After Gira had received his delicious unknown mix of meats and treats from the cooking mechanoid, he simply sat inside alone. Without hesitation he scarfed down the whole meal with an almost animalistic nature. As he licked his lips, savoring the lingering taste, a sharp pain suddenly stabbed through the back of his mind, jolting him from his moment of satisfaction.

Gira!

“Savagrios?!” Gira exclaimed in his mind as he swallowed his food.

Please let us eat too! We beg you, it’s been nothing but suffering for us!

“Wait, where were you? Where are K and S?”

We had some boring Gira meeting thing. We can discuss it later, but for now please allow me to switch with you!

“I guess you’ve had it rough, buddy. But do I have to fully give up my entire body? Can’t we just do what we did when I transformed?”

Oh right, we guess that works.

Gira’s left iris then bled red as even his pupil lengthened into the sharp, evil-looking glare of Savagrios. His hair grew a little longer, he grew taller, his features sharpened, and his body grew more defined.

“This feeling… I didn’t really notice when we merged the last couple of times, but don’t you feel?”

Stronger… Savagrios hissed. Indeed, merging does seem to hone our body and mind.

Gira? Savagrios? Uhhh, we’ll just go with Gira. Gira walked over to the counter, now tall enough to look into the kitchen.

“More food, please!” Gira called out to the mechanoid.

“Sure thing, sweetheart? What’s your order?” the mechanoid asked.

Savagrios shuddered in anticipation. Let me order!

“What’s ordering gotta do with food?” Gira asked.

We see that we’re still mildly slow. Regardless, ordering is how to get certain meals. Let us showcase.

Savagrios took over, “We’d like to order your most delicious meal!” he proclaimed excitedly.

“Daily’s special coming up. Your food will be ready shortly; standby for collection~” It chimed.

“Now we wait.” Savagrios said with a smug grin.

Outside, some of the rangers had taken notice of the mild Kyyr shift inside. They glanced at the strange boy as he stood there proudly.

One of the rangers, a young man with sharp, clearly well-groomed hair that had been arranged in sharp, contrasting waves of black and sage hair, stared at Gira.

“Hey Hitch, doesn’t the new guy look off all of a sudden…” the ranger said, tapping the shoulder of the ranger sitting on his left.

“Huh?” Hitch turned to look inside, studying Gira. “He looks the same to me.”

“You sure? That weirdo wasn’t that tall a minute ago. Wait! Look at his eyes! One’s red?!”

“Oh. I guess you’re right, Noz. So what?” Hitch mumbled, turning back to slowly stir a transparent cup of tea.

“What do you mean, so what?! What if he can turn into other people? What if he muddies the grounds of our squad with lies and deception before he eats us?!” Noz flailed his hands dramatically, much to the annoyance of the ranger to his right.

“Tsst! Stop it, Noz!” A female ranger hissed, glaring daggers at him.

“May! Look at the new guy! Look at his eyes!” Noz insisted, pointing at Gira, who was now receiving a tray full of steaming food with a big smile.

May sighed, exasperated. “What’s wrong? He’s just smiling.”

“His eye is red!” Noz leaned over May, pointing at Gira, who was now happily sitting and eating his food.

May scowled. “So what? Coarsebloods are known for being weird.”

“How would you know?” Noz challenged as he slumped back in his chair.

“Before you started barking in my ear, Mera was telling me all about Coarsebloods,” May said, leaning back to reveal Mera, who was watching Gira curiously.

Noz scoffed. “Mera reads weird sex books about monsters so I wouldn’t really trust her intel…”

A heavy silence followed. Mera slowly turned to face Noz, her eyes welling up with tears as her lower lip quivered.

“I—I mean. Everyone is free to have their hobbies…” Noz mumbled, looking away ashamed.

“Wow, Noz. Real charming.” May said, glaring at Noz, before turning to comfort Mera.

“Egh—whatever. But its still weird! Plus, rumor has it he ate someone back in Trant.”

Hitch, who had been absentmindedly poking at his food, finally looked over at Gira. His auburn eyes scanned the boy as he wiped his plate clean with his tongue like some kind of dog.

“He seems pretty harmless to me,” Hitch remarked. “Plus, Captain Morray vouched for him.”

“Hmph. I’ll figure out his true intent. You’ll all see,” Noz muttered, scowling at Gira, who was now ordering a third plate.

As lunch came to an end and Gira finished his 6th plate, Morray and another ranger approached Gira.

“Hey there, kid, did you get your fill?” Morray asked.

“I sure did, Mister Tall Guy—I forgot the name of.” Gira said, before the Savagrios side took over, “W-WE MEAN. How do you do, Master Morray?” Savagrios suddenly blurted out as he did some kind of half-assed salute.

The other ranger with Morray looked at Gira with a mix of confusion and disgust. “Sir, what’s wrong with him?”

“A lot of things. I’ll explain everything before tonights security meeting.” Morray mumbled, still feeling the psychic damage of the secondhand embarrassment that Gira was exuding.

