Chapter 14

  I ran back to town. My heart raced as my mind worked through everything. I’d unsummoned my new Mun, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t thinking about him. He’d fused. Three Gear Pups had turned into a single Mun when I got all three to level 15. As I ran, ignoring the random gear pups and springers in my path, I mentally focused on the crystal, pulling up its information in my minds eye, a day of grinding already making me accustomed to the strange magic of the gauntlet.

  Cogberus

  Level 10

  HP: 80/80

  It was tanky. I’d thought the calfer was tough, the Mun having 51 HP at level 10. But my Cogberus now had 29 points more than that, at the same level. And that was just for the HP. I didn’t know what the hidden stats looked like. What it’s defense was, its speed, its attack power. Still, considering how it looked, it’s large, bulky, heavily muscled frame, with the occasional bit of metal plating, I figured the Cogberus was going to be a powerhouse.

  I also noted, as I scanned its information while I neared the gate to Cogni, that my Cogberus had a total of four abilities. It had Bark and Bite, just like the Gear Pups before. It also had a body slam, which was a skill my little gear pups had all learned at level 12. The fourth skill, however, was completely new to me. All I had to go on, was it was called Gear Shift. What it did, I had no idea. I would test it out later. For now, I wanted to get to the Mun Center.

  Slightly winded, I made my way through Cogni, ignoring the surprised and startled looks of the residents. None of them were familiar, but that wasn’t a surprise. I’d only just arrived today, and honestly, most of my time had been with the mayor, or out in the wilds. Even when I came back to heal my Mun occasionally, I didn’t pay much mind to the people of the town. I was leaving soon anyways, and figured my mental state didn’t need to try and learn a ton of names and faces right now. After all, I was using a good bit to keep the impending, eventually breakdown over the fact I’d been transported suddenly to a new world with no way back home at bay. And past that, was the excitement and intrigue of the world I was now in, and of course, my joy at getting to tame Muns.

  Now, I had a new bit to ponder on my mind. Mun could fuse. There were special evolution paths. Were they secret? Were they known? What other ways could Mun evolve? Could I forcibly combine them, regardless of their levels? Did they have to be in the party when they reached a certain milestone together? Did some have other evolution parameters I didn’t know of? I swear, if they had a Mun that evolved off something stupid like making it feel bonita, or making it fall in love, I was out. I did not have time for that nonsense.

  It was nearly nightfall as I approached the Mun Center. Interestingly, the town had a unique set of lamp posts lighting the way, though I couldn’t tell if they were fueled by electricity, magic, or crystals. Just, metal poles, with random light coming from them, bathing the space around them in soft white light. There were still areas of darkness, sure, and the shadows cast by the houses and the mountain range made for a rather eerie feel around the town.

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  Stepping inside of the Mun Center was an immediate relief, as I rubbed my hands against my arms, the soft cotton of the shirt comforting. I wasn’t cold, mind you. The town, and area around the town was actually quite warm. If I was back home, I’d guess it had to be in the eighties at least, though thankfully there wasn’t any blasted humidity.

  The Mun Center had fewer people in it this time, only two individuals, both just reading books in a corner, as I approached the massive structure. Neither looked up as I entered, and a part of me wondered if they were actually that engrossed in whatever it was they were reading, or if they weren’t up to something else. It didn’t matter.

  My left hand warmed as it touched the crystal. Immediately the list of options filled my mind. Out of a rapidly forming habit, I selected the option to heal all my Muns. Technically they were all healed, but it wasn’t a bad habit to get into. After the rush of power, I inspected my team.

  Cogberus Lvl 10

  HP: 80

  Springer Lvl 6

  HP: 33

  Calfer Lvl 10

  HP: 51

  Gearow Lvl 4

  HP: 18

  Seeing my team roster now short two slots made me smile. I’d ask the mayor if any others from around here had unique evolution features. Could I create a hydra by fusing multiple springers? Was that a thing? What about a mutli-headed bird? There’d been one of those in one of the taming games I’d loved playing growing up. Or, what about a two headed cow? I was pretty sure I’d seen one of those in mythology before… or maybe it was a game with monsters mutated by radiation… Who knew?

  Doing my best to put brainstorming aside, I selected my Cogberus. It wasn’t going to provide all that much information, I knew, but I still wanted to see what the magical crystal of the world had to say about the creature I’d just come into possession of. I’d already checked out my Gearow earlier, after all, and had continued to be amused, and intrigued, by the strange little tidbits about the Muns.

  Cogberus – Gear Guardian – The Cogberus is a unique Mun spoke of in legend. When a pack of Gear Pups reach a certain level together, there is the chance they can combine, creating a variant that shows three heads are indeed better than one. Cogberus are said to be protectors, watching over packs of Gear Pups and Cog Dogs, and keeping all under their six-eyed gaze safe. It is said Cogberus is capable of withstanding even the heat of a Bullow, as if to spite the Muns who regularly feast on gear pups.

  With a bit of willpower I closed out of the prompt, doing my best to not ventilate as I pulled my hand free of the crystal. It was a unique Mun. One of legends. Did that make it legendary? Was this a legendary dog? Was I that lucky? More questions flooded me, and I couldn’t tell if my shaking hands were from my extremely irregular, elevated heart rate, or excitement. Either way, I wasted no time leaving the Mun Center to head towards my only source of possible answers tonight, as well as, hopefully, a source of food, a shower, and a warm bed for the night. Another thing that the games never dealt with. Training Muns all day all but guaranteed you worked up a sweat, and I did not feel like setting off on my Tamer journey smelling like, and covered in, ick.