Arthur Tompson's POV

I never thought I would be sent to yet another world, one even more fantastical than the last. The people, the knowledge, and while I am a bit put off about being shoved onto a planet that is every Apocalypse known to Existence, the people I was teleported with welcomed me with open arms, warm albeit confused smiles given what I am…this world has so much knowledge that I never once thought possible, something beyond my grasp both in the fields of magic and technology, as I was currently in my 'room' which I have made into a lab/doctor's office as I was currently studying the brand new Cells of this reality, seeing how intricate it was yet so simple…"This world is full of surprises…" I chuckled.

I am many things. First and foremost, a doctor. While they had an AI that performed their medical needs, they hadn't had a proper physician in the whole ten years they've all been on this planet. I found that rather distasteful and was hoping to take on that role personally. While that AI, Vega, was well versed in all forms of medical knowledge, I personally think a human, or humanoid, touch was better than what the AI could offer.

I was mostly hoping to aid the children. Heather's children were all incredible, hybrids between a mammalian and aquatic species that shared traits with both. Their biology was nothing short of beautiful chaos, simultaneously showing the potential of life and biology while also giving evolution and the laws of nature the middle finger.

Hex alone was incredible, despite being the species of wolf that miss Nanny was, his DNA showed that Heather and Casey were indeed his biological parents. Something that back home shouldn't be possible, but here the tests said it to be truth.

Simply incredible.

I was basically having to unlearn and relearn all I knew of biology and genetics. It was incredible.

As I examined these latest samples I heard the door open. Turning, I was surprised to see a familiar winged ram.

"Hello… doctor." Mantis greeted.

"Hello Mantis." I nodded, putting down my notebook and turning my wheeled desk chair to face him. "How are you doing today?" I asked politely, keeping my tone soft and level so I didn't accidentally cause another…incident.

"Calm." He said, taking a seat on one of the spare chairs. "Emotions are still… new to me. My memories being back now have led to… reactions I wasn't expecting to experience."

I sighed. "I…was given the chance to look into your memories, with your mother's consent." I admitted. "And…I fully understand why you did it. You have PTSD, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder…and when you figured out I was a Doctor your body started to panic and react on it's own…wanting to destroy or harm the one that did all those horrible things to you and your family even though I wasn't the one to do it." I explained. "I've…seen that kind of reaction many times with some of my friends…"

"... I know that my… family, Matthew, Zena… they aren't here. Still, all I knew in the moment I realized you were… a doctor, was that fear of what you could do… even though he wasn't here, my first thought was what I promised Zena… protect Matthew… I don't have him to protect anymore. I ended myself so he could live and… I never expected to be… alive, to have to live on my own and be… my own entity. For all contexts sake… I really shouldn't even be here."

"The world works in mysterious ways." I admitted. "This is the second time I've been teleported to a new world, or 'Isekai' from what your mother and some others have told me." I said honestly. "My time here…I shouldn't be here, given I just finished defeating the real bad guy of the world I was sent to by their Goddess…but the genetic disease I had was killing me faster than I could recover…I should have been dead then and there…"

"Right. Nanny told me about your abnormal blood mutation. If I was to compare it to anything back home, it's similar to Gorgon Venom. While the stare of these creatures turns someone to stone instantly, their venom can be used as a poison that does it slower, and from the inside out. It can be cured, like the stare, but this requires Gorgon blood and even then it doesn't undo the damages it can cause before the antidote is administered."

"Oh you have Gorgon's as well?" I asked. "I remember having to fight those pesky things, some of the church used their poison in some vain attempt to give people stone like skin to be stronger and and more durable…durable yes, but the people were in constant threat of true petrification if they didn't get a proper dose of pure blood or if they stopped moving for a certain period of time…" I shook my head…those poor fools.

"Some people were merged with them and became Gorgon Nokori. They had the abilities of the Gorgon but because of that most had to live their lives as if they were blind, some having surgery to remove their eyes or others living with wrappings around their eyes."

"I learned a bit about the Nokori from Nanny and your Memories…the depravity individual's are willing to do just for more power or because they can…" I shook my head.

"... Do you think we'll run into them here on Armageddon?"

"Into these…Chaos Guilds?" I asked. "Well…I hope we'll never have to meet the more…deplorable one's, Greed just sounds like the Black Market to be honest…"

"I mean people like… Y Labs, your Blood Church? Do you think both are likely to exist here, and if so, do you believe there might be someone you recognize and will recognize you?"

"Oh I hope not…" I shook my head. "Cause if either your Y Labs or the Blood Church get their hands on this knowledge…there's no telling what damage they could cause…" I sighed.

"... Assuming they haven't already." Mantis said, pulling out some books from his Assistant. "When Heather returned from her trip the other day for her date, she brought these books. Basic knowledge stuff and even a book on Stalkers, some photos I recognize the Units depicted in them, most credited to Zena… If these exist here…. Then likely so do our enemies."

I pinched the bridge of my nose and took a deep breath. "So if that's the case, unless they're all biding their time for some mystery activity, we have a massive problem…"

"Who knows." Mantis said, putting the books back. "But if they are here… I know I need to… get better."

"And so do I." I stated. "Even with me suddenly attaining Godhood…I don't feel prepared for what might come to bear…"

"... you had questions last time." Mantis took a breath. "Ask them…"

"Well…" I hummed, wanting to take this slow. "What do you think of your new life now?" I inquired.

"Irrelevant. Next question." He said, surprising me.

"That's…rather surprising." I said honestly. "What makes you say it's irrelevant?"

"You want to know about my biology, it's irrelevant to my biology."

"That is true, but I'm a Doctor, and I want my patient to feel comfortable with our conversation." I stated. "But…if you ask, what kind of Nokori are you?"

"Primarily I am a ram. My wings are as my progenitors, ornamental. Neither she, Matthew, nor I can use them for flight. Though, I suppose with some cell augmentation and alterations I could achieve flight, gliding at minimum."

"Mind if I look at your wings? I may not be a veterinarian, but I do know a thing or two about wing's over the years." I said, having helped heal some wing's from some of the more avian like races back in the Blood Church's world.

"I… Suppose." He said, leaning forwards in his seat some and spreading his wings out. The two from end to end barely seemed to reach four feet across.

