In ancient times, not long after the shattering of the Stars, when Ainerax was transformed into the life-bearing haven it is now, Enmu granted its power to individual subjects of each race, sharing parts of its power with them. These individuals came to be known as Precursors, and the power they were granted was called Prana. From those Precursors, Prana-wielding Arbians, and Awakened Beasts were born.
Enlightened Beasts, on the other hand, were beings that, "awakened" or not, stumbled upon remnants of Dao, the Truth Seeker. From these remnants, both monsters and humans alike discovered something called the Arcane, which, depending on the Aspect they awakened to, allowed them to understand or, as is mostly the case for monsters or simply animals, evolve into something beyond themselves.
Name
H.P
A.P
W.P
Aspect
Lesser Aspect
Mawcrawler
12
154▼/169
0.2
Morphogenesis
Aquamorphism
Description
A dweller of the Central part of Ainerax, the Mawcrawler is an elusive creature that can be found dwelling predominantly underground, emerging to the surface solely for its hunting endeavors.
Notoriously territorial, this creature fiercely safeguards its underground and aboveground domain, skillfully navigating through its maze-like labyrinth with exceptional adaptability to darkness. Its stealth and cunning enable it to surprise unsuspecting prey during its usually punitive excursions to the surface.
Just like many fellow enlightened beasts that have undergone evolution, the Mawcrawler wields the lesser aspect of [Morphogenesis].
[Aquamorphism] is the ability to transform or shape water or liquid substances into various forms. It is the lesser spell associated with the Aspect "Morphogenesis," which governs transformation and change of physical objects.
Standing at around twenty feet tall, the creature had a serpentine body covered in thick, glistening scales that shimmered with an eerie iridescence in the light. Its elongated form was reminiscent of a massive, predatory eel, enabling it to move with eerie grace both in water and on land.
The creature's only limbs were long, clawed yet webbed front limbs, adding to its eerie appearance. The lower half of its body, or perhaps just its long tail, was still dipping into the mud that, without a doubt, was manufactured by the creature through its lower aspect [Aquamorphism].
Another highly striking aspect of the creature was its large, unblinking eyes, with dark, pupil-less orbs that gave it an almost otherworldly gaze. Its jaws were immense, filled with rows of razor-sharp, serrated teeth. Its maw could distend to an astonishing degree, allowing it to engulf prey much larger than itself in one merciless bite, just like it did with the poor Arachniscorn.
Upon witnessing his prey being stolen and devoured in front of him, Dream felt little to no frustration at the sight; instead, he experienced a strange exhilaration.
"Hahahaha, so there were enlightened beasts in this damn forest after all," he chuckled. "Since you're mentioned to be an extremely territorial creature, I should make a perfect bait, but just to be sure, let's do this," Dream declared. He called forth his Draconic skill, determined to claim his prize, on top of a little extra.
Blessing of the Guardian Dragon: Synergy Initiated…
Blessing of the Guardian Dragon: Synergy Completed.
Blessing of the Guardian Dragon: Absorption Initiated…
Blessing of the Guardian Dragon: Absorption Completed.
Blessing of the Guardian Dragon: Integration Initiated…
Blessing of the Guardian Dragon: Integration Completed.
This is going to be my first Enlightened Beast, but its H.P. and A.P. aren’t unreasonably high, so I should be able to pull this off. No, I will pull this off. Tonight, I’ll be sleeping, knowing that I’ve acquired an Aspect for myself, even if it's a lesser one.
[ Nexus Alert]
Awakened Beast Consumed: Arachniscorn [ Lvl. 2]
H.P▲
P.P▲
4.4▲
66.32▲
“That was my prey, so I can't allow you to simply steal it from me. How about you have fun with this instead?”
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
[ Electro ]
Apprentice
Thunderspear Lvl.7
76
“Wha—”
With a move quite unfitting for a creature of its size, the Mawcrawler ducked, effortlessly evading Dream’s Thunderspear that came crashing into the distance. It had spotted Dream’s electro-elementalis attack being unleashed and reacted quickly enough to wriggle its way out of the fate of having its head obliterated..
Spotting Dream and obviously furious by everything that just happened, the creature screeched, dipping one of its front limbs into its puddle of mud and scooping enough mud to fill a bathtub. With anger in its eyes, it hurled the massive amount of mud at Dream.
Ah, mud, the Arbians' greatest weakness, especially when the said mud turned into literal solid rock in the middair.
“What the—”
Taken aback, Dream barely got the opportunity to properly block the attack with a shield of Odo, before the boulder came crashing against him, knocking him out of his perch. Dream, falling from the perch, quickly summoned his aero-elementalis, adjusting midair to land safely on his two legs.
“Crap that was lo—wait, where did it go?”
Taking the short moment between him being knocked off the tree and landing on the ground, the creature, along with its puddle of mud, slipped away. For a moment, even with the assistance of the threads, Dream struggled to find where the creature had gone. But as the ground felt moody beneath him, he understood that the thread wasn't showing because it wasn't around him—it was just beneath him.
