Registration Complete!

Everything felt like a blur as Marshal was finally understanding his predicament. Going to sleep an average adult man, to finding yourself being turned into a baby lizard-thing called a Kobold was bit of a brain rattler. Oh, also that everything he once knew was destroyed, that also casted the bit mental fuster-clucking on his already tender mental state. In his fugue state he retained some observations about the culture of these kobolds:

1. Hatchlings were raised together in a giant communal parenting thing, the term it took a village to raise a child was no joke. Though to be honest when there were at most 50 hatchlings in one egg group, there was a reason why most of the tribe spent taking care of the new generation.

2. Kobold hatchlings were born with most of their motor-functions active, just getting used to their movement and muscle groups was the first things most hatchlings spent their first few days of life.

3. The tribe elders were the defacto babyminders. I guess you can consider it the retirement job of all the kobolds that got old enough to live this far. Teaching the young so that maybe they can live long enough to repeat the process. This Egg group's Elder was that wispy mustachioed wrinkle-monger that he first met.

4. Kobolds keep referring to something called 'The Big Boss' in such a reverent tone you could say they treated them like gods. the rest of the tribe that wasn't meant to baby carers were off doing the bidding of whom/what ever this Boss was.

5. And the last observation, Kobold's as a general species were a little bit soft in the head. To make up for that, they were squirrely, stubborn, and tenacious. Fear to them was tied mostly to whenever 'The Boss' was angry or not.

The rest of the hatchlings were busy scrapping or play fighting with each other during most of the time they were growing up but with Marsh being the last to hatch, he was the prime target for harassment. The first to break out of their shells seemed to be the physically stronger of the bunch which they lorded over everyone. The cycle of abuse worked its way down till Marsh was the universal punching bag. It also didn't help his case that while the other kobolds were a speckling of warm reds and brown scales, his own were a dingy grey with black specks.

Talk about being the ugly duckling of the group.

The fact he was the most calm out of all hatchlings made the adult kobolds worried. Old Garp, The elder of Marsh's egg group, was the only one that seemed to be thankful that at least one charge didn't pull on his prodigious Fu Manchu.

"Let the youngin's sort demselfs out, if'n he lives, he'll be an interestin' one te watch." the goofy old lizard would rattle at the other adults when they brought up such things like that. Maybe it was 30 years of life experience, maybe it was his cobweb covered brain telling him so, but he knew that he should observe the late hatchling to at least his name day.

A week of learning how the world worked from Garp, how the social structure of the group worked from the rest of the hatchlings, and his retained memories of his past life made Marsh a very weary little kobold. What concerned him most, was the fact he would receive something akin to the dream that got him into this mess.

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Kobold (Variant) has not been registered yet. Please standby for Registration.

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It was almost enough to break whatever sanity he had left. What was the whole point of all this reincarnation business if it was a bit worse than his previous living situation? At least it was somewhat easy to trick the rest of the hatchlings since they were dimwitted but if he got caught doing it, he sure as hell paid for it later. It was on the last day of the week that Garp and a bunch of the other adults herded them to deeper into the cave.

It was interesting to finally see what the cave was like, outside of the nursery. There were hundreds of kobolds working at the cave walls; mining shining minerals of varying types and sizes before carting them off to another location in the cave. It was variable hive of activity, there were sections of the cave that held the fresh kills of the hunters that waited to be processed, there was hovel spot where stone tools were made for the daily toils, and there was even something akin to a large carved out section that seemed to house the sleeping quarters of the all the adults. But as one got deeper into the cave, Marsh noticed the changing of his surroundings.

The walls progressively be came smoother to the point that it looked like volcanic glass, the ceiling rose higher and higher till it was just a dark abyss, and the ground beneath their feet began to turn into something like an ancient cobbled path. It filled him with an odd sense of awe, but in the pit of his gut, he just felt like that this was leading him somewhere that would spell the end of his very short 2nd life. It was another few minutes of walking that finally reached two gargantuan, stone doors that took most of the adults to even open just one. The chamber past them was filled with splendor: piles of what looked like gold reach up towards the ceiling like sky scrappers, glittering gems and baubles reflecting the surprised faces of the entrants. But treasure wasn't the source of shock, awe and fear that plastered the faces of all the hatchlings.

In the middle of the chamber, coiled around a large crystalline structure that throbbed with power and light, was a hulking mass of muscle and scales. It couldn't have been less than 50 feet tall, with four brawny limbs that sprawled out against the ground with each ending with large claws. Its head, which was held on a long powerful neck, was wreathed in a crown of curled horns and when it yawned its mouth was a chasm of dagger like teeth. It looked down at the collection of pathetic creatures entering its trove with poisonous green eyes and let out what could be a huff of annoyance. It was then that it began to speak in deep regal tone that shook the bones of all the little kobolds.

"Is it really that time already? I swear on my own crimson scales that it was just a few moments ago that I gave names to the last batch!"

It was then that old Garp hobbled up to the front of the group as if there wasn't a mythical creature that could easily squish him. "Listen 'ere ya old coot! Dat was over 4 months ago and ya know it!"

