Jeff stepped through the Pillar wall and arrived back on the rocky outcrop where he fought the monster crab. A thrill of excitement shot through his body. It was time for some monster hunting.
With the threat hovering over Earth he wanted to complete his quests as fast as possible. He had a crowd of people watching, and a camera crew set up, if he remembered right. He gulped thinking of all the embarrassing things he’d done over the last couple of hours. It didn't matter, he had to press on.
He glanced up, realizing the sun in the blue sky was not his own. He didn't know if it would set in the east or west. He paused for a second. Or north or south… maybe the planet was tidally locked like the moon was and the sun wouldn't set at all.
He shook his head. The quest said to survive 10 nights. He trusted that the night would come and it really didn't matter which way the sun set right now. He’d find that out over time. All that mattered was that it would and he would need protection for the night.
He turned toward the forest just beyond the base of the rocky outcrop and started walking. Today would be simple, but not easy. Explore, fight, and find shelter for the night.
His walk to the edge of the lush purple and green forest was full of internal trepidation. Was literally every tree a Spore fused monster? How could he face something like that? Before long he was paces away from the forest and feeling all the nerves.
"Kazi, are there any tips I need to know before I start?" He asked as he walked.
Some of the nerves Jeff was feeling came from the Spore as well. "Remember, this is my first time too, so a lot of this we will be figuring out together. With that said, yes, I did research some tips.
"The first tip is, not everything is a monster. Most of a forest like this will be full of dormant spore infused plants. Most trees will never build a Myst Connection to anything dangerous like 'Sharp Claws'. If they fuse with a Spore that only allows that kind of connection then they will never really change their nature from the typical tree. So the second tip is to constantly be reaching out with your spiritual sense so you can tell which ones are dormant and which are monsters."
"Okay," Jeff said, "not everything is a monster and use my senses to find the bad stuff."
"That last tip is efficiency. You can only cast Throw Disc only so many times before you will get soul exhaustion. You may want to hit everything that feels a little bit like a monster, but don't. Save your resources for the true threats."
"Makes sense," Jeff said, taking another step toward the forest. "Find the bad guys and make sure I'm fit for the fight. Let's do this."
Jeff made his first few steps into the tree canopy and had his breath taken away. The forest was so full of beautiful colors that he couldn't help but stare. Small sunbeams filtered through the canopy above. Bright, beautiful flowers reached for the sun's light. And within those light beams he could clearly see the glittering Myst dance through it. Like dust in a flashlight little particles of Myst came alive in the sunbeams. They created a rainbow of bright glowing colors.
After a moment he curbed his distractions. He didn't know what reaching out with his senses meant, but he tried his best anyway. He reached out with what he thought was his spirit. He may have just imagined it, but he felt a feeling of peace come from all the vegetation around him.
He was still skeptical of his senses and kept his head on a swivel. Nothing looked like it could attack him. He took several more cautious steps forward.
The main thing he was looking for was movement. He tilted his head, confused. Why was there so little movement here? The forest almost feels frozen.
He made it a dozen more paces before he realized what felt so wrong. A forest like this should be full of bugs and insects. He turned a full circle and still couldn't see a single bug scuttling or flying around.
Kazi must have read his thoughts and commented, "On Earth insects subsist on the dead and decaying things. Here, there is none of that. The dead dissolve away into Myst and the Myst keeps the plants too healthy to die and decay away with any real frequency."
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
"What about caterpillars, ants and other leaf eating insects?" Jeff asked.
"First, this is a different planet, one that has been filled with Myst for ages. The plants here are a lot stronger, so the only ant colonies you'll find are those that have grown strong enough to tear into the reinforced leaves. The plant-eating bugs and animals you'll find around here are usually monsters."
Jeff realized he was still thinking of this place like it was Earth. He didn't know if ants and caterpillars even evolved here.
Still, it was nice to walk through a forest and not be swarmed by gnats and mosquitoes. Maybe having Myst on Earth wouldn’t be all bad.
Jeff caught movement out of the corner of his eye. He had accidentally dropped his spiritual sense. He chided himself for the folly and brought all his awareness toward the motion. He could see a shape move through the trees about forty paces away.
