Mash P.O.V
Draconic scales formed around his arms and legs. His two sets of wings shrunk into him. They were replaced by wooden branches. Mixing his two most powerful forms, he became an embodiment of them both. An impossible combination between a dragon and a treant. His wooden body is emblazoned with the strength and durability of a dragon. The raw stat boost alone was enormous. Scales lined his body while branches sprouted from his back. The scales mixed with the wood as they sprouted across his face.
His pure strength was raised to an unbelievable degree, and he could feel how his body had changed. All over his body, he could feel that he was like the treant. However, he carried a speed and strength that was even greater than what he gained from the dragon form. Its impenetrable black scales acted as an armor to protect normally vulnerable wood. He practically used all of his remaining energy in the transformation alone. It didn’t matter to him. He didn’t care if he collapsed, he just needed to save Red. Hunt triggered, and he sped even faster as he aimed for the man holding Red. His restraint broke as he struck the man.
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Red P.O.V
Red felt her skin brush against the ground as she was dragged like garbage out of the castle. Her captor had a handful of her hair in his hand and was pulling her roughly. Something like that wouldn’t hurt someone with her stats, but it was still uncomfortable. The night air had a gentle wind to it, and it made her wounds sting when it blew into her. The cut across her face was especially bad, though it wasn’t fatal. It just hurt. She knew that there was nothing left for her. No way out. These people would execute her, and probably torture her before doing it. She had killed their king, even if many did not agree with Ellis’s rulership. This would be the second time that someone had assassinated a beastmen king. Not to mention, it was her family that had done it both times.
She felt oddly ready for it. A sense of relief washed over her. Her thoughts weren’t for her family, not even her loving mother. What thoughts she could muster were dedicated to her friends. Her mind was still recovering Ellis’s scream, and she couldn’t help but feel a little jealous of the skill. The thought didn’t last long, as her mind shifted to the past year.
It wasn’t like she had spent a lot of time with the group, but it had been meaningful. They were the first people that didn’t demand anything of her. She hadn’t realized how much a single connection like that could matter, and she was able to form multiple in such a short time. Her family would see her friendship as a sign of weakness and tell her that she shouldn’t trust people that she had only known for a year. Now, she realized that it was the opposite. Those people were the ones she should’ve trusted. She shouldn’t have done what her family did and taken the trial instead. She should’ve at least told the others about what she had been planning. It was too late now, and she would die without ever being able to tell the truth to the people that deserved to hear it.
As she was being dragged across the stone, she heard something. It sounded like a storm, and she tried to glance upwards. She saw something descending, though she didn’t know how to describe it. It seemed like a nightmare made manifest. A creature covered in black scales with arms that were more beastlike than human. Long clawed hands and feet and wings that looked more like bones. The light of the moon behind the figure seemed to reflect the glow of his eyes. The white shapes within them identified the monster. It was Mash.
He slammed into the person who had been dragging her, landing and shaking the earth as if he were an enormous beast. The man had been unprepared and was killed instantly. His body crushed beneath Mash’s fist as he slammed it into the ground. It seemed like he was trying to hurt the world itself. Without turning his head in the slightest, the bones on his back shot towards the other knights. Red noticed that they were wood now. His whole body was slightly different, and he didn’t look human in the slightest. His expression was stiff as a puppet, and all she could see on it was anger. The way his eyes were tilted and the stiffness, told her just how angry he was. The soldiers stood almost no chance against Mash’s surprise attack.
Dozens of them got injured as the branches grew out. It was if a bush was growing by killing the people. He still didn’t turn his head from the one he had crushed. His anger seemed focused on that man. Red wondered if he had lost his mind, and tried to speak. Her throat felt surprisingly bad, and it came out rougher than she intended.
“Mash! Stop!”
She hadn’t spoken very loudly, but it seemed to be enough. The branches of wood changed, and they slammed into the ground and spread up and around them. The speed of his creations was incredible, and she couldn’t help but be in awe of his talent. His control over creation was astounding. Walls formed up around them, and he turned to face her. His expression was still stuck in anger, and she couldn’t help but feel a little scared as he reached for her. She couldn’t move or resist the collar though. His hand changed as it reached her, shrinking back to its normal size. His fingers landed on the collar, and she heard the metal snap. She had regained some of her powers but still felt limited by Ellis’s skills.
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“We need to get out of here now!”
What Mash did next was not something she expected. He tore apart the very air, something forming in the space behind him. Wood grew from the ground forming an archway of sorts and she stared at it in confusion. The process took about a minute, and she wondered why none of the soldiers outside were attacking.
