I awoke from my dream surrounded by my lizard friends slowly rising from my spot I noticed my body didn't hurt. The two dreams occupy my attention, an egg to the east and a sibling to the south in some sort of underground city. My thoughts are interrupted by the flashing notification over my stamina, I had never allocated attributes from the wolf kills. Checking my attributes and remembering that STR and PER were the primary for the first wolf I killed I decide to put the first wolf into PER.
PER +0.98 = 8 (8.09)
Seeing that it gave just less than one full attribute point I decide to put the last wolf into it as well. Hoping it would be enough to bring PER up to nine.
PER +0.86 = 8(8.95)
*Damn so close.*
I check the position of the sun and see that it is still low in the sky, the day barely begun. I move to the cave entrance and survey the carnage of my mad dash to cover what had happened. The ground is covered in blood. A drizzle of rain causing the ground to start becoming a slurry of mud and blood. I check for any potential threats, seeing none I launch towards the pond.
*Maybe I should dig through the cave to get behind the waterfall, that would massively reduce my exposure as well as the lizards exposure.*
Mulling over the pros and cons of that I get to fishing, catching five fish in the first attempt. Moving back to the cave the drizzle quickly becomes a downpour of huge rain drops. The rain not bothering me as I expected it to. The water droplets splash off my scales and my eye caps naturally close to keep the water out. My memories of being wet and uncomfortable clash with my current feelings towards the large droplets falling on me. The large droplets hinder the use of my wings, the weight of them making me think it might be a bad idea to try flying in the current weather.
Arriving back at the clearing in front of the cave I can see the rain has washed away most of the giant footprints. The slurry of muddy blood becoming thick, I try to use my wings to clear the gap but end up landing hard about half way to the cave entrance. The mud covering me up to my underscales as I pick my self up out of it. Reaching the top of the slope rising up to the cave mouth I try to shake myself off, much of the mud comes off quickly. I spread my wings out catching as much of the rain as I can and allowing it to run down my body. After a few minutes the natural shower has me relatively clean.
I move to the back of the cave and upend the Space bag with the five fish and water. The puddle of water quickly becoming a miniature pond. I direct the lizard with the enhanced brain to kill fish until it gets another full attribute point of INT. It follows the directions quickly, the already enhanced INT allowing it to quickly dispatch fish. It only takes two of the five fish for its INT to raise another level. Grek's brain density now only appearing to be a quarter more dense than this lizards brain.
Attempting to get a name out of it I project, *What should we call you?*
Its head tilts, making me anxious that the new INT wasn't enough before it responds *Clessh*
*Excellent, Clessh, welcome to the family! This is Grek* I project pointing one of my claws at Grek.
Grek nods in response, to my telepathic communications. Moving to one of the three remaining lizards I direct it to do the same. Just like Grek and Clessh the first attempts at killing the fish are sloppy but after it puts the first point into INT the lizard is able to quickly kill the remaining fish. Watching its brain density carefully I watch as the first fish increases the density by double, the remaining two fish increases the density by another fifty percent. Confirming my suspicions that the lizards start at one INT, which puts this third lizard at three, Clessh at four, and Grek at five.
*Does that mean Grek is half as intelligent as I am? That would be assuming the increase is linear. At three they seem to have a good understand of language but their ability to respond is incredibly limited. Four intelligence seems to be the break point for actual communication even if it isn't that polished.*
I snap out of my thoughts as I notice all of the lizards staring intently at me. The five fish piled in front of them as though they are waiting for permission to eat.
*Are you hungry?* I project to all of them.
Grek and Clessh both respond *Yess*.
The third lizard responds *Yuss*.
The remaining two nod emphatically.
Chuckling to myself I send *Then eat!*
*I keep thinking like they are pets, but I feel like they are much better mannered than any pets I can remember*
The briefly memory of a dog snatching an unattended sandwich flashes through my mind. I try to focus on that memory more but the details surrounding it are nowhere to be found. It's like a single moment in time that I can remember without remembering any of the details about the dog or sandwich, just the moment itself is available to my memory. It is a strange feeling knowing that my memories of my previous life must still be there, but only being able to see small instants of time with no supporting information. Coming back to the present from my reminiscing I find that the fish are gone, all of the lizards laying in different spots of the cave seeming very content.
Unsure of what to do with myself today with the rain, I decide to work on my Space affinity. Attaching a ribbon to the Space bag and then slowly stretching it until the head ache becomes to much. It doesn't take long for the head ache to prevent me from pushing any further but I once again can tell I have made some incremental progress. I decide to start excavating as I wait for the head ache to subside enough for me to continue practicing. I start enlarging the tunnel on the east that leads to the bedroom I can no longer access. Keeping the tunnel sloping upwards slightly but find that expanding the bedroom to fit my new size leads to the tunnel being only a slight increase in elevation from the main cave. The seven shelves now at head height for me but much higher off the ground compared to the old lay out. The extra shelves fill me with sadness, the first death being fully my fault and the second being something I should've tried harder to prevent.
After removing the debris from the cave with my Space bag I being tunneling towards the entrance of the cave, using the bedroom as a junction point. I try to angle down slightly but realize after the first filling of my space bag that I am not doing a good job at it only being a slight angle down.
