《Happy Dragon》 Chapter 1
You are being summoned to another world. As per the terms of your acceptance this is non-voluntary. Do you accept the transfer? Yes / Yes Default option of ¡°Yes¡± selecting in 15 seconds.
¡°Oh crap.¡± Between the time it took me to read the message and realize what was about to happen I only had time to think one thing. Damn, gonna miss all those webnovels.
¡°Hey, Tiamat here. Yes, your personal goddess talking to you is a thing now. Since there¡¯s less interference from a certain you-know-what in this world I can finally talk directly. Alright, I could tell you were bored of life there. So, I saved up my influence points (sorry about the bad couple of weeks on your end) and signed us up for the ¡°Summoned to Another World¡± service¡± As of this moment I have no sensations. I¡¯m trying to see but I can¡¯t perceive nothing. Trying to think about the missing sensations like touch and hearing just make me confused and scatterbrained. So, I hold onto the words I can feel in me from Tiamat. Around me swirls a torrent of being; relief at feeling her more than ever, concern about what I left behind, confusion about my own feelings over the worldly attachments to my family that I don¡¯t really like but also like because it¡¯s my family, excitement about the future. ¡°Hang in there. Your reincarnation is about the start. You¡¯re my only follower here so I¡¯ll always be with you. Maybe think about finding me a construct? Pretty pleeeease. Anyway, in all seriousness here it comes.¡±
Analysis of source world life has revealed compatible classification system for [World Tree] entity system: institutionalized education. Designation: Game Programmer Resultant class: error, not found. Error recovery: Field of influence: Information Science Resultant classes in field: none Error; no class Error recovery: Trait of influence: Analytics Resultant classes in trait: none Error; no class Error recovery: Beast races featuring trait of influence: Dragon Race changed to Dragon Variant circumstances detected: House of Tiamat Race changed to Chaos Dragon Determining world arrival method for race in pre-designated world [Amit]: beast companion summoning. Arrival commencing.
¡°I¡¯m gonna be honest here. I chose the cheapest world summoning service I could to get the fuck outta there. So, you can blame those errors on me. But it¡¯s cool that you¡¯re a dragon now, right? I know you love dragons. This is cool, right? Right?¡± Mmm, I think it¡¯s pretty cool, sure. But I¡¯m not sure about this beast companion summoning situation. Gah! Suddenly I have bodily sensations again. It¡¯s dark, a little cool, and kinda cozy in a tucked in bed kinda way. (muffled laughing) (muffled)¡±Alright, calm down class. There¡¯s nothing wrong with a bird companion. Emily, let us know what the race is so we can look up what the hatching procedure is.¡±
Title Gained: Lonely The only member of a species in the world, whether the last or the first. Effects: Wisdom +10% Charisma +10%
Wait, I¡¯m the only dragon in the world? (muffled)¡±I see ¡®Dragon, unknown variant¡¯. Mr. Ellingsworth, what¡¯s a dragon?¡± (muffled)¡±I¡¯m not sure. Maybe a bird from the Wild Continent? It¡¯s still largely unexplored.¡± Wait they don¡¯t even know about dragons. Blasphemy. Tiamat what¡¯s up with this world? ¡°I know, right? What self respecting magic world doesn¡¯t have dragons?¡± That¡­ wasn¡¯t the kind of response I was expecting. I¡¯ll have to ask her what¡¯s her whole deal later. I wish I could hear better. Ooooh, I¡¯m in an egg, aren¡¯t I? Sorry about being slow on the uptake. Between the cozyness and the sudden world change I wasn¡¯t exactly firing on all cylinders. (muffled)¡±Well, how do I care for it?¡± Emily sounds kinda down about dealing with me. (muffles)¡±Billy, pay attention! Sorry Emily. Since we don¡¯t know the specific circumstances for the hatching we¡¯ll just have to treat it the best we can. Most eggs need air and warmth. So I suggest a heating artifact and a breeze artifact or however you can best manage that. Maybe even try to cast a warm breeze yourself occasionally incase it needs to absorb the spell-mana.¡± Suddenly my whole world tilts and bounces a bit. I must be being carried. Oi, Emily try to walk a little smoother. Don¡¯t shake the baby¡­ egg, whatever. I can hear muffled voices occasionally as time passes but it¡¯s too quiet through the shell to understand what¡¯s being said. Actually it¡¯s kinda a nice bit of brown noise. I¡¯m actually getting kinda sleep-
Thunk Ah, huh, what? ¡°Goodmorning.¡± Who? Why is it so dark?... oh right. (muffled sniffling) (muffled)¡±Are you crying? What¡¯s the matter- oh, I see.¡± (muffled)¡±*sniff*Six years *sniff* all my classmates making fun of me for not being a noble. *sniff* I wanted to show them. *sniff* I wanted to be a vanguard, mom. Not a scout. *sniff* I wanted to be like great-grandma. *sniff*¡± (muffled)¡±There there dear. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll make a great scout. Can you at least tell me what kind of bird it is? Maybe it¡¯ll be really pretty.¡± (muffled)¡±Analyze said dragon. Mr. Ellingsworth hadn¡¯t even heard of it. *sniff*¡± (muffled)¡±Hmm, me either. Well, if that¡¯s the size of a baby it¡¯s going to be a big bird. Mmm, we might have to remodel your room later. We¡¯ll have to start saving now.¡± She says something else but I can¡¯t hear through the shell. ¡°Well, how do you hatch it?¡± (muffled)¡±Warm air.¡± (muffled)¡±Well, come on. Show me what our little mage can do.¡± (muffled)¡±--- Steady Flame --- Blow¡± Oh, I can feel the temperature rising. That¡¯s quite pleasant. And something else. A mild tingling sensation. Dorororororo What¡¯s that? Why is my egg shaking? ¡°Hahahaha¡± What, what¡¯s going on? (muffled)¡±Ahh, quick catch it before it goes off the table.¡± (muffled)¡±What was that? Why did it start shaking? And what¡¯s with these purple flecks? Those weren¡¯t there before.¡± (muffled)¡±I think it¡¯s ok dear. Maybe the heat or your mana caused a reaction. Why don¡¯t you start on your homework while I go make a bassinet for it.¡± ¡°Aww, cute little baby dragon in a bassinet. I hope it¡¯s got lace and ruffles.¡± Don¡¯t say that. It might happen. What was that rumbling, anyway? ¡°I¡¯m not saying. You¡¯ll find out eventually. Hehe¡± Suspicious.
