41 Phase 34: Jijin

Professor Jijin turned out to be a gray haired gentleman who walked with a cane.

"Well! What have we here?" he looked intently at Shiro and Sonia. "Well, well!"

"Uh… Professor…" Colin began.

"One Hundred Comrades!" Jijin told him, distractedly.

"What?" Colin blinked.

"You need to bring me 100 different Comrades to get my map piece." Jijin replied. "They must all meet with my approval and they are non-returnable."

"Non-returnable… wait… you mean…?!" Colin stared.

"You'll have to Transfer them to me. And you won't get them back." Jijin replied.

"One Hundred Comrades?!" Colin spluttered.

"Yep." Jijin answered. "Those are the rules."

"What are you going to do with a hundred Comrades?!" Colin demanded.

"Well, I'm a Breeder. What do you think I'm going to do?" Jijin asked. "Don't worry, I treat them all well. It's my job as a Breeder to raise up strong Comrades."

"Why so many?!" Colin protested.

"Well, it's actually stated in my orders that I must ask for 100. Also, why do you think I'm called 'Professor' Jijin?"

Colin frowned. "You have students."

"Exactly." Jijin answered. "And I'd prefer my students to have everything they need on hand rather than have to travel the world trying to Tame Comrades in order to continue their studies."

"Students…?!" Colin protested. "You said they'd be treated well!"

"Don't get me wrong, young man." Jijin went on. "My students are not fumbling children. I teach the best proven Breeders from around the world! Only those who have already been Chief Breeders are allowed to take my classes and become White Coat Breeders."

"Wow…" Colin stared. "So Michi's actually a better Breeder than Larissa…"

"Michi?" Jijin shook his head. "Ah… that one. Fine girl, brilliant mind, but didn't know quite where to draw the line. You know, her experiments were incredible, but they all had one fatal flaw."

"A flaw…?!" Colin stared. He glanced at Shiro.

Shiro was one of Michi's experiments too.

"They were too independent." Jijin said. "Sometimes, they'd go against what their Travelers wanted. All three of them were eventually left by their Travelers entirely."

{Three of them…? }

"But Shiro is M-5. He's the {fifth} of Michi's Experiments!" Colin blurted.

"M-5?" Jijin turned to Shiro again. "Ah. That explains it. Yes, he does look like one of Michi's works… but it looks like she's finally learnt to stabilize her Breedings. She raised this one quite cleverly. A half-canine… with the Trait of Canine Loyalty. This one isn't going to leave you, I believe. I see she's finally managed to overcome that flaw. Have you come across M-4, by any chance?"

Colin wordlessly held out Raiki to him.

"Both M-4 and M-5? Michi must like you a lot." Jijin mused.

"M-4 was given to me by a friend." Colin explained.

"Ah. I see. I see." Jijin nodded, examining Raiki. "That explains why M-4 isn't quite so Independent, or she might have gone the same way as the others. Being given away does have its effects… but that Independent streak is going to surface again, no doubt about that…"

"Is Raiki going to leave me?" Colin asked softly.

Raiki's ears twitched.

"Well, that's really up to you, isn't it?" Jijin pointed out. "You have an advantage, because M-5 is with you, but if you treat her badly enough, she probably would."

"An advantage?" Colin blinked.

"M-5… Shiro, as you call him, is a Command-type." Jijin said. "As I'm sure you already know. The other experiments of Michi's are probably more willing to follow him than anyone else, just because they share a common background. And unless you treat him really badly, Shiro's not going to leave you. Possibly not even then."

"I have an advantage…" Colin paused. "Professor, is it possible to…"

"Gather all five of Michi's Experiments? Yes, I believe you're the only one who actually can." Jijin nodded.

"But what about Michi herself?"

"Breeders can't take back the Comrades they give out." Jijin told Colin. "That's one of the rules."

"Oh…" Colin thought about that.

Professor Jijin sighed. "Listen, Colin, that 100 Comrades request isn't going to be easy. I won't settle for little things like Common Lynxmice or Colorbits. A Sonic Wolf, fine, or a Shadow Hawk, but those are the average kind of creatures I would accept. Furthermore, I strongly suggest you bring me Tames rather than Comrades, creatures that you have not bonded and do not ever intend to Travel with."

Colin found himself, Fireheart, and Raiki all looking at Sonia.

"Yip!" Shiro barked, putting himself in front of her. "Yip!"

"And I'd also suggest not giving me that one." Jijin added. "Because she can't ever be mine."

"Why not?" Colin blinked.

"Breeders can't take back the Comrades they give out." Jijin told him.

Colin stared. He glanced from Sonia to Jijin. "Are you serious?!"

"I watched you pass by the Comrade Home." Jijin told him. "I saw Shiro, and the cats, and I wondered. I decided to test you. I never expected to see you get killed by Kran."

"Kran…?" Colin's eyes widened.

"Gaak!" said a familiar voice from across the room. Colin spun to see that greedy bird sitting there fluffing its feathers.

"That wolfcat cub is also one of my breedings." Jijin explained. "She was hurt in a quarrel with one of the others and I realized that one of them had to go. Seeing as your Command-type is a wolfcat, I figured she'd fit you better… IF you passed my test."

"What were you testing for?" Colin frowned. "I died, remember?"

