Hmm...
"It seems that I've succeeded in Transfiguring this planet's inhabitants. If I were to leave the humans be, surviving for at least a decade would be a pipe dream. Those so-called Pillars don't know how to orchestrate true entertainment. This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance."
Now then, let's spice things up a little more. Those two siblings from earlier should do just nicely. I have a hunch that the pair will deliver a spectacular performance if I were to give them a small gift. They might even be the ones I have been searching for in my visions. All I can do is hope that both don't disappoint.
With a sharp crack of my fingers, I saw the two in the video, their bodies slumped to the floor. Upon closer inspection, the Transfiguration was a success. I can tell with just a glance that their brains have improved the body's cranial nerves during the process. Their bodies will also be able to handle one of my newest creations, the mana organ, located near the heart. I'm quite proud of how it turned out. It allows one to accumulate what the athios call mana. It travels through the heart and blood vessels. Truly an ingenious creation on my part.
Alas, not every mana organ is created equal. It wouldn't be fun if everyone could use mana to their heart's content. Reaching one's potential is based on the abilities and opportunities given to each person. They are, after all, the most adaptable species.
On one screen, I saw a faint twitch in one of their fingers.
"Looks like they are waking up from their nap. The Pillars should be commencing the Culling right about now. If I hadn't interfered last minute, my plans would have been for naught. You will not stop my schemes, Demos."
A second screen pops up on the right with the message:
[Conversion stage one is complete. The planet Earth has now dipped into a new age.]
"Now then, Isaac, Laila. I do hope that you will be the ones I've been searching for and bring my plans to fruition. Enjoy the gift I've prepared, and good luck. You will need it if you want to save your species."
****
"Ugh... my head. Feels like someone hit me in the back of my skull with a baseball bat," I groaned while lifting my heavy body off the floor. Turning my head, I spotted Isaac regaining consciousness and moving his fingers slowly. His eyes were wide, and a puddle of saliva had gathered beneath his mouth.
"Hey Isaac, you okay over there? That's a lot of drool coming out of your mouth," I joked, pointing at the saliva puddle.
Isaac scowled as he fidgeted with his body. "That is not funny. I really thought I was going to die from the pain."
"Same here. But we pulled through thankfully." I reached into my pocket to pull out my phone to check how long we had passed out. It was around 8:04 pm when I last used my phone, and it's now 6:25 am.
"We've been knocked out cold for ten hours. That's the longest I've slept for," I whistled as I pocketed the phone. "I should probably turn on the news to check if there was any damage. Is this a local or a national incident? What if this is happening in counties other than America?"
As I pondered these thoughts while walking toward the television, something caught my attention. A thin layer of dust had settled on the kitchen table.
Wait a minute. How am I able to see the dust so clearly from this distance? Has my vision improved drastically? Actually, why does my body feel so light? I feel so… full of energy! It's like I'm a brand-new person…
"Isaac, how do you feel right now? Notice anything different?"
My brother gave me a weird look from the floor. He had his butt planted firmly on the ground as he massaged his neck. "Other than my throbbing head? I don't feel different"
I clicked my tongue and said, "Whatever. Now I want you to get up from the ground and jump as high as you can."
If what I think happened is correct, then our bodies may have been altered by the Transfiguration the masked individual was talking about. I could easily test this theory myself, but...
Isaac carefully lifted himself off the floor as he got up from his seated position. He then went on to do a series of light stretches, his joints popping and cracking as he moved. Isaac then bent his knees and jumped. As soon as his feet left the ground and he reached the peak, I heard a faint thud as his scalp just barely brushed the ceiling. While Isaac may be naturally athletic, even he wouldn't be able to get that high up! Our ceiling in the middle of the house is at least twelve feet.
After landing, Isaac had a giddy expression as he addressed me happily. "Woah! Did you see that? I was kind of skeptical when you told me to jump, but now I can see why!"
"Did you think I was playing a prank on you? Have some faith in me."
