Galataea Crystallim Core 2
Page 5
Blade Mastery: [Expert]
She has an expert’s sense for the proper utilization for lightweight one-handed swords. She is capable of dual-wielding such weapons with ease.
ABILITIES
Shadow Bolt: [VF 4] Level 1 [B]
Dark Sphere: [VF 12 ] Level 1 [B]
Soul Cutter: [VF 5] Level 1 [B]
Shadow Teleport: [VF 10] Level 1 [A]
Dark Wave: [VF 12] Level 1 [B]
Shadow Dance: [VF 6] Level 1 [B]
SYNCHRONIZATION GIFTS
PASSIVE
Intellect [C]
Agility [B]
Vital Force [D]
--
Mind Block [Type 1]
Shadow Manipulation [Type 1]
Sword Skills [Basic]
ACTIVE
Shadow Bolt: [VF 512] Level 1
Soul Cutter: [VF 620] Level 1
[--]
Scott stared at the status screen for a moment then released a low, slow, whistle. The power of a high-class dark elf was truly something to behold. Even at level two, she made him look like a pathetic gnat. The bonuses that she granted to him were incredible. There was no way that he would be able to acquire someone like her on his own at this point. Pirouette would cost more than Eina if she placed herself on the general market!
He was a little disappointed that he would not gain shadow teleport directly from her, but that was fine. That just meant that he would have to learn it over time through practice. He did acquire shadow manipulation after all, a talent that would allow him to develop any shadow skill.
“Intellect, agility, and vital force will increase whenever I gain a level... That’s just fantastic.” Since she was a tier-two Crystallim, her synchronization gifts were of a higher quality than what Flora or Shaia could provide. That would change when the girls evolved, however.
Scott considered the situation for a moment. If he had shadow manipulation and an increased intellect, then he would be able to develop dark psionic abilities like confusion and terror. Flora increased his raw vitality, and would do so even more when she evolved to tier two. Between Flora and Pirouette, he would develop a lot of vital force for a human. Maybe he should follow his secret dream after all?
It was rare for a human, but it was possible to make a go at being a true mage. The main issue was the lack of vital force development. Whenever a Crystallim gained a level, all of their stats would increase by several points. They could easily utilize high-end special abilities or magic despite the constantly increasing cost of higher level abilities.
Pirouette, for instance, was only second-tier. However, due to her stat modifiers she would gain between eighty-three and two hundred seven points of vital force each level. She was not even a dedicated mage, but a hybrid class that focused slightly more on physical combat through agile movements. She could theoretically have over a thousand points of vital force by level three. What human could compete with that? Even with the bonuses he acquired through Pirouette and through Flora, he did not even have half the vital force at his current level that Pirouette did at a few levels below him.
Scott smiled at the sleeping elf for a moment then shook his head. It would be good to get to know her better. She seemed like an interesting person. It was too bad that he could not keep her with him permanently. She had her own life and an institute to run. Still, the passive status buffs would be nice.
He glanced at the synchronization gifts she provided and sighed. He would have loved to have access to those abilities that she granted, but access would be limited. Though she would remain actively slotted and with him most of the time, she would also remain manifested most of that time. When a Crystallim manifested, the active abilities that were granted to their master were unavailable. Scott would maintain access to the passive capacities, and synergistic effects still worked, but he would not be a badass shadow mage any time soon.
He could not even practice the attack abilities she granted for a couple of reasons. Pirouette required complete capacity to remain manifested as often as she liked. The alternative would be to return her core and lose even the passive abilities between times when they undertook their morale sessions. Of course, the other reason was that her granted powers required an obscene energy expenditure to use.
She did not grant lesser abilities, for some reason. No, she granted the full power versions. He did not even have the vital force to use either of those abilities even once.
If Scott wanted to develop shadowmancer abilities, he would need to work with them from the beginning. The hunter did not regret his decision, however. He would continue to gain free stats and had already gained a sexy new friend. There was also the fact that he could just study shadow powers on his own and develop abilities that would naturally belong to him. Those sorts of abilities were things that he would always be able to use in the future, provided that he managed to learn at least one ability.
The ability to access a specific elemental wave-length was granted by bonding with a Crystallim. Unless he managed to develop his affinity to that element, he would not be able to use powers in that area when his Crystallim were not slotted into his equipment. Even if he did develop his affinities, the effectiveness would greatly decrease and the vital force cost would increase without a proper Crystallim slotted to his equipment.
Pirouette murmured softly in her sleep then scissored her legs underneath her sheets. Scott suspected that she was having another interesting dream. Of course, that was odd in and of itself. The body he saw before him was supposed to be a physical dream manifestation of the Crystallim. So, Pirouette’s dream was dreaming. It was odd, but more than a little adorable.
He looked at his bracer and noted that the three Crystallim cores on his arm were emitting light at randomized intervals. The black-laced Crystallim lit-up briefly. The green core flashed twice, followed by a slow, almost shy seeming flash from the blue core.