“This bastard—that won’t work on me.”
Calling forth his Aero-elementalis to propel himself into the air, Dream barely evaded suffering the same fate as the Arachniscorn, torn apart by the Mawcrawler's large jaws.
After landing several meters away from the creature, Dream remained on high alert as the Mawcrawler reached out, its claws slashing menacingly at him. He swiftly backed off, evading the attack, and observed how, with each strike, the creature was expending the puddle toward him. Falling into that puddle would be disastrous.
Aware of the danger, Dream kept a safe distance from the advancing Mawcrawler, strategically dodging its relentless attacks. With quick thinking, he summoned his electro-elementalis once again, electricity crackling around him.
[ Electro ]
Initiate
Thunderspear Lvl.5
48
In an instant, a brilliant bolt of lightning shot forth from Dream's outstretched hand, aimed directly at the advancing Mawcrawler. The electrifying attack hit its mark when once again ducking, by submerging its body into its puddle the creature dodged Dream’s [Thunderspear]..
“Tsk.”
Once again, the creature disappeared, and the puddle instantaneously solidified behind him. Through the threads and its moving puddle, Dream followed the creature, observing it go in circles around him, akin to a vulture hovering above a corpse.
Nearby, all tumbled as the creature swam around, creating a whirlwind of chaos in its wake. Trees were uprooted, rocks were displaced, and the ground trembled beneath its powerful movements. It was as if the very forest itself was being turned upside down by the Mawcrawler.
“For something with such an insignificant H.P, you sure are troublesome.”
Name
H.P
A.P
W.P
Aspect
Lesser Aspect
Mawcrawler
12
103▼/169
0.2
Morphogenesis
Aquamorphism
“But sooner or later you’re going to run out of A.P, and I doubt that’s going to be before I run out of O.P or P.P.”
Though he understood that a battle of attrition was a very bad strategy, and one that he had never been quite fond of, Dream hesitated to waste his powerful mantra. The creature, despite being such a big walking target, proved to be quite deft at evading his attacks.
Screeching, the creature once again emerged from its puddle, scooped mud from its puddle, this time without both arms, spewing mud into the air. Beyond a certain distance away from it, the mud solidified into a salvo of solid projectiles.
Summoning a shield of Odo to protect himself, Dream observed the creature diving back into its puddle. Moments later, at a dozen meters from Dream, it resurfaced, leaping high into the air like a whale breaching out of the ocean, and then hurtling straight at him.
Realizing the Mawcrawler's intent, Dream, with a flash of lightning-fast reflexes, summoned his aero-elementalis with one hand and the electro-elementalis with the other. With a powerful gale bursting forth from his palm, propelling him backward, Dream unleashed his electro-elementalis at the creature diving down at him.
[ Electro ]
Initiate
Thunderspear Lvl.1
5
As the electrifying attack surged towards the Mawcrawler, it reacted with unexpected agility, contorting its serpentine body in midair to evade the brunt of the assault. The electrical currents crackled through the air, leaving behind a lingering charge, but the elusive creature managed to avoid a direct hit.
Undeterred, Dream adjusted his aim and unleashed a salvo of low-tiered electro-elementalis attacks. Unlike his previous attacks, these low-tiered [Thunderspears] were much more efficiently aimed and delivered. The electrifying spears showered the beast, and even with its ability to swiftly dodge, the Mawcrawler wasn't able to evade them all.
Surprisingly, instead of finding its way back to its moody pool once again, the Mawcrawler met the ground with a monstrous collision. The impact of the creature hitting the ground sent tremors through the forest floor, and before Dream could react, the Mawcrawler emerged entirely out of its pool, viciously crawling toward him.
Did I piss enough it enough to give up on that strategy of him?
“Good,” Dream smiled.
[ Electro ]
Apprentice
Thunderspear Lvl.7
76
Noticing the electro-elementalis unleashed at him by Dream, the creature attempted to escape down its puddle, but before it could do so, Dream's lightning struck it, causing it to tumble over before sinking into its puddle.
Following the threads, Dream confirmed the extent to which his attack had affected the Mawcrawler.
Name
H.P
A.P
W.P
Aspect
Lesser Aspect
Mawcrawler
7▼/12
87▼/169
0.2
Morphogenesis
Aquamorphism
"Great, just one well-placed hit, and that Aspect is mine," Dream muttered confidently.
Patiently Dream waited for the Mawcrawler, it did not leave harboring doubt as to whether or not it was going to reemerge.
"Don’t tell me it’s not going to come out," Dream frowned, before going on to reassure himself, "that can’t be, the system said that Mawcrawlers are—" He trailed off mid-sentence at the sight of a golden floating thread fluctuating, suggesting that one—no, it was no longer just one golden thread that he noticed, but several of them, meaning that not one but several valkyries were coming his way.
"Ah, crap. Can't really have it good for myself, can I?" Dream lamented, his frustration evident.