Chapter 44

  Julius’s first three Muns were, to some degree, Muns I recognized. Not because I’d seen them before, mind you, but because it was clear what they’d evolved from. The first Mun was a Lion. The magnificent beast, obviously evolved from a Pride Cub, was pure white, its entire body coated in the finest sheen of fur I’d ever seen. Its mane was made of gemstones, in a manner that matched the vest he wore, and from its head an almost crownlike growth of gems grew.

  The lion itself was easily the size of a car, that is… much bigger than a lion should actually be. And from its tail, where normally a tuft of fur would be at the very end, hung a spiked crystalline stone that if I had to guess, was a diamond. I was too far away to pull up its name with my gauntlet’s ability, but luckily, one of the monitors showed the names of all of the Muns being summoned. And this one, was called a Lion King.

  Wouldn’t get away with that back home.

  Beside the Lion King, was another car sized Mun. Its entire body looked to be carved from a single, perfect diamond, giving it a translucent appearance, though within its very center, light seemed to shimmer and shift. The six-legged creature, with a almond shape to its body, spread two large pieces on its back, from which shimmering wings spread. Its head, attached in that special, strange way that beetle heads were attached to bodies, had a ginormous horn sprouting from it, that fanned out in such a way that implied it could not only be used to pierce and flip things, but also chop and slash and who knew what else. The creature, fitting perfectly its name, was a Herculean Diamond Beetle.

  Juluius’s final Mun, with its deep amethyst stripes that glowed and bathed everything around it in a purple light, was likewise, familiar. The Gembra Stallion was obviously an evolution of the Gembra Foal, though I wasn’t sure if it was a direct evolution, or unique one. Something I planned on looking into, after this battle… and my own. For now though, I just admired the majestic creature, who’s body rippled with muscle, its hooves made of gems as well, its… uh… six eyes on its head all glowing purple too. From its head, two horns sprouted, and between them, like a flickering flame, purple light danced. Eerie.

  “Are all of Julius’s Muns from around Silver Springs?” I whispered to Guy as I turned my focus to Mikael’s, taking them in before the battle began. There was a one minute countdown timer that had spawned as they’d summoned their Muns, likely a grace period before the fight started properly, for the two to begin making their plans for the battle.

  “They are. Part of the Keeper position includes limiting their Muns to only those available from the base Muns that spawn around their respective towns. It’s a…uh… flavor aspect of each of the nine cities that also plays into how people make their decisions about which Keeper to challenge to Tier up their gauntlets. Though, I should also mention, you can only Tier up once per Keeper.”

  “Wait,” my eyes went wide, “so, this will be the only time I challenge Julius?”

  “That’s right,” Guy laughed, “lucky you.”

  This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

  I wouldn’t call that lucky. Sure, it sounded dumb to try and challenge him at higher Tiers given how rare his amplifier was… but still, the thought of saving the toughest keeper for last was an appealing one. If not for the fact my Muns were all almost max level for obedience for my current Tier 0 gauntlet… I’d be on my way to the next damn town.

  Oh well… beggars couldn’t be choosers, and I turned my focus back to the battle at hand. While Julius’s Muns made sense and had a theme. Mikael’s were… different.

  Centered on his side of the arena, flanked by the other two, was the Mun that demanded the most attention. Whereas Julius’s Muns were all the size of cars, this Mun in particular looked more appropriately sized to rival a tank. With dark grey skin that seemed made of stone, its four legs, each the size of a tree trunk, protruded outwards from an impossibly heavy looking shell. The oversized tortoise, because that’s totally the animal it seemed based on, had a shell that was lined with massive stone walls and fortifications. Behind which, were… siege weapons? There were scaled down versions of catapults, ballista, cannons, and a few other random assorts all along the shell. It’s name left little guesswork as to it’s purpose. The Ancient Fortoise was, no doubt, a Mun that could take a ton of damage.

  On its left, the most perplexing Mun I’d ever seen to date. Looking at the creature, I honestly had no idea what it was, until I looked at its name. The Mun was called an Ax-olotl Primus. It had bright green skin that was hidden beneath layers of bark, and from its spindly, frail looking limbs, and tail, and the six weird gill frill things on its neck… were axe blades. Down its entire back, was another dangerously sharp blade, that looked like one of those weird moon shaped knives… or, no, I guess to match the name, it was the edge of what… an executioner’s axe? I wasn’t a weapons expert… but all of what I was seeing seemed reallllly unnecessary and ineffective… but, who was I to question the Mun choices of a Tier 7 Tamer?

  His final Mun, on the right of the Fortoise, looked like a miniature version of king kong… if you stuck two tesla towers in its back, electrified all of its fur, and pumped it full of steroids. Seriously, the tiny-home sized gorilla had muscles that bulged in such a veiny fashion that its bald head made complete sense, as did the angry look on its face. Well, that and the fact the lightning crackling between the two tesla towers sprouting from its flesh on its back probably didn’t feel pleasant. It’s fur was… yellow… which I didn’t really feel like questioning, and its entire body was covered in lightning bolt pattern scars, which glowed with a white-ish blue light. As the creature beat on its chest, sparks jolted with each contact, and even though we were protected from their abilities, I could practically feel the hairs on my arms and head rise from the static energy. Called a Bolt-Charged Brutalist, I had no doubt the creature could pack a powerful punch.

  The only question now, as the time counted down, with only twenty seconds left to go, was who would strike first? I knew the battles weren’t based on teams going together, but instead, how fast each Mun was. But, aside from that, how would their amplifiers affect the battle? What type of augmenting stones did both use? There were too many unknowns, and I really wished I could be in one of those special viewing boxes, which according to Guy, would give me all of those extra details.

  Instead, I bit down my frustration at my lack of extra knowledge, and did what everyone else seemed to be doing in the arena. I started counting down, even as everyone started clapping and stomping their feet, filling the arena with a loud, deafening beat.

  “Five,” claps and stops.

  “Four,” the pace picked up.

  “Three,” my heartrate jumped.

  “Two,” it was all I could do to not stand up in excitement.

  “One.” I held my breath, as the stomping and clapping and counting started, an impossible silence falling on the arena, instantly, as the world froze for a moment. As if the very universe was waiting, to see what would happen next.