"Hmm…" I hummed, looking over the wing's with a critical eye, also sensing the blood flow into the wing's and wondering why he couldn't fly with these. "Hmm, well these wings are perfectly healthy, while they look a bit too small that shouldn't really affect your ability to fly, let's look at Bee's for instance…wait…" I frowned, noticing all the wing's and blood and…"Ah, there it is, that's the problem." I said. "See, your wing's aren't being fueled by Magic, as your blood is inherently magical I didn't think it would be amiss, but the moment your magic tries to cycle into your wing's it…doesn't for some reason." I explained. "You can still use these wing's for their intended purpose, for flapping and gliding…but I suppose the flight you'd need is more magical in nature than just your weight or wing strength."

"It's likely due to my biology still being largely Stalker-like." Mantis said. "Plus the… upgrades I received prior to dying."

"Yes…Nanny did tell me a bit about your blood, about how it looks more like an Undead's blood but was acting like a perfectly healthy living being." I admitted. "That was…what kind of started my questioning, because from my experience and training as a Doctor and through Blood, you can learn a lot about a person through it."

"Well… I suppose if you've seen my memories then you know that the vast majority of Stalkers are created by recycling failed Nokori fusion corpses, or the corpses of Nokori who die during testing. In Matthew's case, the fusion was a failure, and he died during it. By definition, Stalkers are a type of necromantic entity. While we are still alive in a sense, we require not food or water as we are implanted with a special organ that takes mana from within the body and converts it into glucose for cell consumption, h2o for hydration, and even various minerals, proteins and such the body needs to remain functioning. I still have this organ myself. When Zena used her power for the first time, reviving Matthew into a form similar to my own now. He is more alive than a Stalker, able to eat, drink, other biological functions, but he still holds remnants of the dark magic that was used to create me. I guess this body, if it's a copy, it must still have those remnants."

I sighed. "I understand…necromancy is one thing the Blood Church always loved doing, infusing live blood into a corpse and using them as mere puppets, sleeper agents as the bodies systems all seemed to work fine, but at a moment's notice they turn into savages, their brain nothing more than that of a rabid animal needing blood to keep it's body going…and they call me a Vampire when they were creating vampire spawn…"

Mantis nodded. "Guess we both come from places with very evil people."

"Yes…but even with all those very evil people, there was good still in the world, for those that are willing to lend a hand or those that need a helping hand." I said honestly. "It's how I became a King of a country…I wanted to help the innocent from the oppressive Church."

"Hmm… Next Question."

"How durable are your horns?" I asked.

"They're bone. Unless I use my power to alter them to be metallic, they're as durable as bone."

I nodded. "Now is your ability to assimilate metal's and machinery biological or magical?" I inquired.

"Bit of both actually."

"How so?" I inquired, bringing out a piece of steel. "And may I ask you to demonstrate it?"

Nodding, Mantis took the small piece of steel, grabbing it with two fingers. The steel seemed to shrink and almost dissolved but a very closer look showed it was being absorbed by him through his skin. "The scientist in charge of Stalker production back home, the one who tortured Matthew and I and installed these upgrades, he wanted to create a completely new breed of Stalker that existed both in the mechanical and biological. We were already created with the ability to store data and encrypt information and decrypt and read the information within our own body's cells, this allowed each unite to carry sensitive information without risk of it being found or taken, after all who looks to the double helix in a cell when there's a decoy hard drive in the brain that has mostly basic log data that's encrypted to act as a red herring keeping them busy. He expanded upon this with Matthew, with me, and managed to use Matthew's nature Magic and rework it to be on our body. As a result, we were given perfect control over every cell in our body. Allowing rapid at will changes to our physiology, biology, and even allowed us to absorb organic matter to speed up the process or even take in metal and machinery. How we, how I do so is a process similar to osmosis, my cells attach to what I touch, and I tell them to absorb it piece by piece, like ants taking food to the colony."

"Fascinating." I said, grabbing a pad and pencil and writing all that down. "And I presume part of your Stalker biology is what houses these mechanical and metallic mass in your body without causing harm to any of your organic parts?"

"Originally, no. Originally before coming here, If I was absorbing mechanical, metallic parts I used them immediately to create my augmentations. I had no prior means of storing the raw materials. This reality has changed that however. The new cells that make up my body are still entirely under my own control. As a result, I can now store the raw materials within them the same way the Assistant seems to store items, by converting inorganic matter into an artificial protein and arranging them in a way that is akin to data from DNA helixes that tell the assistant, and me, what this is, how much of it there is, and even what it goes to. As a result I can absorb whole machines, storing them entirely as is in an artificial DNA helix that contains all it is plus the blueprints to rebuild it when removing it from inventory, or in my case, I can use this with my body's ability to augment myself to create new biomechanical parts to my physiology and even change where on my body they appear, or how."

"This is incredible!" I said, writing that all down. "The closest thing I could come up with back in the world I mostly ruled was a race of Slimes that devoured mass and could change themselves to fit whatever they ate enough of it…always needed to remind myself about that whenever I took care of Sammy." I said sheepishly, remembering my adopted Slime daughter that became a sentient being after eating…so many corpses…but the smile she gave, her adorable intrigue to life and how she always jiggled in excitement…I sighed, knowing I'll most likely never see her again…

"It's definitely a benefit of this new reality. So, next question."

"Next question…how is your fur so soft? I've helped farm sheep and even the best wool I could get was that soft or fluffy." I admitted.

Shrugging, Mantis pulled some of their fur, it popping off almost like nothing. I noticed the bit he pulled off was already regrowing on his body and he handed me the bit he took off.

Gently, I took it. The texture was nothing like Wool. It was more akin to a cotton-silk blend that seemed to gently glide along my skin. On top of feeling incredibly soft and gentle, pulling it seemed to show it was rather durable, and yet it retained its general shape and size.

"This…is more like a cotton-silk blend than ram wool…" I muttered. "Durable yet retains it's fluffy shape…huh…"

"Yeah. I think there was a study into why so many Nokori had such soft fluffy and the the leading theory I remember was that the fusion process merged the hair of humans, the fur of the animals and for the most part, mixed the two together but that the excess mana might have also benefited our hair growth in the process."

