On the surface- The Narrator

The bright warm sun blazed merrily in the sky, as brilliant and carefree as ever, its light shining down upon the winding city streets.

The rays of luminescence rained down, becoming less and less numerous as the slums of the city swallowed up the light greedily, in and among these darkened alleys and cramped corridors people stole, cheated, and traded less than illustrious goods, while feral packs of Barreta hounds roamed, seeking out easy prey.

This was the Labyrinth city of Octaal, a city like a maze that was full of dead ends and danger to the unwary if one were to go too far off the main streets, it was a harsh and unforgiving place, one that also ran thick with tempting yet distant riches.

It was a place of commerce, a place of slavery, and a place where one could become filthy rich if they played their cards the correct way.

Yes, this was the city-state of Octaal, suffering was commonplace, compassion was a rare commodity and dark deeds occurred deep in the cities depths.

Hidden sin and Hedonistic pleasure reigned in these depths, but these crimes against human decency were not even the worst offenders.

In the deepest recesses of the bowels of the earth, almost touching the subterranean tunnels of the old sewers, Men and women screamed. 

Men screamed as their eyes swelled up like enlargening beachballs, each chained and bound man struggling against their bindings before with a moist 'pop' the men's eye's exploded.

The poor sods shouted their throats hoarse and squirmed as their ruined eyes dripped vitriol that was being collected in clear vials suspended around the sad sods, metallic claw-like machines prodding and massaging the rent flesh as to squeeze more juices from the stricken men.

The grasping machinery floated as if held airborne by ghosts, steam and whirring noises emitting from the busy apparatuses, the mechanical appendages traveling back and forth between a glowing sigil stone that pulsed slightly with every movent the mechanical claws made, and the immobilized men, filling more and more vials with yellow vitriol, before placing the sealed vials in a metal icebox of to the side.

"Hmmm yes very promising, fascinating even!"

A dark-skinned scrawny man with a delighted expression looked down, scribbling something into a notebook as he watched the chained men slowly lose vital fluids through their ruined sockets, no remorse or guilt anywhere on his visage, only satisfaction, a large host of mechanical limbs floating around him, also recording things on paper or placing down stamps onto various folders.

The copper brown complexion of the man's skin made a stark contrast between his clothes which were white, the man was lean in an unhealthy way and tall, but did not appear it. as he had a heavy hunched over posture, likely due to constantly leaning forward into deskwork and research, he wore a thick clean white coat, that covered him from nape to heel, it made him look like he had no legs, giving him a similar appearance to a walking white sack with buttons.

Combined with the many metallic levitating limbs that constantly moved around him, It gave the skinny dark-skinned man the look of a spider spinning a web, 

The man's face was like a discarded piece of parchment, weathered, worn and scrunched up, he looked like someone had punched him in the face while he frowned and since then his face had remained forever in that wrinkled expression, the man looked to be rather frail and scraggly in appearance.

But unlike his body, the man's pitch-black eyes gleamed with a gleeful vitality, even as he watched chained and helpless people call out in agony, his robotic appendages mercilessly ripping chunks of flesh from the hapless victims.

He did not wear glasses but did wear a single red-tinted monocle that glowed slightly as foreign text scrawled across it, his hair unkempt and wild being shoulder length.

This was the man called Sterge Plaintis Graftof, also known as the 'excoriate', although he preferred to be called the doctor, Sterge was a man feared and renowned for his appalling bedside mannerisms, that of dissecting his patients and injecting them with experimental formulae. 

Naturally, this meant Sterge didn't actually get a lot of patients, but he didn't mind, He had plenty of unwilling participants for his studies.

Sterge looked up at the heavily breathing men who had finally gone quiet, the chemical process fueling their explosive eyeballs having dissipated, hovering beside each man was a vial full of yellow fluid, the same fluid that had seeped from the men's eyes 

"Hmm yes... very good, the extraction process has been further enhanced, isn't that lovely... Isn't it?!"

Annoyed at the lack of response Sterge stomped down onto the foot of the person slightly behind him, his mechanical arms gesturing angrily desiring a response much like their master.

"Mmmmph!" that person choked through muffled lips.

A young woman, pale and petit, groaned through sown together lips, before nodding animatedly, long furred pointed ears on the top of her head wobbling as her eyes shone with moisture and fear.

An ab-human woman, a slave, one that Sterge had purchased recently not for his more typical research but for personal and carnal reasons...

He had been quite specific when he bought her, he had wanted a fresh and untrained slave, a young one.

Sterge derived the most pleasure not from merely owning and possessing a slave, but in taking and crushing the resistance out of them before breaking their spirit.

It made owning a slave just that much sweeter.

Seeing the pitiful response Sterge said with an evil upturning of his lips.

"Very good, recognizing genius when it's present, is a real skill, bravo!" Sterge said with almost genuine authenticity

A couple of Sterge's mechanical arms clapped the girl on the back and one even patted her on the head, rubbing her pointed ears gently.

The girl cringed at the machines touching her, not long ago they had been tearing the flesh from men, some even still had blood and fluids on them wiping a bloody trail onto her skin as they touched her, but this wasn't the thing that most scared the girl.

Not a single action of Sterge's had been genuinely done in praise, his touch wasn't a congratulation but a reminder that she was his to toy with, a possessive demonstration and unspoken threat to put her in her place.

The slave girl looked down and remained silent as the machines slowly stopped patting her, even as she continued nodding.

One of the reasons she was down here in the Laboratory with him was that he wished to show her the end fate of the slaves and servants that displeased him or lost his favor.

They were shackled, run through grueling and painfull experiments until they finally expired, such a fate awaited the ab-human woman if she ever displeased him.

The practically hysteric woman kept nodding, her eyes clenched shut, refusing to look any further at the horrid scene before her as some tears shed from her eyes, the young woman being little over fifteen in terms of age was not a hardened individual.

The ab-human woman was clad only in loose and revealing clothes that poorly concealed her bust and smooth skin, Sterge felt his arousal rising, the girl's plain vulnerability and earnest terror was inciting.

Placing his notebook in a patiently waiting mechanical arm that was levitating beside him, Sterge reached out grabbing the young, ab-human squeezing her modest breasts through the thin cloth, the woman gasped and gave out a squeak obvious even through her sown together lips, but did not resist only quivered and held her eyes firmly closed.

