"Here you have, anything else?" Alan asked as his eyes turned to look at me, then to Alexa.

He really was worrying too much, again. Like usual, even after all their time bickering at each other, Alan still cared for her; even though they had met up as future husband and wife, Glory hadn't wanted that, nor Alan for that matter. But they grew in each other's presence.

"Nothing comes to mind, just close the door and wait till I say you can come in," She answered, unlike Alan, she as a Lady.

She didn't want for him to see her screaming, nor wanted him of all people to see her with that weird black substance that had come out from him. Alan had changed his blazer and shirt when he went for her change of clothes. But even with that, she didn't want him to see or think of her like that.

That was why she had asked him to get a change of clothes, or well, her change of clothes. Like most heirs of high society she had stashes of clothes here and there, change of clothes for every occasion, it wouldn't do that a noble Lady like herself to walk around with dirty clothes like the common rabble.

"....Glory?" Alan however seemed to be hestitating, it was funny in a way, Alexa was there at the side stretching and slapping herself as if to focus, while Alan was here a bundle of nerves.

He had achieved the dream of the Harmonia of recovering the blue hair of his family, and the first thing he did? Was change it back to black.

And now he was there like a kicked puppy. Did he want that much to stay beside her?

Glory…knew that they were more than friends, but she still didn't harbor romantic feelings for him, she was sure that if they had grown as normal she would have, she knew what kind of things Father had done to her…

A loyal wife should always love her husband.

She had her emotional cortex tampered to fall in love with Alan when they grew, he was designed to release some type of pheromone that she would find what was the word Mother used? Exciting beyond reason and would have her panting her breath out at the memory of it?

Glory didn't know, but searching for images with that description, all she found were distasteful images of women panting like dogs in heat, the mere idea of someone as noble as her being reduced to that…

It was revolting, part of her hate towards Alan was that, he had no part of it, and probably didn't know it if she was to guess. She also shouldn't have known either….

But a moment of weakness from Mother…or perhaps was it guilt? Glory didn't know, but she knew that this was the reason she had that problem, the fact that she couldn't think of herself as a human.

The women she saw in her image search…she refused to acknowledge those as normal women, and the fact that she would end up like them? That she would tarnish her image and end up like that? Her pride didn't allow it.

No, she would become human. Even if that meant suffering a thousand times more than what Alan had suffered. And so, she turned to look at her friend, her best friend, her curse, and the person she would end up loving and unable to live with if she didn't do anything about it.

"I need to do this," So she stated, trying to not depend more on his pressence, Alan was a bastion of security to her, even as much as he was the source of all her future problems, "Please…just…I don't want you to see me like that."

She didn't want for him to have a tainted image of her, she dreaded more the fact that her friend would end up hating himself should he know their future, and what he would do to her.

"....Just promise me something," Alan said, shaking his head and sighing, "If…if you hear…something… Don't think too much and answer it."

"Hear something?" Glory asked; she didn't know what Alan was speaking about, "Did Alexa speak with you during that? Was that how you triggered a Core?"

Alan grimaced at that, "Alexa? Nothing like that," And shook his head, "No, just…have your wish ready and say it as soon as you can okay? Promise me that, don't dwell too much in whatever you hear."

His face was earnest and Glory could see his eyes filled with worry, what had he seen? They both had read the same reports, seen the data, all the information about Core triggering and trigger events. Nothing said that whatever Alexa did should trigger a Core formation.

Then again, she was surprised by how much Alan had screamed, their pain tolerance was high, higher than normal thanks to the modification they had gone through. It was part of their blueprint, as Alexa said.

Higher than normal pain tolerance, all so that if they ever got kidnapped, they couldn't be tortured for information, a stupid thing if Glory was to be honest; all that it did was make sure their kidnappers would kill them, attempting to make them cry.

Glory would have lowered the pain tolerance to the minimum if she was to be honest, but then again that would probably end up killing them via shock from the pain.

"Okay," Even so, Glory nodded, she didn't think it made sense, but then again, he had indeed triggered a Core. "So the wish theory was right?"

"....Not so much as right….but it has some merits…" Alan said turning to Alexa, "Alexa? What do you think decides our Core Powers?"

"The [Core Power]?" Alexa said, turning to them midstretch; the blonde girl's eyes turned empty for half a second as her face turned to a curious gaze afterward, "Alexa isn't sure. But isn't what you want? Alexa isn't sure either. But if anything, she would guess that it depends on what you are doing already? Alexa's [Core Power] is like that too."

….She was already a shapeshifter? Or not? Alexa said her Core Power was in line with pretending to be a shapeshifter since she was closer to a DNA shifter? However, that worked.

"You think so?" Alan asked, "If I may ask, what do you think your wish would be then?"

"To be happy." Alexa answered immediately, "Alexa's wish is [I want to be Happy]."

Talk about a punch to the gut…

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"How does that translate to whatever you use for shapeshifting?" Glory asked, trying to not think too much about what kind of life she had before her Core triggering event.

