The plan so far had gone smoother than I had ever anticipated. Eric, for the last three or so minutes, had done nothing but giggle at himself every now and then, completely lost in his own world. Molly had disappeared once she saw that her assistance was no longer necessary, but she made it very clear that I would owe her quite a lot later on. I had positioned myself directly underneath Eric - just a few feet behind him and well within striking range. All that was left was for me to wait for the last few seconds for the ritual to complete.

  “Get ready, my Host,” Noe warned, “I will activate the ability the second it is ready. Once you reveal yourself, the effects of the groveling title will be lost.”

  I nodded. I’m ready for anything Noe.

  “Activating…” Noe paused, “Now.”

  Okay, I know that I said that I was ready for anything, but perhaps not what I was currently undergoing. Dr. Walter’s body shifted and turned, and the cool lines covering my body, the ones that looked like molten lava, started to feel like it too. My body burned from within, and I had to rely on every ounce of willpower I had to stop myself from screaming. Holy shit, this was worse than what I experienced when I was literally burned alive.

  Noe, that pain-killer function of yours would be useful right about now.

  “This is the effect after utilizing that, my Host.”

  Ah, great…

  After what seemed like an eternity, the pain subsided enough for me to actually think semi-coherently, but it never dissipated. It felt like there was literal magma flowing through my veins, and it was not a pleasant sensation. Every move I made caused the stuff to slush through my joints and muscles, and no amount of Noe-induced dampening could stop the pure agony, but with the pain, I felt power. Maybe not power on par with what I felt during my short stint as a Xollon in its Prime form, but it was a hell of a lot better than my sub-par Secondary Form.

  The transformation process felt like it had lasted hours, but from the still confused expression on Eric’s face, only seconds must have passed. I was still hidden by Noe’s abilities, having used the last of the remaining points scrounged up in the few minutes Eric was lost in Wonderland, but it was my time to act. I didn’t have the time to figure out what my new form could do, nor did I have the time to experiment, so I didn’t aim to take the guy out. Instead, thanks to his idiotic blabbering, I aimed at the book he was holding. Let’s see what happens when an Aspirant loses this so-called artifact.

  The logic behind it was simple. I was currently on fire, or at least felt like it, and the last time I checked, books didn’t like fire all too much. Sure the book was from a god, but I’m going on the assumption that a divine book didn’t like divine fire either. My brain couldn't handle anything more complex than that at the moment. I leaped with every ounce of strength my tormented muscles could endure and pounced at the artifact, Superman style.

  The last Luck Charge I had remaining went up in smoke as Noe did her best to adjust my angle of approach, but it was enough. My fist landed squarely on the think spine of Eric’s stupid book and to his surprise and my own, a jet of superheated plasma erupted from my clenched hand. It vaporized the book along with half of Eric’s arm… and Eric’s barrier, and the trees in the distance, and anything else that got in its way now that I thought about it. Huh.

  Maybe huh wasn't the right expression…

  Eric was just as flabbergasted as I was, his mind so confused with the turn of events that he didn’t even register that his damned arm was missing. He noticed, however, when the sky split open and the rage of a god was felt a few seconds after he lost his book. Ah, that must be what happens when you destroy the artifact. The virtual image of the god looked like it was in the process of descending into the ground below and leveling the entire village; the wrath of the being was so tangible that the light around it was distorted. But it wasn’t over yet. A huge, ominous eye the size of the moon appeared in the goddamn sky and peered into this world, the gaze was full of indignation. I was afraid that this Thoth guy was going to come down and deal with the situation personally, and I wasn’t about to fight a god, at least not now.

  “I failed my god…” Eric muttered, “But it doesn’t matter! You will die along with me! Nothing can stop the wrath of Thoth now! He will descend and-”

  But just as quickly as that pressure came, it disappeared just as quickly.

  A huge hand that extended to the heavens came in and plucked the eyeball out of the sky before quickly mending the tear in reality.

  [Er, sorry Walter. I was going to tell you that I found out who Eric’s Sponsor was, but uh, I was distracted. I’ll get you caught up after. This guy messed up by getting so worked up, but let me handle this! Take care!]

  Uh... Okay...?

  “But…” Eric muttered from his prone position, “How…?”

  I walked up to the wounded Aspirant, just as confused as he was, but I did my best to hide that. Best to allow him to assume I had everything under control, even though I had no idea what the hell just happened.

  “I guess it didn’t work out as well as you thought,” I said, staring at his wounded figure. I was about to say something witty when lasers of energy shot out of my eyes and vaporized Eric’s other arm. Huh, I didn’t know I could do that.

  Eric’s screamed again. “Torture me all you want, you fucking filth. I knew you were scum!”

  I winced when I saw the new hole I made in his arm. I really didn’t mean to do that! Uh… Noe, any idea how to not kill anything I look or point at?

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  “I believe that your abilities are affected by your emotions. I will need more time to analyze your full capabilities, so try not to get too angry in the meantime.”

  I frowned. Is it only anger I got to look out for?

  Another zap from my eyes told me the answer to that, much to the unfortunate Eric’s displeasure. He found another hole in his body, this time in his left leg.

  “I believe that any strong emotion sets off those eye beams, my Host.”

  No shit, Noe!

  Eric howled as a third laser hit him on his other leg. “Fuck you, you sadistic bastard! You won't get anything out of my with torture! Kill me and get it over with! And you can’t even do the fucking deed yourself, you coward!”

