Until now, the Unique skill had only come across one power that it wanted to devour—the gift the Gardener had presented after Warren’s spellshot purged her core of corrupted energy. Forming a parallel to the requirements for its creation, it seemed that Manifest Chain was only interested in consuming skills that were compatible with its nature.
Edge had been fantasizing about upgrading the chain of oblivion for weeks, and it was finally time to find out what his choices were. That was when he remembered that living links didn’t live inside his skill village like the rest of his avatars. He walked over to the black door leading to Skill-Eater’s domain and knocked.
“It’s time to pick your upgrade, Foebinder. I hope you enjoyed your meal. Oh, and it’s nice to see you awake, big guy. Thanks for the advice as always.”
A few seconds later, a hole appeared in the pitch-black door, letting a lick of storm-charged air pass through. Foebinder emerged through the gap and floated over to his side, glowing with transformative energy.
Now that everything was in place, Edge pulled up his Guide and got ready to make one of his most important decisions yet.
The skill Manifest Chain has advanced to Rank 2.
Its mana efficiency has been enhanced.
Please choose between one of the following options:
- Foebinder’s strength will be significantly enhanced, increasing its carrying capacity, restraining ability, and retractive power.
- The…
That was as far as Edge got before Foebinder reached out and tapped the first option on the list.
He did a double take as his eyes widened with surprise. Then, to his utter astonishment, the System acknowledged the selection, and the avatar began to change.
He stood there in stunned silence as the black chain’s profile wavered. My skill just picked its own upgrade. What. The. Fuck. Meanwhile, Skill-Eater’s booming laughter broke out from behind the black door, enjoying his astonishment before drifting back to sleep.
When the chain of oblivion stopped shining, it was longer and thicker than before. He was happy to note that the extra mass didn’t make it any less agile. If anything, Foebinder seemed even more dexterous than before.
While the unprecedented occurrence raised far more questions than it answered about the chain’s true nature, the selection it had made sounded straight-up amazing, which made him feel a bit better about the situation. Since time passed slowly inside his core, Edge stopped to consider the implications of the upgrade before returning to his body.
The extra length is sure to come in handy, letting me grab and manipulate objects from further out. More strength means Foebinder can carry equipment like shields more effectively—maybe even fight using weapons once we get in some practice. On top of that, it will be able to restrain more powerful enemies than before and pull bigger creatures off balance.
Extra resilience will make it harder to break, although it’s still weak against magic. I should be able to carry more weight while I’m swinging around too. I wonder if I can cross the caves while Mel is on my back.
While all of this was exciting to contemplate, he needed to run some tests to learn more about Manifest Chain’s upgrade before he could analyze the details. He would talk it over with Mel when they had time to spare to see if she had any ideas he hadn’t considered. With the main event taken care of, Edge moved on to the next item on his list—selecting the upgrade for Counter Disruption.
The avatar, which took the form of a pair of hands coated in disruptive energy, was patiently perched atop its skill socket, waiting for him to acknowledge its big moment. “Don’t worry, I’m excited about advancing you too. Now let’s find out what we have to work with.”
As he spoke, his Guide floated over to display his options.
The skill Counter Disruption has advanced to Rank 2.
Its mana efficiency has been enhanced.
Please choose between one of the following options:
- You may now link Counter Disruption to two powers at once (it may still only be switched once every 24 hours).
- The skill Counter Disruption is linked to will no longer require additional mana to activate.
- The linked skill may be swapped out once per hour instead of once per day.
Warning: If no option is selected, your skill will remain unchanged and gain a slight bonus to mana efficiency.
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In the end, Edge decided to go with the first offering. The other choices weren’t bad, but he had enough Generation that the mana wasn’t a major issue right now, and he would rather be able to use Counter Disruption on two key skills at once than have more flexibility regarding which power it was linked to.
When the pair of hands stopped shining, their Disruption field was thicker than before. But the biggest change was more subtle. Instead of a single layer, there were now two separate fields surrounding the avatar—one for each hand.
He gave the skill a high-five, then spent a few minutes teaching it to do fist bumps while his other avatars offered their congratulations. Meanwhile, Edge contemplated how he wanted to use the upgrade.
Going forward, he planned to leave Counter Disruption permanently linked to Harden, offering him a potent defense that couldn’t be disrupted. At the same time, he could pair the meta skill with whichever offensive power he wanted, making his attacks far more effective against opponents specializing in antimagic.