"I dunno," Alexa answered with a shrug, "Are you ready? Alexa has stretched all her muscles twice!"

…How does she even know that?

"Yes," Glory said nodding turning to Alan, "I'll see you later then."

"...Remember, keep your wish in your mind at the ready, and use the practice we had to communicate with Mind Cores and Telepaths." Alan said walking to the door, "....And… Good luck. I'm sure you will do it okay; just keep your wish ready."

And like that Alan closed the door leaving them alone, "Weird," Alexa said turning to Glory, "Well, Alexa is ready this time, so to the beeeeeeed!"

Glory smiled at the antics, the girl was overexaggerating with her actions pointing at the hard floor, "Wait a second," Glory said shaking her head and unbuttoning her blouse, "I want to make sure I don't dirty my uniform."

Alexa stared at her weirdly, but Glory didn't mind it, she had gotten used to other people seeing her half naked, thanks to the continuous medical examination and monitoring they put her through.

So removing her clothes and leaving only her underwear didn't trouble her at all.

"Hmm…. I'll have to throw away this set of underwear…" Glory said looking at herself, she…. didn't want to get fully naked, she still had some reservations about it, even if Alexa was also a girl…and didn't seem to understand why she had gotten like this.

"....does Alexa also need to strip? The floor is cold, my feetsies are warm…" And that's what Glory got by wondering what Alexa was thinking.

"No Alexa, I did it so my clothes don't end up dirty, the weird black gunk that Alan expelled was nasty right? I don't want my uniform to get dirty. You also wouldn't want that stuck into your clothes, right?" Glory said laying on her back near Alexa, the floor was cool like Alexa said, but it was a nice cool feeling.

"I'm ready," Glory said, closing her eyes; she didn't want to see the hands of the blonde girl turning into weird flesh-colored tentacles, so instead, she opened her mouth and waited…

Only for her to suddenly get the feeling of a warm hand settling atop her stomach. And nothing else, she didn't got any feeling of pressure in her shoulders of legs, nor felt anything going inside her throat.

"amm…Alexa?" So she tried to speak, perhaps she hadn't felt the tentacle enter her mouth? "What are you doing?"

"Alexa is preparing!" Alexa answered, so Glory opened her eyes and saw…the same happy-go-girl smiling at her, the only difference was that Alexa had a hand atop Glory's stomach…and nothing else.

"....What about the weird flesh tentacles?" Glory asked, dreading a sudden assault against her person.

"Do you want wiggles?" Alexa asked innocently, tilting her head ever so slowly to the side, like a confused puppy, "Alexa doesn't mind sending some wiggles for Glory to play with."

"No!" Glory quickly said, some of the images she had seen when searching that face that her Mother described included women surrounded by tentacles, she would never ask for those, she started hating eating octopi for that same reason, "But…you used them with Alan."

Alexa closed her eyes for a few seconds and nodded, "Alexa did, but Alexandra got mad at Alexa, and scolded her saying that if I used them with Glory, then Alexa wouldn't get any mango candies for a month." Alexa said turning to her, had she spoken with someone in the time they had been here?

Perhaps while stretching, she had made a call?

She hadn't noticed at all.

"Did you tell anyone about this? What are we doing?" Glory asked, if she had told someone, then people would be coming, Alan would do his best to stop them of course, but they would need to rush.

"No?" Alexa answer baffled Glory, "Alexa hasn't said it to anyone, [Fan Girl] would probably also take Alexa's candies, and besides her…[Big Brother Eduardo] would probably not mind it? I think?"

What the hell was a fan girl? And Eduardo? The Saintsworths didn't have a clan family in any Spanish country….did they? Great, more privileged information that she would need to find an NDA to sign later….

"Okay, well, it doesn't matter. Can you hurry it up then?" Glory said attempting to sit, if Alexa wasn't going to use tentacles, then it didn't matter if she was laying on her back or sitting after all, "....Alexa? Why can't I sit up?"

Only that she no longer felt her hands…or legs….or anything below her neck….

She could feel her heart though, she was hearing it in her ears as she was starting to have a panic attack, she could see the signs after all.

"Oh that!" Alexa said, smiling brightly at her, "The wiggles have finished setting up."

The…what?

But…"You said you didn't use….oh…..Alexa?" Glory could see it now, well, not see it. She could imagine it, Alexa had used those flesh tentacles in places to burrow inside Alan and prevent him from trashing.

It made sense the position she used then, but if she wasn't going to use those in Glory, then how was she going to make sure that she wasn't trashing then?

Alexa had burrowed flesh tentacles inside her body and was using them to spread whatever she had used. Just like how she had taken a sample of whatever was inside Alan's body.

That….it was horrifying the fact that she now was aware and couldn't feel them, but that also made another thing worry Glory, "Alexa….when…are you going to start?" The fact that she hadn't felt a thing yet, Alan had screamed his lungs out, something that was very hard to do. Since both him and her had higher than normal tolerance for pain.

