The Pain fades away, like waking up from a nightmare. The lacerations seemed to wash off not just my body but through my entire being. I felt as I were underwater, floating, without connection to the material world.
Underwater? My memories remerge, the water, the sharks, the gun, everything. Where are they? Where am I? I'll, I'll … where are you, Jonathan, you snake? I thrash and turn in this endless sea.
Growing up, I learned to compartmentalize my thoughts at an early age. It's the reason I was so envied by my peers, but to feed me to the SHARKS! Ahhhhh, and for what a pay raise?! Do you know how sharks feed? They surround you, taking turns biting flesh from your sides, over and over until you bleed out. It's a practical and cruel strategy.
You can't blame them for being animals; what should they do when a 75 kg European male falls into their tank, ignore it?
They did at first, you know, a good 10 minutes after being thrown, I went unnoticed; when they did notice me, they did some passerby stokes. All good until Jonathan starts screaming how unfair It was and that the sharks have more respect for me than him.
That's when the fucker pulled out a gun as I was coming out of the tank. Shot me twice; once in my shoulder, the other passed my hand. First of all, how? The lab has metal detectors everywhere; secondly, is he an idiot? "Wee-woo-wee-woo" there's a pressure limit built into the labs for safety reasons, the type that warns fast changes, the kind a gun would trip off.
The way his victorious smile deformed and marred with panic, the way he started trying to open the three-inch-thick steel doors.
Watching him panic would have been enjoyable. The sharks had their own plans.*sigh* I mentally sighed as I'm missing my vocal cords, now where am I? A dark void you would see in the ocean, 2-dimensional with a vague sense of the third.
One Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi, four Mississippi …, four-thousand-one-hundred-and-twenty-two Mississippi. Finally, a change to the bland scenery, waves of sound rippling the dark space making creases and folds as it goes.
[Welcome, Garand]
Oh, angels, how wonderful.
How ironic it is, I defected from my family's Religion before coming here. Hey, I'm not familiar with how it goes, but I'm not going to heaven, right?
[Yes, you will be reborn in the world of Pangera.]
[Destiny and luck shall determine your fate.]
Hold up, what?! I'm not the best human being, but why? Am I not unworthy. And another like what High magic, tech, old-timey I need details man details. My mind's stronghold spins and churns, thinking of the possibility I had already resigned myself to going to hell.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
[You will be reborn with the following status:]
I guess those are details:
[Level: 1]
So a Game-world! Hours of gaming, media, and tropes. Time to min-max.
[Stats:]
Might: 30
Toughness: 15
Cunning: 35
Will: 35
HP: 60
MP: 0
Hmm, an all-rounder, no Mp thought. I might need to unlock it somehow later on. For now, I need to focus on body enhancement and early magic.
[Skills: Digging level 1; Sideways Scuttle Level 1; Grip Level 4; Bite Level 1]
Skills, promising, means I've got other methods of getting stronger. Bite? Digging, am I some kind of animal. Guess that's why I don't have magic. Hmm, hell is perspective; I guess that's what this is.
[Species: Hatchling Abyss Crab (Brachyuran)]
A crab.
A CRAB?!
It could be worse, honestly, speaking, it must be taking my experience in marine biology for the race. Hopefully, I'm not of those spider-crab species. Abyss; bottom of the ocean, getting somewhere near the twilight zone will be a pain.
[You have two Skill points and five Biomass available.]
[Go forth and forge your own path.]
A path I hope to enjoy.
And suddenly, I'm in a dark room, no transition. Like the lights went out, but not really, I can see things in the dark with me. Getting my bearings; the first thing I notice; flat translucent shells, ten limbs, yep, I'm a crab, and those crabs are my siblings? I don't care really, crabs aren't social animals.
The second thing I notice is myself. I'm crab as yes. But I'm not one of those Mariana trench-looking ones. I look like the most generic crab with a paint job.
I'm roughly the same size as the rest of them, though my shell is darker. And lastly, my eyesight is weird. My field of view is much larger, and my eyes are movable and retractable. Going cross-eyed gives me an infinity mirror situation; it is disorienting, though it doesn't hurt. Now that I'm a crab, what's normal crab behavior? Running away, I guess.
Suddenly a flash and a cacophony of what I can only assume as crab screams. To my right, I see what can only be described as a fat anglerfish. And in its jaw, the still wiggling legs of my kind.
I ran; I ran sideways without a thought. I knew I had no chance, so I booked it. Pass my kin, pass the shadows that surround this place. I found a coral wall and started digging into the bigger openings. And when I was done, I collapsed the coral above, hiding me from the world, and prayed. I knew I was being followed by scent; the only way to protect myself was to be too much of a nuisance to hunt. I continued digging even though my claws hurt and my jaws warped. I dig till my shell cracks and am too exhausted to move.
I let the call of sleep overtake me and slumber for the rest of my first day.
Waking up was a chore, my everything hurt, and I was hungry, but all that meant was still in the land of the living.
But this is the limit my body can do. I need to do better be better to ensure I survive future encounters.
For now, I need to spend those points the angel gave me.
Ok, Open. Nothing, guess I can't always be lucky first try.
Menu.
Inventory.
Biomass.
Status.
Name: Garand
Level: 1
Might: 32(+2)
Toughness: 10(-5)
Cunning: 35
Will: 35
HP: 60
MP: 0
Skills: Digging level 2; Sideways Scuttle Level 2; Grip Level 4; Bite Level 2
Species: Deformed Hatchling Abyss Crab (Brachyuran)
Biomass: 5
Skill Points: 2
Fuck!