Dark Matter Ascension-Chapter 43B2 - : The Star Market, Revisited

“Finally,” Xera muttered as the message she sent days ago finally resulted in a call. She pulled up a holographic panel and a familiar face appeared on the screen. The shrouding effect that made her appear as a dark silhouette was already active. “Thank you for getting onto this group call,” she said as she adjusted her spectacles.

“Pardon the late response,” the tall, thin, blue-skinned, pale man replied. His hollow cheeks and sunken forehead were heavily tattooed with runic patterns. “I received your request and have the appropriate calculations for the biological fiddling you requested.”

Xera grinned, “Excellent. The agreed upon payment works for you?”

“Yes. And I do not mind being on retainer. This is a fascinating case. And I have been working with a colleague I did not even know was in Khrox.”

Another face appeared on another panel. The face of Jonsar, Jace’s physician. “Sorry for being a minute late. I had a patient who went overtime a bit. You sure about this, Professor Malzthorn?”

“I am,” The tall man replied. “Changing these key receptors will improve his metabolic efficiency and function by twofold but will require three times the sustenance from consumed foodstuffs. Which, in turn, means that his body’s regenerative capabilities thanks to the super soldier serum and merged nanites is amplified twofold, as well.”

“I’m still concerned about the nanites,” Jonsar replied. “We don’t know how they’ll react. They are programmed to Jace’s subconscious-”

Xera cut him off, “I have already reprogrammed them thanks to his Cosmic Infusion. They have no other subroutines, and even with the introduction of new prosthetics, or upgrades to a higher Tier from (Equipment) Boons, they will still function fully in his interests. I’ve got redundancies in place.”

Jonsar breathed a sigh of relief, “Good. Have you informed the patient?”

Xera shook her head, “We are not informing him of any of this. He is my Signer, and to satisfy your oath to ‘do no harm’, know that I treat this Signer as being of grave importance.”

Not to mention, if I lost him, then any hope of dealing with Troxanir is scrapped until the next Cosmogenic Merging, which with projections is decades away.

Another panel popped up, and an avian woman with pink feathers and pinions appeared. “We are discussing patient codename ‘Flicker’, yes?”

“Correct,” Jonsar replied. “You’re late, Doctor Restra.”

“An emergency with a patient,” the avian replied. “X, you know I’m always happy to take on new clients. But this report…my word, there are a lot of traumas to work through. Abandonment issues with his mother, a savior-complex from caring for his sister, regret and remorse from killing thousands of perceived innocents. This is going to be a difficult case. I would not anticipate a rapid series of changes. One issue, alone, would take months of therapy.”

Xera sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose with one set of fingers, as the other three hands tapped various panels to pull up Jace’s physiology readouts on the call. “Flicker is valuable. Jonsar can attest to this. As such, I need to do everything possible to support him. That includes making sure his body is functioning well: your responsibility, Doctor Velicole. His mind: that’s on you, Doctor Restra…and ensuring that all of these biochemical changes are not disrupting their work; which is why I brought in Professor Malzthorn.”

The trio of physicians nodded, and the tall, lanky Professor dipped his head, “I’m happy to advise my peers. They have my contact information, and I am on-call as per our contract.” His screen blipped off.

The pink bird-woman dipped her beak down slightly, “I’ll send you my schedule for appointment time slots.”

Xera sent her a contract, “Sign this and I’ll give you access to his full files.”

She nodded and tapped the screen, signing through The Cosmic System and binding herself to the pact that Xera now held. “Of course. Happy to take on a new client! Just don’t expect miracles. Even with Skill use, I have to be very careful during the therapy to avoid any…issues.” Her screen, also, blipped off.

Jonsar Velicole was the last one left, and he sighed. “How’s Jace holding up?”

“You have access to his readout.”

Jonsar nodded, “I meant more with how things are going with the Fleshcrafting changes. Changing one’s anatomy is always jarring.”

“Ah,” Xera stated. “I’ll let Josie, my personal Wayfinder, fill you in. But, in my society, we would have referred to him as a ‘Nexite’.” In fact, he might be the best one I’ve ever seen. Not everyone is okay with taking apart their body bit by bit to replace it.

Josie flew over and began filling in the physician on all of the saucy details of her voyeurism, watching the Aspirant and his partner engaging in their amorous activity. Jonsar redirected her to focus on anatomical details and not go into flowery, poetic descriptions.

