"Whose going next?" I asked, turning to the rest and ignoring Kazuma's concerning murders.
"I'll do it," Misaka said while giving Kazuma a strange look.
"Whose going next?" I asked, turning to the rest and deliberately ignoring Kazuma's concerning laughter about building an army of Personas to "finally get revenge on cabbages."
"I'll do it," Misaka said, crossing her arms. She gave Kazuma a sharp glare, the kind of look that could fry him even without lightning.
The glowing panel in front of her flared to life, words etching themselves in shimmering light:
[Ability Acquired: Geass – Command Seal(Origin, Code Geass]: The user gains the power of absolute command: with a single order given through direct eye contact, the target must obey, regardless of willpower or strength. One use per person, but no limit to the number of victims. Evolves with mastery.
The moment the words faded, I felt something shift in the air. Misaka's pupils glowed crimson for just a second, a strange sigil whirling inside before vanishing.
"…What the hell was that?" she muttered, touching her face.
I didn't recognise the name or the ability, but the sensation made the hairs on my neck rise. It was a power meant to override the very will of others. Dangerous.
Itadori let out a low whistle. "That's insane. You can just… tell people what to do, and they'll have no choice but to obey?"
Kazuma's jaw dropped. "Unfair! It's completely unfair! I had to get stuck with making bonds and fusing monsters, and she just gets to boss around anyone she likes with a look! Where's the balance?!"
Homura looked more intrigued. "How did it feel when your eyes turned red?"
"Itchy," Misaka said a little bit uncomfortably.
"You want to go next?." I asked Homura.
She paused her expression as calm and unreadable as ever. "…Very well."
The glowing panel materialised before her, flickering for a moment like it was weighing the very core of her being. Then, the words carved themselves into existence, sharp and deliberate.
[Item Acquired: The Time Stone(Origin, Marvel Multiverse)]: One of the fabled Infinity Stones. Grants mastery over the flow of time: stop, rewind, accelerate, loop, or peer into possible futures. Power is limited only by the user's focus and imagination. Stone bonds directly to the soul, ensuring no one else may wield it.
The gem shimmered into her hand, green light radiating from its centre. For a second, the world around us warped — colours bending, time itself feeling like it had hiccupped before snapping back into place.
Homura's eyes widened just slightly, then narrowed with recognition. "…This feels… familiar. ""
Itadori clutched his head. "Hold on, hold on—you can literally control time now? That's busted!"
Kazuma collapsed to his knees dramatically. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! First, Misaka gets 'I can boss people around' eyes, now Homura gets an Infinity Stone?! What next, is Itadori going to pull Excalibur or the freakin' Dragon Balls?!"
Misaka smirked, folding her arms. "Careful, Kazuma. If I feel like it, I could order you to stop whining."
Her crimson pupils flashed for half a second, just enough to make Kazuma stumble backwards in fear.
I couldn't help but grin. This was chaos, sure… but the fun kind of chaos.
I turned my gaze toward Itadori. "…Your turn?"
He cracked his knuckles, grinning widely. "Alright then, let's see what this thing gives me."
The panel shimmered into existence before him, glowing brighter than the others had, almost as if the system itself was bracing for what was about to happen. Then, the words etched themselves into the air, bold and unyielding:
[Item Acquired: Herrscher Core of Sentience (Origin: Honkai Impact)]: The crystallised authority of a Herrscher. Grants the wielder unparalleled regenerative abilities, combat adaptation, and the power to fragment their consciousness into autonomous avatars. Upon awakening, the dominant energy of the world will trigger an eruption, birthing a new Herrscher of Sentience. Potential grows with conflict and self-realisation.
I put a hand to my chin and thought that my ability was quite busted. At this point, Kazuma did not even try to react. He just went away and squatted, drawing a circle in the ground.
Misaka was extremely intrigued by that. "The autonomous Avatars just sound like a more controllable and manageable misaka network, I am slightly jealous but triggering the energy of the world sounds dangerous and if what Kazuma said is real about my world then a lot of forces would be after me."
"The item feels more like a trap to me. If I were to have it and become a witch, then some unsavoury things would happen..." Homura made her comment with a slight frown. Turning into a Witch, huh? I wonder what that meant.
Itadori tilted his head and then checked his body. "..I don't feel anything..."
That is probably to be expected. If he could not know the shape of his soul, then he wouldn't notice anything entering it. "Did the cursed king inside of you recognise anything with your soul?"
"About that, ever since I entered here, I couldn't feel Sukuna. It was as if he was sealed or something." He said with a thoughtful look.
Well, that is indeed strange, I know Rael is still active and witnessing everything here, so foreign interference other than the chat group members and their abilities or items can not witness anyone here. "Well, that's good. You should also keep this a secret from him, but I doubt he could read that part of your memory without you telling him yourself.."
Itadori nodded with understanding.
I stretched my hands. "I guess I'm next," I said as I used my Gacha ticket, the suspense was...there just as it was for Kazuma and Misaka, a wheel began spinning for some time before it stopped.
[Pet Obtained: Shadow Spider Egg(Origin:Shadow Universe.): A creature born from the deepest and most chaotic regions of the Shadow universe. It has three growth stages, and in each gains terrifying abilities and power, beware, these creatures are not afraid to hunt in the light as their mere presence is enough to shadow it.]
I scratched my cheek at the reward I got, I mean, it's quite fair, I have enough abilities and items at the moment, so a pet isn't that bad. "Not bad, I guess."
[The group members have all claimed their gifts, and the group chat will commence its true purpose once the members adjust to their abilities or items. Everyone can leave and go back at their will.]
Misaka frowned at the message, and so did Homura. They must be offset by the true purpose part of the chat, so I once again reminded them that the chat group won't hurt them. "As I said, the chat group won't hurt you, and it will instead allow you to get stronger... Though I don't know exactly how that will happen."
"I know, I'm just not used to these kinds of things...." Misaka said with a soft sigh.
Homura responded with a slight smile on her face. "I would say this is a change of scenery for me, and it just made me think about some things.."
Kazuma, who was back from sulking, came back with a triumphant smile on his face. "I can also tell you guys what happens in your world to help you."
Misaka scoffed. "Firstly, your information could be wrong as explained by you, so I don't want fake news that will take me to my own doom rather than help me."
Homura nodded, agreeing to her words. "My future is not bright, I know that, and knowing about it will push me closer to despair if I am already not at it...so I'd rather not."
Itadori, too, was thinking about it. "What's fun about knowing the future? It would just take away all the excitement you would feel, and as Misaka said, things are different now."
Kazuma's face froze. He stood there in silence, one hand pressed under his chin like he was trying to process their refusal. After a few seconds, he simply shrugged. "…Huh. Well, that's true. Anyway, I'm already tired of watching you all get overpowered abilities and items. And the way Chara just shrugged off a living nightmare-egg actually scares me. So, yeah—I'm leaving. Goodbye."
As he said that, he disappeared from the pure white space like he didn't get something OP too, anyways the shadow spider egg was sent to my inventory, so it didn't show like Homuras time stone. "See you guys later, i guess."
I waved my hands at them, and I too disappeared, I returned to the familiar feel of my room, which I got used to a day ago and also left half an hour ago or even less, the so called meeting was short and everyone didn't even try being hostile with one another, in fact all of them have odd behaviours and I too am included in that. "But I'm back to loneliness."
As i said that, Rael, who i kept at the side of the bed, turned into her humanoid form with a teary expression on her face. "...Master can we please—."
I stopped her before she could say anything, I sighed and got off the bed and stretched a bit before replying to her. "Fine, let's go get you some souls to eat."