Oath of the Survivor

Kyle looked out at the remnants of the destroyed town, surprised more than anything at the lack of feeling.  It had been a city slightly larger than Newton had been.  Buildings had been scattered like sticks after a storm, reduced to rubble above their foundations.  A year ago, Kyle would have taken C.H.A.D.D. through the ruins to look for survivors, hoping that somebody made it out.  He knew better now.

They were close enough, and Kyle nodded to the woman piloting the smaller reconnaissance vehicle as he disembarked.  It was sleek, about the size of an old-world motorcycle, and it barely fit the two of them along with Kyle’s payload.  Rochelle’s experience in the area taught them that the moths would react poorly to the presence of the vehicles if they got within a dozen kilometers or so of the trees that housed their young, so Kyle would have to make the rest of the journey on foot. 

While he could cover ground almost as quickly through the use of HASTE, he was happy to be able to conserve some energy.  Hefting the large cannister over his shoulder, he began to walk towards the foot of his first target. 

[YOU KNOW, DR. MAYHEW, IF YOU’D LEFT ME BEHIND YOU WOULDN’T HAVE TO CARRY HIGH-EXPLOSIVES LIKE THAT.  YOU COULD HAVE PUT IT IN THE PACK, AND LEFT ME TO DISCUSS MY SUPERIOR TACTICAL ABILITIES WITH MS. ROCHELLE.]

“If I did that, I’d be deprived of your company.  And we couldn’t have that.” 

[I’M SURE WE COULD HAVE KEPT IN TOUCH THROUGH THE NAV BRACELET.  STILL, GIVEN YOUR PENCHANT FOR JOSTLING IT DOES MAKE SENSE NOT TO HAVE YOU KEEP THE EXPLOSIVE IN THE PACK.]

C.H.A.D.D. had not been excited to learn that Kyle was carrying D Grade explosive material to the tree, and even less enthused about the prospect of being next to him while he transported, secured, and armed it.  Unfortunately for the poor drone, Kyle needed him.

“You know why I can’t leave you behind, buddy.  Besides, STORM SHELTER should be enough to protect us if something goes wrong.”

The plan was simple – Kyle and C.H.A.D.D. would deliver the explosive to a predetermined point on the tree, arm it, and run away before it detonated.  After repeating the process on the other marked trees, they would be in a position to take down the D Grade moth, which Kyle had taken to calling the Eye, based on the large patters on its wings.  While the expedition teams could likely do it on their own, they would have to fight their way through the smaller variant moths and the hundreds of awakened larvae to get to the spot.  Kyle didn’t have that problem.

His mobility and durability were simply leagues ahead of any of the expedition members.  This was where D Grades really shone above the rest – tasks that otherwise required coordinated groups could be accomplished by virtue of raw attributes alone.  A wistful smile played across his face as he thought back to how powerless he felt in the first days after the cataclysm.  He’d learned some hard lessons, and he’d come a long way.

He ran through the ruins of the city, vaulting over rubble and navigating uneven ground with ease.  A number of small beetles tried to close in on him during his journey, but he didn’t even slow down as he ran past them.  Minutes later, he crossed the entire breadth of the city.  A small group of E Grade moths spotted Kyle as he approached the tree, moving to intercept him.  Kyle was ready. 

While he felt confident rushing past the moths, they possessed some unique traits that Kyle wanted to test.  Sure enough, the moths floated above him, deep grey and purple wings holding them aloft.  They were about a meter long, with antennae reminiscent of a bird’s feather.  It was mesmerizing to watch them flutter about in the air, a picture of serenity.

At face value they weren’t doing anything, however Kyle’s Auric Perception told him a different story.  Mana infused hundreds of thousands of nearly microscopic scales that slowly infused the air around them, and soon Kyle felt the expected pressure.  The expedition teams had been pushed hard by the moths – the area near their habitats covered in a fog of enfeebling mist. 

The original plan the miners laid out was that Kyle would dash through with HASTE, place the explosives, then retreat and recuperate from the damage.  It was a solid plan.  After all, Kyle was fast enough to move through the cloud of scales, durable enough to limit the damage, and possessed skills to recover all on his own.  However, that wasn’t good enough for Kyle.

