Time blurred after that. Days bled together in a haze of training and transformation. Griffith moved beyond purification and into refinement, casually remarking that his stamina was still rising, his Internal Force now permeating down into his bones.

So, there was that.

At this point, the Forces were beginning to sort themselves out in my mind. Natural Force refining the surface—the skin, offering increased agility through purification. Water Force, on the other hand, flooded the muscles with strength and accelerated regeneration. And Fire... Fire remained an enigma. One I still had to solve.

In the meantime, I doubled down on compressing my own arm, layering pressure upon pressure to balance the power in different ways.

Fortunately, I didn’t need to bother Luna for more details about the blood connection. Much like her, the roots embedded within me had stopped feeding as ravenously. After that first, brutal round of consumption, they became more manageable, more responsive to my intent.

It didn’t feel like they were alive, exactly. Not in a conscious sense. More like... well, more like training muscles to exhaustion. If they they weren't fed, the muscle would be too fatigued to move.

Before that initial push, the roots had merely drunk from me passively, like lazy vines surviving on instinct alone. But now, with focused direction, with purpose, they needed more. More effort. More fuel.

Still, it only took a few minutes before the dizziness would begin. That lightheaded, hollow sensation that came from giving up literal life-blood.

“I am a collection of monsters...” I muttered, a strange sort of admiration in my voice as I regarded myself.

From my point of view, Luna’s voice laced through my thoughts, you’re the monster.

I chuckled. Yeah, yeah. I’m a disgusting, squishy, fluid-filled meat bag. And you? A terrifying, venomous, blood-sucking flower of death.

There was a pause.

But I’m pretty, she shot back.

Couldn’t argue with that.

I returned to training without pushing the point. Luna helped when she could spare time from her own practice. And of course, I had to sit now and then to recover my stamina and... well, my vital juices.

During one session, I managed to replicate a brief but powerful sensation of balance. Real, full-body equilibrium, coursing through me via the Voidseed. It was growing, now about the size of... Is a baby apple a thing? Whatever. It would fit comfortably in the palm of my hand, is the point.

That’s when I noticed something that had probably been happening for a while, but only became apparent during these compression sessions. At one point, I swapped out my Neutral Force core for the Water Force core and there it was.

It was subtle, almost imperceptible at first.

But when the ice-like core nestled just above my Nexus, coiled gently in the grip of a shifting tentacle, the Water Force inside me became more assertive. As I guided my roots up my arm, the strain needed to balance Natural and Water diminished with the core there.

Good and bad. Less mental strain, but one more variable to track and adjust for.

Still, it hinted at something deeper. The core’s role wasn’t just as a battery or generator, or atl least not in a multi-attribute body like mine. No, it looked like the cores also helped determine which attribute took precedence. That meant they could subtly steer the flow of Force through me.

More testing was needed.

So, I gave the tentacles some instruction. I really needed to name the thing. He was more than just a bundle of squirming flesh tethered to a mini black hole.

To name so far: Snake King and Voidrace Boy.

Problem for later.

With Natural Force now dominant, I raised my right arm. A shard of ice formed at my fingertips, laced with flickering veins of power. It launched with a crackling hiss, embedding itself deep into the trunk of an unsuspecting tree.

One. Two...

CRAACK!

Splintering fractures raced through the tree trunk, rippling outward from the embedded shard like lightning frozen in wood, tiny micro-explosions cracking the heart of the timber.

Humans are truly terrifying, Luna said, awe threading through her thoughts. Animals, plants, even each other. You show no restraint. I admire your ruthlessness, Peter.

Her comment didn’t make me exactly comfortable, especially since this wasn’t the first time she had made jokes surrounding me killing things related to her. But well, she already mentioned many times that she didn't actually care. Though, I imagine if I addicted her actual species, the story would be different.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Not like you’re any better, I shot back.

I’m a good influence on you. That's all I meant, she replied, smug, before slipping back into her own training.

I rotated my core again, replacing the current one with the Water Force one, and channeling energy through my arm again. I did my best to maintain consistency as the Force shaped a new needle. A subtle adjustment in the pressure of my limbs then it formed.

I launched it. It hurtled toward a second tree, just as thick as the last. The impact was clean, and the needle sank deep into bark and heartwood.

I waited.

Cr-crack.

“Alright…” I muttered, eyes fixed on the spiderweb of fissures. I couldn’t help but marvel. It made sense, I guess. When Water and Natural Forces fused, they created something greater, more than the sum of their parts. But now, with the Natural Force core displaced from the Nexus-throne, the result was... diminished.

Still effective. Still powerful enough to splinter solid wood. But the cracks were fewer, smaller. The raw violence of the previous strike had been dulled.

It was a detail worth noting. Worth sharing with the others, assuming we ever figured out how they’d forge their additional cores, let alone how to move them around mid-use.