"Hmm…that would make sense." I admitted.

"Next question."

I hummed…thinking for a bit. "Well…the only thing I can think of at this moment is to ask if you are comfortable with a safe, non-invasive doctor check up." I said.

"I need to be. I need to move past these irrational reactions."

"I wouldn't call them 'irrational'." I said carefully. "But you are correct that you need to move past them…but again, I'm sorry for causing you to panic and…experience that, I truly didn't mean to…"

"It's alright. I apologize for my reaction and attempt to… decommission you."

"You wouldn't be the first person that tried to do that and then become my friend." I chuckled. "And while I could have defended myself against your attack's, I didn't know enough about your biology to do my magic without hurting you…and given the brief looks at the Assistant my powers are…a lot more potent here…" I said carefully, getting up. "Alright, let's start off with some basic stuff." I said, while leading him over to a digital scale with a height rod on it. "Let's get your weight and height to start."

Nodding, Mantis stood up, walking onto the scale. Hm… Eighty six pounds. I remember heather mentioned Mantis should be seven… too heavy for a human seven year old but he is part ram so…

"Well, taking into account your a ram with wing's, this should be about right weight wise with your age…" I hummed, using the height rod to check how tall he was without taking the floof or horns into account first.

Huh… with his horns, three foot seven. Without, three foot-five… I knew he was rather short but this small?

"Hmm…about three feet seven inches with your horns, three foot five without them…" I hummed

"That's normal." Mantis said. "Nokori Biology age similar to the animal we are."

"Hmm, so if you're a ram…well you would be an adult in about three to five years." I said honestly. "So either you'll get a big growth spurt in that time if you age like the animal you say and this reality not doing anything else weird.'

"Actually that's not accurate." Mantis said. "When I say we age similar to the animals we are, I mean in terms of physical size and development over the course of an average human lifespan. Were I an infant I'd be, of course, similar to an infant ram, by age four or five we hit our first major growth spurt, where over the course of a few months we grow to around the size I am now which is pretty average for a Nokori of my biological age range. Once we hit puberty, the second major growth spurt happens, where we are larger than I am now but still not fully adult. Only when we are eighteen do we hit the final growth spurt where most Nokori are no taller than five feet to five foot three, with some exceptions being as tall as five seven, but this depends on factors like their genetics of both their human and animal components. I was informed a lot of humans lost a lot of height after their fusions, some shrinking to as little as two feet, while others, a rare few, gained height but this was largely due to the animal biology of their fusion at play."

"That's…strange…" I frowned, thinking about the difference between the normal races here and Nokori and wondering how a weird soul fusion can affect someone's build more or less like that. "If it worked like a normal fusion I would understand…but considering the memories I saw and what I was told about it, it was more a 'Soul Fusion', so it…shouldn't mess with your physical build all that much technically…"

"Fundamentals of magic tell us the body reflects the state and shape of the soul." Mantis said. "If the soul is altered into something new, then the body changes often to reflect this. In the case of Nokori, not only was the body altered in the fusion, but the soul as the soul of the animal was merged in as well as the magic either from said animal and or the soul of the artifact in the ritual, so if excess magic was the goal of the fusion, then the development both of the body, soul and magic would alter accordingly, prioritizing one over the other. In this case, magic."

I scratched my head. "Sometimes magic is just so confusing…" I grumbled. "I studied two different schools of magic and sometimes I can't make heads or tails of what Magic can really do…"

"Was there a concept of base magics in your world?"

"Yes, there were three basic's to it, Affinity, Spoken/Written Word, and Intent." I explained. "Each one is rather self explanatory in their own right with how it all worked, one became a Master if they learned one of the three to their logical limit, Grandmaster for two, and safe for three…I'm a Sage but that's a given when I had to fight in a massive ass war…" He sighed. "But…I suppose what confused me the most about it was the Echo creatures, a race of sentient beings that were cursed to only speak what they have heard like an Echo…there was this one bird person though that especially confused me…"

"Where I come from, there were five. Nature, Chaos, Light, Dark, and Null. Nature is the most common, relating to things like the elements, healing and other things. Chaos, potent and powerful but owners of this base find casting magic impossible by the nature of this base magic. They can use artifacts that draw magic from the user at up to a times five greater power than a normal user. Light is largely considered full of purging, protection and even illusion magic but there is much more than just those. Dark covers everything from necromancy to rage and stealth based magics. Lastly is Null. No one knows what Null does and no human or sentient magic being in history has ever had a Null affinity, but animals in nature have been known to have them, maybe once every several hundred years or so."

"Oh~, I thought we were talking about the Core Concepts of Magic, not Schools." I admitted.

"These are core concepts in magic. In my world, all magic and spells come from four of these five magic bases. It's the foundation of how magic is understood and everyone is born with an affinity for one of the four out of the five and then take a test to determine magic capacity."

"I suppose that's fair." I nodded. "Different worlds have different logics and all that…just wish I understood what that one bird kept doing…seriously, the heck are Meme's?" I said, not wanting to fully swear in front of the child.

"... The internet did not exist in your world I take it?"

"No idea, cause the technology in both my worlds were…a little wonky, as it were." He said carefully. "One region you would find steam trains, another you'd find magitech mechs…digital was a growing form of tech, digital clocks but nothing like whatever the Internet is."

"Hmm… Well, what next?" Mantis asked, stepping away from the scale.

"Next up, sit on the table." I motioned to the medical table. "I promise this is still just a normal check up."

Mantis nodded, climbing up and sitting on the table.

I nodded, bringing my Stethoscope out and putting them on as I gently placed it onto his chest to hear his heartbeat.

It took a second, his heart seemed to be more centered than I'm used to. It was a bit elevated but I suppose that's norma-

Now it's racing…

Racing very fast…

Now it's slowed…

Now it's very slow…

Now it's normal?

I looked at Mantis… who was smirking at me.

"Can you…control your heart rate?" I asked carefully, a little confused and worried that it was either him panicking and trying to calm himself down real quick or if he was just trying to mess with me.

"When I'm not having an episode, yes. I told you have have perfect control over every cell in my body, this includes the ability to control my organs at will should I choose."