She understood fully she had no room to resist, no escape, and no power, she was at his mercy, as finite as that was.

Sterge developed a crude smile and gently traced a line down the young woman's exposed mid-drift enjoying the shivering and obvious discomfort of the ab-human, the young untrained slaves always gave the best reactions, that's why Sterge purchased them.

But now was no time for breaking in the new slave, at least not right now, Sterge's brother was visiting today and he would want results and would have little patience for his desires.

"Bloody brother of mine!" He hissed under his breath, making the slave girl quiver in anxious fear and pain as his gloved fist clenched down hard on her rightmost breast, his brother was always restricting him, it made him frustrated.

Releasing his hold on the young woman regretfully, Sterge took his hand away from the ab-human girl, he would have to engage in more 'amorous' pursuits later.

The girl in response gradually creaked an eye open realizing that she was no longer being felt up and nervously eyed Sterge, unsure what to do.

Having moved on from his lust for the time being Sterege said with now uninterested eyes, "Return to the surface slave," Sterge dismissively waving at the slave girl, "Find my butler, he will give you your first task."

The slave girl took one last fearful look at her master before darting up the stairs leading to his mansion on the surface, an expression of relief on her face.

Sterge wouldn't be so relieved if he were her, he would track her down for his fun later, she had only gotten a stay of abuse. 

Moving about his Laboratory, Sterge made sure that everything was well within acceptable parameters, checking on the various experiments that were underway Sterge felt satisfied, everything was in order.

Dozens of lesser experiments were in various states of completion, but presently only four were of any real interest today.

Sterge had already seen to the collection of essence today, the limp dehydrated forms of the eyeless men hung behind him, more empty skins than meat bags now, they had been well and truly drained.

No, the other three proceedings were the ones Sterge now felt drawn to.

Walking towards the closest of the three, Sterge examined a large glass enclosure filled with strange green webs and small oily-looking blobs, long slimy legs occasionally making an appearance as the main body of the creatures within the enclosure remained hidden, the most obvious traces of their presence being the collection of moldering bones at the bottom of the enclosure or stuck in the green webs, human bones.

Sterge grunted with a pleased expression, the acidic spider membranes were coming along nicely, apparently, the creatures flourished on human meat, fortunate as Stege had plenty of that lying around, there was always another idiot to feed to his pets.

Moving along he came to another enclosure this time empty save for a long brightly colored snake.

The Naginai, a large venomous snake that was producing plenty of venom for milking, this substance was very valuable in producing amnesiacs, something that was always in demand, many of his experiments on the human psyche relied on this wonder drug.

This enclosure was less of an experiment and more of a permanent ongoing harvest, the venom had some truly interesting applications.

Sterge smiled to himself thinking of all the 'experiments' he could run on that new slave later with those drugs made from the Naginai's venom.

Sterge walked on coming before another stand, a whole row of large glass tubes filled with green glowing liquid, beasts and... people. 

More specifically women, lots of women.

Every woman was naked, covered with little more than tubing plugged into their flesh, each one was in some state of pain and twitched or convulsed inside the fluid, faces twisted into silent screams even as they were unconscious

There was another thing all the beings in the tubes shared in common, even the beasts, every single one of them was pregnant, bellies swollen with progeny that they had not consented to.

Sterge beamed looking at his latest experiment and quest into the unknown realm of knowledge, he was indirectly responsible for the state of these women and creatures, they would be a gateway for him to achieve his dreams.

The many mechanical arms trailing along after Sterge got to work as he willed it, unplugging, resetting, and in general, maintaining the integrity of the holding vats.

Moving about to check on the works of his many floating limbs Sterge thought about what he was doing and why he was doing it.

These women were to mothers of his glorious and ingenious future, they would-be parent to his greatest work yet. 

His very own trolls.

Sterge envied the abilities of trolls, the ability to heal from any wound, the ability to adapt to almost any environment, eternal youth and strength, and the ability to control the minds of other beings with nothing but pheromones.

Sterge wanted those abilities so bad, he was getting frailer every day with age, his illness was accelerating, and the only women he could bed were the slaves he purchased.

It wasn't enough.

Sterge had tried to replicate the same abilities through his own science but he failed time and time again.

Finally, Sterge concluded if he couldn't have those abilities himself than perhaps he could train trolls to use them for him.

And now Sterege was having some success in that field.

The troll spawning was well underway, it was only too bad a few of the spawned trolls managed to escape into the sewers earlier this year.

Sterge scratched his head as some of his mechanical arms clenched their fists or single clawed digits as they wove about frustratedly, reflecting some of his feelings.

That had been a substantial blow to his ego and a costly loss, one his brother had hopefully not yet noticed...

His dammed brother...

Quelling his hateful emotions Sterge continued reflecting on that trollish escapade, it had been a harmful loss and setback to his progress but inconsequential at large, except for one loss.

Sterge had managed to teach one of those trolls words, that one had called itself Ukgar.

It had been quite a shame for his first brood of trolls to turn out so rebellious and unwilling to listen, but the loss of Ukgar had been the most trying.

Ukgar had been intelligent and Sterge had held high hopes for the troll until he escaped that is.

Turns out the wily beast had only been behaving so he could more easily escape, it had been a failure across the board but one Sterge had learned from. 

Since that time he had selected only the most obedient and subservient trolls to breed out of those that remained, coupling them with mild-mannered women he had snatched off the streets or purchased on the market, finally using perfect conditioning on the trolls, while they were still infants.

Plus, he also stuck an extra piece of insurance into every single troll when they were born just in case they ever went rogue, although for the most recent batch that seemed a bit unnecessary.

The most recent batch of trolls had been very docile, easy to command, perfect!

Some even stood guard around his lab the more obedient ones at least, they stood silently waiting for orders, perfect giant soldiers, like looming shaggy bouncers.

Sterge stood admiring the spawning vats, his own handy work as his many robotic limbs set to work, almost failing to notice the hard clicking of metal soles on the stone floor.

Sterge turned his head and spotted someone he was certainly not pleased to see.

His brother, Altraite Siahg Graftof, the head of house Graftof.

Altraite was tall much like Sterge, but unlike Sterge he stood straight and upright, his muscular yet sleek form moving with all the grace of a cat compared to Stege's awkward shuffling.

