We spent the next two days in Olga's shelter. The girls obviously needed time to take a break from everything they had experienced, which was facilitated by the fresh forest air and excellent weather. As a matter of fact, I needed the same thing, but for different reasons from them.

It turned out so-so. Knowing that you have a thing sitting in your head that has the ability to burst your head like a soap bubble at any time at the request of the left heel never contributes to harmony in thoughts and a cheerful mood. And all the assurances from Martha that this will not happen if I don't betray Olga could not helpe here. The very fact that an axe is constantly hanging over my head puts a lot of pressure on morality. Even the situation I found myself in scares me less. Died? Okay, I died once already, and the first time is much scarier. And here is a resort, you can say: my body is healthy and strong, i'm not empty-handed, and two beauties next to the eye are pleasing. Well, the fact that I have to fight with them, in the course, against half the world, does not bother me at all. Seriously, what are the local hamadryas, even if they are green, even if they have pimples against shellfish? It's like putting a kittens against a rhinoceros. I took part in such shit, that medieval showdowns are absolutely not quoted against their background. Yes, I miss the guys, and much, it can't be taken away, but... I'm used to losses. Life has taught me well, so this feeling should quickly come to naught. But the fucking AI is in my head… Fuck. I'm sorry about my French.

I walked like I was under the water, doing, basically, only checking my equipment five times a day, and slowly turning into rubble a hefty stone I had thrown from above to the bottom of the ravine. The breed turned out to be very strong, so it was possible to beat it, even at my full strength, for a long time, which I used, with blows of hands and feet gradually grinding the cobblestone to zero. I didn't pay attention to the fists that were broken into blood, they still healed in less than an hour, but I had a way to somehow take my soul away and release irritation.

My companions didn't bother me, going about their business, for which I was grateful to them. I was even more grateful to Martha that she hadn't said another word since that conversation and didn't remind me of herself in any way.

Everything changed last night

I was sitting on the grass, leaning my back against a stone that I had just stopped beating once again and was wiping blood from my fists. It was night outside, but there was a full moon in the sky, so there was enough light. Darkness is not a problem for me, of course, but it's... nicer, or something. I sit here, enjoying the silence and fresh air, staring at the starry sky, and my hands are buzzing pleasantly after two hours of practicing blows. Beauty, and that's all.

I heard the footsteps almost immediately, but I didn't give a sign and continued to sit, staring at the sky. Over the past time, I have burned out a little and there was a complete calm in my thoughts, and therefore it was lazy for me to turn my head to find out who exactly is going there. Anyway, it will soon be found out, because, judging by the sound, someone is coming to me.

"Am I interrupting?" — Chloe asked, stopping a meter away from me. Hmm, unexpected. She seemed to me like a kind of silent right hand of her queen. During the whole time we exchanged only a couple of phrases, most of which were on the case. I rather expected to see Olga here than her. However, I've really gone too deep into my thoughts, so nothing bad happens if i'll get out of them and the company won't hurt me for sure. Especially such a beautiful one.

"No, have a seat." — I slap my hand on the ground next to me. — "It's very soft here."

The girl looked at the place where I was pointing, and, without hesitation, sat down. For a while, the silence she had interrupted was restored, broken only by a rare and quiet rustling when Chloe changed the position in which she was sitting. None of us was in a hurry to speak first.

"You know ..." — Chloe decided first after a few minutes. — "I usually can't stand humans. I've never seen anything good from them in my entire life. Stupid, greedy, nasty creatures, that's what I think of them."

— "I can't blame you for that." — I chuckled, picking up a small stone from the ground and began to flip it between my fingers.

A pair of garnet eyes were directed at me, intently studying my face. It seemed that their hostess herself did not really know what she wanted to find there.

"You didn't know about Martha then. And still helped." — Her gaze became even sharper. — "Why?"

"Those people in the Tower. These are not humans, they are animals." — I copy the Chloe's look and look at her face. — "And I don't want to be an animal. I swore to myself that I wouldn't turn into a stupid killing machine, a fucking dummy who would go where they showed and do what they said, and I wouldn't let my brothers become like that."

"What..." She clearly wanted to ask something.

"We were raised for war." — I didn't let her finish. — "Artificial people, the best soldiers in the service of humanity. Identical on the outside: one face, one physique, one set of skills loaded directly into the brain at birth."

I cross my arms and put them on my knees. I'm looking straight ahead. — "But inside we are different. Each of us was, in fact, a newborn children from whom it would be possible to raise a truly good person. That's just nobody cared about it. Our hosts didn't need identities, they needed weapons, we didn't even have names, just numbers. And the worst thing is, do you know what?"

"What?" — Chloe asks, continuing to stare intently.

— "That it was justified."

— "What do you mean?"

"The enemy. Damn aliens appeared out of nowhere and in the first six months sent half a billion people to the grave." — A sigh and eyes widened in shock made it clear that she was very impressed with the number. — And another one and a half billion over the next 8 years. A quarter of the world's total population. We were really needed. Only the understanding of this did not allow me to go under the roof. These, yes, are my brothers. By a lucky chance, I remembered something from my previous life. Pathetic scraps, but it was enough to know that life is not limited only to battles and preparation for them. And I tried to convey this to the others."

