ã€ŠBeanstalkã€‹


 Chapter 1: Im a mother fucking Janitor

    A man shot through the hallways of South Fremantle Senior High school. He weaved left and right as he dodged loose bags on the floor like an elegant gazelle. Outwardly his face was calm as he moved at an extraordinary speed, but in his heart a deep sense of crisis was unfolding.

    Fuck¡­..I can¡¯t let it happen! The man thought as his entire being moved towards a single purpose.

    Sliding past the end of the hall he veered into a sharp turn and shot through a door like a cannonball before crashing through an open stall door.

    BANG!

    In one fluid movement he slammed the stall door and locked it as he fumbled with his belt.

    Shit¡­.shit¡­..shit

    He tried to force his belt open but all of a sudden his hands felt large and clumsy.

    ¡°Oh god.¡± He whimpered as he felt the first beginnings of leakage occur. Finally, at the last possible moment he whipped his belt off and dropped his pants in a single motion and he hurled his naked ass cheeks onto the toilet seat.

    ¡°FLUMP PHAFLA FPHUMP FAFFFFFSSSSSTTTTTTTT.¡± Ungodly sounds not meant for the mortal world echoed in the room as a foul stench began to spread.

    The man grimaced as he tried not to choke on his own stench. Though the smell was bad he couldn¡¯t help but feel relieved as the pressure subsided. He closed his eyes and did his daily prayer. It was a routine he had maintained even when he was living on the streets - find one good thing about the day and be thankful.

    ¡°Jackson Wolf, age 38. Today, I did not shit my pants.¡± He whispered as he thanked the universe.

    As he relaxed he heard the outer door open and people come in.

    ¡°Can you believe what Milly did today? I can¡¯t believe she is so into Craig.¡± A high pitched voice rang out.

    ¡°I know right? I wouldn¡¯t say he is ugly but he doesn¡¯t have anything going for him.¡±

    Wolf froze as he heard female voices.

    Could it be¡­¡­¡­.

    He frantically tried to recall the icon on the door when he shot into the room.

    ¡°Oh my god what is that smell?¡± One of the the girls moaned as the whiff of Wolf¡¯s shit finally entered her nose.

    ¡°Oh I can¡¯t breathe!¡±

    The sound of the outer door banging rang out as their footsteps faded away.

    ¡°DRRRRIIIIINNNNNGG.¡± The bell rang for the afternoon¡¯s classes to begin and Wolf finally relaxed.

    fufufu with all these punks in class I will sit and here and enjoy my shit.

    Reaching into his pocket Wolf pulled out a cigarette and lit it up as he took a long drag. High schools were like prisons, they ran on fixed schedules. When the bell went all the kids and teachers would be locked away together. It was during this time that he owned the school, when the halls were empty and toilets quiet.

    ¡°Fufufu this is the hour, I the Janitor am God!¡±

    ¡°CLICK.¡±

    ¡°What the fuck?¡± Wolf yelled as he looked up to see a camera over the top of the stall. He went to stand up but could feel his shit wasn¡¯t finished.

    God dammit he thought as he tried to choke off his shit which was still oozing out. Choking off a shit was always a quicker way to get the job done, but it always left you will an unfulfilled feeling.

    ¡°The Janitor thinks he is God hahahahaha.¡± A voice rang out.

    ¡°Is that you Eli? Fuck I warned you about this.¡± Wolf cursed.

    ¡°Hahaha what are you going to do about it you old bald cunt. We got your photo shitting and smoking in the girls toilets.¡±

    ¡°Ahahaha yeah the look on his face is priceless.¡± Another familiar voice chimed in.

    ¡°For fuck¡¯s sake you little pricks. Eli, Billy you don¡¯t want to mess with this old man today.¡±

    ¡°Alright alright. I can see that your pissed off Jackson¡­¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s Mr Wolf to you!¡± I shot back as I kept choking the shit off.

    ¡°Fuck you! You¡¯re not a teacher, you¡¯re just the Janitor! I¡¯ll call you whatever the fuck I want. Now apologise to me and Billy by our proper names and slide some ciggies under the door and we will forget we have this picture.¡±

    Little cunts Wolf cursed inwardly as he thought. Eli and Billy were brothers and the two strongest bullies in the school. They led a local gang and had most of the teachers shitting themselves. Their dad had been locked up for most of their lives and they had simply run amok with little adult control. The real problem was they were fucking huge. At 16 Billy was 6ft 3 and at 17 Eli was 6 ft 5.

    ¡°Ok ok¡­but do a favour for this old man¡­c¡¯mon delete that shit kid.¡± Wolf begged as he slid some ciggies under the stall door.

    ¡°Say our names properly and I¡¯ll consider it.¡± Eli quipped back.

    ¡°Ok ok¡­..No1 and No2 please delete the photo you little fucktards.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha that¡¯s more like it baldy.¡± Eli shot back.

    ¡°Enjoy your shit!¡± Billy called out as the sound of the outer door closing rang out.

    Just as they left Wolf finally finished choking the shit off and he despaired at the timing.

    Great. Now I will feel like I didn¡¯t have a proper shit all day.

    Wolf sighed as he finished the last bit of his ciggie. The only problem with shitting at school when you were the Janitor was you had to clean up the stains. After a cursory wipe of his ass Wolf pulled his pants up and made his way out to the hallway. He opened the cleaning cupboard and pulled out his materials and tools of his trade.

    The life of a Janitor ain¡¯t so bad he thought as went into a zone and began to mop and scrub the halls. Those with aspirations were always disappointed. He¡¯d been like that once, Mr most likely to succeed, smartest in his class, everything he touched turned to gold¡­¡­until it didn¡¯t.

    Founded his own company straight out of high school, got a PhD from university while running his own company because why the fuck not. World¡¯s richest man under 30 for 8 years running. Then everyone realised his so called company was really just a highly sophisticated pyramid scheme no one had seen before. The money disappeared and with it the fame, the women and the lifestyle.

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    After four years in a minimum security prison his wife left him for some rich fuck and he starting going bald. By 30 he was released and developed a drug addiction and began living on the streets. The world began to forget about him and he forgot about the world.

    Finally a couple of years ago he crawled out of the sewers and began working again. It took him awhile before he landed his dream job as a Janitor for the local High School. Steady pay, no one gave a shit what he did. Sure it was the roughest school in the State, but the kids weren¡¯t too bad. Hell, he had worked with bigger pricks in the big corporates who were far worse, let alone the streets.

    As Wolf started thinking about his former life a sense of anxiety started to well up in him again. He slowed his breathing and began to actively control his thoughts. As his breathing slowed he slowly stilled his thoughts and forcibly pushed away the past and embraced the present. What he once was no longer mattered, that man was dead.

    I¡¯m a mother fucking Janitor! Wolf sung in his head as he slid around the hall with the mop.

    ¡°Just a mother fucking Janitor!¡±

    As he slid past Room 4 he slowed and peered through the small window in the door, or as he thought of it - a window to heaven. Ms Hawkins taught English in Room 4. Not only was she the Principle of the School but she was a Grade A hottie. At 40 years old she was still hot as fuck with the body of a thirty year old and perfect big round ass.

    Just the way I like it.

    Just as he began to watch he saw Ms Hawkins begin to bend over to retrieve something from her desk at the front. She was wearing a pencil skirt that clung to her shape like a mother hugging a child.

    Oh hell yeah mamma.

    Unconsciously his hand had drifted to his groin as he was swept away in the moment.

    CLICK.

    Wolf¡¯s head snapped up to the end of the hallway where No1 and No2 stood with their phones taking pictures. Wolf looked down and saw his hand over his knob and cursed.

    He started to move towards the boys but they ran off.

    Blip..blip.

    He unlocked his phone and saw a picture of himself staring through a door window with perverted expression on his face and his hand on his knob. Under the picture was some text.

    No1 > 10 packs of ciggies tommoz or this goes viral along with the photo of you shitting.

    Son of bitch. Didn¡¯t these kids know how much cigarettes cost these days? Wolf could already feel his pocket itching as he thought about having to buy them. He was living on the breadline as it was.

    Janitor900020 > Bad 4 yur health. As an Adult I can¡¯t condone this.

    No1 > But you already gav me sum. Don¡¯t talk shit you cheap old cunt.

    Janitor900020 >¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­.

    Janitor900020 > 1 pack.

    No1 > 8.

    Janitor900020 > Kid, don¡¯t fuck with this Daddy.

    Janitor900020 > 2.

    No1 > 2 and a six pack of Corona¡¯s

    Janitor900020 > 2 and a bottle of my homebrew

    No1 > Yur homebrew = horsepiss.

    Janitor900020 > It will put hair on your little balls.

    No1 > I already got hairy ass balls.

    Janitor900020 > FFS stop fucking with this old man. Take it or leave it.

    No1 > Alright. But you owe me 1.

    Janitor900020 > I dun owe you shit!

    No1 > LMAO C U 2MORRO BAI BAI!

    Wolf palmed his phone away as he finished mopping. No1 and No2 were the biggest pains in his ass since he got this job, they hardly ever actually went to classes and just wandered the school getting in his way. No1 loved blackmail and No2 was a total kleptomaniac. The only things left in the school that he hadn¡¯t stolen were literally nailed down.

    Fucking extortionist. Kekeke maybe ill put some laxatives in the home brew. Wolf¡¯s mind played out the scene of them being forced into the toilets after drinking his home brew. In his mind he could see himself snapping some photos and turning the tables on them.

    ¡°Fufufufu yes¡­..¡±

    ¡°DRINNNGGGGG¡± the final bell for the end of the day rang out and students began to fill the hallways.

    Wolf kept mopping as the classes quickly emptied. Within an hour the whole school was empty except for him. After doing one last clean of the toilets and other facilities Wolf was pretty much done for the day.

    Time for some Youtube. Wolf thought as he headed towards the computer lab for his daily ritual. He couldn¡¯t afford internet access at his shithole of a unit so he usually spent a few hours each day fucking around on the internet at school.

    Unlocking the lab he cruised inside and locked the door behind him. Rows of computers were laid out in the small room and he powered a computer up as he rubbed his hands together.

    Behind the computer was a weird machine that had been introduced into all schools a few years ago. Some kind of mental testing device that all students were required to use at the end of each school year.

    Though Wolf had seen the machine often he had mostly ignored it, but now curiosity filled him as he reached out and grabbed the wires. Small adhesive pads were on the ends of the wires and he stuck them to his head like he had seen when testing usually occurred. Firing the machine up he felt a tiny amount of electrical current transfer into his head that gave him a soft and tingly feeling.

    The image of Ms Hawkins arose in his mind again and he turned to stare at the computer that had just fired up with a smile on his face.

 Chapter 2: Some kind of Genuis

    In an underground military bunker deep in the Australian desert three people sat around a long table.

    ¡°Sir we have identified new candidates from the latest sweep.¡± A comms operator finally announced.

    ¡°Excellent. Patch it through to the main comms room and we will review.¡± Captain Joysich said he as he tapped his fingers on the table. At 19 he was incredibly young to be in command but that was the way of the world since the Discovery was made.

    ¡°The numbers are getting less and less in Australia.¡± A sharp looking woman in her early 40s observed. Few who had met her knew her real name was Madeline Price and her real occupation as the head of ASIO, Australia¡¯s version of the CIA.

    ¡°Part of it is a numbers game. The Indians and the Chinese are the most advanced by numbers alone though the Americans have the two highest level Rankers currently.¡± A thin man with glasses said. At 28 years old he was considered a genius and headed up the research division.

    The records began to pop up on the screen as they gazed through the numbers.

    ¡°Only three potentials! These numbers are truly poor. If we cannot undo the seal on the next world we may lose this war if the other countries numbers are similarly diminishing.¡± Price lamented.

    ¡°Our numbers in America are also decreasing at a proportionate rate.¡± Joysich said quietly.

    ¡°Well if you look at these numbers there are only three and all from Western Australia. But more importantly, there is an anomaly here. Is this correct?¡± Price asked as she pulled up a file on the screen.

    ¡°The scan here says this man is 38 years old!¡± she exclaimed. ¡°And not only that, but his numbers are incredible!¡±

    ¡°Impossible!¡± Dr Jefferson said. ¡°In the ten years since the Discovery no one over the age 18 has ever tested positive. If you don¡¯t enter the Beanstalk by 18 then you never will until we unlock the first seal. Pull up his testing record.¡±

    Price navigated the testing records as he searched for the right file. Nothing was hidden from the government when it came to testing for candidates for the Beanstalk. The testing machines that were put in schools also had surveillance equipment installed that activated upon use. Not only were sensitivity and potential metrics recorded but a video and audio record was also captured.

    ¡°Here it is Log #84939485 DNA indexed against citizen ID Jackson Wolf.¡± Price said as she clicked play on the file.

    A video popped up on all their screens and they saw a balding older man in a janitor¡¯s uniform standing in front of the testing machine. He had the padded wires placed on his temple as he was looking at a computer screen. He gently placed some headphones in his ears as he turned on his iPod and started bobbing his head.

    As the testing machine fired up a look of pleasure came across his face. His eyes began to dart left and right as he looked over his shoulders as if making sure no one was watching. He peeled off one of the padded wires and experimented with placing it on other parts of his body.

    ¡°What is he doing? I thought the wires had to be on the head for the testing to work?¡± Joysich asked.

    ¡°Actually no they only have to be in contact with the body. The machine actually gives a warm comfortable feedback sensation designed to make people relaxed when the testing process is active.¡± Dr Jefferson replied.

    In the video Wolf continued to look over his shoulder before nodding to himself as if he had made a decision. He stood up and because of the limited camera angle all the people in the room could see was a close up of Wolf¡¯s groin.

    ¡°Oh jesus.¡± Dr Jefferson complained as Wolf¡¯s dirty janitor pants took up most of the screen.

    Slowly a hand began to enter their view as it moved down to the top of Wolf¡¯s pants.

    ¡°Oh my god is he¡­¡­¡± Price began.

    Before she could finish her sentence Wolf had flopped his knob out and it bobbed around on the screen semi-hard as he began to attach the padded wires to it.

    ¡°What the FUCK!¡± Dr Jefferson yelled as he covered his eyes.

    Once the padded wires were attached Wolf¡¯s penis began to get harder and harder until it was fully erect.

    ¡°Can we skip past this please!¡± Dr Jefferson said.

    ¡°Come now Dr it¡¯s just penis. We need to watch to make sure there are no unusual outliers in how the testing was conducted. Already we can see that he is probably the first person in history to attach this device to his genitals. Would that alter the reading?¡± Price clucked. She viewed the whole scenario clinically.

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    It¡¯s also not a bad cock. She thought as she looked at its shape. It had an unusual upward bend that sparked her interest.

    ¡°Well¡­¡­i guess not. Provided the sensors are connected to the skin the readings will be exactly the same.¡±

    Suddenly the close up of the penis went away as Wolf sat down. Soon some kind of video they couldn¡¯t quite see began to play on the computer screen next to him as his hand disappeared under the desk and made up and down motions as he started to hum a tune.

    ¡°Working hard to make a living¡­¡­.¡±

    ¡°Bringing shelter from the rain.¡±

    ¡°A fathers son left to carry on.¡±

    ¡°Blue denim in his vein.¡±

    ¡°Oh oh oh he¡¯s a working class man.¡±

    The three people around the table stared in shock as the video footage of Wolf masterbating unfolded.

    ¡°Oh my god he is masterbating to Barnsie!¡± Dr Jefferson shouted.

    ¡°Who is Barnsie?¡± Joysich asked confused.

    ¡°An Australian rock legend.¡± Price replied as she tried not to laugh.

    The video continued to play as Wolf¡¯s singing got louder and louder until finally he stood up and shouted.

    ¡°I¡±M A WORKING CLASS MAAAAAN!¡± he cried as he shot his load all over the testing camera.

    The video footage became obscured by a thick milky substance.

    ¡°Oh shit!¡± Wolf¡¯s voice could still be heard until finally the footage cut off completely.

    ¡°Ok¡­..so I don¡¯t really know what to say here. Who the fuck is this guy?¡± Joysich said as he stared dazedly at the screen.

    Within minutes Price had a full work up out of her database.

    ¡°Jackson Wolf, age 38. Current employment is a Janitor at South Fremantle High School. Served four years in jail for fraud. This is THE Jackson Wolf gentlemen, the man that almost bankrupted the Australian economy with his pyramid scam.¡±

    ¡°Holy crap. What is doing working as a Janitor?¡± Dr Jefferson asked.

    ¡°Difficult to know. Seems like he goes missing for a few years out of prison, just drops off the network but he pops up now and again for drug treatment prescriptions. Seems like he was on the streets with drug issues. Then he seems to have gotten a hold on things a few years ago, scattered work history in mostly dead end labour jobs until his current position.¡± Price summed up.

    ¡°Joysich as an American you might not be aware of who this man was. But he tanked the Australian corporate sector on the same scale as the Enron collapse in America. He used to be a big deal back in the day.¡±

    ¡°And now he is a janitor jerking off with our testing equipment.¡± Joysich frowned.

