"Comes with the Dreg Warrior territory," I said, finally laying on the ground and releasing a weary sigh. It had only been a few hours since we'd left, but I could have sworn it was a few days.

"It appears so. Look, your strange gel pet is coming." Sure enough, Blobby rolled slowly into the clearing. There were two Q0 ant corpses inside its body as well as several red-black blobs floating around inside him. As laborious as the tendril's movements looked, its jiggle spoke of unbridled excitement.

"You three care to catch us up? It's barely been six hours," Ava said, flicking the safety on her rifle and turning to regard us. Apparently, she'd been so focused on the ants, she'd missed our less-than-stellar state. "Oh my god! What happened to you two?"

Samuel was still utterly trashed and I looked like something left in the oven overnight.

"Fire Ants. Dreg Poisoning. The usual," I said casually.

"Very funny, Ronan. Are you two okay?"

"Nothing our healer here can't fix." Of course, Sam picked that moment to hurl on the ground beside him. "Once he's less drunk."

"What? How is he drunk?" my uncle said. Dale pat Sam gently in the back, supporting him as he emptied the contents of his stomach. While I hadn't anticipated he would get intoxicated like he had by Dreg Poisoning, I'd warn the blonde not to eat those snacks while we scouted the ant territory.

"That's a long story. Entity, are we safe?" I asked.

"Clear as far as I can see. I appreciate the Dreg, for the record. Not having to hold your breath while talking is appreciated." Everyone looked visibly confused at the Crystal's antics. "It is a metaphor for what I have been doing with my mana and influence. I do not need oxygen. Yes, you are safe. Story time, if you would?"

---+---

Everyone was very eager to hear what happened. Before we did any of that, we collected the little present the ants had brought to our door. Ben and Ava nudged fourteen of the Q0 ants, pushing Ben into his second Level and putting Ava very close. In the case of my uncle and Alan, the Pith triggered their Attunements.

My uncle started sweating profusely before a sheen of frost covered his entire body. In the case of Alan, flakes of skin burned up and drifted away like ash off of coal. Neither of them were conscious while this happened, since their bodies locked up the moment the process started, but it was still distinctly fascinating. I somewhat regretted not seeing Daniela's mom taking on her Air Attunement.

Once all the loot was secure inside the vestibule or the lobby, and both Dale and Alan had received the reprogrammed connection to the Entity via their Implants, we sat down to talk. It took well over an hour for us to recount our brief raid on the Fire Ant Hive. The part that surprised everyone the most was the degree to which I'd managed to concentrate the physical damage to myself. Considering I was supposed to be the tank of the group, I took that as a compliment. My uncle, of course, frowned the entire time as I talked about getting slapped around by a car-sized ant.

"Why didn't you shoot them from afar? That seemed to work pretty well with the ones here," he asked. He shook his head, small flakes of ice falling from his hair like snow, before pointing at the pile of Q0 chitin plates and infusions. Ben was hard at work separating all the loot by type. It really was an astounding dedication to organization.

"I can provide an answer, Dale," The Entity started, "That would be because of the exponential growth factor certain creatures gain from Quotients. From Ronan's experimentation with the materials these creatures provide, I can say that most of their growth is centered on survivability. Each Quotient makes the ants roughly three times more durable either in carapace strength or hardiness overall. The bullets of the current weapons at your disposal would have a tough time penetrating unless it was a direct hit. The chitinous armor of the ants also throws some ablative properties into the mix."

"As long winded as that was, that about covers it," I said. "I hadn't considered that Quotients would affect creatures like that, but it makes sense. We aren't exactly the same as when we were at Quotient 1 either. There is a big difference between half an inch of chitin and a full inch of it."

The revelation deepened all of the older member's faces. Except for Alan, who was going through the loot, Infusions and his Status like a child on Christmas day. Or, at least how I pictured Christmas had been pre-Landfall.

"We'll deal with that problem as it comes. What's the plan now?" Ben asked, frown still etched on his face.

"I think it will be good if we take a day to gather ourselves and plan then."

"Can we make that three?" Sam said from where he was propped against the vestibule wall. He hadn't made it all the way to the benches and no one wanted to move him after he had passed out.

After some mumbled agreements, me and my friends were left alone in the vestibule while the others tended to the camp. My uncle basically told Daniela that if she didn't let him cook dinner, she would be barred from the lobby. He even had a small cook stove ready to go, so Daniela's passive magic wasn't necessary.