As I move through the cave to dump the bag I send to Grek *Can you come stand towards the cave entrance for me.* They nod back not bothering to respond mentally. *If you see anything that looks dangerous outside the cave do not hesitate, just run back up to safety!* They nod again.
After dumping the bag outside I move back into the new northward tunnel, realizing my angle is a lot steeper than I had intended, I'm almost level with Grek even though they are quite a distance in front of me. I had left them at roughly three quarters of the way to the entrance and I am no more than half way. Mentally patting myself on the back for not just continuing I start to level off the tunnel once I'm at the same height as Grek. The second filling of my Space bag brings me almost to Grek, I move back out to the cave mouth and dump this second load. I try to gauge how far in terms of my strides Grek is from the cave entrance and find that they are roughly twenty strides.
Using this measurement I continue my excavation and begin slowing when I am roughly fifteen strides past Grek. Moving back to the main cavern I find Clessh and ask them to go to the end of the new tunnel and wait there until I come get them. They shoot off into the tunnel without hesitating. Moving down the cave and dumping the bag outside I notice that Clessh is only three strides from the cliff face.
*Perfect! That went better than I expected. I wonder if I can communicate with them through the wall.*
I project to Clessh *You can go back now* I can see their Aura snap rigid for a moment before they shoot back up the tunnel.
*Huh, I'll have to test the range on that as well as the limitations for communicating through objects.*
Moving back into the eastward tunnel I being my excavation work again. I make three trips of dumping my bag before I have Clessh move to the end of the tunnel. The rain has significantly lessened by this point so I attempt a quick flight towards the pond to gauge how far I have left. I can see Clessh's aura roughly a third of the over all distance to the pond and a little bit lower than where I expected. Moving back to the cave I decide to continue the slight downward slope but aim to make a small hole to dump the debris from instead of making the trek all the way back to the main cave. The sky is still heavy with rain clouds but I can see the aura of the sun has reached its zenith by this point.
When I arrive back at the main cavern I realize my headache is almost completely gone so I start stretch my sheet of Space mana more. It doesn't take long for the headache to come back, but the small incremental gains certainly seem worth the small pain. Arriving back at the end of the tunnel towards the pond I tell Clessh they can go back or stay if they want. They choose to stay and watch me work as I turn to the left and start making a small hole that can only fit my arm, after I get as far as I can I widen the hole and then repeat the process. It takes another five repetitions of this before my claw goes through the cliff face, I widen this hole a very small amount before seeing if I can fit the folded Space bag. Finding this to be enough I pull my body out of the cramped space and begin digging towards the pond again. Clessh watches this whole process intently.
As I'm digging I feel Clessh climbing up my tail and perching between my wings. Looking back I can see them watching intently as I dig. Chuckling at the comedy of a small lizard perched on a dragon I continue digging. The next three Space bag dumps take significantly less time with the shorter distance that I need to travel. Using Grek's position as a marker I feel confident that I have not deviated too close to the cliff face but I decide it is worth it to make sure. I have Clessh hope down and wait at the end of the tunnel as I make the trek back to the main cave and then outside. I briefly check my surrounding before moving towards the pond, the heavy rain drops making flight impossible.
Finding Clessh's aura I can see that I have made more progress than I expected, now easily three quarters of the way to the pond. I decide to make this trip worth it and I continue to the pond, I dip my tail in and begin the nearly automatic movements of fishing. I take stock of my surroundings again, turning my Aura sight up higher than I normally can during the day due to the cloud cover. In the distance North East of my poistion I see an Aura that causes my heart to seize in my chest, two giants moving to westward. I check to see if there are any fish taking the bait and there are only three, I snap the bag out under them collecting them as quick as I can before folding it back up and sprinting back towards the cave.
As I arrive back at the cave I check my Aura sight again and find that I cannot see the giants any longer. I turn my Aura sight up more but find that the bright pink aura of the sun prevents me from seeing any further. Moving to the back of the cave I tell Grek as I pass them that there are giants outside in the forest. They immediately run back up to the main cavern as I follow. I dump the water and fish into the makeshift pond before telling the three INT lizard to kill them and put the points into INT.
They happily oblige and I eat the fish after they are done dispatching them. My stomach still feeling hungry after the small amount of food. I can see that the density of this lizards brain has reached the same level as Clessh after these fish.
I project to it *What should we call you?*
It looks back at me and without nearly as much hesitation as Clessh I hear back *Mektha*
*Welcome to the family Mektha, this is Grek* I project pointing towards Grek *and Clessh is down the new tunnel. Please stay inside the cave and help Grek and Clessh keep the others inside, it is very dangerous outside.*
Mektha tilts its head in response before sending back *Yess*
Hoping that the message wasn't too much for them to understand I move back down the tunnel towards the pond, it takes a minute before I reach Clessh. I warn them about the giants outside before I turn my Aura sight up to the max and look for the giants' Auras. I can see them further West of us still moving in that direction, hoping that they don't turn towards the cave I continue digging. As I fill the Space bag I begin to hear the sound of the waterfall crashing into the pond. Clessh watches from my shoulders as I dig and begins to turn their head to the side as the sound gets louder.
