[Cloak activated in normal capacity! Energy usage: 50/M]

The moment he'd thought to activate it, even prior to him finishing his command, Kellin watched as the suit began to shimmer and slowly fade from sight into its surroundings. Thankfully, in the same manner that one could navigate through an entirely dark house, he could still feel and sense where the suit's limbs were as if extensions of his own. The sound of his footfalls became a muted thump that he had to strain to hear as well, though he was unsure if that was due to a suppressing of the noise he and Gypsy were making or his own hearing; the sound of Swarmlings around them had died away at the same time.

Looking down at his boots, he noted how every footfall seemed to barely press into the ground despite their massive weight, most not leaving a trace at all that he'd even stepped onto the ground there. Seeing what appeared to be thin, wide barriers appearing beneath each step for just the moment his foot needed to push off, he began to realize why the cost was so high.

Looking up at his HUD, the reduced sensory information from all around made him strangely aware of the changes in their suit, taking notice of the extremely rapid pace their [Energy] was depleting and its already excessively reduced state.

[Marine Condition: Integrity 74/100

Health: 69/80

Energy: 51/100

Stamina: 82/100]

Focusing on adding both the [Energy] and [Stamina] [Stats] to the screen above, he realized his mistake in not having it displayed before. They had been sprinting non-stop for more than a few minutes now, but the fact that [Energy] had gone down so quickly was still a surprise. They would already be out of [Energy] if it hadn't been increasing along with the other [Stats] due to the [Evolution].

The lack of impact it had on his [Stamina] after the already 12 he'd lost when throwing up was another unusual point as well. Normally an all-out sprint like this for Humans with [Stats] this low would take around 20 of the resource for how long they'd been going, yet he'd used barely 6 even after the initial fight with the Swarmlings. When he thought about it now, it didn't even feel like he was putting any work in currently, despite his body being in constant motion and the strain he had definitely felt during the fight against the Swarmlings.

[Marine Condition: Integrity 74/100

Health: 69/80

Energy: 49/100

Stamina: 82/100]

The situation was clearly not sustainable. It was only moments after activating [Cloak] and he could already tell they couldn't keep it up until entirely safe. The ability seemed like a good trump card, but it certainly was not intended for use over a long duration.

"Gypsy is there a way to reduce [Cloak's] cost?" he inquired immediately.

"Yes."

"Do it, please."

Within moments, as if he had reemerged from underwater, sound returned to Kellin's surroundings as their footfalls once again began to press into the ground. The suit retained its invisibility, but it seemed that was all [Cloak] was doing now.

"This is the 'weak' activation of [Cloak]. The cost is 10 [Energy] per minute"

'She's already looked into it. Perhaps she's already read up on everything the [Class] and [Evolution] have given us,' he wondered.

"Still expensive," he mused aloud, but watching the rate of depletion slow down considerably.

[Marine Condition: Integrity 74/100

Health: 69/80

Energy: 42/100

Stamina: 81/100]

"Gypsy, what is our rate of [Energy] depletion at this pace?"

"On average, moving at the quickest pace we have been, rate of depletion has been 8 per minute," she replied.

"So much," he exclaimed, surprised.

Kellin slowed their pace to a jog, trying to remain light on his feet and quiet as he dodged around larger sticks and dry plants. The Swarmlings would likely not hear him over the sounds they were all making but he didn't want to leave it to chance if he could help it.

"How about now?" he asked.

"Will need more data for accurate calculation."

"How about an inaccurate one?" he pressed.

After another few seconds of silence and watching the [Energy] resource tick down again, Kellin spoke.

"That meant I would like a fast calculation without you collecti-"

"Inaccurate calculations have potential to leave Captain Finnel in dangerous state in the event of reliance on incorrect figure-"

"Gypsy, just a rough number," he interrupted. "Rounded up. Please."

"...3 [Energy] per minute seems to be the average reduced cost. [Stamina] non-factor," she replied after another couple of seconds, causing Kellin to roll his eyes at her delay tactics of just not answering. "Current rate of depletion gives Combat Suit estimated-"

[Credits earned for contribution to the defeat of Juvenile Swarmer Class individual above your Threat Level: 3]

A ding, followed by a [System] message interrupted Gypsy's words.

"One bleed out that you shot?" Kellin asked, surprised at the high [Credit] reward.

He knew there was no way any he shot would have taken enough damage to die.

"One particularly resilient foe too fast to outpace. Damaged suit exhaust ports. Several rounds needed to discourage continued pursuit," she replied, reminding him of the strike they'd taken during the escape. "Time remaining with [Cloak] activated: three minutes."

Kellin nodded and continued the slower pace, taking a moment to listen to their surroundings. The Swarmlings were present, but there was no indication they were closing in or even knew where their target was thankfully. It felt like they were running in a three-sided box of the creatures, but the walls were finally starting to fall apart in all directions.

With good timing as well, as the sun began to set. Kellin could still see plenty fine enough, but he knew it would soon be impossible to keep jogging through the dense forest.

"Relay [Cloak's] description to me," he said, not wanting to slow so he could read it himself.

"[Cloak(Level 1): Conceals the Marine from surroundings in 3 variable intensities

Cost: Energy - Weak(10/M), Normal(50/m), Strong(10/S)]

[Skill Tree Accessible]

[2 Upgrade Paths Available*: Full Customization ---- Enhanced Efficiency]

[Full Customization(20 Credits): Fully access to customize which aspects of and to what intensity Cloaking is performed]

[Enhanced Efficiency(30 Credits): Cloak requires 20% less Energy to use]

[Note: Only individual 'Gypsy' may utilize Skill.]

