What is experience? Where does it come from? Where does it go? Ever since the System descended on our world, scholars priests and wise ones all over the world have sought to understand it. Class progressions have been mapped out, skill trees have been researched and codified endlessly. Many aspects of the system are thoroughly understood and form the curriculum of schools all around the world.
The fundamental underpinning aspects of the System, however, remain elusive and resistant to study. There are many theories on the topic of experience that range from reasonable to absurd but the topic is one that resists study as it is so intangible. The system at no point quantifies experience in a number, making it impossible to ascertain just how much is gained from any one activity. Estimates can and have been made, by having two subjects of the same level attempt to reach the next by different means, one through study and one through combat, for example, and educated guesses can be achieved through such means, but just what experience is, remains as distant a piece of understanding as ever.
There are those who believe, somewhat mystically, that experience taken from a living thing, a monster, is the purest form, the true intention of the System and any other source is secondary to this. The church of the Path has long extolled the view that nothing truly dies so long as it's experience is absorbed by another living creature, that the 'essence' is preserved and made part of a stronger whole. This seems harmless enough when applied to monsters, but should one extend that dangerous logic to the killing of other people, an activity that also awards XP, some of the dark rumours that swirl around that faith, particularly in its early years, begin to gain credence.
"Experience of the System, origins Myths and Legends, by Jivani the faithless" from the secret Library of the Path.
Behind me I can see that the fight is raging between Tiny. Vibrant and a host of Crocs. Without my magnificent magic to deter the beasts, they have been able to swarm forwards and engage Tiny in a vicious melee. Unfortunately for the Crocs, right next to the ape isn't exactly the safest place one could hope to be. Lightning crackles along Tiny's torso, zapping nearby foes and discharging through his hands with every punch. With each swing of his arms a Croc is sent reeling, even the Double Crocs, large as they are, cannot withstand the strength of those fists.
Like me, Tiny is a tier four monster, not to mention the beneficiary of multiple special evolutions. His strength is absurdly high and thanks to having actually spent some Biomass and skill points, his combat effectiveness is only climbing. The Double Crocs are tier three monsters, and there is little chance they have received the level of evolution, or had access to the wealth of Biomass, that Tiny has been able to enjoy.
I spoil my pets! What can I say?
At any rate, despite being heavily outnumbered, the big lug is managing to hold his own, smashing away Crocs with wild swings whenever they surround him. He's taking some damage though, his defence not up to the task of fending off those jaws and claws.
Vibrant is sticking to instructions and after bombarding the foe with acid from range she has stuck to a hit and run tactics. Whenever a Croc runs directly at her she turns and races to the other side of Tiny, putting the melee between herself and her would be opponent. She really is fast! She would leave me in the dust, even when dashing. Once out of sight and out of mind she charges forward and viciously deploys her various biting skills, chomping away at legs or arms, occasionally the odd torso.
Whenever they get sick of her nibbling, the monsters turn and swipe at her, their claws raking along her carapace, occasionally penetrating far enough to draw blood. True to directions, she immediately backs off, healing up and waiting for another opportunity to strike.
I wonder just how often she can use that healing gland...
On my side, Crinis and I are stilling contending with the odd fireball as our opponents struggle to overcome my forceful gravity bola.
Nifty spell this one. Even monsters as large and physically powerful as the Croca's aren't able to advance once I've tagged them with this beauty. One Titan Croc managed to evade the spell but he has unfortunately fallen into the clutches of Crinis' tentacles.
[You dare to approach my Master, vile beast!?]
She seems mad.
The fate of the Croc is.... Not good. To say the least.
[Don't eat them all Crinis, we need to save some food for everyone, especially the Double Croca]
[Understood, Master]
Beyond the immediate surrounding the environment is still shrouded with steam. I can't quite see the Crocs, their hulking bodies reduced to mere shadows with the obstruction, but similarly, they can't see us.
Doesn't stop them from hurling fire at us though.
[Crinis, fire coming!]
Dammit! Blindly throwing fire in our direction is still dangerous enough. The flames the double Crocs contain within is more potent than that inside their smaller cousins. This is going to get rough.
Around me the fireballs explode as I turn my mind inwards, racing to complete another spell. The air begins to roast us immediately, Crinis suffering more than I do.
Grrrr. I should have seen this coming! Hurry up Anthony, get this spell done!
Within my mind the water mana dances and glides as all of my minds are purposed to directing the mana into a familiar shape.
FWOOSH!
More fireballs ignite through the steam. These Crocs have a decent tank of fire. Luckily my spell is ready!
Water Domain!
Expanding outwards with me in the centre, a spherical wall of water pushes the flames away. With yet more explosions of the steam the incoming fireballs smash into my expanding barrier, super heating the liquid and pushing through but only with a shadow of their previous strength.
Nice! I can handle this!
Yet more steam billows out and further obstructs our vision.
Dammit, I can't see a thing!
[We can't hang back anymore Crinis! Time to push forward and mess them up!]
A very damp tentacle death sphere acknowledges my words with her actions and picks her body up and begins to advance, extending a web of tentacles before herself as she advances, completely unaffected by the steam.
I pass the maintenance of my water domain, a swirling mass of water than swishes and froths constantly in a five metre diameter around me.
Cautiously we advance, my sub minds taking over the maintenance of the water domain and supplying it with a steady stream of water mana. Gradually a shadow looms larger in front of us, a Double Croc thrashing against the restraint of the gravity bola. The Croc is large, far larger than myself, but it certainly doesn't expect us.
Crinis' seeking limbs creep forward before finally contacting the monster before us. Instantly a number of tentacles snap forward and latch onto the Croc who growls deep it it's throat and begins slashing with its claws at the shadow flesh that has attached to it.
Oh no you don't you damned Croc!
Dashing forward the beast is buffeted by the surging waters of my water domain, knocked off balance and thoroughly saturated. Summoning the energy from within I open my mandibles wide as they begin to glow.
Shattering Bite!
Crunch!
"GARRRR!"
The Double Croc reels back in pain.
Suffer from my bite Croc! The first of many!
-x-X-x-
More fireballs fly out of the distance and impact against my water domain, sending massive gouts of steam hissing into the air and further reducing visibility. In front of me, buffeted and soaked by the frothing mass of water that makes up my water domain, the double croc lunges forward with its massive jaws.
SNAP!
Yikes!
Leaping to the left I manage to avoid the snapping jaws at the last second. With the foe off balance, I dash forward to bite once more.
CRUNCH!
[Shattering Bite has reached level 8]
Muahahaha!
The Croc growls furiously, a rumble that comes from deep within its chest and shakes the air with its intensity. The double crocs are almost the same size as Tiny when standing on their hind legs, close to ten feet.
Being a little over a metre tall at this point, the damn thing towers over me. My eyes are about level with its knees! Thankfully my shattering bite manifests more than metre away from actual mandibles, increasing the range of my bite attacks considerably.
Enough to take a decent chunk out of the monsters side at any rate.
WHAM!
Ouch!
A little cocky after my successful bite and I don't even notice the twin tails sweeping towards me until they smash into my side with tremendous force, sending me flying several metres away.
[Master! Are you all right!?] Crinis cries shrilly.
[I'm fine! Focus on the fight!]
[Damn beast! I WILL REND YOU!!!]
I've lost a bit of HP from that strike, the kinetic force of the impact was enough to crack my carapace in several places but the enhanced diamond is perfect for resisting this sort of damage. Not to mention, a new feeling arises in the damaged sections that brings a smile to my heart. The inner bone plating, a supportive structure that webs the inside of my exoskeleton, begins to excrete a gel like substance at the site of the damaged portions. Immediately I can feel the tingling feeling of regeneration begin to intensify as the cracks start to knit together.
Oh how I love it when a plan comes together!
How's that you stupid Croc?! A few minutes and I'll be back to full HP again! The magical tank that is Anthony the ant shall never be stopped!
