Misbegotten Memories

Chapter 176

“Hey Cleo!”

“You’re an idiot, Leroy,” Cleo shot back at the leaping idiot as he arrived.

Leroy looked like he’d grown up deep in hillbilly territory, the product of multiple generations of ‘keeping it in the family’. That said, he was at least a joyful idiot. “Ha ha, you still mad at me, Cleo? I promise I be better this time. I got a tomahawk to hit with when I’m...

Chapter 175

“Cleo,” she declared her name as she climbed on top of Fred.

“Hector,” he shot back.

“Awesome big boss Rover Fred master sir. That’s how I prefer to be addressed.”

“It’s a joking Jinn,” Cleo observed.

“Ouch. That one hurt my funny bone. Hector, you’re in charge of jokes when I’m not around. Don’t let Cleo get herself into trouble with...

Chapter 174

It took a count of three for the situation to register in Hector’s brain. “You’re obviously not a vehicle,” Hector observed.

“Philosophically, every human body is just a vehicle for us to experience the world,” the Jinn replied. “More practically, though, I’m Rover Fred. At oh eight hundred hours tomorrow, I will become your direct superior in the chain of command. Welcome...

Chapter 173

There were only two computer terminals in the communal area of Hector’s resident floor. A lot of people crowded around them, desperate to learn about the situation communicated by the System as a universal alert. The details proved disheartening.

Eden, home world of the Alfar, faced an immense monster invasion.

The Coalition Army, out on a year-long patrol, was not currently reach...

Exclusive #6: Troubling Possibilities

A/N: I'd like to apologize for not posting exclusive content more frequently. The day job demands a lot of me and while I love my story, I have been a bit burnt out keeping up with the 5x a week schedule.

Also, for anyone who hasn't read the previous 5, there is a collection for Patreon exclusives where you can see all of them together.

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The reality quake felt ...

Chapter 172

Matthias stepped forward to offer his congratulations and then paused while staring at Darius.

That was no good. Hector knew exactly how little Darius wanted his identity as the son of Volithur to become spread around. It was hard not to know when Darius explicitly described his frustrations that complete strangers would think they have some connection to him.

Hector moved past the ...

Chapter 171

It was a few days after that conversation they learned some of their neighbors were planning to use the cosmic chamber in the basement. Mick was close to reaching level five and was willing to pay for any advantage that would help get him over the line. That seemed premature to Hector because the man’s body enhancement couldn’t be much higher than the peak of level two.

Because afford...

Chapter 170

His lecture proved popular enough that he had to do it two more times. Most of the other tenants couldn’t make it work in the end, but a handful were able to adopt his method of cable formation. They lacked his speed with it, so he didn’t think they would be able to use it in combat situations without significant practice, but that wasn’t his concern.

What was his concern was that h...

Chapter 169

They didn’t have many possessions between the three of them, so it was easy to pack and transport everything by taxi. Riley chattered away on the ride, enthusiastic about her new career. The way she talked about manning a small cafe, one would think it was a prestigious appointment in a government agency.

“So it’s like being a cook, too. Except some of the ingredients are special.�...

Chapter 168

“I’m not sure I understand the question,” Hector said.

“Surely you’ve noticed that Volithur was a bit of an idiot. With his insight, he could have rivaled the emperor of Zing. Instead he languished in the tower of the Lord Platinum before being sacrificed to the Dream Engine. So what do you consider the one thing that, done differently, would have given him an improved outcome?�...

Chapter 167

Darius was the first to respond. “The owner of the building?”

“Yes. I think you three might qualify for a special deal if you choose to live here.” Esther’s smile returned suddenly. “But let’s get on with the tour first!”

They went up one level to the first sub-floor, where they encountered storage rental spaces. “It’s almost entirely booked already even though t...

Chapter 166

“You have to go to Tian Tower!”

Hector returned her infectious smile. “What’s going on, Riley?”

“Tian Tower! It’s a skyscraper just for Xian! I told Esther about you guys and she invited you to stop by any time. I told her I would bring you today.” The young woman shifted from side to side, unable to stand still in the grip of her excitement.

“Is this the pla...

Chapter 165

They met Conrad outside the capsule hotel that Hector lived at before the tournament. His Jinn friend shook hands enthusiastically with Hector and then Darius. “It’s a real pleasure, Darius. I hear you’re even more of a menace to the monsters than Hector.”

The eunuch stood subtly straighter at the praise. “I have a chaos bolt,” he offered.

“I really admire the combat c...

Chapter 164

Gentle taps on his cheek. “Wake up, Hector. You need to go to bed.”

He peeled one of his eyelids open to find Darius peering at him from close distance. His brain half asleep still, Hector was astonished how much the man looked like his father. It was Volithur with chubby cheeks. Darius pulled Hector up with enhanced Xian strength and manhandled Hector into their chamber and into his ...

Chapter 163

“Hector told me you did really good in the tournament, Darius.” Riley was trying hard to make the dour eunuch like her. Hector thought it was a hopeless battle, but he saw no harm in her trying. Darius really wanted to soak up the extra cosmic energy in the air of the kitchen. It was the leverage he needed to keep the man in line.

