Chapter 6: Two years

After a few days of travelling, Crowa and Zeek eventually arrived at the Capital city of Merioll. Before approaching the gates, Zeek stopped Crowa.

Crowa: "What is it?"

Zeek: "The guards will become suspicious if they saw a one-armed boy travelling with a scruffy old guy like me. I don't think you noticed but, look around. Every person here looks civilized and orderly. Now look at us, we look characters straight from a survival film."

Crowa: "Ok then, what do you suggest we do? Do you think we can borrow an arm around here somewhere?" Crowa sarcastically said,

Zeek: "Ok smart ass. Let's just cover your right side with some cloak and they won't notice. Hopefully. And let me do the talking. You just stay quiet."

Crowa: "Whatever you say."

Zeek covered Crowa with a cloak and proceeded to walk to the gates of Merioll, the guards immediately stopped them and asked some questions.

Guard: "Halt! State your business in the capital."

Zeek: "We were just passing through looking for some medicine for my kid here. He is sick. We heard some rumors that a skilled herbalist was living here in Merioll. That's why we decided to come here."

Guard: "Alright, you may go. Behave yourself inside the city. We won't hesitate to arrest you if we see anything suspicious. You're not some runaway criminals from some faraway village, right?"

Zeek: "Heavens no. Like I said, we were just looking for some medicine."

Guard: "Very well. You may pass."

Zeek: "Thank you very much!"

The two of them successfully entered Merioll without any problems. It's Crowa's first time being here in the capital city. Everything is new for him. Tall buildings and houses, merchants everywhere, guards roaming, children running around in the streets and all the hustling and bustling things a city has. Merioll is big, it is a city with walls and in the distance, you can see the Merioll palace where the king lives.

Crowa: " This place is huge. I could easily get lost here."

Zeek: "Just walk with me. Merioll is not some happy place you would want to stick around. Criminals and murderers unknowingly roam the streets. My brother's place is not far from here."

Crowa: "Gotcha. This brother of yours, are you the same age?"

Zeek: "He's my older brother. He's a bit weird but he's a genius when it comes to inventing. You could say he's an engineer specializing on monster parts. Just let him talk, he doesn't like it when he gets interrupted."

Crowa: "Does he live alone? I mean, every genius scientist or inventor needs a sidekick or assistant right?"

Zeek: "You'll see when we get there. Almost there. Does your arm still hurt?"

Crowa: "Kinda, but I can manage. By the way, I forgot to ask, how did you exactly stop the bleeding?"

Zeek: "I burned the part where your arm got decapitated. You were unconscious due to shock and low blood. That's why you didn't felt any pain when I did the procedure."

Crowa: "Thanks for that. That was quick thinking burning the wound to stop it from bleeding."

Zeek: "Yeah, no problem. We're here.

Crowa didn't realize they were already there. In front of him is a metal house with some huge telescope like window at the top. A metallic sign greeted them from the front door. It says "Home of the genius scientist Shaki. Leave at once if you do not have any businesses here."

Crowa: "So your brother's name is Shaki? What a peculiar name for a scientist."

Zeek: "There's a reason why his name is Shaki, but that's a story for another time. SHAKI! It's me. Open up."

A glass lens suddenly appeared at the top part of the door and extended in front of them.

"Zeek. Where have you been? I got a job for you. Oh, what do we have here? You brought along company. Who is that boy?"

Zeek: "I'll explain later. I have the core."

The glass lens instantly retracted, and the door opened slowly. Smoke came out of the doorway and a shadowy figure appeared. It was small. It's walking towards them. It's the genius scientist Shaki. Shaki looks like a small boy. He has two antennas on the side of his forehead that looks like almost like a horn. He is wearing a white lab coat and red glasses. His size is like half of Zeek's.

Crowa: "Huh? This is your brother? I thought you said he was older?"

Zeek: "He is. Don't let appearances fool you. As a great inventor, he made a device that would halt the hormones responsible for his height and directed it to his brain. That's why he's not getting tall."

Shaki: "It's the antennas by the way. That's what he's talking about. Enough chit chats. Give it to me!"

Zeek: "Hold your horses. I did all the hard work, so you better hear me out. I want you to create a prosthetic arm for this boy and infuse it with the alpha's core."

Shaki: "Not a chance. I won't let such a rare and masterful core to be just an arm for someone I barely know. Besides-

Zeek: "I saw them, you know."

Shaki:"...What?"

Shaki stared at both of them. He inspected Crowa from head to toe. Crowa was weirded out.

Shaki: "Come, we'll talk inside."

The three of them entered the house. It was pitch black. Then Shaki shouted: " BELLE! Open the lights." The lights suddenly turned on and Shaki's house was illuminated. It was more like a laboratory than a proper house. There is equipment everywhere, machinery, complex laboratory instruments and some papers scattered everywhere on the floor.

Crowa: "Whoa! look at all this stuff."

Shaki: "Look all you want but no touching boy!"

Crowa whispered to Zeek: "Who's belle?"

Zeek: "It's his assistant."

Crowa: "But I don't see anyone here besides us."

Shaki: "It's the house. She's Belle."

Crowa: "Huh?"

A female robotic voice suddenly talked, and you can hear it all over the house.

"WELCOME MASTER ZEEK! DID YOU ALSO SLEEP WELL MASTER SHAKI? AND TO THE BOY THAT I DO NOT KNOW, WELCOME!"

Crowa: "That's so cool! So, you're Belle?"

"THAT IS RIGHT. CAN I DO ANYTHING FOR YOU?"