Scott winced. The girls were certainly aware of each other now that Pirouette was asleep. The core’s flashed at each other repeatedly. The hunter could not help but wonder about what they were discussing; if anything. Flora and Shaia were currently manifested in their dream forms, but they were awake. Their ability to communicate or sense Pirouette should be limited. Still, on some level they knew of each other’s existence.
"Well, that'll lead to an interesting conversation when we return..." said Scott with a laugh.
***
Sweat poured like rain. Fat little drops of liquid effort splattered lazily as they struck the training room floor. Steam wafted upward from the body of a hard working mermaid. Shaia panted heavily while she lifted the heavy weight off of her chest once more.
A delicate girl of slender frame, but one with a large desire to perform well, the Caesg spent her time away from her master hard at training. Scott left her early that morning, and despite the many hours that passed, Shaia did not relent. Physically and mentally exhausted, a normal person would have given in long ago.
She gripped the weighted bar tightly and struggled to continue. She gritted her teeth and groaned out another bench press. Neither a warrior, nor a proven battler, she knew little of combat. What she did know, however, was that she wanted to make her master proud.
The hard work already showed many wonderful results. Her overall strength and vitality improved slightly. At the rate she currently worked, she might even experience another strength gain soon. Her improvement was much slower than Flora, however. She did not have a healing ability after all.
Flora’s training was nowhere near as physically demanding as Shaia’s. All she had to do was stand in the sun and train her solar absorption skill. As the future primary healer in the group, she needed to develop the capacity to heal herself as efficiently as possible. Further, she would need a lot of vitality and vital force.
Constant training of her solar absorption skill would allow her to develop both, as well as her resonance. When her resonance was high enough, she would be able to use her affi
nity to life and growth related energies to develop external healing powers based on her solar absorption ability. In short, the next stage of solar absorption would allow her to create a radiant healing aura that bolstered the regeneration of others near her while her power was activated.
Flora smiled softly when the effect ended. She increased her skill level several times already. Jack promised her that around the time that she managed to reach skill level twenty with that ability, she would be able to learn the advanced form, Solar Renewal. She took a deep breath then began to focus once more. The Alraune spread her arms and faced the sun. Only fourteen more skill levels to go, but she already felt the strain. Each advance in skill level required more vital force to be used in compensation for the greater effectiveness.
Jack smiled at the girls. They were coming along nicely. The heavy training would pay off soon.
'At the rate they are going, they should both gain at least one level today,' he thought while observing their efforts.
Battles were not the only way to increase the level of a Crystallim. In fact, battling only worked because of the intensity of the emotions involved in open combat. The stronger the core, and more intensely the Crystallim felt an emotion, the stronger their dream form would become. Heavy physical exertion could increase their physical toughness because the Crystallim became stronger mentally and psychologically attributed that to their dream form’s physical state.
The primary basis for training a Crystallim physically was the bolstering of their confidence and sense of self-worth. Work a Crystallim hard until she realizes what she can accomplish, then watch her improve to a great degree. Simply put, if she believed she was physically stronger on a deep emotional level, she would be stronger.
Of course, a lot of other factors such as their rank could influence Crystallim power growth. The quality of their core and the bonds that they formed were what really determined their power in the end. Training only brought out more of what already existed, more of what was buried deeply within a Crystallim's heart.
The day wore on for the girls. Their master remained gone far longer than he originally claimed that he would be gone. Jack assured them that Scott was fine, but they still worried. When would he return for them? On a deeper level, the girls felt as though something horrible must have happened to their master. There was a sense of unease resonating within their beautiful hearts. Something happened, something that made their world seem to be not quite right.
Sometimes, when Flora came out of her healing trance, she would clutch at her chest and frown delicately. She did not know why, but a deep seeded dread would overtake her heart and fill her with momentary despair. There was a sense of danger, of impending loss that overtook her briefly during those moments.
Shaia grunted and strained heavily as she lifted the weight upward once more. Her breasts pressed together slightly as she bench-pressed the weighted bar. If her master did not return soon, she would be allowed to rest for a few brief moments before she would be returned to the water tank for more speed and endurance training. She would have to swim small laps around the tank several hundred times.
The mermaid girl loved to swim, but that was a bit much even for her. She'd already gone through the process twice since Scott left. Even so, the tedium and exhaustion brought about by her training did help her to deal with the niggling little worm of fear that wriggled within her heart. What kept her master away from her? Why did it feel as though he were in trouble?
Thankfully, she felt a familiar presence not long after her break period began. Her eyes widened and her lips parted gently. A bright warm smile spread across her face. Her hair and tail shifted to a hot pink color. She sat up and looked toward the door in heightened interest. Her tail fanned slightly even as her eyes began to sparkle just a little.
Flora sensed the closeness of her master just as easily as Shaia. She also stopped training and looked hopefully toward the door. Her vines began to undulate vigorously. At last, the destined moment was now upon them!
