It has been a while since I was here. How long ago was that? Maybe a year with time dilation. This world has only been around for 5 years yet the buildings and skyscrapers made it feel like hundreds had passed.
There used to be nothing but farmland here, but now as I made my way to HQ, I saw tall buildings as far as the eye could see. Was that a playground? I wonder how that benefited our society?
I knew they were building schools before I left, but playgrounds? Were there really Squirmy’s out there that would play there? I guess I wouldn’t mind it. Actually it sounded like a nice place to burn off some energy.
These child-like bodies were always so full of energy. It made it hard to relax sometimes. I couldn’t be the only one that thought this. We were all copies after all.
I pushed the button for the crosswalk and waited for the red claw to change. Once it turned from a blue X to a red centipede, I made my way across. For some reason I was the only Squirmy that ran across. Meanwhile everyone else walked at a normal pace.
Ignoring my embarrassment, I headed to the government building near the center of the city. From there I went in and headed up the elevator to the top floor where I stepped into a waiting room of sorts.
There were a few other Squirmy’s moving around behind a glass wall. They were all Beta’s with a few Gammas mixed in. Everyone looked like someone from different memories. I was one of the few that had a custom skin.
I couldn’t help but feel dread at the Epsilons scattered among the office. There were two big ones in the waiting room with me. Glancing at one, he eyed me with his sharp eyes and directed a deep grunting sound my way.
In fear I bowed my head and looked away from him. My body was trembling and I could feel my skin shift under my clothes. Out of nervous energy I gave Doggy a hug. Calm down. They’re not after you. You're a perfectly innocent Squirmy. Well, innocent among Squirmy standards.
I mostly just wore the Aku Black skin. It was easy to move around in and the other Squirmy’s seemed to treat me a lot nicer when I looked like this. It was all because of our roles.
The office Betas took on the job of creating personal hells for each of the souls coming in. it was nothing like when I was tortured and broken. I still felt like I could do a better job than them.
I only handled a few souls at a time as a hobby, specifically any of the special souls that I might be able to use to mess with people, or possibly just get a quick antessence boost. Usually the latter of the two.
Since I was close to a rank up, I couldn't wait for my newest acquired soul to break, so I can fully drain their sweet quintessence and rank up into a new type of demon. Only then could I possibly become my own Squirmy.
Smile now beaming, I made my way up to the front desk Beta, who was busy typing away at a computer. She wore a Julia skin. One from when she was a teen.
“Hey there Beta 9! The boss said I had an urgent meeting with him. It’s Alpha 1 by the way.” I greeted the Julia looking Squirmy before me.
She pushed her glasses up against the bridge of her nose while smiling. “How’s it going Beta 18.”
I shook my head at my previous designation, “No, I'm not a Beta anymore! It’s Alpha 1 now!” I complained.
This Squirmy used to be my boss. She would always tease me because of my size. She wasn’t even that much taller than me. Betas like her always took teen bodies. That’s why she and the other Betas would pick on me. All because I went with a smaller shape.
Who knew that racism would still exist even among a society of shape shifters. I guess being different would always be a sign of weakness. This lady was annoying. She was ignoring my promotion all together. Beta 9 was the worst. I wish I could just kill her.
She smiled more devilishly this time. “Sure thing short stack. That meeting isn't for another 15 minutes. Gotta give the other Squirmy’s a chance to get here. Not everyone is as free as you. Some of us have work to do.”
I was deeply insulted. “Hey! What's that supposed to mean! I literally finished with one of my tasks when you people paged me!” I complained.
“Don't get uppity with me. Am I gonna have to report you to HR?” she asked.
“We have an HR department?” I asked.
“Of course we do, It’s run by the Zetas. They all wear old lady skins. Try to avoid saying anything problematic in front of them, or they’ll make you take a course on Alpha Centipede privilege.” She explained.
“Alpha Centipede privilege!? I’m the only Alpha in existence! How could there be a whole course on me?” I asked. Did someone make a bunch of rumors up and pass it as a lesson plan? Was it beta 9?