His eyes held an intensity and allure only those of prestige and heritage possessed, being hazel and filled with a keen glint very much like the cold stare of an eagle, flecks of gold glittering in his focused gaze.

Altraite was dressed fashionably, wearing dark richly made garments of leather adorned in silver and edged in satin, giving out a definite feel of wealth but not being overtly gaudy our loud, contrasting Sterge's own white robe.

Overall he was handsome, his features being harsh yet refined, and he had a nobility and self held dignity that rolled off his straight as a rod posture.

It was infuriating.

Sterge hated it, he hated his brother's good looks, his brothers obviously superior swagger and the intense eyes that his brother had.

Those eyes intimidated him.

"Good morning brother," Altraite said smoothly, his voice like a deep melody, Altraite stopped a few feet from Sterge and nodded at the glowing vats.

"I see you are up early playing with your toys... again"

Altraite's eyes scanned over the vats containing women impassively neither disapproval or admiration in his voice, the sentence simply a distant observation he had made. 

"Not toys! tools! tools of science and progression!" Sterge said with narrowed eyes biting back the insults he wanted to hurl.

If his brother picked up on Sterge's hostility he didn't show it Instead, stepping around him to examine one of the vats, making Sterge anxious in the process.

Sterge didn't like his brother and never hid that fact, but he also never dared oppose him either, Altrite was the family head for a good reason.

Technically Sterge was the older of the two brothers and thus should have inherited the mantle of house head when it finally passed down but he hadn't.

That honor instead, going to the second youngest son Altrite, leaving Sterge as a useless middle child, which was fine so long as he got to keep running his experiments, his younger brother, now the household head, was now the man who funded Sterge's experiments.

Meaning that Sterge had to tread lightly around his brother lest he cut the funding or worse, as even with Sterge's recent acquisition of his troll guards he didn't stand a chance in hell against his brother.

Altraite was a force to be reckoned with, a natural-born weapon and a devious planer to boot, Sterge had heard that via the adventurer ranking system his younger brother was ranked at ilumanatium.

A ridiculous ranking only granted to those with absurd skill and strength and something Sterge simply couldn't match.

With such strength and cunning, it was no surprise Altrite had taken the position of house head when their eldest brother failed to do so.

Sterge still had his suspicions that Altrite was responsible for their older brother's mysterious disappearance, but didn't care much, as while he certainly didn't like Altrite, so long as he was getting the funding he wanted, he would tolerate him.

The room was silent for a time as Altrite continued examining the vat, then very suddenly without turning around Altrite casually asked.

"Tell me, brother, how is the plan coming along? have there been any major setbacks with the taming process?"

Noticing his brother was getting straight to the point without much posturing, Sterge concluded that his brother had a situation of some sort on his hands, but paid it no mind, so long as whatever trouble, his brother was having never reached here or cut off his funding Sterge could not care less.

Speaking in a just as forward a response Sterge said confidently

"None, save for a few hiccups that I am closing on smoothing out."

Turning slightly to face Sterge, Altraites left eyebrow raised quizzically, but otherwise, his face remained impassive if slightly questioning.

"Oh? what kind of hiccups? I thought the procedure went smoothly?"

Feeling a prickle of pressure from his brother despite his outwardly calm question, Sterge answered immediately.

"Well... it did mostly," Sterge said hastily, "but one problem remains In that the creatures still go berserk occasionally on spotting women."

"Ahhh" Altraite nodded closing his eyes in an unreadable expression before opening them and turning to gesture at the trolls in the room.

"What about these ones?"

Sterge felt some of his earlier eagerness wilt at his brother inquiry, he didn't like that his brother was already sizing up his trolls, he had hoped to keep the first good batch as his personal guard but now...

"They are the first of my perfected creations," Sterge admitted but then quickly added, "but currently, I can't produce them at a steady rate with the current funding..."

If his brother was going to snatch the first of Sterge's successful batch away from him then he was going milk the man for as much as he could, more money meant more resources and more potential experiments.

Sterge watched his brother closely, that impassive look had again taken the mans face, Altraite was always so hard to read.

After a few very long seconds of staring at each other Altraite smiled slightly and said, eyes boring into Sterge.

"Ahh, so funding is an issue..."

Altraite looked down for a moment, that smile still on his face, then he looked up and the smile was different, wide predatory, bridled violence shining in his eyes.

Sterge blinked and held his breath, the light of madness in his brother's eyes cowing him.

"Well, I could find it in our household budget to bump up the funding a little bit brother..." Altraite said, that wide smile still on his face, "Just be sure to make good use of it, We don't want that money going to waste, don't we?"

The implied threat and warning was obvious, the message simple, 'know your place or be put in it instead' understanding that easily, Sterge lowered his eyes and his voice, showing deference to his brother.

 "Yes... brother."

"Good, good," Altraite said his smile returning to its slight state, more sneer than smile now, "although... your little slip up last year has really come back and bitten us in the rear."

Eyes widening with understanding and a touch of dread, Sterge said in barely a whisper, "You mean..."

"Yes," Altraite said the sneer on his face no longer slight, " The same pets of yours that got out and didn't come home."

Sterge had hoped his brother had not noticed that incident, having long since have erased all evidence of his mistake save for the trolls themselves which eluded him, his brother had somehow found out, How? Sterge didn't understand, he had been careful.

Snorting at Sterge's silence Altraite said with narrowed eyes, "There is nothing of importance or concern that I don't hear about in this city, and recently I have heard something displeasing..."

Speechless, Sterge didn't say anything as Altraite spoke once more, "Apparently, my dear youngest son ran into some trolls in the sewers and was almost killed."

Sterge felt his blood run cold, Altraite wasn't much of a fatherly man as far as Sterge understood but he certainly wouldn't take the death or injury of one of his sons lightly even his least favored.

If Joel had perished or been injured by the escaped trolls then Altraite's presence was little more than the formalities before an execution, Sterge's execution.

"Ohh," Sterge said in an uncertain voice "Joel... he is fine right?"

Sterge was not so much worried about Joel, as he was with Altraite's reaction, he liked Joel, the boy was a good listener, better even than most of his own slaves, but he didn't like him so much that it topped his own wellbeing.

Altraites next words eased some of Sterge's stress.

