Chapter #1A New Shrunken Challenge by: K.Bonez   The sun poured in through the high glass of the NanoCorps headquarters, turning the polished floors into bands of gold. No alarms. No cracks in the sky. No Rogues. Just the hum of generators, the rush of Toweral below, and the murmur of the strongest guild on Planet Tami all under one roof.
Quentin Andross sat at the main conference table, leaning back in his chair with his boots planted on the edge of the polished surface. A half-finished cup of cocoa steamed beside a stack of mission reports he was very pointedly not reading. He watched his guild moving around the room and couldn’t help the little smile tugging at his lips.
Beta stood near one of the long walls, his black XT Cargsten frame motionless, crimson visor pulsing gently as he projected data across a holographic screen. Delta was beside him, her silver dress and lit blue lines softly glowing as she reorganized mission logs with fluid, almost dance-like gestures. Near the open windows, Vixen lounged on a couch, one leg crossed over the other, tail swishing lazily while she flipped through a magazine. Her fox ears twitched at every interesting sound, but her green eyes inevitably slid back to Quentin whenever she sensed him looking.
Across from her, Reia sat with her arms folded, perfect posture never faltering, she appeared utterly uninterested, gaze distant, antennae glowing faintly at their tips...right up until Cross walked past behind her. Her cheeks tinged the slightest hint of pink, then she coughed and turned away sharply. Cross, for his part, blinked once, as if trying to process an emotion, and then went back to his seat beside the window, staring out at the city with that unnervingly calm expression of his. Zark, the silent assassin, was quietly reading a book on wanted criminals and murderers.
At another section of the hall, Topaz and Garnet were in the middle of a low-voiced argument while Jackal watched on until Garnet looked at him for a moment with a smile that made him blush and look away. The Toon Jester Adelee makes fun of his red cheeks, which he quickly denies. Scar, the hedgehog, crosses his arms and grumbles about the noises within the headquarters, which made the towering silver brute Atomic to laugh loudly, greatly annoying the hedgehog.
On the far end of the great room, the Three Marine Stooges occupied a table they’d more or less claimed as their own. Petire meticulously straightened a stack of mission files, mustache twitching in irritation as Ralph yawned loud enough to echo and Sharper flipped through a food menu like it contained state secrets.
Near them, Dr. Zeal made a brief note on a clipboard about Sharper's metabolism.
Reika stood at the refreshment counter, swirling an amber drink in a glass, eyes half-lidded as she watched the others over her shoulder. Tia was nearby, arms crossed, posture impeccable as she lectured Topaz and Garnet about footwork from earlier training. Sera is having a conversation with Rine and Viz, making the tall demoness giggle while the vice leader blushes. Revenant sat on a reinforced seat big enough to hold his armored bulk, massive sword Grimblade resting against the table beside him. Despite his fearsome appearance, he was carefully petting a dozing Majin Amber on the head as she curled like a content cat against the side of his armor.
On the far side of the room, Aimée checked the scope of her rifle, while Veil stood near a window with her arms folded, light wings faintly glowing as she stared out at the sky with a regal, slightly bored expression. Cressa and Cordelia sat at an empty portion of the table, reading something on a holo-slate, tails swishing idly. Mel hovered by a shadowed corner, half-faded, making the occasional soft “ooo” when someone mentioned her name. Xaria stood near the library entrance, staff resting loosely in her hand, red eyes half-amused as she watched everyone interact.
The guild was all here.
Quentin took a sip of his cocoa and sighed in contentment, noticing his towering marksman co-leader Zeke, approached him with a greeting. Before Quentin could respond, Beta’s visor flared brighter, a small chime echoing through the room.
“Alert,” Beta announced, voice smooth and synthetic, yet somehow authoritative. “Unscheduled inbound delivery has arrived at the main entrance. Origin point: Toweral Central Security Courier Office. Priority seal: Level Omega.”
Quentin and Zeke look at each other before the Drangua spoke up.“Guess break time’s over.”
Minutes later, the whole guild was gathered in the atrium—some at railings, some on beams, the large members, especially Atomic, looming respectfully at the back. At the center of the floor stood something new...a small metallic pedestal hummed with blue-white light. On it rested a palm-sized device: a ring of mirrored metal bands wrapped around a shifting crystal core. Above it floated a folded letter, suspended in the air.
