《A Serpentine Tale {Dropped}》


 Prologue - The Void

    A dim, barely visible particle of purple energy was suspended in a vast darkness, with infinite stars of all colors and brightness twinkling in its vast embrace. As these stars shone, they would sometimes disappear, absorbed into an almost instantaneous opening and closing of the darkness, never to return.


    Suddenly, a pure white nova, larger by far than any other star, streaked towards one of these portals, seemingly desperate to leave the infinite void it currently inhabited. Unfortunately for it, its path brought it colliding with the dim, tiny purple particle, and with a soundless explosion, the white nova was absorbed by the purple, which grew and brightened slightly before slowly falling into the very portal the nova was speeding towards.


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    A woman in a white dress, with a giant black dagger impaling her heart


    A man in shining armor, fighting an eight-armed giant, eventually cutting off its head


    The same man, being beheaded from behind by an old man wearing a crown in front of an appalled crowd


    After coming through the portal, I finally opened my eyes.

 Chapter One - A Whole New World

    My first sight was of a bright tan wall, curving around me in all directions. Speaking of me, I was somewhat surprised to find that I was lacking in a few areas, namely limbs. I spent a few minutes struggling to move, before I realized that I could easily do so by coiling around myself and swaying against the wall that encapsulated me. Upon close inspection, the wall, while flexible, seemed like it would break with just a little more pressure in any one direction. However, pressure was one of the many things I couldn¡¯t quite accomplish yet.


    After what seemed like hours, I finally managed to push against a part of the wall hard enough to crack it. Pushing against the crack eventually allowed me an opening, through which I swiftly escaped the egg, as I finally realized it was. Gazing at the ruptured egg, I was overcome with a sense of¡­. hunger.


    After devouring the egg completely, I finally thought to look around me, and found that I was surrounded by eggs, and that a gigantic beast was currently staring at me, analyzing me, deciding whether or not I was worth eating.


    Hiiiiiiiiiiiiissssssssssssssssssss


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Ability Gained: Serpent''s Tongue (Basic)</td></tr><tr><td>Allows rudimentary communication with, and basic understanding of, all manner of legless reptiles</td></tr></tbody></table>


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Notice: Upgrade!</td></tr><tr><td>Due to being a serpent, your Serpent''s Tongue (basic) has been upgraded to Serpent''s Tongue</td></tr></tbody></table>


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Serpent''s Tongue</td></tr><tr><td>Allows full communications with, and full understanding of, all legless reptiles of sufficient intellect</td></tr></tbody></table>


    ¡°-and, by that fucking vacant look you have, I¡¯m assuming you¡¯ve finally learned the language. Good. Now, as I was saying before you so rudely interrupted me, I¡¯m your mother. Yes, your mother. You and the other thirty eggs here are either my spawn, or orphans I¡¯ve deigned to save from a quick, messy death. Oh, excuse me just a second.¡±


    And then, I saw my mother, the queen of my den and arbiter of my life or death, attack for the first time. It was so quick that I could barely even see as she struck at an egg roughly equidistant from her and I, ripping the shell in two, and biting the head off of who I could only assume to be my brother, finishing his short life mere seconds after it started.


    ¡°Now, let me explain what you just saw. You just saw me cull a weakling from my den. I am the queen, and I refuse to allow weaklings to dilute my genes. That shitstain took over an hour to even begin breaking his shell. You, however, took a full twenty minutes: barely passable, not even close to something to brag about. But you were the first of your clutch, so I will allow you a few questions. You may begin.¡±


    I gathered myself into a tight coil to try and shake the chill of my mortality being proven to me in no uncertain terms, and thought for a moment. Finally, I looked back up to my <del>mons</del> mother and spoke, trying not to shake too much as I did so.


    ¡°S-so, Mother, who am I? And what am I, and where are we, and are we alone, and what were those blue boxes, and -¡±


    ¡°Stop, stop, fucking stop! Shit, I should¡¯ve known you¡¯d be a chatterbox. You must be one of Pelsis¡¯ brats. Well, congratulations, you¡¯re destined to be a tiny fucker. Let¡¯s hope your brothers hatch soon enough that one of the others is a successful father*. Now, you don¡¯t have a name yet. you haven¡¯t earned it. I, however, have, and it¡¯s Teno, queen of the Anens Den. Which I believe also adequately tells you where we are, and if we¡¯re alone. Now, for what we are, I am a Queen Python Serpent. You are simply a Serpent Hatchling. As for the boxes, they are called Information Screens. They are used by the gods to tell you information about your abilities and status. Just thinking of your status should bring up an Information Screen in your mind with all the relevant information, including your level, Attack, Defense, Agility, Intelligence, Wisdom, and any stats that you happen to gain as you live, like Ferocity, which is my personal favorite. I don¡¯t know why those fuckers made the screens or why they chose to quantify our lives like this, but it¡¯s the way it is. Anyway, you¡¯ll stay a Serpent Hatchling until you hit level 100, at which point you¡¯ll be given a few choices of what to evolve into, and fall asleep. You¡¯ll wake up within 24 hours as whatever shit choice you made. Now, onto more important matters: your place in my den. You, unlike your brother, are not a shitstain. You are shit. You will remain shit until you can prove to me that you deserve a name, and a place in my den. You will do so by hunting and evolving into something. I¡¯ll even be generous: you only have to hunt rats tomorrow, and you can choose what to evolve into, as long as you don¡¯t get any ideas about challenging me. Don¡¯t try to do something stupid like hunt today, either. You will die. Now get the fuck out of my sight¡±


    The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    *(Many species of snakes are known to have females that collect sperm from multiple partners, and store them for fertilization at a later date. This is theorized to help produce stronger, more genetically diverse offspring, but nobody is quite sure.)


    Surprised by my mother¡¯s quick shifts of emotion, it took me a second to realize that she was sending me away from the only place I knew, and motioning towards a tunnel I hadn¡¯t noticed until that moment. Slowly uncoiling, I slithered along the tunnel, trying to absorb the information that my mother has dumped on me. I quickly became lost in the tunnel, and decided to make my own opening in the wall to sleep in. I found a relatively soft spot in the dirt, and began to push against it, slowly burrowing in until I was completely inside the tunnel wall. Completely exhausted, I thought of my status for the first time.


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Name</td><td>None (Shit)</td></tr><tr><td>Species</td><td>Serpent Hatchling</td></tr><tr><td>Level</td><td>1 (10 Experience per level) (Curse effect: 20 experience per level)</td></tr><tr><td>Attack</td><td>6</td></tr><tr><td>Defense</td><td>4</td></tr><tr><td>Agility</td><td>7</td></tr><tr><td>Intelligence</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>Wisdom</td><td>5</td></tr><tr><td>Abilities</td><td>Serpent''s Tongue, Bite, Soul Devour (Passive)</td></tr></tbody></table>


    ¡°Wait, what? I can understand Bite, but what is Soul Devour? Inspect¡±


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Soul Devour (Passive)</td></tr><tr><td>By devouring a pure soul while still just a soul yourself, you have gained the ability to do so permanently. However, because you devoured the soul of a god''s Champion, you have been cursed by that god</td></tr><tr><td>Effects</td></tr><tr><td>Gain 10% of all stats from any being you personally kill</td></tr><tr><td>Curse</td></tr><tr><td>Lothrak (Minor God of Education): For killing my Champion, I have decided to take half of all experience you will ever gain as my reparation. Have fun trying to survive, asshole


    - 50% reduction in all experience gains</td></tr></tbody></table>


    My last thought of the first day of my life was, ¡°Well, fuck.¡±

 Chapter Two - Robbing the Cradle

    Feeling groggy, I opened my eyes to my mother¡¯s iridescent green iris and pitch black slit pupil, staring at me from just outside my hole. Panicking, I squirmed backwards as far as possible (roughly 3 cm), and squeaked out, ¡°Y-y-y-yes, Mother?¡±


    Mother kept staring for a moment, before rearing back and smirking, looking more pleased than I had ever seen her, which wasn¡¯t saying much.


    ¡°Looks like you followed my advice on hunting. You even built yourself a tiny home, pathetic as it is. Maybe you won¡¯t die as shit. So, when are you going to go hunt me some rats?¡±


    Gulping, I leaned as far upwards as I could and managed to grind out, ¡°Just tell me where to go, Mother, and I will kill them all! I promise, I won¡¯t disappoint you.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I highly fucking doubt that. But, if you do manage to impress me today, I won¡¯t eat you. Hell, if you do well enough, I may just let you lead your siblings!¡± She laughs harshly for a moment, then continues, ¡°Anyway, you just need to follow this tunnel until you find the crack in the wall. It¡¯s just big enough for small rats - and snakes - to go through, but much too small for me or that dick, the Rat King. Get going.¡±


    Siblings? So she didn¡¯t eat or kill them all? Good. Hopefully there are enough that she¡¯ll go for them before me if she gets angry.


