Newly Summoned Demoness 2 - Chapter 19 - Approaching Resonance (Finale) (Patreon)

Keswick lowered her hand. “The Engine doesn’t need our essence—we rely on the exchange to maintain the city. If we stop, we will lose our powers and connection to the Engine. The city would be left vulnerable. We’ve reduced the rate of our exchanges to the lowest amount possible, but the Engine still hasn’t recovered.”

A well of annoyance rose within her, and Elania looked back at the orb. “It doesn’t matter,” she said icily. “Either way, I have to try, or the city is doomed.”

Keswick nodded gratefully. “Just place your hands on the orb. With your mana manipulation, it should be instinctive what needs to be done.”

Elania tuned the rest of the room out and placed her hands on the cool metal. Almost immediately, she could feel the connection snap into place.

[Outsider detected.]

[Authority Level Recognized: Maximum.]

[Vessel Status: 1526/1526]

[Equilibrium: Enable? Y/N.]

It wasn’t what she had expected, but it reminded her of when she’d first arrived in the city and had to pay her ‘taxes’ to enter. Well, there was only one obvious thing to do.

[Equilibrium: Enabled]

The thrum of the Engine pulsed stronger, matching the beat of her heart as she closed her eyes. It felt like a river was flowing out of her while another one replaced the lost essence. Her entire body felt warm and tingled, and with her eyes closed, it almost felt like she was floating in a warm bath.

Glimpses of the city form high above near the cavern’s ceiling flashed inside of her mind, a view of the Magistry, of the City Watch Headquarters, of the bridges and waterfalls all rushing along.

The buzzing in her ears, and the itch under her skin that she’d nearly grown used to came to an immediate stop.

The flow stopped on its own… but something was not right.

The sound of the engine hummed in her head… it had grown smoother, slightly less discordant, but not repaired. Her small contribution of divinity was… just a drop of what was needed.

That was frustrating. She could feel the difference between the pools inside of her, and she still had more she could give. But she didn’t have a way to manage it…

Elania inhaled as she recalled a key detail. There had been a way offered to her…

She had her perk selection choice still, and there was one option that somehow seemed very relevant and useful.

[You have gained the Soul Management perk!]

[You have spent all your available perk selections.]

[Perks: (Soul Siphon - Visible) (Summoned from Another World!) (Regeneration) (Demonic Transformation) *(Soul Management)*]

All physical sensation suddenly washed away until she was cradled in a warm bath of liquid. She opened her eyes. The vast ocean before her didn’t burn her eyes, and it suddenly lit up with an ambient light that seemed to come from every direction.

Several pools in the water began to form, each with a different color. She knew what they were instinctively, just by looking at them.

A pale, inviting beige showed her a scene from Aetherhart’s Artifice; Yolani and her were eating ham sandwiches and chatting. It was her humanity. It was the largest of the pools, taking up nearly half the circle that formed in front of her.

A thread seemed to weave its way into the pool of humanity, shining and pulsing with energy. Somehow, she knew it was her connection to Yolani through their contract.

Black; it was her [Darkwalker] side. A scene of her prowling through the caves on the hunt turned into one where she was sitting on her haunches, getting ear rubs and scratches from her favorite human.

The third largest pool was a diffuse cloud of gold that shimmered in the ocean. She saw no scenery or other features inside of it, instead it pulsed with a constant warmth that seemed to fill everything with energy and [Power].

Nearly crushed between the other three was a small blob of milky white liquid. There was a vision of a coup of hens, each laying eggs. Elania winced internally when she saw she was sitting on one of the nests. It was the [Chicken] essence from her latest meal…

The sensation of sound-but-not-really-sound pulled her attention to the side. There was a giant whirlpool sucking down… something. To the other side was the exact opposite… a pressure of new substance flowing through.

Somehow, she could tell it was mostly [Human] essence flowing through it, but tinged with a small sprinkle of others, especially [Divinity].