I sighed. "Alright, cause part of this was me concerned you were forcing yourself to relax as you were in mid panic attack…"

"No, just messing with you."

I nodded. "Wouldn't be the first time…" I muttered, gently pulling it back and putting the scope onto his back where his upper left lung should be. "Take a deep breath and let it out slowly, even if you have complete control over your cells I still need to get some basic levels on your physique."

Nodding, Mantis took several deep, slow breaths. Alright, so far everything sounds normal. No abnormalities detected.

"Alright, both your lungs sound clear and no abnormalities."

"I figured. I recommend you take an X-ray." Mantis told me.

"Well, just doing a basic physical first to get you used to any physical touch." I said, bringing out my Otoscope and putting on a clean cover for it as I checked all four ears, two which are located where human ears are and the other two being atop his head, checking if there was any blocking from either earwax or something else.

Hmm… No wax that I can see. Nothing concerning. Hmm… If I'm looking right… all four have eardrums?

"I suppose you have two functioning set's of ears?" I inquired.

"Yes. Nokori can have up to six ears, some can be fully functional, others more decorational. Some can even be linked by small fleshy tubes to another and share eardrums. It just varies from case to case."

"Alright." I nodded, throwing away the cap for the otoscope as I pulled out my medical flashlight. "Now this will just be a quick little light in your eyes to check if your eyes are fully focused." I said, turning it on and carefully waving it over each one of his eyes, checking to see if they would react to the light properly.

The reaction was immediate. Then I noticed something… Flashing the light over again I thought I saw… is that… it's so small but it looks like… metal wires and… glass? I checked his other eye, and it held similar glass and metal wires, in the same place just on the other side of the eye. Both are so small and resting right next to his eye lens.

"Hmm, do you have any capabilities to change your eyes to act like night or thermal vision?" I inquired. "Cause I noticed there are metal wires and glass, so small it took me a moment to realize it."

"Yes. As a Stalker, a Mantis unit, I am built with target recognition in mind. While most models have one eye, I was an experimental duel eyed model that allowed me the use of special implants that on top of a five hundred magnification zoom, also gave me a better mana and biometric scan of my targets to identify the Nokori subjects. I also have night, thermal, infrared, and visual surrounding mapping software that lets me map an area to help me scan for abnormalities in the environment and locate specific objects otherside hidden in a crowd or pile of items."

"Well…if it's worth doing, it's worth overdoing I suppose.' I admitted.

"I also possess a high frequency antenna in my spine. When I activate it on a setting above ten percent you can feel it along my back. Small vibrations." Mantis said, motioning for me to feel.

Gently, I placed a hand to his back center just below the ribs. At first I felt nothing… then I felt it. The subtle shaking of his very spine… the intensity got to the point that it made the paper and table shake a little. From the base of his head to his tailbone, that ended in a very small tail, the vibrations were constant.

As soon as they started, they stopped and I retracted my hand.

"That is rather interesting." I hummed. "Next up before the X-ray will be simple tendon reflexes." I said, bringing out a medical hammer and stepping to the side so I don't get kicked, and lightly hit Mantis's right knee to see how he reacted to it.

His leg kicked, fast and with a very smooth motion. His other knee, the same. I tested his elbow on his one arm, and his arm moved in a similarly fast manner.

"Alright, everything seems to be in working order, how are you feeling?" I asked, wanting to check to see if he was okay after all of this.

"Alright so far."

I nodded. "Alright, now onto the X-ray." I said. "So glad that we have all this technology…" I sighed thankfully.

I helped mantis over to the X-Ray machine. The lens giving a quick flash. The machine displayed the full body X-ray, showing bones and organs and… oh my.

I could see the… Antenna, metal and wires within his spine that were almost stitched in and out of his vertebrates. There was some form of… reinforcement along his legs, knees and hand. There was an odd rectangular object in his brain, and that was oddly shaped, either because of what he was or because of the object I didn't know. I saw the eye machines, wires going inside and from the side views seemed to merge with his brain stem.

I noticed an abnormal extra organ, that must be the one Mantis mentioned turned magic into nutrients…

Aside from that I noticed a lot of… abnormal, yet healed cracks and injuries that seem to have been mended…

"So…two things of note, one is the strange object in your brain, and the second is…all the mended injuries…"

"I have the hard drive in there. Remember, I explained earlier it's a decoy containing only some basic logs meant to deter away from probing the Stalker Corpses more. As for the injuries, well, Nokori fight back. When I was still a Stalker, I'd be injured while out and would be repaired back at Pandora Site."

"Must have been tough battles to cause this damage…and the hard drives I've seen aren't this weirdly shaped so I wasn't entirely sure."

"It's likely more advanced than what you've seen. Y Labs had many facilities. What wasn't for Stalker research, development and storage or Nokori production and research were for private research, development and manufacturing of parts to avoid paper trails from external companies."

"I can imagine, my worlds were never as technically savvy, especially the second one when a corrupt blood cult was running the show for the most part." I rolled my eyes.

"So, did your world also have gods then?"

"My home world did pray to several Gods but I'm not sure if they were real, now the second world had 2, both Blood Gods but each on the opposite Ends, the Angelic Goddess who bled life into the world, the holy matriarch of Life…and the Demonic God that drinks the lifeblood, the unholy general of Death…the Goddess brought me to her world because her other half was corrupting the people, having used enough of her blood to make a facsimile of her to make the church go from a more peaceful kind into…what I've constantly talked about…"

"Hm. Back home there were the Old Gods who created the universe, the New Gods that mankind and many species worships… but by the time Nokori came to be, all that was around were Lesser Gods, they had lots of magic but without worshipers they were largely just extremely magical animals, people, or plants. They were unable to grant miracles without artifacts to focus their power."

"Well, it's a good thing cause I dealt with the God of Death and it…wasn't entirely a fun ordeal." I said carefully. "Sure he was mostly possessing the Pope but he was also a Sage…unless they're kinder than your average man, they aren't really fun to deal with."

"I can imagine. Did your world go to war too?"

"My first world was in a state of peace thankfully, all the races were okay…the second one on the other hand…well, it was on the brink of war, due to the Church trying to find a way to threaten the other regions…when I rose to power, that's when the war started…and I was sent here not two years after the war ended and peace was finally achieved…" I sighed.