*What sound?* Clessh askes me, surprising me with the mental question. Up to this point I had thought they could only respond if I asked them a question. Now wondering if my telepathy went even further and allowed me to read their surface thoughts or if maybe they were telepathic as well.
*A waterfall* I respond.
*Waterfall?* They question back.
*Yes, it is a large river of water falling off the top of the cliff*
It seems to ponder that for a while as I continue to dig before settling back in as the sound continues to grow. Having filled the bag to capacity I turn back to my dump spot. I check my Aura sight again before dumping the bag, hoping to prevent the giants from noticing rock appearing from nowhere. I can not see the giants any longer in my Aura sight, hoping that means they continued to the west on whatever trek they were making. I dump the bag and move back to digging. The waterfall quickly becomes an overwhelming sound in the small tunnel as I dig. The bag filling quickly I move back to dump it and look for the giants again. This time I see the giant auras but instead of moving West they are now moving East, they seem to still be on the far side of the cave so I dump the bag and move back down the tunnel.
As I dig I notice the sound of the waterfall begins to lessen slightly, assuming I have dug beyond the waterfall I stop digging and move back to where it is at its loudest. The exact point hard to discern because the sound fills the tunnel and echoes. I start digging a small slope up to the south away from the water fall and create a room that I can turn around in. Not wanting to have to continually back my way up this tunnel every time I go to fish. This fills the rest of my bag so I move back to the small hole I have been dumping debris from.
The giants Auras are clearly visible standing around the small hole I have been using to dump debris. My heart drops into my stomach my anxiety spiking causing my blood to feel like its on fire.
*Stay quiet* I project to Clessh *The giants are just outside.*
I watch the giant Auras as they seem to walk around the area, one of them kicking at the ground. This goes on for a few minutes before they finally start moving away from the cliff to the north. I stand there, heart pounding, as I watch them leave my Aura sight.
*Fuck that was close*
Hoping that this excavation hasn't piqued their interest even more I dump the debris before telling Clessh to go wait in the new room. They bolt off down the tunnel as I make my way back to the main cave. I pass through the old bedroom and see the two unnamed lizards resting in the shelves, Mektha and Grek are by the edge of the now larger pool of water in the main cave.
*The giants seem to have left the area, but I don't think it is safe yet. They may be back* I project to both of them.
They both clearly understand as they move back to the guard spots the lizards had used previously. I move to the front of the cave and notice the rain seems to be coming to an end.
*I need to be quick about this, if the giants catch me out there is no way they leave. Especially after those first two investigated because they thought they saw a celestial dragon. I wonder what is so special about us that one race will imprison us and another will kill us on sight. She didn't tell me what these giants will do, I'll have to ask next time I see her.*
Making sure the coast is clear more thoroughly this time I launch back towards the pond, as I fly low to the ground I notice boot prints outside of the cave. Flying over my debris pile I can see that the giant had kicked it flat, the small pile of my most recent dumping standing out to me as I soar over it. Arriving back at the pond I can see Clessh's Aura behind the waterfall, closer to the far side but still thoroughly behind it.
*Perfect* I think as I check my surround. *Be greedy or not?* The thought shoots through my mind as I dip my tail back into the water. Hoping the fish become interested quickly so I can get back to the safety of my cave. Six fish quickly respond, I shoot the bag out under them and unfold it sucking them into it as I refold the bag. I pull it up next to me and then start moving back to the cave. I arrive back at the small pile of debris and do my best using my wings to spread the pile out, hoping to disguise the extra debris I have dumped.
I then launch into the air hoping to prevent myself from leaving a trail up into the cave. I land just outside before moving up into the cave and dumping the six fish and water into the growing pool of water. Hopeful this trip will be much safer and the progression of my lizard friends much more secure. Still feeling the pains of hunger I go and get one of the two unnamed lizards, giving them the same instructions as the previous lizards I watch as they grab one of the fish.
The lizard has a very difficult time killing the fish, it doesn't get thrown to the ground like when Grek did but it does flop around the cave for a bit. The fishes head ends up impact the cave wall hard enough to cause its Aura to dissipate and the lizard allocates the points to INT. After the first attempt the following five fish are quickly dispatched. That first point of intelligence does wonders for their ability to effectively dispatch the fish. I eat all of the fish as they finish killing them still hungry but no longer suffering from hunger pains.
I watch as the lizard's brain reaches the same density that seems to correspond with a four in INT. Realizing that fortunately the six fish were enough for that. Asking the lizard for a name to call it by leads to an interesting result.
*Flough Karack Befithifle* Was it's instantaneous response.
*Umm What?* The three distinct names catching me by surprise. Its eyes seemed to twinkle at my response.
*Karack okay for you* It says, the twinkle still present in its eyes.
*Are you fucking with me right now?*
A nod the only response forth coming, the twinkle in its eyes growing.
*God damn it, you really had me there Karack. I didn't expect humor from one of you.* Deciding I liked the lizard even more after that I chuckled as I walked down the tunnel towards the waterfall. Clessh was still in the room I asked them to wait in they had laid down and seemed to be sleeping when I reached them.
*You can go back if you'd like but stay in the cave, those giants probably aren't far away*
*I stay* Clessh responds as they stand up.
