Unitrix Demonstration

Exploitative is an extraneous short for Transformative, taking place before the events of the series.

Plot
The meeting began in near-darkness. The distant moon reflected off the squalid water and gave the area a very faint green glow, but to say it was lit up would be an overstatement - sight was still impossible. Instead, the man navigated by the repulsive, overwhelming scent coming from the stream. The dirtiness which was solid in the air was more than enough of a pointer to his destination, and he held his nose as he descended the steps onto the concrete. Not that it was unexpected from a sewer.

The client was already waiting for him. The man was unsure what to call him - 'alien' was disrespectful, but he was unaware of the species his short, toady appearance owed itself to. He was only as tall as the man's briefcase was wide, and yet the man felt it would be a mistake to disrespect him. Although, he felt that about most people he met.

"Took ya long enough." His client's pupil-less green eyes pierced through the dark, directly into the man's dull brown. "Show the stuff."

"Straightforward." The man observed, placing the briefcase roughly between them. It was hard to judge the distance in the dark, but there weren't many other places for illegal dealing. His client waddled forward, and unlocked the briefcase before the man could, flipping it open. Inside, three, metal cylinders lay. Each had different coloured veins running through their black length, but were otherwise identical.

"These are fakes." He declared.

"What makes you say that, if you're willing to say?" The man frowned slightly, but made sure to keep his manners.

"Exactly. I can't say, can I? Nobody's seen junk like these before. They're a new revolution."

"True." The man agreed, "I'll give you some light to make sure." He turned the briefcase, and picked out a red-veined cylinder carefully. Making sure to show his client, he slowly undid his cuff, and rolled back his sleeve, before pushing the cylinder into his arm. A twisting sensation came from inside, and a dull sound came from the cylinder which sounded like 'Pyronite'. Cracks spread into his skin, and magma began to inexplicably ooze out. His flesh darkened from beige to vermillion, and everything around him was suddenly filled with heat.

The thing in the man's place was more like a volcano than a person. It resembled his original shape, but its hands were made of shifting yellow flame, and its eyes were only holes in a rocky face. A flame formed the top of its head, and its feet were split into two-toed prongs. It held out its arm, and a small ball of fire seeped out of it. The fire-man tossed the ball at the wall behind the client, and it quickly spread across into a small fire, but no further.

The man's voice came from within the heat, "There you go. Please, I ask for your re-evaluation."

His client grinned, "Good. This is the good junk, right here. I was just bluffin', by the way." He gave a thumbs-up with his green, segmented hand, and picked up a cylinder with deep blue veins across it. "How much?"

"Six million."

His client's jaw opened in disbelief. "You're kidding."

"I took these straight from the creator. I'm a marked man if he sees me again."

"You'll be a marked man if you don't lower the damn price. New tech is three million, not six."

"Try getting this from anyone else. In the galaxy." The man's politeness slipped slightly.

"Nah, I'll just take 'em right now." Before the man could react, his client pushed the cylinder into his chest, and his body shape rippled into a wider, somehow shorter shape. A deep sound - "Ickthyperambuloid" - came from the device, and in less than a second, a trout-like alien with thin legs was facing the man. "The actual hell is this?"

"I believe you made the mistake of underestimating my intelligence. Illegal activity requires a degree of caution. I would never include Unitricies that could do any real damage, although I assure I have possession of them."

"What if I took the Pyronite one? Huh?" The client pointed unsuccessfully with his flipper.

"I know how people like you think. And don't worry, you'll buy all of these." The man calmly explained.

"What makes ya think I'll buy anything off you now?"

"The fact that there's no other option." The man pointed a burning finger behind his client, and he suddenly noticed the flames around him. Everywhere was burning, the ceiling, the staircase, and even the walls around the sewer water, with the flames circling an arm's length from the client a menacing blue.

"Go to hell." His client spat, and took out a previously unseen pocket-sized box. The flames wrapped around it and delivered it to the man, who pressed down on it as it unfolded into twice its dimensions. The now-large box opened, and the man counted its contents carefully before returning it to its pocket state.

"Thank you for your service." He nodded, picking up the briefcase, careful not to ignite it.

"Hey! There's eleven mil in there! I need my change!" His client protested, as the flames parted slightly to let the man through.

"Consider it a tip."

"I'm gonna- how do I get back? To bein' an Ekoplektoid?" The man ignored his cries, picking him up by his head fin.

"I'm sure you'll figure it out." He assured, throwing the Ekoplektoid without hesitation into the sewer stream, followed by the briefcase.

"You little..." His voice drowned out, and the man waited until it was completely gone until he dissipated the flames. His body morphed back into a human's, the Unitrix dropping into his hand, and he tossed it, too, into the murky stream. A deal was a deal.

The meeting ended in near-darkness. The distant moon reflected off the remnants of dark water and charred ground as the man brushed his suit off and climbed the concrete steps.

Noteworthy Events

 * The Unitricies are introduced.

Characters

 * Businessman
 * Ekoplektoid

Transformations Used

 * Pyronite (by Businessman)
 * Ickthyperambuloid (by Ekoplektoid)

Trivia

 * This takes place in early 2015.
 * Along with Transformative and Serena & Sasha's Solar System, this short takes place within Earth-21.