Chapter 60: Book 2 chapter 18

Amethyst was flooded with notifications as a Babylon terminal flashed into existence before her, a nearly illegible scrolling blur of text before her as it flashed different colors. One line standing out as darkness slowly began overtaking her vision.

“ERROR… Trait acquired; Lucky.” With that one line the screen turned black, the entire system going silent as it tried to process what was unfolding before it. The only word, the only concept it could attribute the strange happenstance on was fate… but the system had no programming for fate, no belief in something so superficial as luck. 

Everything had a reason. An algorithm, an explanation. Something quantifiable that could be measured, even Hecatolite had a limit, Overseer was sure of that. Yet the only explanation it could come up with was… luck. That was the only thing it could come up with as Amethyst's smoking body hung limply in the hands of Saffron who was desperately draining the overflowing mana pouring off the girl.

That was the only explanation. Amethyst Lapidary was undoubtedly the luckiest girl in the world at this moment. She was lucky that her sister had saved a Succubus, who was so enamored by the action that she would risk her existence not only for her mistress but her pseudo sister. She was lucky that Saffron had become a demon lord who could not only instantly notice the influx of strange mana but react without hesitation, appearing beside the young woman and latching onto her.

She was lucky that Saffron had reacted so quickly, buying time for her other allies in this unprecedented battle. She was Lucky that her sister had, on a whim, contacted the oldest goddess in this world. A Goddess who knew the dangers of flooding not only a mortal, but a child with too much divine power. That Siofra knew exactly what blessing to send to the girl once she realized what the other gods were doing. A blessing to ease the burden on her as her soul was flooded with the “thanks of the gods”.

She was lucky that Soter happened to go to his sister’s realm for tea the day Hecatolite had contacted them. That he understood the ramifications of the god’s actions, and just how dangerous Hecatolite would be if anything were to happen to Amethyst. That he was levelheaded enough to carefully pick a blessing to protect her body while his sister attempted to protect her soul.

She was lucky that she had been all inclusive with her offerings, that she was the first human in ages to send a proper offering to “all the divine”. She was lucky that three devils, each sitting in their own realms, had found her offering amusing as they each individually sent their “boons”. She was lucky that, despite the expectations of the system, the blessings, and boons from the two different types of divine had reacted in such a way to dampen the effects of each other. 

But above all else, she was lucky that she shared a body with Hecatolite. Without Hecatolite, Amethyst would never have had enough mana to send an offering to not only the gods but the devils at the same time. Her soul, without the constant pressure from her sister, would never have grown to be as sturdy as it was to withstand the influx of power. Without Hecatolite, Overseer was positive that Amethyst's soul would have shattered immediately, instead it was able to resist just long enough for Hecatolite to arrive.

Hecatolite was the only being in all of creation that could do what she did. Overseer did not know if it was because of what she was, or what she became; but it was positive that no matter how many simulations it ran; no one else would have done what she did. No one could have, and survived. 

Overseer watched Hecatolite, it always watched, scanning the monstrosity for any weakness. The system recorded exactly how much mana could be injected into it before the need to expel it came. It recorded that even the most minute amount introduced into its system would cause it discomfort, though the tiny amount it was given through the mass prayer was barely enough to slow it down as it coughed up the smoky purple liquid that vanished before hitting the ground. 

Overseer noted its irritation as it swore about its “sister”. Swearing to get its vengeance as it ate the muffin it had been offered. Adding a footnote that Hecatolite seemed to dislike blueberries as the terminal followed it through the forest, thankful that Mother Eryl had fused the system key to Hecatolite’s soul, meaning that it would not need to track it as it sprinted. 

Overseer briefly feared Hecatolite’s fury as it tackled Amethyst's vibrating soul out of the spell circle. Overseer was certain that history was about to repeat itself as a low growl emitted from the creature that sat over the young woman’s soul. It already began processing the ramifications of Hecatolite consuming another full soul before it was called.

“Yes, Hecatolite?” Overseer asked, appearing before it.

“What’s wrong with Amethyst?” It asked frantically holding the girl's limp soul up. “I ended the possession spell but she’s…” Hecatolite shook the girl.

Is that… concern? “Amethyst is currently receiving multiple blessings, the backlash of so much power being etched into her soul…”

“Is that all this strange stuff?” Hecatolite asked inspecting the girl’s soul, the markings beginning to form on it as the power of the gods began to take form. “How do I stop it!” She screamed as Amethyst's soul pulsed, it grew slightly as a crack formed along its neck.

“The process has already begun,” Overseer stated calmly, it did not expect this reaction from the gods, but it was a possibility. 

The simple fact was Overseer had planned for a few gods to bless the girl; it had even planned for this outcome as a possibility. It is unfortunate but it was her decision that led to this. It had already formed the report for Mother Eryl as to what had happened to the young girl’s soul as the split grew.

“If she survives the initial blessing, once the divine connections stabilize, she will be able to pull on the divine powers to bolster herself.” The fact she is still in one piece is quite impressive, but it is unlikely she will survive this many blessings at once. 

“If she survives!?”

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“Yes, blessing a soul is much like enchanting. A higher soul pushes a small amount of their aether into a mortal soul to form a connection. Through that connection the mortal can send more mana to the higher soul, as well as utilize a small portion of the higher soul’s power.” Overseer noted having to explain this process yet again to Hecatolite. “This is normally not a problem. A mortal would feel a bit of discomfort, but it typically subsides quickly as the channel is opened. Several of the channels are having problems forming from the interference of so many channels forming at once causing the power to pool in her soul. Her skill is attempting to convert the pooled aether into mana…”

“Stupid gods!” Hecatolite hissed as she cradled her sister, “how can I help?”

