Macronomicon
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Chapter 112: Brain Leech Hunting
🕑 Added 2020-02-18 23:39:31 +0000 UTCAlright Karen, try this one on for size. Calvin said, touching the Puppet component behind his back.
The goop exploded around the blonde-haired Legend, the catalysts evaporating instantly as it sank into her skin.
Karen glanced down at the sheen of residue on her arm, and raised a brow.
Was that it? She put her sword casually over her shoulder as she approached. Ive taken more damage from a fart.
Calvin put his hand over the shrunken Husker brain and started sending delicate strands of Bent looping through it. Now that the Husker extract had permeated her flesh, he could use the brain to control her with Bent, like a puppet. Hence the component name.
Karen stiffened as Calvin ran Bent through the shrunken brain.
Yes, its working!
Caster was unable to penetrate Ability: Strength of Will.
Shit!
Something had to be happening, though, because Karen opened her mouth and began shaking like shed been-
Achoo! She sneezed violently.
Whoo, boy, whatever you did bugged the hell out of my nose, She said, violently wiping her nose and squeezing her eyes shut.
What in the Abyss is Strength of Will? Calvin demanded.
Its Ability from Toughness that lets me use Endurance in place of Stability to resist hostile spells. Karen said, itching her nose. You like it?
No. No I do not. Calvin said, moments before she cut him in half.
Calvin opened his eyes in the real world, and glanced at the Puppet component in his hands. It was a clear glass vial with two distinct parts.
Compressed Husker extract mixed with the crystalline catalyst and a few blood extracts that allowed the liquid to permeate organic materials incredibly fast on one side, and then there was the much smaller side, the knobbly, textured end to tell Calvins fingers where the brain was.
Shoot the extract with dupdomancy, then puppet whatever it hit with the brain. Simple
Except I havent been able to get a good test. Calvin mused.
Maybe you shouldnt try it on someone who obviously wields godlike power. Seriously, is Karen tenth Break, or what?
Eighth, I think, with a lot more practical experience than us. Besides, shes a good benchmark.
If the benchmark was resistance is futile.
True. Lets try it on some people who arent quite so resistant. I do want to see how this works. If it can work at all.
Calvin closed his eyes.
Someone partway between Karen and an average person.
Nadia sound good?
Im game.
Calvin appeared standing in the forest, Nadia before shed been killed backing away from him as her disguise was broken.
How do you even know where I am? The girl demanded, sliding into view, light lapping against her skin like the waters edge.
Its the smell, Calvin said, mimicking his original response to the girls question.
Calvin waited placidly for that to sink in. The princesss eyes widened, just like they had the first time, and she let out a growl before charging toward him, slipping into the edges of the light lapping at her sides and vanishing from sight.
Calvin followed her movement easily with his Tarka skin and the ability to feel her gaze, then, as she rushed him invisibly from the left, he thumbed the Puppet component.
Shaping.
The Husker cocktail exploded around Nadia, and she tumbled onto the ground, sprawling in a pile of undergrowth, spitting out Husker juice and leaves.
What in the Abyss did you just do? she demanded, then frowned. My tan fees nam.
Calvin put his fingers on the pebbled side of the vial, sending strands of Bent from the tips of his fingers to exert control over her body via the connection between the husker brain and the gunk shed been sprayed with.
Ah! AAAH! Nadia shouted as her limbs began twitching on the ground, flopping out from under her.
Thats the same problem I seem to have every time I do this. I have to relearn to control the object or person in question.
In this case, it wasnt quite long enough, as Nadia started to break free from the control in a matter of seconds, her limbs jerking as she put them underneath herself.
Kneel!
Calvin sank to his knees as the Skill overwrote his Stability, but this time, his Will ate through the control in under five seconds.
Shaping.
Another splash of Puppet washed over Nadia, forcing her back to the ground, and there the two of them stared at each other as they ever so slowly climbed back to their feet.
Nadia opened her mouth to speak.
Shaping.
Calvin created a ball of the gunk inside her mouth, causing her to retch and spit violently before looking back up at him with a furious glare.
She opened her mouth to speak again, and Calvin took control of her mouth in the few moments he had before she shrugged off control again.
Nadia tried to say something, but Calvin flopped her tongue up and down, forcing her to say lalala over and over again.
Heh, Calvin chuckled as her eyes became bloodshot, glaring at him with a strange mixture of enjoyment and total fury.
Calvin was entertaining the idea of animating her leather clothes separately and peeling them away one at a time, when an enormous proboscis slammed into the back of Nadias skull, causing the Shadowboxing created princess to twitch violently.
Calvin followed the dark, slimy red tube up to the light blue, shuddering, wormlike creature emerging halfway out of the huge tree. There was a crack, and Nadias shuddering stilled as a lump began traveling up the disgusting tube, her cheeks hollowing as her insides were literally sucked out.
