Aha, my god said he'd be back soon with a new dragon. There he goes. He loves expanding our big and growing family.
"Dracosect, you're fine with all of that?"
"I already had an idea. My god's not exactly secretive, you know. I didn't become his claws to kiss up to him. We are dragons! We must fight righteously to prove ourselves and prove our strength to each other."
"That's not what I mean. The compulsion, and the fact you transformed your body."
"Did you think I was compelled to do that?"
"I did."
"Pride, you love your draconic body. You hated your old one, yeah?"
"One of the main reasons I submitted. Yes."
"I was an insect. Yet, my god recognized me as a dragon before I changed species. Changing my body a little, or perhaps a lot, to comfort him? Doesn't bother me at all. Without him, I'd have no opportunity to become a dragon."
"I guess that's why he favors you so much. You two are like peas in a pod."
"My god's been through a lot. If that's all I have to do to lessen his burden, it's nothing much."
"I know, you said that already."
"So? What aren't you getting?"
"I get it."
"I know you pride. You won't ask because you want to act like you've figured it all out."
"The longer I'm his subordinate, the more I think I'm becoming transparent, too. What the heck is okay about being compelled to treat him as your god and follow so many rules?"
"I'd have wanted to do that anyway. Still do. Simple. No compulsion necessary. Do you not?"
"I do, but I still want to feel free."
"Freedom comes with a price: responsibility. He bears that cost for each of us, and we're a heavy burden. Just look at all the thought he's put into his temple since he made it. Places to show off, to compare treasure, to compete in challenges. A library, a study area, a science lab. He doesn't have to bother with all this. He could throw us into some random castle and say 'figure it out.' What would we do? Complain? He's much too powerful to contest. He knows that and yet he still tries to improve our lives."
"Dracosect, you should start a group which studies our god's best qualities. We'll call it 'Dracosect's Dracosect.'"
"Hraw! You have terrible naming sense, Pride."
"I got it from my parents. What if I still wanted freedom?"
"Aside from being compelled to carry out a few tasks, what freedom hasn't he given you?"
Pride thinks for a moment.
"I guess that's true. Plus, he isn't compelling us anymore. Though, I imagine that fate talent is guiding us instead. He probably rejected it when he found out, so the fate talent was like 'nyaa fuck you!' His talents almost have a life of their own. You should've heard the— you know what?"
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
[...]
Pride » "Watch this; Kaliwot made it work."
[Pride (UBERAdmin) is sending a file. Accept?]
[Yes] [No]
Dracosect » "Huh, what's this, Pride?"
Pride » "The mental chat the sins and virtues used to run. Mine now. I'm the UBERAdmin."
Dracosect » "What's that?"
Pride » "The admin role but with a cooler title. Hit yes."
Dracosect » "Cooler?"
Pride » "Just hit yes already."
»[Yes]«
[Replaying Memory]
|DEBUG|
[Pride.StreamOpen('A71FE9A066C8BEF3')]
Warning: Handle incorrectly validated; ensure opcode concurrency.
Warning: FileLock 3x1bcada7a93f7c82e4 detected a pool error (7A: wrong container type).
[Playing Stream...]
|DEBUG|
###`¶-$;℅?¶∆!|+@^!;£"@!;•+%'~׿$###
###`¶-$;℅?¶∆!|+@^!;£"@!;•+%'~׿$###
###`¶-$;℅?¶∆!|+@^!;£"@!;•+%'~׿$###
{Caption: Chronovoid is beheaded}
###`¶-$;℅?¶∆!|+@^!;£"@!;•+%'~׿$###
{C: Spatial twisting}
#####`¶-$;℅?¶∆!|+@^!;£"@!;•+%'~׿$#####
image [https://timjames.net/data/acd/images/155.png]
{C: Spatial twists abruptly multiply}
‡‡‡‡‡‡`¶-$;℅?¶∆!|+@^!;£"@!;•+%'~׿$‡‡‡‡‡‡
{C: Spatial twists abruptly expand and multiply}
‡‡‡‡‡‡`¶-$;℅?¶∆!—K——K——KEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAKAKAKAKA‡‡‡‡‡‡
{C: Mechanical/maniacal laughter}
|DEBUG|
[Pride.StreamClose('A71FE9A066C8BEF3', StreamPersistence.None)]
[Stream End]
|DEBUG|
Dracosect » "Holy crap, Pride."
Pride » "Yeah, it's pretty crazy isn't it?"
Dracosect » "Decapitation does nothing! Our god is incredible!"
Pride » "That's NOT why I... You know what, never mind."
[Kaliwot has joined.]
Kaliwot » "I see you two are enjoying my beta plugin!"
Pride » "Oh, hey K."
Dracosect » "Hey, Kali."
Kaliwot » "Hi guys!"
Pride » "How'd you make that, anyway?"
Kaliwot » "Meme and I worked on it together. My lovable giant blob of a memocyte is smarter than I am!"
Pride » "Already? It's been what, one day?"
Kaliwot » "Yeah! In fact, he's grown a lot! I've kept him well-fed by doing all manners of activities and I even asked Temp to convert my Antimana into Will! He's so precious!"
Pride » "Wait, you asked Temp to convert your Antimana into Will? Won't that make you weaker?"
Kaliwot » "Yeah, but it's fine. So long as Meme is happy, I'm happy too. I love the big bouncy blob!"
Pride » "Alright, Kali. Just remember it'll be harder to earn more Antimana or Will if you're weaker."
Kaliwot » "Oh, no! You're right. I'd better work hard to make myself strong again. I don't want him to go hungry. Bye guys!"
Pride » "Cya K."
Dracosect » "Bye."
[Kaliwot has left.]
Dracosect » "Did you notice that?"
Pride » "Yeah, she forgot draconic instinct number one: always amass more power. It's the basis of our pride and greed, after all."
Dracosect » "Our god certainly never seems to forget."
Pride » "He's the paragon of all dragons. Not you. The only way he could possibly be any stronger is if he went and consumed all of reality, which he doesn't want to do for obvious reasons."
Dracosect » "Rude— but I agree. We should tell him, right?"
Pride » "Of course. That memocyte isn't helping her."
Dracosect » "Well, it may be helping her with something, but it's not helping her be a dragon. That's for sure."
Pride » "You let him know, Dracosect. I'm going to go play dodgeball with Martissa."
Dracosect » "Martissa plays on the courts? I thought she was always trying to destroy them?"
Pride » "Oh, no. We play with blue supergiant stars."
Dracosect » "Hmm. I'm jealous."
Pride » "Maybe you can join later. Chronovoid said he'd give you a 'big' present when he got back. Told me all about it, in fact, which has me a little annoyed. In any case, it's a good chance for you to fix your body."
Dracosect » "Nothing to fix, Pride. Only to evolve."
Pride » "Hraw! You're a lot like him."
[Dracosect (RAWR) is sending a file. Accept?]
»[Yes]« [No]
Fated Dragon (Evolution Variant)
You are fated to follow the strongest dragon, seeking to encourage his highest moments and console his lowest. Your task is made difficult by the fact your charge is a dragon, unlike yourself, and is very sensitive to dishonesty.
You have exceeded even the demands of fate! You have safely guided your master into the role OF fate— which controls this talent!
You are a dragon among dragons.
Pivot Type: Guide
Related Fates: Chronovoid
Bonuses: Chronovoid's Favor
Pride » "Okay, now you're just bragging."
Dracosect » "This coming from Pride! I'm honored."
[...]