War, I learned, had no respect for spectators.

A set of fangs sunk into my scale-flesh, dropping down onto me from above and filling my body with a wave of slow-venom. Immediately, I could feel as the slow-venom began to set in; were it not for my earlier precautions, it might have ended there. The slow-venom was stronger than that of the infant that I had first faced. It set in quicker, more abruptly. It didn’t reach the level of the Aridae mother’s venom, but it wouldn’t have needed to.

I thrashed, just as I had against the infant Aridae. It hung on, fangs ripping slightly through my scale-flesh as the Aridae tumbled back and forth. Its weight fought against my efforts, turning furious thrashes into less-furious wriggles. Still, I finally managed to dislodge it. Slow-venom crept through me, turning the tip of my tail ever-so-slightly numb. I hissed.

The Aridae, older than the infant and younger than an adult, raised up onto its hind legs, exposing its fangs just as the infant had.

So I repeated the past, as well.

I spit venom into the largest of its many eyes.

The juvenile shrieked as its eye-flesh began to melt and sear. Yet, this time I didn’t have the nearby mana-water to affect the battle. That was both a good thing and a bad thing. The good part was that the Aridae couldn’t wash off my venom. The bad part was that I couldn’t hide in the mana-water’s depths.

The juvenile Aridae, stripped of any other option, charged.

It pounced, leaping through the air with a powerful jump. I twisted my length, coming up underneath it and sinking my fangs deep. The Aridae’s fangs bounced off the Core on my head-scales, unable to even scratch it.

In that moment, I thanked the Great Core for its mercy.

A stream of venom spilled from my fangs, dripping into the Aridae’s bleeding wound. A second later, we hit the ground, pulled down by the momentum of the bad-thing’s leap.

In the time that I spent recovering from the stunning blow, the Aridae had run away, leaving me to suffer without the cleansing taste of true victory. All around me, bad-things had waged their own battles. Claws cut, fangs pierced, and blood flowed.

I slithered silently, coiling my way up a glow-cap stalk. Death was all around me. I found it in the air, in the way that blood-scent crept onto my tongue. I found it on the ground, in the crimson pools that had formed, running in tiny red rivulets towards the blue of the mana-water. I found it in myself, in the way that my battered scale-flesh trembled and shook.

Droplets of red dripped from down my length, pitter-pattering against the stone below. Finally, I found a wedge in the glow-cap’s stalk, a tiny little outcropping upon which I could perch. Concealed under the hooded shadow of the glow-cap’s head, I chewed upon my tail.

I itched.

I healed.

My trembling stilled. Only anger remained.

I had let myself become too distracted by the ensuing battle. I thought that I had been safe, in my position as an opportunistic scavenger. I had been wrong.

In war, nobody was safe.

Now, I could only stew in my anger as I lay under the concealing glow-cap head. That had been far too close; the Aridae had almost managed to insult the Great Core once again. Even worse, I had almost let them.

That was far, far worse.

I felt myself fill with righteous anger. It was like a burning on my scales, a singing in my blood. It collected and pooled, congealing into a severe determination.

By my fangs, an Aridae would die today.

The power of the mana core, so much weaker than the Great Core, would help. I could feel it in the back of my mind. I knew that it could be manipulated, changed to make myself stronger. I just needed to figure out how.

I ignored the sounds of battle and death all around me. Nestled in the glow-cap as I was, it was unlikely that any bad-things would notice me. I had time.

I concentrated, focusing on the swirling, whirling mana that rested within its tiny little core. I watched as it shifted from second to second, one moment a placid pool, the next a savage storm. It was tumultuous. It was temperamental. It was potent.

I needed to tame it. I would tame it. It was nothing before me, the greatest creation of the Great Core. It was even less before the Great Core itself. It would bend before my will, before the Great Core’s power.

I pushed against the raging storm, seeking to calm it. I thrashed against the placid pool, seeking to ripple it. There was a balance there that was needed, I knew. I had known it from the moment that the thought-light had revealed [Mana Manipulation I] to me. I didn’t need the savage storm, nor did I need the placid pool.

