Upgrades

"I swear to the goddess, these kids are going to be the death of me," Raven mumbled to himself as he searched through the terminal for any relevant information. Unfortunately, most of it was gibberish, corrupted, or flashed Error. "For the last time, Moon, these aren't teats, they're nipples, and they're vestigial!"

"THEY'RE BOOBIES!" Amber yelled out, along with her sister speaking in baby babble.

Raven inhaled through his nostrils and let out a shaky breath, trying to keep himself calm. "'They are not 'boobies.', they're pectoral muscles. Now drop the conversation, or I'll give one of you a spanking!" He slightly turned his head away from the monitor and gave them a sideways glance. " and I'll be using my claw for said action." The twins quickly shut their mouths, not wanting to tempt fate, and see if the Cyborg will follow through with his threat.

Unfortunately, this didn't stop Cozy glow from being a nuisance; she flew up and landed on Raven's right shoulder. "So whatcha working on here looks complicated?"

"Yes, what are you working on, and what is this contraption?" Oleander walked and sat on her haunches. "I've never seen anything like it."

Raven let out another sigh; he might as well answer their questions. "I'm looking for information about what happened while I was asleep and what the nasods did to me again." He kept searching and searching but only found more useless files. "Also, to answer the second question, this is a computer. It's a device that can that manipulates information or data. It can store, retrieve, and process data." He gave the group a basic explanation of how and what a computer is. He wasn't going to bother to go into further detail, not now, at least. He heard the "Ooohs" and "aahs" from his charges.

This brought a question to his mind; he looked towards Oleander. "What's the most advanced piece of machinery do you have in this world?"

Oleander opened her mouth but was quickly cut off by Night. "That's easy; it's the train friendship express!" The colt pumped a hoof in the air. "Yup! Before, it was pony-powered. Now it has a steam engine, and it's super cool!" Dew was next to answer with her enthusiasm.

The dark magic user let out a whinny at the interruption, much to Raven's amusement. "That's correct, but why does it matter?" She raised an eyebrow at the Cyborg,

Raven gave the unicorn a condescending look and returned his attention to the computer. "It matters because I'm in a world filled with primitives. It makes my job far easier." He said in a monotone voice, but he was smiling inside.

"P-p-primitives! Big talk from an Ape!" She snarled out, "How dare you call u-" The unicorn was about to give the man a tongue lashing; Cozy hovered over to her and held up her hooves.

"Whoa, stay calm. I'm sure mister Maxwell didn't mean it, right?" she nudged Raven with an elbow. Raven grunts in acknowledgment, but he couldn't care less. "See, now, no fighting. We just started this group; let's not bicker over the little things." Again, she put up one of her biggest smiles, and again, another red flag went for Raven.

"Fine, hmph!" Oleander raised her head and flicked her tail in annoyance.

"CryBaby."Raven thought to himself as he did his best to suppress a smile. "Hm?" He stopped scrolling and found a file titled 'Experiment 137'. "Finally, something useful.

Name: Raven Maxwell
Age: 27
Height: 197 cm (still growing)
Race: Human-Nasod Cyborg
Replaced Organs: Liver, kidneys, Left lung
Affliction: Alterasia
Special notes: All attempts to remove the infected Nasod arm and infected flesh have resulted in failures. Alterasia coming into contact with machinery always results in a parasitic relationship, but it becomes symbiotic when in contact with flesh and machine. Experiment 137 has already shown signs of a growth spurt, even though he's far too old for such a thing. This warrants more studying.

Side notes: Experiment 137 reacts well to sunlight and water; due to Alterasia, 137 can now perform photosynthesis. A cheap form of energy making, but the food is still a requirement.

Raven wanted to smash that computer screen right then and there. He wanted to go berserk and destroy everything in the room. He wanted to scream and curse the very goddess that brought him to this life. But he didn't do any of that; he remained cool and calm."Stay calm,Revenge comes later.", the tiny voice spoke again. Besides the blatant experimentation with his being, the information was rather useful.

The Cyborg stared at his Nasod arm for the longest time... No, a new name is needed, something more appropriate, Valasia Arm. "I am my own master now." He said quietly to himself, but Cozy's right ear twitched, picking up what he heard.

It was apparent that his Valasia Arm was no longer trying to kill him and possibly make him stronger. They were both evolving, but into what? "A question for another day, I suppose."

He closed the file and kept searching for anything useful. The man kept scrolling until he found something rather curious, a file titled "Henir's Gift"... This couldn't be good, but he clicked it regardless.

