Mangowo
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Chapter 85: WraithScale
🕑 Added 2024-11-26 00:30:01 +0000 UTCMy doppelgänger paused mid-stir, frowning as if I’d just failed the most rudimentary of tests. “Thought you’d have caught on by now,” she said, fixing me with a look of mild exasperation. “All those flashy attacks of yours? Echo Claw, Spectral Crunch, and now this phasing business—I figured you’d pieced it together.”
I frowned, the gears in my head grinding at her words. Now that she mentioned it, the thought had crossed my mind, though fleetingly. “I was, uh, a bit preoccupied wrecking those cultists, thanks very much. Didn’t exactly have the luxury of sitting down for a tea and ponder session. Sure, the phasing bit with the Phantom Dragon Dance had me curious, but I didn’t have a bloody clue how it worked. It all felt... instinctive. And, well, with no leads to go on, I figured if I started digging into it, I’d tumble headfirst down some rabbit hole I didn’t have the time or patience for.” I shrugged. “So yeah, I shelved my curiosity and just rolled with it.”
Honestly, if I stopped to question every bizarre thing that cropped up, I’d never get anything done—not without driving myself mad in the process.
She set her stirring rod down, and the potion, which had been swirling obediently a moment ago, immediately grew wilder. “Alright,” she said, clasping her hands with the exaggerated patience of a teacher about to explain why two plus two isn’t twenty-two. “Picture this: the good old three dimensions—length, width, height. Everything you see, touch, or stub your toe on. But there’s more to the world than that. Imagine an extra layer of reality, snug as a second skin. That’s the fourth dimension—the Shadow Dimension. It’s not some separate plane, mind you. It’s right here, just... out of sync. A distorted mirror of our world, where things are shadowy, half-there, intangible.”
I frowned, properly mulling it over now. My phasing technique suddenly started to make sense. I hadn’t been teleporting or reconstructing myself on the fly like some stupid puzzle. It all clicked. “So, when I phased through stuff, I was... hopping in and out of this Shadow Dimension?”
“Exactly,” she said with a nod. “Your technique burns stamina to dip in and out of it, bypassing physical barriers like they’re nothing. You’re not altering the world; you’re just sidestepping it entirely for a moment.”
“What about Echo Claw and Spectral Crunch, then?”
“Ah, that’s a property of this fourth dimension,” she said, leaning back smugly. “Time moves... differently there. A little warped, a little stretched. So, when your skills interact with it—like a claw swipe or a bite—they leave a delayed echo. The action’s already complete in the physical plane, but the Shadow Dimension lets you fire off a follow-up attack out of nowhere, catching your enemies off guard.”
My eyes widened as the implications hit me. A whole different dimension, hiding in plain sight, and I’d been dipping into it without even realising. “Why the hell wasn’t I aware of this till now?”
She smirked. “Don’t fry your brain over it. It’s not exactly a state secret. People in the world know about it, though they might call it something else. Ever notice how specters, wraiths, and incorporeal monsters work? They’re native to this dimension. They exist there but interact with here, opposite of what you’ve been doing.”
I nodded, though my knowledge of such creatures was pitiful at best. Research wasn’t exactly my strong suit, since my knowledge supply had always been limited, especially when it came to monsters. Still, my doppelganger seemed unnervingly well-informed about this dimension—more than a passing nod to the system’s spoon-feeding, I reckoned. Judging by the stack of evolution tomes mentioning this shadowy dimension, it was clearly no small topic. Grinning, I decided to prod her further. She seemed in a rare teacher mode rather than her usual annoy-for-sport antics.
“Sooo… learning that technique was quite the milestone, yeah? Considering all these shadow-dimension-themed options popping up. Not to mention, I’ve been pulling off specter-ish stunts already. The name Phantom Dragon Dance is almost offensively on the nose, isn’t it?” A thought struck me, and I cocked my head. “But wait—aren’t the denizens of this dimension mostly undead? Am I nicking some of their traits or what?”
“Well,” she drawled, “you’re undeniably alive, so let’s not add ‘zombie’ to your list of issues. And no, not everything there is undead. Spirits, incorporeal entities, and who knows what else reside in this plane. Unlike you, they’re naturally attuned to it. Their bodies destabilize molecules and sync with dimensions instinctively. You, on the other hand, have been burning stamina to brute-force the same tricks. Now, with the right organ, you could do it with mana instead.”
