Wait, isn’t that…? My thoughts were turned inwards, to where the Divine Favour of Laverna, anchored to me by my modest stocks of adherence, ulsing like a fme, resonating with the Grasping Hand Of Heaven. My Eye bzed, and looking at the Favour, I could see that it was also spatially aspected.

  I have no idea why you are so surprised. Space is certainly a ceptual matter, but it is also uionably something real. somethi without somewhere for it to exist in? This Boundary clearly exists. Arisu lectured me, though I could sense her curiosity. You saw the gap within my Room, the dimensions that lie within other dimensions, perhaps. It makes me wonder. Is String Theory actually correct? Are dimensions so tiny as to be almost unnoticeable hidden within the rger dimensions?

  That hurts my head. I’ll stick to three dimensions, thank you. Haru-san cracked a joke, trying to lighten the mood. The twins echoed her, and surprisingly, Arisu-san directed kind thoughts at them.

  You are both still young. There is time for learning ter. Find something you enjoy, and it is fun. Do not end up g learning, such as Oshiro-san here.

  That hurts my feelings! I just haven’t specialised in this field. I defended myself as a distra from the boiling pain throughout my body, the pressure of the spatial element that was slowly dismantling me from both within and without. Arisu-san isn’t wrong though, girls. You should take advantage of your enhaats to learn all you . So… huh, it’s not just the Favour…

  I was distracted by the pain, so hadn’t noticed that a certain amount of the spatial energy was disappearing, when it reached the Foehn that was led in my lunar chakra. The fmes were greedily ing some, which was slightly lessening the pressure. That makes me wonder…

  Fog on Foehn, I let it bze, spreading through my body as if it art of me. Spatial element burned away, redug the tide that was flowing into me, lessening the pressure. All right, I’ve bought myself some time. Hyath, are you all right?

  I will be fine. I am nooot drawing in the nasty element, unlike you, Akio. My body is crumbling, but with yooour Healing, I endure. Her smile was bright, though her eyes were pained.

  No, that’s no good, give me a sed… Foehn bzed, and I had to ha very carefully, so as not to e Hyath, but it formed a sort of thinly transparent citrine dome, redug the density of spatial element arouoo. She shuddered in relief, and I let out a relieved sigh. That buys us more time. We could always retreat and try again ter, but… we haven’t achieved anything crete yet…

  I open the Room at any time. There is no need for haste. White is worried for you. Arisu-san’s thoughts came to me, mirr my own.

  Don’t listen to her Aki, I have every faith in you! Although Arisu is right! We’re not in any rush, we take it slow. There’s no need for you and Hyath to risk yourselves. Shiro denied her words, but her actual thoughts were simir.

  True. Though I get the feeling haste is important. Not Fht. I reassured everyone. Just… we have a lot of big threats to face. Time is precious. Besides, we’re nowhere near our limits, are we Hyath?

  Nooo. pared to the struggles learning to use the spooores, this is nooothing! She squeezed me tightly, the veil of thin yellow fmes around her shimmering violet as it ed the sparkling motes of spatial element created by the torted, twisted space.

  You know, it’s eerily beautiful. Looking at the rippling fmes, I was momentarily entranced. It’s a shame that we ’t record this for the others…

  I share it with them ter. But is now the time for idle thoughts? If you make a mistake, you’ll regret it. You don’t want to end up like me… Haru-san’s thoughts filled me. There might not even be a spirit left of you to make a ghost if you get burned by those fmes. I remember them… she shuddered, and for a moment her trol slipped, and I saw an image of the burning Kiku, who I had long put out of my head.

  You are right. Sorry. When this is done, we’ll take a day off, go out for some rexation. A pany excursion maybe? Now… the flow was diminished, and my Ether Healing could easily hahe damage. Now all that remained was f my chakra to absorb and start replig the energy. Though that is far easier said than done.

  Your methods of empowerment are quite novel. Rather than relying on strengthening yift, the power you were bestowed, you have expao gaining these elements and skills. The first rule of sce is that something has to be measurable to be sidered proven. We had no way of measuring such, so did not believe such existed, is that nht, White? Arisu-san advised.

  Tan had an idea, but she was more focussed just on finding suitable people to eat. Damn, now I say that, we sound truly evil. Well, it’s not like they weren’t bad people. Except… uh… now I feel sorry for Daizen… Shiro ologetic.

