Lukas didn’t know if it wasn’t the same for the Soul Pillar or if Lady Silverspine’s magic had made the Shard of Duplication special. He woke up two days after Penelope’s ritual, feeling significantly better than before.

The man in the mirror was barely recognizable. The gaunt, discolored body from probably years of malnutrition and neglect was gone. Lukas looked and felt healthy for the first time since his arrival in Fracture. Colors were more vivid, and the wood grain underfoot was coarse, his body light and strong. Stamina no longer seemed a major shortcoming or limitation.

As expected, the Shard of Fluid Mass had offered Lukas three options.

Modify Mass(Body): Increase your body mass for improved strength and toughness at the cost of speed and flexibility. Decrease your body mass for increased agility, flexibility, and speed, but become fragile. You will suffer no other physiological problems or limitations because of the altered mass.

Aura of Fervor(Heart): Gain an aura that affects the hearts of those around you or a focused target. Work them into a fervor, filling them with joy or passion, or take it all away, leaving them in a state of horror or dread. The effects will linger even after the affected have left the area of effect. Duration will vary from person to person depending on their emotional stability and psychic fortitude.

Phase Shift(Mind): Burn magic to become or make a held object intangible, granting it the power to pass through any and all matter. Once the ability’s target regains tangibility, all non-phased matter will be displaced around it. The cost of phase shifting increases with mass and density. Subsequent ability usage also ramps up the magic cost.

Unlike with the Shard of Duplication, the decision was a challenging one. As incredible as Aura of Fervor was, Lukas discounted it straight away. It wasn’t the kind of ability Lukas ever foresaw himself using. Mind Magic had horrified and disgusted him when he first transmigrated, even though it had incredible potential for assassination and espionage. His opinions on the matter hadn’t changed.

Lady Silverspine used to call his opinion on the matter stupid and the boundary moronic. However, she never forced it on him. In fact, she appeared to respect a man with a code.

Aura of Fervor didn’t give Lukas the creeps like some others he had encountered. It had decent potential in and out of combat and would be excellent for someone in a support role that didn’t use clones. He imagined a bard, entertainer, merchant, or politician would kill for such a shard ability, but not him.

It was Phase Shift that caused his dilemma. The ability to turn himself and touched objects intangible was an incredible gift. If Lukas had stuck true to any of his old careers, he would have killed for the power to turn intangible and walk through walls or let incoming attacks just pass through him. The offensive potential also seemed incredible. Lukas imagined phasing his arm through an enemy’s torso and then deactivating the ability. The act would likely displace all of their internal organs, bones, and flesh, instantly killing them.

Concerns regarding the magic cost gave him pause. The strength of such an ability lay in rapidly and frequently turning it off and on again. If the magic drain ramped up, it would frequently leave Lukas drained, and he wanted to conserve energy for spell casting. The skill ceiling on Phase Shifting also seemed high. If intangibility didn’t mean overcoming gravity, he’d be in trouble of falling through floors and possibly losing most of his senses while passing through large objects. Since the clones didn’t yet have the power to use skills, mastering the ability would be on Lukas alone. As a result, he went with Modify Mass in the end.

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It was the simplest of all the offerings but potent and versatile. Lukas didn’t have the Phaser's ability to turn invisible or absorb light, but he didn’t mind. A shapeshifting, were-form, or stealth ability that also came with passive enhancements would’ve been great for the clones. However, the mass shifting felt just as good. Lukas currently desired speed and agility more than anything, and he liked the bonus of potentially having more durable and stronger clones.

* Modify Mass: Tier 1 | Rank 1

* Arcane Clone: Tier 1 | Rank 9

Arcane Clone had come with the image of a shifting amorphous mass that was his soul. After gaining Modify Mass, a sliding scale appeared in his mind’s eye.

Lukas started by gradually moving it to the lowest end. There was a nominal magic drain and at first he didn't feel any different. Then he moved.

Even though his weight had significantly reduced, Lukas's strength and ability to exert force didn't seem to have changed. As a result, pushing off the ground for a simple step propelled him much farther. Push-ups and pull-ups were also easier since he had less weight to lift.

Lukas popped down to the courier office and delivered a handful of packages, too, jogging from pick up to drop off. He ran as fast as when under the shortsword's speed enchantment. The world didn't seem to slow, and he wasn't as surefooted, but he felt just about coordinated enough to not trip and fumble. Lukas believed he had the Body Pillar's awakening to thank for that.

During the third delivery, Lukas got greedy and also activated the Haste enchantment. The speed left his heart racing, and goosebumps covered his skin. Everything blurred, and his eyes stung from the cool sea air washing over them at high speeds. It felt like he was flying. Lukas had moved at similar speeds before, but it was using Body Reinforcement Spells. They came with magic drain and mental strain.

Shard Abilities were different. Lukas was light. He felt free.

Unfortunately, the joy and elation didn’t last for long. The fun and games ended when he turned a tight corner at a watering fountain for beasts of burden and accidentally kicked the stone slab it sat on.

Thanks to the reinforced steel cap, his toes and foot didn't break. However, a painful shock pulsed up through the ankle and all the way to the knee. It felt like he had been stabbed by several electrified icepicks. The pain was so intense tears filled Lukas's eyes, and he had to sit down. Retching followed. The discomfort only faded when he moved the slider to the central point and even more when he pushed it to the other end.

I'm not just physically fragile. Pain tolerance is down too.

The transition reminded him of climbing out of a pool after a long swim or frolicking in the water. His body was heavy. Each step wasn't laborious or draining but took more intent and time. The effects of gravity on his body had increased, and Lukas could feel it. Much to his relief, he wasn't comically slow.

Even at a jog, he was only half as fast as when at his original weight. He could feel power bubbling under the surface. The lightness and agility of his low-mass state were gone, but he compensated with rapid acceleration for brief bursts of speed.

Lukas threw a few punches when passing through an empty alley. Someone had left old furniture sitting against the wall, and he couldn't resist. His fist flew struck like a sledgehammer, breaking through a heavy hardwood wardrobe’s door like it was a paper screen. Subsequent blows proved just as effective, and a kick shattered the side and knocked it over.

Lukas returned the slider to the neutral position for the rest of the delivery and journey to the inn. There was no constant drain. The ability continued to consume only a trickle of magic when he moved the slider.