*This chapter came out a bit later since I slept more and I also played some HSR while writing :)))
Welp, we're moving along with a bit of something interesting here and there, I'm trying out some new things. Stick around, and have fun. Peace out, and Deus vult.*
Bewildered by what his own mind is capable of, Mark made his way to the parlor once more. A good few hours had passed since he left March and went off to sleep. No way in hell he expected such a damned dream, cursed to the core with the most random of ideas. Still, thinking about Gilgamesh in the Honkai universe, his nose bled out and his mind felt hazy.
"Damn... so there is a connection... I guess somewhere in the future..."
The parlor was, unlike the last few times, a bit more lively. Stelle was back, and March was pestering her for stories about the things she's done. Himeko, like usual, sipped her coffee, and upon seeing Mark, she already poured him a cup without even asking if he wanted one.
"Mark, there you are. I tried a new brew, and I was really curious if it was to your liking. I'd say it turned out pretty well."
Mark found himself bombarded by a coffee cup and a smiling Himeko, which once again made him realize what power pretty women had. He nodded and took it, giving it a twirl, the dark liquid moving slowly along his motion.
"It smells pretty strongly."
He took a sip, the bitterness spreading along the inside of his mouth. For a moment, it was strong, too strong, only to then milden in a flash. He moved the cup away, letting the aroma linger for a bit more.
"Yeah, it's good. You did one fine job with this one, Himeko."
She smiled proudly, glad that her new attempt was a successful one.
"I knew you'd like it. Just say the word, and I'll make some coffee that will knock you off your feet."
He smiled, looking at the floor beneath him.
"Hmm, you either want me dead or just near that state."
Her laughter was soft, but the nudge she gave him was everything but that.
"You sure love using that sharp tongue of yours. Just be careful; one day it might get you in trouble."
Mark stared at her, the subtle hint of inuendo floating in the air. He wasn't sure about what to do, but in the end, he chose to fuck all logic and just go for it.
"Oh, no worries, I know how to use this tongue of mine, alright?"
Truth is... that was a lie. Sure, he could talk a lot and actually make some good arguments depending on the topic, but when it came to the other side of the spectrum, he had no clue nor experience.
Himeko smirked a little, a tiny move of her lips that was as enticing and tantalizing as it was dangerous, uncharted territory. She patted him on the head, ruffling his hair with a playful chuckle.
"You sure don't hold back. I like it."
She then let go and simply walked back to her seat, pouring herself one more cup of coffee. Mark stood there, finally noticing the way both Stelle and March were grinning at him. He faked a cough, then sat down next to them as if nothing had happened.
"So, Stelle, what were you up to?"
She shrugged, deciding that teasing him is something worth doing another time.
"Just the usual. Helped Hook with something, then Clara with a sentient robot, also lent Natasha a hand with finding something. Nothing too interesting, you know?"
Mark nodded, aware of all the quests. March still seemed confused about the sentient robot thing.
"How come the robot was sentient? Wasn't it programmed to be that way?"
Stelle shrugged, but Mark came in with the explanation based on what he knew and other things that he himself had theorized about.
"Parts of that robot had been corrupted by the Fragmentum, similar to relics and whatnot. Thanks to its nature, the machine sort of gained sentience in a weird damn way. I can only assume that, since the Stellaron has conscience and the monsters weren't all mindless, it meddled in with the existing code and then managed to somehow add its factor of semi-free will, or whatever I should call it."
He crossed his arms, pretty much unimpressed by the topic, even if it was a pretty interesting thing to talk about.
"In the end, it's nothing but an imperfect process. I guess you both terminated the robot, right? It's better than letting it live with its memory being wiped every day."
Stelle nodded, a hint of sadness in her eyes, most probably from Clara's reaction. She's a smart kid, that much he was sure of, but in the end, emotions are still something that can hurt even the toughest humans out there. He was aware of the effect they held.
In the back of his mind, ideas about his inability still flashed from time to time, the words not completely gone from his consciousness. He took a glance at his hand, still aware of the Stellarons within him yet unable to use them as he wills. In that moment, an idea struck him.
"Hey, do we have some training room here in the Express?"
Himeko nodded from her spot across them, pointing towards the living quarters.
"Way past the bedrooms, there's a compartment made specifically for training. The inner walls are reinforced, so they can take a beating. Even if that is the case, I kindly ask that you don't treat them too harshly, since fixing them is up to me."
Mark nodded, already grabbing both March and Stelle along.
"Thank you, Himeko!"
He dashed away, the two finally finding their balance after having been taken away so suddenly. Mark felt his mind take a wild run down the same allies it did back in his world. He'd spend time thinking about ways to use different sorts of powers, same as the Stellarons within.
"Why are you in such a rush, Mark?" asked Stelle, trying to gauge his intentions.
Mark chuckled to himself, opening the doors without restraint.
"I just had some cool idea. We'll train, and hopefully I can figure things out."
The training room, as well as Stelle's room, were parts that didn't exist in the game as explorable areas. That's the limit of what the developers do, combined with a need to keep processing power to a minimum in order to make the game playable on more devices.