Being able to repair the damage to my main defence, the carapace, without having to expend my healing gland, is so tasty!
Whilst I'm admiring my own incredible wisdom, Crinis has gone berserk. She has begun threshing her limbs around one of the Crocs' legs, the beast being too large for her to effective wrap the entire thing at once, she has chosen to concentrate her fire on one particular limb.
Ahhh! So THIS is why she took dismember!
....
Yuck....
The beast fall to one side and I can see other shadows growing closer now, their flickering shadows growing nearer through the steam. My water domain continues to swirl around me and I position myself so that the frothing liquid slashes and slams into the Crocs face as Crinis flicks her limbs to the beasts torso.
It seem like the crocs, as expected, are quite resistant to water spells. Their scaly hides are perfect for sliding through water and provide a decent measure of protection against the kinetic impact of my water spells.
Perhaps Garralosh wasn't completely stupid when they designed their children with fire mana glands after all. At least my water magic is working to counter their stupid fireballs, even if the field has been covered in a blanket of steam.
I rush forward and begin to chomp away at the hapless double croc. With Crinis working her dark magic on its limbs and my own mandibles crunching at it, even a tier three croc monster cannot resist for long.
[You have defeated Level 12 Garralosh Bellator]
[You have gained XP]
Before Gandalf has even finished his words I leap forward and take a bite from the fallen enemy.
[You have consumed a new source of Biomass: Garralosh Bellator, you are awarded one Biomass]
[Basic profile of the Garralosh Bellator unlocked]
[Garralosh Bellator: Garralosh Soldier, Following in the evolutionary footsteps of their progenitor, the Garralosh Soldier is equipped with a more powerful muscular system, increased stamina, intensified flame and double tails. ]
Huh. So apparently these Garralosh offspring are basically evolving the same way the original Croc monster did? Following in their mother's footsteps?
That's interesting, it gives some insight into what Garralosh itself might look like.
But I don't have time to worry about that now, we have more offspring to kill! I have to move quickly before my gravity spell wears off completely!
I nudge Crinis mentally and we dash in the direction I recall seeing the other Double Croc. Thankfully my memory doesn't fail me and we manage to approach the creature who, despite being buffeted by my water domain, manages to accurately swipe at me with one claw.
SCREETCH!
The solid bone claw scraped along my pristine Diamond carapace and sparks fly but the claw fails to penetrate through to my soft, fleshy insides. The carapace is triumphant!
[DEATH!] Crinis screams, and a boiling mass of tentacles lash forward and wrap both legs of the double croc.
[Nice, Crinis!] I shout and move to follow up on her attack.
POW!
Right from the famed shopping plaza a blast of acid smacks into the beasts upper chest, immediately sizzling and burning away the scales that cover the crocs torso. Flames begin to flicker around the mouth of the creature but thanks to my improved rear vision I'm way ahead of it and position myself so that my water domain starts slamming into the crocs' face.
Haha! You want flame thrower me now?
HSSSSSSSSSSSSS!
Apparently yes!
Unwilling to hold back the flame, the monster opens wide blasts the spherical wall of water before it and even though some of the fire does indeed penetrate my defence, the majority is swallowed by the water and a huge gout of steam blasts the Croc right in the face!
Yeoouch.
I wonder who has the higher Cunning, Tiny or the Double Croc?
I shake my head, I should think so poorly of my own pet.
Scalded by this unexpected event, the Croc rears back in pain and anger.
[Get him Crinis! Finish it!]
[Understood!]
As the uncomfortable sounds of ripping and tearing begin to fill the air I lunge forward to apply mandibles, pumping some raw mana into them to active their infused property and greatly increase their cutting power.
CHOMP! CHOMP!
No matter how the monster tries to fight back its useless. Within Crinis typing up and savaging its legs and me tearing into it, the superficial slashes and bites it manages to land on us are not able to inflict serious damage.
[You have slain level 6 Garralosh Soldier]
[You have gained experience]
I feel the forceful gravity bola dissipate, releasing the rest of the crocs to continue their advance, but it's too late, the spell has done its work admirably. Without being able to group together the larger double crocs have been defeated.
In fact, I can also sense that by forceful gravity sphere has dispelled and ....
[You have slain level 7 Garralosh Soldier]
[You have gained experience]
[You achieved Level 14, One skill point awarded]
There you go.
Not sure I want to go inspect those remains though...
-x-X-x-
With the heavy hitter taken out of the equation there isn't much left to the fight. Crinis and I quickly destroy the Titan Crocs and rush back to help support Tiny and Vibrant.
The giant ape and ant soldier are beaten and bruised but victorious as they lord over their fallen enemies. Tiny is beating his chest and roaring his challenge out to the world whilst Vibrant does a manic, high speed dance around his ankles.
[RAAAAARR] Tiny bellows.
"RAA HAHAHAHAHA!" Vibrant cackles.
.....
I was right to team these two up. They fit together like peas in a pod. The only problem is, who is the brains of the operation?
In the distance there are yet more crocs, huddling together in small posse's like leathery hoodlums. For the time being they aren't responding to our provocation but I'd rather not put their tolerance to the test.
For now there aren't any groups within two hundred metres, which is roughly how far we've advanced into the expanse.
["OK, hold off on the celebration already you two"] I snap, ["We've won the first skirmish but there are more to be had. Let's eat quickly and prepare our next move."]
I don't need to tell them twice. The gang quickly breaks up and we start stuffing our faces full whilst keeping a watchful eye on the surrounding monsters. I myself head directly for the Double Crocs. It's been some time since I've been able to eat a tier three monster of this size and I don't intent to let the opportunity go to waste!
OM NOM NOM.
There really is a distinct flavour to croc. I think it's growing on me, to be honest. Particularly the tails. Now that I think of it, the double croc evolutionary choices are really making sense to me. Double the tail to eat? Nice!
I manage to reap a nice harvest of Biomass from the first croc but as I'm moving towards the second, Crinis cries out mentally.
[Master! I can feel vibrations coming this way, lots of them! I think it's a wave!]
Oh snap!
["Everyone back to the tunnels! Go Go Go!"]
Tiny seems reluctant to move, still shoving huge fistfuls of food into his mouth until his cheeks are puffed out to a ludicrous degree.
[Tiny! Move your big butt back to the tunnels! Right now!] I yell at him even as I activate my dash skills to rush at Crinis and throw her onto my back.
HEAVY!
With that maw of hers she can eat ten times faster than the rest of us, she's so damned heavy already she must have eaten two or three crocs at least!
Tiny cannot refuse my direct command. Unwilling to part with his meal he grabs the body of the double croc he was eating and throws it over his shoulder before dashing and leaping his way back to the tunnel.
How greedy! Wish I'd thought of that.... At the very least I might have been able to grab a tail...
With all possible speed we rush back to the tunnel entrance we used to reach this point and position ourselves defensively. I'd figured that we would encounter a wave or two during our attack on the expanse and in my mind the worst case scenario would be if we were caught out in the open. The monsters in a wave are low level, without many mutations and generally tier one with a few having evolved, generally not much of a threat. But if they were to surround us in the middle of the marsh, where mobility is difficult and there are native monsters who could interfere and get in the way...
It could get nasty.
Safely retreating to the tunnel that leads up to the colony and effectively blocking it, preventing any monsters from reaching my family and then continuing the assault is by far the best choice.
[Tiny in front, Crinis right behind to support, make sure he doesn't get surrounded. Vibrant, stay behind Crinis and move up to support when you can, don't let yourself get caught. I'll stick to the roof]
We quickly take our positions and it isn't long until I can see the wave of monsters approaching through the tunnel entrance. They roll through the marsh as a dark mass of shadow beasts, the occasional normal, animalistic monster mixed in.
Curiously, they don't seem too interested in feasting on the native monsters in the expanse as they pass, leaving them undisturbed for the most part. I think I see the odd flower monster getting trampled but nothing seems to go out of its way to kill or eat.
