“Oh the woes of the pathetic attempts of lesser creatures that could not even fight back from the capture at the hands of our tribe!” A voice rang out, clearly mocking the unassuming gelatinous mass that resided within a leather sack. The voice belonged to a semi-intelligent Kobold monster that went by the name of Harold. No one knew why, but Harold called himself that after he had ascended to the place of Chieftain of the Tribe. The others had thought it was funny, but no one dared to laugh after they had thrown Dubs into the fire for dinner… Poor tasty Dubs…

Kobolds were short, dog-like creatures that liked to eat anything they could fit into their large mouths. They stood around a meter tall, had furry heads and bodies, a short, lizard-like tail shooting out from their backsides. They ranged in color almost anywhere on the scale, avoiding the whole Purple to Green range. Though some were black or white, most were ruddy yellows, oranges and reds. If they ever lived long enough to show it, they could even reach the heights of almost a quarter of a meter taller and would begin to lose the ruddy hue of their fur for a more ‘pure’ color. However, these ragamuffins hardly ever survived that long. The reason was simple: they were just too stupid or too hungry to even consider their own safety.

“For its folly, we shall boil it, season it, and dine upon it, all for the continuation of the tribe!” These creatures were usually found to be in the service of beings much more powerful than themselves. Warlocks of questionable nature, tyrants just beginning out, and sometimes even dragons, though not if they could avoid it.

“All who wander into this area of the world shall perish by our hand!” For you see, if a kobold serves a certain master for too long, they start to impersonate the master’s habits, accent, likes and dislikes, and even begin to speak like them. Dragons absolutely HATED being impersonated. Their pride did not allow for any creature to do so.

“All who do so shall fall and become part of the strength of the tribe!” There was that one weird dragon who thought that if the kobolds were just bred into a better species, they would just be better servants. Alas, it was eaten by said kobolds. Though, that group did not last too much longer after that. During the feast, all the exits to the cave mysteriously collapsed in on themselves. This forced the creatures to feed upon each other, until all that was left was one giant kobold, who eventually starved to death.

“This thing, [along with one or two of our own for a side dish] shall be consumed by us so that we may grow strong!” Although, there had been far off rumors that said there was a very successful King of the kobolds in a far off land, and he survived just by threatening the lesser kobolds to go out and find him food. If the kobolds succeeded, then they were able to survive another day. If not, well…

“And so, let us thank the great Warlock Jones, who gave us this life to begin with!” This particular group of kobolds numbered at around fifty on any given day. Some were killed trying to catch prey. But most were eaten to sustain the tribe, usually the weakest of them. Good thing these things bred so fast, that they managed to keep a balance between their loss and gain. They also matured in about a week, so there was that as well.

“”All hail Warlock Jones”” The tribe responded. Warlock Jones was an aspiring tyrant who had wanted to conquer a nice corner of the world, one that was a lot of farmland (for food) and hand a few indigenous beings that could be put to use. His problem was that he had let one of the kobolds, the one now known as Harold, as an assistant, and when the kobold had begun to mimic the Warlock’s ways, the man had attempted to converse with it. Kobolds only know two languages: fight and eat. The Warlock may have gone insane trying to ‘improve’ them like that one weird dragon, if he had the chance, that is. For just like that dragon, Warlock Jones was eaten, lightly seasoned.

“Now then, let us see what we have caught today!” And, without pomp or circumstance, the two kobolds closest to the bag, untied it and looked in, only to receive three Magic Missiles into their faces. As what was left of the two unfortunate creatures settled on the ground, and the silence that had fallen upon the tribe deepened, the leather sack fell from around a shadowy, clear slime with an orb of blueish green, or maybe greenish blue, floating within.

“Boo!” Newb shouted out at the crowd, and then it all fell into chaos.

“Oh gods… they’re kobolds!” Aylia groaned as the whole mass of furry bodies began to charge towards her and her host. “Don’t let them put you in their mouths… from what I heard, there is no coming back from that, no matter how strong you are.”

