Null & Void: Journey to Defy the Creator

Overall, the journey across the world had been fruitful.

Klein enjoyed the ride slaying beasts with all of his being in it; he felt every pore of his body absorbing the mofei in every way.

The meibeasts he fought with tooth and nail taught him to react under many situations.

When he could not face a particular beast due to it having more experience or power, Null stepped in to help control the outcome.

Not to mention the Allbeast joined in to better control its forms to adapt to the multitude of circumstances.

It was now grown enough to be suitable for combat although its capabilities were somewhat lackluster at the moment.

It could still target the weaker areas or attack the beasts when Klein held their focus.

"This little guy is something else!" 

After a few tag team battles with the Allbeast, Klein grew to admire it.

Meanwhile, Null grasped more of the Allbeast's features and even established a mental connection with it thanks to the mind mofei.

"Is there more food? I'm still hungry!" It spoke through the mental connection.

When it had not taken the form of a beast capable of speech, the connection allowed it to relay its distress in the form of an empty stomach.

That or whatever it did to consume the form of a desired beast.

Currently, it had amassed dozens of forms it could take on; with the best of all worlds, it was nothing short of a killing machine.

The only thing it lacked was the ability to manipulate. 

This problem was supplemented, however as the Allbeast could replicate the enhancements that a beast possessed.

A tough hide, spikes, array of teeth, or claws were just the tip of the iceberg.

Along their way, they camped and traversed, getting deeper and deeper away from any remnants of civilization.

Soon enough, they would find what they were looking for in the realm of the beasts.

Currently, Klein was battling a herd of deer with the ability of nature.

The head buck had giant antlers that channeled the nature mofei to grow hardened trees of bark and used vines to entrap him.

Fire naturally countered the herds' powers, but with their being so many at hand, Klein found it difficult to weave around the dense attacks.

Additionally, the forest surrounding him was at risk to succumb to his flaming attacks.

Faced with the arduous condition, Klein found himself wondering just how he would get out of this one.

'I should just embrace the chaos.'

Klein was done withholding his power and with that, he embraced the warmth of a raging flame.

Whoosh!

The surrounding area was immediately engulfed in an eruption of fire.

The deer immediately bleated in fear of the danger.

There was no escaping the immediate outburst however, and the herd was left wounded and desiring to escape. 

Klein was not about to let that happen.

He took note of the binding powers of the vines and used their tactics against them making sure they could not gather themselves.

Then it was over for them; the most they could do was summon a few more wooden spikes around themselves for protection, but that was useless in the end.

Klein jumped high into the sky and casted some of the simplified Wind Pellets directly into the skulls of the herd.

'Sigh. That was a bit taxing.'

Still, he had not relied on any help to face the herd of deer and that was important to him.

"Let's prepare some veal for dinner! I'm starving after that fight," Klein smiled through the pain.

"Leave it to me."

Null had gotten used to preparing the slain enemies they came upon throughout their time in the wilderness.

The only problem was that this typically begat the attention of a few hungry souls their way for another round of fighting.

"You sure you can handle some more after that fight?" Null asked squarely.

"It will only reinforce the strength of my core in the end. The more beasts the merrier in my opinion!"

And so, they ate and fought, slowly etching more of a path to the recesses of the danger zone's center.

"The books regarding this area have only sparse accounts for the danger of the beasts that lie inside this danger zone known as the Dryad's Repose."

"What is a repose? I only know that a dryad is some sort of nature-oriented species, but what do they look like?"

Null was full of questions to which Klein answered, "A repose is a sort of resting place and as for the dryad in question, there are only warnings of trees as I recall."

Looking around themselves, Klein and Null sat in a scorched area of the forest; the trees were charred to the center and there was no plant life in sight for a good distance.

'Gulp.' They felt the warnings might have come in handy earlier.

"Do you think we're goo-," Null was about to ask about their situation when they felt a looming pressure and a single sprout growing somewhere next to them.

'Fuck.' 'Shit.'

They each gave a swear in their minds.

"Who dares tarnish my fair land so?"

The tiny sprout spoke to their surprise, but this was no time to be amazed under such a weighty pressure.

"This humble one was not under the impression that these lands belonged to anyone," Klein immediately went to courtesy.

"It is one thing to not know and another to have no respect for nature itself. Tell me, which one of you did this?"

Klein eyed each Null, 'It can sense both of our presences, but I doubt it's anywhere close to us.'

He then spoke, "I had no idea-," 

The sprout cut him off and threatened, "It is you that has no respect for nature that you would wantonly destroy my beautiful babies. Do you think I would care for your excuses and not take revenge?"

It was now that Null spoke up, "Hey! You might not understand our situation, but such threats are futile in front of me."

The sprout then miraculously grew into an enormous tree that reached three hundred and eighty feet in height and sixteen feet in diameter.

The figure of a stunning beauty was protruding from the side facing the two; it's height was about ten feet tall.

"Futile you say? I'll see about that!" The tree spoke, finally revealing its form.

But the two had no time to examine further, they were under attack by the Dryad of the Repose!

Earth pikes rose from the ground reaching the two instantaneously. 

More smaller trees created a barrier from the outside, trapping the two inside an arena of nature.

The only thing remaining from before was the scorched earth under their feet.

"Time to go all out!" Null screamed to Klein.

"Right!"

The Allbeast was sent back inside of Null— another feat he discovered after it became tired one day.

---

Inside of Null's mind space.

"Birdie!" Ego called to the Allbeast.

Upon hearing the call of Null's mental caretaker, the Allbeast transformed into the four-winged eagle.

"Chirp!"

---

Back on the battlefield, Klein was dodging the earth pikes and razor-sharp leaves sent by the surrounding trees.

Null felt that this was a good training session for Klein, so he was purely acting as support mainly getting rid of the leaves.

'I can sense it. This beast— if you could still call it that— has got to have a core of its own!'