Somnus V - Chapter 14

Kat’s fists moved in a blur, hitting Heather’s metal arms with loud clunks. Gravity shifted along with each punch, pulling her hands toward Heather and increasing their speed ever so slightly.

Heather responded, shrugging off one of Kat’s punches with her left shoulder and launching a punch with her right arm. Instantly, Kat altered gravity, pulling Heather’s shoulder backward with about one G of force where her fist had connected with it.

Suddenly off balance, the security officer’s otherwise perfect punch became ragged and landed off center. Kat blocked it, her forearm bruising slightly as it slapped aside Heather’s metal limb.

She grabbed hold of Heather’s shoulder. The moment she was fully in contact with the other woman, her gravity domain expanded to cover the security officer.

Kat’s leg slipped around behind Heather’s leg, planting her calf in the back of her opponent’s knee. She twisted the domain, creating competing gravitational forces, one pushing away from Kat and centered on Heather’s shoulders while the other pulled toward her and focused on her target’s knees.

Compared to her time in the tower, the gravity was almost twice as strong. It was nothing compared to focused spells like Gravity Spike or Gravity Plane, but it easily matched some of her lesser abilities such as Levitation or Gravity’s Grasp.

It barely took a push from her hand to knock Heather off balance. Kat’s leg swept Heather’s out from underneath her, sending her chief of security spilling over backward.

Heather didn’t go down without a fight. Her arm moved, fast as a striking snake, slamming into the cement floor hard enough to blast a crater into it. Heather’s body flipped to the side using her plant arm to stabilize, and her legs pressed back at Kat, trying to bring her to the ground with her.

Kat jumped backward. Heather wasn’t in a good spot to leverage her strength, but a direct confrontation with the other woman’s top of the line cyberware wasn’t a good idea.

As Heather tried to stand up, Kat landed a snap kick on the other woman’s chest, knocking her back to the ground. With a grunt, Heather absorbed the blow, using its momentum to roll backward and land in a crouch.

Before she could stand up fully, Kat pounced upon her, hands moving in a gravity assisted blur as they rained blows on Heather’s face and shoulders. At least a half dozen of the punches were solid connections, more than enough to put the average boxer to sleep, but it barely managed to slow Heather as the other woman staggered to her feet.

Kat bounced backwards a second time, using her personal gravity to lighten her body in order to open the distance between the two of them.

Heather popped to her feet and spit out some blood, bouncing up and down on her toes a couple of times before grinning at Kat. She had a split lip and what looked like the beginnings of a black eye, but it hardly looked like she was down for the count.

She charged Kat, metal arms parallel to each other in a guard position in front of her face. Kat didn’t even bother to try attacking her head. She’d gained plenty of strength in the Tower, but it wasn’t to the level where she could even properly scuff the steel

Instead, she kicked Heather in the lower chest, her foot connecting with the other woman’s stomach. For a fraction of a second, they were in physical contact meaning that Kat’s domain extended to her opponent, and Kat cut gravity for Heather.

Then, her foot was snapping back and planting itself even as the brief gravitational hiccup threw off Heather’s rhythm, causing the security officer to miss a step.

That was all the invitation that Kat needed to sidestep Heather’s charge and land a strong punch on the other woman’s ribs. This time, there was an audible crunch, and Heather winced.

“Point, Miss Kat,” Dorrik’s voice echoed through the room, calling an end to their sparring match. Kat blew out a sigh of relief as she walked over to Heather and began muttering the words to a healing spell.

“That new trick of yours is pretty neat,” Heather said grudgingly. “You’re sure you can exert that fine of control without spending even a single point of mana? I’ve heard of some weird abilities coming out of the Tower of Somnus, but this is the first time I’ve seen someone get something for nothing.”

“I’m not cheating if that’s what you’re asking,” Kat replied with a roll of her eyes. “Zero spells used. You’re just mad that I was able to take you down fair and square.”

“It is exceedingly rare,” Dorrik chimed in, extending a pair of water bottles and towels to the two sweating women, “but there are some records of particularly powerful warriors gaining unique skills during a class evolution. Of course, I haven’t been able to find anything like Miss Kat’s Gravity Domain for a dreamer under level thirty six. That doesn’t mean that it hasn’t happened, just that anyone who managed to acquire an ability of that caliber has also refused to publicly comment on it.”

Kat finished the healing spell and stepped away from Heather to accept a towel and water bottle. Heather raised her arm above her head, rotating it once or twice before twisting her hips side to side to test her range of movement.

“Not going to lie,” the security chief said with a wry chuckle. “I’m a little salty at how strong you’ve gotten. I’m supposed to be the one protecting you, but even your jabs hit like a truck. It really doesn’t help that you haven’t put on any visible muscle in the last year or so either. You still look nineteen or twenty, but I’m pretty sure you could put your hand through a brick if you needed to.”

