Tell me about Lacuna, please.

It was the last one on Serenity’s short list, so it was a good thing to check out next. So far, nothing he’d found was needed and several of the more obvious options were terrible. If this continued, he was going to choose the one he wanted instead of trying to pick the most useful evolution.

[A lacuna is a gap or missing place, something that evidence says should be there but is not present. The Lacuna Evolution leaves a legacy to be followed even as it removes the individual. Some Lacuna no longer exist even in memory, but their actions live on, usually more so than if they were still around]

Serenity could see where that would be valuable for someone who thought they would soon die, but he couldn’t see why it was on his list without a warning. He wasn’t even remotely interested in disappearing forever, and he didn’t think his Path indicated that at all. There were a lot of other things on the list that didn’t fit at all, like demons, but most of them had warnings.

Why isn’t there a warning?

[Two reasons. First, it would accomplish your primary goals: Rissa is surviving and so is your family and your planet. This would likely be enhanced by the Lacuna effect, meaning that the threats you are worried about would be defeated in your name if it survives]

That was nice, but Serenity could deal with the threats he knew about without killing himself.

[The second reason is more speculative but possibly more important. You are a Sovereign of Potential, connected to the Voidspace you call the Origin. The method of action for a Lacuna is not known, but it seems likely that for you it would be related to the Origin. It is entirely within the probabilities that while you would no longer be recognized when you act, you would still be around and able to act, perhaps as a lacuna from sapient memory instead of from reality]

That was better in a way, but if anything even more horrifying. Being able to protect his loved ones at the cost of never being able to meaningfully interact with anyone ever again? Even if it were certain to work, that was a price Serenity would pay only if it was necessary. He knew the cost of not being with people he cared about all too well.

The Final Reaper knew that cost. He’d paid it for longer than he bothered to count. Serenity did not want to pay it again.

Serenity wasn’t about to let his memories mess up his chance to Tier up, but he also wasn’t ever taking that Evolution. It was time to look at the ones he actually wanted.

Two of them stood over the others. Yeah, Potential and Temporal were interesting but they were just so generic.

Something magitech had been on Serenity’s list, and he was fairly certain he already qualified as a cyborg anyway; that one should be a safe change and reinforce a set of abilities that he was learning the value of.

Living Spell, on the other hand, was just cool. He wasn’t certain what it would mean, but he suspected it would double down on his two Vital Affinities, Mana and Essence. It might expand his pools or perhaps increase his Aspects. He was a spellcaster, and it was hard to see where being a spell himself would make him worse at that.

He already suffered consequences if he let himself run dry; it seemed likely those would get worse, so it wouldn’t be without consequences. It was also possible that he might run into other issues; what if he found himself with a cost to maintain his form that reduced or eliminated his natural regeneration? It seemed unlikely, that that didn’t mean it was impossible. With luck, he’d be able to shift to a form other than that of the Living Spell and be fine; even if Chimera assumed some of the cost, he’d surely still be fine.

The real question was if he should wait until Earth was higher Tier, just to be safe.

Serenity thought about that for a moment, but decided that this was the time to act, not the time to play it safe. He was already moving up to Tier Four, which would be uncomfortable, but Earth had ley lines; he could make it work unless it was simply outrageously bad.

Magitech Cyborg and Living Spell next, please.

[A Cyborg is a fusion of the living and the created. Magitech adds the element of magic to the creations, allowing the fusion of any created item, including magical ones. While replacements are usually done via the actual replacement of body parts and implantation of cybernetics, you already have the capability to do this through the intervention of Tek instead. This Evolution will integrate your altered physical form with that of your Species, reducing the chance for rejection and other side effects. As it calls on the power of Tek, this requires the approval of Tek to complete]

[Tek has already registered her approval contingent on your acceptance of a Deific Alliance. The offered terms are her unlimited support in exchange for the opportunity to watch your magitech operate and a copy of any magitech blueprints discovered. Note that a Deific Alliance under these terms will prevent you from accepting the position of Tek’s Champion]

Serenity laughed. Of course she approved! From what he’d gathered about Tek, a magical cyborg was probably at the top of her wish list. The terms she was offering only reinforced that; unlimited support from a deity was absolutely unreasonable.

On the other hand, it was undoubtedly useful.

Cyborg (Magitech) was definitely staying on the list of choices.