    ¡°The other two potential candidates from Western Australia are also from this school strangely enough. They are also at the older end of the scale at 16 and 17. Names are Eli and Billy Jones. Their attendance record indicates they rarely go to class and so the first time they took the test was only recently. They both presented strong numbers, not that much lower than our masterbating janitor. They also have a colourful background with some low level gang links. I believe you would call them petty thugs.¡±

    ¡°What do you want to do Captain?¡± Dr Jefferson asked.

    Joysich stared at the screen for a long while before signing. He flexed his fist a few times and felt the enormous power he possessed thrumming through him. Though he looked merely like a young man he alone could wreak havoc on a city and could not be stopped by conventional earth weaponry.

    ¡°We do what we always do. We collect the candidates, brief them and see if we can force them through portal into the Beanstalk. The war with the undead is entering its final stages and we need every recruit we can lay our hands on. I myself will be permantely deployed to the Australian side of the portal shortly.¡±

    A silence spread across the room at Joysich¡¯s words.

    ¡°Can we win?¡± Dr Jefferson asked

    ¡°All we can do is what we have done since we made the Discovery of who and what we really are.¡± Joysich said.

    ¡°Climb the bloody Beanstalk.¡± Price whispered.

    ¡°Indeed.¡± Joysich replied as he smiled and showed all his teeth.

 Chapter 3: Here Come the Men in Black

    An hour before school was supposed to start a man and two teenagers huddled at the edge of the school under a tree.

    ¡°Ok here you go 2 packs of ciggies and here is a bottle of my finest homebrew.¡± Wolf said as he handed the goods over.

    ¡°Peter Jacksons? Come on man you know we smoke Winnie Blues.¡± No 2 complained.

    ¡°Yeah well tough luck kid, Winfield Blues were all sold out. PJs were all that were left.¡±

    ¡°Yeah that¡¯s coz they taste like shit.¡± No 2 whined.

    ¡°Well wash it down with some homebrew you ungrateful shit.¡± Wolf snapped.

    ¡°It¡¯s cool bro. PJs will do, and this homebrew better be as good as your last batch. That shit was stronk.¡± No1 said.

    ¡°Ohh don¡¯t you worry this is certainly strong.¡± Wolf said smiling.

    Fufufu this is strong alright. I mixed in enough laxatives to make an elephant shit!

    Wolf watched with keen eyes as he saw No1 slowly unscrewed the lid on his homebrew.

    ¡°Excuse me Gentlemen.¡± A voice suddenly interrupted.

    Wolf¡¯s head whipped around and saw a tall stocky man in a black suit standing to the left of him. Behind him were several other men in suits and Wolf also noticed they had earpieces. Wolf instantly changed his body language as he stood taller.

    Fuck am I busted? I can¡¯t go back to jail!

    ¡°Excuse me sir I will be with you in a moment.¡± Wolf said addressing the man in the suit before turning back to No1 and No2. He carefully positioned his body in front of the suits so they couldn¡¯t quite see the kids.

    ¡°Ok boys I hope I have made myself clear. While I am only the Janitor at this school and I am not your teacher or your parents, you need to understand the dangers of smoking and underage drinking. You have your whole lives ahead of you and I believe one day you can achieve great things. That is all.¡± Wolf finished.

    While the suits couldn¡¯t see he mouthed the words ¡®Two more packs of Winnie Blues¡¯, but No1 just grinned and held four fingers up.

    Son of a bitch.

    ¡°I¡¯m glad we can all agree on this.¡± Wolf said nodding slowly. Turning around he nodded at the men in suits.

    ¡°Gentlemen, I bid you good day.¡± He said as he began walking off in the distance. A thin line of sweat had broken out on his forehead as he began to speedwalk.

    The stocky man in the suit watched in surprise as Wolf walked off at super speed.

    ¡°Wait¡­sir!¡± he yelled.

    But Wolf just kept walking faster. He looked over his shoulder and saw that at least half the men in suits were starting to run after him while the others had gathered around the kids.

    ¡°I ain¡¯t going back!¡± Wolf yelled as he began to sprint.

    ¡°Stop!¡­..sir¡­STOP!¡±

    Wolf broke out in a full blown sprint as he exploded in motion. He didn¡¯t dare slow down by looking behind him as he stared forward in the distance at the boundary fence 100m away. As his arms and legs pumped a familiar feeling came over him and his running technique got sharper. Before he was Corporate CEO, before his fall from grace, he had been the fastest runner in high school.

    The ground disappeared under his feet as he bounded forward like a cheetah and strength exploded from the deep core of his body as he got faster and faster.

    Hahaha eat my dirt mother fuckers!

    The boundary fence got closer and closer and was only about waist high. Wolf already had a plan firmly in mind, he would leap over it in one huge jump and before the suits could catch him, POOF, he would be gone like a fucking magician.

    ¡°MUAHHAHAA!!¡± Wolf screamed as he approached the fence, but something distracted him at the corner of his eye. He turned his head slightly and saw there was already a suit waiting there. He looked like a young kid dressed in his daddy¡¯s suit, but he gave off a strange scary aura that made Wolf¡¯s hair stand on end. The kid waved his hand slightly and something small and black appeared.

    Is that?¡­¡­..Wolf thought as he exploded into a full jump.

    Two electrodes shot out and travelled through the air. They had been aimed at Wolf¡¯s chest but he had leapt a microsecond after they had been fired. As his body travelled up in the air the electrodes stabbed through the thin fabric of his pants and into latched onto his left nut. Seconds later the electricity hit and he seized up into a flying ball of flesh as he hurtled through space and landed face first into the fence.

    Captain Joysich stood with the taser in his hand looking at Wolf¡¯s unconscious twitching body and bloodied face. A wet patch began to spread in Wolf¡¯s pants as he pissed himself and the acrid smell of urine filled the air.

    Joysich wrinkled his nose as he tapped his earpiece with his finger.

    ¡°Target acquired. Stand down.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Wolf awoke later and experienced a strange discombobulation as he didn¡¯t realise where he was.

    ¡°Whaa that fark?¡± He mumbled as the words came out funny. His mouth felt sore as he rubbed it and realised he was missing a tooth and the insides of his mouth were all cut up.

    ¡°Welcome back to the world of the living Mr Wolf.¡± A smooth voice asked.

    Wolf opened his eyes wide and realised he was sitting in a dark room in a chair. Across from Wolf sat the prick that had tasered him and in his hands was the two packs of ciggies and the bottle of homebrew.

    Wolf¡¯s spirits sank as he saw all the evidence had already been collected.

    ¡°I want a lawyer.¡± Wolf said.

    ¡°We don¡¯t do lawyers here Mr Wolf.¡± A soft velvety voice said. That was when Wolf realised there was more people in the room. He looked left and saw No1 and No2 and deeper in the shadows was a woman.

    ¡°You can call me Ms Price and the man across from you is Captain Joysich.¡±

    ¡°We didn¡¯t do nothing.¡± No1 complained.

    ¡°Yeah it was just like we explained, Mr Wolf he kept trying to give us alcohol and ciggies if we touched his private parts. He¡¯s a full fucking Pedo I swear to god.¡± No2 said.

    ¡°Yeah sometimes he just takes it out and waves it at the kids at school. He¡¯s a totally sick fuck.¡± No1 added.

    No2 took in one step further and started to break down and cry as he held his face in his hands.

    ¡°One time he¡­..he¡­.made me rub oil on his bald head in exchange for 50 bucks. I did it because my mum is sick and needs the money. When I rubbed the oil in he kept telling me how special I was.¡±

    ¡°Hohoho kids and their imaginations these days.¡± Wolf coughed. ¡°I¡¯m not sure who you people are but I was in the process of confiscating the items in front of you from these boy this morning. I am sure one of your men can attest to this fact.¡±

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    ¡°You think I give a shit about this crap?¡± Joysich asked he grabbed the homebrew. He flicked the lid off with his thumb and proceeded to scull the full contents in one go. Then he pulled out a cigarette out of one of the packs and lit it up. Grimacing he turned the pack over so he could see the label.

    ¡°PJs? Why the fuck would you buy PJs?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what I told him!¡± No2 said.

    Wolf didn¡¯t respond as he looked at the empty contents of his homebrew and tried to keep his face expressionless as he thought about the amount of laxatives he had blended in.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get things straight. First off we know you¡¯re all lying pricks. Second we don¡¯t give a shit about this petty stuff. We injected you with a blackout compound when we acquired you at your school. Right now you have been transported to a Top Security installation owned by the Australian Department of Defence for a very specific purpose. What I am about to tell you is known by only a handful of the world¡¯s governments, in simple terms it will change your lives forever.¡± Joysich began.

    Wolf and No1 and No2 tensed as he began speaking. The words were simply too outlandish to be believed, and yet they couldn¡¯t deny how they had been brought in.

    ¡°Perhaps its easier to begin with the ¡®show¡¯ rather than the ¡®tell¡¯. See that wall over there? Go touch it.¡±

    Wolf stared at Joysich like it was a trick question, but No1 and No2 didn¡¯t hesitate and went and touched it.

    ¡°Solid rock right?¡± Joysich asked as the boys nodded.

    ¡°Right now you are in an underground facility. This rock is 40 meters thick. Watch carefully.¡±

    Joysich walked up to the spot on the wall the boys had touched. He formed his hand into a fist and lightly punched out.

    BOOM!

    The whole room slightly shook and a fist sized hole appeared in the wall.

    ¡°Holy fuck!¡± No1 screamed.

    ¡°Not possible.¡± Wolf said as he eyed the hole.

    He walked over and felt the wall and the dimensions of hole. His eyes had seen it happen but his mind couldn¡¯t accept what he had seen.

    ¡°How¡­.i don¡¯t understand.¡± Wolf whispered.

    ¡°Sit down and listen and I will tell you a story. It¡¯s a story about you and me and our ancestors. It¡¯s the story of the human race and this world, which is our prison.¡± Joysich began.

    Wolf and the two boys sat across the table with all their attention on him as the story unfolded.

    ¡°The anomalies were first discovered in 1966. Russian scientists were the first to detect the strange radiation from a fixed point within Russia. They began experiments. Soon America, Australia the European powers and various other countries also detected fixed point anomalies within their own territorial borders. It was in 1970 that they cracked the first part of the problem. We learned that bombarding the anomalies with particular types of radiation caused a quantum fluctuation. The true breakthrough though happened by accident. An American researcher accidentally got too close with an anomaly after a radiation bombardment.¡±

    ¡°He disappeared only to remerge from the anomaly two years later. He returned with powers that defied imagination and a story that was hard to believe. It was then that we discovered the Beanstalk. The anomaly is actually a locked door, and on the other side of that door is the beanstalk. In the beanstalk their are engravings that were left by our ancient human ancestors that tell a story.¡±

    ¡°It appears that an untold time ago human beings were the most dominant species in the universe. There is a type of energy in the Universe that humans are particularly adept at manipulating. Countless other species attacked us to seal our potential by creating a pocket universe. Imagine a string of beads, each bead on the string is a world and the string is the beanstalk. At the top of the beanstalk is the entrance to the real universe and at the bottom is Earth. Each world on the string has less and less of this universal energy like water squeezed out of a sponge.¡±

    ¡°The Earth has virtually none. It is a prison to keep us out of the rest of the universe and unable to access the true primordial energy of the universe. Our technology allowed us to break the first seal, travel up the beanstalk and access the next world. The energy in the beanstalk and the world¡¯s above are rich and transform our bodies. That hole I left in the wall is nothing. I could level an entire city on my own if I chose too. That is the kind of power that is our inheritance.¡±

    ¡°But not all of us can receive it until we break the next lock and more energy can begin to flood into Earth. Only a tiny portion of our planet has the potential to enter the beanstalk. Its a combination of DNA, mental aptitude and a host of other factors we do not understand but know how to test for.¡±

    Wolf¡¯s mind was reeling as he thought about the testing machine at the school.

    ¡°You mean the testing machine at the school?¡­¡­.¡± Wolf asked hoarsely as he recalled how he attached it to his wang.

    ¡°Yes¡­..exactly that.¡± Joysich said as his face wrinkled like he was recalling a bad memory.

    ¡°We started with random blood tests before progressing to more sophisticated measures. The type of score one gets on these tests determines their potential to enter the beanstalk. In basic terms it correlates to sensitivty to the universal energy which we have begun to call mana.¡±

    ¡°If you can enter the beanstalk then you learn how to harness this power and return to Earth as something of a god. In fact, right now you are sitting in the location of the Australian entrance to the Beanstalk, and if your curious to see it we can go have a look. What do you say gentlemen, are you interested in a tour?¡±

    ¡°Who the fuck wouldn¡¯t be!¡± No1 shouted as he exploded out of his seat. ¡°Sign me up Joystick.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s Joysich¡± The Captain responded with a frown.

    ¡°Joybitch, Joystick same diff.¡± No2 chuckled.

    Great the fear has worn off now these fuckers will see what these two punks are really like. Wolf stroked his non existent beard as he considered.

    The story sounded like total bullshit but he couldn¡¯t explain the way Joysich punched a hole in wall. Plus he felt like there wasn¡¯t really a choice. There was really no way they gone to all the trouble of bringing them here just to tell them a story and show them a magic trick.

    ¡°Sure why not. Let¡¯s take a look at this beanstalk.¡± Wolf said.

 Chapter 4: Enter the Beanstalk

    ¡°Are you fucking with us?¡± No2 said as they all stared at a empty wall and the end of a tunnel.

    Captain Joysich and Ms Price had taken the three of them down into the restricted underground tunnel that housed the anomaly.

    ¡°No one one is fucking with you kid. At the end that tunnel is the anomaly. It is always in a state of quantum flux since we learned how to unlock it. Simply walk forward and if your potential is right you will pass through into the beanstalk. If its not you will just walk into a wall.¡± Joysich said.

    Wolf hung off to the side as he wrinkled his face in uncertainty. The whole situation was too bizarre and it seemed like some clever trap.

    ¡°Hahaha in that case see you fuckers on the other side!¡± No1 yelled as he began to sprint down the tunnel at full speed.

    ¡°Whoop¡± He screamed as he leapt into the blank wall only to disappear completely.

    ¡°Yeeeeaaaahhhhh.¡± No2 two screamed as he copied No1 and sprinted full pelt down the tunnel before hurling himself headfirst in the wall and disappearing.

    ¡°These kids are fucking crazy.¡± Joysich said as eyes widened at the sight. He turned to look at Wolf who he expected to be more dignified only to see he was gone.

    ¡°MUAHAHAHAHA!¡± Wolf screamed as he sprinted down the tunnel and leapt through the wall.

    ¡°Well¡­¡­..shit.¡± Joysich said.

    ¡°Good luck with that.¡± Price laughed as she left. Her work was done for now.

    Joysich sighed as he walked down the tunnel. He looked back at the bunker momentarily as closed his eyes. He knew he wouldn¡¯t be back for some time. Slowly he stepped through and entered the beanstalk.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    When Wolf appeared in the beanstalk he looked around in amazement. They were standing in a huge chimney that extended so far above them they couldn¡¯t see where it ended. The walls were a craggy rock face that were covered with thousands of layered engravings.

    ¡°What are they?¡± Wolf whispered as he passed his hand over the images.

    ¡°Look at this thing baldy. It¡¯s some kind of demon with four heads and fangs.¡± No2 said as he pointed to an engraving mid way up the wall.

    Wolf stared at it for a moment and then it felt as if his soul was beginning to get sucked into the engraving and his knees went weak. A deep sense of terror washed over him as if his life was slipping away.

    ¡°Mr Wolf are you alright?¡± No1 asked as he grabbed Wolf¡¯s arm. As soon as No1 made contact with Wolf¡¯s arm the spell broke and Wolf backed away from the engraving with a look of horror on his face.

    ¡°Wha¡­¡­there¡¯s something moving inside those engravings!¡± Wolf hissed. For once No1 and No2 didn¡¯t make any smarts comments as they slowly began to look around at the engravings around them. They too could feel the strange power that permeated the beanstalk and made the hairs on their arms stand on end.

    They all quickly realised that every engraving was a different version on the same theme.

    Monsters.

    Big fucking monsters.

    Joysich suddenly materialised in the middle of the room.

    ¡°Welcome to the Beanstalk.¡±He said smiling.

    ¡°Ok thanks for the tour Captain!¡± Wolf said as tried to pass through the space Joysich had just materialised from. He jumped back and forth through it but he remained inside the beanstalk.

    A look of panic began bloom on Wolf¡¯s face until he surpressed it. His years of mental discipline came into play as he controlled his fear and put the pieces together.

    ¡°Ok Joystick. Why don¡¯t you tell us what this really about.¡± Wolf said in an unfriendly tone.

    ¡°It¡¯s Joysich.¡±

    ¡°No I¡¯m with the kids on this one, it¡¯s definitely Joystick.¡±

    ¡°You fucked us didn¡¯t you Joystick.¡± No1 swore.

    ¡°My name is JOYSICH!¡± Joysich yelled. This was of course the worse thing he could have done. No1 and No2 winked at each other and smiled. Now they knew the name bothered him Joysich was never going to be able to escape it.

    Wolf smiled a little too. He remembered how much he had fought against being called baldy and and Old man by the little fuckers when he first started.

