Despite my disgust at going anywhere near the remains of the rooster, my trepidation was gone after a single bite.
It was delicious.
[Where can we find more of these? They taste amazing!]
[...You barely survived.]
[It's worth it if they taste like this!]
[Do you really want to get almost eaten every time you meet one of these things? Because - FINALLY!]
Startled, I realize that she's back to her optimistic self at last, and I am surprised to realize I missed it.
[What is it?]
[That rooster generated enough energy for us to unlock casting! It couldn't be better timing!]
[What's so great about that?]
[It means you can extend the void outside of your body! I mean, not much, and the repertoire is really limited, but still! It's a step!]
[...So that's a good thing, right?]
[IT'S AMAZING!]
My antennae perk up. I've learned to be a little dubious when it comes to helpful abilities, partly because they tend to disappear after the first use. This time, Joule seems pretty certain about what she's doing.
[So, how do we use it?]
[Well, my Engineering rank is rock bottom - we haven't been using it for pretty much anything, but we can improve that as we go. Anyway, to summarize: try breathing in and concentrating Void at the air around your mouth.]
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I feel like she just said something really important.
[What engineering rank?]
[No, Engineering. There's a difference.]
[Okay, but what is it?]
She laughs. As usual, it's a weird feeling in my head.
[Did you really think I wouldn't quantify myself? I have an Engineering rank of one, an Allocation rank of two, and an Intellectual rank of six.]
[...That sounds really made up.]
[Of course, it's made up! I made it up! I'm a quantifier, what do you think I do?]
[Okay, fine. Settle down.]
I open my mandibles wide and concentrate void on the area in front of my mouth. I start getting light-headed.
Something starts appearing, a tiny black dot in between my mandibles. I pour more void into it, and it slowly gets bigger. I start losing void at a massive pace, the precious energy I'd just gained disappearing rapidly.
[I'm letting it go!]
[But you could make it more powerful!]
[I'm not using my void on something like this!]
I release the energy, and the ball sputters out of existence. My mandibles hang open, and I collapse from the exhaustion.
Joule starts talking immediately.
[Why did you do that? We could have kept it going!]
[I barely have any energy left! If you don't believe me, check it yourself!]
[We had plenty of - oh, wow. That was using it up like crazy!]
[You think?]
I get back to eating the rooster, frantic to refill my Void.
[Okay. Casting might be helpful at some point, but right now it's worse than useless.]
[Well - that's a little harsh. The spell you just tried involved creating a literal rip in space - an actual void, if you will. The other technique is way more cost-efficient. If I'm quantifying it correctly, that is.]
I'm skeptical, to say the least.
[What is it?]
[It allows you to create a pair of phantom mandibles at a range, and directly connects them with yours.]
[Meaning?]
[Just try it out.]
I eat more of the rooster before I do so, worried about my Void.
[How do I use it?]
[Easy. Picture a pair of mandibles in front of you.]
I look at my mandibles, their shape permanently burned into my brain, and imagine them a little further in front of me.
After a moment, a wispy form appears.
[That's it! You're doing it!]
The form dissipates.
[Wha - why'd you end it?]
[I didn't end it. I think that that's as good as it gets at the moment.]
Joule sighs.
[Sorry for hyping it up so much. I'm used to dealing with the Cosmics, and their powers are pretty much unlimited.]
That sounds like a nice thing to have. I still don't really have a good frame of reference for how dangerous Noah is, and he looks like a teenager.
[Don't worry about it. We'll get more powerful over time until we can even beat Noah!]
[That's literally impossible, but I'm liking that enthusiasm!]
and a Void Engineer. And yes, it is indeed terribly weird. I should probably come up with some better terms, like 'reserves' instead of 'Void'. If you finish reading this postscript and are confused, don't worry. I'm right there with you.
Rename the void?