  “I would stop looking at him, dear Walter,” Noe continued, “Unless your intention is to vaporize him slowly, in which case, please, continue.”

  Are you sure you don’t have a sarcasm Shard?

  “I am sure.” She answered... sarcastically.

  I sighed and looked at Eric (er, technically I was staring at the spot a few inches above his head). I could technically transform back to avoid this unnecessary risk, but I wasn’t sure if there was some kind of cooldown between uses of this new form, and frankly, I didn’t want to experience that sensation of being boiled alive from the inside again if I could help it. I was still in pain, no doubt, but that was nothing compared to the agony I experienced earlier.

  “Now what to do with you?” I muttered.

  Eric grunted as he spat out another mouthful of blood. “Wait, that voice…”

  Right, I had forgotten that he was still under the incorrect assumption that Dr. Walter was just some summoned construct. Guess it’s time to rectify that misconception.

  “Glad you remembered,” I answered, giving him my patented smile.

  “But-”

  “You thought I was only a brainless monster?” I asked, “Or that the illusion outside was the real Aspirant?”

  He frowned and stifled another grimace as he forced himself up a little to glance toward where Molly had been. Sure enough, there was no one there. Just looking at him stumbling in confusion gave me a perverse sense of satisfaction, and I couldn’t help but want to monologue to him about my plans. Hell, was this why those villains in the movies and such always did so? I couldn’t blame them, it felt good!

  “Then everything was-” Eric had to stop and cough, his body spasming in pain as he did so. “Everything was a setup?”

  I was about to answer when Noe’s voice interrupted me. “Be careful, my Host. I detect that Aspirant Eric is planning something, and he is merely distracting you with these questions. I would advise against going into an hour-long monologue about the brilliance of your plan. Please remember that it was mostly my ideas you were using.”

  Aw, and here I thought I’d get to have my mustache-twirling moment. But Noe’s right, there was no sense falling into the same trap I just set. As much as I wanted to find out exactly what it was like to be Sponsored by a god, especially from the Aspirant side of things, it was safer to end this farce before something went wrong, and with me, something always goes wrong. I held my hand up and felt the liquid pain course from my heart into my outstretched limb, primed to fire one of those superheated shots.

  “Please wait a moment, Dr. Walter,” A familiar voice interrupted.

  I turned around and saw Greta, she was still dressed in that flowery apron and looked rather out of place in this field of destruction.

  “Oh, hey,” I waved a greeting, careful not to vaporize the old woman with the gesture. “Fancy seeing you here. I thought you couldn’t leave the hut?”

  “This year’s ceremony has been unique, so the old restrictions are lifted for a time,” She gave me a toothy grin. “And I believe I have you to thank for that, doctor.”

  I raised an eyebrow but didn’t question it further. I was willing to bet that my transformation wasn’t the only thing that changed when I was up there burning. Hell, Noe used us close to a thousand Luck Charges during that process, so what changes she did was anyone’s guess.

  “Sorry,” I said quickly, “I hadn’t anticipated my involvement in the ceremony, at least not like that. I’m guessing there’s a lot of changes this time?”

  “That’s one way of putting it,” Greta chuckled. “Your presence here has helped more than you can imagine, but I never thought that you would be completely clueless about your latent bloodline. Still, it’s good to see that you’re not a stranger at all, it puts the others at ease to know a son of our Patron returning home after so long.”

  Er, once again, I had no clue what she meant by that, but I had enough context clues to at least go with the flow. I couldn’t destroy my illusion of a grand savior by asking questions that I should already have the answers to.

  “As the head of the Village,” the old woman continued, “I would like to offer my heartfelt gratitude. If there is ever something that you need, everyone here will be glad to assist in any way that we can.”

  I wanted to say something, but Noe’s voice cut through my thoughts. “Notification, my Host. You have obtained a new title. Do you wish to view it now?”

  In a sec, Noe. Thanks.

  I gave Greta a sincere smile. “Hey, like I said, I’m here to help. But speaking of help, why did you stop me from finishing off that outsider?”

  In my head, I added. Noe, would it be fine if we don’t kill him now? Won't we have to finish him off if we want to exit?

  “I have had sufficient time to break into the programming of this Trial; not completely, but enough to exert some control over its core functions. With only five current survivors, I can force the Trial to end with your victory.”

  Do I get the full rewards?

  “You will. The people lost in the woods will return to their own towns, but I can leave Aspirant Eric here if that is what is desired.”

  Awesome, thanks Noe, but hold up on ending things. Let me talk with Greta first.

  “Acknowledged, but please note that missions will continue to play out, and I cannot stall things for much longer without the Trash Matrix noticing. You have a few hours at most before I must act.”

  We turned our attention back to Eric just in time to see him take out an odd-looking device from his pocket. He pressed a button on the palm-sided thing and a glint of madness filled his eyes.

  “You’re not taking me with you!” He shouted with the last of his strength before throwing it at us.

  I almost panicked - what with having no Luck Charges left at all - and dove to the ground, but Greta just shook her head and caught the thing between her hands. She gave it a little pat and the thing disintegrated into powder. I didn't even get to see what it did, but the look in Eric's face made me think that it should have been something spectacular.

  “Now, now,” Greta said with a tut, “We can’t have you scaring the good doctor. Let’s take you back home. Do you mind coming as well? We can discuss things properly over some tea and coffee.” She picked Eric up like a sack of potatoes and smiled at me. “And as for your question, he will be necessary for the proper revival of the Protector, of your Mother.”

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