“Just fifth place in the weaponless round r...

Chapter 162

Darius didn’t speak of it until they were on the train into the dungeon. Hector let the issue fester, not sure how to tell his… whatever Darius was to him… that he was being an asshole. He’d taken Riley around to do some food deliveries around noon. While a friend couldn’t escort the deliverer inside an apartment without being severely fined for trespassing, Hector could walk with her...

Chapter 161

A locust the size of a van flew at them as they jogged free of the ravine. Darius hit it with a chaos bolt, blasting its head apart. Hector grimaced while he guided their group to the exit. His mood improved only slightly when the System increased his funds by twenty thousand credits.

He’d never realized how offensively weak he was as a Xian until seeing Darius in action. Every monster ...

Chapter 160

The few minutes between Tian and Union Central felt longer than they were. He’d left Jasmine behind. There had never been any real promises between them. Just her offer to talk about their future when the tournament ended. He finally understood why he felt so drawn to her, too late for it to matter.

She’d been a fighter. Not just as a participant in a tournament. Not even because she ...

Chapter 159

Three more fights passed before Hector could stop shaking. He didn’t even catch the match directly after his own. The one after that featured Walt, who summoned a spear and threw it expertly to pierce the heart of his opponent. Then two other men went at each other with glowing swords.

That fight didn’t end as fast as the others. Both of them were serviceable with their weapons, but n...

Chapter 158

With the arrival of the day of the single elimination bracket, there was a lot of speculation about what type of externality each person had. Some had openly shared their secret long since. Others wisely kept quiet. And though he didn’t have expansive notes on who was believed to have what, Hector had a basic idea of what to expect in general from other Xian. There were only so many things th...

Chapter 157

Hector was on the verge of peak level five in his entire body. There were places he’d not done as good of a job as he thought. Those stood out quite clear as blemishes compared to the perfection around them. His energy reserves were empty again.

They’d all skipped breakfast. Everyone else seemed about as miserable as Hector felt, but only Micah had achieved a similar feat. The two of ...

Chapter 156

Hector blocked the first punch. Walt stepped in with it and collapsed his arm to turn it into an elbow that clipped Hector’s cheek. When he flinched back, Walt brought up a knee to his gut before snapping Hector down into a headlock. Walt fell to his back holding onto his grip, launching Hector into an involuntary front roll that ended with Walt in top mount.

Elbows rained down on his f...

Chapter 155

Back at the barracks, Hector claimed his bunk amid the intense scrutiny directed at him. He’d upset the status quo in a big way. He defeated the person widely considered the second best among them. He did it in such a way that Evan might be rendered impotent going forward. Now people were trying to recall Hector’s previous matches. He only lost the one time, and that was to the best of thei...

Chapter 154

After returning to his bunk, Hector debated the direction for his body enhancement. Digestion, nerves, and flesh were all that remained – other than muscles, of course. Flesh was by far the lowest priority, so he didn’t truly consider it.

He instead chose nerves because he’d already gotten started on his brain the previous day from the honey pill Lord Andrew gave him. He raised his ...

Chapter 153

Morning found him stiff and achy. He’d recovered far more than a normal man could with a single night. His bruises were no longer raised welts of the deepest purple. Now they were a jaundiced yellow with notes of sickly green where deeper damage yet lingered. It was like a week of recovery passed while he slumbered. It was still too soon for him to be fighting again, but there wasn’t anythi...

Chapter 152

Lord Andrew huffed as they went to one side of the circular arena. “This is terrible luck. You have to win the match after this one, Hector. Absolutely have to. How did you so anger this man?”

Hector suspected this unexpected curve ball to his hands came about as a conflict over a woman. He didn’t want to tell his sponsor that, so he presented a palatable lie instead. “Lord Andrew...

Chapter 151

Master Percival woke them early and took them to a small breakfast of rice porridge and fruit. “For the next ten days, the only resources you will be given are those you earn in the arena. Every victory grants you a fish plasma elixir. You all personally know the benefits of such a resource. Imagine consuming nineteen of them – one for each competitor you face.

“You will fight once ...

Chapter 150

“Why are you acting like this? Whatever you think you know, you are wrong, I assure you.”

“You can’t go after the Lord General,” Hector said, finally able to force words out.

Panic. Darius looked about to ensure no one was near enough to overhear, then stepped closer with a dark expression. The way he moved in that moment was like a panther stalking prey. “What do you kn...

Chapter 149

“The word from Percival is that we get to pick our first matches,” Sam whispered to Hector. “The lords draw a number from a hat that corresponds to the order we arrived. Then that person issues a challenge. They take the numbers for both gladiators out of the hat and draw next. So you need to have a good idea of who would make a good match-up for you in advance.”

Hector considered...

Chapter 148

Their training schedule over the next two weeks left much to be desired. Calisthenics between breakfast and lunch. Self-directed sparring between lunch and dinner. Low level resources with the meals. Otherwise it was confinement to the barracks with the expectation that they would be cultivating and body enhancing.

And Hector did a lot of both. He hid his chaos cultivation by doing it onl...