Jack looked at Sloth. Still slumped in its deep, seemingly innocent sleep. The 'Lazy' personality trait was certainly evident.
"A creature of comfort and subtle mental manipulation." He mumbled in his eerie, nasal voice. "Really fitting match. Drowsy Aura to soften the targets up. Nightmare Snores to scramble their minds. And Dreamy Truth to pry out secrets. A perfect incapacitation and interrogation kit. All wrapped up in a cuddly package."
The potential applications for the puppet raced through his mind. He could use Sloth to subdue targets without brute force. Or to gather intelligence on confidential matters. Or even to subtly influence the weary minds of the opponents.
It allowed for clean, untraceable information gathering. Or quiet neutralization. This wasn't a combat puppet. Not directly. But it was a formidable support tool.
Well, his specter incarnation could do almost all of them too. Using his versatile [Mysterious Anomaly] ability was not much different. So, this one wasn't that great of improvement. But... one of Bizarre Puppeteer's main features was simultaneous use of many bizarre puppets.
If the next bizarre puppets he created have high synchronization potential with Sloth, things might change. Drastically.
He reached out his currently tiny hand and gently nudged Sloth. The puppet remained unresponsive. Its breathing, if it had any, was imperceptible. It was truly dedicated to its slumber.
Rune, in her tiny floating lantern form, shimmered with a soft yellow light. A subtle sign of her own interest in the new creation.
"Alright. Let's see how useful the next puppet design would be." Jack mused. Eager to continue crafting the next bizarre puppet. To see what other unique quirks and skills his new creation could acquire.
The 'gaining basic sentience and random unique quirks' was the most intriguing part of bizarre puppet craft. Each creation would be a surprise.
However, just as he was contemplating his next design... something with tougher looks yet still adorable... a strangely familiar sensation vibrated through his existence. A wordless calling of his name.
Jack couldn't identify it for a couple of seconds. But, he quickly realized what it was. It was a mystic call. A distinct and urgent communication request.
Someone from the Fateless Gathering was attempting to contact him. Jack quickly recognized the specific frequency. The image of the twin children appeared in his mind. Adam and Alice.
He paused his thoughts on puppet design. The two children had a knack to recognize threat and danger. He definitely needed to respond to their call.
Jack glanced at Sloth. Still deeply asleep on the workbench.
He ignored it for now. He needed to activate [Incarnation Shift]. The twins recognized Jack Mystery. Not Jack Lantern.
"Alright, Rune. Let's transform." Jack murmured to Rune.
He focused his will. Initiating his [Incarnation Shift]. The fiery glow within his pumpkin head flared brightly for a moment. His small, doll-like form dissipated. Phasing out of existence like smoke.
As Jack Lantern dissolved, Sloth also shimmered. The dark-red and yellow panda plushie shrank almost instantly. Contracting into a tiny, polished pearl. No bigger than Jack Lantern's eyeball. The pearl glowed faintly and then vanished. Apparently stored within Jack's essence.
Rune, concurrently, also transformed. From a floating gas lamp into a spectral will-o'-the-wisp. Her form now was a shimmering, translucent wisp of pale blue light. Hovering expectantly.
The transformation was very fast. Almost instantly. Very different from how Jack used to transform in the past. His shifting power's improvement was now... combat ready.
Jack Mystery materialized in the workshop. The mysterious specter stood tall and ethereal. A featureless mask was obscuring his face. His spectral form was barely displaced the air. A silent, watchful presence.
He focused his mind on a [Runic Communication Ritual] symbol. Unlike the case for the [Runic Transfer Ritual] or the time when he was the one who started the call, he didn't need any materials. Or physical drawing of the symbol. He just needed to imagine and focus on the symbol to accept the mystic call.
A low hum vibrated through the air. His imagined rune on the wall flared. Glowing momentarily before fading into a stable, ethereal window.
Through it, Jack saw a familiar bedroom. The twin's face materialized. Somewhat translucent. Their eyes were wide with excitement. But the rest of their faces remained flat. Without any expression.
"Jack? It worked!" Adam's voice started. Ethereal, yet very clear.
"Quickly." Alice's voice reminded her brother. In the usual flat tone.
"We need you to come over." Adam immediately went straight to the point.
Jack remained silent. Letting them continue. He didn't speak through the link. The twins were technically un-awakened, despite their strange abilities. They couldn't maintain the connection for long. He didn't want to waste their connection time.
"It's important." Adam said again. Still in their usual flat tone and flat expression.
"But not urgent." Alice added with the same tone and expression.
"Tonight, if you can." Adam finished.
"We'll be waiting." They concluded in unison. And the mystic link dissolved. Leaving only the faint hum of residual energy.
Jack retracted his focus. His spectral form was unmoving. "Cryptic as ever." He grumbled.
