Kara found herself floating in a swamp. Trees and a variety of giant mushrooms grew out of the green stained water, letting only the tiniest rays of sunshine to seep through, and even then its hue was more of an emerald rather than a yellow. In the corner where the sun couldn’t reach were pink flowers with a firefly-like light shinning from the bud. Their scent was potent enough to conceal the smell of rotten eggs that came with bogs

I can see. These weren't just glimpses of memories she was accustomed to. She was inside it as if it was its own world. Her senses worked fully.

Directly below her was a three-foot, purple translucent creature. The color of its skin shifted from different shades of dark blue as it moved, becoming light purple when it jumped. Its blue butterfly wings fluttered as best as they could, giving it an extra foot of reach on each leap. Through the blurriness of its flesh Kara could see its bones bend and flex like rubber. Its eyes, another hallmark of fairies besides the skin, were completely neon purple and unblinking. There was no hair or nose to speak of.

It looked to be a child, by fairy standards, and above it was a green halo. Life Force Pacify. It turned weaker monsters friendly.

This must be Nilbog, otherwise, the memory wouldn’t begin here. Which means the rumors are true. Monsters could not evolve across species—a goblin will always be a goblin, and a fairy will always be a fairy. The fact that he became a Shapeshifter meant that the Shapeshifter race did not follow this rule.

Nilbog’s low weight and the fluttering of his wings allowed him to quickly traverse the bog, something that could not be said for the Fire Ants following on his heel. Their sharp legs pierced through, and if they weren’t each a few meters tall, it would have sunk them to the bottom. Instead, they dug the ground up in their pursuit.

If her memories served her correct, they were level 40 Rank C monsters with poison and decent hive power. Their jaws, two large mandibles at the side of their mouths, clicked and snapped at a few inches away from Nilbog’s wings, causing him to jump and yelp each time the sounds got closer. Anything that was in between those two blades was cut in half, the venom seeping out sizzling against the ground. Trees, rocks, and even each other were snapped apart.

Considering their level and size, devouring a thousand of little Nilbogs would do little for them. This must have been a Dungeon otherwise the ants wouldn’t have behaved so strangely.

He existed the encasing of the grass, dodged a few skimpy trees, and jumped straight into a battleground.

The Ant Queen stood in the middle of it all. Over 10 meters tall, it punctured the earth wherever one of its giant feet landed. It went through the hard dirt like it was mud. It’s body, however, was riddled with countless punctures, burns, slashes, and arrows. Its shell was crumbled and burned at parts, as if struck by a meteor. A dozen Red Ants protected her on all sides from humans.

There were 6 of them with the typical roles--Warrior, Tank, Mage, Ranger, Rogue, and Healer.

Not a Dungeon, but a Raid. 4 stars, if her guess was right.

Nilbog sprinted past, his feet bouncing off the ground with every explosion. He stumbled in holes and open crevices of the earth until he fell before a woman lying on the ground.

Around her stood Sprits of varying colors and sizes. They were in the shapes of Wyvern’s, Manticores, humans, Vandrans, and the Free Tribe folk. Any Fire Ant that entered their parameter were quickly crushed, cut, burned, and electrified.

She likely had some type of Necromancy class. They were a rare breed of Life Force users that were able to capture the Soul of creatures that died and to re-summon them Spirits. She might have been the one that used Pacify on Nilbog.

The Spirits, not sensing any malice, allowed Nilbog to near her. A clever bunch, considering they were remanence of the dead.

He dropped to his knees, clutching her hand tightly. “Nelly!” he yelled, though his mouth did not match the pronunciation of the words. The brain filling in for the missing bits, no doubt. These should be his memories, after all. It didn’t mean they were completely real.

“N-Nil?” she wheezed, blood dripping though her mouth. “I...fine...Jack...B-Betray...” Her stomach was open, her guts spilling out. One of her legs were missing, as well as a decent portion of her waist. She did not look fine. It was amazing that she could even breathe.

But Kara saw that she would heal, and very soon at that. Her Spirits were transforming their Life Force into live matter. Limbs, organs, nerves—they were all coming back. Likely part of her class, as well. No ordinary skill could heal this quickly.

What was truly odd, Kara noticed, was her wounds: it was cut by a blade, and no Fire Ant was able to wield a blade with their limbs, as far as she knew.

Jack betray? He was the one that did this? A quick look showed only two people with a sword--the tank and the warrior that was mounting the Red Ant.

The purple liquid in Nilbog’s eyes fell like tears down his cheeks as he held her hands. “I’ll get him! He’ll know what to do!” he said, running off.

Nelly’s hands reached for him, though neither her mouth nor hands had enough power in them. She watched as Nilbog went towards the Red Queen. He got surprisingly far until a lightly armored man with an eye patch landed in front of him. The memory once again fluttered; words become static, the colors fading, faces blending. After a pause a red flask was handed to Nilbog.