    ¡°Thank you, Mother. I will bring you a feast. Goodbye.¡±


    I slithered just far enough away from Mother that I could feel confident she wouldn¡¯t see me, and dug a small hole in the tunnel. I closed my eyes and thought about Soul Devour¡¯s description, trying to figure out who exactly I killed to obtain the abili


    A young boy, barely old enough to leave his mother¡¯s leg, his shoulder-length golden hair shining in the summer sun, running towards a burning village, his azure eyes shining with unshed tears


    The boy standing over a mass grave, struggling to hold a sword twice as large as him, vowing vengeance


    The boy building a fence around his former village, placing a deformed skull on every spike, the other survivors watching him from afar, fear in their eyes


    The boy, now a youth at the peak of adolescence, fighting an elder, both bare chested, slowly gaining power and skill, eventually besting the old man, grinning while walking towards a girl with sparkling red hair


    The boy and girl, both adults, dressed all in white, walking down a flower-strewn path, their friends surrounding them, stopping at an altar


    The woman¡¯s young sister walking towards them, eyes empty, blood dripping from her thighs and where she once had arms, chained by the neck to a bestial man, larger in width than height


    The man fighting shadowy, nightmarish creatures, getting further and further away from the woman


    The woman reuniting with her sister, tears streaming down her face as she breaks the neck of her own flesh and blood


    The man-beast drawing a black dagger, ominous, drawing in light and emitting darkness, and thrusting it into the woman¡¯s chest


    The man screaming, standing in the midst of a sea of blood, no bodies left, just chunks of meat


    The man rampaging through thousands of creatures, killing all in his path


    The man finally reaching the source of his agony, fighting for hours, desperate to destroy


    The man, empty of anger, devoid of sadness, being escorted through a lavish palace, being presented to a kingdom


    The king, taking the man¡¯s own sword, slicing his neck like it was air, following with a thrust through the man¡¯s heart, to ensure his death


    The crowd being put to death, the king proclaiming his son as the saviour of their world


    The man, floating in a white void, screaming at a man in a black robe, being promised a new start, a chance to live at peace


    The man, as a white orb, speeding through a vast darkness, colliding with a barely there dim purple speck


    I jolted back to consciousness, shocked at what I had seen. I had killed a man who had seen no peace in his life, who had been promised a simple life of peace? Lothrak was right, I was an asshole.


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Upgrade!</td></tr><tr><td>By understanding more of Soul Devour (Passive), you have unlocked more of its power, but also unleashed more of Lothrak''s curse


    Additional Effects:


    <ul>


    <li>Allows you to obtain information of a species after you kill a member of said species


    If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.</li></ul>


    <ul>


    <li>Any stat points you gain from any source other than Soul Devour are nullified


    </li></ul>


    </td></tr></tbody></table>


    Fuck.


    After that¡­ enlightening experience, I steeled my shattered nerves in order to commit genocide against an unknown race of creatures at the bidding of my possibly psychotic mother. Leaving my temporary cave, I slithered as fast as possible down the tunnel, and almost missed the crack in the wall. Just as Mother said, it was a tiny affair, barely twice as large as me at my full height, but only three times as wide as my body at its thickest. Slipping through, I went forward as slowly and silently as possible, hoping to not draw the attention of any rat sentries. Eventually, I found a nest of tiny, squirming bags of skin, left unattended while the mother replenished herself. Moving quickly, I positioned myself in the middle of the pile of 13 rat pups, and Bit one in the neck, crushing the vertebrae as well as draining the sweet, sweet blood, the first thing I¡¯d drank in my life. After the pup¡¯s convulsions stopped, I paused to stare at another, letting Soul Devour do it¡¯s work.


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Rat Pup</td><td>Fairly useless, high evolutionary abilities</td></tr><tr><td>Experience</td><td>100</td></tr><tr><td>Attack</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td>Defense</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td>Agility</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td>Intelligence</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td>Wisdom</td><td>1</td></tr></tbody></table>


    Storing that information away in case I later found some kind of super-rat, I dispatched the rest of the litter with swift Bites to the neck, being careful not to decapitate the corpses on the off chance Mother wanted the brains. However, I soon ran into a completely separate problem: transportation. I eventually decided to tie the tails of the dead rats together, using my mouth and tongue to ensure tight knots.


    That done, I went searching for more unprotected nests, dragging the dead pups behind me by pulling the lead¡¯s tail with my mouth. I got lucky and found one more, however with only seven pups. After killing them and adding them to the line, I decided to check on my status.


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Name</td><td>None (Shit)</td></tr><tr><td>Species</td><td>Serpent Hatchling</td></tr><tr><td>Level</td><td>100 (10 experience per level) (Curse effect: 20 Experience per level)</td></tr><tr><td>Attack</td><td>8</td></tr><tr><td>Defense</td><td>6</td></tr><tr><td>Agility</td><td>9</td></tr><tr><td>Intelligence</td><td>5</td></tr><tr><td>Wisdom</td><td>7</td></tr><tr><td>Abilities</td><td>Serpent''s Tongue, Bite, Soul Devour (Passive)</td></tr></tbody></table>


    Feeling incredibly proud to already be level 100 and imagining what I might be able to evolve into, I headed towards the crack with my spoils. Unfortunately, I wasn¡¯t as careful going out as I was going in, as I was caught by a Rat Guard as I was about to begin slithering out of the crack.


    Grabbing the tip of my tail with its paw, it yanked back, throwing me into the wall of the tunnel. Stunned, I could only watch as it rammed into me and began clawing at my underside. The sensation of it ripping of the scales above my heart finally brought me back to action, and I desperately Bit at its face, managing to sink both fangs into its left cheek, and pulled back, exposing the rat¡¯s oversized jawbone. Screeching, the rat fell backwards, allowing me to fall off of the wall. Struggling to move, I tried to retreat, only for the rat to pounce on my back and start clawing again. Twisting, I coiled around the rat¡¯s back leg, and somehow got behind it. I immediately Bit the tendons in its back legs, crippling it and severely limiting its speed. The rat, enraged, turned around as fast as it was able and began biting at any part of me it could reach, eventually ripping the tip of my tail off. The fight soon devolved into me trying to get behind it to Bite anything vital that I could, and the rat trying to tear me to shreds while slowly becoming more and more immobile. After repeating this pattern a few times, the rat began to bleed out, and I was finally able to attack from the front, catching the rat by surprise as I Bit into the arteries in its neck and pulled, using the thrashing of my body to tear the rest of the rat¡¯s throat out.


    Slowly realizing that I had won, I collapsed for a moment, to assess the damage the rat had managed to deal. I was missing almost an inch of my already diminutive 6 inches, and there were bleeding spots where I once had scales everywhere, but the most concentrated areas of scale loss were the spots directly above my heart and the top of my head, where the rat had tried to gnaw into my brain. I slowly got back up, and looked at the rat carcass. It was by far too large to enter my side of the tunnel, at 8 inches tall and at least half that in width. However, I needed a trophy, a way to prove to Mother that I had killed something so much bigger than me, that I was worth keeping alive, even injured as I was. I finally decided to finish the job I had started during the battle, and decapitated the rat, holding it by an ear and the pup line by a tail as I returned to what was now my home.


    It took a while to drag my prizes back to Mother, especially since I got lost multiple times, probably due to confusion from blood loss. However, I was finally able to find her, guarding the entrance to my birthplace.


    ¡°Holy fucking shit. You actually did it? You actually fucking hunted successfully? And not just one or two shitpups, no, you brought fucking twenty? And the head of a guard? Brav-fucking-o, son. Fuck. Now I can¡¯t even call you shit. You know what? You get a name.¡±


    Taking all but one of the pups and the head, Mother threw them haphazardly into the birthing hole, before turning back to me and lowering her head to my height.


    ¡°You, my son, have impressed me. You are now known as Hain, after the former king of this den. Who I killed, yes, but that doesn¡¯t mean I didn¡¯t respect him. Or you, now. Even if I could still kill you with a fucking breath. Eat that pup, do whatever the fuck you want with that head, and come back to me whenever you wake up. I¡¯m absolutely fucking certain you¡¯re going to evolve after this. Good night, son.¡±


    Done speaking, Mother coiled up at the entrance to the birthing hole, turning away from me. I struggled back to my home in the tunnel, and coiled around the rat pup, slowly shoving it into my unhinged jaw and down my throat. I decided to leave the guard¡¯s head outside my door, to warn anybody that might want to attack me in my sleep that I may be small, but I wouldn¡¯t hesitate to kill.


    The pup swallowed and digesting, I began to drift to sleep, when an Information Screen popped up.


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Congratulations! For reaching level 100, you have gained the chance to evolve! You will only get one chance to decide, so choose carefully!</td></tr><tr><td>Python Serpent: Become a Python Serpent, just like your mother. Fast size growth, Attack grows +1 per level. Gain Constrict Ability</td></tr><tr><td>Viper Serpent: Become a Viper Python, like your (dead) father. Fast Ability growth, Agilitiy +1 per level. Gain Poison Bite Ability</td></tr><tr><td>Soul Serpent (Unique): Due to having the Soul Devour Ability, you can evolve into the Soul Serpent. This evolution will not grant any new Abilities, but will allow Soul Devour to transfer 11% of stats to you</td></tr><tr><td>Do not evolve (Evolution choice screen will reappear within 24 hours)</td></tr></tbody></table>


    Barely aware, I pick the third option, and slip into nothingness.


    <hr />


    Just to let you know, this is the last chapter tonight. Tomorrow, I should get out at least two, maybe more if I can write them. Thanks for a great first day.

 Chapter Three - Marching Orders

    I woke up intensely uncomfortable, for good reason: the front half of my body was outside of my hole, which was now filled with the rest of my body. Apparently my evolution had come with a size increase. Carefully pulling my body out of the now ruined hole, I coiled around the rat guard¡¯s head and thought of my Status


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Name</td><td>Hain (of Anens Den)</td></tr><tr><td>Species</td><td>Soul Serpent (Unique)</td></tr><tr><td>Level</td><td>1 (100 Experience per level) (Curse Effect: 200 Experience per level)</td></tr><tr><td>Attack</td><td>10 (.5)</td></tr><tr><td>Defense</td><td>7 (.7)</td></tr><tr><td>Agility</td><td>11</td></tr><tr><td>Intelligence</td><td>6 (.1)</td></tr><tr><td>Wisdom</td><td>7 (.9)</td></tr><tr><td>Abilities</td><td>Serpent''s Tongue, Bite, Soul Devour (Passive)</td></tr></tbody></table>


    Well, that¡¯s new. I guess the Guard didn¡¯t have rounded-out stats. Well, no matt-wait, am I eating his brain?