*Okay, Just stay back a little, I'm not sure what will happen when I break through.*
Hoping Clessh listens I begin working on the wall aimed towards the waterfall. Knowing that the water fall center is slightly to the left I begin digging slightly left with a fairly steep slope down. It doesn't take long before my claw breaks through the wall and a small amount of water begins to splash into the tunnel. Widening the hole so I can see out I see that I am still quiet a distance up from the ponds surface. I turn so that I am digging parallel to the cliff face and continue my steep angle down for roughly my body length before making a small landing and then digging back East at the same steep slope. Turning towards the cliff wall I continue digging until my claw breaks through the wall. A much larger amount of water beings splashing in as I widen the hole. Peering out I can see that the hole is just barely above the surface of the water.
Realizing that if I break through all the way down to the floor that the area would flood up to my belly I begin to work on making a small area that will be above the water line. I move back up the slope and begin digging to the south. I don't get far before my bag is full of stone. Moving back to the lower hole I slip the bag through and dump the contents into the pond. The splashes of stones dropping into the water cause a few waves of water to splash up into the hole, coating the floor with water. I continue my excavation leading to a small landing on the south side of the sloped tunnel down where I can easily fit.
Expanding the lower area so that I can stretch my snout and tail out and barely touch the walls, I once again fill the Space bag so I dump it out the hole. Causing more water to spill in, satisfied with the size of the area I begin slowly digging the opening down until water begins to cascade into the area. I widen the hole just above the water line so it is roughly the width of my shoulders before I cut it down to just below the water level of the pond. This causes the pond to create a small waterfall as the lower room begins to fill. I perch up on the small area I had made above the water level and watch the room begin to fill.
My head laying on the stone as I relax I feel Clessh climb up onto my shoulders and lay there. We both watch as the water bubbles and splashes as it slowly fills the room. When the water has risen to the hole I pick my head up and start to rise. Clessh dashes off of me as I slide into the water, I begin digging down into the water so that the hole goes a small distance under the water. I push the extra debris out into the pond instead of filling up my bag. Hoping this ledge allows fish in while preventing easy escape I perch back up on my ledge and wait.
In my Aura sight I can see fish coming to explore this new area but they are unable to swim up in or unwilling. Realizing my hope for a passive fish trap is probably not going to work I dig the rest of the wall out and push this debris into the pond as well before getting back up on my perch. While I wait to see if fish will swim in on their own I begin stretching the sheet of Space mana again, the headache comes much faster than previously making me think I'm approaching the end of my ability to stretch the sheet any further.
As I wait for the headache to subside I notice that some fish are coming up to the lower lip of the room. They edge in slightly before shooting back out after a few minutes the first brave fish swims all the way into the room exploring the edges before it swims out into the pond. This leads to more fish coming into the room and swimming around. My plan to have a safe fishing spot as well as a potential escape route a success I start climbing back up the slope to the tunnel. The slope is wet from the water splashing in from my first hole but doesn't appear to hinder my climbing. Afraid that this will eventually become to slick I gouge a small line into the middle of the slope, giving the water a controlled path down into the room below.
After making the modification I move back to the main cave and inform the lizards about the new area. Telling them they can go check it out if they would like.
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*Can you swim?* I project to Grek, hoping his higher intelligence allows him to understand my meaning.
*Yess, not well* His response comes quickly.
Hoping 'not well' means well enough to escape that way if they have to I lay down and attach a ribbon of Space mana back to the sheet of Space mana. I begin pushing in this time instead of stretching the sheet itself, the head aches warning me of my strain start much slower than I expect. I make my way back to the waterfall to check on the lizards, finding them all lounging by the edge of the water watching the fish swim in the water below them. The water filled portion of the room has seven fish swimming around in it, I place the Space bag at the bottom of the water and unfold it. Six of the seven fish get sucked into the bag, the final one shooting out through the waterfall. I fold the bag back up and tell the unnamed lizard to follow me. It seems confused for a minute but eventually seems to catch on.
We trek back to the main cave and I upend the fish into the small pool, the water getting deep at this point I worry that the lizard wont be able to catch the fish. I project to it the same instructions I have to all the others and it seems to catch on. The depth of the pool making it difficult for it to catch one of the fish but after a few attempts it manages to grab one. Flailing about the cave before it finally manages to hit the fishes head off the ground hard enough to kill it. The further attempts at catching the fish go much smoother, bolstered by the increase in intelligence.
When it kills the sixth fish it finally reaches the same brain density as the other lizards excluding Grek. I immediately project to it *Welcome to the family, what should we call you?*
*Limaea* The mental voice replies after a short pause. The mental voice of this lizard seems much softer than the others.
The progress for the day seems astounding, even though I still have not progressed personally. My added excavation allowing the lizards safe places to go if we get attacked again. The safe fishing provided by the small cave behind the waterfall feels like a massive step forwards. The back of my mind is still plagued by the increased presence of giants around the cave, as well as the potential for another wolf attack tonight.
