The training chamber was dimly lit, filled with the rhythmic hum of machinery and the faint flicker of artificial lights lining the walls. Theo cracked his knuckles, rolling his shoulders as he prepared himself for whatever fresh torment Erasmus had cooked up. After weeks of gruelling training, he was eager to see how far he had actually come.

  Erasmus stood beside a pop-up console, fingers gliding over the interface with absentminded precision. He barely glanced at Theo before speaking. "Today, we test your ability to combat psionic opponents."

  Theo immediately threw his arms up in exaggerated excitement. "With mind bullets!? That’s telekinesis, Kyle!"

  Erasmus briefly paused, exhaled slowly, and shook his head.

  Theo smirked. One day, he swore, he'll get one of my references.

  Erasmus tapped a final command, and with a mechanical hiss, a section of the floor slid open. From the compartment, a small, round creature, no larger than a basketball, hovered into view.

  Theo frowned. "Uh. What?"

  The creature was covered in fluffy, cloud-like fur, its tiny eyes blinking with an innocence that felt entirely out of place in Erasmus’ lab. It bobbed slightly in the air, letting out a soft, pleased coo.

  Theo turned back to Erasmus, suspicion creeping into his expression. "What am I looking at?"

  Erasmus crossed his arms, watching the creature with a hint of amusement. "This is a Vennothian Puffling. It is incredibly rare, deceptively adorable, and capable of psionic influence beyond most things you’ll encounter in this world. They’re also relatively friendly, so this is the perfect test setting."

  Theo looked between the Puffling and Erasmus. "So… what? I fight it? Punch the furball in the face? I don’t know if I can do that. It’ll automatically turn into a head pat."

  Erasmus sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "No, you imbecile. It’s going to try and manipulate you. If you can resist its influence, we’ll have our answer as to how psionics affect you."

  Theo squinted at the floating ball of fluff as it let out another soft, content chirp. He tilted his head. "Alright, fine. When do we start?"

  Erasmus smirked. "We already have."

  Theo blinked.

  A strange fog crept into his mind, like stepping into a room and immediately forgetting why he was there. He frowned, shaking his head. The sensation was subtle, barely noticeable—like the edges of his thoughts were blurring, but not enough to be alarming.

  He turned back to Erasmus. "Wait, that’s it? That’s all it’s got? I thought I was gonna start seeing ghosts or suddenly believe I was a teapot or something."

  Erasmus tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Interesting. The Puffling’s ability should have fully ensnared your mind by now. But instead, you’re simply… mildly annoyed?"

  Theo shrugged. "A little confused, sure. Mostly just disappointed."

  Erasmus began pacing, his analytical mind already whirring. "This confirms a theory I had. Your unique biology means you lack the system’s energy pathways—the very pathways psionics manipulate. That makes you resistant, if not outright immune, to psionic attacks."

  Theo grinned. "So what you’re saying is… I’m a natural counter to mind readers and creepy mentalist guys?"

  Erasmus stopped pacing to give him a long, exhausted look. "Yes, congratulations. You are functionally a brick wall to psionic influence."

  Theo pumped a fist. "Hell yeah. Finally, something in this world actually works in my favour."

  The Puffling let out a -meep-, almost as if frustrated that its ability had failed. Theo reached out and patted its tiny head, ruffling the soft fluff between his fingers. The creature trilled in delight, rubbing against his hand in immediate acceptance of its new role as a pet instead of an opponent.

  "Well," Theo said, grinning. "I’m keeping him."

  "Absolutely not." Erasmus stated.

  "Too late, it likes me." Theo replied.

  Erasmus’ eyebrow twitched. “Theo, stop befriending the test subject.”

  Theo scooped up the Puffling, cradling it in his arms as it nuzzled into his chest. “Impossible. Professor Meep and I are bonded for life. He can assist you with your science as he is now an accredited professor, since I just named him such.”

  Erasmus slowly turned to stare at him, his expression an unreadable blend of exhaustion and why do I even bother anymore?

  “…Professor… Meep,” he repeated flatly.

  Theo nodded sagely, holding the tiny creature up like a prized artifact. “Yes, Professor Meep. Esteemed scholar in the field of being fluffy and excellent. Look at him, Raz. This is the form of a true intellectual.”

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  Meep let out a soft, inquisitive chirp and wiggled its tiny paws.

  Erasmus pinched the bridge of his nose. “Theo, that is a glorified sentient stress ball with barely enough cognitive function to avoid walking into walls.”

  “Which means he fits right in with me,” Theo quipped, plopping the Puffling onto his shoulder. Meep immediately flopped against his neck, trilling contentedly. “See? He’s already part of the team.”

  Erasmus turned back to his console, muttering something about wasting perfectly good resources on nonsense.

  Theo, however, was fully committed. If Professor Meep only had a short time in the lab, then by God, they were going to make the most of it.

  First, Theo decided that Meep needed to explore his new kingdom. He placed the tiny creature onto one of Erasmus’ many worktables, where it immediately discovered a small spherical drone about its own size. Meep sniffed it once. Then, with unshakable purpose, booped it with his nose.

