Street Cultivation 3

by Sarah Lin

  "I, uh, don't know what that is."

  "Yes, the announcement would have been a lot more dramatic if I'd ever told you that I was working on it. The thing is, I wasn't sure it would work. I abandoned the idea a while back because Lisa said it didn't have much commercial application, but it's very well-suited to you in particular. Here, take a look."

  Rick accepted the vial and flinched slightly as a shock went through his fingers. The gray liquid felt just a bit like Melissa's aura, as if it was acid that could eat at him on a spiritual level. "So you're using me as a guinea pig for this, huh?"

  "Yes, and all those supplements are actually just chopped carrots." Melissa grinned briefly, but then tapped the vial. "I'm actually proud of this, Rick. The problem with giving you anything that provides an instant boost in power is that your body might end up dependent on the rush of that instead of the Formula T. But this is actually negative power, filtered through my ether void."

  "So it's like a bottled version of what you do to help increase efficiency?"

  "It's more than that. If you carry a void flame from me, it should be stronger. Somebody who takes it will be less harmed by my Manifest Destruction. Hopefully your defensive cores will be able to adapt to it too. Now, I'm not saying it will transform your life, but I think you're one of the only people who could get some real use out of it."

  "Thanks, sis." He opened the vial and tried not to show any hesitation as he drank the gray liquid.

  Almost the same instant it hit his throat, it flowed through him on a spiritual level. His vision went completely black for a moment, then he saw the world in negative. Only slowly did it fade back to normal, his body thrumming with the echo of the void.

  "Uh, Rick, you okay?" Melissa was looking at him in concern, so he smiled.

  "My head is... completely clear. I think it will only be temporary, but I feel scoured clean. I don't know about the deeper effects, but in the short term, this is great."

  "Wonderful! I'll work together with Lisa and make you some more."

  "I appreciate it." Since he wasn't weak or restless for once, Rick sat down on the bed and tried to enjoy the momentary peace. Melissa sat down beside him, but didn't say anything. It might ruin the vibes, but he decided it was best to ask her about one of his concerns. "Did Lisa send this with you for a particular reason? I feel like she's been avoiding me."

  "Oh, pooh. One, this was my extra special formula. Two, she's really busy, still trying to run her business remotely."

  "If you say so. I feel like whenever I thank her for helping me, things get strange."

  "That is... something else. It's because you talked a lot while you were unconscious." Melissa saw the shock and horror on his face and smiled. "Relax, bro, you didn't say anything humiliating. While you were semi-conscious, you were actually so grateful that it was a bit silly. Like, Lisa would give you the normal supplements for the day and you would tell her that she was a great friend and that you couldn't repay her for her kindness. You did it more than once."

  Rick dropped his head into his hands. "Oh god. I guess it could have been worse, but..."

  "I thought it was sweet, actually. But it does make thanking her now a bit funny." Melissa smiled at him and rubbed his shoulders and back. "She came all the way out here to help you. Don't get yourself worked up about that sort of thing."

  "Yeah, I guess you're right."

  Melissa leaned closer and lowered her voice. "There is a little bit of tension between the two of you, though. Do you know what you should do?"

  "Don't."

  "You two should totally bang."

  "Har har." Rick pushed her head away and ruffled her hair. "Don't joke about that while she has a boyfriend. I screwed up enough with her, I don't want to be an asshole."

  "Oh, but she doesn't have one right now." Melissa regarded him so seriously that he wondered if it was a joke, but her expression remained somber. "I guess I shouldn't talk about her life. But seriously, don't worry about any of that. Actually, you should ask her to give you a lucrim massage. When I touched your shoulder earlier, it was super, super stiff."

  "Well then, I guess my shoulders should bang."

  Melissa laughed and for a while all was right with the world. By the end of the day, some of the trembling and craving returned, but he'd gotten an excellent day of training in meanwhile. Just going through all the old exercises without any distractions helped him immensely to remember the proper forms even when the withdrawal hit harder.