*I really hope killing that large wolf made them decide to leave us alone. Nothing good can come from more of them attacking and bringing the giants attention even more to the cave.*
I move to the entrance of the cave, checking the suns position I find that it is almost set. The sky tapestry of purple and red peeking through the remaining cloud cover. The area in front of the cave is a horror show, bloody mud now drying causing the ground to be a red-brown. The remaining corpses have been picked almost entirely clean by scavengers at this point. Fur and bones being the majority of what is left some partially sinking into the mud. I move back just inside the cave and watch as the sun sets, as I watch the sky change colors I work on trying to pull a fifth thread of Raw mana. Each time I fail my head pounds on the fourth attempt I finally find success. The thread is difficult to hold and causes my head to pound continuously as I draw it forwards I use all five threads to make a quick one compression missile. The missile snapping together in half a second, I astound myself with the speed.
System Message: Skill Mana Manipulation Rank 1->2
A smile cracks my lips as I dismiss the message. The breakthrough coming faster than I expected. I immediately try to pull five threads again and find that the fifth thread is just as solidly in my control as the others. My head still pounds but it doesn't grow and seems to just be residual from my previous creation. I let the threads go as I send the missile I already created into the ground, not wanting the illumination to give me away. The sun's final rays disappear shortly after as night takes hold over the forest. Maxing my Aura sight out I see that the wolves have definitely not given up their pursuit. My stomach growls reminding me that I have not eaten all that much today. I walk back up to Limaea and start eating the fish they killed.
With two left on the ground I project *Are you hungry?*
They nod their head so I leave the last two fish for them to eat before I start crafting advanced missiles. The fifth thread of raw mana allows me to complete a missile in roughly a minute and a half. The speed increase of only a single thread surprises me until I realize its the new thread compounded with my own experience at creating them. I find that I can utilize all of the threads at once, it looks like a maypole being made with the threads all spinning around the central core. As I am finishing the third advanced missile I hear the howls of the wolves from just outside the cave. Turning my attention to the entrance I see easily twenty wolves, all of them seem to be sitting a good distance from the cave well out of range of my missiles.
*Well, I guess they aren't completely stupid, but what is their plan? Just hope I run out and jump into their jaws?*
Hoping my new scales will at least give me some protection I decide I will have to take the fight to them. I finish the last missile and then move towards the cave entrance. As I pass Limaea a though crosses my mind, *Limaea, please make sure you all stay in the cave*
The reply comes quickly *Yess*
I launch out of the cave mouth quickly gaining altitude as I soar above the wolves. I notice quickly that the sizes of the wolves vary greatly, outside of their second attack this is the only time I have seen this much variation. Finding one of the smaller wolves I fly lower over it, hoping to bait an attack. It immediately obliges me and leaps up trying to snap up at me. I release only a tenth of my breath directly into its mouth, the liquid visibly sticking to the inside of its mouth before it snaps it shut. The pained cries begin almost immediately but I can already tell that the wolf is dead. The mass of dark veins easily taking up half of the overall Aura of the wolf.
As the wolf falls to the ground the other wolves start leaping up at my now much lower altitude. My low dive putting me within range of the larger wolves, as I notice this I being beating my wings attempting to gain enough altitude for them not to catch me. I'm just barely too slow as one of them bites into the end of my tail.
System message [-3] Health {Piercing}
I immediately send a missile at its left eye, hoping to cause it to let go. The missile explodes into its eye quickly shooting through the orb and into its brain. Fortunately the wolf releases its grip before it dies, unfortunately it pulls me almost all the way to the ground before doing so. I attempt to gain altitude again but can tell the next closest wolf will reach me well before I get out of its range. I release my breath straight up into the air, the cloud portion of my breath creating a barrier around me as the liquid portions shoot up like a fountain. The wolf immediately pulls back from the dark purple cloud seeming to understand how deadly it can be. The liquid portions rain back down, some sticking to me as I gain altitude rapidly.
The portions sticking to me cause me to have a trail of dark purple smoke as I raise back up to a safe altitude. It is only after I am above the wolves range that I realize how close that was, three wolves had closed the gap and were ready to pounce, held back only by the dark purple cloud.
*Two down... eighteen to go.*
I look for another smaller wolf and find one close by. I maneuver over so that I am above it circling around it to try and bait out another foolish attack from it. It doesn't take the bait, having just watched me easily kill one of it's packmates. Checking on my breath I realize I only have half left.
*Shit, I didn't mean to use that much as protection.*
I move my missiles under my body so that I can obscure them with my front claws. I then dive at the wolf, pulling up as I watch it's body go taut. My sudden move causes it to prematurely jump up at me. I shoot a missile into its mouth, aiming to have it impact the roof, hoping for it to blast through into its brain. As I push my wings hard to get out of range of the larger wolves I lose sight of the small wolf. When I feel safely out of the range of the wolves I look back to see if the missile connected as I wanted it to. The wolf is convulsing on the ground, it's Aura looks strange. I can see the wolves body in my normal vision but the Aura doesn't go below its neck region.
*Huh, I haven't seen that before. I wish I had been able to watch what happened to create that result.*
Having two more missiles and half my breath I realize the seventeen more wolves still in fighting shape are going to be far too much for me. Hoping to score at least one more kill before I try to get back to the cave I move towards the edge of the pack. Aiming to be on the far side of the wolves from the cave so I can lead them away from it. I see one of the wolves that is a little farther from its pack and start to dive bomb it. Unleashing both missiles before I see its body tense, the wolf leaps to the side. The missiles are still within my control range though so I just change their trajectory. The wolves eyes shoot open in surprise, making my target that much larger. The missiles each impact an eye, causing the wolves head to snap back as two geysers of blood shoot from its head. The body being rocked backwards from the force of the impact and the final attempt to dodge.
