Theo and his friends stopped their activities when they heard a mental communication directed at everyone, "Everyone, gather on the stone platform. The selection has finished, and a general from the army is about to arrive. I haven't been told who it is, but we will find out shortly. Move immediately." The five creatures looked at each other and slowly walked out of their favorite tunnels, curiosity fueling their steps.
Theo, specifically, was jittering with his alligator tail, swinging it side to side, making sure not to hit anyone. I hope they're kind of like Examiner Dripsworth. I want to see what a really powerful monster looks like! thought to himself. He tried moving his head to the side, noticing how difficult it was while in the alligator's form. Growling, Theo shifted to a more versatile form, settling on the mantis-ant hybrid.
Mantis ant... Antis Mantis? Nice.
Transforming into an Antis Mantis, which took less than five minutes, Theo looked to his right side, finding Zilch silently slithering.
"What do you think the general is going to be like?" Asked the shapeshifter.
"I don't know. I just hope they don't kill us." Replied the worm worriedly.
"Why would they kill us? It's not like we stole anything from them, right?"
"I've heard many things about generals, and most of them weren't good. One of them decimated an entire unit simply because they were bored. Do you understand, Theo?"
The Antis recoiled back while replying, "Of course I understand. I am a genius so why would I not understand something? This general killed their allies just because they were bored. What about it?"
Zilch looked at Theo, once again searching for any indication that the shapeshifter had been sarcastic. "They, they could kill us, Theo! For no reason! And we couldn't do anything about it!"
"Calm down, I'll make sure they don't kill us. And even if they do, it just means we weren't strong enough to survive. Is that cool with you?"
"I-I guess. Yeah."
The group continued toward the platform, finding it crowded by nineteen monsters including the Major and the Examiners. Theo could see some familiar faces, such as the bamboo samurai and the three hobgoblins, meaning that they had passed the selection. The crowd was split into two columns at each side of the circular structure, leaving the middle part open, resembling a celebrity walkthrough.
Ah, is this the same thing happening? Strong monsters and people would be the equivalent of celebrities, here.
Fuoco instructed them on where to stand, dividing the two columns into exactly twelve monsters each. The Major and the Examiners stood farther away from the stairs, closer to the edge. Theo moved to the side of the bamboo samurai, who was crossing its arms with its eyes closed, unmoving. The shapeshifter initiated a mental connection with the plant monster, which got accepted soon after with a slight hint of annoyance.
"Hey bamboo buddy, how's the sunlight?"
"Hmm?" Replied the sword-wielding warrior in confusion.
Oh right, there's no sun here. I can still sense photons from the black hole, so that's why plants don't starve, and also why the planet isn't dark, just in a state of constant twilight.
"It was a way to ask how your day was."
"Why would you care?"
"Because I am bored. What else am I supposed to do here while we wait for the almighty general or whatever? If I had thumbs I would twiddle them, but as you can see, I don't have any,"
Wait. I'm a shapeshifter!
Theo then added two human-like hands on top of his mantis forelegs, getting them close and twiddling his thumbs.
"Never mind, I managed it."
The samurai moved its head away, ignoring the shapeshifter.
"Do you have thumbs?" Asked Prometheus. The plant raised one hand, showing its thumb and fingers, dexterously wiggling them. It then rested that hand on the pommel of its sword, ready to use it at a moment's notice.
"I would recommend you stop ignoring me so easily." threatened Theo, moving to face the samurai directly. The latter stepped back slightly, rotating its body to look at the Antis monster, before replying, "Or what?"
Prometheus nodded and hummed, replying, "You might regret it. You like living, don't you?" I missed my villain persona! thought Theo to himself. The boredom and lack of orders bothered him to no end, so his solution simply involved bothering someone else in return, getting enjoyment out of it. Influence moved from the samurai's Soul around its body, energies swirling like a tempest ready to receive a command.
"I don't think I would regret it, no. Let's pretend that you didn't just threaten me, so no one gets hurt. How does that sound?" Replied the bamboo monster while its Influence moved to its sword and arms, waiting like an ambush predator.
"You can't hurt me, unfortunately. But sure, we can ignore my 'threat' and talk about something else. What's your favorite color?"
"What?"
"I don't see any problem in the mental connection spell, so what is it that you don't understand?"