I needed something in between. I needed something that held the power of the storm, pushing violently against its enemies. I needed something that held the tranquility of the pool, complying to my efforts to shape it.

I pushed. I thrashed. And yet, the storm raged. The pool lay still.

Fatigue set into my scale-flesh, as if I was being assaulted by the mother Aridae’s slow-venom. The thought helped, strangely enough. It reminded me what I was fighting against. It reminded me what I was fighting for.

In that moment, the storm stilled. The pool raged. I found the balance.

Lesser Core Skill: [Mana Manipulation I] Increased.

[Mana Manipulation II] Acquired.

The flow of mana became a little easier to work with, responding ever-so-slightly more to my touch - which was good, because I was tired and the sounds of fighting were getting closer.

The glow-cap head above me began to tremble, vibrating as a battling swarm of rot-flesh bad-things and Aridae tumbled atop it.

A rot-flesh bad-thing fell from the side, dropping off the edge with a squeaking shriek. It twisted in the air, tiny limbs batting furiously in an attempt to catch itself, meeting nothing but the wind. It hit the ground with a sickening crunch, bones shattering with the force of its landing. Crimson blood began to collect underneath its twitching form, red trickling across the gray of the stone.

Before I could react, an Aridae fell from the side, catching itself with a shimmering thread that prevented it from plummeting to the ground in the way its former enemy had. As it slowly lowered itself to the floor, I twined my way down the glow-cap’s stalk.

The Aridae was smaller, similar in size to the infant Aridae that I had first fought. I knew that this would be my best chance.

The infant Aridae stumbled on its legs, swaying slightly. Blood seeped from its flesh, matting and tangling the small little hairs that covered its body.

This time, I was the one who went unnoticed.

This time, I was the one who struck first. I leapt forward, baring my fangs. In a moment of instinct, I tamed the storm. I rippled the pool. I reshaped my mana, imbuing a stream of the energy into my venom.

Fangs sunk into flesh. Venom spilled into blood. The Aridae shrieked. The thought-light flickered.

Gained the Lesser Core Skill: [Mana Venom I].

A set of fangs pierced my scale-flesh, injecting a venom of their own. For now, I chose to ignore it. It was nothing compared to the slow-venom of the juvenile. It was less than nothing compared to the slow-venom of the mother. My increased resistance would keep me safe for a little longer.

I bit again and again, forcing the mana from my core to mix with my venom, ignoring the growing weariness as I did so. I knew that I needed to end the fight quickly.

The infant Aridae began to panic, thrashing furiously. It tore my fangs through its flesh, leaving bleeding furrows behind. It turned to run.

It only made it a few steps before it fell, tumbling in a bloodied heap onto the stone.

The thought-light flickered.

Experience Gained!

Level Up!

1 Trait Point Gained.

My scale-flesh trembled, shivering under the combined strain of the slow-venom flowing through me and the effort of bending my mana to my will. My scale-flesh trembled, shaking in the exultation of victory.

I unhinged my jaw. I swallowed my foe. The thought-light greeted me again.

Level 0 Infant Aridae Consumed.

Transferred to Core.

Blooded Trait Acquisition Progress: 1/5.

Despite my weakness, I felt powerful. I felt strong. I had won. A line of red pressed against my scale-flesh; I followed its trail, spotting the shattered rot-flesh bad-thing. It had stilled. Its body was there for the taking.

Before I could question my judgement, I unhinged my jaw. I swallowed my foe. It tasted vile, nearly forcing me to spit it out. Instead, I pushed it further down my open throat. The rot seeped into my flesh as if it had its own will. It fought against my will. I forced it down. The thought-light flickered.

Level 1 Festering Rat Consumed.

Transferred to Core.

Blooded Trait Acquisition Progress: 1/5.

I slithered away, trembling all the while.

I could only hope that my [Venom Resistance - Basic III] would save me from the sickness that was soon to come.

I had my doubts.