I have a confession to make. I was just a little afraid of those mandibles that the beetle had. So much so that I—very carefully—pried the beetle free of the hole I’d locked it in, and made sure to grapple it when it was out.

It was already quite clear to me that my weight was more than the creatures could handle, so when I had the beetle trapped underneath me, angrily snapping its pincers, I did the best thing I could think of.

I grabbed them by the base with my mouth and snapped them off his head.

A loud high-pitched tone accompanied my actions, and after the deed was done, I managed to hook a claw under the hard shell covering his wings—the elytra. I popped open the blue menace’s elytra covering and tore out the wings.

I actually felt a little bad about everything I’d done to him.

Then again, he did try to crush my lungs just because I slipped down a hill into his home.

Hey, I get that somebody bursting in your front door is kind of spooky, but do I pull out a katana, and go ham on the guy without a second thought?

...

Maybe.

But most likely, if that guy looked super confused, like he’d just fallen through the floor of the apartment above me, we’d have a discussion first.

A nice, calm discussion.

And nobody would try and kill the other person.

Probably.

Then again, what can you expect from uncivilized dimwits like this?

So, while he was now unable to fly, and unable to bite, I got off of him and crouched down to hide from him, letting him walk around for a minute.

Your [Grapple] Skill has leveled up. It is now level 2.

The beetle moved his elytra a couple of times, as though trying to free his wings underneath. He didn’t seem to understand that his wings were gone before he started to walk around the cliff. Then it seemed to hit him as he collapsed near the edge.

The guy investigated the bodies of the other beetles for a minute, while I watched, then saw the light above us. As he started wandering towards the bridge instead of staying in the area, I sneaked up towards him, and kicked him back towards the wall.

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You can’t leave yet. I’m not done with you!

I grappled the beetle once again, awkward as it was to do with my hands, and sort of drag-carried him back to the hole. It was time to go. This guy needed to heal, and even though I'd been drinking blood, my stomach was somehow grumbling for food now.

So as I entered backward, which was a lot more awkward than you might think, I plugged up the exit with his exit.

Heh.

Now he’d be trapped for me to come back and play more with, and nothing could come through the other side if it had been planning on it.

This is an order! You and your family must lay witness to the genus of the dino species! You're in my kingdom now, my domain!

Though, one of those bees could probably fit through the extra space in the hole with ease, if they wanted to.

I made my way back to the front of the cave, noticing that the outside world was still light out.

But man was I exhausted. That physical exercise had left me quite tired. And even the thought of finding something to scavenge seemed like a chore, let alone having to kill something.

Plus, I needed to keep an eye on the watering hole during the day for when Rex came back.

I wonder what he’s up to now.

Well anyway, I made my way back to the front room, moving agonizingly slowly until I could finally stand up. As I stepped onto the leafy floor, my stomach grumbled again.

It was still dark as I entered my room. I’d probably mess up my sleep cycle if I went out at this point, but it just might be worth it.

But then a tantalizing scent floated through the air.

It was familiar.

My eyes were still adjusting to the darkness, but I looked around. The room was almost completely empty.

Almost.

Pterocelaur Wing

This wing once belonged to a prince of the sky, but it was severed with a powerful attack.

Atop the natural rocky table in the center of the poorly furnished room sat two crisp Pterocelaur wings. They were simply laying there, as though waiting for my arrival.

Huh. Mr. Dwayne, did you order delivery?

Well, even if the rock had been so considerate of me, I highly doubt any driver would be able to find this address, though.

Must’ve been the wind.

Never one to turn down a free meal, I stomped on over to the food, leaning forward and preparing to take a huge bite.

Wait…

Aha! Now I knew where these must’ve come from. Carefully, I looked around the room, squinting. Last time, this had been nearly impossible.

So I decided to walk around tapping the wall, instead. I ran my hands along it, letting the sounds guide me in the shadows.

Click. Click. Click.

My claws bounced off the rocky surface as I continued to survey the area the best I could. My feet swished over the leafy floor, and I appreciated the fruits of my efforts to decorate the small area.

Click. Click.

Maybe I was wrong. Maybe Dwayne really had gotten takeout. Maybe--

Squish.

Oh. Nope. I was right.

I grinned.

Oh, my little gorlen friend, did you really think you could hide from me? No trick works on me twice!

The fuzzball turned around, looking up at me with large, dark eyes. His expression was a mixture of worry and… was that a smile?