"The world when I left was still at war. The remaining global Y Labs facilities unleashing weaponized monstrous Nokori, Stalkers, some World governments to cover up their involvement in funding Y Labs tried exterminating their Nokori Populations… I heard on the news before I deleted myself from Matthew's body that the Hellfire Human Hunter paid those countries in kind."

Hm?

"Hellfire Human Hunter?" I inquired. "That sounds like a rather friendly name, who were they?"

"Well, I got the chance to analyze them when I was still a Stalker. They weren't registered in my database but their magic was… it broke my sensor. Had to return to Pandora base for repairs, think a little after that is when I targeted Zena and everything that led me here happened." Mantis said.

"Hmm…only time I've heard a being using senses to scan someone was when it was with Sages, Me…or the Gods…" I frowned,

"Well, aside from breaking my sensors when I scanned him, the news had a lot to say about them. Everything from a vigilante protecting the Nokori to a terrorist and a mass murderer given he killed a lot of humans, but always the ones who targeted the Nokori as their victims."

"Fair enough." I nodded. "When I was doing my thing, the people I saved called me a hero, a savior, a gift from the Goddess…the Church was calling me the second coming of the Death God as I 'stole their purity', or 'I drank the the Mother's Gift', or just people screaming Heretic at me."

"Sounds like you two would have gotten along. All I really know about them is they were far to powerful magic wise to be human, they used only pyromancy, and they apparently used that pyromancy to nuke a country."

"Ah the old 'nuke a country' reaction…threatened that once or twice, got the Church to back off real quick when I needed some room to breath."

"Amazed you even know what a nuke is given you say there wasn't that much technology where you come from."

"Came from the Wizard Nation, one of the older Sage's of Fire had a power spell he said would 'cleanse the path with Nuclear Flame', didn't learn until fifteen years after I heard that line what Nuclear energy was as a more…basic version of the term compared to what I've started to learn in this world." I admitted,

"Fair. So, any other… exams or is that all?"

"That should be it for our basic doctor's physical." I admitted. "Everything else I would do might be a bit too…invasive, and I don't want to push it and cause you to relapse while we're making good progress."

"Alright. Thank you doctor. This was an… interesting visit."

Some days passed after Mantis visited me in my office. My days were rather slow, sadly. I ended up spending the time largely conducting my research.

I was enjoying the outside air, watching the townspeople walk by. So many different races. Even those that looked human, I could sense small differences between them because of their blood.

"Look out!" Someone shouted. I turned to see many large logs of lumber rolling down the main road… right at Mantis.

I stood, ready to act until I saw something.

Mantis crowteched. He then leaped up. Five. Ten, fifteen… thirty feet high, the logs rolling under him from his massive leap, and he landed back to the ground with barely a noise, catching himself on his three limbs before standing back up and proceeding to walk away.

I blinked. I detected no magic nor did I see him use that body modification power of his. I've seen that up close and know there was none of that even at this range.

Curiosity got the better of me, and so, I ran over to the child.

"Are you okay Mantis?" I asked, wanting to start with that.

"Yes. Why?" He asked, seeming genuinely confused at my question.

"Well, you literally just jumped thirty feet into the air, dodging all those logs and landed without a sound like it was nothing with pure strength alone."

"Yes." He said, giving me a nod.

I was… rather floored.

"Excuse me, that shouldn't just be a 'yes' and ignore it." I frowned. "I know what you were, and I know you're a Nokori but still…your seven years old still."

"While true, you forget before I was this, I was a Stalker, a Mantis Stalker. See, while it became my name, Mantis is the class of stalker created for Target Recognition. I explained this to you when you performed my exam. So, our bodies are built to more easily perform this task. I'm sure you noticed on my X-rays the reinforcements along my joints, hand and other bones?"

I frowned but nodded. "Yes, I did notice…and I know you have previous experience…also, the point of this is that you were a Stalker, you aren't now…even though you somehow have all the implants in your body, you aren't in your Stalker body, and your new body normally shouldn't be able to keep up with what you want to do with such minimal ease."

"Normally, but there is one factor you're forgetting. This body is, as far as I can tell, an exact copy of Matthew's. Down the the DNA. More or less since the new cells and such. And Matthew's body, despite being that of a seven year old Nokori, is still fully capable of all the abilities we possessed as a Stalker due to one factor. Zena's magic. Zena was a critical threat level Nokori to Y labs for one sole reason. Her magic allowed her to grant wishes, but only when she was in emotional distress. For a long time she didn't know her powers were wish granting, she only knew when she was upset, an orb of light would appear over her head. Well, the day I targeted her, she and her brother shot me down, and since she worked in Stalker Research for a Nokori Run Civil Service Agency, she and her partner discovered the truth due to several critical errors that happened from their bullet impacts. That, added to me being a prototype new Mantis Stalker Unit, lead to me having to load a different OS to camouflage myself from their detection. Matthew. Devastated with learning this, that night Zena used her powers for the first time, and brought Matthew back to life. Her magic compressed our Stalker body into a form that was very similar to her own, hence why all the Stalker implants and abilities are inside. It reshaped the body, and Matthew was put in charge of the body as per her wish magic's work. When I loaded back in, Matthew was in charge and I became a Master OS Assistance program to him."

"Right…so that's kind of nonsense…" I muttered. "But…alright."

"Like you said, Magic is nonsense sometimes." Mantis said, giving a shrug.

I sighed. "Yeah…yeah…"

"Would you like to see what I am capable of doing?"

"I might as well, and I might as well see what my real capabilities are in this world…" I admitted.

"So… take this outside the walls then?"

"Of course." I nodded. "But first, let your mother know."

"Oh right, that's a normal thing to do for a kid huh?"

Mantis quickly ran back to their home. A few minutes later he came back. "Can't find Heather, asked Casey and he said sure since you're with me."

"Fair enough, wonder what she's doing if she's not here." I hummed.

"Think she and Nanny are working to make that Church thing." He said.

"That's fair." I nodded. "So, off to have our little adventure."

