Wind danced across my fur, a gentle breeze that rustled the leaves above my head. Birds chirped as they flitted about their days. Bustling squirrels and other critters chittered on their way to gathering nuts and other things to bring back to their nests.

And none of that was my concern. No, the sun-soaked rock was far more important than that. It warmed me from below as I slept. I stole the sun’s rays from the rock, absorbing its warmth into my fur. All was right with the world.

My ear twitched, swiveling behind me. Something was scurrying along the ground. I tracked its movements, careful only to move my ears and nothing else, lest I reveal my attention to this newest plaything.

It squeaked, likely communicating with its brethren. No doubt it had found food and was letting the rest know, but that just made it a bigger target. It rustled further through the grass, and I listened to its tiny paws padding into the soft spring dirt.

I couldn’t resist the temptation any longer. The sun wouldn’t be going anywhere. This critter, however, presented an opportunity, one that made my skin ripple with excitement as I opened my eyes and crouched upon my rock.

My ears pinpointed the creature as I slowly tracked my head around to see it with my eyes. It was a rat!

I carefully adjusted my paws, creeping to the edge of the rock. The rat was close enough that I could reach it in one great leap if my aim was right. Every adjustment was critical.

It hadn’t seen me yet. I licked my lips. This was almost too easy. But, of course it was. I was a skilled hunter, a perfect example of the model predator. A mere rat wouldn’t be able to get away from me.

It rummaged through the dirt, looking for seeds or nuts from the trees above. I readied myself.

Three…

Two…

ONE!

I threw myself forward, claws extending just as I landed on the tiny creature. It squealed in terror, scrambling at the dirt with tiny paws and claws, but it was too late! Down came the claws, and the rat was trapped.

It struggled beneath my superior weight, tail lashing in every direction. It even tried to reach back and bite at my paws with its dirty teeth, but it just didn’t have the angle. Just another sign that I was a perfect example of-

I hissed in surprise as the rat managed to squirm around enough to sink teeth into my foreleg. I jumped back, releasing the rat and it scurried away.

Oh, no you don’t. Get back here!

I leapt after the creature, tracking it with ears and eyes built for exactly this activity. It wouldn’t escape. Now, it was personal.

It raced through the underbrush, running as fast as its tiny legs could carry it. I kept pace. It raced under a log. I jumped over it, coming down right back on its tail. It burrowed under a bush, trying to lose me in the thorns, but I just went around, always keeping my ears trained on its squeaks and squeals of terror.

An enormous tree was ahead. The trunk was pockmarked with holes and knots that could provide a convenient refuge for my prey. I couldn’t let that happen. I wouldn’t be defeated by a stupid little rat like this!

My legs pumped faster, speeding up my pursuit to a pace that I wouldn’t be able to maintain for long. It squealed and put on a burst of speed of its own, but I was not deterred. I threw myself at the little rat, claws extended. It dove for one of the holes in the roots, trying to escape!

Claws pierced fur and flesh and the rat was dragged backwards. I would not make the same mistake twice, however. I nipped the rat in the back of the neck, severing its spine and ending its life.

Congratulations. Level 0 Forest Rat defeated. Experience gained.

My flanks heaved from the chase, but the rat was lost from my attention almost entirely. The voice…what was that voice? It was...familiar somehow. I’d heard it before. I just…couldn’t remember where.

I searched through my own mind as I sat and licked the bite on my leg. It was a small wound, not enough to cause serious harm, but enough to potentially get infected if I wasn’t careful. Wrapping my tail around my paws, I tried to reach into my memory to find this strange voice.

Let’s see…this morning, I hunted the rat…and before that, I sunned myself on the rock…and before that…

Before that…

Nothing.

Or rather, nothing concrete. I had a vague sense of fear. It was the fear of the hunt, the same fear that the rat had felt as my claws were poised to strike. Had I been the prey creature? Then, there had been pain…and…and…something had gone wrong. That voice had been there when it did, and I’d been sent far away.

The rest was a blank void of nothingness. What had happened?

Summoning Spell overloaded.

The voice responded to my thoughts, causing me to nearly jump out of my own skin with surprise. When I landed again, I picked up my rat and scrambled up the tree. Once in the branches, I crouched, wrapping my tail around my paws and scanning the forest floor for the source of the voice.

There was nothing.

System Activation of Welcome to Atria.

Welcome to Atria. This world is under the care and control of the Atrian Mana Standardization System III, also known as AMSIII or the World Engine. I am the interface for the system. Welcome!

The disembodied voice provided no further explanation. Was I meant to interact with it? I shuffled my paws closer together, trying to be as small as possible. This…Amsiii…or whatever it was called was not natural. It felt wrong, like the feeling you get in your stomach after eating three-day-old rat, a feeling that I was certain I knew, despite remembering no single instance where I’d done such a thing.

That was another thing. I remembered nothing concrete before waking up on my rock with the sun on my fur, but I knew that the voice had been there. Amsiii’s words were cold and unfeeling, despite the fond phrasing of the welcome. Had it been the thing hunting me? Had it been the source of so much fear that even the vague memory of it made me want to climb and hide? Had it hurt me?

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Amsiii offered no explanation, only silence. I watched and waited, but no predators came. My stomach growled. I didn’t remember the last time I’d eaten. At the moment, it felt like I never had.

I bowed my head and began to eat the still warm rat. It did wonders to satisfy my hunger, and when I was done, I looked around once more before jumping down from the tree. Amsiii had left, it seemed…or at least I hoped it had. I still wasn’t sure to make of the strange voice, but it was something that warranted investigation…preferably from a distance.

My paws spread the sun-warmed dirt beneath my feet, and I began to explore this strange forest I’d been left in. Another rat crossed my path. I pounced on it, slaying it with a single bite to the neck.