  Soon, however, he would be out of time. Every message from H was getting more urgent and Rick was starting to worry that his mentor - his former mentor - would come to drag him back. He'd been given the location of the immortals' battle, which fortunately wasn't absurdly far. Apparently it would take place at one of Josiah Craw's estates, this one deep in the American South.

  One day Melissa skipped into his room with a large brown package. Rick was puzzled until he saw that the return address was the office of the Peakless Wildlife Refuge. Melissa beamed as she handed it over.

  "I got responses from them, but I was keeping it a secret! I don't know exactly what they sent, but I'm sure it will be able to help. So come on, unbox this stuff!"

  Rick opened the package and removed the protective wrapping. Though the interior was nothing special, it was clearly divided into three different compartments. The largest one had some sort of... fuzzy ball? When he picked it up, puzzled, it was shockingly soft in his hand, but he wasn't sure what it was supposed to be.

  "There's a letter here..." Melissa picked it up, then giggled. "Apparently that thing is from the tail of something called an 'elysian rabbit' and it's supposed to reduce the stress from lucrim-based conditions. So it's a bunny stress ball. Isn't that hilarious?"

  "Uh, no." Rick's eyes were wide as he felt his fingers squeeze into it. "This thing is actually amazing. I don't know how it works, but the rabbit's fur must channel aura or something. I was feeling way more jittery before."

  "Are you pulling my leg? Give me that, if this thing is... oh my god, that's amazing. Getting an elysian rabbit is now officially one of my goals. I know you need it, but this fluffy is mine for now. You'll have to content yourself with the other presents."

  "I think I'll manage." Rick started by taking the letter, reading over it quickly. As he'd expected, the ball was a gift from Wemilat, who went on to emphasize that the fur had been harvested humanely from a rabbit that had died of old age.

  Setting it aside, he moved to the next compartment. Adsila had given him several vials that she explained had been developed from the jackalope extract he'd helped them with so long ago. It would allegedly improve his offensive core, which frankly needed the help.

  The third compartment contained a dark brown flask. Rick picked it up carefully but didn't feel any power. He assumed it was a gift from Delsin, but there was no explanatory note. As Rick unscrewed the lid and sniffed it, Melissa finally took note.

  "What's that, some sort of special elixir?"

  "Not sure." Rick took a sip and immediately coughed violently. "Nope, it's whiskey."

  "Well then, I guess he wants you to replace your power addiction with alcoholism. Seems like wise mentorly advice to me!"

  After Melissa left, Rick paced for a while. Squeezing the stress ball actually did help reduce the tension inside him, though mostly it only made him realize just how much of it he'd been carrying. Part of the problem was that this time, he wasn't trapped between an enemy and a wall. For everything to work out, he needed to walk back into danger.

  While he was shoving food into his mouth for dinner, Katenka emerged across from him. She hadn't been present for a few days, but judging from her expression, she had good news. "Bftgage and Ythsil are doing well. They're vomiting all sorts of colors worrying about your fight, but I convinced them that it would be better for them to focus on the future."

  "That's probably for the best. How did the bond thing land with them?"

  "We still need to actually
set it up and clear some hurdles, but those who heard about it were enthusiastic. This could work..." Katenka trailed off, her pale eyes meeting his. "If we survive this conflict. Well, if you survive, but I don't want to see any of you hurt."

  Rick couldn't help but smile. "Have I softened the demon's heart? Melted the cold ice of-"

  "Oh, you're so funny. But really, you don't see this sort of thing in the Burning Snow or in Siberia. People might be loyal to their family, but very rarely beyond it. For all that you complain about how your society pits people against each other, it can produce real unity as well."

  "This time, I'm not going to argue with you." Suddenly no longer hungry, Rick set down the meal bar and took a drink of water. "Thank you, Katenka. If I didn't thank you while I was unconscious already. I wouldn't have been able to do this without you."

  "I just hope that you can do the rest. Call on me if things get bad. Any lucrim you borrow from me, I promise that you won't regret it."

  So now he was accepting promises from demons. Strange how his life had changed. Rick was about to say more when there was a knock on the door. Katenka glanced toward it with a slightly unusual expression, then vanished.

