Chapter 3: The Template Collection I
Martin Gable looked like a man being eaten from the inside.
He sat across from Chronos in the too-bright café, hands wrapped around a cooling coffee he hadn't touched. His eyes were the color of old bruises, and when he spoke, his voice had the careful tone of someone who'd been disappointed too many times.
"The treatment," he said, not bothering with pleasantries. "Is it real?"
Chronos placed a thumb drive on the table. "Phase one and two trial data. FDA approval won't happen for eighteen months, but the mechanism is sound. Rosen-Thal is a single-gene transcription error. The therapy corrects it at the mRNA level."
Gable's hands trembled slightly. "And you just... have this."
"I have access to research that hasn't been published yet." Chronos kept his tone neutral, factual. "The winery is for a long-term ecological study. We need isolation. The option agreement is standard ten thousand non-refundable, applicable to purchase. You have the authority to grant it without court approval since the estate value is under threshold."
"The bank expects seven hundred thousand."
"The bank will accept whatever they get when civilization collapses in thirty days."
Gable stared. "What?"
Chronos slid a second thumb drive across. "Open that after our meeting. It contains financial advice that will save your family. Move assets to physical commodities. Buy antibiotics. Learn to purify water. When June ends, the world changes."
"You're insane."
"Check the treatment data first. Then decide."
Gable pocketed both drives. His expression was a battlefield hope warring with cynicism, desperation fighting pride. "The option agreement?"
Chronos produced printed documents. Already signed by "Chronos Holdings LLC," a shell corporation that existed only on paper but would withstand basic scrutiny for twenty-nine more days.
Gable read. His lawyer's eyes catching every clause. "This is... unusually fair."
"I'm not trying to cheat you. I'm trying to secure a location efficiently."
"And the treatment?"
"Available as soon as you sign. The researcher will contact you tonight."
Gable's pen hovered. "Why are you doing this?"
"Because in thirty days, kindness will be extinct. I'm stocking up."
The pen descended. Signature. The scratch of ink on paper sounded like a lock clicking open.
Chronos handed over an envelope. Ten thousand in hundreds. "The researcher will email within the hour."
He stood. The meeting had taken fourteen minutes.
As he reached the door, Gable called after him, "What's really coming?"
Chronos didn't turn. "A harvest. And we're the crop."
He stepped into the morning, the option agreement folded in his pocket. Phase one: complete.
---
Now, templates.
From Silas's memory: Central Park Zoo. Closed for renovations until June 15. Security: minimal. Animals: healthy specimens, clean templates.
Chronos had $7,600 remaining after the option payment. He needed to bribe someone, but more importantly, he needed access without attracting attention.
He found his target at a bar near the zoo: Leo "Stretch" Henderson, head zookeeper, drinking away his midday break. A man with a gambling debt that would get his legs broken in two weeks.
Chronos sat beside him. "I need to examine your primates for a research paper."
Stretch didn't look up from his beer. "Zoo's closed. Come back in two weeks."
"I need it today. I'll pay."
"Not interested."
"Three thousand dollars. Cash. Fifteen minutes with the gorillas."
Stretch's eyes flickered. The debt was $2,800. "Five thousand."
"Thirty-five hundred. And I erase your marker with Tony 'The Knife' Valenti."
That got his full attention. "Who the hell are you?"
"Someone who knows things. You let me in tonight at midnight. I touch the animals. I leave. You get paid and Tony gets a call saying your debt is cleared."
Stretch's Adam's apple bobbed. "You can do that?"
"I just did." Chronos placed ten hundreds on the bar. "Down payment. The rest tonight."
He walked out, leaving Stretch staring at the money like it might bite him.
---
Midnight.
The zoo was a ghost landscape of empty pathways and sleeping animals. Stretch let him in through a service gate, eyes darting.
"Fifteen minutes," the zookeeper whispered. "The night watchman does rounds at 12:20. Don't touch the glass alarms."
"I need physical contact."
"Jesus. Fine. But if anything happens..."
"Nothing will."
Chronos moved through the shadows, his enhanced mana senses painting the world in silver traces. Each enclosure pulsed with biological signatures.
First: the gorillas.