    It was true. While I had been analyzing my new status, I had been absentmindedly chewing on the rat guard¡¯s forehead, eventually getting through the bone and into the brain matter. Shrugging (mentally, because I didn¡¯t have shoulders), I finished my impromptu meal and looked at my new body. I had grown, as evidenced by my eviction from my hole, but not as much as I had imagined. I was now a full 12 inches from nose to the tip of my tail, while my width had only increased by about an inch, to three inches total. I had also regrown the tip of my tail, and the scales that had been torn off in the battle. However, they weren¡¯t my original drab green, but a dark purple, and almost iridescent. It was a mystery as to why, but I had a hunch that it had something to do with Soul Devour. A smile grew across my face as I thought of a way to test my new tail¡¯s tip. I carefully threaded it through the top of the rat¡¯s skull, and out through its mouth. I then started swinging my tail, getting a feel for the amount of force I could put into any one swing, and wound up. Swinging my tail like a windmill, I relaxed the tip of my tail, allowing the skull to go flying down the tunnel, and crash into a curve in the wall about 15 feet away from me, breaking into small chunks of bone. Satisfied in my new body¡¯s power, I began the trek to Mother, anticipating her reaction to my improved form. Slowing as I drew near, I found her ranting to a group of hatchlings, presumably my siblings.


    ¡°-And that, little shits, is why you weren¡¯t allowed out yesterday. Oh! Speak of the fucker, and he appears, apparently. Shits, meet your brother, Hain. He¡¯s a small fucker, and apparently he got some shitty variant evolution, but he¡¯s fucking vicious.¡± She nods at me, and moves just far enough away for me to enter the birthing hole.


    Squeezing my way inside, I saw 12 terrified hatchlings, staring at me with a mixture of apprehension and relief. Apparently Mother had ¡®culled¡¯ a lot of my siblings in the day or so that I had been hunting and evolving. I had to admit, the results were exceptional. The hatchlings that had been murdered by their mother were all my original size or smaller, while the ones she had kept alive were all at least 9 inches long, with two a full inch longer than me. The survivors were terrified, but I prefered them that way; it would keep them from deciding to gang up on me.


    One of the smaller hatchlings, pushed forward by the rest, reared up as far as she could and asked, ¡°How did you earn your name, and when were you born? You¡¯ve obviously evolved, but Mother told us that it can take weeks.¡±


    I grinned, showing my weaker siblings every single fang, ¡°I was born two days ago, as far as I can tell. And earning a name is easy: just kill enough that Mother is satisfied with you, and probably almost die in the process.¡±


    All of the hatchlings reared back in shock, fear, and at least a little respect. I leaned up as well, staring down at them, slightly amused. Mother chose this moment to break the tension, sliding between us with an exaggerated sigh. She looked at me, more amused than annoyed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t steal my fucking job, Hain. I get to terrify the little shits. Now, Hain¡¯s going to take you little fuckers out to hunt. At least a few of you are gonna die. If you die, you die as shit. Get fucking going.¡±


    With that heartfelt farewell, I gestured to the hatchlings with the tip of my tail, and we began slithering to the crack. It was incredibly obvious that the hatchlings had never been outside of the den before; their eyes were widened as far as possible, and their heads were darting in all directions, tongues tasting the air, testing for allies, enemies, prey.


    We got to the crack, and I paused to look around inside for a moment before speaking. I saw the headless carcass of the Rat Guard, but nothing living had disturbed the area for a few hours, at least as far as I could tell. Safety somewhat assured, I turned to my siblings and began to outline my plans for our hunt.


    ¡°Okay, here¡¯s how this hunt will work. I¡¯m going to take the two smallest hatchlings. You two big fucks are going to split the other eight. We¡¯re going to split up into those three groups when we go through this crack. You hatchlings are going to hunt Rat Pups, preferably the ones that get left unattended. When you¡¯re done killing the nest, you tie their tails together so that we can bring them back to Mother quickly. I¡¯d rather not see what happens if this takes too long. Also, if you see a Rat Guard, it might be best to run. Or die and hope you get a better life next time. One last thing: don¡¯t be a hero. We¡¯re here to kill their children and eat them, not invade their territory. If you get too far into their den, they¡¯ll probably all come out to kill us. And I don¡¯t want to die for you. Understood?¡± The now terrified hatchlings nodded in unison. ¡°Good. Let¡¯s get fucking going.¡±


    After my inspiring speech, the two large hatchlings entered the crack, followed by their eight minions. My two huddled together, frightened of me or the situation, I couldn¡¯t tell which. With a sharp jerk of my head, they slipped through the crack, but stopped as soon as they saw my kill from yesterday. I reminded them of their situation by slapping the back of their heads with my tail and motioning for them to continue.


    The next few minutes were an exercise in silence and futility, until I decided that we would be hunting Rat Guards, instead of the Rat Pups the other two teams had apparently exterminated. Sneaking along, we were able to find a guard that was patrolling on its own, and I took a moment to check its stats.


    Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Rat Guard</td><td>An expendable rat that guards a warren of nests. Fairly self-explanatory. Evolutionary dead end.</td></tr><tr><td>Experience</td><td>250</td></tr><tr><td>Attack</td><td>25</td></tr><tr><td>Defense</td><td>17</td></tr><tr><td>Agility</td><td>20</td></tr><tr><td>Intelligence</td><td>11</td></tr><tr><td>Wisdom</td><td>9</td></tr></tbody></table>


    Hmmmm. Apparently these things are fucking stupid. We can probably use this.


    Thinking quickly, I decided to let the hatchlings take the kills for this hunt. It was more important to have them stronger and loyal to me than for them to see me get stronger off what they would no doubt perceive as shared effort. Done negotiating with myself over the plans, I told the hatchlings to wait behind a corner and made sure one was ready to strike at the guard¡¯s neck at my order.


    Turning the corner, I snuck behind the rat and bit through the tendons in his (his gender was plainly obvious by the testicles hanging centimeters from my face) left back leg at the same time I wrapped the end of my tail around his neck. Suddenly crippled and losing oxygen, the rat didn¡¯t put up nearly as much of a fight as I imagined he would have, going limp fairly quickly, as if accepting his fate. Not taking any chances, I proceeded to tear out the tendons in his remaining limbs, and even ripped his tail in half to prevent the hatchlings from being whipped (the rat¡¯s screams would no doubt have been horrific, if I had allowed him enough oxygen to scream). Dragging him behind me, I returned to the hatchlings, and had the one that I had prepared tear the rat¡¯s spine out from his neck, to prevent him from biting my <del>minio</del> charges.


    The next seven Rat Guards we killed followed roughly the same pattern, with the exception of the fourth, who was able to make enough noise that the fifth came running. Wrapped up with the fourth, I was forced to distract the fifth while the hatchlings snuck behind it and crippled its back legs simultaneously, before killing it.


    Dragging our kills behind us, we came back to the crack in the wall, to find the other groups waiting for us, some of whom had obviously not heeded my warnings against fighting the Rat Guards. Only six hatchlings, with only one big hatchling among them, were assembled, dragging a collective 100 Rat Pups and 3 Rat Guards. They were obviously surprised to find that I hadn¡¯t let my two hatchlings die; the survivors¡¯ tongue were lashing out as if to attack us with saliva, and they all reared up, just a little. I smacked my tail into the crack of the wall, widening it be almost an inch, with a side effect of all the hatchlings jumping, and some even snapping at the air in front of them.


    ¡°Settle down, fuckwits. I¡¯m just trying to open this up a little. If we don¡¯t get these guards to Mother, our siblings have died for nothing. If we bring them to her, maybe they¡¯ll have died to let you get names. Now help me, or cower over there.¡±


    At this, the hatchlings began striking the crack, more out of fear of the repercussions of disobedience rather than enthusiasm. Either way, we widened the crack just enough to squeeze one rat guard at a time through (with a small amount of shaved skin, to deter the living Rat Guards from entering our side of the wall) and began transferring our kills. Once this was done, we began the slow trek back to our nest. Nearing, we heard hissing and moving flesh - far more than Mother would make by herself. Motioning to the hatchlings to stay where they were, I snuck closer to the opening of the den, and found Mother fighting a 4 foot long viper, both of whom were clearly heavily injured and tired, both surrounded by mangled serpent corpses.


    Moving as quickly as I could, I threw myself at the viper¡¯s neck, managing to Bite down into it before he could react. Mother took this chance to disentangle herself from the viper and start biting his body anywhere she could get purchase. With the viper being attacked from two sides, it was simple to shake myself, every swing pulling his neck further and further out of his body, slowly killing him. When he finally quit moving, I made sure he was dead by tearing his head completely off of his body. Tired, I looked around and found that the hatchlings had entered the den, bringing the dead rats along. I looked to Mother, who was even more tired than me, and still heavily injured.


    ¡°What the fuck are you looking at? Oh, right. Probably want an explanation. Well, long fucking story short, that was my brother, your uncle. He probably wanted my spot as ruler of this den. The thing is, he was supposed to be in one of the other dens, so the ruler there probably wants to unify us. Fucker.¡±


    Seeing our blank look, Mother hissed in irritation, ¡°Seriously? You didn¡¯t even fucking think to check out the rest of the tunnel, did you? Well, fuck. Okay, we¡¯re in the Anens den, right? Well, why do you think we need a name for the den? Because there are other dens, fucking obviously. There are four others, all ruled by my siblings. I¡¯m the oldest, so I got the biggest den, when I killed the old king. There¡¯s also the Chilid den, ruled by Anom, the weakest, a python and the second oldest, the Chordid den, ruled by Acroc, a viper and the middle sibling, the Phid den, ruled by Cylin, a nasty fucking viper and the second youngest, and Lopid den, ruled by Typh, the youngest and a python. Now, get the fuck to sleep. Now that you know the names of those fuckwits, you¡¯re going to kill them all in the morning. I get the food tonight. I need it. You can feast on your cousins¡¯ flesh tomorrow.¡±


    Done with her speech, Mother pulled all the rats to her, and began taking chunks out of her former brother. The hatchlings and I slithered to the far side of the den, and began curling up and coiling around each other to sleep, with me sleeping a few feet away, aware of the dramatic size difference that evolving can cause. Slowly drifting off, I checked my Status, eager to see what the viper gave me.


