Ryan's newly acquired D-Tier "Hyper-Awareness" was turning out to be quite the handy party trick, if the party involved not getting eaten by pointy things.
As he moved deeper into the Shifting Wilds, it wasn't just his eyes and ears that were working overtime.
He felt a subtle pull, a faint thrumming in his senses that wasn't quite sound or sight, more like a weird sort of invisible breadcrumb trail.
It was an unusual energy signature, different from the general background hum of the jungle.
"Well, my spidey-senses are tingling," he muttered, though it felt more like his 'ooh-something-weird-is-over-there' senses. "And since following random urges has worked out passably well so far, let's go see what's making the air feel funny."
He followed the strange sensation, pushing through thickets of pulsating, bioluminescent vines [ he made a mental note to come back and try to extract from those later they looked like they'd make excellent, if slightly distracting, shoelaces ] and stepping over roots that seemed to writhe like sleepy snakes.
After about twenty minutes of careful trekking, the oppressive greenery opened up into a hidden clearing. And Ryan just stopped. And stared.
This place was magical. In a slightly creepy, alien-garden sort of way. He'd stumbled into what could only be described as a "Whispering Grove."
The air here was thick with a soft, multi-colored glow, emanating from hundreds of large, bizarre fungi. They weren't your average, run-of-the-mill mushrooms.
These were huge, some as tall as he was, with wide caps that pulsed gently with shifting hues of blue, purple, and soft green.
And they were making a sound a faint, collective sighing or whispering that seemed to brush against his ears, like secrets just out of reach.
Ryan felt a little like Alice after she'd fallen down the rabbit hole and found the "Eat Me" cakes. Except he was pretty sure eating these glowing, whispering mushrooms would be a very bad idea.
His Hyper-Awareness, which had led him here, was now practically screaming at him. Not with fear, but with intensity. The energy in this grove was strong.
And then he saw it.
In the center of the grove, coiled around the base of the largest, most luminous mushroom, was a creature. It was big. Much bigger than the Spine Whelps. It was long and slender, like a giant, predatory ferret mixed with a chameleon.
Its scales, or maybe its skin, seemed to shimmer and shift, perfectly matching the colors and patterns of the pulsating fungi around it. If he hadn't been looking for something unusual, he might have missed it entirely.
The creature was currently very still, its head resting near a strange, crystalline fruit that grew from the base of the giant mushroom.
The fruit itself was about the size of a large apple, but it was made of what looked like clear, faceted crystal, and it glowed with an inner white light.
The creature's belly was noticeably distended, as if it had just enjoyed a very large, and probably unfortunate, meal.
Ryan's god Interface immediately supplied the information:
Target: Grove Stalker [Unstable Fauna, Level 2, Stealth Predator]
Notes: Uses ambient fungal spores for camouflage. Highly agile. Currently in a post-meal digestive state [slightly sluggish].
Nearby Object of Interest: Resonance Bloom [Tier 1 Growth, Sensory Enhancement Properties]
"Grove Stalker," Ryan whispered. "And it just ate. Hopefully not another poor novice." He eyed the creature's swollen stomach with a grimace.
"And that shiny thing must be the Resonance Bloom." His system said it enhanced senses. That sounded very useful.
The Grove Stalker hadn't noticed him yet. It was probably enjoying its food coma. This was his chance. The creature was Level 2, a step up from the Spine Whelps.
But it was sluggish. And Ryan had his slightly-better-than-basic knife, his increased Agility [now a respectable 14], and the element of surprise.
Plus, that Resonance Bloom looked too good to pass up.
"Okay, Ryan," he strategized quietly, "Plan is: poke the sleepy lizard-ferret with the pointy stick, grab the shiny fruit, and try not to become dessert topping." It wasn't exactly a masterclass in tactics, but it was a plan.
He moved slowly, carefully, around the edge of the grove, trying to stay downwind of the Stalker, though he wasn't sure if it hunted by smell.
The whispering of the fungi seemed to get louder, more insistent, as if they were trying to warn the Stalker. Or maybe they were just gossiping about the weird human sneaking up on their resident monster.
When he was about ten feet away, he took a deep breath. He could see the creature's chest rising and falling slowly. It was definitely sleepy.
He lunged.
He wasn't aiming for a kill shot he wasn't that skilled or that lucky. He just wanted to wound it, distract it.
He brought his reinforced knife [Liam's old knife, which he'd started using since it was a bit tougher] down in a stabbing motion towards the Stalker's exposed flank.
The Stalker, despite its sluggishness, reacted with surprising speed. It uncoiled like a released spring, letting out a furious hiss that sounded like steam escaping a broken pipe.
Ryan's knife scraped against its shifting hide, not sinking in as deeply as he'd hoped, but it definitely got its attention.
The creature twisted, its long tail whipping around like a scaly whip, narrowly missing Ryan's head. Its eyes, which he now saw were large and golden with slitted pupils, fixed on him with pure, murderous rage. So much for the element of surprise.
It pounced, a blur of shifting colors and snapping teeth. Ryan yelped and threw himself sideways, tumbling over a patch of smaller, squishy mushrooms that let out indignant little puffs of spores. He scrambled to his feet, knife ready.