After a brief pause, the bamboo continued, dropping into a more relaxed stance, "Nevermind."
"What do you mean 'never mind'? You still have to tell me what your favorite color is." Insisted the shapeshifter, not letting the monster rest for a single minute. Meanwhile, Major Fuoco was talking with Examiner Dripsworth, and by the looks of their faces, it wasn't any casual conversation. Focusing on the two monsters, he broke the mental connection spell with the samurai and moved it toward Major Fuoco, hoping to understand why they were all so serious. The snake furiously moved his head to glance at Theo with flaming eyes, literally. The Major must be excited to talk to me!, thought Prometheus thought to himself. The old reptile grasped Theo's mental connection spell and started, "WHAT DO YOU WANT, YOU ANNOYING LITTLE SHIT?! CAN'T YOU SEE WE ARE ALL BUSY?"
"Aren't we all just waiting around?" Asked the shapeshifter innocently. Fuoco must have appreciated the observation from Prometheus as he slithered toward the smaller monster and snaked his tail around the Antis Mantis. He is even hugging me! I must have misunderstood Major Fuoco's personality, he has a kindhearted and warm nature!
The flaming monster moved to the edge of the clearing, lifting Theo in the air. He is showing how much he loves me to everyone else! Yes, I love the glory! But isn't he squeezing a little to ti-, Before Theo could finish the sentence, he found himself soaring through the sky, hundreds of meters above the platform. The shapeshifter immediately stabilized himself with his wings, looking down to find Major Fuoco breathing heavily and returning to his old spot to talk to Dripsworth. Not having suffered any significant damage, Prometheus slowly glided toward the platform, reaching it in half a minute. Most monsters present seemed to glare at him, truly jealous of Theo's power! That was the reason, he was sure.
Before he could bother his favorite samurai once again, a loud mental communication arrived at everyone present, surprising the crowd. "Everyone, General Espanto is arriving in a couple of moments. Bow deeply if you care for your life!" Finished Dripsworth with a trace of fear.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Prometheus looked around, expecting to find a portal appearing somewhere near them. His expectations were obliterated when a high-pitched sound came from above, accompanied by a dot in the distance. The Major moved many Influence tendrils below each monster, holding onto them and making sure they were firmly attached to the platform. A brief exchange between the flaming monster and the Hedgeraptor was all that transpired before an object flew toward the center of the platform. Speeding his mind up to the maximum, Theo could see what it was: A pod-shaped object the size of a car covered by roots and leaves became everyone's center of attention. Not a millisecond later, it collided with the stone platform which had a new hole in it with arm-like protrusions designed to catch the pod. The impact shook the structure, making everyone stumble, but not fall, thanks to the Major's Influence. After a couple of seconds passed while the tremors subsided, Theo could observe the pod much better. It bore a striking resemblance to a cocoa pod, only thicker and covered by large tree roots covering it completely. Leaves sprouted from random spots on its surface, fluttering in the calm wind.
Gasps could be heard all around the platform as the pod unsealed, releasing an angry hiss from the air escaping it. One side of it moved up enough to reveal what was hiding inside, which looked like a random jumble of roots and leaves, just like the exterior. When it began to move it showed the exact opposite: Expanding its body out of the pod, a humanoid figure only in silhouette formed, revealing a three-meter-tall creature. It had a green crystalline core on its chest, which seemed like the starting point for all roots as they moved and formed its limbs. The head wasn't in the shape of a typical mammalian skull, as it resembled a coralline structure with many appendages, each holding a smaller version of the same crystal in each tip. A beard made of foliage dropped to its neck, giving it a wise and old appearance. Using his Supernality sense, Theo could observe the general's Soul, and it was astonishing. If Fuoco's Soul compared to an electric torch, the general's would be an industrial-level high-power spotlight. The shapeshifter had to avert his Supernality sense away as it was distressing, like using it on the black hole.
The monster glanced at Fuoco and exchanged some information privately, probably discussing important matters. The Major's influence was still holding every monster from below to make sure they didn't move from their spots, limiting their mobility and freedom. Prometheus did NOT enjoy that fact. Trying to break the snake's influence proved fruitless, as Theo couldn't even move it, much less affect it in any way.