“Right…” the other ranger muttered.

“Anyways, what’s up, Morray?” Gira asked with a goofy, nonchalant look.

“Ahem, this is Lisk’Pier; he’ll be in charge of showing you around the manor.” Morray explained.

Lisk’Pier stepped forward. “It’s certainly an occasion to come in contact with you, Mr. Coarseblood.”

“Nice to meet you! My name’s Gira, by the by, can I call you just Pier or Lisk? Your name is kind of a mouthful.” Gira said.

Lisk’Pier’s brow twitched. “I’d prefer if you used my full name.”

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

“Awww really? Darn, well, I tried.” Gira mumbled as he cleared some crumbs from his face.

“Well, you two have fun, oh, and before I forget, take this, Gira.” Morray said, handing Gira his crystalcomm.

“Oh, thanks, I almost forgot I had one of these.” Gira said, shoving the crystalcomm in his pocket.

“Make sure you don’t lose it. Xizu is going to call you later tonight.” Morray said.

“Alright, I’ll look out for that.”

Morray excused himself, a group of rangers trailing behind him as he exited the dining area.

“What a popular guy!” Gira remarked.

Lisk’Pier just kind of glared at Gira before he began to walk.

And with that, Gira and Lisk’Pier began their tour of the alabaster manor.

Lisk’Pier set a steady pace as he wordlessly guided Gira up the wide stone stairs, leading Gira through high-arched hallways. Their footsteps echoed off the polished white stone floor, passing all sorts of rustic weapons, aquariums, and tapestries that decorated the halls.

They took a sharp turn, stepping into a wider corridor lined with massive stone pillars, each carved with intricate depictions of creatures locked in eternal struggle. The space narrowed into a sleek, gently inclining ramp, subtly guiding them upward.

Beyond the next threshold, they emerged into a spacious, high-ceilinged room that was filled with shelves of all sorts of things. From what appeared to be consoles to books to more fossils. The room was filled with multicolored beanbags and other strange seating arrangements like hammocks and giant cushions.

“This is lounge room one; people come here for recreation.” Lisk’Pier said, with a very matter-of-fact tone.

“Awesome!” Gira grinned, but he barely had time to take it in before they were moving again.

A heavy mechanized door slid open, leading into a spiraling stairwell that coiled around a hollow core. The ascent was lined with softly glowing cyan strips, illuminating the walls like veins of light. The climb itself was steady, but as they emerged onto the next level, the atmosphere shifted again.

They entered a vast training facility—a sprawling chamber stretching far overhead, where the walls gleamed with faintly reflective plating, absorbing and diffusing light in soft waves. The air smelled faintly of sweat and disinfectant. Strange exercise machines whirred and clicked, their mechanical components adjusting to the motions of those training. A shimmering pool rippled under distant overhead lights, and in the far-off alcoves, segmented rooms hummed with energy, their purposes unclear.

“This is our main training facility,” Lisk’Pier explained as they strode through.

“Cool!” Gira spun, trying to take everything in at once.

They passed through another reinforced door, which slid open with a faint hiss, revealing another long corridor—this one flanked by elevated walkways where shadows of distant figures moved between rooms. The path widened into a massive outdoor terrace, its far end opening to the sky.

The sudden shift from enclosed steel to open air was breathtaking. They stood on a broad, open-air platform overlooking the ocean, the cliff’s sheer edge framed by elegant stonework. The waters below stretched endlessly, mirroring the sky in its shifting hues. Benches and carved statues stood vigil around the perimeter, a lone swing swaying in the gentle coastal wind.

“This is our outdoor recreation area,” Lisk’Pier said, pausing only briefly. “People like to hold Kyyr Onryō Parabellums here.”

“Cool!” Gira exclaimed. What the heck’s an Onryō Parabellums… He wondered.

Before Gira could wander off, Lisk’Pier grabbed him by the scruff of his neck, hauling him back inside.

“No exploring.”

Gira barely had time to yelp before he was dragged back inside and up a flight of stairs that led to the garden at the entrance of the manor, past the peaceful canals of the garden once more. He let go of Gira as they entered another garden-like area. The crisp air and gentle sound of flowing water faded behind them as they approached a homely-looking structure nestled within this other garden. Unlike the grand halls before, this building felt cozier, familiar—its wooden floors carrying the warmth of lived-in comfort.

Inside, the scent of aged wood and faint herbs lingered in the air. The furniture was sturdy, less extravagant than the rest of the facility, but inviting in a way that made the space feel oddly welcoming.

Lisk’Pier led him up another flight of rustic wooden stairs, their steps creaking slightly underfoot. At the end of a dimly lit hall, they stopped before a large, light blue door—rugged, weathered, but sturdy.

With a swift motion, Lisk’Pier swung it open. “This is your room,” he stated.

Gira blinked at the space beyond, then back at him. “Wow! Wow! Cool—my own room?” His excitement flickered with confusion. “How is this mine?”

Lisk’Pier arched a brow. “It just is.”

