“Wait until you take a sip of that bad boy,” Tresk said, rubbing her hands together.
Theo had been forced to do something he had wanted to avoid. Increasing his potential meant dipping his toes into a wacky form of progression that was outside of their current system. It involved turning his own system off, collecting some weird energy, and then doing stuff with that energy. The entire affair was uncomfortable. It made him feel weak, and Tresk was quick to remind him.
“Not so badass without your fancy stats, huh?” she taunted.
“Barely.”
“I’m fine, thanks for the offer,” Theo said. “Elrin is doing something, though. He’s… Wait, hold on.”
Theo released his willpower aura, covering them both. “That’s much better. I think Elrin mobilized a force against the gods. Didn’t think he’d actually do it. And the way the heavens feel from here… I think he won.”
“What? Ponytail defeated the gods? What the hell?”
“He has a topknot, not a ponytail,” Alex corrected.
“Who cares? The gods use a different power scaling than us,” Tresk said. “How could he beat them with mortal power?”
Theo scratched his chin, unsure what this meant. He was certain the gods weren’t doing good, based on the confusing wash of energy coming from the heavens. “Best to stay out of this,” he said, eventually settling on abstaining from this conflict. “We can’t take a side, one way or another. If we side with Elrin, we’re betraying the trust the Throne Holders have with the gods. If we side with the gods, we’re betraying the confidence the system has in us as middle-grounders.”
“Doing nothing is the solution?” Tresk asked, dusting her hands off. “My favorite solution to all life’s problems?”
“Seems that way,” Theo said. “We should have a meeting about this.”
Tresk groaned. “God, just send an email or something. No one wants another meeting!”
“Sure they do,” Theo said. “The holders of the thrones want to be informed.”
“We really don’t,” Fenian said, appearing from behind a nearby barrel.
“Is Khahar hiding behind a nearby crate?” Theo asked, looking around. “What’s the point of a silenced bubble if the weird elf just sneaks into it?”
“Here’s the meeting: We don’t need to get involved in Elrin’s schemes, because he’s sanctioned by the system,” Fenian explained. “Send a letter to Khahar if you want, but this doesn’t concern us.”
“Killing a bunch of gods sounds like our concern,” Theo said.
“He isn’t killing them,” Fenian corrected. “He’s reforming them. Elrin activated the Warriors of the Shard to teach the gods how to defend themselves, so we don’t have to worry. Once they figure out he’s not there to kill them, each will happily accept his instructions.”
“Guess we’re trusting the shady guy. Again,” Tresk said.
“Agreed,” Theo said. “I’m satisfied that this is being handled. Or something. Whatever, we got a few games to commentate on, right?”
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
“More than a few,” Fenian said, withdrawing a roll of parchment from nowhere. “We have a few baby fights to get through, but all the other fights are heavy hitters.”
“That’s fine. Gives me time to go through my energy-system-thing.”
“Oh, Celestial Cultivation?” Fenian asked. “Unlike the other members of Elrin’s cadre, I never learned it.”
“It has a name?” Tresk asked. “No one tells me nothing.”
“And, changing topics,” Theo said, eager to get away from the problems with the gods. “Should we head to the booth?”
“Of course,” Fenian said, bowing slightly. “Perhaps you can get me started on the technique while we’re at it.”
“Sure,” Theo said, jabbing a thumb at Tresk. “She’s apparently the expert, though.”
“Why not join us?” Fenian asked. “We can use another lively voice in the booth!”
“Hell yeah!” Tresk shouted.
The energy within the arena today was different. As Theo walked along the hidden path, he shared a laugh with Tresk. Somewhere overhead, Alex fed them images of the people shuffling into their seats. They were already cheering or otherwise chanting impromptu slogans. The alchemist had no opinion on who should narrate the games, feeling as though his flat tone wouldn’t bring much to the table. Tresk would be a far better commentator.
“We’ve got a few random games before the main event today,” Fenian explained.
“More team fights?” Tresk asked with excitement. “Man, those are awesome.”
“And a cooking competition.”
Theo perked up, turning away from the random scatter of furniture in the room. He had been considering taking a nap on the sofa. “Is Xam participating?”
“Oh, yes,” Fenian said, nodding. “She’ll win, of course.”
“Not so sure about that,” Theo said, walking to the window and looking down to the arena below. They were preparing it for the first team fight of the day. “I know she’s good, but we’re talking about all the cooks in the world. I’d assume there are a lot of people with high-level cores for cooking.”