Combined with the ability to swap the linked skill out once a day, Disruption wouldn’t be nearly as dangerous to him going forward. That being said, he wouldn’t let this power lull him into a false sense of security. Disruption surges and disruptive skills would always be something he had to watch out for, since losing access to key powers at critical times could mean the difference between victory and defeat.
He would have to do some experimenting to deepen his understanding of the underlying mechanics, but not just yet. Now it was time to find out if the mycanoid was still alive and use his final charge of Extraction if it was.
When he returned to his body, the beast was still moving. Edge sent the black chains out one more time, grabbing another Uncommon from the mushroom’s core. He put the experience into Double Slash, which he hoped to upgrade sometime over the next few days. He noticed that his other powers were making progress too, thanks to the training sessions Chibime had begun, which let his avatars advance on their own.
Two upgrades in one fight. This day just keeps getting better. Now it’s time to find Sasha and Lilly, then meet up with Trapper’s team. With Mel at his side, he crossed the passage that was now free from hostile shrooms, savoring the satisfaction of taking another big step down the long road to power.
There were still some slicers in the area, but Extraction was out of charges, and Manifest Chain didn’t seem to be interested in them anymore regardless. It must need something stronger to advance to stage three.
They continued walking while Edge summoned Foebinder and ran a few tests—eager to dig into the details of its heightened capabilities. He was thrilled to learn that it could carry almost twice as much weight as before, and its retractive power was even more enhanced. Just to see what would happen, he had it grab hold of his naginata and take a few experimental swings.
Unfortunately, the chain couldn’t put much force behind the blow compared to his own arms, but Foebinder would be able to use a wider range of items in battle going forward. Maybe a poisoned knife or some heavier consumables. It should be able to catch and fling my chakram with decent power too.
Overall, the chain’s combat potential had shot up considerably, and reaching rank two had dramatically improved its overall utility. He would have to wait until his next fight to see how much its restraining power had been boosted, but he was sure that it would be a considerable upgrade.
The duo caught a break over the next few hours, crossing through a series of grottos that were easy to traverse and free from prowling predators. It gave them a chance to catch up and enjoy each other’s company, taking the edge off the pervasive tension evoked by their dangerous environment and pressing problems. When he shared the pun with Mel, she laughed and took his hand within her own, fingers intertwined as they passed through one cavern after the next.
Edge was glad for Melenia’s company—both her extensive combat experience and her reassuring presence. It was nerve-racking to traverse a high-threat biome while trapped deep below the ground, but having a friend along for the adventure made the ordeal far more bearable than going it alone.
They passed the time by swapping stories of their adventures, bringing each other up to speed on the events of the last few weeks in more detail than before. Once they arrived at the present, they moved on to talking about their pasts, starting with their lives on Ord and then back before their runs began.
Edge’s mother was a sensitive issue, particularly her addiction to memory simulations from before the accident that had killed his brother and father. But he talked about it anyway, including some details from the tragedy itself. It felt good to share his worries with someone who was such a sympathetic listener. When he reached the end of his story, she began her own.
It turned out that Mel’s past was just as emotionally charged as his own. She had purchased her puppet with the assistance of her extended family and undergone extensive training before starting her Prison World run. It was an incredible gamble by any accounting. If she had performed poorly, it would have put three generations of her family into crippling debt. On the other hand, if she succeeded, she would dramatically increase her family’s standing on her homeworld, boosting their standard of living and prospects for the future.
Fortunately, the tale had a happy ending. While Mel’s feed hadn’t been one of the top earners, she had racked up enough royalties before the disaster to repay her debt and significantly enrich her family’s prospects.
They camped for the night when Edge spotted a narrow shelf of rock running along the ceiling of the next enclosure—hundreds of feet above the cavern floor. He carried Mel on his back as he climbed the wall and then made his way across the ceiling using Foebinder, which could now support their combined weight—just as he’d been hoping.
“Nothing should be able to see us up here.” She nodded in approval after examining the ledge. “And most of the beasts in this biome shouldn’t be able to reach us regardless.” Even still, they decided to sleep in shifts this time around. If something came for them, they would have limited room to fight, and if they had to beat a hasty retreat, they needed all the warning they could get.
Edge volunteered to take the first watch, and Mel closed her eyes. She really is beautiful. Not to mention a total badass. He watched her sleep for a few minutes before turning his attention to the mushrooms filling the cavern below, going over some strategies in his mind before their next fight.
She woke up a few hours later and let him get some shuteye. He fell asleep dreaming of athletic curves, giant axes, and hair the color of flame.