Wakino Notes

Type Shifting
So, as to fucking be expected, I'm awesome enough to have figured out how to align pokemon with the Ghost type. It seems to be a permanent process and confers all advantages and disadvantages that come with the type. I can also control what typing gets replaced depending upon how I prepare the ritual, usually using some sort of reagent to effectively select the one to keep. On the down side, it's...like literally murder. I mean, they stick around because they become ghosts, but...well the two I've performed thus far...they let me know it felt like all hell. Though I'd like to explore this much more, I'm afraid I only have the mental fortitude to do it a few more times. I mean, it's not that I'm weak...it's just...well murdering your own pokemon is hard, you know?

//Addendum//
This is...I don't...I don't know how many more of these I can do...

Power Transfer
While perusing the tomes I found in the Mizou mansion, I found a rather curious ritual. It's similar to the type shift, but...well I believe it's fallen out of fashion for a good reason. It is not simply a state change, but rather a way to transfer the power of a subject on to another. The cost, which explains its obscurity, is the life of the subject. The ritual doesn't seem to work on pokemon more than once, but due to their natural resilience, the power they inherit is almost natural. Most curiously, it works to transfer powers to humans as well. We can receive such gifts many times more often than pokemon, but at the same time it is a much larger burden. There appears to be a few variations of the ritual. Each has the same end result, but the expression is different. The first...well I'm not quite sure...the scrawlings in the book seem to indicate you would...look like the sacrifice. Now that just sounds ridiculous, and isn't even remotely subtle. The second is...well kind of cool. You get tattoos...which...are kind of hot...you kn- why am I justifying this to myself in my own notes, right then. The last method appears to not hold any ill effects whatsoever, well, for the one that isn't being sacrificed. However, the requirements are just...I don't even know how to get any of these...Genesect larvae? Mew brain tissue? The very last drop of blood a Yamask bled in life? That shit is just...untenable.

//Addendum//
Well...I did it. I've performed the Power Transfer ritual twice now. It is...I'm beginning to understand why this isn't a commonly known phenomenon. I'd surely be driven mad if I weren't able to offload some of the pain. Furthermore, despite the limits I'd seen previously listed, it may vary with the host, and you definitely can't just do one after the other. I'm...not sure how much farther I'll continue. The power is very real, to be sure. It even grants some logical properties associated with a particular move. The tattoos are...well I can hide the ones I've received, but they are not as subtle as I'd hoped. Although...I might want more...this is an addiction, right? Recognizing it means it isn't really that powerful yet...right?

Possession
As of course is no great surprise by now, shit can be possessed. Either in the normal boring exorcism way, or the considerably more interesting divine possession. This is considerably more complicated than when a ghost does so. First, it's based on the...um...compatibility of the host. This refers to not only their general uh...can I just steal soul wavelength from that one show? That sounds like a good plan. It also depends on how similar the host is to the divinity, both in form and attitude. Regardless of the power these things have, many behave exactly like any mortal. Or unlike them. Which is kind of still like them. Where was I? Oh right, with a high enough compatibility, the full ritual isn't even needed, it seems. A harlot possessed my girlfr- a friend of mine that I happen to be madly in love with and am bangi- can I even use that te- FUCK IT. Mirai.  This is likely due to the fact that she's a channeler, which has something to do with that fucking mystic shit. Anyways, these factors include things like gender, dress, build, personality, and so forth. It's better to be neutral than to clash with your target divinity. If you aren't prepared enough, they'll behave like snooty douches, looking at your pedigree and everything. Furthermore, the environment will influence it. Don't expect to channel a sky god in an undersea cave. That would just be stupid. Likewise, it's much easier to summon a fire god in a volcano. But then you're in a fucking volcano with what is probably a stereotypical hotheaded fire god, so you still made poor choices. As usual, reagents are also quite powerful for this. As in type shifting, you can use anything you can think of. Provided it isn't stupid. And of course it has to make sense, this shit is straightforward. Unlike type shifting, the item isn't necessarily consumed, it simply aids in your compatibility. Also it isn't exactly...well the ocean seems like it counts as the environment, right? The state of the ocean also matters, as a storm god could more easily be summoned with rougher water. This shit gets downright ridiculous in how symbolic it can be, so it's...just don't be a fucking idiot.

