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Update initiated!

!ERROR! REPAIR NEEDED. LV2 DEVICE REQUIRED.

Skill List:

Kanji (lv1): Aspect of Energy: Electricity, Thermal, Sound, Elastic.

{Skill points: !ERROR!}

[Full destructive power limit: Village]

Skills: [1. Infuse/Absorb] [2. Energy travel] [3. Energy trail] [4. Energy bolt] [5. Energy wave] [6. Energy blade] [7. Energy shield] [8. Energy dual conduit] [9. Energy healing] [10. Umbral Cape]

[Vortex battery (Storage)]

Inventory: Geographic sphere, mechanical soap, spyware device, tungsten-infused nanotech silver chain, tech tablet (Portal) (Hide, Input, Output, Convert, Compress), night vision goggles.

Claire (lv0): Aspect of Creation

Skills: [1. Create (Slots: 5)]

Inventory: Black cloak, crossbow, crossbow bolt (modified with rotatenium), ammo pouch, Fanfics, mechanical soap, a spyglass.

David (lv1): Aspect of Form

{Skill points: !ERROR!}

[Range limit: Self]

[Vortex battery (Control)]

Skills: [1. Expand (x2)] [2. Spikefacation] [3. Delay (1-10s)] [4. Shieldfacation] [5. Trigger] [6. Transform pattern Wave] [7. Net Transform] [8. Whip transform] [9. Blend around] [10. Uno]

Inventory: Iron bat, AK -47, mechanical soap.

Amelia (lv1): Aspect of Reality

{Skill points: !ERROR!}

[Attack type: illusion] [Attack range: x3 field of view]

Skills: [1. Third-person vision] [2. Blurring Mirage] [3. Double] [4. Connect] [5. Vision Swap] [6. Disguise] [7. Flash Mirage] [8. False movement] [9. False Touch] [Mentaltomisis]

[Vortex Battery (Charge)]

Inventory: Frying Pan, knife, mechanical soap.

Sarah (lv0): Aspect of Fiction

[Skill access: 1 skill for each item] [Conjured item 1]

Inventory: Mechanical soap, Nezha’s leopard bag (Nezha’s ring).

Noah (lv0): Aspect of Emotion

Skills: [Emotion infusion] (Emotional requirement: High)

Inventory: Gilded axe, mechanical soap, a sharpening stone.

Diana (lv0): Aspect of Law

{Laws unlocked: Law of Friction} {Limit: Only manipulate small values}

Inventory: Mechanical soap, a pickaxe.

Adrian (lv0): Aspect of Knowledge.

{Connected Minds} {Info Extraction} [Limit: half of basic info}]

Inventory: Mechanical soap, rope, Handbook (recorded events).

Azan (lv0): Aspect of Change.

{Limitation: 1. Follow under the concept “change” only. 2. Changes under other aspects require hand holding.}

Change slot: 1

Inventory: Metal suitcase, mechanical soap, miniature fan, blue boxing gloves.

Mina (lv0): Aspect of Time

{Limitations: 4 skills (Currently).}

Skills (!ERROR!) (Auto Input Activated): |1. Aging| |2. Time Exchange|

Inventory: A machete, mechanical soap, yellow boxing gloves.

Gwen (lv0): Aspect of Destruction

{Limitation: Gas only}

Inventory: Mechanical soap, Izzybot, P.T.A.

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...

In New York, Manhattan, guests of a particular art museum rush out of the building in panic succession. Not even the artwork of a famous artist could sustain their desire to stay in the presence of 11 menacing individuals. They saw signs of bruises and cuts like they had just finished a fierce battle.

Two security guards notice the horde of escapees and decide to peek into the room hosting the artwork. However, as soon as they see the source of hysteria, they too bolt out of the facility. The two guards would later be fired for their actions.

Diana "Ummm, boss. All the guests just left."

Kanji "The more, the better. This way there won't be any witnesses."

Mina "I mean... We're not that frightening. Are we?"

Dave "Yo, Minabro. I think it was Amber's bloodlust. Turn that shit off."

Amelia "Sorry, It is truly difficult to keep it under control. Especially after dueling one feisty lass."

