Strangely, I had never before felt that the backpack full of stuff on my back gave me a little extra confidence. Now, with an empty bag hanging on my shoulders, I felt as though I'd been robbed. It was probably something I inherited from the previous owner of this body.
How long have I been in this new world? A week and a half, if my memory serves me right. At least a month is needed for full adaptation to the new body. However, I've managed to force through the main stages, helped by numerous meditations. Lately, I've had to experience Zen almost every day, and all of it was due to the fact that I killed and absorbed the powers and personality imprint of a mutant named Masquerade.
"How much longer?" I asked.
The bald, thin girl with skin as pale as a corpse answered shortly, without stopping:
"No."
As usual, Caliban remained true to herself, being extremely brief. My brief experience with the girl who saved me from the Toad and led me to the Morlocks told me that at the very least, I could trust her, so I didn't push further with questions.
Instead, I turned my head to the left and allowed myself a few moments to admire Sander. This always made me feel a little proud of myself. After all, the tall mutant girl looked much more attractive now than she had five days ago!
After taking on the role of judge and executioner, weighing Masquerade's personality, and coldly killing him, I thought my acquaintance with the Morlocks would end there. I thought that after such an act, it would be impossible to establish any kind of friendly relationship with them. After all, I had just taken out their leader!
However, I was wrong. Some tension arose between us, as expected, but it disappeared as quickly as morning fog. A big part of this was due to the fact that I helped Sander.
Masquerade's abilities seemed quite appealing and promising, mainly because they allowed me to touch others, albeit with significant "buts." Practice showed that I could only "activate" them for a very short time, after which my primary abilities took over and returned to their rightful place.
My record so far was three minutes and thirty seconds. Honestly, using an example of rabbits, that time was more than enough to have a quick fling or even romance. However, the phrase "pull out in time" takes on a very different meaning in my case.
Of course, I was trying to develop this ability as much as I could. Fortunately, I had plenty of test subjects. The first on the list was Sander. The girl, covered head to toe in scars and injuries, was in need of extensive and systematic plastic surgery.
I tried to dedicate as much time as I could to her, taking breaks from meditations and looking after the still too weak Skyds. Apparently, the others saw and appreciated this.
As for Masquerade's abilities, they were both complicated and simple. When I activated them, I also received some vague, basic understanding of what I could do. During the act of touching another person, my perception expanded.
It's difficult to describe how it felt, but the biology of another person revealed itself to me as though I had been fitted with a microscope and MRI machine. I could view almost anything I wished: tissues, organ systems, individual organs, fluids, cavities, and even the smallest parts of the body—cells!
I only observed the last one once, and I must say that while my abilities could work on such a level, they didn't provide the intuitive understanding of how to achieve the desired result. I didn't risk diving deeper, to the cellular structure or attempting to focus on a DNA strand.
I believe if I could influence the very genes of a person or mutant, I would be as potentially powerful as those Apocalypses and Villains! But it would be just too frustrating to realize that I could do it, but lack the basic knowledge.
It was so frustrating that I didn't even try. First, the boys should play with plastic cars, and only when they grow up and get their licenses, can they buy real ones. Right now, Masquerade's basic abilities were more than enough for me to perform simple cosmetic procedures.
"We've arrived," Caliban said, pointing at an inconspicuous service door in the middle of the corridor.
I snapped out of my thoughts, looked at the girl, and only after a couple of seconds realized what she had said.
"Okay," I nodded in gratitude and adjusted the strap of my backpack. "Will you wait here?"
"Sander will," the giantess said in a rough, almost masculine voice.
Honestly, her voice still sends shivers down my spine! Even though I had managed to remove all her scars and tighten her skin where needed, her overall angular proportions hadn't changed. She now resembled a woman more than before, but it would still be easy to mistake her for a man.
"I'll come when you say," Caliban added.
After estimating in my mind how much time I'd need to attempt to resolve all my issues, I did some quick calculations and answered:
"At ten o'clock in the evening, right here."
The pale, thin girl nodded silently and went off to her mysterious business. Sander, likewise, sat down on her rear end by the iron door, making the concrete path beneath us vibrate noticeably. I can only imagine how much she weighs!
Nodding at the mutant, I pushed the door, but it didn't open. After tugging it back and forth, I had no success. Hmm, awkward. Sander leaned slightly forward and struck the door with her fist, nearly knocking it off its hinges!
"Th-thank you," I muttered, quickly leaving the network of tunnels. "Don't get bored here!"
The door led me to a small, likely technical landing. Caliban had mentioned that if I went strictly upwards, I would eventually reach the surface, out of the damp, cool underground of the Big Apple. She didn't like walking in the sunlight, so she wasn't going to escort me all the way to the exit. Sander, however, could have collapsed the fragile stairs with her massive weight.
I climbed to the top in just a couple of minutes. I was a bit sweaty and winded, but as soon as I stepped out into the sunlight, the scorching summer sun, I immediately felt a renewed love for life! I hadn't realized how much I had missed the sun!