I glanced back at the tomes, a flicker of hope stirring in my chest. Maybe this dimension held the key I needed. But her voice echoed through my thoughts, dampening the spark. “There’s a catch, of course. While you’re in this dimension, you’re untouchable—but also utterly useless. You can’t affect anything on the other side until you pop back into the 3D plane to do the deed.”
I nodded. That tracked. Every story I’d heard about specters or wraiths attacking involved them manifesting physically to land a blow. Still, curiosity got the better of me. “Okay, phasing through stuff makes sense now, but ghost hunters—there was one incident in Randall with a wraith—how do they manage to catch these things? What should I be wary of?”
She tilted her head. “Well, what do dark mana entities fear most?”
I blinked. “Er… light mana?”
“Bingo. Try phasing through a light mana barrier, and you’ll have your answer.” Her laugh was half cackle, half lecture. It added up, really. Every organ linked to this dimension required dark mana to function or attune. “And it’s not just barriers. Any attack imbued with light mana will land on an incorporeal entity like a hammer on glass. Just because you’re invisible to the eye doesn’t mean the physical world won’t respond. A drop in temperature, for instance—that’s your telltale sign something’s lurking.”
I filed that under important things not to ignore. Something else nagged at me, though. “Why does it feel like energy—mana and force—has more presence in this dimension than, y’know, solid objects?”
Her grin widened, all teeth and smug satisfaction. “Knew you’d clock it eventually. You’ve been flirting with the fourth dimension for a while, and only now you’ve bothered to ask its name.”
I scowled, the gears in my mind grinding as the pieces clicked together. "So these evolutions—Wraithwing Stalker, Veil Warden, all that lot—they’re designed to pull me deeper into that dimension, aren’t they?" My gaze flicked to the gold section, narrowing. “And I’m guessing there’s even more up there, isn’t there?”
“Not just deeper,” she said, waggling a finger like a smug professor. “Better. They refine your body for it—tendons that detach, membranes that stabilize transitions, senses fine-tuned to disturbances in that shadowy layer. Oh, and as for those gold tomes?” She flashed a grin, all teeth. “Why not take a peek and see for yourself?”
That I would. My heart raced at the thought. Until now, I’d only dabbled—skirting the edges of becoming something ghost-like. But an evolution that could actually grant me their properties? Access to a dimension where they thrived? The idea of becoming the kind of monster that made hunters take specialized skills to deal with—deliciously irritating and devastating—was too tempting. Still, I wouldn’t lose sight of my edge. I wasn’t some fragile specter. No, for me, that dimension would be a weapon. A cloak to amplify my strength.
The hope to survive when I woke up burned brighter as my gaze locked onto the gold tomes. I couldn’t help but laugh. “Wouldn’t it be lush if one of these evolutions let me fully dive into that dimension, like ghosts do?” I quipped, only to stop dead when my doppelganger’s grin stretched even wider, her eyes practically gleaming.
“No fucking shot!?” I blurted.
Her smile said it all, but I didn’t wait for confirmation. My hands were already snatching up the first golden tome before she could say another word.
[Thunder Scion]
[Description: This evolution channels the ferocity of lightning mana through a body honed under extreme conditions, combining resilience with explosive capabilities.]
• Stat Bonuses per Level: +6 Intelligence, +5 Will, +5 Durability, +2 Strength.
• New Organ: Electroconductive Myelin – Enhanced nerve fibers coated with specialized conductive sheaths. This adaptation accelerates neural signaling, enabling heightened reflexes and more precise lightning mana control.
• Evolution-Exclusive Ability: Living Conductor – Grants the capability to absorb electrical energy and lightning mana, storing it internally for controlled release as devastating bursts. Overloaded energy can be redirected into a healing burst, restoring stamina and mending internal injuries.
• Mana Core Upgrade: Intermediate Mana Core – Expands mana storage.
• Supplemental Core Unlock: Tempest Core – A supplementary mana core designed to optimize lightning mana storage, providing an expanded reservoir exclusively for lightning mana.
Not quite what I had in mind, but oh, gold tomes were leagues ahead of any other rarity, as usual. I couldn’t help but gape for a moment at the evolution on display. The cover illustration alone was enough to make one’s heart skip a beat—gleaming bioelectric veins coursing beneath the skin, horns elegantly curving backward with a polished metallic sheen, crackling faintly with static energy.