Sarah "Oh, I'M FEISTY! You're a psycho! I'm not training with you again!"

Amelia then starts chasing Sarah around the room, her arms wide open as if she is trying to give her a hug. But to Sarah, it is more like a death grip and so she takes cover behind Noah. Noah blushes and he turns his head to Diana. She sees this, Diana sighs and she walks over to lift the two girls.

Diana "This is no time for games. We are in the middle of a trial. Right, boss?"

Kanji "Put them down. It's ok, the challenge hasn't started yet."

Diana puts them down back. Amber and Sarah stick their tongue, but she ignores them and follows Kanji.

Diana "What are you staring at, boss?"

Kanji "This painting of course. Do you know what it is?"

Diana "I'm not much of an art expert, boss."

Claire "It's The Starry Nights. A gorgeous and mesmerizing artwork painted by Vincent van Gogh from around 1889 to 1890 in mid-June. What I love the most about this painting are the vivid blue sky and yellow lights that reflect the feeling of looking out a window at the night sky. Over recent years, people have gained a greater appreciation for this painting as it may also represent Space which is a region we are exploring right now."

Gwen "That explains why there's no other artwork in this room. This is that special and awe-inspiring."

Diana "That sounds cool but I don't get art. Boss, why is this important again?"

Kanji "The crystal map says that in 10 hours something will occur."

Dave "Seriously, ten hours! Bro! Might as well sleep or maybe... Play some fucking games!"

Azan "I'm in a mood for games. What do you have in mind?"

Dave "Let's play charades, dudes. But... we use like our powers to help us."

Adrian "So... Super Charades. That sounds fun."

The wielders gather around Dave. He stomps the ground and after a few minutes, the entrance of the room begins to stretch and seal shut. Dave snaps his fingers and several of the floor's tiles rise to create a stage.

Dave holds out his bat close to his mouth and taps his fingers around its handle. The head of the bat begins to wiggle.

Mina "Oh, is it a snake?!"

Azan "No, Mina. It's supposed to be a snake charmer. Nice one, Dave. How about you give us a harder one next time."

Dave frowns and he sticks his lower teeth outward. He grunts and slams his chest three times while spikes appear one by one on his bat. He goes around the stage carrying the weapon over his shoulder, each step causes the foundation to shake.

Diana "Hahahhahaha! What the fuck is that supposed to be?!"

Kanji "Is it Orge? No, that would be too easy. It must be something more specific. This... This feels familiar."

Adrian "Wait, is it an Oni with an iron club?"

Dave "Yes, dude! Kanbro, I can't believe you didn't get that!"

Kanji "Yeah, looks like I'm going to need to brush up on my Japanese folklore. Okay, next one I'm surely going to get it."

The game of charades then proceeds for four hours switching the performer every two attempts. The results are 50 points for Kanji, 23 points for Claire, 60 for Dave, 12 for Amelia, 20 for Noah, 35 for Sarah, 17 for Mina, 35 for Azan, 55 for Adrian, 10 for Diana, and 40 for Gwen.

AN "Hi, everyone! I'm back! I'm gonna tell you that it was quite busy and.. wait... what happened here?"

Sarah "We played charades for like hours. Where you been?"

AN "I had some commanding duties to complete. But now that that's over. Can I join in the fun?"

Kanji "I don't know how you can participate. Maybe if we play Simon Says. That can work."

AN "Simon Says, huh. Yes... I am a bit familiar with it. It is like commanding people but if they mess up, they lose. Am I correct?"

They nod and AN thinks for a second about what to say. AN doesn't it to be too hard, the action that comes to their mind is...

AN "Ok. Simon says jump!"

They leap into the air and their hair grazes the ceiling of the room. AN begins to smile, for the first time in forever, they feel what it's like to have fun.

Six hours pass. The wielders are lying on the ground sweating, none of them has messed up yet. Kanji pulls out his tablet and looks at the time. He panics and stands up to see the artwork. The sky inside the painting is now gone.

The wielders hear a strange noise, it is like a sack made of flesh and filled with sludge and bone squishing and rolling along the floor.

Kanji "Damn it! Why is the room so dark now?! Wait, I still have that!"