Newb shivered slightly at that thought. It did not want to die, which meant that it did not want to be eaten either. As the closest of the ravenous things approached, hands outstretched toward the slime, it left into the air firing another Magic Missile at the enemy. It died just as easily as the rest of them. The monster was a little disappointed that none of them ran away when it had just killed two of their own and had made an attempt at spooking them. Maybe it would have better luck with beings that were not just stomachs on legs.

As it went through the air, the jello cannon decided to take a look around and try to form a plan. The encampment, if one could call it that, was about ten meters from one end to the other, though most of that was for a pit of… something. The slime chose not to think about it judging the mud or other stuff currently resided there. The rest were all piles of hay, some weapons haphazardly cast to the ground near some of them, though most of the little heads filled with teeth were armed… so that meant that there were less of them than there were before.

There was one thing of note, however, and that would be a large (compared to these creatures) ‘tent’, black and red in color. Though it was poorly kept: holes were all over the place, it was dirty, and the poles weren’t even in the ground. It kind of looked less like a tent and more like a pile of soiled cloth with some sticks poking out. Newb also noticed that there was one of the buggers that stood out from the rest. This one had probably been the one speaking, though the slime had only understood a portion of it. That sack was rather thick. It probably smelled horrible as well. There was no way for the monster to know that though, as it could not smell.

The pudding of death pulled in some Energy from outside, while in the air, and then focused on a specific purpose, just as before with the Magic Missile spell. The result sent the slime hurtling through the air at almost breakneck speeds towards the ‘leader’ of this ‘pack’, if they could even be called that.

 --- Congratulations, you have learned the Spell, Outer - Air Propulsion.

 Air Propulsion

  “I believe I can fly!”

  You launch yourself through the air at a quick pace.

  Be careful of the landing!

  Mana Cost - 5

A moment later, the flying jello slammed into the kobold, Harold, knocking it from its perch on top of a large, flat stone.

 --- You have suffered 15 Life from blunt force trauma.

 --- You have suffered 3 Life from being pierced.

 --- You have resisted a strike.

 --- You have resisted a strike.

They continued towards the ground at less than breakneck speeds, slamming through a large tree, and coming to a stop several meters from where they had been, after bouncing along the ground twice. While Newb had hurt itself from contact upon hitting the kobold, and less damage from the teeth that had attempted to bite it, the kobold was little more than a smear upon which the slime now sat, given that it had taken the brunt of the damage from the ground. The little round monster was slightly disoriented from the whole endeavor, and was certain that if it had legs like those Advens, it would have fallen over several times. And those legs would likely be broken.

“I think… urp! I think I’m going to be sick!” The spirit stated.

“You don’t have a stomach…” The slime retorted. It took a moment to reorient itself, and turned back towards the oncoming stampede. “Well, so much for scaring them off… Wait, is it just me or are there three times as many as there were a moment ago?” It would have blinked a few times to clear its vision, but it did not have eyelids. Or eyes.

“It’s just… It’s just you. You must be a little out of it.” Aylia managed between deep breaths. Newb shook itself a little, and its vision focused on the remaining horde. They were still a little ways away, just about to pass the rock that was higher up. This put them about five meters from the slime.

Thinking over the possibilities of how to get out of this alive, the cunning jelly quickly thought up a plan and began to put it into action. First, it focused on its Mana once more, concentrating on itself. It envisioned its body becoming clear like the air, and it felt its energy drain a little.

 ---Congratulations, you have learned the Spell, Inner - Invisibility.

 Invisibility

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  “Now you see me, now you don’t!”

  Your body is no longer able to be seen by the naked eye.

  The effects last for a number of seconds equal to your Resolve.

  Any attack that you make or suffer will end the effect immediately.

  Mana Cost - 15

 --- You are now under the effects of Invisibility.

Now we’re talking! The slime celebrated for a moment, then made its way towards the large stone. The kobolds ran past the rock, and to where their leader’s remains laid. Not seeming too concerned about the lack of a target, they began to fight amongst themselves for a taste. Newb, seeing this behavior, changed tactics slightly. It hopped up on the rock, turned around, pulling an essence out of its storage into itself, and waited until they were almost all in that area. It then sprang from its perch, flying through the air until just as it was about to hit the tops of the critters heads. It then released its very first spell upon them.

