Our group left the office and went outside. We went into the backyard since it was bigger and I walked a safe distance into the grass while the others stayed on the patio. I might not like the outcome of what I'm about to do, but I can't help being excited at the same time. This was my first full shift in a long time.
Letting Magnis come to the forefront of my mind, I let the shift take over. The sound of bones snapping and realigning soon filled the air. I fell to the ground as my legs broke and bent, and soon my body was growing to Magnis' size. He was the length of two double wide trailers and as tall as a two-story house. His scales were black and tipped with red, yellow, and purple. Spikes ran down his spine and grew from the tip of his tail. Razor sharp teeth grew from his mouth with fangs that could inject poison into his victims at will. Massive wings grew from his shoulder blades and extended to their full two hundred foot wingspan. Lastly, my eyes glowed yellow as I gave Magnis control to do the King's Call.
I heard gasps from behind me before my dad told everyone to cover their ears. Magnis drew in a massive lungful of air before unleashing a deep, bellowing roar. The roar echoed through the surrounding mountains and all of Picantia, shaking the ground under our feet. Soon, more Dragon roars were heard. They were answering the call of their King.
Once the roars calmed down, I began turning into Nightmare. My size shrunk to the size of a Ford F-150 truck, and my scales turned into black fur with blue streaks. Instead of one tail, I now had ten and my eyes glowed a bright ice blue as Nightmare took charge.
He sat on his hind legs with his head held high. Taking in a lungful of air, Nightmare released a piercing, reverberating howl. As his howl died away, you could hear the answering calls from the other Ayakashi. The King's Call is done and now everyone knows of my existence. Considering the fact that I'm only 14 and a half years old, I'm not ready to be a King to anyone. However, in the world of Shifters, that doesn't matter.
Shifting back into my human form, I made my way back to the patio. I sat down with a deep sigh. Normally, shifting didn't take a physical or mental toll on me but, for some reason, I was feeling really tired. Figuring I'd talk to Donny about it inside, I opened my mouth to talk to everyone outside. However, instead of words, a blood-curdling scream escaped from my throat.
Falling out of my chair, I writhed in pain as I continued screaming. The pain was excruciating and I didn't know what was happening. Dad picked me up and rushed me inside. On the way to the Infirmary, Donny caught up with us.
"What happened? He was fine this morning." Donatello asked, his voice heavy with worry.
"I don't know. He did the King's Call and sat down before he started screaming in pain." Dad said as we reached the Infirmary, and he gently laid me on a bed. Donny stepped forward and started examining me as other medical personnel rushed out to help.
"Andrew, can you hear me? I need you to describe the pain for me." Donny said calmly. When his only response was more intense screams, he turned to the closest nurse. "I need 5ccs of Shifter Grade morphine. We have to get this pain under control."
"Yes, Doctor." The nurse replied, rushing to get the requested medication. When she returned with it, another problem occurred. Because of the amount of pain I was in, I was losing control of my powers. The lights in the Infirmary flickered while electricity lightly danced across my skin. My nails were also turning into claws which posed another issue. No one could touch me without getting hurt.
Pulling out his phone, Donny made a quick call. "Hey, Nixis, we have an emergency at the castle regarding Andrew… No, he's already done the King's Call. He's now lost control of his Electricity and you're the only one who can help… Alright, see you in ten minutes."
As Donatello waited for Nixis to arrive, he instructed everyone to stay away from me. Meanwhile, he got everything ready that way, when Nixis got here, Donny could tell him what to do. It didn't take long before he walked into the Infirmary.
"What the hell happened?! He was fine earlier today." Nixis exclaimed, walking up to Donny.
"I have a guess, but I need you to cut Andrew's shirt so you can put these stickers on his chest. There's something I need to check first, before saying anything." Donny said, handing Nixis four stickers attached to wires. Nixis nodded before doing what was asked. After they were placed, Donny turned on a machine and gasped.
"3 billion joules. His lightning has tripled in power."
"Does that mean what I think it does? Tell us, Donny!" Nixis yelled, panic creeping into his voice.
"Yes, it does. He's going through the Inheritance process." Donny said somberly. The Inheritance process was already dangerous at 18, but that danger has increased since I'm 14 and a half. Even though I couldn't talk, my mind was aware enough to hear what was being said.
The Jacobson family, as well as mine, had already gathered in the Infirmary by this point. Everyone was worried, and it spiked even worse when I passed out and stopped screaming.
"He's still breathing." Nixis said, after checking on me. He placed more stickers attached to more wires on me, as well as a blood pressure cuff and an oximeter.
"I'll keep monitoring Andrew for the time being. Why don't you guys try to decompress? If anything changes, I'll let everyone know." Donny said gently, trying to help everyone calm down. My mom was crying on my dad's shoulder, while everyone else was a bundle of frayed nerves. As people needed and slowly walked out, Donny pulled up a chair beside my bed.
"You're going to be okay, Andrew. You have to be. After all, you're our King." Donny whispered, clasping his hands in his lap. He repeated this phrase like a mantra.