What she needed to do was fairly clear. The weird dreamlike world seemed to obey her will, so she pictured a firehose sucking out the golden divinity from her pool while leaving the others alone.

The desired tube formed from nothing, and then she felt a lurch in her chest as the divinity began to be sucked out of her.

Panic at the sensation almost forced her to kink the hose and stop the transfer, but the turbulent feeling inside calmed as pressure from the incoming whirlpool deposited a mix of fresh [Human] and [Divinity] into her essence pools.

Since she was effectively filtering out only the [Divinity] that pool quickly began to shrink while her [Human] pool grew thicker.

Before the golden essence became too thin, she practiced controlling the rate of flow by stopping it and starting it a few times. When the divinity was nearly empty, she saw something new.

A golden sphere was half submerged in the shallow [Divinity], with tiny amounts of golden liquid forming on its shell. It began to roll toward the hose and Elania shut down the connection for good.

She needed time for her [Divinity] to regenerate.

She was done. For now. It was the best she could do.

The world flashed around her, and she was back in the Celestial Engine’s control room.

“Elania? Elania!” Yolani was up close to her face, waving a hand in front of her eyes and calling her name.

Elania blinked and reached up to take Yolani’s hand. “Hi? Are you alright?”

“That’s what I’ve been asking you! You’ve been zoned out for a few minutes!” Yolani hissed.

Keswick was standing at the monitor. “You did it. The levels have gone back up. The Engine is running more smoothly than in over a month.”

Sure enough, the green line had spiked upwards, returning to the level it had been a half dozen Magister ‘maintenances’ before.

“But it’s still sloping downward…” Elania whispered.

“Your eyes,” Yolani mumbled.

Elania blinked. “What?”

Yolani fished in her bag, then pulled out a mirror.

Elania looked in it. It was her—but her eyes had changed to a deep sapphire blue, with sparkling glints of gold that shined like glitter in them.

The discordance that had been a constant hum through her body had completely evaporated. Whether that was because she had less [Divinity] essence, or because the Engine was operating smoother, she wasn’t sure.

Keswick turned to them. “This is excellent. With your assistance, I believe we can stave off disaster and return the engine to its previous function before it was disrupted while maintaining our current practices.”

Elania withdrew her hands from the orb slowly, the warmth of the Engine’s essence lingering on her palms. A frown etched itself onto her face. Maintaining their current practices… of draining the divinity from the Engine to maintain their… immortality? Power? She wasn’t sure.

“How quickly can you restore your [Divinity] essence? Do you know how many days? It’s important we measure your recovery speed, and possibly reduce your production and consumption of other essences. For starters, ending your contract should reduce the transfer of [Human] essence from Miss Aetherhart,” Keswick said, her voice reaching a rapid clip.

Elania stared at her. “No.”

Keswick blinked in surprise. “What?”

Yolani moved to stand beside Elania, crossing her arms, her posture rigid. “Our contract isn’t anyone else’s to be canceled or modified. If we wish, we can modify it to assist.”

Elania nodded. “I’ve helped you, and I am willing to come periodically to help maintain the Engine, but not for free. Right now, we have some needs from the City Works.”

The gears turning behind Keswick’s eyes were almost visible. “Of course, Miss Aetherhart, Miss Reyes. What is it you require?”

Yolani raised her chin and met Keswick’s gaze unflinchingly. “We’re considering an expansion of Aetherhart’s Artifice. A basement to serve as extra space and additional workspace. We’ll need permits, assistance from City Works personnel, and materials.”

Keswick nodded almost immediately. “I see. Given the circumstances, I believe arrangements can be made immediately. Your contributions today have been invaluable and will continue to be so.”

The Magister checked several more panels before finally being satisfied. As the three of them headed towards the lift to return to the library, she took hold of Elania’s arm.

“Our mandate is to safeguard the Engine and the city. You’re vitally important for that now—critically so. We will be keeping tabs on you,” Keswick said.