 --- You have created a devastating shockwave.

And it was devastating. The ones closest to the epicenter were flattened to the ground like wet pancakes. The remainder went flying. All those hungry beasts were within range of the effect, which meant that none were spared the pain that came with being launched backward across the ground. In the deafening silence that followed, Newb sat in the small crater in the ground, glancing around to make sure that none had survived. And aside from the aforementioned pancakes, there was nothing in its immediate vicinity.

 --- Congratulations, you are the victor! You have gained the following:

  - Congratulations, the following Skills have improved:

   - Augment has improved from Inept to Untrained. Intelligence, Caliber, and Resolve +1. A Skill boost is available.

   - Energy Absorption has improved from Untrained to Amatuer. Willpower +1, Resolve +3.

   - Energy Expulsion has improved from Untrained to Amatuer. Willpower +1, Caliber +3.

  - Congratulations! The amount of EXP you gained has increased due to defeating your opponent in one hit (x59). You are now a Level 12 Slime. Might and Intelligence +2, Vigor and Soul +4.

  - The following have been boosted by Unlimited Potential:

   - Might, Caliber, Resolve, and Soul +2, Awareness +4, Luck +8

   - Augment, Cache, Iron Will, and Stealth have obtained additional SP.

Ah, the sweet feeling of victory… Newb reveled in its gains. The warm feeling from Leveling was still better than the Sun, but maybe it could bask in the warmth of the celestial body while it picked its boosts? It decided that it would search for a safe spot before it did anything brash. See? It was learning!

The slime hopped back over to the rock, which had more than a few cracks in it, and surveyed the damage. There was a crater just shy of the full blast radius from Shockwave that ended about a meter further down than the rest of the ground around it. There were splotches of Monster blood here and there, and a few bodies still in one piece further out from the blast. The jello monster estimated that the furthest one was outside the camp itself. Though from the looks of it, there were a few that pelted the ‘tent’, judging from how it was now lying mostly flat upon the ground.

“... Whoa. Was that the Spell you had used in the Dungeon?” Aylia wondered aloud.

“... Yes.” Newb saw a rare opportunity present itself, and continued, “Impressive, isn’t it.” It was not a question.

“Very. You probably shouldn’t have that Spell… I would use it wisely and sparingly in the future,” the spirit warned. The slime had to agree - with this much devastation, it could probably have wiped out even those ‘speedrunners’ that had gone through the Dungeon some time ago. Especially with its newest acquisition to its Spell repertoire…

The kobold camp did not contain much of anything of use. Even the glorified stick that ‘Harold’ had carried did not hold any value. It really was just a glorified stick, painted with something whose origins were obfuscated... both Aylia and Newb had no desire to know exactly what this ruddy-brown color could be. Upon searching the ‘tent’ however, the couple located at least something of interest. The object had been set upon a pedestal, both of which seemed to be of higher quality. They probably were property of that ‘Warlock Jones’ fellow. The pedestal was made of a fancy stone, now marred with the blood of the kobold that had knocked it over.

The object was small and round, about twenty centimeters in circumference. It was a clear purple, and seemed to swirl with some kind of haze within. It was also reeking of Mana. “What is that?”

Aylia was slow to answer the question, which prompted the impatient jello to ask once more, just to make sure she had heard it. “It is… one of the Orbs of Power.”

The slime just nodded slightly before it asked the obvious follow-up question, “What is an ‘Orb of Power’?”

The spirit soon realized her mistake, a light smacking noise echoing through their mental connection. “An Orb of Power is what several powerful casters had in their possession after the fall of the First Creator, or the one who released Creation to do whatever it desired. The casters were what remained of the Praetorians, or the guard that had served the Creator, after the war with the Great Evil ended…” She took a long breath before continuing. “They were said to be gifts granted unto them by the Creator. What each one did, and how it affected the world around them, were secrets that only the holder of the Orb would know. And no,” she anticipated the follow-up question, “I don’t know which one this is.”