"I know. I wasn't looking for strength or tactics or anything." Jijin said.

"Then?"

"I wanted to know if you had a good heart."

Colin sat down. "Great. Do you test everyone who comes to get the fifth map piece from you?"

"Not really." Jijin answered. "Just those who walk by the Comrade Home without looking for me."

Colin really groaned then.

"But back to what I was saying, young man…" Professor Jijin straightened. "You're the only one who can gather Michi's Experiments. The map piece and the 100 Comrades can wait until you're good and ready to get started. Michi's Experiments, however, will get wilder and wilder the longer they remain in desertion."

"Desertion…?" Colin wondered what it meant."

"Their original Travelers have Abandoned them." Jijin explained. "You can Tame them the same way you would any Wild, but be careful because if they don't accept you…"

"They'll attack." Colin figured.

"I don't think that will be the case, but who knows...?" Jijin said. "The longer you wait, the harder it will be, but the stronger you are when you meet them, the more they'll respect you. Also if you wait too long, they'll become Frenzied Wilds."

"I've heard of that before. What does it mean, really?" Colin questioned.

"Frenzieds are Wilds or Comrades gone mad, or hate people so much, they kill Travelers every chance they get. They're almost impossible to Tame – they must be sealed."

"Sealed?" Colin blinked.

"Don't bother asking me. I don't know how. You'll have to ask one of the Knight Orders, like the Justice Knights, or the Wind Knights."

"Wind Knights…?" Colin blinked. "Who are they?"

"Ask for them the next time you need to deliver a package far and fast." Jijin suggested. "Anyway, Colin, don't wait too long before going after Michi's Special Experiments. Those things are so powerful, letting them go Frenzied would be disastrous."

***

After a bit of talking with Jijin about Michi's experiments, Colin to realize he'd already seen two of them.

"You've seen them recently?" Jijin stared.

"That white lioness, the one you call M-1, was pinned under a tree." Colin nodded. "M-2, the black Gryphon, as you call it, was helping protect it. When M-1 was in trouble, Raiki and Shiro went to save her. In short, Professor, I've seen four of them in action together."

"And they were having trouble fighting ants?!" Jijin shook his head. "That sounds terribly weak."

Colin frowned. "Katrin says it's their numbers that is the problem."

Jijin sighed. "I know Megants, and I've seen the records of M-1. The White Lioness could wipe out the entire nest on her own. No, Colin, something else happened before that. Something hurt M-1 badly enough that she couldn't get out from under a fallen tree and needed help. M-2 can't be as weak as you describe either, not unless he was already exhausted. Michi's breedings are all deadly even without a Dreamer in command."

Knowing Raiki and Shiro, Colin had to admit, Jijin was probably right. "Then what happened to them?"

"How should {I} know?!" Professor Jijin threw up his hands. "Something serious! Maybe some Purple Badge Dreamer threw an army at them and died before you arrived! Maybe Michi lured them together, and did something to weaken them in an attempt to recapture them, but didn't quite succeed. Maybe they decided to raid a dungeon together and came out tired when lightning hit a tree and it dropped on M-1! Mercy, my boy, anything could have happened!"

"I'm not your boy." Colin pointed out.

Jijin groaned. "The point is, you know what they look like and where they are. Go get them! Bring an army if you can!"

"And where would I get an army?!" Colin demanded. "I only have seven Comrades, and they're hard enough to keep track of as it is!"

"You're a Green Badge, boy! Green Badges are able to organize squads!" Jijin snorted. "What did you think Command-type Comrades were for?!"

"Squads?" Colin blinked.

"Small groups of Comrades led by a Command-type Comrade." Jijin explained. "Usually, there are four to five Comrades in a squad, but I've seen squads as few as two and as many as twelve."

"So all seven of my Comrades should be in a single squad led by Shiro…" Colin figured.

Jijin shook his head. "That might be your only option right now, but really, boy, that's not how it's supposed to work. You've got cats and wolves growling at each other already. You should put them in different squads."

"But I only have one Command-type!"

"Two." Jijin nodded to Sonia. "She's a Command-type too."

"What about my cats?!" Colin protested. "And my bear! And my Rainduck! And my Bubblesaur!"

Jijin scratched his head. "I'll leave that to you to figure out. Try putting the cats and Lynxmouse under the Wolfcat, and the bear under your new cub. The Bubblesaur and Rainduck, you should leave out of the squads and command them yourself. Like you're doing right now."

"Put the Raiki and Fireheart under Shiro…" Colin paused, looking at them both. "Professor, Raiki's still recovering from the transfer."

"Well, put her in a squad {after} she recovers." Jijin shrugged. "The point is, boy, you can command lots of Comrades by squads. Just tell the squad leader what to do, and it'll handle the rest."

That made sense. Shiro did that all the time. "How do you know a Comrade is a Command-type?"

"Traits, mainly." Jijin said. "Also its stats, intelligence, wisdom and wit. You should try it out and see for yourself."

***

Florence was smiling broadly and Jijin not so broadly when they waved goodbye as he left Forest Village.

"Wonder where Michi went to?" Colin said, trying to call her only to find that her comms was busy. "Or whether she's still on her way here?"

"Yip." Shiro told Sonia again.

"Yiff." Sonia struggled.

"Yip." Shiro repeated patiently.

"Auuu…" Sonia wailed.