Limits

The little human explained "This set of clothes, has couple of my new Formations placed on them. The boots have Boost Formation, that I modified from the standard. It gives 25% boost to your speed, but there can be a problem. Due to modifications I carried out, the boots may sometimes dictate your direction". I asked a bit confused "In what way?". He replied "Let's say you are running at your opponent, but then the Formation plays a trick, and you are sliding backwards instead. There is a chance that it may happen, or it might never happen. When it does happen, it will last for a short time only. Of course, if it happens at all. It's a possibility, that's why I'm telling you".

I nodded my head, and asked "What else?". He continued "The boots also have an improved Toughness Formation. This should work no problem though. I used it on other items, and didn't find any problems. There is also a third Formation. It's my own creation and I called it the Camouflage Formation. It is a bit tricky though". "How so?" I asked. He replied "The Camouflage Formation… may or may not work. If it does work, then another problem might arise. Let's say, you want to hide your presence, and the Formation works. Suddenly, your clothes change colour to that of bright red for example, not only the camouflage stops working, you become more visible. I suggest using that with caution".

I said "Right, and how do I activate the Formation?". He looked at me, as if looking at an idiot, and asked "You don't know? Then why didn't you ask that before?". I replied "Just answer the question". He sighted, and said "It's simple really. You just have to focus on activating that Formation, and it will activate". I thought about it, and replied "I think I know how to do it". The reason was simple, I had the Storage Feather, which also had Formations. It turned out, I had to do the same thing in order to activate it.

I then realised something, and asked "Then what about this Boost Formation? I have to activate it too?". He said "No, it's a constant effect Formation. You really know shit. There are constant or rather Permanent Formations, and there are Temporary Formations. Permanent are much more expensive, and require much more work, while Temporary Formations, are activated only when you want them to activate. This makes you also lose energy, as the Formations takes it from your body". I nodded, and asked "Alright. What about the coat then?".

He said "The coat is a bit more tricky. There are three Formations placed on it as well. The improved Toughness Formation, which should work without any issues. The Camouflage Formation, which I already told you about, and the improved Regenerative Formation".

The little human continued "The Regenerative Formation is.. different. This one was the hardest to make, and it… might have a problem". I already expected something bad. "The problem is, instead of regenerating you… it might drain your energy, and will not regenerate you at all" he said, then took a proper look at me. I wasn't happy, when he saw that, he quickly continued "Fortunately! It's a Temporary Formation. So it's not active at all times. The Formation is not dangerous at all, when you just wear that coat, without activating it".

He then continued "The last piece of the set, are the trousers. The trousers have the same Camouflage Formation placed on them. You already know about that. There is also the Toughness Formation, which you know about as well". I realised something, and asked "Wait, all three pieces have the Camouflage Formation. What if one activates correctly, but other don't?". He shook his head, and said "They are connected, that is why this is a set. When you think about activating the Camouflage Formation, all 3 pieces from the set will be activated. Whether it works or not, is a different story".

I nodded my head, and said "I don't understand. You already know about some issues, yet you still want me to test it?". He replied "Yes, I need the set tested in real conditions. Otherwise, I will have to spend a lot of time, in order to figure out, how to correct these mistakes. This will make my job easier". I nodded my head, and said "Alright". He continued "Keep it for a while, and use it as intended, then bring it back here".

I nodded, and said "Fine, but remember that I expect a proper set, at the end of all this. With all Formations working as they should, and I want it for free as well". He replied "I already said it will be free, now go. Weren't you in a hurry somewhere?". He reminded me about my task, so I replied "Yes, I need to go. Before that, I will change to this new set". He replied "Suit yourself", and went back to his basement. I quickly changed, then headed towards the destination of my task.

The reason I needed a mask, was exactly due to my task being a bit public. The task required for me to fight in the Arena. The owner of the Falanks Arena required warriors, who would win 10 battles against the challengers. I couldn't lose even one battle, but the rewards were quite good. I would get 530 Contribution Points and 5 Black Hals for my troubles. Although any medicine and whatnot, was not supplied. I had to take care of that by myself.

The Arena was about one day of travel, away from Varent. I had to report there the next day, before the time ran out. In case I was late, I would lose 250 Contribution Points and would need to pay 15 Black Hals as a compensation. I ran towards the location, as the time was tight. When I finally arrived, I noticed a huge building in the desert. 'So, this is the Arena?' I asked myself.

There were many creatures walking to and fro the Arena. I could also hear loud cheering coming from inside. It was a round building, not squared as I mostly encountered. It was also very tall. At least 5 storeys tall, and the size was colossal as well. I walked towards it, and entered through the same gate, as the other creatures did. I already had the mask on my face. Some passersby gave me a second look, but usually no one cared much. I went to the frontdesk and said "I'm here to carry out the task", then passed the task paper to the Lizard behind the counter. It was a female, and she said "Great, the owner was waiting for you. You are the last one to arrive, the others are already waiting in the meeting room. Follow me, I will take you there".

We went through some doors, then upstairs. After some more walking, we finally arrived at the meeting room. There were bunch of other people inside, who came to do the same task presumably. She said "Wait here, and the owner will arrive soon". I nodded my head, then stood in one spot of the room. 'Let's see what we have in here' I thought, and checked out the others, inside the room.

In overall, there were 6 more people inside that room. Three of them, were humans. There were also two Lizards, and one other creature I didn't encounter before. It looked like a large ape. It must've been intelligent, because the ape like creature was wearing clothes, and conversed with the two Lizards. One of the humans came over, and said while laughing "What's up with that get up? Are you a Shade?". I shook my head, and said "I'm as much human, as you are".

He then replied "First time here?". I said "Yep". I kept my answers short, and the guy noticed that, but didn't really care much. He seemed like a talkative guy. He continued "Then welcome. We are not competing against ourselves, the challengers are our opponents. I'm looking forward to your matches. I wonder what this mysterious friend has to offer". He then went back to the other humans, and talked away.

Soon after, the owner arrived. It was another race, I never saw before. To be honest, he looked like a large pig, but walked on two legs instead four. He was also quite fat, tall, and had his tusks protruding from his mouth . If not for the clothes he was wearing, he would look just like a large pig, but with a more ugly face. He said "Welcome to the Falanks Arena. I'm sure you know, what you are supposed to do. Each of you is required to win 10 battles. Then your task will be completed. I'm counting on you, as it is my profits we are talking about. Fight to win!".

He then left, and one of the attendants, who looked like a pig as well, walked in. He said "Follow me. I will take you to the Fighting Platform". We all followed the attendant, and went down the stairs. I didn't know much about this Arena, but I was certain of one thing, win 10 fight and complete my task. We arrived at the place, where a raised circular platform was located. It was quite large, and took about ⅔ of the open space of the Arena. We headed to a corner next to that platform, where seats were provided for the amount of people gathered.