Alright, so at this point everything's in place, but you still need an impetus. It has a thousand different names, but it's effectively divine energy. The less you fucked up, the less you'll need. The ways you get it are all the stereotypical cult or mystic things: meditating isn't complete bullshit, as the various aura users can attest. I believe it's the least efficient though, which is why you usually see the old bald guys doing it. I mean if you could do it yourself with thought easily, you'd probably already be a god, right? I imagine burning incense counts, but it sounds stupid and easy. There's also ritual sacrifice which as you can guess is...messy. Very powerful though, as souls are just full of the stuff. Of course you need to know how to do it so you aren't just killing something and having the energy dissipate into nothing because you fucked up, like glyphs generally help for that. I recommend building it into the main possession glyph. Oddly enough, dances work. Like those war dances you hear tribal people did? Totally valid. Which is weird because sometimes they really look fucking dumb. It's...not a bad route, but if you look like a twat doing it, don't blame me if bad things happen. Lastly there's always...uh...well...when people have...sex...I mean the thing that generates life must generate some of this shit if souls have a bunch, right? Moving on! You can also get the energy from more scientific means, like certain chemical reactions. Also the full moon business is totally legit. Mermaids apparently go bonkers. I don't even know how that's useful. Oh, maybe they just like go into heat and th- moving on.
+++ The Dream World
The Dream World seems to have two primary regions. The Eternal Nightmare, effectively a wasteland, and the Dream World proper. The Eternal Nightmare is filled with...well...nightmares. And as is to be expected, throngs of Darkrai inhabit the area to feed. I believe nightmares that we experience in sleep, at least the average sort, are somewhere near the border of the two realms. This is why you're not totally freaked the fuck out of your mind, but it's still unnerving. The worse they are, the deeper in you must be. Eventually, logical cohesion seems to break down entirely. This is...was...well I suppose another could form, but "junk data," which would be the left over bits when people fuck around with reality, also accumulates in this area, likely because of the lack of coherency.

The happier side is...odd, to say the least. As a world of dreams, your perception heavily influences the area. It's...sort of set up like a country. Or...a city, at least. A confusing city. There appear to be permanent settlements, which attract all sorts. I'm not sure if these beings live here permanently, are the NPCs, effectively, of our dreams, or what really...I was not in the best condition to be asking them. These settlements are rather...well life-like but lacking in realism. Junk data tends to warp that realism even further. Different settlements seem to have different themes, like an urban city or a castle village. There is also an area that is...I did not quite understand it, but it seems like...the most volatile area, but at the same time the most wondrous. It is most heavily influenced by one's perception. There is also a library, of sorts. Rather than godawful teen romance fantasy novels, it holds...well apparently everything. Ever. Like all knowledge. Or all perceivable knowledge. Of any dimension or any would be dimension. I read about a version of me that literally fucked around into dark godhood or something. Also another one was...well anyway I'm fucking glad I'm broken or whatever. Oops, tangent. Anyways, it's guarded by a being known as Mother Swanna. I...really don't know much about her. I'm not particularly a fan of hers. Or its. Whatever.

Ritual Magic
I should note that there are more rituals than just murder and all of that. Recently, with the aid of a friend, I've been working on the creation of my own personal ceremonial robes. I don't yet know the specifics, as my friend is going to be performing them, but she is going to tie a spirit to my equipment. I mean, that will take the form of a live sacrifice, but it's less muderific. I'll have to bathe in blood though...that...can't be good for you...basically I'm going to be bathing in gross stuff. It's still being worked on.