"It was difficult, but ..." — a smile crept onto his face from the memories of those days. — "I began to succeed. Where I could, I prompted, helped, invented entertainment and leisure for the guys, told stories that I remembered or invented right on the go. And it worked! They were becoming more alive, more complete, or something. We became a real family, and the best clone unit of all."

"Heh!" — I grinned. — "That's probably why scientists didn't take me to pieces, noticing deviations in behavior."

"I think I understand." — Chloe whispered. — "You were upset that you were under control again."

"Yes, to some extent." — I sighed, running my hand over the back of my head. — "I just felt freedom, and then it's a bummer. But, you know what?"

I wink at the girl, which made her ears twitch prettily.

"What?" — She made a curious pug.

— You're good. And if I'm here to protect you, then it's okay, it will only be a joy to me." — Well, that's it. I talked it out, and now it's much easier for me.

"T-thank you." — The way she blushed, I noticed even in the dim moonlight. Quite a bit and obviously not like in Japanese cartoons, but still, enough. And the averted gaze, together with the trembling ears again, made the picture quite pretty. — "You're good too. But when you tricked us and pretended to leave, I wanted to kill you!"

To compensate for her embarrassment, she went on the attack, looking at me accusingly and poking her finger, but immediately faded away, looking down. — "It's good that you're back…"

"Do you like music?" — I had an idea how to try to brighten up the night for us.

"Yes!" — The girl jumped up, instantly cheering up. — "I know a lot of ballads of my people, but unfortunately we do not have musical instruments, and without them they are not so good…"

"It's not a problem. Now." — I put my hand in my pants pocket and pull out a player with a headphone wire wrapped around it. — "I have my own."

[Do you like music, Martha?] — I mentally call my neighbor on the torso. It's time to put up and stop pretending to be offended. So why not now?

[I don't know, I've never tried it.] — the AI immediately responded.

— [I'm sorry for getting angry.]

— [It's okay. I understand that this is a lot of stress. Frankly, I predicted a much stronger reaction.]

— [So, peace?]

— [Peace!]

Another stone off my shoulders. I still don't fully trust her, but I'm not so uncomfortable with her presence anymore. I think I'll get used to it over time.

While talking to Martha, I managed to unwrap the headphones and insert one into my ear under Chloe's curious gaze.

"Here." — I hand her the second one. — "Do as I do."

The girl carefully took the earphone from me, and I found out that the elf fingers turned out to be very pleasant to the touch. It was funny to watch her clumsily, unaccustomed, insert the earphone, but she coped with it quite easily.

And so, when the headset was fixed, I pressed the button and music started playing:

«Close your eyes

All you need is inside your mind

We've gone deaf now we're going blind

But we've learned to compromise…»

"Eh?!" — Flapping her eyes dumbfounded, Chloe stared at the gadget with a burning screen in my hand, which made me smile. But the surprise quickly passed, replaced by the enjoyment of the melody. — "Beautiful…"

"Yes ..." — I drawled, throwing my hands behind my head and leaning back against the stone. — What is needed now.

 

A week later

The clearing at the bottom of the ravine today acts as a testing ground.

"Here. That's all I could do with the current resources." — A black-haired dark elf handed me a pair of assault gloves improved by her from hand to hand.

"Thanks." — I thank the girl and put on a new one. With a soft puff of the vented air, the gloves tighten, tightly fitting the hands and connecting with the sleeves of the jacket. Now each of them has a rune written on the inside of the palm in white paint. — "How do they work?"

"This is the rune of the magic projectile. As you can guess from the name, it releases a projectile from the condensed mana. No complicated effects. Just a blow, like a club or a stone. To activate it, direct mana into the palm of your hand. The more you give, the harder the blow will be. Up to a certain limit, of course, so try not to invest too much." — She explained.

"Got it." — Well, how can I not understand when she explain to me like to a kindergarten student.

"Will you check?" — Olga asked me, stepping aside and folding her arms under her chest.

"Why not." — I shrug my shoulders and stretch out my hand towards the same piece of rock that served me as a punching bag for the first days of our stay here. — "I hope I don't screw up and lie down here to rest again. Or I won't tear off my arm…"

I closes my eyes. Inhaled and exhaled. Felt the magic and gave it momentum and direction of movement directly into the open palm, but do not overdo it, so as not to drain the entire stock at one time. It takes quite a bit…

A wave of goosebumps all over my body makes it clear that I have succeeded, and a moment later a clot of energy breaks off from my hand at a fairly high speed and crashes into a stone, leaving a fist-deep hole in it and twenty centimeters in diameter. Externally, it looks like a lump of air compressed to a state visible to the naked eye, although in fact it is not.