A silverback named Kofi slept near the viewing glass, massive chest rising and falling. The enclosure door had a keeper access panel. Chronos bypassed it with a code from Silas's memory the same in three timelines because zookeepers never changed passwords.
The air inside was warm, humid, smelling of hay and musk.
Chronos approached slowly. Kofi's eyes opened intelligent, assessing. The gorilla didn't rise. Just watched.
"I need your strength," Chronos said softly.
He reached out, palm resting on the gorilla's shoulder.
Skin contact.
[Template Acquired: Western Lowland Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla)]
[Traits: Dense muscle fibers (Type IIb), skeletal reinforcement, grip strength (480 psi)]
[Biomass Cost to Apply: 12kg (full transformation)]
[Compatibility: Human-Primate (94%) - EXCELLENT]
Kofi grunted, a deep rumble, but didn't pull away. Almost as if he understood.
Chronos withdrew. "Thank you."
The gorilla closed its eyes again.
Second: the crocodile exhibit.
Nile crocodile, five meters long, floating motionless in murky water. Eyes like chips of obsidian watching him.
This was riskier. Chronos used a keeper pole with a soft loop to guide the crocodile to the edge. When its snout broke the surface, he touched the armored hide.
[Template Acquired: Nile Crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus)]
[Traits: Osteoderm armor (dermal bone plates), jaw pressure (5,000 psi), anaerobic endurance]
[Biomass Cost: 8kg (full transformation)]
[Compatibility: Human-Reptile (71%) - ACCEPTABLE]
The crocodile thrashed. Chronos stepped back just as teeth snapped air where his hand had been.
Third: the eagle aviary.
A bald eagle perched on a dead branch, regal and fierce. Chronos offered a piece of raw meat from the keeper's supply. The eagle took it, and in that moment, he touched its wing.
[Template Acquired: Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)]
[Traits: Telescopic vision (8x human), feather-light bone structure, aerial navigation sense]
[Biomass Cost: 3kg (full transformation)]
[Compatibility: Human-Avian (82%) - GOOD]
Fourth: the python enclosure.
Burmese python, coiled in artificial warmth. Chronos ran a hand along its scales.
[Template Acquired: Burmese Python (Python bivittatus)]
[Traits: Constriction strength, infrared sensing (pit organs), mandibular dislocation (unhinging jaw)]
[Biomass Cost: 5kg (full transformation)]
[Compatibility: Human-Reptile (68%) - ACCEPTABLE]
He had four clean templates. But as he withdrew from the python enclosure, something new appeared in his vision:
[Template Compatibility Matrix Generated]
[Analysis: Templates organize by phylogenetic similarity]
[Hierarchy Established:]
Mammalian Templates:
· Gorilla (94%)
· Human Base (100% - implicit)
· Rat-corrupted (78% but unstable)
Reptilian Templates:
· Crocodile (71%)
· Python (68%)
Avian Templates:
· Eagle (82%)
· Pigeon (85%)
[Insight: Mammalian templates integrate with less biomass penalty. Mixing across categories increases cost by 15-40%.]
[New System Feature Unlocked: Chimera Blueprints]
[Description: Design fused transformations using multiple templates]
[Example Available: "Gorilla Arms + Crocodile Hide"]
[Cost: 18kg biomass (12 + 8, minus 10% mammalian-reptile synergy)]
Chronos stored the information. The system was more sophisticated than Silas had realized.
He returned to Stretch at the gate. Handed over the remaining cash. "Tony's debt is cleared. Check your messages."
Stretch's phone buzzed. A text from a blocked number: DEBT PAID. ACCOUNT CLOSED.
The zookeeper looked like he might cry. "How?"
"Don't ask questions that don't help you sleep." Chronos started to leave, then paused. "One more thing. On June 30th, don't come to work. Take your family north. Past Albany. The city won't be safe."
"You keep saying that dat..."
"It's the last day of the world as you know it. After that, we build something new or we die."
He slipped into the night.
---
Back at the apartment, Chronos conducted his first real test.
He focused on his right arm. Summoned the gorilla template.
[Applying: Gorilla Right Arm Transformation]
[Biomass Required: 2.4kg (20% of full)]
[Available Biomass: 68.82kg]
[Proceed? Y/N]
Yes.