"Alright. You got an Assistant right?" I nodded. Mantis then brought up his one arm. I noticed his Assistant was on the palm of his hand rather than his wrist. Makes sense, he is one armed. He then tapped it against mine.

[Party Formed with Mantis.]

Ah, so this is a notification… and I see Mantis there in my top right. Hm. 400 HP, 2,000 MP? Ah right, this device quantifies magical power and one's overall health until expiration. My own is at…400,000 HP and…3,000,000 MP…

Those are big numbers…

With that, Mantis and I walked out the main gate and off towards what appeared to be the ruins of a town. My word… all the blood and the absolute stench of death.

"I know this is an Apocalyptic world…" I frowned. "But…I hoped to never smell this much blood and death again…"

"From what I know, Heather says that this is all… generated. Never a real place but… sometimes I wonder." Mantis said as we walked past a blood soaked bicycle. "The books of mine she got me were supposedly from loot that appears when no one is around in the area, so… I wonder."

"You think someone took each continent, shoved it into a dice cup, shook it around and threw it out and went 'welp, there's our new danger zone'?" I inquired.

"Maybe not that… exactly, but I heard from… one of my siblings that there is something called Lore Hunting that people do in Hazard Zones and Dungeons. Newspapers, data, environment, computers, all with information that tells a story of a place in one way or another. Just about every dungeon has something similar, few don't, usually Tower Dungeons. Dungeons like this, Arena, that looks like whole places always have something. Usually. So, it makes me think."

"Hmm…let me try something." I said, as I raised a hand as the blood from the ground, the objects around us, all started to form into spheres around us. "Let's see if what Mother Blood said was true about Blood Gods…" I muttered, as I felt my new Blood God magic going to work. "Blood Memories." I chanted, using my Affinity for Blood Magic, the incantation phrase, and the intent to see into the memories of all this blood to see the history Mantis talked about.

I saw… carnage. Death. Fear. Monsters. Agony… Hell brought to earth… and it's harbinger, a woman, like death personified…

I dropped the blood, it splashing everywhere as I… took some steps back and deep breaths.

"Are you alright?" Mantis asked.

"I…saw everything…" I panted. "I saw…a woman, the harbinger of all this…Death personified…I looked a God of Death in the eyes and laughed at him…but her…" I shuddered in horror.

"So… does that mean this… used to be a real place after all?"

"It either that, or this place has it's own history with whoever created or found this…" I said, trying to calm myself down and work through this horror show…"Let's…let's just keep going…"

Nodding, Mantis followed me down the sidewalk.

"Enemy detected." Mantis spoke up. I nodded, sensing at least… fourteen demonic blood sources nearby.

"Fourteen demons…" I hummed, thinking about how we can handle this cause I want to see what Mantis can do but also see what I could also do. "How do you want to handle this Mantis?"

I turned to look down at them, only to see they were gone.

"Crap…" I muttered, rushing after where I assumed Mantis was going, which was straight after the Demons.

By the time I rounded the corner, I saw the fourteen demons varied in size and shape. Three were already torn apart.

Mantis's body augmentation power was already in effect as his limbs seemed longer, a bit bulkier and his hooves and one hand were covered in a sharp metal plating.

He was fast. Faster than I expected and somehow during several moments I swear I lost sight of him. The demons too, only for Mantis to suddenly appear under or behind one and finish it off.

I'd seen combat and I'd seen bloodshed and I'd seen brutal murder.

Somehow Mantis was doing all three at once and making it appear as a dance.

I snapped out of my surprise just in time to make use of my own power, taking hold of the remaining demons by their blood and ripping them apart from the inside out.

With them all dead, I walked over to Mantis, who was already reverting to normal.

"You okay Mantis?" I inquired.

"I'm fine. The demons here were of the Imp, Pinky, and Lamia classes. Nothing too dangerous."

Hmm. Between his speed, combat skills, body augmentation, not to mention he doesn't act like a child at all. His vocabulary seems to switch between something of an older, more versed person and a child of his age range, maybe a bit older.

Perhaps that is because he was a Stalker… he was never a child, therefore doesn't know how to act like one.

Or react like one either.

"Need to remind myself that you aren't really seven years old…" I muttered.

"Well, I suppose if you only count the years I've been what one would consider self aware, then I am seven. Counting the years I was a normal Stalker, then I'm fourteen." Mantis stated.

"Fair enough." I nodded. "Fourteen sounds more right to fit what I'm hearing and seeing."

"Maybe. Hm?" Mantis said, suddenly turning and walking towards what appeared to be a pile of demon corpses. A pile neither he nor I made.

"That's a curious pile there." I wondered.

"I'm detecting a very powerful Dark Magic signature in here." Mantis said.

Hm? I can't sense anything through blood… so it isn't alive at least.

"Hmm…should really start using my new Nature magic…" I muttered, knowing my Earth magic changed quite a bit from the world transfers as I started to move the pile around and tried to sense if there was anything inorganic in this thing.

I detected… something. It wasn't metallic or stone it was just coming off as… darkness.

"Think I found it." Mantis said, pulling a rather blood soaked short sword from the pile. The blade resembled that of a bat or maybe even demon wing of sorts, the hilt holding an almost shimmering blue eye just before the grip.

"Hmm…I've never seen something like this before." I hummed.

"My Assistant says it's called Soul Eater." Mantis said, looking the blade over. "A darkness based weapon, drawing power from the users negativity and the darkness in their heart."

"Well…that's an interesting weapon." I hummed.

"Hmm. Interesting. I can't absorb it either." Mantis hummed.

"Well, I believe it's because it's not organic or inorganic…I can only sense pure darkness in it." I admitted, my magic senses telling me it's not any normal magical item as it felt more like it was made out of an energy rather than out of materials.

"Hm. I think I'll keep it."

"You sure?" I inquired.

"Yeah. I have no combat protocols for swordsmanship, all that was uploaded to Matthew and I the day that scientist recaptured us and modified us relate to hand to hand combat and a combat modified algorithm that takes any modifications I made to myself, enemy target data I have and runs a combat simulation and inputs that as new combat data. I wonder if sword and gun based combat can work with it to?"

… I understood maybe half of that if I'm being honest.