Turns out there¡¯s not a whole lot to do inside an egg. That tingling sensation never quite went away but it¡¯s too mild to really feel right. Every time I focus on it it slips and I can¡¯t feel it anymore. Eventually I¡¯m lifted and placed down again before another spell of nothing. Then, I¡¯m lifted again and there¡¯s a gentle swaying motion. I must be being carried in a basket. It¡¯s quite nice I¡¯m starting to feel slee-
When I wake up again it¡¯s pleasantly warm and there¡¯s a very steady white noise filling my ears. Do I have ears? I try to move my head near what I think are my hands and my whole body shifts a bit. Am I suspended in liquid? How am I breathing right now? Whatever. I can feel my claws on my head but only a dull pressure in my paws where my claws attach. Guess I¡¯m not going to be feeling small details any time soon. Back to sleep, like a good dragon.
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP Ah, quick! Get up, gotta go to¡­ nope. Still a dragon. Hurry up and shut off the alarm, kid. THWAK (muffled)GROOOAN Are the dead rising? Are there undead here? Hope I get to use magic. Kinda lame dragon if I can¡¯t use magic.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. My whole world spins a bit before I settle towards the bottom side of my egg again. Come on Emily, I just woke up. Is that any way to say ¡°goodmorning¡±? (muffled)¡±No change, huh.¡± (muffled)¡±--- Steady Flame --- Blow¡± Ahh, yea. That hits the spot. Nice and warm and a bit of tingly. Vrrrrrrrrr There¡¯s that shaking again. I wonder why my egg is doing that. ¡°Pfft¡± Hey, seriously. Why do you keep laughing every time this happens? ¡°Nope, not telling.¡± Suddenly the tingling starts fading and the shaking stops. (muffled)¡±Hmm, a mana reaction? Guess I know what I¡¯m doing after school.¡± I hear, or maybe feel, steps walking away before it gets quiet again. Hmm, well now I¡¯m awake, my body feels kinda fuzzy, and I have all day to do nothing. Hey, Tiamat. Any chance we could get some cable in here? ¡°Nope, they only have radio. Maybe you could tell me a story like you used to?¡± I¡¯m not in the mood. You know I¡¯m only good at making up short stories to fall asleep to. Oh, I know. Let¡¯s talk about you. So, how come I can talk to you directly now but before I could only hear scattered whispers? ¡°Pretty simple really. Gods gain influence based on their followers¡¯ belief and they can use that to affect the world. However, influence cancels influence so whoever has more gets the final say. As you know, in our old world we had several, capital G, you-know-what¡¯s waving their dicks around so I could only do weird things they didn¡¯t care about. Honestly, I¡¯m kinda impressed you were sensitive enough to notice those kinds of things and keep belief in me. Anyway, here there isn¡¯t a competing belief system to get in the way so my less counts for more. I still can¡¯t overcome a person¡¯s belief in their self and reality but with a much more malleable reality due to magic I can change more. Like, right now I¡¯m just an ambient psychic-mana wave tuned only to you. My range is about five feet so even if someone is looking for psychic-mana waves it¡¯s unlikely they¡¯ll notice me. We should probably work on some encryption later on when you have more mana for me to work with.¡± Wait, so I¡¯m sending out a psychic-mana wave that is your side of the conversation? Why couldn¡¯t you do that in the old world? ¡°Simple, you-know-who said humans can¡¯t produce mana and used influence to suppress it. That¡¯s why all you ever got was vague feelings and some simple thoughts. Anything bigger got identified and disrupted. What better way to keep all the profits than to remove the opposition?¡± What a dick. So, does that mean you could cast any magic with my mana? ¡°Nah, your own self belief gets in the way. But once you learn something I could be given the ability to cast it if you felt like it right.¡± So, how come you can make the psychic-mana wave? ¡°You discovered telepathy in your old world you just couldn¡¯t exercise it properly because of the influence interference.¡± Damn, I knew humans were psychic. What a dick. Thanks for bringing me here. Hmm, why do I feel so sleepy all of a-
Yep, still in an egg. ¡°Sorry about that. You passed out because I used all your mana to talk. So, snarky remarks are best.¡± Best, riiiight. Hmm, well if I used up my mana by you talking then that must mean it¡¯s a finite resource. How do I get more? ¡°Dunno. You absorb a bunch when Emily casts her heat magic on you. Other than that, dunno.¡± Sometimes I wonder why I worship this goddess. ¡°I heard that.¡± Whatever, I¡¯ll just go back to sleeping.
