Jack moved towards the source of the problem.
The mini-sun pulsed with intense, golden light. Radiating heat. It was the probable engine driving the dinosaur transformations and the vulcanism above. This thing had to be stopped.
He approached the mini-sun, raising his Grim Reaper Scythe. Its cold metal contrasted sharply with the intense heat. He hoped the Scythe's unique properties could disrupt... Or extinguish this primordial ball of energy.
He swung the Scythe. The sharp edge made contact with the surface of the mini-sun. It wasn't actually a physical impact. However, the instant the scythe touched the light, a violent reaction erupted.
A blinding flash consumed the chamber. Jack's dead body didn't feel the extreme heat. Instead, he perceived an overwhelming presence. An ancient, searing energy that felt paradoxically creative and destructive.
Then, the system message slammed into his perception.
[DIVINE PRIMORDIAL FIRE DETECTED! FUSION INITIATED!]
Jack was frozen. He couldn't move. He couldn't think. He couldn't even feel his battered undead body anymore. He was encased in a shimmering, fiery cocoon of energy. Drawn inwards towards the mini-sun.
The light wasn't melting him. It was integrating with him. Like the pterosaur before, he was undergoing a transformation.
Not the usual incarnation shift between his established forms. But something new. Unpredictable. Driven by an external, powerful source.
He felt the raw power of the 'Divine Primordial Fire'. Coursing through his undead frame. It was trying to remold him. To overwrite his necrotic existence with its blazing essence.
His cold, deathly energy fought back instinctively. Creating a volatile, internal storm. He was a creature of undeath. Forced to fuse with the essence of primal creation and destruction.
Time seemed to stretch and warp inside the cocoon. He was aware of the process. The uncomfortable merging. The system working in the background. Analyzing and adapting.
It felt longer than the previous fight. Longer than his initial transformation into a draugr. It was a baptism by fire. A forced evolution.
Finally, the internal chaos subsided. The searing energy became... compatible. Integrated. The fiery cocoon surrounding him dissipated. Leaving him standing, whole again. But undeniably changed.
Another message flooded his mind...
[FUSION COMPLETED!]
He stood in the now slightly dimmer chamber. The mini-sun was still there. But it was significantly less intense. The air was still hot. But bearable.
Winning the fight against the Blazing Pterosaur was one thing. Interacting with its power source was another entirely.
The system wasn't done. It presented him with a new list. A branching path his existence could take.
[AVAILABLE NEW EVOLUTION FOR UNDEAD DRAUGR] CHOOSE ONE:
[ARCHFIEND: SLENDERMAN]
[ARCHFIEND: VAMPIRE]
[ARCHFIEND: BUTO]
[ARCHFIEND: BAYKOK]
[ARCHFIEND: BLEMMYES]
Jack stared at the list. Undead Draugr was just one of his forms. But it seemed the fusion had specifically targeted that form for evolution.
And the options presented were... quite unexpected. They were mythological horrors from different corners of the world. All were labeled 'Archfiend'.
What had he just fused with? And what would choosing one of these turn him into?
Jack stared at the list. The glow of the less intense mini-sun was reflected in his hollow eyes.
Archfiend. The term nagged him.
It was very likely the evolution of a Fiend. He recalled the definition of the term Fiend in this world. It was a supernatural being dominated by a singular, all-consuming desire.
Did Archfiend still have similar restraint? Bound by a single desire?
As a Draugr, his desire was protection. But what was the desire focus of each of these Archfiend racial choices? Still protection?
He ran through the possibilities. Scrapping the archives of knowledge of his past life.
The first type of Archfiends. Slenderman... This one screamed bondage. Slenderman was very likely originated from the creepy-pastas of his old world. It was all about ensnaring victims, especially children, into his twisted web.
The dominating desire, under this evolution, would be very likely a warped, possessive imprisonment. A being flourished from control and isolation. He shuddered. No.
The next one, Vampire... was trickier. It was definitely the most famous among the choices. The defining desire for this creature was usually bloodlust. But it might run deeper than that.
Vampire was also described to be connected to dominance, immortality, and the corruption of life.
As the most famous choice, it had the largest possible numbers of interpretation. The possibilities were too… complicated.
As for Buto... This was very likely the Javanese term used for their version of Rakshasa. This was also interesting and complicated.
In most of the stories he remembered when he was in Java, Butos were more complex compared to its Rakshasa counterpart.
They could be the gluttonous demons. Ones devouring flesh and souls with equal glee. If this was the case, their insatiable hunger could be their defining trait. The dominant desire.
But there was also Buto Ijo, the green version, associated with lust. Buto Rambut Geni, the fire-haired one, associated with either Rage or Arrogance. Buto Cakil, the one with jutting jaws, associated with Envy.
This one was chancy. Interesting though.
Next, Baykok... He vaguely recalled something about this one. Native American. Maybe Ojibwe? It was a skeletal figure, a spirit of death. It was armed with invisible arrows that brought wasting disease.