"The best I got from that is that you are good with hand to hand combat, and all the machinery in your body gives you some form of Clairvoyance to anticipate how an opponent is going to act based on your actions." I said carefully.

"I suppose that is an accurate enough version." Mantis said with a nod. "Do you fight with weapons Arthur?"

"I have learned how to wield a staff and a sword, but I try to mostly use my magic since I want to keep my hands safe and ready for what I really need to do, which is my work as a Doctor." I said readily. "It's why I took the role of Physician here, cause while our AI friend is good with medicine…personal experience always showed a more 'personal' touch is needed when it comes to medicine."

"I suppose. So you are a combat medic of sorts?"

"I have taken my Oath as a Doctor, I have led a war against the corrupt and monstrous…I'd say yes but I have done more than just be a combat medic."

"Hm… sounds like an Arch War-Healer." Mantis hummed.

"And what is that?' I inquired, as I don't know much about the terms from his world.

"Well, it's someone with an extremely powerful Nature Affinity and Magic Capacity. If they earn the rank of Arch Mage and Master all forms of healing spells and acquire their medical doctorate, they are given the title of Arch War-Healer. Basically a spellcaster that can heal and fight in the event of a war. As far as humans go I believe there were only ten human Arch War-Healers world wide. It's more common to see them amongst Elves, Dwarves and Orcs."

… Elves, Dwarves and Orcs?!

"And how common are those races? Cause while I have seen my fair share of those three…they were a bit uncommon due to the Churches antics during the war…"

"Hmm… population wise they were all similar to human population, while some all lived in the more magical areas as they were magic enough to survive in those locations, a large amount lived amongst human too. Many Nokori were formerly of the other races as well. Elves, Orcs, Dwarves, Fairies, Pixies, Dryads, Druids, Gnomes." Mantis listed. "Most common living amongst human cities were Elves and Dwarves though. Unless they were in the mountains then It was Dwarves and Orcs. It mostly depends on location how common some races were compared to others but they all lives more or less well with one another."

"Ah, that makes sense." I nodded. "The races I had in my world were probably just as diverse, as there was two nations filled with 'Magical Humanoids' and 'Magical Beasts', the humanoid was run by a council of Elves, Dwarves, Giants, Orc's, Lizardfolk, Beastfolk, and the Fey, then the Beast Kingdom was filled with all the smart magical creatures that weren't humanoid but were capable of having the sapience of humanoids so things like Hydra's, Behemoth's, Chimera's, Griffons and the like." I shrugged. "Abriga was such a beautiful place…I just hope they are rebuilding it to what I once saw it…" I sighed.

"Hm. I hope the same for back home. Leto was the place where the Y Labs Nokori experiments were discovered. Someone leaked photos, police raided the place. Course, no one knew the project was global, so for years it was isolated, til a team working for the Nokori Agency discovered a lab in a neighboring city, then, some time later, another lab all the way in Mexico. Once that lab was discovered, it became a global manhunt for the Labs, and that is when the researchers unleashed their more dangerous projects. Became a whole war." Mantis informed.

"Yeah…thing's can happen real fast when you're not paying full attention." I admitted, looking around the area for anything else…hmm…I wonder…

"Something you're detecting?"

"Just….if you feel the earth shake, it's just me doing something." I said, feeling the air around me get…cleaner, as I started to use my new Nature Magic. "Tectonic Location." I said, as I lightly tapped the ground and felt the ground around us shake as I let out a pulse, more like echolocation but through the ground as it spread far…far…holy damn that is far…but when the reverberations came back I felt my Assistant ping as I looked at it, seeing my minimap displaying…so much…"Hmm, well, good thing this thing keeps track of all the locations I sensed…but jeez, I didn't think it would be over several hundred miles…" I muttered, but what caught my attention was that there was a specific glowing spot with an exclamation point over it, and it looked like it was rather close. "Hmm, there's something of importance nearby, not sure what it is but map wouldn't be pointing it out with such importance."

"Which direction?" Mantis asked.

"North east from here." I answered.

Mantis turned that direction. "Hmm… it's far away but even from here I can detect it. It's a very powerful demonic type of magic signature… doesn't match any of the demons I've seen however…"

"Well, if it's anything stronger than that Apocalypse Demon I dealt with then I can try and shake some rust off." I admitted, though I still don't know my full capabilities now that I've attained godhood…still need to look into that.

Mantis and I made way for the source of this demonic magic. It was a long walk but we eventually arrived at what looked to be almost a tomb of bone, flesh and stone all merged together. The door depicted a demonic screaming face of rage, the maw opened and showed a shimmering reddish gold energy.

"Hm…" Mantis hummed.

"Well, this is certainly a fancy door." I admitted, looking around the door to see where we can open it if it wasn't just touch the shimmering energy.

I touched the door. Immediately getting a jolt as if a rather nasty electric shock hit me. The eyes of the door then blinked as they seemed to come alive. "God of blood and heart of a healer. You have potential to wield what I guard, but do you have strength to carry its burdens?"

"Huh. It's a Treasure Box." Mantis said as I looked to him. "Heather told me about these. They're special things that hold usually powerful items but to open them either takes a bypass ability, solve it's riddle or complete it's challenge or have an item called a Skeleton Key to bypass all that.

"That makes sense…I think I heard about these before back on my country, saying that there was a mystery third god of tricks and riddles that always held something you'd want. I think I found something along those lines but when I asked the God and Goddess about it neither really gave me a straight answer." I explained. "So…I need to show that I have the strength to carry the Burden of what this door is guarding…that depends on what you are guarding Keeper." I stated to the door.

"For you, God of Blood and healer of the ill, you must carry the burdens of your consequences, your actions. For every life you saved, a hundred died by those same hands. Experience, God, the agony of your victims demise."

My eyes widened.

"Oh…oh no…" I muttered in horror, knowing what must be done…knowing what it wants…knowing full well what I will experience…I took a deep breath and nodded. "I accept the burden." I said readily.