  The drone whirred in confusion and tried to roll away. Meep pursued.

  Theo gasped dramatically. “Raz! My esteemed colleague has discovered the ancient art of drone herding!”

  “Get it off my equipment!” Erasmus snapped, typing furiously, as if sheer willpower alone could evict the Puffling from his workspace.

  But Theo was already invested. He nudged another drone into play, watching as Meep pounced onto it like a victorious hunter, only to immediately roll off and land in a heap of fluff. Unfazed, the little creature wiggled upright and resumed its relentless pursuit.

  Erasmus watched, slack-jawed. “This cannot be my life.”

  At some point, Theo found an old lab coat draped over a chair. With a bit of effort—and some hastily knotted wiring—he fashioned a makeshift professor’s robe for Meep. “Now this is a proper scientist,” Theo announced, proudly presenting the Puffling in his grand new attire.

  For a split second, Theo swore he saw something dangerously close to amusement flicker across Erasmus’ face.

  Then the moment was ruined.

  Meep, emboldened by his promotion, decided he needed a proper perch and launched himself onto Erasmus’ head.

  The scientist froze. His icy blue eyes narrowed as the Puffling wriggled into his hair, cooing in self-satisfaction.

  Theo, thrilled beyond belief, clutched his chest. “Oh my god. He loves you.”

  Erasmus remained unnervingly still. Then, in a voice so calm it was terrifying, he said, “Theo.”

  “Yes, Raz?”

  “Get it. Off. My head.”

  Theo grinned. “Who am I to come between love, Raz?”

  “If you do not remove it in the next five seconds, I will replace all of your meals with nutrient paste made from its essence.”

  Theo gasped. “Don’t say things like that! You’ll hurt his delicate sensibilities. The mind of an actual genius is a fragile thing.”

  Erasmus’ patience snapped. With a flick of his wrist, a small drone zapped to life, gently scooping Meep from his head and depositing the Puffling back onto Theo’s shoulder. Meep let out an indignant -meep-, deeply offended by the relocation.

  Theo soothed the tiny creature, rubbing his head. “There, there, Professor. Some people just are intimidated by greatness.”

  Erasmus turned back to his console, muttering something about burning the entire lab down and starting over.

  Theo, satisfied that Professor Meep had officially left his mark on the place, leaned back against a nearby counter, stroking his fluff-covered companion.

  “Well, Raz,” he said smugly, “I think today was a success.”

  Erasmus didn’t even look up. “Get out before I reclassify you both as failed test subjects for disposal.”

  A few hours later, Theo stood at the edge of the encroaching forest outside Erasmus’ lab, the Puffling nestled snugly in his arms. The warm, humid air of the wilderness was a stark contrast to the sterile chill of the lab, and for once, Theo kind of preferred it.

  He knelt, setting the little fluff ball down gently. "Alright, little dude. Be free."

  The Puffling looked up at him, its tiny paws twitching as it let out a soft, questioning chirp. Theo ruffled its head one last time, a small smile tugging at his lips. "Go on, get out of here before Raz starts running more tests on you."

  Meep let out one final trill, bouncing a few steps forward—then stopping. It turned back, staring up at him as if reconsidering this entire plan.

  "Don’t give me that look, Meep," Theo muttered. "You’re not making this easier."

  With a reluctant little wiggle, the Puffling finally disappeared into the underbrush, its pale fluff blending into the dense foliage. Theo watched until he could no longer see it, the last rustling leaves settling into silence.

  Behind him, Erasmus stood with his arms crossed, his expression one of barely concealed impatience. "Are you quite finished?"

  Theo grinned, shaking his head. "For now. But let’s be real, that thing’s totally coming back."

  Erasmus muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like buffoonery incarnate before turning back toward the lab.

  Theo lingered for a moment, staring at the underbrush. There was an annoying little pang in his chest—something disturbingly close to loss. Professor Meep, in his short tenure, had somehow gone from ‘test subject’ to ‘certified chaos gremlin and emotional support fluffball.’ And now, he was gone.

  But as Theo turned to follow Erasmus, the old man spoke without looking back.

  There was the faintest pause before his voice came—carefully neutral. "That thing belongs out here, Theo. Keeping an undomesticated creature in a high-risk lab filled with volatile experiments and equipment is a fast track to disaster. Sentimentality doesn’t change facts. It wouldn’t be fair to ‘it’ either."

  Theo sighed, dragging a hand through his hair. "Yeah, yeah, I get it. But c’mon, Raz—he was a prodigy in the field of adorable anarchy."

  Erasmus let out a long-suffering exhale, shaking his head as he opened the lab door. "Exactly why he had to go. It was you or him. You only just won out…"

  Theo snorted. "I’m taking that as a victory."

  Erasmus didn’t reply, already disappearing inside. Theo followed, glancing over his shoulder one last time before the door hissed shut behind him.