The bacteria king’s body was constantly expanding and contracting. Each of his breaths sent sporadic pulses of energy throughout his body. Increasing the pressure to his entire, basic nervous system. He was in pain.

Mato was drilling into his flesh. Leaving destruction behind him.

As Mato continued forward, the flesh gradually became harder. He was getting closer to his core. He could hear vibrations echo in the distance as the bacteria king was shouting in pain.

“I WILL GET YOU!”

Mato cast his threat aside. At this point, Mato could tell he was about halfway to his destination. He was almost going to reach his enemy’s life energy.

“Only a little bit more!”.

Mato's eyes smiled. A constant thumping was playing in his head. Telling him to reach the life energy as soon as possible.

Mato was lost in his thoughts but he remained vigilant. He was in somebody else’s body. It would be stupid to think that the enemy would casually let him roam about inside of its body. He could feel something approaching him from behind.

He looked to his rear.

He saw the large tunnel that was excavated by him when he was drilling through the flesh. In the distance, he saw four tentacles. Green blood was dripping down their shafts. Their skin moist from the constant burrowing.

The tentacles were travelling like snakes in a nest. Mato had opened a way for them and it was made easy for the tentacles to catch up. It would only be a matter of time until they got a hold of Mato’s body.

“Interesting…”

Mato was interested in the bacteria king. He didn’t think that this creature had the willpower to dig his own tentacles into his own flesh. This was like using your hands to pull a tapeworm out of your ass.

Mato changed directions. His drill-like tail pointed to his right and started to drill away from his original direction. Headed for a different side of the bacteria king’s body, his speed increased. The flesh he was drilling became softer.

The bacteria king could feel Mato changing directions in his body. Which seemed to bring him some relief. But what was his enemy thinking?

“What is he planning?”

The bacteria king couldn’t help but feel anxious. This enemy of his was simply too weird. The bacteria king knew that Mato was after his life energy core. Now he had changed directions and was headed outside of his body? This was definitely too weird.

The tentacles traced Mato’s trail. Thrashing about as they made their way to the escaping Mato.

Mato shot outwards almost breaking out of the bacteria king’s exterior. The outer skin expanding like a balloon. Mato used the skin and rebounded back into the bacteria king’s body. Heading to the untouched area.

“So that’s your aim?”

The bacteria king knew that the length of his tentacles was long. But if he kept following Mato they wouldn’t be long enough to reach Mato. His tentacles would end up being tangled inside of his own body. The bacteria king felt that Mato’s plan was good. But he vastly underestimated his intelligence.

The bacteria king knew that the only way to kill him was to go after his life energy core. Knowing this he then ordered his tentacles to go wait near the centre of his body.

His tentacles turned around and left. Leaving the same way they had come from.

Mato no longer heard any slithering behind him. His plan was found out. Mato could feel what the bacteria king was saying but paid him no heed. Mato was consistently drilling into his body. Taking the chance to gain furthering understanding of his whirlpool stab.

Mato’s body was spinning rapidly in the bacteria king’s body but he always maintained the same pace. Determination filled his eyes. He wanted to be faster so he focused his mind.

“If I increase the speed of my spinning it might be able to increase my thrusting speed!”

Mato’s body span like a tornado. The flesh in front of him was diced into small bits but it was still hard to make it through the flesh. Mato tried to spin faster but he didn’t seem to push any further ahead. All he seemed to do was make a mess of the insides of the bacteria king.

“There must be a way!”

Mato was determined. He wasn’t sure when the next time he was going to fight such a large opponent. He had to use this opportunity to better himself.

“Maybe I’ve been looking at it wrong…”

Mato tensed up the muscles in his tail into a corkscrew shape.

He spun and careened himself into the bacteria king’s flesh. He felt that his speed increased astronomically. The flesh in front of him was much easier to go through.

The broken flesh that was mangled by the tip of Mato’s tail was flowing through the grooves. The flesh then exited out behind his body in a smooth fashion.

Before, the broken flesh would be pushed to the side and would be in the way. Which would then create more pressure when going forward. Without the flesh in his way and inside trailing behind him, Mato proceeded to go down into the bacteria king’s flesh unimpeded.

My speed has increased by four times and it only requires a tenth of the effort.

Having improved his move, Mato couldn’t help but feel delighted. Having gained even stronger power had excited Mato. He couldn’t help but express it.

“I’m going to screw you until nobody recognizes you!”

Sending his thoughts into the bacteria king’s body, the bacteria king couldn’t help but shudder!

“WHIRLPOOL SCREW!”

Mato bolted off. Having improved his move he had no more need to waste any time and headed straight for the life energy.

Mato was travelling through the body effortlessly. Leaving the ravaged flesh in an orderly manner.

In the time it takes to open a soda, Mato burst out of a solid wall of flesh like it was a pile of twigs. He looked forward and saw a white looking heart. He had reached the bacteria king’s core region.

Inside his core was a large fleshy ball attached to the interior of the wall. White light was being sent forth from this ball to the different parts of the bacteria king’s body.

Mato swam forward.

The ball of flesh had thousands of strands of white flesh. Each emanating vasts amounts of life energy. They were all bunched up like a ball of yarn.

This ball seemed to be consisting of strands that looked identical to the life energy strands Mato had consumed before. The life energy strands had overlapped each other and coalesced into this ball.

Mato’s eye slits couldn’t help but curve upwards.

“It’s beautiful!”

