First Carnal Shift

Few moments later, Romeo was standing in what seemes to look like a railway station with his trusty backpack still tightly strapped to his back. Though Alfred has suggested taking more possessions, Romeo politely refuse due to the fact that he doesn't possess so much stuffs except the backpack which he tends to keep on him at all times.

Sweeping his gaze across the waiting station, the sight of people chattering and moving with the occasional sounds of laughter and yelling were the things that greeted him. Although those in the slums are known to be degenerate, that doesn't necessarily imply that they don't work hard to make a decent living neither does it mean that they shouldn't live their lives to the fullest.

After standing for quite some time, Alfred soon return to Romeo and handed him a ticket which he went to buy earlier.

"Come on, our train is here already." Alfred gesture towards Romeo and the duo move towards the train which stopped and passengers started alighting.

The world might be in an era where there is simply no limit to the technological marvels that are in existence but such marvels are sight and privileges meant only for those who are in the better part of the world. While others use Spatial Port or wings for transportation, those living in the slums are condemned to old school technologies such as railway.

Romeo took in a deep breath as he sat in his seat next to Alfred. With the train starting to move, Romeo let his mind wander around about thoughts of what the future seems to hold for him.

Earlier today, after breaking the news to Alfred about unlocking his Carnal Gene, the old man has simply suggested that he enrol into a school which would help him in developing his potential, something that Romeo feels he needs desperately. Because of such, he and alfred are on their way to the only Spatial Port left in the slums where they shall be teleported to Land Climax which according to Alfred is the location of the school that Romeo is about to enroll in.

Even with the excitement gleaming in his eyes about the thrills the future tends to hold for him, Romeo still couldn't stop the raging sound of his heart which helps to remind him of the anxiety he is feeling as to the uncertainties that lies ahead.

For the first time in the odd eighteen years of his life, he is going to live a life away from the slum he has grown to be accustomed to which made him excited but the fear for the unknown which he knows his inevitable is another major reason for Romeo's heart to almost jump out of his ribcage.

Next to him, Alfred has already doze off as they have been moving for the past one hour now. Although the urge to sleep is also affecting Romeo, nevertheless, he kept his eyes peeled with the expectations of the future that awaits him.

Two hours into their journey, something strange begins to happen. Suddenly, the wheels of the train screeched against it's rails and at first, Romeo thought it was normal considering the effects of friction but moment later, the train begins to shake violently that it seems as though the earth was trembling and eventually, the train flew off it's tracks with a tremendous force that caused most of the passengers severe injuries.

It collides with a nearby hill, provided that they were already in a mountainous area, before the coaches in the train begins to dismantle piece by piece until nothing but scraps were left. Immediately this violent ordeal was over, the passengers begin to alight while some wear a confused look and others were wearing a terrified one.

They were in the outskirts of the slums. A place known to be raided not just by terrorists or bandits but also by fearsome creatures, some of which had caused humans their existence.

"Damn!" Romeo cursed under his breath as he alights the train with Alfred trailing him while coughing incessantly. One would think the old man was having an asthma attack owing to the amount of wheezing and coughing he was making but Romeo was too angry to care about the man's health.

"Calm down Romeo. The Spatial Port is just over that mountain. I bet we could get there before nightfall even if we are to walk." Alfred said after catching his breath but this only fueled the anger that Romeo was feeling.

"Calm down? Alfred, look around us. We are in the Demon's Haven, a place of terror and you expect me to calm down. I can't because we are all going to die here." Romeo lamented as he almost pulls his hair out of frustration.

"Nothing can go wrong. While we might be in the Demon's Haven, that doesn't necessarily implies that we've got something to fear. I mean when was the last time since the attack that took place." Alfred asks rhetorically as he moves to pat Romeo on the back.

"Don't worry, I would make sure to get you to that school no matter what." Alfred said reassuringly. "So can we start walking. If we don't delay, we would be able to reach the Spatial Port within two hours and we could arrive at Land Climax by evening." Alfred deduced.

Finally calming his agitated emotions, Romeo soon began to follow Alfred but they had barely move an inch when suddenly, a loud roar resounded in the area they stood. At the mention of this fearsome sound, the passengers around the vicinity froze in fear as chills went down their spine and goosebumps covers their entire body.

Even Romeo remains rooted on his spot as he asks with shaking voice, "Is that not the roar of a chimaera?"

Alfred was about to open his mouth when several strange beast started appearing from around where they stood. The beasts encompass the passengers on all sides such that it was as though they looked like a pack of wolves trapping a prey.