This behaviour is just so un monster like that its baffling to me. What hold does the creature controlling this expanse have on these monsters? Is it a skill? A mutation? Or something to do with their core? I just don't have the knowledge to explain it.
Hopefully soon, I will.
It doesn't take long for the monsters to reach us. Tiny finally stops snaking on his croc and flings the remaining food behind us, saving it for later, before flexing his fingers as lightning begins to crackle around his body.
I myself head towards the ceiling and grip it tightly, drawing on my water transformation construct to stockpile some condensed water mana in preparation for a forceful water cannon. That spell has proven to be the most effective so far at cutting through the shadow beasts strange flesh quickly.
[Advanced Grip has reached level 4]
....
Nice! Grip hasn't levelled in ages! Why now?
I guess I haven't been doing a whole of gripping. Where once I almost exclusively travelled on ceilings I'm more a floor walker now. Somehow that feels a little disappointing to me, as if something of my ant nature is lacking. I guess I walk up and down the colony walls but that probably does less for xp wise than hanging off a ceiling during a fight.
Internally I resolve to hang upside down a bit more as I brace for the incoming wave.
The monsters grow larger in our eyes until they crash into us with tremendous momentum. Tiny meets the challenge willingly, his massive fists smashing the first monsters into past the moment they rush into range.
Forceful Water Cannon!
The tunnel is immediately filled with sound of desperate combat as the monsters throw themselves at us like berserkers, mindlessly advancing into our attacks and getting cut down just as quickly.
My spell zigs and zags through their ranks, slicing through them without mercy. The spray of water saturates the tunnel and the incoming monsters who quickly fall prey to Tiny's lightning and fists.
Any that reach his sides are snatched up in Crinis tentacles and torn to pieces or flung back towards Vibrant who falls upon them with savage flee, her mandibles swiftly ending the threat.
We battle in this way for a full fifteen minutes before the wave has expended itself. The tunnel is packed full of Biomass, to a ridiculous degree and we are tired and battered. Tiny in particular has suffered the brunt of the fighting so far, cuts and bruises dot his body as the massive ape catches his breath.
Since we are close to the shortcut anyway, I decide that we should stuff our faces, heal up, and deliver the rest of this food to the surface for the colony to pick up before we continue our assault.
-x-X-x-
After we've made a quick delivery to the surface and we take a little time to rest to aid the digestion. Fighting on a full stomach isn't the best feeling in the world, especially when I've already taken in a special core.
The tight, painful feeling has faded in the background by now. I'm sure if that is because my body has successfully accommodated to containing this slightly oversized core or if I've just gotten used to the pain. I'm still determined to try and take in another before my next evolution. I'm not willing to stay behind on the power curve. To protect my family, I'll take the risk to get every edge I possibly can.
To turn a humble worker ant into a monstrous powerhouse I can't go by the standard road. Maxing out my core and selecting the special evolutions isn't enough for me anymore. If I'm going to run into this Garralosh monster, I feel like I'm going to need every edge I can get my claws on.
Just thinking about what that Croc could look like makes me nervous enough to clean my antennae before I can settle down.
How many evolutions? Tier five? Six? Seven?!
Mutations would be at what level? Tier six would be +30!
I hope my pets and I are strong enough to handle it if that damn beast ever decides to come at the colony.
For that reason, we need to take every opportunity to make ourselves stronger. When the new generation is up and running, I'll be a lot more confident in our future. To that end, we have to secure our position as quickly as we can. I've got a week until they hatch, by that time the expanse needs to be tamed and the threat to the colony ended.
I reaped 21 Biomass from the fighting so far, enough to buy a little something.
I instruct everyone to spend up and then settle in to glance through my menu.
Thank goodness! With this last feed, I've amassed just enough to take my antennae to +10!
[Would you like to upgrade antennae to +10? At this level you may select a mutation advancement from the menu}
Awesome!
My infrared senses have served me well since purchasing that upgrade. Having more information and more ways to sense enemies has made me feel much more secure in my travels through the Dungeon. My earlier sensory weakness has been well and truly overcome by now.
Flicking through the menu, I can see that there are some upgrades to the infrared advancement that make it more sensitive or effective at a greater range but I'm not particularly interested in that. Some of the other options are far more delicious, and I want to come back to some of those this time.
Precognitive Antennae, being able to sense a moment into the future. That is just a straight up hack. With multiple upgrades, I might be able to push the time I can detect into the future further and further.
Now that ability to sense opponents is so high, and it's time to continue to build on my ability to defeat them!
[Do you wish to purchase this upgrade? It will cost 27 Biomass]
YAS!
....
Oh right.
SNAZIFAZZLE!!!!
WHY DAMMIT?!
Five minutes of agonised flailing later we are ready to roll. The others have made their purchases, and the decided lack of reaction to the irritating side effect of having your body rearrange itself at the cellular level is starting to get me irritated.
Not much I can do about it.
Before we leave, I gather the crew for a brief war conference.
["All right everyone, how do we feel about our attack on the crocs so far?"]
[These beasts lack the proper respect for you Master!] Crinis pouts.
[Tasty] Tiny grunts.
"Those tails are delicious!" Vibrant cheers.
....
["Thanks everyone that's super useful. Let's go"]
In short order, I get everyone lined up and ready to advance. Once more we step out of the narrow, glowing tunnels and into the comparatively broad skies of the expanse — this time I make sure to instruct Tiny not to charge forward recklessly and wait for my order.
He wasn't happy, but he's just gonna have to build a bridge and get over it.
Immediately I can see that there are fewer crocs on this side of the expanse than before. Where before they were clustered quite thickly around this entrance, there isn't any sign of them now. It almost feels as if they've withdrawn to prevent further losses. Maybe we'll find them deeper into the marsh. Content not to have to worry about the stupid lizards, for the time being, I get the gang moving, and we step forward.
In this way, we progress a little further into the marsh. The vegetation and flora are a little more active this time. Perhaps the thinner numbers of crocs have encouraged them to come out of their shells a little. The ever-present aura of intimidation still hangs thickly in the air, but the marsh is starting to show a few small signs of life.
Tiny, for one, gets instantly spellbound by the mind-bending flowers and I have to try and hold him back while Vibrant rushes forward to mow the offending plant.
Having warned Tiny away from the pretty flowers, we continue to creep gradually in until we make it to roughly the four hundred metre mark. The vegetation is so damned thick, trees, hanging vines, flowers the size of cars and rolling humps of mossy earth rising high, that visibility is incredibly weak. It's hard to know if we are coming or going sometimes.
As the soft sounds of the marsh ring through the air around us, I try to watch in all directions at once, wary for any traps or ambushes that may come our way.
As I creep along behind Tiny, Crinis riding on my back, I suddenly feel a strange sensation tickling down my antennae. It feels so weird I freeze in place momentarily, entirely unable to process what my brain is telling me.
CHOMP!
Which is precisely when I lose two legs to a massive Hippo Turtle.
-x-X-x-
I realise now that my brain, or rather my fancy new antennae, were telling me that I was about to have my legs bitten off in a savage and painful manner by a large creature emerging from the murky waters to my left.
Unfortunately I was simply unable to process the information quickly enough. I mean, when you start receiving sensory messaging from the future, it kind of wigs you out a bit. Up until this pointy my new antennae had only been providing me with a mild buzzing sensation. When it lit up so suddenly I was momentarily overwhelmed. So much so that even though I knew I was about to leg my legs chomped off, it still happened!
Ouch!
The offender is a rather large hippo looking creature with rough leathery skin and a moss covered shell that had been visible above the water line, looking for all the world like a hump of dirt, much like any of the others.
Now the damn fatty looks decidedly smug as I fall to one side, cursing internally and triggering my healing gland. The cold fluid floods my system, rushing to the site of my lost limbs which begin to regrow at an almost visible pace and I scramble with my four remaining legs to get myself clear of the monster.
[MASTER?!] Crinis shrieks, [What happened?!]