The desire here would be… either the act of hunting, or the infliction of suffering. The power he would gain here was likely... long ranged attack or disease creation. Not the one this incarnation should focus.
The last one was Blemmyes... He had vague memory for this one. Was it the headless man with face on his chest? He knew next to nothing about this creature.
What was its desires? What drove it? The unknown was unsettling. He discarded it immediately. He wasn't about to jump into an evolution without a clue about its nature.
Slenderman, Baykok, and Blemmyes were out. Now his choice was either the Vampire or the Buto. Both were chancy. But...
Vampire was too overused. The Javanese Rakshasa option, the Buto, resonated with him better. It felt more raw and powerful.
It aligned with his current… frustration. The lack of strength. He wanted to smash things. Devour problems. Fight with brutal efficiency. Things he felt the Buto would excel at. Better than a Vampire
Jack immediately chose... [ARCHFIEND: BUTO].
The system responded instantly. [RANDOM COLORING INITIATED!]
Then the floodgates opened. A torrent of notifications assaulted his vision. Each was vying for dominance:
[COLORING: LUSTFUL GREEN]... [COLORING: PRIDEFUL WHITE]... [COLORING: RAGING RED]... [COLORING: ENVIOUS PURPLE]... [COLORING: GREEDY GOLDEN]... [COLORING: GLUTTONOUS BLACK]... [COLORING: LAZY GREY]...
The colored phrases pulsed. Shifted. And fought for control. Bathing the chamber in a nauseating kaleidoscope.
What the hell was this? He gritted his teeth. Trying to maintain focus. It seemed the system was assigning a dominant trait. A specific flavor. To his Buto evolution.
Each color represented a different aspect of the Buto. A different interpretation of its inherent hunger. Wait! Weren't they seven deadly sins?
Lustful Green? Prideful White? Raging Red? Envious Purple? Greedy Golden? Gluttonous Black? Lazy Grey? Seven colors. Seven desires.
That was right. Seven deadly sins. The system connected the Buto with seven deadly sins. What a ridiculous thing?
Finally, the chaos subsided. One color remained. Burning with an insatiable hunger.
[COLORING: GLUTTONOUS BLACK]
Jack felt a surge of… anticipation. This was it.
His Undead Draugr body began to shift. To grow. Bones were cracked and reformed. Muscles were swelled and strained. Flesh were thickened and darkened.
He felt power coursing through him. Raw. Untamed. Brutal.
He changed... into something monstrous. An enormous, hulking brute. Almost three meters tall. His skin was a coarse reddish-black color. Stretched taut over newly formed muscles.
He could feel sharp, jagged teeth within his mouth. And a mane of coarse, black hair cascaded down from head to his back. His muscular build was like... a Warcraft's Orc. Or the Incredible Hulk from Marvel Universe.
Almost immediately, more notifications:
[ADJUSTING POWER. SUPER EVOLVING TWO PERSONAL ARTIFACTS!]
[GRIM REAPER SCYTHE] INTO:
[JUDGEMENT WARHAMMER] FOR ARCHFIEND INCARNATION;
[SPIRIT TORCH] FOR SPIRIT INCARNATION; AND
[NIGHTMARE MACE] FOR HUMAN INCARNATION
[GRIM REAPER ATTIRE] INTO:
[NARAKA ARMOR] FOR ARCHFIEND INCARNATION;
[SPIRIT CAPE] FOR SPIRIT INCARNATION; AND
[DAYDREAM UNDERSUIT] FOR HUMAN INCARNATION
Before he could digest the information, Jack felt his half naked body changed. Covered, as the Naraka Armor materialized around him.
It was a masterpiece of demonic craftsmanship. Pale-grey bone plates intertwined with black leather straps and metallic black studs. All wreathed in crackling flames.
The fire covering the armor was not hot for Jack. And it seemed to writhe and shift. As if alive. Mirroring the brutal aura that now consumed him.
And then there was the weapon. The Grim Reaper Scythe, the symbol of his previous Draugr form, was gone. It was replaced by something far more… destructive.
A Judgement Warhammer appeared in his massive hand. It was crafted from the same materials as the armor. Heavy and large black metal head. Long pale-grey bone handle. And black leather straps covering parts of the handles.
The weapon was enormous. And it was also coated in blazing fire. The flames licked at the air. Radiating intense heat. It felt… right.
A tool for smashing opponents. For devouring problems. And, for delivering brutal, unadulterated justice. Or, in his case, judgement.
He flexed his fingers around the Warhammer's handle. Testing its weight. It felt heavy, but not so much. Just right for his comfort and convenience. He could feel the power coursing through it. The raw energy waiting to be unleashed.
A grin, wide and predatory, stretched across Jack's beastly face. This was going to be fun.
The transformation was complete. He was no longer Jack Deathspark. He was something else entirely. Something bigger. Stronger. Deadlier.