Yikes!
Quick! Hit her with the ice cream! My minds slam the prepared stimuli across the Mind Bridge and hammer them into that raging mind. The cold sensation on the tongue, the creamy rich texture, the curled sphere of a scoop. Every aspect of ice cream I can think of, I bundle together and throw it at her.
And she froze.
NICE!
With Vibrant tailing behind me, I Dash on an angle to get behind the beast. Anything to get me away from that mouth! Come on leg, how much longer? The flesh is extending down, the claw beginning to form at the end at a ridiculous speed. It itches like mad, but not nearly as terrible as mutating. A few more seconds and I’ll be good to go!
But wait. She’s still not moving? This could be a chance! A few moments have passed and Garralosh is still frozen in place, perfectly still. Since I’m this close, I might as well get a quick chomp in! I change direction to bring me a little closer to her body and position myself near the base of her tail.
Omen Chomp!
Once more, my stamina drains precipitously and the dark mandibles of energy manifest to tear into Garralosh’s body.
CRUNCH!
And another wound is struck! Her scales are so thick, even with my extended mandibles, I can barely reach through to the muscle beneath, but reach it I do. With a satisfying tear, I can see the damage has been done and immediately sprint away to get more distance.
GROOOOWWWL!
My bite has snapped Garralosh from her reverie, and she turns toward me, a glowing ball of raging fire in crocodile shape. Luckily, I have a few things going for me at this point. One, my leg has been reformed, and second, I have a new mental package to send her.
The speed at which my brains can weave this stuff together is truly incredible. Evolutionary energy well-spent! All around us, the battlefield has come to a complete stop. The croca-beasts in all their forms remain poised away from the wall. Growling, they snap their jaws and flex their claws as they watch their mother fight. Hundreds of them stand together in this way. An intimidating sight, to say the least.
On the ant side, they poke their heads up, and thousands stare down at me as I fight. Are any of them going to come down for the queen? Actually, what the heck is happening to the queen! I can barely see her now. It appears as if she’s sinking into the ground. Oh, they’re digging underneath her! Smart. She’s already more than half underground at this point, a minute or two more and they’ll be able to drag her deeper into the Dungeon to recharge her energy.
Other than that, the only ants near me are Vibrant and… is that Grant? Close to the wall but not quite in its shade, the soldier is hesitating, caught between her desire to help and the certain knowledge she would get in the way.
Get back to the wall, you idiot!
I don’t have time to worry about the spectators, I need to worry about the ant in more direct danger. Namely, me.
[Not a fan of ice cream then?] I ask Garralosh.
[DON’T.] she screams back.
Uh.
[Don’t what?] I ask, confused.
[DON’T.]
Not sure how to take that. Let’s discuss again after I hit you with this one. Before she can Dash, cough up pure lava or do anything else that might snuff out my life, I smack her right in the frontal lobe with another Earth memory.
Birthday cake.
Flickering candles, cream, icing and the sponginess of a good cake. This one was a little harder for me, since I don’t remember having my own birthday cake at any point, but I did eat a few when I was first in school. The teacher would bring out a cake for each student on their birthday. Quite a shock to me. I’d never heard of anything like it. But the fun of it, the song and taste stayed with me.
About to Dash forward, saliva dripping from between her gigantic teeth, Garralosh stumbles and her chest smashes into the ground. The croca-beasts watching from the sidelines fall silent witnessing the rare sight of their mother stumble. I’m sure that to those idiotic beasts, their mother must appear as an all-powerful existence. To see her fall must be quite the shock.
It’s definitely getting to her! Who’d have thought she would still have these memories buried deep in that skull of hers. I’m not going to let this chance go by. Once again with all six legs, it’s time to Dash!
Unleash the Omen Chomp!
As I position myself to deliver another savage bite, a blast of anguish smacks me over the Mind Bridge. Garralosh is screaming.
[DON’T MAKE ME REMEMBER!]
Uhh, what? Bit late for that, I’m afraid!
CHOMP!
CRUNCH!
The scales shatter and flesh tears as my mandibles dig deep into the body of Garralosh and she howls in pain.
[Remember what?] I ask.
[STOP IT!]
Don’t think I have an option to stop, actually. In fact, I’ve got another one in the chamber and ready to go. This is something that I’ve actually missed from the old life. Something simple, but I feel it’ll have an impact.
Bed.
147. It’s Getting Hot
Beds are wonderful things, don’t you think? Especially if you have a good one. My family had never shown me affection in any meaningful way, but I did have decent stuff. At least, I did until the collectors got hold of me. My bed gave me the welcome and comfort that was missing from everywhere else in my home. Warm, snug, safe. My head resting on a soft pillow, the reassuring weight of sheets and blankets. It had been my sanctuary. A vessel that could carry me out of my life, away from the rejection, harsh words and angry eyes. How bad can life be when you have a comfortable bed? Probably terrible, but hey, I have my own policy.
I wonder if Garralosh felt the same way in her past life. Gandalf, the System, said all of us were a little odd in our lives, which was why we were chosen. Perhaps this would be a common thread between us. At least, increase the thread count… heh.
As the increasingly irate crocodile prepares to attack, I hit her right in the face with all of my most fluffy bed time memories. Sinking into a mattress, drowsy with sleep, cool sheets covering me and my pyjamas. Pyjamas! Damn, I miss pyjamas. Why the hell didn’t I wear them all the time? Superior to regular clothes in every respect.
Ah!
I let myself get distracted by my own mental attack! How’s Garralosh responding? The giant crocodile has faltered and I take the opportunity for another cheeky Omen Chomp. The mountainous reptile is missing a few chunks from various places, and ichor is steaming off her still-burning scales. The hiss and bubble of it is a constant background noise in the battle at this point.
CHOMP!
Take that! In fact, she still isn’t responding. I’ll take a chance and go for a sneaky second chomp, inflict some of that deep damage.
CHOMP!
The hit to my stamina is massive, but the outpouring of energy from the Vestibule replenishes me. The Will of the colony is becoming my strength! Already, my health is near full and the Regeneration Gland is almost ready to go once more. This is insane!
A wall of anguish slams into my mind, stunning me for a short moment. Awww, snap. She is not happy!