Vrrrrrrrrrrr Mmm, yeah. That light shaking, that pleasant warmth, that tingly feeling creeping over my body. That¡¯s the way to wake up. The tingling and shaking, I guess you could call it vibrating, keep going for a while. Maybe ten minutes before it starts fading away, though the tingly doesn¡¯t quite go away. (muffled)¡±Ha, ha, ha. This is going to take a while. All my mana and just a small change. I hope you appreciate what I¡¯m doing.¡± Oh, I do Emily. I have a feeling I won¡¯t hatch without the mana. I start playing around with my focus on the tingly sensation in my body. I can sort of move it around to different parts of my body. Not that I can notice any kind of effect. (muffled)¡±Hmm, that sounded kinda mean. I should practice for when you hatch. Hello, I¡¯m Emily. I wanted to be a vanguard but we¡¯re going to be scouts instead. Not that I¡¯m mad or anything or disappointed in you. I mean- *sigh* Maybe I should think of some names? But I don¡¯t even know if you¡¯re a boy bird or a girl bird. Hmm.¡± What a sad world. To not even know the grandeur that is the dragon species. That¡¯s the second time she¡¯s mentioned this vanguard and scout business. Are we going to join an army? Be adventurers? Oooh! I want to learn crafting. I could be a crafting dragon. Screw stereotypes. (muffled)¡±Alright, let¡¯s do this again. At least I¡¯m training my mana pool. --- Steady Flame --- Blow¡± Ahh, yeah. That¡¯s what I want. Vrrrrrrrrrrrr. ¡°Hehe.¡± Nope, not listening. Just enjoying the feels.
Emily kept at it for quite a while but at some point I fell asleep again and woke to the white noise. My whole body is practically bursting with energy and I don¡¯t think I can sleep like this. It¡¯s obviously mana and with just a tiny bit of focus I can move it around my body. It doesn¡¯t seem to have any effect but it¡¯s kinda hard to test when you¡¯re in a tiny ball. Hmm, Tiamat, any idea what I¡¯m supposed to do with all this mana? ¡°Not really. Why don¡¯t you try something from one of the stories you read. Both cultivation and mana cores seem possible.¡± Ooh, good idea. I am a beast after all, so a mana core would make sense. Its placement might make a difference so my options are heart, brain, liver, stomach. Liver and stomach seem kinda boring. Heart would probably increase my physical abilities. But if this world doesn¡¯t have dragons do I even need it? Then again are dragons even peak existences on this world? Ahh, who am I kidding. I¡¯ve always been smarter than average and I would love to boost that ability. Min-max to the limit. First, I try to get a feel for all the mana in my body. This turns out to be quite challenging as I¡¯ve never been good at meditating. So, I change my plan. I go through my body systematically and pull the mana from each part into my head. After I¡¯ve been through every part, I can still feel something separate from the mass in my head. Right! I have a tail now. I¡¯ll pull that mana too. Tail-core? No, focus. Now that all my mana is in my head I try to condense it down into a ball. This is actually quite easy. It almost feels instinctual. After a certain point it starts flaring up and losing shape. I keep my focus on the small space inside my head and redirect any outbursts back into the ball as I slowly keep shrinking it down. After a while, it starts feeling less like a tingling sensation and more like a pulsing. I try to hold the pulses in place but nothing I do stops them. Each pulse is bigger than the last and I can feel it spreading through my body. Finally, it hits my four feet and the tip of my tail all at once and a big wave travels backwards from the end into my head. Donnnnnng A sound like a gong goes off and I forget to keep the mana in place but it doesn¡¯t move. (muffled)¡±Huh? Wha-? Zzzzz¡± It¡¯s still sending out pulses and they still bounce off the edges of my body and travel back to the core but no more gonging happens. Wonder what that did? Whatever, now that the tingly sensation in my body has calmed down I¡¯m going back to sleep.
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP THWAK Ahh, another day in the egg. Come on Emily, take me to school or whatever. I may be an egg but I¡¯m dying to start my adventure. (muffled)¡±Mffmble.¡± ¡°She¡¯s fun in the morning.¡± Yea, can¡¯t say I was ever much of a morning person. Oop, I¡¯m being rotated again. Baby¡¯s first adventure? (muffled)¡±I can probably finish today.¡± Yay! (muffled)¡±But after school.¡± Tease. Just skip. Isn¡¯t your baby dragon more important than a single lousy day at school. Doo EEIT! ¡­ Nope, she left. I¡¯m not really in the mood to think up new magic experiments so I guess I¡¯ll practice my only other skill; sleep.