"So be it, God of Blood, Psion of Nature, Savior of Life, feel the burden of those that you have slain." The door echoed, as the golden red energy flowed into me…

I let out a silent scream, every fiber of my being, every single cell that made up my entire being felt like it was being ripped apart…crushed, pierced, drained, exploded…every conceivable pain I could possibly imagine all happening at once and it was beyond anything I've felt before…hundreds…thousands…millions of people…all the screams I heard, of the children from the Legion Virus, to the ravings of madmen driven to such acts of depravity by the church, everything rang in my ears as I had to relive everything…

"I vowed…to do no harm to my patients…" I said through gritted teeth. "I vowed…to heal the ill, the sick and the weak…I vowed to prevent suffering, not just 'cure' it…I vowed that the Blood of Life shall not be tainted by corruption…that Blood hold's the true essence…I vowed…to fight against the monster's that claim to know the Truth…my oath…" I growled, stomping down as I started to push past the pain, push past the screams and remember…all my family and friends there to support me. "My Oath! From Blood we have been born, From Blood We Are, but I shall do no harm to my Patients, for I do Harm to protect the Ill, the Weak, and the Dying so that Life's Blood may return and be made anew, through my Actions and Knowledge I share to prevent the ill's of the world, and with all my Heart I will stand and fight!" I shouted in defiance to the pain.

As the agony came to a climax, as soon as it had built up and pounded my every being, it came to a stop. The cool, calm of the a sense of pain. At first, I thought it over… but this, this didn't feel like that…

It felt like… their death… after their hearts stopped beating.

All my senses came back in a rush. It was disorienting as I was on my side, hacking up bile and seeing Mantis hand me what I recognized as a healing potion.

I gently grabbed it and lightly drank the healing liquid, taking it slow as I didn't want to throw it up immediately. "Wh-what happened?"

"Well, you collapsed, foamed at the mouth, screamed about oaths for a bit, went still, threw up a little then woke up and took the potion I offered." Mantis said.

Heh… from the outside sounds more like I had a seizure.

"Sounds like I had a seizure and…looked kind of like an idiot or an insane person…" I admitted weakly. "But…this was the single most excruciating pain I could ever have experienced…"

"I can relate. Door's open though." Mantis said.

I looked over at the door, seeing it now looked old and rusted, broke open more like it as half of it was on the floor. Inside looked empty save a small pillar where a strange item rested.

I pulled myself up and looked it over as I entered. It looked like a handle, perhaps some form of blade handle made from bone and metal. The hilt held the image of a skull. Not a human skull, some form of demon skull.

I picked it up.

[Item Obtained!

Demonic Crucible Obtained!

Level 4

Rank: SSS

This Demonic Crucible is one of many Arch Demons weapons made to combat the Doom Slayers in ancient times. They are equal in power to a standard Slayer Crucible with the added benefit of being self upgradable through killing.

Every ten kills increases the blades stats by five.

ATT: 700

MAG: 900

DEF: 600

Item Ability: Soul Impact - This item can damage the soul of a target allowing for either Soul Slivers, Soul Gems or Soul Fragments to be obtained as loot.

People slain with this tool will experience a longer respawn waiting period.]

"Huh…that is…rather interesting." I said honestly…oh? What's this?

[New Title Acquired!

Oath Bearer: Even in the face of Death, you would not forsake your Oath. While you are upholding your Oath, gain a bonus based on certain actions corresponding to your Oath. Bonuses can affect any stat within a range of 10%-60%.]

"Huh…well, Oath Bearer does sound like a neat title." I admitted.

"Do you have other titles?" Mantis asked.

Hmm… actually, that's a good question.

I looked up what other Titles I had…

[Titles

Divine Medic: You are a divine being, your divine nature guides your hand in the field of battle to heal the injured, protect the wounded and resuscitate the dying. Healing Magic is now 3x as effective. Patients you care for have a 2x recovery speed.

Blood King: Your mastery and devotion to Blood has crowned you King, for you there is no equal as Blood obey's the command of their King. You now have access to Advanced Blood Bending, Blood Magic, and Blood Information Gathering.

Psion of Nature: Your mastery over Earth magic and your care for it has gained the support of the World itself. Earth Magic now upgraded to Nature Magic, unlock's all forms of Nature Magic and upgrades Earth Magic Schools to Advanced Earth Magic

True King: You are a ruler, you do not rule with an iron fist, or armies at the helm nor do you rule with the fear you demand from your subjects. You rule with kindness, compassion, and understanding. You are a king who is of the people, who wears no crown for the people do not need you to wear one to recognize your nobility. +90% Charisma Boost when talking to frightened/injured people.

Caduceus's Chosen: You have been Chosen by the Gods of Medicine and Healing for your outstanding performance against any and all illnesses and injuries. Your magic is boosted by 60% when casting healing magic.

God of Medicine: You are a divine being, your divine nature is that of healing and understanding the sick. All Healing Magic costs 70% less for you to cast. Healing Spells gain a +50% effectiveness. All medicine is 4x effective when you administer it. Crafted medicine and healing potions you craft are three times as potent.

Man of Science: Despite the law and existence of magic you are a man of science and conduct your own research through and through with eager hunger for knowledge. Researching gains you a better understanding of all you learn about. +40% Intelligence boost and +30% understanding speed.

Blood is Key: Blood holds many secrets and you have spent a lifetime uncovering them all. All Blood Magic costs 40% less to cast. When controlling the blood of others through Blood Bending you gain a +40% intimidation bonus to your target(s).

Oath Bearer: Even in the face of Death, you would not forsake your Oath. While you are upholding your Oath, gain a bonus based on certain actions corresponding to your Oath. Bonuses can affect any stat within a range of 10%-60%.]

"Huh…that's quite a bit of titles already…" I hummed. "And…those are a lot of bonuses for these…" I hummed. "Plus now I know why my Earth magic changed…"

"Heather told me Titles are usually either buffs, can bestow specific abilities, can act like an ability, or can max out or increase some of your abilities levels depending." Mantis said. "It just depends on what title you get."

"And I got some rather interesting buffs." I admitted. "There's so much to go over…so much to explore…" I muttered, feeling myself get really giddy over this.

"I guess we should go home now. I think if we're out past dark Heather will be upset. That's a normal response a mother figure has right?" Mantis asked.

I gave a laugh.

"Yeah, that is what mother's tend to do." I chuckled. "I have so much to study, look at, figure out and…just so much work to do."