Chapter 02 "The Change" Written by Xelloss "Well, now! What a motley crew we have here. Two Dragyn, an ex-Guardian, a cyberjockey, and a fruitcake in a pear tree." He of the Neverending Smug Grin said as he walked into the meeting room. "Can it, Xell, and let's get down to business." Ryu, a gruff demeanor revealing itself on his face, said as he sat down. "All work and no play... oh, nevermind. The question at hand, as is apparent, is this: What is to be done with our guest... ah, pardon me, but what is your name?" "Ken. And that's all you need to know, whoever... _what_ever you are." Ken was immature in attitude as well as body - the Elders had told him so many times - but he wasn't stupid. And the one with the purple hair just seemed to unsettle him, in a way he couldn't describe. Maybe it was because the person hadn't yet opened his eyes. "Testy, are we? Note to self: wherever this one goes, send a supply of Midol with him." "You arrogant...!" Ken was incensed. This... _person_ was insulting him? How dare he! Ken tried to get up, thinking to haul the purple-haired one up by his collar and tell him what-for, but was unable to rise from his seat. "Hey! What gives?!" Grey discreetly moved his hand away from the Static Restraint controls. "I can't help but think this one's gonna be nothin' but trouble. Y'all oughta wipe him and send him back." Dracos chuckled. "Funny, I remember hearing something similar regarding your disposition when you first arrived." "Different circumstances, those were. My Earth barely had any knowledge about alternate dimensions; Dragonia's had ID travel for centuries now. But point conceded, nonetheless. Might you have a suggestion, though?" "I think we should make use of him. I think I see a bit of potential here." For the nth time, Dracos cursed his blind desire on that day, which cost him nearly all his former glory and freedom. "I'm yet undecided," Xell said, wanting to break the uncomfortable silence. "Potential of any kind in a Dragyn is hard to gauge before the Change. He may end up completely devoid of any potential. What say you, Ryu?" A long pause preceded Ryu's reply. "...I think we should take him in." Grey was VERY surprised. He hadn't expected this at all! He and the Chaos Dragyn usually saw eye-to-eye on most issues. "No offense intended, Ryu, but care to explain your reasons? I mean, the guy's obviously got a huge chip on his shoulder, and it's pointed at you. Plus, he's got an obvious problem with authority, has little self-control, and doesn't seem to understand how to look before he leaps!" "Don't ask me why. I think he's acted like a reprehensible little turd too, so far. But there's something picking at the back of my mind, telling me there's something to be made of him." "Don't talk about me as if I'm not here! I'm not a chibihemoth, to be kept as your servant-pet! I can speak for myself!" The group steadfastly ignored him. The NDF Grand Commander spoke. "Well, let's have the votes. Dracos?" "He stays." Xell nodded. "Grey?" "...He stays. I just hope we're not making a mistake." "That's two. Ryu?" "I've already made my reasons clear. He stays." "It's unanimous, then. Ken Skybolt, you are to remain at the Nexus Station and be trained as a beginning officer in the Nexus Defense Force. Keep in mind that your license to remain here is probationary. Should it be revoked, you will be mind-wiped and reconstituted, returning your memory and all of your skills and power levels, both physical and mystical, to the state they were in before you entered the Gate. By my authority as Grand Commander of the Nexus Defense Force and Caretaker of the Nexus Station, so let it be recorded and done. This meeting is adjourned." ------- Ken waited. He was early, but only because he was eager to get started. Here, in this dojo, he would teach that uppity long-haired human a much-needed lesson. Thinking himself good enough to take on a Dragyn, ha! The dojo, also known as the Training Room, was enormous. It currently had a solid-hologram floor and artificial gravity, but it could be configured to simulate any environment. It was located inside a sub-dimensional pocket, which made it all but impossible to cause any damage to the Nexus Station itself from the inside. The room's only door slid open, admitting entrance to a single being. Said being had long brown hair, currently held behind his head by a wide silver ring. "Well, you're early." "It's never too soon, human." The eager Ken insultingly spat the word out of his mouth like sour milk. "We've decided your training regimen," Grey stated. "Until your Change, you won't be learning any mystic arts, except a few Chi self-enhancement techniques and some meditation exercises. I'll be your hand-to-hand combat instructor, and I'll also be teaching you how to use many of the technological systems in the Nexus Station." "I'm aware of this already, human!" Again, Ken spoke as if 'human' was an insult. "Let's get started!" With a loud kiai, Ken launched himself at Grey. Grey didn't even take a stance. 