  As it turned out, it was Lisa. She carried a bottle that gleamed a dull gold, which surprised him. "Uh, hi. Can I come in?"

  "Sure." Rick guided her in and closed the door. "What is that?"

  "This is Formula T completely purged of the addictive component. Now, personally, I wouldn't advise that you take this, because it could still form a habit and it's relying too heavily on outside sources of lucrim. But... given upcoming events, I thought... well, if you need an extra boost, it's here."

  He almost thanked her before remembering himself. "That's very kind of you. I'm... sorry that I'm always running straight into these things."

  Lisa smiled sadly at him. "But I suppose you'd be bored with a more normal life, huh?"

  "Actually, no. Being in the Showdown, I've seen so much striving... I want to keep working and I don't think I'd ever be happy as an accountant or something. But I don't want to live throwing myself constantly into danger, never connecting with anyone. It's impossible to build anything that way."

  "Huh." She regarded him thoughtfully, her smile submerged. "It seems you've been through even more than you've told us. I'd... like to hear even more about it, when you have time."

  "Yeah, maybe we could." Rick looked down at the bottle in this hands, then handed it back to her. "I don't think I should take any more of this, but I do have another use for it. How much do you have? Can you send some with me?"

  "Oh, I purified it all. Sure, I can send some."

  "And... you've been offering a massage for years, but I've never taken you up on it, except that one time I was unconscious. But, uh, I think I could use it now more than ever. If that's okay."

  "Of course." Lisa smiled surprisingly broadly, then turned away. "Why don't we get started?"

  Rick had been afraid that having her touching his back would be awkward, and there was certainly something sensual about her skilled fingers working over his muscles. But as she massaged his back, he realized just how much tension he was carrying. Not just during the brutal period of withdrawal, but from years and years of that life.

  Setting everything else aside for the moment, Rick relaxed into the warmth.

  ~ ~ ~

  Rain battered the top of the skyscraper and Rick wasn't himself. He could feel the rain stinging against his bare back and the aura pulsing through his body, but something was wrong.

  Something was very wrong. Part of him knew that this couldn't be real, but he didn't remember why that mattered or what reality really was. He knew that if he looked up, he would see someone on the other side of the roof, yet he kept his eyes closed. What was the essential thing he needed to remember?

  The Dark Blood Kettle surged within him and suddenly the fragments of memories filtered back. This was a dream. Of course it was, it was exactly the same dream that had gotten him into the mess. Around him, the city lights and then the skyscraper began to go out, dissolving into the shadows of pure unconsciousness.

  As his mind cleared, he realized something more important: if the Dark Blood Kettle could react to the dream, it was a lucrim technique. Not a mystical dream, or prophecy, or destiny. He'd been confident that it was just manipulation from Alger, but this confirmed it. In fact, it suggested that the man might be getting desperate, using another dream to try to lure Rick back in.

  When he woke up, the room was still dark, but he felt surprisingly rested. More than that, he felt strangely settled, the complete opposite of the disturbance he'd felt after the first dream. It was just another trick.

  More than that, he was suddenly aware of just how many people had helped him. Not to gain something from him or to force him into a specific role, but because they were his friends and allies. For a long time, he'd been struggling alone against a hostile world. That was no longer true.

  There was no point trying to sleep further, not when he was so awake. Rick got his phone and checked his portfolio after all their work.

  [Name: Rick Hunter

  Ether Tier: 10th

  Ether Score: 547

  Lucrim Generation: 99,100

  Enhanced Generation: 256,100

  Current Lucrim: 22,125]

  [Rick Hunter's Lucrima Portfolio

  Dark Blood Kettle Foundation: 25,200 (Lv VII)

  Triune Golden Spheres: 157,000

  - Defensive Sphere: 54,000

  - Absorption Sphere: 51,000

  - Sensory Sphere: 52,000

  Offensive Lucore: 15,400 (Lv X)

  Defensive Lucore: 41,700 (Lv XII)

  Bunyan's Step: 16,800 (Lv X)

  Demonic Fusion (Katenka): 33,000 (Stage I)

  Graham's Stake: 49,650 (Lv IV)

  Economic Bond (Bftgage & Ythsil): 2300 (Stage II)

  Total Lucrim: 184,050

  Enhanced Total: 341,050]

  Though the Triune Golden Spheres had diminished slightly due to everything he'd done, he felt good about the rest. His Bunyan's Step and offensive Lucores had finally broken through the barrier to being classified as Level X, and he felt the difference. Despite still falling beneath six digits without his bond or Spheres, he wasn't the fighter he'd been a month ago.