“Don’t worry,” Kat replied, spraying a stream of water into her mouth before hosing down her hair. “I’m not planning on replacing you anytime soon. You might not be able to beat me in melee, but not a lot of people can. I’d be lost at organizing and training the security forces without you.”

She tossed her water bottle back to Dorrik and toweled the sweat and water off of her face.

“Anyway,” she continued, her voice muffled by the cloth. “What’s your take on my new abilities? Obviously I want to hear about my strengths and weaknesses, but if you have any idea on how I should change up my day to day training, I’d love to hear it. I’m running obstacle courses, lifting, shooting, and sparring a lot right now, but I don’t know if that’s the most efficient plan of action.”

Heather took a water bottle from Dorrik, swishing a mouthful around as she thought over Kat’s question. After a couple of seconds she handed it back to the lokkel and grabbed her towel from him in turn before replying.

“I think you should try to learn a bit more judo. Your gravity control lets you punch harder, but not enough to get through armor or a well trained fighter’s guard, at least not without breaking the bones in your hands and wrists first. Boxing you was more difficult than before, but I’m pretty sure that I would have managed to beat you if that was all we were doing.”

“Where you really shine,” Heather continued, toweling her face off, “Is in destabilizing and throwing opponents. Even without using spells, it was almost impossible for me to keep my center of balance whenever you had a hand on me. I can’t help but imagine how much more effective you would be with the ability to remotely tinker with gravity. I was able to recover from your leg sweep, but if you’d used Levitation, that throw would have sent me soaring helplessly across the room.”

Kat nodded thoughtfully. Heather had a point. She’d trained in some basic hand to hand combat and judo back when she’d been working with Xander and Nina. In fact, she’d gotten pretty good at unarmed combat. Kat wasn’t what she’d consider an expert, but she had more hand to hand experience than the average samurai or corporate goon.

Since teaming up with Whipporwill, Kat had begun to focus more and more on knives, shooting, and stealth. She was still working on the last one, but judo hadn’t exactly been a focus of her training routine for a while.

“You have a point,” she said finally, drawing a blunted dagger from the sheath at her side. “Polishing up on my judo skills could really help maximize my close combat abilities. Even if I can’t knock someone out with straight up strikes, I can probably concuss them long enough to get some good stabs in.”

“And that means,” Kat continued, waving her knife in Dorrik’s direction, “that Dorrik is up next. I think I have a good gauge on my unarmed capabilities, now it’s time to figure out how well I can use my new class in proper combat.”

“Sounds good to me,” Heather replied, withdrawing to the edge of the gymnasium. “I’ll referee your match while I check over the security reports for the new enrichment facilities and agents. We just got some new figures in for the Lake Michigan heavy water plant and I wanted to make sure that there wasn’t something urgent buried in there before I sideline the rest of the report for later in the afternoon.”

“Heavy water?” Dorrik asked, scratching the scales at the base of his chin thoughtfully. “Isn’t that simply water made with deuterium? Why are you using terrestrial refineries for something that basic. Surely an orbital facility would be much more efficient.”

Kat cockedher head to the side, flipping the dulled knife in her hand as she looked quizzically at Dorrik.

“Deuterium? I mostly studied biology while I was in school, so I barely know what you’re talking about here.”

“Heavy hydrogen,” Dorrik supplied. “When a hydrogen atom has both a proton and a neutron. The extra neutron comes in useful in certain nuclear reactions, and a decent amount of modern technology uses trace levels of it in microfusion circuitry. Most of the time it’s harvested by large magnetic funnels that scrape the upper levels of a gas giant’s atmosphere, but if your society is especially wealthy and technologically advanced, it will probably have built a solar pump to extract huge quantities of hydrogen from a nearby star.”

“Well we certainly don’t have the ability to mine gas from the sun,” Kat said dryly. “I suppose I could talk to the scientists about trying to get some hydrogen from Jupiter. They said that their research on the downed stallesp cruiser’s engines would revitalize space flight after all. Still, I bet that building something to go to Jupiter would require the isotopes that we’re short of, so we’re in a bit of a Catch 22. We need the hydrogen to collect the hydrogen which means relying on Belle to refine enough to shield us from market forces in the meantime.”

Dorrik nodded, his crest placid as he replied. “That seems reasonable. Hydrogen traps are more of a Kaleek question anyway. He’s the one that works in advanced math and physics. I am more of a historian and a xenopologist. Those sorts of details are for other folks to sort out.”

