His claws scraped against the ground, and his hind legs trembled with the effort. He hadn’t stood like this since—since before. Since he had been human.

I remember this... The thought felt distant, almost like a memory from another lifetime. His body had once been upright, bipedal. This position wasn’t new to him, yet it felt so alien in his current form. His new limbs were longer, heavier, not as nimble as his human legs had once been, but they held his weight, and slowly, he rose higher.

His body adjusted, his tail shifting for balance, and finally, Arthur stood tall—like a predator on two legs. His claws dangled by his sides, flexing as he looked down at his new form. He could see the bulk of his chest, the dense scales covering his limbs, and the massive claws that could now reach farther than ever before.

The sensation was strange. His center of gravity had shifted, and it took a moment to find the right stance, his legs stiff as they tried to hold him steady. It was like trying to walk again after a lifetime of crawling.

Arthur took a tentative step, his claws digging into the rocky floor beneath him. His legs wobbled slightly, unsteady at first, but with each step, he began to adjust. His tail swayed, a counterbalance to his forward motion, and slowly, surely, he grew more comfortable in this new form.

Despite the unfamiliarity, something about standing upright felt right. Like this, he wasn’t just a creature of the sea anymore. He was something more—something closer to what he had once been, yet undeniably different.

His memories of Earth were faint now, fragmented images and sensations that slipped away as quickly as they came. But as he stood there, towering over the ground on two legs, he felt a strange connection to his past self. To the human who had once walked on two legs, free of the hunger that now gnawed at him.

Arthur glanced down at his claws, flexing them as they gleamed in the glow of the cave’s crystals. This is what I am now. A predator.

The crystals surrounding him pulsed, their soft light brightening, as though responding to his presence. The cave felt alive, charged with energy.

What is this place?

Arthur moved cautiously, his eyes scanning the cavern. The air was thick with the scent of earth and stone, mixed with the faint, metallic tang of the crystals. He could feel the energy radiating from them, seeping into his body with every breath. It wasn’t overwhelming, but it was enough to make him feel... alive.

His hunger, however, remained relentless. Even in this mystical place, the gnawing emptiness in his gut refused to be ignored. He had followed the map here for a reason, and whatever that reason was, it had to be close.

Arthur’s gaze fell on a large cluster of crystals near the back of the cavern, their glow brighter than the rest. Something about them seemed... off. As he approached, he noticed that the ground around the cluster was disturbed, as though something had been here recently.

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His instincts flared, and Arthur crouched low, ready for anything. His claws flexed, molten heat surging through them as he prepared for whatever might be waiting for him in the shadows.

Whatever’s here... I’ll take it.

*

Arthur’s nostrils flared.

A scent, faint at first but unmistakable, drifted through the cave. It was sweet, metallic, and sharp—blood. Fresh blood. His muscles tensed immediately, and something deep within him stirred, a primal hunger igniting at the very thought of it. The smell overpowered his senses, filling his mind with nothing but the overwhelming need to hunt. His vision sharpened, his focus narrowing in on the source of the scent. Whatever it was, it had only recently been killed.

He crouched low, his new bipedal stance allowing him to move with more agility than before. His tail dragged lightly across the rocky ground, a counterbalance that kept him steady as he stalked forward. The hunger in him roared louder, almost overpowering his thoughts. He could feel his claws twitching in anticipation, the molten heat within them ready to strike.

Something’s close. Something weak.

Arthur followed the scent deeper into the cave, his eyes scanning the dimly lit surroundings. The glow of the crystals cast eerie reflections across the walls, but he ignored them. His mind was locked on the trail, his instincts sharpening with each passing second.

He moved quickly, silently, until the scent grew stronger—thicker, almost suffocating in its intensity. Arthur slowed his pace, his eyes narrowing as he caught sight of movement ahead. There, lying on the rocky floor, was a creature.

It was reptilian in form, large but clearly weakened. Its dark scales gleamed in the dim light, and blood oozed from a deep gash along its side. The creature resembled a crocodile, its long body sprawled across the ground, its breathing labored. Arthur felt a strange sensation creep up his spine as he looked at it—an odd sense of familiarity.

It looks... like me.

The creature was almost a mirror image of Arthur—scaled, reptilian, powerful. But unlike him, it remained on all fours, its body hunched low to the ground. Its sharp, yellow eyes flickered weakly, barely noticing Arthur’s presence as it bled out from the wound. For a moment, Arthur hesitated. Seeing this creature, so similar to himself, triggered something human in him—a brief flash of empathy, perhaps.

But that moment passed quickly.

The hunger roared back, louder now, drowning out any hesitation. He wasn’t a human anymore. He was a predator, and this creature was prey. Weak, bleeding prey.

Arthur’s claws flexed, the heat within them surging as he approached the crocodile-like creature. It let out a faint growl, more of a whimper than anything, but it was too weak to fight back. Without another thought, Arthur lunged.

His claws sank deep into the creature’s neck, cutting through scales and muscle with ease. The creature shuddered once, then went still, its life force slipping away in an instant. Arthur wasted no time. He tore into its flesh, the rich, nutrient-filled meat flooding his senses as he devoured the fallen prey.

The taste was overwhelming, far more potent than anything he had eaten before. Each bite seemed to fill him with energy, the creature’s strength transferring into his own. His hunger, for the first time in what felt like ages, began to subside. Arthur ate until he could feel the strain in his belly, the gnawing emptiness inside him finally giving way to a sense of fullness.

He wiped his mouth with the back of his claw, surprised at how satisfied he felt. The creature, despite its weakened state, had been filled with nutrients, far more than any of the baby Krakens he had feasted on earlier. It was as if this kill had been meant for him, a gift from the cave itself.

But then, just as the thought crossed his mind, a high-pitched, blood-curdling shriek echoed through the cave.