Benjamin Vryce

The world exploded into pain as Benjamin’s fingers touched the stone and energy began to flow into him. The power he had absorbed from his first few kills had been like misty fumes, which he gathered into himself and condensed into a drop of liquid energy. It had been so weak in fact that he had to kill several rats before he could say with certainty that anything was happening at all.

The larger creatures had provided more energy, the largest being the crocodile turtle. He had been a little distracted then however, so hadn’t really been able to focus on power absorption rates. This was nothing like that. If what he got from a dire rat was like a drop of energy and the dire squirrel was a cup full of energy, this was a swimming pool. Rushing into him as if blasted through a fire hose.

His system was overwhelmed, energy tried to rush to his reservoir but the flow was more than his damaged seal would allow. It was going in, and forcing the damaged seal to swell and unbind, but there was a backflow of energy that threatened to rip him apart.

He franticly searched for any means to redirect that flow. Finding the channels that had formed in his body when he transformed himself, he forced power down them. His body began to itch and change again. There seemed to be a limit on how much change his body could sustain however and he soon reached it.

He found the smaller channels he had made in his flesh when he had forced his body to heal quickly and forced power into those, the pain as the small channels took in more than they could handle was maddening. They ripped from the strain, then repaired themselves. Then ripped apart again.

There was still too much power. He cast his mind around desperately seeking new targets to off load some of this energy into. He found the line that connected him to Silver, he didn’t want to hurt the little guy but he was scared he was dying. Energy flooded the connecting line; he could feel it when the spider got enveloped by the tide.

It was strange, through the haze of pain he felt his thoughts and feelings about silver being pulled out from his mind. Like what it was and why it was important to him. He thought about how, since day one it had gone above and beyond what the others had, to keep the Combat drones in fighting shape.

Even after it had bonded with Benjamin the drone had continued to help him. Prioritizing his health and wellbeing over fighting the rats and snakes. It was like his doctor, his caretaker and his friend all in one. As those thoughts swirled around his mind, they seemed to be funneled into the energy that was even now changing the silver spider.

Very soon it reached the limit of what it could take. He knew that if he kept pushing, he would damage it beyond repair. Benjamin cut the flow of power to the drone but there was still too much. He cast his mind out again.

This time he came into contact with something that he didn’t immediately recognize. It was a small presence in his pocket. Benjamin wasn’t sure what it was but there was a very thin line going from it to him, he grasped it and forced what power down that connection he could.

As the power connected with the object, he realized that it was the aged copper acorn. It was like a blank canvas to his mind, being reinforced by the energy but having no shape of its own. It couldn’t handle much and after drinking in the energy a dire squirrel might provide, it couldn’t handle any more.

Benjamin once again cut the flow. He looked at the seal over his reservoir, the knots that composed the seal had swelled once more and the flow into his power pool had increased. If the pain wasn’t so overwhelming, he would have attempted to work a few of the knots loose, to allow more of that energy into that holding space inside himself. He just couldn’t spare the attention for it.

He still had too much energy assaulting him. His body was at its current capacity, Silver was also full. The aged copper acorn had helped slightly and yet Benjamin was still burning from the inside out. He had to find a way to dump this power. If it wasn’t for that damn seal, he didn’t think there would have been any problems.

When he realized that there wasn’t another option, he grit his teeth against the pain and decided he would have to try to loosen the seal. To allow the power to flow into himself faster. That’s when he felt another thread of connection, trying to reach him.

He was in pain and needed an outlet but he was wary of anything that wanted to connect with him on the level of his soul. He tentatively inspected the line. There were actually two threads interwoven around each other.

One belonged to Grace. A sad and lonely girl just over the cusp of adulthood. She had just lost everyone she had ever known. He could feel how desperately she was clinging to her responsibilities, just to stay sane.

The other was an older more commanding presence. It wanted to create a bond with him, to help him grow yes, but also to shape that growth. He could tell that this was a part of the Erlking, not malevolent in and of itself, but incapable of doing anything other then what it was programmed to do.

With that brief connection, he now understood why Grace’s actions seemed so robotic. She was being guided, controlled even, by the other presence. It was both a part of and separate from her. Benjamin examined the lines for a long time, gritting his teeth against the pain.

