Mature Content Warning: Suggestive themes, language, and there are people being treated as merchandise.

Disclaimer: If you're happy and you know it... and you clap your hands... Please don't talk to me on the bus.

Author's notes: This chapter is shorter than most of the others. It was designed to set the stage for the final episode of this volume. There are five more chapters left until it is completely wrapped up. This chapter is important for setting up everything to come, but it sort of shows a lot of different places and people. Thus, I call it Convergence.

I chose to post it tonight due to its length.

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The steady drip of water from a rusted faucet was the only sound that could be heard in the godless darkness. The faucet was not alone, but only it dared to speak out against the atrocities that it witnessed on a daily basis.

In that darkness a light slowly appeared. It held neither warmth nor comfort. What it did hold was a moderately tall man in what appeared to be a gray colored uniform that was reminiscent of something a teenage boy would wear in a Japanese high school.

The uniform was not the strangest thing about the man. No, the strangest thing about him was what he was doing. He wandered through the darkness, lighting it with his glowing aura, while lightly caressing crystalline rock formations.

Whenever he touched one of the crystal prisons, the smoky surface become clear. Within the confines of those prisons were several dozen demi-humans culled from various parts of this world. They had taken for study and energy draining.

It was the height of annoyance to him that such creatures, despite their astonishing powers and life force, were ill-suited for the type of energy the Empire needed. Yes, they certainly served their purpose, but even the strongest of them seemed to lack that necessary oomph derived from a human being.

However, they would make excellent shock troops once their spirits were broken. He had already begun to devise ways to mimic the local customs and set up tamers. Yes, such a plan would be quite ingenious.

All he had to do was slip one of these so-called demi-humans into the harems of a few random idiots. He would thoroughly enjoy watching the fun when they sucked the foolish humans dry for the glory of the Empire.

A low chuckle escaped his lips. Nothing could stop his plans, nothing...

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Chapter 12: Convergence

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Scott awoke with his now customary grogginess. After his senses properly reoriented themselves he started to look around the room. He made a mental note of the I.V. bag and various machines hooked to his body then turned his attention to the other people in the room. Yeah, it must be Tuesday. He was beginning to believe that being in the hospital was his full-time job.

Nina stared at him with an expression obvious concern. Her eyes were bloodshot and red-rimmed. Had she been crying?

"Master, you really need to stop doing that!" Nina pounced onto his bed and wrapped her arms around him.

Makina walked over and stood near his bedside. Apollo for his part seemed happy that Scott was doing better, but was otherwise unconcerned.

"Yeah, well you know me. I’ll do my best.” Scott yawned softly, and tried to downplay the situation. He glanced at the calendar and sighed. He'd been out of it for two days. Heck, it really was Tuesday.

"So, master...” began Makina. She wasn't sure what to say to him. He seemed like an awesome guy and all, but they hadn't really talked much, yet. Their conversation a few days ago had been nice, but it took a long time to really get to know someone.

Scott smiled softly at her and gave her hand a squeeze. She smiled gently in return.

"Sleeping beauty is awake I see?" The group turned their heads toward the door in time to see Aaron walk in with a look of curiosity on his face.

"Yeah, though with a face like mine I could have used a few more weeks." Scott laughed merrily. His situation was no laughing matter, but he had to do it anyway. It was important to keep up appearances.

Nina giggled then snuggled in closer to her master. She had missed doing that.

Makina murmured, "Looks alright to me.”

Scott clasped Nina’s hand gently then lifted it up as though he were going to kiss it. When it reached his face, he casually tried to bite it. She pulled her endangered limb back then squinted at him.

He grinned at the girl then smiled a little more normally.

Aaron chuckled at their antics. "Well, I thought that I’d once again come visit since you seemed determined not to heed the doctor's advice to take it easy.”

Scott nodded. "Always nice when fans come to visit.”

The older man smirked. "Well, there is that. There's also the matter of a mission that's come up at the office. I recognize your current status as a hospital shut-in, but I figured it would be right up your alley."

If looks could kill, and some could, Nina's glare would have meant swift decisive death.

Scott's response was less dangerous in nature. "Whatcha got for me?"

The older man said, "There's been a rash of recent kidnappings in Verdant falls. A few dozen Demi-Humans and at least six tamers have gone missing suddenly in and around the area."

The younger man pondered that briefly then asked, "Isn't that the sort of thing the local police force would normally deal with?"

Aaron quirked an eyebrow and nodded, "This is true, but they are understaffed. There have been rumors of strange creatures sighted in the woods. The thing that you would be investigating is the creature sightings."

Scott nodded. That sounded like it would make more sense. Investigating a kidnapping was more of a detective thing anyway. "When do we head out?"