“Same,” Kat agreed with a chuckle, willing her Pseuodopod into existence. The tentacle of water drew a second blunted knife from her other sheath as she dropped into a half crouch. “I’m more of a big picture girl. Now, are we going to blab all day or are we going to take our new abilities for a test run and try to stab each other?”

Dorrik tossed the remaining water bottles over his shoulders in Heather’s general direction, a giant grin painting itself across his face as he drew dull replicas of his swords.

“Be careful Miss Kat,” he said happily. “You were not the only one to gain a unique class. I would hate to hurt you by accident if you neglected your defenses.”

His body blazed with purple light, and Dorrik sprinted toward her at a speed usually reserved for high end motorcycles. Kat hit his face with Dazzle, blinding the lokkel for a fraction of a second as she went low, diving under his swords in an attempt to take him out at the knees.

A circle centered on Dorrik, roughly ten paces from one end to the other, lit up with a light purple glow. Almost immediately, Kat could feel her speed and reactions slowing. Even her thoughts were murky and indistinct.

Dorrik angled both of his swords downward, seemingly unimpacted by Kat’s spell. Against an ordinary opponent she would’ve been able to cross her daggers to catch a sword or use both of them to parry it, but that wouldn’t work on Dorrik

Each of his attacks carried enough force and ferocity with it to warrant her full attention, but she simply couldn’t stop both at once. Another point in favor of having four arms rather than two.

 Instead, she cast Crushing Fist. Through her gravity sense, Kat could feel the mana restructure the forces of physics around Dorrik, reorienting gravity so it pressed inward toward him at about nine to ten times Earth’s average.

  The spell didn’t stop Dorrik’s swords, but it did rob them of most of their strength as the lokkel tottered under the stupendous pressure she’d inflicted him with. She blocked both of the attacks, sparks flashing from the impact of steel on steel as she jumped to her feet and hurriedly backpedaled out of the violet globe that surrounded him.

 Purple light erupted around Dorrik as he seemed to ignite like a torch. Kat’s spell wasn’t broken by the burst of energy, but as Kat had suspected, Dorrik was moving at almost normal speed again, his heavily enhanced muscles straining against the weight of the gravity pressing in on him.

 “You weren’t kidding about your increase in gravitational control Miss Kat,” he said gruffly. “You’ve used Crushing Fist on me before, but I would swear that it is almost fifty percent more effective now. If I didn’t have the ability to empower my muscles using Psi energy, I doubt that I would have been able to breathe under its influence, let alone fight you properly. It was a useful spell before, but now it is truly formidable.”

 “Thanks,” Kat replied, breathing heavily. “That new Psi Battle Sense of yours is incredibly annoying by the way. I’m not sure what you meant by ‘complete clarity of senses’ means other than that Dazzle and Shadow won’t work on you, but its ability to interfere with living creatures that get close to you is absurd. The combination makes you virtually assassination proof which is a bit troubling when the primary purpose of your build is to be an assassin.”

 Dorrik smiled again, his crest fluttering with excitement.

 “But that wasn’t the only ability I gained from my class evolution. After all, as powerful as the Battle Sense is, if that’s all there was to being a Psi Battle Adept, it would hardly be worth its grandiose name. Be prepared, Miss Kat.”

 He lifted both swords into the air and they shone with purple light, the Psi energy coming off of them so dense that Kat thought she could touch it.

 Then, Dorrik swung both of the blades, unleashing two lines of energy that zipped toward Kat.

 She didn’t bother to block, unsure if a metal weapon would even be able to stop the angry manifestations of the lokkel’s psychic energy. Instead, Kat threw herself to the side, generating a gravitational pull in the direction she was moving to increase her speed.

 The arcs of purple energy smashed into the wall behind her, blasting a hole in the cement as it erupted into a cloud of dust.

 “Stop the fight!” Heather shouted, tossing her towel to the side. “That wasn’t a sparring attack, you could’ve seriously hurt-”

 Kat ignored her, stepping back into the floating dust. As soon as the direct illumination from the ceiling lights wasn’t on her anymore, she could feel Shadow Step stir to life. There weren’t many nearby spots of darkness for the skill to link up with, but it opened up Kat’s options immeasurably.

 Dorrik stalked forward, his swords still coated with thick purple psi energy.

 “Hiding won’t do you any good Miss Kat,” he remarked. “Remember, I can see through any obstructions within the range of Battle Sense. Even if I couldn’t, my abilities are hardly restricted by line of sight.”

 A disk of violet appeared in front of him as Heather sputtered. About two dozen Ego Shards erupted from it, aimed generally at the cloud of cement dust where Kat was hiding.

 She cast Shadow, generating a cloud of darkness about a half pace behind Dorrik and stabbed forward with her dagger even as she Leapt into the air. Gravity warped slightly around her as she shifted its direction, pulling herself upward toward the ceiling.

