The sand had many hidden dangers. “Ouch! Damn you are all your little calcium carbonate friends” Drawde uncovered the large shell with his hands. He had not been stabbed by the sharp side. This time. Small blessings. The conch shell had just the right shape and heft to spiral beautifully as it sailed into the sea. He was getting good at it. That shell had made it further than any before. It was a crying shame he found most of them with his feet.

The cold and wind were starting to drain his already dwindling strength. His legs were screaming for a breather. So were his lungs. Ha. The knee high waves breaking on the beach would occasionally splash over his feet and ankles. The water was surprisingly warm. He would have thrown himself in an hour past if he hadn’t seen some of his throwing shells with living inhabitants. Some sort of snail, but they were bright pink and blue. They glowed softly when seen through the water. Bright colours usually meant poisonous. He also wasn’t certain if he knew how to swim.

Worst of all was the sunburn. He could feel the back of his neck and shoulders radiating heat. It only itched for the moment, but tomorrow would be hell. Another ten minutes of forced trudging finally provided the excuse to stop Drawde had been waiting for. The tide that had been steadily retreating had left him a gift.

Some driftwood, some seaweed, and most exciting of all, a large sand covered sack. Maybe the sack even had something edible inside? Pulling the soaked and dirty fabric from the sand was no easy task. Half of it was still under the wet. Drawde was panting and sweating by the time the sucking sand surrendered its prize.

After giving the sack a good shake to loosen some of the sand, and hopefully any nasty surprises, he found the sack to be empty. The saturated material was too tough to tear with his hands. He suddenly regretted his last epic shell throw. It might have been sharp enough to tear holes for his head and arms. Oh well, his feet were terribly good at finding more. A large flat rock was a little way up the beach. The fabric might dry enough to be workable given some time in the sun. Drawde walked back down the sand to inspect the driftwood. On closer inspection, one of the longer logs of dark wood turned out to be a plank. A narrow plank. A slat.

Whatever it was called, it had been fashioned into shape with intention. If it had washed up on this beach, there might be people living nearby. People meant food, water, food, and shelter. More importantly, food. The thought brought a smile to his cracked lips. On the other hand, a sturdy piece of wood was also a potential weapon. He didn’t know what a Perrak was, but he refused to be eaten. Again.

Murder on his mind, Drawde gripped the dark timber and yanked. It shot from the sand with so little resistance he dropped to his backside. The plank rested across his upper legs. The dry end was still in his left hand, the wet end was occupied by the largest conch shell he had seen yet. The mucousy pink skirt of the snail became visible as the creature worked its up the wood and closer to his exposed thigh.

Drawde stared at the leisurely paced snail. He was simply too tired and hungry to panic. Or stand. He began to wonder how the creature could see. He focused on the leathery gelatin mass creeping toward him. It didn’t have any eyes or antennae.

Vibrant Strombid Lvl 2

Skill discovered: Perception

If you don’t see it, is it really there?

5/200xp to Level 2

To his eyes, the name appeared immediately under the snail. The less courteous skill window absorbed half his field of vision. He blinked them both away, their sudden appearance leaving a faint afterimage.

The snail stopped its upward progress. He sure it was somehow looking back at him. A wet sucking sound was accompanied by a terrible pain in his leg. The slimy little jerk had shot him.

Vibrant Strombid damages you for: 1hp (Piercing damage)

He tried talking himself into get angry. Nope, too tired. He struggled to a standing position, keeping he snail balanced on the wet end of the plank. He endeavoured his way up the sand. The gentle incline almost convincing him to forgive his distasteful passenger. The empty shells were tough. A force multiplier was going to be needed to crack out the meat. Maybe it isn’t poisonous? Maybe pink means delicious? He was hungry enough to find out.

Drawde cracked the snail’s shell on the second blow. He pushed one end of his plank into the sand for something to lean on.

You deal 8hp (Blunt damage) to Vibrant Strombid Lvl 2

You deal 7hp (Blunt damage) to Vibrant Strombid Lvl 2

He wished the words and numbers would stop obscuring his vision mid-murder. He had almost missed when he went for his second hit. His hands stung from the harsh vibrations of the plank. Knees resting on the rock, he began to pull the shell away from creature. Despite the large cracks he had made, it was hard going. He thrust the thumb of one hand in the shell mouth. It was mucousy and cold, but it awarded him enough grip to tear away large fragments with his other hand. The creature that eventually glooped out onto the stone resembled a hideously deformed tongue. He lifted the sloppy mess to his mouth, careful to keep the dangling spike away from his face. Biting into the glistening flesh, he found the skin to be surprisingly tough.

You bite Vibrant Strombid for 6hp (3x2- Vulnerable Location, Piercing damage)

You gain 11xp

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

11/300 xp to Level 2

This time the damage related information appeared in his mind. It was like the echo of a recently read passage. How was the little bastard still alive? Drawde’s annoyance was forgotten as his mouth filled with sweet fluids. It was a touch salty, and the mucus made his mouth tingle. It was glorious. He sucked at the rapidly deflating skin sack until small traces of sand and grit nearly choked him. Chewing the now significantly less juicy skin proved too difficult for his teeth. He had managed to swallow only the single membranous flap ripped free by his initial bite.

His lips had stopped tingling and even felt better than before. Snail slime moisturiser? He ripped the barbed spine free of the dead creature. It came free with a layer of transparent skin and fiddly bits he thought might be organs. He rubbed the leathery corpse over his sunburn. The relief on his neck was particularly soothing. By the time he reached his chest, the snail had no more balming ooze to offer. On the plus side, the skin had lost a modicum of its toughness. He still had to chew for long time, but his teeth could now tear off smaller chunks. For an hour, he sat and chewed.