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"So this is Verdant Falls, huh?" asked Henry. He was only another two day’s outside of Oldtowne by foot. Soon, he would show his uppity Angel that she would never be free. When her so-called prince finally proved to be his inferior, she would have to accept her lot in life.

Hopefully, it would make her actually pull her weight. As it was, he was considering just releasing her in the woods, near her home. The girl was practically useless to him as she was, and he’d stopped bothering to tame her weeks ago. Her glassy-eyed disregard of his touch had been rather off-putting.

Henry, the douchebag tamer sighed loudly. Nothing had gone right for him since he had run into this girl. First, that guy attacked him out of nowhere and then he had to take crap just because she was not actually a wild Demi-Human. So, what? She was alone in the woods and admitted that she had no master!

After that criminal freak bite off a chunk of his ear, Henry had been enraged. However, he had chosen not to pursue the man further. He was obviously unstable. Had the angel actually chosen to fall in line and stop being such a whiny bitch, they might have entered the regional combat league championships by now. No, she had to be defiant. It was like she did not understand her place in the world!

Henry looked off into the distance and took stock of Verdant Falls. It was an old mining town, famous for digging up magical minerals. He did not really care what the town was known for at the moment, however. What he wanted was a bed for the night. He wanted a bed, and a good night’s sleep.

The idea of having a good night’s sleep felt like it was a beautiful dream. He had been unable to sleep much since the incident where he acquired the angel. Every time he closed his eyes he was forced to see the accusation on the face that that blond haired bitch.

Henry clenched his teeth together. He was not a fucking rapist! He was a tamer. This was his job, and he did it well. Why was he subjected to such constant torment? Had he been cursed by some evil god? Did he smell funny, and life hated him for it? He did not know and it was pissing him off.

Long habit forced his hand up. He fingers moved to the back of his head and he stroked the scar that refused to heal. Soon, this would all be over. Please, let it be over.

Just outside the gates he was confronted by a strange man in a hood. The man gave off a weird vibe. It was the sort of vibe you might get when watching a creepy old man gaze gently at a pre-school. You did not know if it was right to think it, but somehow you always expect the worst.

"Sir, you are a tamer correct?" asked the man. Most of his face was eerily shadowed by that hood.

Henry stopped short then looked at the man in annoyance. "Yeah, so what?"

The blond man drew out a D-Ball that was pure black in color. Strange symbols flowed around it; they caught the eye and entranced the senses. "I have a rare Demi-Human that may interest you."

Henry was about to laugh in the man's face, but a strange sensation over took him. The pattern on the ball was so interesting that he could not look away. Less than a minute passed before he reached out his hand to accept. His glassy-eyed expression never changed. He did not even blink. He merely took the ball as instructed.

His eyes began to glow with a soft, but sinister light. The blond man handed him the ball then slipped away into the shadows, a sinister smile upon his lips.

Henry put the ball on his belt and wandered off into town like a good little patsy. Angry thoughts that had originally begun to soften in recent days returned full-force. His heated rage grew steadily as he recalled the treatment he had endured. He would have his revenge against his angel and the idiot who had tried to take her from him. Let her go in the woods? Never! That bastard and the angel-slut had to pay, no matter the cost.

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"So master, what’ll we do first when we get to Verdant?" asked Makina. The girl trotted along at a moderate pace. She was not even remotely tired, though she noticed Scott had started to lag behind a little.

He did not have her enhanced strength and vitality. The steady, rapid, pace was far more exhausting for him than it was for her.

Nina seemed to be doing a bit better than him, too, but she did not have the raw base stats that the Balvulf had. Still, they were going to continue the trip on foot. They had little choice anyway as they were only a few miles from town now.

Scott continued trotting along just as he had done the last two days. At this point he was running on mere determination rather than real strength. His armor was designed not to chafe, but he'd love to get out of it soon. "Find the training center and report to the guild office afterwards. We will probably get something to eat after that."

Makina nodded and said, "Oh, OK.” He continued to jog alongside everyone else at a pace that caused her little concern.

Scott silently wished that he could have that sort of stamina. Of course, the fact that she was jogging along backwards did not help the situation. She wanted to face him while they ran for some unknown reason. It did not make him feel much better about his physicality, but he had to admit that he did enjoy the view.

Nina smiled while she listened to the conversation. Makina was really coming along, though, Scott was still clueless. It was obvious that the girl wanted a proper taming. Nipples did not get that hard just from jogging.

Apollo galloped along with them. He was trying his best to keep up with the longer legged people, but they did not understand the concept of taking breaks. At first he had easily been able to stay ahead of them, but over time it had become apparent that his lengthy period in that crystal stasis pod had weakened his constitution. He was still holding up better than Scott though, he could at least feel comfort in that.

"You should know; I’m considering getting a vehicle of some type soon. Running is good training and all, but there's bound to come a time when we need wheels." said Scott after he tripped over a rock and nearly fell. Such were the hazards of running on rocky dirt roads.