Shaki: "Open the trap door Belle."

"AS YOU WISH MASTER SHAKI."

The floor suddenly shook. A large trap door opened on the floor and a staircase as well. It leads to a basement.

Shaki: "Thank you Belle. Now, on to business. So, who's this boy you brought here?"

Zeek: "His name is Crowa. He is my student. I'll train him to fight the Vindinors."

Shaki: "So, finally. You found them. And you think this boy can kill those assassins?"

Zeek: "Yes. If he trains enough and proves it. I found them because of the alpha. They were after it also."

Shaki: "Figures. The alpha is an extremely rare monster, it appears only within a few hundred years. The power of that monster is unlike any other. It can absorb anything it eats and use the power of that absorbed monster. Luckily for you that time when you killed it, it just recently spawned and has not been able to absorb any strong monster. Can I see the core?"

Zeek: "Before I do that, do we have a deal?"

Shaki: "The question is, can he handle it? You know this is not some ordinary core of a common monster, right? This is one of the 15 special monsters. If I infuse the core to his prosthetic arm, I don't know what side effects it will create."

Crowa: "I'm willing to take the risk. If not for Zeek, I would be dead by now. I'll grab any chance I can to become strong so I can kill the Vindinors. And in that way, I can avenge my father and find my mother as well."

Shaki: "Very well, let's go to the basement where my extractor is. We'll do the infusing there. But first I've got to create a prosthetic arm. That will take some time maybe a day or two. I've got to make sure that your arm can sustain the core of the alpha. In the meantime, you can both rest here."

Zeek: "Thanks Shaki. It's been a long time."

Shaki: "Don't mention it, besides, inspecting the core itself is already an accomplishment for me."

Shaki immediately worked on the core and the prosthetic arm while Zeek and Crowa rested. Shaki did not sleep at all because of the tedious process it takes to extract the power of the core. But eventually he had done it. It took him 2 days to separate the essence of the core. The prosthetic arm for Crowa was also finished. It was metallic gray in color and slightly chrome. All that's left is infusing it with the power of the alpha and installing it to Crowa.

Shaki: "Now comes the hard part. This is going to hurt like hell, are you ready boy?"

Crowa: "I am. Now or never."

Shaki: "Go lie down at the center of the infuser."

Crowa proceeded to lie down on his back at the metal table. The infuser is pointed towards his right shoulder. Shaki then brought out the prosthetic arm that he made and placed it on Crowa's right shoulder.

Crowa: "That's an awesome arm. Is that metal?"

Shaki: "Titanium to be precise. You seem excited about this. You do know that you'll die when the core rejects your body, right?"

Crowa: "Yeah. I should have died that day. But Zeek helped me. This is my way of saying thanks to him. If this succeeds, I can properly plan my revenge on the ones who killed my father."

Shaki: "How old are you anyway?"

Crowa: "16"

Shaki: "You've got a lot ahead of you. Goodluck. Oh, and one more thing, I think it's obvious but, this is gonna freaking hurt. "

Crowa: "Go ahead."

Shaki pointed the infuser near to Crowa's right shoulder. The core is placed right above the prosthetic arm. Then he went outside the room and watched through a glass window. Beside him is Zeek also watching.

Shaki: "You seem so sure this would work."

Zeek: "The core chose this kid. It's like it's alive. When I carried him that day the core suddenly vibrated violently. I thought it would shatter. Then it glowed a faint light."

Shaki: "Monster cores especially these types of monsters is, said to be linked to human emotions. Maybe the emotions of that kid that day resonated with the core."

Zeek: "Then I made the right choice."

Crowa gestured a thumbs up to the both of them, signaling that he's ready. Shaki nodded in response and pulled the lever in a control panel. The lights inside the infuser room became dim. The infuser then generated a red light at its tip. Then the alpha's core created a bright light. The prosthetic arm started to shake. The infuser is like a magnet pulling them together. Crowa felt intense heat and pain. It feels like his skin is burning and at the same time thousands of needles puncture him simultaneously.

Crowa: "ARRGGHHHHH!!"

His life flashed before his eyes. "All I want is to avenge you father, and mother, I'll find you no matter what. Please help me on this journey that I'm about to take. I know I am always with you wherever I will go." He thought to himself. The pain is almost unbearable. He remembered the time he was in the village, playing with friends all day long. Those are some fun times. The hunting trips he and his father went through. The days when he took care of his mother when she was sick. He'd do anything to bring that back but right now, he has to endure this. He's almost at his limit.

Crowa: "ARRRRGHHHH! MASTER SHAKI! HOW MUCH LONGER?"

Shaki: "You're doing great boy! just a little more!"

Zeek: "Come on, Crowa"

Crowa: "AARRRRGGHHHH!!"

Shaki: "There! It's done!"

Shaki immediately pulled down the lever, the infuser instantly stopped. Then Shaki and Zeek entered the room. There they saw, Crowa with his prosthetic arm successfully attached to his shoulder.

Shaki: "You did it boy! Good job. I'd thought you wouldn't survive."

Zeek: "Are you alright?"

Crowa: "Yeah, a minute more and I would have passed out, or worse, dead.

Zeek: "You did good. Shaki, where's the core?"

Shaki: "It's inside the arm. The infuser did its job. I'd say this operation is successful!"

Zeek: "Crowa, I can safely say that you're ready for your training. The path ahead is definitely not easy and it's going to take a long time before you're ready to fight head-to-head with the Vindinors.

Crowa: "How long exactly?"

Zeek: "Two years will suffice."