'Heh, he's not even ready for this,' Ken thought. 'I'll make short work of him!' Ken reared back with his right hand, making it a feint as he jabbed with his left. This trick took down every opponent back home! Grey took this opportunity to show why he was the teacher and Ken was the student. He weaved his right arm around Ken's punching left arm, locking it in place. Ken was already committed to his two-hit attempt and struck a jab with his right arm. Grey did the same to Ken's right arm as he had to the left. With both of his arms tying up Ken's, and each hand holding a fistful of Ken's shirt at the shoulders, he yanked Ken closer and headbutted him. Ken woke up shortly thereafter, with something of a headache. The human was lucky, but he wouldn't be so fortunate twice! He charged his teacher and leapt to deliver a vicious two-footed kick to the chest. His attack was foiled once again as Grey ducked, turned and grabbed his student's ankles from mid-leap, then jerked him downward to slam face-first into the 'wooden' floor, cracking a few boards. "Are you quite done yet?" Grey taunted. Ken, conscious but dazed, picked himself up and rushed to the attack again. This time, he would not underestimate his opponent. Two punches to the midsection, one deflected, the other dodged. An elbow to the head, ducked. Knee to the solar plexus dodged. Ken was getting frustrated! No human could hope to outmatch a Dragyn in physical prowess! Feint a right to the face, turn and heel-kick at opponent's ribcage. Success!... no, wait... Ken realized too late that Grey had caught his leg as it impacted. Grey shoved the Dragyn's leg to the left, ducked the spinning backhand and slapped Ken's arm to give him more momentum in his spin. Ken couldn't control his spin at that speed, and stumbled to the floor as his foot caught on his ankle. His misfortune was quickly capitalized on by Grey, who pulled both of Ken's arms up behind his shoulderblades and held them so that the elbows met. "Submit!" the brown-haired human demanded. "If you don't, I have no problem with dislocating both of your arms at the shoulder!" With the feeling draining from both hands, his shoulers creaking under pressure, his lower body immobile from a knee in his lower back, and the clear threat of severe damage to all of these, Ken readily agreed. Releasing his hold, the human teacher stood over his student. "From now on, you will not speak the word 'human' as an insult. Furthermore, you will follow my instructions as I give them, without excuse." Ken, unable to rise due to exhaustion and pain, nodded his head against the ground. "Good, I'm glad we have this straight. Here's my first instruction: Whenever I'm teaching you, you will address me as 'sensei'. My second instruction: outside of lessons, you will call me Grey. Third: You will treat myself, the other members of the NDF, and especially the higher-ups with respect. Do you understand?" Ken nodded again. "Then we're done for now. Sleep it off kid, we've got a lot of work to do." <=0=> The days went by in the Training Room, and Ken learned. With reluctance and difficulty, but he learned nonetheless. "...Focus. Visualize journeying through your spiritual layers, toward your center..." "...please. Give me some credit. I didn't survive years of infiltration jobs without learning to cover my nuts..." "...leg's broken, alright. Again. Next time, apply the leg-lock _this_ way..." "...That was a _joke_, son. Learn to laugh at things, it'll come in handy in the long run..." "...lot of talent, here, but it's going to waste because of your attitude..." "...Good form, Ken. Now do it just like that 100 times..." "...Here. Figured a hot-tempered Dragyn boy like you can handle my Armageddon Chili. Have a taste... dammit, stop drinking straight from the bottle!..." "...After your Change, you'll have to do plenty of 'book stuff' in your magic-learning. Believe me, it's better if you get a head start on it. Now, let's go over this again..." "...see, it's easy. Point, aim, shoot. Control your breathing, that's the key..." "...and I call this nasty little ditty the Dynamite Palm..." And so it went, until the day the training ended. --------- "Ken, it's been hard for you, I know. But you made it through 'basic training', as it were, and for that I'm proud of you. I'll warn you though," Grey said as he and his student walked through the door of the Training Room, "I'm not the toughest sensei in the NDF. When you get to some of the others' methods, you'll think I was downright pampering of you. But I think you'll be able to handle it." This unnerved Ken more than a little bit. "Oh? Why's that?" His answer came as he began to feel a piercing pain in his gut, followed by stronger ones in his back, neck, and shoulders. His eyes started blurring, and his chest felt like some gremlin was tearing apart his pectoral muscles one fiber at a time. He wanted to rub the blurriness out of his eyes, but couldn't lift his arms through the pain. He collapsed to his knees, and felt a wet splash on his skin. All he could think