    Never show these little cunts your weakness.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t ¡®fuck you¡¯ as you put it. What I told you was the truth. I just left some parts out. Basically, everything is as I said except each world up the beanstalk has a species placed on it whose sole purpose is to kill us and prevent us from entering the next world.¡± Joysich said.

    ¡°So we are at war?¡± Wolf asked.

    ¡°Exactly. Also I forgot to mention a couple of other things. The portal back to earth is now sealed until we unlock the next world. Only new candidates will be pushed through, but no one will be going back. There is also a time dilation effect between the worlds, basically 1 day on earth is worth 2 up above.¡±

    ¡°Anything else?¡± Wolf asked.

    ¡°Oh yeah¡­.we are at war with a species of undead that are dramatically more powerful than us and the war is not going very well.¡±

    ¡°Bloody hell mate this is fucked.¡± No1 said. ¡°What happened to the super powers and shit?¡±

    ¡°Oh they are quite real, that is what these engravings are. But first follow the story from here on the floor. If you move in a clockwise direction you will see the story unfold.¡±

    Joysich pointed to an area on the floor and they all moved over to where it started.

    ¡°There are 26 known entry points to the Beanstalk from earth and they all lead to different parts of the beanstalk. Think of the Beanstalk as an enormous tree, we are all climbing the same tree at around the same level just on different vines. What we know is that the engravings on the beanstalk are different and never repeated for each different entry point. The only thing that is the same is the floor engravings that tell the story of the ancient humans.¡±

    Wolf started walking as he followed the engravings that were like tiny pictographs depicting ancient humans riding chariots of fire. As Wolf stared they began to move and slowly came to life in his mind as his consciousness was absorbed into a whirlpool of memories and moving shapes.

    He saw great battles between humans and all kinds of monstrous beings. They fought across planets and stars, on land and in outerspace. Countless dimensions and galaxies unfolded as he saw the human Empire grow. As the humans defeated all kinds of species he saw them being converted into pure energy and absorbed into imprints that the humans merged with becoming a part of their power.

    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Slowly the images began to change as time passed and saw the ancient humans beginning to lose. Countless species had united to attack them and their overwhelming power and numbers began to weaken and destroy the ancient human worlds. They were chased across the universe as they desperately fought to survive. Finally in a great battle a pocket dimension was formed by their enemies and the beanstalk was created.

    The energy of the universe was squeezed until it formed a world that had slightly less energy that the real universe. Then another was formed and another and another. Each world contained less and less universal energy until at last the thirteenth world was formed which was Earth and it was almost completely devoid of the universal power. As the humans were forced down the Beanstalk they fought grimly. They couldn¡¯t alter the diminishing energy in these newly created words so they branded their legacies on the beanstalk itself.

    As they were forced further and further down the beanstalk they continued to engrave different parts of their knowledges until finally they were expelled into earth and the doorways were locked. The anger and fury of the ancient humans washed over Wolf¡¯s mind. They were once the Emperors of life and now they had been reduced to mere mortals at the hands of their former slaves.

    Their bitter and arrogant bloodthirst began to permeate Wolf¡¯s being and words in an archaic tongue slowly echoed out in Wolf¡¯s mind.

    CLIMB¡­.THE¡­..BEANSTALK.

    The words boomed into his mind like explosion and when the sound faded away Wolf found a strange kind of knowledge had been left in his head.

    [12 Chamber-Heart]

    ¡°Blaaaarrgghh.¡± Wolf¡¯s eyes shot open as he vomited blood. Everything looked red as he realised blood vessels had burst in his eyes. No1 and No2 looked like they were in worse condition as they huddled on the floor in a puddle of blood and puke.

    Wolf slowly raised his eyes as he looked up into the beanstalk and the thousands of engravings as he realised what they were. They were all former real life monsters that had been absorbed and converted into energy by the ancient humans. Legacies of power for their descendants to absorb and inherit as part of their desperate climb back to power.

    ¡°You see now don¡¯t you Wolf?¡± Joysich said as his eyes filled with a deep wisdom. ¡°All of us have begun just like you three today. The story on the floor and the task that lays before us. On these walls are the first layer of legacies. The system the ancients used to manipulate the energy of the universe should now be in your mind. We call this the 12 Chamber-Heart scripture. Open your mind to it and your journey will begin.¡±

    ¡°All you have to do is¡­¡­..¡± A strange rumbling noise came from Joysich¡¯s stomach. ¡°I mean all you have do is¡­..reach out and¡­..¡± Suddenly Joysich doubled over as he clutched his stomach.

    ¡°I¡­.no¡­..oh god.¡± Joysich swore as he rushed over to the corner. His eyes bulged before he got their and a brown liquid began seeping out of his pant leg.

    ¡°Arghhhhh¡± he screamed as he used his immense strength to simply rip his pants and jocks off in one go and squatted in the corner as shit cascaded out of his arse like a waterfall.

    Wolf smiled as he thought about the homebrew Joysich had sculled earlier.

    Serves the cunt right for dragging me into this mess.

    With the groans of Joysich in the background Wolf refocused on the imprint of the [12 Chamber-Heart] in his mind and knowledge unfolded like a flower seeking the sunlight.

    The ancients described the energy of the universe as mana. Mana permeated every part of creation, even on earth it was present as it was necessary to sustain life, only it was in incredibly minute quantities. Every human had a mana-field that surrounded them that extended to around an inch outside their body. Wolf mused as this knowledge flitted through his mind. The concept was not dissimilar to the idea of an ¡®aura¡¯.

    He focused his mind according to the scripture and began to sense the mana that surrounded him in the room. He had practiced meditation before so it was not a dissimilar process. As he felt the mana he began to slowly draw it into his mana-field. He felt the energy dance and drift across his skin and as it began to draw inside of his body into his blood. The [12 Chamber-Heart] scripture began to glow in his mind as the mana entered his blood stream and began circulate through his body before penetrating into his heart.

    ¡°Ungghhh.¡± Wolf grunted in pain as a sharp stabbing sensation pierced his chest. His body spasmed as his heart seized.

    Fuuuuuucckkk. Wolf screamed in his mind as the most incredible pain he had ever felt threatened to overwhelm him. He could feel the [12 Chamber-Heart] scripture glowing madly in his mind as his mana-field suddenly sucked in energy like a tidal wave from outside his body. The mana crashed through his blood and exploded into his heart like a supernova.

    Something wriggled in his heart like a worm boring into a tree as his hands spasmed uncontrollably. He tried to let out an unholy scream but no sound came out and he wept inwardly. Finally the pain started to subside and he could see in his mind¡¯s eye that his heart had undergone an incredible change. It now looked crystalline and he could feel their were 12 chambers inside of it that were like empty pockets of space hungry to be filled. The mana began he was absorbing began to fill the first chamber until finally it subsided.

    He opened his eyes as he panted. Even the memory of that pain was almost enough to send him into spasms and make his mind weak. He knew from the scripture what had just occurred. The crystalline heart was basically his nuclear power reactor. It was an organ that could store the mana that he drew in from his mana-field. This was how the ancient humans developed their incredible power.

    But worse than the pain was the bone deep sense of hunger that filled him. The heart chambers felt like a bottomless pit that needed to filled.

    Instinctively he knew that the next step was now upon him. He had find a Monster on the wall and seal the energy inside his first chamber. Only then would the first stage of the scripture be complete.

 Chapter 5 The Monster Within

    Still inside his mind¡¯s eye Wolf stimulated his mana-field and emitted a pulse that sent his senses out to cover the walls. Like a sonar it began to bounce off the walls and bring him back energetic impressions. He couldn¡¯t help but shudder at how terror inspiring these creatures were. The ancient humans must have been incredibly powerful to have not only defeated them, but to have enslaved them for all time.

    He found that every now and again he actually recognised some of the monsters. They were creatures from human myths and legends that had been passed down since ancient times. Others were engravings of beings that he could not recognise as they had no firm shape.

    As he moved his senses over the walls the words of the philosopher Nietsche washed over him.

    Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster¡­..for when you gaze long into the abyss. The abyss gazes also into you.

    Wasn¡¯t accepting one of these monsters into his soul the same as becoming a monster himself? Wolf shuddered as he continued to search as his emotions roiled. He had no easy answers his fears. As the questions flitted through his mind the hunger filled him again relentlessly driving him like a baby screaming for its mother¡¯s milk.

    Is it controlling me somehow? He asked himself in fear. His mind had been invaded and overwhelmed by the history engravings on the floor and then whipped into action by the scripture. Wolf felt driven by powerful thoughts and emotions he couldn¡¯t fully understand and a sliver of fear invaded his heart that he had somehow been taken over. The [12 Chamber-Heart] began to glow more forcibly as Wolf began to pull his senses away from the engravings on the wall.

    Shit I have to complete it.

    Tucking away his fears to the back of his mind Wolf resolved to survive the current situation before exploring his fears more closely. He didn¡¯t plan to be anyone¡¯s puppet.

    Fuck, I just wanted to be a janitor.

    As Wolf searched he tried to find something powerful and intimidating. He figured that if he was going to have a monster in his soul then it may as well be a bad ass one. As he scoured the walls he finally felt a resonance near the middle hidden under layers of other engravings.

    He passed his senses over it and all he could see was what looked like a horn and a fang. It gave off an incredible aura of power, but without the sense of evil some of the other engravings had. Reaching out with his mind he called to it and felt it resist with all its might. Suddenly the [12 Chamber-Heart] Scripture flared like a sun in his mind and dragged the engraving kicking and screaming into his mana-field.

    It fought like a wildcat as it struggled against the relentless pull of the scripture. Just as the scripture seemed to be in control a phenomenal power burst forth from the engraving and a terrifying repressive force rippled out. Colour began to bleed from the world as everything slowly turned black and white and Wolf felt his mind fading away. For a moment the engraving almost broke free, but the scripture exploded in in power and slowly began to drag it back in. Suddenly the resistance stopped and the engraving flew throughWolf¡¯s bloodstream and into his first heart chamber. Wolf felt the chamber swell slightly as the being settled into place.

    A moment passed and then another.

    BOOM.

    A shockwave passed through Wolf¡¯s heart as he felt the power of the engraving fully bond with him and the name and shape of the mighty being presented itself inside Wolf¡¯s mind.

    With great difficulty Wolf opened his eyes and saw that the others were already complete and were leaning against the wall waiting for him The stench of shit filled his nostrils and he saw Joysich resting on the opposite side half naked. Because he had shit his pants he had tied his shirt around his waist to cover up his junk.

    Slowly Wolf stood up as if he was getting used to his body. Though his mind felt exhausted his body was brimming with energy. He felt far stronger than he ever had in his entire life as he clenched and unclenched his fist.

    ¡°Well done all of you. Although there are countless thousands of engravings in this part of the beanstalk, the reality is each one is unique. When you take the engraving into your hearth chamber it becomes a Totem and is no longer on the wall. These Totems are the legacies left by the ancient humans, without them we wouldn¡¯t have any chance of battling the undead and creaturs on the other worlds with our current knowledge and power.¡±

    ¡°The heart chamber has 12 chambers. Each chamber can hold a different Totem. As we unlock each world and enter a new part of the beanstalk we will be able to acquire new Totems, or what we truly hope for is to rediscover the technique to create Totems in the first place. One day if we can open the floodgates to humanity these engravings we use to make Totems will all disappear very quickly as billions of humans devour them. So these Totems are a non-renewable resource and as each human dies on the battlefield these Totems are lost forever.¡±The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    "So the only question left is what Totems you got." Joysich finished.

    ¡°I got the [Sleeping Giant].¡± No1 said as his eyes brimmed with power.

    ¡°I got the [Bogeyman]¡± No2 said excitedly.

    ¡°The Bogeyman?¡± Wolf asked. ¡°You can¡¯t be serious? Is the Tooth Fairy up their as well?¡±

    ¡°Not here, but it is in the entry point controlled by the Russians. It¡¯s a seriously powerful Totem.¡± Joysich said.

    ¡°Well fuck me. Next thing there will be a Santa Claus.¡± Wolf laughed. When he saw Joysich¡¯s serious face his smile fell.

    ¡°There¡¯s a Santa Claus?¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t want to know some of the deadly beings that are imbued in the engravings. Anything you have ever imagined in your worst nightmare is on here in some shape or form.¡± Joysich said seriously. ¡°There are no weak engravings as such, though some are stronger than others.¡±

    ¡°Well what the fuck did you get old man?¡± No1 asked impatiently.

    ¡°Well that is¡­..i guess I got [Black Sheep].¡±

    ¡°Black Sheep?¡± No1 asked.

    ¡°Yep.¡±

    ¡°What like a dragon-sheep with big ass claws and red eyes?¡±

    ¡°Nope it looks like¡­¡­..well a normal black sheep.¡±

    Silence descended for a full minute as they all stood there.

    ¡°I can¡¯t say I have ever heard of any Totem so¡­¡­¡­normal.¡± Joysich finally said.

    ¡°Hahaha you got that straight Joystick.¡± No1 boomed. ¡°Old baldy got ripped off hahahahaha.¡±

    ¡°Fuck you kid what does your giant do? Probably just sleeps all day which means your Totem matches your lazy ass.¡±

    ¡°Dun worry old man I can shave your Totem and use its wool as blanket for my giant!¡± No1 joked.

    ¡°Screw all you cunts I was happy being a janitor and now I¡¯m in this fucking beanstalk with some fucking sheep living in a hole in my heart.¡±

    ¡°Well it could be worse. Joystick¡¯s Totem is the diarrhea monster!¡± No2 said. Clearly he had be saving up this joke for some time now and had been waiting for the right moment to unleash it.

    ¡°Hahahaha yeah probably defeats his enemies by drowning them in shit.¡± No1 added.

    ¡°Shut the fuck up all of you.¡± Joysich said menacingly. He didn¡¯t know what was wrong with him but he had to utilise all of his muscle control to constantly clench his butt cheeks to prevent further shit from leaking out.

    ¡°Apologies Captain.¡± Wolf said with a respectful look on his face as he glared at No1 and No2, before looking back at Joysich. ¡°But I really do need to ass you one more question.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t¡± Joysich said.

    ¡°Baldy your assing him too much¡± No1 shot out.

    ¡°Please stop.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t butt in Joystick.¡±

    ¡°Guys.¡±

    ¡°Your jokes stink old man.¡±

    ¡°GENTLEMEN!!!¡± Joysich screamed. His powerful voice hurt everyone¡¯s ear drums as the shout rebounded off the walls of the beanstalk.

    ¡°In case it had escaped your attention there is only one way out of here. We have to climb up until we reach the next world. An impossible feat usually, but you now have access to mana. Draw down on the mana pool in your first heart chamber if you get fatigued. Just touch it slightly and let it filter into your blood. We will teach you proper techniques on how to strengthen your body through this method later.¡±

    ¡°For now let me lead you to the top. Follow me gentlemen as we conquer the beanstalk!¡± Joysich finished with a noble air.

    At that point everyone looked up into the high walls that faded into an endless black.

    Joysich walked over to the wall and started climbing. As he turned around Wolf realised that there was nothing covering his ass. The shirt which was tied on his front only covered his cock and balls leaving his backside exposed. A splattering of dried brown liquid covering his cheeks and as Joysich moved upwards you could see it was on his legs as well.

    ¡°Oh hell no. I¡¯m not climbing behind Joyshit. I might get some dribbling.¡± No1 said as he chose a different wall. Joysich went bright red as he ignored the comment and continued climbing. After a quick moment of thought, No2 and Wolf also nodded and avoided the wall Joysich was on. They chose different sections of the wall and began to find their own way up.

    These¡­¡­ fucking¡­.. guys. Joysich thought in fury as he began to climb.

 Chapter 6: Climb the bloody Beanstalk

    The climb up the beanstalk was long and ardorous. Days passed as they climbed without food or water scaling what seemed like an infinite wall. What was worse was the chilling and evil feeling many of the engravings gave off as you touched them. At the point when Wolf felt incredibly fatigued he would tap into his Heart Chamber and circulate a little mana into his bloodstream.

    The mana was like a sweet tonic from the gods, washing away his fatigue and sending new strength into his limbs.

    It was also addictive.

    Every time he drew mana out of his heart chamber he felt a thrill of power and pleasurable feeling hummed through his mind.

    Fuck this feel good.

    The climb itself was not difficult, merely long and unending. In his past life Wolf had gone through a phase where he had become obsessed with rock climbing. Mostly focusing on indoor climbing he had reached the peak ametuer level before he stopped after a hurting his shoulder. That was back when he had big money, fast cars and spent all his spare time training various things that captured his interest.

    As he climbed he felt his old techniques come back. His back leg flagged out as he transitioned into a smooth side-pull as he gracefully extended up to the next hand hold. He had always found climbing as meditation in movement, much like Yoga. As he got more and more into the zone the fact that he was in the beanstalk faded away and he lost himself in the ballet of movement that was climbing.

    He deliberately let his muscles tire to exhaustion before letting a flood of mana cascade over them bringing renewal. As he continued this process he slowly felt his senses begin to expand as he entered a strange mental state. The clumsy way he had been grabbing at his mana smoothed out and he felt he only needed to draw upon a tiny trickle to keep going. Wolf suddenly had an insight as his muscles fatigued. Not everything needed mana in the same way at the same time, his forearms were usually the quickest to exhaust due to how much they were used in gripping.

