Chapter Thirteen

Beast Lecture 101

The rays of the morning sun fell upon Mina's face as she slowly began to wake up from her sleep. She slowly began to pull herself up, but she felt a bit…strange. It was like she felt…energized for some reason. Her vision slowly began to become more focused as felt her stomach growling a bit. The sudden realization that she had almost forgotten about her food hit her as she quickly made her way over to the microwave. Upon stretching her hand out to the door, her eyes widened upon seeing it. Instead of her usual pink skin color, it was the same color as Kama's arms and legs.

"So what happened last night wasn't a dream…" She soon looked down at herself as her legs were the same color as Kama, though she soon noticed that she had a reptile-like tail with the same color pattern of her arms and legs. She quickly made her way over to a pantry and pulled out a stainless steel frying pan that showed her reflection on it. Her eyes widened upon seeing that her horns were sticking up instead of being bent, and her hair was much longer. About the same length as Kama's from the looks of it. "...okay, yeah, what happened last night wasn't a dream."

"Indeed~," Kama said as Mina let out a yelp of surprise from hearing Kama's voice in her head while looking around. "Relax, it's just me. Remember the deal we had last night?"

"Oh…right….wish you told me that I would look different after letting you live inside me."

"I didn't think that your appearance would change upon accepting my offer to become a Grand Servant. But there's not much I can do about it."

"Swell," Mina said before opening the microwave door and pulling out the small box of shrimp-fried rice. "Well, at least the food is still…moderately warm." She said before opening up a drawer next to her, pulling out a spoon, and beginning to eat the content that was inside it. "So…Lily's a Grand Servant, just like me?"

"Pretty much."

"For how long?"

"Who knows. Given what you saw yesterday, I can only assume that she's been a grand servant for a good ten years or so. Which would make sense given how well she can handle herself in a fight."

"Was there a reason why she hid something like that from me?"

"Multiple reasons. One of them might be because people wouldn't believe that what she has isn't a quirk, they might think of her being crazy, or they wouldn't believe her…no offense, but you humans are easy to fool."

"Hey!" Mina said before pausing and thought it over for a good ten seconds before sighing in defeat. "…crap, you got a point."

"It's not easy trying to explain one's self in a society like this without proof."

"Hm…I suppose you're right…So…what do I do now? I mean, I'm supposed to fight against these…beast villains, but you never explain to me what they are."

"I'll explain it on the way to school. Though you might want to inform Lily about this before classes start."

"Right," Mina said before looking at the time. "School doesn't start in two hours, that should give me at least thirty minutes of free time before class starts."

"Perhaps I can assist you in that. Though I will need to be in control of your body to help."

"What do you mean by that?"

"You have the body of a grand servant, or pseudo servant to be more accurate. That means you have super strength, speed, durability, stamina, and in this case the ability to fly." Kama said as it caused Mina to be taken by surprise by hearing this. "There are a few other perks, but for now let me have control of your body so I can let you experience it."

"I…I don't know."

"It won't hurt, I promise."

"Alright, I'll allow it…but I need to freshen up a bit before we head out…man…it's so weird to have a voice in my head."

"You'll get used to it…though I recommend not talking out loud in public, fewer people think you might be talking to yourself."

"Oh…yeah. Don't want them to think I'm crazy or anything."

There were many things that Mina had experienced that she would classify as awesome. Getting the new phone that she ever wanted as a birthday gift from Momo, was awesome. Going to a rave party for the first time without getting lectured is also awesome. Being able to run at speeds that only Superman could only do…This was on the top list of things that were awesome in her book.

"This is freaking amazing! I like the Flash, but different!" Mina yelled as she quickly took off from the ground and started hopping from the rooftops of buildings within the city.

"The perks of being a pseudo servant of a divine spirit. Bear in mind, I'm only doing this because you have no control over your own body. Hence why you'll be learning how to control the magic circuits within your body."

"And who's going to teach me how to do that?"

"The Grand Servant, Lily," Kama said as it caused Mina to ask her a question.

"That reminds me. What's the big deal about being a Grand Servant? You know, like, what I am supposed to do?"

"You the Grand Servant. Chosen by the planet to face off against the beasts, The evils of humanity. There are a total of Fourteen beasts, but as of what I know thanks to being part of Mara for a good couple of seconds, there are seven beasts that have been summoned into the world. I only know three out of the seven beasts that appeared in this world."