Gods and Shit
For the sake of convenience, I am going to define gods as those beings that walk between our waking world and the dream world. I believe they are primarily in snoozeville, as they can't exactly just step out apparently like we can, as seen when that fuckwit possessed Mirai. So more than just being aware of the differences in the worlds, they seem to deposit most of their being in the dream world, but remain attached enough to the real one, or our real one, that with...well it's a big whole thing, but with the right circumstances, they can either possess a mortal or...presumably with the right conditions even manifest their whole being. Lesieli seems to be a god, but not truly at full power. I posit...and worry...that when she reaches it, we won't really get to have her around anymore. At least not like it is now. She's like a sapling at the moment: still quite flexible, but as she returns to her full glory, much more rigid.

The area between mortality and godhood is...messy. I have...met a being that...really and truly should not have existed. It manifested from junk data in the dream world, apparently with enough fractions of identities to grow a conscience. It too primarily resides within the dream world. Or at least did. But it can still step between the two worlds. It doesn't have its own body, but it seems to have a fairly easy time stealing another, displacing that person's consciousness in the dream world, almost as a replacement. I believe I have found a way to...effectively bind it in one host, preventing it from passing through dreams into other bodies. I am unsure of what this may cause, and it's...a little exciting. It seems like with the right growth, it could become a god of sorts! The only thing I don't understand yet is...well, one generally thinks a god needs a fanbase, right? And their power is proportional to it? It...of course doesn't really have that. But...well I mean I might just...nevermind, I'll observe it more.

As expected, gods do generally work like shitty social media pages. Like dis if u fuk evry tim, that kind of thing. Unfortunately, I've no attachment to that structure. At the very least, gods seem capable of granting boons of generic divine power. That, or this fucker is playing me big time. Hmm...while a given god may not want to give away too much power to another without placing the other god within their control, I wonder if I could get enough independent boosts from enough gods to really add up. Kanaloa seems the simple sort to please, but I seem to be pretty good at getting on his nerves, so presumably I'd need something pretty big to negotiate another boost.

I'll need to keep my eye out for signs of the other Akua. Kaane's likely right in our path, but...well I was hesitant with Kanaloa because it was all so new, but...with Kaane...I'm...scared. He's the highest, so presumably the strongest, and the most likely to view me beneath him, and as a creation god I might be an abomination in his eyes, what with being...kind of fucked up existence. Furthermore, we have no idea of his current state. The changes to the book may also have had a significant impact on him. Then there's Kuu, whom...well if he exists, I can't even guess as to what form he'd take. Government hasn't exactly stayed in the tribal state, and war is done a bit more discretely now. Lono...well the domains sound easier to deal with than any of the rest...well at least in terms of not dying or anything, it would still be plenty miserable for me in all likelihood. Unfortunately, I haven't a fucking clue where Lono or Kuu would even be found. I'll need to...oh, Lesieli may likely have interest in that as well.

Well, seems I didn't have anything to worry about. Kaane was totally fine with our pursuit. In fact, even though we didn't actually have anything to offer him other than our intentions, he...gave us some gifts...in fact I got a name. Ululane. Sounds like gibberish, but I guess I should pretend it's badass. So now I just need to go about finding away to place myself into the pantheon. Which means making myself known. Which I don't want to do at all. Goddamnit.

I did a bunch of research in Hermit at that fancy ass lighthouse library. Oh goddamnit, that's also alliterative. I've got a really good concept for how to contact the other gods now. Figure if I do shit for all of them, including the lesser ones, I can cement my place pretty easily. Well, relatively easily. Also seems like the lesser gods won't be so...conceptually terrifying. I mean, a few of them would very likely still try to murder us. But more street thug scary than divine judgment scary. I...do worry about playing host myself. It seems like I should do it, but...what, like I just write myself notes or have someone handle the discussion on my behalf? That's weird. Also I guess I should probably talk with Naamaka some time...it's been a while...and I've been kind of a bitch to her...understandably. Although...don't know if she'd possess anyone besides Mirai. It probably says something that I'm more terrified of summoning Nuakea than Kaulu. I've really got to work on that...and...I...should...probably summon her sooner than later...oh god, how the fuck am I going to do that without dying of embarrassment. Maybe I can get someone else to do it...wait, where the hell am I going to get fresh milk? I mean...well I guess the very existence of Miltank implies some pokemon do produce milk...and Fangs just had a baby, but...do...Mawiles...even...have...nipples...why...am I still writing this...fuck...