    Rather than bullishly grabbing the mana out of his heart chamber he gently began to coax a tiny wisp out into his bloodstream. As it flowed through his blood he he let it drift inactively as it circulated through his body. Then as it passed through areas of his body that were critically fatigued he would activate the mana and it would burn up as it nourished specific parts of his body.

    The more he practiced this technique the better he became at it until after several hours he felt very adept at manipulating small streams of mana in his body. Not only had his consumption of mana gone down dramatically, but its effects seemed even better. It was like a soft and gentle tide pulling the water in and out of a stream.

    Finally after what seemed like a lifetime a faint white light could be seen in the distance. Wolf stared at it trying to make out what it was, but it was like looking at the sun and he felt his eyes glaze over.

    ¡°We are almost at the summit.¡± Joysich¡¯s voice echoed out. ¡°Hold on for a little longer¡­¡­.climb into the light!¡±

    Wolf looked around and saw No1 and No2 were struggling as they climbed. There faces were flushed and their muscles trembling as they neared the white light. No2 slipped slightly and dangled by one arm before he hauled himself up and clung to the wall.

    ¡°My mana is running out.¡± He yelled and there was a trace of fear in his voice as he looked down. It was a face Wolf had seen in many new climbers as their endurance began to fade and they realised how high they were.

    ¡°No2 listen to me.¡± Wolf said as he cast his voice out.

    ¡°Don¡¯t look down. Only look up. You¡¯re gripping the wall with more strength than you need to. Grip it gently with only the amount of strength you need to stick to the wall. Your only a few moves from the top. Relax and stop wasting your strength by being tense.¡±

    Wolf saw No2 nod his head across the gap, but saw he was still struggling. So he slowly began to traverse sideways around the beanstalk to make his way over to No2¡¯s position. No1 had also had a similar idea and began to climb closer to No2.

    Soon No1 and Wolf were on either side of No2 as they all marshalled their strength for the final ascent.

    ¡°I¡¯ll come help too.¡± Joysich said as he began to traverse above them onto their wall.

    A tiny drop of something splashed onto No1¡¯s face as he clung to the wall.

    ¡°What the fuck was that?¡± he said as he wiped at his forehead with his arm. He looked at the suspicious blob for a moment before he drew it towards his nose and sniffed.

    ¡°Fucking Jesus.¡± Wolf roared as he snapped his head back away from the offensive substance. ¡°Joyshit you fucking asshole!¡± No1 yelled.

    ¡°I¡­..it was an accident!¡± Joysich cried. His emotions were unsettled as he had never encountered such a situation before. Even as he spoke he felt his butt cheeks still quivering wanting to release their deadly goods.

    ¡°Ok ok¡­.just climb up into the white light¡­.I¡¯ll see you on the other side!¡± He finally yelled before scurrying up into the light. Wolf looked up and saw Joysich¡¯s naked ass and hairy balls disappear into the light as his body faded away.

    ¡°Ok the naked tool is gone now.¡± No1 said in a whisper. No2 immediately stopped shaking and his eyes were firm and resolute again. Wolf looked at the two kids in shock for a moment before he realised he had been had.

    ¡°Your not tired at all are you?¡± Wolf said.

    ¡°Tired? Fuck no. I could climb this wall forever.¡± No2 laughed. ¡°I¡¯ve been climbing since I was a kid. In and out of houses carrying all sorts of shit hahaha.¡±

    No1 smiled as he gazed at Wolf with a look of calculation in his eye.

    ¡°Listen up old man. This is what we figure, we got no way to tell how much of all this is bullshit or not. Joystick has already fucked us a couple of times and I for one don¡¯t plan to keep getting fucked by him. The only thing No2 and I know for certain is you really are a fucking janitor.¡± No1 said with a serious face.

    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

    In fact No1 was not certain of this at all. He had already decided that there was a reasonable chance Wolf was some kind of plant. But he figured if he was a plant it was best to begin to pull him into a fake alliance to see what information they could pump out of him.

    ¡°So what¡¯s the play?¡± Wolf asked curious to see what No1 thoughts were. Though he was only 17 and never went to class it was not like No1 was stupid. Wolf was well aware No1 and No2 had been rolling on the streets since they were young and were well versed in working the edges of society. But then this was also an area, in a different field, that Wolf was very adept at.

    ¡°Hard to script it yet.¡± No2 said. ¡°We don¡¯t know what is on the other side, but this whole thing stinks and I don¡¯t plan to get shot up on the front lines for these cunts. We stick together, share information and have each other¡¯s backs.¡±

    Wolf looked at No2 in surprise. He had assumed that No2 was basically just No1¡¯s follower, but perhaps he had seriously underestimated him.

    ¡°Look Mr Wolf, sure we gave you a hard time at school. Let¡¯s face it, you¡¯re a first class cockhead. But that was then. We know you used to run some corporate fraud and shit like that. Got caught with your hand in the till and why the fuck you never fled to a desert island somewhere god only knows. But we recognise you got some skills. From our side we know how to run our game, our shit is locked. If you don¡¯t sell us out we won¡¯t sell you out¡­¡­we really mean that.¡± No1 said with a warm and genuine look on his face.

    Wolf looked at No1 and No2 in the eye as he nodded his head and returned a trusting, friendly expression.

    These kids want to play me? You¡¯re a hundred years too early! Wolf thought as an old feeling rose inside him. The dangerous predatory side of his personality had begun to slowly awaken.

    Wolf had made it to the top of the corporate ladder where every relationship was a knife that could be twisted into your back. Prison and the streets had been easier to survive in comparison.

    No1 smiled as he saw the trusting look on Wolf¡¯s face.

    Hahah this guy¡¯s a total sucker. He thought as he shared a look with No2.

    ¡°Well as long as we are all buddies now I was considering climbing back down and seeing if I could use my mana-field to exit back to earth.¡± Wolf said.

    No1 and No2 turned serious as they considered the idea.

    Suddenly a powerful emotion washed over Wolf and saw himself climbing the beanstalk and unlocking incredible powers. The corpses of his enemies stood underneath his feet as he stood at the summit of power like an invincible god. The motion thrummed through him in a wave as the hunger for power and glory overwhelmed him.

    King¡­.Become a King!

    No. A simple thought formed in Wolf¡¯s mind as he forcibly disengaged himself from his raging emotions and managed to stand outside of them. Wolf shook his head as if to clear the emotions out and saw No1 and No2 clenching the wall as their faces twisted.

    He reached out and slapped them a couple of times before they shook free from their delusions and turned their raging eyes onto Wolf.

    ¡°Settle¡­¡­¡­.before you do something stupid think for a moment, just breathe and control yourselves.¡± Wolf whispered as he did the same.

    Wolf was now certain that there was some kind of emotional manipulation happening inside of him due to the [12 Chamber-Heart] scripture. Wolf had tasted power before and was once one of the wealthiest men on the planet. He had supped on the dizzying heights of power and been cast down into nothing eventually living on the streets. He understood the high of the chase, of closing the deal of gathering influence and power until he was like a god to those around him. He had already been down this road and was familiar with its scent.

    Ever so carefully he flexed his mind and felt at the edges of the [12 Chamber-Heart]. He could feel it in his mind pulsing and sending out a hunger. His heart-chambers began to ache with the need for more mana and he could already feel the push to unlock the next world so he could absorb a second engraving.

    This thing is semi-sentient. Wolf thought in fear as he slowly withdrew his mind. It didn¡¯t seem trying to withdraw was going to be an option and he needed to move forward incredibly carefully if he was to understand what was really going on here.

    ¡°Alright if we are sharing info¡­..i don¡¯t know what your experiences were when you acquired your Totems but I believe the [12 Chamber-Heart] scripture has some kind of influencing effect.¡± Wolf said quietly.

    No1 and No2 struggled as the words washed over them.

    ¡°I agree it¡¯s like an unending thirst for power. It¡¯s focused on the heart chambers.¡± No2 said.

    ¡°I felt it when I got my Totem. The hunger.¡± No1 whispered.

    ¡°Look I don¡¯t know what the fuck it is, but clearly it wants to force us to keep climbing. So let¡¯s keep going up, but we need to be careful. Very, very careful.¡± Wolf said.

    ¡°You know I think looking forward, we will not be fighting the enemy. We will be fighting ourselves and the enemy is in us. The war will be one for the possession of our souls.¡± Wolf finished while he gazed off into space with the look of a powerful leader.

    No1 and No2 nodded slowly as Wolf¡¯s words of wisdom washed over them. Then they began to climb back up towards the light. Just as No1 was about to climb into the light a look of recognition appeared on his face and he paused and looked down.

    ¡°That¡­..that was a line from the movie Platoon you old bastard!¡±

    ¡°Shameless prick.¡± No2 shouted as he followed No1 up into the light.

    Wolf coughed as a bashful expression spread across his face.

    Dammit. That movie was released in 1986 who knew these kids watched old movies.

 Chapter 7: Shit Got Real

    Entering the white light gave a similar feeling to entering the Beanstalk. Reality turned and shifted and there was a feeling of discombobulation as space readjusted.

    Soon reality reasserted itself and Wolf found himself face down on some kind of warm wet surface. He reached out and his hand slipped in something as his eyes tried to readjust. All his senses were out of whack as a dull ringing sound echoed in his ears.

    What the fuck. Wolf thought as he levered himself up on something soft and mushy. Whatever he had his hand on gave away as the mush rose up to the mid part of his forearm.

    Finally his senses began to readjust. His sense of smell kicked back in and a horrific stench assaulted him as he half gagged. Shaking his head he swallowed as he tried to breath through his mouth to avoid being overwhelmed.

    ¡°Argghhh fucking christ.¡± Wolf spat as he levered himself up into a sitting position. His eyes began to come back into focus and he could detect an intermittent flashing. As his eyes readjusted at last, he could see the room was in total darkness and every few seconds it would be illuminated by a pale light that would flicker on and then disappear.

    In between the flashes of light Wolf saw a body on the ground covered in red paint.

    Except it wasn¡¯t paint.

    ¡°Wha¡­¡± Wolf intoned as he stared down at the body. The vacant eyes of Joysich stared up at nothing and half of his face was missing.

    ¡°Joy¡­..Joysich?¡± Wolf whispered as he stared uncomprehendingly.

    Finally he looked down and realised his arm was half buried in what was left of Joysich¡¯s stomach.

    ¡°Blaaargggggghhh!¡± Wolf vomited as his mind reeled and he desperately backed up.

    The light flickered off.

    His back hit something and he spun around as he grabbed it. Large hands wrapped around his throat as he felt himself being carried backward through space until his back smashed against a wall.

    A fetid breath washed over him as he sensed something close to his face.

    The light flickered on.

    Wolf saw a large humanoid creature with a decaying face reach out and try to bite into his flesh as it choked him.

    ¡°No no no no no.¡± Wolf gibbered as he wrestled the creature in the half light. He punched out a few times but his blows had no effect. Shifting his body weight he tried to twist the creatures grip but instead they both fell to the ground with the creature on top.

    The heavy weight of the creature pinned him as its mouth went for his throat. Just as he thought he would die, the will to live surged through Wolf¡¯s mind and the survivor in him arose with a vicious glee.

    ¡°Fuck your mother!¡± Wolf hissed between his teeth as he remembered he had mana. Tapping into his heart chamber he felt mana flow into his bloodstream and his body grew stronger. With his life threatened he felt the [Black Sheep] in his heart chamber faintly awaken and a thread of a dominating aura leaked out into his mana-field.

    Emotions cascaded through him. The image of a black sheep standing on top of the mountain as the lessor sheep bowed down before it blinked into his mind. Even as he felt the power roar through him he knew instinctively that this was different to the [12 Chamber-Heart]. That scripture was a cold relentless hunger to devour. The [Black Sheep] was different. It was like the aura of a king or an Emperor.

    ¡°Come get some bitch.¡± Wolf snarled as he forced his thumbs into the decaying eye sockets of the creature and forced its head back. The [Black Sheep] aura spilled out of his mana-field and into the creature as he touched it and he felt the creature weaken suddenly.

    Seizing the moment Wolf lashed out with a punch and left a sizeable dent in the creatures head. Wedging his knee between them he flipped the creature over and then began to rain blows down upon its face until he felt its skull give way. Reaching in he wrapped his fingers around its brains and ripped them out.

    As the creature died he felt a surge of mana being released at its death and the [12 Chamber-Heart] automatically flared to life inside him and began to suck in the mana like a child on its mothers tit. Wolf jumped off the body while taking in his surroundings ready to ward off against another attack as his adreneline pumped. In the flickering light he saw No1 and No2 across the room covered in blood with several creatures ripped apart at their feet.

    Fuck they took out at least three each!

    For a long moment Wolf stood their breathing heavily as they all stared at each other.

    ¡°Well¡­¡­..shit got real.¡± No1 whispered. ¡°You ok old man?¡±

    Wolf slowed his breath as he tried to regain control of himself as he stopped tapping his mana. After the climb and the fight he felt like there was only a little mana remaining in his heart chamber. That was until he killed the creature. Now he felt bloated from absorbing so much energy.

    ¡°I¡¯m alive.¡± Wolf replied. ¡°Which is more than I can say for Joysich.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Poor cunt.¡± No2 said as he shivered.

    ¡°What the fuck happened?¡± Wolf said as his breathing calmed.

    ¡°Dunno. You know as much as as. We came through and appeared right here next to a bunch of these zombies eating Joysich. Halfway through the fight you appeared.¡± No1 replied.

    ¡°How can this be, I thought Joysich was all suped up? If we can kill these fuckers how did he die?¡± Wolf asked.

    ¡°Check the door.¡± No2 whispered.

    Wolf looked at the entrance to the room which housed a 10 inch thick reinforced door that had been smashed open. An enormous fist sized dent could be seen in it.

    ¡°Check it. There are definitely bigger and badder things in here than just these zombies. Something put Joysich down like a dog.¡± No1 observed.

    ¡°Shit. Whatever it was its still here. We were like 5 minutes behind Joysich.¡± I added and saw No1 and No2 shit themselves.

    ¡°Fuck this light is going to give me an epileptic fit.¡± No1 joked as it continued to flicker.

    How the fuck is their even a light? Wolf wondered as he stared at the ceiling. There were a number of stones socketed in small holes. Most of them were dull but two of them seemed to have some kind of power source and continued to flicker.

    ¡°Ok I don¡¯t about you two but we have to get the fuck out of here. If whatever got Joysich comes back we¡¯re fucked.¡± Wolf said. No1 and No2 nodded as they stepped aside.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Wolf asked.

    ¡°Getting out of the way so you can lead.¡± No1 said.

    ¡°Me?¡±

    ¡°Well you¡¯re the only adult here bro. We¡¯re just kids man stop been such an irresponsible fuck.¡±

    ¡°Ok but you better watch the back you little cunts. I need one behind me on my left and the other behind to the right. That¡¯s all an old formation we used to use when I was in the army reserves.¡± Wolf said as he moved forward. No1 and No2 looked at each other and nodded as Wolf moved out. They adopted the positions Wolf suggested and carefully followed closely behind him.

    In fact Wolf had never been in the army reserves. He had invented the formation on the spot for one purpose only. If a big fucking zombie came charging at him he could jump straight backwards with nothing directly behind him. In that scenario the monster was most likely to attack whatever was now closest. In this case either No1 or No2.

    Edging out the door Wolf saw the lighting was better outside. A long tunnel extended to right and left of the exit. Wolf looked down and saw a half chewed leg down the right side so he automatically went left.

    Don¡¯t follow the chewed leg. Seemed like good logic.

    The tunnel was illuminated by a fading soft light as they hurried down. Distantly screams echoed in the tunnel and they all froze for moment like deer in the headlights.

    Wolf turned to look back down the tunnel towards the area they had emerged from. The end of the tunnel now just looked like a pitch black hole into hell.

    The screams are behind us. Wolf thought as the tried to triangulate where the sounds had come from. Slowly they bagan to move forward again, stopping every now and again at the slightest hint of a sound. Further up the tunnel they found several human bodies ripped apart. Some of the bodies looked like they had been ripped and clawed while others had huge holes in their chests as if a cannonball had been shot through them.

    ¡°Check this out.¡± No2 said. He had found a short three foot sword under one of the bodies. After rolling some of the other corpses over they found another two.

    As Wolf picked up the sword he felt a zing go through his mana-field. It almost felt alive in his hand as he held it as if it was made out of mana.

    ¡°Which way?¡± No1 asked and Wolf looked up to see he had forged ahead and was standing at a three way split in the tunnel. They all gathered at the intersection as they looked down into the darkness.

    ¡°One direction is as good as another.¡± No2 shrugged.

    Thadump¡­¡­thadump¡­..thadump.

    The sound of footfalls began to echo out in the tunnel.

    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

    Wolf¡¯s eyes darted down all three tunnels as he constantly moved his head to try and work out which direction the sounds were coming from.

    ¡°Can you see anything.¡± Wolf whispered as he continued to scan.

    ¡°I can¡¯t see jack shit.¡± No1 hissed as his knuckles grew white from tightly gripping his sword.

    All of sudden shapes emerged from two of the tunnels as a large number of zombies ran into the half-light.