The girl’s offered Scott bright smiles filled with hopeful excitement as he entered the room. Flora even went so far as to open her arms and extend them forward.
Her vines rose up into the air and started to curl gently in anticipation. However, her tendrils froze in the air when she sighted the creature who walked in behind the man. The excitable vines quivered slightly then began to droop when the Alraune noticed that the beautiful girl was holding her master’s hand.
Flora's eyes narrowed and her lips puckered into an annoyed pout. What kind of paperwork was he supposed to have been doing again?
“Hi girls,” said Scott cheerfully. He walked into the training room hand-in-hand with the beautiful Pirouette.
The dark elf glanced at each of the girl’s in turn then made an attempt at gifting them with a warm smile. However, her expression held greater similarity to a predatory grin. She could not have made her position of authority any more clear short of reaching down, gripping Scott by his manhood, and loudly proclaiming, "This is mine, now."
Shaia’s tail immediately shifted into a rainbow hue of colors and her hair became stark white. She was not certain what to think about this development, and neither was her body. It could not decide on a proper color for anything.
Flora on the other hand, sighed loudly. Was it already starting? Would he toss her aside like the others? At least she knew the source of the horrible feeling she’d felt for the last few hours. Her master formed a strong bond with a far more powerful Crystallim.
“What’s wrong Flora?” asked Scott. He had a good idea of why she would seem so depressed, but he did not want to make an assumption. He knew the girls would not take this development well at first. They were not there to meet the new girl when he gained Pirouette's services after all.
She shook her head gently then retracted her vines. She lowered her arms and made an attempt to smile. “It is nothing. I am alright, master.”
Pirouette glanced at the girl and then back to Scott. She leaned close to him and whispered something into his ear. Scott smiled softly at the dark elf then whispered quietly into her ear as well. Flora reacted as though she'd been slapped when she saw that casual intimacy. Her eyes began to shimmer slightly in the light and her eyebrows rose upward in concern.
However, to her surprise, the new girl strolled over to her. Flora looked away instinctively. She closed her eyes and started to tremble a little. Her eyes widened in surprise when she felt a slender set of arms wrap around her body.
She felt the strength in those arms, but it was a gentle strength. The dark elf kissed her softly on the cheek and said, “It’s good to meet you sister.”
Flora’s heart fluttered gently. Such a powerful Crystallim called her sister so casually? The girl embracing her could easily crush her, and yet she was being kind to her?
“It... is nice to meet you, too,” said Flora softly.
Pirouette kissed her softly on the ear and then whispered. “Scott tells me that you are a sweet and loving person. I’m sure it’s true. You have a warm spirit.”
Flora’s eyes began to shimmer softly and then tears began to flow. She sniffled a little. “He spoke of me to you?”
The dark elf kissed her gently beneath her left eye, drawing away a few of her tears. “He wouldn’t shut up about you. He’s quite smitten I think.”
“R-really?” Flora’s eyes widened further and a small, but warm, smile spread across her lips.
“Yes, he mentioned something about sweet nectar... Perhaps you will allow me to learn of it personally, later?” asked Pirouette.
Flora’s face turned dark green then began to redden slightly along her cheeks. She'd become so flush from the thought of such an interaction that even her green skin could not prevent the reddening of her cheeks. She nodded politely, “Of course, sister... I would like that very much.”
Pirouette kissed the Alraune on the side of her neck and then lifted her lips back to her ear. “Yes, you will.”
Shaia watched them curiously for a moment, and then sighed. It would be nice to feel that sort of closeness at the moment. Her sigh changed to a startled cry when a set of muscular arms slipped around her waist.
Scott leaned in and softly whispered, “Has my favorite mermaid been training hard today?”
She gasped a little as a sudden sense of panic flared throughout her body. She was like a fish out of water, one who was even further surprised by a shocking event. Her master kissed her tenderly on the shoulder and her tail turned bright red without a moment's hesitation.
Finally, she stammered out, “Y-yes. I wanted to be stronger for you, Scott.”
He kissed her on the side of the neck and she gasped again. She fanned her tail erratically and shivered a little at the sensation of his lips' caress.
“Will you show me your strength?” asked Scott in a tone of voice that clearly bespoke his true meaning.
She made a strangled outcry and started to hyperventilate a little. Shaia panted heavily at the implication of what her master said. Did he really want to do that with her? It was such a wonderfully frightening thought.
His hand slid down to lightly caress the area just above her soft pink slit. She gasped and whimpered for a moment. Her tail curled back much like someone might curl their toes when excited.
“Shaia, won’t you show me your true power?” asked Scott in a suggestive tone of voice. Perhaps his words were a bit manipulative, but as a result she was no longer filled with quite as much angst. She knew that he remained interested in her, and wanted to spend time with her.
Surprisingly she nodded her head. Her hair, eyes, face, and tail were a bright vivid red. She looked a little like a boiled lobster to be honest. However, she managed to whisper out a definite, “Yes...”