Kanji wears his night-vision goggles and he turns to see the source of all the noise. He sees a clump? A collective mass of what he assumes to be the blue part of the sky and the stylized yellow lights are its many eyes.

Claire "Kaney, what's happening?!"

Kanji "Everyone remain calm and stick behind me. We need to find the light switch."

AN "Kanji, it's on the opposite side. But you have to pass that thing."

Kanji with no other choice left, sprints toward the switch, passing by the mysterious creature. Success. The lights come back on and everyone sees the abomination in full action, rolling along the floor with no sense of direction.

They notice something odd.

Noah "Woah. What the hell?" "First of all, ew. Secondly, why is it like that?!"

Gwen "It's emitting a kind of darkness but there also appears to be a shroud of light near its mass. How contradicting."

Claire "Ah! I get it! This is my trial! Isn't it? That little guy is going through the cycle of creation."

Azan "Err, that's a cycle I haven't heard of. how does it work?"

Claire "Before, you create anything, you need inspiration. No form of creativity comes from nowhere, there has to be something that influences it into being. When it was in darkness, it took inspiration from it. The same for when it was met with light."

Azan "So are we supposed to kill it or help it grow?"

Adrian "It could also be both where we have to build it then fight it. At least, that's what I'm seeing using my power on it."

Kanji "If that's the case then we need to think carefully about what we should expose it to. Knowing that aspect wielders are immune to toxins, gas, poison, and venom. Our best bet is to start with that."

AN "That was genius, Kanji! But does anyone have those components?"

Kanji "Unfortunately, I don't keep that kind of substance around in my storage. So the only way we can get them is through Claire's ability. However, since this is her trial, her power might be useful in defeating this thing."

Gwen "Thinking five steps ahead. Nice. Fortunately, for us. I do have some spare poison inside Izzybot in case someone tries to steal her.'

Kanji "No. Seeing Izzybot is your greatest strength, I say we don't do that. Instead, we should do small harmless actions like pushing to begin with. Diana, you can do that, right?"

Diana "Ok, boss. I'm on it. A little push can't be that hard."

Diana walks up to the rolling blob and pushes it a little to the left. It begins to shake and shoots its floppy body toward every few seconds.

Kanji "Okay, that is quite an interesting result. It has dashes now. That can't be good. Does anyone have any other suggestions?"

Dave "This might sound gross, bro. But what about licking. That shit is quite harmless."

Kanji "That is true but who's gonna do it?"

Dave "Let's do rock paper scissors!"

They agree and in the end, Dave loses. His smile goes full reverse as he moves toward the creature... then he looks back, his friends are giving him a thumb up. He sticks his tongue out and licks one of its yellow eyeballs.

The creature stops dashing and starts shaking again. A large tongue-like appendage grows from under it and licks the floor as it bolts around the room.

Mina "Ok, ew. Maybe hair. Hair is harmless, right?"

Azan "Yeah, but I'm not sure if that thing can take hair as an inspiration."

Mina "We won't know unless we try! Here I go!"

Mina catches up with the creature and she sticks a piece of her hair into it. As she runs back, she trips from the saliva that creature left behind. Her machete flies out and stabs the right side of its body.

This time, it drops to the floor and spasms out, then jumps up and down. Another appendage grows from its side and forms into a machete. The saliva that it leaves behind now turns into the hair, every second passes by. As the creature treads along the room, its machete-like arm cuts down the nearby hair and leaves behind.

Sarah "Mina! What the fuck?!"

Mina "I'm so sorry! I didn't know it had saliva! I mean it isn't THAT bad... it is just doing a bit of trimming."

Kanji "Calm down. At least, it isn't attacking anyone right now. We need to think of something that can stop it before it comes this way and chops us all up into cubes."

Diana "Boss, what if we hold it down. Will it be like staying in one place?"

Kanji "It's worth a shot. But can anyone handle that?"

Diana "Not to worry, boss. I got this! A little puny blade can't destroy these gains!"

Diana runs toward it, ignoring the danger the creature's swinging blade poses. Her large hands come down on its mass and it stops in its track. Diana clenches her teeth as its hand slashed her arms.