*Sixteen more.*
This drives the wolves into a frenzy, they begin jumping at me even though I am well out of their range. I continue flying away from the cave hoping that I will be able to out pace them. I feel the beginning signs of fatigue growing between my wings. Checking my stamina I see that it has just dropped below fifty percent. I gain a little more altitude before banking back towards the cave. The wolves still snapping at the air beneath me. As I come around in the bank I aim straight for the cave entrance, using all my might to gain as much speed as I can. The wolves lose a little bit of distance as the slip in the mud and bushes below me, but quickly regain their footing.
I blast back towards the cave, quickly reaching the clearing in front of it, I snap my wings out once trying to slow myself as much as I can. The cave entrance rapidly approach me far to fast. I shoot another quarter of my breath out below me as I hear the wolves breach the bushes at the edge of the clearing. Snapping my wings back into my sides I brace for impact, my legs catching my body but quickly becoming overwhelmed with the force of my body. My head swings forwards like an upside down pendulum, my shoulders impacting the ground first. The rest of my body arcs up and over my head making me look like a large misshapen scorpion. I slide forwards, quickly stopped by the upwards slope of the cave.
System Message: [-6] Health {Blunt}
*Less than I expected* Shoots through my mind as I pick myself up, trying my best to ignore all the new pains. I don't even bother looking over my shoulder as I dash up the incline, stopping when I know I am out of range. As I turn I immediately see that three of the wolves ran straight into my breath, they must have been close enough that they couldn't stop in time. Two of them lay on the ground in a heap while the third walks off to the left off the cave. Another wolf is picking itself up off the ground closer to the cave.
*Did it fall over the other two in their mad dash??* I think as I watch the wolf it starts pacing back and forth in front of the cave. Small veins of darkness quickly recede from its Aura seeming to have done little to the wolf. The other two wolves slowly recovering from their much larger doses behind it. I quickly craft four single compression missiles and send them at the wolf, aiming to damage its legs, hoping to reduce its maneuverability. The wolf being well within my range of control doesn't stand a chance. The first missile impacts its front right shoulder as it tries to dodge, the next three following it through the air and slamming into the same spot as the first.
I craft another four as the wolf's limp begins to show, still pacing close to the cave it seems to think it is not in danger. Looking to prove it wrong I unleash my second volley the wolf immediately jumps up looking like it is trying to jump over the missiles. All four of them once again slam into the right shoulder, this time impacting into the pit of the leg instead of the outside. The effect of the missiles shows itself as the wolf lands, the leg snapping at the shoulder joint causing the wolf to pitch forwards and to the right.
Leaping on the opportunity I quickly form a missile and send it straight at the wolf's eye. The wolf doesn't have any time to react as the missile slams into the orb. The eye explodes at the impact bloody fluid spraying from the eye as the wolf cries in agony. Unfortunately for me the missile does not have enough power to kill the wolf, but it is very clearly out of the fight.
During this quick exchange the other wolves Auras that went into my breath have recovered, losing the dark veins, the Aura still showing a large dip in density. They seem cautious compared to the other thirteen uninjured wolves still stalking towards my cave in the bush. I craft more missiles watching as the wolf closest to the cave begins to pull itself off the ground. Only having three good legs makes the process take a significant amount of time allowing me to complete another four missiles. I release them as I complete the last one, sending them at the small joint just above its foot. The missiles all impacting at the same time cause a loud cracking sound as the joint bends the wrong way. The wolf once again eating the dirt in front of it. Realizing this wolf is out of the fight probably permanently I begin hunting for a new target. I see the two that took large doses of my breath stalking behind the front line seeming uninterested in pursuing this attack. I quickly craft another four missiles before checking my stamina. My stamina sits at seventy percent, with four notifications flashing above it.
*Did the one I paralyzed die? I only confirmed three of the kills*
I still have sight of the wolf that is heavily wounded but it is definitely still alive. The approaching wolves are within my missile control range giving me comfort in my capability to maim them. I choose the closest wolf and begin trying to hit its eyes with my four missiles. Being uninjured the wolf easily dodges the first missile but I redirect it quickly into one of the other wolves, the missile doing little damage. The second impacts the side of the wolf as the third and forth hit the snout, one of them barely missing the eye. The wolf's wounds seem superficial from my vantage but the wolf begins to back away from the cave.
Crafting yet another set of missiles as they continue creeping forwards I realize my only chance is to fight a war of attrition. I unleash all four missiles at the same time once again trying to take an eye with them. My luck seeming to have run dry I only manage to do superficial damage again. I retreat back into the cave, beginning to construct more of the advanced missiles as the wolves stalk around the outside of the cave. One of them begins digging at the entrance the wolf manages to dig away at the slope leading up to the cave but doesn't seem to damage the cave itself that much. It gives up a short while later as I am finishing the second advanced missile.
I watch them start to roam farther and farther from the cave entrance, a large group waiting in the bushes near the cave preventing me from being able to safely take flight again. I complete the fourth missile and move to the cave entrance again. The wolf's digging has entirely destroyed the slope leading up into the cave, preventing me from having a space to stand on outside of the cave without moving to the ground.