    Within seconds they almost upon No2 as he cleaved the head of the first one and back-pedalled.

    Luckily for Wolf he was at the back of all three of them at this stage and he turned around and sprinted down the only tunnel empty of zombies. He made it about 20 metres before he saw a small group of zombies walking towards him.

    ¡°Behind as well.¡± Wolf yelled as he backed up.

    Three zombies got their hands on No2 and began to drag him down as he struggled. No1 swung his sword and lopped the heads off two zombies in quick succession and gave No2 the chance to regain his feet. A thick mana permeated the air as their heart chambers sucked it in like a vacuum cleaner.

    Within moments the three of them stood back to back as the zombies closed in.

    ¡°Fuck we¡¯re gonna die.¡± No1 whispered as he spun his sword. ¡°Old man¡­¡­..we put that video of you shitting on reddit. It went viral. You should know that before you die.¡±

    ¡°Fuck you kid.¡± Wolf whispered back as the zombies closed in. ¡°You should know that first bottle of homebrew I gave you last year tasted like horsepiss for a reason. This daddy put actual horsepiss in it.¡±

    ¡°You dog-hole cunt.¡± No1 whispered. ¡°I¡¯ve always hated you.¡±

    ¡°I hate you too you piece of shit.¡± Wolf said as he gripped his sword tightly and yanked on his mana.

    ¡°But you know what? This Old man won¡¯t die easy!¡± he roared as he charged the zombies. His mana hit his bloodstream like an avalanche as he drew on it hard.

    He kicked the first zombie in the chest and as it flew back in the air it caused several zombies behind it to fall over. Like snake he shot forward and began to slash at the zombies heads.

    SPLAH

    SPLAH

    SPLAH

    Zombie heads exploded as he surged forward carving a path of destruction in front of him. Wolf had no idea how to use a sword properly, but then he didn¡¯t need to. The mana surging through his body made him stronger and faster and he used the sword more like a hatchet as he hacked into their flesh.

    As their bodies blew apart the mana thickened in the air and the [12 Chamber-Heart] flared and sucked in the mana in an endless stream. He could feel the power of the scripture and its hunger for more mana.

    These zombies are fucking food for it. Wolf realised as the mana was sucked into him.

    Deeper inside his heart chamber he felt the [Black Sheep] stir. Its aura began to bleed into his mana-field and a terrifying energy of repression began to bleed out in front of him like a cone.

    As the zombies walked into it their bodies began to slow and weaken. Wolf barely noticed the effect as he cut through like a madman. Emotions surged through him as the [12 Chamber-Heart] got brighter and brighter and an ancient impulse entered him.

    KILL¡­..KILL¡­..KILL¡­¡­

    ¡°MUHAHAHA!¡± Wolf laughed as he lost himself in the madness. A larger than normal zombie surged forward and punched Wolf in the face as two others latched onto his legs and began biting.

    Wolf barely felt the blow as he punched the big zombie in the face with the hilt of his sword and kicked his legs free. He stomped on the zombies head at his feet and stabbed the big zombie through its head.

    Behind him No1 and No2 desperately fought for their lives as the [12 Chamber-Heart] also whipped them into a frenzy.

    No1 had six zombies hanging off his arms and legs as he tumbled to the ground. They began to bite his body as he screamed and tried to fight free. Finally his [Sleeping Giant] began to awaken and an enormous surge of power spread through his physical body. It flooded into his mana-field and then his mana-field fully retracted and disappeared inside his body causing his muscles to bulge.

    "Get Wrecked!" No1 hissed as he exploded up from the ground.

    It was like his untapped potential had been awakened and he was filled with a glorious power. He dropped the sword as a mob of zombies were wrestling him and began use his fists instead. At close range they were like devastating clubs as his fists punched right through the zombies bodies. One after another he flung zombies around like they weighed nothing and were ripped apart in his hands.

    As the fight had progressed No2 had become slightly separated from Wolf and No1. As the zombies surrounded him he despaired as he knew he would be the first to die. He felt the fingers of a zombie pierce into his chest as it quested for his heart.

    As the fingers got close to his heart a deep spike of fear burst through him as his mind trembled. Just as the fingers lightly touched his heart something primal awakened. [Bogeyman] awoke and No2¡¯s fear was absorbed like water into a sponge as it was transformed into a strange energy.

    No2 stared into the zombies eyes as it bore down on him and the fear-energy spread out into his mana-field. His mana-field began to warp and within seconds No2 emanated a horrific undead aura. His mana-field twisted the light around him and he looked bigger and more powerful like a super powerful zombie.

    The tide of zombies paused as if sensing an Alpha predator as they began to fawn and back-pedal. The strength of the [Bogeyman] thrummed through him and No2 instantly knew his appearance had changed into what his victim feared the most.

    Some kind of zombie boss. No2 thought as he struck out. Instinctively he knew how to manipulate his mana-field as he poured more mana into it making him seem even more powerful and dangerous. The more afraid the zombies became the more powerful No2 grew as he felt [Bogeyman] feed on their fear like a meal.

    ¡°Hahahaha¡­..i¡¯m not trapped in here with you! You¡¯re trapped in here with me!¡± No2 cackled as he spread more fear through their ranks and exploded into action hacking and slashing as he shoved through. He saw No1¡¯s discarded sword and picked it up in an instant as he swung two swords against the horde.

    "Duel wielding mutha farkers!"

    Zombie after zombie died under his hand until finally he swung his swords into empty air as none were left.

    Panting he turned around to see No1 and Wolf staring at him in horror. He moved forward and Wolf raised his sword as if to strike at him.

    ¡°Wait¡­..guys it¡¯s me!¡± No2 said as he backed up.

    ¡°No2?¡± Wolf whispered.

    No2 released the mana he was directing into his mana-field and felt the mana that was infused with the fear-energy drop away. Soon No2 returned to his normal appearance as they stared at him.

    ¡°What the fuck was that?¡± No1 asked. ¡°You looked like a big ass zombie!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s my Totem bro. [Bogeyman].¡±

    ¡°Well¡­¡­¡­shit.¡±

    All this time the mana from the dead corpses was still being absorbed by all of them and suddenly it reached a critical level.

    ¡°Fuck can you feel that?¡± Wolf asked as his heart chamber trembled. It felt like the mana he had absorbed had reached some important threshold. A strong vibration occurred in his first heart chamber as the space suddenly pushed out and doubled in size. Instantly the mana in his heart chamber which had been full a moment ago seemed small within the cavernous space.

    It was like he had some kind of breakthrough.

    Looking up Wolf could see No1 and No2 had experienced something similar. Despite the doubling of space inside the first chamber his heart had not gotten any bigger.

    It¡¯s like some kind of pocket dimension. Wolf mused as he wiped blood off his sword. Slowly he saw the [12 Chamber-Heart] begin to fade back to normal as the mana and adreneline washed away.

    "ungghhh." Wolf grunted as he instantly dropped to his knees as pain washed over him. He was bleeding from dozens of wounds and his face felt like it had been hit by a truck.

    No1 and No2 had also gone deathly pale as their strength washed away.

    Wolf tried to tap mana but only a small sickly stream answered his call and it felt withered and ugly.

    Shit. Must be overuse. I guess nothing comes without a price. Wolf thought as he struggled to stand only to find himself collapsed on the floor. Even though anger rose in him the logical part of his mind understood that this made sense. Nothing comes without a price, on earth or in this new world. The feeling of being a god was partly an illusion as the power burned up their bodies.

    As Wolf lay their an enormous shadow fell across his body. He tried to look up but no longer had the strength to even move his head. He felt a dark presence extend to cover him as it probed into his mana-field and covered him in a thick black mana that took his breath away.

    "Hello little humans......my don''t you just all look delicious." a deep voice whispered.

 Chapter 8: Mad as a Cut Snake

    All Wolf could see was the ceiling of the tunnel as the lights continued to flicker. Something huge was dragging him by his leg as a thick black miasma continued to penetrate into his mana-field.

    Without the ability to even summon a trace of mana he could only silently endure the sickening feeling. The black-mana smelt like rotting potatoes as it bored into his mana-field.

    Slowly the black-mana began to seep into his skin as it spread out to cover his entire body.

    Shit. Wolf thought in panic as it covered his entire face preventing him from breathing.

    At first the black-mana just sat there as Wolf held his breath, but then it finally began to sink in through his mouth, eyes and nose. Wolf tried to struggle as it crept down his throat and left a faint burning feeling.

    Soon the black-mana infiltrated his bloodstream and wrapped itself around his heart like a glove before merging with his blood and bones. For the first time since his heart had transformed Wolf felt completely cut off from its energies and his body felt like a normal human being.

    After being dragged for a long time a large hand hauled him up into the air. Black ropes appeared out of nothingness and bound his hands as he was hung from a large hook on a wall.

    He dangled there as a hulking shape moved passed him and out of the corner of his eye he saw No1 and No2 being placed on large hooks and strung up against the wall.

    ¡°Yes¡­¡­yes this is quite nice.¡± The being laughed.

    A small amount of strength had finally returned to Wolf and he raised his head and then instantly regretted it.

    The creature in front of him looked horrific. Its eyes were red and sunken deep within its face and its flesh looked like it had been sewn together like a jigsaw puzzle. It was at least five time the size of a normal zombie and exuded and towering strength.

    ¡°Hehehe with 60 of you at least one will convert.¡± The zombie laughed. At these words Wolf managed to turn his head to the right and his eyes widened in shock. All the way along the wall humans hung on hooks coated in a black-mana. There eyes were glazed over as if dead and yet there bodies occasionally twisted as if in pain.

    ¡°Great being. We offer you the old man as a sacrifice. We request to be your slaves. Let us live and serve you.¡± No1¡¯s voice croaked out.

    ¡°Supreme one ignore this fat calf¡¯s words. This old man is stringy and weak, while these two are muscular and plump. Do you eat human flesh? I used to be a chef and can prepare it for you quite nicely.¡± Wolf said.

    ¡°Oh your all still awake?¡± the zombie said with a grin that showed its black gums. ¡°Very nice. All three of you are strong candidates for the transition.¡±

    ¡°Transition?¡± No2 asked.

    ¡°Yes the grand transition. Only lower level zombies are born from the nests. The rest we get elsewhere!¡± It said as it inspected the three of them. ¡°Hmmmm your all only level 2. Must have just come up the beanstalk! Been a long time since I have such fresh meat kluk kluck.¡±

    ¡°I used to be like you once. At least that is what they tell me. After the transition you lose all your human memories. Its a great trick you see? The zombie kings worked out that humans could be converted into zombie lords.¡±

    ¡°HAHAHAHA¡­..a great trick.¡± It said as it roared with laughter and black-mana dripped out of its mouth.

    Then suddenly its face grew ferocious as it shot forward like a dart and squeezed Wolf¡¯s face with its hand.

    ¡°You know who taught us that trick?¡± It whispered as its tongue lolled out and licked the side of Wolf¡¯s face.

    Wolf grunted in pain as the black-mana from its tongue corroded his flesh like acid.

    ¡°I¡­..don¡¯t know.¡± Wolf whispered.

    ¡°Hehehe¡­.it was you!¡± the zombie laughed as it backed off.

    He''s mad as a cut snake.Wolf thought in despair. It was clear this zombie had lost the fucking plot.

    The zombie looked at them in anticipation. When the three of them showed no shock at his words it looked at them in disappointment.

    ¡°Of course you have probably forgotten haven¡¯t you. That is the problem with humans they all forget.¡± The zombie summoned his mana and a vicious black-mana hook knife appeared in his hand as he ran his fingers down the edge.

    ¡°Great one we have forgotten please enlighten us.¡± No2 begged.

    ¡°Well alright then. But only because you asked.¡±

    ¡°Old and new, old and new. I lost my old memories but I gained new ones you see? We were not always like this with this disgusting form. We once flew through the stars.¡± It said wistfully as its voice filled with a deep longing.

    ¡°Every species in the universe is born from an origin concept. A universal law. Our origin concept was [Resurrection] and we were the Phoenix race. You know what Resurrection is? It is the space between life and death as one folds into the other. Born to die, die to be born, both but neither, the balance of the cycle of creation.¡±

    ¡°And so it was until human came. You captured our Phoenix Emperor and refined him. Converted a living being into pure energy and sucked it into your heart chamber as a slave for all eternity. Thousands of us were refined by your kind as the balance of the energy of our species shifted.¡±

    ¡°Life and death don¡¯t forget! But as we perished we became more death than life and the balance of our origin concept shifted. You left what was rest of us on a desolate world and we changed. We died but couldn¡¯t quite resurrect anymore. So we slowly changed into this form you see before you. A form we modelled after you.¡±

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    ¡°And as you left us death so shall we return it to you!¡± the zombie screamed as it rushed forward and plunged its knife into Wolf¡¯s chest.

    ¡°Unnnnghhh.¡± Wolf grunted as the blade effortlessly pierced through his body and flooded it with a strange thin line of red-mana. Quickly the zombie stabbed No1 and No2 in quick succession.

    ¡°Hehehe can you feel it? The red-mana of resurrection?¡± The zombie giggled as it did a little dance.

    ¡°99% of our being is the black-mana of death and 1% if the red-mana of life. But that 1% can do some amazing things. Though the success rate is not high we have found that those humans with high potential bathed in black-mana and a hint of red-mana can be reborn as zombie lords.¡±

    ¡°There are 60 of you here. I hope to get at least one new brother! And every new human that emerges from the beanstalk to this node will find a place on my hooks.¡± the zombie cackled as it looked at all the humans hanging form the wall.

    ¡°Well¡­¡­I have to go take over the next beanstalk node nearby. I will be back soon my little ones.¡± The zombie said as it disappeared in the blink of an eye.

    What kind of fucking speed was that? Wolf thought as he struggled on the hook. As soon as the red-mana had been injected into his body it was like a transformation began to occur in the black-mana. Wolf felt his blood starting to boil as his flesh slowly began to start to rot.

    As the red-mana began to fully dissolve into the black-mana in his blood he lost his external awareness as he went blind and deaf. It was like his mind was sealed into an internal hell as he felt his body slowly being converted into a rotting corpse.

    For the first hour Wolf fought with all his might as he tried to resist the corrosion. But slowly even his will became eroded as the pain grew greater and greater.

    After awhile Wolf simply gave up and let the process take its course. Since coming into the beanstalk his predatory side had risen deep inside him. Perhaps it had been ignited by the influence of the [12 Chamber-Heart]. But Wolf was a complex person and during his fall from power he had learned how to surrender. As he stopped fighting the pain disappeared and was replaced by a strange sickly feeling.

    Some would call Wolf''s actions simply giving up, but it was not the same thing. It was simply living in a single moment of time, no past, no future just a single moment. If you lived in that one moment then the future could not crush you and the past could not kill you. You were invincible and outside of time and place.

    This was the mentality that arose in Wolf.

    I don¡¯t want to die fighting. I¡¯d rather die peacefully.

    As his body began to shut down his mind felt freer than ever. He couldn¡¯t touch his mana, but he could feel his contaminated mana-field as he danced his mind along it.

    It was then that he first noticed it. A glint, like the reflection of light on a mirror. He tried to see the glint again but it was gone.

    As he relaxed he saw it again.

    There! He finally found it and concentrated his focus on this one single point. As his mana-sense focused on the glint a whole new world began to emerge as he saw tiny almost invisible lines of something connect from his mana-field into his body.

    They looked like some kind of energy pathways. Thinking back to old earth beliefs if the mana-field was similar to the concept of an aura then these energy lines were like the idea of meridians or a channel network.

    They all seemed to be glowing healthily except for the thickest line of them all. This line ran from the tip of his tongue down into his body. Following the line down his throat he found that it ended at his appendix.

    Right above the insertion point in the appendix was a large knot.

    Strange. Wolf thought as he saw the knotted energy line. Doctors all said the appendix was a useless organ and no one could figure out what purpose it really served.

    If it¡¯s useless then why is there this massive energy line running right through the middle of my body into my appendix?

    Gently Wolf nudged the knot with his mana-sense and noticed he disturbed the flow of black-mana slightly. Getting excited he whipped his mana-sense into a frenzy as he made it swirl around the knot pushing the black-mana into a vortex. Though he could not manipulate it directly he could influence the way it was passing through his body.

    As he got the right angle the felt the knot begin to become untied until finally the kink his energy line was gone.

    ZZZZZzzzzzz

    An electrical shockwave exploded through Wolf¡¯s body as the line came alive and the energy lines in his body roared to life. Black-mana surged down his main energy line and slammed painfully into his appendix.

    As the black-mana surged the sliver of red-mana began to move at a very slow rate as it collected up on his tongue and then began to slowly slide down his throat.

    Slowly after several minutes it made its way into his appendix.

    BOOM!

    Emotions his him as power surged and the red-mana and the black-mana became balanced for a moment in time.

    Oh god. Wolf cried as he could feel it. This was not the corrupted transition the zombie had spoken of. It was something else far more ancient and pure.

    It was the true [Resurrection].

 Chapter 9: I need a Doctor to Bring me Back to Life

    The red and black mana merged into a single golden drop as it was absorbed by Wolf¡¯s appendix. It spread out across the organ as it began to seep into it on a molecular level. Suddenly a barrier that was previously invisible appeared as it fought the golden drop. Billions of tiny lines that formed some kind of seal repulsed the golden drop again and again until finally it could not resist any longer.

