Despite my disgust at going anywhere near the remains of the rooster, my trepidation was gone after a single bite.

It was delicious.

[Where can we find more of these? They taste amazing!]

[...You barely survived.]

[It's worth it if they taste like this!]

[Do you really want to get almost eaten every time you meet one of these things? Because - FINALLY!]

Startled, I realize that she's back to her optimistic self at last, and I am surprised to realize I missed it.

[What is it?]

[That rooster generated enough energy for us to unlock casting! It couldn't be better timing!]

[What's so great about that?]

[It means you can extend the void outside of your body! I mean, not much, and the repertoire is really limited, but still! It's a step!]

[...So that's a good thing, right?]

[IT'S AMAZING!]

My antennae perk up. I've learned to be a little dubious when it comes to helpful abilities, partly because they tend to disappear after the first use. This time, Joule seems pretty certain about what she's doing.

[So, how do we use it?]

[Well, my Engineering rank is rock bottom - we haven't been using it for pretty much anything, but we can improve that as we go. Anyway, to summarize: try breathing in and concentrating Void at the air around your mouth.]

I feel like she just said something really important.

[What engineering rank?]

[No, Engineering. There's a difference.]

[Okay, but what is it?]

She laughs. As usual, it's a weird feeling in my head.

[Did you really think I wouldn't quantify myself? I have an Engineering rank of one, an Allocation rank of two, and an Intellectual rank of six.]

[...That sounds really made up.]

[Of course, it's made up! I made it up! I'm a quantifier, what do you think I do?]

[Okay, fine. Settle down.]

I open my mandibles wide and concentrate void on the area in front of my mouth. I start getting light-headed.

Something starts appearing, a tiny black dot in between my mandibles. I pour more void into it, and it slowly gets bigger. I start losing void at a massive pace, the precious energy I'd just gained disappearing rapidly.

[I'm letting it go!]

[But you could make it more powerful!]

[I'm not using my void on something like this!]

I release the energy, and the ball sputters out of existence. My mandibles hang open, and I collapse from the exhaustion.

Joule starts talking immediately.

[Why did you do that? We could have kept it going!]

[I barely have any energy left! If you don't believe me, check it yourself!]

[We had plenty of - oh, wow. That was using it up like crazy!]

[You think?]

I get back to eating the rooster, frantic to refill my Void.

[Okay. Casting might be helpful at some point, but right now it's worse than useless.]

[Well - that's a little harsh. The spell you just tried involved creating a literal rip in space - an actual void, if you will. The other technique is way more cost-efficient. If I'm quantifying it correctly, that is.]

I'm skeptical, to say the least.

[What is it?]

[It allows you to create a pair of phantom mandibles at a range, and directly connects them with yours.]

[Meaning?]

[Just try it out.]

I eat more of the rooster before I do so, worried about my Void.

[How do I use it?]

[Easy. Picture a pair of mandibles in front of you.]

I look at my mandibles, their shape permanently burned into my brain, and imagine them a little further in front of me.

After a moment, a wispy form appears.

[That's it! You're doing it!]

The form dissipates.

[Wha - why'd you end it?]

[I didn't end it. I think that that's as good as it gets at the moment.]

Joule sighs.

[Sorry for hyping it up so much. I'm used to dealing with the Cosmics, and their powers are pretty much unlimited.]

That sounds like a nice thing to have. I still don't really have a good frame of reference for how dangerous Noah is, and he looks like a teenager.

[Don't worry about it. We'll get more powerful over time until we can even beat Noah!]

[That's literally impossible, but I'm liking that enthusiasm!]