Prepping for the Portal

"Alright, Ireena." Gil said formally, pulling her to the side. "I won't have Rose to back me up next portal, so I'm going to need to rely on you or Snow."

The two of them looked over at Snow, who was singing loudly while she hung up their fresh washed clothes from the branches of the central tree. She was injecting so much joy and love into the work that it was easy to forget that she was doing menial chores.

"For obvious reasons, I think you'll be a bit more reliable in a high stress situation." Gil said. "From what I've seen, when confronted with danger Snow tends to flee immediately while calling for help. That's not a bad idea when you are alone and have no way of defending yourself, but it's not what I want my only backup to be doing. You hear me?"

"That makes sense." Ireena said, frowning slightly. "It's more or less what I ended up doing with Strahd, after all."

"Speaking of which, I've seen you prove yourself under fire." Gil continued, "I'm not all that great of a warrior, though I intend to learn more in time. You and your brother saved my damn life."

"Of course. Those creatures were attacking all of us!" Ireena replied, appalled. "We could not let them wander the streets of Barovia."

"Whatever the reason, with only a month of seasoning you stepped up and killed two of them. That takes guts." Gil steepled his fingers. "Unfortunately, there are far scarier things out there than Gobu Gobu. I would like to offer you a weapon that will make you, to be perfectly frank, far stronger than me."

Ireena was wary at that.

"Why would you do that?" She asked. "You aided me, but I don't know if we could really be called friends."

It was a reasonable question. Even the part about Snow had been at least partially a lie. Snow appeared to have supernatural luck and could verifiably communicate with animals. A large part of why Gil had chosen Ireena was that he didn't want to lose Snow's potential, and he wanted a meat shield that he could get over the loss of without too much fuss.

"I have the ability to grow stronger over time." Gil explained. "It's a process that must start anew every time I die, which is one of the many reasons I avoid death despite its lack of hold on me. I'm weak right now, and I need a bodyguard. Further, I think you'll feel more comfortable if you're in a stronger position."

"What kind of weapon is it?" She asked, "I don't know how to use anything but a sword, and that only somewhat."

"That's not a problem," Gil said, pulling out the card and palming it so that Ireena wouldn't see the busty cowgirl depicted. "This is a magical item that will grant you the skills, knowledge, and powers of the woman it is based upon. She was a kind of magical knight in her homeland, with years of field experience fighting others with similar abilities. I don't think you'd be able to fight Strahd with this power alone, but I imagine you'd be at least equal to your brother. Likely much stronger."

Ireena stared at the card, trying to keep the hunger out of her eyes. She'd been forced to hide in her house from a stalker. It was no shock that she craved power. What was more surprising, at least to someone unfamiliar with the lore of her world, was her immediate question.

"At what cost?" She asked. "Gifts such as this come with puppet strings."

"Nothing too major." Gil said, smiling. "I'm afraid that you may forget some of your own skills, but not the life that gave them to you. This lady did not use a sword, so you will likely forget what your brother taught you of the blade. Much of what you know will likely remain untouched, but any kind of specialized skills you have may be lost. Even things you don't think are specialized, like embroidery or horseback riding. It's a similar process to what I go through after each death; I've made a study of learning new things with each life so that I can find out what I'm allowed to keep."

The price was unpleasant, but manageable. That was comforting to a girl raised on stories of bargains with the Dark Powers.

"And my memories?" She asked. "You've mentioned that your memories are somehow limited."

"Faces, names, events." Gil said. "Those are the things that will almost certainly stay. It's not exactly the same process, but in the event that you do experience what I did, you'll find that you can remember a conversation with your brother or father over dinner, but you might not remember what you ate even if it were the same thing every week. You won't be able to picture the clothes you were wearing, or exactly what a burgomeister is beyond a position of authority."

Ireena gulped.

"I accept." She said, before following up quickly. "On one condition. I wish to return to my home and destroy the Devil Strahd someday. If you will grow stronger as you say, it should eventually be no impediment to you."

"Deal." Gil said with a smile. "It's probably a good idea anyway, but not anytime soon."

Not one for ceremony, Gil pulled up his tablet, navigated to Ireena's profile, and pressed "apply card." He pressed the card against the screen where an appropriately sized rectangle appeared. He selected "power swap" and "partial fusion." The last bit was as much curiosity as anything else; he was, after all, quite bored.

