Monster Girl Ranching in Another World

"So, what exactly are you trying to do inside of my head?" I asked as I walked over to Maelstrom and Harold.

Wataluga was standing over at the one machine that was uncovered, but it was a complicated look switchboard. None of the buttons had labels on them, but my Water Elemental was pressing them like he knew what he was doing.

"What I am trying to do is diversify your energy and give you access to more elemental power. Normally, you should only be allowed to get the six Pacts and create bonds to form Totems. I am going to try and start breeding elementals inside of you. Then when they are brought from the nine rings, they will automatically form a pact with you," Harold explained.

"Breeding them? You plan to start the ranch in my head?" I asked, half-joking, but the look on his face said he wasn't kidding.

"Yes, but more of an elemental hatchery in your head, but I think it will give you more diversity. It takes too much energy to combine the elements to create the desired effects that you want. There is one catch," Harold explained, and I rolled my eyes but then turned my focus to Wataluga.

"Isn't there always a catch? What is the waterboy doing over there? It looks like he is just pressing random buttons, or is there something there that I can't see?" I asked as Wataluga turned back to glare at me.

"I am no child!" Wataluga declared as he leveled his glare at me, but that just made my eyes roll around my head more.

"You are all children in my eyes since you are all just the creations in my head," I shot back, and that made Wataluga roll his eyes.

"Children, there are more important things to deal with right now than bickering about things that don't matter right now! I need to explain to you what could happen when we split Maelin and Stormy up. The switchboard is programmed to only respond if a project is being worked on. Then it can only be accessed by that person," Harold scolded and then explained.

"That seems a bit silly, but I guess it's alright. Just seems a bit overkill for security inside my own head," I said as I turned back around to face Harold.

"This is what I have been trying to explain to you. If the dark energy gets loose, it could infect you, so I have set almost everything in your head to respond only to each of us the way we are right now. Suppose any dark energy gets looked at and infects one of us, the elemental. In that case, we can just separate it from us, but we can't if it infects you," Harold explained, and I nodded in understanding.

That meant that if it got free, there was a chance that it could go directly for me. With my luck, it was best just to auto-assume that's precisely what it would be; it would be silly to think otherwise.

"So, then what are we doing to prevent this from happening, and what do we do if it does?" I asked, and Harold nodded with a smile.

"Fear not, dark energy is not all bad, and you have absorbed some before, but the difference is this kind won't go away. You can still survive with it, but it will be the little devil in every conundrum you run into. These tubes are the best bet for now, but it's not a permanent solution, and let it out of you is not an option," Harold told me, and I lifted an eyebrow at him.

"Why can't we just let it out? That seems like the best way to get rid of it, right?" I asked, but Maelstrom was the one that spoke up.

"No, you don't want something like that to happen, or you will be dealing with a huge problem that you don't want any part of. We are strong enough to handle and control it, but if it gets into an island heart or a monster, then we will all be in trouble. The dark energy will start to consume everything that it can, and it will start to spread out until it consumes the world," Harold explained.

"So then we just have to make sure that it doesn't get out, but if it does, then what? Is there a way to burn it from the world?" I asked, but Harold waved me off.

"That isn't important because the chances of it getting outside of your head are basically impossible. I was going to explain this before, but then we got on to the topic of Maelstrom, so I wanted to show you all this. I created this ship to be out in a real space environment, so it will be tough for the energy to escape, but not impossible," Harold said with a sigh.

"So what you say before is true then? We could do things inside of here that can affect the world out there? The place looks unfinished, and it looks like there could be a lot more added, and there are so many things that are covered up around here," I said as I looked around the room.

"As you get stronger, you will slowly start to gain more control. This is half of your mind, but right now, Zero is much stronger and more infulencical in the world. The Elemental Hatchery will help out with this, and so will the girls. Every step forward you take is your hand slowly closing, and your control inside and out will increase. We will have access to more things like crafting and enchanting," Harold told me, and I nodded with a deep sigh.

There was no end to this, but at the same time, this was something that I dearly needed. I had already felt the massive drain from the first time I turned my body into steam on Kubrick.

"Alright, tell me what we need to do then," I told Harold, and he nodded with a smile.