47 Frankenstein's Monster

The focal manipulator was the next, luckily Dandle Dorf had given a small notebook explaining how to use it and the concepts related to it. First, a node was required which needed to be stabilized using a Node Stabilizer.

A Node Stabilizer generates a small localized forcefield that prevents vis from passing through it, this prevents nodes from interacting with other nodes and can even heal damaged nodes, it should be placed under a node and it powers itself by sapping a minuscule amount of vis from the node.

Next, a Node Transducer was needed. A Node Transducer was the opposite of a Node Stabilizer instead of protecting the node, it uses the tiny gateway at the center of all nodes and levers it open to allow vis to pour forth in a torrent!

This is far more dangerous than it sounds so careful steps must be taken during the entire process.

The node needs to be stabilized during the entire process. Once that is done the Node Transducer needs to be placed above the node. When a signal is applied the node will begin to convert into an energized node and quickly lose its stored vis in the process.

The process takes some time but once done the node will change into an energized node. Extreme caution needs to be taken to keep both the stabilizer and transducer active from now on.

An energized node no longer stores or recharges vis, nor can vis be drawn from them with a wand or other means. Instead, they produce a steady supply of CV (centi-vis, or a hundredth of a vis) each second.

This energy can be tapped by placing relays near the energized node.

Now that extremely complicated process is out of the way I could use the Focal Manipulator! It requires CV and experience to function and can upgrade a focus up to 5 times with the costs increasing every time.

Now that everything was set up and ready I sat down at one of the desks and started to design a new Curative Vat. While designing and building over the next few weeks I came up with something new to add onto the Curative Vat; a modified runic matrix!

To infuse a living creature would be an unprecedented feat as any of my previous attempts to infuse a living creature ended up with grotesque deformities as the creature's body rejects the foreign magic. This modified runic matrix may allow for a creature to be infused, now the process of creating this matrix is far harder than it seems.

Any attempt to infuse a runic matrix produces considerable magical feedback between the two matrices. I failed 6 times trying to make it, 4 of them ending up with both matrices exploding causing me to have to restart from scratch, but after trial and error, I finally got the recipe perfect!

By infusing a runic matrix with 2 portions of salis mundus, 2 syringes of blood and 32 units of fabrico (crafting), victus (life), bestia (beast), and preacantatio (magic) essentia I finally got it.

The process of creature infusion is somewhat riskier than infusing inanimate matter. In addition to the usual effects, accumulated instability will damage the subject. Worse, the process cannot be aborted; it will end in either success or death.

Less hardy creatures may not survive complex infusions without outside help. A little bit of experimentation has shown that providing a combination of Aqua, Ordo, and Terra CV can slow the rate of injury.

The infusion vat as I am now calling it has a few limitations. Chief among them is the fact that humans (and other sentient beings) cannot be infused, as the human soul actively interferes with the addition of magical energy. Likewise, creatures of an already magical nature such as undead and golems will not be affected.

Also, while a given creature can have any number of general infusions, it may possess only one species-specific infusion.

Unfortunately, infused creatures do not pass on their infusions to offspring.

I had come up with a number of different general infusions:

Quicksilver Limbs: Augments muscles and sinew, increasing flexibility and overall movement speed.

Thaumium Claws: Replaces nails with sharpened thaumium increasing lethality.

Awakened Blood: grants rudimentary awareness to a creature's circulatory system, increasing natural regeneration multiple times its original speed.

Diamondflesh: fortified the hide of an animal while retaining its flexibility. Increases resistance to all forms of damage. Side effects include sparkling under bright light.

Enderheart: Merges the subject's heart with the ender pearl allowing a creature to teleport short distances.

Shockskin: distributes small bioelectric glands throughout the creature's body allowing it to emit small thunderbolts.

Portability: allows a creature to be placed in a slightly higher dimension, allowing for a creature of any size to fit in a jar.

Instilled Loyalty: forcibly rewrites portions of the subject's mind, removing any hostility it holds towards me and replacing it with a fierce dedication to me its adoptive "parent." -Side Note, this infusion cant be used on creatures with primitive nervous systems.-

Runic Hide: inscribed runes onto the creature's skin adding a thin layer of runic shielding. -Side Note, can be applied multiple times, although multiple applications reduce the life expectancy of a creature. Likely due to the fact the shield regenerates using the creature's stamina.-

This research was enlightening and will likely come in handy if I ever need a creature suited for specific needs, but I am incapable of infusing my body which was where I wanted to go with this. I could infuse the clone of Freya I had made a while back but it lacked a soul so it was really just a nice-looking puppet.

While creating livestock to test on, I stumbled upon Golem Animation Powder. Created by mixing salis mundus with 4 humanus (man), motus (animation), and spiritus (soul) essentia, it allows me to temporarily animate any non-complex matter. They follow very basic instinct and follow me around and attack anything I deem a target, rather cute but has some extreme applications!

While using the animation powder, I created a golem out of cake and gave it a golem core so that it would stay permanently, and now I have it cooking for me!

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Word Count: 1041

Stella is close to reaching her goal! Suggestions and power stones are always welcomed!