The swinging stops and its body begins to root itself in place. The creature's tongue slides up his body to the side, it starts to lick around the creature in a circle giving growth to a greater concentration of hair.

Diana "Oh fuck. Boss! What now?!"

Kanji "Get out there right now!-

Something grabs her arm. Diana turns around and sees two wavy blue arms pulling her back. She puts her leg forward and tugs back. Unmatched by her strength, the arms let go and Diana runs back to the others.

Diana "Okay. What the fuck?! It has two hands now. When did that happen?!"

Kanji "When you grabbed it. It must have thought of it as two types of inspiration."

Sarah "Umm, guys. This shit doesn't look good."

The group stares at the creature. Its new arms are now raised high above its head. However, they notice something far worse. Its machete-like arm is now slicing with incredible speed around itself, trying to trim the bushes of hair. Kanji notices the motion of the blade to be rather janky.

Kanji "Why is it moving like that? And what's with this speed?"

Gwen "Ah! I understand. It was pushed to adapt to its current situation. Once, it was its body that was being pushed. Now it is its blade."

Kanji "Are you trying to say that in addition to the swinging... it is also getting pushed?"

Gwen "Obviously. We need to dial it down will be objective. Anyone wants to volunteer?"

Sarah "I will! I'm pretty good at dodging."

Noah "What? Are you sure?" "Sarah! Are you crazy?! I mean look at that thing!"

Sarah glances over at Noah and gives him a timid smile. She then runs past him.

Noah "Ok. Then." "Shit. She's serious. But with a smile like that. I think... I think she can do it!"

Dave "Yo, Sas. Good luck, bro! Also, what are you going to introduce it to?"

Sarah takes off her hoodie and twists it, dripping sweat onto the floor. She takes the object and puts it around the back of her neck.

Dave "Dansgame! What the fuck?!"

Sarah races forward and reaches a distance just out of its slicing circle. She squeezes out a batch of sweat into her hand and throws it at the creature.

Dave "Huh?! Sas! I thought you were going to go all-in!"

Sarah "That was my first idea but I think this is WAY safer!"

The creature vibrates as small protrusions that look like tubes appear around its eyes. They then begin spraying the surrounding area with a strange liquid that to Sarah smells like sweat but its appearance has the same art style as the main body.

Sarah "Shit! Some of it got into my hand!... Wait, nothing is happening?"

Sarah walks back to Kanji and the others. The look of worry in her eyes tells them everything.

Dave "Dude, you fucked up. Now, that thing has a shotgun."

Sarah "Hey, at least it's harmless. Right? Right?!"

Gwen "Remain calm. Shall I take a look at it?"

Gwen takes out a glass container, scoops up the liquid, and puts a drop of it onto a small glass platform. She leans her face close and blinks. Her iris changes from the usual purple into a pinker color. Her pupil also fluctuates as she closely examines the substance.

Gwen "Ok, on an atomic level, it is technically sweating. But there is a foreign substance which I presume is the creature's own cells."

Claire "Is it dangerous? Is Sarah going to be ok?!"

Gwen "She's fine. They appear to be inactive and deteriorating at a rapid pace. However, I suggest we be more careful about what we should feed it next. Perhaps a less biological approach might be best."

AN "Less biological? Like metals, stones, plastic, and glass?"

Kanji "Yeah, maybe some kind of weak material like paper. Then again, paper cuts are a thing."

Adrian "I got an idea. What about music?"

Kanji "That... that might actually work. But we should choose something quiet like- D-Dave? Dave! What are you doing?!"

It is too late, Dave is right next creature. He puts out his phone and plays "Never gonna give you up" by Reck Astlay.

For a moment, the creature pauses all forms of action, and suddenly its body moves in a odd manner. Its hands and its machete begin to sway left and right, making its slicing pattern less random and more precise. Its body also begins to spin causing the song to play on repeat.

Dave "HAHAHAHAHAHHHA! HOLY SHIT! I'm dying out here man! I can't believe that worked, man!"

Kanji "Dave! What the hell?! Get back here!"

Dave runs back to the group but before he could talk Diana punches him in the stomach.

Dave "O-Ok... I deserved that."