He felt just how lonely the girl was, how she had only survived the loss of her clan because she still had her clan brother. Now that he was gone, she felt that there was nothing left but her duty and so she let the foreign power take over.

The other entity was another story entirely. He couldn’t allow that, thing, into his being or he would forever be fighting its influence. Just like Grace had, while it forced her to cut her last clan brother apart. It made him angry. He couldn’t see all her memories but he got a few impressions. Seeing those things that had affected her on a deep emotional level.

It wasn’t a true reading of her mind, but it was enough. He was pissed off, the energy that burned his body responding to his desire in a way that it hadn’t before. It enveloped Grace’s line and flowed power into it, and at the same time gathered up the line of the Erlking’s control and crushed it mercilessly.

The tendril was fighting him, trying to maintain itself and get into his soul. He was flush with energy though and it stood no chance. He didn’t crush it completely, some instinct telling him that would harm the girl, but he did reduce its influence on her. It went from a controlling force to a faint suggestion, one easily ignored.

The connection to Grace had now solidified, she was as bound to him now as silver was. Just like with silver he pushed energy into her, and with it his thoughts and feelings were pulled from him. Unlike with the drone, he didn’t know anything about Grace. The connection didn’t care about emotions, it wanted something to guide their bond. Something to shape her to better suit his needs.

In the end he shaped her to be true to herself. That she was never alone now that she was his companion. He didn’t know if it would be enough, but the impression he had gotten of her plus his desire for companionship, combined and was pulled into the energy, just like before with Silver.

When it was all over, he felt completely drained. The pain of his body’s changes. Coupled with the emotional ride he had gone on with Grace left him weak. He had enough focus left to catch Grace as she fell. She was also greatly affected, physically and emotionally. To say nothing of her injury.

Setting her gently on the ground, Benjamin fell into unconsciousness.

* * *

Grace

Grace had lost her balance, but not consciousness. As Benjamin caught her and set her down, she was reeling. She looked at him now unconscious at her side. She hadn’t been able to understand all that had happened.

She knew that the memories in her head had guided her actions to gain an influence over the soul. She knew that it had caused her to do things to her clan brother that sickened her. She also knew that Benjamin had crushed the memories for what they did to her, and that she was now linked to him.

She searched inside herself, but couldn’t find any new changes or compulsions. The bond she had with him hadn’t taken any of her control away. Just, gave her the feeling she had when surrounded by her clan, she felt at home.

Grace knew that she was only ever meant to be a weak member of a weak clan, created only to make the weak souls stronger. Her entire clan had died at the hands of a soul. Leaving only herself and her clan brother alive, now he was gone too.

She was alone now. The last of her clan, the last of her kind. The feeling of being home washed through her again, driving away the pain. She looked down at her hands, flush with the power Benjamin had pushed through their link.

Grace clenched her hands into fists, she could feel the strength in them. The feeling of belonging was fading but hadn’t gone. She looked to Benjamin, the reason for both feelings. She didn’t know what the future would hold for her but she would find out at his side.

* * *

Erlking

The Erlking drummed the tips of his claws on the arm of his chair. They made a rhythmic tapping noise on contact that he barely heard. The calming chair was working hard to keep his thoughts in check as he watched the events surrounding Benjamin Vryce unfold.

“You might have had the right idea, Morrigan.” He said at last, “perhaps I should have kept the training area secluded away from my other experiments.” He didn’t understand how but Vryce had overwritten his creation’s directives.

“I don’t know, he gained a lot of power in that encounter. Granted, binding with one of…those…creations wasn’t desirable at his stage. However, I don’t think he is likely to find a more loyal companion.” The Morrigan replied.

“It’s not her loyalty to him that’s the problem. The hidden directives in those creations were supposed to be just that…hidden. He might not react well if he thinks I was trying to control his mind.” The Erlking was worried how the human soul would react to a perceived threat.

“It’s done now,” the Morrigan said. “Perhaps you should just move him to the next trial?”

“No, Benz is already in the tower. I don’t want them meeting yet, we will wait until she goes up a floor or two. Besides Vryce hasn’t cleared this trial yet. He has to follow the trail to the end.” He had set each trial up to test the human souls and help them grow in some way, he wanted him to learn every lesson.

With a sigh he closed that window. Vryce had promise, but he wasn’t his only promising charge.