I sat amidst the carnage for a long while. Thinking.
It wasn’t until a rustle and a whimper brought my attention elsewhere. A wolf pulled itself out from under its limp brethren. The gray fur on its back was slicked red; its hind legs didn’t work as it dragged its body along the ground with solely its forelegs.
One of them had survived? I recalled throwing a wolf onto another during my rampage. I just assumed it had died with the others.
It wasn’t thirst that brought me to my feet, but mercy. The beast wouldn’t survive like that anyways, what good did leaving it to struggle do?
I approached it and released my claws. It seemed to notice my presence, stopping its crawl to look at me. There was no edge in its eyes. I could have mistaken it for its domesticated cousin.
The only thing I saw when I looked down at the wolf was pain. Its eyes were full of it. The haggard breaths it took were laborious. Even as I came closer, my intent on full display, it didn’t shrink back. Almost as if it were asking me to do it.
I kneeled beside it, running a hand over its fur. With what little strength it had, the wolf dragged itself closer to me, resting its head on my lap.
The warmth of a living body sent my blood into turmoil. I could feel the thick veins in my neck pulsate with desire. As I took my hand back from its fur, dripping with blood, I felt my fangs protrude from their sockets.
I bit my lip, drawing blood of my own.
Why was I like this? I didn’t want to be a slave to the monster inside me. But the frailty of this creature made me so excited.
I hadn’t even noticed myself leaning towards its neck with my mouth opened wide. My body moved without consent. Instinctively, I could locate the artery. Just like I’d done in the fight, my body could move to where the blood was thickest without even knowing the creature's physiology.
Mercy my ass. I would have done the same had the wolf been in perfect health. My thirst controlled me, and there was nothing I could do about it.
“No…” I muttered.
I dug my nails hard into my thigh, the pain bringing some clarity. My body trembled as I came to a halt. It wanted to keep moving. The blood was right there! Why stop?
Because I would not be a slave to instinct.
“Yeah…there’s no changing what I’ve become. I’m an atrocity. There's nothing I can do about that,” I said, struggling to get the words past my thirst. “But I’ll choose how much of a monster I’ll be.”
I let my body fall forward and sunk my teeth into the wolf’s neck. It let out a soft whimper. I swear I heard the words ‘thank you’ in its breath. But I was not sending it along with the others. I needed an anchor to my humanity.
My fangs sunk deep into its neck and before even a drop of red blessed my tongue, I activated [Blood Infusion].
Energy gathered in my mouth and into my fangs as I felt my head go cold. Liquid spilled from my canines, flowing into the wolf’s artery and mixing with its blood. It was a terrible feeling being the one getting drained. Siphoning my blood into another…it was like handing over a Michelin Star meal.
The wolf squirmed and opened its mouth to howl but made no sound. Its eyes strained and flooded red. And after what felt way longer than it was, the wolf roared. Deep and guttural.
Do you wish to enforce subordination?
The notification appeared in front of me. I remembered the description of the skill; if I wished it, I could force those infused with my blood to obey my every command. It was useful. But with how I currently felt, the idea of stripping another being of its freedom was sickening. I removed my teeth from the wolf’s neck and said, “No,” low and flat.
The message faded into blue smoke and I instantly felt the wolf resist against my grip. It kicked from my hold and stumbled away, shaking its head and growling at the ground. It was in perfect health again. Its hind legs were kicking at the ground as if they hadn’t been twisted in seven places. The wolf jumped back and forth. I couldn’t tell if it was excited or in shock; perhaps both. After a while it calmed down and paced in the opening, keeping its eyes locked on me.
“You’re free,” I said. “Keep your distance from me and it will remain that way. I can’t guarantee your safety if you show yourself around me again.”
The wolf stood tall. It definitely looked bigger than before; my blood was supposed to make it stronger, after all. I quickly identified it and saw the beast flinch back as I did. Could it sense what I was doing?
Grey Wolf|Power: 44
A slight increase. I wasn’t very strong myself so it only made sense. Perhaps with more power I could raise their levels by leaps and bounds. The wolf backed away from me slowly, reaching the edge of the clearing and dashing off into the dense foliage.
I guess it got my message then?
Left alone I began to wonder if I made a mistake. The wolves were most likely the first of many dangers to come and I had just sent away a potential ally. If I'd forced it into obedience…
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I shook my head.
“Fighting over what was the better decision will keep me human. Monsters don’t contemplate that stuff,” I said, chuckling to myself.
The blood coating my body has dried and become quite uncomfortable. The smell was both nauseating and intoxicating. I wanted to wash up. If there was life in these woods, wolves and most likely other creatures, there was surely a water source. I made my way through the forest, quickly yet quietly, in search of a place to call home for the next month.
On my third day in the forest, I finally found a river. I hadn’t slept until then and surprisingly wasn’t tired despite it. I followed the river in a random direction, hoping to find an appropriate place to settle in.