Thump Wha? I¡¯m awake. I¡¯m awake. Oh, is something going on? (muffled)¡±So, you think it will hatch?¡± What is presumably Emily¡¯s mom asks. (muffled)¡±I think so. The purple specks are almost completely covering it now.¡± (muffled)¡±Have you thought of a name?¡± A deeper voice, that must be Emily¡¯s dad. (muffled)¡±I haven¡¯t decided but I thought about it a bit. Maybe Verity or Angelica. Something regal.¡± Uh oh. I never even thought to check. Am I a boy or a girl dragon? I move my forelegs a bit to try to feel between my rear legs but I don¡¯t encounter any resistance. Haaa. Maybe it¡¯s inside me? Like a dog. Or maybe I am a girl. Maybe this is a gender-bender reincarnation. Sigh. I¡¯m not overly caring about that kind of thing but I¡¯m not sure if the benefits *cough*orgasms*cough* are as apparent for dragons. Oh well. Wait! Maybe Tiamat will tell me. Hey, am I a boy or a girl? (muffled)¡±--- Steady Flame --- Blow¡± ¡°I think it will be more amusing to watch you figure it out.¡± I can pretty much feel the tehepero. Vrrrrrrrrrrrrr There goes the shell again. Three rotations of Emily¡¯s warm mana-filled breeze later I suddenly see, actually SEE, a light coinciding with a small crack noise. I think that was my shell breaking. The breeze stops. Guess that¡¯s my cue. I put my all into stretching out. All four of my legs brace against the shell, my tail uncurls and pushes me up, I stretch my head and start pressing against the light¡­ Crack! GAH! The light! Retreat! My head pops out of my shell for a second before I fall back to adjust my eyes for the first time in my life. ¡°Aww, where¡¯d it go?¡± Mom asks. Should I consider her my mom? No, grandma asks. ¡°Come on. You can do it. Nothing scary out here.¡± Ok, eyes are adjusted. Hatching attempt two is a go. This time I only use my rear legs for support while my forelegs and head/neck work to enlarge the hole. The shell is a little stiff but I make quick work of it and flop out of the shell. Everyone is quiet. I get control of my head pretty quick and manage to look around. Emily (young teen with pixie cut blond hair and librarian half-moon glasses on a gold chain) is up front looking at me. I can¡¯t quite figure out what her expression is. I was basically a hikikomori in my last life so that¡¯s expected. The parents are in the background but they¡¯re pretty fuzzy. Must be my eyes aren¡¯t fully developed yet. Or I¡¯m near-sighted. How embarrassing would that be? Near-sighted baby dragon. Hmm, judging by the relative sizes I¡¯m probably the size of a juvenile cat. Huh? What¡¯s that heavenly smell? I focus on my nose and learn that I have a pretty darn accurate sense of smell. But sorting through all that info can wait. I need to find the source of this aroma. Sniff. Sniff. It¡¯s the shell! Ok, new goal. Eat that shell. Legs don¡¯t fail me now. Legs failed me. I only managed to hobble-crawl-scoot my way over to the shell but I made it. Munch. Ooh, this is awesome. Like if you combined electricity with lemon sorbet and caramelized sugar. Munch. Munch. Munch. Clack. Aww, it¡¯s all gone. I wonder if Emily will give me something else to eat. I look back over at her and this time I can recognize the emotion; confusion. ¡°Thaaat¡¯s not a bird.¡± Oof, that shell is settling weird in my stomach. Gotta burp. BLAAARP Instead of burping I release a purple beam of destruction right into the basket in front of me. A cylinder the size of my head in the basket, and the table beneath it, was vaporized, leaving the edges smoking. Oops. I back away as best as I can. Maybe, they won¡¯t think it was me? ¡°Heh, awesome.¡± Ahh, good Emily forgives me on the basis of coolness. I¡¯ll need to remember this loophole for future wrongdoings. She approaches and carefully extends a hand to pet my head. Which I allow because she has already begun to realise the awesomeness that is dragons. ¡°Hmm, what am I going to call you?¡± Her hand makes its way to the underside of my snout and she scratches lightly. Purrrrr-! I jerk my head away from her hand. Nononononononono, that shaking! ¡°Pfft. Hahaha¡± Nonono, that vibrating. ¡°Hehe, cute.¡± Emily reaches towards my head again but I avoid her hand like a master martial artist while I deal with this problem. Ok, problem 1: I purr when I¡¯m feeling good. Problem 2: purring is an undignified action for a dragon. Problem 3: everything that has made me purr has felt really good. I mean when she scratched under my snout I could feel it all the way to the tip of my tail. Haaaaa. I give up and just hang my head in shame. Of course Emily is there in an instant and scratches under my snout. I resist as much as I can but eventually I just melt. Purrrrrrrrr. ¡°I¡¯ll call you Calamity.¡±
Birth and bonding complete. Access to the [Beast Companion System] is now available. As your sentience is rated at or above [Self-Aware] your mode has been set to [Manual]. [Beast Companion System] commands may be prefaced by [BCS] for ease of use. User entry point command: [BCS] Help