*Shit, now I can't even safely fly out of the cave at all with them here. I don't have a good launching point to spread my wings on now.*
My plan for bombarding them while in flight falls apart as I start brain storming other ideas. Moving up to the western tunnel I start looking out of the small hole I had created previously to shoot missiles from. Directly below me is one of the wolves crouched down facing the cave it seems to be unaware of me. I send one missile out of the hole and aim for the base of its skull, hoping to hit the spine where it connects. The wolf next to my target notices the missile at the last second and tries to warn the target. It is far too late though as the missile impacts the base of its skull, blood exploding from the impact as the wolf's body goes rigid for a moment before fully collapsing. Its Aura of its body collapses inwards, leaving Aura only showing its head and brain. Watching intently I can see the density of its brain slowly begin to lessen before it blinks out, the remaining Aura dissipating into the air.
*Well that was effective... a single advanced missile to the eye or spine seems to be enough to kill one of them, but successfully hitting those areas seems to require quite a bit of luck.*
My System Messages now flashing saying I have five notifications. Knowing that the wolves will now be on guard for another attack I begin excavating the room further to the east, hoping to open another hole to attack from. I fill my now much larger Space bag quickly as I dig, moving back to the hole I watch the wolves below. I push the bag out as far as I can, positioning it above one of the wolves, they seem to be unaware of the folded Space mana hanging above them. I flip it over and unfold it, dumping rocks and debris from a good height down onto them. The earthen waterfall impacts them causing them to cry out in pain before moving back into the bushes. I can't tell how much impact the improvised attack had on the wolf.
I fill the bag once more as I excavate farther East before I start to try and make a new hole. My impromptu tunnel is clearly angled away from the cliff wall because it takes me a lot longer than I expected to break through. After I break through I dump the contents of the bag and begin filling it with the debris from making the hole. I then begin widening the hole to allow me another shooting spot. As the hole widens I can see that I have over shot the cave entrance by a good margin I find myself roughly half way to the bushes to the East of the caves entrance. Down to my right I see another pair of wolves crouched in the bushes, both staring up at the hole where the rocks just rained down from.
*Shit I shouldn't have been so lazy and gone back to my previous hole. Now I can't sneak attack them from up here.*
I watch the wolves for a moment hoping that they will stop paying attention to the new hole. I am not that fortunate, both of them keeping their eyes on the new hole while staying completely still. Pulling back to my initial shooting hole I begin crafting a missile to replace the one I shot. The process being almost automatic at this point I pull up the five notifications and being allocating attributes. I put the first one into PER, having barely missed get that to nine from the previous wolf.
PER +0.78 = 9(9.73)
The reduced amount not surprising me as it follows the same pattern as all of my other attributes to this point. Knowing that STR will give me the next best gains from a wolf I mull over getting that to nine as well but end up deciding that raising WIS or CHA from five would probably be more worth the investment. Knowing WIS affects my decision making abilities I opt to go with that over CHA.
WIS +0.19 =5(5.12)
*WHAT!? only 0.19 for a full wolf?? Now that seems wasteful compared to continuing to pump PER and STR. I need to find something that gives me more points towards WIS... or I guess I could go kill a few hundred fish again.*
Not wanting to waste the remaining three wolves I put points into STR.
STR +(0.87+0.78)=9(9.67)
Taking two of the remaining three wolf attributes to get it above nine, this does not surprise me after the PER fiasco from the day before.
*Hmm it seems like I can get STR to ten or PER to ten, PER will probably be more likely to save my life.*
PER +0.71=10(10.44)
Breaking ten points in PER makes a huge different in my hearing as well as sight. My Aura sight seems to extend instantly further, sounds become much more distinct as well as hearing sounds I didn't hear before.
*Interesting, so there is the linear affect of the points themselves but also seems to be a threshold, I wonder if all the stats have a threshold at ten or if only some do.*
Hoping to get one of the lizards INT to ten in the near future to test that theory I focus back on the problem before me. The wolves have moved away from both of the holes I created, the nearest wolf to each watching the holes intently. Realizing my attacks will be much harder to hit with them paying attention an idea pops into my head. I unfold my Space bag and try to put a missile inside as the missile passes the barrier my control over it severely reduces. I can still control it but it feels sloppy and slow. Folding the bag up I can still feel the missile but trying to control it doesn't feel like it does anything. Unfolding the bag I see that the missile is in the exact same position. I test this further, pushing the folded bag out through the West hole I position it above the nearest wolf. I flip the bag over and partially unfold it, I feel my control again over the missile as I unfold it and being to move it out of the bag. Even trying to make the missile go as fast as possible I find it moving incredibly slow until it crosses the threshold.
As the missile crosses the threshold it shoots off, surprising me at how quickly it sped up after leaving the bag. The wolf doesn't even see it coming as the missile impacts the top of its skull, barely missing the base. The wolf's head is driven into the ground by the impact of the missile. It cries in pain as it begins to pick itself up off the ground and look around to try and find the source of its pain.