Xera just shook her head and went to her living room, plopping down on the couch and sighing as she leaned forward, cupping her face in her hands

She felt tired. Thin. Spread too far apart. I need more help around here. “Josie!”

The Wayfinder floated into the room, “Yes?”

“Pull two more Wayfinders from the Starlit Sea. Personal redirect. Access Code E56745-XY-5R3.”

“Okay! Want me to give them my programming?”

Xera nodded, “Yeah, I don’t want to override their personality matrix, but they need to be able to do everything you do.” She stood up and stretched, “I’m going to sleep. Wake me up if something urgent needs my attention.”

As she walked to the restroom and used the hygiene station, she looked down at her dainty palms. I’m doing the right thing, she thought. Changing Jace’s physiology, biochemistry, and ensuring his mind is in the right place is all necessary.

She paused and shook her head, No. Not necessary. I want him as stable and adapted as possible. Anything to increase his chances of survival. He’s got the drive to do what I need him to do.

Not everyone had the drive to leave the universe. He did. An she could use him as an anchor point. A ‘beacon’ of The Cosmic System. Expanding her influence. Showing her people that their original universe was not worth leaving behind to live in a pampered, custom reality.

And…she could use Jace beyond that. If she could establish a direct pipeline from their universe, through the various layers of reality, and anchor it to a specific Afterlife? Death would hold no true meaning anymore. The best gift she could conceive of for all of the species in her universe.

Never losing a loved one ever again. Removing the fear of what comes after death. Ensuring easy transition between the two. And, with her cloning and soul-capture technology, she could facilitate returning from the Afterlife.

But to make that journey, to establish that anchor that would enable her to make that pipeline, that trans-dimensional tether? All of the extreme changes to her most important Signer were warranted.

Yet still, she felt the odd, stirring sensation in her stomach that she was somehow betraying her Signer. The behind-the-scenes manipulation. But she knew in her deepest part of her being that it was necessary.

And now? She had a well-rounded group of Signers. Quinn to coordinate, Greg, Priam, and Dee to tackle larger tasks, and Jace to deal with the ones needing a bit more delicate touch. Quinn could stay in this universe and grow her Skills to enable trans-dimensional coordination and support. But the other three…she had to figure out a way to strengthen them similarly to Jace if she had any hope of them aiding in his as-yet unassigned task.

She left the hygiene station and went to her bedroom, laying down on the soft cushions as she pulled the blankets up to her chin. She turned to her side and closed her eyes. It’s all to improve his chances of reaching Tier 10. That thought quelled the sense of betrayal in her gut.

The boat ride was pleasant, and even though Jace had not been on one this large or fast, he still felt comfort with the wind racing through his hair and the deck moving beneath his feet. The salty, sea-air was a bit cleaner than what he had experienced back in New Jersey. They made a pit stop at a dock south of Rome, in a city called Anzio.

Jace’s augmented eyes were enough to keep the few, simply-equipped guards cowed, and the various employees below decks were let off. Greg kept traveling along the coast, to a river called Tiber that ran all the way up to the city.

The journey there was uneventful, and Jace could see the ripple-effect of the servers going down. There was anarchy in the streets. People were screaming and shouting, running to and fro as they wailed out lamentations of being financially ruined. Security was trying to keep a lid on things, but it was like a few boulders trying to block a torrential river: they were swept aside as people panicked.

In the tumult and chaos, Greg was able to get them to the same dock that his friend had picked them up from. The four Aspirants got off, and Jace used Dark Matter Cloak (Rank 3) [Group] to sneak back to the portal. People were grouped up in front of it, trying to get in: but they were hitting the solid, blue-pastel aperture with no result. Greg shoved them aside, clearing a path for the group as they entered the black void of the portal hub for Earth.

Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

The pastel blue gateway snapped shut behind them, and Dee breathed a sigh of relief. “Thanks for rescuing me. That place sucked.”

“You’re not done yet,” Quinn’s voice said over Jace’s earpiece. “Head to the Star Market. I was able to make sales on the gear you gathered up.”

“Come on, Dee. We’re going to get you some gear. Plus, Greg, you’re low on ammo, right?”

“Affirmative,” Greg replied. “Only two magazines left for the pistol. I’m tapped on the rest.”