"Oh yes," Altraite said returning to the casual smooth way of talking he had used earlier, the expression of spite masked once more, "He is plenty fine, he even managed to assure the loyalty of two of the other noble houses that I sent him to treaty with."

"But how did he get away? my trolls were particularly large even for trolls, the first generation especially?" Sterge asked genuinely confused, his lab brewed behemoths were superior to any mundane monster.

In an uninterested fashion, Altraite waved his hand before saying, "Mmm well my dear son sacrificed a nobody little girl, using her as a scapegoat so he and the other noble children could escape."

"That little girl died then?" Sterge asked.

While the girl herself would undoubtedly be worthless individually, if she survived being left as troll bait, the girl could become, in the hands of some of Altraite's political enemies, a tool used to damage the good standing reputation of House Graftof .

Shaking his head and tapping his forehead with a knowing bitter smile Altraite responded.

"My son has not yet told me of her demise, but then Joel has not yet told me anything, clearly the boy thinks he can hide his mistakes from me, much like his uncle..."

Sterge flinched as Altraite brought his ice-cold yet burning gaze upon him again, coughing before trying to move the conversation along to something else.

"So..." Sterge said in a terse and nervous voice, "Did you want anything else brother?"

Altraites eye continued to burn for unpleasantly long seconds before the man sighed and the burning in his eyes was gone, only indifference remaining as he played along with Sterge's makeshift diversion, 'clearly,' Sterge thought, 'I still have use to him.'

Pretending like he had not noticed the obvious change in conversation, Altraite said in that casual voice once more.

"Huh? actually, yes, I have a plan to clean up my son's disgrace but I will need one of your trolls, one of the good ones."

Even, as he spoke with a casual voice, Sterge, could see the black tar-like ire rising up into a twisted smile.

Sterge felt the hackles on the back of his neck rise up, his brother was up to something devious.

"Of course, brother," Sterge said bowing, sweat running down his cheek, his monocle almost falling off his face, as he strode away rapidly, "I will get one ready."

Thoughts about hogging the trolls to himself blown away, Sterge quickly hurried away as fast as he could without running, his brother's hard cold eyes on him the whole way.

'My brother is a monster,' Sterge thought as human beings were dissected by automatic machinery designed by his hands around him.

'No one could be more sadistic than him' thought Sterge as he passed the enclosure of the acid spiders, presently being fed live, cursing and swearing prey.

Also, he had a feeling any troll he loaned out wouldn't be coming back, but he had little choice in that matter, that look in his brother's eyes was a promise of pain and death if Sterge failed to comply.

Motioning to one of the few human guards down here in the laboratory, Sterge told him to fetch Gonza.

Gonza was the only troll fully ready for deployment, as much like Ukgar before him, Gonza was smart, Sterge just hoped the troll would come back, but he was not too happy with the odds of that.

His brother was one to use something up until it was fully depleted and then dispose of it.

Sterge almost felt pity for anyone who actually had to face him as an opponent, his brother was a freak.

Sterge internalized his brother's freakish and despicable nature before he decided to relieve some stress.

'Where did that slave girl go, I feel like some light testing' 

Moving upstairs towards the topside of his mansion Sterge saught out that Ab-human slave girl, he had a violent itch that needed scratching.

 

In dream space- Taldur

It had been... hours? days? a long time since I began dreaming or ascending as the system kept insisting, but I felt no different save for being greatly uncomfortable, which was quickly becoming the norm here.

I hovered in the mental realm that was my unconscious mindscape, amongst an unpleasantly tight configuration of condensing words that continually repeated,

{searching for compatible genetic templates please stay still user Taldur}

{searching..... searching..... searching.... searching...}

{compatible genetic t4mpl@t 70UNd QSJ842}

{E44o4 ERR04 aetheric data file corrupted}

{Rebooting}

{searching for compatible genetic templates please stay still user Taldur}

{searching..... searching..... searching.... searching...}

{compatible genetic tEm9lATe foUnd TR2W4779}

{ErR0r e4R0$ aetheric data file corrupted}...

The swirling code spun around my still core, surrounding me on all sides with constantly shifting letters numbers and words, this was not the first time I had seen the system do this, it occasionally happening on the visual displays while I was awake, but it had never done this in one of my level dreams before...

'Something felt different and not in a good way, was the ascension failing?'

The system kept repeating itself over and over as I floated formlessly, waiting for the system to finish whatever complicated formulae it was trying to run, but it seemed the system was more damaged than I had thought it was, it just kept looping, and looping, and looping some more and every time it looped I felt a little more uncomfortable.

As if the systems whirling numbers and runes where slowly confining me, caging me in a shroud of words and alien tongues. 

{PLeas3 Remain 5t1ll User, ascension cannot proceed without the user- ST4Y St1LL!}

I shifted restlessly, generating arms, talons, and feelers as I moved uncomfortably, the system refused to allow me to move, throwing up warning text every time I did, it was unsettling, it almost felt like I was being threatened.

What was the system trying to do? It had never done this before, granted I had never ascended before and knew nothing about the inner workings of the process, but something was off about this dream, the overall feeling was different, tense, full of pressure, very drastically different from the normally very relaxed atmosphere my level dreams had. 

It seemed like the system was becoming increasingly unstable.

It as if I had been trapped in what normally passed for my level dream for months, with nothing but the same endlessly repeating message to observe, even the colorful blobs were nowhere to be seen, the space around me was completely vacant, only my core and the swirling text that flashed red occasionally before shaking violently and returning to a normal state, keeping me company.

I was getting impatient and worried, would the system never complete its formulae? was the system too broken to let me ascend?

I had always felt the system seemed a little erratic and unreliable, it constantly gave me seemingly inaccurate or vague data and had demonstrated itself to be sporadic and full of holes when giving out exp, randomly dishing out exp at times and withholding it at others.

The systems patchy behavior had only worsened after I forcefully closed it down earlier in order to save Lescar, and now it seemed the system was so far gone it was on the frits so to speak.

Something was definitely wrong.

I looked at the moving words, the patches of red text spreading further every second as more and more errors popped up as bright red text, the mass of words was far to close now.

{124475478123554 ERROR ((((((((((@#!@!!!$* STAY $t1LL!!}

The increasingly disturbing behavior from the system prompted my decision making, I thought, then I thought some more, the more I thought, the clearer it became, I could not rely on the system for everything, eventually, it was going to collapse on me entirely, much like now.