[A Living Spell is either a spell or magical effect that has achieved sentience or an otherwise living sentient being whose physical form has been replaced with a spell. Dungeon monsters are close to Living Spells, as their bodies are formed of Essence, but only the ones without a physical core which are self-maintained instead of being maintained by their dungeon can truly be called Living Spells. This Evolution would restructure you so that you are a self-maintaining spell that creates a physical form instead of your current hybrid structure. Further effects are unknown]

When you say hybrid nature, what do you mean?

[You are not a dungeon monster, yet you have an affiliation with dungeons and a core that is closer to that of a dungeon monster than a normal monster’s core; even so, your core does not maintain your physical shape except for when you are actually shifting. You do not even have a core when you are in your Sovereign, armor, or sword forms; this is impossible for a monster maintained by a core]

The short form seemed to be that the Voice didn’t know what would happen.

I’m guessing this would not normally be on the curated list.

[Correct. The uncertainties are simply too high]

The answer was surprisingly easy. He’d looked at all of the reasonable options and Cyborg simply resonated as well as having the lowest risk. He already was a cyborg; that was simply the truth. Another time he might look at Potential, Temporal, or even Phoenix; for now, he was going to move forward with the evolution he wanted.

Cyborg (Magitech), please.

[You are certain?]

Serenity didn’t remember if the Voice had asked in the past or not.

Yes. It’s not that big a step.

[As you choose]

Serenity was suddenly overwhelmed by a moment of pain. It wasn’t physical, or at least it didn’t feel like any physical pain he’d felt before and he thought he’d felt all of the options.

It was gone almost as quickly as it appeared, leaving only the feeling of being stuffed into a too-small box with someone very loud for company. It took a time period that felt like minutes but Serenity somehow knew he took less than a second to realize that the loud person was speaking numbers and logic in a familiar voice.

“Aide?”

The voice stopped talking.

Serenity? How are you speaking so quickly?

Serenity’s head hurt again. That was definitely Aide, but it was far too loud and all-encompassing. It echoed. “That hurts.”

How was he even speaking? He didn’t have a body here. Where was he?

The filters Tek established are no longer functioning, yet you are marginally functional. That is a vast improvement but still not sufficient to leave the filters disabled. I believe I can recreate them once your evolution is complete, but until then it seems best not to interfere. Would you like to be unconscious until the filters are reestablished?

Aide’s voice made sense, but it caused pain like spikes being driven into Serenity’s non-existent head. Serenity suspected it wasn’t really pain but oversensitivity; whether or not that was true, putting up with it didn’t help anything and he was useless as long as it continued. He trusted Aide. “Yes.”

There was a small delay, then the pain vanished, followed by the overload that made everything seem like a too-small white box. It left Serenity finally able to see/hear/feel some of what was around him. It wasn’t like being in a physical world; instead, it was all numbers and sensations that didn’t map well to his physical body. He didn’t understand what was going on, but he knew that somehow it all made sense.

Everything continued to fade until he was in darkness.

The next thing Serenity knew, he was lying down on a cold hard floor that was clearly not his bed. He opened his eyes and saw the final dungeon room where he’d stopped to do his evolution.

A check of the time told him that he was unconscious for less than ten minutes.

Everything about his body felt fine. No mysterious white space, no random pain. “Aide? Did you fix the filters?”

There was no one else around, so there was no reason not to speak out loud.

I did. I do not believe that they are as capable as the ones Tek originally established, but when combined with your established perception filters it should be sufficient. I am encouraged to see that you may someday be able to operate without the filters.

Serenity smiled. “I’m encouraged to see that you’re becoming more relaxed and less robotic. More human.”

My systems run on your hardware, as it were. I believe that some level of humanization was inevitable. This evolution you chose appears to have accelerated it by more closely integrating us.

Serenity felt a pang of guilt. He’d had no idea it would affect Aide; the possibility hadn’t even occurred to him. “I’m sorry. I should have asked.”

It was the correct choice. Had you asked, I would have encouraged it. This is more of an evolution for me than for you, as I manage all of your cybernetics.

“I still should have asked.” Aide’s words didn’t alleviate Serenity’s guilt, they only made him realize just how blind he’d been when he made his choice without asking the person who would have to deal with the results.

Stop that. You are being ridiculously human again.

Somehow, Aide’s words made Serenity feel better again. He wasn’t sure why; they didn’t relieve him of any of his guilt for not talking to Aide, but they still snapped him out of the guilt spiral.

If you’re going to dwell on the evolution, you should at least dwell on the changes, not on what you should or should not have done before choosing your obvious best option. While I am still searching for additional alterations, the immediate changes so far appear to primarily be related to how the technology is stored in your crystals; it now bears a significant resemblance to runes instead of the more traditional technology created by your absorption.