["Ambush! Fat Hippo thing on the left! I've lost a couple of legs, cover for me!"] I shout.
[AHHHH!!!!]
My mind is overwhelmed by Crinis hysterical screaming as the little tennis ball on my back EXPLODES with tentacles that start seeking towards the left side, latching onto and tearing at the Hippo-Turtles face at breakneck speeds.
Irritated at the sudden retaliation, the hippo rises out of the water and charges towards us at surprising speeds. Fast! Huge! FAT!
The monster is much larger than I'd first thought and certainly more bizarre! Small piggy eyes and those adorable little flappy ears sit above a typical broken toothed, oversized hippo mouth. The head extends out from under a thick, dome shaped shell on the end of a long turtle neck. The entire thing rests upon four squat hippo legs that pump at a rapid pace as the huge monster dashes out of the water, grunting angrily as Crinis continues to shriek at it and tear at its face.
As the beast runs towards me the ground is rumbling under my feet! I push with all of my might but I can't activate dash without all of my legs! Great time to learn that! Thanks skill! Come on legs, regenerate quick or I'm going to be building a more intimate relationship with this dirt that I was quite prepared for. Just before I get stomped into ant pate and served on crackers, Tiny dashes in from the side and meets the charging hippo with one shoulder.
BOOM!
The impact is colossal and the ground shudders under the impact of these two titans. As more of the creature emerges from the water I get a clearer picture of its size. Hippos are quite large creatures back on Earth, everyone knows that. Fast, big mouth, plump grey skinned killing machines that like a swim. This guy is a touch larger. I'd say he's about the size of a minivan.
You hear what I'm saying?
A MINIVAN!
[Crinis! You need to try and get at his legs! Buy me a little time!]
My smaller pet, she of the ink chainsaw, is still screeching a the monster. Her earlier wordless hollering has given way to a deafening tirade that promises endless violence in the most graphic terms I can imagine. So caught up in her blood red diatribe is she, that I'm not even sure he heard what I said.
In any event, as the Hippo Turtle rights itself and recovers its balance after being knocked aside by Tiny, Crinis gradually begins to transfer her tentacles away from the monsters face where, despite her most violent effort, minimal damage has been done.
Not only is the shell tough as nails, it seems the skin aint no slouch either.
[Go hard Tiny! This guy look tough!]
"ROOOOO!" Tiny bellows, the fire blazing bright in his eyes.
He's ready to go!
Fists sparking, the ape launches himself into the air and brings both fists down in his patented ape smash, directly onto the hippo turtles shell. The flabby beast grunts as all of the air is forced out of its body in a whoosh and it slams belly first into the ground.
Electricity flows out of Tiny and into the beast, stunning it momentarily as lightning crackles over its shell and leathery skin. Snarling, the beast forces its feet back under it and turns to engage the offending ape, snapping at him with those huge jaws.
Why does everything around here have to have such large mouths?
Whilst my pets engage the monster in brutal battle I bravely continue to crawl through the dirt as my missing limbs slowly regenerate. It's been ages since I lost a leg dammit! This hippo is going to pay!
As Tiny continues to trade blows with the beast, his fists snapping that head left and right and sending shockwaves through its long neck, Crinis busies herself with ripping into the legs, trying to saw her way through the thick skin is taking a long time though.
"Vibrant! Give it some acid, aim for the neck!"
"Roger!"
The ant soldier had been waiting for the opportune moment to engage in the fight, not willing to obstruct Tiny is his battle. With my instructions given she proudly presents an ants best feature and begins to blast the enemy with her potent acid!
Four shots in total land on that long neck and begin to sizzle away pleasantly. The big monster groans in pain but cannot now turn away from the ape in front of it as he grows more and more aggressive, his fist swinging faster with every moment.
Gravity Bolt!
I hastily whip up the spell and blast it out, hoping to assist my pets in their work. Unerringly, thanks to my skills, the bolt strikes home on the creature, directly behind its head. I've seen this before. When the bolt his a creature of sufficient size it doesn't just increase the gravity of the whole monster but rather drags down the body part that is hit.
In this instance, the fatty is instantly effected by a strong dragging force that wants to pull its head down into the dirt. Tiny takes advantage of the hippo's distraction to step it and smash a few punches directly into his opponents face.
Gravity Bolt!
Gravity Bolt!
I pile more spells onto the now struggling monsters neck, removing its ability to attack quite so swiftly with its jaws. Unwilling to suffer from the torture of the apes fists any longer, the hippo turtle begins to withdraw its head back into shell.
You can also do that?!
I hate this monster... so much.
[Get that leg Crinis!]
[Fall you filthy beast! Become food for the Master!]
With a horrible ripping sound, those countless tentacles twist and writhe before eventually completing their task and crippling the hippos front left leg.
Hah! How do you like it?!
As the beast falls to one side, this time for good, the assault is renewed. Crinis moves to another leg as Tiny begins to lay into the shell like it's a punching back, eventually cracking the hard outer layer with every punch.
Vibrant judges that the time is right and leaps forward to engage with her mandibles, chipping away at the beast.
By the time my legs are sufficiently healed that I can walk on them the creature has been brought down.
Finally!
-x-X-x-
[You have consumed a new source of Biomass, Sus Aquarum armatae, you have been awarded one Biomass]
[Basic profile of Sus Aquarum Armatae has been unlocked]
[Sus Aquarum Armatae, Armoured Water Pig. This giant monster possesses robust defence, boasting a tough skin and extremely durable shell. Offensively, the Water Pig can deploy its vicious bite and has been known to utilise water magic to attack its foes]
Water magic huh? This one didn't use it, but it may not have had the chance.
After the fight, I had Tiny tip the beast onto its back, a difficult feat, even for him, and then we commenced feasting on the creatures flabby Biomass.
Somewhat vindictively, I started on the legs.
How do you like it?! Damn pig!
My legs have regenerated at this point. The new limbs are still somewhat stiff and a little tender, nothing a day or two won't fix. Having my legs get eaten is still irritating.
["We need to make sure that we don't get ambushed by these damn water pigs again guys"]
[Tasty] Tiny disagrees.
"Yeah! Tasty!" Vibrant registers her opinion cheerfully.
[I will be three times as vigilant! No such filth shall approach you again] Crinis is wiggling her tentacles in the air furiously to emphasise her words.
.....
The unity of this group is severely lacking.
More to the point, listen to me dammit!
Other than Crinis, the other two are only interested in eating!
She might get a little over-enthused sometimes, but at least she listens and pays attention.
[Thanks Crinis, I appreciate your efforts] I give her a quick tap on the top of her tennis ball form with an antenna.
[HAGA!]
Eh?
Standing next to me, elevating her main body on a few slender limbs, Crinis freezes and ever so slowly, begins to topple over until she's lying flat on the ground.
"What happened to Crinny!?" Vibrant dashes over to the small mass tentacles lying unnaturally still on the ground, poking her friend with a foreleg.
.....
All of them are useless. Hopefully, the next generation of ants will prove to be more helpful than this lot.
Did I just jinx myself? No flags! Shut up Anthony!
After finishing off the damn pig and letting Crinis recover until she's able to take her place on my back once again, I pause to consider the next move. The lush growth of the marsh expanse surrounds us, pools of murky water everywhere and the extensive mangrove-like trees with their vast, overly fleshy leaves.
Those small shadows are still up there also. I can see them now, little shapes that change their position every now and again, shuttling about in their own airy domain. I think I'll get myself up there, I've had enough grubbing about down here.
More than anything, I'm curious as to what these creatures are. What exactly are they doing up there?
Informing the others of my plan, I head straight towards the nearest of the trees and place one claw against the wood of its trunk. There is something odd about this bark. I can't quite put my finger on it. Not that I have fingers. Leaning back, I reach forward with my front four legs and try to pull myself up.
Slippery!
Sticky!
What is up with this tree?! I can't quite get my claws to dig into it? Not only do they slide off, refusing to grip properly into the soft looking bark, they also feel gummed up, as if coated in some invisible substance.