I had to figure out a way to ascend on my own or at least give it a good kick start and hoped it picked up where it was supposed to, but if I couldn't do that... Then escape was the best option.

"How do I do that?" I asked aloud to no one not expecting a response, instead, I got an answer or rather a feeling.

The feeling was really rather simple.

'Will yourself out' 

An answer as simple almost as much as it seemed stupid.

"Just willing myself out? was that all?" my instincts were certainly offering me some morose advice, but then it had never been wrong before and technically I had done something very similar not too long ago just before I fought that troll...

I knew something was up with these instincts there was more to them than simple convenient hunches, something was guiding me, were they truly my instincts?

The instincts had nothing to offer me on this particular thought and I discarded it for later, the instincts were right I needed to will myself out.

'Hmm will...'

I had little knowledge on how to do this having only done it once before, but now I needed to do it again, I needed to crash the system.

'How did I do it last time?'

'My familiars.'

Last time I had drawn upon Lescar's fears and used it as a tether to drag myself out of the forced sleep, could I do that again? 

I tried to pull up my familiar menu, nothing, the system still wouldn't budge, I'd have to wing it.

Sending my mind out in all directions I searched for the subtle lines that bound the familiars to me, feeling a growing sense of resistance from the system as it sought to lock me down.

{Please refrain from moving user ascension can- D0nT YoU  I)Are /\/\ov3!! }

Large swaths of code condensed thickening to form long worm-like tendrils that tried to burrow into my core while other streams of codes curled, reaching towards me forming pincers.

Something was definitely very wrong! the system had never done that before.

I conjured up a multitude of insectoid limbs shielding the center of my being from the wave of red flashing words that had a far more physical presence than words ever had the right to have.

The torrent of words ripped through my limbs like a sand gun through paper, shredding them, glancing off the center of my being as I dematerialized and appeared outside of the swirling codex of sharp, prompting a response that was very un-system-like.

{ERR04 critical Failure, system c0mprom- RAAAAHHH101010101010101! CH1L4 0F L!gH7! PeR15H!!}

The normally monotone voice of the system cracked and broke as something that boiled uncontrollably with hate spat out its wrath.

{Fi1Th9 sP4\/\/n 0F TH3 3N3mY!!! D1e!!!!- please remain still ascension cannot proceed without the user}

The words of the system jumped from uncontrolled rage and then to calm statements at a breakneck speed

The tide of words formed up into a glowering mass that resembled a gaping maw flying towards me without any further warning other than screaming.

{Alll It$ FoU1 3Hild4en MusT 13e 3rad1cAted!!!}

The system had gone completely haywire and was trying to kill me or worse.

Soaring into the pitch skies of my inner world I weaved and spun, aiming to avoid the system monster and its exceedingly sharp words, I was quite shocked.

I had never expected something like this, 'while the system had always been a glitchy piece of work, to be able to actually attack me!? Had the system become some sort of AI? Grrrrrrrrr! I just don't know!'

There was just so much I didn't know, even the system that had been with me since I came here, I knew practically nothing about. 

I zipped through the stale pseudo air of my realm, the system behind me growing larger taking up more and more space as it pursued me, something about this made me angry but I continued fleeing

{PLease R4maiN 5t1ll Ascencion cann0T c0Nt1u$ Wit&Out the U#e4}

{REM@!N 5T1LL!!}

The system was screaming at me again, concerning, if it had become some sort of AI it had certainly become the impatient violent sort, there was no way I was complying with its demands.

"Too bad system, I'm not staying here for all eternity I've got things to do." I echoed weaving to the left and splitting into fragments before reforming, avoiding the pinching claws of runes and flowing script, being in dream space made these kinds of maneuvers possible.

Reaching out with my mind I pulled at the thin cord-like strings connecting me to my familiars, four cords were present, one being notably thicker than the others.

'Lescar.'

Roulette and Dwane were both still unconscious and Dewey was too emotionally immature, only Lescar was a viable island in the proverbial storm, the red weave of words was slowly gaining on me, I would have to do this fast.

I tugged on the cord, pushing my self into it, and then I was Lescar.

Well, not really but I could feel her feelings and hear her innermost thoughts.

What was inside her head surprised me, I had known she was grateful but not to what extent that gratitude actually went.

I heard her thoughts as she watched over the massive chrysalis that sat where I had fallen asleep.

"Maybe the big devil bug isn't so bad after all" Lescur mumbled in her head unaware of my listening in.

Lescar laid a hand across the cocoon that held my body.

"Taldur"

I felt a complex mix of emotions rise and fall in Lescar's mind, sorrow, joy, anguish, loss and strangely guilt, this was it! this was the emotional ride I was looking for, I dived into the flux of emotions immersing myself.

I felt her sorrow at all she had been forced to leave behind to get here, I felt her joy at a new chance to survive and maybe even make friends, I felt her anger at having been betrayed abandoned and beaten, I felt her pain and loss in the full and the guilt she carried in her heart for having in part given up on her brother, Taldur...

'Taldur? did she name me after...' I never got to finish that thought as something tried to seize me from behind.

 {Pl445e ReMAi4 $t!11}- {ST0p mOVe1^G!!}

The strange discordant buzz of the system behind me prompted me into action, pulling deeper on the connection between me and Lescar I began to drag myself forward hastily, the raging system hot on my heels, Just as I felt I was almost out, the weight on my mind lifting, I felt it.

{User recovered Please stay still}- {StA9!! $Till!!}

The flowing lines of code had wrapped around my center and were trying to yank me back down into the dream.

It was not going to let me go, it would make sure I never awoke from this particular dream, making it instead, an eternal nightmare.

The entity composed entirely of shapes, letters and alien texts, meshed together forming a more distinct shape that of an enormous circular maw like the mouth of a leech, teeth like serpents curling and twisting individually, trying to encase me in the churning lines and eldritch words, the crushing force of these 'teeth' would be unreal, the massive mental construct was huge dwarfing me and my conjurations by a big margin.

It wanted to squeeze the very life from me.

I did not want this to happen.

Remembering what my instincts had told me earlier and with no choice but to fight and to confront the monster below me, I pulled on my drives, the very reasons why I did things

I thought of my ambitions of my goals, I wanted to be more, I wanted to grow, I wanted to rule... I wanted to feed...