Glancing at his side, he noticed the samurai swiftly imbuing its blade with Influence before severing the Major's grasp on the warrior. The Major had clearly felt it but was too busy discussing with the newly arrived general to care. Theo had a great idea in mind which would free him from the shackles of the tyrannical reptile!
"Hey man, can you help me out? I hate the feeling of being restricted by someone else." Asked Theo as gently as he could. After all, the samurai had become Theo's friend, at least from the shapeshifter's point of view, so asking for such a small favor had been trivial.
"No." Replied the bamboo warrior promptly, not even bothering to look Theo in the eyes.
"I have something that might interest you if you're willing to listen to me." Tempted Theo with his incredible negotiation skills, completely confident in the success of his words.
"Not interested." Replied the silent monster while keeping the same calm and nonchalant posture.
"You're not interested in getting stronger?"
Silence dominated the mental connection, making Theo briefly think the spell had malfunctioned. Thankfully, the other monster replied, "How can you make me stronger? I don't want any monster cores or techniques."
"None of that. I have a special gift, you see? I can make anyone's body much better without the Hacker's intervention or anything related to the Soul. You just have to undergo a one-hour procedure and the effects will show themselves in around... a couple of days. How does that sound?"
"Can you do it right now?" Asked the bamboo monster suspiciously.
"I could, but with the Major and the General here, I can't gather the biomass necessary for the procedure. Other than that, you can ask for any improvements and I'll make sure I give you anything that's not impossible."
"Are you willing to swear a Soul Oath on that?"
A Soul Oath? Sounds ominous, but I really want this Influence shackle gone so I'll do it, thought the shapeshifter before replying, "Sure."
The samurai sat down with its legs crossed in front of Theo, showing an air of absolute calm and tranquility. Its Influence moved from its Soul to Theo's one, creating a stable and firm connection. The samurai's next words seemed to shake the air, deeply worrying the monsters next to them.
"I, Sayuri Kizuna, swear on my life that I will obey the following terms, without any intent of malice and manipulation. First, I will free the other party from the Influence shackle from Major Fuoco, and in return, he will grant me body improvements to the limit of his ability with the intent of making me stronger. Is that reasonable?"
"I, Prometheus, swear on my life to follow the conditions listed by Sayuri Kizuna and provide genetic improvements to the limit of my ability. In return, I will get freed from this shackle."
Just as Theo's words ended, their souls shook momentarily, settling into their usual calmness just seconds later. The bamboo samurai, who Theo just discovered was a girl named Sayuri, nodded and immediately cut through Fuoco's Influence. The shapeshifter, happy to finally be able to move, immediately ran toward the general's front, interrupting their conversation with Major Fuoco. Before the Examiners or the flaming snake could stop him, he sent a mental connection to the General, who surprisingly accepted without hesitation.
"Hello, my name is Prometheus. I want to be stronger, so you will be my mentor," said Theo as fast as possible before Examiner Rocktooth tackled him out of the platform, making the two of them fly to the ground. The Hedgeraptor grabbed the Antis by the neck and growled deeply, his neck veins bulging in Theo's face. his claws easily cut through his metallic blue exoskeleton like it was scissors going through paper.
"Are you even more insane than I thought?! You don't only have shit for brains, you also lack basic survival instincts! You are gonna be the DOOM of us, RETARD!"
"Heh, I already asked him. Too late to shout at me, Examiner."
Before the furious Examiner could continue, General Espanto appeared behind Rocktoth, laying a bundle of roots resembling a hand on his shoulder, creating a mental connection between the three, "You're Examiner Rocktooth, correct?"
The Hegderaptor turned around and immediately dropped to one knee, head lowered to the ground. A monster with the appearance of a raptor doing such a thing was strange to watch.
"Correct, General!"
"This one is just a new candidate, you shouldn't be so harsh on him. He has a good spirit, that's all the army needs. Rest easy, Examiner."
Rocktooth visibly relaxed, nodding.
"Of course, sir."
"As for you..."
The General walked over to Prometheus who was still recovering from the Examiner's blow. He easily got up and locked his gaze on the General's eye stalks. He has so many eyes, if those are eyes at all. Which one should I even look at? I'll just choose at random.
"You said you wanted me to be your mentor?" Asked the General with the most neutral voice Theo had ever heard in his life.
"Yes. I am very strong now, but not enough to protect the people I need to protect."