I've summoned Nuakea and had someone interview her on my behalf. The meeting went about as expected, way less intense when the god isn't one of the big four or an evil monster. She seems pretty down to earth actually. The only awkward part is...um...I was...milked...I mean, I wanted to be since it's divine milk, but...yeah. Won't have a bigger update until we visit her realm though.

I think I've kind of started my first real steps to instantiating myself today. At least, I'd attracted a crowd, said some stuff they agreed with, and eased a burden of one person, so that seems like a good start. The hard part is going to be coordinating any long term efforts, especially while we're at sea and...well...saving them in ways they probably need to be aware they're at risk, but I imagine most people wouldn't be able to handle it. It will also be tough to keep the interest as more than a passing fad, as well as getting it to hop the islands. Come to think of it, once the seeds are sown in each area, we could just let the local gods know. I mean, if we get the people to pay attention, and at the same time the gods are a little more active, well it could have great results. Still going to have to deal with some of the bigger assholes though.

When did I last write...ah, I see, okay. So we went to this underwater secret ancient city thing, I don't know, but it had all kinds of old cultural stuff. Cutting out the unrelated matter, there were a lot of shrines to the various gods, including current and forgotten. I was actually able to revive Haumea. I'm not exactly sure of the implications of this yet, but I guess she was pretty grateful. I mean, I guess I kind of learned some general godhood stuff in all of this. Whatever. Well, she helped me...kind of...move in, to the whole godhood thing. I even took Bunsen's soul or something. I'm not quite certain, buuuuuuut...

Well...it looks like it's time to draw this chapter to a close. I didn't want to be a god anymore, and...there actually is a way out. I had to replace myself with someone like me that wanted to take my role, and...it just so happened that Luna was up for it. Haumea, Kaane, and Kanaloa were there in the dream world to assist, and...some weird stuff happened, blah blah, godswap. I know I ran away but...it was for the best...I'm thankful for everyone's support, and I'll be glad to get back to simple studying instead of godhood. Well, not that it's SIMPLE necessarily...it's just...there aren't a bunch of other people telling me what to do.

Glitches and the Arcane
I've begun looking back into the whole...glitch stuff that I am. And Nilly is. And the thing that became the other me. And I guess Reeve. What was I...oh, junk data. Yeah. From what I understand, not only should it not exist, but the goose lady that protects all of reality seems to hate it. Which I guess is okay because fuck you too, goose lady. Well everyone affected by the rewrite seems to have had some glitch...iness, but I guess this whole meeting your true self bullshit they've been doing pretty much takes care of that. I guess I'm the only one that actively wants to embrace it. Really I just need to know more about it. It seems to just generally interfere with reality. Nilly uses it to...alter things...uh...dimensionally. I guess. Like something that shouldn't have happened happens. The aggregate of junk data that came a being and copied me worked in more or less a fundamentally similar way: being able to interfere with what should happen in reality.

I only have a cursory understanding so far, but working with junk data seems to pretty much be a tool that can let you redefine aspects of existence. Now the extent of it...well I imagine if I fuck up too much, goose lady will hunt me down. Now, I think fucking with things via glitch can cause an accumulation of junk data, as evidenced by the whole rewriting existence causing a lot of it thing. But it had to start somewhere. So either reality was so ill-defined that definition yielded junk (anything that didn't fit into form), or it's something weird and incomprehensible like dark matter or whatever.