 Dorrik spun, reacting with absurd speed as he swung a sword to block Kat’s knife.

 She pulled her knife back before clearing the top of the dust cloud, not wanting to get caught with her hand in the portal once Shadow Strike and Shadow Step deactivated. It wouldn’t cause any serious damage, but it hurt like crazy and Kat didn’t want to go through that a second time.

 Below her, the cement dust flashed purple as the storm of Ego Shards flew through it, erupting in pulses of light as they peppered the facility wall.

 “You’re not the only one who can use three abilities at once!” Kat shouted down at Dorrik, planting one hand on the ceiling and twisting her body so that her shins and feet were planted on one of the steel support struts.

 “Come Miss Kat!” Dorrik shouted back, his teeth bared in a delighted grin. “Show me what you’re capable of!”

 He swung both of his swords, unleashing another pair of angry purple crescents toward her. Kat dismissed Shadow, kicking off of the ceiling with all of her force as she angled her body toward Dorrik.

 “Seriously!” Heather was screaming, waving both of her cybernetic arms. “Cut it out! This is absolutely not a spar! Both of you are using fatal techniques!”

 Kat ignored her, focusing her mental energy on casting Gravity Spike. At the last second, she grabbed hold of the gravity around her, yanking herself to the side and upward so that her body passed through the narrow gap between Dorrik’s attacks.

 Dorrik’s body flared purple as he enhanced his muscles again, fighting back against Crushing Grasp as he swung one sword at Kat, the other held in a high guard.

 She hit the purple field of Battle Sense. Almost immediately her thoughts became muddled, but it didn’t really slow down her fall. Apparently that effect was limited to conscious decisions and actions.

 Kat flipped gravity again, aiming it toward Dorrik. Her course changed in mid air, accelerating past his offensive swing. Almost immediately, his other sword darted into action.

 She brought the knife in her hand up, cursing internally at how slowly her limbs were reacting. It barely managed to intercept Dorrik’s blade, but without anything for Kat to brace herself against, the exchange sent her flying.

 Her Pseudopod whipped around her body, slashing its knife toward Dorrik even as she sailed through the air away from him. It managed to barely scrape against the scales of his upper left arm.

 Dorrik dropped the sword, simulating an injury, but he was already sprinting toward Kat. She tried to adjust gravity again to cushion her fall, but it was hard to think and concentrate through the purple haze around her.

 Just as she’d gotten the hang of it, barely a half second after Dorrik had batted her from the air, an Ego Shard hit her in the stomach. Distantly she could feel Crushing Grip shatter as she lost concentration.

 Kat’s mind went blank and her muscles stiffened. It felt like she was holding onto a live wire as Psi energy went wild inside her body.

 Just as she was regaining control over her senses, a second Ego Shard hit her shoulder, sending her mind into a tailspin again, one that was interrupted when she slammed into the far wall.

 She shook her head, trying to clear the fog only to look up and see Dorrik standing above her, his right handed sword gently resting on her chest. Kat sighed.

 “That’s your win Dorrik,” She said, wincing slightly at the ache coming from her chest and back. “I thought I had you when I jumped down at you from the ceiling.”

 The lokkel leaned down offering her both of his left hands and helping pull Kat to her feet.

 “You almost did,” he replied, flashing her a happy smile. “I think that was the fastest I’ve run out of stamina in a fight too. It really takes a lot to keep up with your new class.”

 “But you did keep up with it,” Kat said, smiling back. “I see you fighting monsters every night, but actually standing on the other side of your swords is something else. The worst was your new Battle Sense. I’m not used to something messing with my mind and reactions like that. It absolutely changed the momentum of the fight the second you started using it.”

“The same with your ability to attack from the air,” Dorrik responded. “As strong as your Gravity Domain is on the ground, it is wasted with you just increasing the speed of your fists and dodges. It opens up entire new vistas of movement for you, and with a little practice you should be able to attack from almost any direction, especially when you begin combining it with Shadow Step and Shadow Strike.”

Kat nodded her head thoughtfully. There were a lot of shadow corners on most ceilings. If proper use of her gravity control could turn those surfaces into viable hiding spots for her, it really could improve her skill set.

She put her knife back into its sheath, willing Pseudopod to replace its blade as well before dissolving. Heather was sprinting toward the two of them, gasping for breath as she tried to wave away the dust that was rapidly filling the training gym.

“That was fun,” Kat said. “I really feel like I learned a lot from even that brief sparring match. At a minimum, I have a good idea as to how I will be changing up my training routine. That said, I’d hate to leave things at that. What do you say Dorrik, rematch in a week?”

“Of course,” Dorrik replied. “I will let you have as many rematches as it takes for you to win.”

Heather could only groan.

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