    [table]<tr><td>Name</td><td>Hain (of Anens Den)</td></tr><tr><td>Species</td><td>Soul Serpent (Unique)</td></tr><tr><td>Level</td><td>2 (100 Experience to next level) (Curse Effect: 200 Experienceper level)</td></tr><tr><td>Attack</td><td>14.9</td></tr><tr><td>Defense</td><td>11.8</td></tr><tr><td>Agility</td><td>17.9</td></tr><tr><td>Intelligence</td><td>8.3</td></tr><tr><td>Wisdom</td><td>10</td></tr><tr><td>Abilities</td><td>Serpent''s Tongue, Bite, Soul Devour (Passive)</td></tr>[/table]


    <hr />


    Sorry I didn''t post anything yesterday; I had a few family matters to take care of. I guarantee at least one new chapter after this, though.

 Chapter Four - Regicide

    Sorry this chapter took so long to come out. It turns out that it''s difficult to balance college preparation, work, and writing a story at the same time. Writing combat is also one of the harder things for me, for some reason. Also. Halloween happened, and I am all about that. Anyway, I don''t see myself writing chapters of this length any quicker than one ever two or three days, but I want to hear your opinion. Should I start releasing a chapter every day, but of a shorter length (or in parts, as the story calls for), or should I write a chapter of about the same length as before, but only release every two or three days? Either way, we''re coming up near the end of this arc of Hain''s story. Chapter Five will be the end of the Prologue of A Serpentine Tale, and the beginning of Hain''s true journey.


    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


    In what was quickly becoming an annoying habit, I was woken up by an uncomfortable pressure on my body. Looking around with barely opened eyes, I made a startling revelation: I was now, by far, the smallest of my siblings. It was fairly clear that the majority of the former hatchlings had evolved into Viper Serpents, with only two out of eight evolving into Python Serpents: one being the only large survivor of the hunt yesterday, and the other, surprisingly, being the smallest of the two that I had taken with me. Coincidentally, she had also been the only one to speak with my before we had been forced to hunt by Mother. I decided to call her Smol, as even an evolution to the larger species of the two had only allowed her to grow to 18 inches long, a far cry from the Vipers at an average of 2 feet. All of us, however, were dwarfed by our Python brother, who was an impressive 4 feet long, almost as long as our Mother. Speaking of, I should probably go see if she¡¯s died. Slightly irritated, I worked my way out of the pile <del>that I had purposefully fallen asleep away from</del> and began to look for my Queen.


    When I finally found her, I was surprised for the second time in a few minutes, as Mother had evolved, and greatly at that. She had grown from 5 feet long to a full 9, and her scales had changed from a dull green to a stony emerald, but the most dramatic change was the large hood that now covered her head. The inside was dark, with patterns that drew attention to her eyes. She had not yet woken up, so I waited near her until she opened her eyes. Eventually, she began to stir, and gave me an order before she even opened her eyes, her voice smoother and higher pitched, but somehow even more powerful than when she had been a Queen.


    ¡°Hain, if that¡¯s you, get your fucking siblings to the Chilid den. It¡¯s about a half mile down the tunnel, and there¡¯s no other den between us. If my shit brother was going to attack me, it means. that all the other dens have already made an alliance. So, you fuckers are going to destabilize their weakest link. If you can, scout them and come back. If not, kill every single fucking serpent in the den, then come back here. I need to see why exactly I evolved, and what I can do now. Get fucking going.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Mother. We¡¯ll have killed our uncle and his children before you even wake up fully.¡±


    Nervously, I began rounding up my siblings, preparing them for their first battle, rather than hunt. After a few minutes discussing Mother¡¯s evolution and our plans for battle, we began filing out of our den, some for the last time. I had the vipers form into two groups of three, with a python each. I took the two fastest vipers with me, since our plan was for my team to scout the den, with the other two teams behind us both to prevent any possible ambush and so that, if the scouting mission became an attack, we would be able to lure our attackers into a circle of fangs.


    Like always, traversing the tunnel was an exercise in patience. However, with our increased size, the time taken to travel was much shorter than before, with the total time between us leaving our den and seeing the entrance to the Chilid den being only 10 minutes. Slowing, I motioned to the other teams to wait where they were, and my team began slithering softly towards the den.


    Before we could even get to the entrance, the worst possible event to our mission happened: two vipers came slithering out of the den, and saw us. Fortunately, they froze rather than sound an alarm, and my vipers were able to strike at their necks before dragging them away, effectively erasing them from existence for the purpose of the mission. One of the other teams took the bodies further away, allowing my team to get closer to the entrance, careful to not be surprised again.


    Our first look into the Chilid den showed that we were outnumbered, if not overpowered. After a few moments of careful scrutiny, I counted 12 Hatchlings, 4 pythons, 3 vipers, and a python who was obviously our uncle. Anom was at least 6 feet long, with bright blue scales and similarly colored eyes. He was also heavily scarred, and it seemed he only had vision in his left eye, as none of the serpents near him went near his right side. Before we could so a more in-depth analysis, however, we heard a loud hiss, and every serpent in the den whipped their head around to see us. Anom roared, and the serpents were upon us.


    My vipers and I began scrambling towards the other two teams, only to find them already rushing towards us. Turning quickly, I ripped the throat of an unsuspecting hatchling with a lucky strike, spitting out flesh as I coiled around myself, making sure to defend as many vital areas as possible. my vipers and I were surrounded by the 11 hatchlings, while the pythons and vipers had decided to attack the other two teams, and Anom was lurking behind the scenes, waiting to assist his children.


    My vipers immediately began using Poison Bite on any hatchling they could reach, going to injury rather than lethal strikes. I, on the other hand, went for the throat, head, and spine of every single hatchling I saw, often attacking at the same time as one of my vipers, forcing the hatchlings to go on the defensive. After almost a minute of rapid strikes, the last hatchling finally died, letting me see the other battles taking place.


    The team with the giant python had been attacked by all three vipers and their smallest python, who I could see in half on the ground. While the large python¡¯s team, with 2 vipers and the python left, had the upper hand, Anom¡¯s vipers had focused on the python, who didn¡¯t have any resistance to their poison. I sent one of my vipers to assist them as I evaluated the situation with the Smol¡¯s team.


    What I saw was a complete massacre of Anom¡¯s pythons. Of the 3 that had attacked her team, only the largest was left, and as I watched, Smol tore his vertebrae out of the back of his neck. Deciding to let my other viper help the large python¡¯s team, I motioned toward Smol¡¯s team, and we turned to face Anom. Smol had her vipers start circling Anom, Biting at him whenever he focused too long on one. Unfortunately, our advantage was lost as soon as he struck one of the vipers, killing it almost instantly. At this moment, I finally saw my chance and struck Anom¡¯s neck, shaking myself vigorously, prying his very throat out of his skin.


    Anom, surprisingly enough, didn¡¯t put up much of a fight after I locked my jaw, only injuring the two remaining vipers from Smol¡¯s team before she was able to Bite the other side of his neck and swung herself opposite to me. After an agonizingly slow few minutes passed, we had swung enough that Anom¡¯s very flesh was torn from his body. Picking myself up, I gazed at the survivors of our extermination of the Chilid den. Out of nine serpents, we had merely lost 3, all of them vipers. Gathering together, we began our last job in the den: feeding, sating our hunger, and heading back to Mother.


    Returning, we found that Mother had somehow killed a Queen Viper, and was devouring her with gusto while waiting for us. Turning to stare at us, she demanded a situation report.


    ¡°Mother, the Chilid den is no more. When we were unable to scout undetected, we led a three-pronged assault, succeeding with only three casualties.¡±


    ¡°Three? That¡¯s three too fucking many, Hain. What the fuck did you think you were doing out there? You weren¡¯t allowed to lose any of my serpents, you piece of shit. I need all of you if we¡¯re gonna have any chance of killing those fucks. You fucked up, so I¡¯m going to punish you. Take these fuckers and go kill Cylin. He¡¯s in the Phid den; it¡¯s just a little further away than the Chilid den. Hell, they probably heard you kill Anom. Cylin has a special poison, and if you get bit, you¡¯ll probably die. So don¡¯t get fucking bit. While you¡¯re doing that, I¡¯ll go pay baby brother Acroc a visit in the Chordid den. When you finish off Cyclin, head further away from here. We¡¯ll meet up a few hundred feet before the Lopid den. Get the fuck out.¡±


    Slithering out with our heads down, we began the journey towards the Phid den, organizing our plan as we did so. Instead of scouting, we had been ordered to directly eliminate the den, and so we decided upon two teams. The first team, lead by me, would have two vipers and the large python. Our mission was to kill Cylin at the expense of anything and everything else. The other team, composed of Smol and the other four vipers, would ensure that we got to Cylin, and would kill any serpents they could.


    Seeing the entrance, my team didn¡¯t hesitate, rushing into the den, and immediately found Cylin coiled near the entrance. He was tiny by the standards of his brothers and sisters, barely 3 feet long, but his presence alone made him feel much larger. His scales were a pure red that didn¡¯t reflect any light, and his eyes were a sickly yellow, constantly emitting tears of a similar color.