"Well, how does it feel?" — Seductively shaking her hips, a woman came up to me. Considering that she is dressed according to Earthly concepts very ... frivolous, it looks just killer. In the sense that it kills the impotent in me, yes. And also the opportunity to experience at least some negativity towards this embodiment of perfection.

With great difficulty, I tear my gaze away from her legs and raise it to my eyes. So... not to the "eyes", but to the eyes! To the eyes, I said! Like that. Well done, Kay, you did it.

Damn, I died twice and rose from the hell twice, went through the millstones of a terrible war, and I react to this woman like some kind of schoolboy... yeah.

I'll probably get used to it.

"Well." — Having met with the sly squint of the golden eyes of the elf who perfectly reads all my inner tosses and is frankly amused by this, for some reason I was keenly interested in that bug that crawls on the grass under my feet.

"Considering that I can still stand," — I pull myself together and listen to myself: there is no weakness or discomfort, as before, only a feeling that the stock of the "battery" has sunk a little. — "good. No signs of fatigue. What do you say, Martha?"

"Your control over the consumption of magical energy has reached the minimum required level, but the efficiency is still low, only 37.4 percent. I would advise you to temporarily not use this skill in combat, until you have worked out all the actions to automatism." — AI shared her thoughts through the speaker.

"I agree." — I nod, confirming her thought. — "I spent two seconds, while being calm and concentrating as much as possible. I won't have that opportunity in battle."

"And still, your progress is very fast." — Olga shared her impressions. — "Neophytes usually spend at least a month mastering their very first, simplest spell. It's a pity that you won't be able to become a real magician."

Why can't I? Here it is necessary to tell in order.

The next morning, after talking to Chloe, Olga rolled up to me, praised me for coming to my senses and asked the question: what did I do in the tower that her empty magic reserve was instantly filled to the brim, and why did I feel sick after that. I honestly replied that the fuck knows him and it's better to ask Martha about it.

Martha told me this: it's all the fault of nanorobots in my blood. To be more precise, their version from the ancients is superior to those used at my home as much as a premium sports car is superior to the Soviet Zaporozhets. When creating my new body, the main computer of the tower analyzed and optimized the old one, correcting the shoals of Earth scientists, making me one mush better in terms of purely physical characteristics, nanomachines also became part of these improvements, they serve as a source of magic for me. However, "Harry, you're a wizard" didn't happen. In practice, we found out that unlike the local normal magicians, including Olga and that motherfucker in the Tower, who have a normal magic core and an energy channel system, I was deprived of all this, and therefore could not use spells in the usual way for the locals. Yes, I had large, almost doublingthe ex-queen's of the dark elves, and she, for a second, is a very strong and extremely experienced sorceress with an experience of almost a thousand years. That's just somehow I could manage the reserve only within my body, and act as a battery, releasing magic into the environment, well, or to another person, as it happened in the Tower.

Then, by the way, Martha only provoked an outburst, and I swelled everything I had during the transfer, which is why I came down with exhaustion. After hearing all this, Olga asked for time to think and left, muttering to herself something about the wonderful potential that must be used.

By the evening, training began. Under the supervision of artificial intelligence and a sorceress, I tried to limit the amount of magical energy released. The first ten times it turned out the same as the very first: I stupidly drained everything, after which I experienced all the delights of the state of the moth in a swoon under the snide comments of my tormentors. The joy for the heart was Chloe, who took care of me in between attempts not to squeeze herself dry. After that night to the music, she began to treat me much better and freely communicated with me all the available free time. And she's not the only one. Olga also didn't mind chatting, especially when it came to the Land, starting with cultural features and history, ending with an explanation of the purpose of the things that I had with me. In response, they willingly shared information about this world with me.

Progress came unexpectedly. It's just that at one point I managed to catch the right feeling and stop the outflow of magic outside, remaining on my feet at the same time. I was still reeling like a drunk, but the success was obvious. Then things went much more briskly and ended up with the fact that today I can more or less tolerably control the flow of magic.

The idea with gloves arose after Olga brought me a piece of paper with a squiggle drawn on it, resembling an Egyptian hieroglyph, for verification. At the request of the girl, I poured my magic into it and the drawing lit up bright red. Delighted with what she saw, the sorceress quickly explained to me what this meant and during the discussion, where to attach a couple of runes, they agreed on gloves. To the question why not directly on the skin, I was told that: firstly, it is dangerous for an inexperienced user in my face, and secondly, if you apply them to the body, then it is for good, and it is better to approach the matter thoroughly and responsibly, using the best resources available. Naturally, there were no such people on a temporary bed, which was not supposed to be used, not that there was something really valuable to store.

So, perhaps that's enough. Let's go back to the present.

"It's okay. For me, even this." — I rose my hand, showing the drawing rune on the open palm. — "Already a big miracle."

"As for me, what's you show is a miracle." — Olga smiled back.

"Kay! Mistress!" — Chloe called out to us as she came out of the cave. — "Lunch will get cold soon, hurry up!"

"We're on our way!" — I replied, exchanging glances with the sorceress, and we went to the table. This girl cooks just divinely, so let's not offend her by being late.