Street Cultivation 2

by Sarah Lin

  Finally she stood with her void manifested around her and she felt amazing. Nothing had felt like this since the first time she had discovered the "cure" for her condition. And she was glad to have her brother standing nearby, grinning back at her in pride.

  "Congratulations, sis. What are you going to call it?"

  She blinked, not having thought much about that part. "I don't know, I think the original name sounds kind of cool."

  "No, you can't run around with a Lucore named 'Manifest Destiny' in your portfolio. Maybe some people won't recognize it, but that's just asking for trouble. At best people will get the wrong impression." Her brother folded his arms and examined her thoughtfully. "I'm surprised you don't already have a name picked out. Howling Black Destiny Inferno or something."

  Melissa giggled. "I'd never choose such a ridiculous name! Maybe Ultimate Howling Black Destiny Inferno of the Sublime... now there's a name..."

  "Well, you have time to decide. Even if you don't register the Lucore, you can still rename it on your end."

  "No, I want to now, I just..." She let the flames dissipate and just stared into space. "I don't know, I'm really coming up with nothing. You name it, bro!"

  "Me? But I-"

  "Do it! Something cool. Maybe kind of similar to the original name, but changed a bit..."

  He protested that he wasn't good at names, but helped her brainstorm anyway. Eventually they came up with "Manifest Destruction", which Melissa thought was amazing. Sure, it'd be goofy to shout it out like she was in an old movie, but if she actually built the technique up to the level she wanted...

  Abruptly she looked down and realized just how much of the carpet she'd damaged in all her attempts. Part of the couch was looking pretty damaged too. Melissa winced and looked at her brother guiltily. "Uh, sorry. I'm sure I can stop it from doing that once I get more practice. But we probably lost our security deposit, didn't we?"

  "Oh, don't worry about it." Years ago that would have been a disaster, but now Rick just shrugged. "It's not all that much compared to a better apartment and the landlord was probably going to cheat us out of it anyway. Besides, a skill like yours is worth a lot more than that."

  Melissa lunged in to hug her brother, this time without any void flames around her. Their embrace felt even warmer.

  Chapter 47: The Dark Blood Kettle

  It felt deeply strange to be approaching the Peakless Wildlife Refuge along with Emily. Maybe it was the fact that they were in her car instead of biking, but he didn't really think it was that. No, it had something to do with how the Refuge was so far away from Branton: it felt unconnected to all the problems in his life. Some part of him felt that bringing someone else would ruin that.

  That idea was ridiculous, of course. The very reason he'd been there was because the Refuge was entangled with the local politics in the form of lucrim anomalies. Besides, though Emily seemed quite irritated at Delsin for refusing to give details, he didn't think she'd ruin anything.

  He glanced over at Emily, fixated on driving with her usual intensity. When she noticed his gaze she turned enough to smile at him and he felt a strange twinge within him. Though he always liked seeing that smile, recently...

  "We're almost there, right?" she asked. He nodded and pointed to the trail, though it was fairly obvious.

  "Just up that way and then we'll reach the office."

  "Good. If he hadn't been correct about the jackalope anomaly, I'd be suspicious of this guy." Emily's fingers tightened on the wheel and she frowned toward the office as it approached. "People who put a lot of effort into playing the 'wise old master' bit are usually running a scam of some kind."

  Rick chuckled. "If Delsin is doing that bit, he's doing it in a strange way."

  Working with Melissa's new technique had finally increased his foundation's rating, plus he had over 2000 excess generation rate, so he was ready to approach Delsin. Going over the threshold had actually been somewhat boring - he was much more interested in Melissa's Manifest Destruction. Dangerous as it was, she was getting better control over it every day.

  As they walked up to the office, Rick thought that it looked darker than usual. He'd been hoping that Emily could meet Wemilat and Adsila first, rather than running into Delsin immediately, but it looked like that wasn't happening. The old man detached himself from the place where he'd been leaning, until that moment so still he'd been like part of the building.