Congratulations. Level 0 Forest Rat defeated. Experience gained.

I hissed as Amsiii’s voice rang clearly in my thoughts, by-passing my ears entirely. Amsiii was a being of great power to have access to magics like that.

Unable to find this mystical and powerful being that caused me so much fright, I instead thought about what it had said. Experience gained…no doubt it was some kind of reward, perhaps one that would reveal itself if I gained enough.

I did not eat the rat, this time. I was full. Instead, I left it under a bush for the scavengers of the forest to find. Nothing was ever wasted in a forest such as this, even if I was not the one to consume it.

My ears swiveled around, searching for another of its kin. There was more experience to be gained from the rats.

My patience was rewarded after a few more minutes of crawling silently through the forest. Two more rats were chittering together by a small pool of water. I crept closer, my paws never making a sound.

The pounce was swift. Though one of them scurried off into the brush, the one I’d targeted didn’t live long enough to even register its demise.

Congratulations. Level 0 Forest Rat defeated. Experience gained.

Level up to Level 1.

One Aptitude point available for allocation.

A purr rumbled in my chest as Amsiii praised my efforts. It seemed that the mysterious entity could be bartered with, and, if it could be bartered with, that meant it could be reasoned with.

It had given me power. That I knew deep into my bones and through every inch of my body, whiskers to tail tip.

I was Level 1, a truly mighty level, to be certain. I was one of the most powerful and amazing beings in the world, and my level now matched! But, better yet, where there was a Level 1, there was probably a Level 2! I could be even stronger!

To do that, however, I needed to know more about what I was working with. Perhaps Amsiii could help? Responding to my command, Amsiii began to speak again.

Name: Unknown

Species: Cat, Familiar

Type: Fiend

Level: 1

Titles:

Witch’s Familiar

Aptitude Points Available: 1

Current Aptitudes:

Environmental: 0

Internal: 0

Energetic: 0

Enervation: 0

Abilities:

Soulbond

Resistances:

Corruption Resistance I

Description: A summoned familiar created with the purpose of protecting the summoner from harm.

I thanked Amsiii for the helpful information. The first rule of getting power and wealth from others was to be polite. You can more easily manipulate those who think that you respect and admire them. Though I didn’t know yet what Amsiii’s goals were, I did know that it had much of what I currently wanted. Best to keep things civil, and I have always excelled at being a suave gentlecat…or so I believed.

I studied the information Amsiii had provided with great interest. It didn’t know my name…which was disappointing. Even I didn’t know my name, and I had been hoping that Amsiii, as a being that may have approached my greatness, might have known.

Still, what Amsiii had given wasn’t nothing. It told me I was a cat, which I already knew. My beautiful black coat, delicate paws, and gorgeous tail could only belong to one of the best creatures in the world. More than that, it had told me that I was a familiar meant to protect the summoner. I didn’t know who this summoner was, but I was certain I could find them in due time.

My ear flicked back. More creatures filled this forest, and their experience was ripe for the taking. I would barter with this Amsiii creature, giving it the violence it so clearly craved, and, in return, would take its power, piece by piece. The purr in my chest grew as I trotted off into the brush.

A flash of color darted across my vision. I stood stalk still as my ears caught the new creature first. It rested on a nearby flower, twitching tiny legs as it rested tiny wings. I spied it, brilliant blue wings lit up by the sun as it drank the nectar of the flower.

Carefully, I crouched in the grass, watching the insect as it flitted to another flower. In the air, it was fast. On the flowers, though, it was perfectly still. It made for an easy target.

It darted to another flower. I readjusted my position, creeping closer. It flitted away again, this time landing on a flower just next to me.

Foolish creature. It would not live to make that mistake twice.

My muscles tensed and I launched myself at the flower. Only, the insect was gone. It had flown to another flower in the time I’d taken to launch my attack! How was it so fast?

I crouched again, studying the creature from the shadows. If I could not outrun it, I would outthink it. It darted to one flower, then the next, then the next. Each time, it stayed at the flower for several seconds before moving on, making a direct path to the next flower.

I narrowed my eyes in focus. It landed on a flower nearby. Then darted to a flower separated from the rest. To my surprise, it then returned to the flower it had just come from rather than going to a different flower.

An idea sparked in my mind, and I stood up, putting myself between the creature and one of the flowers. Sure enough, it chose other flowers instead of the one I was blocking. All that proved was that it wasn’t stupid enough to go near an obvious predator, but I was ready to test more.

Trotting to a nearby bush, I grabbed a leaf in my teeth. After pulling it off, I returned to the flower patch and placed the leaf on top of one of the flower heads. Then I moved away.

It left the covered flower alone.

I licked my lips in excitement. I could corner it. Taking leaves from the bushes and placing them around the flower patch, I began to limit the places the blue-winged creature could fly to. Once I was certain that it was trapped between only a handful of flowers, I crouched again, waiting for my chance.

It went to one flower, then the next. Wait for it…wait for it…

I sprang into the air, just as it left one flower and made for one behind me. My claws wrapped around its gossamer wings, and I bit it clean in half. In its dying throws, it shook its wings violently, spraying my snout with a strange kind of powder that made me sneeze, but little else. It fell still.

Congratulations. Level 1 Petal Hopper defeated. Experience gained.

I purred as I released the creature. The Petal Hopper had been a formidable foe, enhanced by its speed, but I was more than a match! As I trotted away, my ears picked up the sound of another set of wingbeats, then another. I began walking towards them. There was a third, then a fourth. I began to lose track of the possible prey creatures.

As I leapt through the brush into another flower field, a blue blur streaked right between my ears. I froze. There was no flower behind me. Another streaked towards me, then another.

A whole swarm of Petal Hoppers was in the field…and they all looked straight at me, vibrating menacingly.