about was how he was bleeding to death. A piercing light shot through his mind, bringing with it a memory. Grey had to set Ken's right leg-bone before the myosteodermal regenerator would work properly, and anaesthetic was dangerous to pre-Change Dragyn. So he had to bear it. "Just concentrate, Ken. Pain is a sensory perception, and it can be blocked out. Just like I taught you, remember? And you're strong enough to handle whatever pain you can't block out." When his teacher had set the bone, it was excruciating. But Ken didn't scream, no matter how much he felt like doing so. Ken used what he had learned then. He concentrated on the feelings of pain, pinpointing exactly where each of them was centered on. Carefully, one by one, he shut his mind off from each pain. It couldn't block all of the sensation, but it would at least make the pain more manageable. Grey looked at his student. He was handling this well. He had almost laid a hand on Ken's shoulder before remembering that for a Dragyn undergoing Change, _every_ sensory input was painful. Grey didn't want to add to the maturing Dragyn's pain. "He's doing well. Handling the pain as he should. You taught him your way?" Grey turned to the source of the voice. "Hey, Ryu. Yeah, I taught him the best way I knew to prepare for this. And he got plenty of practice, what with how many times he got broken bones." "Heh. He's lucky the regenerator didn't burn out, I bet." The cyberwizard flinched as he saw bony protrusions burst through the skin between his pupil's shoulder blades. That looked like it _hurt_. "This... really... has to suck for Ken. Was it this bad for you, too?" "No," Ryu stated in reply. "Then..." Just as he was about to ask 'why is it so bad for Ken?' Ryu cut him off with a terse statement. "Mine was worse." Shaken by the imagery Ryu's statement brought to mind, Grey turned back to his pupil. Ken's transformation was almost complete. Large wings were partially folded at Ken's back. A thin tail had grown from the base of his spine. An odd sheen of moisture that covered the newly-grown limbs was dissipating. And as the two bystanders watched, Ken's Change was finished. Ken stood and, after steadying himself, experimentally flexed his wings. They were large enough that they spanned the width of the corridor, and had sharp-looking bones protruding past the wing membranes. Something in Grey's mind warned him of danger. Familiar with this sense and knowing from experience not to discard its warnings, he braced himself, unsure of what might occur. His feelings were well-founded as, with a yell that reeked of madness, Ken attacked his sensei. Grey was shocked by this sudden, unprovoked assault, but managed to guard himself from Ken's arms and legs. He was totally unprepared for the assault from Ken's wings, however, and received a gash on the left side of his face as punishment. 'Ouch! I guess those wing protrusions aren't just for show!' Now wary of an attack from what amounted to bladed weapons, Grey did not hesitate to bring his own into play. With a muted metallic *SHINK!*, his cyberspurs came through the skinseams on his forearms. Ken, still not returned to his normal mindset, lashed his wings out at Grey again, in his madness wanting to do whatever harm he could to whoever was around. Razor-sharp wingblades whistled through the air, heading for their target with deadly speed. This time, however, they were met with another set of blades. The serrated back edges of Grey's spurs caught the first strut, preventing the entire wing from moving further. The not-quite-conscious mind of Ken Skybolt was confused. This target suddenly had talons, ones capable of stopping his wings? Ken struck at his teacher with the other wing, yet again achieving nothing as it was caught by Grey's other set of blades. Grey knew he could be in trouble. Ken was merely attempting to force his way through Grey's defenses. The data his cybernetic eyes were showing him indicated that his 'spurs were holding Ken back nicely and without damage to his systems, but he knew that Ken could attack with his arms or legs at any time. And Ken's wing-reach was long enough that Grey couldn't knock him out with a headbutt like he did in their first lesson. Suddenly, Ken gave a short lurch forward. Grey steeled himself for a hit - one which didn't come as his pupil slumped forward like a marionette with its strings cut. Grey quickly retracted his cyberspurs into their forearm housings, disengaging them from the young Dragyn's wingblades. Looking up from the limp figure now resting on the floor, he understood why Ken had collapsed. "Tsk, tsk, Ryu," the 'upgraded' human jokingly chided the only conscious Dragyn in the corridor. "I thought attacking from behind was beneath you. Not that I mind, you understand, but..." "Well, an elbow to the back of the head seemed like the quickest solution." Ryu caught his friend's light-hearted attempt at easing the tension out of the situation. "And since it worked, I assume you didn't give him the endurance conditioning yet?" "No, not