For several seconds, Ireena glowed so brightly that looking directly at her left dark spots in Gil's vision. Then, just as quickly as it started, the light faded. Ireena stood before him, a changed woman.

https://postimg.cc/87R7yf03

This new Ireena's skin had lightened slightly, which made sense given how fair skinned Cow Lady had been. Her hair was the same dark auburn that only looked red when it caught the light. Her clothes were one of the more jarring shifts; not a perfect match for the superheroine or the noble girl. An orange tank top under a leather vest was more layered than the simple brown tube top that Cow Lady had worn, but showed vastly more skin than anything Ireena had ever willingly worn in front of Gil. The outfit revealed toned arms, a flat exposed midriff, and breasts that were notably larger, though smaller than the heroine she'd been infused with. Probably the upper end of d or dd cup. Technically she was only exposing a few inches of her thighs, but jean short shorts plus thigh high boots were not at all what Ireena would have chosen to wear.

"Ireena! Whatever are you wearing?" Snow cried out, clearly scandalized. After all, she'd only recently come to grips with women wearing pants. She wasn't at all ready for women not even wearing pants.

••••••••••

To Gil's mild disappointment, Ireena's taste in clothing was still fairly conservative. The daisy dukes didn't last long, except as something to wear under a skirt. Her shirts no longer fit her due to the new breasts, so Snow immediately started taking measurements; it might be a bit slipshod, but Snow was certain that she could modify something for Ireena within a day or two of dedicated effort to cover her tummy.

While the girls worked on that, Gil looked on with amusement and considered the other cards. Berelaine was less obviously useful than Cow Lady had been. She was a beautiful woman, to be sure, but didn't have any dramatic super powers or unique abilities. He considered what he might do with the card.

Snow might benefit from a more well rounded set of social skills. She was a princess, but the only arrows in her quiver were being kind, throwing herself upon the mercy of strangers, and bolting. Given how pretty she was, that strategy could backfire terribly without her unnaturally good luck. A basic grasp of interpersonal politics and manipulation would allow her to stretch her luck much further, even if she still preferred to play nice. Hell, given how she communicated with animals she might even get better at training Blackpaw.

Gil did somewhat want Rose to be more interested in men, and Berelaine was apparently of that persuasion. That being said, enjoying sex with men was hardly a rare trait. As a matter of biological imperative, the vast majority of women did. Might it be better to wait until he got some tier one bimbo with no marketable skills? On an even more selfish note, Gil didn't particularly want Rose to discover an appreciation for penis when she had a wealth of dicks available, none of which were his own.

He briefly wondered what would happen if he shifted Blackpaw's appearance. As a general rule, The Company made up the practical difference when making aesthetic shifts to waifus. A six foot tall Amazon reduced to a 4 foot short stack would be able to bench the same amount, and generally feel comfortable with their body outside of cognitive dissonance. Frequently her technical skill could actually improve in order to make up for the lost combat ability.

As such, what would happen if he made an angry wolf into a beautiful woman, without getting rid of the combatant tag? Would he become a wolf girl? Learn a brutally direct martial art? Become a shapeshifter? Make the logical leap of adding fencing to Berelaine's repertoire? Blackpaw might not learn how to speak Company Standard, so would Snow actually lose the ability to speak to the wolf-turned-girl, or would she still count as an animal?

It was honestly another question that probably deserved to be answered later, when he had a less useful card to burn as an experiment. There was also the very real possibility that Blackpaw would just turn into a busty feral woman with basically no value in a combat situation beyond providing a distraction, so he'd want a backup plan if that turned out to be the case. In fact, as he considered it another possibility occurred to Gil.

If he did a full power swap with the card, he could get a fully functioning Berelaine. Used on Blackpaw that would mean a beautiful and intelligent seductress with the underlying personality of an angry feral dog, but Blackpaw probably wasn't the last animal he'd capture. Even if he never bought one deliberately, he could potentially get his hands on another Beastmaster sphere as a Mission or Gacha reward.