  He would have betrayed us in the end. I know his sort. Arisu-san had no sympathy, as cold as usual. But you are missing the point. I am praising the research I have seen here. After all, I see nowhere else that ordinary people learn abilities that could potentially rival ifted ones in the end.

  That’s not true, unfortunately. There are Cultivators, such as Daiyu, and who knows just what Mary Stuart’s group was doing, but they had plenty of ordinary people in the Boundary. Or is calling them ordinary right? Never mind… my point is, it isn’t just us. I think humanity as a whole is going to grow and advance. Sure, we have the advantage of a head start and a little extra gift or two, but…

  Perhaps. But my point is… you have already succeeded. Not just you, but these others. I… ithen myself as well, iime. Now, take what you have already learned. Gh from first principles. Repetition is the sed principle of sce. It must be measurable, theable. And then third… it must be predictable.

  I see. I get it. Thanks Arisu-san, you’re right. I got thrown off by how much more damaging spatial element is pared to the others. Only my first time with wind, when I had no idea what I was doing, and my work was shit, even pares… with that said, I had a path to follow. You know, you really are something. A famous actress, and a brainy sce girl. Did you ever talk about that before? I’m sure you’d be very popur with a certain subset of guys…

  There was a shocked stillo her thoughts, before amusement from Shiro came though. All right, enough of that. Aki, you’ve embarrassed her, she’s actually surprised! But… I don’t think the guys you are talking about are the sort Arisu is ied in. Who the hell wants to be stalked by a host of Yasu’s? Wait, are you hinting that smart girls are your thing? That makes sense, after all, you love me and I’m a whiz with puters and programming, but…

  Enough, White. Stop your idiot ramblings. Be more posed, like Red. Arisu-san cut though Shiro’s babbling. Now… I shall lecture you. So pay attention. Suzuki Haru and the twins here have shared their own experiences in learning additional elements. So has Ixitt. I believe I uand how it all works. Firstly, what is space?

  There’s a lot of different definitions. robably scrap the puting one, even if it’s the one I’m most familiar with. Mathematically, it’s a bound where the tents be arrayed, following a set of principles. Again, not terribly useful, but… In terms of spatial element, we’re clearly talking about real, discrete spao?

  That is correct. I would say space is a three-dimensional tinuum taining all material objects and energies, and in which everything that exists occurs. I am not vinced on this definition any longer, havihe Klein Bottle and the dimensions within. But it will do as a starting point.

  That I uood, and it was how I prehe, from my lessons at school. After all, space wasn’t so much a thing, as a pce where everythied and happened. But then if that was true… That doesn’t fit spatial element though. It’s more what is maniputed by the element, allowing distortion of dimensions, movement that is not tiguous, and more…

  My Split Thoughts were tinuing to try and tame the rampaging violet energies while shielding Hyath, while the rest of my mind was rag. But then… huh. Looking at Foehn and its as, I sidered fme as a. But then, fire isn’t a thiher, it’s a process. Though the process is usually created by matter, elemental fme burns without fuel…

  I shall give that a seventy. Arisu-san marked me harshly. sider this. Fire element is both the process of burning, the fme, but also the cept of fire. Ohing is a phenomenon, the other, it is not real, but it has an effeoheless. other elements be paired in such a way?

  Light is like that! Light is the same! The twins excimed, and I was shared the endearing image of the taciturn, stern former actress patting their heads.

  Exactly. Light is the elemental particle, the photon, as well as the cept. I believe that the greater the uanding of both the tangible and the ceptual, the greater the power is. Mastering only the real or the intangible will lead to failure.

  It was like a lightning bolt passing through my brain. That’s it! You’re right, I think! Shaeu, when she first tried to teach me wind, all she uood was the ceptual. She didn’t sider it was a movement of the atmosphere, or the gases that made up the air. In fact, wind and air were separate ideas to her. I bined her knowledge with our sce, and quickly lear. In fact…

  Your ability with darkness and wood elements are rather crude, no? Probably because they are the most ceptual, right? Haru-san interjected.

  Yes, it makes perfect sense. But that you learhem proves you do not need a full uanding, no? Ixitt’s ughter filled our minds. Otherwise, how could these skills tio grow, to Rank up, as you say?

  I will provide the physical uanding. You… you must grasp for the ceptual, the spiritual. You have all the tools at your disposal, I believe. Arisu-san opened her mind, Haru-san routing a surge of easy-to-uand data to me.

