Ophirian woke from his slumber to discover that his natural healing had finished the job the powerful healing potion had started. He could now see out of his left eye, which was convenient but with all his other senses so empowered not as necessary as it would be for others. Still, he was happy to take advantage of every edge he could. He had vengeance to bring down upon his attackers. His bondmate’s words echoed in the recesses of his mind and he would follow the advice. It was time to use every Ability to its full extent.
The serpent flowed through the tunnels and caverns, senses primed for a trail that would lead to his targeted prey. Along the way, he came upon others using the same tunnels. He left none at his back. All he came upon met a quick death through his venom, but he did not linger or enjoy the kills. They were merely an inconvenient presence in his path.
It took hours but Ophirian finally picked up the trail of his attackers. He slowed his pace and increased his concentration. Stealth was his ally, and he was about to put every ounce of it to work. He moved slowly and carefully, choosing his path with painstaking care. He scented and tasted every coil’s length before advancing, testing it for hidden dangers.
In time, his vigilance paid off as he came upon a section of the tunnel riddled with traps. Ophirian stopped his slithering and studied the trapped tunnel. He lost all sense of time as he studied the extent of the traps until he was sure of all the traps in the area. Then, he TELEPORTED beyond the traps, using the advice his bondmate had given him. “Use all your Abilities,” he had said. As Ophirian slithered down the tunnel beyond the traps he knew that his bondmate was right. He was no simple serpent, no lowly snake. He was smarter and more cunning and he would show his enemies just how deadly that made him.
He found six other trapped sections of the tunnel, each bypassed just as easily. He knew he was getting closer to their settlement cavern as he came across the first guards. He could sense them from far enough away that they would not know that he was there. Ophirian decided that it was time to again test the advice that his bondmate had given him. He reached out with his TELEPORTATION and pulled the first guard to his fangs, biting down before the stalker could defend itself or even cry out. The powerful paralytic venom went to work quickly, freezing his foe into inactivity before the other aspects of the venom began to shut down its organs.
Ophirian was tempted to consume this foe out of spite, but he could hear the other guard starting to look for its companion. With a conceptual jerk of his head, he threw the body to the side and summoned the next morsel to his fangs. This one had a weapon drawn but never completed his swing as Opirian’s fangs penetrated its skull, killing it instantly. As the blade fell from its dead hand, the great serpent opened his jaws wide and, with a series of swallows, consumed it. He had time for this snack.
He enjoyed the warmth of a meal to digest and the temptation to coil up and rest was strong, stemming from instinct. Ophirian resisted for long enough that his willpower took over, silencing the call of instinct. With a serpentine smile, he silently moved down the tunnel yet again.
Four guardposts and several trapped sections of tunnel later, he entered the cavern of his hated enemy. His pride drove him to charge in and kill everyone but, again, his reasoning ability took over. He studied the cavern with his senses and found just what he was looking for and it was not far. Only about one hundred meters away from this entrance was a ledge overlooking the entire cavern. Ophirian began to climb up to the ledge, gripping rocks with his coils.
It was difficult and slow going with him loosing the rocks he clung to frequently. After several minutes of struggle, he simply TELEPORTED up to the ledge, admonishing himself for not doing that in the first place.
He studied his ledge. There were bones that cracked under his weight, evidence that something else had chosen this as a hunting spot before him. He would have to keep an eye out for any other predators that might be about. He didn’t think that there was much of a chance of meeting whatever had occupied this ledge previously as the bones were brittle and long dried out. He settled in to observe.
Days passed as Ophirian sat coiled up on his ledge. He watched and waited from his perch, undetected. Whenever he sensed one of the Twilight Stalkers below separated from the sight of others, he TELEPORTED the victim right to his fangs and silently killed them. His belly was constantly full, and he could feel himself growing day by day.
