I burst out of a thicket of trees, arms wide and teeth bared, before tackling the strange humanoid-wolf thing that smelled vaguely of both. It was large and muscular, but hardly bigger than me. There wasn't much fat on it and it honestly didn't smell all that appetizing; however, the strange sweetness was present in its scent, and that was all the incentive I needed to hunt down the strange creature. I dug my claws into its shoulders and bit down on its neck, before wringing my head left and right. The creature, caught in surprise, screamed and fought back vigorously.

Its claws were sharp and vicious, and it was far stronger than it looked. But I was heavier and bulker than it could ever be, and my strength far exceeded whatever paltry resistance it offered me. With a final, snapping motion, I ripped its head right off its shoulders, before pushing the creature into the ground. Its claws hardly penetrated my fat stores; it was sharp, but not long enough. It did sting a bit, but nothing that I can't handle.

Besides, I'd just gotten a meal - though, I wasn't particularly hungry. This...thing didn't taste all that great, either, but the bitterness of its flesh was mostly overshadowed by the sweetness that flowed in its blood. It wasn't nearly as powerful or as rich as the rhino and the human that killed it, but it sated me all the same. I ate even its bones so nothing remained of thee creature, save for the strange patch of...something it had around its groin that kind of resembled the things humans wore over their skins.

Cursed Beast Core Absorbed!

+20 Agility

+10 Intelligence

+40 xp

Qi incompatible...

Converting...

Psionics enhanced!

Your Eldritch Soul stirs...

A strange warmth spread within me, starting from my chest and flowing outwards all across my body. I felt my power swelling, if only slightly - my bones and muscles feeling just a tad bit more nimble. I swallowed the last bit of bone from the wolf-human thing, before setting out further into the woods.

Three days has passed since Volos urged me on to go beyond the world I knew. Three days since I walked on further than I've ever walked before. The mountains weren't getting any closer, and everyday the creatures around me were more vicious than the last. There weren't many of said creatures, however, and whenever something too powerful for my liking appeared I could simply avoid them with my Unseen Predator perk. I ate mostly fish and berries, maybe the occassional deer, but nothing more than that. I needed easy kills; hunting down large creatures would drain me too much and, even if I somehow managed to take down one of the powerful beasts that roamed in the deep wilds, some other, much bigger, beast would simply come over to steal my kill.

Here, however, deer, fish, boar, elk, and even moose, were not fought over by fellow carnivores. Here, the strange and powerful beasts hunted each other down in droves - their clashes would leave trees broken and splintered, and cause deep furrows to form on the soil. Prey animals were left to flourish as even wolves were not dumb enough to hunt in this region; the only predators that roamed the deep woods were those, whose blood bore the sweetness.

And so I was left to hunt all I wanted; with the Unseen Predator perk, I was virtually invisible to the eye.

The only downside was the fact that I had no den, and so I had to actively look for safe places to sleep in - not that I've needed much sleep lately as my body seemed to no longer tire - and the fact that prey animals no longer sated my hunger as much as it used to. Now, my body craved the sweetness and the warmth that came with it.

'More....' I needed to hunt more of these beasts. The simple prey animals that roamed the deep wilds were simply not enough to sate the burning hunger in me. I needed more - I wanted more.

And isn't that what Volos told me, to strive for more?

With a wave of my right paw, the treeline parted before me and I strode through. On the otherside was a patch of tall rocks, packed together to form a strange structure, where tall grey spires and spikes jutted about at random. The spaces between the crags was tight and dark, but it was - for now - the perfect place to sleep as the sun dips behind the grey mountains. It'd been rather fortunate that the man-wolf-thing passed by just as I found this place - a good meal before I closed my eyes to sleep.

I walked backwards into the tight crevices, before nestling into a soft patch of earth that seemed to be damp and mossy - I wasn't sure, but it was soft enough to be comfortable and that was all I really needed. I laid flat on my belly and allowed my head to rest upon the ground. My eyes fluttered shut, and the stars wheeled overhead as night turned into day.

Once more, I dreamed. It was a good dream, though I could hardly remember what happened - only what it made me feel. And it was good.

My eyes snapped open to meet the tiny cracks of light that'd peered into the dank crevices. I had briefly considered just going back to sleep when my ears perked up to the sound of a distant roar. It was big - really, really big. The sweetness that flowed from it was so thick it was almost made me feel sick just sniffing the air, which meant its power was far beyond me. The ground shook and another roar echoed across the woods. Birds chirped and flew away. Trees splintered and tiny pebbles danced as something slowly approached.

I held in place - with my unseen predator perk, I should be quite invisible, but then most predators didn't rely on their sight too often and that perk of mine did little to hide my scent.

My vision was rather limited in between the rocks and most of what I could see was what lay in front of me, which happened to be the treeline. The shaking of the ground continued as the sickly sweet thing lumbered closer and closer; whatever it was, the creature was definitely walking on only two legs. I couldn't quite recall ever seeing giant, two-legged creatures before, so a part of me was rather curious. Another roar echoed; this one was much closer than the last. The distant trees suddenly splintered, furiously breaking apart as something utterly massive walked through.