“Oh, don’t be ridiculous Alpha 1. There’s more than one Alpha now. I think we’re up to 4. The Boss says he’ll send the rest out once the city is conquered.” She explained.
“Wait… That's… forget about the Alphas! Why are we making weird courses like that?” I asked.
“For fun. Making so many copies of ourselves has been kind of maddening. The distraction of individuality is the only thing keeping us sane. It’s the only reason I haven't jumped over the counter and tried to stab you with this steam boat willy pen I got from the gift shop.”
She began to laugh hysterically While clicking the pen over and over. I joined her as our eyes locked with one another. Her mouth began to move around her face going over her forehead and back to its original position, while my eyes elongated out of my skull like snakes and slivered into each others sockets trading places.
That was when the two stationed Epsilon Squirmy’s stepped forward, drawing out their sharp swords. “Is there a problem?” asked the larger of the two.
We both shut the hell up, but our eyes remained wide. I couldn’t bring myself to speak. That was when Beta 9 spoke up with a beaming smile. “No, there’s no problem here. We’re both just joking around. Gotta make fun of the madness or it’ll eat you alive.” She insisted.
“Carry on then.” He replied then him and his buddy went back to their posts.
The Epsilon Squirmy’s were the second scariest of all of us. Right behind the Boss himself. My dad was one of them. An enforcer. Their job was to keep us Squirmy’s from killing each other and the Squirmy’s that rebelled were labeled as Omegas.
That was basically what happened to the guy on the bus. It’s what could easily happen to anyone of us. Their madness could be contagious, so they were disposed of and their antessence was fed back into the Boss.
I turned my eyes back on Beta 9 and tried to continue our conversation, “Um… Okay. So… there’s a gift shop now too?” I asked trying not to think about the fact that I really didn't like how many copies of me there were.
“Yeah, you can buy stuff with antessence. It’s a bit more expensive than making it yourself but for us none creative types, it’s nice. By the way, If you want coffee you can get some for free over there.” She pointed to an expresso machine sitting on a table on the opposite side of the room. “We grew the beans ourselves at Squirmy farms.” She said cheerfully.
“Who's running all these facilities?” I nearly cried at the sheer number of entities in our inner world net.
“Well, we have several different classes of Squirmy now. The Alphas are the strongest of us. The Beta’s are kind of like grunt workers. Gammas are in positions of management and administration. There's only one delta and he’s in charge of keeping the flow of information organized.” She explained.
I interrupted, “I know all those. Any others I should be aware of?”
“Well you know how Betas are smart? They’re not very strong and get tired pretty quickly, so now we have Etas. They do all the heavy labor stuff around here. After that, there is the Zetas which do a lot of social work, like HR, therapy, counseling, and teaching.” She said.
“Okay and after that?” I asked.
“The Thetas are our engineers, and the Iotas are gentle and creative types. There like artists and architects and also make good caregivers.” She said.
“What’s that mean?” I questioned.
“There have been a few Squirmy’s with more caring personalities popping up. They like to cook and keep their homes neat and tidy. They make good partners. A lot of them are in the food business, but their creativity is in our architecture, paintings and design. Even I got myself one for a partner not that long ago.” She explained.
I bet mom's one of those. She was always good at cooking. She must have been one of the first. Last time I was here they labeled her a Beta. That explains why she didn't want a teen body. Things sure do change with time.
“Right… I could really use that coffee now.” I said.
“Don’t worry sweetie, I'll call you when everything is ready.” She cheerfully responded.
I wasn’t sure if she was playing along with my persona, or making fun of me again. Either way I didn’t want her near me. Instead of confronting her I smiled like the child I was and thanked her. She looked annoyed. I bet she wasn’t expecting me to call her out.
The expresso machine was actually wonderful. The coffee tasted amazing. I sat down and enjoyed it as I swung my feet back and forth. As soon as I ingested a few sips my body began to feel really energetic. A few other Squirmy’s arrived soon after.
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I’m pretty sure they were the other front liners. There was the field Betas who were all teen girls wearing uniforms similar to, but not the same as mine. Then there was Gamma who wore the body of a middle aged businessman. All the gammas wore those bodies.
