“This…” Ignatius observed the transformation with genuine interest, “looks more like a true tamer’s fusion.”
The mercenary extended his newly formed wings on his arms, each feather glowing with contained power. The transformation was elegant, almost beautiful in its symmetry.
“Isn’t it?” he smiled, his features now more avian like the director’s but maintaining a harmonic balance with his human form.
“Although…” his smile widened, “one of the things my body learned after so many abyssal ‘experiments’ is how to extract… more.”
Ignatius barely had time to react.
The mercenary’s golden claws passed grazing his face as he threw himself backward. The Director used his own phoenix claws, blocking the second attack by millimeters, golden feathers clashing against golden feathers.
The mercenary feathers began to glow with more intensity. He arched his back as his transformation continued, pushing beyond natural limits. The air itself seemed to distort around him as his body reshaped itself.
His arms, locked in a contest of strength with the director, lengthened and broadened, the transformation defying human anatomy.
“Impressive, isn’t it?” The mercenary pressed forward, gaining ground in strength against the director. “When you truly accept becoming one with your beast, when you let the transformation reach its end…”
His claws lengthened further, digging into the director’s skin, his face deforming slightly as a golden beak emerged, reshaping his features into something between human and raptor.
“This is an abomination!” Ignatius manifested more power in his feathers which burst into flames. “You’re perverting the sacred bond between tamer and beast!”
“Perverting it?” The mercenary pushed, his strength now far superior to before. “We’re improving it!”
“Don’t think,” Ignatius counterattacked by wrapping his hands in flames, “that just because you look more like a beast means it’s better.”
Their claws fought wind magic against fire magic, creating shockwaves that made nearby trees tremble. Each clash sent sparks of golden energy cascading through the air.
“A true bond is about balance, about maintaining your humanity while channeling your beast’s power.”
The mercenary laughed while fighting the blaze. “Humanity? What good is humanity when you can be something superior?”
Several meters away, the supervisor fought against the abyssal scorpion. The beast was slower without its tamer, but its venom made each exchange mortally dangerous, forcing the supervisor to maintain constant vigilance.
“Look at what we’ve achieved,” the mercenary nodded toward his golden wings that were beginning to separate from his arms while continuing to press his attack. “Two beasts, complete transformation, and soon…” his wind power began to gain ground and managed to graze Ignatius’s shoulder, “we’ll have tamers capable of fusing with three.”
Ignatius retreated further, feeling the cut on his shoulder. It was superficial, but the fact that it had connected was worrying. “All I see is someone who has forgotten what it means to be a tamer.”
The golden flames of his phoenix intensified, creating an aura that made the mercenary step back for the first time and sealed Ignatius wounds. “A true tamer guides their beast, doesn’t become one.”
“Empty words from someone limited by obsolete traditions,” the mercenary began to gain ground again by generating thrust with his now separate wings. “I’ll show you the true power you achieve when you fully embrace the transformation.”
The mercenary’s golden wings began launching cuts at Ignatius while his own arms, covered in denser feathers, kept his hands trapped. Each wing moved independently, creating a storm of slashing attacks from multiple angles.
“You see?” he smiled while his wings attacked independently. “You talk of nobility, of purity… but your transformation is limited, incomplete.”
Ignatius could only manifest his claws and wings on the same pair of arms. His movements lacked the versatility of his opponent, forced to choose between offense and defense with each motion.
“Look at your form,” the mercenary fully extended his 2 extra upper appendages. “So attached to human anatomy… don’t you see the irony? You boast of nobility but move further from the truly noble ones.”
“What are you talking about?” Ignatius created a mane of flames to block the wind attacks but some still got through, leaving shallow cuts across his defenses.
“The dragons,” the mercenary broke through the fire using his wings. “The true lords of beasts. Six appendages, not four. My base hippogriff and this form are closer to divinity than your ‘pure’ transformation.”
The Director was reduced to focusing on his phoenix’s regeneration against the avalanche of attacks coming from multiple angles. The mercenary’s wings not only gave him superior mobility but functioned as additional limbs in combat, each one capable of launching its own deadly attacks.
Meanwhile, the supervisor struggled to keep the abyssal scorpion at bay. His silver rank 2 penguin created increasingly thin ice barriers while the silver rank 3 beast systematically destroyed them, each impact weakening the defensive line.
“Maintain the perimeter!” he shouted to the guards who were fighting to contain the fires caused by the Director’s golden flames. Their earth beasts worked frantically, digging trenches and raising barriers to prevent the fire from spreading toward more trees and other parts of the academy.
“Your pure beast is failing,” the mercenary pointed toward the supervisor. “Your subordinate will die soon. The rank difference is evident, and abyssal beasts are superior in endurance.”
As if to emphasize his words, the scorpion broke through another ice barrier. Its stinger passed dangerously close to the supervisor’s face, who barely managed to create a shield in time.
“Your methods are obsolete, Director, the future belongs to those who are willing to truly evolve.”
Ignatius tried to increase the power of his golden flames, but it became increasingly difficult to maintain regeneration. The mercenary was right, the ability to use his wings and arms independently gave him a significant tactical advantage.
A cry of pain pierced the battlefield. The scorpion had managed to graze the supervisor’s arm with its venom. The supervisor froze his arm at the point of impact but…
The ice around the venom began to crystallize, the corrosion spreading rapidly.
“Supervisor!” shouted one of the guards, but they couldn’t abandon their position. If the golden fire spread beyond the perimeter, the entire academy would be in danger.
The scorpion prepared its final blow. The supervisor, partially paralyzed by the venom, could barely maintain a weak ice barrier.
“Kill him already!” The stinger descended like a chitinous lightning bolt.