Damn tree! How dare you resist my claws! As an ant, I will not be denied my natural born right to walk vertically on anything I damn well, please! There are species of ants that can hang upside down on glass back on earth. For a tree to try and stop me climbing has lit a fire in my ant heart.
I shall climb!
Determined and alight with the pride of all ant kind I kick sharply off the ground and latch onto the tree with all of my claws, gripping for all I'm worth. Come on advanced grip! Do me proud!
The tree isn't having it. I can feel my claws sliding and locking up but I refuse to give in. Grip, Grip Grip!
Like a barehanded climber with six legs I reach and grasp, forcing my claws to bite deep into the tree and grasp hold before hauling the rest of my body up. Good thing I'm not that heavy for a monster relative to my Might stat. Even so it takes all my strength to pull my body up and by the time I reach the top I'm a heaving, gasping mess.
[Are you alright Master?] Crinis asks from my back.
.....
Ah. This deceptively heavy ball of unending hunger was riding on my back. I forgot.
Still! That tree is resistant to climbing to a ridiculous degree. That was insane. I can walk upside down on wet rocks, no problem, but climbing this damn thing was nearly impossible.
Shaking myself, I push my legs back under me and look about. I've reaches the lowest of the branches that reach out across the marsh. In front of me, I can see the thick leaves, each one larger than I am, and small shapes creeping over them.
Alright then. What are these things?
Bracing myself, I move out along the branch, gripping tightly and moving slowly, begin to creep out along the length of the branch towards its end. As I draw closer to the over-sized leaves, the creatures creeping about on them become more clear.
Small, soft looking green shells, round chubby looking body and thin, stick-like legs.
Something deep within my ant brain sparks as if struck by lightning.
Are those... APHIDS?
Excitement begins to build in my belly.
Many people on Earth don't realise it, but some species of ants are farmers, and used farming to produce their food for hundreds of thousands of years. Leafcutter ants harvest leaves, not because they eat the leaves but because they use the leaves to grow a species of mould, deep within their nests, that they eat. Herder ants, among other kinds, perform a different type of farming. They keep aphids. The aphids feast on the leaves of trees and plants, and when approached by the ant, they will offer up a sugary liquid produced in their business district, which the ants eat. In return, the ants protect the aphids and shelter them from harm, even picking them up and moving them to the best positions on the plant.
Looking at these little monstrous aphids, each one the size of a school bag, creeping about on the leaves, I begin to wonder about the possibilities that might present themselves. Ants and aphids have a long history of cooperative coexistence.
In the deep recesses of my brain, a farming scheme is taking shape.
Eagerly, I advance down the branch and step out onto the broad leaf on which one of the little green fuzzy little insects is feeding. The leaf manages to take my weight, and I gradually approach the little bug. As I draw close it the creature freezes and huddles flat on the surface of the leaf.
As I stand over it, waiting the creatures shivering gradually slows as I don't attack it. Gradually, slowly, the little aphid excretes a thick, gel-like fluid from its back.
My antennae twitch at the scent.
Biomass!
My eyes gleam with avarice.
-x-X-x-
Beyn was a Priest and he was proud of that class. He had worked hard in the seminary, his faith blazing with an admirable glow, such that he had earned promotion and placement into a small village at a young age.
He still thought back on his time at the college, within the Path Sanctuary in Luxon. A mighty citadel filled with learning, preaching and the contemplation of the Path. He'd been happy there, tearing through scripts and sitting at the knee of his teachers, absorbing their wisdom and delighting in his deepening knowledge of the System and the way in which it improved the lives of all peoples.
Respect was due to the System, reverence also! It was omniscient, it was omnipresent and it had saved all of the civilised peoples of the world from certain destruction. It had shown them the Path to salvation!
That is what Beyn had firmly believed his entire life.
Looking around the dusty people surrounding him now, it was hard to comprehend just how he had come to be here.
Such wondrous happenings, such revelatory events, they defied understanding, let alone explanation. If he were to take his lessons, relate his experiences to his old teachers he didn't doubt that he would turned over the Seekers for questioning. Perhaps he would even be purged. Yet he could not deny the evidence of his eyes, nor the wellspring of hope that had erupted in his heart.
He had paid for his newfound belief with an arm, but it had been so worth it.
The evidence was all around him. The System had chosen to present its aid, its benevolence, through an entirely unexpected medium. Monsters! Ants from the Dungeon! It seemed preposterous, yet wasn't it said, "The ways of the System are unknowable by mortal mind"?
Truly none would have expected this turn of events!
"Priest Beyn" he was greeted by a passer by.
"Good Morning. May the Path be clear before you and our saviours clack their mandibles with blessing upon you."
The person smiled and nodded, their eyes flicking towards the direction of the colonies great mound, barely visible now from this place, before moving on. Indeed, the ants had done so much for these people and Beyn intended to be sure that they were properly grateful. The monsters infesting the nearby woods had been nearly eradicated by the tireless workers, wood had been provided that was now being made into houses, fencing and other such structures. Crude farms were being erected in order to secure a food supply for the near future and as more people came south, fleeing the violence that continued to ravage the surface, so too did the needs of the community grow.
He moved amongst the burgeoning village now, smiling, giving blessings to those who approached him. An encouraging word here, a smile or a nod there, a hug and compassionate prayer for those in distress. Beyn moved amongst his people and did his utmost to buoy their spirits so that they might take advantage of this wondrous blessing that had befallen them.
A sanctuary in such troubled times, protection, given by the System itself in the form of their ant guardians.
Suddenly inspired, Beyn stopped in place and raised is one hand to the sky and began to speak, his [Expert Preaching level 9] causing his voice to soar over the din of the village.
"Let us give thanks, O travellers! O weary folk of a fallen kingdom!" he cried.
The refugees were accustomed to his frequent outbursts of preaching, they were not surprised to hear his sudden oration. Compelled by his powerful voice, they turned to listen as they had many times before.
"We have suffered much. The pain of loss, the heartache of our destroyed homes. Monsters have risen to the surface in a way that hasn't been seen for thousands of years!"
A ripple passed through the people at his words and the crowd slowly began to coalesce around the crippled priest. Monster pouring out of the Dungeon was the stuff of nightmares, a forgotten legend, that they had witnessed with their own eyes.
"And yet, the Path is never straight, the path is never clear before our feet. It is not for us to decide the way, but for the System! We have been delivered from Monsters, by Monsters! Our insect saviours, led by the Great One, have defended us, provided for us and granted us sanctuary in these times of fear and death."
Beyn could see the faces of his audience. As an expert level Preacher, he was able to read the mood of the crowd, sense the ebb and flow of emotion as his words were absorbed by the crowd. These people were grateful. These people were awed. More importantly, these people believed.
There was a veneration in their eyes as he spoke of the Great One. They'd seen it for themselves. The creature had come right to the village, standing so unnaturally still, and communed with one of them.
Beyn wondered if the Great One had any idea how strange such an action was to the people here. To see a feared Dungeon Monster in the flesh, so close. For it not to harm them, but to SPEAK to them? Provide them with food? With wood?
Unheard of.
It was unprecedented, it was unnatural. To Beyn, it was a sign of the Divine.
"A MIRACLE has occurred here!" he roared, "the Great One is a MIRACLE. Sent to grant us succour in our time of most dire need! The monsters rise, friends! They rise but they shall be defeated! Our guardians shall overcome them. They shall roll back the tides of darkness that sweep over the lands and we shall be saved!"
People cheered at his words now, raising their hands towards the ant hill and bowing as Beyn built towards a thunderous crescendo.
"Be glad, friends! Make a nest of gratitude in your heart and let the workers of your soul build a tunnel to praise! The Great One has shown care for you. Do not allow despair to overwhelm you! Ensure that the directions of our saviour are met! Be vigilant and educate any newcomers as to the ways of the colony! We must seek to emulate our saviours in our unity of purpose! Only then will we be worthy of the blessings rained upon us. That is our Path!"