Everyone of them just held their breath as if they were just waiting for suicidal old to be enveloped in flames. Marsh was going to miss the old man that taught him so much for the past week. But everyone, save for the old kobold was dumbfounded, when the chamber erupted in a thunderous laugh coming from the red Tyrant.

"I swear, you never change! Also, who are you calling old? I am an immortal being that grows more powerful with age, you look like a prune that was dried under the sun for an epoch!"

"Ye', but at least I have a better mustache than yer scaly mug! Now ya have a jeb to do and ya better do it! Else I will get to ramblin' abouta good old days like the codger I be!"

"Oh for the love of all Esmerda. Fine, fine! I will do the naming ceremony! But if I find them inadequate I am eating them!" The Monstrous being flicked his gaze back to the Hatchlings with another huff. Getting in a seated position and spreading their tremendous wings in a display of might. "Behold I am the Master of this realm, The fire of the mountain, The true heir of-", he was interrupted as Garp, and his cast iron stones, motioned for them to speed it up, ".... The Crimson Dragon Verndal. On this day you shall be given your name and thus finally be seen by the eyes of the gods of Esmerda. Please step forward to make your mark."

As soon as Verndal had finished his speech it was the biggest of the clutch that came barreling through the crowd. Looking as he saw god and wasn't impressed. "If old fart Garp isn't afraid ya, then you must just a big, fat fa-" The poor idiot didn't even finish his mistake as he was devoured by the Monstrous maw.

"Ahh, there's always at least one. Now," he let out a small jet of flame as he regained his composure, "does anyone else something to say about my weight?"

Without anymore outbursts, each hatchling was given a name by the Ancient dragon one after another. When they received their names it was as if their body had a growth spurt, growing to at least the same size of regular adult, with a slight shimmer around their body. Finally after a long wait Marsh made his way to the dragon with a look of scared deference. Verndal lowered his head and eyeballed the small creature as if concentrating.

"Hmmm..... You are different from the others aren't you short stack?"

"I-I am bit odd looking as I understand it, my lord," Marsh stammered, using all those years of management pleasing techniques he had back as a human.

"Ha! My lord?! Ooh I do like the way you speak to me young one. Much more polite than someone with an idiotic mustache." He gave the old kobold a bit of a glare before looking back. "What I meant is, you're not an everyday kobold. A good deal weaker than most, but a bit more thought in that head of yours. I am going to give you an older name. Something that has a bit more flair."

Verndal brought his massive claw up to the small hatchling and pressed the point against his chest. I swelling of warmth began to fill the tiny body, his senses washing away till it was just the two of them in the room. "From an era long since past, held by someone of great import to me and to the world at large. The name and mana I give onto you, shall mark you to this world."

It felt as if that warmth was condensing and burning into his soul, his body wracked with growing pains as it began to swell to that of a spindly adult kobold. "From this day forward, You are marked as Marz. May the power of this name bring you a long journey towards the marvels of Esmerda."

As the energy finally condensed into the core of his being, Marz felt his senses return but also a tidal wave of exhaustion. His limbs felt heavy and wobbly as if he had hatched once more. To those looking at the newly named kobold he had gone through an odd transformation. He was the tallest out of the whole group being about four feet compared to the average 3 feet but his limbs were thin boney as if to make up for the lack of muscle. The oddest thing about it was little fluff of feathers that sprouted onto his head, matching his mottled grey and black scheme.

"Well, It think that's it for naming day. Everyone, as much as I adore being looked at like the Magnificent being I am.... GET OUT OF MY TROVE!!" The red dragon roared out, causing all the little visitors to leave him to his vast riches. A mysterious force causing the massive stone doors to slam shut behind the leaving crowd. Once the dragon was sure that he was alone, he let out a tired sigh as he curled the warming crystal. Naming a creature also took a small bit of magic from the person naming them, and after years of naming the little imps, he had gotten used to the amount he spent. But that last one, the odd little kobold he named after an ancient friend of his, it was as if he was filling something vast, like an unfilled lake of potential. What was he going to do in the future? what will he become? Whatever it was, at least he won't be a boring little minion.

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It was late into the day, based on the color of the moss in the cave, when the newly named kobolds were lead to their own little dens. They were a rounded mud huts that were held together by sticks and other debris found in the cave itself. There was enough space for a little bit of personalization but most of it was taken up by a round nest of leathers and pelts for a bed. Marz just immediately reenacted the scene from before when human and flopped onto the make shift bed. When he closed his eyes he found himself in that same darkness. The prompt finally changing after a week.

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Registration Complete! Welcome to the Esmerda Transmigration system. Here is your current Status.

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Name: Marz (Marshal)

Race: Kobold (variant)

Occupation: Reincarnate

Level: 1/100

Agility: 3

Strength: 1

Stamina: 1

Intelligence: 10

Wits: 5

Magic: N/A

Charm: 5

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Skills:

E.T.S. lvl: 1/1000

Dark vision lvl: 1/5

Mental Map lvl 1/6

Mining lvl: 1/99

Watchful Eye of the Trickster lvl: N/A

Monster comprehension lvl: N/A

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The only thing going through Marz's tired mind was just a simple phrase: Oh no.