Hours of walking brought me across a campfire with four primitive tents built around it. They were small tents, not even large enough to properly fit a grown man. And as I came closer to the campsite it was clear why. A dozen creatures sat and stood around the fire. Some rotated a spit over the fire with a disgusting assortment of meat pierced along it, others skinned the hides of rabbits and squirrels, and even a wolf. They were green little monsters, about the size of a human child; their malnourished arms barely held any muscle and their eyes were onyx black.
Goblins.
Seeing living, breathing creatures for the first time since the wolves made me a complete mess. The bloodlust emerged immediately and my fangs ripped from my gums in hope to feast. I denied them their prey. The easiest way to squelch my desires was to inflict as much pain on myself as I could. If I tore my legs and stomach, focusing on the sharp piercing pain, the thrumming of my blood would quiet down.
I would not harm these creatures.
They seemed to have other plans. The goblins armed themselves, picking up rickety spears and wooden bows—rusty swords and warped axes.
“It’s okay. You don’t have to fear me, I mean you no harm,” I said, hoping they understood human language.
An arrow to my shoulder confirmed they did not. The goblins began to chitter after seeing me take an arrow uncontested. Their confidence skyrocketed. Smiles filled their faces.
It wasn’t instinct that wanted them dead now. I didn’t even need to identify them. The smell of their blood told me all I needed to know. Even if three of them stood up to one of the wolves I fought they would’ve had a hard time making it out alive.
They didn’t even know the carnage that was about to ensue.
I tore three of them apart with a single [Sharp Claw], watching their limbs and blood fly through the air. Their comrades shouted in fear and anger. If I tore them apart like that, would I be unable to drain their blood? The monster inside answered. Instinct flowing through me, I reached my arm out towards the leaking blood of the three goblins. “[Blood Drain],” I said, and the scattered crimson whipped up like a tornado, spinning towards my palm and seeping into my skin..
Blood Shard Acquired {Green Goblin 1/10}
Blood Shard Acquired {Green Goblin 2/10}
Blood Shard Acquired {Green Goblin 3/10}
Power Level Increased: 50-51
The blood didn’t satiate me like when I’d drained the wolves with my fangs. “I see. So even if I tear them apart I can still drain their blood. That makes things easier.”
The goblins flung themselves at me and I wasted no time dispatching them, not caring for how mangled they became. I did not take pleasure in this. It was survival. I tore them apart with my skill and claws, smashing them against trees and tossing them across their campsite—I drained their blood every chance I had, healing the small wounds they inflicted upon me.
In less than five minutes, the goblins were no more. I absorbed the blood from all of them, completing the Blood Shards and acquiring a new ability.
New Resistance Acquired: [Sure Eyes]
“I told you…” I said through heavy breathing, “I meant you no harm.”
But there were no ears to listen. If it wasn’t for the corpses and blood-soaked soil, this would’ve been a prime place to make my home. Unfortunately, I wasn’t fond of sleeping next to the dead, so I was forced to keep moving.
The [Sure Eyes] resistance seemed quite handy. As long as the opponent wasn’t far stronger than me, I was protected from any type of illusions and mind games. I couldn’t be blinded, either. If I so wanted, I could stare down the sun just like every child dreamt of. I’d probably burn to a crisp before I got to try.
I picked up one of the goblins' discarded swords. It was rusted to the hilt and stained with years-old blood.
Do you wish to equip [Rusted Blade]? The system prompted.
I accepted, and the sword glowed bright with white light.
[Rusted Blade] Equipped|+3 Power.
The notification made me wonder if all equipment would increase my power or if it was just the weaponry. Still, getting a boost to my power was nice and all, but I had no idea how to use a sword.
I swung it out in front of me, getting a feel for it. My arms were remarkably strong, swinging the blade faster than the blink of an eye. But I felt clumsy doing so. Tearing my opponents with my claws was simple; it would be hard to somehow mess that up. Swinging a sword though? If you weren’t trained, carrying one around with you was basically handicapping yourself.
“I don’t really need this, do I?” I said.
If you wish, you can dismiss your equipment so that it does not bog you down. The dismissed items will resummon when you so desire them.
Power increases will remain even when the equipped item is dismissed.
That was convenient. My gamer brain immediately started thinking up uses for that feature. Tanks wouldn’t have to lug around their hulking armor and could summon it only when taking a heavy blow, dismissing it to increase agility and reposition themselves.
I dismissed the sword, watching it disperse into blue light.
Immediately, I took a stance as if I were to strike a foe and lunged forward, willing the rusty blade to come back. It appeared in my hand, extended in the air at my non-existent enemy’s throat. I dismissed it again.
“That also increases the risk of assassination. You’ll never know who’s carrying what around you. How could you trust anyone?”
Well, it’s not as if I needed to worry about that. I was alone. For now.
I continued my wandering in search of a place to call home, summoning and dismissing my sword over and over to pass the time.