[Kazume → Shane: Hey man, I heard from Jake you can give powers with wishes? My Elixir ability is supernatural luck. I'll give you a minute if you grant my wish for the best superpower you can.]
[Trade Request Created]
[Kazuma Will Pay
1 Minute Usage of Golden Elixir(The Fortunate Sun)
Shane Will Pay
1 Wish Usage: Optimized Ability creation]
[Shane has declined the trade]
[Kazuma: ??? why?]
[Shane: Not a high enough rank to grant powers yet]
[Kazuma: What else can you grant then?]
[Shane: Pretty much anything, items, world class mundane skills, just nothing too insane.]
[Trade Request Sent
Kazuma Will Pay
1 Minute Usage of Golden Elixer(The Fortunate Sun)
Shane Will Pay
1 Optimized wish for a stealth skill]
[Shane has accepted the trade]
Shane threw the cell phone to the side. Blinking he felt the violet power fluctuate then disappear as a single golden sigil engraved itself above his right wrist. The wishmaster really wanted to test this power out, but restrained himself. He'd rather use it for something useful like Benny's wish, if he changed the wording to something like 'I wish for a random power that is as powerful as you can possibly create, I'll pay with X Y and Z'.
He rose from the couch, and flicked through his scan ring sending a text to Benny. "Let's test my new scanbox, bring some gamer fuel." He really hoped Benny understood that, and did not take it literally. Because while Shane wasn't a high enough rank to give Benny his ability yet he could certainly help his friend build a strong foundation.
Something that could help his friend rise with him. Like Zeke was for his father. That was what Shane wanted, Jake was a practical stranger, and while he thought the guy could be a great friend they just hadn't known each other for long enough. Oh, and god he was going to have to apply at the Unity soon.
He didn't want another Cautious Man cell sent after him for any reason. Shane beat those memories back with a stick, and paced. That 1 minute of luck—he'd save it. For when he needed it, being lucky that was one of the better super powers he had heard about. Far behind his Wish—because he could probably manipulate luck too at higher levels—and Jake's 'transcendence' that thing was.
Shane didn't know what it was, it was everything. He saw everything from the moment she began training the skill. Watched as her father beat proper form into her, As she awakened her ability, and slowly nurtured it with every skill she bled for. Growing from a small girl into the beautiful powerful woman that he had learned about on the news. Nightstrike, and Shane could honestly say that after meeting her that fan-crush had evolved.
He was becoming what he hated, a simp. Chuckling to himself Shane sprawled across the couch. That transcendence was a lot, and he understood that Jake using it 24/7 was probably not healthy. He shook his head, not his problem. He had offered help, if Jake refused it that was his problem. You can only lead a horse to water, you can't make it drink.
Shane's "thinker" power activated, and he saw a dozen possible futures branch out before him. Following that information he rolled off the couch, catching himself with one hand, and flipping to his feet. God that Minor Gymnastics skill was baller. He wanted more stats, more skills, he wanted to be stronger so strong that that never happened again. So that if he was captured he could save himself.
Never be so helpless again.
Shane couldn't wait to test the limits of his wishmaster power, couldn't wait to make friends with the group chat members, become someone worthy of myth and legend. Become Ascendant.
[Zorian: Hey, Shane right? My name's Zorian and I was wondering if you'd be willing to help me save the world.]
[Shane: ???]
So Zorian explained. Shane thought about it, while he might not get as many stats if Zorian's world wasn't a time loop. . . stats were stats, and Shane needed to rank up. If he reached G-rank he would be able to Ascend Benny, able to protect himself. So Shane waited at the door for his best friend to arrive.
When Benny did he shooed him in, She needed to understand his wish power better. Needed to be better than he was.
—
Jake blinked as he returned to the stump in the exact same place. The beautiful woods surrounding him, and the desecrated corpses he left of their ambushers. One was cut down the middle, his steel armor bisected like butter. Another was bright red and discolored white. The man had started to both steam and melt before he died. The last, well, wasn't that special. Just a corpse, Jake glanced away from them, but his sphere couldn't ignore it.
Then Jake wanted to slap himself, he had accepted the skill but never allocated his free stat points. He split them evenly between perception and wisdom—a stronger bloodline and more mana was always good in his books. His sphere expanded another meter than two, and he smiled.
This feeling of improvement, the growth through slaughter, everything about it spoke to him. To be able to grow by destroying others, it was intoxicating. After resting at Shane's place for a few days he felt much better too, his Jake Juice had started to regenerate. He was thrilled having pushed it so hard he felt that strange unmentionable energy inside of him start to regenerate faster.
He just had to keep practicing, Jake could feel it in his gut, his abilities would keep growing. Growth, strength, improvement. He wouldn't be a weak failure that ruins everything anymore. Not a fucking failure. Not him. So he put on a smile, and started to stretch. Jake hummed wildly, "If it's that easy to make water—" So he shifted his hand to shadow copying Calie's power.