*Well, that is a fun trick.*
I pull the bag back to myself and put the other three missiles in. The confused wolf is staring back up at the hole, seeming to be unaware of the attack coming its way. I slip the folded bag back out of the hole and position it again above the wolf. This time moving it down closer to the wolf until it stops moving, having hit the limit of my control on it. I notice at this moment that my control range on my missiles is easily five times further than my control on the bag. Moving that thought to the back of my mind I unfold the bag again, unleashing another missile onto the unsuspecting wolf. This time I catch its spine, the same Aura implosion happening in its body, leaving just the head and brain's Aura before they slowly disappear as well.
I fold the Space bag back up and pull it back into the cave. The nearest wolf on the West side being out of easy range of my attacks. As I move to the East hole I can see that these wolves have crept up, seeming to have determined that the rocks were not a threat. They are now only slightly East of the hole itself, both staring at the cave entrance. Moving the folded Space bag out of the hole again I position it in between the two wolves nearest the cliff face. I push it all the way out to the limit of my control again as I unfold it above them. I unleash both missiles aiming again for the base their skulls where the spine connects. The wolf nearest the cave moves at the last second, causing the missile to left of where its spine is. The second wolf is not so lucky, the missile severing its spine and leaving it paralyzed on the ground as it dies.
The first wolf reacts immediately, leaping over the other wolf's body as it runs back into the bushes away from the cave. This attack finally seems to break the packs spirit and they all begin moving away from the cave. I watch as they run into the distance only getting a short distance before more Auras appear at the edge of my newly expanded Aura sight.
I watch in horror as six giants enter my Aura sight, they are spread out in groups of two, walking directly towards the cave. The wolves seem to be unaware of the giants as they continue to run in that general direction. I watch as the giants and wolves notice each other at roughly the same time. The wolves all turning sharply trying to move away from the new threat. They are not nearly quick enough, four wolves dying almost immediately. It happens so fast I can't even tell what the giants actually do to kill them.
Not wasting anymore time watching this, I fold my Space bag and pull it to me. I rush down the tunnel and through the cave. Quickly moving down the Eastern tunnel towards the rooms behind the waterfall. The lizards are all still in the lower room watching the fish swim around below them.
*The giants are coming* I project to all of them, the fear rolling off of them is easily picked up by my telepathy even though they do not respond. I expand this lower room so that we all have enough room to hide down here to weather this new storm, I fill my Space bag half way from the expansion but don't dare to empty it with the giants outside. Watching through the rock, my aura sight severely diminished by the amount of rock between us I watch as the giants arrive at the cave.
They move around outside the cave for a long time, bending over and inspecting different things which I can only assume are the wolf corpses. Two of them move towards the pond along the cliff face while another two move west. The last pair stays at the cave entrance, walking around the area but not going far. I can hear the two giants outside of the waterfall as the approach.
"This is very strange, this cave seems to be the epicenter for some strange activities." The first states
"I agree, whatever is killing these wolves is something we haven't seen before. The way those corpses yesterday were shredded means it must be big to be able to take so many down." The second responds, "They did say they found one of those lizards as well though. I wonder if the wolves and this thing are fighting over who gets to eat them."
The first one chuckles, the sound booming off the cavern walls. "That is entirely possible, they are very delicious after all. It does seem that the last of those lizards lived in the cave based on the two sightings of them here. The captain is pretty set on sending out a large hunting party to find whatever the thing is that killed those wolves though"
"I hope I am not on it", The second responds as they begin to move back towards the cave. They continue talking but I can no longer understand the now muffled words.
*My luck holds apparently. The clearly don't expect the wolves killer to be little old me. Those first two that came upon the cave definitely saw me though. Were they just not believed?*
I watch as the giants regroup before moving West following the path of the other pair. I cautiously move back up to the main cave as I watch the giant Auras continue West. I peak my head out and notice what they were doing, the wolf corpses from tonight are all gone. The drag marks to the west showing that the giants must have gathered them up and taken them.
*MORE THIEVES?*
The irrationality of my instant reaction giving me a small respite from the anxiety of the giants appearance. Surveying the damage I realize that this entrance has been made much less useful. The slope going up to it is almost completely destroyed.
*I might be able to still fly out of this but coming back in will almost guarantee I take damage. Either from clipping a wing or impacting the ground to hard. I will have to work on getting an entrance on top of the cliff, but that might get me spotted again.*
I begin making my way back to the waterfall rooms as I think about how I would go about making a new entrance that is still safe. The waterfall protecting the egg gives me the idea of making my entrance up high behind the waterfall itself. I arrive back in the lower rooms and lay down next to the lizards, watching the fish swim in lazy circles as the exhaustion of the day begins to weigh me down. I pull up my character sheet, looking at my gains from the past few days as I slowly drift off to sleep.
Race: Celestial Dragon Health: 71/80 Stamina: 100% Stage: Wyrmling Level: 6 Mana: 10 Attributes: Traits: (1) Skills: STR: 9 (9.67) Breath: 3 Aura Sight: MAX CON: 8 (8.16) Claws: 2 Digging: 2 DEX: 6 (6.13) Mental: 3 Flight: 1 AGI: 7 (7.21) Scales: 4 Mana Manipulation: 2 PER: 10 (10.44) Wings: 4 Telepathy: 1 WIS: 5 (5.31) Affinities: INT: 10 (10.28) Space (Major) CHA: 5 (5.17) Raw (Minor)