Calvin stretched his arms wide, his bones cracking in sequence.
"OK!," he panted. "You think you can beat me now?"
He bounced on the platform like a boxer, fists clenched, his reddish-pink hair flowing behind him, his headband tied tight like a ninja. "I will show ya. I will show you what I'm capable of."
He boosted forward. "Yaaah!"
BOOM!
His face slammed into her elbow. She hadn't moved; she just lowered her arm as Calvin fell.
THUD!
He hit the ground. "T-That was a mistake," Calvin groaned.
Tracy sighed. "You're still a new hunter. No rush."
Her voice was low and bored. She turned and walked away. Calvin watched her from his knees, her yellow hair catching the light.
Shit!
He pounded his fist against the floor. Minutes later, Calvin sat on the basement stairs, sighed, and blinked. His blue screen appeared:
[Beast Soul / Biogenes]
[N/A / 7]
[5 Speed Biogenes. 2 Speed Biogenes. Strength: N/A. Intel: N/A. Mutated: N/A.]
"Damn," he muttered. He dropped his head, grumbling under his breath like a kid. Then, he heard something—muffled noises, rising and falling. He stood up and followed the sound.
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
It took him a while to find the source. A guy his age sat on a bench in a black hoodie and joggers, hair pulled back, holding a headset and turning it over in his hands. The person was brown-skinned. Calvin walked closer and stared for a moment.
"Hey. What are you doing?"
Kael paused and raised his head. "Fixing it."
He went back to work. Calvin shook his head.
"Do you think that'll work? That's my youngest brother's headset."
He reached over and grabbed it from Kael's hand. He resized it, folded it, powered it on, tapped a button, powered it off, and tapped again. The headset enlarged and powered on, loading up. Kael watched him.
Calvin licked his lips. "Here."
He handed it back. Kael placed it on his head. His neck chip glowed. A green screen displayed. He smiled, removed the headset, hung it around his neck, and stood up.
"How much do you want in return?"
Calvin looked at him. "Huh? Did I ever tell you I need your money?" His voice got louder. "I only need thanks. Simple."
Kael looked at him, stepped closer, and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Thanks."
He muttered it, faked a warm smile, and walked away. Calvin watched him go.
"Hey!" He walked after him, smiling. "I've never seen your face here. Are you a new hunter?"
"Guess so," Kael said.
"Whoa. Seems I'm not alone anymore." Calvin grinned.
Kael kept walking.
"Bro," Calvin called after him. "We're all going to Mystical Eraland tomorrow. It's going to be dangerous. Be careful."
"Hmmm," Kael nodded.
Hours passed. The spaceship's main hall filled with hunters. They clustered in groups as the ship boosted through space. Every gang had its leader; half the hunters were of the experienced mutated class, the rest were newbies. Kael walked slowly, eyes scanning. Some guys sharpened metal weapons—primitive daggers. Those were the only things that worked in Mystical Eraland; tech went dead, chips went blank. Kael shook his head.
He spotted another cluster gathered around a hunter holding an animal skin map. He looked at other hunters staring at empty air—their screens invisible to everyone else. Kael sighed and kept walking until he reached his gang. He stopped meters away.
"That was weird," he muttered.
He remembered the dragon. How he killed it. He wasn't himself. Something strange took over. He held his chin and raised his head. His screen displayed black:
[Beast Soul / Biogenes]
He stared at it:
[Beast Soul: Mutated Class. High Mythic Tier. White Feathered Dragon Beast