The Brain Leech.
How the hell is it here?
Doesnt matter! EJECT!
HOW THE HELL IS IT HERE!?
Calvin felt a pain in the back of his neck as a weight drove him to the ground.
STOP SHADOWBOXING.
***
Calvins eyes flew open and he surged forward, the Puppet component flying off to the side with a clatter as he scrambled to his feet, heart trying to burst through his chest. Every single hair stood up at once as Calvin slid his fingers over the back of his neck.
Nothing there but a little sweat and a twinge of phantom pain.
What the hell was that? Calvin thought, panting as he looked around the Unqua tent.
There was nothing in Shadowboxing that wasnt under his control. It was the perfect safe place to practice his skills, abilities, and alchemy experiments
Or it was.
Calvins breath slowly calmed. Where had the leeches come from, and how had they gotten into Shadowboxing?
It was well known the leeches were capable of phasing.
Did they phase into Shadowboxing? That would imply that shadowboxing created a concrete place for them to phase into, didnt it? Or were they simply shifting from reality to idea?
Calvin had no idea, but the whole thing set the hairs on his arms and neck up.
What the Abyss. He muttered, grasping his forehead, before running a hand over the back of his neck again.
Still nothing.
Calvin decided to go outside, make sure the cavern was still warm and dry, his confidence in the strategy of being unpleasant for the creature to enter beginning to wear thin. All it took was one lapse and people would get eaten.
I think living down here is starting to affect me Elliot?
Yeah?
No snarky comments?
Sorry, I was just changing my pants. Im back now.
There was a series of clicks and scratches in the back of Calvins mind.
I um cant figure out why that happened, and it spooks the shit out of me. Shadowboxing is a simulation run by the users Mind. To get into shadowboxing, the creature would have to access your Mind directly.
Elliot. Answer me honestly. Are we inside a Brain-Leech right now?
No. No, definitely not, as I would have moved on to the next body, but something is really, really screwy here.
Calvin stepped out of the unqua yurt, into the cramped cave filled with the sounds of laughter and industrious Knick-knacks. He looked around for any sign of the corpulent creature phasing through the walls.
I need a solution to this.
As far as I can tell, nobody should be able to access shadowboxing without your permission by default. Inherently.
Calvin snapped his fingers, having come to a solution.
Ill just kill every last one of the fucking things. Problem solved.
Really? When theres every possibility this is a glitch from your last encounter with one and not an actual brain-leech?
I dont know what a glitch is, but theres no better solution than killing the problem.
Come on, man, we talked about this.
You work the glitch angle and tell me if you find anything. If you dont find anything, then we have to assume actual Brain Leeches are roosting in ShadowBoxing, and we need to exterminate them.
This is crazy.
Those things interrupted me making Nadias leathers peel away on their own! Calvin thought with a clenched fist. Their suffering will be legendary!
And they scared the crap out of you.
Nobodys admitting to that.
Calvin touched his neck.
Still nothing.
***
Im not a huge fan of this idea. Elliot said as Calvin settled back into a crosslegged posture.
Oh, and you think I am? He thought, closing his eyes. Just be ready to pull me out instantly if we pick up right where we left off.
Dont you worry, Ive got my fingers on Control Alt Delete as we speak.
Shadowboxing.
Calvin opened his eyes and he was on the platform.
With a mental tug, Karen appeared on the platform in front of him.
Ah, nice choice. Bring out the big guns.
What the? she frowned, glancing around the platform before her gaze landed on him. In the blink of an eye she was looming over him, the tip of a blade pressed to his throat.
Who are you and what are we doing here? she asked.
Im Calvin, this is a spell, Im hunting imaginary phasing monsters and could use your help.
Calvins intention was to get practice killing them in Shadowboxing before he did it alone. Even though they posed a real danger in Shadowboxing, it was still safer than doing it in person.
Calvin? she asked, frowning and stepping away from him, looking him up and down. Well, you got a little taller. Its about time. I didnt recognize you with the tan and the circles under your eyes.
It happens, Calvin said, scanning the ceiling. Listen, Im not sure well have a lot of time to catch-URK.
Karen pushed him to the ground and batted away a proboscis that seemed to come out of the air.
Calvin rolled to the side and watched as Karen took a wild swing at the pale blue worm seemingly hovering in the air. Karens sword passed through it a fraction of a second before it flickered, and ceased to exist, like an ilethan light illusion.
No blood. Damn. Karen said, poking the floor with her toe. Looks like youve got a mockingbird problem.
A what?
Its my old teams codeword for a creature or person that is flighty. Really hard to hit, and tends to vanish between attacks.
Theres enough of them that you made a codeword? Calvin asked, holding out his hand.
Calvinian summoning.
Atom ant.