  When Melissa and Lisa came to check on him, he'd already finished breakfast long ago and was going through final polishing exercises. Melissa raised her eyebrows, noticing the difference immediately. "Did you get called to the fight?"

  "No, but it's time to go." Rick stood up and smiled at both of them. "Melissa, can you get me another of those void elixirs? I also need a void flame... as big of one as you think is safe."

  "You got it, bro!"

  Lisa, meanwhile, watched him thoughtfully. "Are you doing this alone?"

  "Mostly. Melissa... I'll depend on your void flame, but I think you might want to stay back for this." He met her gaze and an unspoken understanding passed between them. "But Lisa... would you be willing to do something for me? Something that shouldn't be dangerous even if this goes bad."

  "And do you think this will go bad?" Lisa asked. Rick had to shake his head.

  "I hope this will end without any violence at all. But I don't expect it."

  Chapter 48: The Immortals' Tournament Begins

  There were two constants: the whirring of the helicopter blades and the angry admonitions from H. Rick simply sat in his seat, looking out the window as they neared their destination.

  H was saying all the same things he'd heard before: that Rick's discipline was lagging, that he'd be left behind other fighters, that family matters needed to be managed, that he needed to decide if he wanted to be in the Showdown at all. Now that Rick was certain that H was merely one of Alger's tools, none of them stung. Part of him wanted to just bluntly ask the other man exactly what he'd been ordered to do, though of course he kept his mouth shut.

  Though Rick had expected a city at first, as they passed o
ver empty southern plains, he realized that of course Josiah wouldn't live near anyone else. As the helicopter began flying lower, he saw nothing but a single highway stretching forever in both directions, surrounded by desolate fields. Not even the crops Rick was used to, but patchy gray and brown wasteland.

  Finally something else came into view: an isolated bus station. For about a mile around it, there were street lamps, a few still flickering in the morning shadows. Just as those began to disappear behind them, he spotted it: an enormous mansion off the side of the road. The driveway out to the mansion looked half a mile long and it was all finely ground rock.

  "Almost here." H finally stopped his ranting to turn back to him. "Take off that stupid jacket and put on a proper combat suit before we land. You'll be representing Josiah in his own home, so you need to put in a good appearance as well as a good fight."

  Rick cooperated, carefully removing his favored red jacket. It had been a comforting bit of familiarity, but it wasn't what mattered. He slid it into his backpack along with the other things he'd prepared. If they were searched, he might have a problem, but it all should be explainable enough.

  His fingers twitched, wishing for the elysian rabbit fur Wemilat had sent. Bringing it along would have reduced his stress, but he didn't want to risk losing it. Most of what he carried was the modified Formula T, plus he had a vial of Melissa's void elixir in his pocket. That would have to be enough.

  As they landed beside the mansion, however, there was no sign of any guards. Rick did spot servants in archaic uniforms moving around closer to the house and in the garden. Past them, he saw a pool surrounding an octagon of stone in the center: no doubt a traditional combat ring. So that was where the fights would take place.

  "Yo, Rick! You're finally here!" Raggest burst out from the front of one of the mansion doors, rushing toward him. "I thought you weren't going to make it!"

  "He nearly didn't." H managed to halt Raggest's charge with a concentrated glower. "I don't want you to distract him with any hare-brained schemes. We need time to prepare."

  "Naw, I'm sure Rick has been training. Besides, I think now that he's here, we're probably going to get things started pretty soon. Everyone is bored of eating and staring down each other."