The people cheered, clasped their hands and bowed towards Beyn and towards the ant hill. Some were overcome with emotion, unsurprising considering what they had been through, and fell to their knees.
Beyn ceased his preaching and began to move amongst the people again as they turned and resumed their tasks.
"Do you really need to preach so often Beyn?" a weary voice asks from behind him, Enid.
The priest turned to face the de facto leader of this community. The elder of the village was looking careworn, her expression tired. However, in her eyes a small light burned dimly.
She worked tirelessly for these people, caring for them, struggling to meet the material needs of the people even as Beyn worked to provide nourishment to their souls.
"I only seek to instil a spirit of gratitude and cooperation in the people Enid, you know that."
She sighed. "Yes I know that. I just wish you didn't block the traffic when you did it."
Enid eyed him a little warily. "We've had some new arrivals today Beyn. I was hoping you could talk to them about the rules here. Make sure they don't cross any boundaries. This group seems a little ... different."
Beyns face lit up with enthusiasm. "I'd love to!" he smiled.
"Don't preach at them Beyn. Just talk to them."
"Aww."
-x-X-x-
Beyn found the new arrivals huddled under a tree towards the edge of the village. Refugees, fleeing the continuing destruction of the kingdom to the north arrived nearly every day. Sometimes in small groups of three or four, other times a collection of families, farmers usually, fleeing their holdings. Twice they had received a more significant number, over fifty in each, people feeling their town, moving together for safety.
There were almost two thousand people here now, and more trickling in over time. Enid was run off her feet trying to keep everyone housed, clothed and fed but she did good work. Her high level in the merchant class made it so organising provisions and acquiring goods happened as she breathed.
Beyn smiled to think of it. It felt as if everyone was falling into place as they were needed, at just the time their absence was most felt. Builders and carpenters had arrived two days ago, just in time to employ their skills and levels in the construction of more permanent housing. When they ran out of materials, the very next day blacksmith arrived, his equipment stacked on a cart pulled by an exhausted nag and watched by his young apprentice.
The priest had gathered the people and given praise for an hour, shouting and raising such a racket that the blacksmith might have turned his cart around and taken off if Enid hadn't appeared and clapped a hand over Beyn's mouth.
He shook his head at the memory as he approached the dusty group of travellers. He got carried away sometimes, he knew it. The passion, the faith that blazed inside of him felt so powerful that he struggled to contain it. The Great One, a divine miracle, had appeared to lead the people in their time of trial.
How was he supposed to NOT talk about it?!
Even now, the blacksmith was running out materials he could melt down and turn into nails. Many a wagon axle had been sacrificed to erect housing. No sooner did the need arrive than members of the community stepped forward and began prospecting in the nearby woods. Beyn had every faith they would find ore nearby. He felt it in his bones. Provision would come.
"Welcome travellers to our humble sanctuary" he greeted them warmly, "please be at ease, you are safe here and among friends."
Before him sat five travel worn individuals. Enid has told him there was something odd about this group and on first inspection, Beyn had to agree.
It wasn't the way they half sat, half squatted in the shade of the tree, resting yet alert. It also wasn't that they wore leather armour and had blades on their hips. It was their eyes, hard, cold, and perhaps a little angry. They were mad about something, Beyn had no idea what.
He wasn't phased though. It would take a lot more than a hard stare to wipe the calm smile of his face.
After a moment four of the strangers turned to eye one of their number. The thickset woman nodded shortly and stood. Beyn turned his peaceful expression towards this person, apparently the leader of this group and took in her features.
She looked strong. Not only that, powerful. Her shoulders were broad, her arms thick and her jaw looked like you could cut bread with it. A strong, calloused hand rose and rested on the hilt of her blade as she extended the other towards the priest in greeting.
"I am Morrelia. My group have been fighting monsters in this area for several months. We saw smoke from a few kilometres west of here and came to investigate", she gestures towards the bustling people in the village with one hand, "I didn't expect to see .... This? What has happened to the north?"
The smile finally slips a little on Beyn's face. They haven't heard of the trouble, of the kingdom in ashes, trampled into the dirt under the feet of Dungeon monsters.
Taking a deep breath, he tells them. Their faces go pale and their eyes wide with shock as he describes to them the horror that has occurred.
"... we are all refugees here Ms Morrelia. I led the people of my village here and in the weeks that have followed more have arrived with the same tale. It is a difficult time."
Morrelia scrubs one hand across her forehead, still struggling to process what she has heard.
"Monsters on the surface? Are they attacking out of the Dungeon? It makes no sense! My Father... what of the Legion? They surely wouldn't allow such a thing to take place! What has happened to them?"
Beyn can only shake his head. "I have no idea Ms Morrelia. I am only a humble preacher who has followed in the steps of our saviours, led by the Great One. Here we have found a place of security, for the time being."
Confused, the young lady and Beyn has realised that she is quite young, turns back to her people for a moment and they shrug.
"Saviour? Great One? Is there some leader here? A Lord or Lady with a strong class?: she asks, turning back to the priest.
His smile returns at full beam, blasting these guest directly in their eye holes. There is nothing he would like to talk about more!
"Yes! The Great One and our saviours! From the Dungeon itself, they rose amongst us and did not do us harm! Instead, they had protected us, saved the city of Liria before its subsequent fall and then led us here to safety. We would be dead without them, and so we give thanks!" he shouts fervently.
"Give thanks!" nearby villagers echo his shout and raise their hands towards the ant hill in the distance.
Wide-eyed, Morrelia looks from the suddenly, extremely animated priest towards the villagers and back.
What the heck is happening here? She wonders.
"Just who is the great one? And your saviours? Some delving team?"
"No!" Beyn yells, full of the wonder of this miracle. He leans close towards his audience, his face only inches away from hers, his eyes afire with faith.
"They are monsters!"
A leather gloved fist crunches his nose before he says another word.
---------------------------------
The following melee was short and thankfully deathless. When the people saw their beloved priest go down bleeding the refugees were incensed. Full of wrath they descended upon the five strangers, punching and kicking in a frenzy. The new arrivals were no slouches, their skills put on full display as they fended off the angry mob with fists and movement skills until Enid had arrived on the scene and shouted everyone down.
"How can you be sure you are safe from them?" Morrelia demanded, not for the first time.
Enid sighed once again. These people were exhausting, and she had a list of jobs as long as her arm that needed to get done. Instead, she was here trying to talk to one of the most stubborn people she had ever met.
She raised her hands from the crude wooden table in front of her to rub her temples and try to soothe her building headache. They were seated inside one of the few completed buildings, used by Enid and her helpers to try and
"We are safe here. The ants have protected us numerous times. I'm surprised you didn't run into them if you were out there", Enid gestured in the general direction of the woods, "they've been in and out of there killing the surface monsters for weeks."
The young woman before her shifted uncomfortably.
"We had noticed that the pressure from the surface monsters had decreased lately. We thought we might have finally been having an impact on their numbers."
"You've been trying to reduce the monster population here? Just the five of you?" Enid asked incredulously.
Morrelia turned her head to one side. "Fighting monsters is kind of my family business, and I'm damned good at it", she brought her forceful stare back towards Enid, "and I don't trust them. Dungeon monsters are killers, always have been. You want me to believe a colony of monstrous ants is peaceful? It's insane!"
Enid readily nodded. "Yet it's true. Their nest is right over there. You can see it from the edge of the village boundary. We are unharmed. Not only that, the monsters have provided wood and materials to the village to help us establish housing. I witnessed one of the ants fight to repel invaders from Liria. I have SPOKEN with their leader, using mind magic. They mean us no harm."
If Morrelia was shocked before, she was gobsmacked now.
"You've spoken... With a MONSTER?! You could have been bewitched! If it can use mind magic it could have twisted your thoughts!" she exclaimed.
"I am extremely confident that is not the case" Enid denied firmly.