It was the first time the twins used the [Runic Communication Ritual] to call. He wondered if there was another threat he needed to handle.
The twins had given him several quests before. Ones that were truly out of the ordinary, and potentially dangerous. Their strange power to perceive the supernatural threat made their words hard to ignore.
"Tonight it is." He decided.
He glanced at the empty spot where Sloth had been. It once again confirmed his conjecture. His incarnations shared [Supernatural Abilities] and [Constant Traits] with their [Characteristics]. However, class-based power could not be shared.
Sloth could only appear when he was in the form of Jack Lantern. This meant he couldn't deploy Sloth while operating as Jack Mystery. Or any of his other forms for that matter.
It was a specific tool for a specific incarnation. A limitation. But not an unexpected one. He had distinct power for each form. And Sloth... it now belonged to Jack Lantern's repertoire.
The rest of the day passed without special incident. Jack was back as his Jack Lantern's incarnation. Designing several more puppets and started constructing one. It wouldn't finish quickly though. It took him two days to create Sloth. And he wanted a more complex puppet for the next one.
...
Evening descended upon Lonestone City. Casting long shadows from the steam-powered factory smokestacks and the grand Renaissance-era buildings alike.
As Reina was asleep, Jack transformed into his specter incarnation. Preparing to visit the Lingreen twins. He turned invisible, and phased out the walls... to a specific destination.
The Academy District, where the twins resided, was calm and quiet as usual. Quite distinct from the bustling docks. Or the grimy industrial quarters.
Under the soft light of the twin crescent moon, Jack Mystery floated across the rooftops. He moved like a ripple in the air. Completely unseen by the few late-night passersby.
Rune was in her spectral will-o'-the-wisp form. Floating a few paces ahead. Her soft green light was like a silent guide for Jack.
They navigated the sky with practiced ease. Sometimes, phasing through walls and bypassing locked gates. Just for fun.
Soon, they arrived at the Lingreen residence. It was a well-maintained, luxurious house. Modest in size but comfortable. Nestled between larger, more ornate structures. The ground floor windows glowed with the warm light of lamps. But the upper floor, where the children's room was located, was dark.
Jack paused outside. Observing. No unusual auras. No aggressive presences. Safe. He then phased directly through the outer wall of the house. Straight to the children's bedroom. His intangible form passed through bricks and mortars as if they were mist.
Rune followed behind him. A silent, shimmering wisp companion.
Jack and Rune drifted inside the bedroom, where Adam and Alice were waiting. They were sitting cross-legged on their bed. Looking straight at the direction the two entered. As if they had been expecting them to enter from that direction.
Jack looked around. As usual, the room was neat. Filled with many types of children's toys. Mostly puzzles. Arranged with an almost perfect precision. A single oil lamp on a bedside table cast a warm, dim light. Illuminating the twins unblinking faces.
They both wore simple, matching nightclothes. Their faces were, as always, utterly expressionless. Their childish features betrayed no hint of youthful exuberance. Or fear.
"You're here." Alice said in her flat voice.
"We knew you would be." Adam finished. Equally devoid of emotion.
Jack reappeared and nodded. His masked face was inscrutable. Rune hovered behind him. Her green light pulsed slightly. A silent acknowledgement.
The twins were silent for a few seconds.
"What is it?" Jack asked. "Another problem to solve?"
Adam reached out and picked up a rolled-up piece of parchment from the bedside table. It was old, brittle-looking, and stained. With frayed edges.
He carefully unfurled it. Revealing a crudely drawn map. The lines were faded. Depicting what looked like a rough coastline, a few islands, and a series of cryptic symbols and markings. It looked exactly like the kind of fake treasure map sold to gullible tourists in the seedier parts of the docks.
"A charlatan sold that. A fake." Alice stated. Pointing her small finger at the map.
"But we bought it anyway." Adam clarified. His finger tracing a particularly intricate, meaningless symbol in the corner.
Jack raised a spectral eyebrow behind his mask. "You bought it knowing it was a scam?" His voice held a note of genuine curiosity. He had seen the twins do many strange things. But actively participating in a known swindle was new.
"Yes." Alice confirmed.
"It's useless for us." Adam explained. His gaze was fixed on Jack. "But it's useful for you."
"For me?" Jack looked at the map. He couldn't discern any immediate mystic energy or hidden enchantments. It looked like a worthless piece of junk.
Yet, the twins were rarely wrong about such things. Their ability to sense unusual supernatural resonance was almost unerring. If they said it was useful for him. Then it was.
"How?" He asked.
"We don't know." Adam said.
Alice added. "We just know it's useful for you."
"Show me, then." Jack drifted closer to examine the map.
Rune also floated forward. Her light was focused on the parchment. Its appearance might be mundane. But the twins' insistence gave it weight.