The room was modest in size, its wooden floors carrying the faint scent of polished featherwood. A single bed sat against the far wall, neatly made with blue covers and two pillows. To its right, a small wooden nightstand held a strange curved glass lamp, its surface catching the ambient light. The wall behind the bed opened into a shallow closet, its sliding doors blending seamlessly into the room’s simple design.

To Gira’s left, a wooden desk rested beneath a window, bathed in the soft glow of natural light. A white, see-through curtain fluttered gently over it, shifting with the subtle movements of air.

But what caught Gira’s attention the most were the metal bars lining the ceiling. They stretched across the room like some kind of framework, and from them, a hammock hung—high.

Maybe a little too high, actually.

“Why are there metal bars up there?” Gira asked as he walked in, spinning around as he stared up at the bars.

“Vice-Captain Mera told us Coarsebloods like to sleep upside down, so we added the bars this morning.”

Gira blinked. “I do?” He muttered, more to himself than anyone else.

We do? Savagrios echoed in his mind, just as puzzled.

“Before I go, please exchange IDs with me so I can send you a map of the manor so you can learn the layout yourself. I only gave you a general walkthrough of the main facilities.” Lisk’Pier said, as he pulled out his crystalcomm.

Gira wobbly pulled out his own and nervously tapped at the crystalline device, “Umm, well, I don’t know how to do whatever you just said…”

Lisk’Pier didn’t miss a beat, “First, open the device.” He clicked a button on the bottom end of the device, allowing it to turn on. “Then unlock it.”

“How do I?”

Lisk’Pier sighed, “Right, it should be default; you can figure your privacy settings later. The device opened up, displaying a light structure that emanated from the crystal like a screen. “Now we go to your contacts. We go to add, then we select the camera option.” He then pulled out his crystalcomm, and waved it in front of the camera display. “I’ll send you the map data through a private message; simply tap the file I send and it should create a personalized map in your maps app.”

Gira blankly smiled and nodded.

Lisk’Pier sighed, “Right…” He played around with his device and sent Gira the file, then after explaining how the map functioned, he continued, “With that, you are free of me for the day. You are free to roam the manor on your own, but you’ll need a buddy to leave the premises.” He paused studying Gira. “See you around, Coarseblood,” he said as he excused himself from Gira’s room.

Gira walked around his room, an odd emotion seemed to brush against his heart and mind as he sat down on his bed. His hands comfortably sinking into the soft mattress. He took a deep breath as he lay down, staring at the odd ceiling.

Gira. Savagrios suddenly spoke in his head.

“What’s up?”

Since we are alone, perhaps it’s time we share with you what we discussed.

“You mean in that Gira meeting thing?”

Indeed, us. So let us recede into the throne of our soul. Savagrios’s words slowly faded as Gira felt himself grow shorter.

He closed his eyes, letting himself fade into the throne.

Within the void of his mind, he found himself in a new version of his throne. The same fire illuminated the space, and the same red sofa’s were strewn about in the void, but now there was a small blue bed. Gira instinctively walked to it and sat down.

“Weird?” he mumbled.

“Dear me!” K shouted from the distance as he emerged from the shadow.

“Oh hi, K. Where have you been?”

“We’ll explain shortly… follow me; let’s go to where we hold our meetings.” K said as he walked over, gesturing for Gira to follow.

“Okie.” Gira said as he followed his teal-eyed self into the shadow.

Immersed in shadow, Gira felt a creeping sense of dread—an eerie weight pressing against him—before it suddenly lifted. He stepped forward, emerging into a vast, dimly lit chamber. At its center stood a massive round stone table, surrounded by an unsettling gathering.

Savagrios sat in his Coarseblood form, his presence as imposing as ever. Beside him was another Gira—but different. This one had fluffy white hair, amber-gold eyes, and a devilish grin that seemed to grow as his gaze met Giras. Next to him, another Gira lounged lazily, his deep blue eyes tinted with a spacey purple.

Then there was it—something vaguely shaped like Gira, yet disturbingly incomplete. Its pale, almost featureless form was marked only by two thin, white, slit-like eyes, staring without expression.

And finally, across from them all, another being loomed—one that resembled Savagrios, yet was not him. This creature's body was an off-white bony material, its edges sharp and jagged. Unlike Savagrios, this creature had an elongated muzzle that ended in a pointed nose-like protrusion that tapered into a predatory tip.

Its ear-like organs were tall, sharply pointed, and angled slightly forward. The creature also lacked eyes, like Savagrios, and similarly to his crimson counterpart, cracks spread across like lightning strikes, giving the faint impression of eyes.

“Gira, some weird stuff happened inside our head.” Savagrios whispered in his ear.

Gira flinched. “Wha? Huh? ” He looked between the red-eyed version of himself and the other Savagrios sitting around the massive table. “H-How?”

Savagrios gave an annoying smile. “Oh, you mean the other us? Yeah, its a little odd, but! Look at S! Doesn’t he look rather dashing in that form?” Savagrios said, pointing at the bone-bound creature.

“Wait—what?! That’s S?”