  All the tools, huh? My lips curled into a wry smile, which made Hyath giggle softly. Arisu-san has a way of talking to me like I’m an idiot. Sure, I may not know as much about it as her, but that’s because it’s her hobby and she’s read up on it a lot. I like to think I’m quite smart… oh well, even with the big numbers, we don’t know what we don’t know.

  Space, it is either a tinuous fabriposed of multiple dimensions, or it is discrete. If it is discrete, it is likely to be so tiny, prised of one Pne, that even trying to imagi is ludicrous. It is like paring the size of a person to the scale of intergactic space between gaxies. The mind ot prehend it. Her lecture was clear and uandable, perhaps because as an aplished actress she was used to her thoughts and expressing herself clearly to her audiehere was a mencholy in her mind, which left me feeling a little sad. I always used to take so that. Despite the bitter sorrows the world fore, I was merely a speck of dust in a cold, ung universe. So my pain mattered nothing in the grand scheme of things…

  That’s bullshit, right Aki? Shiro protested, furious. Just because something be endured, or doesn’t affect others, doesn’t mean it is meaningless. Isn’t that the lessoried to teach Hyath?

  She’s right. Your sorrows are our sorrows, and not just important to you. Shiro cares. I care.

  Me too. I’ve known such sorrow, such grief… but now I have daddy back, and friends who would weep for me. In fact… I was a bit hesitant to say… Haru-san broke in. Now that the existence of us Chosen is revealed, you especially… I’ve been able to tact my old co-workers and friends. They… they didly believe me, they went to my funeral, after all, but… they’ll give me a ce. So… don’t you give up either, Arisu-san. Anyone who you want ba your life, it’s not too te.

  Hardly. Your friends mourned you. Mirayed me. I have no need of them. I have White, and Suzanne-san, Bunta-san, and … even you, Oshiro-san. And perhaps you as well, Suzuki-san.

  Call me Haru, please. And yes, I think we are simir. But for now… sorry for interrupting.

  The banter rexed me. The overall pressure of spatial element within the ed space was building, so I expanded Foehn, burning it over a wider area. As I did, I noticed the walls starting to and smoulder. Walls? Huh… how … wait. Arisu-san, please keep expining. I’ll delve into the deeper aspects…

  I have the Divine favour of Laverna with me. It deals with spatial energies. And it move items betweeerial and the Boundary. The Boundary also affects the Material and the opposite is also true. Therefore they have to be ected. And for something to be ected it o exist in some space.

  … for space to be ed, we have already seen it is possible. Through great masses in small areas, space be deformed, twisted and moved. Gravity is merely the curvature of space, and thus…

  It doesn’t have to be ected though. Void Motion move me instantly. Is it teleportation? No… deep in thought, Hyath hugging me, brilliant yellow and violet fmes raging around us, I started gathering spatial element, the glittering purple sparks f a small ring around my chakra.

  … deform spaough and potentially wormholes form, eg two distant points. Though they would colpse uheir own gravity, without some exotic matter which likely does . But spatial element, if it had a spiritual aspect, could…

  I remember watg Star Trek with mom when I was younger. I wasn’t that big a fan, but I remember thinking there’s no way you’d get me in a teleporter, as it basically disied you and rebuilt you. Would the inal die, and would the newly arrived persohe same? Why stop at one copy? Ugh… wormholes are so much more appealing…

  One could argue that the smallest unit of space would be aary particle, or that the graviton could almost be sidered aary particle of space. I disagree, as while matter s space, so does energy as well. You might as well call a photon the particle of space. Arisu-san was in full lecture mode now.

  We already have the photon allocated. Light element. But then… huh. Wait. Arisu-san, are you a genius? A fsh of inspiration struck me. Spatial element is with light element, and increases, as though energy is given to it. Darkness decreases it… almost as if… huh. And spiritually… how many magic systems in fi have darkness magic as affeg gravity? Quite a few. Wait, what is space as a cept?

  Space is where the retionships between thi. Position is one such, so henotion. Orientation, hence t the dimensions is just ging the orientations…

  I wonder. Dark matter, dark energy… unseen forces. So if we sider space to be… Arisu-san was deep in thought now as well. Wait, is it that… I feel such a fool. It is simple, whehinks about it. I see… White, I see why you put your trust in him. I accepted this power, but I am no puppet. I took it for me. I do not care about the world, it could burn to ashes for all I care. Or I did not care… perhaps now I have reason to not see the world end. After all, who will look after foolish children such as you and Suzanne-san, White? As for the power, power is simply that. Power. How it is used is not up to the giver, but to us, the user. It is not fixed, but…

  Whoa, Arisu, ylowing!