I sighed and let the thought go.

Morning had long broken by the time another session of purification and absorption left me drained and drowsy. When I stirred again, it was to heat. A heavy, pulsing warmth flaring beside me.

I blinked blearily to find Griffith standing near, his eyes locked on the trial unfolding just beyond us. A firestorm raged. Within it, two figures endured their trial by flame at the mercy of the dragon-snake. The slime companion was perched on the creature’s back, riding the coiled beast like some arcane observer, bobbing and shifting as if hunting for something.

“How long’s it been?” I asked Griffith, rising and brushing the dust from my clothes.

He rolled his neck slowly, each vertebra popping like distant thunder. “Longer than last time, but this is the longest time yet.”

I squinted into the roiling fire. “As long as I lasted?”

He shook his head and scratched at the back of his neck. “No… This time too, I think. It’s a—”

He cut off, gaze shifting. Actions spoke louder: Thea jumped from the flames, eyes finding mine even as Griffith looked away to give her a shred of privacy.

Not sure it was necessary anymore, but the gesture was nice. She probably did appreciated, and honestly, I did too. She wrapped herself again, body language radiating quiet disappointment as she walked toward us.

“Griffith said you lasted longer,” I offered, trying to lift her spirits, even just a little.

She nodded, but the frown held. Her brows stayed drawn, mouth downturned. “Yeah. I think there was something there. I was close. Really close. But…” She trailed off, shaking her head as if to dislodge the doubt.

I bumped her shoulder lightly. “If you’re getting closer, then maybe your theory about Spiritual Refinement holds up.”

She shrugged and leaned into me, the contact warm. “That, or I’m just getting used to being burned alive.”

Her voice was light, but when she looked up at me, something serious swam behind her eyes. I could tell that she wanted to say more, but the words never came.

“You—”

“FUCK!”

The voice cracked through the air like a whip. I blinked in surprise at Elric storming out of the inferno in full birthday suit glory, shouting louder than I’d ever heard him.

The dragon-snake ceased its fire in response, then dipped its massive head in my direction in what I’d come to recognize as a greeting. Afterward, it curled up lazily, as if the entire blaze hadn’t just happened, slime still riding atop it.

Elric didn’t even look at us. He marched past, face stormy, ash-streaked, and utterly bare, then dropped into a seated position and shut his eyes, chest heaving... His clothes lay untouched near him.

Thea’s gaze drifted away, lips twitching with the effort not to react. I walked over, struggling to keep a straight face.

“Elric, you—uh, you forgot something.”

“Nope,” he growled, teeth clenched. “Clothing is for the strong.”

Did I just short-circuit?

Wyrem? I called inwardly.

A sluggish rustle responded from within me as the worm stirred from its post-feast stupor. Yes? What is it? I'm still eating, so be quick.

Did you hear him? I asked, ignoring the snark.

He curled up again, already mentally checking out. Sure. I don’t get it either. That fabric stuff you wear always looks so constricting. Makes sense the weak-minded cling to it.

Okay. I didn’t imagine it.

“PFFT!” I collapsed, knees buckling as laughter overtook me. “That—that has to be—” A noise came from my mouth that was part wheeze, part roar as I doubled over. “MOST RIDICULOUS—!”

Another snort escaped before I lost all composure completely. Elric’s eyes snapped open, wide with shock, just in time to see me roll onto the ground, clutching my stomach.

“Get dressed, you idiot!” I finally choked out, half-sobbing through the laughter.

His eyes were wide. Shock running through them, but I couldn’t care less. I thought it was really bothering him before, but now? Now I knew he was basically just pouting. Maybe there was a mix of inferiority with his upbringing mixed in there, but this wasn’t that.

With a sigh, he reached over and grabbed his pants, pulling them on with grumbling reluctance. “Alright, cut it out already.”

I didn’t. Not for around a full minute. By the time I wiped the tears from my face, Thea had settled to my left. Griffith sat beside Elric, who was now rubbing his temples like he’d caught a headache from the entire ordeal.

“Finished?” Elric muttered, no longer angry, just exasperated.

I adjusted where I lay, shifting until I found a suitable pillow. This one reached down and took my hand as I rested my head. I smirked. “Sure.”

I felt Thea roll her eyes. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard you laugh.”

I tilted my head to look up at her. “What do you mean? I laugh all the time—”

“Not like that,” Elric cut in. “That was… new. Thought your brain finally broke. If you have like that, it hasn't been around us.”

I glanced at Thea, Elric, and Griffith. Their faces told me they agreed, but that couldn’t be right, could it? I’d laughed before. Even with Trevor…

Except that with him it had felt forced.

My fingers tightened slightly around Thea’s as she gave my hand a quiet squeeze, and just like that, the thought scattered.

“Guess you guys just aren’t funny enough.”