Chapter 29

  “Imagine an Amplifier like an egg,” Guy started as we continued our walk, “there is potential within it, but it must be drawn out, it must be hatched.”

  “Okay,” I said tentatively, “go on.”

  “The rarity of an amplifier, has to do with the potential that can eventually be unlocked within it. The higher the rarity, the more dormant power within, and the more that it can grow and change and evolve, the more the potential can incubate, before it reaches maturity. Though,” he looked at me, “the time and effort and resources for it to reach that final stage also increases with the rarity.”

  He touched his stone, “most people you meet will have common amplifiers. They still have potent power within, mind you, even though they are common, but the difference between a common amplifier, and a legendary amplifier, is like the difference between a grain of sand, and Mutopia itself.”

  My mouth dropped at that. That disparity sounded a bit… too grandiose. Guy must be exaggerating.

  “Common Amplifiers also only take a month or so to properly ‘hatch’ to keep going on with the egg analogy. And after that phase, once it’s done attuning to you, it will grow and evolve slowly over time, until it reaches maturity.”

  “During that whole process,” I ask, “does it affect your Muns? Or must you have your amplifier reach full maturity, before it benefits you?”

  “A good question,” Guy smiled, “and another sign of just how intuitive you truly are. Placing an amplifier into your gauntlet will always come with an immediate effect. Dependent, of course, on the amplifier, and on you. Once it has hatched, the effects it gives will change and evolve, based on again, you as the Tamer, and the environment, experiences, battles, and so much more that occurred during its incubation period. As it grows, it will cycle between an infant, juvenile, adolescent, and mature stage. Those stages will see more spikes in power, and again, the quality of the spike, and what exactly happens, depends entirely on you.”

  “Meaning,” I said slowly, “during that whole time, your every action can potentially determine the end version of your amplifier?”

  “Exactly.” He took another drink, licking his lips as he continued, his moustache glowing slightly where the liquid had touched the dark hair, “most Tamers, once they’ve advanced their gauntlet to Tier 3 and acquired their amplifier, will seclude themselves, trying to ensure they are in an environment they can completely control, to shape the growth of their amplifier in a way they want. Especially before it hatches, an amplifier can be extremely volatile and… impressionable if you will. It’s why Tier 3 is the point most people who do not wish to proceed down the path any further, step aside. They reach that point, gaining the ability to use an amplifier, and return back to their normal lives.”

  “Can you swap out Amplifiers?” I asked, probably a dumb question, but still, I didn’t know what information would actually be important down the road. And, if you were limited to only a single amplifier your entire life… though it may be difficult, trying to hold out for a higher rarity one could be important.

  “You can, though again, the effort and time requirement usually makes such a notion unappealing. If you spend months raising a common amplifier to its adult stage, unequipping it, to equip a rare amplifier at the egg stage again, starting the process all over again, and usually weakening your capabilities in the short term in, is ill advised. Even if the end payout is better in terms of power, most Tamers do not have the luxury, nor want, to have to do the process all over again. Especially because of the time. It’s one thing to give up a month or two to ensure your Amplifier hatches in a way that you want. But to do that, repeatedly as you upgrade the rarities of your amplifiers, each time for an even longer period of time. He looked at me over his moustache, “would you want to be a hermit on a mountain for over a year? Two years? How much would you sacrifice?”

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  He had a good point. There was a saying I’d heard once about making sure the juice was worth the squeeze. That being said, if the power difference between a common amplifier and legendary amplifier was even a tenth as large as he’d hinted at, I could definitely see the temptation in it. If it were a video game, it would be a no brainer. But with real time on the line… sitting alone on a mountain for a few years just to try and ensure it ‘hatched’ properly felt a bit… too much. I couldn’t imagine anyone in their right mind would actually go through such a method.

  “Are there any people with legendary amplifiers?” I asked, still intrigued mind you, even though I doubted I’d ever attempt such a thing.

  “One that everyone knows of,” Guy began, and I already had a good guess of who before he said it, “the leader of the Disciples of Grand Nox. Liz the Lizard.”

  And there it was. If this was an anime or a book, I would have facepalmed at how obvious such a revelation was.

  “Anyone else?” I pressed. I didn’t care about the obvious answer. Besides, I’d already made a mental note of staying far away from her and the heart of Mutopia that was Centropolis. Those problems, were totally not mine to deal with. And knowing she had a legendary amplifier made me sorry for any poor sap from my world that wanted to play the hero role.

  Guy’s quickened steps faltered for a moment, as a pensive look crossed his face. “One, maybe?” He said slowly, the normally talkative man hesitant to speak. “But… it’s only conjecture, more myth and spoken legend than anything.”

  “Up until a couple weeks ago,” I started, “the concept of being here, in a real world where I am actively getting to tame and train monsters, would have been a story of pure fantasy. Not even conjecture or myth or legend. So, hit me with it.” I took another drink, my pace continuing with ease. This drink was amazing.

  “There was a Tamer, some fifty years ago or so they say, who had a legendary amplifier. A man who’s power was impossible to deny. More god than man, they said about him. But,” Guy shrugged, “he just kind of disappeared. People don’t know if he ever actually had a legendary amplifier, or he was just that strong. He was known to specialize in rare Mun, types people rarely ever saw or heard of. Could be the rarity of his Mun, along with whatever his augmenting stones were and amplifier was, put him above the others.”

  He looked at me, “sort of like you with your Cogberus. It singlehandedly turned the tide of your battle against those two Disciples. Even though it was level capped, making the battle as even as possible. Some Mun are just on a different level. So,” he shrugged again, “what’s to say someone using rare or exceedingly powerful Mun couldn’t be mistaken for having a Legendary amplifier?”

  If there was one thing a lifetime of gaming and watching anime told me, it was that there was a lot more truth to Guy’s words than he probably actually realized. I had no doubt in my mind, that that man did, at the very least, exist and have a legendary amplifier. The part that confused me though, was how he just disappeared. Fifty years was a long time, sure, but it didn’t seem long enough to just be gone, with people questioning if you were even actually real. There was more to this mysterious man… But, that wasn’t for me to explore. I had my own mission, after all.

  “Well,” I said, finishing off my Pep Step, “I appreciate everything you’ve told me so far,” I smiled, and it was an actual, warm smile, towards Guy, “now though, I’ve one last question for you.”

  “And what’s that?” He asked, finishing his Pep Step as well.

  “How fast can we reach Silver Springs?”

  He grinned, and pulled out a few more crystals. “If you’re up for a faster pace,” his eyes sparkled as he handed me one of the crystals, another Pep Step, “we can probably cut your travel time by a good day, maybe even two, depending entirely on you.”

  I grinned as I materialized the glowing pink drink. “Perfect.”

  I had a Keeper to defeat, a gauntlet to improve, and more and more Muns to capture, level, and evolve.