Scales shimmered like storm-touched silver-blue clouds, claws extended into blackened, razor-sharp talons etched with lightning-like patterns.
It was a masterpiece of deadly grace, with eyes like blazing blue orbs that all but whispered, blink, and you’re already gone. And that was just the first option among the four versions on offer in this section.
The ability it came with was absurdly powerful—one of those evolution-exclusive perks, though. The catch was there. It’d vanish the moment I evolved again unless I kept to a similar path and snagged an upgraded version. With a sigh, I turned my attention to the second tome.
[Draconic Devourer]
[Description: A predatory evolution emphasizing resource consumption and metabolic adaptability, turning sustenance into combat advantages.]
• Stat Bonuses per Level: +6 Strength, +3 Durability, +6 Intelligence, +3 Will.
• New Organ: Energy Vault – A secondary digestive organ equipped with mana-reactive enzymes and specialized acids. This organ processes consumed materials—including mana-rich or toxic substances—into stamina, mana, or temporary boosts to physical attributes and regeneration.
• Evolution-Exclusive Ability: Ravenous Conversion – Enables the user to consume enemy corpses or mana-infused objects mid-combat, replenishing health, mana, or stamina. Grants a temporary enhancement to stats and allows for limited replication of consumed traits.
This one was another hunger-themed evolution, and sweet heavens, these options just kept improving. Boosts from eating? Check. Temporary trait mimicry? Check. A combat powerhouse, no doubt about it.
The accompanying illustration leaned more towards nightmare fuel. Bulkier frame, muscles like coiled steel cables, and a maw so large it practically swallowed itself. Because why not, right? Stage 4 clearly didn’t hold back—every one of these forms was at least the size of a horse now. Reluctantly, I set the tome down. Gold evolutions always reflected your path and top achievements, like a twisted mirror.
My gaze slid to the third tome.
[Venomscale]
[Description: A toxin-focused evolution enhancing venom production and deployment, transforming the user into a master of poison manipulation.]
• Stat Bonuses per Level: +3 Strength, +3 Durability, +6 Intelligence, +6 Will.
• New Organ: Toxiferous Glands – Dual-purpose glands capable of producing various toxins when supplied with mana. Includes corrosive venom for dismantling defenses, neurotoxins for incapacitating enemies, and hallucinogenic compounds for disrupting perceptions.
• Evolution-Exclusive Ability: Toxic Veil – Deploys a venomous mist from the glands, creating a localized field with variable effects based on the toxin type:
Neurotoxin Mist: Slows movement and reduces enemy strength.
Corrosive Mist: Deteriorates equipment and burns through physical defenses.
Hallucinogenic Mist: Induces confusion and paranoia in targets, impairing coordination and perception.
The illustration was all sinuous grace—a serpentine version of me. Scales of emerald green with golden flecks glimmered like a serpent’s hoard. Needle-like fangs glistened with a suspiciously venomous sheen, and my tail had grown barbs, clearly designed for constriction. Thin membranes along my spine shimmered faintly, radiating a gaseous, toxic haze.
It looked as dangerous as it was described. My very own venom glands?! The idea of cycling mana into poison, and poison back into mana, practically had my mind spinning. Could this be an infinite loop of self-sustaining terror? The possibilities were endless. Still, there was one more tome left on the shelf, and deep down, I already knew it had to be tied to that shadowy dimension.
Without a moment’s hesitation, I reached for it.
[Wraithscale]
[Umm, yeah, sorry for leaving you hanging on that shadowy cliff (haha), but here's a quick note about the 4th dimension/Shadow (mem)Brane idea! The inspiration struck during a chat about spatial dimensions, y'know, the ones we can't perceive but can whip up with some fancy math. It got me thinking: what if this shadowy plane was like an adjacent 4D hyperspace interacting with our 3D world?
And then it hit me, bam! What if the world had ways to perceive it? That thought spiraled into a cornerstone for the worldbuilding. Naturally, I dove headfirst into research, ending up in a truly bizarre rabbit hole (as one does). There was this one gem I stumbled upon, the M-theory, which defines such dimensions as “branes.” Shadow Brane just sounded way cooler, so, voila!
Anyway, that’s my little physics ramble. Got some wild plans brewing with this one. Thanks for reading!]
Comments
MangOwO
Fixed!
Skia Elafris
"no, not everything here is undead." Missing a 't' in 'there'