Dear Raven

If you're reading this, congrats, you're awake, which means that little group of misfits succeeded. Now before you go rushing out and start causing trouble. Henir has a gift for you: crazy, right? Bigman upstairs said you were going to need it. Just head one floor down; it's three doors down; you'll find yourself at the armory; your gift is there. Another thing, Stop by the Server room if you want more information.

Yours truly

Glave.

P.S. BOOM.

Raven grimaced after reading that letter. "What the hell does the God of darkness want and why me?... Also, 'BOOM'?More questions without answers, he felt a migraine coming on. "Fuck it, we need to get moving." He quickly spun around, causing everyone in the room to flinch. "Form up!" He boomed out.

"Oleander to the rear, I want you watching our back; have that horn of yours ready. Xuez, Cozy, I want you watching our flanks; make sure you two stay in the air." The Cyborg brought his attention to the thestrals. "Moon, Dew, I want you two up in the front with me. I require your night vision right now. Night I want you hanging back with Oleander and keep to the air." Finally, He brought his attention to Ember and Jade. " I want you to stay in the middle of the formation; you're the most vulnerable right now with your sister."

The group was stunned into silence after hearing his order. Oleander was the first one to speak up. " How did you?" Raven waved his hand in dismissal. "It doesn't take a genius to see what our group's strengths and weaknesses are. " Raven points a finger at Oleander. "I've never seen a unicorn before, but I can put two and two together and say that you channel magic with your horn. Considering you're the oldest of the bunch and you're a dark magic user, I assumed you weren't a slouch in a fight."

Oleander blushed slightly and whinnied at his comments. "F-flattery won't get you anywhere."

Next, he gestured to the three bat ponies. "I've certainly never seen a thestral before, but with their bat-like features, and slitted pupils, I can assume they have good night vision." He points at his silver eye and says. "Currently, I have one working eye, so I'll need all the help I can get when seeing in the dark. Now form up! we're wasting time."

All of them got into formation, but not before Oleander lit up her horn and summoned a book of some kind from thin air. Raven gave her a look, and she shrugged. "Pocket dimension. I'll tell you later; also, his name is Fred."

"Greetings." A posh-sounding voice came out of the book. He had many questions for these children, but he had to hold his tongue for now.

"Alright, before we go, if we enter combat, all non-combatants, we will huddle up in the middle and stick together. In other words, Oleander and I are fighting." With that, they left the room.

5 mins later

Like the laboratory, the rest of the facility was old and frail. The only thing they could hear was the sounds of their hoof steps, flapping wings, or in Raven's case, his feet. Once in a while, the group listened to the dying hums of a machine shutting down for the last time.

Dew broke the silence after narrowing her eyes. "I see something ahead. it looks like one of those golems." She was correct; up ahead was a Nasod Guard. It was a rather stout thing; its midsection contained large yellow cables to allow more natural movement. The head was relatively small compared to the rest of its body, and it had six eyes attached to it, all pointing in different directions. The Guard held a scutum shield in its left hand and a baton in the other. It was slowly walking towards the group with its protection raised.

"Time to see if I still got it."

"Oleander, let me handle this one." The unicorn raised an eyebrow at this. She had to see what this overgrown monkey could do.

Raven held his claw out. "Grasp!" A giant seed with black vines wrapped around it came rocketing out of the claw. The attack made contact with the shield, and it exploded. Black thorny vines proliferated and insnared the Guard, stopping the Nasod's movement. In that same instance, Raven was already in front of the immobile Nasod. "RAAH!" He Brought down the metal pipe on top of its head and crushed it.

A few incoherent beeps came from the battered machine before falling over and dying. The Valasia continued to ravage its unwilling host until there was nothing, rusty scraps of metal and a misty cloud of grey and black mist. The battle lasted less than 10 seconds.

Raven's joints and muscles ached from such rapid movement in a short amount of time, but he had a smile on his lips. "I still got it. Still, " The smile vanished, and he looked towards the crude weapon. "I can't make proper use of Valasia without an actual weapon. I need a blade."

Raven's attention was brought to the Outcasts as they quickly approached his location. "Stop!" He yelled at them, and this halted their movement. "Don't get any closer. The mist around me is toxic! Just stay there and let me clean this up." Raven held out his claw again and began absorbing the toxic mist back into his arm. Once everything was gone, he signaled the group to approach.

"That was AWESOME!" Moon was the first to express her excitement.