Diana "I can't believe this! What now, boss? How many more things do we have to give that monster?!"

Kanji "I don't know and it is eating us out of ideas. Wait... eating. Eating food! Food, of course! Quick someone grabs anything out of the storage that seems reasonably editable."

Kanji opens up his portal and Amelia jumps in. She then comes out with a piece of cheese and some wine.

Kanji "Why the wine?"

Amelia "Maybe we can introduce it to drinks as well. Maybe the bloody thing thinks it as something different."

Kanji "Good idea! So, who wants to deliver the cheese?"

Amelia raises her hand, Kanji nods and gives the cheese to her. Amelia sprints along the left side of the room, she's looking for a blind spot. Then she spots it, She slides beneath the creature's blade and shoves the cheese into its mass. She then puts her legs out and kicks its tongue, bouncing her out and she returns to her friends.

The top of the creature's head bubbles like hot soup before popping out a large piece of blue cheese.

Kanji "Ok, that's weird. It's just cheese. Maybe this can work after all. Okay, who wants to deliver-

Mina "Can we like rest for a bit? I mean nothing will happen if we don't do anything."

Kanji "That's true but we can't be too relaxed. Then again, as your leader, I'll need to hear what the others think."

Unsurprising, everyone lifts their hands except Gwen and Diana.

Diana "Oh come on! Are we seriously going to leave that thing alone?"

Gwen "Yes, that is quite concerning. It might be possible for an outer factor to influence it."

Kanji "I understand your concerns. But Dave did seal this place off, so that is highly unlikely..."

...

While wielder argues among themselves, a small movement can be seen from a crack in one of the room's corners. Out comes a nose of a little rodent. For eight long years, this little fella has been living off scraps left behind by guests who snuck in food.

A lot of people around the world know him as Jeremy and some even call him the guardian spirit of The Starry Nights. Today his sense of smell picks up something unusual, something he is never used to. He skits around near the crack he calls home, pointing his head, and darting from one scene to another. Then, he spots it. A massive chunk of cheese bigger than his entire body. Never once in his life has he ever seen a fully intact food.

His desire to feel and taste the cheese pushes him toward, passing a group of humans. Only when he gets closer that he senses an unimaginable sense of dread and danger. A feeling far worse than going through a field of walking humans.

He looks up and sees a blade spinning around, creating waves of air that push on his little body. It reminds him of the time when he saw a couple of construction workers cutting off a piece of wood with a saw. He knows it's dangerous. He looks at it carefully for the right time. And just like that, his instincts kick in. Jeremy hops onto the blade itself and jumps off onto the cheese.

He touches it with his little feet, it is soft and squishy. He sticks his tongue out and tastes it, it is sweet and sour. With that, he starts chowing down on the cheese. After a few bites in, he begins to feel different. His eyes close shut and a wave of blue tendrils pull in his body into the bluey depths.

"BE REBORN!"

These words ring throughout the room. The wielders stand up and look at the mass, it is condensing into... an egg?

Dave "Ok, it wasn't me this time. I swear, dude!"

Kanji "We know that! You were here. Shit, something must have touched it, or maybe there was a time limit. Whatever it was... we better be ready. Everyone! Prepare your weapons!"

As they armed themselves, a dozen markings appear on the shell of the egg. Gwen notices this and she approaches the object. The other wielder tries to stop her, but Kanji blocks them. He has full faith in what she is doing.

Gwen "I think these are the inspirations we introduced to it. Now, what was the one that caused this transformati-

A massive oil canvas tail bursts from within the egg and knocks Gwen flying into the wall, knocking her out.

All "Gwen!"

They look back and see a large rat creature. Its fur has a texture similar to the blue sky of the famous painting. The yellow lights became the creature's eyes making six on each side of its head. Its rat-like legs fused into the ground like trees, creating massive cracks on the tiles. Along its back are two arrays of cannon-like protrusions. Then There are four wavy arms growing from its underbelly and in each hand lies a blue machete.

The creature looks toward the group. It sticks its tongue out, covering the ground with saliva which then turns into the hair. Its four arms stretch and dice up the hair until there's nothing left.

The song "Never gonna give you up" begins to play.