“Alright C.H.A.D.D., you’ll need to let me know if the toxins are getting too dangerous.”

[THIS IS SPECTACULARLY STUPID, DR. MAYHEW.]

“Don’t sass me now, you’re the one who made me train in a cave for a month to fight the Infernal.”

[THERE WAS NO TIME PRESSURE, DR. MAYHEW.  THERE IS NOW.]

“If I’m right, we’ll save time in the long run.”

[AND IF YOU’RE WRONG, THE MISSION WILL BE DELAYED SIGNFICANTLY.  MS. ROCHELLE WILL BE DISAPPOINTED IN ME, AND I DON’T WANT THAT.  DON’T DISAPPOINT HER, DR. MAYHEW.]

“Then pay close attention, and make sure this works.”
Taking a deep breath, Kyle closed his eyes.  His first step was to activate ADAPTIVE REGENERATION.  The skill went to work, circulating rejuvenating mana through his system.  Next, he focused his attention on his mana pathways as he made them flexible with RESONANCE. 

As he focused, he felt three distinct concepts ADAPTIVE REGENERATION was fighting against.  The most prominent effect was in his blood. 

“C.H.A.D.D., pay close attention to the circulatory system.  That appears to be the main attack vector.”

[CONFIRMED.  RED BLOOD CELL OXYGEN EFFICIENCY IS REDUCED, CURRENTLY AT NINETY-EIGHT PERCENT RELATIVE TO STANDARD.  PLATELETS APPEAR TO BE LACKING COAGULATIVE PROPERTIES AS WELL.]

A hemotoxin, then.  These were sinister in multiple ways, making every exertion more taxing, every wound more serious.  Too much exposure could cause him to hemorrhage and lead to organ failure.  Still, he continued to breath it in.

The second area he felt his skill working to repair was his nervous system.  He could feel a very gentle tingling at the tips of his fingers and toes as the toxins built up in his body.  Again, it was far from causing major damage to him, and likely wouldn’t be enough on its own to prove deadly to a reasonably powerful E Grade.  In conjunction with the hemotoxin, however, Kyle acknwoledged the debilitating compound effects. 

C.H.A.D.D. was quick on the uptake, giving Kyle the information before he could ask.

[A COMPOUND APPEARS TO BE ATTACKING YOUR NEURONS, DR. MAYHEW, THOUGH IT’S QUITE INEFFECTIVE AGAINST YOUR ACTIVATED GANGLIA.] 

The drone was right.  Kyle’s new Ceaseless Vitality had greatly expanded on the nerve ganglia he’d noticed after his change into an Arthro-Human Chimera nearly a year ago.  Most people, even D Grades like his grandfather, had nerves that would connect to the brain through the spinal cord.  Damage to that pathway would limit, or even prevent, signals from making it from the brain to the rest of the body.

Kyle’s body worked differently.  While he still had the central connection through his spine, his body also had a series of nerve clusters that formed connections outside of it.  Just like how the Endless was able to continue its rampage after its brain was destroyed, Kyle’s body could likely continue to function even with major damage to his spinal cord.  He was in no hurry to test this hypothesis, though he and C.H.A.D.D. had been discussing some other applications.

In a situation like this, the dense and numerous nerve clusters were simply too resilient for the neurotoxin to cause significant damage, particularly against the strength of ADAPTIVE REGENERATION.  That brought him to the last area being impacted – his mana network itself.  It felt as though there was a buildup of residue as his mana circulated; faint, yet present. 

This was the piece he was most interested in, as up to this point he hadn’t encountered creatures but himself able to directly influence another’s mana.  Neither his knowledge nor C.H.A.D.D.’s records had shown any indications that this was a possibility.  When he’d heard that the expedition members had been struggling with skill activation and mana recovery, he knew it was something he wanted to study.

As he focused on it, two things became clear.  First, this effect wasn’t related to the toxins, at least not directly.  C.H.A.D.D.’s continuous commentary didn’t indicate any compounds other than the hemotoxin and neurotoxin.  Secondly, ADAPTIVE REGENERATION did nothing to limit this effect.  Ever so slowly, Kyle felt the effectiveness of his skill deteriorate as his mana pathways were impacted. 

That could be trouble.

~~~

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