D looked at the console in front of him. There were two massive joysticks in front of him. With a lack of anything else to grab, D pulled on the joysticks. [I probably have to use my aura on this machine.] D started to focus as he channeled the aura coursing through his body. The machine burst to life as D shut his eyes. The screen in front of him started bathing him in a bright red glow.

D waited until he heard a ding. The process stopped and the screen went black. “So that’s it.”

After being freed from the machine, D noticed Maximum looking at two papers. “Are we done now?”

“Give me a second kid.” Maximum switched to the second page, but his face scrunched up. He turned to look at Bart, then returned to the page. “Well, this is a first.” D downed the remainder of another flask. “I would say I have seen worse, but I rarely use that machine.” Maximum handed the pages to both D and Bart. “I don’t care what you do with them. You just have go through the scan for the hole danger rating thing anyways. Fight your own risk.” Maximum started opening another flask.

D checked his results.

Template Name: Not Registered

Template Description: The ability to awaken the potential in objects.

Template Tier: 6

Aura Level: Not Measured

Aura Purity: Not Measured

Threat Level: Minor – Low

Bart poked his head over D’s shoulder. “What does it say.”

D looked up from the paper to see Bart with sparkling eyes. The contents were somewhat what he was expecting. However, the threat level was new. “I have a Template to awaken the potential in items. It’s tier 6. Nothing I didn’t expect. What about your power?”

Bart smiled and pointed at his chest with his thumb. “I have a unique power.” Bart said nothing else.

Maximum broke the silence. “So, are you two going to fight or what. I want to see some action!”

“Really?” Diana cut. “Weren’t you literally walking away two seconds ago.”

Maximum paused as he started to look around. “Was I? I can’t recall such an event, so it probably didn’t happen. What about their powers. Do they have any cool templates?”

Diana narrowed their eyes as they responded. “You were the one that was operating the Template press, so you should know already.” Diana grabbed the bridge of their nose before letting out a sigh.

“Ah, right. That’s-” Maximum looked around confused. “How did I get here? Oh, Diana, it has been a while.” Maximum took another sip of his flask.

“Is he drunk?” Bart elbowed D while whispering just loud enough for everyone to hear.

“He has been drunk since this morning. This guy has probably been chugging stuff that is definitely not meant for human consumption. However, I haven’t seen him sober for more than a minute in years, so it’s nothing new.” Diana let out a low sigh as they pulled out their phone.

D watched as Maximum started to flail around as he started an argument with Diana. [He didn’t feel drunk when he was talking to me.] “Bart, do you mind helping me train for a bit?”

Bart turned with a serious face. “My fists are only for helping my friends and saving those in need. However, I can make an exception for my second best-friend! Let us make haste!” Bart started to walk towards the center of the arena as he maintained a stoic face.

“What are you doing Bart?”

“Not sure. I saw it a guide. I think it’s for boosting morale or something. I’m still trying to figure it out.”

Maximum watched the two go towards the center of the arena and turned to face Diana. His face was covered by a mischievous grin. “20 credits says that the weird one wins.”

“Seems your gambling addiction is as bad as ever. Sure, I hope you’re ready to part with whatever scraps you have left.”

“Ha, delusional as always. I never lose, for I am the strongest!”

Diana let out an even deeper sigh. “Well, this should be fun if nothing else.”

“Apologies in advance D, but I won’t lose.” Bart raised his fists as he readied himself for a fight. D remained silent as he cracked his neck and did a few stretches. “So, want to ha-”

“BEGIN!” Maximum’s voice echoed throughout the stadium.

D brought his right foot back as he dropped to the floor in a lunging position. His eyes were glowing red. Bart on the other hand, cautiously approached with his hands raised like a boxer. D dashed forward to close the distance once Bart was a meter away. He landed a palm strike on Bart stomach, causing Bart to immediately crumble. D backed off. [Is that it?]

Bart rose to his feet. [I guess I should have expected as much. Oh well. This is where the fun starts!] Bart smiled as he through a right hook that was immediately grabbed. D used Barts momentum to perform a shoulder throw. “Ha?” Bart stared at the clouds above him. “Why am I on the ground?” Bart remained emotionless as his red eyes continued to pierce Bart. Bart rose once more. D took a step back before dashing again. However, Bart was ready. He blocked the straight but ended up getting kneed in the stomach instead. **Cough** Bart spit to the side. A smile was filling his face. “Now this is fun!”

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

Bart took a different fighting stance. His right hand was leading while his left guarded his flank. He also lowered his center of mass as he spread his legs for balance. Steam started to emanate from his body. “Now I’ll show you… The true power of a Shounen Protagonist!” Bart’s body bulged as he increased to double his size. His muscles tore his clothes, leaving a single pair of oversized boxers that seemed to be under his original underwear. Bart started to emanate a purple light. “BEHOLD M-” Before Bart could finish, D landed a right hook on Bart’s chin. Bart then fell to his knees as his body returned to normal.

Bart started falling face first, but D caught him and carried him towards the bleachers.

“So, about my money.”

Maximum was slumped on the ground, pale as a sheet of paper. “How-” Maximum shakily grabbed his phone and tapped the screen.

“Looks like you made another reckless bet. When was the last time you actually managed to earn money when gambling? I thought you leaned more towards ‘S’.” Diana looked at her phone and smiled. Maximum fell forward as he clutched his phone.

D arrived with a Bart on his back. “So, what happened to Max?” D pointed at Maximum using his head.

“Don’t worry, he just fell prey to one of his many addictions. That man is the embodiment of debauchery and over-indulgence. Emphasis on the ‘over’.”