The General hummed loudly, stroking his beard with one hand. His eye stalks each moved independently to look at Theo from multiple angles, judging him.
"Getting an apprentice after so many years of stalled progress might be worthwhile...First, show me what you can do."
"My main strength is my shapeshifting, which means I can take any form," Theo then demonstrated by shifting into various animals, choosing all mammals so the transformations wouldn't take too long. All in all, the General waited patiently for fifteen minutes for Theo to finish his demonstration before continuing, "Very intriguing. You are not using any Soul technique or ability to do that, which is unusual. Is it a power that came from a Trigger?"
"No, it is all me and my biological mastery over my own flesh!" Exclaimed Theo loudly, nodding at his own awesomeness. The General must have been impressed by Theo's, because he nodded, thinking deeply.
"What techniques do you know?"
"I know the [Mental Connection] technique and one I invented yesterday."
"Oh? You made a new Soul Technique? Are you sure that it's not a Soul ability?"
"What's the difference?" Asked the shapeshifter, finally having someone willing to tell him. The Examiners and the Major always said they were too busy to tell him, so he was ecstatic.
"Mmm... This has been the subject of many debates, but I believe that a Technique has little to no conditions to be used, other than its tier obviously. An ability is something an individual creates to suit his personal needs and often is tailored to his personality with many conditions. Also, they differ in complexity, such as the [Mental Connection] technique being one of the easiest and simplest techniques ever invented. There's another dividing factor: Creating a new ability or technique takes incredible amounts of effort and practice, as well as time. Creating an ability without conditions would make it weaker, so almost everyone chooses to learn Techniques from someone else, and creates an ability or two independently for their own needs. Now, would you call it a technique or an ability?"
"I think it's a Technique. It's just about using Influence to make my transformations faster and more efficient."
"Amazing...Techniques that enhance the body are really complex and risky to pull off, unless you know your body really well. I am impressed, Prometheus. Can you show me your Status?"
"Thank you, General, you must have a great eye for talent. How can I share my status?"
"Just think about sending me that page of information."
Theo did that, and was surprised when he received a notification from the Hacker;
Share system information with 'General Espanto'?
He accepted mentally, feeling nothing changed. The root monster clearly did, judging by the fact that his eye stalks were looking at something in front of him, probably the 'system info'.
"How old are you, Theo?"
"If you're asking how long I've existed on this world, less than a week, General."
"That explains it. Your Stats are pitiful. Your skills are unusual, but nothing outstanding. Your trait, on the other hand... How did you manage to get it? Let me rephrase; How did you manage to get hit by a Tribulation at all? Those freaks of nature strike very specific individuals, and even I don't know exactly why they do."
"I was just thinking about things from where I come from."
"Hmm, understood. Well, the fact that you're immune to those is splendid. I bet you could even weaponize Tribulations if you managed to summon them consistently."
Theo added the General's idea to his database, hoping to use it as a fight occurred. Choosing the tree monster as his mentor was definitely the right choice. The monster in question sat on a throne made of wood, which erupted from the ground, and thought. The General didn't move a single millimeter, which worried Theo slightly. He could feel nothing coming through the mental connection, so he waited. A couple of minutes later, the monster sat up from his throne, and announced, "Prometheus. You will accompany to the enemy's base to rescue the Doctor and his children. If you survive, and most importantly impress me, I'll take you on as an apprentice. In return, you'll do some small favors for me when we're done. Is that clear?"
"Fine by me, General. When are we going?"
"Tomorrow. I need to gather strength, as our enemies aren't pushovers. I've done some research on them, and I won't be able to obliterate them head-on, not easily at least. You should get rid of the Digging and Stonemasonry skills unless you want to specialize in craftsmanship, which you don't strike me as the type that does. There is a maximum amount of skills you can have at one time, so it's better to have skills that have good synergy."
"Okay, I'll delete them now."
A thought was enough to prompt a notification from the Hacker;
Do you wish to remove Low-rank Digging and Low-rank Stonemasonry? Warning: Removing skills makes obtaining them again much harder.
He confirmed, and the two skills disappeared from his status. Theo felt a slight regret from the decision, but remembered that he had barely used them, so it wasn't a massive loss. Seeing that the General had sat down on the throne once again, he moved to the platform to annoy his favorite samurai once again.