“Are you sure? No one will come to get you until the allotted time runs out?” Nelson questions with a worried tone. He feels partly responsible for my injury as my ‘team leader.’

“If you want confidence that nothing bad happens to me, you can help me stock up for supplies.”

I plan to spend at least 5 days inside a fracture, using that entire time to hunt for levels and practice wilderness survival skills. I would need practical experience if I ever decide to roam the lands.

“Sure, Ellis. Do you have a list of things that you need?”

I hand him a pre-prepared list of things I will need. I have the standard things that any man would need in a survival situation. Rations, water, a hatchet, etc.

“Ellis, what's this at the bottom? Any evolution materials for my fish. Are you messing with me?”

“My floating fish might need materials to level up. I am just preparing for the future.”

“How are you going to know what you need? Also, don’t you need them to reach their level cap before you can attempt an evolution?”

“I was thinking of quickly gaining them a few levels and then leaving for the materials. Coming back once they evolve.”

“That won't be possible… I can get you access to one fracture maximum. And if you leave, it counts as you forfeiting your time.”

That fucking sucks. Either Khan misses out on a week of grinding, or I get lucky inside the fracture and find the materials I need there. Maybe I don’t even need materials… I have a better idea.

“Do you know if there are any rat infestations anywhere?”

Nelson thinks before answering. “… unfortunately, one of our warehouses is infested with roaches because someone didn’t activate the preservation glyphs where we were storing monster carcasses. I called an exterminator. They should be here in an hour.”

“Can I see?”

~

I sicked Khan on a bunch of level one rat-sized roaches crowding one of the FIB’s storage facilities. I don't think he liked killing these things because his [Rage] activated. He managed to sweep them all up and reached level 10 before the exterminator came and handled the rest.

Name / Nickname

Khan the Exile

Species

Cloud Guppie F (Unique)

Level

10 (MAX)

Evolution Requirements

Not Met

~ ~

Health Points

100/100

Mana Points

75/75

Armor Points

0

Might

18 > 20

Agility

18 > 20

Vigor

18 > 20

Mind

13 > 15

Spirit

13 > 15

Perception

13 > 15

I hope Kahn gets some extra attribute points when he evolves. I also noticed that when one of Khan’s bodies was far from the group, they became their own entity. Expect for the main body, all of their stats were one, and the collective stats dropped by one.

Ten floating fish circle my head as I read Khan’s evolution requirements.

[Evolution to Aerial Predators D

Cloud Elemental Stone: Not Completed

Fresh Meat: Not Completed

Kill 100 creatures in a rage: Completed]

Khan killing all those roaches help him out. [Aerial Predators]... I didn’t have a choice in his evolution, but it sounds powerful.

I find Nelson and tell him I need both elemental stone for cloud and a bunch of meat. I told him around 100 pounds because I wanted to be safe.

“That’s a hefty order. You sure that this will evolve you floating fish?”

“Yes, Nelson. I wouldn’t have tamed these creatures if I didn’t know how to make them stronger.” That was a lie, but I prefer not to tell him I can see evolution requirements with a skill. He has been nothing but helpful to me, but he still has superiors to report to.

“Sigh, let me ask my friend in storage and distribution and see if he has either available.”

I leave Nelson to go hunting for my stuff as I wait in the break room. I don’t know where my other team members are, but they’re not here.

…

Around ten minutes pass before Nelson walks through the door holding a huge brown paper bag. He plops it down on the table and looks at me.

“That's one entire [Cloud Sheep] with the elemental stone inside. My friend owed me a favor, so he made this one get ‘lost.’

“Thanks! What do I owe you?”

“Hmmm, let me think. How about you tell me where you got that arm? It seems simple in design, but it functions better than other prosthetics I've seen.”

I hesitate before answering. “A friend of mine gave it to me. She had it lying around her house.”

“Wow! That's a great friend! Did she tell you where she got it?”

“Nope.” I lied. If Rain wanted other people to know about her creations, she would already be famous in this small city.

I rip open the bag and see a dead [Cloud Sheep]. The wool is a literal cloud that hugs the flesh of the creature. They can walk on clouds and graze from them for sustenance. It looks like this one was cleanly killed with a single wound to the head. The elemental stone is near the heart and is visible with postmortem cuts.

I can tell Khan is excited... He starts swimming faster around me, itching to get closer. The meat on a [Cloud Sheep] is as tender as cotton candy.

