Chapter 405: Anything else? [2/2]
[No. You have to manually plant each mine before it can be recorded].
"Guess I should have expected that."
I turned to see the Siren fighting Robert. It was obvious that the Slayer was trying to reach me.
Lilly was using her {Fates} to keep him from leaving. Liv took the lead in blocking his pole arm while everyone else attacked him. I knew I had to hurry, but it would be wise to take the time to plan.
"Exa, can you get my soul avatars the ability to use {Fates}?"
[No. If you want to gain that ability, you have to level up the soulgear itself. As an original soulgear at level one. You can still upgrade it.]
"I see."
[In truth, I was going to suggest it to you myself. The current settings for {Day by Day} cannot be used if you do not upgrade it].
"Okay. How do I do it then?"
[You can do it similar to how you would upgrade a soulgem. Touch it and command it to evolve].
I removed the soulgear from my neck and examined it with [Analyze].
[Analyze] was a new combination skill that inherited the legacy of [Weak point targeting]. When used on an object, it would show me its information. If it was an enemy, it would display information along with their weaknesses.
"[Analyze]."
___
Name: Sierra Richards (Original)
Race: Reaper | Rank: Wraith | Origin: Human
Soul capacity : {Fate} 1/2 | {Kismet} 0/1
Available Souls: 250 | To evolve: 400
{Fate}
1. {Day by Day} Lvl 1 | Cost: 1 | Owner: Self
{Kindred}: N/A
{Kismet}: N/A
Soulgear:
___
It was quite sad to see such a short status page. For one Sierra, Pixie\'s mother managed to gain 250 souls. That was about 12 Normies. She successfully awakened as a reaper, but died soon after.
I touched the face of the necklace and spoke to it.
"{Day by Day}. Give your soul avatars the ability to use {Fates}, even just passive ones. And I don\'t mind if you don\'t regenerate avatars, but use souls to create them instead."
Controlling some of the souls I had at hand, I sent them into the Soulgear and ordered it to evolve.
"Evolve."
The soulgear glowed with bright colors for a while before suddenly fading. When I used [Analyze] a second time, the soulgear gave me a pleasant surprise.
___
Name: Sierra Richards (Max)
Race: Reaper | Rank: Wraith | Origin: Human
Soul Capacity: {Fate} 1/2 | {Kismet} 0/1
Available Souls: N/A | To evolve: N/
{Fate}
1. {Day by Day} Lvl 3 | Cost: 1 | Owner: Self | Sub: {Promoted to Manager}, {Return to office}
{Kindred}: N/A
{Kismet}: N/A
Soulgear:
___
"Thank you, Sierra. I will protect your daughter as long as I live in exchange for your help."
[Limitless, be sure to select your classes before invoking the Soulgear].
"Right. Let me see. [Commander], [Assassin], [Knight]."
I put my soulgear back on my neck and used it. As my vision split for the Conference HUD, I quickly noticed how much easier it was to control each avatar.
And unlike before, they all felt the same. The uncomfortable feeling of switching to or from Sunday was gone. Controlling them like RC cars, I had them do calisthenics for a few minutes.
"Exa. Command one of them."
[What should I make them do?]
"Be creative."
Then Monday started shadowboxing in place. It was a strange feeling. I could feel the sensation of throwing punches, but there was also an unknown force moving my body. Specifically Monday\'s.
"This is too weird. How many can you control? What else can you do?"
[I cannot control them to speak. I cannot make them use {Fates}. Whatever I want them to do, I have to see and feel it with your body first.]
"You mean if I learn how to cartwheel, that would be the only time they would learn?"
[Yes. And there is a delay in my actions. When the soul avatar is moving under your commands, I cannot move it].
"I see, then complicated battles or instructions are a no. Can you make them lay mines?"
[Yes. I have seen you do both types, so I can control them to do that. Although it would take twice as long.]
"I guess it is what it is. [Inventory] Armory."
Exa\'s help before I learned how to fight with my avatars would have been useful, but it came too late. But I could still use them like squad mates or party members in Bioware RPGs or something.
I cycled through each soul avatar and had them take back their old loadouts. It was so cool that I could now keep pumping Soul Avatars even if they died. The only thing I would need would be Soul.
[Limitless. Please use the soul avatars carefully. When you used [Analyze], I noticed that there was a price to pay for the soul avatars to be able to use {Fates}. Unlike before, the death of an avatar will damage you whether you control it or not.]
"Well, fuck."
I shuddered as I remembered the pain and suffering I experienced when an avatar died. I didn\'t even get to test using them as kamikazes. It was a shame that I couldn\'t now.
With my preparations complete, I cycled through all of them to approach the Siren and the Slayer. Then I asked for the information the Sirens had sacrificed themselves for.
"Exa, tell me everything the Siren\'s learned."
[Am I talking to you like you\'re five?]
Amused, I chuckled as my AI gave me a light jab. "Yes, please do."
[Understood. The Slayer gets stronger over time. He has a {Fate} that turns him into a Pseudo-Specter. His most dangerous ability is {Vendetta}.]
I remember hearing that word before a blood spear came at me at the speed of Mach Fuck! It broke through {Withstand}, {Endure}, and even {Block} all at once.
[Vendetta is like {Counter}. But it cannot be blocked, evaded, or diverted even with {Portals}.]
When I heard Exa\'s conviction, I felt my stomach turn. For her to know this meant that my girls had tried to do all three. And that was how they learned this information.
[Vendetta has a 3 minute cooldown. The timer is individually based].
How many times did the girls have to be hit with {Vendetta} to know it to the last second? Gritting my teeth, I grimly listened to Exa\'s explanation.
My girls have paid for this in blood. And just like I killed the Slayer\'s army. I will repay this debt sevenfold.
[The next skill to note is {Transfusion}. It blocks active {Fates} from being used for 5 minutes. It cannot be dispelled even if a new {Fate} is re-ingested. Passive abilities are unaffected.]
"I see."
I didn\'t even notice such an effect because the Sirens stopped me from fighting after Robert used {Transfusion} on me to heal himself.
[Next is {Sanguine Armor}. The cape on his back defends automatically. It can defend from multiple directions, but it cannot defend when the Slayer attacks.]
I noticed this myself. I was able to shoot him when I attacked him mid-swing.
[{Carnival of the Damned}, on the other hand, is not a buff, but a series of attacks that get stronger with each hit. It can be intercepted as it is executed. Robert suffers a strong backlash when that happens].
"Does {Vendetta} take the backlash into account?"
[Yes. The backlash is quite strong, as Lady Lilly and Lady Robyn were dismembered by their respective timed strikes. Both were the ones tasked with forcing {Carnival of the Damned} to stop.]
"I see. Anything else?"
[{Blood Feast} collects blood in the sky, which is why the moon turns red. Aside from being used by the Slayer to poison everyone once before, the Blood Moon has no purpose.]
"Got it. Thank you, Exa. I\'ll take it from here."
[Fuck him up. My lord.]