Considering its similarities to the classical types/elements, maybe it was something in existence that never made the cut? Things with the glitch properties seem to react to the other types consistently but differently, and likewise other things are affected by it in much the same way. As Knox commands poison, Auriga commands fire, and...I suppose technically my own command of the ethereal (though that was a right earned through years of practice and effort, not quite a natural gift, and it's strenuous), I believe there are those (un)naturally attuned to it such that they can influence or outright wield it, like myself (okay, this one was a birth thing) and Nilly. I won't concern myself any further with the philosophy of why it exists (I mean, really it's probably some unknowable bullshit or something really stupid), but will instead look to this lost type as a tool.

I have begun to postulate that perhaps it is the substance that drives occult rituals. Traditional science rejects the occult for not being objective. A scientific reaction is generally perfectly repeatable, and who performs the ritu- er, experiments does not really matter if the experiment is done the same way. But the occult relies on all manner of oddities: properties of reagents unidentifiable by modern science, the intentions of the ritualist, divine powers, and so forth. If the junk data is able to redefine aspects of reality, it would explain why miraculous feats are accomplished by doing things that should have no effect when viewed with a scientific mind. A slightly different approach would be to consider junk data a waste product of the occult. Perhaps it draws from divine power (or something even more incomprehensible), but creates junk data? This could certainly be the case. It is fact that divine beings exist and oversee the composition of reality. And their strength is affected by the belief of humans. There is some manner by which mankind communicates its desires to the gods, and with the right influence, this can result in a change in some capacity. It could be that the mechanism by which man achieves this is the same that results in the various psionics. If some are more attuned to this "sense," it could allow them to alter reality in unnatural ways.

Continuing that thought process, gods themselves may be a mix of some of the earliest beings and those that were significantly attuned to that "sense". They wouldn't all necessarily need to be tied to something like shooting fire or poison. For example, Haumea may have been able to inspire pregnancy. At first, it seems likely that the gods frequently sought the favor of mankind for the power of their beliefs. The stronger and more plentiful the beliefs, the stronger the linked god. But if the various catastrophes frequently mentioned in ancient texts were true, it seems that the gods have dropped back to more reserved roles: influencing the world less and less over time. The minor gods still seem to act frequently of their own volition, and the power difference between minor and major may be like children to adults. Perhaps wielding the divine powers creates junk data. If that is the case, it explains the reservations of modern gods, and the generally concerted efforts to avoid intervention. With considerable care, it seems that the generation of junk data can be minimized and maybe even avoided completely, but only when divine power is exercised subtly and carefully. And if the junk data can so significantly alter reality, it could upset the status quo the gods have relied upon for so long, throwing what is effectively the engine of existence into turmoil. So basically a nuclear meltdown for existence. In this sense, goose lady is dedic- wait, goose or swan? Birdfucker is dedicated to preventing the interference of the junk data from ruining too much. However, despite her apparent hatred of it, she does not dispose of it herself. Perhaps the chaotic concept has never properly been handled. If one such as myself can learn to manipulate it responsibly, we may be able to personally see to it that the glitches remain in check, while wielding its power to great personal effect.

Or this is all fucking bullshit because Luna's bullshit is bullshitting my head and making it very hard to think if I try too hard to do anything other than just fucking keep thinking incessantly. So fuck that. You stupid fucker, why would you do that? I AM NOT WORTH IT AND YOU ARE A REAL, WONDERFUL PERSON. For fuck's sake. I need a drink.

Oh, uh, everything about what was written above turned out fine. Then some other stuff happened mentioned in a previous chapter. So, now we can continue. So after voiding myself of the divine spark, I was relieved but...lacking. It had empowered me and helped in the fight against Aether, so then I had to fill it with something. I'd recently acquired a tome with information about draining energy, and with help from Luna and Nilly, I had some fantastic tutors to assist me apply my intended magicks. As something that was truly part of me, after returning to mortality, I sought to increase my command of glitches. I could focus on it as a god, but...the power I could draw on to use it was not something I had access to afterwards. So I needed a new system.