Chapter 2 So, now is where I spend all my time going through system prompts and bore the pants off you. No thanks. I¡¯m sitting on Emily¡¯s lap in what I¡¯m guessing is a living room. The lack of a TV makes me wonder if it¡¯s still called a living room. Or was the TV a later addition to the living room? Purrrrrrrr Ah, Emily. Noo stop. Not there. My dignity. ¡°Are you sure you want to call her¡­ erm, him? Are you sure you want to call it Calamity? What happened to a regal name?¡± Grandmamom asks. My eyes are a little fuzzy at this range, but I think she has the same blond hair as Emily and she looks a little fat. ¡°Hrm, it just popped into my head when she vaporized the table. Besides, I, um¡­ want a name that will... scare my classmates.¡± ¡°Honey, you¡¯re supposed to get along with your classmates.¡± ¡°No, I¡¯ve had it. The past two days have been the worst. Now that they all have their beast companions the clique lines solidified. The vanguards are better than the scouts and so the scouts take out their anger on the commoner. ME! I¡¯ve had it. Me and Calamity are gonna be awesome on our own and there¡¯s nothing they can do.¡± ¡°*sigh* Well, Calamity, better learn not to calamitize the house from now on or she¡¯s living outside.¡± Oh, god. The dad-jokes. Please grandpadad, restrain yourself. Huurk Emily has me in a hug that was raised by a pair of doting chokeholds. ¡°No way! If Calamity is living outside than so am I.¡± I start trying to tap out. ¡°Actually that might be good wilderness training.¡± Emily tightens her grip and I notice blackness creeping into the edges of my vision. Oi! Grandpadad, stop calling her bluff. ¡°Dear, stop strangling the poor thing.¡± Grandmamom interjects and Emily releases me quickly. ¡°Oh, sorry baby! I didn¡¯t mean to hurt you.¡± I narrow my eyes at her and snort. Well, I saaay snort but with my tiny little head it was more like a kitten sneezing. Not willing to face my shame, I jump off her lap. Only, to crash into the floor below. Right, can¡¯t actually walk yet. Well, now is a good time to learn. ¡°Hehe-¡± I glare at Emily and it¡¯s enough to stifle her laugh, but not enough to hide that she¡¯s still laughing on the inside. Let¡¯s see you walk on the first day out of the womb. Alright, first up standing on four legs. ¡°So, what does [Analyze] say now that it¡¯s hatched?¡± I¡¯m a little closer to grandpadad now that I¡¯m off Emily¡¯s lap so I can make out his head better. I was confused at first because his head was just a big red blur. Turns out, he has red hair and big bushy red beard. Also, a rather large physique. Just your everyday lumberjack guy. ¡°Oh, right. Hmm, I can see her(?) variant details now. It says ¡®Dragon; Chaos Element¡¯. That¡¯s weird I thought beast summons with an elemental type followed the summoner''s. But my highest is a mid-class wind. Wait! I¡¯ve never even heard of chaos before.¡± Ok, all four legs are working. Kinda wobbly but working. Tail is¡­ doing its thing. Head I¡¯ve got pretty good control over. Time to walk. ¡°You know we don¡¯t know much about elements dear. You¡¯ll have to ask at school. Why don¡¯t you play with¡­ Calamity, while we make dinner.¡± ¡°Try not to destroy any more furniture or it¡¯s coming out of your allowance.¡± ¡°Haha, very funny dad.¡± ¡°Baby¡¯s first steps. I¡¯m so proud.¡± Shut it. Ok, I know I¡¯ve got the form wrong but let¡¯s take things easy. Right front, forward. Left front, forward. Ok, that¡¯s leaving me kinda stretched out weird. That was obviously wrong. Ok, maybe diagonals in sync? Right front, left rear forward. Left front, right rear forward. Hmm, that felt correct. Nice and easy. Maybe my dragon instincts are kicking in. Pat Pat. ¡°Come here, Calamity. Over here. You can do it.¡± Emily is across the room from me on her knees and urging me towards her. I need to take some time to think about our relationship. But for now she makes a good walking target. I make it across the carpet well enough but I¡¯m extremely tired. When I reach Emily, I just collapse my head into her lap. Just pet me. Fuck dignity. I deserve pets in this life.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Emily starts petting my head and neck. ¡°Good job. You¡¯ll be running in no time.¡± The pets and pats and scratches all feel nice and before I know it I¡¯m letting out a satisfied yawn with a smile. Wait can dragons even smi-