Dee giggled, “I don’t need equipment. Really, I’m good!”

Priam raised his hand, “You need a communicator to hear Quinn’s coordinating!”

Jace led the way out of the larger blue portal and into The Cosmic Corridor. He reached out and put a hand on Dee’s shoulder, “Since you’ve not been there before,” he quickly explained. She nodded her assent and a minute later space warped and they entered the store.

To Jace’s surprise, Quinn was behind the counter. She had a laptop on the counter, and glanced up as the four came in. “Alright, Wayfinders out. You’ve got a split of Stardust coming your way.”

The various Wayfinders floated over to the countertop. Quinn held up her Cosmic Power symbol, and a stream of glittering, blue starlight split off into four and into the Wayfinders. “Don’t forget, redistribution to stay on the same level!” Ollie said gleefully.

-----

[Stardust Contributed by Aspirant:]

[Jace Seren: 504]

[Priam Westerfold: 504]

[Greg Bhastal: 504]

[Quinn Cipher: 125,040]

[Deasyl ‘Dee’ Luna: 1600]

[Stardust accumulated by Aspirants: 128,152]

-----

[Stardust Split: 25,630]

-----

Quinn sighed, “I’ve only sold about half of the stock, and since it’s just from a Tier 3 world: and most of it counts as Tier 1 or 2 tech: I had to go for bulk offloading. Even with Broker’s Fee it’s not as much as I was hoping for.”

Dee squealed with delight and clapped her hands together, “Oh, my, gosh! You are so nice, Quinn!”

Quinn smiled ever-so-slightly. “Here’s an earpiece for you.” She slid one over the counter, and Dee grabbed it before slipping it inside her chitinous shell through one of several crevices. Quinn tapped a few buttons on her wrist pad and nodded, “Yup, functioning on my end.”

Greg put his weapons on the counter, “Reloads. Lots of ammunition.”

Quinn nodded and set to gathering items from a stock room in the back, and Dee, Priam, and Jace all went over to the couches to wait for Greg to refill his gear. “Do you need to eat?” Jace asked their new companion.

“I can dissolve biomass inside my goop, but no. I don’t need to consume sustenance.”

Jace nodded and scratched Ollie’s head as he flew over to him. Ollie wended his head up next to Jace’s ear and whispered, “Xera has a surprise. Step outside.”

Jace stood up, “I’m going to step outside for a minute.”

Priam didn’t seem to care much, just nodding before turning to Dee, “So, how does the goop work when interacting with the environment?”

Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freewebnσvel.cøm.

“Well, it’s sort of like your hands: paws? Adorable. Anyways…”

Jace exited the building and stood outside, “What’s up, Ollie?”

“Don’t tell anyone else about this surprise. And, she wants you to use it now. Epic (Augmentation).”

Jace nodded and whispered back, “Can I merge that with my 2 existing ones to do a Legendary rarity?”

“Yup. That is what she wanted you to do. But use it on the NICIF inside you.”

Jace stopped himself from responding, pulling up his Equipment list. “I don’t see the NICIF on here.”

“Technically it is Equipment just like your Adamantine Skin and Leviathan’s Skin. But it has been kept off of your Equipment list because she was still working on classifying it. Now, she has not only Doctor Jonsar, but also a specialist who is helping her with your health management. When we get a breather after this Earth business, she also has a therapist she wants you to start meeting with.”

“That’s…a lot.” Jace took a breath and let it out slowly, practicing the breathing technique his mentor taught him. “I’ve got a whole healthcare team dedicated to me?”

“Yup!”

“…Why?”

“Xera knows you are valuable. She needs you to be as strong as possible: to survive for Chroma. She is doing everything in her power to make sure that you survive.”

That’s thoughtful, Jace thought as Xera’s kindness and being given special treatment for once in his life filled him with a sense of warmth. “Okay. Let’s merge the x3 Epic (Augmentation) and use it on the NICIF.”

-----

[Using Boon: Legendary (Augmentation).]

[Target Equipment: NICIF (Nanite-Infused Cyberconnect Integration Fluid).]

[Augmenting.]

[Result: (Reactive) NICIF.]

[Description: The Reactive (Augmentation) causes the NICIF to (1) replicate more quickly to replace lost mass, and (2) move to an impact site in less than 1 zeptosecond to reinforce the flesh and/or prosthetic, reducing total damage received. Additionally, can normalize the skin coloration and/or pattern of the host.]

