Harmonic Recall. This was the second step of Zarek's plan. Well, it was more like half of a step. Alone, as the description implied, it was basically just an auxiliary scouting Skill.
With it, he could touch objects and experience what they had experienced. This was exceptionally useful to have if it was just a random throwaway in a squad. But to have it take up a Talent slot, well… that was another problem entirely.
Most would rather have something like this in a Skill rather than a Talent. Skill slots were limited as well, but Skills could be easily swapped and chosen between should you find an appropriate Hub.
Right now, as a Mutant F Elite, Zarek could easily have three Skills. When he became an E Warrior, he would gain another slot.
But Talent Swap Hubs were far rarer, and everyone had a hard cap of three Talents even up into the S Class. That Zarek knew from personal experience.
Even so, Zarek was sure in his choice and didn't bother to give the system's words another glance.
"We've got it. Let's go."
**
Zarek looked back over his shoulder. Beneath him was a familiar motorcycle—this time pumped full of gas—and to his back, there was Priya.
It took every fiber of control he had to not wait for that Godsfall Tear to close and put a bullet in Jiade's skull. But he knew it wasn't the smart thing to do.
With Suki by Jiade's side, Zarek would likely have to complete his plans first before he had a chance to deal with this man.
But deal with him he would.
"Are you okay?" Priya asked.
"Yeah. I am. And I'll be even better very soon."
He revved the engine and lifted his foot from the ground, shooting off into the distance.
When he collected his third Talent, that was when the real games would begin.
…
The Godsfall Tear pulsed and then began to slowly close.
From a distance, a familiar mutt watched it warily. Every so often, it would catch its reflection in one of the shattered pieces of glass scattered across the ground and yelp, leaping back.
Such a powerful creature had been rendered useless beneath its own stupidity. It hadn't even noticed that the mirror that smashed against its nose earlier hadn't even cut its skin. All it could think about was the feeling of fear it had when a creature as large as itself was rushing toward it.
Well, it wasn't the size of the creature that was the problem, but instead the fact its physics didn't make any sense. How was it moving like that without moving its legs? Could it fly?
At that moment, the petite frame of a woman came into view. She stood to the side of the hound, stroking its fur.
Slowly, the anxiety of the six-headed dog began to calm until it rested its head to the ground and fell into a deep sleep.
The woman stood there in silence, still stroking the hound's fur, her head tilting to the side.
"Hm… First Temp Duplicate… then Harmonic Recall? Two worthless Talents, what is he trying to do…?"
The woman's head tilted to the side. If nothing else, Zarek was surely taking a path they couldn't predict. Trying to guess what his third Talent would be would definitely be a worthless endeavor.
After Zarek got his hands on Temp Duplicate, she thought that he had found a method to multiply those Ashen Flames he had become so famous for. This was the real reason she had come here…
But she didn't expect that rather than entering the Godsfall Tear he always had, Zarek would pivot in a way none of them could have ever expected.
"If that's the case, if I had to guess where he'll go after he collects his third Talent… it should be to that summit… Fascinating. I wonder what Talent he is trying to form. But this is foolish. Why would a Strength and Endurance Type like Zarek choose Talents clearly more suited to an Intelligence or Charisma Type?"
Nothing Zarek was doing made any sense to her, so even her speculation that he would aim for that summit just might be entirely wrong.
The woman looked toward the skyscraper in the far-off distance. Even from here, she could spot it clearly. But after a while, she shook her head too.
With Suki present, it really was too dangerous to be here.
Much like Zarek, she made the same decision, slipping onto the back of the hound.
"Come on, little guy. Let's go find somewhere else to play."
There was one thing the woman's speculations hadn't made clear…
If she was so confused by Zarek's actions…
How would she know where to leave her hound?
—
Name: [Clarice Heimer]
Role: [N/A]
Core Stats:
[Strength: F+]
[Dexterity: F+]
[Intelligence: F+]
[Endurance: F+]
[Charisma: EEE]
Talents:
[Severance of Fate: D-]
[Abilities: Thread of Fate]
[The echoes of Time and Fate call to you. Allow it to guide your steps and decide your actions, or fight against its flow. Be warned, choosing the path of the latter is long and lonely]
[Unawakened]
[Unawakened]
—
**
"We'll stop here for the night," Zarek spoke over his shoulder to Priya.
The location was a fairly barren stretch of desert. It would take them another three days at this pace before they could reach the destination Zarek had in mind, but this was for the best.
Once they were far enough from Priya's family, the odds that anything odd would happen before they were ready was low.
Of course, when you were messing with timelines, anything could happen. But Zarek was confident that he would feel it first this time.
"Is it safe to practice?" Priya asked, referring to [Limit Break] and [Godsfall Eclipse Resonance].
Zarek smiled. "Of course. You're always safe when I'm here."
"That's not what I meant."
Zarek chuckled, but didn't change his words. Instead, he looked off into the distance, finding that a point of light had become more obvious the darker it got.
Since the sun was only just setting, they could have gone on for much longer. But after he spotted a Hub, he couldn't just let it go unexplored, right?
"You stay here and start practicing. I'll be back."