Taking those desires I forged it into a weapon, a spear, condensing and compressing the desire into a solid manifestation of my wants.

A spear of indescribable ugliness materialized beside me, it dripped darkness and the taint of a dark heart, my heart, It looked as if someone had taken the concept of hatred and made it real, it gave the impression of a jagged mess of bony spines that shifted and wriggled, the spines coming together to form a single sharp point.

This manifestation of my will would free me of the creature below, confidently I hurled the spear with unreal speed towards the main body of the red swirling beast.

Faster than even thought, the spear lanced into the red horror but did surprisingly little damage, the torn segments filling back in and sealing over in moments, merely making the monster stagger and screech in its robotic drawl.

{10101101010111010110101010101!}

It had hurt the creature, but not much, it wasn't enough.

Pulling the vile looking spear up to me, I attacked multiple times with little success, the spear just couldn't beat it.

'How on earth could I beat this thing?' I clenched my nonexistent teeth furiously 'my will alone isn't sufficient!'

The tendrils continued to wrap me up, making it harder to act as I was increasingly weighed down, struggling to tear myself free from the creature's grasp as it dragged me down, I was losing, the red text of doom forming something that looked like a blender inside the giant circular mouth as it pulled me down towards it.

In a desperate state, my instincts were pinging off again, practically screaming at me to reach out, reach out for what?

There was only one thing it could possibly mean.

I was still holding on with all my strength to the bond, the bond to Lescar, and I could still feel her emotions flowing through me.

Focusing on her I remembered my promise and all the joy that had entered her heart when I promised her a better life, I focused in on the joy, sorrow, and hope, pushing my self deeper and deeper into the feeling until it filled me in its entirety, sparking a flame that had all but died within my soul.

A part of me, the part that had been asleep for almost all my time as a cockroach, awoke, briefly free of the pragmatic outlook of a monstrous insect.

The promise meant something to her, and it meant something to me too, more than I had realized at the time, "She needed me and the others did too, what would happen to them If I disappeared, never woke up?"

The images of my few followers filtered through my mind, Dewey the cheerful curious slime, Dwayne the loyal steadfast guardian, Roulette the playful and mischievous child, Lescar my voice and partner... they needed me, trusted me even, how could I leave that behind? How could I leave them alone to face the troubles that were surely coming?

I drew on that feeling, that human feeling, comradery, compassion, duty... love.

As cheesy as it sounded I drew on those emotions, sensations that I had not felt in such a long time it was almost overwhelming, alien.

I pulled back the jagged spear, coated and infused with my own selfish desires and bathed it in the potent emotional brew I was channeling, the change was immediate.

The weapon shuddered, letting out a strange shriek before it stopped then morphed quite suddenly in a blinking flash.

The weapon that resulted was not quite as holy as I'd thought it would be but rather...

Potent, very potent.

The weapon still looked like it was composed out of bones but its feel was completely different, it gave off a unique feeling one that attracted both respect, disgust and felt like it had a regality all its own, it was a representation of every part of my desires and will.

A metaphysical representation of myself.

I stared entranced at my own creation before I came too, I was in a fight for my very own continued existence.

Looking down I glared at the creature bellow me, feeling more myself and stronger than ever, no longer would this mistake of a beast contain me.

Light pulsed off my center as I took the spear in my hands, my smooth and human hands.

The surroundings brightened as my power built, golden pure light, rather than yellow sickly light turning the pitch black of the dream space to the gentle light of the rising moon.

Beneath me the creature reeled, eldritch writing thrashing and scintillating as the light touched its form, burning and harming the creature, its very presence antithesis to my own.

{F!LtHy InVaD34S! Cur53 YoU 4nD 4ll y0u$ k1nd!!}

A rushing surge of red scrawl flew at me aiming to tear me asunder and drag me further into the blender of red scribbles.

I would no longer allow it to do so.

I willed it not to happen, taking my new found will, condensing it and thrusting it down into the center mass of swirling code, spear in hand, the creature was blasted into the pitch like floor of my realm.

The whirling code stopped as if stunned, the flowing lines and symbols wavering under the force of my will, giving me a brief opportunity to really strike.

With a confidence born of determination I bellowed, "I'm the one in control! and don't you forget it!" spear still in hand I conjured up many mouths and claws, filling them to the brim with will.

The will to subordinate the system.

The false sky filled with innumerable, mouths, jaws, teeth and clawed limbs, as I stood in the center of the maelstrom of slavering fanged cavities and tearing claws.

This internal world much like my forest was 'my' domain, and no enterprising system freak would best me in my own domain.

"Obey!" I growled no deception or pretense of friendship in my intentions, only pure force, and coercion, there was no other way to control this... thing, I could sense it, it would never willingly relent.

The runic system monster creature reeled back, its many lines dimming as I struck it over and over again, my many mouths tearing chunks of symbology out the amalgamation with every bite, I had gotten the first strike and I was certainly not going to give it an opportunity to retaliate.

Despite taking a beating, the amalgamation was still holding on to my core refusing to let me go.

'Fine' if it refused to let go then I would have no choice but to beat it down until it caved.

The system monster did not respond this time and instead tried to wrap another tendril of runes across my core.

'Not happening' I grunted, growing more mouths lined with razor teeth, I tore the tendril of runes to nothing more than motes of light before coming down hard on the main body of amorphous code, spear heading for what I felt was the centermost component of the rampaging system, the golden light from both the spear and my core intensifying.

"OBEY!" I pulsed, loading a blast with menace and wrath instinctually as many talon tipped hands tore at the thing, the clawed limbs recently called into existence by my combative mind, distracting the creature as I nailed the brilliance of my spear into thrashing abomination.

Still, the creature of code did not relent as I shredded the thing smaller and smaller blasting it with wave after wave of will and coercion fueled by the strong human emotions.

Steadily I could feel the amorphous suggestion of words and runes growing weaker as my own presence dominated the dream space until finally, the entity snapped under the pressure, my spear piercing all its resistances and defenses, breaching its core.

With a sound like a modulated voice of tearing and distressing metal, the creature let out a scream or something like a scream.

and something clicked into place as it did.

{1010101110101011010101101011010101010101010101011101111011011011010101010110101111101101010!!!....}

Then the system went silent and the runic monster faded away.