Even that was setting aside the possibility that he might just recruit a person that didn't have any particular skills he valued, but seemed likely to stay loyal to him. Hell, he might even use it as a bargaining chip; Berelaine was a bombshell that seemed to be in her mid 20s. There were plenty of women who might sell their soul for a body like that. Not just for the sake of vanity, either. A full power swap with a new appearance would make an elderly person young, a cripple whole, or provide a more complete gender transition than one could possibly hope for in most settings. The best part? None of that, absolutely none of it, was unique to Berelaine.

••••••••••

Day 4

The dart lanced through the air, the long metal pin flying with unerring accuracy to pierce through Ulla's sleeve and into the wall beside her. The durable fabric tore only slightly as she ran, causing her to lose her balance for a crucial second, falling to her knee with her left arm pinned to the wall. A second dart pierced her pant leg, pinning her to the concrete.

She looked out through her iron wolf mask at the woman behind her, walking confidently. Medium height, with straight black hair. Her mouth was visible, showing pale skin. Probably Jewish, everyone knew they were controlling the Protectorate. Her purple and black armor was form fitting, but Ulla knew it could take a bullet. Even so, she reached for her side arm. She still had her dominant hand.

The moment her gun was free, another dart flew through the air, piercing through the barrel and stopping. She looked at it, and the metal of the dart was fused with the gun; if she tried to fire this it would just blow up in her hand.

"Lucky you, peasant." The cape said, with a strangely playful lilt very unlike Flechette's normal New York accent, "Kid Win is busy with your friends and will be for a few minutes, so you get a special opportunity if you act fast."

"Fuck you," Ulla spat, "Rot in hell."

She strained her body weight against her sleeve, slowly ripping her thick leather coat and the sleeve beneath. It did a better job of hiding her armor than most clothes, but in that moment she wished she'd thought better of wearing the jacket.

"Without even listening to the offer?" She said, "I'm hurt. I'll let you go, girl. Pluck those pins right out, you won't even have holes in your clothing. Setting aside the ones you made yourself with all that undignified flailing."

That made Ulla pause. She looked at the cape again. Wary.

"All you need to do is sell me your soul." The girl's lips twisted into a cruel smile. "If you don't? Well, we are near Merchant's territory. Who knows what might happen to a girl like you if I plugged a few more pins into your clothes? Especially dressed like that. I'll report where you are, as well. If you're very lucky the police will come pick you up before the Merchants. So, will you?"

The rush of knowledge assaulted Ulla. This woman was asking her to hand over her soul to a stranger, not even the Ward who had arrested her. This unknown person would be able to kill her at any time, or to erase her memories of this whole series of events. She'd be subject to his whims, and any powers he might develop would be at their strongest when used on his property.

No doubt he'd use that leverage to make her into his slave. Or a spy, a double agent among the Chosen of Fenrir. Of course the other option was potentially a fate worse than death. Those degenerates dragged girls away to rape them for fun on a normal day. What might they do to a disarmed enemy combatant they found nailed to the floor?

Ulla shuddered, and mumbled her assent.

"What was that?" Flechette asked, smiling cruelly, "I can't hear you."

"I said I'd do it." She said, more clearly. "I'll sell you my soul."

"Good girl."

••••••••••

Gil was pleasantly surprised by the timer that appeared on his tablet. Soul pact had a 24 hour cooldown, stopping him from using it more than once per portal. He felt practically giddy to discover that Rose could purchase souls on his behalf. Sure this meant that he wouldn't be able to make a pact if he opened a portal at exactly the 7 day mark, but that was fine. He could just delay an hour.

Bethany "Ulla" Smith

T2 No Name

Sell price: lesser Gacha

Gil smiled. Good enough for him; even if the Gacha didn't pay off the fact that it was possible was incredibly good news. The only bad news was that between the Nordic themed nickname and the lack of an "addict" tag, Bethany here was probably not a member of the Merchants. If she had been, he'd have left her to go about her business on the off chance she'd earn herself a ribbon.

He sold her promptly.

••••••••••

"Now then." Flechette said, pulling out the last pin. "There is only one way you're going to come out of this. If your allies find out that you're beholden to my companion, you'll no doubt be tossed out on your ear at best."

Rose considered the girl. She was a bit plain looking without the helmet, with dirty blonde pigtails and a round face combining to give her a surprisingly cute appearance. Lily found her repulsive based on her beliefs, while Rose found those same beliefs more quaint than anything else. The idea that she could take the glories of her betters upon herself because they happened to share a skin tone was laughable, even before factoring in the parts Lily hated.