From previous studies, I was already quite capable of ritual magic. Furthermore, I solidified my grasp on the spectral magicks observed in ghosts; what was once the tenuous ability to wield those spells has been developed and they are now at my beck and call. With knowledge from Kanaloa's spell library, Luna worked with me until I understood the base parts of these spells. With...more patience than I'm sure I deserved, she was able to liken the spells to the glyphs in the ritual magic I am so used to. Once I could see the relation, I learned how to modify the spells in much the same way one modifies a sigil. An important aspect of this magic (and why it's treated as nonsense and superstition by the scientific community) is willpower. Ritual magic is as close to science as the field gets really. Intent still matters, but in a more systematic manner. Arcane conjuration, however, takes this to a new level. I had issues getting spells to draw consistently as I desired. In truth, Auriga helped me to figure it out. I'd not thought of what it takes for her to pull fire from the ether. But after thinking about it, I realized the relationship between her temper and her ability to wield fire. When she's passionate, it's easier for her to draw it forth. I tried anger myself, and while it was a noticeable boon to my success rates, it still was not as consistent as it should have been. Mulling it over once again, I realized we have plenty of other elementally attuned companions, but they use their respective elements differently. I considered that each element may require a different method of being tapped into. With Luna's help, I began exploring each emotion to judge its affect on my spell efficacy. Success rates varied by emotion, with despair serving to be the most apt, but even then it was not high as it should have been, we needed further study.

Here we were fortunate to have Nilly's...unique perspective. Based on her own unique existence and experience so far with emotions in general, she did not simply see me yelling, crying, or cheering during the tests, there was something behind it she used to identify emotion. To summarize the worst game of hot and cold ever played, Nilly guided me to identify the operant emotion as...well something not generally recognized as one. Despair was most successful because I was more apt to simply let go of my self during it. The actual emotion is...well insanity is the closest word I can think of. Not necessarily frothing at the mouth, but it's more or less a very strong, singular desire combined with a blend of paranoia, confidence, apathy, and excitement. According to Nilly, I frequently gravitate toward this state naturally. The reason this sort of craziness works compared to the white padded wall kind is that in the latter, the four sub-emotions I described do not have real rhythm. To visualize the difference, my version is like a train piston, in which the emotions are the wheels, bound by the piston which drives them in concert. In the frothing mouth kind, the wheels spin at variable speed, sometime forwards, sometimes back, as there is no piston keeping them consistent. After this revelation, Luna was chided for her outburst of laughter and continued insistence of calling me crazy, even if she thought it was cute.

Once I had a state of mind to link to my spells, efficacy and consistency increased considerably. They formed faster and were considerably more potent. Now that I had a solid foundation to the spellcraft I was focusing on, the next step I needed was a better understanding of glitches. On this matter, Luna did have some knowledge based on Kanaloa's observations, but Nilly was the real master. Unfortunately, there were still some issues with communication on account of her being...Nilly. Born of it herself, she doesn't really quite know the original source of junk data. Well she might, but she wasn't describing it coherently enough to be understood. Based on what I could gather and my own observations, it forms from errors in reality, similar to computer crashes. However, where the computer or program would simply stop running, existence doesn't have that luxury. Based on the severity of the error, junk data is a byproduct of how existence reconciles the issue. Higher power divine magic may be a cause. It would be indicative of how greater a power must be to inflict a change with errors, and it would explain why the more powerful gods are not as active as the weaker ones. Poor editing of the book of reality caused innumerable junk to accumulate, including both that of myself and of the being I merged with. Duckfucker's role as interdimensional referee makes perfect sense in this context. Not only is junk data indicative of abuse of power, but it serves to further destabilize reality based on application. This would account for why I'm no longer welcome in her library, since I'd fuck it all up. I would like to eventually have good enough control that I could walk the library without incident, but I doubt I could convince her it's fine