"I wanted to speak with you three. As you are aware, I have access to your Status and to your Dregs. Thanks to your efforts, I should be able to impart another set of Skills onto each of you while keeping my functionality as I have. A bit more, and I will be able to have more stable connection times. Alan has already expressed explicit interest in speaking with me. At length."

The three of us chuckled. It hadn't surprised me that Alan had already been trying to eek out as much from the Entity as he could.

"Do you have any recommendations for us this time?" Daniela asked. Her tone was much more level and less demanding than when we'd discussed our Skill acquisitions with the Entity.

"Actually, I do. From your tale, it appears that you three should continue to focus as you have. Perhaps, spreading the damage taken with Ronan a tad. As such, I believe the Offensive Imbue Skill for you Daniela, the Defensive Imbue Skill for Samuel and the Defensive Imbue Skill for Ronan."

"That sounds fairly reasonable. Actually, wait a sec." I looked over the loot, searching for the Metier Crystal I'd found. "Did you guys see the Crystal that was with Danny's fangs?"

"You mean the thing Blobby is sucking up into its body?" Sam slurred.

If the Entity had been able to pivot with us, I was sure it would have. Daniela and I spun just in time to see the crystal disappear into Blobby's bulk. The slime even had the audacity to burp loudly. I didn't even know he could burp...

"That is unfortunate. I could have significantly increased my mana capabilities with a Cluster of that size. If you did indeed acquire that from your insectile foe, then that would explain why you three struggled so hard."

"Wait, back up. Explain," I said. Blobby was jiggling erratically, but what the Entity said drew my attention.

"As creatures grow in Quotient, it is possible for them to form Clusters of purified mana. That is, what we Entity Clusters are imprinted on. They give the creature enhanced capabilities and control over their Attunement mana. Should I gain access to one such crystal, my mass would increase proportionately to that crystal and so would my strength."

"Ah! They are rare mobs!" Sam chuckled. "They drop the best loot."

"From my understanding of your games, Samuel is correct. It is not often that creatures form pure clusters. It is also not clear if they form as a result of their abnormal strength or their abnormal strength is just a result of the formation early on in the organism's development.

"Ugh. This is making my head hurt. Can we just get our Skills and take a nap?" Daniela complained.

"That is certainly okay. I do not believe it would be in your best interest to practice your Skills over much. As far as your Dreg, I would suggest you give your Statuses a look. You and Samuel have now accumulated enough Dreg to form a Trait. I believe Samuel has enough to overbank his own. Daniela, you are at the borderline threshold. Considering Samuel's... odd state, I would recommend you let him acquire his Trait before you."

The three of us took a moment to review our Status. Except, Samuel. I wasn't entirely sure what he did while we both stared at our implanted displays because he was already looking off into space. In my case, I went for the full breakdown. Thanks to the Health and Mana bars at the edges of my vision, I knew some of the overall information but I wanted the numerical breakdown.

Subject: Ronan Terrigan

Health: 91% (Unafflicted)

Mana: 100%

Metier Quotient: 4 (3%)

Dreg Accumulation: 0%

LPS: Wildwood, FL

Communications

Skills - (3) Selections Available

Traits - (69% Banked)

Attributes - Growth Quantified

Skills:

Offensive - / Imbue / Materialize

Defensive - Direct / Imbue /

Misc -

-

Traits:

Limestone Skin

Unformed (0%)

Attributes:

Strength: 1.41 > 1.52

Mobility: 1.31 > 1.41

Perception: 1.53 > 1.63

Refinement: 1.16 > 1.26

Containment: 1.98 > 2.08

A grimace took over my face. I’d been expecting the growth from my risen Quotient, but my Strength had gone up by a factor of 0.11. The fight hadn't been particularly physically exertive compared to what I'd been doing daily. That meant that the marginal gain to my Strength had been a result of the thorough beating I'd received. My thoughts scattered when Daniela finished her own Status check.

"All done. You can take him, but I want the Skill."

"Very well. Samuel, if you would?'' The Entity's crystal flowed open like a closet door of perfect glass. Sam tried to make his way over, but failed miserably. Daniela and I were forced to give him a hand. A muted thunk was all we heard before the Entity Cluster encased my friend. A trill of panic clenched my heart. He could suffocate within.

"Don't worry. You did the same thing, remember? Hopefully he won't be so wobbly when he comes out," Daniela said, patting me on the shoulder. "Now, Entity. Skill me up!"