Sniff Sniff Something smells good. Ah, I¡¯m back in my basket- ¡°Bassinet.¡± Like I was saying, I¡¯m back in my basket and the family seems to be eating dinner nearby. Time to hunt down some grub for myself. First task, climbing out of the basket. It¡¯s about my height when I¡¯m on all fours so I should be able to manage. I get my front claws up on the edge and¡­ Hmm, this is trickier than I thought. As a human I would just swing my legs over the side at this point but that¡¯s not going to work here. I think I need to get my rear legs where my front are now then before I fall off either way I need to transfer my front legs to the ground and hop off. Ok, let¡¯s try it. Claws are getting good purchase on the basket (it¡¯s wicker) so climbing is working. Seems balancing on the edge is actually quite easy; between my neck and tail I¡¯m not really at risk of falling like I thought. Next phase, step on floor, go. Miscalculation! The floor is not carpet like before but is in fact polished wood. Not an ideal claw and scale gripping surface. My chin smacks into the floor while my front legs slide out to the sides and my rear half follows less than gracefully. Last to make the journey is my tail, letting out a sharp crack against the wood when it limply whips down. ¡°Oh no, Calamity! I¡¯m sorry girl. With your feet, and the floor, I forgot.¡± Hurk. Emily shatters the exposed shred of dignity that is my gender identity while my pride defences are at their lowest. Truly masterful. She picks me up behind my forelegs and carries me against her chest like a stuffed animal. ¡°Do you want something to eat? I don¡¯t have special food for you yet but you can have some rotboar and sprouts if you want.¡± Emily places me on the kitchen table and I look greedily at the roast sitting in the middle. I take a step towards it then remember my manners. I look back to Emily. Then to the roast. Then to Emily. Then the roast. By the fifth repeat she gets it and cuts me a piece to eat. But then she realizes she has nowhere except her own plate and the table to put it so she¡¯s just holding it in the air out of my reach. How cruel. ¡°Umm¡± ¡°I¡¯ll get a plate for her.¡± Says her dad. He returns with a plate and Emily drops the meat. I stare at it. Pretty sure I have a problem here. I run my tongue against the tops and bottoms of my teeth. Yep, problem. No molars. I look at my claws. No thumb. Hmm. Guess I¡¯m excused from manners. I stab the slice of roast with my claws and rip a piece off with my teeth. I try to chew out of reflex but it¡¯s pointless so I just swallow it. It tastes ok. A lot of the flavor of food comes from being spread around while masticating it so it¡¯s kinda like I licked a piece of meat then swallowed it. Also, compared to mana-enriched egg shell¡­ But I¡¯m hungry, so I eat. I finish off the slice and settle onto my haunches to pick at my teeth with a claw. I wonder if they have toothpaste here.
I fell asleep again while the family (my family?) was clearing up dinner and just now woke up when Emily picked me up like a newborn. My eyes open and I lift my head to get a better look at where we¡¯re going. It¡¯s a short trip up stairs and through a hallway to a room on the left. Emily turns on a light when we get in. Purple. Everywhere. Rug, bedspread, curtains, pillows, all various shades of purple. Emily puts me down in the middle of the room, which is a little smaller than my college dorm room. ¡°I have to do my homework now so¡­ Here, you can play with Flitter.¡± She places a plush wolf toy in front of me. I don¡¯t think she understands what happens when you combine pets with teeth and claws and stuffed toys. But she¡¯s waiting for me to do something. Is this some diabolical alignment test? If I maul the fluffy little critter am I evil? Pretend to think it¡¯s a real creature and lick it? Like any real game programmer playing a game, I¡¯m going to ignore all content and explore game mechanics instead. Ooh look, a mirror, yes please. I can finally get a good look at myself. ¡°Calamity? Well, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be fine.¡± I hear the door close behind me while I check myself out in the floor length mirror. What I see is a baby black dragon with neon purple lines on the edges of a few scales. It gives me a sort of corrupted by techno look that I think is pretty cool. I have two forward facing slit pupiled eyes and both are a ruby red color. I have nubs on my head that I think are going to grow into horns later. There''s a rough patch of scales on the tip of my snout that''s either a horn-to-be or just something that was meant to help with getting out of the egg. Along my spine are more bumps that will probably turn into spines. There are a couple of larger nubs that I pray to Tiamat with all the fervor I can muster are going to turn into wings. My body is big enough to suggest I will probably need to use magic in some fashion to fly though. The spine bumps continue down my tail which currently ends in a rough mass of bone, like a club. I try smiling. It¡¯s terrifying. Let¡¯s remember not to smile at friends. My teeth are mostly shark¡¯s teeth but it also looks like I have fangs for canines. Maybe I¡¯m poisonous? Oh, what about my stomach? I sit on my haunches and raise a foreleg to get a good look. Basically the same as the rest of my body. Good, no critical weaknesses here. Now what? Emily is at her desk working on her homework. I eye Flitter again but shake my head. I think I should get some exercise. Try to figure out how to lope or run or whatever.