    Seeing us rush in, Cylin smiled and began uncoiling, hissing slowly. The large python began the attack, striking at the King Viper¡¯s neck. Cylin easily avoided, landing his own bite near the tip of the large python¡¯s tail. Immediately, the python began roaring and thrashing. Panicking, I bit at him, managing to cut off the part of his tail Cylin had struck. After it was off, I was able to clearly see why Cylin¡¯s poison was so special: the tail was slowly being eaten by the poison, scales burning away and meat rotting before my eyes. I looked away from the gruesome sight to find Cylin had already struck one of the vipers in the neck, killing him before he even realized it.


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    Acting on instinct, I struck at Cylin, getting a lucky strike on the back of his head. It wasn¡¯t a serious injury, but he wouldn¡¯t be able to just shrug it off, either. I hurried to move away from him as fast as possible, dodging just in time to avoid a corrosive bite. The next few minutes involved a lot of dodging, and a lot of getting bit and being forced to tear of our own flesh to avoid being rotted alive. After a few minutes, however, the blood loss finally began to catch up to Cylin, and his reactions suffered enough for the remaining viper on my team to inject his own poison into Cylin, forcing him into an even worse situation.


    Eventually we wore Cylin down enough to end his life, but it wasn¡¯t without sacrifices of our own: the large python had his spine bitten through, and the viper and I had both lost chunks of flesh all over our bodies. Looking around, we found that the battle between Smol¡¯s team and the Phid den was nearing its own end. The Phid den, despite having such a formidable king, only had twenty serpents, all pythons, ostensibly to protect Cylin from his much larger brethren as living shields. That said, the gathering of pythons had still managed to kill four vipers, often crushing them to death in their own death throes, and had injured Smol to almost the same extent that Cylin had injured the viper and I.


    Slowly regaining our strength from the flesh of the dead, the vipers, Smol, and I worked our way towards the Lopid den, running into Mother just before we saw the entrance. Mother took a look at how far our forces had fallen, and stared at me, rage clear in her eyes. However, Mother did not attack me, instead just jerking her head towards the entrance to the final obstacle in our domination of the tunnel.


    The Lopid den was filled to the brim with what was apparently the strongest of the united serpents¡¯ forces. There was at least one of every serpent species, with 40 hatchlings, 10 vipers, 15 pythons, 3 king vipers, 2 king pythons, and our final aunt, Typh the Queen Python. She was the largest of her siblings, easily 15 feet long, with pitch black scales and pale green eyes, staring at the entrance to her den. Taking a moment to prepare ourselves for the upcoming bloodbath, I analyzed the enemy forces.


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Serpent Hatchling</td><td>A freshly hatched serpent; preferred hunting method influences future evolution</td></tr><tr><td>Experience</td><td>100</td></tr><tr><td>Attack</td><td>4</td></tr><tr><td>Defense</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>Agility</td><td>5</td></tr><tr><td>Intelligence</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>Wisdom</td><td>2</td></tr></tbody></table>


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Viper Serpent</td><td>A poisonous serpent, focusing on speed rather than strength</td></tr><tr><td>Experience</td><td>500</td></tr><tr><td>Attack</td><td>40</td></tr><tr><td>Defense</td><td>37</td></tr><tr><td>Agility</td><td>63</td></tr><tr><td>Intelligence</td><td>20</td></tr><tr><td>Wisdom</td><td>19</td></tr></tbody></table>


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Python Serpent</td><td>A serpent that prefers brute strength and crushing power over speed</td></tr><tr><td>Experience</td><td>500</td></tr><tr><td>Attack</td><td>82</td></tr><tr><td>Defense</td><td>45</td></tr><tr><td>Agility</td><td>26</td></tr><tr><td>Intelligence</td><td>12</td></tr><tr><td>Wisdom</td><td>9</td></tr></tbody></table>


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Ruler Python Serpent</td><td>A ruler of the Python Serpents; much smarter than the common snake</td></tr><tr><td>Experience</td><td>2500</td></tr><tr><td>Attack</td><td>100</td></tr><tr><td>Defense</td><td>67</td></tr><tr><td>Agility</td><td>34</td></tr><tr><td>Intelligence</td><td>40</td></tr><tr><td>Wisdom</td><td>39</td></tr></tbody></table>


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Ruler Viper Serpent</td><td>A ruler of the Viper Serpents; much smarter than the common snake</td></tr><tr><td>Experience</td><td>2500</td></tr><tr><td>Attack</td><td>62</td></tr><tr><td>Defense</td><td>50</td></tr><tr><td>Agility</td><td>102</td></tr><tr><td>Intelligence</td><td>59</td></tr><tr><td>Wisdom</td><td>46</td></tr></tbody></table>


    My analysis complete, Mother, Smol, and the four vipers began our assault on the Lopid den. As we rushed in, Mother let out a low hiss, and looked directly into my eyes.


    Rage filling me, rushing headfirst into the throng of serpents with the vipers


    Biting through a hatchling¡¯s head, throwing what''s in my mouth at another before biting all I can


    Most of the hatchlings dead, the vipers and I splitting up to kill the rest


    One of the vipers dying, constricted by five pythons


    Coiling my tail around one python¡¯s face, biting another¡¯s spine, smacking a third with the first


    Smol taking over the attack on the pythons, the other viper crying out as she is bitten by Typh


    Mother attacking Typh, them flying off in a tangle of green and black


    Feeling the fog in my head, trying to fight it, blowing it away as hard as I could


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Notice: New Stat!</td></tr><tr><td>By killing your own family in cold blood, you have gained the stat: Ruthlessness! This stat determines how much you are affected by any outside influence to your actions, positive or negative.


    Notice: Gained Stats, unlike Basic Stats, are unaffected by any direct statistic manipulation, even by the gods.</td></tr><tr><td>Current Ruthlessness: 50 (5% influence reduction)</td></tr></tbody></table>


    More aware of my surroundings, I found that Mother, Smol, and I were the only survivors of our den. Typh¡¯s forces, while outnumbering us two to one, were much more seriously injured than us, the most injured undoubtedly being Typh, with multiple chunks of flesh torn off her body and bone clearly visible. The battle lulled for a moment as we all gathered ourselves for the conclusion of our genocidal assault.


    Finally, only Typh was left, bloody and torn. She choked on a laugh and spit out vermillion blood before croaking out, ¡°You bitch, Teno. You finally won a fucking round. Don¡¯t get used to it, though. How¡¯s that scrawny, psycho fuck going to help you make a stronger den next time? You¡¯re going to choke on your own piss and blood, big sister. I promise you that.¡±


    Done with her diatribe, Typh did something incredible: she bit into the wall of the den, and began shaking, putting enough stress on her injured neck that it snapped, depriving us of complete victory.


    Smol, Mother, and I slithered back to our den to nurse our wounds and reflect on what we¡¯d done. After coiling up into a comfortable position (unsurprisingly difficult to do with multiple missing chunks of flesh), Smol and I looked at Mother, and I asked the question that I was sure was on both our minds.


    ¡°Mother, what did Typh mean by this round? She sounded like she thought she¡¯d come back to life. More importantly, what the fuck did you do to me before that last battle? I couldn¡¯t even think about anything but killing my cousins and eating their flesh. After what we¡¯ve done for you, I think you owe us an explanation.¡±


    ¡°Fuck no I don¡¯t. You owe me your entire fucking existence. I could eat you alive right now, and you¡¯d only have your shitty attitude to blame. But I will tell you. Tomorrow. Now get the fuck to sleep. It¡¯s gonna be a long day.¡±


    Finished, Mother closed her eyes and began to lightly snore. I called up my Status so that I could see the spoils of war.


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Name</td><td>Hain (of Anens Den)</td></tr><tr><td>Species</td><td>Soul Serpent (Unique)</td></tr><tr><td>Level</td><td>71 (100 Experience to next level) (Curse Effect: 200 Experience per level)</td></tr><tr><td>Attack</td><td>126.7</td></tr><tr><td>Defense</td><td>83.9</td></tr><tr><td>Agility</td><td>85.7</td></tr><tr><td>Intelligence</td><td>44.5</td></tr><tr><td>Wisdom</td><td>40.1</td></tr><tr><td>Ruthlessness</td><td>50 (5% influence reduction)</td></tr><tr><td>Abilities</td><td>Serpent''s Tongue, Bite, Soul Devour (Passive)</td></tr></tbody></table>


    More than satisfied with my gains, I slowly drifted into the last peaceful sleep of my life in the Anens den.

 Quick Update!

    So, you''re probably wondering where Chapter Five is. Well, it''s the same place as Chapters Six, Seven, and Eight: my Google Drive. Due to the hectic monstrosity that is the holiday season, I won''t be posting chapters for a little while (I barely have time to write them). But don''t worry! I have a present for you guys for my birthday, and after Thanksgiving I should be good (no need to celebrate Christmas, so December is much easier for me). In other words, just be a little more patient. I promise it''ll be worth it.

 Chapter Five - Deracination

    So, as some of you may have noticed, my birthday was the 28th, but I didn''t post anything. I was going to post Chapters Five through Eight, but on the 27th, I looked them over and decided that they weren''t good enough. So I rewrote them, with a completely different story line than I had originally intended. The ending is still the same, this version is just better. To try to make up for my broken promise, I also wrote Chapters Nine and Ten. You''ll be getting Six in 9-12 hours (so I can sleep and edit any mistakes), then Seven-Ten once every 18-24 hours until I''m out of written content.


    PS: Sexual content in this chapter, and probably in the future, too. Plot stuff. If there''s sexual content of other NSFW themes in a chapter from now on, I''ll have some indication before the chapter, in red (sexual content) or pink (various NSFW themes).


