Level up

When they finally finish, and rapidly fall asleep like everyone else whom I've seen drink up, I stand and cloak myself in my wings. The two detectives are apparently finishing up some paperwork, and there's a crew taking pictures of the scene, bagging spent shells, and such. The kidnappers are missing… I presume they

are already on their way to a holding cell… and I have a pending level up notice.

Ignoring the notice for now, I walk over to Adam and Alice, “Why?”

“They're good men,” Alice shrugs, as she continues with the paperwork, “and you needed relief.”

“If everyone is super, nobody is.” Adam smiles as he sets his down for a moment, “I would love to get the entire **** on board with it, myself. Give the good…” he glances at his partner, and re-chooses a word, “...people power first, and we don't need to worry about the bad people so much.”

“And you didn't discuss this with me, why, exactly?” I'm a little upset, but I think this body just makes me look like a petulant brat.

“Spur of the moment thing,” Adam shrugs, “they were here, you were here… had a good ten minute chat with Alice, she was cool with it.”

I take a slow, deep breath, “Well… at least we'll find out what happens with a partial dose,” and another breath, I don't have a home or identity without these two… “we need to know that anyway. Seriously, though, talk to me about these things. Did Alice show you what happened to her after her second dose?”

Adam perks up, “Ooh, lucky!” He pauses, “Why am I excited about that?”

The man's partner chuckles, “Because it's awesome, I have got to show you what he gave me… i private.” She follows up with a more serious answer, “Also, I'm pretty sure it's part of his ‘aura’... but we should discuss that elsewhere.”

Of course… “So what's next?”

“Well, we have about another half hours’ worth of on site investigation begore we can turn everything over to the blues and the forensics team, then about three hours’ of reports to write,” Alice rubs her temples, “we can drop you off at my place after we're done here. Until then… I guess you're stuck hanging out here?”

I think I want some alone time… “Eh, I'll just fly back. I know the way,” Survival skill will get me there. “I'll do the invisibility thing so as not to make the news too hard.”

“Thanks,” my host nods, “Oh, I'll need a written statement from you at some point.”

“No problem… just give me the forms when you get home, we can go over what I need to gloss over then. I need some air… see you.” I shrug as I invoke Fey Invisibility again, and Warp to the door, then through it, then out of the building, then into the sky. I let my wings catch the air, and then I'm moving… at twelve miles an hour. Then Hustling at twenty-four, then Running at forty eight. It's not freeway speeds, or even highway speeds… but there's no traffic a hundred feet up, and the place isn't so built-up that I need to worry about buildings that tall. Immunity to Fatigue and nonlethal damage lets me Run all the way ‘home.’

Reasonably confident I won't be disturbed, I land and realize I don't actually have a key to the front door, and we never got around to adding me to the security system. Well… no time like the present. I already know about the traps and alarms… Toolkit spell for the tools; Divine Providence, Borrowed Power, and Display of Charisma for the check; Engineering and Computers skills to do the base work: I have root access to the security system easily, where I shut it down for now. One picked lock later, and I'm in the living room.

Then I get down to the business of leveling up.

Now, this level is extra complicated… not because it's inherently so, but because I get a build keystone at this level: Technological Wonders, from a Terraformer with some templates to get the CR down: it makes all of my abilities permanent and nonmagical. That and second level spells do a LOT of heavy lifting. That's all the Mythic abilities I want… including things that stop aging, prevent me from needing to eat, drink, or breathe, grant bonus caster levels for certain Spheres, and more. Additionally, second level spells - especially with Secret of Magical Discipline from last level - grants me access to a lot of very useful buffs, including Heroics (combat feats) and Enable Function (any feat, but can't be used for requirements for more copies). The synergy is excessive.

Borrowed Power also gets me Limited Wish for five points of Mythic power… which is unlimited in my case. Sadly, as it isn't a spell, it ends up with a caster level of just four. Still: There's a lot of spells where the caster level isn't relevant. Greater Teleport is 5th level for the Summoner, and gets me anywhere on Earth instantly. Plane Shift is fifth for the Cleric and gets me around the Planes. Delay ****, Freedom of Movement, **** Ward, and Sheltered Vitality all give me different immunities (**** by HP damage; anything that would restrict movement; **** effects and Negative Energy; ability damage, drain, and fatigue, respectively), and are in range of Limited Wish. And yes, much of that is redundant…

…which is a good thing: One of my other Mythic Borrowed Power choices grants a six point bonus to caster level for two Magic Spheres (which I spend on Time and Conjuration). That gives me a permanent Time caster level of sixteen, which allows me to pick up Greater Reversion. That, in turn, allows me to swap out all of my class build choices, dropping the redundant items in favor of different bonuses. Conjuration, of course, is for servants: As a permanent bonus, I can get my Mindless Conjuration Companions to sixteen hit dice (and give them minds via the Enhancement Sphere, effectively removing all the drawbacks).

I also take the equivalent Spheres of Might path talent as well (I mean, why not?) which I apply to the Pilot and Beastmastery Spheres. Pilot because it gives me a Companion Vessel (a mech to pilot, of my size… basically powered armor, but not actually armor, so works with the Synthesist Eidolon). Beastmastery because it can supply a proper familiar (also a proper animal companion), and I need one for a project.

When I finish leveling up and my new buff routine, I leave a note for Alice, and head to the basement for my project….