A contract.
She could remember it clearly in her mind. The exact detail to what she agreed upon her very soul.
And still, she could barely understand what it truly meant.
She felt it, the consequence of her actions. Her will was no longer her own. Her instincts told her as much.
There was no king to speak of. And yet, whenever she put her heart to it, all she could think about was serving the human boy in front of her, as if he were the very king she had been born to serve.
Only that he had as much relation to royalty as her species had to common ant species.
"So... you're actually real!" The boy paused, giggling to himself as he grew paler by the second. "Throughout the infinite cosmos, heavens, and earth, you responded to my selfish wish for a companion!"
He had his eccentricities. Pitou didn't need to hear his crazy and manic laughter to see that. But it certainly did help.
Taking stock of her surroundings, she found herself in a sort of shed meant to house slave workers, one piled high with the bodies of several humans, all aged similarly to the boy in front of her. Taking a closer look at the bodies revealed something interesting, though. A pool of blood had gathered from the bodies, trailing down a path that had already been set out for it, cascading in a river that seeped into a ring beneath her feet. Intricate symbols carved channels of crimson that appeared to shine with the brilliance of blood diamonds.
Her eyes sparkled a twinged, her expression shifting to show a clear interest, her lips widening into a cheshire grin. "My name is Neferpitou, but you may call me pitou, my liege."
Introductions were in order. After all, she had been beckoned by her new master with guest rites that were more than necessary.
Her bow was taken with the utmost gratitude, divine grace guiding her actions as she greeted her new master.
"Now, now, there's no need to be so polite. We're supposed to be companions, not master and slave. But, we can discuss how our relationship stands later. How about you help yourself to some of the food I prepared for you? I didn't quite know if it was to your liking. This world doesn't quite have nen... However, I don't suppose we can find a suitable substitute."
It truly made her heart swoon. Her new king had already thought ahead! Still, it did hurt her somewhat that things wouldn't last long. But she was definitely going to make the most of things while she still had the chance. It was only a matter of time before her contract came to an end, but that didn't mean she wasn't going to suck it dry of all it had to offer.
"If you say so, my liege."
It was bland, she had to say, but for it to have come directly from her king, then it was better than any cut of meat in the world.
She would serve her liege till the end.
{--}
The world was messed up, but that didn't mean he couldn't maintain some semblance of sanity.
Sure, bloody murder wasn't the best way to open things. But it was a start. And that was better than nothing.
Now, he just had to deal with the massive insect… thing (cat?). It would really be for the better if he could nip the issue right from the bud.
Taking a seat on the floor, the boy watched as Pitou turned to look at him, blood dripping off her adorable face as she blankly stared at him, almost looking like the animal she was based on. He gestured to the space in front of him with a polite smile, fingers steepling in delight as she followed his gesture.
"Now, I know it was quite a trip to get here, so I'll make things as easy to understand," He started, easing into the rough conversation. "My name is Dexter, but you can also call me Dex. I Summoned you into this world to help me, and in exchange, I will help you with a problem that you may have."
It was the broad stroke of the matter, but really, that was all he needed at the moment.
The catgirl tilted her head to the side for a moment, pondering an unknown thought. "Ne, ne, what do you want, my liege?"
The question struck the boy like a hammer, knocking him out of his thoughts. Well, that was going to be hard to say. And it wasn't because he was lacking options…
"Undecided, then, are we?"
That was not a question; it was a statement. One that caused the boy's eyes to be drawn into his summon's, enraptured like a moth to a flame.
Red jewels stared right back at him, unwavering in their gaze, piercing into his very soul. The weight of the world pressed on his shoulders at that moment, and he felt the need to look at the ground. And yet, he forced himself to sit up straight, biting down on whatever made him react.
He wouldn't falter. Not here, nor now.
"If I don't have one, then I'll search to the corners of the earth to find it. And once I do, will you help me accomplish it, Pitou? Accompany me every step of the way?"
That seemed to strike her as much as her earlier words had struck him. For all the mastery she had over every fiber of her being, a single twitch of her cheek was all he needed to know that it meant something.
"From the moment I entered this world, my body, the instincts that make me up, have recognized you as my king. It would make me a very traitorous guard to disobey your wishes."
The boy's lips frowned slightly. It wasn't quite the response he wanted, but it would do for his purposes.
"Then let's go on a never ending journey, explore the universe, find what there is to find, and explore what is there to explore! And at the end of it all, find true satisfaction knowing there's nothing left to do!"
It was aimless, sure. But he knew he would find something… eventually. He was given the entire multiverse to explore, and he was going to make the most of it.
"Oh, I almost forgot. I haven't given you my name, have I?" The nod that followed made his shoulders sag, but that was alright. It was better to fix his mistakes than leave them be. "My bad, then. Name's Gregory, Greg for short, but I never really liked that nickname. So, Pitou, now that we've exchanged our names, how 'bout we cut this master or liege business and just be friends?"
"Friends?" The word sounded like it was probing. Testing to see if it fit well on her tongue. "Friends… my- Gregory… I would love to be your friends."
Huh, curious… and just adorable! She looked like a confused kitten when he said those words. It was almost funny to see the expression on her face.
"Great!" Gregory cheered, jumping off the floor as his eyes darted towards the door, pointing dramatically at it. "Now, we're off to kill a story-obsessed maniac!"
"As you wish, Gregory," Pitou finished, her tone far less enthusiastic than mine.
"Come on, say it louder! Give it some pizzazz, my new found friend!"
At his encouragement, the chimera ant suddenly found her voice projecting much louder than it did before, her lungs pushing out all the air they could as she shouted, "Right, lets go, Gregory!"
"A bit stiff, but we have the entire journey to make it sound more natural," he said, knocking her head to make a point. "But don't worry your sweet little head; we have all the time in the world to get you to an acceptable level."
"Yes, my friend."
"That's the spirit!"
Suddenly, there was a bang at the door, followed by the rattling of keys. "You rotten bunch, I told you to stay quiet while the master's sleeping. Now it's time for me to punish you dumb, shit-licking, asses!"
"Pitou?"
"As you command."
"Right, but let's try that one more time later."
There was a flash of silver, and soon, the banging stopped, followed by a gasp, as a thud could be heard outside the hut. A small hole to the outside now became apparent.
"Thanks, now we can really get started on our journey."
A/N: It has been an eternity and a half, and in that time I managed to grow as a person. But, Ive been neglecting my writing. Unfortunately.I have a few things floating around, but I think this will do great.
Really, no flow, no idea. Just write. Mc is unhinged, and honestly, Im all for it. As for the multiverse things, Ill establish a few rules for it in the coming chapter, but really it just boils down to "eliminate conflict, move on" rinse repeat...
But I dont want that, so the mc will interact with the world, and teavh Pitou too about said world and humanity as a whole... or something. ..
I guess Ill let you guys guess which world he's currently in. Should become more obvious in a bit.
But with that being said, thats for reading. Toodles!