Doctor Ivan Decanov stepped towards the inert pile of black sludge that had once been two monsters attempting to kidnap him emotionlessly. He bent his back to study the mass a little closer, trying to discern traits leftover from the entities they used to be.

"You did quite the number on them."

Still acting as Silhouette, James approached the doctor after ending the dramatic horror scene he had set. No more mist or strange apparitions haunted the warehouse, only the two strange men and what remained of the victims of their scheme.

"I hope witnessing the Transformation Aspect firsthand wasn't too distressing."

"Bah, I may have never seen the process on living beings but I've been experimenting with your crystals for a little while now. The elemental appears to be new, though. Much like the dreadful atmosphere. I have to admit, even I was caught off-guard by that one."

"I picked up on the trick some time ago, but my sessions with Mesker had drastically improved my usage."

"Ah, right, the wizard. That's still quite the upgrade in just a few days of learning."

"Let's simply say our dear demonologist doesn't take teaching lightly."

The robot scoffed.

"That's the bare minimum. I'm more impressed his lessons were effective on one such as you."

"I suppose I have a strong Soul."

"Hmf. In any case, for future reference, I'd rather not be bait for your plans in the future."

"I'm genuinely sorry, doctor. I'll try to avoid the practice when possible. However, you understand the situation."

"Yes, yes. The Hivines sent spies, they stumbled on your rat guards, and you wanted them silenced."

"It's not the rats that worried me, though Mischief losing the element of surprise would be a bother. It's what Polisson did."

"Ah, you did mention something about that marked business. I suppose then his claw is capable of spreading your influence?"

"Yes, and it's a discovery I'd rather keep quiet. I know you said that me having this Aspect would get out eventually, but it'd be best if the ways it's spread stay discreet."

The robot nodded.

"Yes, it would be best to keep them in the dark, as it were."

James had to take a few seconds to register the moment.

"Was that a pun, doctor? I didn't think you had it in you."

"Moving on, how long did you know of those two clowns?"

James could see the scientist was trying to change the subject. It was blatant. But honestly? He figured the man deserved his wishes to be respected. Decanov seemed quite fond of banter on some days, but that didn't mean he had to entertain James whenever they met. Besides, James had a feeling the man simply struggled to handle his feelings and used this cold facade as a shield.

Or maybe he genuinely was a prick with the occasional sense of humor. Either way, he earned it.

"Not long, in truth. I was actually just coming back from a meeting with Mesker when Mischief came to warn me of an ongoing altercation. I gave them orders to lead the intruders to a specific spot, called you to go there and perform our little act before luring them here as I hurried to ascend as well, and voilà. Had I still been down there, they likely would have gotten away."

"Don't be so sure. Even with the security system disabled as it is now, if all went well and I had seriously been trying to take them down, I could have corrupted the larger one and ordered it to take out the smaller one. She seemed more than capable of catching him."

"Perhaps. Maybe he would have fled. Maybe she would have resisted long enough to attack you. In this sort of situation, I prefer to go for overkill."

"You won't always be there, Silhouette. You can't be everywhere at once."

"That, Doctor, is a problem I aim to solve."

James formed a tentacle to poke the pile of sludge, sending the whole thing wobbling. Each wobble and bobble saw the mass change, slimming down as it reshaped itself.

"Umph. So it wasn't that your powers melted them, but rather that they were flesh blobs to begin with. Not overly surprising for the Hivines."

"What intrigues me is how seamlessly they fused. The fact only one of them was marked but both bore the burden when they arrived, along with the fact they looked different according to Mischief, leads me to believe those weren't truly siblings. Not in a biological sense."

"A single entity splitting itself both in body and mind? Not impossible, but I question the utility in this case. The advantage of such an ability would be to spread the resulting parts, why bother sending two when they could fuse into one? The inflated one barely did anything, the crab could have used his resources to upgrade herself."