The odd part was that the last Squirmy to walk in wore an Aku Black skin. I thought I was the only one that wore it. I designed it myself. He was stealing my stuff! He didn’t have a uniform like mine. Instead the copy cat wore a white dress.
Oh no! Now I’m not special! What if he's just like me! What if Squirmy made copies of me so he could have extra Alphas! Should I kill him? Too many witnesses.
The Epsilons would kill me before I could do anything. Wait, I’m an alpha. I can take them. They were weaker than me, but then I’d have to kill all of them and I’ll get labeled an Omega and have everything I built taken from me. Mom and dad would never let me go back with them. I also don’t wanna kill dad.
With no way of preserving my individuality, I had no choice, but to sit and pout. I hugged Doggy, but it didn’t help. Before I knew it we were all ushered in through the glass door.
From there we made our way to a conference room where we were all seated. I felt kind of short sitting at such a high table, so I got out of my seat then pushed the little lever under it to make it go up.
With that, I was at a normal height with the table. Wait… why was the other Aku Black at the same height? She did the same thing as me, but she did it first! Was I the copy? No, I don’t wanna be a copy of a copy.
I looked to Doggy. That’s right! That asshole doesn’t have a furry companion! She’s totally a poser. I put Doggy on the table and gave him a few pats. He was a good boy. For the first time I felt happy to have such a loyal companion by my side.
Hang on a sec, who was this girl? Why was she in here with us? I looked around the room. There was the three Betas from the scout party. There was Gamma who was in charge of everyone.
Wait, wait! Then who the hell was this person!? Did some rando just walk in from the street!? What if he had a knife and was secretly an Omega!? He could kill everyone of us!
“Who the hell are you!? Name yourself unnamed Squirmy!” I demanded while pointing my accusatory finger at the imposter.
The Aku shaped Squirmy looked around the room, then pointed at herself, as if she didn’t know I was talking to her. “Me?”
“Yes you stupid! Who else! You clearly don’t belong here!” I complained.
“Alpha, it’s me Delta.” she explained.
“Huh?” I deflated.
“You really didn’t know?” asked one of the Betas.
In embarrassment I reached under my chair and deflated it. I sunk down hiding most of my body under the table and my face behind Doggy. “Why are you copying me?” I yelled.
“I had some issues with my other form. It turns out this one is the most convenient especially when trying to move around Legion.“ she explained.
I could see that multi limbed body trying to fit through doors only to break the frame and rip up the carpet with his sharp… feet? Whatever you call them, it would probably break stuff.
“That body is also convenient in the material world as well. That’s why we use them in the field too.” Said another one of the betas.
“Nah, I’ll skip on the whole cutesy demon girl aesthetic. Unlike you five I’m comfortable as an adult.” Said Gamma.
“Hey! You four need to stop copying me. Wouldn’t one of the adult Isaac skins work better? I like using this one because it confuses the crap out of the HumANs. I designed it myself, ya know!” I said.
HUmaNs would never attack such a cute face after all. You lure them in with cuteness… THEn sTAb THEM IN ThE BalLS! Or… Boobs? Perhaps the elusive clitoris? Somewhere in that general area.
“That body isn’t bad, with the numbers of the system, it’s speedy, and the small frame makes it harder to be hit. You can always just shapeshift for reach. I recommend increasing bone density for better strength.” Explained Gamma.
Gamma 4 always had good advice. “Noted.” I said. He was also really tall and could reach stuff for me-like a tall king.
“In my experience, while being big and bulky makes you strong, it also turns you into a big target. Of course density can help nullify damage but your still a giant target.” Said Delta.
We all heard a long sigh followed by the disgusting and immediate smell of garlic. It was the Boss. He probably had something awful for lunch. The Boss wore a custom skin with a neat suit on top. He had neat black hair combed back and stood at 6’4. He also wore a pair of sunglasses and carried a brief case. Like all demons his irises were red.
“Hey Boss! How's it going!” I greeted him.
He slammed his brief case on the table and yelled, “Shut it! Everything is shit because of you assholes!” his breath washed over everyone, but none of us had the balls to say anything.
