The mouse pressed below me gives a final, rattling sigh of death.

82 exp gained

Level up!

You have reached Level 8

Level up!

You have reached Level 9

Level up!

You have reached Level 10

Normal Skill Choke has reached Level 3

Normal Skill Stab has reached Level 4

You have reached (MAX) Level

You may now Evolve

I try to ignore the pop-ups as best as I can because right now that’s not important.

The thrill of battle is still raging on inside of me, begging me to just turn around and attack, to show that degrading fox that we are more than a plaything, that we are something to be feared, that it was stupid to let us live. But, at the same time, my much more rational side is imploring me to just stay still. Stay very, very still.

Rationally speaking, I have every reason to be afraid. I am lying atop a fresh mouse corpse, something foxes usually eat. Furthermore, I am covered in mouse blood. If I move, I will look suspiciously like a mouse.

But the fox isn’t here yet. It has noticed us, yet, but it isn’t down here yet. I still have time.

I can still absorb this blood. If I just focus on it, if I put my mind to it, if I try my very best to just absorb then maybe, just maybe, I’ll have time. I won’t die. I’ll survive and get out of here and do whatever the fuck that pop-up told me to do.

I just need to absorb. Absorb. Absorb. Absorb.

More. More. Faster. More. All of it. There can’t be a single drop left.

The air is thick with adrenaline and blood and guts, but I can at least remove the blood from me. If I can just do that, then I can survive.

More. More blood. I need it. I just have to absorb it. More blood.

My mind slowly turns red. It feels like I’m a kid on halloween, gorging myself on fifteen pounds of pure sugar. My body is trembling and I want to kill.

Mossling(F-) Lv.10/10(MAX)

Stage: Elder Health: 6/12 State: Myccorhiza, Bloodfrenzy(Major), Insanity(Lesser)

I see the pop-up and I know it’s trying to tell me something but I can’t tell what because my mind is filled with something else.

Large, pounding steps approach and the shadow above me and the dry corpse grows heavier and then a large nose presses itself into my back, taking deep, dragging breaths of who and what I am.

With my mind stuck deep inside a red, bloody haze, I turn around and throw myself at the nose. With my one leg I try to attack and stab and murder, but it does absolutely nothing. Two large, green eyes peer at me curiously and my heart sinks.

A paw crashes into me again and I fly across the clearing, away from everything. I lie there in a heap, watching how the fox sniffs the mouses’ body, intrigued, before lying down and eating it.

Careful not to experience the same fate, I drag myself away into the shade of the forest.

There, beneath a tree, I lie until I feel alright again.

...I think, from here on out, I should probably avoid drinking blood.

Now, er, Kid? You wouldn’t mind showing me my stats again, would you?

Mossling(F-) Lv 10/10(MAX) Stage: Elder Health: 12/12

State: Mycorrhiza, Tired

Strength: 2 Dexterity: 3(+1) Grit: 1 Racial Skills: Absorb, Photosynthesize Normal Skills: Stab Lv.4, Stomp Lv.2, Choke Lv.3 Titles: Oknytt, Bloodthirsty, Natural Deviant

...There it is. I suppose I ought to check out what those titles mean before I handle the elephant in the room.

Title Bloodthristy: Given to a creature that has achieved Bloodfrenzy. Bloodfrenzies are easier to achieve and harsher in nature.

Great. Fantastic. Just what I needed. Now that I think about it, Mosslings as a species are probably not predatory in nature.

And the other one?

Title Natural Deviant: Given to a creature that opposes the natural order of their species. Future evolution routes outside initial species possible.

In other words, because I decided to drink blood like a damn vampire, I went against the order of nature or something? Well, if that was the case then it really shouldn’t have been possible to begin with. For that matter, don’t plants eat dead bodies all the time? I’m pretty sure that’s par for the course. There are even some plants that actively kill insects to eat.

...But Mosslings as a species probably don't.

Sure, whatever. Say what you will, kid.

-Though, this does remind me of the thing that I tried to ignore.

Evolution. Specifically…

You have reached (MAX) Level

You may now Evolve

Yeah, that.

Evolution: granted upon reaching Level (MAX). Allows a creature to gain a new form.

That is shady as fuck and doesn’t sound exactly Darwinian. But it does sound promising.

Will it allow me to take a form less shitty than the Mossling?

yes

...Oh. Uh. Alright, kid.

Fire it up, then! The sooner I leave this useless, armless body, the better.

Choose Evolution:

Moss Child(E-): A draping being of moss taking the appearance of a child. Only appears at night, where it often guides lost travellers and plays with children. If angered, it will show no mercy.

Lilla Skuggan(E): A small, winged creature that appears as a shadow. Often lives near marshes and lakes, where it lures children in the night.

Lilltroll(E): Known as smaller and wilder forms of their larger troll counterparts, the lesser trolls often hunt larger prey in packs.

Well… There it is. Is that it? That’s all the information I get?

Very well then.