“Dammit, who aims for someone during their transformation? It was a sparring match. Why would you go for a sucker punch!?” Maximum was muttering to himself loudly, completely oblivious to the current situation. The loss of the 20 credits he borrowed from Larry was a massive hit. Maximum looked at his phone again. He clicked on an app with a gold coin on it. He then navigated to his bank account. It was empty. There was nothing. “Hahaha.” That was the final straw.

***

D placed Bart on one of the bleachers, just in time for him to wake up. “What did I miss?”

D pulled out his phone and started fiddling with the settings. “I won.”

Bart jumped from the bleachers as he glared at D. “THAT IS RIGHT! Why did you attack me!? I was in the middle of powering up! That is a violation of the guides’ rules of combat!” Bart’s face was red, but he calmed down after noticing Maximum on the ground. “Wow. It reeks of despair over there.” Bart reached into the boxers, now closer to oversized shorts, and pulled out a cup of ramen. “Here, you probably need this more than me.”

Maximum turned and looked at the ramen. “An…” Maximum paused for a second as he looked at the Raman packet. “AN ANGEL!” Tears were streaming down Maximum’s face.

Bart showed a smug expression as he held his head high. “Fret not. For I bear no hatred in my heart for you vomiting on me. None what so ever.” Bart waved his arm in an exaggerated fashion. “You were mean at first, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be friends. No,-” Bart whipped out a rectangular object from his shorts. “The guides depict many a case of enemies becoming friends over a stern talk and a good meal.” Bart pulled out a kettle and an extra ramen cup. “Now let us praise the guide as we become besties!”

“Praise the guide!” Maximum jumped to his feet and started chanting with Bart. A bit of drool was leaking from his mouth as he eyed the Raman packet.

D looked at Diana with his forehead wrinkled. “What the heck happened.”

“Ha, alcohol can do many things to a man.” Diana squinted a bit. “Actually, I think he was always like this looking back on things. Just eggier most of the time.”

“He was like Bart?” D was confused, but he started to notice a resemblance between the two. At least when it came to their actions.

“No.” Diana watched as both Maximum and Bart started to eat Ramen together. “He is a bit of a psychopath. It’s hard to understand him.” She pause for a bit as her eyes narrowed and her brows wrinkled a bit. “One minute he is buddy buddy with you, the next…” She didn’t finish that sentence. “He is a strange person. Although he is a bit defensive when it comes to children, but it is likely due to his past.”

“What happened.”

Diana ignored D as they started held their chin for a moment. “Actually, he seems like a more mature and less friendly Bart.” They looked to the side for a second as their forehead scrunched further. “With social anxiety, antisocial personality disorder, OCD, and a severe alcohol addiction.” Diana snapped back to D. “Did you say something?”

“I was asking how Maximum ended up like… that.” Maximum pointed at Maximum eating noodles with absolute bliss.

Diana followed D’s finger and looked back to D. “A lifetime of bad choices and a shit ton of trauma. Although he ‘seems’ better than when I first met him.”

“You mean that he was worse than he is now?”

“Surprisingly, yes.” Diana’s expression seemed to lighten a bit. “Larry is quite a strange person. He was always hanging around the gloomy alcoholic. Before Maximum met Larry, he would kill at the drop of the hat. One day he met Larry and the two became friends somehow. Next, I was dragged into the mix and we were just grouped together all the time.” Diana let out a long sigh as they looked at Maximum. Their eyes carried an untold weight in them. “Time really does change people.” Diana’s expression grew a bit darker.

Diana started staring off into the distance, ignoring D. . “I remember the day we first met like it was yesterday. It was a shitty day.”

***

< FLASHBACK – I thought this was better than telling it through word of mouth, but I will leave that for the pole below. Cast your opinions below or go unheard. I could have and nearly did write it out. However, I believe show don’t tell takes precedence. >

“Come on Maximum! We have to go see the movie opening night!”

“For the last time, I’m not going to a soap opera.”

Maximum and Larry were walking down a hallway. Larry was trailing behind Maximum holding his phone to the back of Maximum’s face. However, Maximum dashed to the other side of the hallway before Larry could even notice. “Come on, you have not eve-”

“Kya!” A blonde girl rounded a corner at an extreme pace, knocking Larry to the ground a few feet away. “Sorr-” The girl’s eyes widened as she stared at Larry.

“Hey!” Maximum tried to get the girl’s attention to no avail.

Larry laid on the floor with spirals in his eyes. The girl finally snapped out her stupor and began to panic. “What should I do? This is awful! I have to take him to the nurse’s office immediately. Ah.” The girl finally noticed Maximum and turned to greet him. “Hello, I’m-”

“MOVIES!” Larry shakily jumped to his feet, only to notice a tower before him.

“YES!” The jumped with joy as her cheeks flushed. Maximum was watching the display with indifference.

Larry on the other hand was stunned. Instead of Maximum, a 9-foot-tall woman was standing before him. “Um.”

“Ah, first we’ll go to the movies, then we’ll-KYA” The woman continued as Larry looked to Maximum for help.

“Sorry Larry, something really important came up.” Maximum walked away giving a parting wave without turning around.

“Wait! Maximum!” Larry gave one last desperate plea, before Maximum rounded a corner in a rather quick maneuver.

The giant woman looked at Larry with a slight blush. Sorry about earlier. Ah! Where are my manners? My name is Diana. It is so great to meet you.”

Larry stared at Diana for a few seconds. One of his eyes was twitching as he struggled to form a smile. “Larry. Likewise.” Larry’s tone was as colorful as a blank sheet of printer paper.

Diana grabbed Larry's hand with a giant smile. [This is great! This is love at first sight.] Diana never noticed the pain that covered Larry’s face as he nearly crumbled to his knees.