Then she thought about it from the soldier's perspective. A monster, one who was terrifyingly strong was attacking. It killed a few people instantaneously, then formed a shell around itself. They would be busy trying to figure out how to best deal with the situation themselves. Honestly, they might even be assuming that the monster was in the process of evolving or something. An evacuation of the city might even start. Mash’s finished making his thing, and she realized it was a dungeon portal.
“Let’s go.”
His voice was deep and hollow as if it was speaking through a long tube. He didn’t sound angry anymore though his expression was still unchanged. She couldn’t tell if he was mad or not, and that bothered her more than the strange situation. Still, she trusted him enough to enter the mysterious portal with him. The other side made the situation even more confusing.
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Mash P.O.V
He was worried about Red and needed to get her somewhere safe. Her skin was gray, and it looked like she was infected by something bad. He would need Luke, but how could he get him. His sister could probably help too, but he would need to treat her other injuries first. The cur on her face was bad, and he noticed what looked like Whip marks on her back as she led her inside. His anger was dispersing quickly and worry, and fear set in heavily.
Thankfully he was able to focus on Red, and not what had just happened. He had lost himself a few moments ago. Rather it felt like having so many transformations active had influenced his mind as well. His emotions had gotten the better of him, and he wondered if his skills were surpassing his equipment at this point. While his earrings were good, he didn’t think they could oppress something like the effects of a level 100 skill. He would need to learn more about how his transformations would affect his mental state.
“What happened, are you…”
His voice trailed off as he saw what she did. This had been the portal to his own dungeon, and this was the first time he had actually seen it. It was enormous far bigger than he could’ve imagined. It seemed like an actual world, and it was somewhat similar to what he saw when he used the earrings.
An enormous tree stood before him. It was covered in a blackish wood and reached far into the clouds above. They couldn’t see the top but could see the shadow it cast. The treetop seemed larger than several cities put together, its shadow casting the clouds beneath it in darkness. They were far away from it, but it still seemed large. It was kind of cold where they stood, and the occasional breeze only made It worse. The shade the tree cast probably chilled the ground significantly. The urge to explore was strong, but he contained it as he heard Red start to speak.
“Mash, where did you take us?”
Mash was about to reply when he felt the effects of hunt end. His body went limp, and the transformations faded as he fell to the ground. Much to his shame, Red immediately threw a cloth over him. Thankfully the portal behind him had closed with his collapse. It would be bad if others could enter. He turned his head to face her. His attention was drawn back to his biggest concern.
“Are you okay?”
Mash had to ask, although he should’ve expected the response.
“That is a stupid question. We can talk later. More importantly, where are we? Is it safe here?”
He felt surprisingly happy about being chastised. It was familiar. Red was always the one to focus on what needed to be done. She rarely got distracted from the main task and had moved to the most immediate concern in her mind. He was tempted to reiterate his question but didn’t want to mindlessly talk in circles. He answered Red to the best of his knowledge.
“It should be safe, it’s my dungeon or world, I guess.”
The discussion shifted a little as Mash explained his abilities and where they actually were at the moment. While he couldn’t be certain of their safety, he didn’t see any creatures around and didn’t think that there were any creatures here. He wondered if he would need to populate it himself. That could be a fun project, though it wasn’t an urgent task.
He told Red of his unique skill, and how it worked. If they weren’t inside of a dungeon already, he doubted that she would understand what that meant. He wondered if this made him a world owner. He didn’t think so, especially since he lacked the power of one. Red seemed to agree with that conclusion. The conversation about his abilities naturally flowed to Red’s, though she seemed weirdly hesitant about talking. Her eyes fell downward, her brows creased slightly. Mash had an idea why too.
“Why were you in Krall? I think I deserve to know that much.”
Mash didn’t like pressuring Red for an answer, but he couldn’t ignore it. Considering what he had just done to save her, he wanted to know why. What had she done to lead to such a ridiculous situation? Even though he felt bad, he didn’t let up in the slightest. His eyes bore into her as he waited for the response. Staring at her closely, he saw just how hurt Red actually looked. Her injuries were slowly healing now, and he guessed that whatever had prevented it was vanishing now. It wasn’t the physical pain that he noticed though. Oddly, it felt like he was able to understand a little of her emotions too. He could see that she was afraid of something, and from the situation, he thought it was of him. Then he recognized the look she had and remembered something from his own past.
“Red? What happened? Are you doing alright?”