It looked vaguely reptilian - I think, though small feathers adorned much of its body and tiny bristles seemed to sprout out of its large head. The titan stood on two legs, but it bent over forwards with two very tiny forearms dangling down its thick, muscular torso. Behind it, a powerful tail swayed left and right. Its head looked somewhat similar to the heads of most lizards, only far larger, and its teeth were so huge that the smallest one must've been bigger than my forelimbs.

Strangely enough, the feathered lizard titan thing appeared to be wounded - if only slightly. On the right side of its torso, between its powerful hind legs and hideously tiny forelimbs, were three claw marks that drew blood, which was likely the source of all the thick, sickly sweetness that filled the air.

The titan lizard creature bent over and peered into the gaps between the rocks. Our eyes met briefly and my breath hitched. This monster can see me? How? I thought Unseen Predator could-

The ground rumbled as the massive beast lumbered forth, sniffing the air as it did. A single step of its massive legs, each one ending in vicious talons that left gashes upon the ground, covered immense distances. In two steps, the lumbering behemoth was already upon me. The only thing that stood between us was the network of spiny grey crags. It was far too large to walk into the crevices between the rocks and I was far too nestled within said rocks for it to attempt to claw me out - not that its tiny forearms could do so.

It sniffed the air and lowered its head. Its eyes were a bright yellow. It could see me somehow, even through the Unseen Predator perk. The titan growled and licked the air, a massive tongue slithering forth from its mouth. Something clicked in my head as I realized something that should've been rather obvious from the start. Unseen Predator only hid me from prey; in this instance, however, I was most definitely not the predator. Fear filled me, reminding me of the days when I was but a mere cub and was forced to hide in deep crevices whenever larger predators roamed.

Fear...I hated it...I hated the feeling!

NO!

Still, I pushed myself up to stand on four limbs and stared down the titan defiantly; I was no mere beast. I will not bow to fear - not anymore, even if it kills me. My lesser kin could and would succumb, lesser beasts would flee and hide, but not I. The very thought of running away seemed anathema to me, as though the act itself was unthinkable; I couldn't do it, even if I wanted to. My body simply refused to back down. Death seemed a better alternative; if I was going to die, then I would die standing!

And so I roared back with all my might. "RAAAAAAAGGGGH!!!!"

Through shear willpower, you have successfully resisted the effects of Dread Aura, gaining partial Immunity!

Congratulations! You are now slightly resistant to psychological effects!

Curse discovered: Ambition and Greed!

The titan roared back and barreled forward, shaking the earth and nearly tumbling over the tall crags as it shoved its head snout into the tiny gaps between the tall rocks. Undeterred, I activated scan; this thing was big enough to kill my accidentally, but there were many ways for me to fight back.

Necrosaurus Rex

HP: 5,400/6000

SP: 3,105/4000

My eyes widened slightly; okay, this thing is way beyond me in terms of raw power. But then I didn't need raw power; the humans themselves didn't need raw power when hunting. What they had - what I now had as well - was far superior to brute force. Sure, this Necrosaurus Rex thing was far more powerful than me, but its brain was likely the size of a walnut; I was more intelligent, and that was all the advantage I needed.

The jagged crags shook as it attempted to push its massive head through the tiny gaps, repeatedly bashing its powerful skull in each time it tried and failed. Even if the rocks held strong against the creature's onslaught, I was trapped; waiting for it to tire itself out was not an option. Sooner or later, I would have to exit this place and that thing was likely faster than me by virtue of having greater strides.

I had to fight back.

I looked around; around me were numerous piles of sharp and jagged rocks, grey and black. The titanic predator was fearsome indeed, and a direct attack would likely end with me in its gullet, but - despite its size - there were several glaring weaknesses I could exploit. I lifted the sharpened rocks with my Telekinesis, and hurled them all at once into the Necrosaurus Rex's open jaws just as it opened its mouth, revealing the fleshy throat underneath.

-40 MP

Its eyes widened at the sudden obstruction its throat. The titan lurched backwards, but I was far from done. With the rocks lodged firmly in its gullet, I then began turning them, creating a whirlwind of sharpened debris within the soft and fleshy confines of its throat.

-50 MP

The Necrosaurus Rex roared, but all that emerged from its throat was a weak wince, followed by a thick spray of blood as flesh tore and shredded behind its jaws. Sweetness filled the air. My mouth moistened at the closeness of the scent. The titan turned away, choking and clumsily attempting to claw out its own throat with its tiny forelimbs.

-20 MP

MP depleted!

A sickly sensation made itself known in my chest, as though something had been ripped from me and thrown away. I struggled to breathe for a moment. My vision blurred and my head was suddenly a lot lighter than it usually is. I took a blind step forward just as the ground shook, debris falling from the tops of the crags. The titanic beast was still choking, raspy coughs and wheezes storming out of its massive jaws.