“Are you doubting our Xam?” Tresk asked, shaking her head in disappointment.
“I’m asking you to look at the reality of it,” Theo said. “Consider our people going into a combat competition. They’re not going to win, because we’re too low.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure.” Fenian put on a more arrogant tone than normal, which should’ve been impossible. “There’s only so much a core can do for you. At a point, we only have the genius of a chef to consider.”
“Okay,” Theo said, turning away and flopping onto the sofa. “Wake me if something interesting happens with the team fight.”
“You’re abandoning your post? Just like that?” Fenian asked.
Theo waved him off, unwilling to give a response. He had spent too much time brewing potions and raising his potential that day to do commentary. With a steadying breath, he drew on the knowledge Tresk had accumulated to start the Celestial Cultivation process. It truly was too much work for such a comfortable couch, but he pressed on.
The first part of the process was the least enjoyable. Theo grimaced as his connection with his system faded. Tresk had discovered this technique because she was bored, which was a frightening thought. The energies provided by the local system faded, and he felt his body become heavy. According to his always-slightly-wet companion, he could do this part without cutting himself off entirely, but it would take a lot longer. A chill ran up the alchemist’s back as he felt himself exposed to the raw energies of the world.
Theo closed his eyes, placing his arm over his head to block out both the sound and light coming from the large window. He felt the celestial power, resting just under the surface of everything. It was like a thread that ran through all of existence, just waiting for someone to pluck it. And pluck he did. Using Tresk’s knowledge, he grasped the thread gently, allowing some of that energy to flow into himself. He then went down the checklist, moving the power, infusing it in his soul, muscles, bones, organs, and so on.
The magical energy, which Theo understood only through years of Tresk’s memories, soaked into him. The chill was gone, replaced instead with a different kind of warmth. It wasn’t a comforting heat like that of the local system, but something that burned. The energy created a need for more, every part of him drinking hungrily and only asking for more. He was happy to provide, eventually opening his eyes and checking on the games once he fell into the rhythm.
Theo edged toward the window, listening as Tresk screamed about something. He blinked a few times, waiting for his sight to adjust to the sun coming through the window. “Is that…”
“And pop goes the weasel!” Tresk shouted, slamming her fist on the table as she cackled. “Another one bites the dust! Hope you guys have some binoculars, or maybe a microscope!”
“I’ve never seen anything like this!” Fenian said. “Seriously, the zoom feature on my window only goes so far. Can anyone in the audience actually see what’s going on?”
“Oh, god,” Theo said, looking at the zoomed section of the window Fenian had summoned. “This is a PR nightmare, guys.”
“There’s nothing wrong with this, Theo,” Tresk said. “This is so right.”
Below, skittering on the arena floor, was a collection of diminutive races. They were split into teams and were currently fighting it out. Theo shook his head, not approving of the situation at all. He turned around, getting back to his work as broglings fought it out below. It was hard not to think about the tiny hamster-like people. Could they increase their attributes enough to stand toe-to-toe with the larger races of the world? He had never seen a powerful brogling, so it was hard to say.
Although Tresk was busy, Theo had questions to ask about how this new form of advancement worked. Instead, he searched her memories. She might’ve been borderline goblin-mode all the time, but she had formed some decently intelligent ideas in her mind. Manipulating the celestial energy was the manual way to get stronger. Theo had his own theories about how they could use that energy to develop domains, but their understanding of that was still quite far away.
If only Elrin would share whatever secrets he knew…
“And that’s it, folks!” Tresk shouted. “I think the red team won, but we’re gonna have some people get down there and check.”
“Wow. I can hardly believe my eyes,” Fenian said. “Who knew those little guys had such spirit?”
“Never underestimate rabid hamsters, Fenian,” Tresk said. “Now, looking forward to our next battle… We’re going to have a battle in the kitchen! After a short break, we’re diving right into a flurry of knives… but they won’t be cutting sapient beings.”
“Hah! That’s right. They’ll be cutting into delicious food, instead,” Fenian said. He pushed away from the table, stretching out. “Now, that was something worth watching.”
“I see you’ve made progress with your potential,” Tresk said, jumping from her chair. “Hows that feel?”
“I feel mysteriously stronger,” Theo said, cracking a smile. “Might almost be time to drink those potions.”
“Gotta wait,” Tresk tutted. “Wait until you’re super buff, so you can be even super buffer.”