Drawde finished most of his snail. Only some gristle remained to mark the site of his breakfast. He had found another shell shortly after resuming his walk. One the size of his palm rather than the size of his foot. It had been wonderfully easy to push the pointy end through the tough weave of his salvaged sack. His new shirt, though damp, kept the sun off his back. Even if it did itch his throat and underarms. He was proud of it. He had gone so far as to decorate himself using the barbed spine as a decorative pin. While pushing it through the weave over his heart, he had been pleased to discover it had taken on a resplendent blue as it dried. The universe had agreed with him.

Skill discovered: Crafting (Improvised)

4/200xp to Level 2

In the distance he could see that the rolling dunes gave way to rocky cliffs. The sand nearer him was spotted with tables of flat, barnacle encrusted stone. On an outcropping that stretched into the water, Drawde saw there were several strombids. Careful not to step on any barnacle patches, he navigated his way along the slippery stone. The pink shelled molluscs surrendered their grip from the side of the rocky slab after a single whack of his plank. There was one with a spiky blue shell he couldn’t prize up even after it was dead.

You damage Vibrant Lambis Lvl 3 for 4hp (Blunt damage)

You gain 17xp

50/300xp to Level 2

Skill discovered: Blunt Weapons

The art of hitting things until they do what you want.

62/400 to Level 2

Funnily enough, he did feel like his whalloping technique was becoming more polished. The plank stung his hands a little less than it had. He hurled his catch to join his sewing shell on the beach. The dead weight contained within granted more distance than he intended. He made his tender way back to shore. Clever monkey that he was, he chiseled the shells from the Strombids using a mostly barnacle free piece of shale and his sewing shell. He drank his fill of the sweet fluid and gave his sunburn a second coat of slime.

He wasn’t hungry, but good future planning demanded he hold on to what food stuffs he could. A dozen punctures and some tearing later, he was able to fold a pouch with a flap of sack over his hip. He used his new snail spines to pin it closed. It worked so well that his sewing shell easily fit beside the squishy husks.

It was a well moisturised and glistening Drawde that finally made it to the end of the beach. The sand ended where the cliffs began. A sluggish stream cut a path between him and the rocky platform. It was looked no more than waist deep and he waded in easily. The mix of sand and silt swallowed his legs to mid shin. Don’t inlets attract predators? The water was half way up his chest when the thought struck. A frantic trudge got him to the slippery stone. Despite the many available handholds, he grazed both knees and an elbow scarpering onto the rocky shelf.

The cliffs were much more imposing when standing at the bottom. They had looked picturesque from a distance. Now they loomed and threatened. He wasn’t here for cliffs. He was here for pants. He ignored their ruddy intimidation and pressed on. Ruddy cliffs? There must be deposits of iron throughout the rock. Was that useful to him? Not right now. Where was the damn cave? There was maybe fifty metres worth of rock shelf remaining before the ocean cut off his path. If he was willing to swim the gap, there was a wall of boulders to contend with if he wanted to continue along the coastline. The sun was directly overhead now. The sun that had spent the morning scorching him. Did the sun rise in the West? Something about that bothered him. Did that mean this planet had a retrograde spin? How would he know? Who could he ask about the planet's orbital direction around the sun? That decides it then. He must be an alien. “What kind of sick joke is this?” he asked the uncaring stone.

His vision filled with blue and green.

ALIEN IS ABOUT RIGHT. WAIT FOR LOW TIDE.

Quest received: Clear the cave.

Reward: 200xp

“You can hear me? What the cursing hells is going on? Where do I come from? What am I?!” A horrible scuttling was his only answer.

A crab the size of a child’s bicycle launched itself from behind a boulder. Oh good. Something to take his day out on.

He swung his club at the crustacean. It stepped backwards a full half second before the wood sailed by. This thing was quick, possibly clever, and could move directly backward and forward. He was sure that broke some kind of crab law. It scuttled at his leg and nipped at his toes. He stepped over the crab before it could grab him with a pincer. It lunged again at where he was no longer standing. Alright, not super clever. Blasted quick though.

Rock Pagu Level 2

He supposed it did look a bit like a rock with legs. He jabbed at its hindquarters with his plank. It didn’t hurt the creature, but it did scurry about to face him. It charged his legs with the same fury as before.

“I’ll teach you not to come at me sideways” he swung low with the plank. It was a swing that would have had beautiful follow through if his plank hadn’t snapped on contact with the crabby assailant.

You damage Rock Pagu for 12hp (Blunt damage)

The legged rock cartwheeled into the air from the hit. It landed with on its back with a crunch. Its legs on one side were completely crushed. The fight was over. Drawde knew it, the cliffs knew it. Against all sense, the crab thought otherwise. It rocked back and forth, flailing its claws until it righted itself. It clawed pathetically across the stone to continue the battle. Drawde suddenly felt very tired as it hissed a defiant scream from a foamy mouth. It was time to end this saddening display. His length of wood had split down the middle as well as in half. There were plenty of fist sized rocks to choose from. He found one with a pointy bit and let the crab drag itself to his feet.

You damage Rock Pagu for 4hp (Blunt damage)

You damage Rock Pagu for 5hp (Blunt Damage)

You damage Rock Pagu for 4hp (Blunt damage)

You gain 14xp

Confirmation of death be damned. The bastard was still moving. He struck it three more times before the twitching stopped. As he struggled to catch his breath, a little green bar with a red outline flashed in the corner of his vision.

Stamina 35/122

He wiped specks of blue blood from his hands. The creature twitched as he picked shards of shell from the destroyed carapace. He would enjoy a seafood buffet while he waited for the tide.