Chapter 38 - Beast Sanctuary

"So what time is it, Pact?"

"Why should I tell you, human. You think you can order me around now that you've succeeded at forming a single Pact? I'm not going to let this slide. Give me 200 pushups right now or I won't let you return."

"What, you're going to stop me?" Delta said, chuckling to himself at Pact's anger.

"You'll regret that."

Suddenly, a high-pitched screeching sound erupted out from the ground besides Delta, and every beast within a few hundred metres turned its head, their eyes full of rage as they stared at Delta.

"Um… Pact… what have you done…"

"You need some extra discipline, so I'm going to give it to you."

The beasts seemed to screech out their own sounds before hurtling towards Delta, each of them giving off enough killing intent to terrify even a seasoned warrior.

"Pact! What did you even say!"

"I said you slept with their mothers and enslaved their sisters," Pact replied, sounding rather pleased with himself.

"You sociopath!"

Looking around, Delta searched for a place he could hide and wait this all out, but there wasn't one.

He tried looking inside his core again for the door, but the door was locked with a sign saying 'Currently Unavailable' with a terribly drawn dragon's face on it.

"Now apologise to me, boy, and I might let you go."

"Damn it, fine. I'm sorry. Now let me go."

"Sorry I couldn't quite hear you. Maybe if you bow down to me while you say it, I might be able to hear you better."

"You bastard."

Delta hurriedly kneeled down and said, "I'm sorry. That enough for you?"

"Eh, for now. The door should open now."

Hurriedly, Delta looked into his core, deciding to leave Major behind to get later. He had no idea how he was meant to bring him along, and with the beasts about to rip him to shreds, Major would simply have to be a worthy sacrifice.

Major was freaking out, jumping around and trying to get Delta's attention, however entirely failing.

"I'M TOO YOUNG TO DIE," it tried to scream, struggling on the spot as its mouth refused to move.

Delta, unaware of this, headed towards the exit in his core, reaching for the door and exiting.

[Would the User like to bring Contracted Beasts with him?]

[Y/N]

'Oh? I suppose he'll live a little longer, huh.'

Delta pressed 'Y', and suddenly felt space distort again as he arrived in the training arena again.

"We're back, Pact. What now?"

"The lesson's over. Scram."

"As you wish." Delta chuckled, walking over to the terrified Major.

"You can speak now."

"HUMAN WHERE AM I? WHAT HAVE YOU DONE? WHAT HAVE I DONE TO DESERVE THIS?"

"Hmm… you're in a Magic Academy, I formed a Supremacy Pact with you… and nothing… I was just testing something."

"You dare reduce me to a mere test subject?"

"Well if you don't like it, beat me in a fight. Although I don't suppose you can, considering you're just a rank 1."

After that, Major quietened down a little.

'Now what do I do with him… I don't suppose the System would let me place the beasts somewhere...'

[Would the User like to store 'Major' in the Beast Sanctuary?]

[Y/N]

'How convenient…'

He pressed 'Y', and whilst still quivering in fear, Major slowly disappeared, appearing in the middle of a square of lush forest and trees that he had never seen in his life.

"Erm, human? I think your pet just disappeared…"

[To enter the Beast Sanctuary, the User must simply wish to do so]

[Be warned, however, as there are locations where the User will be prevented from accessing the Sanctuary]

'Simple enough…'

"Hey, Pact? I'm going to relieve myself quickly."

"You humans have no bladder control! No wonder you're inferior to us Dragons! Well get lost! The lesson's over anyway, so I'm not responsible for you."

Walking out of the Arena and out of Pact's view, Delta mentally willed himself to enter the so-called 'Beast Sanctuary', and suddenly, he felt space distort as he arrived in a place he didn't recognise, standing in front of a gate to something that reminded him of a zoo.

Immediately on his left was an area labelled 'Plot 1', and inside it was a forest of wild trees and grass from species Delta didn't recognise.

In small text underneath it, a label written 'Currently Inhabited by Major'.

Delta tried to enter, but he found that there seemed to be an invisible barrier between the Plot and the Walkway where Delta was.

[Would you like to enter this Plot?]

[Y/N]

Delta pressed 'Y', and the barrier dispersed temporarily, allowing Delta to enter.

Walking in, Delta shouted, "Major! Come over here!"

Major, who had been freaking out, heard the familiar voice and felt his body begin walking towards Delta, completely ignoring his wish to escape.

Failing the mental battle with himself, Major found himself in front of Delta, his body sitting like an obedient dog whilst his mind churned in fear.

"What are you going to do with me, human?" he said.

"I'm not sure really. What do you want me to do?"

"Set me free?"

"Nice try, but no. I have a few things I want to test on you…"

Looking at the system menu, Delta opened up the sub-section in the 'Pacted Beasts' section that read 'Beast Sanctuary', and inside this menu, Delta was able to configure each of the 'Pens'.

Pressing the icon for 'Pen 1', Delta saw the options to change the 'Topography' and 'Residents'.