With this, my suspicions have been confirmed. This lightweight feeling, improved vision, and Isaac's ability to jump higher than normal... The Transfiguration has improved our body's physical state. But for what purpose? Why would the masked individual go to such lengths? Is it really for entertainment? What is its purpose? First, let's recall what happened before Isaac and I passed out.
I asked him to go down the street to get some rice since we ran out. When I was looking around the house, I noticed a light shining on a nearby window, which I found odd as it was late evening. No cars were nearby, and we don't have functioning streetlamps. My phone then had an emergency alert and notified the civilians of an oddity appearing that turned out to be a planet. How do you mistake that as a comet? Anyway, the ground shook; I went outside, saw a planet looming over the earth, and a mysterious individual appeared out of nowhere, talking about Transfiguration and Conversion. Isaac and I hurried inside, received painful headaches, and before passing out a message appeared proclaiming our Transfiguration was complete and gave us an inhuman constitution. With all that, there's only one thing left to confirm.
I skipped towards the front door. I opened the door slowly and stepped outside, feeling the chill of the night air on my skin as I looked up at the night sky. The sun had just begun to cast its rosy-orange hue across the eastern sky. The golden rays of the sun filtered in at a snail's pace, ready to overtake the moon's dominion. Other than that, a planet stood firm, right between the two giants. I couldn't accurately tell the details of the planet, but I recognized it had an ocean-blue atmosphere just like Earth's. That was all I could discern as of right now.
Yep, the planet is still there. Which means all that has happened so far is reality and not some dream. Even with my improved vision, I thought I would somehow see any distinct features on the planet, as if I was a human-sized space telescope. I guess this is the limit for now. No damage to the surrounding area of my street either. Man. The events leading up to this point all felt so real, but deep inside, I could only pray that this was a dream and could snap myself back to reality. But now, in this situation, moving forward is what is most important.
After a moment of brooding over myself, Isaac urgently called for me. "Laila, come here for a sec! I made an important discovery."
"Yea, I'm on my way. It better not be something dumb!" I shouted back. With one last look, I tore my gaze away from the unknown planet and start heading back in. I wonder if anyone is doing research on the new planet and is making appropriate preparations…
I shut the door from behind and sauntered next to Isaac, who was staring at the wall with a delighted smile.
"If you stare even harder, the wall might melt from your gaze," I sarcastically joked. "What's the important discovery you made?"
"I'm not staring at the wall. I'm looking at a screen that only shows up in video games."
I knitted my brows together in puzzlement. "You lost me already. I see nothing in front of you."
"Huh. If you can't see it, then it's probably reserved for yourself. Remember that blue screen we saw before we passed out? I wanted to bring it up again to see if there was anything else. After minutes of testing, one phrase worked. That's why I said I made an important discovery."
"What's the phrase then?"
Isaac paused for a moment. "The phrase is Status"
"..."
"..."
An awkward silence envelops the room.
"That's it?"
"If you don't believe me, try it yourself," he shrugged.
There's no way he's messing with me, right?
After seconds of deliberation, I softly muttered the words:
"Status..."
In a fraction of a second, my vision was filled with the bright and vibrant red of a square screen. It contained the following information:
Name: Laila
Rank: Undecided
Strength:0 Agility:0
Durability:0 Mana: 0
Masteries: N/A
The details listed before me look like they came straight out of a video game. Strength, agility, durability, and mana are all at zero, which is odd. Shouldn't my stats be a little higher?
"Isaac. Tell me the values of your stats. Mine are all at a solid zero."
Isaac's eyes darted around as he checked his stats once more. "Erm… They are all listed as zero for me. I don't know how to feel about this. I know for a fact that I'm stronger and more durable than you. Shouldn't my strength and durability be higher?"
…Isaac is right. Did the Transfiguration not account for what our body capabilities were previously? That would mean you start off with a clean slate after the process while also keeping your physique after the Transfiguration is finished. If say, for example, a bodybuilder who specializes in strength but lacks speed, were to have Transfigured, they could increase their agility with this to offset that imbalance. You're basically a real-life hulk! It's safe to say that humanity has evolved to greater heights. Whether it's a good or bad thing remains to be seen. Power can corrupt a human. I'm one hundred percent certain this will get into people's heads and think they're some kind of god.