  "Alright, guess it's finally time to make things square." Delsin had his thumbs hooked on his belt loops, but the casualness of his posture felt forced. "You can't bring along your friend, though."

  "You haven't given remotely enough information about this technique of yours." Emily stepped away from Rick, not at all intimidated by Delsin's stare. "I'm not letting him waste his potential on some half-assed local technique."

  Delsin stepped forward and scowled down at her. "I didn't come to this decision lightly. He's helped us and I intend to do my best to pay that debt."

  "You're not helping anyone by surrounding this with so much secrecy."

  "Yeah? Who said you get a vote?"

  In response, Emily swung. Her aura blade came into existence so quickly that it made a blinding line in Rick's vision, yet the arc cut off abruptly. When he could see, he discovered that Delsin had somehow pulled the shotgun off his back and used it to block. The aura blade that had easily sliced through metal stopped against the shotgun barrel.

  Emily was only surprised for a moment, then she attacked in a vicious assault. It didn't include her most deadly skill, but it was certainly more power than she'd ever directed against him. Delsin frowned and took a step back, then actually fired the shotgun, a burst of aura scattering gravel and plants in a wide arc in front of him.

  She had vaulted overhead, slashing down at him, yet he blurred out of the way. Rick lost track of the fighting for a moment and struggled to catch up. He saw Delsin jab Emily in the stomach with the end of the shotgun and she stumbled back a step. They froze, his shotgun pointed at her casually. His finger wasn't on the trigger, but it lay nearby along the side of the gun.

  "Okay, you're no fraud." Emily released her aura blade and ignored the shotgun pointed at her. "But in case you haven't heard, Rick is facing a difficult challenge. He doesn't need just any foundation."

  "You're not bad yourself, kid." Delsin regarded her appreciatively, then flipped his shotgun over his shoulder to rest in his back holster. Then he shifted so that he was facing both of them, his eyes on Rick. "Alright, it's time to talk. I'll be direct, Rick: there's nothing particularly special about you."

  "Gee, thanks." Rick couldn't get too offended, though, not given the hard seriousness in Delsin's eyes.

  "There's nothing particularly special about this technique, either. It won't grant any dramatic powers, it won't transform your body overnight, and it won't instantly double your portfolio. What it will do is give back what you put into it. Whatever you choose to do in life, it will grow along with you."

  That sounded good to Rick, but Emily crossed her arms. "Growth foundations are well and good, but that isn't much for technical information. Does it at least offer the basic benefits of a combat-type foundation?"

  "A bit at a time, yeah. It'll also slowly work as an Investment Foundation. Not as clean or straightforward as a modern one, but he'll be able to recoup that investment into Graham's Stake."

  The two of them continued speaking about the details and Rick followed as best he could. What he got out of it was that the technique Delsin offered seemed to be a solid generalist option. If it could work flexibly under many circumstances and the old man thought it was the best choice, Rick was willing to take the chance. After some further discussion, Emily seemed convinced as well.

  Delsin walked off a short distance into the woods and gestured over his shoulder, but Emily ignored him and instead moved to Rick. When she drew close, she spoke in a low voice. "I don't have any further objections, so take the technique if you want. The old man kno
ws what he's doing."

  Rick glanced over her shoulder, where Delsin waited impatiently, and decided that he could satisfy his curiosity. "Did that fight give you a sense of how strong he was?"

  "He's strong. Definitely a cruiserweight - stronger than the one Granny Whitney got for the multi-tier tournament, but not a heavyweight." Emily shrugged. "More importantly, his power is well-constructed. His lucrima portfolio isn't exactly modern, but there was a lot of thought put into it."

  "Enough chatter!" Delsin called at them irritably. "If you want to do this, Rick, let's stop messing around and just do it."

  "Go." Emily touched his arm and gave a small smile. "He said I couldn't come along, but I trust you to handle it."

  Since he had Emily's approval, there were really no more obstacles in the way. Rick smiled back at her and then headed out after Delsin. They walked in silence into the trees for a bit, then the forest blurred around them. Instead of taking them far, however, Rick felt as though they went deeper. The landscape still looked like the Refuge and Delsin just kept walking, so he kept pace.

