Inside the sleeping Balto, Vita is raging through some cells.
'God damn it all, why the fuck can't I mess with the genes more?! The grass on the back of the wolf is working perfectly, and the upgraded skeleton works too. Then why the hell can't I do anything with the goblin genes? It can't be a problem with genetics, because there are plant cells existing in harmony with the animal cells, so why can't the goblin DNA go together with the wolf DNA? It's not like I dont know how, but this!'
The two test cells in front of Vita, one goblin and one wolf, got closer and closer to each other. When the cells touched, Vita stepped in between the two and opening them up. Some of the plasma inside the cells leaked out, but Vita didnt care as he took some chromosomes and started to fuse them together. But right before he manages to swap the genes between the two chromosomes, a strange glow appears and destroys the two genes. At the same time, the two cells melts away into useless protein, leaving a pissed Vita all alone.
'Fuck! What is that! It showed up when I was stuck inside the horned rabbit, and now it shows up when I do this. It doesnt make sense for it to glow like that. Sure, cells do normally kill themselves whenever they detect that they might turn into cancer cells. Cells committing suicide is expected, but why do they glow? Maybe it's like a weird magical law, like gravity and electricity?'
Vita tried to think harder about it, but being something that shouldnt exist in the first place, Vita stopped worrying about it and closed the opening on a ball-shaped piece of bone. The bone ball isnt connected to any other bones like in a normal skeleton, but is connected to Vita's own form. Inside, there is a big number of cells. But not wolf cells or other bone cells, but cells of everything Vita has ever gotten in contact too. The original plant cells from the time Vita were small and fragile. The horned rabbit cells, the armored rat cells, goblin cells and even the cells from the abomination elk that didnt die or turn into bone. Also, that weird root that would've paralyzed Balto was in there too, Vita didnt really know why the wolf would've eaten something like that. The network of tendrils that are made out of Vita's body is keeping the metabolism of those cells as close to death as possible to make sure that cell division wouldnt be possible. Vita had a smug feeling of superiority and went back to maintaining Balto's body.
For the first time in a long time, Balto didnt have any nightmares. Despite the annoying little hole he was sleeping in, it didnt matter much because of the amazing sleep he got. That root did its job well. The sun has already risen a long time ago, and Balto knew that he has slept well because of that. There wasnt any animals in the area, but some bugs could be seen crawling up trees.
Getting out of the hole, Balto started to stretch after a good shake. Balto could hear his bones crack in a good way, and his muscles felt good. 'I havent felt this good in so long, I should thank Ulva for that.' Balto started walking towards the place the where the tree stump was. As he was making his way over, Ulva got slowly got out from the tree stump and started to stretch.
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"Good morning Ulva! It was Ulva, right? Either way, thanks for that root. I really helped." said to her as he walked past. Ulva didnt see Balto when she got out from the tree stump, but hearing Balto from out of nowhere, she immediately locked her eyes on Balto's back.
"Hey, did you eat the root I gave you?" Balto stopped and thought about for a second before answering the question.
"Yeah, it tasted funny. I still ate it." Balto didnt waste much time before moving towards the opening where Duke was. Ulva didnt really know what to think, but followed after Balto just to make sure in case he suddenly started to melt or something worse.
In the clearing, Radolf and Beowul were talking with Duke. Duke hasnt really gotten up from his sleeping position and seeing Balto, he only raised his upper body.
"Good morning Balto, did you sleep well?" Duke asks as Radolf turns to look at Balto. Beowul didnt even bother to do anything.
"Yeah, that root Ulva gave me really helped." Balto was much more comfortable with the small group of dire wolves. Why? Because Balto isnt the smartest.
"That is good to hear. You woke up just on time, too. Beowul and Radolf here told me that you were attacking some goblins, even trying to headbutt a tree. Correct?" At this point, Balto didnt really care about the headbutting thing. Beowul must've thought it was funny, because he was snickering a bit for himself before stopping.
"Well, it seemed like the thing to do." Balto ignored the little snicker from Beowul. Duke nodded and continued.
"Well, Balto, those goblins are a problem. There were originally more members in our clan, but then the goblins showed up."
Duke then explained everything. The Gavir clan didnt originally live in the forest, but in a massive cave. Big enough for at least a dozen or more dire wolves to live in. At first, there were only one or two goblins that showed up in the area where we used to live. They were easy enough to get rid of. But the problem with goblins is that they always come in numbers. If the first couple of goblins won't work, the numbers increase. From a few to a dozen. The Gavin clan managed to survive for months, but they were forced to move when the goblins boss showed up together with its elite. The goblins were the under the banner of an ogre. Massive, with enough strength to kill three dire wolves with one swing with its club.
"The only reason we survived was because we were looking for Fridolf, Radolf's mother." Duke nods at Radolf, who was a little down after the story, but immediately brightened up after being mentioned.
"Oh right! You havent met my mother yet. She is super smart! Smarter than me!" Radolf was now walking around Balto in excitement.
"Before you go to meet Radolf's mother, there is something I want to know." Duke got up to his full size, dwarfing both Radolf and Beowul. Even if they are just as big as each other, Duke felt bigger because of the air surrounding him.
"Balto, will you help us in reclaiming our birthplace?" Duke asked. As the words left his mouth, Beowul's and Radolfs eyes went wide, both with different emotions. Balto didnt seem to notice the faces on the other two and simply said.
"Sure why not? But I wanna met Radolf's super smart mother." Balto said with a dumb smile on his face.