"And who might they be?" Mina asked as she felt her body stopping on top of a large business building. She felt her hand move against her will as three orbs appeared in front of her taking form.

"The first beast, Goetia, The demon king. Originally made by King Solomon, the king of mages, as a means to help humanity, but over time after seeing the horrors of what humans can do to each other, he decided to burn humanity and go back in time to make his version of humanity and to the concept of death."

"...I-Is that even possible?"

"On this planet, no. But on the planet that he tried to kill humanity, yes." Kama said as she made two orbs appear in front of Mina as it represented the earth. Though one had a wild colorful aura, the other had a normal blue aura that only engulfed the planet. "Now the planet that Goetia was on was brimming with magic. The planet that you're on now, has little to no magic. " She said before making the orbs disappear. " I can only guess that it might be the planet's doing by storing magic within itself so that it can summon us here because of the beasts, or someone was able to seal off the beast's ability to absorb the magic from the planet at the last second. But we'll have to look into it later."

"It's still hard to believe something like this is on earth…D-do you think that the pro heroes can stop him…or them?"

"...Do you want my honest opinion? Because if so then it's not going to be good." Kama asked as Mina hesitantly nodded. "Alright…I know you're a kid and you're still processing what I'm saying…but this world is doomed if you let this world's heroes take on the beast."

"...Can I ask why?"

"Because…Whoever forced this broken system to be implemented is either an idiot or a genius in making humanity weak. Humans rely on heroes for just about anything. Just like I said yesterday, being a hero isn't about ranking, glory, or money. Sure it's nice to have that but come on. All this crap and morals about not killing your enemies. That only makes things worse for not only the person but innocent bystanders."

"What do you mean? Aren't the villains taken down by the heroes taken to jail?"

"And what if they escape?" Kama asked as she noticed Mina was about to speak but cut her off quickly. "If they are a serial killer, rapist, or god forbid a child molester. If that person escapes custody or jail, then they will do the same things over and over again. Not only will that person's hands be covered in blood, but so will yours. Because you let the villain live and the actions he or she had done will weigh heavy on you more. You let the villain live so he can take another person's life. It's even worse when the person that the villain kills has a family."

"I…I….but."

"You can make up excuses like maybe they'll get the help they need once in jail, or they'll be locked behind bars for the rest of their days. But you can't keep every evil in the world locked away in Pandora's box. Because sooner or later, that box will open, and all the evil locked away will go on a killing spree."

"I…never thought about it like that…I always thought that everything would be okay so long as a hero…I mean, heroes take down the bad guy and then send them to jail."

"It's understandable that you would think that. You grew up thinking this way by the system that was placed on this planet. But you need to know that everything isn't black or white. It's a huge gray palette. Sure, actions from those in the past may have been barbaric and inhumane, but it got the job done and prevented more people from being killed later on by the villain."

"...Y-Yeah," She said before looking at the other two images of the beasts as a means to try and change the subject. "What about the other two?"

"The one with the huge horns and her body restrained is Beast II, Tiamat, One of the Primordial Deities in Mesopotamian Mythology. She's the mother of all Sumerian Gods. The gods were given birth from the pairing of Tiamat, who is the saltwater, and Abzu, who is the freshwater. Afterward, the gods, who are their children, waved their banner of revolution against the primeval father Abzu and acquired supremacy over the world. At this moment, Tiamat gently approved the deeds of her children. It is proof that her love for her children has won over her love for her husband. However, the gods pointed their blades even at Tiamat, their mother. Tiamat, in her grief and disorder, gave birth to 11 Magical Beasts as her new children, and they altogether had a showdown with the gods. At the end of the conflict, Tiamat and her 11 Magical Beasts were torn apart. It is said that the gods tore up her corpse into two, forming heaven and earth from it, and thus, had established the ritual for the creation of the World of Man."

"How can they do something like that!? They were their parents!"

"Because even children have to part ways with their parents eventually. After all, you fall under this category as well, albeit a bit different seeing how you didn't kill your mother." Kama said as it caused Mina to flinch from the divine's spirit's statement. "Granted, the way that happened to Tiamat may be a poor example of it, but you can't stay with your parents forever. Otherwise, you'll be regressed. Tiamat was "a womb discarded after Genesis", becoming the origin of Sumerian Mythology. She was turned into a "Mother Sea" and was put to use as a breeding ground to produce life, but once the earth's environment stabilized and after the ecosystems were established, she was banished to the World of Imaginary Numbers. A space within the world with no life. It is where Tiamat waits until she gets the chance to return to her original world. Sadly she's in this world now, and her existence is a threat to humanity."