Daniela placed her hand on the portion of the Crystal where our friend wasn't and it sunk an inch in before her eyes rolled into the back of her head.

"You know, you do some freaky stuff to our bodies," I said.

"That may be true, but not as freaky as what your gelatinous companion is doing," the Entity retorted. When I turned I watched Blobby mitose. Like playdoh being molded, the lime green creature stretched in the middle before a wet pop snapped both parts of Blobby. And then there were two.

"What the hell, Blobby!?" I wasn't sure if I should be impressed, alarmed or scared that the creature had been able to do that.

As if trying to communicate a response, both Blobbys held up an appendage in the air. They were perfect mirrors. A moment later, the Metier Crystal cores rose to the surface like driftwood. One had the brown light surge within, while the other looked to be more or less pristine. At the edges of it, the same brown was starting to crawl along it with each passing second.

"Did you somehow use the new Crystal to duplicate yourself?"

Both slimes nodded their appendages vigorously. Having tested the ability, Blobby surged and melded into itself and waved as if nothing had happened.

"Curious, and concerning. If it is this easy for this creature to corrupt and imprint onto other Clusters, the Tendrils may be a bigger threat than I could have anticipated," the Entity said gravely. I held the silence between us as I contemplated Blobby's new offensive capabilities and the unknown trouble the Tendrils were presenting themselves as. And we'd only met them once! "On a positive note, I believe my hypothesis on your spell chain development was correct. Daniela will be much more potent moving forward."

"What are you talking about?"

"I will let her explain," it said cryptically.

On cue, the Entity released Daniela from its crystalline hold. She stumbled a step before shaking her head like someone had smacked her. Before I had a chance to ask what was going on, she lifted her hand and flames licked the length of her arms. She grabbed a hold of the fang tucked in her belt and the flames crawled down her arms and onto her makeshift weapon.

"Oh yes. I am a fan of this one," her voice drifted off and a chill ran down my spine. The fire flickering in her eyes didn't look entirely reflected. As suddenly as she'd utilized her Skill, she cut off the mana. "I got something on top of my new Skill. That was , by the way."

"Well, don't keep me waiting!" I tried to push past my somewhat irrational fear into the prospect of something exciting.

"With the three categories of Offensive Skills, I was able to use another of those Skill Points for something called . It's supposed to let me manipulate spell chains to do whatever I want!" she said excitedly.

"That would be some of what you want. You three haven't come anywhere close to understanding the manner in which we form spell chains. However, with the current catalogue of information at your disposal I believe your minds will be able to start incorporating some of those benefits. A warning, if you would. Using the will be prohibitively expensive on the mana front, but it will give you much flexibility. Please, be cautious," the Entity said. It put a dampener on our prospects of more free magic use, but it was a fair warning.

Throwing magic around shouldn't be done willy nilly. Especially not when your friend seems to have a bit of a pyromaniac streak hidden inside.

"Got it, I am gonna go mess around with this. Tell Dale I won't fight him about dinner this time." With that, Daniela was already speeding towards the training area. Had she not been walking on the path I'd solidified, she probably would have thrown up a dust cloud with her pace.

"Don't forget you still need to get your Trait!" I shouted after her. All I got was a dismissive wave over the shoulder. "Great. Who would have thought I would be the adult in this situation."

"It does appear you and Sam hold much of the calmness in bearing. Except when intoxicated. Samuel does appear unduly inhibited."

"What can I say? Friends help keep you grounded," I shrugged.

"Friends... of course. Would you like to acquire your Skill?" the Entity said quickly. There was something suspicious about its change in tone, but I let it be for now. As much as I bugged Daniela about being aggressive with getting Skills, I couldn't deny my own excitement. had changed the game for me; it had even given further functionality to .

With no hesitation, I sunk my hand into the crystal surface. The world winked and I was deposited once again in the white space hosted by the Entity. Its pulsing light hovered next to me.

"I believe you are now familiar with this process?" I nodded and mentally selected 'Defensive Imbue'. The familiar deluge of information pressed down on my mind. The surprising thing was that some aspects of the information felt familiar. So familiar, in fact, that my brain rejected it outright. The non-overlapping sections of information settled into the back of my mind leaving the mental button for a new Skill. The headache that followed was also less intense than with the previous bits of knowledge I'd acquired.

"That's not disturbing at all," I said flatly. "Are you the one who writes these?"

"In a sense, it is you who wrote these. I cannot describe the effects more than this without actually seeing the Skill manifest through you. I also like to be brief."

