"Oh, yeah. Don't worry about that scum." Mence gives me a million dollar smile and keeps walking.
I attach the bracer to my wrist and expect something to happen, but nothing does. "Hey, you said something about an ocular implant?"
"Yeah, it usually takes about twenty minutes for it to come online. It should be ready by the time we get to the wall." Mence tells me without looking at me.
"So, you never really answered my questions earlier. What about classes, skills, and leveling up? I really liked that purple lighting thing I did back there, I guess I am some kind of mage?" I ask.
Mence sighs, "Damn kid, you sure do ask a lot of questions. If it will make you happy we can assign classes. I guess I would be your tank, both Kit and I are Genetically Modified Cyborgs, which would be our race. My bones have been infused with titanium and space crystal. I can take a ton of damage and I'm as strong as ten men. Kit's DNA has been mixed with a few different feline species and parts of her have been replaced with robotic prosthesis. She is our rogue, most will never see her face before she kills them, as you almost experienced. The Alchemist is... I'm actually not sure what he is. Just a human I think, he is a bit of a mystery. I know he is probably one of the smartest people you will ever meet, and one of the most dangerous. He provides support with his potions, salves, bombs and whatnot. But, he can match damage output with the best of us."
Mence stops walking and everyone turns and looks at me. "Then there is you, kid. You are a Human-Crystalline Hybrid, first one try out this new type of race. All of us have some technology embedded in our bodies, the Collectors and Ocular Implants, but you and the Alchemist don't have enough technology in you to be considered cyborgs. You will be our glass cannon, I don't know the extent of your abilities, but if what you did back there is any indication, you will be a force to be reckoned with." Mence strokes Ibuki's head, and then get water bottles out and tosses one to everyone. The one he throws at me hits me in the face. "Sorry kid, don't fry me with your purple mojo." Mence holds his hands up in the air in surrender. "Where were we?"
"Wasting our time." Kit says draining her bottle and tossing it to the ground.
The Alchemist frowns, or I guess frowns deeper, and picks up her discarded bottle and walks it over to a trash bin. Kit rolls her eyes.
"The closest to what I would consider levels is called a Breakthrough. When we collect enough crystalline energy our bodies reach a threshold. Again, I'm sure I'm not explaining this the best way. I'm better at shooting stuff. It's like water in a dam... no that's not right. Um, how old are you again? Have you been with a woman... or a man, whatever way you swing? When you have the building of the man pleasure until you burst..."
"Jesus, Vehemence. You are horrible at this. Are you trying to have 'the talk' with the kid?" Kit looks slightly amused. "Did you really just say 'man pleasure'?"
"Incremental shift of the crystalline resonance on a cellular level resulting in varying degrees of mutation, mitochondria power output, stem cell regeneration, new neural pathways formed, and so on. Critical Mass reached around Break Ten." The Alchemist cuts in with an explanation.
"I guess that's one way to explain it." Mence chuckles.
"Gray." I say annoyed.
"What'd you say, kid? You're mumbling." Kit asks.
"My name is Gray. Gray Sky. Everyone keeps calling me kid." I say, trying to look dangerous. I force the purple electricity to crackle between my fingers, although I notice it was harder to make it manifest this time.
"Ha! Well... that's a new one. No need to get your panties in a bunch, kid. Having a nickname is a good thing, endears you to us." Mence grins at me.
I deflate, the power in my hands dissipates. "It's because of the color of my eyes. My mom said they looked like a gray winter sky."
Less then thirty minutes later we are standing in front of a massive metal wall. It is at least thirty feet tall. There is a gateway in front of us, large enough for two mack trucks to fit through, side by side.
"It was built by the original American Federal Government, before the collapse. Steel reinforced concrete, four feet thick." Mence tell me.
"Wow. I am really enjoying the lore of this game world." I say in awe.
"Anyway, if you need to piss or anything, do it now. Once we cross we may be in the shits for awhile." Mence says.
"Yeah, actually, I do need to go. They really went all out with the immersion. So does that mean that my real body needs to pee?" I ask.
"Yep. You signed on for a one year, full deep dive, you still have to do all of your bodily functions, eat, sleep, shit, rinse and repeat." Mence says as he approaches a smaller door off to the side of the massive gateway.
Walking around a partially destroyed Starbucks I find a spot to do my business. After I am done I turn around and I'm face to face with a woman. I almost yell out, but she raises a finger to her mouth for me to be quiet. She looks to be maybe half Japanese half Caucasian, about 5 '11, early twenties, long snow-white hair with straight bangs across for forehead. Her skin is pale, and there are a few freckles on her cheeks and nose. Her eyes are purple, like mine are, or at least I think they are like mine, I haven't found a mirror yet. She is wearing a long white trench coat over her black form fitting clothes. There is a katana strapped to her back. She is stunning.
"Who..." I begin to ask, but she stops me by reaching out and touching my forehead, right between my eyes. There is a small static charge and she shocks me. Just then my Ocular Implants come online. My eyesight turns blurry and then clears. The womans face shifts to a grotesque form and a red aura surrounds her, text appears above her head, but it keeps shifting between gibberish and strange characters. Then she shifts back to her pretty form and her aura is blue.
"What is her middle name?" She asks me, her voice sweet.
"I don't understand. Who are..." She looks behind me.
I turn to look and when I turn back she is gone.
"Who you talking to, kid?" Mence asks from behind me.
I jump, feeling strange. I turn around and see Mence standing there with his gun half raised. He has a blue aura around him and I see text above his head.
Vehemence - NRG - B15
"Your Ocular Implant kick on?" He asks me.
For some reason the hairs on the back of my neck stick up. Mence misses nothing. He saw my eye movement, and knew. "Yeah, you have a blue aura, and I can see your name above your head."
"So... I thought I heard you talking?" He asks, his gun still slightly raised.
"Uh, yeah, there was this woman with white hair, maybe Japanese?" I say.
"Fuck. Where did she go? Did she touch you?" Mence asks, his gun coming up higher, his eyes darting around our surroundings.
"I don't know, she just disappeared. What's going on? Who is she?" I ask, not liking this situation.
"Dammit, Gray! Did she touch you?" Mence yells at me. I can hear people running towards us.
"No." I lie. I'm not sure why I did, but I don't like the way that Mence is looking at me. I can see his visibly relax some.
"What's up, Mence? Ferals? Tweakers? Poachers?" Kit asks quickly, scanning the buildings around us, her claws out.
The Alchemist has glowing glass orbs in each of his hands, fiery-red colors swirl within them.
"The Ghost." Mence says.
Chrysalis: The Crucible of Immortality Book 2 Page 27