“This will save her! She’ll die without it!” the man said hurriedly.

Nilbog paused for a brief moment. Even on the face of a fairy Kara could see the distrust clear on his face. A few precious seconds passed by until a group of Fire Ants began rushing towards them, making the decision for him. Nilbog sprinted in the other way as the man turned around, his body turning into a flash of light.

He bellowed something, and then the ground shook followed by an explosion. A Life Force Flare fired from his palm into the sky, exploding into a star figure.

That was how rankers communicated across distance and in secrecy.

Two Fire Ants charged towards Nilbog. One was pinned to the ground with a Life Force Web by the man, but the other Fire Ant avoided it. It ran straight at Nilbog. Without stopping it swiped at him with its front leg. It was too fast for Nibog to react—he was cut in half. His upper body went up while his legs kept on running. His wings fluttered, gained a bit of distance, and landed on Nilbog’s lower half. His body re-glue itself, and Nilbog kept running.

Before the other Fire Ant broke free of its chains a huge heap of metal crashed into it. He stood on top of the Fire Ant with his shield and giant sword. Brown ooze covered each part of his white and blue armor.

The Life Force Flare called him. What's the secrecy for, though? The man with the eye-patch could have just called for him.

He looked from the fur armored man to Nilbog, to the flask in his hands, and then mouthed something Kara could not hear. An argument ensued. The only audible word was the name Barlom.

It sounded familiar, but Kara couldn't put a finger on it.

Soon Nilbog was followed by Barlom. He leaped from one Fire Ant to the other, blowing them apart like…..well, like insects. He protected Nilbog until he reached the safe zone of Nelly's Spirits, which by itself was strange.

Why was he wasting precious time to protect Nilbog? If he wanted to get the potion to Nelly, who didn't need it in the first place, Barlom could have jumped straight there.

It was an easy puzzle to solve, but sadly, it did not seem little Nilbog figured it out. He fell down next to her, nudging her until she opened an eye.

“Drink!” he said, pushing the red flask against her lips.

She was unresponsive. She only shook her head weakly, so Nilbog reached with his fingers and opened her mouth.

Before the liquid touched her lips Nelly cringed, her eyes opening wide. A shiver went through her body. She attempted to close her mouth, but Nilbog stuck the flask in.

This will save her, the voice repeated. She will die without it, it said again, echoing.

The Spirits floated vigilantly above, ensuring that no one would hurt their Host.

"How frustrating," Kara said, shaking her head. Behind Nilbog, outside of the Spirit’s range, was Barlom staring quietly.

The world began to lose its color. The Spirits vanished as Nelly died, but the Pacify skill controlling Nilbog did not. She wasn't the one that cast the skill.

The picture paused then, frozen in time/ This will save her. She will die without it, the voice repeated.

The world turned murky, its colors of gray, yellow, and brown twisting and combining until a new scene unfolded before her.

A large man in blue and white armor stood in front of Nelly's body, directly behind the Nilbog. Nilbog slowly turned around with an expression on his face that Kara just could not describe. "J-Jack," he said in a whisper. His quivering hands held Nelly's arm. He kept shaking her.

Jack grabbed Nilbog by the head and thew him away. Nilbog's flesh bounced off the ground like a ball, striking a boulder and falling still.

The man’s helm vanished into blue particles as he fell to the ground. Dark hair and green eyes—it was much too similar to the face that Nilbog currently had.

Barlom, the old mage, and the same eye-patched man surrounded Jack.

Barlom walked forward, his sword glowing with Life Force. Jack did not flinch. The fool lost his will. Even when Barlom’s sword pierced him through the back, Jack did not react. He just let himself bleed to death.

“For Dlar,” Barlom said, jerking the sword off. Jack fell on Nelly's body, his blood mixing with hers. “We won’t have monsters, and monster lovers, rule our kingdom.”

“You mean your kingdom, Barlom,” the woman said, cackling, though her face quickly died down to scowl. "Our goals are different, though, in the end, I am no different than you."

“It's too late for regrets. Burn the bodies. We must find Eikko before he gets the King’s Egg.”

“It was far too late, dear Barlom. He caught on faster than I expected. He'll find it any minute now,” she said as fire began to form in front of her. “3rd rank Fire Hound.” Out of the fire, the shape of a large dog formed. It growled and leaped forward.

A black claw burst from under Jack’s corpse, going through the hound and smashing Olivia into the ground.

Both Barlom and the man in fur armor dashed for her aid. Barlom slashed the claw in half while a burst of Life Force from the eye-patched man covered her.

Jack’s body was tossed to the side as Nelly's body floated up. Her skin ripped apart as a dark blob began expanding. Black bolts began to explode from her.

“Damn the fates, she's turning into a Shade!” Barlom yelled, his shield propped in front. Each bolt left a dent and pushed him back.

“F-Finish the Raid,” the mage croaked. “We can’t beat it.”