-----

“Much more durability,” Ollie commented.

Jace looked down and saw his skin shift tone from the slight grey with silver and gold streaks of starlight, to its normal, slightly pale color. Huh. Can I make it weird colors? As if responding to his thoughts, his skin turned into a rainbow of various hues. Okay, no. Back to normal, please. The skin coloration returned to his normal pre-Aspirant hue. The silver and gold swirls of starlight from Cosmic Infusion were still present, however: gently dancing just under the skin.

“Neat! You can camouflage with that. A bit, I guess.”

Jace held up his arm and pulled the sleeve back. He could barely make out the slightly shimmering, gold, arcane script; and he could see the articulation along the joints. But otherwise? It looked like his arm. This is going to be helpful for blending in, he thought as he rolled the sleeve down. “Tell Xera thank you for me.”

“Will do!”

Jace took stock. “We have 12 levels worth of Stardust. That would put me at 97. So close to Tier 5 and capping out my Class.”

“You could spend some here,” Ollie stated. “You have Equipment that could be swapped out. Nethaldrim is a great sword and will last you a long time. But your Aegisleather is only Tier 2, as is the Ghostlight Grapnel Arm, the All-Seeing Dragon’s Eyes, Mind’s Eye Amulet, and Thellor’s Everguard.”

“Right, but the Amulet and Everguard I don’t think I need to swap out for an upgrade. They do their job just fine.”

“Agreed,” Ollie said as he pointed back into the building and Jace re-entered. He sat on the couches opposite the now-engaged in some deep conversation Dee and Priam. “Your Steelstalker Sabatons are Tier 3, your Adamantine Skeleton is Tier 5, Leviathan’s Skin is Tier 4, and the Anathema Arm is Tier 8. The NICIF scales to your Tier, so right now it is Tier 4 as well. Oh, and the Wildercloth tent and Devilsram wool bedroll are Tier 2.”

Jace leaned forward and rested his arms on his knees. “I don’t think I need new Equipment right now,” he replied. “But…humor me. If I came across an Aspirant who used some type of mind-manipulating Skill, who was a higher Tier than my amulet’s rating…would they still be able to affect me?”

“Yup,” Ollie replied. “Aspirant Tier of higher: but not equal: to the Equipment will win out. But there is another type of Boon. The ‘Tier Up’ Boon. You can use a Common rarity version of the Boon on any Equipment you want! So, if you find something you really like, you can keep it!”

“Why didn’t I know that before?” Jace asked as he felt a little bit of frustration enter his tone.

Ollie picked up on it because his voice became slightly sterner, and he floated in front of Jace, crossing his arms as he bobbed up and down slightly. “Because new Equipment often is better. You only want to Tier Up gear you know you want to keep. Like the amulet you have. Some Equipment, like Thellor’s Everguard, don’t need to be a higher Tier equivalent.” He pointed over to the counter, where Greg was finishing up. “Do not forget to restock your Omnitech prosthetic repair module’s charges! You are down one.”

“Do I need it anymore? Dark Matter Mending effects my prosthetics now, thanks to the nanites.”

Ollie frowned, stroked his whiskers, then smiled and nodded as he swam around Jace’s head. “Nope, you are right. Might as well sell it.”

Jace walked up to the counter, pulled the repair module out, and left it on the counter. “Quinn, add this to our ‘stuff to sell’ pile.”

The Aspirant came back from the back door and nodded, “Pile is an apt term.” She hiked her thumb over her shoulder, “It’s disorganized back there. Well, my section is.” She looked at Greg who was finishing up loading his guns. “Everything clear?”

Greg nodded as he began socketing the magazines around his torso and slung the rifle and rocket launcher. “I’m good here. How about the rest of you?”

Priam and Dee looked up from their conversation, “The what-now?” Dee asked.

“Are you ready to take out the last megacorp?”

Priam shook his head, “We should level up first. We have a lot of Stardust!”

Jace looked at Quinn, “Can you sell me Common (Tier Up) or (Variable) Boons?”

“Sure. 250 Stardust apiece.”

“I’ll take 10.” Jace nodded to Ollie, who hovered over and tapped Quinn’s Cosmic Power symbol.

-----

[Stardust Spent: 2500]

[Boons Acquired: x10 Common (Variable) Boon.]