"Yes, that was rather... Impressive, but crude."

"Golly, Mister Maxwell, I didn't know you could teleport!"

"T-that was cool and kind of scary.."

"Do it again!"

"Yeah, do it again!"

"YOUR ARM WAS LIKE THROOM, AND THAT GOLEMS HEAD WENT CRUNCH, AND YOU STOOD THERE ALL COOL AND STUFF."

"Ah praise, from the youth, really nothing like it."

Raven dismissed all of their praise with a wave of a claw. "It was nothing; that thing was already on death's door. Anyways, form up! We need to get moving again" The youth took their positions once again. The Cyborg gave Cozy a side-way glance.
"And no, Cozy, I didn't teleport.

The young pegasus's eyes widen at that revelation. "No, he couldn't be that fast! Not for somepony that big!"

7 mins later

They made it to the lower floor via a staircase. The existing floor was relatively spacious compared to the rest of the facility. Conveyor belts were going everywhere, and rusty power press machines with rusty weapons and tools littered everywhere. The room at one point, was built for manufacturing, but now it's long dead. "Good riddance," Raven said under his breath.

The dark unicorn nearly tripped when her hoof made contact with a random object on the ground. "Stupid little thing."She kicked the offending object away, creating an echo throughout the floor.

"Intruder alert"

Everyone whipped around to find the source of the metallic voice, and what Raven saw brought back terrible memories.

They saw a yellow glowing eye in the dark, which came closer until they could fully see the construct. What stood in there was a Water Nasod Leviathan. It had a humanoid shape and stood around the same height as Raven. Its torso was made up of many white cables connected to each limb. One of its arms was more significant than the other, and it had three cannons attached to the end. Its once shiny blue paint has faded and begun to chip. In the middle of its chest was a giant orange orb.

"Intruders will be eliminated." It sprinted towards the group, knocking or bulldozing anything in the way.

Raven got into a battle stance and barked out orders. "Oleander with me, attack from range. Xuez, grab ember and Jade, and stay in the air. Same for the rest of you!" The foals did as they were told and got out of the way. Oleander's horn flared to life.

"Dispersion!" The Valasia didn't come rocketing out like last time; instead, it formed inches away from Raven's claw. Raven quickly smacked the orb. A series of explosions made of Valasia came crashing into the fast-approaching machine. It further erodes its frame, but it doesn't slow down.

"Fel spark!" Oleander sent three dark fireballs flying towards the blue nasod. Two hit their mark, and one missed, thanks to a short sidestep. More of its frame and armor started to break away due to both attacks, but it wasn't enough.

The Leviathan quickly closed the gap, and Raven was in its striking range. The Nasod brought its fist back for a punch, but Raven took a quick step back and dodged it, but the machine wasn't aiming for him. After his fist made contact with the floor, it pulled it back swiftly. In its place was a giant floating ice shard. Raven's eyes widen.

"SHIT!" Raven did another step back, trying to get away from the shard, but it was too late. It exploded, sending smaller ice bits flying everywhere. The foals took cover, and Oleander formed a dark purple barrier around herself. Meanwhile, Raven got sent flying and came crashing into a wall."Gah!" He let out a pained yell. A couple of the ice bits got themselves lodged in him, mostly his stomach and human arm.

"Get back up!" voice in the back of his mind yelled at him. The man did a quick roll as a fist came crashing into the spot he was just in a second go. He quickly got back to his feet and dodged the punch with a quick duck of his head.

Raven slashed at its arm with a claw, causing Valasia's vines to sprout and wrap themselves around the scratch. It still wasn't enough.

"What's with this thing? Four Fel sparks came into contact with the machine's back, causing it to stumble, giving Raven a chance to act. "Grasp." He performed the same move from earlier; the attack made a direct hit with its head. Like before, black vines came and wrapped themselves around and crushed its head with a sickening crunch. "Gotcha."

It still didn't stop! The nasod started going berserk, throwing random punches everywhere while firing ice blasts with its cannoned arm.

"Are you bucking serious?!" She yelled out in utter frustration before putting up another barrier to protect herself.

”This is getting us nowhere, and Valasia is taking too long to finish this thing off.” He thought to himself as he dodged the random attacks. "Need to finish this thing in one attack." He glanced at Oleander."Or two. But with what? I Can't use any other move properly without a blade. He wanted to break through its defense entirely, "Maybe a spear? No, it'll just get stuck. I want to cause massive damage." He took a quick look around and found something that made him smile. A drill "A drill! Perfect!"