Mark took a look around, tapping the walls. They were covered in some pretty thick steel plates, and Mark was pretty sure that they could probably take a beating that he'd be able to give maybe somewhere in the next few hundred years.
"Well now, Mister Training Expert, what are we supposed to do here? You just dragged us here like we were some ragdolls," said March, arms crossed, her cheeks puffy from a pout. Mark looked over to them, specifically at Stelle, his eyes fixed on her bat.
"Easy. Combat training. I need to figure out a bit how to draw out my powers, so maybe fighting someone will help a lot more than just silently contemplating it."
Stelle nodded, taking the bat from her side, giving it a good twirl. She held a bit of an eerie smirk on her face.
"Are you sure you just want me to beat you with the bat?"
Mark nodded, shrugging at the same time.
"What can I say? Go easy on me, ok? I'm not that knowledgeable in combat as you are, you kn-"
Wham, the bat passed right by him. Barely on time, he managed to step to the side, watching as the bat fell to the ground, only for it to change directions. He was surprised that his eyes could even keep up with the movements.
"Woah! That was too sudden! Damn it, Stelle!"
She was laughing, clearly enjoying herself, swinging her bat from all sides, not even giving it her all. Mark could dodge, yet he soon felt the sturdy wall touch his back. He had cornered himself.
"Fuck it, we ball!"
He threw a punch, meeting Stelle's bat head-on. In that instant, he felt it, boiling up within, overflowing past the gates of his body. Stelle's eyes widened as Mark's glowing fist came at her, clashing with the bat. March watched in shock as Stelle was flung across the room, clashing against the wall with a thud.
Mark's eyes widened in turn, his fist bloodied from the impact, his right arm shaking from too much energy that passed through it. Stelle was sprawled out on the floor, hitting a familiar pose that a specific anime character did after having been defeated by a green little creature that exploded after attaching itself to him.
"Damn, she hit that pose... Wait, no time for jokes!"
He ran to her side, checking to see if she's alright. With a weak voice, she mumbled.
"Come... closer..."
Mark leaned in, trying to listen to her words.
"Closer..."
He did as told, moving even closer, to the point that he was leaning over her. He listened, prepared for whatever she might say. Instead, he felt the bat smack him square in the head, sending him on his ass.
"That's for sending me flying across the room."
She stood up, rubbing her back, placing her bat aside. Mark touched his head, feeling at the spot. A few droplets of red dirtied his fingertips, and he wasn't sure if they were from his ruined fist or the blow he had just taken. He was used to hitting his head randomly, but never once did it draw blood.
"I sure did drink my milk, but a bat to the head is no joke. Damn..."
He stood up, rubbing at the wound. By their side, March was a bit panicked, unsure of what to do.
"Are you two alright? You both look, well, not so... well..."
Mark chuckled, rubbing at the spot on his head, annoyed that blood was pouring out. It annoyed him since the pain was just a tiny sting, nothing more.
"Well, I guess I'm fine. Sure, my right hand has seen better days, but it's not so bad. I felt the energy move, so it was a success. Thank you, Stelle."
She made sure to let out a loud 'tsk' sound before glaring at him, trying to act all pissed and serious despite the tiny smile that threatened to appear.
"Next time I won't go easy on you, got it?"
He nodded, sitting back on the ground, letting the blood simply fall along his forehead. He closed his eyes, placing his hands together.
"What are you doing now, Mark? You're sitting like you're in a novel, trying to unlock some sort of power... OOOH, so THAT'S what you're doing!"
He nodded, remaining silent as he focused. Just like back in his own world, when he'd randomly sit like that and focus on his entire body, feeling the blood flow through his veins, he did it again, focusing instead on the spot where the energy had come out from. Bit by bit, he could feel it move inside, and finally, he could draw out a tiny part of it, just enough to give his body a boost.
"Yes, it worked. It's not much, but I can sort of enhance my body a little."
He sprung up to his feet, dashing around the room, feeling as though his body held on better than usual. It was felt in his rhythm, both in running and moving his arms around. It was the same as back when they were looking for the Stellaron on the Northern Plains of Belobog. It was at the same level, but this time he had done it willingly, not because of a life-and-death situation.
"Good, now, March, I wanted to ask you for advice as well on something."
She raised a brow, waiting curiously for what he'd have to say.
"How do you go about using your ice? That one special ability of yours."
She placed her hand on her chin, thinking, but when Mark put the issue like that, she realized that it just came to her naturally.
"I just do it somehow. It's pretty weird, but it's like using your limbs."
He gave a satisfied nod, humming to himself as he paced back and forth, head bowed slightly as he held his arms crossed, rubbing his chin from time to time. His mutters were incoherent, known only to him. Stelle and March exchanged glances, silently calling him a bit crazy.
"I know!"
He stopped and looked back at her. He did recall having heard somewhere that March tried making a sword with her ice powers, but it didn't work as expected. Concomitantly, the Stellaron he had absorbed seemed to have some ice-based powers, so he thought that maybe they could work using the same principles.
"Let's learn together how to use ice."