"Now that is just a lie, but I'll take your word on the other part." Sighing, I pulled on the information and hovered my mental hand over the Skill's trigger. "Here goes nothing."

The Skill triggered instantly. Similarly to how Daniela's had worked, sand winked into existence around me. Instead of obeying the laws of gravity, they zipped back onto my body. Layer upon layer of sand sedimented along my arms as my mana drained. When said drain was at almost thirty percent of my total, I stopped channeling the Skill. No new sand was added, but the compacted soil had formed solid chunks of stone around my arms up to my shoulders.

My arms were locked in place, however.

"Well, that doesn't seem very practical," I said, wiggling my arms ever so slightly.

"Perhaps a simulated enemy would be to your benefit?" the Entity asked.

"You can make those?"

"Certainly. At a cost, of course, and they won't provide you any Pith. This is all going on inside your mind." When I didn't object, the Entity drew half of my remaining mana away in a second. A Q1 ant chittered angrily before me before lunging.

"Gahh!" I screamed in surprise.

The creature's mandibles clamped around my immobile arms and only managed to scratch the surface. Its legs flailed and did manage to score some cuts along my body, but I shook my arms and the creature flew some distance away. Now that I focused on our surroundings, I could see that the Entity had also populated our training area from reality into its mental landscape.

Considering how effective the had been, I cranked my arm back and used my whole body to throw a haymaker into the ant's face. With my arms still locked in place, it had to be a whole body affair. Regardless, the attack proved super effective. My encased fist slammed the creature into the ground with earth shaking force. It's eyes bulged as its insides were unable to handle the blunt force trauma. The creature was dead.

A few seconds after the impact, chips started to form along my shell, like cracks on overly dry soil. This time, when I flexed my arms, most of the shell crumbled to dust. All that remained was my encased left arm, and the rock equivalent of a bracer.

"Good for cutting attacks, bad with blunt attacks," I mumbled to myself. As much as the Entity classified as a 'Defensive' Skill, I could already see the offensive uses for the new Skill.

"On the surface, yes. With practice, you may be able to reshape to different uses. Ah, it appears that Sam is waking up and Daniela is returning. I look forward to speaking to you soon now that you are at Quotient 4. Your Infusion goals are within reach." With yet another cryptic message, the Entity spat me out of its mental landscape.

"Good, we can eat dinner now. What were you doing in there, Ron?" Daniela asked. My mind scrambled at the sudden change in perspective and all I managed was a 'huh?'. "You've been stuck there for most of the afternoon. You okay?"

Sure enough, the sun was already falling and my uncle was laying out salad bowls with some dehydrated looking bits of potato on top. The whole scene was utterly strange, partly because I didn't know we had access to leafy greens or dehydration technologies. The other strange part was how nonchalant everyone was about interacting with a sapient crystal or the giant ant and gelatinous construct jiggling its way over to its own bowl of food.

"You're right, it is a tad strange."

I jumped high enough to hit my head on the vestibule ceiling. Samuel had casually exited the cocoon embrace of the Entity and laid a hand on my shoulder without me noticing. What I did notice were the hair-thin roots growing out of his hand. "Samuel, what the hell!?" I asked in alarm while rubbing my head.

"Oh, my bad. These are from my Trait. I've got a Decentralized Nervous Root system now. I'm able to get impressions while touching living things," he said. He still looked a tad drunk, but nothing compared to before. He watched the small roots in his hands before they disappeared into his skin. Freaky, but possibly useful.

"Are you two done gawking at each other? I already ate dinner and I want to get this whole Trait thing out of the way!" Daniela said in agitation.

If one could wait aggressively, then that is what Daniela did. She didn't rush her food, nor did she move around impatiently, but her eyes were set on the Entity Cluster throughout dinner. When that was done, she excused herself, gave her mother a hug and then entered her crystalline cocoon. We all waited for a few hours, chatting and trying to dispel some of the stress our attack on the ant hive had caused, but she did not come out. A brief query of the Entity responded that she was alright, merely processing the changes.

Trusting in the Entity, we all went to bed except for Alan and Ava. The former, because he'd only gotten glimpses of Samuel receiving a trait. The latter, because even after all the assurances and the fact that both Samuel and I had acquired Traits, she wanted to be there if her daughter needed her. It was a bittersweet display for me. Pushing past thoughts of my parents, I collapsed into my bed while my mind swam with Infusion crafting. I was determined tomorrow would be the day I succeeded.