"Oleander! I'm going to attack this thing; once I do, I want you to hit it with your strongest spell, put everything you got into it!"

"Alright!" The unicorn started gathering magic into her horn; meanwhile, Raven was trying to get a good image of performing this new attack.

"Okay, imagine a drill big enough and strong enough to pierce the heavens.” The image quickly formed in his head, a giant black drill of death breaking through any armor. He took steadying breaths as he felt the infected plant matter in his claw relax and contract. He brought himself in range of the raging nasod. He pulled back his claw, as if he was going to punch someone with it. He held the palm of it open.

"INVASION!" Raven threw his claw forward, and a giant drill made of Valasia came rushing out, cutting through the air itself. The attack came in contact with the Nasod's chest and made quick work of it. There was nothing left of the orb in the middle of its chest. What was left was a giant gaping hole with black veins growing out of it. The machine just stood there motionless.

Raven held his mechanical arm in pain; he gritted his teeth, suppressing an urge to yell. "By the goddess that hurts! I guess I put far too much into that attack."

"Get down!" Oleander yelled out as her eyes were glowing pure white. The human quickly acted, as he didn't need to be told twice to perform such an action.

The unicorn dropped her barrier, brought her spellbook in front of her, and opened it."Dark Spark!" A giant beam of pure dark magic came rushing out. Oleander's aim was true, and it came crashing into the Nasod. The attack engulfed the entirety of its body.

When it was all over, the only thing that remained was the charred body of the Nasod.

Oleander's legs gave out from under her as she let out shakey labored breaths. "That...was...rather intense," she commented as her eyes returned to normal. All the foals got from their hiding spots and made their way to Oleander. Thankfully none of them got hurt.

Meanwhile, Raven walked over to the charred remains of the Nasod while still holding his claw. " Tough piece of shit, weren't you." He said with a smile.

He brought his attention to his claw, and to say the least, it was in a worst state than it was before. The Pauldron attached to it hung there loosely. Four of the cables popped out, and it was painful because he could feel them. One of his talons was utterly bent in the wrong direction. All in All, it was falling apart.

"Well, that thing is completely fucked, ho-" His own thoughts cut him off.

"Time for an upgrade."

As if possessed, the Nasod arm on its own forced Raven to get closer to the burnt remains of the machine. "Hey! Stop!" He protested, but he couldn't stop. As soon as it made contact, A slimy version of Valasia covered and consumed the burnt remains. Once it had its fill, the slime retracted and wrapped around Raven's nasod arm.

The next few minutes were painful. The slime constantly moved and shifted everything around while Raven did his best to keep pain-filled yells muffled. He didn't hear the worried voices around him as pain filled his mind.

The pain subsided, and he heard a collective of surprised gasp. He looked at his claw and was shocked. "It's fixed?" He stared in awe. It is more than fixed, and it was something else entirely.

It looked like the entirety of it was covered in a black carapace, with small holes in it. Underneath were dark blue vines running up and down the arm. And beneath that was dark blue skin, actual living skin. A brand new piece of Pauldron didn't cover the entire shoulder, but it was more rigid and lighter. The talons themselves were made with the same carapace. The very tips glowed hot white but were cool to the touch.

"It's alive, I can feel everything... No one said anything.

Until Moon charm spoke up and nudged him with her hoof. "Raven, what happened to your arm?"

Raven raised his brand new claw in the air and said. "It mutated."

footnote:
Raven
Class change: Mutant reaper.

SKILL TREE EXPANDED!

NEW PASSIVE SKILL:
Of two minds - - Due to being put into an endless dream and given false memories, the remnants of a fake life have taken form. Hypnosis or brainwashing of any kind no longer works.

Valasia - - The Nasod power mutated by Alterasia, Valasia will grow on enemies and destroy them. Enemies take 20% more damage when Valasia seeds are attached to them.

Saprophyte - - Recover Viliaty while draining living enemies' lives with Valasia seeds attached. Non-living enemies take 20% more damage, on top of the effects of Valasia.

Path of revenge - - Raven calls upon the souls of his deceased comrades to aid him in battle--20% chance to induce fear in friend or foe; this chance increases 50% when the creature is a pony—100% chance of working when the creature is Fluttershy.

NEW ACTIVE SKILL:
Invasion - - instantly expand Valasia and create a spiral of death made of venomous black vines.

Author's Note

Hope you guys like the new chapter! Upgrades people, Upgrades!