I sunk in my seat nearly disappearing under the table. I hated when the boss got mad at us. That was how I knew I was a copy. He carried so much authority. It probably had something to do with the tortured soul fragment I was copied onto.
That was how all us Squirmy’s were made. The boss tortured several souls back in the day. Then when they submitted to him, he broke them up into millions of pieces, upgraded them to the second rank and turned them into monsters sending them after the HumANs. I was one of those at one point.
My whole identity was erased in a moment when he copied himself onto my soul. I was more Squirmy than I was… whoever that other person was.
The Boss was smart like that. Because of how he made us, we were all incredibly loyal to him. The fear I felt in his presence was maddening.
I wouldn’t mind becoming his meal, if it made him happy. Of course I’d rather not have that happen, but as long as he isn’t angry I’d do it.
“Why haven’t you taken the city yet!?” Yelled the boss.
“It’s not that easy Boss. Shadow has taken over as guild leader. She’s gathered her armies and even managed to evacuate most of the civilians. Our essence gathering has slowed.” Explained Gamma.
He was basically in charge when it came to everyone in the field, so it only made sense to let him do the talking. I know I sure as hell didn’t want to be the one to explain stuff to the Boss.
“That fucking cat! What about you Alpha 1. Your at the very front. Why haven’t you done anything to break their forces!” yelled The Boss.
“What! I’ve been doing stuff! I have this whole cruel plan laid out. Right now I’m still in the middle of breaking Lilian. Once that’s done I’ll go after Shadow. You just have to trust me Boss. Shadow’s soul will be perfectly prepped when I’m done and you’ll have a thoroughly broken cat girl.” I said.
“He’s right Boss. Shadow’s soul isn’t like others. I’d say it’s worth more than 5 souls.” Said Delta.
“I see your point. Her eyes are special. I suppose a few dead centipedes might be worth it. What about you Delta? Care to explain your failure?” The boss locked eyes with my clone, who looked to do the same as me, and shrunk into his seat.
“I-I’m sorry! It wasn’t supposed to go down that way! Isaac cheated!” he said.
I was confused. “What’s going on?” I asked tilting my head. Everyone looked at me.
“Didn’t you get the memo?” asked one of the Betas.
“Uh… memo? I haven’t talked to anyone since the boss sent me into the material world.” I answered.
The boss shook his head. “Everyone got an email with detailed information on Deltas failure. There was even a hilarious gif of him burning.” The Boss turned his gaze on delta for that last part. He had this grin on his face as if remembering a funny joke.
I tried to defend my ignorance, “I don’t have an office, much less a computer. Hell, I don’t even have a phone.” My parents didn't allow me to have a smart phone. They said it was nothing, but brain rot. Like, what the sigma mom!
Boss raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, you do. Did no one show you where your office was after your promotion to frontline?”
“For real! I get an office! Wow, my parents will be so proud!” I said.
“Parents?” Everyone questioned. For a second the frontliners all reverted back into the original Squirmy. There appearances were the same as before, but the look in their eyes was similar to the Boss. It wasn’t that uncommon for us child Squirmy’s to get adopted.
Not wanting this entire meeting to turn into a blood bath I moved on. “Oh, there’s these two Squirmy’s that partnered up and adopted me as their child. I went along with it because it fit with my persona. So far it's been…useful.” I explained.
Everyone immediately understood. After all, it was a mental health thing. The more different our identities were the more sane we all felt. “By the way Boss. I’ll be taking time off once we secure serenity. I heard there’s a school thing starting up and I want to try it out for a bit.”
“Sure, take it up with HR, but first I need to know. Why have you been stealing my souls.” His eyes changed becoming as sharp as knifes.
I saw a flash of memories from before my soul was fractured. When the boss tortured me. “I didn't mean to steal from you boss! I was only doing what you would do! Here, you can have the power back if you want!” I held my hand out drawing out a ball of antessence.
The boss leaned forward and got a look at the swirling mess. “How many souls did it take to get that much antessence?” he asked restraining his anger.