It was a little tricky learning how to run in such cramped confines but I feel comfortable in my body now. I even managed to figure out how to climb up the side of the bed with my claws. That blanket may or may not have some new frays and holes. I¡¯m not sure. I didn¡¯t remember to do a ¡°before¡± before the ¡°before and after¡±. Emily gets up and starts changing. From which, I quickly avert my attention. Not into the lolis here. ¡°Ok, Calamity. Time for bed.¡± She grabs me from the floor and slides under the covers clutching me like kid holding a stuffed animal. I struggle a bit but she¡¯s got me under the armpits so I have no leverage. I give up. I¡¯ll let her have this. I don¡¯t imagine she¡¯ll be able to hold me like this after I grow a bit. ¡°Aww, how cuuute. I¡¯m gonna take a picture.¡± What? Why? ¡°Duh. So I can share it with the other deities.¡± I thought you said there was no established religion here? ¡°Sure, doesn¡¯t mean there aren¡¯t deities anyway. You got me without a religion didn¡¯t you? Also, there are leftovers from ancient history and stuff. What, did you get worried that I¡¯m all alone over here? Thanks for worrying but I¡¯d be bugging you a lot more if that was the case.¡± Oh, makes sense. I¡¯m not really tired so I guess now is a good time to get this [BCS] stuff figured out. Chapter 3 So begins the slog. [BCS] Help
[Beast Companion System] Help Page
  • All [Beast Companion System] commands are prefaced with [Beast Companion System] or [BCS].
  • A complete review of your [BCS] identified mechanics can be viewed with the command ¡°Character Sheet¡±, ¡°Sheet¡±, or ¡°CS¡±.
  • Subsections of the [Character Sheet] may also be individually reviewed by stating their corresponding headings as commands.
  • Additional features for you may be purchased with [Resources] in the [Shop] via the command ¡°Shop¡±.
  • In the event that further information is available on an element in any of the presented information merely focuses on the element with the intent to understand it better will case that information to be presented to you.
  • The following commands (and more in their nature) are available for use without prefacing: Close, Hide, Retrieve, Yes, No, Purchase, Next, Previous, All.
It is suggested you start by closing [Help] and opening [Character Sheet].
Sounds like a good plan. [BCS] Sheet
Levels Current Resources Invested Upgrades At
Mana Core 1 0 400
Growth 1 0 400
Summoner Relationship Acquainted NA Friendly/Angered
- - - -
Status Current Max Upgrading Level
HP 400 400 Growth
MP 400 400 Core
- - - -
Effects Base Rate/Duration Upgrade
Mana Regen 1.65% per minute purchase only
HP Regen 1.65% per minute purchase only
Non-Magical Nutrient Consumption 10% per day purchase only
Wisdom Bonus 10% - varied
Charisma Bonus 10% - varied
- - - -
Resources Current Max Upgrading Level
Non-Magical Nutrients 50 400 Growth
Magical Nutrients 50 400 (Core + Growth)/2
- - - -
Attributes Base Bonuses Modified
Strength 3 - 3
Constitution 25 - 25
Dexterity 8 - 8
Intelligence 20 - 20
Wisdom 23 10%+ 25.3
Charisma 10The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. 10%+ 11
Uwaa. That¡¯s quite a bit of information but it¡¯s surprisingly not confusing. Except for the attributes. Like, if my HP is tied to my Growth level then why do I have Constitution? Let¡¯s examine it.
Constitution The ability to resist poisons, disease, decay, and curses.
Ahh, so not related to health. Strength and Dexterity are pretty normal looking but like Con and HP I need to see what Int and Wis do instead of affect MP.
Intelligence The ability to remember, think logically, and apply skills and knowledge correctly.
Wisdom The ability to spot patterns and predict outcomes.
It¡¯s going to be weird to alter those without training. To suddenly notice things differently will probably be jarring. And of course I have to see what Charisma is because it means different things in different systems.
Charisma The ability to master your external reactions and affect others intentionally.
Sure, why not. Hmm, how do I invest resources in my levels. Maybe focus on the appropriate Resources Invested cell?
Invest in Growth? 0/400 Non-Magical Nutrients
No The dialog fades and I think about what else to look at. Oh, there was the Shop. [BCS] Shop
Current Tier Available: 0 Next Tier Unlocks: Combined Level >= 10
Name Tier Pre-Req Cost Description
Breath++ 0 1440 MN Increase Range 300%
Toxic Saliva 1 0 1440 MN Change Saliva to Toxic Acid capable of destroying or infecting organic materials
Healing Saliva 1 0 1440 MN Change Saliva to Healing Fluid capable of mending tissues
Claws++ 0 Dex 10 1440 NMN Increase Hardness and Sharpness to the limit of non-magical means
Retractable Claws 0 1440 MN Allows for Retracting of the Claws into a subspace able to accommodate all sizes
Spiked Tail 1 0 Str 8 1440 NMN Changes Tail Club to Tail Spikes for piercing instead of blunt damage
Bladed Tail 1 0 Dex 8 1440 NMN Changes Tail Club to Tail Blades for slashing instead of blunt damage
Tail++ 0 1440 NMN Increase Hardness/Sharpness of Tail to the limit of non-magical means
Fangs++ 0 Int 10 1440 NMN Increase the Size Fangs by 200% and create a channel inside for use with later Suction or Delivery abilities