The Grove Stalker was fast, much faster than the Spine Whelps, even in its supposedly sluggish state. It darted left, then right, trying to get behind him, its movements fluid and hard to follow against the backdrop of the glowing fungi.
Ryan relied on his Hyper-Awareness and his improved Agility. He dodged another snap of its jaws, the wind of its passage ruffling his hair. He managed to land another shallow cut on its leg as it went by.
It hissed again, and this time, the fungi in the grove seemed to react. The whispering intensified, and the pulsing lights brightened and dimmed in a disorienting rhythm.
The Stalker seemed to use this to its advantage, its camouflage becoming even more effective as it darted between the giant mushroom stems.
"This is not going well," Ryan panted, backing up slowly, trying to keep the Stalker in sight. He needed to end this quickly.
He remembered the "Residual Neural Patterns" he'd extracted from the Spine Whelps that fleeting instinct for pack tactics.
It wasn't directly applicable here, but it had given him a tiny insight into how these creatures moved, how they anticipated.
He tried to tap into that feeling, to predict where the Stalker would appear next.
It lunged from behind a particularly large blue mushroom.
Ryan, anticipating the move just a fraction of a second beforehand, wasn't entirely surprised. He ducked low, and as the Stalker sailed over him, he thrust upwards with his knife, putting all his weight [and his temporary +1 Strength, which was still active from Boulder's boot residue good old Boulder!] into the blow.
The knife sank deep into the Stalker's softer underbelly.
The creature let out a strangled, gurgling screech and crashed heavily to the ground, skidding a few feet before coming to a stop. It twitched once, twice, then lay still.
Ryan stood there, chest heaving, adrenaline coursing through him like a runaway train. He'd done it. He'd actually taken down a Level 2 monster, all by himself.
His Interface chimed happily.
Enemy Defeated: Grove Stalker [Level 2]
+50 god Points [Np] Acquired!
Assimilation Level Progress: 70/100 [Towards Level 1]
He was getting closer to Level 1! Almost there!
He took a few deep breaths to calm his racing heart, then cautiously approached the dead Grove Stalker. It was a strange, beautiful, and deadly creature. Now, for the good part.
"Okay, System," he said, his voice still a bit shaky. "Let's see what goodies Mr. Stalker has for me."
He placed his hand on its cooling hide.
Target: Grove Stalker Corpse [Level 2]
Initiating Extraction Protocol
Multiple Essences Detected
Extraction Complete!
Acquired:
Spirit Essence [Grove Stalker Variant]: +2 Permanent Spirit!
Environmental Camouflage [D-Tier Talent Fragment – Stalker Hide]: Partial assimilation of the Stalker's natural ability to blend with its surroundings. When activated, provides minor camouflage in natural environments.
Requires concentration. Don't expect to turn invisible, but you might be harder to spot if you stand still next to a particularly leafy bush.
Ryan felt a warm, soothing energy flow into him, the Spirit Essence. His mind felt a little clearer, his resolve a little stronger. And a new talent! "Environmental Camouflage." It wasn't invisibility, but being harder to spot in a jungle full of things that wanted to eat him sounded like a fantastic upgrade.
He then noticed something else. Stuck in the Stalker's hide, near one of the wounds he'd inflicted, was a tattered piece of fabric and a small, metallic buckle. Very similar to the ones he'd found on Boulder's trail.
His heart sank a little. So, the Stalker's last meal had been a novice. He wondered if it was Boulder himself, or someone else unlucky enough to wander into this grove.
He carefully cut open the Stalker's distended belly with his knife. It was a gruesome task, and he tried not to breathe too deeply. Inside, amongst a lot of partially digested stuff he found more remnants of standard-issue novice gear: a shattered comm-device, part of a ration pack, and a bent Utility Knife. Definitely a person.
He felt a little grim, but this was the reality of the Shifting Wilds. He quickly extracted what he could from the remnants of the gear [mostly just trace energies, nothing substantial], then turned his attention to the main prize: the Resonance Bloom.
It was still nestled at the base of the giant mushroom, glowing invitingly. He reached out and plucked it. It felt cool and smooth in his hand, vibrating with a faint energy.
But what exactly was it?
He remembered the Corrupted Data Fragment he'd extracted from the Precursor Tablet. His system had said it was trying to analyze and integrate it. Maybe it could help?
He focused on the Resonance Bloom, and as he did, his Interface flickered. The Corrupted Data Fragment seemed to connect with his system's basic scanning function.
Corrupted Data Fragment Integration [Partial]: Basic Lore Scanner Functionality Unlocked.
Scanning Object: Resonance Bloom
Object Identified: Resonance Bloom [Tier 1 Growth]
Properties: Enhances sensory perception and mental clarity for a short duration upon consumption. Mildly psychoactive.
Recommended for users seeking heightened awareness. Side effects may include seeing pretty colors and an inexplicable craving for more shiny things.
Ryan grinned. A Lore Scanner! So the broken tablet piece was actually useful! And the Bloom did exactly what he'd hoped.
Enhanced senses and mental clarity? Yes, please!
He looked at the shimmering fruit in his hand. "Well, bottoms up, I guess." He was about to take a bite, hoping it didn't taste like regret and alien vitamins.
This SSS-Tier adventure was certainly keeping him on his toes. And occasionally making him fight for his life over glowing fruit