//------------------------------// // Chapter 25 // Story: Subject to evolution // by Dramize the Salamander //------------------------------// Day 152 After waking up I went outside to stretch my wings and found Buzzelga covered in green skinned bronze chitin covered with dark green chain like markings that lead to the emblem of a tower with giant emerald spikes coming out of his shoulders and clawed hoofs that were cutting into the ground with each step carrying a body the was for lack of a better description strength incarnate destroying trees, stone and the roots in the way with single swings of the great sword he welded as he moved towards the beach as his mace ended dragon tail took care of anything still standing. I flew down landing on a standing he was just passing allowing me to get a good look at the three emerald horns that spouted out of his short silver spiked up mane. "Morning Buzzelga what's new?" "Not much I wanted to clear out more of these roots so the weaker and younger lings could hunt." Buzzelga said turning to me while destroying a few other trees with his tail. "Ok then I'm gonna go find the source of this problem and see if I can end it once and for all." "Then you might want to find Acid last time I checked she was headed their with some fire affinity lings to see if they could burn the roots away." Buzzelga said before he continued forward as I took off to find Acid using my thermal sensor to scan the island which allowed to find them quickly as they were incinerating a section of the forest. I landed next to the much Acid who was wearing an angry expression as heat came of her black and orange chitin which for some reason had a cape made of flames coming off her back. From what I could see Acid evolved for explosive power as hole that doted her chitin started shooting out small bursts of flame as her small more subdued frame stood like the lord she was unmoving unafraid of was ahead of her as several hundred crystal roots burst from the ground impaling most of the evolvings before she turned them into magma with her magic protecting those who weren't impaled. "Acid pull back I want to try something." I said moving forward to the flames. "Ok. Everyling leave the wounded and fall back to a safe distance." Acid said before walking away heading to the castle. With those weren't really hurt as I watched as the flames died down to show the crystal tree that was plaguing in our home. I sighed looking at the nuisance and put my left hand on it and tested out my new ability and started leaching the nuisance's life force and watching it slowly die as I converted it's life in to mana which I then released in to the ground. After a few minutes I was looking at the withered husk of tree which turned to dust as a soft wind moved through the forest. "Whisper what took you so long." I said as I felt something land lightly behind me. I turned to see Whispers new form her legs were now like needle points that some how supported her hourglass frame along with her scorpion tail which was curled around her waist like a belt just above a skirt of jade needles as large black and neon purple butterfly wings the bio-hazard symbol on them sprouted from her back out of her waist length black mane which her long white moth antenna stuck out of. "Sorry my king I don't have the best wings for speed." "It's fine but where is Jinx I guessing you two emerged around the same time?" "We Did but as soon as we sensed the hive was in danger she ran off and I couldn't catch her so I just flew here. But at my max speed she should have been here before me." "Then I wonder what's holding her up." I said getting a little worried for my young lord. "You know what Whisper load everything new into the library then look after the nursery. I'll go look for Jinx and see what's holding her up." "Yes my king." Whisper said before taking of for the castle. While I flew back to Cantorlot to pick up Jinx's trail or I would have if not of the face I saw a creature that looked like a pony mixed with a tiger covered in an sapphire blue chitin with light green stripes. two long squid-like barbed and bladed tentacles that sprouted from her head along with four shorter ones from the back were trailing behind her as she was dashing on top of the water at blinding speed dodging volleys of cannon fire coming from a blockade of pirates ships. I watched from the sky as Jinx got closer and closer readying her claws as she speed up and vanished reappearing on the other side of the blockade and racing towards the island while the ships she pasted started to fall apart like they were sliced by fine blades. "HEY JINX!" I yelled causing her to loose focus and trip as she started sinking which made her belly flop and skip like a stone. I stifled a laugh as I flew down. "You ok?" "I'm good just give me a second." Jinx said as she composed herself and started treading water. "So what took you so long? I heard you left before Whisper but she got to the island first." Jinx jumped out of the water landing on surface crouched like a tiger ready to pounce as her long tentacle tail cam out of the water with a glowing cluster of soft eggs attached to her tail by her corruptive clear slime. "I see, head to your nursery drop them off then go to the library." I said as my thermal sensors turned on telling me to look up as a fire ball was speeding towards the castle telling me Velger was back. Jinx bowed saying. "Yes my king." before dashing away to do as she was told. While I took off for the castle to hear Velgers report flying into her room through the window to find herself preening her wings. "Velger have any good news?" I asked causing her to smile. "You could say that." "How so." "I tracked the seed origin to a small lab in the deer territory and after a bit of brain draining I reduced the entire facility and everything in a fifty mile radius of it to smoldering ash." "That's not going to go over well with the deer but I will deal with it later." I thought as I told Velger good job before going fishing.