“Three sir!” I answered honestly.
His face softened. He actually looked a bit curious. “Three? and you got that much?” asked the Boss. His curiosity getting the best of him.
“My methods of torture are to make it as personal as possible. To do that I torture them while they are still alive. Breaking them down is easy. You just have to destroy their beliefs and make them feel worthless. Keep them in suspense by dangling death over them. This makes the torture of the soul a lot easier. Bonus points if you can give them a little hope for escape, only to crush them. They fall in line almost immediately.” I explained.
The boss chuckled. “You can keep it. We’ll call it a reward for your insight. From now on, we’ll try to make deaths more traumatic. Why didn’t I think of that? I guess I got too greedy and went for quantity instead of quality. This is good. It looks like you’ve become your own person. Once I ascend into a demon lord I’ll be able to create unique demons like alpha 1 here. instead of just copies of myself.”
The antessence sunk back into my spirit body. I was sure the boss would take it all, but I guess since I belonged to him, it didn't really matter. It’s not like any of us could betray him. Even the Omegas would freeze up in his presence.
The situation we were all in was a bit maddening, but it’s only like that now because we’re trying to gain a foothold in the material world. Once that happens us Squirmy’s will be able to build an actual society where we can grow into our own people and ascend onto the material world.
“Now then. Delta 1, tell me what you’ve learned from fighting Isaac. The information you have could be valuable. Let your failure help legion grow.” Said the Boss.
We all looked to Delta. She had this look on her face like she was expecting the boss to bite her head off. That was a common way to go out around here. The Boss had done it to a few of us already. Mostly just Betas.
“W-well… prime’s passive attacks went after him in the beginning, but they weren’t enough to stop him. He was too fast and there was this energy around him. It seemed to cling to primes back. That energy is like the stuff that the system uses to empower creatures but way stronger and actually visible.” Answered Delta.
“So he can manipulate the system to increase his status? I think I remember that lady saying something like that. Something about cultivators.” Said the Boss.
“Yeah, I remember something like that too. He can also spam spells like there's no cool down. It doesn’t even look like he’s pulling the energy from his body. There was also this giant fireball. I couldn't find it anywhere in the spell tree. It’s like he's not even using the system.” Said Delta.
“So he isn’t a cultivator. A mage then, but that doesn’t make sense.” Said the Boss.
“It also looks like he has eyes behind his head. No matter how I attacked him he seemed to know exactly how to counter. That’s not the worst part though. I couldn’t feel anything from him. It’s like his soul was empty.” Said Delta.
“Empty? You couldn’t see any memories, or any thoughts?” asked the Boss.
“Not one. He was a blank book. Actually, I did feel one thing. It was pure rage.” Said Delta.
“That’s troubling.” Said Gamma.
“I’ve never fought something I couldn’t read. That sounds terrifying.” I said.
“His magic is very different. He used a bind spell on me, but it was way more powerful than a normal one. It also didn’t look like a bind spell and it lasted way longer than the normal version. He also used the platform spell as a way to make different kinds of shapes. Even though that spell is only supposed to be used as an extra jump.” Said Delta.
“Magic that does something different, and he doesn’t use focus from his body. That is troublesome indeed.” Said the Boss.
“He likes fireball spells the most and can create hidden fireballs to act as landmines. I don’t think our kin do well against fire. Especially not his persistent flames.” Said Delta.
“Interesting. Alpha 1, how is Lilian’s torture going?” asked the Boss.
“Not bad, but she’s being very stubborn. I might need to go with plan B.” I replied
“Some souls are like that. Do what you have to do. If you fail I’ll have no choice but to send out the other Alphas.” He answered.
“Understood sir.” I responded.
The meeting went on like that for another hour. It was mostly the Betas talking about their looting and Gammas ideas on more efficient ways of sweeping the streets for souls.
The bosses breath stunk through the whole meeting and it started to make me dizzy by the end of it. Eventually one of the Betas couldn’t take it anymore and spoke up about it which lead to her getting her head bitten off.
We got a new Beta after that. He was much more obedient, as all Squirmy’s should be.