BLAKE PUDDING [1st Draft]

All hell was on the horizon. Airships amassed like a storm poised to unleash hellfire upon us all, and I was practically dancing with excitement. What can I say? I’ve developed a profound love for fighting and mayhem—blood, carnage, death, guts, and an affinity for chaos and destruction. Sue me! However, it was my decision regarding Phantasia that gave me pause.

I had opted to click the Claim the Entity option because, really, was there any other choice? The other two options involved tampering with my soul, an experience I never wanted to repeat. So, sorry, Phantasia, but when it comes down to my soul or her survival, I’m choosing myself. Besides, why would I want to grant her self-awareness with a piece of my soul? I already had two voices of myself in my head; the last thing I needed was a third.

That said, I hadn’t expected the notification that appeared next.

“Wait—what?”

I fixated on the floating text, unsure what the hell it meant. I had failed, yet somehow, I received the benefits of both the Merge with the Entity and Claim the Entity options. This means Phantasia has become a facet of both my subconscious and will. But now she’s a Legion Abomination? What the hell does that even mean?

Ignoring the ships on the horizon, I stood in the polished, clean crater I had created—I might have indulged in every delicious morsel of blood and chimera chunks. Yummy! ...Anyway, I was about to call out to Phantasia from within, given her penchant for hiding within my form. How she manages this without altering my appearance is beyond me, but that’s a discussion for another time. However, before I could summon her, she emerged on her own. Yet, it wasn’t in her usual black sludge or tar-like form. No, this time, she—or it, they, or perhaps even we, considering she had intertwined with my will and subconscious—manifested as a horde of gooey little spiders, moving in unison, numbering in the hundreds of thousands, perhaps even millions.

Pulling my gaze from the swarm that began filling the crater, I held up my hand, watching as a little gooey spider peeled out from the darkness of my palm. I stared at it, observing that it looked more like a little octopus than a spider—well, maybe a combination of the two. It seemed Phantasia was more of a title for this aspect of myself, seeing as the soulless creature that had bonded with me had become a part of me.

I experienced a blend of excitement and slight disappointment. I had become quite attached to the little unicorn form Phantasia had taken before. Upon that subconscious thought, the little black spider-pus in my hand kept its tentacles, but its body morphed into a tiny unicorn the size of the tip of my thumb. Looking down at the swarm of puny horrors, I observed they all assumed the same shape, much to my amusement.

I can’t believe you went there, Dream. Seriously, spider-pus?

Yep! Am I not the bestest at naming things?

Yeah—no. You’re definitely not.

Hey!

The Phantasia I knew was officially gone, though I kept the name for this aspect of myself—or perhaps it was more akin to a skill? Frankly, I couldn’t quite determine, and truthfully, I wasn’t overly concerned as long as it amplified the carnage and anarchy surrounding me in battle. That all being said, I could never really discern if the little pudding had a will of its own or if it was simply an entity driven by basic instincts—you know, kinda like a jellyfish. I shrugged off the thought as the horde of little spider-pusses returned to my gooey essence.

Hey, Dream, wouldn’t it be uni-pusses? Wait—didn’t you already decide on octicorn when we first got Phantasia?

Don’t remember, but you’re a freaking genius!

I wasn’t being serious.

It doesn’t matter, it’s brilliant. Love it or hate it, we’re keeping octicorns! 

I hate you.

With those cheerful thoughts safely stowed, I turned towards the castle, skipping merrily like a loon back to my woman—only to find she had disappeared. Actually, only one person was left, my champion, who stood with the bearing of a stoic warrior. Or, to put it another way, she was leaning against the wall, arms crossed, wearing the most intense resting bitch face I’ve ever seen.

“Where did everyone go?” I asked, my frown gradually creeping into a pout.

The elf woman pushed off from the wall with a huff. “The bloodsuckers have gone to equip their day armor.”

“Day armor?”

“Yes, day armor,” the paladin replied, rolling her eyes. “It’s quite formidable armor infused with dark essence.”

“Huh,” I mused, scratching my chin, curious how a certain vampire’s backside would look in her armor. As I entertained that pleasing thought, bells rang from the city below, their sound echoing throughout the mountains, signaling the impending threat on the horizon. “I really wish I could figure out how to fly,” I sighed wistfully.

Von Von shot me a questioning glance. “Fly?”

“Hmm, oh right,” I mumbled, half-distracted. “I’ve been messing with that gravity skill I snagged from eating that dwarf we fought, hoping it might let me fly,” I added, waving my hand nonchalantly while observing the airships floating in the distance. “I thought I mentioned all this before,” I said, tilting my head at her before shrugging.

“Well, knowing you, you’ll figure it out by doing a handstand or something equally ridiculous,” Von Von scoffed.

My eyes widened at the suggestion. “Von Von, you’re a fucking genius!”

“What? No, I didn’t actually mean—”

I tuned out the rest of her protest as I sprinted back to my crater, laughing all the while. Approaching the center, I dove into a roll—I was going for a somersault—then shifted into a handstand, still giggling like an idiot, a wild, unnatural grin stretching across my face as I gazed at the horizon upside down.

“Blake, wait for—” Vanya attempted to call out, but it was already too late.

“[Astral Graviton],” I screamed, laughter escaping me as gravity exerted its full might down upon me—except now, down had become up, and up had become down!

My excitement truly took flight in the most literal sense. I found myself soaring upwards—or downwards. It’s all a matter of perspective. To put it simply, I was flying, and the laughter just wouldn’t stop. As the sky darkened with my rise, hinting that I was hitting dangerously high altitudes, I deactivated my graviton skill. At that moment, I pulled off a badass aerial cartwheel. That was when I finally noticed the rocks, boulders, and debris trailing behind me.

After my cartwheel, I pointed my feet at the airships, which seemed much farther away than when I’d started my ascent. My smile grew even wider. Amidst my laughter, giggles, and joyful screams, I mentally re-engaged the skill, feeling the force of gravity twist and contort around me. Then, with an exhilarating surge, I launched myself directly at my enemies, a trail of holy shit coming along for the ride.

~

Blake launched into the air with such force that the ground trembled beneath her, leaving a trail of dirt and rock swirling in her wake. As she disappeared into the embrace of the sky, Vanya watched, a mix of disbelief and resigned exasperation etched into her features. She let out a deep sigh, the corners of her mouth dipping in a helpless frown. Madness, pure and unbridled, was the only way to describe Blake’s actions. Vanya had thought she’d grown accustomed to Blake’s unpredictable nature, yet somehow, the woman’s capacity for insanity still managed to catch her off guard.

Resigned, Vanya observed as Blake’s upward momentum ceased. In a breathtaking maneuver, Blake twisted mid-air, her feet now aimed at the distant airships. Even a few kilometers away, Vanya could almost hear Blake’s wild laughter as she propelled herself toward the vessels.

The most daunting task for Vanya wasn’t the spectacle unfolding above, but the thought of explaining this chaos to Blake’s wife. The mere idea of facing Aurelia, the vampire empress, filled her with an indescribable dread. With a heavy heart, she glanced back at the castle, where the sound of vampires clanking in their newly donned armor echoed, only to then refocus on the looming airships.

Faced with the lesser of two evils, Vanya knew her survival hinged on following Blake. The prospect of explaining Blake’s whereabouts to Aurelia was far more terrifying than any danger that lay ahead. With a resolved breath, Vanya allowed a radiant light to emanate from her back, shaping into magnificent feathered wings. With a determined leap, she soared into the sky after Blake, her resolve steeling her for whatever lay ahead in pursuit of the chaotic and uncontainable force that was Blake.

¹