God he hoped that Shane and her would get together. They were practically made for eachother—well literally if he still believed this was all some novel. Both had daddy issues, both were talented, and Shane already had a crush on her. So it should work! Jake's eyes flicked to his level, and he realized that it wasn't anywhere near enough. At 10 in race he'd evolve and be able to sense mana without needing to use his transcendence.
At 1000 he'd be a god.
Jake allowed his shadow hand to flow like water, then he tried to purify it. Somehow shadow + Aqua's purification cycle = light. Jake returned his hand to flesh, and shook it out. Alright, that's cool. Cool, his mind returned to the spell he bought from the system shop. The knowledge was engraved in his mind, and as he cast it he felt his transcendence try to trace the spell back to it's origin.
Infinity.
An infinite expanse of things, a beginning to all, a Root. The Root of existence, one of them at least. Then his gaze failed, and he had to wipe blood from his nose. A cursed, "Motherfucker!" had him focusing again. He needed to learn how not to do that, or at least when he realizes a mystery is too high for his current level to step back instead of smash his head into it.
Reinforcement is improvement. It is the conceptual improvement of another concept. A knife becomes a conceptually better knife. It will cut better, and at higher levels can cut other things. Time, fate, karma, life, all the important things. Jake wanted to throw himself back towards the root, and he finally understood why every Magus is obsessed with it. A single glance and he could make anything better as long as he is wielding it, what would a second give.
Could he create something from nothing, or step between universes. The possibilities were endless. Still he forced himself to glance away from that. Jake let his mind wander back towards the mana bolt skill, if he simply poured more mana into the same area it would probably be better. Turning his bullets into spheres, compressing those spears and explosive releasing that pressure as a beam—the same thing he did with the water back on Calus.
No then it's just a stream again. How about a bomb instead of a bullet. Make the arrow into a small grenade. Hollow out the interior of the bolt while reinforcing the walls, fill it with mana and compress that. Fuck, he didn't know how to turn mana into fire. That crimson destruction flashed past his mind and he drew on the barest hints of understanding. Flicking the newly formed spike at the nearest tree is didn't so much explode as shatter.
The bullet pierced into the tree before releasing the light pink energy, that energy raced up the rest of the tree consuming and destroying it before eventually blinking out of existence.
Jake just clicked his tongue and started again—not enough. How would that scratch the Fallen King? How would that pierce a dragon's scales? It wouldn't so he started again, redesigned the bullet and fired, again, and again, and again. Eventually the sun rose, and another group of tutorial initiates walked up. Oh right, Jake had forgotten, this was when he and the group split up. He just shrugged, Jacob would deal with it.
He just waited for his mana to regenerate while meditating. Still his sphere watched them, saw the subtle aggression shown towards his groupmates—well this was a chance to get closer to Jacob, and Casper even if he would be leaving after. When his mana capped out, and the leader of their group—let's call him Mc. Assface—turned his gaze to Caroline.
She was their group's healer, and if there was anything Jake knew from MMO's it was that you need to protect your healer. He rose, after he opened his mouth to demand Caroline join their group Jake struck. His 'strike' was a simple yawn. That had Assface's head turning towards him.
"Whopie a tinpot dictator, it only took," Jake glanced at his wrist, "A day, damn man you work fast."
An arrow was loose towards his chest, but Jake just yawned a barrier of mana blocking the arrow. Jake returned fire, and the light pink destruction raced across the man's body before he fell over. Still he was breathing, Jake raised a single hand and said, "A little trigger happy aren't they. Hey Caroline—heal him please." Jake pointed and met the tinpot's eyes. God his life had been constant violence for a while at this point.
He really wanted an alchemy break, he just had to find a single tree in a forest. Oh and not reach level 10 before getting there. Him and Tinpot kept eye contact until the man nodded, and the rest of his people lowered their weapons. Caroline then rushed over hands glowing golden—a skill he copied—healing the man's wounds.
"I don't know your name, I don't care." Jake responded cockily, "I'm going to leave them with you, but remember if you don't fuck around you won't have to find out."
Jake turned and walked away, Casper yelling a "Jake! Why are you leaving?"
"MAGIC!" Jake laughed, "No risk no reward my friend!"
Then another arrow flew at his back, and Jake spun a shield manifesting as a blade of water extended from his hand. Then he swung, and right before impact infused the pink light into the water. The blade collapsed, exploding forward with a shotgun blast of acidic knives. Half cut into the archer's chest like flaming daggers melting flesh as he screamed. The rest flew into the woods—he got 2 kill notifications. The human, and a random rabbit.
He started walking away again.
One more fucking arrow and he was just going to kill them all.