"So what do you want?" The Chosen girl asked, suspicious. "If I'm seen talking to you, the jig is up regardless."

"Indeed. I want you to infiltrate the Merchants." Flechette said. "If you kill Skidmark, by whatever means you deem necessary, you will be released from duty and rewarded handsomely. There's only one catch. It can not be traced back to us."

The girl stared, gripped with horror at the idea of spending an extended period among those subhumans. Then she vanished, popping out of existence. Flechette sighed.

"He got greedy, I suppose."

••••••••••

Lesser Gacha: roll twice and take the worse roll.

5/4

5: one lesser consumable

The Golden Rule: for a limited time, the target will treat you as they would hope to be treated if roles were reversed. This extends even to traits they have no way of knowing, for example finding you as attractive as you find them or providing you with water unprompted if you are thirsty. This will be limited to what they would believe to be remotely plausible from your perspective. For example, a warlord may accept you into his service and spare your companions but is extremely unlikely to name you as his heir based on an initial meeting. They will stand by any decisions or actions they made while influenced, though they may come to regret them.

"Hell yes!" Gil said, pumping one fist into the air. "Fucking score!"

It was no binding, but this was on par with the Seal of Mercy at minimum. Just being able to force someone to act with some common decency would come in clutch at some point, without being so niche that he'd forget that he had it. He'd probably find a use for it some time in the next couple weeks, saving him some time or helping him finish a mission.

Of course, it was almost time for him to open another portal. He was feeling pretty confident, despite the loss of Rose. Not only did he have Ireena and bikini armor to protect himself, he had insurance. Five credits in the bank and a Reincarnation ticket from "selling" Ireena. If something killed him, he could pay up even after death and be back in the game instantly as a tier 3. He wasn't sure if it would be worth it to keep a 5 credit buffer all the time, but if he had even one that would let him take a few more risks.

Feeling a bit cocky, Gil decided to fill his address book. A fifth random portal in a row; hell, if he was really lucky this test would have achievements squirreled away somewhere. If anything would earn one, it would be sustained recklessness. Next week he'd need to weigh his decision a bit more carefully, between closing a path permanently or returning to one of the existing worlds. Today however, he felt like venturing forth into the wild blue yonder.

He waited until the cooldown on soul pacts was up, and opened the door. Naturally, he looked down immediately at his tablet.

Azuremist Isle

Kill, fuck, or capture Surveyor Candress.

Reward: 2 credits, Blue Capture Ticket, unlock arcane sanctum for purchase.

"Alright, track down Candress and do something to her." Gil muttered, "easy enough. Doesn't tell me much, though. Well, she's probably associated with magic somehow?"

He shrugged and switched tabs to the Gacha. Having opened a portal, that tab had regained its weekly charge. He pressed the button, fingers crossed.

Roll: 20, mundane local item

Apprentice cook's training results

Dozens of small rolls the size of Gil's fist rained down all around him, along with a handful of greasy slabs of fresh-cooked meat. They were all still warm. At first, Gil's heart leapt with joy, before he realized that he had no way of storing this much highly perishable food. Home baked bread didn't have much of a shelf life, and cooked, unsalted meat had even less.

He sighed and picked up one of the rolls. He bit into it as he waved Ireena over.

"Well, at least we have something small to barter I guess."

He walked out into a madhouse. The smell of ozone floated through the air, and a modestly sized white building was half buried in a clearing down the hill. It appeared to be on fire. Scattered through the forest, Gil saw the prone bodies of humanoid creatures with blue skin, horns, and hooves.

Ireena stepped out behind him and clutched one hand to her chest.

"Morninglord preserve us." She said under her breath. "Those poor tieflings."

••••••••••

Blue Capture Ticket- allows for one capture to not count against the capture limit for one binding in one world, allowing for the capture of another target by the same method. One of the two targets must be tier 3 or lower at the time of capture.

Arcane Sanctum Skyblock Extension: a skyblock segment containing a small building where all forms of magic are jailbroken by default. 2 credits.

Apprentice cook's training results- the results of a player character rapidly learning how to cook. 50 small loaves of spiced bread and 20 chunks of unspiced pork.