[Note*: Selection of one Path makes other permanently inaccessible]"

[Marine Condition: Integrity 74/100

Health: 70/80

Energy: 36/100

Stamina: 81/100]

Glancing up at their [Condition] briefly, Kellin took in the new information and grit his teeth slightly. He was hoping, as with many activatable abilities related to Combat Suits, the [Skill] would come fully customizable from the start. Unfortunately, it would seem that was not the case. The end of the description did give him an idea of why his [Stamina] was no longer decreasing though, as he addressed his companion again.

"Gypsy, are you handling all movement costs?"

Before when fighting, it felt like he was physically moving with the suit to drive away the Swarmlings, but at some point during their run, most of if not all the exertion he was outputting had somehow fallen away. He hadn't thought much of it at the time since he was focused on running for their lives and not tripping and falling, but now was a different story.

"...Unsure. Captain Finnel's attention heavily tasked, [Energy] exertion... increased after observation, logs indicate.," she responded, continuing after a few seconds. "Calculations show [Stamina] output reduced 90% and [Energy] output increased 300% compared to preceding values," she finished.

'A hidden advantage of this [Evolution]...' he wondered, trying to pin down where it would come from. 'Definitely passive in nature; she didn't even realize it was happening until now. The other class wouldn't have it though.'

His eyes widened slightly.

"Gypsy, are you prioritizing [Class] information and implications?" he asked suddenly.

"Correct. AI currently parsing through potential weapon choices to aid with current situation. [Wave Pistol] and [Combat Blade] have best compatibility with [Skill] [Disruption]-"

Breaking himself out of listening to her findings, he interrupted his companion.

"Read out the [Passive] description of [Unique Shared Mortality] instead, please," he said with expectation on his voice.

Hearing the two tone beep that Gypsy used often during their time in the military to indicate acceptance, Kellin put all his focus on his surroundings again and waited. The shadows around him had doubled in size again, leaving him hoping they'd be far enough away soon to make camp. They'd moved a considerable distance from the river at this point and he could feel the suit was beginning to get weaker, or at least reaching the end of its capabilities. Whether that was due to a connection he held with it or a placebo effect brought on by his HUD showing him their [Energy], he was unsure.

Suddenly, that feeling became a lot more real as the suit began to slowly put pressure against his attempts to move it.

"[Unique Shared Mortality: The Marine has chosen two lives but the thread that binds them will never truly sever: A soul knows only one death, though strengths of one reunited are not all intangible]

[Warning: Reliance on one half beyond acceptable thresholds will result in disabled half. Massive consumption increase of resources allowing function until disabled half awakens]

[Skill tree unnaccessible]"

Within seconds after she finished, Kellin felt as if he was taking on as much of the load as he had been back during the fight with the Swarmlings. It was like he was actually moving again and not being ferried about. He was unsure of whether it had been necessary or not for Gypsy to reduce his fatigue when they were running, and the fact that he could feel their pace increasing without effort meant that it had possibly even slowed them by heavily relying on the suit's resources. Still, the [Passive's] potential was... massive.

[Marine Condition: Integrity 74/100

Health: 70/80

Energy: 31/100

Stamina: 80/100]

"Put up to 90% of the strain on me for statistics and then level it out at 75% for now," he said.

The two-toned beep of confirmation sounded out, immediately increasing the pressure on his body once again. Weight all over began increasing until it felt even more exhausting to move than when he was fighting Gypsy for control earlier. His muscles were straining with every motion of his legs and pumping arms, slowing their jog, albeit still manageable to a degree.

The pressure reduced a few seconds after, allowing him to resume pace and giving his muscles a much-needed break from before, though they were still under exertion.

"[Energy] consumption reduced to approximately half of 1 per minute, [Stamina] cost at approximately 5," Gypsy stated.

"Higher [Stamina] cost at just 75% than [Energy] at 90%... what a disparity," Kellin stated, dissatisfied.

"That is correct. No consistent formula found currently, but cost rapidly spikes above 85% when relying on [Stamina] for movements. Not a factor with [Energy]," she added. "Standard usage 1 to 1 at 50%."

Kellin nodded, overall happy with the find. It may be a bit niche, but at least it confirmed two important things: One: if either one of them went unconscious or passed out due to overexertion, the other should be able to carry on. Two: Finding a correct balance with regards to [Energy] usage was going to be extremely important moving forward, especially with the high energy cost of the [Cloak] ability.

Taking into account that he had been given the rare [Mana] resource, his own [Skills] may not be reliant on the suit's [Energy] banks and his [Stamina] as they had been in his past, which was a potential massive advantage. He had never used [Mana] to activate an ability before, but if it meant he could use his [Stamina] to preserve [Energy], he'd gladly wear himself out. He didn't even want to consider what would have been if they couldn't share like this and Gypsy's gained an indispensable [Skill] with a high [Energy] cost.

"Alright, let's look for shelter," he eventually said. "We'll drop cloak at 15 [Energy] as well. We may not have even needed it with the [Stat] increase, but better to be safe," he added.

Two beeps later and they were on the same page, slowing pace once again as they moved through the rapidly darkening forest.