Pain was a white-hot wire drawn through muscle and bone. His arm shifted. Skin darkened to charcoal gray. Muscle fibers thickened, writhed beneath the surface like serpents. Bones creaked, densified. His hand broadened, fingers shortening, nails thickening into dark keratin.
Ten seconds.
He raised his new arm. It was heavier, powerful. He could feel the potential could probably crush concrete with that grip.
But the biomass cost ticked down:
[Biomass: 68.82 → 66.42kg]
Transformation wasn't free. It consumed his own body mass. He was literally burning himself to fuel the change.
He reversed it. The arm shrank back to normal, leaving him sweating and hungry. The biomass didn't return it was spent energy.
He needed to understand the economics.
He ate an entire family-sized package of chicken breasts he'd bought, consuming them raw for efficiency. Cooking destroyed nutrients.
[Biomass +0.8kg]
[Total: 67.22kg]
Not enough. The conversion was poor maybe 30% efficiency from food to usable biomass.
He needed a better source.
From Silas's memory: Rancid Butcher shop in Queens. Sells "expired" meat cheap. Actually sells monster meat smuggled through early rifts. High biomass yield but contaminated.
Too risky now.
He needed clean, dense biomass. And he needed it before he could properly test combat forms.
As dawn approached, Chronos checked his quest:
[Pre-Descent Quest Update]
· Acquire 3 biological templates (6/3) ✓ OVERACHIEVEMENT BONUS
· Secure 10kg biomass (0.8/10)
· Claim territory (1/1) pending finalization
· Time Remaining: 6 days, 12 hours
[Overachievement Reward: +1 Template Slot (Total: 7 active templates)]
Good. But the territory wouldn't be truly claimed until he performed the ritual at the winery.
He opened his laptop. The forum post had 47 replies. Mostly mockery, but three users had private messaged him with genuine questions:
User: RiverOfStars
Message: The water in my cup moved today when I got angry. No draft. Is this related to your post?
User: Sparky
Message: My phone keeps shorting out when I touch it. Started three days ago.
User: StoneSense
Message: I can feel vibrations through concrete. Down to fifty feet. What's happening to me?
Early awakeners. Talents manifesting pre-Descent. Rare, but not unprecedented.
Chronos replied to each with the same message:
You're sensitive to the changing reality. The energy is called mana. What you're experiencing is a minor talent awakening.
Do these exercises:
1. Meditate near running water (RiverOfStars)
2. Hold a battery between your palms (Sparky)
3. Lie on bare earth (StoneSense)
Record what happens. I'll contact you June 15 with next steps.
Do NOT tell anyone. Not yet.
He closed the laptop. The first threads of a network.
But first, he needed to be strong enough to protect it.
He looked at his remaining biomass: 67.22kg.
Enough for one full transformation, maybe two partials.
He needed to hunt.
From Silas's memory: First mana-sick humans appear June 5-7. Usually homeless, addicts weakened systems can't handle mana integration. They become "Shamble-Rots," the tutorial monsters.
Tomorrow, he'd find one. Test his templates in real combat.
And more importantly, harvest its biomass.
Chronos lay down, but didn't sleep. Instead, he entered a meditative state, cycling through his templates mentally, feeling their potentials, planning combinations:
Gorilla strength for power.
Crocodile armor for defense.
Eagle vision for perception.
Python flexibility for grappling.
Individually, useful.
Combined?
He began designing his first Chimera Blueprint:
[Designing: "Predator Form Alpha"]
· Gorilla torso/core (strength)
· Crocodile limbs (armor + bite)
· Eagle eyes (vision)
· Python spine (flexibility)
[Estimated Cost: 28kg biomass]
[Estimated Duration: 8 minutes at current efficiency]
Too expensive. He'd burn through nearly half his body mass.
He needed to optimize. To find synergies the System hadn't revealed yet.
As first light touched the window, Chronos made a decision.
Today: secure biomass source.
Tomorrow: claim the winery.
Day after: recruit Jin-ah before her accident.
The clock ticked.
[28 days, 14 hours until The Descent]
He rose, ate another pound of raw meat, and prepared to become a hunter in a city that didn't yet know it was a hunting ground.