    With an almost human sounding cry the seal dissolved and the golden drop became one with Wolf¡¯s appendix. The pure energy of life surged into his body and absorbed into his energy network. One after another small seemingly invisible lines lit up like fireworks as they became thicker and stayed visible to his mana-sense.

    A great transformation was underway inside Wolf¡¯s body as his appendix began to breathe energy like a set a lungs breathed oxygen. As his appendix transformed a shape of something that had been long buried in his DNA emerged and he could see an old haggard man in his mind¡¯s eye staring at him.

    The old man reached out with his hand and it glowed like the sun as he pressed it into Wolf¡¯s mind. Instantly a storm of knowledge erupted.

    He saw humans fighting other humans as a deadly civil war erupted. Wolf could actually feel the energy fluctuations from the battles as the memories passed through him. He gasped as he realised the old man¡¯s enemies were wielding the [12 Chamber-Heart] scripture. He could see the rage and hunger in their eyes as they killed.

    The Old man¡¯s faction wielded something different. Their energy was more condensed and surgical. It was like the difference between an enormous ball of flame and a laser beam.

    Finally one faction rose to power while the Old man¡¯s faction was mercilessly slaughtered. At the brink of their destruction they sacrificed their lives to power a bloodline seal. They injected a single item of knowledge into the DNA of humanity deep inside the appendix. The knowledge would lay their hidden for millions of years waiting for the moment when it could be reborn.

    A painful spike of pain pierced Wolf¡¯s mind as the knowledge unlocked from the seal and sunk into his mind.

    In fact even the Old man¡¯s faction couldn¡¯t know that it would take so many years before the knowledge was revealed. Their method of energetic manipulation had long been erased by their conquerors, the energy lines of human beings had been buried and the appendix disconnected from the internal energy network. Only one energetic methodology had survived - the [12 Chamber-heart].

    It was only due to the unusual combination of Wolf¡¯s incredible sensitivity to mana that he had rediscovered the energy lines of the human race. This was coupled with the even more unusual circumstance of reconnecting his appendix to the energy network while the origin concept of the fallen phoenix race was inside of him and his hearth-chamber completely supressed. These factors combined had caused a reboot in Wolf¡¯s DNA and resurrected a knowledge long forgotten from the annals of human history.

    As Wolf reeled with the knowledge he felt something ancient emerge, a powerful and holy scripture from humanities earliest beginnings.

    [Infinite Constellation]

    As the scripture poured into his mind he immediately began to operate it. The world inside his appendix transformed into a black space. Slowly from among the darkness light began to emerge in the form of stars, they slowly began to arrange themselves in a pattern that was unique to humanity.

    After several moments the stars laid out in a pattern and began to slowly spiral.

    It¡¯s a double helix. Wolf realised. In molecular biology, the term double helix referred to the structure formed by the double-stranded molecules of nucleic acids such as DNA.

    As the constellation of stars spiralled a burst of emotion shot through Wolf. He wanted to paint, to run, to move his body. He was filled with a deep need to¡­¡­¡­.create!

    As Wolf stared at the double helix constellation he thought back to the words of the zombie and realised what it was.

    This is humanities Origin Concept¡­¡­¡­.Creativity!

    The feeling was completely different from the [Black Sheep] which was filled with the tyranny of suppression. This was a different driving force, the force behind invention, innovation and inspiration.

    Slowly the golden drop began to get used up. Now that his constellation was formed he felt the space in his appendix absorb more and more of the golden energy as the black space in his appendix broke through in size.

    A surge of energy filled him as it broke through four times before it slowly stopped as the last piece of golden energy was used up. Each time the space in his appendix had expanded a strange vortex had formed that orbited around his double helix. Wolf could feel these vortex¡¯s were like batteries that contained a dense amount of mana.

    Like a black hole. Wolf thought as he felt their edges.

    Opening his eyes Wolf realised that the black-mana was now totally absent from his body and he could feel the raw power of his heart chamber again. Rather than draw on the mana in his heart chamber he drew on the mana from his appendix.

    Except it wasn¡¯t that simple.

    Tapping mana from his heart chambers was effortless. It came roaring to his call like a raging beast. But drawing out the mana from his appendix felt incredibly difficult. It was like trying to hold water in your hands.

    Finally Wolf managed to coax a thin sliver of black and silver mana out of his appendix. It felt far purer than the mana from his heart chamber.

    Hmmmm the heart chamber mana has more volume, but the appendix mana has a higher purity.

    As he stared at the mana he realised it was like black space filled with stars as it crept up his main energy line and then began to fill his body.

    Wolf easily ripped his hands free from the black cord that bound them and fell off the hook which had kept him suspended on the wall.

    He looked at No1 and No2 miserably struggling on the wall with dead eyes as they were lost in their own nightmares. Unlike Wolf, the two had never given up resisting and so their bodies were wracked with incredible pain as the black and red mana refined them into a zombie.

    For a moment Wolf pondered the idea of leaving them to die.

    I mean seriously. Fuck these guys. Wolf thought as stared at them. But then there was a kernel of truth in their conversation in the beanstalk. They didn¡¯t know anyone else in this world and there was at least some basic level of trust between them, at least as much as it suited them. Also he was going to have to wade through zombies to get out of wherever the fuck they were and so some extra firepower wouldn¡¯t go astray.

    Gently Wolf coaxed a thread of black-silver mana out of his appendix and directed it into his hand. Slowly he let the mana penetrate into No2. It spiked into his bloodstream before it became swallowed by black-mana.

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    God it¡¯s strong. Wolf recoiled in shock as he fought against it and tried to force the black-mana out of No2¡¯s system. But as much as he tried his black-silver mana was ejected.

    Sighing Wolf chose a different path and tapped his heart chamber. Instantly a ferocious mana hit his body like a sonic boom and flooded into No2 like a tsunami. But after a few minutes the same result happened. The higher level zombies mana was simply too powerful.

    I¡¯m too fucking weak. Wolf sighed.

    Another thought came to him. The only real option was to try and replicate the process that freed him, a surgical approach. Rather than take the risk of killing No1 or No2 Wolf looked down the wall at the line of humans as he considered the need to experiment.

    Fuck this may seem cold blooded but they are fucked either way. Wolf thought as he wandered down the line. Wolf¡¯s face grew grim as he realised of the sixty people people hung on hooks nearly all of them were already dead. They wouldn¡¯t resurrect as a zombie lord, they were simple dead.

    Fucking brutal.

    There was only six left alive as they struggled in the throes of undead conversion. Wolf finally stopped in front of an enormous hulk a man. He must have been at least 7 feet tall and he was as wide as a barn. He looked more like a small giant than a human being. Wolf coaxed black-silver mana from his appendix and inserted it into the man''s body. It penetrated into the man¡¯s bloodstream and he shot it straight towards the energy line that connected to the appendix.

    Immediately he saw that this person had no appendix, he must have had it removed in the past due to appendicitis. Even worse he could sense that the man was half converted into an zombie lord already. He was in some strange state beteen the living and the dead. He swept his mana-sense up and saw that the man''s heart had been crushed by the black-mana. But in the fragments of his destroyed heart a tiny sliver survived that had an imprint of something. As the black-mana corroded the last shards of the fragment, something spilled out with nothing to house it.

    As Wolf¡¯s mana-sense brushed against it he could feel the edges of an Origin Concept.

    [Fealty].

    As Wolf stared at this scene he felt his double helix spin inside his appendix as a a deep intuition sparked inside him. [Infinite Constellation] flared and his manipulation of mana grew more and more refined.

    It''s like a making a painting. Wolf realised as he twined tiny threads of black-silver mana with his will and made it dance. The blackness of space and light of the stars swum through him as mana-sense moved like a scalpel.

    With great difficulty Wolf enveloped the Origin Concept with black-silver mana and drew it down towards the empty area where the man¡¯s appendix used to be. With a subtle push he connected it with the end of the main energy line where the appendix usually was and watched the Black-mana go mad.

    It swarmed down the energy line and wrapped around the Origin concept. Soon that thread of red-mana followed and formed a cocoon around the Origin Concept. Wolf felt two Origin Concepts, one was [Undead Resurrection] and the other was [Fealty].Facinated Wolf watched with the eyes of an obsessed artist as he saw the energies collide and transform.

    As they began to merge into one another a wisp of energy shot out from the Origin Concepts and burned a mark into his mana.

    Within seconds an enormous change began to take place inside the man¡¯s body and Wolf¡¯s mana-sense was forcibly ejected.

    What the fuck was that? Wolf thought as he checked his mana to see if something bad had happened. But nothing showed up to his mana-sense when he searched.

    Reflecting Wolf realised that there must be some kind of connection between the energy line, the appendix and specific mana and Origin Concept of the zombies.

    Carefully removing his mana he moved to the next person. He began the process again. This time however the results were not favourable. As soon as he connected the energy line to the man¡¯s appendix it exploded and the man died almost instantly. Wolf¡¯s heart chamber immediately sucked in the left over mana as he died.

    absorbing the mana felt good but made Wolf feel like a murdering monster.

    The same happened to the next two people.

    Only one test subject remained as Wolf commenced the operation. This time it was a blonde woman who looked to be in her thirties. This time Wolf¡¯s mana was steady as he performed the operation extremely quickly like an experienced surgeon.

    His mana-sense was ejected as the change was underway.

    Success.

    Lastly he approached No1 and No2. He decided if he accidentally killed one of them he would have to kill them both. He knew neither one of them would let him live if they knew he had killed the other, even if it was to save their life.

    Fortunately both operations were successful and the change was underway and they began the process of unlocking [Infinite Constellation].

    Wolf sat with his back against the wall as he reached into his pocket and pulled out his last ciggarette. He lit it up and took a long drag as he sat there in the darkness. The heavy silence was only broken by the odd sounds of bodies bumping into the wall as they wriggled on their hooks. Rather than be afraid Wolf was actually feeling something different.

    Melancoly.

    A part of him almost wished he had died instead of miracously surviving. He had tried to kill himself once, long ago when his company first collapsed. But enough painkillers to kill 10 men had not been enough to put him down.

    I''m like a cockaroach. Wolf mused as he dragged on the ciggie. When the world ends only cunts like me will be around.

    Without him even realising it his double helix rotated as the [Infinite Constellation] flared ever so slightly and a song by the gods of rock n roll entered his mind.

    Wolf blew out smoke and began to softly sing.

    "Living easy, living free. Season ticket on a one-way ride. Asking nothing, leave me be. Taking everything in my stride."

    "I''m on the highway to hell......"

    As Wolf''s voice trailed off he flicked his ciggarette off into the distance. The buring end faded and went out returning the room to darkness.

 Chapter 10: Never Trust a Russian

    No1 had been the last to have the operation, but he was the first to awaken. His eyes snapped open as they glowed with black-silver mana. Snapping his wrists he dropped off the hook and landed gracefully on the ground like some kind of alpha predator.

    Fuck he¡¯s a big cunt. Wolf thought. Not the quite the size of the human giant he had experimented on, but he was one big kid.

    No1 just stood in front of Wolf and stared at him intensely.

    ¡°Was it you who reached inside of me?¡­¡­¡± No1 whispered. Wolf just slowly nodded his head.

    No1¡¯s eyes widened slightly and he nodded back.

    ¡°I owe you one old man.¡± He said as he turned to watch his brother.

    Within minutes No2 had successfully transitioned and ripped himself off the wall.

    ¡°Did you see that old man from the past?¡± No2 whispered. No1 just nodded as his eyes continued to scan the darkness.

    ¡°Fucking epic brah.¡± No2 said.

    ¡°Who knows what the full story is. What I can say is this, I think where possible we should use [Infinite Constellation] rather than [12 Chamber-Heart].¡±

    ¡°I agree¡± No1 said. ¡°No sign of the mega zombie?¡±

    ¡°Nah. I escaped hours ago and operated on you all. There have been no movements in all that time.¡±

    The sound of something snapping echoed out and body flew of the wall further down the line. No1 and No2 immediately adopted fighting postures and were ready to attack in an instant.

    But out of the darkness walked a tall blonde woman. She looked strong and athletic, mid to late thirties.

    ¡°Hello Tovarishch. You are Australian yes?¡±

    Russian. Wolf thought.

    ¡°Yeah we are Aussie¡¯s ¡± No1 replied.

    ¡°Da, I am Anastasiya.¡± She said as she looked expectantly around at the three men.

    ¡°Wolf.¡±

    ¡°No1¡±

    ¡°No2¡±

    Everyone introduced themselves.

    ¡°Who operated on me?¡± She asked.

    ¡°I did.¡± Wolf said.

    ¡°Fantasticka!¡± She smiled. ¡°Thank you for saving my life.¡±

    THUD.

    A loud noise echoed as an enormous man came free of the wall. A small giant walked forward and everyone froze as its face was revealed. 7 feet tall and as wide as three of No1, he was truly a goliath of a man.

    All hair had fallen off his body including his eyebrows as if he had alopecia. His skin was completely white like an albino and his eyes were pink. Other than that he looked like a normal person.

    No1 and No2 began to tap mana as they went to attack, but Wolf stood in front of them quickly.

    ¡°Wait¡­¡­i don¡¯t think he is a zombie. I operated on him too.¡±

    ¡°Nyet he is a zombie lord!¡± Anastasiya warned as she strafed to the side. Indeed the aura the man gave off was similar to the mega zombie from earlier, though nowhere near as strong.

    ¡°No use your mana-sense it¡¯s not quite the same.¡± Wolf said. There was an undead aura to the man but he lacked the rotten, decaying smell the zombies had.

    The man ambled up and everyone skittered back except for Wolf. The giant stood in front of Wolf as it stared down at him. Wolf coaxed a thin line of black-silver mana into his energy lines just in case as he readied for an attack.

    But the giant only slowly nodded as it dropped onto one knee and looked up with a face of worship.

    ¡°Daddy.¡± He said in a deep voice.

    As the giant spoke the words Wolf could feel an odd connection to it. He remembered the branding sensation on his mana when he operated on the man.

    Gently he reached out his hand and rested it on the giants bald head. He probed his mana-sense into the giant and marvelled at the transformation that occurred. It was if his body was body dead and alive. Half of it had turned into an undead and half was still living flesh. Somehow they had formed some kind of equilibrium and fused.

    His blood had been completely replaced with a thick black-mana that seemed to achieve the same purpose. All his energetic pathways were filled with the red-mana which formed a pipeline down where his appendix should be. Instead of an appendix there was now a small round balloon sized shape made off hardened red-mana.

    The black-mana that was his blood would pump down his energetic pathways into the balloon and then back out into the body.

    It¡¯s like his new heart. Wolf marvelled as he took it all in. From the balloon an entwined Origin Concept constantly pumped out into the man¡¯s body as the black-mana circulated in and out. It was the feeling of total loyalty to a master and an odd feeling of life beyond death.

    Holy shit. I think its Origin Concept of Fealty bonded with me somehow as its master. Wolf realised. HAHAHA fucking win!

    Wolf removed his hand from the man¡¯s head and looked cockily back at No1 and No2.

    ¡°Arise my servant and speak your name!¡± Wolf said in a grandiose manner. The man slowly stood and towered over them all as it opened its mouth.

    ¡°Daddy.¡±

    No1 and No2 wrinkled their brows as they waited.

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    ¡°No no what is your name?¡± Wolf asked.

    ¡°Daddy?¡± the man said.

    Wolf began to get the feeling something wasn¡¯t quite right.

    ¡°Ahhh where are you from?¡± Wolf asked trying a different tack.

    ¡°Daddy!¡± the man said enthusiastically.

    Fuck I brought him back to life but clearly he left something behind. Wolf thought miserably as his dreams of a slave servant faded.

    ¡°Wow Old man, your so talented. You found yourself a buddy even balder than you.¡± No1 laughed.

    ¡°I think when you made Frankenstein you forgot to put the brain in.¡± No2 chipped in. ¡°No offence Frankie.¡±

    ¡°Well¡­¡­fuck.¡± Wolf cursed as he became deflated.

    ¡°I do not understand this joking.¡± Anastasiya said as she looked confused.

    ¡°Dun worry Anna Banana no one understands this old cunt.¡± No1 laughed.

    ¡°Ana, do you recognise this man?¡± Wolf asked. He was curious about the big mans identity.

    ¡°Da. All would recognise him. His level has fallen very drastically, but he was in the special prison here.¡±

    ¡°Prison?¡± No1 asked.

    ¡°Da, that is where these men are from.¡± Ana said sweeping here hand at the dead bodies on the wall.

    ¡°This Aussie entry node is also place for criminals. All countries send their criminals here. India, Russia, European. Most dangerous criminals are sent here, ones with the highest potential. They did not kill them in case we are needed one day.¡±

    ¡°This one.¡± She said pointing to Frankenstein. ¡°His name was the Mad Bull. He was very talented with the two handed heavy sword and his Origin Concept was powerful called [Fealty]. He defected from the Australian forces and made his own platoon. He would kill zombies on sight, but the humans he would only ever give two choices. Join him or die. If they join him his Origin Concept bind them to his service.¡±

    ¡°Eventually they hunted Mad Bull down and killed his men. This is what is left of him.¡±

    ¡°What a badass.¡± No2 said.