"Restrictions in the way they work, perhaps. What worries me is how aware of one another they are. If there's more of this split entity out there, is it aware of what happened to these two?"

"Yes, I do believe this would be worth investigating. Perhaps you should have left one of them unharmed to judge its reactions to the other's demise?"

"Perhaps. I still think there would have been too high of a risk the survivor fled, but I can't deny it would have been an opportunity to learn more. Still, what I gathered is already enough."

The robot raised one of his prominent rectangular eyebrows.

"Could you elaborate on that?"

"There was no resistance to my infusion, at least nothing outside of the norm. This either indicates they weren't affected by the Transformation Aspect or that my version of it was much more powerful than the hypothetical one they had."

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"I see. Do not start underestimating these lunatics because of that."

"Of course. Not everyone working for me has been touched by my shadows. It's more than probable that if this Biflora has a similarly corruptive power the same would be true for him. But wouldn't you agree it's the sort of ability you'd expect from those creatures? If they weren't made with Transformation, then how?"

The scientist tapped his square chin with his cubic fingertip, making a light clinging sound.

"The Hivines are a troublesome lot, but they also know how to keep secrets. The fact everyone in the underworld treats them like the Villainous group they are despite yet not having the title officially is proof of that. Technology is out of the question. Those demented tree huggers treat anything made after the Stone Age like poison. You'd figure they'd welcome genetically engineered lifeforms."

"They don't?"

"Well, yes, but they also have other robots among them. Those are not true members of the group. They're cattle, infiltrated agents, their guarantee that the Hero Union will never nuke them. The true Hivines are not the adoring masses but rather the shepherds among them. Those are the ones that will never allow beings of science into their ranks, not unless the Biflora himself steps in to reward and promote a particularly competent worshipper."

"You're quite informed."

"One of my siblings had the bright idea to join them. That idiot did so well at a job the leader came out of his hole for the congratulations."

"Are they well?"

"Oh, they're still alive. A little rusty and covered in moss, but functional. Their attempts at recruiting us by sharing their stories make for useful intel once you learn to distill the propaganda."

"I hope they'll over the indoctrination. Now, you were saying?"

"Right, right. Not technology. Magic isn't my forte but it seems unlikely as well. It's well known whatever the Biflora does isn't magic. The city's druids are unnerved by what he does. It's an open secret the Hivines create problems the druids can't fix for some reason but the cult can and does to further their reputation."

"It could be some sort of forbidden spell. My last time meeting a demon revealed they didn't operate on the same rules we do."

"As I've said, I'm a man of science, not one of those sticks and fingers wigglers. Perhaps it's demonic rituals at play, I wouldn't know. Did the two feel otherworldly?"

"No, not really. They felt no different than anyone else so far."

"So, once again, magic is unlikely. It only leaves two or three options."

"Two or three?"

"It depends on how you wish it categorize them. Option number one, this is a natural mutation of sorts."

"Either a spontaneous one or the result of generational evolution like the one of the unicorns we discussed in the past."

"Exactly. If the latter is the case, we might be able to discover more if we can correctly identify the species."

"And your last two-in-one option?"

"Otherworldly intervention."

"Elaborate."

"This is why I further broke it into two. One, this is a god's work. Two, this is the touch of something from elsewhere, another realm, an alien planet, or possibly another eldritch creature. It would explain the wanderer that came after you. It could have slipped in when the others came or left."

"The eldritch hypothesis doesn't work. Mesker assured me the Nightsnatcher snuck in alone. I also didn't feel anything like that on them."

"What of the divine one? Or the other realms?"

"I'm afraid I don't know. The same goes for the alien theory."

"Well, knowing you do not know is good enough. Either way, no matter which of these ideas is correct, it would be better than the Transformation Aspect."

"Even a god?"

"Deities have rules they must follow. If they could do as they pleased science as a whole would be pointless. As omnipotent as they like to pretend to be, they are in the end just another form of existence, not the great architects of creation they present themselves as."

