Before I can do anything else, a warning blares into my skull, making me wince from the sheer force of it. I have to blink away the spots in my eyes to even begin to parse what just happened, but when I do, my eyes widen. It's a Paradox Warning. The skill construct resonates within my core, and I stare up at the volley of golden spears. I don't like the idea of letting it kill me. I don't like the idea of not pushing this fight to its limits and getting everything I can from it. Almost unbidden, I can feel something rising within me, responding to my desire to keep fighting. The Knight. It struggles to free itself, and already I can feel its influence leaking into my Firmament; my skin hardens, gaining the glint of solid metal in odd, mishappen spots. I grit my teeth, forcibly pushing it back—I can't afford this right now. Not if I need to let myself die. I don't know how I know, but I feel certain that if I allowed it to take over, I won't die. At least not easily. And if I let that Seed get destroyed... that's a failure that has a chance of blowing back into other Trials. As much as I'm interested in seeing that process, I don't think I'm ready for it. I need to have something that allows me to— I suddenly understand, and the moment I do, I trigger the skill. Paradox Warning. I feel the skill activate, then feel the way it coils around me, asking me to complete the loop, to send back the warning that gave me this train of thought in the first place. So I do. Sending the message just a second or two into the past doesn't cost me as much Firmament as it might have otherwise, but the cost is still staggering; I feel nearly a quarter of my Firmament supply empty out of me in a way that I almost never feel these days, leaving me to stagger and grit my teeth. "I will find you," he calls back gravely, apparently sensing what I'm planning. Good enough for me. Ahkelios calls out in alarm, clearly also sensing what I'm planning and disapproving of it, but before he can try to convince me otherwise, I Accelerate up to meet the spears. I have to admit: as many times as I've died in the loops, I don't think I'll ever quite get used to the feeling of being stabbed multiple times over. [You have died. +57 Strength credits. +15 Durability credits. +32 Reflex credits. +50 Speed credits.] When I wake up, I'm lying in the dirt, staring up at the sky. Ahkelios stands on my chest, his arms folded across his chest. "You let yourself die again!" he complains. "I did," I agree. I reach up to pat him on the head, and he flails for a moment as he tries to push my finger off before he reluctantly accepts it, huffing. "I know you're worried about me getting used to it, but... I'm in a time loop, Ahkelios. I need to take advantage of it while I can, especially if it gives me an advantage." "How does this give you an advantage?" he grumbles. "We've got some time before Guard manages to find us." I push myself up to my feet, prompting Ahkelios to hop off and then reclaim his spot on my shoulder. "Why don't we find out?" "What are you talking about—" he begins, but I don't quite give him the time to finish the question. It's the realization I had. I might have been able to fight off the Seedmother and protect the Seed, especially with the help of the Knight—but that's not what I need right now. What I need is information, specifically on the consequences should I fail a Ritual stage, and that Seedmother set up the perfect opportunity for it. I'm changing a decision that's a fairly limited amount of time in my past, but even then, it's a costly use of Firmament. I feel about half of my reserves drain out of me, leaving me with barely a quarter left, and I groan against the strain; I feel Ahkelios's worry flicker down the bond as he reaches out to Discover more novels on NovelHub - your gateway to endless stories. It's an automatic act, but it still makes me grin. And then the power of the skill envelops us both, and we find ourselves back in the battlefield. Mentally, anyway. The Road Not Taken is ultimately an observational skill—I can't just rewind to a point and redo things the way I want to, I have to pick a singular decision to change—but the decision I'm changing here is a simple one. Now that I'm actually using the skill, I'm realizing that I need to grow a lot more to be able to use it for everything I want to use it for—going back long enough to interrogate Whisper, for example, is going to take exponentially more Firmament than I have available to me right now. That's a problem for future Ethan, though, and preferably one that's been through a few more phase shifts. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Discover more novels on NovelHub - your gateway to endless stories. I let the Knight take me over. Metal plating emerges from my skin, and I hear a guttural snarl emerge from my throat as vocal cords change into something other, a combination of metal and Firmament and conduit-flesh. The transformation is painful, but not nearly as harrowing as it was the first time. Unlike my first attempt at using this Inspiration, the Knight and I are... somewhat coordinated. Not perfectly coordinated, as it turns out. Not yet. We try to dodge the spears and to keep the Seed safe, but we don't quite agree on the same direction to move, and the result is our combined body flailing awkwardly through the air and toward Ahkelios; we still manage to protect the Seed, but only because several spears glance off our armor. A few manage to pierce into us partway before we bat it away in retaliation, and we snarl in response. Pain is unpleasant. The Seedmother is an enemy. "Was it?" Even in my current state, I manage a cheeky grin at the mantis. "I'm pretty sure I'm just using what's available to me." "It's cheating," he insists stubbornly, though he can't quite resist the grin that steals across his face. "...You think you can use what we found?" "I'm sure I can." It's going to take me a while—I'm not dumb enough to think I can mess around with the Interface without severe consequences just yet. But once I've got Gheraa back... well, who knows? I hear Guard's thrusters in the distance. He wasn't kidding about being able to find me. "Three," I say easily. And only because I want to study those skill constructs on its back. Guard lands a moment later. "Four," he says, having apparently heard the conversation. "I will adjust my strategy, but it is not an easy battle." "We will adjust our strategy," I say, smirking. "But fine. Let's see who's right."