    The effects of resurrection seem to have inverted his Origin Concept Wolf thought. Before it would bind others to him now it bound him to Wolf.

    ¡°Time for talking is later. We must escape before the Zombie Duke returns.¡± Anastasiya said. ¡°There is a storage area we need to visit first down here. This has all the mana-stones, memory-stones and resources of the base. We need to collect what we can before we flee.¡± She said.

    No1 and No2¡¯s eyes lit up at the words ¡®storage area.¡¯

    Without waiting for a reply Ana began to run off forcing the others to follow her. She quickly manovoured past the wall of dead men and through a series of twisting corridors before she entered a room with a huge thick door. Wolf looked over his shoulder and saw that Frankenstein had followed him like a dog.

    Everyone quickly piled in and saw a long corridor stretching in front of them. The form of Ana in front of them suddenly flickered and faded into nothing.

    BANG!

    The enormous door closed behind them and the corridor was thrown into darkness. A sliver of light penetrated through from outside where a small hand sized slit was open in the thick door.

    Wolf rushed to the door and bounced off it as he struck it several times. He stopped when he realised the sound was echoing out and causing too much noise and his blows had no effect on the incredibly thick door.

    ¡°Ana¡­.¡± Wolf whispered as he put his face near the tiny slit.

    Two blue eyes stared back at him from the other side of the door.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry Tovarishch.¡± She whispered. ¡°But what you did¡­¡­no one can know. You have made a new path, no? They will kill all of us if they find out it exists. The [12 Chamber-Heart] will not tolerate it.¡±

    ¡°Ana listen to me it¡¯s our secret, no one will know. Just open the door.¡± Wolf pleaded. But Ana just shook her head with sad eyes.

    ¡°I am sorry Mr Wolf. Two can only keep a secret if one is dead.¡± She said as her face disappeared from the door.

    ¡°Motherless cunt.¡± Wolf swore.

    ¡°Frankie. Smash this door.¡± Wolf ordered.

    ¡°Daddy.¡±

    ¡°No son, come here see? Look punch this as hard as you can.¡± Wolf said as he acted out punching the door and pushed Frankensteins fist towards it.

    ¡°Daddy!¡± Frankie said as he sat down on the ground.

    ¡°For fuck¡¯s sake!¡± Wolf swore as he lost control of his emotions.

    ¡°Guys I think we have bigger problems.¡± No2 said as he stared down the corridor.

    Faces began to emerge at the end of the darkness as glowing pink eyes could be seen and an ominous aura came billowing out.

    ¡°Fuck that bitch locked us in the prison part.¡± No1 said.

    Wolf frowned as he realised what the pink eyes were. If the mega zombie had tried to convert all the other prisoners in here as well a few must have survived the process.

    What level is zombie lord? Wolf wondered as the eyes slowly grew closer. As he felt their auras roll in one thing was obvious. Whatever there level was, it was definitely higher than theirs.

 Chapter 11: Wrecking Ball

    The pink eyes in the distance blinked once.

    Then twice.

    Wolf eased black-silver mana out of his appendix as he readied himself. He already had his shit planned out. In his mind the zombie lord would slowly approach them and he would cut to the left, wall walk like some mother fucking jedi knight and skull fuck the zombie lord from behind.

    Easy as pie. Wolf thought as he grinned.

    The only problem was one moment the pink eyes were at the end of the corridor and the next moment they were in front of him before he had the chance to react.

    As a fist descended towards his face Wolf desperately tried to draw more mana out of his appendix, but it was too slow. He lacked the skill to use the mana from [Infinite Constellation] exactly as he needed to. Before the fist even hit him the pressure of it began to impact on his skin as a moment of inspiration hit him.

    In that single split second he fed the mana he was holding into his mana-field and made it harden like how he had seen the red-mana harden inside Frankensteins body.

    BOOM!

    The zombie lords fist hit Wolf¡¯s mana-field like an atomic bomb. The mana-field miraculously bent as it absorbed a large amount of the force before the impact blew him backwards into the door. Wolf hit the door so fast he bounced back off it and flew back past the zombie lord and hurled down the corridor like a fucking ping pong ball.

    He hit the ground some metres away and slid to a stop as he came to his hands and knees. Blood filled his mouth as he breathed in air and shouted.

    ¡°Harden your mana-field with mana like a shield!¡± He yelled. Casting his mana-sense over himself he realised despite the force of the blow his mana-shield had held.

    Barely.

    No1 and No2 did not even bother with their appendix mana as they immediately tapped their heart chambers. Moving swiftly they tag teamed the zombie lord. No1 slipped to its left and grabbed it in a wrestlers body-lock to keep out of its deadly punches and tie it up. No2 edged in and out of its range as he used his longer reach to pepper the zombie lord with jabs.

    It was a combination that two brothers had used many times to great effect in street fights.

    Except this wasn¡¯t the streets, and they weren¡¯t fighting against some street punk.

    It was a mother fucking zombie lord.

    ¡°KLUK KLUK!¡± The zombie roared as it lashed out a kick that nearly broke No2 in half as he spun through the air and crashed unmoving into a wall.

    No1 roared as [Sleeping Giant] activated and he grew bigger and stronger.

    Wolf let go of his black-silver mana and tapped his heart chamber instead. Unlike the black-silver mana the power came roaring to him like a long lost lover. He began to sprint towards the zombie as he shoved the mana into his body and his mana-field.

    As he ran he watched No2 actually go toe to toe with the zombie as their fists ploughed into each other. Wolf spooled the mana onto his fist as he ran and felt it become more and more concentrated.

    The zombie hit No1 with a vicious blow and No1 and folded like a piece of origami as he collapsed. As Wolf ran he felt the power of his mana and he opened his mouth as he closed in.

    ¡°I came in like a wrecking ball!¡± Wolf screamed as he launched a huge overhand right.

    BOOM!

    The force of the blow hit the zombie lord like a truck.

    Miley Cyrus your ass. Wolf thought as he felt the reverberations in his fist from the punch.

    The zombie lord staggered backwards one step.

    Then two.

    Then stopped.

    It twisted its head back around to look at him without the least bit of damage on it.

    Fuck a duck.

    ¡°Earth! mother fucker!¡± Wolf spat as he surged forward and lashed out. He felt the [12 Chamber-Heart] flaring stronger and stronger and [Black Sheep] finally began materialise. An Origin Concept began to flood his blood and mana as it eeked out of his pores.

    The zombie backhanded him into the wall and punched him in the chest. Wolf¡¯s mana-field hardened and withstood the blow though his insides were rocked and he could feel blood in his chest.

    For some reason the zombies punches felt weaker.

    As Wolf lashed out at the zombie again they began to exchange blow after blow and the [Black Sheep] surged stronger and stronger as it unleashed a dizzying force in his mana.

    I understand now what this is. Wolf thought as he traded blows. As the [Black Sheep] manifested Wolf knew it was the Origin Concept of Suppression.

    Wolf abandoned himself to the [Black Sheep] as he fought desperately as he barely held his own.

    BOOM!

    The power of the [Black Sheep] exploded in his mind and roared out of his heart chamber. It directly infused into his mana-field and his form was overlaid by giant humanoid looking Sheep.

    Wolf opened his mouth to scream but instead a strange tyrannical noise burst forth.

    ¡°BAAAAAAAAAA.¡± Wolf bleated.

    The colour began to bleed out of the world as a suffocating suppressive force was projected. Soon all colour faded from the world as everything turned black and white. Sound still existed, but it was as if it was coming from far away as everything stilled. In that world of black and white everything became weakened and suppressed. Even the mana in the zombie become sluggish and its strength diminished considerably.

    This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    Wolf felt the eyes of the [Black Sheep] on his own as it looked into his soul and bleated at him in approval. Knowledge unfolded in his mind of the nature of the aura that he was projecting.

    [Black Sheep Domain].

    Despite the suppression the zombie lord continued to surge forward and rain down blows on Wolf. His hardened mana-field buckled and he took shots to the face that sent him reeling. Slowly Wolf¡¯s strength began to fade as the [Black Sheep Domain] sapped his mana at an outrageous rate. He struggled to look up as he swayed and realised somehow he had ended up back where he had started from with his back to the door and the zombie in front of him.

    It¡¯s over. He thought as he saw the hungry eyes of the Zombie Lord as it closed in.

    ¡° DADDY!¡± a deep voice screamed as the zombie closed in. Distantly he heard the pounding of heavy footsteps moving at an incredible speed and some instinct made him throw himself to the side.

    An explosion of flesh flashed through the space he had just vacated as a human cannonball rammed into the zombie lord from behind and carried it at super speed towards the locked door.

    BOOM!

    The 10 inch thick door exploded off its hinges as Frankenstein and the zombie lord rolled into the hallway. Frankie stood on top of the prone zombie lord as it rained massive blows of death down upon it. His huge hands were like hammers as literally pummelled the zombie into meat paste.

    As the flesh of the zombie turned into mush Frankie reached in and pulled out a black marble from inside the zombies chest and began chewing on it.

    As if realising he was been watched he looked up all of a sudden and saw Wolf watching him. An awkward bashful look passed across his face as if he had done something wrong.

    ¡°Daddy?¡±

    Wolf sucked in air as he steadied himself as he felt his heart chamber sucking in the diffused mana from the death of the zombie lord.

    ¡°You did good Son. You did good.¡± Wolf said and forced a smile on his face.

    ¡°Daddy.¡± Frankenstein agreed as he went back to kicking the meat paste corpse.

    ¡°It¡¯s mana is so strong.¡± No1 said suddenly as he stood behind Wolf. Wolf whipped his head around to see No1 and No2 standing their absorbing the loose mana looking none too worse for wear.

    Wolf¡¯s eyes tightened as he realised they must have been fine to continue fighting but had watched to see the zombie lord and him deplete each others strength first.

    He opened his mouth to say something, but slowly closed it instead.

    Your time will come if you want to play that game. Wolf thought.

    As Wolf felt his heart chambers automatically suck in the mana he tried to direct some of it down to his appendix. A thin line of sweat broke out as he fought tooth and nail agains the suction force of the [12 Chamber-Heart] as he directed a small portion down and into his appendix and away from his greedy heart.

    There was so much mana loose from the death of the zombie lord that he felt it would never end. Quickly he felt his Heart Chamber reach a saturation point as it pushed against the space in his heart. Like a surging tide he felt himself breakthrough as his heartchamber expanded once, then twice in rapid succession.

    He had also managed to divert enough mana into his appendix that he also felt that it was about halfway filled again already.

    ¡°Ding!¡± No2 said.¡±That¡¯s four times I¡¯ve levelled up in my heart chamber.

    ¡°Me too.¡± No1 said as he looked at Wolf.

    Wolf ignored him and walked out of the room. He was still pissed at their earlier choice to watch him bleed while they increased their survival chances.

    ¡°Hey old man. What was that weird power you used. The whole world went black and white like I had gone colour blind.¡± No1 asked.

    Wolf whipped his head around smiled.

    ¡°What information will you trade for the answer?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Trade? I aint got shit old man.¡± No1 said. Wolf just raised his eyebrow and then walked off.

    ¡°Daddy.¡± Frankenstein said as it followed him.

    No1 and No2 looked at each other as they saw Wolf head out.

    ¡°Shall we still follow him?¡± No2 asked.

    ¡°Did you see him go toe to toe with that fucking zombie? Shit yeah we follow him. For now at least.¡± No1 laughed.

    As he walked Wolf cast his mana-sense over his body. His heart chamber that housed the [Black Sheep] had expanded to level 4. The black space in his appendix had also expanded to level 4 previously. The fight against the zombie lord had given him confidence, he could sense there were abilities he hadn¡¯t even begun to tap yet.

    I just need to get out of here. Before I get caught by the zombie duke¡­¡­¡­or a Russian.

 Chapter 12: Big, Bad Merv

    As Wolf traced the path back up the tunnel a feeling of urgency filled him as he began to move swiftly.

    I don¡¯t want this place to be my grave.

    It was not hard to find his way back to the main chamber where they had all been hung on hooks. From there there was only really one major tunnel which quickly took him back to the intersection where they had first been captured by the Zombie Duke.

    Picking a direction at random he headed down the tunnel he had first chosen the last time they had reached this point. As he walked he mused that they had not encountered a single zombie so far.

    Perhaps Ana cleaned them out? That means I am headed in the right direction.

    Soon at the end of a long corridor Wolf saw a ladder embedded into a wall that went up like a chimney.

    Feeling excited that he may have found the exit at last Wolf began to climb up the ladder. As he climbed higher he finally emerged into a small cave and the outside world could be seen.

    A large number of humans wearing some kind of battle fatigues stood staring at the sky outside the cave. Tentatively Wolf walked out and cast his eye across a hundred or so humans before his gaze was also irresitably drawn upwards.

    In the sky all he could make out was two blurry images as shapes fluttered around the sky and the colours black and gold smashed into each other again and again.

    As time passed the shapes began to slow and he could make out the shape of the Zombie Duke fighting. It was fighting some kind of divine goddess that was wreathed in a holy light with angel wings extending from her back. Her body was strong and athletic with a prominent chest.

    Without conscious thought Wolf¡¯s cock grew hard in his pants as he stared at her divine form.

    ¡°God damn that angel is stacked.¡± No1 whispered in disbelief next to him.

    ¡°Tall, athletic, hourglass shape. The ass won¡¯t quit and the tits are banging. This angel is definitely mine.¡± No2 said.

    ¡°Nah bro. I saw her first.¡±

    ¡°Meh. She might like the younger meat.¡±

    ¡°Ahem.¡± Wolf coughed and interrupted them. ¡°I believe I saw her first. Clearly she is at least in her thirties, she is probably looking for a mature man like me.¡±

    BOOM!

    The body of the zombie duke hit the ground at super speed. A small crater formed in the ground as the angel descended and ripped the zombie Dukes head off.

    ¡°YEAHHHHHHH!¡± the surrounding soldiers began to cheer.

    The angel had her back to Wolf as she backed up facing the crowd and displayed the severed head. Finally when she was almost on top off Wolf she turned around in all her glory.

    Her golden wings extended and glittered in the light as Wolf¡¯s gaze slowly focused on her face.

    ¡°Fuck.¡± Was the only word that came out of Wolf¡¯s mouth as his cock instantly shrivelled and nearly inverted inside his body.

    The ¡®Angel¡¯ was not quite as feminine as they had all assumed. A very masculine face stared back at them decorated with a magnificent handlebar moustache. As the Angel released her Totem the wings began to fade and even the breasts retracted and disappeared. Within seconds a thick-set burly looking man with a handle bar mo and mutton chop sideburns stood in front of them.

    ¡°You look like complete fucking noobs. You boys just out of the Beanstalk?¡± The man asked in a deep husky voice.

    ¡°Y¡­yes.¡± Wolf stammered still in shock at the transformation.

    ¡°Righto then. Name¡¯s Merv. I¡¯m the head of this ragtag division. Who brought you up form Earth?¡±

    ¡°It was Joysich.¡± No2 said.

    ¡°I take it he carked it?¡± Merv asked.

    ¡°Yah mate. We think that zombie duke got him the moment he came out the beanstalk.¡± No1 said.

    Merv¡¯s eyes tightened as the words washed over him before he sighed.

    ¡°He had a fairly large stick up his arse but he was a good egg despite that. Trained him myself.¡± Merv said as he stroked the edges of his moustache.

    Finally No1 couldn¡¯t contain himself any longer.

    ¡°Soooo¡­¡­what¡¯s with the titties?¡± No1 blurted out.

    Merv looked a bit embarrassed as he scratched his head.

    ¡°Well truth be told its a cunt of a thing. Got this Totem [Angel of Mercy]. It has a feminine essence to it so whenever I utilise a transformation it has certain¡­.ah¡­.manifestations.¡±

    ¡°You mean you get big ass titties.¡± No1 laughed.

    ¡°HAH!¡± Merv said as he slapped No1 on the back. ¡°Too right kid. Too fucking right.¡±

    ¡°Anyway follow me cruds, lets talk while we walk.¡± Merv said. A man appeared to his right and he issued orders as he walked before the man scurried away.

    ¡°Alright quick 101 of the shit you just landed in. You two just look like kids so I am sorry but welcome to the end of the fucking world.¡± Merv said as he glanced up at Wolf while he continued to walk swiftly.

    ¡°As for you old man, your ancient lined face tells me you¡¯ve probably already had a good life so dying out here is not a bad way to punch your ticket.¡±

    This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

    ¡°I¡¯m 38!¡± Wolf complained.

    ¡°38? Jesus fucking christ you¡¯ve aged badly. Your face is as wrinkled as my ball sac.¡± Merv said as he stepped over the decaying body of a large zombie.

    Wolf stared in shock as a sea of dead zombie corpses spread out before them. Some of the piles were so high they formed small hills. All he could smell was the rotten stench of death.

    The impact of this vision even sent No1 and No2 quiet for a short time. Merv strode passed it all as if he didn¡¯t even notice until he saw Wolf¡¯s shocked expression.

