The moment the system recognized Cyra Valt as an upgrade target, I realized something very, very disturbing.
It seemed that my life had progressed to the point where meeting beautiful women was an automatic notification.
[New Upgrade Target Detected.]
[Name: Cyra Valt.]
[Potential: Extremely High.]
[Current Condition: Aether Seal - Active.]
[Recommended Action: Analyze.]
I looked at the floating blue screen.
Cyra looked at me.
Nyx looked at both of us.
"Again with the staring," Nyx said.
"Doing what?"
"Staring at her."
"I was reading the system."
Cyra raised a silver brow.
"The system?"
I wish I could take those words back.
Nyx closed her eyes.
"Riven."
"What?"
"Do you really suck that badly at being discreet?"
"I’m still learning."
Cyra advanced.
The blue glow around her eyes grew stronger.
"You have a system."
I gulped.
"How did you know?"
"Aether reacts strangely around you."
She raised a hand.
Tiny sparks of blue electricity danced around her fingertips like fireflies.
"It has been doing that since you entered the mansion."
I stared at the sparks.
Even in a world where automatons, airships, and mechanical limbs were common, this was something else entirely.
Something far more personal.
"You’re an Aether user."
Cyra gave a small smile.
"So you’ve heard of Aether mages."
"Not exactly."
Her smile vanished.
"Then where have you been living?"
I hesitated.
"That’s complicated."
Nyx stepped between us.
"We don’t have much time."
Cyra looked at Nyx.
"Nyx Veyra."
Her eyes flicked down to the crimson arm on Nyx’s shoulder.
"That is new."
Nyx’s expression darkened.
"Don’t ask."
"I wasn’t planning on it."
Cyra turned back to me.
"You did that."
It wasn’t a question.
I rubbed the back of my neck.
"Technically."
"How?"
"Upgrade."
Cyra’s eyes narrowed at the word.
The word seemed to strike a particular chord with her.
"Upgrade?"
I nodded.
"I can upgrade things."
"Machines?"
"Machines."
"Weapons?"
"Weapons."
"People?"
I hesitated.
"People."
The temperature in the hallway suddenly dropped.
Cyra studied me for a long moment.
Then she whispered, "That’s impossible."
Nyx looked toward the staircase.
"We should go."
Before I could respond, the sound of many footsteps echoed from below.
Nyx immediately drew her revolver.
"Guards."
Cyra’s expression shifted.
"They found us already."
I looked at her.
"Who?"
"The merchant’s security detail."
She raised her hand.
Blue electricity crackled at her palm.
"I was trying to leave before they arrived."
"Why were you here?"
She looked at the blood on the floor.
"To retrieve something that belongs to me."
A loud metallic clang sounded from below.
The guards were getting closer.
Nyx checked her revolver’s ammunition.
"How many?"
Cyra’s eyes glowed briefly.
"Twenty."
I looked at her.
"How do you know?"
"I can sense their Aether signatures."
I turned toward the staircase.
"Twenty."
Nyx nodded.
"We should leave."
Cyra shook her head.
"Not yet."
She walked toward a large window.
I followed her gaze.
Outside the mansion, the merchant’s private garden illuminated the dark night.
Beyond that, the city sprawled for miles beneath the smog-choked sky.
Cyra placed a hand on the glass.
"There is another way out."
The window slid open.
A sudden rush of air filled the hallway.
I looked down.
We were four stories above the ground.
I turned back to Cyra.
"You’re joking."
"No."
She stepped onto the ledge.
"Trust me."
"I barely know you."
"Then this is a good opportunity to start."
She jumped.
I lunged toward the window.
"CYRA!"
I barely had time to register the jump before she landed on the other side of the mansion.
Blue electricity surrounded her body.
For a moment, it seemed as if she would float away.
Instead, she landed gently in the garden.
I stared at her in awe.
"Okay."
Nyx walked past me.
"You coming?"
"You two are insane."
"Probably."
She jumped.
I looked down at the street.
Nyx landed beside Cyra.
I took a deep breath.
"I’m going to regret this."
I jumped.
Gravity reminded me why humans didn’t leap from buildings very often.