    PPS: After this week, expect  two chapters a week until the middle of January, when classes start. I can''t promise you''ll get two, but it''s what I''ll be aiming for.


    -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-


    Waking up, I found Smol and Mother curled up together, leaving me (for once) undisturbed in my sleep. Feeling peckish, I searched the den, eventually finding part of Typh, only recognizable by the scales. I devoured it, then decided to spend the time until the only remaining members of my family woke up by finding more meat, in case they wanted something.


    After more than an hour of travelling between dens, carrying my brethren, I arrived to find Smol awake. Slowly uncurling, she looked at me, mute as she¡¯d been since she evolved.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you ever talk anymore, anyway? There has to be a reason. I know you¡¯re intelligent enough to at least answer in simple sentences.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s not going to tell you, numbfuck. It¡¯s a secret of her species, just like there are secrets of your species that you probably won¡¯t tell us. So stop fucking talking for a few minutes. I¡¯m hungry.¡±


    I turned to find Mother savaging the corpse of one of her own children with relish. It would have been a disturbing sight, if it had been the first time.


    After completely devouring her young, Mother turned to me and yawned.


    ¡°Now, what did you want to know, again? Right, right. My powers, and what Typh meant. Okay, let¡¯s start with that bitch of a sister. She¡¯ll be back in about a week.¡±


    Not giving me time to respond, Mother began speaking faster, as if trying to force the sentences out.


    ¡°Yeah, they all will. My brothers and I regenerate from anything, even death, in a week. We¡¯re here to make little snakes like you. Ones that can fight and win against anything, even their own family. So every week we go on a crusade to kill each other, and the winner¡¯s kids get the chance to leave this place and join the outside world. A chance, mind you. There¡¯s never a guarantee. I¡¯ll have to beg the Guardians to even get one of you out, never mind both. Anyway, yeah. We have the power to emit pheromones, scents, to force you into a frenzy, to make it easier for you to kill your uncles, aunts, and cousins. All Ruler and above Serpents do. By the way, be careful of that in the future if you can leave this shitty place. That answer all your fucking questions?¡±


    It took me a long time to answer Mother, and almost as long to understand what she said. After a while though, I finally nodded, and made a grunt that she took as an affirmative.


    ¡°Good. Now, be ready. The stone fucks are about to get here. I¡¯ll try to get you out of here, but the other one has to stay here with me.¡±


    No sooner had Mother said that than a group of three¡­ Creatures walked through the opening of the den. They looked like a cross between the hero whose soul I had eaten and the walls of the den. They were a uniform grey, with streaks of shining green on the offshoot that must be their version of a head, and two protrusions each for arms and legs, the arms asymmetrical. They walked up to Mother, bowed slightly, and began to emit sounds like rocks grinding against one another, that slowly became something resembling a language.


    ¡°Ahoj, chaotick¨¦ jednu. Jak se tyto d¨§ti d¨§lat v tr¨¦ninku?¡±


    ¡°Nen¨ª to ?patn¨¦, k¨¢men kurva. Jste tu, aby je pry?, nebo jen obt¨§?uj¨ª mo? ze m¨§?¡±


    ¡°J¨¢ bych se neodv¨¢?il. Ktery z nich je byt tr¨¦noval?¡±


    ¡°Maly jedn¨ªm, s podivn¨¦ barvami. Samice je naprosto k ni?emu na?im pot?eb¨¢m. Bu?te opatrn¨ª, i kdy?. On nen¨ª v¨¢z¨¢n stejn¨¦ z¨¢kony jako bezduch¨¦ drones obvykle vys¨ªlaj¨ª. V¨ª. Dejte ho ve t?¨ªd¨§, a? u?¨ª na?eho sv¨§ta. Kdy? jste zjistili, jeho nad¨¢n¨ª, skl¨¢dka ho v probl¨¦mov¨¦ skupiny. V¨ªte, ten pod moj¨ª sestrou, je?t¨§rky.¡±


    ¡°Samoz?ejm¨§, bohyn¨§. M¨¢te pot?ebujete pro jak¨¦koli dal?¨ª slu?by z htese bezcenn¨¦ zam¨§stnanc??¡±


    ¡°Ano, skute?n¨§. Pot?ebuji t¨§ p?edst¨ªrat, abych prosit, abys ho pry?. Dej mi jednu minutu, pak za?¨ªt k?i?et na m¨§.¡±


    ¡°Ale pro?? Ty jsou tak mnohem siln¨§j?¨ª, ne? jsme mohli n¨§kdy doufat, ?e se, pro? bychom v¨¢m pop¨ªrat?¡±


    ¡°Prost¨§ to ud¨§lej, necitliv¨¦ o?echy.¡±


    Mother turned to me, and sighed. Fearing the worst, I began curling as tightly as possible, ready to lunge at the rock creatures at the first sign of any trouble. I had no aspirations of killing them, just the intention to hold them back long enough to allow Mother to get away. With any luck, my soul would be safe outside of my body if I die. If not¡­. I¡¯d have to worry about that later.


    ¡°Calm down, shit for brains. It¡¯s not a definite no, yet. Give me one more try, and then you can begin your suicide attack.¡±


    ¡°Dob?e, je ?as. jen ?¨ªct, co p?ijde na mysl.¡±


    ¡°No, uvid¨ªme. ¨²l kr¨¢lovna byl nakonec schopny tvo?it druhou l¨ªhn¨§. Brzy bude n¨¢? druh se nez¨¢visl¨¦ od zatracenych element¨¢ly.¡±


    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    ¡°Dob?e dob?e. Nikdo by nem¨§l byt v poutech do druh¨¦ho jen vytvo?it jejich dal?¨ª generaci. Je to d?vod, pro? star?¨ª neuk¨¢zal tentokr¨¢t? Byli slav¨ª jejich budouc¨ª neo?ek¨¢van¨¦?¡±


    ¡°J-J¨¢ bych p?edpokl¨¢dat v¨§d¨§t, velky jeden.¡±


    ¡°Tak?e m¨¢m pravdu. Dobry. To mi d¨¢v¨¢ n¨§co, co k jejich vyd¨ªr¨¢n¨ª. To by m¨§lo byt dostate?n¨§ dlouh¨¦. Nechte asi 15 minut, pak se ho dostat. Chci ho sp¨ª v st¨¢zov¨¦m klece p?ed t¨ªm, ne? opust¨ª tuto jeskyni.¡±


    ¡°Samoz?ejm¨§, ?e va?e p?¨¢n¨ª je n¨¢m rozkazem.¡±


    ¡°Samoz?ejm¨§. A te? vypadni. Mus¨ªm ti n¨§co ... z¨²?astnit, aby se s n¨ªm.¡±


    The rocky menaces began to leave, confusing me greatly. I looked at Mother, only to find her smirking at me. Taking that to mean that her negotiations were a success, I uncurled, and asked her why the living stones were leaving.


    ¡°Why, to give us some privacy, of course. You see, I haven¡¯t been completely honest with you. You will be leaving the cave, but not all of you.¡±


    Confused <del>and more than a little scared</del>, I began coiling on instinct, trying to hide from my smirking Mother.


    ¡°Why are you getting nervous, boy? It¡¯s not like we¡¯ll be doing anything bad. In fact, it¡¯ll be downright fun.


    I began feeling¡­ Loose. Knowing that it was Mother using her control over pheromones to affect my mind, I glared at her, causing her to laugh.


    ¡°Oh, so you¡¯re feeling it, huh? Too bad. You can¡¯t do shit to stop this. Just relax. I just want some of your cum. You owe me a clutch of strong kids.¡±


    Appalled, I yelled, ¡°I¡¯m your SON!¡±


    ¡°What? No, you¡¯re not. I told you when you hatched, my clutch is my children, and orphans I picked up to buffer my numbers. You¡¯re one of those orphans. Your parents were some random snakes that made their way into my den and lived long enough to have you.¡±


    Mollified, I began to analyze her words, trying to find any hints of deceit. Finding none, I finally let go of my control, and began looking at <del>Mothe</del>Teno as just a female serpent, rather than the leader of my den. Immediately, I felt my hemipenes engorge and push their way out of my body. Teno, seeing their emergence, looked surprised for a moment before grinning fully.


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t expecting you to accept it so quick, or to be so enthusiastic about it.¡±


    ¡°If it¡¯s going to happen no matter what, then I might as well be accommodating. I might also have a thing for power.¡±


    Laughing sultrily, Teno lunged at me, and we began to coil and thrust against each other, lasting for what felt like centuries before Teno finally allowed my damaged organs to rest and retract.


    ¡°That wasn¡¯t bad, for a first time fuck. A bit too fast for me to have fun, but I¡¯ll let you go.¡±


    Saying that <del>incredibly hurtful</del> line, Teno smacked the wall of the den, causing it to rumble. The rock creatures rumbled back in, and surrounded me.


    ¡°Dokon?il jsi?¡±


    ¡°To jo. Vezm¨§te ho a vypadni z mych komnat.¡±


    ¡°P?ejete si je n¨¢? p?¨ªkaz.¡±


    ¡°To si pi?, ?e je.¡±


    Finishing their conversation, the creatures picked up my limp body and placed me in what seemed to be a cage made completely of solid air. I was only able to stay awake long enough to see a white light shining from the wall of the den opposite the opening before succumbing to sleep.


    -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-


    After the worker golems left with Hain, Teno reared up, and began rapidly morphing between herself, Anom, Acroc, Cylin, and Typh, before finally shooting in size, becoming a giant woman with a snake¡¯s body below her hips and her original head, and began rubbing the skin above her now-human womb. The leader of the golems, almost as tall as his mistress, immediately bowed and began chanting.