The younger woman stared, unable to believe what she was hearing.
"They're monsters," she said, "they kill people. They always kill people. How can you trust them?"
Enid could only shake her head. "They have proven to be trustworthy, so we trust them," she said definitively, " while you are here, you must respect the rules. If you cross the boundary and are attacked by the ants, you will defend yourselves, and the villagers will not take kindly to any casualties amongst their protectors. If you cannot accept this, then I suggest you leave."
"What about this leader ant? Can I speak to it?" Morrelia asked suddenly.
"It's gone into the Dungeon for a while" Enid replied warily, "I'm not exactly sure when it will be back. It isn't particularly talkative, but you could try for an audience."
The warrior rested one hand on the pommel of her sword.
"I think I shall."
-x-X-x-
After the discovery of the wondrous Dungeon aphids we spent two more days pushing into the Expanse. Monsters became more and more common the deeper we went. Hippo-Turtles, Double Crocs, bewitching flowers, a tree that tried to eat Tiny and got punched to pieces, all sorts of stuff.
I didn't care about any of it.
APHIDS.
They represent something incredible to me in this world of Dungeons and monsters. A way to get Biomass, WITHOUT fighting. The possibilities boggle my mind. You could have newborn ants fed from the aphids until they have achieved a decent level of strength, they'd be under no risk whatsoever as they collected food, from trees and leaves of all places!
I'm hungry for the details. To what level can these creatures be pushed? Can the stuff they excrete be improved in some way? Is it an organ that they have? Can they mutate it? Can we breed them? They're almost like fuzzy little dogs, would the ants be happy to care for them, defend them?
I need to know so badly! I can't however. Until the Expanse has been purged of our foes and made safe for ant kind I can't afford to be side tracked by anything!
So we keep fighting.
The constant fighting and eating has been good for my little group. Crinis in particular has continued to feast and take in more Biomass which I demand she spends during our rare breaks. As a result she's been able to gain several more mutation advancements, including her Durable Shadow flesh +5 and Disintegrating Void Maw. The first upgrade has made her rubbery shadow flesh tougher and harder to damage. The second has caused her mouth to achieve a disintegration property. From what I understand, anything she can get her impressive maw around will slowly start to disintegrate, crumbling out of existence.
She was apparently frustrated that her tentacles weren't up to the task of tearing the Hippo down and wanted another avenue of attack against monsters with tough defence.
With that she has achieved +5 in all the body parts she is currently able to spend Biomass on. Having already evolved once, her limit is presently +10 so she's pushing forward with upgrading her tentacles, getting them to +9 so far.
Almost all of her skills have advanced also. The murder ball of infinite darkness is certainly starting to come into her own! At level 16 it won't be long until she's ready for her next evolution!
Tiny has continued to feast, as usual. He managed to get his Iron Bones to +10 and took the unbreakable mutation, making his reinforced skeleton even stronger. I suspect this is only so he can try and attach even more explosive muscles, making his punches stronger again.
Most of his punching skills have improved also, not enough to go up a tier but I can tell they're getting sharper just by watching.
Vibrant has also been sharply improving. Her Robust inner carapace plating has improved her defence and her +5 Enhanced speed aura gland is giving all of us a significant speed improvement. Nothing crazy but certainly enough to make a difference.
My own improvement has been more modest, by comparison. I'm still biding my time and testing out my bag of tricks. I want to have plenty in the tank by the time we get to the big bad hiding in the middle of this swamp.
For now I'm just storing up my Biomass and continuing to hone my magic attacks.
Right now we are perched up a tree. Not one of the nearly impossible to climb large ones, but rather a more regular specimen that is less resistant to climbing and not quite as hungry for giant ape flesh.
We gathered up here to rest a little after another tough fight in which a Hippo Turtle decided to run into the middle of a battle against a posse of crocs. It got messy real fast but fortunately we were able to lock down the hippo long enough to finish off the crocs before turning onto the hippo and devouring it.
A little battered and with bulging stomachs, I decided we should retreat to heal up and digest before moving on.
So here we've been for the last few hours as I've watched the comings and goings of the monsters nearby. It's curious that after we clear out the Crocs the local marsh monsters begin to come out of their shells. Their activity increases and what I would consider 'normal' monster behaviour begins to re-emerge. It only gives more weight to my theory that the expanse and indeed all local monster activity is being supressed somehow by the crocs as part of their occupation.
If I can learn how they do it I'd be most interested in exploring the applications of such methods....
Gweheheheh.
First, there's more crocs to for eating. I mean fighting. Also eating.
If Garralosh truly wanted to conquer the upper levels of the Dungeon then they shouldn't have made their offspring so tasty! It's a flaw in design and not one I'll replicate! I've never eaten an ant but I feel fairly confident we'd taste like garbage.
Not that I think a monster would care about how I tasted considering how Biomass rich my body would be.
Gah! Stop thinking about yourself getting eaten Anthony! Positive thoughts!
Isn't it a positive thought though? I wouldn't want the monster that eats me to have a negative experience... or would I?!
Bah! I hope they choke!
["Are we all ready to go?"] I ask my gang, not willing to dwell on these pointless thoughts any longer.
[FIGHT!] Tiny growls.
"Ready-ready!" Vibrant beams.
[I am prepared for battle, Master] Crinis replies, dignified.
Alright then.
["Let's move out"]
We cautiously descend the tree and begin to make our way deeper into the expanse. Here, in the middle, we are completely surrounded by the dense vegetation. I can't even see the walls from where we are. This means that vigilance needs to high.
Tiny is under the strictest of instructions not to go running off like a moron. We can't risk it now!
-x-X-x-
What the heck is this stuff?
After venturing forth again, it wasn't long, and only one fight before we came across something curious and I halted the group for a careful inspection.
We're looking at one of the mangrove style trees that emerge straight out of the muddy waters of the marsh expanse. It's tangled knot of roots sinking beneath the water line like so many straws. Supported atop this mess of roots the tree rises, twisted and tall, opening into a grand canopy. It isn't the top of the tree that has garnered our attention at this moment; it's the bottom — specifically, the roots.
They're glowing. Not all the roots, mind you, just some of them, half perhaps, but there is a glow happening. The roots in question are shimmering with a soft browny, bluey sort light, the kind of colour that soothes and mollifies the tired mind.
Curiously I venture close enough to give them a tradition ant investigation, which consists of thwappity thwapping the offending wood with my antennae until I get a good sniff of them. To my more ordinary senses, they seem just like glowing wood.
Flipping on my mana sense skill, I get a very different picture. When I reach out with my magically attuned mind I can detect water mana, blue and clear, infused with the wood alongside another mana type, slow-moving and earthy in a way I can only imagine is earth mana.
So this wood is infused with not one, but two types of mana? Is it due to sitting in the muddy waters of the expanse, a place that is saturated with mana at the best of times and at present completely overflowing with the stuff?
Perhaps this is an example of the kind of rare materials Enid was mentioning? I wonder if the humans can make something out of this stuff? I'll have to take a sample up with us when we return, not to mention keep an eye out for any more sources.
Before leaving I give the wood one last thwappity with my antennae, the nimble sense organs flipping about rapidly as if they had a mind of their own before I feel satisfied.
["looks like some sort of mana infused wood'] I report back to my group when I join them, a few metres away from the tree.
"Oooooh" Vibrant coos, "sooooo, what does it do?"
"I'm completely certain" I reply firmly, "that I have no clue. We'll have to wait until we get to the surface and ask if the humans know what we can do with it."
"Aww. I was hoping we could do something cool with it."
Personally, I was hoping the same, but to preserve my dignity as the senior ant, I refuse to let my disappointment show.
"Nothing to get too fussed over Vibrant," I tell the soldier, "let's go find some monsters to crush."
"'kay!" she cheers, punching the air with one foreleg.