yet. Hitting him with heavy objects to up his pain resistance seemed a bit extreme for such a young one. Maybe now that he's undergone the Change, though..." "It'd be a good idea. He'll need it for the advanced hand-to-hand combat training." Ryu grinned an expectant grin and continued, "And he'll definitely need it for my weapons training." A new voice added itself to the conversation. "I hope you weren't planning on just leaving our new recruit lying there. As I understand it, he'll need plenty of food and liquids to replace the nutrients used by the process." Dracos, clad in his usual black and gold outfit, walked up to the group. "Well, if you'd hold his wings steady while Ryu and me carry him, we'll get him to the infirmary. That'll make things a bit easier. Ryu, get his feet would you?" <=0=> "So what's the prognosis?" "His vital signs are stable, and he seems to have fully completed the transformation. Brainwave patterns indicate unconsciousness associated with physical trauma," the doctor paused to glare at Ryu - who scratched the back of his head sheepishly - before continuing, "but there's no sign of concussion or other damage. Most of his nutrient levels are low, but the medical bed is taking care of that. A few days of rest, and he'll be fully recovered." "Good. Log the changes in his medical bio, I'll pick them up on the way out." The physician sighed and smiled. "All in a day's work for an EMH. Just a second... Done. Will there be anything..." Seeing that the person he was talking to had left, the Doctor trailed off. Some people were just so impolite! Dracos walked back into the infirmary's waiting room. He reclaimed his seat at the table with Grey and Ryu. He informed them of Ken's current situation. Ryu nodded, but Grey remained motionless. Dracos waved a hand in front of the longhaired man's eyes and snapped his fingers twice in front of his colleague's face, frowning when neither action elicited a response. "I always hate it when he jacks in. He blinks and breathes like normal, but he's not there. It's rather unnerving." Grey's eyes blinked out of pattern as he returned from the system and reoriented himself. "You really should be nicer to the Doctor, Dracos. His body may only be made of multifracted light, but he's still a person." "We've been over this before. He doesn't register at all on my senses, and that makes me uncomfortable." This discussion was all too familiar to Ryu, who knew that it would once again bring hard feelings between the two if he didn't change the subject. "You have the bio sheet downloaded, Grey? Mind if we review it?" Grey broke off his previous line of conversation to answer his friend. "Sure. Let's see here; Subject, Ken Skybolt. Age, 16. Race: Dragyn, subcategory 'Wyvern'? What's that mean, Ryu?" Dracos was eager to hear more about the Dragyn race, and Ryu was made the center of attention. "OK, here goes. Get comfortable, this may take awhile. "When a Dragyn is born, its physiology is pretty much human, with only two differences. One, its ability to withstand Dragonian gravity, which is five times stronger than Earth's. Two, a sac containing a mutagenic fluid is located inside the abdomen, near the intestines. There is very little mutagen in the sac at first, but it gradually fills up. After about 16 years, the sac is filled so full of the mutagen that it bursts, flooding the body with mutagen in a sudden rush. This starts the process we Dragyn call the Change. "With me so far? Good. OK, the Change transforms the subject in many ways. The first is what we refer to as the Dragyn's type, Light or Dark. What type they are is obvious from the color of their skin. Light types tend to be patient and intellectual, but lacking in physical ability. Lights make good doctors, researchers, et cetera. Dark types are often more aggressive and physical than Lights, with tougher bodies but less intelligence. They usually end up as athletes or in the military." "A universal physical change that separates the good from the evil?" Grey interjected. "That must cause problems." Ryu shook his head. "Not good from evil. Light from Dark. Dark Dragyn can easily be kindhearted, and Lights can just as easily be cruel and evil. They just manifest differently." "Like, perhaps, a manipulative bureaucratic Light?" Dracos mused, "Or a Dark athlete who strives to be a good role model?" "Bingo! Now, listen up, there's more. The Change also further separates Dragyn into breeds. Breed is determined by dramatic changes in the body. Most breeds are called by the name of a mythological creature to make them sound less generic. "Normals are the ones whose bodies only go through the Dark/Light change. They get medium-size wings, which can hold the Dragyn and a proportional extra burden, and a medium-size tail. Nothing special, but no relative deficiencies either. Light Normals and Dark Normals, unlike the other sub-types, aren't called by any particular breed name, just 'Light' or 'Dark'. "Flyers have enlarged wings, enhanced long-distance eyesight, shorter or