  Haru-san veyed the image and Shiro’s surprise to me, and I could see that Arisu-san was now shining fiercely, verting her spatial element into light. Of course, from the way she used her Room in Kyoto, I could tell she was a genius, uniquely suited to wielding her Favour. Must be nice. But then, hard work beats talent right? That was the message from our jump-suited ninja, wasn’t it, although I ’t help but feel the message ended up backwards by the end of that manga… someoalented also work hard. But if I ’t do it alohen I’ll do it like now, by borrowing the powers of all my allies, and I also give back. Those are the bonds we share… bonds. That’s it. I uand!

  Hyath doooes too. e. Her arms tightened around me greedily, despite the blood soiling us giving us a bleak appearance.

  Yes, e. Position, Orientation, e. Those three. Shaeu would probably end up calling them the Three Great Powers of Space or something simirly grand. The Silver Cord… that’s a e. The Boundary… in a way, it’s just a rger silver cord, eg Earth to the lower Astral, though I doubt it’s that simple. Kin Bonding, Lovers’ Link… they are es, their own twisted fragment of space, ign distano… distance isn’t necessarily a cept for them. Just like Arisu-san and Ixitt mao create Orientations that should be impossible, why ’t Lovers’ Link, Kin Bonding, Pledged One… why do they have to obey physical limitations of distance?

  As the Foehn bzed, Arisu-san sharing her new insights with me, I looked at Foehn, burning around me, and dismissed it. It’s like wheruck the Golden-Eyed Devourer. It was using spatial energies, and could exist separately from itself, a e, while still being itself. A dark mirror to our bonds. Likewise, Laverna’s ability to move items between the Boundary and the Material implies that the retionship between then be re-orieo allow that…

  Drawing in the spatial element, I let darkness and light energy glow from my lower chakras and lunar chakra, almost herding the element, pruning it where it was causing damage, expanding it where it was being slowly absorbed into my chakra. As it pulsed threads were leaking back down towards the lunar chakra, and my Eye shone as I guided the flows.

  Wind was ever-ging, hard to grasp. ethereal. Fire was damaging aructive. Earth, deep, cold and unyielding. Water was mercurial yet predictable. bining multiple elements unbahe others, yet they are in fact desigo work in harmony. Four elements. Two. The the top. Putting aside the posites… there must be underlying principles…

  Fasating. This was not a waste after all. I do so abhor expining to people who do not uand. Despite her hard words, I felt a little affe from Arisu-san’s thoughts. I think you are correct. After all, my Room is indeed made up of the three aspects, the most important of which is e. It is how I created the token which allows me to hear the ripples of spad e to the bearer. However… I believe this would be more effective…

  If I may… maybe more like this? Ixitt interjected, and he and Arisu-saered into a heated exge of images. Haru-san groarying to ferry them all over with perfect crity, and the twins were starting to fg. I’ll defiake them out for a treat after this…

  My Spatial Perception skill chimed in, and I made a few small adjustments. The density of spatial element within the Room was diminishing, I was drinking it in deeply, relieving the pressure on Hyath. No, it wasn’t just me. Hyath had squeezed shut her eyes, and was replig my teiques. She also had access to darkness and light elements, and was better with darkhan I was. With Haru-san allowio see what I could see withih my Eye, she was replig it, a touch hesitantly, but her was swirling with shining purple stars as well, bending into a series of M?bius strips that were twisted in on each other, like ected infinity symbols.

  Those symbols are just like us, our bonds tied together, unbreakable. Which is why we he strength to keep it that way… like a brilliant fre of a violet supernova, my chakra kindled, as did the lunar chakra, now shining with seven brilliant energies, all of whied a banced array, like a miniature sor system…

  You have gained a skill, Chakra Of Space Rank 3. Your Chakra will gee spatial energy and your ability to absorb and utilise it has increased.

  You have gained a skill, Space Manipution Rank 3. Your ability to…

  Your Skill, Lunar Chakra Of Four Elements, Light And Darkness Rank 3 has bee Lunar Chakra Of Seven Primal Elements Rank 4. It now gees signifit additional elemental energy, and… [Css: Imperious] [Type: Artifice]

  Your Skill, False Void Motion Rank 1 has bee Void Motion Rank 2. You ow utilise spatial element to relocate yourself within the surrounding area, only being blocked by other spatial distortions and wards.

