The sound was coming from underneath the tunnels. I stared at it for a few seconds before making my decision. “Fuck that!” I grabbed my kids, threw them on my back and ran. Although carrying this much weight with only three legs isn’t as easy as it seems.

I made it back home in one piece and collapsed next to the pond. Linus sprinted out and greeted. “Mother! You’re okay!” I nodded meekly, forgetting to correct him as I hoisted myself to my feet and said. “Linus help me carry your siblings inside.”

After a few minutes we got them safely inside. Once he confirmed I would watch the eggs Linus hopped into the pond and swam around. I was beyond exhausted, running while carrying my kids had been difficult.

I looked into the distance where the now flooded rat nest was. I could see a large shape standing over the nest. It was difficult to tell what it was but it looked like a giant fucking rat. I stared at the behemoth for a few seconds before screaming. “Linus! Get in here!” Linus sprinted over to me and stood at attention. Adorable. “Linus, I’m pretty sure we have maybe five more minutes before a gigantic monster comes over here and stomps us out of existence.”

He stared at me for a minute before letting out a shrill scream and diving under my legs. I patted him on the head and said. “We are going to do a tactical retreat. Got it? They know where we live.”

This probably wasn’t the best decision but it couldn’t be helped. That rat was so big it could probably just pick the money tree up and smack me with it. How the hell did it even get that big? Where was it the whole time?

I shrugged and carefully picked up the eggs. The rat didn’t appear to be moving towards us yet. But where should we go? We should be able to hide in the forest but honestly we’re not supposed to dry out.

Maybe we can go in the forest but just stay by the lake? It wouldn’t be a permanent solution but until these eggs hatched and our numbers grew we were stuck constantly running. Alright we just need to transport the eggs. Then I’ll come back and grab my kids.

Just as I was preparing to leave I felt something bump into me. I turned around and saw Diana smiling at me. “Holy shit Diana! You’re gigantic!” Okay I probably shouldn’t have said that. I’m pretty sure a father calling his daughter gigantic is not the best thing. Although Diana doesn’t seem to mind.

She hopped around saying. “My Queen! I’m a queen now just like you!” I stared at her for a few seconds before joining her in her hopping. “That’s wonderful! We’re leaving now, there's a giant rat. Go grab your siblings, we need to leave.”

Diana nodded and sprinted towards Linus who was trying to drag Jack and Felix by himself. I smiled and turned towards the behemoth moving towards us. We’ll be fine if we can get out before that thing arrives.

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I stared at it for a few seconds trying to make out any details. It looked to be around 100 ft tall. Or at the very least it was much larger than the nearby trees. Did that thing have six legs? What the fuck!

It had been standing around for a while but suddenly it slammed into the ground. I could feel the tremors from here! I trembled in terror before sprinting back towards my kids. “Alright everybody! Linus take the eggs, keep them safe at all costs. Diana grab Felix, I’ll grab Jack. We are going to be abandoning the mud flats for a while. We’re gonna head for the lake first. After that we’ll follow the shore towards the forest. Move out!”

My children leapt into motion and I couldn’t be happier. Living beneath the Money Tree had been nice but there was no reason to stay. The rats knew about it. As we were leaving I paused by Arthur’s grave. I felt a tear run down my face as I stared at the mound of skulls. “We’ll be back, don’t worry.”

And that was it. We sprinted away at a pretty good speed, making it to the lake shore without any problems. I stared back at the Money Tree for a few seconds before turning towards Diana. “Alright kids! Let’s move out!”

Linus and Diana followed me as we entered the forest. We hugged the shore for a few miles before I yelled for everyone to stop. “Halt! We shall rest here for a while.” The trees thinned in this area revealing a small rocky clearing. There wasn’t really anything noteworthy about it but by now we just needed somewhere to chill for a few days.

I would go out scouting for a new, more permanent home soon. I grabbed the eggs and wrapped myself around them while Linus and Diana started digging a small hole under a nearby tree to keep the eggs in.

Again, not the best but it was the best I could do. I stared at the lake for a few seconds as a single thought floated through my mind. How could we make money? Sure we were pretty powerful now with most of us being evolved but the only thing that really matters is money.

Wealth is power. So how can we, a small group of monsters in a random forest, make money? We could try hunting other animals and then attempt to sell their fur but I still didn’t know how to properly skin and tan.

Mining for resources was out of the question, we didn’t have any tools or locations to mine. We could always try our hand at the lumber industry but again tools. Also how would we use the normal tools?

What about fishing? It’s pretty easy for us and once we meet someone it shouldn’t be too hard to sell. People always need food. Although how could we preserve it so we could ship it? Oh well at least I had an idea in mind for when we meet someone.

I wonder what my kids are doing? I looked around and saw Linus passed out next to the new burrow. I picked up the eggs and gently placed them inside. Then I plopped down by the entrance and looked around for any threats. Not seeing any, I looked for the rest of my kids.

Wait, where did Felix and Jack go? I looked around and saw two giant forms by the lake, wrestling around. I nudged Linus awake and had him watch the eggs as I walked towards the seemingly familiar forms.

“Felix! Jack!” Both of the giants stopped and looked at me. Both had become Mud Skink Bruisers. I smiled, we were much safer now. In fact we probably didn’t have to worry about anything being able to hurt us. I started laughing, cackling as an idea popped into my mind. “My children, we will take over the world! World Domination! I shall rule the world! ”