  After hiking for a while, they blurred once more. Something about the environment had changed again - the animal noises were louder and the forest itself seemed to crowd around them. Delsin kept striding forward as if he didn't notice, but Rick found himself struggling to keep up.

  "Relax," Delsin said over his shoulder. "This isn't dangerous, so the only risk is that you'll fuck it up. Just go along for the ride until you get to the end."

  "Which part is the end?"

  "Trust me, you'll know when you get there." The old man continued hiking onward for a few more steps before giving him a wry glance. "Your girlfriend is a bit aggressive."

  "That's... one way to put it." Rick sighed and tried to put his thoughts into words. "I like her a lot, but sometimes... I don't know, I'm not sure we're right for each other. But she's doing so much to help me, is that a shitty thing to think?"

  "Ah, young one, let me tell you what I know of love." Delsin turned to him with a somber expression and put a hand on his shoulder. "If my years in this world have taught me anything, it is that I don't want to talk about your fucking relationships. One, I'm a lifelong bachelor for a reason. Two, I don't want to hear a hormonal brat babble about his crushes."

  Rick sighed and knocked the other man's hand off his shoulder. "Fine, be that way. But if you don't actually talk about what's coming next, we're going to have a conversation about boners."

  Delsin chuckled and moved on, so Rick followed. After they had walked for a while, he wondered if the old man had called his bluff. The truth was, Rick found thinking about his relationship with Emily that way uncomfortable period, much less at a time when he needed to focus. Eventually Delsin spoke up, and there was no trace of humor in his voice anymore.

  "It's called the Dark Blood Kettle. As foundation techniques go, it's old... maybe archaic. For most people, I don't think it would be the right choice. In this case... maybe."

  Though his pace remained leisurely, somehow Delsin was pulling ahead. Rick struggled to keep up, tripping on vines that seemed to reach from the ground to intercept his shoes. The forest itself pushed closer and he braced his defensive core on instinct. No attack came, everything just pressed closer and closer until...

  Until he stood in a graveyard of bones. Bleached white bones extended in every direction, mounted higher than could possibly be real. Though part of Rick knew that he must be seeing something that was only an internal reality, he couldn't help but stare at the sight around him. Judging from the broad, sweeping horns, many of the skeletons were bison, but he also saw some human bones, and a few even stranger skeletons.

  "This is going to be a bit old-fashioned." Delsin still faced away from him, searching through a pile of bones for something. "Sorry that I didn't update all this to be a clinical Lucore. But this was done the same way for many years and I reckon there's no sense in ruining a good thing."

  "What do I have to do?" His voice rang hollow in the boneyard, echoing back to him.

  For a long time Delsin didn't answer, just shifting skeletons from the pile. Eventually he turned and raised his hand, revealing a bloody shard of bone. The bone itself was so white as to be luminescent and the blood glistened darkly. "You eat this, then hang on."

  After so many jokes, Rick hesitated, but there wasn't a trace of a joke in Delsin's eyes. He took several cautious steps forward, his feet slipping on the bones, then Rick reached up and took the shard. None of the blood got on his hands, yet it seemed to stain him on a deeper level. Before he could lose his nerve, he swallowed the jagged shard.

  It hurt scraping down his throat, but then the jagged edges seemed to dig into his entire body at once. Rick choked out a cry and nearly fell, the boneyard reeling around him. He'd felt pain before and could endure this, but it seemed to be getting worse. Just how long would the process take?

  "No." His vision swam too much to see, but Rick could feel Delsin's hand clamp down on his upper arm. "Warriors always want to fight through the pain, but if you do, you will fail. The way forward isn't through the pain, but in the other direction. Let go."

  Though that ran against his instincts, Rick did his best to think about it like he was training his defensive core. Instead of fighting back, he just opened himself to the pain and accepted it. To his surprise, the sensation rapidly faded. All his senses spiraled away with the pain and suddenly he was racing over the prairie.