Mato sighed in amazement due to its impressive stature. One couldn’t even imagine how much life energy would be contained within the fleshy sphere. If he consumed it would he transform again?

“HA! I knew you would be headed for this place!”

Tentacles burst through the interior walls.

He had finally caught up to Mato. He still had a chance to stop him.

“Of course. I did say that I was going to eat your flesh.”

Mato snickered as he crossed his tail over his body in an arrogant manner.

“What makes you think that those tentacles would save you. I previously got through that large tentacle, what makes you think I can’t get through these?”

“Since I couldn’t defeat you with one tentacle, I will now defeat you with four. Everyone knows that four is better than one!”

Mato raced forwards not caring about the four tentacles.

The tentacles bent back, tensing the muscles in their shaft.

Like a whip, the tentacles came from strange angles, diving straight toward Mato.

“Too weak.”

Mato had confidence in himself, this last defence of the bacteria king was deplorable. Mato could see it all. The angle of the tentacles attack. He could even tell the force and speed. Mato was unconsciously analyzing everything in his head, he was a natural fighter. This was his instinct.

As the tentacles approached, Mato pushed his body to the side. The tentacles slashed at Mato’s last position, hitting plain nothing.

Mato reached the fleshy core and cut the flesh around it with his tail.

The bacteria king’s body shuddered. He had no more words.

The bacteria king had lost all hope. He knew in his heart that his fate was already sealed. The damage done to his body was too severe. Mato had decimated his insides, which made the use of his tentacles even harder. Now that Mato had reached his fleshy core, it was over.

The bacteria king could only sigh. Those beady black eyes that once stared at Mato with contempt, were put to rest. The hundreds of eyes that were upon his body closed up slowly.

The liquid was silent.

The once chaotic atmosphere had turned back to normal.

Having lost the energy core, the corpse started to deteriorate. With no more life energy, the bacteria king’s body could not support its own weight.

The bacteria king’s body started to dissolve. The surrounding liquid brushed past it. Sweeping away swathes of flesh down into the corridors of the flesh lined tunnel. Swathes of flesh could be seen getting smaller. The remaining life energy held in the flesh was disappearing. The flesh was slowly dissolving. The surrounding liquid sucked up all the remaining nutrients leaving nothing behind. In a few moments, there was no evidence that there ever was a bacteria king.

The surrounding walls pinkened. They were already regaining their vigour. The life energy eaten by the bacteria king seemed to regenerate, healing all of the damage done to the walls.

The only thing left was Mato. Floating stationary in the liquid, holding the fleshy core with his tail.

Mato swallowed the fleshy core.

The fleshy core was being dissolved as it went up Mato’s tail. Massive amounts of life energy could be seen spreading out through his body. As time passed, the fleshy core was getting smaller and smaller. The life energy was being sent throughout his body. A part of the life energy from the fleshy core went to the outer exterior to bolster it. While another part went to the inner flesh.

By the time the fleshy core had reached Mato’s nucleus, it had turned into pure life energy. There were no longer thousands of strands of life energy. What was left was pure, unadulterated life energy.

Like a tsunami, the life energy rushed forward to meet with the nucleus. The life energy flowed like a river and pooled into the pond. Life energy kept on pouring into the pond until it was no longer a pond. But became a lake of life energy.

The lake of life energy started to agitate as it could no longer just be a lake.

The life energy within the lake began to disperse into a mist. The mist travelled around his body circling his nucleus. The life energy became a globe of mist that fully surrounded Mato’s nucleus.

Mato started to concentrate. The nucleus of his head started to vibrate with a hum. The mist surrounding the nucleus started to seep inside. Life energy could be seen flowing into the brain-like cracks of the nucleus. The mist traveled through tiny cracks, breaking them open and making them larger for more life energy to pass through.

Swathes of mist could be seen barreling down the vein-like cracks until it was filled to the brim. The mist was like a cloud that was filling a cave, fully filling his nucleus with life energy mist. The mist was so abundant that it became heavy. The heavy mist started to congeal back into a river of liquid life energy, which then continued to flow throughout his nucleus.

The life energy burst forth from his nucleus, expanding further throughout his body. Like a seed that was planted, the pathways reached outward to grow. Veins of life energy began to stretch across his whole body. The nucleus getting smaller as more veins appeared. A network of veins began to appear throughout his body bringing life to a once desolate plain.

The pathways that were once only connected to the nucleus expanded to the rest of his body. Branches of veins were seen on his main body, which then extended down to his tail.

Mato could feel the life energy flow with a purpose through his body. Flowing white light could be seen extending from his head to his tail.

Light was constantly moving within his body, which then shined through his skin to illuminate their dark dwelling place. Mato's eyed beamed with brilliance.

This was the creation of meridians!

The meridians extended all throughout his body. His nucleus was the power station, storing and creating energy. The meridians were like cables, sending that energy throughout his body.

He was like a sapling ready to embrace the morning’s dew.

I can feel the life energy flowing. Before it needed to forcefully press the life energy through my muscles but now it just flows through it.

Life energy travelled unimpeded through Mato’s body. Mato couldn’t help but admire his new physique.

While Mato was busy transforming. Tamo couldn’t help but see two objects floating to their destination. She wanted to keep watching Mato’s transformation. But those two objects in the distance sent chills down her tail.

Tamo squinted her eyes. Laser-like light shot off like a concentrated beam of energy. The light landing onto the bodies of the foreign entities. The light was a scanner, probing the appearances of the two entities.

Tamo’s eyes couldn’t help but squirm in confusion.

“What are they?”