To experiment, Delta pressed the 'Topography' button and changed it from 'Deciduous Forest' to 'Volcano', and suddenly, the trees vanished, leaving a bare and dusty ground in its place.

"H-hey where'd my trees go?"

Suddenly, the ground erupted in countless cracks and quakes in the ground, shaking the area like an earthquake as the earth rose to form a small volcano each billowing in smoke and flames as the skies turned black with particulates that filled the air.

"W-what have you done? Where are my trees? Why do you hate me so much…"

Delta, who was entirely focused on the plot changing, looked around in shock as he admired the power of the System.

'How powerful…'

Pleased with his findings, Delta switched the Plot to a few other Topographies, changing it to 'Tropical Ocean' and watching the volcano get replaced with water before changing it to 'Mountain' and seeing the area get replaced with icy mountain caps. Satisfied, Delta returned it to 'Deciduous Forest' like before.

Major had been risen into the air, dropped into an ocean and risen up once more, and he was completely terrified of his new master.

With a newfound will to survive, Major approached Delta slowly, reaching close enough to strike out before dropping to the floor, its head on the ground and its mind entirely submitted.

"Master."

[Congratulations! 'Major' now recognises you as his master]

[User is now able to Synergise with 'Major']

'Didn't Pact say it would be difficult?!'

"Hey, Major, how about we synergise now?"

"S-sure."

"Oh don't be like that, we're partners now."

"Y-yes, Sir."

'This is going to take a while…'

"So, Major, how do we do it?"

"We need to link our Pact Energy onto the same wavelength, S-Sir. Your core should be vibrating ever so slightly. They need to vibrate at the same frequencies and timing."

Delta looked into his own core again, staring ever so closely at the Pact Energy that had been built up inside of him, and as it switched forms, Delta managed to sense a slight wave emanating from the Energy.

Focusing on this wave, Delta began to pick up on a repeating feeling, like a drumbeat or something similar. It continued to beat steadily, seeming as if it were a heart beating in rhythm.

Returning to his senses, Delta said, "how do I check yours?"

"Use the bond between us to see my core. If you do it right, I'll be able to feel your resonance, and I can align our frequencies. Be warned, however, this will take a lot of energy to maintain it."

Delta did as he said, feeling a tether between his Energy and a foreign source that he could only assume was Major's.

He traced the tether back to its source, and after a little bit of fiddling, Delta found himself in a foreign core.

Contrary to his own, Major's core only contained a single type of energy, and rather than switching appearances between beasts, it simply stood still in the form of the 'Fiery Tusked Boar'.

'How interesting… wait will I be able to shapeshift then?'

Keen on the idea, Delta imagined himself changing form, focusing on growing wings or becoming larger, but all he really did was make Major look at him in even greater disappointment.

"Ahem. Well, let's do this."

Major could feel a terrifying level of sheer force coming from Delta's Pact Energy, and seeing this, he knew one thing for sure. Whoever his new master was, he wasn't normal.

Slowly but surely, the two frequencies slowly got closer to each other, reaching a midpoint where both Delta and Major had begun to stabilise.

After what felt like a year, the duo finally managed to pull it off, their Energies resonating with each other perfectly.

[User has synergised with 'Major']

[Congratulations on achieving Synergy!]

[Intelligence + 1]

[Feat (Ultra Rare) : 100% Attribute Synergy]

['100% Synergy? Are you long lost twins or something?']

[All Stats + 1]

[Synergy will allow the User to utilize the abilities of the contracted Beast]

'A Feat?! Woah… I need more of these…'

[Magic is already at full capacity]

[Would the User like to Rank Up?]

[Y/N]

Knowing what he did now, Delta quickly pressed 'N'.

[Would the User like to know more about Feats?]

[Y/N]

Delta pressed yes, his curiosity getting the better of him.

[Feats are awarded by the System when the User manages to perform certain tasks and complete difficult challenges. Feats are ranked as such:

-Common

-Uncommon

-Rare

-Ultra Rare

-Epic

-Legendary

-Mythical

Higher ranking Feats offer greater rewards. Achieved feats can be viewed in the Achievements List]

Dela instantly felt the benefits of synergising with Major. The speed of his actions had increased, and after striking the air a few times, he could feel the increased force in the blows. His body felt taller and larger than before, and he also felt invigorated, as if his body had been revitalised to a higher level. It almost felt like he could run through a wall!

Looking at the System Stats, they now said:

[Stats:]

[Rank: Initiate II]

[Strength: 12(+2)]

[Agility: 12]

[Dexterity: 12]

[Vitality: 12(+1)]

[Endurance:12(+2)]

[Intelligence:15]

[Magic: 19]

[Reach 19 on all Stats to Rank Up]

'The stats in the round brackets must be the boost from the synergy. Damn, looks like the feat didn't increase my Magic stat because it's already maxed.' Delta noted.

Planning on testing out his new abilities, Delta willed himself to return to the Physical Realm, and shortly after, he was back in the corridor, his mind still reeling at his sudden gain in power.