Apollo was all for that! They could run for training purposes all they liked. Traveling between towns, though? Just go ahead and get there already! After another hour they were able to see the town gates. They chose to slow down to a casual walking pace.

"So, this is Verdant Falls?" asked Nina. The small mountain town was actually rather pretty in an old-timey fashion. Cascading waterfalls that poured down from atop green mountainous formed a lovely backdrop. The local flora and random types of moss and lichen caused the mountain to seem like it was a covered in a light sheen of green. That backdrop was how the town had gotten its name in the first place.

As they strolled through the gates, they came upon a sign that read “you are here.” Below it there was an arrow that pointed back to the town gate.

"Cute.” said Scott. They made a few little jokes about the humor of the town’s citizens then set off in the direction of the training center. It would be near the heart of the town.

The little rural community was so small that only a little over a thousand people, human and Demi-Human alike, lived there. The town sported a shopping arcade near the town center, but it was mostly for the occasional tourists who liked to come and ski on the mountains in mid-winter. The training center was readily located next to a small tea house in that shopping district.

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Henry sat on the bed while his new girl whispered dark and terrible things into his ear. She fed his anger and evil minded desires. Slowly, what little decency that existed within the man fled from his mind. Once he had become a hollowed out shell of his former self, he revealed a dark and terrible smile.

They should all pay. He had been humiliated enough in his life. People, people everywhere deserved to pay. They were all in it together. Everyone was against him. It was them; all of the people everywhere were his enemies. Another dark whisper slipped into his ear.

“Yes, of course.” The people in this town deserved to pay even more than most. They had done nothing to him, but that did not matter. They were obviously biding their time before they attempted to destroy him.

It would not work. Oh, no. The foolish people of Verdant Falls would learn to fear him, revere him. Yes, he would make this place his.

The blue skinned fiend smiled evilly and revealed a set of wickedly sharp fangs. Things were going nicely. Go team Empire, right?

Henry stood up then turned toward the door. His face was empty of expression, but his eyes burned with a dark and sinister fire. "Let's go make some noise.”

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An armored figure knelt down and ran its hand over the grass. The streak of wilted flora had been perfectly aligned. There where residual energies in the area that seemed both dark and familiar.

Several days prior they had felt the sudden release of an energy that should not exist here. It was a type of force that had to be relevant to their current situation. They had traveled with little rest so that they could reach the source of that disturbance. Yes, this was definitely the place.

The armored figure wore a full-face helmet that mostly obscured their features. However, behind the face mask, lips moved slowly and a single word formed. The menacing figure spoke the single word that came to mind, and did so in a heartbreakingly soft whisper. “...Dak?”

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Scott sighed softly as the water ran down along his naked body. It curled along the delicate architecture of his masculine physique. It was a physique sculpted by hard training and dozens of battles. He would scarcely recognize himself if he were to meet the person who he had been only a few short months prior. “Whatever gods there be in heaven, please bless he who invented the shower.”

After he got done experiencing the joys of hot water, and all manner of other things that people generally enjoyed when they were in a shower, he toweled off and wandered back into his room.

Makina and Nina were passed out in each other’s arms in a delightfully naked scene of sweet and sensual eroticism. He had intended to enter into some modest taming, but they had apparently decided that they could not wait. Perhaps he should have let them join him in the shower? He made a note of that thought and pinned it to his mental refrigerator. That seemed like a definite thing to put on any proper to do list.

Apollo for his part looked vaguely disturbed in a way that only a cat can look disturbed. Something about hot sweaty girl-on-girl action while he was in the room tended to make his fur stand up in a strange and interesting manner.

"Get an eye full there kitty cat?" His question was rhetorical in nature. He already knew that the little fur ball would not answer him yet. A moment later a low yowl escaped his feline throat. Scott nodded in understanding.

"Yeah, I hear ya fella. Hey, do you want something? I'm headed to the store." Scott looked at the cat quizzically.

The cat sniffed the air then seemed like it wanted to say something, but Apollo settled for a disappointed mewling sound.

"I'll get ya some fish, or milk from the cafeteria before I leave. I need you to be strong since you’re the man of the family while I’m away, right?"

The cat blinked owlishly, with is something cats often did for some reason, then meow in a much friendlier manner.

Scott put his armor on, belted on his sword, and headed out. A few minutes later he returned with a big bowl of fresh shredded tuna.

"I hope that'll do. You keep the girls safe, alright?" he asked the cat.

Apollo once again looked as though he wanted to speak, but he settled for a slight head bob. He would do that. His was an existence that struck fear into the hearts of fish and small rodents everywhere. Neither of which were in the room, unless you counted the shredded fish on the plate. Apollo had things covered.

Scott headed out into town. He would not be gone long. The store was just across the street. What could happen, right?

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