"OH, HELL - !"
Blue electricity surrounded my body.
My fall slowed dramatically.
I landed hard enough to bruise my knees but thankfully didn’t break any bones.
Cyra looked at me.
"You screamed."
"I was expressing myself."
She almost smiled.
Almost.
We ran through the garden.
The glowing Aether flowers cast an eerie green hue over the path.
Their petals opened and closed as we passed.
I realized something strange.
The flowers only reacted to Cyra.
Nyx passed one, and it remained closed.
The system appeared.
[Aether resonance detected.]
[Unique biological compatibility identified.]
I looked at Cyra.
"Your body is generating Aether?"
She glanced at me.
"No."
"Then why are the plants reacting to you?"
"My family has carried Aether blood for generations."
"Aether blood?"
"Yes."
"That’s a thing?"
"In this city?"
She looked toward the distant skyline.
"Everything is a thing."
Fair enough.
We reached the mansion’s outer wall.
Nyx drew a grappling device from her belt.
She fired it at the rooftop.
"We climb."
I looked at the wall.
Then at Cyra.
She casually walked up the side of the building.
Not with her hands or feet.
Her boots skimmed the surface, her body floating an inch above the bricks.
I stared in disbelief.
"I hate magic."
Cyra glanced down at me.
"Why?"
"Because it makes physics look stupid."
She laughed.
It was the first time I’d ever heard her laugh.
It was surprising.
It was oddly endearing.
We reached the top.
The three of us landed in a small alley.
For a moment, no one said anything.
Then Cyra looked at me.
"You saved Nyx."
I nodded.
"You also upgraded her."
"Yes."
"And now you’ve come here because of me."
"I didn’t know you existed until five minutes ago."
"Yet your system identified me."
I nodded.
Cyra’s expression turned thoughtful.
"What exactly do you intend to do with me?"
I had no good answer.
The honest response sounded delusional.
"I want to make you stronger."
She looked at me.
"Stronger?"
"Much stronger."
"Why?"
"Because you have potential."
Her eyes narrowed.
"And what do you expect in return?"
I hesitated.
"I don’t know yet."
Nyx looked at me.
"That’s a terrible recruitment speech."
"I know."
Cyra smiled.
"You’re strange, Riven Vex."I’ve heard that too."
She looked toward the distant skyline.
"My family has controlled me since I was a child."
Her fingers tightened into a fist.
"They sealed my Aether because they were afraid of what I could become."
The blue glow around her eyes grew stronger.
"My father calls it protection."
She looked at me.
"I call it imprisonment."
I understood that feeling far too well.
The system appeared.
[Hidden condition detected.]
[Aether Seal is suppressing target’s true potential.]
[Possible Upgrade Path: Aether Liberation.]
[Required: Specialized Aether Core.]
I looked at the message.
A specialized core.
That meant another objective.
Another resource.
Another problem.
I smiled.
Cyra looked at me.
"What?"
"I think I can remove your seal."
Her eyes widened.
"You can?"
"Eventually."
"Eventually?"
"I just used all my upgrade energy."
She stared at me.
Then, to my surprise, she laughed.
"You’re promising to break a magical seal without even having the energy to do it."
"It’s a long-term project."
Nyx shook her head.
"You’re both insane."
A distant alarm suddenly blared from the city.
Cyra looked toward the mansion.
"They’re searching for us."
Nyx turned toward the northern district.
"Then we move."
Cyra looked at me.
"Where?"
I pointed toward the distant skyline.
"The Skyport."
She hesitated.
Then nodded.
"I’ll go."
Nyx looked at her.
"Why?"
Cyra looked directly at me.
"Because if he can really remove my seal..."
Blue electricity crackled at her fingertips.
"I want to see what I become."
The system appeared again.
[Temporary Party Formation Available.]
[Members: Riven Vex, Nyx Veyra, Cyra Valt.]
[Party synergy: 17%.]
I looked at the notification.
Two beautiful women, one system, and an entire city trying to kill us.
It was actually quite heartening.
Maybe this was the start of something big.
Maybe this was the start of my crew.
Either way, I had a feeling Aetheria was about to have a very, very bad night.