The thoughtful ovoid thought it over for a moment, before it asked another question, “Who is the First Creator?”

Several hours had passed. Aylia had told the slime what every member of the Races knew since their youth about the War and Fall. That led to some additional questions about more common knowledge about Creation and the Great Evil, which she happily supplied. That new information led to more questions about Monsters, and onto the topic about why most did not have souls.

During their conversation, Newb had placed the precious Orb in its Cache, and had proceeded to seek out a nice hiding spot for it to begin its upgrade process. This led to some travel to a bluff overlooking a small meadow prior to some deeper woods. Just a little ways down from the edge was a small shelf that had optimal Sun coverage. The eager jelly hopped down, and proceeded to review its acquisitions, only piping up during the now-lecture with an additional inquiry about the subject.

 -- Augment has the following boosts available:

  - Extend: Allows the uses of Essence to last for a longer time.

  - Enhance: Allows one to increase the effectiveness of any Essence used.

 --- Congratulations, you have acquired the Skill boost, Enhance. Caliber +1.

“So, that big War was all about this ‘Creation’ power, which was able to draw Energy from outside our realm to create new life and ‘Souls’? Isn’t that kind of like ‘Æther’?” Newb interrupted another lengthy explanation. It seemed that Aylia had taken the role of teaching this ‘unknowledgeable’ slime a bit far, and assumed that it could not extrapolate the meaning of anything.

Having heard the summary of her explanation put into such few words startled the spirit for a moment. “Y-yes, that was the point of the War. Sorry. I got a little carried away there.” She cleared her throat before continuing, “As for your other question… in a way, they are similar. Æther is a power granted unto certain entities and objects to ensure that they are able to accomplish what Creation laid out for them to do. One such example of this is the Dungeon Hearts, which you have already seen for yourself. Another example is the Gods, beings that have ascended above the rest to manage bits and pieces of the world in Creation’s place. Their powers are of a higher concentration of Æther, and of a different quality, but are both cut from the same cloth, so to say.”

The slime had become absolutely still at the mention of a ‘greater’ being than the Races and Monsters. It had thought that it had only to overcome the strength of its own kind and those that the Advens made up. It certainly did not expect a third type of being that would trump the others!

Newbs’ thoughts had wandered for a time during the last part until Aylia mentioned cloth, so now the only thing it could think was, What does cloth have to do with anything?

*************

Meanwhile, at a small patch of grass atop a small hill near the Dungeon of Newb…

“So, we left the Dungeon. And since we’ve had no apparent sign of this Monster that had escaped, where should we go now?” A petite red-haired, blue eyed girl, barely 16 years of age, inquired of her companion.

Captain Axis Gheit sat on a stump, slowly chewing a hunk of bread and cheese. His unreadable expression caused the young girl to knit her eyebrows together as she tried, and failed, to get a read on his mood. Axis wouldn’t let anyone know what he truly felt, at any time. “We follow the tracks. There are markings heading off the path, and through these woods.” He swallowed.

The girl thought for a moment, not doubting that this man could track something she couldn’t see. She was, after all, only a Level 5. “If this Monster is so powerful, shouldn’t we have more guards or adventures accompanying us?”

The man shook his head. “No need. They would only slow me down.” Before the girl could say more, he suddenly stood, his senses focusing on a very distant sound. He watched as some birds took flight in the distance, near the thicker woods. He held up his hand to stop his companion from asking needless questions, then pointed. “We need to head that way.”

The girl turned her head towards where he was pointing, “What was it? How do you know?”

Axis just responded with, “I can feel it. Come, my lady. We should find the location of this disturbance by tomorrow. Then it is only a matter of time until we can put this whole thing behind us and go home.”

He and Princess Rikia Seimens, unwilling heir to the Kingdom of Carminas, grabbed their gear and went towards the place that the Captain knew his prey would be. It didn’t bother him, knowing that his other prey was right next to him...