Heroine Creation: All My Summons Are Custom Made

The driver stared with wide eyes. "Who the hell?"

The giant, deciding the answer to that question didn’t matter, attacked first, swinging the flaming baton at Spectra’s head.

Amused by his courage, Spectra waited until it was almost on her before a crimson tendril snapped up from the road beside her and wrapped around the weapon.

The baton stopped so suddenly that the giant’s shoulders jolted, and before he could wrench it free, two more tendrils coiled around his wrist and elbow.

He grunted and planted both feet, forcing his arm back and even stretching the Gloom strands. But Spectra only watched him with mild interest — the other half of her focus was on the driver who had slipped around her other side with the hooked blade already glowing green.

The driver was smart enough not to repeat the giant’s mistake. He came low and fast, cutting toward Spectra’s ribs while her attention seemed fixed on the larger man.

Spectra shifted half a step before the blade reached her, and another tendril rose behind her without her even turning.

It caught the driver’s wrist, twisted sharply, and forced his fingers open. His weapon clattered against the road just before a second strand of Gloom struck him across the chest and threw him into the side of the cab.

The metal door buckled around his back, but he rolled off it instead of collapsing, caught himself on one knee and immediately reached for the fallen blade again.

But Spectra had had her fun. She stretched her hand and a giant rose sprouted from the ground, it burst out a red mist out of its petals and the moment the men inhaled it, they all froze in place.

Lancet was surprised to see her use that power as he’d never seen her do it before. But his attention suddenly snapped toward the Slime Tamer just as the man compressed his arm and launched a slime fist straight for the back of Spectra’s head.

"Spectra—" Lancet was about to call but she caught it before it touched her and before her name even left his mouth.

Her fingers closed around the blue slime, and the Tamer froze with his arm stretched between them. Spectra slowly looked over her shoulder, more annoyed than surprised.

"You should know better," she said, tightening her grip as the man tried to pull himself free. His entire body stretched toward her instead. "You can never catch a Demoness off guard."

"De....moness?" The Slime Tamer muttered. Realizing he was fucked, he split the captured arm and turned to make a run for it. But his fate was already sealed.

Red-black fire appeared around Spectra’s hand a moment later and the Tamer’s face changed when he looked over his shoulder.

She hurled the Gloomfire at him and once it touched the slime, it began eating through it.

The blue mass bubbled and blackened around the Tamer, forcing him to scream and try to retract the blubby powers before the flames could spread.

But the relentless Demoness held on and sent the fire racing farther down his body. He stumbled backward, tearing chunks of his own transformed body away as the Gloomfire chased him.

Spectra released him only after the flames had burned most of the length between them. The Slime Tamer threw every remaining tentacle forward at once, apparently deciding that smothering her before she could attack again was his only chance.

Several wrapped around her waist, shoulders and legs, thickening as they tried to pin her in place. He smiled when she stopped moving.

Then every tentacle touching her caught fire.

The smile vanished.

The Gloomfire traveled along each strand at once. The Tamer screamed and tried to withdraw them, but Spectra raised one hand while the burning slime recoiled from her body.

Fire gathered above her palm into a dense black-red sphere, and by the time the man managed to pull his limbs back, Spectra had already thrust her hand forward. The sphere struck him square in the chest and burst.

The Slime Tamer flew across the road.

He hit once, rolled twice and slammed into the curb, where he finally stopped with smoke rising from the ruined slime covering his body.

The tentacles binding Lancet loosened at the same time, allowing him to tear his arm free and step away from the last pieces still clinging to his clothes. He rolled his shoulder, brushed dirt from the front of his coat and looked over the three defeated bandits scattered across the street.

Spectra turned toward him and studied the cut in his sleeve, the dust across his clothes and the irritation still written across his face. A smile slowly returned to hers.

"How were you unable to handle these miscreants? You are a high Level now. I expected more from you, darling Master."

Lancet gave her a flat look while wiping the last streak of slime from his sleeve. "I was handling it. But that slime guy was getting really annoying to deal with. Since I was going to summon you anyway, I decided to call you now."

Spectra kept looking at him.

Lancet noticed the smile widening. "What?"

"How so readable you’ve become, dear Master." She stepped closer and glanced toward the unconscious Slime Tamer. "That Slime was difficult to free yourself from because you could not burn it. You needed some kind of fire and all you had was Gloomfire, but you still don’t want to use Gloom, do you?"

Lancet stared at her for a moment. There was no point pretending she had guessed wrong, with that certain expression on her face, convincing her otherwise was futile.

"Alright, yeah. But I also was going to summon you anyway."

Spectra laughed softly and shook her head. "You’re such a cute coward. Why do you fear power so much?"

"It’s demonic power, Spectra." Lancet’s expression became more serious as he looked down at the Phantom Ring. "You were able to control it, but it doesn’t mean I can. I have no idea what it could do to me."

Spectra gave him a long look. She did not laugh again, and for once there was no easy teasing answer waiting behind her smile. Lancet noticed that and because had no interest in the conversation turning into another debate over Gloom, he changed the subject fast.

"Now no more talking about it," he said, starting toward the cab. "Come on. We have to be somewhere."

Spectra remained where she was for another second before rolling her eyes playfully. "Alright then, Master dear." She followed after him with that slow, naturally sensual walk of hers, stepping around the frozen driver without even glancing down at him.

Lancet opened the cab door.

The driver immediately forced himself to speak. "No! Leave the car!"

Lancet ignored him and climbed inside. Spectra entered from the other side while the giant groaned somewhere behind them and the Slime Tamer remained half-curled near the curb. The driver managed to get one knee beneath himself and shouted again, "That’s my car!"

Lancet looked over the controls, found the start crystal and activated it. "Not anymore."

The cab lurched forward.

Spectra caught herself against the seat and turned toward him. "You know how to drive this?"

Lancet adjusted the steering as they left the empty street. "It can’t be that much different than the ones back in my world."

"What?"

"Nothing."

Behind them, the driver shouted something else that disappeared under the sound of the vehicle picking up speed. Lancet followed the road back the way they had come, checking every intersection until the warehouses and abandoned lots began giving way to the city again.

He was back in the traffic with pedestrians and tall merchant buildings marking every corner — the Rosenblum that he recognized.

Lancet pulled over on one of the larger market districts and this place was ridiculous.

There were freight platforms moved overhead between towers, huge signs advertising weapons, relics, Beast materials and luxury goods. The merchant riders crowding the roads with their mobile stalls was a fun sight, he admitted.

Lancet stepped out of the stolen cab and looked around for the quickest route toward Calamere Road. Spectra came out beside him but stopped almost immediately. Her eyes moved over the towers, the suspended bridges, the glowing displays and the steady flow of trade filling the streets around them.

"Well, well." She turned slowly, taking in another side of the city. "This really isn’t your boring Academy. We’re are we, Master dear?"

"Rosenblum," Lancet answered, glancing toward one of the towering merchant houses ahead. "The capital city of trade."

Spectra pursed her lips and looked around again. The city clearly meant something different to her than it did to Lancet. She had known Rosenblum once, only the version she remembered belonged to another era entirely.

"It has become much more brilliant than I remember."

Lancet looked at her. Spectra finally turned back toward him. "And why are we here in the city of trade?"

Lancet shrugged. "We’re going to find your catalyst."

Spectra froze where she stood. Her eyes widened, then slowly began to glisten as she stared at Lancet.

Was he being serious?!