[Remaining Stardust: 23,130.]

-----

“Ollie, let’s get everything Tier 4 that can be upgraded.”

“That will use 8 of them.”

Jace nodded, “Do it.”

Quinn chuckled softly, “Right. Well, make sure you level up.” She raised her voice up, “The same goes for you three. General Logistics has at least 3 Ascendants and 8 Aspirants. You’ll want to be prepared as possible.”

-----

[Using Boon: Tier Up (x8)]

[Target Equipment: Multiple. See list below.]

-----

Jace felt a surge of cool through him. As if a refreshing breeze was encapsulated and injected into his veins. It was a soothing chill that faded almost as quickly as it began. Ollie floated in front of him and gave him a thumbs-up, “All good! Every piece of Equipment is now Tier 4. Except for Thellor’s Everguard, the Venture Pack, and the bedroll.”

Jace nodded, “Alright.” He looked back to his allies, “You all ready to level up and get back out there?”

The various Aspirants were already staring off into space, mid-level up with their Cosmic System interface in their vision. Right, okay. Guess I need to catch up. “Ollie, 11 levels.”

“Right! 22,000 Stardust being consumed. What do you want to put Ranks in?”

“What I’d really like is something that functions off of Wrath’s Embrace. Maybe…a damaging aura of some type while its active?”

“I have an idea for that. Here we go!”

-----

Name: Jace Seren (Aspirant, Tier 4)

Power [Class Level]: Dark Matter [Swordmage <Wrathblade> 96]

Skill Name (Rank) [Evolutions]: Universal Translation, Environmental Adaptation, Dark Matter Blade (Rank 5) [Rending], Dark Matter Shield (Rank 3) [Reflecting], Swordmage Stance (Rank 3) [Astral Annihilator], Dark Matter Dart [Exploding] (Rank 4), Dark Matter Cloak (Rank 3) [Group], Dark Energy Mine (Rank 3) [Distant], Cosmic Infusion (Rank 10) [Innervating], Dark Energy Beam (Rank 16) [Limited Range], Dark Matter Mending (Rank 4) [Vampiric], Energy Cost Reduction (Rank 10) [Siphoning], Wrath's Embrace (Rank 10) [Focused], Ruination Razor (Rank 3) [Wrecking], Mage's Mark (Rank 5), Raging Cleave (Rank 10), Aura of Wrath (Rank 11), Steel Gale Stride (1/day), Arbiter's Anathema (3/day), Shadow Nebula Smokescreen (1/day), Hope's Edge (1/day), Archmage Geomancy (1/day), Archmage Hydromancy (1/day), Archmage Pyromancy (1/day)

Stardust: 1,130

Equipment: (Returning / Adaptable) Nethaldrim, (Medium / Snowguard / Burnguard) Aegisleather, Ghostlight Grapnel Arm, (Thrice Judged) Anathema Arm, (Overclocked / Lightfoot) Steelstalker Sabatons, (Terrifying) All-Seeing Dragon's Eyes, Leviathan's Skin, Adamantine Skeleton, (Reactive) NICIF, Mind's Eye Amulet, Thellor's Everguard, (Heavy) Venture Pack, survival meals (x40), enhanced canteen, optimized medical kit, (Restful) Wildercloth tent, Devilsram wool bedroll, Vibro-Slicer Knife

Boons: 2x Common (Equipment), x2 Common (variable)

-----

Aura of Wrath (Rank 1): While under the effect of Wrath’s Embrace, emit a constant aura of raw threads of Cosmic Power that harm any designated foe within 1 foot of the user.

Aura of Wrath (Rank 11): As Rank 1, but increase damage, and increase radius to 11 feet.

-----

“I compressed down Ranks 2-10,” Ollie said as the warmth of the Stardust infusion settled into Jace’s torso. “Since they just increase radius by 1 foot each time and increase damage. It is an endless Skill if you want to keep dumping Ranks into it.”

Jace nodded and stood up, stretching as his allies remained transfixed on their screens within their vision. “Just gotta wait for them, and then we are on our way to General Logistics.” His voice took on a harsh tone at the end.

“You sound like Greg did when we went to Myscape Industrial.”

Jace nodded, “The woman that abandoned me and Chroma worked for them…yeah, I’ve got a score to settle with them.”