  He floated without a body, yet he felt the wind rushing against him as he charged. Though he wanted to struggle to orient himself, he forced his instincts back and just let it happen. It seemed like he was hurtling over a prairie of some kind, so this was probably the part where he'd been told to "go along for the ride". Around him moved a landscape similar to the wilderness outside his home, yet it looked much older and wilder.

  Part of him could dimly remember being a person, having reasons to begin all this, but that was swept away in the wind. All that mattered was charging. Even though he had no body, he felt strong and powerful. There was a surge of emotion that could have been fear or excitement. He sped up toward a ridge ahead and he wondered if he would be safe on the other side.

  Then he sailed into the air and found himself over an endless ocean of dark blood.

  This time he couldn't resist his instincts, but flailing did him no good and he plunged directly into it. There should have been pain, yet instead of impacting on the surface, he was simply swallowed whole. He plunged deep, the blood filling him, trying to go along with it instead of resisting...

  No. Suddenly Rick knew that this was the end. Instead of passively accepting the experience, he clung to himself, declaring his soul against the blood. It pressed in faster, yet there was no pain. Only deeper depths, ever deeper... he at last took a deep breath, felt the ocean enter his lungs...

  And woke up lying on the forest floor.

  Rick just stayed there for a while, remembering who he was and what he was doing. He slowly pushed his way to his feet. Though his mind expected his limbs to be injured or shaky, his body itself felt fine, as if he'd woken from a deep and pleasant slumber. Raising his hands, Rick looked over himself, though he couldn't see any differences...

  "Nah, there's nothing flashy." Delsin leaned against a nearby tree, watching him. "You might eventually notice a few physical differences, but it won't make you stand out. Looking out of place can be a liability, these days."

  "Right. Good idea." His voice should have been hoarse, but he spoke easily. Rick frowned as he felt inside himself: there was definitely a well of strength around his foundation, dark but not very large. "Is that it? Are we done?"

  "Yup. Nothing to it." Delsin pushed himself off the tree and the world blurred, leaving them standing beside the offices. Emily was meditating on the bench by the side and immediately got to her feet, though not so quickly that she seemed worried about how long they'd been gone. "Alright, the debt is paid. Run along now."

  "Is that really
all?" Rick turned to face Delsin, trying to find something else in his dark eyes. "Well, if that really ends it... thanks for everything, Delsin. It was good working with you."

  "Eh, I guess it could have been worse." The old man reached out and shook his hand firmly. "I'd just as soon not run into you again, but my nephew and niece were saying you helped them out. If you ever want a bit of part time work, maybe they wouldn't mind hearing from you."

  "I'll keep that in mind, thanks."

  With that, Delsin turned away and vanished into the forest. Rick just stood there, not quite sure what to feel, until Emily came up beside him and wrapped her arms around his. "It feels like a success. Good work."

  "Does it?" Rick stared inwardly again, then shook himself and remembered that he had technology to help with that sort of thing. He used his free arm to get out his phone and managed to bring out the app. Immediately he frowned. "The Dark Blood Kettle is just 100 lucrim? Did the rest... where did my lucrim mass go? I've lost almost 2100 in generation rate."

  "Don't think of it as lost, consider it a different sort of investment." Emily guided him back toward the road away from the Refuge. "The foundation may be weak in terms of total lucrim, but what you have feels rock solid to me. Now you can start reaping the benefits."

  "I hope so. What do I do about Graham's Stake? Can I train it away now?"

  "No, it should be more like your new foundation will slowly take the weight of it off your shoulders. That will make it easier for you to create a new investment, without all the hard work that normally goes into raising your generation rate. It's like some sort of combination of investment and combat - not done today, but I think it should work well."

  He nodded absentmindedly and let her guide him back to the road. Though he wanted to think about all his preparations for the upcoming fight against Jack, part of his mind still floated on that ocean of blood...

  Chapter 48: Cultivator's Market