  As the messages scrolled through my vision, I felt a surge of hot power within me. My silver cord was burning, my chakra work also bzing. I’m feeling so much stronger…

  Your Skill, Eight Moons Chakra work has advanced from Rank 5 to Rank 6, passing the first bottleneck. Yeion and ability to use aether and adherence has signifitly increased, and your spirit is able to exert greater force. [Css: Imperious] [Type: Rule]

  Your Skill, Silver Cord has advanced from Rank 5 to… to… %^%* *^%% my vision was filled with gibberish nonsense as pain spiked through me. I looked down, only to gasp in horror as my silver cord seemed to disie, turning into motes of sparkling energy in a prismatic rainbow of colours, before being drawn into me. Wait, I’m not dead? For a horrifying moment I wondered if the fact that I could supposedly survive without a Material body was responsible, only to feel a surge of strength flow into me, and the letters rearrahemselves, burning e, yet now with a slight tinge of rainbow colours flickering at the edges.

  Your Skill, Silver Cord Rank 5 has bee Silver e Rank 5. You no longer have a distin between physical and spiritual, your body is both aher, you exist singurly, and freely ehe Material and Astral worlds. You create a purely Material or Astral body, eg it to your main form with a Silver Cord, and if such is destroyed it will injure your true form, though the effect is muted. All abilities involving es you possess are strengthened. [Css: Imperious] [Type: Rule]

  Your form possesses both i spiritual and physical properties. You have advao a new species, High Human. Since you are possessed of a lunar chakra of suffit strength and strong Fae attributes, your species, High Human, has bee Noble Faeduine, and your ability to manipute aether and elemental energies has increased.

  Your Skill, Body Enha has advanced from Rank 4 to Rank 5. You further…

  Your Skill, Split Thoughts has advanced from Rank 4 to Rank 5. Your Split Thoughts work faster, and you are more capable of abstract thought and visualisation. You run an additional instance of Split Thoughts without taxing yourself.

  Your Skill, Spiritually Pure Physique has advanced from Rank 1 to Rank 2. Your resistao curses, misfortune, poisons and impurities increases signifitly. You are also able to resist the slight weako cold iron you have ied due to yreater Fae nature, as bined with your human ary you are less afflicted by this. Your ability to gee Spirit Water has strengthened.

  You have gained in strength. Your level has increased from one hundred and thirty to one hundred and thirty-four. Your…

  Your Material statistics have all signifitly increased. Your Charm, Majesty, Fortune have increased by four. Your League has increased by three. Fht and Fate have increased by two.

  You have gained a css, Wielder Of Elements, Primal Seven.

  You have gained a css, True Faeduine.

  As the cascade of messages died down, I gasped in shock. I had never gained such a tremendous amount of power in one go. I shut out the surprised, cm thoughts of the others, only looking at Hyath, who despite being covered in blood, her face a mess, was smiling brightly, her eyes rippling with violet energies.

  I see it! Her thoughts echoed loudly, and I realised I could feel her far more deeply, the bonds eg us crisp and clear. Not just her too. Eri, Shaeu, Shiro… all the others… and not just them. The sleeping Tsukiko-san, and Ginneka and even the barely formed Kinneka, they were a weighty prese the bay mind.

  That is why it did nooot work. Foolish mushrooms! Akio, we must goo back. I have work to do. She kissed me then, tongue savagely w mine, and even as the others pined ihoughts, the Room colpsing, spilling us out into the Boundary once more, we didn’t stop, the passions of our efforts running through our minds. Leave it to Hyath, she will make all yooour desires e true! She paused for a moment then. Akio, you seem so much more alluring than befooore. Hyath does want to fix the mushrooms, but I wooonder, we have time for looove, right?

  Before I could answer Shiro hauled her off me, muscles straining, and I let out a dry ugh, relieved and embarrassed. Looking up at Arisu-san, I thanked her. “Without your Room and all yuidance, I’d never have mahat. I owe you. Just ask me if you ever need anything.”

  “I will.” Arisu-san said, a little troubled. “But before that… what happened? You look… a little different…”

  With a surge of aether I imagined a mirror, and it sparked ie was wasteful, and would vanish when I stopped trating, but… Oh, she’s right. Wow…

  ShipTeaser