Devouring an Artificial Form

Damon staggered backwards in shock. He patted his eyes to see if it was really his. 

"My eyes! It's altering!" Damon shouted, looking at the Dragon for answers. 

"I can… see that," The Dragon replied nonchalantly before gesturing at the poisonous arrow. 

"Ah, yes!" Damon exclaimed, completely forgetting about their deal. He hurriedly ran toward the Dragon, but when he clutched the arrow, his body went through. "I can't do it!" he announced. 

The Dragon huffed before its head dropped to the floor from extreme fatigue. Its remaining energy was drained from assembling a contract, and it didn't have vitality left since the arrow kept sucking its essence. 

"Dragon! Are you okay?" Damon asked in concern. He could see the creature was in pain, but he had no clue what to do. He needed to have a physical body to help the Dragon. 

"Maya! Where are you? I need your aid!" Damon shouted in hopes Mata was lurking around. 

[ System Activating. ]

Maya's voice rang in Damon's ears, causing him discomfort. He tried his best to stay conscious, or it would be too late to save the Dragon from cessation. 

"Maya! Help me! I need to take the poisonous arrow, but I can't!" Damon shouted in a hurry. 

[ Instruction: The physical body can be attained after eating a vessel. ]

"What the heck!?" Damon gasped in disbelief. He thought Maya would give him a hand, but she suggested a gruesome task for him. His eyes glanced around before darting at Alfie's sword. 

"No! That's not right," Damon shook his head. Turning Alfie back into a human was the reason why he accepted the Dragon's contract, only to eat him. 

"Ack!" The Dragon puked out blood, indicating it wouldn't stay long enough. 

"Ah! Don't die!" Damon shouted in desperation. His brain rattled at who to save first. 

'If I choose Alfie, the Dragon will die. Hence, I have no help bringing Alfie back as human, but if I pick the Dragon, Alfie will be eaten by me… That's too much!' Damon thought in his mind. He slumped down to the ground while weighing both choices. 

"Maya, are there other vessels closer to me?" Damon asked in hopes of finding another option. 

[ None, except an Artificial human! ]

"Artificial?" Damon asked in surprise. "Where?" he added. 

[ Obsidian Long Sword: A sword embodied by the magic, blood of three generations of mages and a drop of Dragon's scale. Artificial Form: Human. ]

Damon slowly turned his head toward Alfie. His hand trembled as he touched the blade, feeling the coldness to his skin. 

"Maya, are you implying about Alfie?" Damon asked to be sure. 

[ Alfie: The key to unlock the Dragon of Wind's hidden chamber. ]

Damon felt the air in his lungs was crushed. He snapped at the Dragon with blood boiling from anger. 

"You lied to me! You said you'll help me bring Alfie back as a human, but he's not in the first place!" Damon shouted at the Dragon. He felt betrayed, but he didn't know whose fault it was.

"How... will I know... that," The Dragon replied weakly, forcing itself to speak. 

Damon was dumbfounded. He wanted to blame the Dragon, but no one would know the truth about Alfie except the Obsidian Order. 

"I'm sorry, but this is overwhelming," Damon stepped back from the Dragon and went to the sword. He wiped his forming tears and gathered his wits to focus on the situation. 

"Maya, can you analyze Alfie's sword and if there's even a tiny life force inside him?" Damon asked, preparing himself for the truth. 

[ Alfie: An Obsidian Sword; Artificial human. Life force: Used to open the Dragon of Wind's portal. Status: Empty. ]

Damon pursed his lips. He breathed deeply and glanced at the dying Dragon. 

"Haha... empty. Does that mean he's nothing but a pile of metal?" Damon realized. He slumped to the ground as the truth hit him hard.

[ Answer: Yes ]

Damon chuckled as his coping mechanism. He burst out loud with his eyes swirling like crazy. He felt the world collapsed on him after attaining a goal. 

On the other hand, the Dragon only observed Damon having a crisis while preserving its energy. It was amused but somewhat worried at the shift of his attitude. 

"Maya, tell me. What will happen if I eat Alfie?" Damon asked further to ensure he would do it right.

[ Answer: You will gain his Artificial Form. ]

"I'll do it," Damon replied in acceptance. He stepped closer to the sword and placed his hand on the handle. In his mind, there was nothing to lose since Alfie was no longer alive. 

[ Understood. ]

Damon watched his hand swallow the sword, removing it from the stone. It travelled and settled on his torso before releasing a black ink that covered his entire body. 

At the same time, the portal underneath the Dragon vanished, causing it to fall from the bottom of the tower in a loud stud.

"Dragon!" Damon shouted and unconsciously jumped without thinking. His spiritual shape slowly turned into Alfie's body, copying his appearance and by the time it was completed. He collided with the Dragon.

[ Congratulations! Transformation is complete. ]

"Ah!" Damon shouted at the impact, but he didn't feel any pain. He immediately stood up and grabbed the arrow that dug deeper into the Dragon's flesh.

"Are you okay?" Damon asked in concern. He looked at the arrow and noticed his hand became smaller than usual. 

"Hmm," The Dragon hummed but remained unmoving. It was so weak that it couldn't even open its eyes. 

"Rest," Damon whispered, feeling extreme fatigue as his body slowly adjusted to the transformation. It didn't take long before his consciousness slowly faded away, and sleep engulfed his system. 

---

It took several hours before Damon felt a shuffle beneath him. 

"Ugh," Damon groaned and slowly woke up. His vision was blurry, but he could see gigantic green eyes staring at him.

"AH!" Damon screamed and crawled back, making the Dragon roll its eyes at his reaction. 

It took a second before memories of what had happened returned to Damon's brain. He sat up while massaging his temples. 

"You've... changed," The Dragon said while observing Damon's new appearance. 

"I guess," Damon replied. He wasn't surprised since he ate Alfie after all. Looking straight at the Dragon, he could see multiple buttons as if he had a screen. 

What caught Damon's attention was an envelope popping at the center.