“Eat well, Khan.”

Khan immediately swarms the lump of meat in front of him. The nine smaller fishes start ripping into flesh as his main body b-lines it straight for the elemental stone. Khan doesn’t need to eat much but has ten mouths to feed.

~

I wait patiently for Khan to finish eating. He seems completely content with himself right now, ripping into flesh. Watching him eat is almost hypnotic.

[Evolution to Aerial Predators D

Cloud Elemental Stone: Completed

Fresh Meat: Completed

Kill 100 creatures in a rage: Completed]

[Comensing Evloution]

Each of Khan's bodies suddenly stops moving, and cloud fog surrounds him and fills the room as they start growing in size. Nelson left a while ago since he couldn’t stomach watching Khan eat, so he doesn't get to see this happen.

Right before his evolution finishes, the clouds turn turbulent as rain and thunder fill the clouds. They turn darl and stormy before condensing into one [Aerial Scavenger]. Khan sits there alone as he finishes digesting his meal. He is now around six inches long and looks more similar to a piranha/guppie hybrid. He has the shape and fins of a guppie, but his teeth and eyes are sharper and ampler.

*pop pop pop pop pop*

Popping sounds fill the room as Khan repopulates into his swarm. A full ten Khans lay flat on the ground. I quickly check his [Status]

Name / Nickname

Khan the Exile

Species

Ariel Scavengers D (Unique)

Level

10 (0/800)

Evolution Requirements

Not Met

~ ~

Health Points

100/100

Mana Points

75/75

Armor Points

0

Might

20 > 40

Agility

20

Vigor

20

Mind

15

Spirit

15

Perception 15

Trait:

Shouldn’t Exist:

This creature should not exist.

Wrath of the Skies A:

One of many, the scourge of the skies.

Multiple bodies. Unknown effects

~

Skills

Power of the Storm C (NEW)

The user’s attack may deal elemental damage in place of their physical attacks.

Rage D:

When angered; +50% to Might

When fully enraged: +100% to Might

Float D:

The user does not need land or water, only the skies to move.

Bite D lv1 (NEW)

Bite attacks deal more damage and penetrate armor.

Damage: 30%

Penetration: 15%

Cloud Affinity D (NEW)

An amount of affinity is added with clouds.

Stormy Weather D (NEW)

In rainy conditions, increase stats by 10%

~

Very fucking nice! It seems like all the bodies increased his Might by two now instead of just one. His main body seemed to get this upgrade as well. [Stormy Weather] and [Power of the Storm] seem situational, but at least he has a new skill that can level up.

I force khan to get his lazy asses back into the air, and we walk to the fracture.

Before I left the house this morning, I contacted Nelson to pick a fracture out for me. The conditions are creatures with flesh and can get hurt from [Radiant] damage. He surprisingly didn’t ask why. He told me to prepare for a forest environment and bring extra food.

Nelson leads me to the FIB’s official fracture containment site. The fractures can’t be too close together in case of instability causing a chain reaction, so they constructed a series of long hallways with rooms that have adequate distance away from each other. The fracture is not being stored in an item but is just floating in the middle of the room.

“Thank you for your help. I’ll see you in a few days.”

“Take care, Ellis. Don’t be embarrassed to leave early.”

I nod at Nelson and walk into the fracture.

~

I wish Nelson would’ve told me more than “forest.” I found myself standing in a dark forest with no moon. The dark clouds hand in the sky as a constant reminder of inky blackness. There is no thunder, but the air is cold and damp. The trees around me are robust and numerous.

[Master, any light thisss one makes will probably be seen by every creature within a few miles.]

“Duchess, we are here to hunt, not for a camping trip. Thanks for the heads up, though. Let's try to be discreet with your magic, but If you can’t, there is no issue.

We skulk through the trees. Without light, it's difficult to make out anything past my outstretched arm. My perception can compensate, but we must be careful of anything lurking behind trees.

Flash Gordon has to suffer through not being able to see every day. I can power through just this week.

Rain starts to fall from the sky, accompanied by flashes of lightning. The lightning illuminates the forest in bursts. I utilize this new sensory information to find the inhabitants of this forest.

I send Duchess into the sky to scout for me. She tries to be careful of the lightning above.

[Thiss one detects no creatures.]

As soon as that message was sent to my mind, a chill tuns down my back.

*AWOOO*

"Wolves."