Teeth++ 0 Str 10 1440 NMN Increase the Sharpness and Hardness of Teeth (including fangs) to the limit of non-magical means
Wings 0 Str 10 1440 MN Grow your Wings and enable magic-assisted Flight
Telescopic Sight 0 Wis 12 1440 NMN Upgrade Vision to be capable of 100x Telescopic Sight
Night Sight 0 Wis 8 1440 MN Upgrade Vision to be capable of seeing even in pure darkness
Magic Sight 0 Wis 12 Int 12 2800 MN Upgrade Vision to allow the viewing of Mana in transparent areas or on the surface of solid objects
Hearing++ 0 1440 NMN Improve Hearing to be capable of hearing whispers within 30''
Snout Horn 0 Dex 3 1440 NMN Grow a Horn on your Snout capable of piercing attacks and/or future abilities
Horn 0 1440 NMN Grow curling Horns on your Head similar to a ram capable of blunt attacks and/or future abilities
Antlers 0 1440 NMN Grow Antlers on your Head similar to a deer capable of piercing attacks and/or future abilities
Dorsal Spines 0 Str 5 1440 NMN Grow Spines on your Neck, Back, and Tail to defend against grappling attacks from larger creatures
Doral Sail 0 Dex 6 1440 NMN Grow a Sail along your Neck, Back, and Tail to assist in cornering during high speed flight
Rider''s Spot 0 400 NMN Prevent Spine based Upgrades from precluding the ability for your companion to ride you at larger sizes
Olfaction++ 0 Wis 9 1440 NMN Improve sense of smell to that of a bloodhound
Scale Hardness++ 0 2800 NMN Improve defensive attribute of scales to that of Steel
Scale Lustre++ 0 880 NMN Improve shine of scales to Glossy
Scale Highlights++ 0 880 MN Add glow to Chaos Highlights present in Scales
Scale Absorption++ 0 Con 12 2800 MN Improve Spell Negation of Scales to 20%
Acidic Blood 0 1440 MN Blood becomes acidic capable of eroding Iron (no damage to self; possible damage to companion)
Str++ 0 1440 NMN Increase Str to 4
Dex++ 0 5400 NMN Increase Dex to 9
Healing Rate++ 0 2800 MN Increase Healing Rate to 2% per minute
Mana Recovery++ 0 Int 10 2800 MN Increase Mana Regeneration to 2% per minute
Living Cost-- 0 1440 MN Decreases NMN Consumption Rate to 8% per day
Strong Mind++ 0 Int 12 1440 MN Improve Mental Defenses so that Suggestions and Compulsions no longer affect you
Strong Will++ 0 Wis 12 1440 MN Improve Soul Defenses so that Temporary Binding Curses no longer affect you
Fat-No-More++ 0 Cha 10 1440 MN Magically decrease weight without altering body structure by 12%
Immediate thing I¡¯m noticing is that the cost for everything is about quadruple my current capacity. Haa. Can I pay in installments?
Invest in Breath++? 0/1440 Non-Magical Nutrients
Oh, guess I can. Still, I think it would probably be better to upgrade my levels first. Kinda like quest stacking. But with nutrients. This also appears to be the list for only the first round of things I can buy. There are a few items in the list that I don¡¯t meet the requirements to purchase so I can guess this is the whole list. Also, I notice that most of my attributes can¡¯t be increased right now. I guess some of them are already tier 1 or higher so it makes sense that I can¡¯t keep increasing them. No god-baby allowed apparently. Hmm, also probably some seem to take the same slot. Like, I probably can¡¯t have both Horns and Antlers. Wait¡­ Maybe I can. They aren¡¯t the exact same slot. Same with Spines and Sail. Who¡¯s to say I can¡¯t have a spined sail? But surely I can¡¯t have both healing and toxic saliva. You know anything about this? ¡°Actually, yes. Now that you¡¯ve accessed the system I¡¯ve been granted Limited Observer status. I know all the in¡¯s and out¡¯s that you would if you did proper investigation.¡± So, just like before? You can teach me anything I could already learn? ¡°Yep, just like before. Probably the most useful mechanism in our relationship you devised I think. Though the one where you have to praise me every time you see a furry animal being cute is close.¡± So, the saliva? ¡°Right, if you have both then you can channel intent-specific mana into your tongue to change which one is active. So, if you want to destroy you just relish in those feeling of bloodlust you get occasionally and channel mana into your tongue. Then, poof! Saliva is toxic. I expect you¡¯ll have to practice.¡± Mmm, right bloodlust. Wonder if I can satisfy that non-digitally this time. Simulacrum only goes so far. ¡°I love your evil side.¡± Is the tail situation the same? ¡°Yep, mana and intent.¡± Wings are high on the list. I¡¯ll hold off on getting spine attachments until I¡¯m no longer snuggle size. I¡¯ll wait on upgrading my sight to see how much I¡¯m going to improve after a couple days. If I have to upgrade my sight just to see across a room I¡¯m going to be a little annoyed. Other than that I¡¯ll have to think about what I want to look like. Honestly, I want everything but I¡¯m not sure if I can get that much food without bankrupting my new family. And where am I going to get Magical Nutrients? I assume the ones I have now are from my shell being laced with mana but how am I going to get more mana-laced food if I can¡¯t talk? Guess I¡¯ll just invest my nutrients into Growth and Mana Core and be done with. Maybe I¡¯ll get to leave the house tomorrow.