While I was contemplating the future, a timer pops up with the message-
[Teleportation commences in five minutes.]
Teleportation? Teleportation for what, exactly? And to where?
"Yo, sis. You see this countdown?" My brother's voice quivered. Why does he sound excited?
"I see it clearly on my end. You're very calm about this, ya know?"
"So are you. Why aren't you scrunching your eyebrows like you usually do whenever something surprising happens or whenever you are deep in thought?"
"It's because I stopped getting shocked when just uttering two words into the air allows me to pull up a screen only yourself can see."
I looked away from my brother and settled my gaze on the kitchen. A ridiculous idea came to mind. "Also, we should prepare ourselves just in case. You store up some food while I turn on the news."
[Teleportation commences in four minutes.]
Isaac rushed to the kitchen with a bag tucked under his arm while I fumbled with the remote to turn on the TV. What used to be a newscaster from last night now stood the president of the United States of America, addressing the nation. It sounded like he was finishing up a speech that was prepared in a hurry and was now wrapping it up.
<...While the United States will do its utmost best to research this new planet that has mysteriously appeared in our solar system with the greatest experts on Earth, we have received reports that superhumans have surfaced around the globe after a great shower of light came from the mysterious planet. They have already gone on a rampage proclaiming themselves as a superior species and that this was an act from God itself. I know it's hard to believe at first, but we have taken precautions to withhold the power dynamic. As of now, I declare that martial law is in effect immediately and will do so until the situation is under control. This is not only applicable to this country, as other world leaders have taken similar steps. We are being presented with new information every hour and we will notify you of any developments. Thank you for listening.>
They cut the connection to the President as the middle-aged man from yesterday replaced him. He had bags under his eyes and his skin was ghostly pale. Contrary to his appearance, once the man spoke, he sounded like your average newscaster.
Well, that was a long speech. I expected that this would be in utter chaos. What I don't understand is why the president didn't mention the game-like screens that appear before these superhumans or the timer that has appeared. Is it possible that not everyone has gone through a transformation?
[Teleportation commences in one minute.]
"Isaac, you done packing yet? We only got a minute left."
Isaac poked his head over the kitchen counter like a mole escaping from the earth. "After I finish packing the water bottles. Hopefully, there's enough food and water for both of us. We don't exactly know where we're going and what awaits us once we get teleported."
"That is true. There is also the case of whether there will be others in a similar situation like us getting teleported or not."
I turned the tv off with a press and lifted myself off the couch. "Whichever outcome comes forth, we will deal with it. Together. Like we always have."
"We only have each other to rely on," he finished, still grinning.
A few seconds later, Isaac had just finished packing our supplies. The green backpack was filled with provisions such as granola bars, chips, nuts, a protein bar, and water bottles. Slinging it on his back, he strolled over to me. Isaac holds his arm out, fist out. I instantly knew what he was going for and I returned the favor. We both watched the countdown in silence. Thousands of possibilities flooded my brain, making it hard to focus on what would happen next. Will we have to fight something dangerous or is it all about survival?
[Teleportation commences in five... four... three... two...]
[.....]
[Teleportation halted due to interference]
Hm? Interference?
[Rerouting Destination]
Wait wait wait...
[New destination found]
Isaac glanced at me worriedly. "Laila, this doesn't sound good at all. I think we might be getting screwed over intentionally."
"Obviously, since there was some sort of interference."
[Teleporting users Laila and Isaac to a Dungeon]
And there it is… The worst scenario came to mind reading the word Dungeon. With everything having similarities to those in a video game such as the Status screen and stronger bodies, we are now being forcefully transported to a Dungeon. Death is more than likely to occur if we were to go about this recklessly. Knowing Isaacs's personality...
"Isaac, hold my hand while we're getting transported! I don't want us separated."
"Great idea!"
Hands firmly gripped, white particles appear below our feet. It slowly slithers around our bodies, attempting to encase us as all we could see was a white wall surrounding us like a box, nervously standing by. Moments later, a message appears.
[Arrived At Dungeon: ####]