Chapter Fifteen: Augment

< Augments have been pre-selected for you based on your performance. Choose one of the options provided. >

[Thermal Exhaust Chamber]

Creates a variable heat immune chamber in the user’s body that holds thermal buildup for later expulsion. This augments the user’s ability to handle large amounts of thermal radiation and enhances control over concentrated output.

[Mana Foundation]

Creates a base network of mana channels throughout the user’s body to optimize mana efficiency, speed, and usage. This augments the user’s mastery over mana and opens future pathways for more mana-based enhancements.

[Mana Reinforced Makeup]

Binds mana to the user’s muscle fibers and bones to strengthen overall constitution and enhances user’s innate defense versus mana-based attacks. This augments the user’s body in a definite upgrade that lays a foundation for further enhancement.

[Regenerative Cell Mutation]

The user’s cells mutate into a state of continuous regeneration that allows significantly enhanced healing times and minor adaptive properties over time. This augments the user’s natural regenerative rate and passively scales alongside the mutated cell turnover rate.

[Radioactive Tissue Siphon]

The user gains the ability to house radioactive cells within their tissues to stem decay and draw excess energy for later use. This augments the user’s energy pools while providing a smaller healing effect based on how many cells are stored at the time of injury.

I didn’t really know what to expect when I first saw the quest that had an Augment as a reward, but I can confidently say that this was not it. I also was not expecting descriptions that actually explain what each Augment does, so it is safe to say that I am overjoyed with the screen before me.

I throw a glance around to make sure no other monsters are planning on coming out of the woods before I sit down and lean back on the large corpse of the goblin brute. My fight with the brute was the first in which I didn’t get seriously hurt, which I view as a complete win. In congratulations of my win with no real damage, I allocate all of my free stats into PWR and begin reading the options for my Augments.

After my first read through, I immediately like [Mana Foundation], [Thermal Exhaust Chamber], and [Regenerative Cell Mutation]. Two of them have specialized upgrades to either one of the energies I can produce: mana and thermal radiation. The last option seems like a strong survivability enhancer.

[Mana Foundation] seems fairly unattractive at a glance, but the wording of the description makes me wonder how far it can get me. Creating a ‘base’ network that allows for ‘further enhancement’ makes the Augment sound like it could be truly powerful the longer I have it. Unfortunately, I feel like this long-term bonus makes it sound weaker than the rest of the options. Mana is also the energy I believe to have the least control over, as my thermal radiation’s power makes it harder to perceive and experiment with.

[Thermal Exhaust Chamber] sounds really good. I mean it sounds really, really good. Not only will it provide storage for the constant stream of radiation that my mana produces, but it sounds like I can choose when and how to expel it too. It would be a huge trump card in my back pocket to let loose a huge wave of concentrated heat in the middle of a fight. For all I know, the chamber could be concentrated enough to even create an explosion upon use. I have a few more ideas on how I could use it as well, but without actually having it, I can’t be completely sure.

[Regenerative Cell Mutation] is somewhat less exciting, but in my current injured state, knowing that I have multiple more hard fights ahead, it is nearly a perfect lifeline. Not only will it allow me to heal much faster, but it also will scale the longer I have it. There is one reason that I don’t want to pick this Augment though despite the obvious boons.

[Mana Reinforced Makeup] sounds like a good physical and survivability boost that will also have long term benefits, but I don’t like it because I feel like I should be able to achieve the same results with <Infuse>. Also, the fact [Mana Foundation] is still an option alongside this one means that this Augment most likely doesn’t have as much potential as the former since they were both offered as equal options.

Finally, [Radioactive Tissue Siphon] sounds like a good balance between [Thermal Exhaust Chamber] and [Regenerative Cell Mutation]. It has the ability to store energy, and it has some healing effects as well. The very fact that it was offered at all and the wording of the Augment give me more information on my [Mana Mutation] condition too. Since it is offering safe storage for radioactive cells and suspends the process of radioactive decay, it makes my hypothesis that my mana is in a similar state of decay that much more proven.

Regardless of my appreciation for [Radioactive Tissue Siphon], I still will not choose this Augment as it is just a limited version of the other Augments. Its jack of all trades nature seems incredibly useful and will provide me with much more options to work with in future fights, but I will not choose it for the same reason I won’t choose [Regenerative Cell Mutation].

< Warning: Any options not chosen will not be available for selection in the future. >

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

I can tell this decision is not something as simple as what would be the most useful right now. [Radioactive Tissue Siphon] and [Regenerative Cell Mutation] are clearly the most useful for my current situation; [Thermal Exhaust Chamber] even more so than those two.

This one line of text tells me that my choice here has much more impact in the long term than I can currently comprehend with the meager information I have at my disposal. With that said, I also think that maybe in the future I could manage to replicate some of these Augments on my own. It might be wishful thinking but creating a reservoir for my thermal radiation doesn’t sound impossible.

If I am to choose based on the knowledge that my best choice is the one that will benefit me most in the future, then there really is only one choice.

< You have gained the Augment: Mana Foundation >

As if I am a puppet with cut strings, my limbs fall to the side and my neck lolls back. With most of my injuries thus far, the pain has been only a small side issue, as I have long since become detached from such things. But I can say one thing with certainty…

The Augment hurts.