I wait a moment as Crinis lifts herself up on a few tentacles and returns to her customary place on my back. Since she has a walking skill it wouldn't hurt to have to wander about on her own. There isn't strictly any reason why she has to be on my back. Perhaps I've gotten so used to having little creatures riding around on me that I've grown too comfortable with it. Since she can fold up into a little ink black tennis ball, it doesn't do any harm to have her there.
[See anything Tiny?] I ask the ape as he pushes through the growth in front of me.
[Crocs. Big] he grunts, pointing.
Hmm? I skitter forward, mandibles clacking with curiosity. What did he see?
When I make my way around my sizable ape friend, I follow his arm with my eyes and takes a moment before I can spot exactly what he's pointing at, but once I do...
Holy Mackeral! BIG!
In the distance, perhaps only one hundred metres from us is a gigantic croc. I wasn't able to see it at first since it was resting in the water, most of its body submerged. When the water rippled, I was able to pinpoint the long snout resting just above the water level and then traced it back to see the tail resting on the shore FIFTEEN metres away.
I mean, really?
I can tell from here that this thing is a freakin' beast. Perhaps this is our first sighting of the legendary, so far mythical tier four offspring of Garralosh? I study the floating beast carefully. Yes, I'm confident that this is just too large to be a Double Croc. We have a new species here.
[Don't even think about it]
I hear a shuffle next to me.
[Wha?]
[Don't play dumb Tiny. You plant your big ape butt right here in the dirt until I say you can fight. Got it?]
[Grrrr]
[I'm not kidding here buddy. Sit down a chill out for a second. We don't how many crocs there are out there]
Without turning my head, I can see him shift and look directly at me as if I were crazy.
[Is that meant to be the fun part?]
He nods vigorously up and down.
.... Save me from this muscle head!
With one antenna I firmly point to the ground next to me. [SIT].
[Hmph] he sulks and sits with a THUMP.
.... And of course, the Croc in the distance twitches in response to the sound before slowly turning to face our direction.
[Dammit Tiny.... Was that on purpose?]
The massive ape looks innocently at me, and wide eyed as a newly born baby giant ape.
....
If he didn't have the Cunning of brick forged out of smaller bricks that were themselves made of the distilled energy of pure stupid, I'd believe he might be capable of such an act of duplicity. I think he just got lucky.
["Ok gang. We have attracted the attention of a large ass croc, possibly a new variety. It looks strong, and we don't know how many others are about, so be careful!"]
[Roger!] Vibrant solutes me with one antenna before scuttling a little ways off to look for a flanking opportunity.
[Master, I will defend you with my life!] Crinis vows solemnly.
[It uh, shouldn't come to that Crinis]
[Nevertheless!]
.....
[Ok thanks....]
This headache is coming back...
Shaking my head to dispel my extraneous thoughts I focus on what is truly worrying me. The oppressive aura that has weighed on our minds and hearts the entire time we have been in this expanse, is it coming from this beast?
To tell the truth, I'm worried. Obviously, I'd be worried! That stupid aura is pressing down on us like a weight strapped to our backs! It isn't exactly comfortable! The vague oppressive fear that permeates the entire expanse has only grown stronger the further we have progressed.
....
No. It isn't coming from this monster. I can tell that the source is further in, the pressure is rolling in invisible waves from quite a distance yet.
So even this creature in front of us, a Croca Beast that has undergone three evolutions, is not enough to cause that terror. Just what is waiting for us deeper in the expanse?!
-x-X-x-
We've killed a lot of Croca-Beasts already in our expedition. I don't know exactly how many children Garralosh has but we are seriously depleting the tables at the family reunion at the rate we are going.
I've now eaten so many of the basic Croca's that we managed to unlock the intermediate profile for them. It struck me again the riduclous number of specimens you need to consume to get even this far in terms of profiles. Just how many do you need to eat for the complete profile?! A thousand?!
What exactly does the complete profile communicate anyway? It must be something damn good to have such high requirements. Or, more likely, it doesn't and it's just the Dungeon messing with my head, as usual.
At any rate, the profile provided the following information:
Garralosh Infant :
Might: 31
Toughness: 17
Cunning: 9
Will: 6
These numbers are roughly in line with what I expected. From my experience with designing the new generation of workers, workers mk2, if you will, I know that it's so much easier to bulk up on physical stats than mental ones for a new monster. Even so, to produce monsters of this size, the cost compared to even my enhanced workers would be out of control. If I were to compare the output of the Queen to producing workers or Garralosh infants, the ants would outnumber the crocs more than five to one.
Since my work was so damned streamlined!
The more I know the more I think that Garralosh just didn't see the value in efficiency. Although, now that I think about it, these creatures were designed to be solo hunters, and they certainly manage to terrorise the upper levels just fine, being pretty much the baddest thing on the block around here. So perhaps Garralosh was correct in making sure their offspring could punch hard from the get go.
Whereas I want my fellow workers to survive through intelligence and cooperation, garralosh wanted to create solo killing machines that would battle their own way up the evolutionary ladder. Not a bad approach I suppose, simply inferior to mine.
At this moment the next rung in that Croc ladder is lazily swimming towards me, double tails trailing behind it. This thing is absolutely massive and I don't intend to stuff about in this fight.
Meditation.
For the first time in the expanse I activate my recently acquired meditation skill and its effect comes into play immediately. Like a shutter sliding down over an open window, my minds are suddenly cut off from distraction, from the outside world.
The silence is deafening. Where only a moment ago my keen senses, heat detection, near 360 degree eyesight, hearing, scent, were flooding my mind with information, where my inner mind was filling itself with plans, thoughts, worries and distractions, there is now quiet.
To be honest I hadn't expected much from this skill when I first used it. Level one skill like meditation? How effective can it be? At best I'd expected a little more clarity of thought, a little stillness.
Instead, it was like being ejected into space. My minds are sealed into a vacuum, separate from the world an unassailable as the mundane stimulus of the physical worlds drifts past like debris after a storm.
The problem I found was that I was so detached from my own body that a monster started chewing my antennae off and I was barely cognizant of it, my minds dismissing the pain to focus their energies inwards.
If Vibrant hadn't tackled the shadow beast off me I might have kept on casting spells whilst it tore my head from my body!
So I'm a little nervous as I activate the skill but as soon as I do, those concerns fall away into nothing.
I'm as placid as a lake that has no giant Crocodiles swimming in it.
Immediately my minds turn to crafting magic and it's so damn easy! With the unnatural focus and concentration that the skill brings the weft and weave of the magic is so smooth that the streams of energy seem to dance under the ebb of my thoughts.
Three streams of gravitational energy flow out under the direction of my sub brains, swirling around each other as they drawn down in concentric circles that grow tighter and tighter until a ball of condensed gravitational mana begins to form.
To this task my main mind is dedicated. The ball of extraordinary energy looms so clearly in my mind and it's so simple to reach out with my thoughts and PRESS, squeezing until the ball begins to take a different feeling.
"Vibrant, give our new friend a few blasts of acid. If he's going to take his time approaching then let's get a few shots in."
"Okay!"
The ant turns to present her commercial district to the foe and fires a few shots of acid at the approaching monster. The enormous Croca has been slowly drifting towards us, not even moving except for the languid shift of its tails as it propels itself through the water. In the stillness of my mind I can make out the beady red eyes of the monster glittering confidently as it continues its gradual approach.
As Vibrant's acid slashes through the air the beast finally reacts, opening its mouth wide and ... yawning?
The acid splashes across the water, much of it wasted on the marsh but certainly some of it contacts the monsters head. Sure enough, a slow sizzling sound arises and I can see the steam rising from bubbling flesh on the creatures snout.
Within I continue to press the mana that floods out of my gravitational mana gland into an even more dense ball. There is something off about this Croc...
It takes a moment for me to recognise it but with my thoughts so still my observation is much sharper than normal.
[Stand up Tiny. Time to fight]
Where only moments ago the acid had been chewing into the monsters face, the flesh is reknitting itself at a rapid pace. Is this Croc undying?!