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On the third day, he couldn’t help but celebrate as two very special things happened. First, he pulled a warrior to him and killed the creature easily but as it died, he realized that he knew its scent. This was one of his attackers. Revenge was his! The second thing was that the experience from this kill was enough to push him to what would be level 51. Instead, he Tiered up to Tier Two. The notifications were delicious.
*** Congratulations, you have advanced to Tier Two. You have automatically gained your bondmate’s second-highest Ability. In this case you have gained the Ability RESTORE. Additionally, you have a choice of one of the following:
1. Create a new Ability appropriate for your Tier
2. Advance an existing Ability by one rank (Maximum of Adept)
3. Advance an existing Skill by one rank (Maximum of Adept)
4. Gain 20 bonus Characteristic Points
5. Switch out one Ability from your bondmate for another less-advanced Ability.
***
Ophirian savored the rush of advancement but puzzled over the choices. He could create his own Ability but did not know enough about what that entailed. He could also advance one of his Abilities or Skills. That didn’t appeal to him as he could advance them through use. The bonus characteristic points would be nice, but it seemed like a small amount. That was slightly more than two levels worth at this Tier. Finally, he could switch out one of his bondmate’s Abilities for another. This was perhaps the most appealing for him as he was unsure what he could use RESTORE for and how it could benefit him. Ultimately, he decided to speak with his bondmate about it later. For now, he was ready to experience the rush of leveling now that he had returned to level one of the new Tier.
Day after day, Ophirian watched over the Stalkers, slowly culling them one straggler at a time. He saw the settlement’s mood and habits change over this time. At first, they had been confident and bold but as their hunters disappeared, never returning from their hunting parties they grew increasingly panicked. The day that Ophirian got their shaman, the entire village went into full-on panic mode.
The remaining warriors gathered around the last two dozen residents. Ophirian could hear them shouting, urging the villagers to do something. He did not understand their language, but the urgency was clear. He settled in to watch for anyone separated from the group and was delighted when one of the warriors headed off on their own towards an exit tunnel. Ophirian didn’t hesitate to snatch him up for another meal.
Hours after the warrior did not return, despair set in amongst the remainder and Ophirian watched with fascination. The reaction of this prey was becoming erratic. There were some who refused to leave their huts and none left without being in at least a pair. He concluded that he would not have any stragglers to pick off anymore, so it was time to change strategy. It was time to leave his perch.
He waited until they were all hiding in their huts and TELEPORTED down to the village. Slowly stalking his way around to the first hut he knew was occupied, he focused his senses on the inside. He could sense the heat signatures of the pair of Stalkers huddling together. He could smell the fear radiating off his prey. It warmed his cold, reptilian heart. He was upon them with a thought, and both had been bitten before they could react. He left the bodies, his belly still full from the last warrior he had eaten.
The next hut had three and they were dispatched as quickly as the previous two. He continued on in this manner killing each and every Stalker in the village. Finally, he came upon the single remaining Stalker. It was cuddled up in a ball, shivering with the sharp reek of fear. Ophirian let out a hiss of disgust. How had these creatures been able to capture and wound him so grievously? They were pathetic. Unworthy. He almost left right there but the mewling creature uncurled and stood.
Ophirian rose up over the creature, his tongue tasting something more than fear coming from the creature. Without warning, the creature unsheathed its claws and launched itself at Ophirian with a shout of rage. The creature’s rage was blinding and he struck with fury, slashing into the great serpent’s scales with all its might and frenzy. The claws scraped his scales but did not penetrate – his scales had grown thick and strong. Ophirian looped himself around the creature over and over, holding it still until he could bring his fangs to bear. The Twilight Stalker village ended with a single bite.
Ophirian consumed his final prey with an odd feeling flowing through him. He was satisfied that he had gotten his vengeance on the creatures that had attacked him, but there was a sense of emptiness and lack of fulfillment that ran through him. He did not understand this feeling and he did not like it. His racial memories gave him some hints but nothing strong enough to explain what he was feeling. He knew he had to return to his bondmate and ask him about it. He TELEPORTED back to the origin cavern to do just that.