"And how is she a threat to humanity…I mean it looks like she's tied up, so defeating her shouldn't be a problem…right?"

"The sea of life or the black mud that she can produce from her body is highly dangerous. Not only to humans but the ecosystem as well. It will kill, corrupt, and give birth to monsters that are from Tiamat." Kama said as it took Mina by surprise. "If not taken down soon, her sea of life could spread all over the world if given the chance to."

"...I'm starting to have second thoughts about becoming a Grand Servant. Is it too late to return us to normal?"

"All transactions with becoming a Grand Servant can not be refunded," Kama said with a devilish smirk on her face. "You're stuck this way until you die~," She said as it caused Mina to deadpan her. "Hey, this isn't any different than becoming a hero, no?"

"I mean yeah, but the way that you're saying it is pretty much on a much larger scale!"

"Again, how is that any different than what you're doing in the U.A. High school?"

"I…well…okay you got a point." She said before looking at the third image that resembles Kama, but this one had multiple horns on her head, and the cosmic color of her arms was the same as the sun. "I know you said that she was you, but why does she look…different?"

"Because the demon side of Kama has taken over." She said before showing two images of Mara. One was her with multiple horns, the other was her looking like Kama, only her arms were a darker shade of a purple cosmic theme and a star-like crown on her head. "So far, Mara isn't at full power, hence the first image I showed you last night. If she were to gather enough magical energy, then she would be looking like the image with the star-like crown on her head. Mara is the beast of pleasure, though the difference is that even though she gives pleasure, her pleasure can corrupt people. No matter how pure they are on the inside."

"Wait…do I have that ability to do that?"

"Not so much. You can make people fall in love with you or with other people. But corrupting them to the point where they will kill for you, that's Mara's department of corruption with love."

"Okay, good. For a second there I thought I'd be in trouble if I accidentally did something like that."

"Which is why I'll be locking away certain aspects of your powers. Not that I don't trust you or anything, but I prefer not to have you accidentally kill someone that didn't deserve it."

"Hey, I'm careful!"

"You barely have control over your quirk to some degree. What makes you think I let you have full reign over your new powers without giving me a reason to?" Kama asked as Mina was about to reply, but couldn't think of a means to object to her statement. "Except for fighting the beasts, your powers will be limited until you can master it."

"Fine," Mina said with a pouty expression on her face. "So…Kama…what's your story?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, you know all about me…so why not let me know more about you?" Mina asked as she felt Kama's hold of her body releasing and a bit of anger and fear welling up in her body. "I mean...if you're not up for something like that, then I won't press the subject-"

"When you gain more control over your powers, I'll let you know more about me…For now…let's just focus on getting you to school." Kama said as Mina paused for a moment before shrugging and making her way towards school.

"Nice to see you're up!" Midnight yelled as she watched Lily making her way from the doorway that led to her room. From what she could tell, her hair was a mess, wasn't wearing a shirt but her hair covered up her breast, and had on a pair of men's boxers. Needless to say, she couldn't help but find the bunny girl's sleeping attire…odd and disturbing at the same time. "Um…weren't you wearing your school uniform when I put you to bed?"

"I got up later on during the night to take a piss. You guys didn't give me any other type of clothing, and the ones I had on before coming here smelled like trash, blood, and sewer water."

"Ah…right…I'll make a mental note to stop by the mall and get you some clothes."

"Yeah, if you're going to pick out my clothing, then don't expect me to wear them," Lily said as she made her way over to the refrigerator to pull out two cartons of eggs. "I prefer to find clothes that don't show off certain aspects of my body."

"You have no problem doing that around the school."

"Because I'm doing it out of spite for not giving me clothes that would fit. Maybe next time they'll ask before assuming I'm just like every girl in this school."

"...Right…w-well I made you breakfast if you want any. It's over on the table." Midnight said as Lily looked over at the table that had a plate with scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, and orange juice on it.

"Yeah, I'll stick to making my food."

"Oh come on. It's not like I laced the food with anything?"

"And you expect me to believe you on that?" She asked before making her way to the cabinets in the kitchen and started to look for a frying pan. "You heroes label me as The villain killer . That means I'm pretty much a threat in your eyes. Now I may have joined the school just for the shits and giggles, but I don't trust you, pro heroes. Sure you provided me a place to sleep, but that's only so you all can keep an eye on me, and so that it doesn't cause problems if people see me sleeping outside on the ground." She said before placing the pan on the stove, turning the heat on underneath the pan, and cracking the eggs she pulled out and put them in the pan.