thinner tails, and usually get no increase in body size from the Change. If they're not carrying much, a Flyer can stay airborne for days on end without getting tired. They can also carry aloft about twice their bodyweight, more or less. The support bones for their wings extend farther than the membranes, and are very sharp, making their wings into natural weapons. Light Flyers are called 'Griffons', Dark Flyers are called 'Wyverns'. "Landracers' legs are modified, with longer feet and shortened thigh and shin bones. Their tails are long, heavy, and prehensile. When they start running, they can point their tails straight backward and lock them in position, ramrod straight. This lets them go really fast by leaning forward and using their tails as counterweights. Those tails are also weapons, since all that muscle-weight makes a good bludgeon - at full speed, the strongest Landracer was recorded to have dented untempered Gigasite! Their wings aren't as good as the others', though, and are only useful for gliding in short spurts. We call Dark Landracers 'Raptors' and Light Landracers 'Zephyrs'. "Aquatics make up the fourth group. The Change gives them working gills in addition to their lungs. Their hands are slightly larger than normal, with a membrane connecting the fingers up to the first joint. Their feet are normal, except their toes are longer and also have membranes like the fingers. Their wings are a lot like Landracers', except they can hold more additional weight when gliding and can be held together to act like a dorsal fin underwater. Their tails are normal-sized, but not very dexterous. Aquatics don't have any natural weapons like Flyers and Landracers, but their bodies are a lot tougher. 'Merfolk' and 'Sahagins' are what Light and Dark Aquatics, respectively, are called." "I think that about covers it." Dracos nodded at the end of Ryu's lengthy explanation. Grey, however, had a question. "Okay, so Ken's a Wyvern, right?" At Ryu's affirmative nod, Grey continued. "So what are you?" "Well, I'm sort of a special case. I'm a Chaos Dragyn." Seeing a questioning look on Grey's face, the Dragyn continued. "I'm the only one of my type - only one Chaos Dragyn is born every 10,000 Dragonian years. I have a memory like a Light, physical enhancements like a Dark. I have a Flyer's enlarged wings, a tail like a Landracer, and Aquatic gills." Ryu flexed his neck muscles a certain way, revealing what looked like seams, and extended his wings and tail fully in demonstration. "Another thing is that unlike other post-Change Dragyn, my mutagen glands didn't go dormant after the Change organ ruptured. I've learned how to control it in some ways, like these..." Ryu stood and removed his tunic and boots, then spread his wings to their full extent. Grey and Dracos watched as the bones seemed to lengthen a tiny bit for a split second, and then fold at points where joints had not been evident before. First the 'finger' struts, then the 'arm' struts folded, until the wings looked like nothing more than leathery strips between his shoulderblades. "Whoa. That's gotta be pretty handy. Looked kinda like a folding umbrella." As usual, Grey was plain-spoken. Ryu chuckled. "Yeah, but any Dragyn can do that. It's a part of the wing structure. The unusual part is this." So saying, he turned his back to his companions. The folded wings were pulled into his back and swallowed up by flaps of skin. Grey made a face. "That was kinda gross, Ryu." "Yeah, but it might come in handy as a disguise if I ever figure out how to hide the tail too. But anyway, here's why I took off my boots." As soon as Ryu finished, his legs started to change. His feet enlarged, while his legs shrank. When this was done, Ryu bent his knees and stood on the balls of his feet as if it were the most natural thing in the multiverse. "For running like a Landracer, right?" Dracos asked, almost to himself. Ryu nodded his affirmative, quickly returned his wings and legs to normal, and redressed. "I can't use the mutagen very often without getting tired, though. And the bit with the legs can really hurt if I do it too quickly. Right now, though, I'm bored from all the explaining. I'm heading to the arcade - I hear the Gundam Battle Simulator begging me to knock Lieutenant Uraki off his week-long winning streak." Ryu chuckled. "He thinks it's in his blood, and maybe he's right. But his great-grandfather Kou lost his share of fights too. Either of you wanna join me?" Dracos stood and shook his head. "I've got grav-ball practice in about 15 minutes. The game against the Sector 34 Scorchers is next week, and the rest of the Sector 73 Pulsars are going to need their best power forward. I'll see you later." "How about you, Texan?" "I might, later. Depends on whether I still have enough energy to remain conscious after a certain someone," Grey grinned and pointed at the viewscreen for emphasis, "is done with me. It's been a week, if you know what I mean!" Ryu laughed knowingly, and the group parted. And in the infirmary, Ken slept a dreamless sleep.