《Aw Cluck》4. Getting Cocky
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A wave of energy washes over me as I get the status message about leveling up. It feels...pleasant. Like a warm breeze blowing over me on a nice spring day. As it passes over aches and pains I hadn’t even noticed fade away, and the small cuts in my mouth stop hurting as well.
Status
Spoiler: Spoiler
Table:
Status Menu
Name: Grover
Age: 0 years
Race: Rooster (Juvenile)
Level: 2(+1)
XP: 5
XP to next level: 120
Profession: N/A
Seals: 1
HP: 12/12
SP 19/19
Mana: [Locked]
HP Regen: 2/day(+1)
SP Regen: 4/hour(+2)
Mana Regen: [Locked]
Strength - 2(+1) [+]
Agility - 4(+2) [+]
Constitution - 2(+1) [+]
Wisdom - 8 [+]
Intelligence - 10 [+]
Charisma - 4(+1) [+]
Luck - 2
Stat Points - 4
Skills:
Instincts (Chicken)
Chirp
Peck
Basic Appraisal (Lvl:2/10)
Sneak (Lvl: 2/10)
Titles:
Reincarnated
Spiritual Bulwark
Huh. So leveling refilled my HP and SP, and there were a few minor increases to all my stats. It says I’ve got 4 stat points though, and there’s little plusses next to all the scores except the regens and luck. I’ll worry about where to put those a little later though, for now a feast is before me, and I’d have to be a bird-brain not to at least try it while I’ve got the chance.
I look around the clearing in front of me, and decide that no other danger is present before dragging the mimic corpse into the shelter of the foliage behind me.
Not a pleasant smell. Kind of like a fish that's been sitting in the sun a little too long.
I close my eyes as I use my beak to tear a small amount of flesh from the cracked shell, and tilt my head back slightly to help it go down.
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It’s…..surprisingly not that bad. Reminds me of crab a bit, but with a spicy aftertaste. If there were more I definitely wouldn’t mind eating it, but I definitely got lucky with that last one. It basically stood still and let me kill it, and I don’t know if I can rely on that strategy.
As I eat I pull my status back up and contemplate where to assign my points.
If intelligence and wisdom are doing anything for me, I haven’t really noticed it. I’m sure they’re useful, but if it’s life or death I don’t know that I could rely on it. Charisma might be useful if I could talk to anyone, but last I checked I can’t any more. So that leaves agility strength and constitution. If I had to guess strength will make my peck skill stronger since it does use my muscles, and constitution will increase my HP, but I don’t think those should be priorities. Agility sounds like it’s either how fast I run or how quick I can move in general. Maybe a little of both?
I think at the end of the day, the only real option is agility. I’m very small, and I don’t think I can count on being a little extra healthy or being a little physically stronger to keep me alive. The only reason I survived that mimic barreling me down was because I was just barely fast enough to stay ahead of it, and the thing was a baby like me. The most important thing is that I survive, and if I can outrun anything that wants to eat me that seems like my best chance. I didn’t get the chance to really enjoy my last life and I’ll be damned if I die before I find a way to enjoy this one.
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With that settled and my impromptu meal finished, I put my 4 free stats into agility and make my way back to my nest. As the roots hiding my unborn brethren just start to come into view, every fiber of my body screams at me to freeze.
crunch crunch
That wasn’t me. Something is making noise inside there. Maybe mama hen came back? Or one of the eggs is hatching? I dismiss my gut feeling and take a step forward.
CRACK
I stepped on a twig. It wasn’t even loud, but in the quiet of the clearing, it’s practically deafening.
Wait.
The quiet?
It wasn’t quiet here earlier. There was the droning buzz of bugs in the brush, birdsong from above, the scratching sounds of small creatures climbing through the canopy.
Why is it so quiet?
I listen to my instincts, but I need to know what’s going on. I carefully sneak forward, watching for anything that would make even the slightest noise.
CRUNCH CRUNCH CRUNCH
The crumpling sound is louder now. I know what I’m going to find, but I’m scared to look. I know I should turn and run, but I’m scared that whatever is chewing inside there will hear me. I step forward.
CRUNCH CRACKLE CRUNCH
Oh. It's a lizard. A lizard, with mottled black and cream skin, and a pure black tongue. A large lizard with claws as long as I am tall. A very large lizard that’s crunching on the eggs that were in my nest.
A lizard that’s looking directly at me.