"Look, I get it. I'm the bad guy in your eyes because I'm a hero. But you have to meet me halfway kid."

"I don't have to meet you halfway for anything," Lily said before pulling out a spatula and began mixing the eggs to make her batch of scrambled eggs. "You see, unlike most people who would trust you, I'm not that. You want to gain my trust, then you will have to give me a reason to trust you." She said before walking to another cabinet to pull out a plate. "And trust me, it's going to be hard to gain my trust."

Midnight simply stared at Lily for a good couple of seconds before trying to speak up. The moment she did, however, her phone began to ring as she pulled it out to see who it was. Upon seeing that it was Nezu, she quickly began to make her way towards the door of the house before speaking up.

"I have to get stuff ready for class. Be sure to get to your homeroom before school starts."

"Yeah, cause I'm so looking forward to it," Lily said in a sarcastic tone, causing Midnight to roll her eyes as she left. The moment she left, she heard Artoria's voice speak up in her head.

"She didn't drug your food. Not like you were going to eat it anyway, but I thought I'd let you know."

"Well, that's good to know," Lily said before turning the heat off on the stove and placing her meal on the plate. She soon pulls out a plastic fork from her tail before heading over to the table and begins to eat. "Is she planning on anything involving some hidden plan to take me to jail?"

"None whatsoever. But I wouldn't be surprised if someone higher up plans that. I'll be sure to let you know if I come across someone with information involving that."

"Good to know that you'll have my back and not let something bad happen to me." She said before letting out a small chuckle. "You almost remind me of…Tituba."

"You mean the former caretaker of the orphanage you used to live in before leaving," Artoria said as she noticed Lily stopped eating. "There's not much I know about this person. Other than the picture you have of her."

"I'm surprised you didn't look into my memories for the answer."

"I felt like it was something that I shouldn't touch until I gain your trust," Artoria said as she felt a sense of sadness from Lily. "You miss her…don't you?"

"Of course I do. She was like the mother I never had…which I still believe she is my mother."

"Even though she has fox-like features, and you have rabbit-like features."

"Look, the point is she was like a mother to me. Possibly the only person that treated me like I was a person, not some foreign monster to throw rocks at."

"...You know…you could always get the heroes to look for her."

"And have the heroes use her as a means to guilt me into becoming a hero? I think not. If I'm going to look for her, then I'm going to do it by myself. Not with their help."

"Fair enough…and when will you be looking for her?"

"When I leave the school. Might be when I see if the heroes are going to try and gain my trust in them. Which isn't going to happen anytime soon." Lily said before taking another bite from her meal but paused upon feeling a strange tingling sensation flowing through her body. The sensation soon vanished after a few seconds as she stood up quickly. "What the hell was that?"

"That would be the grand servant appearing in this world."

"...Care to explain. Because I thought I was the only grand servant…or is there something you forgot to mention to me."

"More like wasn't important at the time. But I suppose now would be a good time to explain it. You were indeed chosen to be the host of the grand servant, but even one powerful being isn't strong enough to face off against one or more of the beasts that might appear in this world. So, the planet can summon up to seven grand servants to take down the beasts depending on the stage they're in."

"Wait, so the planet can just pick a random human and make them into a grand servant? What if that random human was a hero and that hero was to come after me if I ended up leaving this school?"

"Then the divine spirit in the host's body will prevent that from happening. After all, the grand servant's job is to kill the beast or anything that is a threat to humanity." She said before she and Lily heard a knock at the door. "Plus, I'm pretty sure you'll be surprised as to who this grand servant is."

"Oh yeah, I'm sure I'm going to know who this one is," Lily said as she walked over to the door and opened it. Upon opening the door, her eyes widened upon seeing Mina standing in front of the doorway. Specifically, the way she looks. Yesterday, she was just a normal high school-looking girl...well as normal as a school for heroes, now she looks like a demon radiating with divine energy. Lily stared at Mina for a moment before her train of thought was broken by Mina speaking.

"H-Hey Lily…Um…question…How good are you when it comes to um…magic…you know the same thing that you used on me and in the fight the other day?"

"You were saying?" Artoria asked as Lily mentally glared at the divine spirit.

"...I fucking hate you sometimes. You know that, Artoria?"