    ¡°All hail the Chaotic One! All hail the Chaotic One! All hail the Chaotic One!¡±


    ¡°Shut the fuck up, Charlemaigne. Keep an eye out for that little fucker. He¡¯s tiny, but he¡¯s got big dicks, and some kind of special power. Well, I wouldn¡¯t expect anything less from my adorable little sister¡¯s kid, even if his dad is that self-righteous prick.¡±


    Chuckling a little at herself, Teno grabbed her rejected child, caressing her head for a moment before placing the serpent in her mouth and swallowing. Smol, completely controlled by her mother, didn¡¯t even struggle as she slid into Teno¡¯s stomach and was digested.


    Her work in the den complete, Teno slowly dissolved into a puddle of black liquid that burst into green flames before sprouting into purple grass, freezing into a crystal skull, and finally exploding into nothingness.


    <hr />


    Did you really think I''d go into detail about snake sex? Also, here: <b>Spoiler</b> : <input type=''button'' value=''Show'' class=''spoilerButton''>This is the template for the golems. The only real difference is that in this world, they have veins of precious ores in their ''faces''. http://suirebit.deviantart.com/art/Awakening-the-Stone-Golem-442161984</a>

 Chapter Six - Impressment

    Waking, I found myself in the cage, inside a white room with a creature that seemed to be made completely out of vines. The vines shook, and I could hear a monotone voice in my head, but there was no sound.


    <So you¡¯re awake, then? Good. If you can understand me, then we¡¯ll begin by checking your stats. You don¡¯t have to do anything but sit there for a second.>


    Suddenly, I felt a piercing pain, as if my mind was being torn to shreds. This went on for only a few seconds, but by the time I could think again, the vine monster had already taken my spasming form from my solid-air (Glass, that¡¯s glass) cage and set my on a curved platform help up by three pillars (Stool) and slumped around me.


    <Good job. A lot of people can¡¯t even stay conscious throughout that process. But, anyway. You have an incredibly high intelligence for a serpent, especially one of your level. So here¡¯s the plan for you. We¡¯re going to teach you Unil, the common language around here. Then we¡¯ll do a little surgery for fun and profit. Finally, we¡¯ll end our session by assigning you to your future group, and send you off. Sound good?>


    ¡°Yes, I guess. I do have questions, though. Mainly what you are, and where I am.¡±


    The vine thing tilted it¡¯s topmost mass at me, but didn¡¯t otherwise react. After trying to talk to it a few more times, I simply nodded my head.


    And like that, two full hours passed of a vine monster telepathically coaching me through the intricacies of spoken and written Unil, eventually earning me a new Ability.


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Language Comprehension</td></tr><tr><td>Allows the understanding and use of the listed languages: Unil (85%), Chaoticke (.004%)


    Note: Language acquisition is based upon length of time focused on language, understanding of language, and difficulty of language</td></tr></tbody></table>


    With my new comprehension of Unil, I could (theoretically) converse with anybody that knows the language as long as the conversation didn¡¯t drift into any obscure subjects. Feeling that I had learned enough about the language of the land, the vine creature (appropriately known as Vinny) shifted its vines into a ball, and began to teach me about this world.


    According to Vinny, the world began as the domain of Balenot, the goddess of all things physical. She created the world, the solar system, the galaxy, and even the entire universal plane simply by tearing a hole through the void and entering it. However, a simple plane of dead worlds and empty stars wasn¡¯t enough for her, and so Balenot tore through the void again, and dragged out her twin sister, Corasa.


    Corasa held dominion over the ethereal, and so summoned elementals, divine and infernal beings, monstrous creatures of immense power, and even simple animals out of the aether from whence she had come. Eventually, a singular species appeared in every planet that had been allowed to grow long enough: humans. Simple creatures of flesh and bone, they were nonetheless able to create vast magical and technological wonders and conquer the majority of the universe before turning on themselves. The resultant war tore billions of star systems to shreds, drove to extinction untold species, and drew the ire of Balenot and Corasa themselves, but the final battle of the last members of the human race did what even the goddesses couldn¡¯t; it set free the sister of the goddesses, the goddess of energy herself, Nalathi.


    Nalathi, gazing upon the broken wreckage of her sisters¡¯ home, stole the magical power of every being, structure, weapon, and planet in the universe, and used it to repair the damage that the millennial war had wrought, with one exception. Nalathi had banished humanity from the universal plane, and set forth a commandment: while a creature may walk the path of humanity, and strive to become human, they would never be able to truly assume the form of a human, or harness their powers. In exchange, Nalathi gave all living beings in the plane the ability to transform as they grew more powerful.


    The beings of the plane, having been stripped of magic, panicked and began research into the extent of their loss. They found that, while they could not control or even sense magical energy any longer, it still flowed through their veins, carried by their blood. Desperate, some beings forced their weaponry to steal the necessary power from their own veins, and studied the effects it had. After decades of research, they found that, as long as the blood was not exposed to air and could be returned back into the body, their magical power was depleted, but their bodies were not adversely affected.


    Meanwhile, Balenot, Corasa, and Nalathi were communing, deciding the fate of the very plane. Eventually, the sisters concluded that they were not enough to rule over the entirety of a plane, and so each opened a portal to their own realm, from which came countless lesser gods, each under the control of the goddess who summoned them to serve as the arbiters of a single aspect of reality in their stead.


    The plane, while not entirely happy with the new changes, functioned in this matter for just over ten thousand years, at which point the myriad lesser gods cried out for power. They had been virtually unknown by the mortals of the plane since their arrival, simply because the mortals had no ability to sense magic, and therefore sense them. To appease the legion of gods, the Divine Trio created orbs of pure magical energy, to be inserted into a mortal in place of their heart, that would grant the recipient the blessing of at most one of the three, and the blessings of at most five of the lesser gods under the sister that blessed the mortal.


    These Mana Cores, as they were known, were created in multitude and distributed to every inhabited world and star in the universe, and some even began to grow from the very soil of the planets. Soon, mortals found that, by forcing their own mana through their core and then into their weapon, the nature of the weapon would shift towards that of their blessing. This sparked many advances in the field of blood-powered weaponry, and led to the day I came to this room.


    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    After this <del>exhausting</del> history lesson, Vinny finally left its egglike shape and surrounded me. I only knew that we were moving by the feeling of Vinny¡¯s vines shifting, but before I could protest, I felt a pinch at the base of my head and a strange darkness overcame me.


    I slowly woke up, and found myself staring at a bright light at the ceiling of a different white room. As I looked around, I felt a twinge in my chest, which seemed to be the signal for an Information Screen to appear before me.


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Core detected. Beginning connection of Core to Soul.</td></tr></tbody></table>


    I was only able to stare at the Screen for a moment, before I felt pain in my chest, as if I had been torn open. I stared down at myself, and found a protrusion on my chest, pulsating. Slowly, it began to shrink, and a new Information Screen replaced the previous one as soon as it disappeared.


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Core connection in progress.</td></tr></tbody></table>


    PAIN


    INCREDIBLE PAIN


    SOUL BEING CRUSHED TORN BURNED REFORMED


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Core connection completed. Interfacing with Divine Overlay.</td></tr></tbody></table>


    Suddenly, as if it were just a fever dream, the pain stopped. Panting, I simply allowed my body to rest as the final Screen faded away.


    I rested for hours, letting my mind drift as my body recovered from what could only have been the most intense pain I had ever experienced. Eventually, however, my curiosity got the better of me, and I evoked my Status.


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Name</td><td>Hain Anens</td><td>Species</td><td>Soul Serpent (Unique)</td><td>Level</td><td>71 (100 Experience to next level) (Curse Effect: 200 Experience per level)</td></tr><tr><td>Attack</td><td>126.7</td><td>Defense</td><td>83.9</td><td>Agility</td><td>85.7</td></tr><tr><td>Intelligence</td><td>44.5</td><td>Wisdom</td><td>40.1</td><td>Ruthlessness</td><td>50 (5% influence reduction)</td></tr><tr><td colspan=''3''>Abilities</td><td colspan=''3''>Serpent''s Tongue, Bite, Soul Devour (Passive), Language Comprehension, Mana Core (Basic)</td></tr></tbody></table>


    Puzzled, I Inspected my new Ability that had apparently replaced my heart.


    <table><tbody><tr><td>Mana Core (Basic)</td></tr><tr><td>A Mana Core created by the Divine Trio, this orb takes the place of your heart and allows use of blessings granted by gods to influence your mana.


    Goddess Blessing: Nalathi (causes your mana to be more pure the longer you use it, allowing you to use less to do more)


    Minor Blessings: None</td></tr></tbody></table>


    Dazed and with more questions by far than answers, it took me a moment to realize that Vinny had entered the room. However, he wasn¡¯t alone.


    Beside Vinny was a gigantic version of¡­ Me, almost. It was what I could only call an ugly serpent with horned scales and legs. Moreover, this monstrosity was emitting smoke from its nostrils with every breath it took, and tasted of burning flesh. This giant abomination took one look at my disgusted expression, and laughed.


    ¡°Well, fuck you too, runt. You think I¡¯m ugly? Wait until you see the other fuckers I have command of. Now get ready for a world of pain. I¡¯m going to work you to the fucking bone.¡±


    Processing what the mistake of nature said, I could only think one word:


    FUCK.

 Chapter Seven - Inadequate

    More world building. Action starts up again next Chapter. Also, how''s that cliff feel?


    PS: Yes, all reptiles have dirty mouths. Especially Komodos.


    -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-


    It has been a week since I was taken from my den. The only reason I know this is that the hell I have been put through begins at sunrise and ends at sunset.


    After my first impression of the <del>fucking monster</del> salamander that now controls my life, he introduced himself as Captain Lutox, and began to explain where (and what) I am now.