I wish I had done more damage to its throat, possibly even kill it outright by simple choking it to death.

Without more MP, I couldn't use any of my special abilities. And the only way to get more MP was to eat - lesser or higher prey, though the ones with more sweetness in their blood restored greater amounts of MP than regular prey creatures.

Blood sprayed out of its massive jaws as I stepped out of the crevice. The blur that'd clouded my vision disappeared then, though my chest still felt somewhat hollow without MP - a cold void that needed to be filled. The titan was writhing on the ground. It'd lain on its side, its legs and tail sticking outwards as it feebly attempted to claw out the rocks from its throat. It must've seen me, for its eyes widened slightly as it met mine, but the titan was too distracted by its own choking to think of me as an actual threat. Perhaps, if I were but a beast, I would not have been much of a real threat - true enough.

And so it continued on trying to cough out the sharp rocks I'd somehow imbedded into its gullet.

Unfortunately, I was no mere beast.

'Now...how am I going to kill this thing?' Just its foot alone was bigger than my whole body, though not by much. Even with its belly exposed, I wasn't entirely sure if my teeth could punch through its scaly hide. My eyes drifted upwards to the three, still-bleeding, gashes on its side.

But then maybe I didn't have to bite my way through its hide.

Rushing forward at speeds that'd make my lesser brethren appear as slugs, I climbed over the titan's side. The beast roared and wallowed, attempting to roll over, but then - as before - its attention quickly returned to the veritable pile of sharp rocks I'd left in its throat. Balancing myself over its form was rather difficult, but my limbs were far lighter and limber than they had been before. The massive wounds were not deep, but they were deep enough to show me just how thick its skin was; on the other side was raw, exposed flesh. This was where the sweetness oozed out in droves - there was just so much of it that I almost wanted to vomit.

And yet the urge to devour everything was greater than the urge to regurgitate.

I stared into its open wounds and salivated at the feast before me. The titan shook its body, but I held on by reaching forward and anchoring my claws into the folds of its wounds, drawing blood as I did. The Necrosaurus Rex writhed and stirred, struggling madly as it finally realized the danger it was in.

Something took over my mind then - a dark urge I hadn't known was even there.

Crimson filled my vision as I dove in and bit down upon its exposed flesh.

And I tore through, biting, breaking, hacking, ripping, tearing, shredding, and swallowing with such mindless drive that I hadn't noticed myself slipping into its ribcage, a clumsy hole behind me. Blood flooded outwards and I simply drank my way through it all, before biting down upon its organs. The titan might began thrashing and flipping itself over, but I didn't care; within the confines of its own body, there was little it could do to me as I feasted on living flesh, slowling eating the powerful creature from the inside out.

"Greed and ambition..." The goddess of Dragons, Ignis, muttered as she leaned back against her throne, lazily eyeing the mortal realm from her realm in the heavens. Usually, the goddess' attention was fixed upon her children, the mighty dragons, and the occassional mortals, who still prayed to her in the few temples she had in their cities - only very few humans worshipped her after all. It mattered little to her. But what caught her gaze now was Volos' newest avatar - the only avatar he's ever had.

Though powerful and mighty, bears were...simple beasts - incapable of higher thought or higher powers, unless one just so happened to transform into a magical creature after accidentally snacking on another magical creature. But those were rare cases and the humans were quick to hunt them down anyway, since their minds remained bestial and primitive. Volos' newest toy, however, was something rather...interesting.

Greed and ambition were very strange things for a bear to possess, but so was true sapience - and pretty much everything about that creature was truly peculiar. The Eye of the Watchers, an artifact from an age before even they made contact with the humans of this world, from a time when the Old Ones, the shapers of worlds, came and raised complex life from the primordial muck - that freaking bear had somehow won the celestial lottery, having found a very powerful, but weakened and exhausted, human, who had somehow uncovered the lost artifact. And now that bear had become something quite unlike anything else in the world.

"You've picked an interesting piece, Volos." She chuckled, leaning forward to look upon the ursine creature that was now feasting on a Necrosauros Rex, one of the very few magical beasts that could challenge a dragon - the weak ones anyway. Even from her realm in heaven, Ignis could feel the tremendous spike in power that came upon the child of Volos as it finished its grizzly meal.

It was all so...lucky, as though a certain god of luck was involved somehow. After all, what were the odds that a wounded Necrosaurus Rex would just happen to come along.

She laughed. Well, if they were going to play that game, then she might as well play as well. After all, it'd been hundreds of years since her fellow gods last laid out their pieces across the mortal realm. This time, Volos - ever silent, ever reclusive Volos - was playing with them...and he was the first to lay his piece. The human world was filling up with cultivators and mages, warriors and martial artists; was that not the perfect board in which to play their game?

Ignis smiled, eyes glimmering with crimson fire.

Perhaps, the time has come to awaken her darling children from their slumber?

"Very interesting indeed..."