The blob of corrupted mana began to form into a woman’s shape. Its shell flowed like flames as it began to expand. Two pure white eyes formed on its head. It glanced from Jack's corpse, to Nilbog, and then to Barlom as they ran away.

With a ground-shaking screech the Shade bolted towards Barlom, leaving Jack’s body and the monster who used to be Nilbog behind.

Kara didn’t need to see the rest, and apparently, neither did Nilbog. The memory froze as Nilbog reached for Jack’s body.

“Poison,” Kara said, turning behind her. "Out of all the different ways it could have gone, it had to be poison."

Nilbog stared back at her in his fairy form. He was taller with wider wings behind him with a face held no emotion in it. “It should have saved her. She would have died without it,” he said, his voice seraphic. It echoed throughout the frozen world.

“She would have lived if you had done nothing. Her Spirits saw you as a friendly creature. They would have stopped Barlom, but they didn’t stop you.”

He paused, or rather, the flowing liquid in his eyes did. Then, when he finished guessing how much Kara now knew, the swirl resumed turning. He kept his silence.

"You ate him, didn't you?" Kara said, sighing. Kara will never be able to attain that race if that was the case. If she had a body that she could eat with then she wouldn't need the Shapeshifter race in the first place. "You perfectly copied his body, that’s why no Detection skill can work on you—it’s not a Disguise. Biologically, to the bone, you are a human. That’s also how you, aside monster created in a Dungeon escaped without the Game deleting it. It removed all the Bog Fairies, but a sentient Shapeshifter? No, that the Raid didn’t create."

Nilbog didn’t respond.

Kara sighed. He was going to be difficult--he didn't seem to care about his life. “Here is the thing-- I don’t care about your life either, or the rest of this wretched world, in fact, but I do need you. Help me and I’ll help you get justice in return.”

“Getting revenge won’t change what I did, nor will it bring them back,” he said, his voice stale.

“This isn’t about you—this is justice for them. Rankers killing each other is fine, this is what The Game is about, anyway, but treachery is not. Use the life you stole to right the wrong. Heal your body and fight!”

“Okay,” he said.

“Anything short of that is a lack of—wait, what?”

“You get to use this body, and in exchange, Barlom, Olivia, and Wynjo will receive judgment. Destroy them. Rip them apart. I don’t care.”

Kara was speechless. There was no surprise or hesitation in his voice. Where is the stubbornness, the incoherent rambling of what was wrong and what was right? She thought he would despise his powers. Wasn't that why his body still hasn't met the "requirements?" Was she wrong to think this?

I feel…duped. Am I overthinking this?

“So are you actually able to destroy a kingdom?” he said. The underlying assumption was obvious—he wanted proof that she could fulfill her promise.

“Uh,” Kara said, waiting until her mind caught up to the conversation. Killing them this early on wouldn’t pose a challenge. “It’s not whether I can, but whether I’m allowed to. Being directly involved in killing lower levels would endanger myself.” Of course, there are other ways around that. Doing so was just not the wisest course of action. The moment they die Nilbog would have no reason to cooperate with her. There was nothing that guaranteed his word, or his motivation.

“Right, of course," he said, and if he could roll his eyes he probably would have.

Sharp. Noticing Kara's obvious lie wasn't special--having the discipline not to call her on it was. It wouldn't have changed her answer. He's still a child with an attitude, though. He should have acted ignorant for more than a handful of reasons.

"And how are you going to do this?” he said. "They have a kingdom."

And you have the broken ranker in history on your side, both literally and figuratively. "The normal way, of course. It won’t be easy, but if we complete difficult Dungeons and rank high in the Phases we’ll catch up in a couple of months. Levels will mean less when we hit the top 100s.”

Nilbog paused. It was hard to read his fairy face, but for a second she thought he narrowed his eyes at her. “You weren't able to catch a level 20 like what, three times? And what's this sticking out of my stomach? Seriously, why should I trust someone with that track record to do anything?”

But there were reasons for that! Not only had she forgotten how to move a body, but she also started as a near-dead level 20 against foes at least twice her level with little skills to use. And that wasn’t even what killed her—trying to play the hero and save Caldain was what done it. If Yan was capable as a thirteen-year-old child then…

Kara, of course, mentioned none of that. That wouldn't change the fact that she did have an embarrassing streak of failures. She couldn’t use her past record as the 44th First Ranker to her credibility, and nor could she show an impressive amount of power without sacrificing a portion of it. She had no real proof.

“Well, it’s not like I have anything to lose,” he said, saving her from embarrassment. He shrugged, looking back on his old self.

He doesn’t believe it’s possible, damn it all. Why does the sole conqueror of the surface have to prove themselves to a one-year-old Shapeshifter? This was more than just humiliating. She was like one of those old hags that tried to convince the younger ones that she did, in fact, once have it.

You have seen your Dancer’s Essence

This was a new level of irony. Before Kara screamed, her senses faded, and she once again found herself in the pitless darkness of the real world.