Several hundred fist-sized wasps burst out of the green smoke, searching for anything to kill that wasnt him or Karen.
Theres only so many basic ways you can fight, so we typify them into code words for quickl strategizing. She said, glancing at him, pointing a thick finger at his smoke disgorging wasps. For example, youre a royal with cheese.
Sounds like a burger.
Karen flickered, and Calvin felt something shove him aside.
An instant later she swung her blade through the space his neck had been, bisecting the proboscis. The worm reared away, but Calvin blinked when he noticed the red tube was still in one solid piece.
Thats weird, Karen said, looking at her sword. I felt it land.
Karen flickered again, and Calvin was violently knocked to the side.
This time he saw the red tube go through Karens blade on its own, the blonde fighter leaning out of the way at the last second before it attached to her face.
This thing really likes you, Karen said, glancing over her shoulder.
I know, Calvin said as he climbed to his feet. I wanna get rid of it.
Lemme try some dimensional fuckery. These things dont seem too smart. Dont move. Seriously.
The next time it came, Karen was ready. With a grunt, she unleashed a strike right over his head, her massive blade glowed for an instant with a radiance that dazzled Calvins eyes before it released a light-bending wave over his head.
There was a squelch, then a deafening explosion that Cal felt in his very bones.
Matter of fact, I feel that in my real body, too.
An identical screech echoed in Shadowboxing and the real world, overlapping each other perfectly.
Calvins eyes shot open, and he leapt out of his tent, scanning the ceiling.
Bluish, rubbery flesh was shifting in and out of the stone, riddling the entire cavern wall, until there was almost more blue flesh than there was stone. The leeches seemingly hesitated and pulled back as soon as they touched the warm glow emanating from Sals light fixture, but they were slowly beginning to press in.
One of the leeches was truncated, a bleeding stump where the proboscis had been.
Shit.
I think you pissed them off.
Comments
James Earl Givens
imagine if they're his next summon
William Brayer
You need some kind of ability or counter for melee types against spells or otherwise it's a glaring gap in one's defenses. I'd imagine that there is an ability for mages that let's them sub stability in place of endurance as well.
Elayda
Really, I am excited to see his abyssal alchemy used on them. Especially since it seems they can interact with his shadow boxing.
Nimps
He does have the ability to negate the brain penetration ability with heart of the swarm right? Or would they be able to hijack the connection with any of the wasps and royally mess him up?
Nimps
Oh damn man, I am bouncing on the edge of my seat. I am super excited for the next chapter and the fight with the brain leeches. I really hope, as some people have already mentioned, he takes advantage of shadow boxing to link the virtual with reality and do some serious damage to them. Especially since it will help him learn to fight them AND he can have multiple Karens!
Chris
Can he fight them in shadowboxing by summoning a lot of Karrons? Can he also use his spells like the mage flame? If the damage can be carried over I don't see why not. These brain leaches seem to have some sort of ability that carries over between reality and shadowboxing just wondering what he can make with their parts.
Macronomicon
Some days are a little off. I can do a scan through tomorrow morning.
David Burchfield
I don't know they seem like potential Calvinian Summons to me though I am not sure how much control he would have over them.
SunderGoldmane
If this is not what happens I’ll be very disappointed
Pastor Joubert
Ummm, this one was hard to read. Many typos/structure errors? or am I just dumb?
Anon
“It’s Ability from Toughness that lets me use Endurance in place of Stability to resist hostile spells.” That's some absolute bullshit right there. You've just completely removed one of the biggest advantages of being a mage with a single ability.
Rosnoc
Definitely think he needs to embrace the cheese. In his shoes I would hop into shadowboxing, make it an exact duplicate of his surroundings, then summon Karen for a trans-reality killing spree.
Anon
I think its Rufe who was fishing. Learner seem to view everyone who isn't Calvin as Prey.
Findell
Sounds like he definitely needs to pickup that language mind defending perk or he needs to power level beli ma until it’s strong enough to be that passive aura.
Chad B. Sonnen
Safest way to despatch that many brain Leeches is for Calvin to weaken or kill them one by one in shadowboxing, guessing that they compete with each other for who gets inside Calvin's head, otherwise they would have swarmed him from the start.
Who is Prey Who Pulls from the last chapter? The guy with the sling?
Findell
I don’t really get that one it’s a fast food something right?
Bbyh
"royal with cheese" is an excellent description.
0xFFF1
No, Learner is definitely the Fractal Mimic. Brain Leeches just aren't used to the idea of mortality, and the outrage might overpower their fear of light soon. Hopefully there was a reason for that fear and it wasn't just a psychological tic common to abyssals.
Findell
So a brain leech is the learner? Or is it something else entirely?
Alex k
Your dam right it is (but thanks for the chapter 8D)
Macronomicon
Sorry, felt like a cliff.