James hummed in acknowledgment. If one of the smartest people in the people thought they were better off fighting a god than someone with corruptive powers, he was inclined to trust him.

To be fair, it also fitted in with what he had gathered from his research about this world. Captain Cyan, his kids' favorite show that just so happened to be historically accurate despite its campiness, did feature multiple divine characters that were knocked around just as much as other regulars of the show. Prometheus had been enough of a threat to be a two-parter, but he wasn't the only one to show up. Well, to be entirely accurate Prometheus wasn't truly a god either, but he was close enough to one to draw the comparison.

The pile of recently infused flesh hadn't been idle while the two men discussed. It had finished the last steps of its transformation, turning from a singular pulsing mass to two quiet copies of Silhouette. Not perfect ones though. Solvent was much closer to James and still wasn't fully accurate. It couldn't turn into a gaseous or a fully immaterial form and that black skeleton in the middle restricted how heavily it could alter itself.

These two newcomers were even more restricted, James could feel it. First off, they were made of meat. That might sound bizarre, but it was truly a limitation. Where Solvent was a slime with an oversized solid core, those were closer to slugs. They did have tentacles hidden inside, ready to be released, but they could only come out of specific hidden slits on the body. Not to mention that those were physical appendages, if cut they couldn't be regrown without reclaiming the lost body mass firsthand and their weight was fixed.

That last point was likely the reason why the copies were at least a head taller than James' version of Silhouette, a shape that was already a head taller than the average person. There had been a lot of combined flesh, but only two minds to make use of it, and given Silhouette's general slimness aside from the wide shoulders and the tentacles, the result was those two towering figures. James could already tell those would do poorly in a fight compared to Solvent and himself. Well, they'd probably be more than able to take down mundane people, even ones armed with regular guns, but anything at the level of a former Runarian Knight would beat them with ease, whereas Solvent could likely beat the lot of them by now. It didn't sit around menacingly and silently for nothing.

"I'm guessing one of those will be permanently stationed here?"

"I'm not sure. This area is the most at risk currently, so I'd rather send them to already secured locations while I stay here."

"Oh, how thoughtful of you. Why, I had no idea you were so worried over me."

The scientist's deadpan stare revealed his true feelings much more accurately than his words.

"No one is stopping you from making some protective gear from yourself. I could also permanently dispatch an Infused or two to serve as bodyguards."

"Because being surrounded by dark and gloomy guards wouldn't be suspicious. Of course."

"I could also have Mischief monitor you. They're not quite perfect on the surface yet, but they pride themself on their discretion."

"Ah yes, rodents, the perfect security force. Sadly I may have to accept your offer. They are better than nothing, and I can't afford to be careless when someone else is at home."

James nodded.

"I'll inform them right away."

Without any further thing being said, the two former cultists made their way out, relying a lot on their bottom tentacles and using them to walk, hidden underneath the cloak of black flesh that simulated Silhouette's singular foot, instead of James and Solvent's natural smooth movement.

"Yes, they'll fail to convince anyone perceptive enough that has met or researched you. You should ideally keep them standing without moving."

"Like glorified scarecrows with speakers. Unfortunately, you're correct."

"Of course, when am I not? On that note, I'll be taking my leave. If I get home too late Adam might get worried. Farewell, Silhouette."

The scientist walked ahead without waiting for James' response, following after the two flesh copies as they squelched through the doorway. James was tempted to call out to the man and ask him to wait for Mischief to finalize their preparations, having already sent a quick short message to Polisson through their bond. Ultimately, he figured this would make for a nice test for the rats. He ordered his new avatars to head off to warn the rodents already present in the facility before going down to the sewers as he let himself become one with the ambient darkness, quickly hiding away in the doctor's shadow.

Would the rats be able to catch up to the man and stay hidden, or would they be discovered or be too late to solve any arising problem?

It was time to see if those on the surface were as ready for an emergency as those in the tunnels beneath.