“Error… Hecatolite will be incapable of assisting Amethyst. With the amount of aether passing through her and her nearly bursting mana pool, if you attempted to offer her a blessing yourself at this time it will do nothing but…”

“Stupid box! Go tell those stupid gods to knock it off!” She yelled, flipping the girl onto her stomach and muttering to herself. 

What exactly is it doing? Amethyst has too much…. It recorded as Hecatolite traced Amethyst's spine from the base of her skull. “It… should be right… here!” Hecatolite exclaimed, opening her mouth wide and… 

“What are you doing!” Overseer screamed as Hecatolite bit into the back of the girl’s neck.

The effect was immediate, Amethyst's soul seized as Hecatolite’s teeth punctured the main mana channel that ran through her neck. Mana engulfed Hecatolites entire face as it erupted from the now open wound. Overseer could no longer make out Hecatolite’s head as its throat and chest began to glow. The forest that was Hecatolites “side” of the soul space also shifted as the broken egg in the sky began to emit a low hum, the black liquid like aether pouring from the side shimmering as streaks of color appeared in it. The moment the new colorful liquid began to fall, a wave of heat washed over the shared space. 

“Your soul is… burning?” Overseer noted as a bright blue glow started to light up the darkness that was the forest. Is… is it attempting to eat Amethyst? no it’s drinking the mana? Does it does not know what damaging that mana channel will do! That was the main mana channel in a soul, it was not only the largest channel in a body but without it, “You will cripple her if you continue to damage her soul.” Overseer attempted to reason with Hecatolite, “if she survives, she will be unable to...”

Hecatolite ripped its face from the back of Amethyst neck, its own soul scorched from the mana. Overseer paused as it scanned the damage, Hecatolites entire face was covered in a severe mana burn, the soul mass that made up its face was bubbling out as if it were boiled. “Shut up box.” Its distorted voice shaking the void as mana poured from its mouth. Its tail slammed into the terminal shattering it as Overseer formed another terminal, managing to reform just in time to watch Hecatolite bite down again.

It does not make sense… Why does this creature care? Does it not understand that if it were to simply stop it would have full control of the body. Overseer attempted to process what it was watching; this monster was willingly damaging itself to save something else? If it were anyone other than Hecatolite it would make sense, it goes against all the data I have on it… it’s a monster that ate everything it came across, what is so special about this child? It has to know that they aren’t even true sisters, it simply ended up here. It couldn’t process what it was witnessing as Hecatolite repeated the process several times.

This went on, eat, vomit, eat, vomit, eat, vomit… “you have removed enough mana to stabilize Amethyst soul.” Hecatolite panted as it pulled its face back a final time. 

Its face was unrecognizable, most of the soul mass that made it up had been burned away as aether poured from its mangled soul. The only thing recognizable was the blood red eyes that glared at the terminal, its cheeks had long since burned away revealing the sharp blackened interlocking teeth that parted slightly. “See… dumb box… said…couldn’t save…” it wheezed as it looked down at Amethyst neck, a gnarled bite mark still pouring mana out. “Need… fix.” Hecatolite distorted voice said as it wiped some of the mana away.

“And exactly how do you plan to do that?” Overseer asked not bothering to tell the creature that it had deemed it impossible.

Hecatolite looked around for a moment before gritting her teeth. “Need… mana channel…” it held its arm up, “will give.”

“Will give what?” Overseer couldn’t process what the creature was saying before it bit down on its own arm, the full force of its jaw making short work of the thin appendage as Hecatolites right arm fell limply onto the ground, it released a pained howl as its tail slammed repeatedly against the ground.

Overseer realized what Hecatolite intended to do as it spoke, “you do realize how foolish it is to remove that much of your own soul?” It ignored how anything could survive that much damage to its soul and still function as it watched it dig a claw into the discarded arm

“Will regrow.” It stated bluntly pulling a thick vein from the arm, setting the useless appendage to the side, “will eat… should make faster heal.” Given its broken speech, Overseer could tell that the creature had taken significant damage, the only thing keeping it going had to be its indomitable will as it refused to give up on its task.

“Yes, I suppose you will.” Overseer stated. You always regrow. Always the same… yet you’re so different this time… it didn’t bother to say anymore as Hecatolite grafted a part of her own soul onto her sisters. Hecatolite did not see the words that scrolled across the terminal as Overseer finished its “report.” 

“Amethyst Lapidary is indeed “lucky”. By utilizing her own soul as a temporary bypass, Hecatolite was able to allow enough time for Amethyst's soul to stabilize her new connections to the divine souls of this world. It is unknown whether Hecatolite knows, given their shared soulspace, that “consuming” mana from Amethyst’s soul in such a manner will cause the mana to run back into Amethyst’s mana pool. However, by alleviating the pressure in Amethyst's soul as well as creating a delay in the build up, Hecatolite was able to keep her sister’s soul from fracturing. Amethyst lapidary, new skills combined into, Divine intervention. Traits combined; Loved by the divine. Scarred soul has evolved into “marred soul”. Titles acquired; All faiths Saint, Sister of X47… Hecatolite Lapidary skills acquired…. Error. Unable to gain skill “mana convergence”. Skill gained, pain nullification. All traits, skills, and titles combined into existing soul page entries.”

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