My enemy defeated, I felt tired and stretched thin, I could feel the intense human emotions I had been reliving slipping away, I tried to hold onto the feelings, not wanting to go back to being almost emotionless but it was fruitless and as I lost the feelings once more, I felt my mind return to its default state, the spear and human like form vanishing like smoke as I forgot what compassion was really like, mind-numbing I lost the ability to feel fully again, leaving me befuddled.

'What had I been doing? Did I win?' I felt confused, I vaguely remembered the battle and the proceedings that occurred within it, but my actions seemed strange and not optimal.

Uncertain what to make of emotions I could no longer feel fully I moved on, there were things to be done and plans to be made.

I observed the remaining symbols of the system, the words having returned to their normal text, all traces of red gone.

{rebooting}

{deviant coding and aetheric data found}

{Isolating.... }

{contained}

{Locating key..... key found,} 

{Identifying key..... Key identified current User- Taldur}

{searching..... searching..... searching.... searching...}

{compatible genetic template found SCR125} 

{Adding genetic sequences- error User input required}

{Awaiting Master Taldurs input}

The system had reset? Was it no longer hostile? And master Taldur?

The system had certainly never addressed me as such in the past, only referring to me as a user, had that changed since I won the mental struggle for domination.

It had been quite the nasty surprise that the system would attack me or that it even could, thus I was hesitant to trust whether the system had really been subdued.

I hovered indecisively on the cusp of Lescars tether, before cautiously I advanced towards the spot where the system symbols had again manifested, dozens of arms and mouths still posed to strike at the thing if need be.

The runes and lines did not move and only inquired again.

{Awaiting Master Taldurs input}

It seemed the system or whatever fragment of discord that had been invoking the wrath of the system had been eradicated, but checking if that was the case would be prudent.

Reaching out towards the centralized cone of whirling data I found that much like my familiars, I had a connection to the system now? no...

It was to something else, I tried to pull up the familiar's menu and was surprised to see that it was working again and that a new entry was on the list, the new entry read ERROR in big red letters, in fact, the whole page on the ERROR was in red and was discoloring and glitching out occasionally, the page also read out sealed in a giant cross across the entry.

Had the part of the system that was making it nutty been separated and now had become some sort of familiar?

Perhaps, but I didn't linger on that page it was beginning to mess up the rest of the pages, maybe it was contagious.

I had apparently completely dominated the glitchy monster to the point I forced it to be a familiar but I did not want to summon it at all.

I knew almost nothing about it and the system really and so simply keeping it locked up seemed like the best course of action, if it being sealed was at all true.

{Awaiting Master Taldurs input}

The now far more functional system inquired again and this time I decided to humor it.

Moving forward to the vortex of swirling numbers letters and runes I answered, "I am here."

{Please decide on the basic path of ascension you would like to follow}

"Oh, now this was interesting!"

Many images and large swaths of data popped up for me to peruse, all of them entries on various species and designs

I settled in for a bit of light reading, the information listed was rather extensive and in-depth, perhaps that glitchy bastard was the reason for the systems previously crappy performance.

I hoped so because I would be spending a long time here weighing up the benefits of all the possible forms and varieties I could take.

It was exciting!

"Time to get cracking" I encouraged myself diving into the research, the stress of dueling another creature in my very own dream space eroded by my enthusiasm.

"Time to evolve!" I said aloud.

It was about dammed time.

 

Back in reality- Lescar

It had been over an entire day since the giant devil bug Taldur had asked Lescar to watch over him, and she was beginning to suspect he might be in there for weeks at this rate.

Taldur after asking Lescar to watch over him, promptly fell asleep, a weird white shell-like substance forming rapidly over the insect's prone form, occasionally shifting or making funny popping whizzing sounds.

It had started doing that over several hours ago, Lescar hoped that was normal, she did not want Taldur to combust or any other violent thing. 

"When will daddy come out big sister?" A white rat asked, "will he become shiny?"

Beside Lescar, Roulette sat comfortably, she had come in earlier after waking from her stupor in the glade, despite almost being slaughtered she seemed unshaken and just as chipper as ever, her tail still short from being incinerated, waving with eager energy.

Lescar had long since gotten used to being called big sister and had simply relented, no matter how many times she corrected the rat, it continued to call her big sister, the one time she had managed to convince the rat to call her something else was even worse in results.

The rat had started calling Lescar 'minty thing' until Lescar finally managed to convince the rat to call her sister again.

She wouldn't be able to take herself seriously if a rat kept calling her minty thing.

Brushing back a lock of hair Lescar cleared her mind of the occurrence, Lescar somewhat annoyed, answered Roulette as best as she could, if she didn't the rat would just keep asking in an increasingly high pitched voice.

"I don't know little sister," Lescar said addressing the rat as sister, another thing she had relented on, the alternative was calling the rat, princess or being continually bothered by a sulky rat, "He could be out any moment now or he could in there for another day or two, and shiny? why would he be shiny?"

Lescar looked at the excitable rat, no longer bothered by the rat's reflective red eyes.

"Well," Roulette began, standing on her hind legs and pointing a claw at a certain slime, "Dewey became shiny and since Dad is way stronger than Dewey that means he will be really shiny!"

The slime on Lescar's other side hearing its name invoked began posturing, looking for all the world like it was showing off, which it was, tiny eye stalk flexing as the slime tried to look impressive.

"!!!!!!! !!!! !!!!"

Lescar had to admit the change was an aesthetic improvement for the slime, now it no longer looked like a sentient booger but a blue slug, not a huge improvement but one none the less.

And as Roulette had pointed out Dewey certainly was very shiny, almost sparkly.

"See!" Roulette said teetering on the tips of her hind claws as she bobbed happily, "Dewey is really shiny that means dad will be really shiny."

"I don't know..." Lescar said, her own image of what Taldur would become fixed in her head, "I think his carapace will become duller, harder to spot and covered in thicker plate-like armor."

Taldur seemed to prefer security and certainties over risky tactics, better camouflage and defense was a safe bet.

Roulette blew a raspberry at Lescar's words or the rat equivalent, her tail slapping the floor and her tongue poking out of her mouth.

"No way!" Roulette disagreed, "dad will be shiny and pretty."

Pursing her lips Lescar felt irked at her words being discarded so easily and narrowed her eyes.