Or used to have anyway, after this, more than likely they would not anymore.

"In Five….four…..seven….nine….two…" Alexa said in a playful tone.

"That is not how-" Glory was about to correct Alexa when suddenly she was aware of how many ways one could murder another person, that is to say, "KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!"

She was also screaming, she couldn't help but close her eyes and pray, pray that she had imagined it.

For half a second she could swear that Alexa's face had shown a smile, the face of someone who had found a toy, a face that she had seen several times, her Mother had made sure that she knew that face, but it was a face that she had only seen in those of high society when they were looking at others that stood below them.

A face that she had never seen in Alexa, that was anathema to the little girl who was a somewhat birdbrained girl.

But Glory was too busy screaming and wanting to claw at her stomach, at her throat, at her chest, at her head, at her eyes, the feeling of pain was everywhere. She wasn't sure what hurt her more, her pride for the fact that she was screaming as her body feel as if it was being cooked alive, or at the fact that she had thought for a second that Alexa was enjoying this.

Surely not right?

The girl had said that she considered her Glory Blackthorn. A friend, a word that she thought never would be directed at her…

Surely…surely not right? What kind of friend would do this to someone else?

"What is your-" While thinking about that, Glory felt as if someone was about to ask her something.

Right, what did Alan say? To have her wish ready? Well she had it!

"I wish to become human!" Glory screamed inside her mind her desire, "I wish to have what it takes to be a human! I wish to be able to be proud about who I am, I wish for my basic being to become a normal Human!"

She wasn't sure who or what she was speaking to, perhaps it was delirious speech from the pain?

"....Your wish has been heard heir of the Blackthorn. You who wields the power of a new family will be granted that which you desire." There it was, an obviously female voice? Was..was this what Alan spoke about? Who was that? "You shall hold the power that was once forbidden, the power that will guarantee your desire. May your Consciousness Stream help bridge those that wish to claim to be Human with those that aren't."

What?

"Step forward Gloria Blackthorn and embrace the power to ensure that your Consciousness Stream is that of a Human, but beware of how you use it, for not all those that have a Consciousness Stream have the Soul of a Human. Nor is everyone that houses a Soul a Human." The voice faded away with those ominous words.

What the heck was it talking about?

Consciousness Stream? The hell was that? Wasn't a Soul what decided what a Human was?

"I did it!" She was pulled back from that thought when the sound of a happy Alexa distracted her, "I did it Glory! I recorded it!"

Opening her eyes, she found an Alexa with a happy smile hugging her; the girl was quite expressive and even pulled at Glory and raised her above the floor a few centimeters.

"What is happening?" Glory couldn't help but ask, it was at that moment that Glory noticed that she wasn't hurting anymore. "Is it over? Did…did you make me human?"

Glory couldn't notice any difference if she was being honest, she did felt lighter than before, but that was it, if anything…no wait….she could vaguely feel it? Something in her stomach? Or perhaps below her waist? At her waist?

"I recorded it!" Alexa said, separating herself from Glory, pulling herself away from her, "I recorded the whole [Core Formation]!"

"Yes yes cogratu-" Glory said almost as reflex that, her classes about being polite helping her to answer as she should, when she noticed it, "ALEXA! WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO YOUR ARMS!"

Alexa's left and right arm were burnt, badly burned. She could see parts of the blonde girl's bones here and there, and her right arm, the one she had put atop Glory's stomach, was fully eroded away, leaving only the bones.

"ALAN! GET INSIDE RIGHT NOW AND SET UP THE FIRST AID KIT, CALL THE AMBULANCE!" Glory screamed while pulling at Alexa from her shoulders, wincing as she felt the flesh in the shoulder give away.

She had originally planned to put her atop her towel, the one she had set up before laying on the floor, but looking at it, it was filled with the black goo, the same one that her body had expelled, and now was marring Alexa's uniform.

"It's fine, Alexa killed the nerve endings while going throught the recording," Alexa said still smiling, how could she smile like that?

[Eldritch]

What?

"What?" Glory asked.

"I killed the nerve endings, Alexa didn't felt like dealing with the ouchies, if I had Main Core around I would have left them, but he is still sulking," Alexa said shaking her head, "Do you know how to deal with someone sulking? Alexa is dealing with the extra workload, but she would rather have Main Core back."

Not whatever stupid thing Alexa was doing right now, Glory had….felt something, when she thought about Alexa, when she focused on her.

[Eldritch], [Cute], [Aberration], [Adorable], [Happy], [Mango].

The words…they came to her, Glory felt something stir within her, and the words that had been said before hit her straight in the gut; not all those that have a Consciousness Stream have the Soul of a Human. Nor everyone that houses a Soul is Human…. was it?

"Alexa….can you tell me what Core Power do I have?" Glory asked, turning to the blonde girl, the girl that was oddly calm when suffering wounds that should have gotten her killed from the shock…

She….Tried to point that at herself.

[Human], [Whole], [Stable].

….Glory did not like the implications of what she was getting. Not at all….

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