As to the actual application of the glitch, it's sort of a wild card in arcanism. Its effect on reality is actually quite consistent, but its inclusion in spellcraft is irregular. The concepts behind ritual magicks and hex magicks of the same type alignment are actually quite different. The glitch, however, seems to work in the same manner across both studies. When wielded offensively, the glitch seems to override the other spell components. Whether verbal incantation or presence of mind, introducing glitch into spell formulae completely changes the original design of the spell. Furthermore, not all spells are compatible, and some are redundant. When channeling a more indirect hexing spell, the glitch causes the spell to spill violently forth, affecting the constitution of targets in a short, wide range seemingly at random. A more direct spell with glitch introduced remains a damaging attack, however the presentation is...frightening and the spell becomes capable of significant debilitation. A curse spell with glitch introduced...don't do it. Just...just don't fucking do it. It was awful.

Ritual magic, however, behaved much more consistent concerning the intent of the spell, though the effects themselves were just as varied. A basic possession ritual (we may have put a few smaller pokemon in the area to sleep for testing) worked correctly, but rather than channel one spirit for the duration, the host channeled several different ones in series. A ouija ritual that would normally allow spirits to communicate by moving a pointer instead resulted in the actual appearance of warped letters, seemingly spelling out gibberish. Though the letters disappeared within seconds, they seemed genuinely interested in the environment. We were not sure if the glitches mimicked Unown or if this was an actual link to them, but based on the danger of unpredictable portals to their world, we discontinued testing.

The final glitch ritual performed was a test on myself. I've been...self-conscious about my tattoos. Though imbued with significant power, their appearance is inconsistent due to being the result of three separate rituals. Even if I am a crazy person, I shouldn't have to look so blatantly like one. Proof of concept was achieved using doodles on paper. We were able to construct a ritual that would transport ink drawings on a paper across the page. The image itself was distorted with the move, and we could cause shapes to both compact and spread out. Though we could not predict or choose the shape of the new drawing, we found emotion could influence the style of the warped shapes. When calm, lines were even and smooth, when angry bold and jagged. We also tested using patterns scratched into driftwood, which also moved like the ink drawings. I was prepared to proceed with testing it on myself, but Luna grew worried about the possibility of having my veins scrambled, since they too had patterns. To appease her fears, I found a half-eaten Goldeen on the beach and tested the ritual on it. The pattering of the coloring on the scales changed in a manner consistent to the other trials, and everything below the surface was just fine. Though she remained apprehensive, Nilly assured things would "probably" be fine and I continued.

While performing the ritual, I relied on the mindset that has been working so well. Admittedly, I focused a lot on the possibility of having my veins scrambled since Luna had brought it up. This seemed to be reflected in the new pattern. Movement of the tattoos felt like a warm, tickling sensation. They seemed to unravel in trails of static, relocating to where I had desired them. The trails spread across my right arm, in a veiny serpentine pattern that wrapped around the length of my arm. From there, it spread down the right side of my torso, stopping just above my posterior. I had...agreed to leave a tramp stamp for Luna...which is where the head of a serpent formed. Once it finished migrating, the tattoo took on a pale purple color, one I recalled seeing when first meeting the glitch entity. I realized there was some resemblance to Reeve, though I don't know if I did that or if that was done by the glitch entity. It didn't take Luna long to suggest that if I put my hand up my ass, it would look like the serpent was eating itself. I was not amused and it took us a good deal of time before Nilly stopped asking why one would put their hand up their butt.

Our experiments seemed quite successful. Though I of course still feel I've a long ways to go if I wanted to rival a god as a mortal, I am now sufficiently comfortable with wielding glitches at a basic level. I will begin to attempt to combine my command of the glitch with the vampiric concepts I've been studying in my new tome. Ideally, I will able to incorporate the energy siphon into other spells, but to begin with I will start small. I worry if I combine the two concepts with too much force before I'm ready, I may cross a line not meant to be crossed. Or choke on static and die in the dumbest way possible, that would suck. Alright, peace out.