“That is new.” Zeal remarked.
“Is it dangerous?” Sharper squeaked, mouth stuffed with food.
“Most interesting things are,” Cressa said calmly.
Xaria descended from an upper balcony, robes billowing. “Stand aside, dears.” She plucked the letter from the air. The spell broke, the letter dropped into her hand, and the pedestal’s hum softened. Her eyes skimmed the page before lighting up with amusement. “Oh my...” she said. “This will be fun.”
“Define ‘fun’.” Scar said.
“It’s from an old acquaintance of Toweral,” Xaria went on. “And yours, technically.”
Quentin frowned. “Mine?”
“From Dr. Van Micro.” A ripple of groans, sighs, and wary interest passed through the crowd.
“Read it, please.” Quentin said.
Xaria cleared her throat, then read:
To the NanoCorps,
Congratulations on your recent rise in fame and effectiveness. You have become quite the spectacle across Planet Tami—heroic rescues, Rogue detainments, etc. Impressive, impressive.
But I ask you: how effective are you when the entire universe dwarfs you like dust?
Enclosed is my latest invention: the Multiversal Micro-Transit Device. With it, you may traverse different dimensions and worlds… while reduced to the size of a bug.
My challenge: Survive, adapt, and return after three weeks of such conditions.
You may travel together in teams, alone, or however you wish. The device will choose the destination. I will, of course, be monitoring your progress purely for scientific curiosity.
Try not to get stepped on.
— Dr. Van Micro
Ralph rubbed his face. “Three weeks as bug food...”
“Medically terrifying, but intriguing.” Zeal said.
Vixen nudged Quentin with her shoulder, tail swaying. “Well, boss? That dragon brain cooking yet?”
“Being forced to scurry under people’s shoes like vermin is hardly dignified,” Reia sniffed.
“Speak for yourself.” Amber said brightly. “Sounds fun.”
Garnet glanced at Jackal, electricity flickered faintly around his fingers as he stared at the device.
“You okay?” She asked.
He smirked. “Shrinking, weird worlds, giants trying to step on us. Just another Tuesday, right?”
Topaz growled. “If any giant tries to step on my sister, I’m cutting their ankle.”
“Language, Topaz.” Reika said lazily from a pillar, amused. “We haven’t even agreed yet.”
Quentin stepped closer to the pedestal. “Beta, can it be shut off if something goes wrong?”
“Not from the outside.” Beta replied. “There is a recall failsafe keyed to your survival states. The process itself will not kill you. The worlds you visit may still attempt to.”
“So the shrinking and travel are safe,” Zeal said. “Everything else wants them dead. Classic.”
“We’ve been through worse.” Vixen said softly. “And you know it.”
Rine’s eyes glowed. “If this keeps other worlds from suffering what ours did, I don’t mind being tiny.”
Sera snapped open her fan. “If there is power or knowledge to be gained, I refuse to let other kingdoms claim it first.”
Reia lifted her chin. “If Cross goes, I am not staying behind.”
Cross blinked. “I did not say anything.”
“You didn’t have to.” She muttered, cheeks pink.
Scar snorted. “Speed’s speed, no matter the scale. I’m in.”
Quentin nodded and turned back to the device.
“Alright. First things first: we pick who goes.” He said. “A small group of six works if we stick together. Solo runs are optional. The rest will handle anything that hits Toweral while we’re gone.”
He glanced around at them all.
“Three weeks, tiny as bugs, in worlds we’ve never seen. Giants, monsters, gods—who knows. But we’re NanoCorps. We’ve stared down worse odds than ‘tiny’ and ‘lost.’”
He bared his dragon teeth in a grin.
“So we’ll treat it like what it is: a challenge.”
Vixen’s tail swished, Adelee whooped, Rine smiled like a demon given permission, Sera lifted her chin, Reia’s eyes glowed, and even Zark’s skull mask seemed to tilt in approval.
Soon, the Multiversal Micro-Transit Device would activate.
And the NanoCorps would find themselves in a world where even a single blade of grass rose over them like a skyscraper.   indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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