    The facility that seemed to be comprised mainly of white rooms is known as the Monastery, because, while it is mainly a military installation in a key strategic area of the planet, it is also the capitol of the local Holy City. It is an enormous cylindrical building, with the outside walls having a circumference of easily 100 miles. The center of the Monastery is a dome, with the only access being an underground tunnel, that serves as the housing for the clergy and prophets of the church and the worship halls for the entire installation. Outside of this dome is the military office, barracks, commissary, training grounds, and entertainment centers, taking up the west, south, and east sides of the compound. The north side, however, is occupied by a single structure: the arena.


    The arena, as a structure, is simple: a dome, with holes in the top to let in just enough light for most beings to see; gates allowing entrance and exit to the arena, which open at sunrise and close at sunset; seats encircling a walled off area in the center; and tunnels leading from the edge of the round area into underground buildings for competitors to rest and prepare. The rules of the arena, likewise, are simple: no killing; no being above Stage Three; no weapons; and if you go in, you don¡¯t come out until you are defeated.


    My orders, as a quasi-slave of the Captain, are to begin each day by battling in the arena until I am either defeated or the arena closes, and to do this until I gained a combat Ability. Well, my actual orders were a bit more¡­ distasteful.


    ¡°Listen here, you no legged fuck. You are now my property. You have been given by your mother to the military of the planet Odras, and the commander of said military has seen fit to place you under my command. I was given the explicit order to train you until you¡¯re even the slightest bit useful to us, and then work you until you die. I plan on fucking enjoying this order.¡±


    At this, Vinny rustled, and the Captain paused for a moment, before snarling toward the vine¡¯s ¡®head¡¯ and turning back to me.


    ¡°Okay, the green shit said that you can talk. So tell me what skills you have, before I burn your head off.¡±


    Clearing my throat, I began listing my paltry few Abilities, leaving out Soul Devour. As soon as he heard that my only Ability for attacking is Bite, he smacked the ground with his tail and growled.


    ¡°Okay, the first fucking thing that you are going to do is go to the arena. Tell them I sent you, and that you¡¯ll be going through the salamander special. This tentacle bastard will show you the way. Don¡¯t fucking come back until you¡¯re at least partially better than a piece of shit.¡±


    Done with his rant, Lutox turned and walked out of the room, and Vinny encircled me once again. We moved for almost 10 minutes, and Vinny finally opened his living cage, showing me that we were in a stone room, with tables, chairs, and a desk all sprouting from the floor. Behind the desk was a cross between a fish and a monkey, whose dead eyes were staring intently at me. The monkey-fish (monkish? fonkey?) cleared it¡¯s throat, and began speaking in a surprisingly harmonious, and clearly feminine, voice.


    ¡°Hello, young one and Lieutenant Vinchesca. How may I help you today? Are you looking for your parents, by any chance?¡±


    Vinny turned towards the monkish, and telepathically explained my situation. She turned towards me, nodded, and bade Vinny farewell.


    ¡°Now, let¡¯s begin with introductions. I am Cleris, the owner, manager, and main attendant of this arena. The good lieutenant has told me your name is Hain, and that you are a Stage Two Serpent. Is that correct?¡± At my confused face, Cleris shook her head. ¡°I see. I¡¯m assuming the confusion is over my reference towards your Stage, and not your name. Well, let¡¯s begin with the beginning: Nalathi forcefully removed all of this universe¡¯s ability to manipulate magic normally. Now, some resent Her for this. I personally believe it¡¯s for the best. It certainly makes it easier for arenas to be cost efficient. But I digress. After Nalathi returned some magic in the form of evolution, scientists of the humanoid species began to study in what ways exactly we could evolve. You must understand, before this event, evolution was a process that affected an entire species over thousands or millions of years, and had no limits. Now, however, evolution is personal to every being, and happens literally overnight. Unfortunately, this causes it to have some limitations. These are twofold.¡±


    Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    ¡°The first, and most immediate for you, restriction is that of form. Nalathi has gifted us the ability to strive towards the form of humans, but to do so, you must pay a price: your heritage. After you go through your third evolution, you must choose one of two paths for any future evolutions you may take. You can either choose to follow the path of your ancestors, and grow into a more powerful species of Serpent, in your case, and pass some of your power to your offspring; or you can wal*ahem* slither the path of the human, and forgo your ancestors. Doing so will grant you much more power early on, but is ultimately more suited towards those that wish to study the world.¡±


    ¡°The second limitation placed on our evolution is that of potential. As you know, once you are eligible to evolve, you must choose one of three, or in rare cases more, forms to take on. This isn¡¯t much of a restriction, except that you may only evolve nine times throughout your life. This makes it much harder for, say, a plant to evolve into, say, a dragon. Not to imply that it can¡¯t happen, but it is almost impossible. Anyway, this is what a Stage refers to: a stage of evolution, where Stage One is the form you are born in, and Stage Ten is that of a fully evolved individual.¡±


    Cleris looked away for a moment, then cleared her throat and hit me with the back of her webbed paw. Shocked back into wakefulness, I just stared at her as she explained the rules of battle in the arena. After this (comparatively) brief explanation, I was shown to a small hole in a back wall that was to be my home for the duration of my stay in the arena.


    The very next morning, I was woken up by Cleris and shown to a waiting room. When asked about why I was there, she only smiled and told me that I would be fighting to earn my keep, instead of having Lutox pay for lodging.


    What followed was an exercise in painful combat. The very first opponent I faced was a bird with a fish¡¯s head that attacked my blind spots from above. I¡¯m not ashamed to say I lost almost immediately. It is very painful to fall from 30 feet in the air.


    After my inglorious defeat, I was taken to a room filled with holes. Each of these holes had a green fluid in them that was supposed to heal injuries. I was allowed to rest in one just long enough to heal my internal injuries. I was then dragged out by Cleris and forced to clean the vacant waiting rooms. After I was done, I was sent off my Cleris with no food, and told to do better in my fights the next day is I wanted the luxury of food. I finally got a meal after my third day.


    And that leads to my current predicament: dead tired, scales torn, fangs dulled, circling a 7 foot tall wolf-headed bear named, for fuck¡¯s sake, Tiny. The only good news about the situation was that is was almost sunset; I only needed to stay awake for a few minutes to force a draw.


    Tiny, taking my introspection as fear, roared and charged, biting the air in front of him as he went. I was barely able to dodge, and was totally unable to grab hold of him. Tiny turned and swiped at me, and connected. I hit the wall, and something in me snapped. I coiled myself up, reared back, and hissed furiously, slowly waving my head as I did so. Tiny, confused, just stared for a moment, before he began to sway in unison with me. We continued to do so for almost a full minute before I slumped down.


    Tiny just kept swaying, and I recovered just enough energy to approach him. Cautiously making my way towards him, I saw that his eyes, formerly completely black, now had a large white spot in the center. Hoping that it meant he couldn¡¯t move, I began the arduous process of slithering up his body without him waking up.


    I was able to get around his neck and secure myself just as Tiny¡¯s eyes returned to normal. Panicking, I began constricting my body, reducing his air flow as much as possible. Tiny, finally realizing that he might actually lose, clawed at my body, tearing chunks out with every strike.


    The battle dissolved into a war of attrition, which I won, at a cost. My body was wrecked, and there were multiple bones showing by the time Tiny fainted. Ceris herself ran into the arena after I was declared the victor, and carried me into one of the healing baths, where I promptly passed out.


    I woke up and found Ceris staring at me. She waved her hand in front of my face, and pulled me out of the water when I followed it. She placed me on yet another stool, and started talking in a very quiet voice.


    ¡°You¡¯ve been out of consciousness for almost a full week. I hope that you finally completed Lutey¡¯s objective, because otherwise he might actually roast you alive.¡±


    Taking a deep breath, I nodded to Cleris, steeled myself, and opened my Status to find that the Ability I had gained was...

 Update (Yeah, Again)...

    So, last week I got in an accident. Wasn''t huge, but messed with my laptop. Got a new one yesterday, but now there''s some stuff going on with my brother that I need to help resolve if I can. I''m gonna post up to 14 by Friday, earlier if I can. It''s just been a shitty, shitty, shitty fucking week. Sorry.

 This might be it, folks.

    So, I''m not going into many details, but I will give you the gist of what''s happening. My family moved to NY from NC about 6 months ago. My brother was given a plane ticket from here back to NC on Christmas by my parents, so he could see his friends again (we''ve driven back as a family every few months, but this was the first time for him to go by himself). Less than 12 hours after he landed, he said he was staying. Thing is, he''s 17. So, obviously we can''t really let him stay, fail high school, and ruin his life. So we''ve been trying all week to get him to get on his flight back, which was supposed to take off an hour ago. He didn''t get on. To top if off, my drugged up aunt (who dropped back into our lives 2 years ago after a breakdown) and grandmother (who never had much time in our lives, by her choice) have convinced him that my parents are abusive and that he''s mentally ill, and that''s it''s best for him to stay with them, after a week of telling us that they were trying to get him on the plane. I''m too fucking... drained, basically, to write for a while. Maybe forever. I just can''t even think about anything else at this point. I''m sorry, I''ll put it as hiatus, but don''t be surprised if I take it down forever sometime in the future.

 Its Over. For Now, at Least.

    As probably 99.999% of you have guessed by now, this story is dropped. For now, at least. Maybe, sometime in the future, when trying to write it doesn''t produce such strong emotions, I''ll come back to it, or even rewrite it (because any first attempt isn''t perfect). BUT, that doesn''t mean that I won''t be writing anymore. I''ve been kicking an idea around in my head, and it seems to me like a good story to tell. I won''t be putting it up anytime soon. I''ll start writing, and post the chapters when I have a good backlog of chapters, to avoid any real life bullshit that will, inevitably, pop up. Thanks for the support while I was writing, and the understanding of why I stopped. See you all again in a few months.