Spoiler: Spoiler
Table:
Status Menu
Name: Grover
Age: 0 years
Race: Rooster (Juvenile)
Level: 2
XP: 5
XP to next level: 120
Profession: N/A
Seals: 1
HP: 12/12
SP 19/19
Mana: [Locked]
HP Regen: 2/day
SP Regen: 4/hour
Mana Regen: [Locked]
Strength - 2
Agility - 8(+4)
Constitution - 2
Wisdom - 8
Intelligence - 10
Charisma - 4
Luck - 2
Stat Points - 0
Skills:
Instincts (Chicken)
Chirp
Peck
Basic Appraisal (Lvl:2/10)
Sneak (Lvl: 2/10)
Titles:
Reincarnated
Spiritual Bulwark
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Killing Tree
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8 300For Justice! - A Tale Of Paladins And Hammers
Gabriel Norris always did his best to be a kind man, he fed the poor and homeless, gave to charity, volunteered at animal shelters and even worked as a Red Cross medic for a living, he tryed to do his best to help even when it put him in danger. But sadly the brave and the kind ones always seem to be the first ones to go. As Gabriel's government become increasingly tyrannical and power hungry, Gabriel stages a peaceful protest against recent government practices, he is told to cease and desist or he would be jailed, he refuses. thus instead of being just being a good man Gabriel becomes a hero, a martyr. But heroism is never without it's price as Gabriel lays there slowly dying of dehydration, for the first time in all his life he prays. "Gods or Demons or whatever out there that might be in between, i have never asked anyone else for anything before, i have devoted my entire life to giving to those who had nothing and never asked anything in return, now i ask you for just one favor. Don't let this be the end of my story, just give me the chance and potential to help in some way more significant than feeding one poor soul when a million more are still starving. i don't just want to help in these small ways, i want to change the entire world for the better, just don't let this be the end... And as he lied there and the last breath wheezed through the air, and the final synapses and neurons went quite, something answered.
8 60Myth of The World's Trees
And Simon answered their call with a single statement that nobody understood "Et super mos absit hoc hodie!" "Yah!" "WWWaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!" "AAAlllllaaaaallllaaaaallllaaaa!" "EeEEellllleeeeeelllllleeeeeeuuuuuuu!" I, too, yelled a battle cry at the top of my lungs. I had no idea what Simon had just spouted but from Camilla's giggling, I could guess that Simon thought that spouting nonsense was his way of getting out of the earlier predicament. "I forbid death upon this day," Camilla said. "What?" I answered a bit at a loss. "Ancient Latin," she replied smugly, "He said 'I forbid death upon this day'." I laughed aloud "Then he is gonna be really disappointed in everyone here," Camilla did not reply and instead took a deep breath. I did the same, zoning out everything in my surroundings. The environment became a world of electrical pulses traveling across several networks. I perceived the world through my lightning and sped my heartbeat to inhuman levels. I was present now, at this moment, at this point in time. I could feel the electrifying air saturating my lungs, the electrified ground vibrating at the rhythm of the approaching enemy. Then I took a step forward, everyone followed in tandem. Camilla the first, and then the others. Then I took a second step, and this time everyone followed simultaneously. Third step… Fourth step… Fifth step… Then light jogging… Speeding up… Running … Running faster…. Then suddenly, everyone disappeared into motes of light particles that re-constructed itself hundreds of feet above the horde, dozens of miles away from our initial position. We were literally 'diving' into battle.-------------------------------------------------------------------Despite a rough childhood in the slums, Omari had everything a guy could want - a loving girlfriend, an understanding sister, a wonderful teacher, and his dream job. Still, the scars from his childhood made Omari unable to live a dull life. He dreamed of something greater... something beyond the reaches of what humankind could achieve in the current era.Like always, Omari should have been careful what he wished for. In the year 2046, the World was thrown into chaos as the apocalypse came in the form of massive trees that shot up out of the ground one day.These trees towered over the tallest of buildings and had thicknesses that spanned kilometers at a time.They grew everywhere, in homes, businesses, and cities as they formed a complex network that overlayed the old world.The cause of the apocalypse was unknown, but Omari's workplace was believed to be the origin point of the unfortunate events.Fifteen years after the start of the Apocalypse... after all the pain and suffering... after losing everything he cared about, Omari sent his memories back in time to make sure that the future he lives in, never came to be.Will he be able to uncover the mystery of The Trees? Will he be able to protect all those he has lost? Will he succeed, or will his attempt be washed away by the currents of time? Will Omari be able to learn the truth about 'THE MYTH OF THE WORLD'S TREES'?
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