    ¡°Get¡¯s ya the first time you see it doesn¡¯t it? But this is nothing boys. Until you¡¯ve seen corpses piled high enough to blot out the sun, that¡¯s when you know your knee deep in shit.¡±

    ¡°The war is in its final stages. Only 12 human cities remain with the zombies trying to wear us down in a war of attrition. It¡¯s like trench warfare in World War 1 now. Pretty brutal. The zombie kings seem to have identified our beanstalk entry points and have swarmed them so we are shutting them down.¡±

    ¡°Over to the west around 100 clicks away is the Russian entry point. This zombie Duke wiped out most of those poor bastards as well before coming back here. The Russians asked us for help, but fuck the Russians. After the shit they pulled last year lets just say the Australian forces are not inclined to cut our own throats a second time.¡±

    ¡°Not that nationality really means that much anymore. The city we are taking you too is called Eureka and it¡¯s controlled by the Australian forces, though there are humans from other parts of earth mixed in. The Americans splintered with one city still controlled by the USA and another American city called Belieberdom has declared its independence. The Chinese and Indians control two cities each and they are very very strong. The rest are a smattering of smaller independent cities filled with a hodge lodge of people from earth who are running their own show. And then of course there are the Russians. They have four cities and holding strong.¡±

    ¡°Long story short, we will head to the Chopper and Port into Eureka. From there we will get you inducted and trained and you can join the rest of us miserable bastards.¡±

    ¡°There are helicopters here?¡± Wolf asked in shock.

    ¡°No no. Not a real fucking chopper.¡± Merv said as they arrived at a large flat platform with strange lines carved all over it.

    ¡°Watch.¡± Merv said as a group of twenty soldiers stood on the the patterns.

    A glow of energy began to emanate from the lines as the men channeled their mana into it. A line of energy began to spin around in a circular fashion like the blades of a helicopter. Faster and faster they moved until only a blur could be seen.

    ZZZiiiiiiit.

    Within seconds the men were gone.

    ¡°Holy shit.¡± No2 said.

    ¡°Holy shit indeed.¡± Wolf echoed in shock.

    ¡°That is a Chopper boys. Third generation Formation-Tech. Invented by the Chinese and tweaked by the Australian Formation Research Division. Formations will be explained to you later, but just for your info, the entire underground base you were in are formations.¡±

    ¡°What? But¡­.¡± No1 began.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you wonder how the fuck an underground base that looks exactly like one on earth was situated at the beanstalk exit? Do you see any factories around here? It¡¯s all just hardened mana kid. Formation-tech is one of the few reasons we have managed to survive as long as we have. Its not something the zombies do well, if at all.¡±

    The whole time Merv had been talking Wolf had been eyeing of the patterns carved into the chopper.

    ¡°It¡¯s the same technology as the engravings in the beanstalk.¡± Wolf whispered.

    ¡°Hah! You¡¯re a perceptive one alright. That was where the idea came from, but really our formation-tech is like a child with a crayon trying to draw the Mona Lisa. But who knows, maybe one of you will have some talent in this area.¡±

    ¡°Alright you little farkers. Get on the Chopper and let¡¯s get the fuck out of here.¡± Merv said as he leaped onto the platform. Quickly Wolf and No1 and No2 followed him.

    An enormous surge of mana shot out of Merv and into the platform as the energy started to spin.

    ¡°Inject your mana in kids. I¡¯ll power it up but it still needs a trace of your mana to lock onto your bio-patterns.¡± Merv shouted as his mana roared into the patterns.

    Wolf immediately injected mana into the patterns and felt a strange resonance thrum through him as a reciprocal energetic loop was formed. The mana circulated through the patterns then into his body and then back again at a faster and faster rate. As each pass of energy went through him it was like his mana and the patterns synched until if felt like they had merged into one.

    ZZZzziit.

    The world blinked out.

 Chapter 13: Welcome to Eureka

    In the blink of an eye Wolf felt reality fade and then reassert itself. The transition was much smoother than the journey in and out of the beanstalk.

    Perhaps that was because this is just teleporting within the same space, whereas entering and existing the beanstalk might involve crossing over some kind of dimensional shift. Wolf mused.

    Wolf felt the hulking presence of Frankenstein and knew he had made the transition through the Chopper. In fact Wolf hadn¡¯t even thought to check if he was capable of using the chopper and was still following him. He didn¡¯t really know what to make of him. While he had saved his life from the zombie lords in the underground base that was more by accident than anything else.

    The second thing Wolf noticed as he became accustomed to his new surroundings was that he stood in the middle of the town on a raised hill. The hill gave an excellent 360 degree view of the town. On the hill were a few building and structures and then at the base in ever expanding rings were what looked like an interlinked series of barracks.

    Further outside of those rings was what looked like an insane maze spreading out into distance. It spread so far out it was impossible to see where it ended.

    The other noticeable attribute of the town were the thousands of thin poles that disappeared up into the sky like electrical towers. They seemed to spiral from the hill Wolf was standing on outwards through each ring and into the mazes. A faint sheen of mana glistened from the towers as they pulsed with some kind of strange energy.

    ¡°It¡¯s something isn¡¯t it.¡± Merv whispered from behind Wolf¡¯s shoulder. No1 and No2 walked up to the edge of the hill and also gazed out at the maze like structure that spread into the distance.

    ¡°This is why we are still alive gentlemen. We call this the Garner-Reynolds Formation. Harry Garner and Steven Reynolds invented this in the early years. Both of them were formation geniuses who unfortunately got killed before the formation could be completed.¡±

    ¡°The towers emit a mana-field that only effects the zombies preventing them from flying within Eureka and suppressing their strength. Because they are unable to overwhelm us with numbers by flying into our base they have to approach on foot. The maze like structures you see funnel the hordes in countless different directions into pits, traps and our men.¡±

    ¡°Even the energy produced by their decaying corpses is captured by the formation and used as additional fuel to power the defences. Our men are spread throughout the maze battling the hordes day and night. The zombies don¡¯t really tire so we run day and night shifts. While some fight the others sleep and then rotate back in.¡±

    ¡°Even with this though we barely hold stable. In fact, we are slowly losing the war of attrition. Less and less people from earth have the requirements to enter the beanstalk and our birth rate on this side of the portal has not kept up with the death rate. The other human cities are in a similar situation.¡±

    ¡°You see the zombies grow from zombie nests inside these weird sacs. We send out parties via some of our Choppers to hunts nests behind enemy lines, but this is dangerous and more than often than not we end up in the losing side of that engagement. Even worse, they somehow identified our beanstalk entry points and so we are basically cut off now.¡±

    Wolf whistled as he took it all in. The sheer scale of the formation took his breath away. The battle on the fringes of the maze were too far for this eyes to see but he almost felt as if he could hear the conflict.

    ¡°Hah! I can see you boys are like me. Just makes you itch to get out there and fight doesn¡¯t it!¡± Merv laughed.

    ¡°Fuck yeah!¡± No1 said, while his eyes slid sideways to No2.

    These fucking guys. Wolf thought. He knew No1 and No2 had as much desire to become cannon fodder as he did. No1 caught Wolf¡¯s eyes for a moment and he nodded his head slightly.

    No fucking way I¡¯m getting stuck on the front lines.

    ¡°Alright boys. If you head down the hill you will see a small building at the bottom. Sergeant Peters is in charge of inductions and will give you a preliminary assessment and kit out before giving you access to the F-Net. Just head down their and say Merv you sent you.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡± Wolf said nodding his head.

    Without any real other choice they began to make their way down to where Merv had indicated. Frankie lumbered behind Wolf as they descended.

    Eventually they stood in front of a small booth and saw a man lazily reclining in a chair while he chewed something.

    ¡°Ahh¡­..we were asked to come down here by Merv.¡± Wolf said.

    The man lazily looked up as his eyes took them all in. They widened slightly when he saw Frankie but then returned to their normal indifferent look.

    ¡°You must be the last of the new recruits.¡± The man drawled. ¡°Suppose you¡¯re here for an induction.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Wolf said.

    ¡°Okay dokey. I¡¯m Sergeant Peters. Line up one at a time and I will assess you.¡± He said. Seeing as how Wolf was the closest he went first.

    ¡°Draw down on your mana and touch upon your Totem and tell me it¡¯s name and what you know about it.¡± Peters asked. Carefully Wolf tapped his heart chamber and touched upon [Black Sheep]. The aura of the [Black Sheep] thrummed through him and began to spread out.

    ¡°Totem is called [Black Sheep] and it looks exactly like¡­¡­well a black sheep. It seems to have a restraining effect on an enemy¡¯s mana. My feelings are that it is related to some kind of principle of repression or suppression.¡± Wolf narrated.

    Sergeant Peters mana probed Wolf¡¯s mana-field as he drew in a sense of the Totem.

    ¡°Ok place your hand on this symbol here.¡± Peters said and directed Wolf¡¯s attention to an interlocking set of circles which were engraved onto the front of the booth.

    Wolf stretched out his hand and put his palm on the symbol and felt a spike of mana drill through him. It travelled down his bloodstream and into his heart chamber. Instantly he felt a roaring in his mind as the [Black Sheep] grew enraged at this intrusion and snuffed the thread of mana out like an ant.

    The symbol on the wall grew brighter and brighter and made a bell like sound.

    ¡°Excellent!¡± Peters exclaimed and for this first time his face began to show some real interest. You have a Rank 5 Totem, Supressor class. While all Totems are unique, they tend to be formed from overlapping or complimentary universal principles. So we try to put them into categories, while these are somewhat arbritary they help sketch out an appropriate development path and also effect how we group soldiers into squads. [Black Sheep] is clearly in the Supressor class. It is also a Rank 5 Totem, while all Totems are fairly close in power, some are still stronger than others. Rank1 is the weakest and Rank 5 is the strongest.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t understand how do classes work?¡± Wolf asked confused.

    ¡°Think of it like this. There might be a Totem based on the concept of Weakness or decay. Its effects might be very similar to your Totems concept of Suppression. All concepts that lead to Suppression we group into that category. In fact you will find that it will be far easier for you to learn techniques developed by other humans who have a Totem in the same class because the ultimate effects are similar enough. Other than that it doesn¡¯t really mean anything, its just how we categorise and manage people¡¯s Totems and abilities. By the feel of your Totem I would say your Supressor skill set is more close combat focused.¡±

    Lost deep in thought Wolf stepped back as No1 strode forward. He explained his Totem¡¯s name and its nature and then placed his hand on the symbol.

    A strong glow enveloped it and a similar bell tone rang out.

    ¡°Hahaha! This is incredible! Two Rank 5 recruits.¡± Peters said as he wrote down furiously in a notebook. ¡°Your Totem is in the Delimiter class. Delimiters are a grouping of Totems that have the ability to remove inherent limitations. Yours appears focused on your internal physical limits. You should be very happy Delimiters are tough and usually thrive in close combat.¡±

    The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

    Next was No2 and he went through the same scenario as the symbol lit up. At this point Peters face was slack in shock as the familiar bell chime went off.

    ¡°What do they feed you kids? Steroids?¡± Peters laughed as he wrote down notes. ¡°We usually average Ran 1 - 3 Totems. Rank 4 are rare and Rank 5, well you can count them on one hand.¡±

    ¡°Your [Bogeyman] is also quite rare. It falls into two classes, Shapeshifters and Emoters. Shapefhisters are uncommon, but not unheard of. Emoters on the other hand are very rare. It¡¯s basically a class of Totems that deal with emotionally manipulating opponents or drawing power from emotions. It seems to be linked with your shapeshifting class which makes it part illusionary and part real. I¡¯ve never something like it before. It is up to you how you develop your fighting style, however i would suggest medium to long range for the greatet versatility witha an assination type weapon for close combat. You will never have the same raw power as these other two, but you will make up for it in flexibility."

    ¡°What about your last companion? Tell him to come forward.¡± Peters said as he eyed Frankenstein at the back. Wolf looked at him and shrugged his shoulders before gesturing towards the symbol.

    ¡°Look Frankie, put your hand on here.¡± Wolf said gesturing with his hand.

    Frankie just looked at Wolf with a confused look on his face. Finally after much coaxing they managed to get Frankie¡¯s palm onto the symbol.

    Peters narrowed his eyes as he saw the pure white Frankenstein lumber forward.

    They all stared at the symbol for sometime but nothing happened.

    Maybe he doesn¡¯t register because he has no heart chamber. Wolf thought.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with him?¡± Peters asked as he stared at Frankie suspiciously.

    ¡°Ahh he is a bit damaged mentally from an assault by a Zombie Duke. It scrambled his brain and damaged his body severely.¡± Wolf said.

    ¡°Ok well he is your burden to carry. If you don¡¯t register a reaction from the test you are not considered an enrolled soldier, so he will not be assigned any privileges and will be your responsibility to look after.¡± Peters said coldly.

    ¡°Understood.¡± Wolf said.

    ¡°Ok take these and follow me.¡± Peters said as he handed a small stone to each of them and set off.

    Wolf followed Peters as they wound their way through the streets until they came to a set of barracks. Opening a door he gestured to a room with two bunk beds in it that was for four people.

    ¡°Ok guys. Inject some mana into those stones.¡± Peters said.

    As Wolf did so he saw the pattern on the stone wriggle off and embed itself into the palm of his hand.

    ¡°This is your Solider-ID. It is a unique identifier and also allows you access to F-Net. You will have five days to complete your training in the F-Net after which you will be rostered onto the front lines. So I suggest you make the most of your opportunity. Also remember that while you can train knowledge and to some extent physical skills in the F-Net it will not increase your mana. That can only come from absorbing mana in the real world.¡±

    ¡°As to what the F-Net is, it stands for Formation Internet. It is the single greatest asset we have in this war. It is our attempt to replicate the internet within the new physics we have come to understand now we have access to universal energy. The tower that you saw when you ported in doesn''t only restrict the zombies, they are also broadcast towers.¡±

    ¡°Each human city is connected like a server and it creates the F-Net. When you focus on that imprint on your palm your consciousness will enter the F-Net and you can train and learn and build your own space in there. We also learned it is possible leave an imprint of skills, memories and techniques in the F-Net. Other humans if they are compatible can then learn those skills in Technique Rooms.¡±

    ¡°The currency of the F-net is trade and bartering. If you want access to other people¡¯s technique rooms then you have to be able to trade something they want. The only exception is that all cities agreed on a base package of Technique Rooms you can have access to when you first arrive. That is what your basic training is. Also because you are all Rank 5 Totems you will have access to one bonus Technique room so choose carefully.¡±

    ¡°So log in to the F-Net, access whatever rooms you can. Learn what you can, while you can and then be prepared. In a week you will be putting those skills to the test.¡± Peters said as he clapped his hand and strode to the door.

    ¡°Well that is all I have to share with you gentlemen. Now that you are the last recruits we will have, I will be changing posts. I doubt we will see each other again, but I wish you the best of luck. I will report to my superiors now that you are all Rank 5, this should see that you get priority placements on the front lines and will increase your chances of surviving.¡±

    Wolf and No1 and No2 simply stood there for awhile after Peters left as they absorbed the flood of information that had been dropped upon them.

    ¡°It appears it will be difficult to avoid the front lines.¡± No2 said.

    ¡°I agree.¡± No1 said as he sat on his bunk.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Wolf asked.

    ¡°Well you heard the man. We got a week to get jacked up on this F-Net shit. I¡¯ll see you on the other side!¡± No1 said as his imprint on his palm glowed and collapsed on the bed unmoving. No2 shrugged and climbed onto the top bunk above him and also entered the F-Net.

    Wolf watched them both for awhile but it just seemed like they were sleeping. He considered logging in as well before he was gripped with a sudden thought.

    He left the room and found his way back to the booth where they had originally encountered Sergeant Peters. The Booth stood empty and a small door to the side was firmly shut.

    Glancing at Frankie behind him Wolf tried to get him to smash down the door. It took a heart racing twenty minutes before Frankie understood what he wanted before he shoulder charged the door and barged his way in.

    Wolf followed through the ruins of the door and found what he was looking for. Under a shelf neatly labelled was an extra new recruit log in stone.

    Hell yeah boi. Wolf thought as he quickly pocketed it. He also saw what looked like a black marker. Picking it up he tested drawing on a wall and sure enough it left a faint black line just like a whiteboard marker.

    Useful.

    Escaping as quickly as possible Wolf returned to room assigned to him and No1 and No2 and slid quietly back in as if he had never left. Frankie walked in and sat in the corner gazing into nothing while nodding his head as if he was talking to someone.

    Crazy son of a bitch.

    Wolf was about to slide into his bunk when he stopped for a moment and took out the black marker. Moving quickly to No1 and No2 he practiced an ancient design from earth on them before climbing onto his bunk.

    Actually no - fuck this. Wolf thought. Instead of lying on the bunk all prone and vulnerable he squeezed himself underneath the bottom bunk between the floor and the bed. This way he remained hidden to anyone bursting into the room.

    He just wasn¡¯t comfortable being all exposed while he was logged in for anyone to come and fuck with him. Injecting a little bit of mana into the second stone he gained a second imprint on his other hand. Now he had two imprints and IDs, one on each hand.

    Hohoho. Wolf thought. He had worked out ways to create money out of thin air in his heyday. He was sure as hell he would figure out ways to scam extra benefits out of the F-Net.