He reached out clumsily with his spiritual senses. The peaceful feeling all around him was disrupted by the thing ahead of him. He felt a small tinge of putrid danger coming from its direction.
The monster crawled along the forest floor. It was a bright blue color with yellow spots along its back. It came up to his knees and was in length about double his height. At least his 5'10" height he had before his body changed a few hours before.
He readied a glowing disc. He did not have a clear shot, but he had practiced this exact shot plenty of times before. He placed his thumb into a grove that was formed inside of the disc and brought his arm low and across his body. He envisioned the flight of the disc and then threw.
He brought his arm up and threw the disc high into the sky. The spin he applied with his thumb would create an interesting flight path. He lost sight of the disc as it flew over the canopy of trees. He felt his Mystical control over the disc take over. He could sense where the disc was as it flipped over in the sky and descended on a steep curve. He mentally guided it to where he wanted it to strike.
The disc tore through the canopy above the creature and hurtled down toward his prey. The disc sliced into the creeping, crawling creature.
You have defeated:
Forest Caterpillar - Level 2
Myst Abilities:
Strong Bite
Rewards Accepted
Jeff crept toward the dissolving monster. The Myst entered his body and he could tell it filled him up about halfway to his level 3 threshold.
The Myst left the monster's head undissolved. It looked like a big blue basketball with a bug mouth that hung open at one end.
I guess I need to take this back to the Pillar for merit points, Jeff thought, resigning himself to the task. The bug head was heavy like a medicine ball you'd find in the gym. His improved strength made carrying the awkward thing easily manageable.
He trekked back on the same path he had come in on. Somehow he kept losing focus on his spiritual senses. He would be searching around himself or focus on avoiding a sticky looking leaf and drop his awareness. He neared the edge of the canopy and could see the Pillar through the trees and remembered to bring his senses to bear again.
He froze.
He felt a distinct sense of danger from… somewhere. He looked up in time to see another bright blue caterpillar leap at him from a branch above.
He brought up the basketball sized head he was holding and shoved it into the descending mouth. The monster was large and heavy. He let the head go as he fell back to the ground and rolled into a crouch. The sharp jaws of the bug crunched into its kin's head.
Jeff rose to his feet and readied a disc. He leapt into the air. As he descended he threw it at the creature. The yellow spotted bug moved it's body in an unnatural whip-like dodge and avoided most of the attack. The golden disc still sliced about a third of the way into the side of the monster before it impacted the ground and quickly disappeared.
The blue caterpillar recoiled from its injuries then went back on the offensive. It moved its body around getting a sharp looking stinger ready to impale its foe. Jeff took several steps back and with his spiritual yearning he readied another disc.
The monster, it's mouth still occupied with the head, struck out with its stinger. Jeff jumped to the side, placing a tree between them. He readied his arm and threw the disc to the right. It curved sharply around and down till it bounced off the ground and flew straight through the large bug. The disc continued on a stuck into a tree before disappearing with golden sparkles.
The bug writhed and curled in on itself, making a tight ball. It came to a rest, unmoving. He readied another disc and felt it was safe to approach.
Suddenly the creature unwound itself and struck out. Jeff felt a sharp pain in his leg, but his arm struck true. He threw the disc right into the thick body behind the monster's head, detaching it from the rest of the body.
You have defeated:
Forest Caterpillar - Level 3
Myst Abilities:
Strong Bite
Lithe Body
Reward Accepted
The stinger still stuck in his leg started to dissolve into Myst. Soon the whole body was gone except its head, still clenching tight to the other bug's head.
You have leveled up to Level 3.
“Ugh, why do I always get injured on the same leg?” Jeff said.
He had never had his leg impaled before, but he was actually surprised it didn't hurt more. It was a heck of a lot more than a tickle, but it wasn't nearly as painful as he thought it should be. He figured it was his extra vitality at work.
He looked at his leg, the two heavy heads, and then at the Pillar in the distance. Delivering these on an injured leg again…this was going to get old.