Sweat covers Romeo face while drenching his back also as he forces himself to gulp down the lump in his throat. Truth be told, this is the first time in his life that he is witnessing such a sight. Though he has heard stories about how travellers usually get attack during their journey within the slum, Romeo had never believed them and has always considered them to be rumours.

The reason was simple. These beasts which sprung out of the wormhole that opened a century ago are known to have been hunted and killed according to the elite forces of THRIVE. Therefore, if THRIVE was the one that personally saw to the fact that there remained nothing such as this beast among the humans, then truly it implies that the ferocious beasts have been eradicated.

But now looking at the snarling monsters with drools falling down from their oversized canines, Romeo felt that those stories might not necessarily be rumours as he thought them to be. Those stories were real and they are about to get more real as sooner or later, but Romeo is betting on sooner, he would end up becoming a delicacy to satisfy the viciousness of the beasts.

The beasts in questions are bizarre creatures. They are nothing like the rest of the creatures that exists in Earth. With metal like scales that glimmers with a cold glint and standing at about eight feet tall, the creatures are a combination of abnormality and ferociousness along with the combination of what seems to look like the head of a komodo dragon, body of a wildebeest and legs like those of a horse. On their heads lies two horns which points at about three feet tall with the sharp tip laced in what seems to be venom or some other liquid as it drips from the horns.

The gaze in the eyes of these creatures is one of bloodthirst as they circles around the passengers who were devour by their own fear to the point that some amongst them has already peed their pants while others quietly recites their last prayers as they know this is nothing but the end for them. Surrounding them are beasts whose numbers are up to twenty and they are thrice the size of an average human so they expected nothing less but damnation.

Having confirmed the status of their prey, the beasts took their positions and soon makes their move. With movements as fast as lightning, they began picking up different passengers and soon enough, the sound of bones crunching and wails filled the atmosphere accompanied by grunting and the occasional sound of snarling.

Romeo almost fainted as he saw one of the beast charging towards him fiercely. The wild pounding of his heart continues but with a more frantic pace such that Romeo could literally feel the bulge left in his chest everytime his heart pounds. Seeing the beast closing in on him, Romeo close his eyes while expecting the pain that came with the beast tearing off his bones.

But at that moment, something weird suddenly occurs. The pain he was expecting eventually came, however it was not from the tearing of his flesh or the crunching of his bones from the beast but from within his body. It was as though his bones are trying to reconfigure themselves in such a way that they began to rub against one another leading to an excruciating pain.

Romeo let out a deafening yell as his vision almost blacked out from the pain he is feeling. His insides are on fire but that is not even the worst case scenario, Romeo could feel the changes that is occuring during the moments he was in such great pain.

Alfred who stood by as he was anticipating the attack of the beast forcefully tore his gaze away from the beats as he fixed it on Romeo after hearing his scream. However, Alfred's eyes widen in shock as he stares at the phenomenal sight before him. This sight was something that he has only heard of but never got the privilege to see it nor experience it.

The eighteen years old boy who was accompanying him to Land Climax has long disappeared as in his place stood a fiery red dragon standing at over a ten feet tall with a bulky build. As the realization dawned on Alfred, he soon understand that Romeo has finally undergone his first Carnal Shift and this realization caused his heart to tremble with excitement.

The dragon let out a fierce roar which seems to part the clouds in the sky and make the earth tremble. Seeing this great beast standing majestically, the chimaeras were quick to regroup as they bare their teeth at the fiery monstrosity before them. Even the passengers around stared in awe at the great sight of the dragon, turns out that the seemingly harmless and innocent teenager whom they rode with in the same train is a member of the aristocratic House Of Dragons.

Meanwhile, as everyone stares in awe at him, Romeo was incredibly shock within him. This can really be considered as the greatest day in all of the days he has lived. His first Carnal Shift was a success and to make matters more blissful, his Carnal Form wasn't just ordinary but mighty, a dragon to be precise.

When it comes to ranks in THRIVE, the elites are divided according to the kind of form they take when they shift. For starters, there are several houses of shifters under THRIVE with the Dragons, the Phoenixes, and some other mighty shifters being the strongest houses in THRIVE. Each of these houses are considered to be elites amongst elites and as such they are rarely seen residing with the humans as they live in the peak of luxury, Cloud Nine.

Since Romeo ended up shifting into one of this high-class creatures, he knows that his life would never really remain the same because this is just his first step to him taking his place in Cloud Nine as a member of the House Of Dragons. And with this step, the luxurious life he has always dream of us just a Spatial Port away.