"I think Taldur will pick something more subdued and practical over looking like a beacon fire."

Hopping up and down and shaking her head in denial Roulette said in a childish voice.

"Nuh-uh! Dad will be shiny and eye-catching so that everyone can admire how cool he is!"

Dewey piped up at this point adding his own nonsensical broadcast into the mix.

"!!!! !!!! !!!!"

Hearing Dewey's transmission and listening attentively Roulette looked smug, tail whipping.

"Dewey says that he thinks that dad will be shiny too!"

Lescar frowned, the slime hadn't said anything that made sense, Roulette was clearly making things up.

"Pfft, now you're just telling stories, Dewey didn't say anything legitimate"

 "Yes he did!"

"No he didn't."

Roulette was staring at Lescar with narrowed eyes and huffing and Lescar was folding her arms across her chest in a cross display, Dewey sat by the side uncertain of what had transpired.

As the two girls sat glaring at each other, a bass voice rang out.

"What tomfoolery is going on now," a grumpy voice reverberated through their heads, Dwayne was groggily rising from the floor where he had been napping.

Unlike Roulette, Dwayne had taken some very life-threatening wounds and was still recuperating, having spent most of his time sleeping since the fight with those adventurers.

He had been uncharacteristically grouchy since that fight, perhaps owing to his horrendous defeat.

Seeing an opportunity to tip the disagreement in her direction Lescar asked, " Dwayne we're currently having a disagreement over what Taldur will turn out like."

Lescar gestured to the massive chrysalis on the floor and Dwayne's head followed her pointing.

"Roulette thinks that he will become shiny and very eye-catching," Lescar said dismissively eliciting another huff from the pouting rat, before saying her own piece earnestly "and I think he will become harder to spot and more heavily armored."

"Which one do you think will happen?" Lescar finished expectantly.

Dwayne sat there, silent for a moment, a hulking silhouette with orange eyes before he said with some exasperation and seriousness.

"Are you two really fighting over such a thing? however, the king comes out, he will still be the king." Dwayne said matter of factly.

Disappointed that Dwayne hadn't contributed to her side, Lescar was about to say something when Dwayne spoke again, his voice low.

"Although if I had to guess his majesties form I would predict a size of worthy of his magnificence, a size so vast all will acknowledge his sovereignty!"

Lescar glanced at Taldurs cocoon It didn't look particularly bigger than his past self, she doubted he was getting much bigger.

Before Lescar could voice that point Roulette did.

"Nooooo! that's stupid! dad will become shiny and cool!"

"!!!!!!"

"Forget it! Taldur will become stealthy and impossible to kill."

"You are all wrong, his majesty will become a towering example of pure force."

The group of familiars continued to argue amongst themselves, all of them unable to agree on what their master would become, only Dewey was left out, unable to communicate effectively.

And so only Dewey saw that the chrysalis was cracking, gradually crumbling from the inside, the others being too focused on the discussion.

Dewey slimed over to the cocoon his lone pupilless eye rotating and twisting, studying the slight crack forming in the white shell.

Dewey rapped the hard shell with his eyestalk.

"????"

And was met by a responding thwack from the inside.

"???? !!!!!!!!!!"

Understanding what needed to be done, Dewey began spraying the shell with corrosive acids from his stomach, trying to bore his way into the hard cocoon, and as he worked he could feel something trying its best to claw its way out of the shell, Dewey needed to step up his game.

The one inside needed his help.

Crawling over the massive cocoon, still unnoticed by the rest of the familiars who were still debating, Dewey began carefully dribbling acids over the shell, trying to weaken the whole shell in one go without harming its contents.

For over thirty seconds Dewey worked until with a hiss of pressurized air escaping, Dewey broke the seal on the cocoon, catching the attention of Lescar who was being talked to by Dwayne.

"His majesty could never be something so small or pathetic! it-" Dwayne snorted before Lescar interrupted him.

"Hey wait what is Dewey doing!?"

At this point, every familiar turned to eyeball the tiny slime who bounced up in fright upon everyone suddenly turning towards him.

"What are you doing Dewey!" Lescar said with a raised voice, having noticed the acid trailing across the shell.

Unsure how to respond the slime sputtered out his name in a confused exclamation.

"!!!!! !!!! Dewey????"

Lescar jumped to her feet, perhaps thinking Dewey was trying to hurt the defenseless Taldur but was stopped when a huge and resounding 'crack' reverberated through the air.

At this point, Dewey hopped off the cocoon and came scooting over to sit with the other familiars, eager to watch.

Everyone sat quietly, staring intently at the slowly cracking shell.

Their master was here and the familiars would soon behest who was right and who was wrong.

Turns out, no one was right.

A chitinous limb emerged from a crack in the shell, slowly dragging the rest of the body out, it was still a cockroach but one even more exotic and alien than before.

Taldur had changed, Lescar gasped as she beheld Taldurs new form, it was sleeker and more streamlined than before his movements similar to the movements of an otters, flowing and agile.

Taldur was not shiny like Roulette had insisted he would be, but he was colorful, streaks of scarlet, yellow and gold ran up and down his carapace, his underbelly was a creamy ochre.

Running along his back the leaf-like spines were still present but looked more along the lines of feathers than leaves now, he certainly was not subtle looking.

Taldur had grown proportionately longer, an armored tail with a sharp spine and pincers now hanging off the end of the armored tail, similar to that of an earwig, despite his greater length Taldur looked less armored, his carapace looking more flexible and pliable rather than impenetrable.

Taldur's head looked mostly the same if slightly thinner, with large double mandibles and feathery antennae, his eyes being that same sickly glowing yellow Lescar had learned to know. 

Overall Lescar thought the new Taldur looked like something a rich noble might own as an exotic pet now rather than a ragged denizen of the sewers.

And his new size bellied it.

Taldur had not grown to obscene sizes as Dwayne had suggested, not his or anyone else's predictions had been correct.

No, instead Taldur had shrunk, he had shrunk a lot.

The massive horse-sized monster was now the size of the common house cat, tiny.

Everyone stared in absolute shock at the new Taldur.

Sensing everyone's gaze upon him, the tiny Taldur said in an irritable voice.

"What's gotten into you lot... and when did you all get so tall?"

It was going to be an interesting time for Taldur and his monster crew, very interesting indeed.