Intelligent Design: A Monster Evolution LitRPG

David floated in warm darkness, the shadows around him oddly broken and uneven, bands of light spaced about randomly. His head was fuzzy and he wasn’t exactly sure what was happening, but he was mostly comfortable and didn't have the energy to spare to think about it, so he simply accepted the fact amicably. A few scents drifted to him as if from far away, but he didn’t care very much except to vaguely note that most of them were awful, and he was glad he couldn’t smell them very well. A small part of David seemed insistent on the fact that he was moving, but he metaphorically rolled over onto it and smothered it into silence as he sighed in contentment. His back itched and he wished he could scratch it, but he knew he couldn’t reach it anyway, so this too was simply accepted as a matter of fact

He persisted in this state for either an eternity or 20 minutes, and there wasn’t any way to tell the difference, so it didn't really matter.

Then suddenly he was drowning, spluttering up mouthfuls of cool water, wrinkling his aching face as the liquid poured into his nose and filled his ears before the world snapped back into focus. His eyes flew open to discover there were sharp, snaggly teeth everywhere, jaws enfolding him gently as he was swished through the water like a dirty rag while he bounced off either side of Claire’s mouth in time with the motion of her head. David thrashed against the lack of air and was yanked upwards, pinned against a rough tongue easily as long as his entire body before being dumped onto the muddy banks of the wetland along with several gallons of water.

“David. Moonsong. Please.” Claire’s voice was strained as she limped painfully past him to settle carefully into the water herself, “Now. Please.”

David opened his mouth to deliver a cutting jab about being waterboarded when he noticed the mangled state of her leg and immediately belted out the requested ability instead. He felt his Stamina drop and allowed his head to simply sink into the cooling mud as he continued his song, the notes washing out of him and skipping along the water in a calming melody. Claire sighed with relief and allowed her own enormous head to sink forward onto the bank nearby, smashing the reeds flat beneath her with a loud rustling sound as she focused on her breathing when the melody faded away. Neither of them moved for a long time as the various insects that inhabited the swamp slowly began to emerge from their hiding spots and buzzed around the pair curiously.

Claire slowly cracked an eye open to regard him before snorting loudly and closing her eyes again, the snort morphing slowly into a pained chuckle that quickly devolved into a giggling fit. David glared back at her as he slowly pulled himself out of the mud and straightened up, his entire body feeling tight and tingly as his Health regenerated and repaired the damage.

“What’s so funny?” David hacked after a moment, “We got it, didn’t we? I said we could do it with two of us!”

Claire giggled harder before she let out a pained groan, “I was wrong, is why. You don’t look like a rat, you look like one of those bald-ass chihuahuas, just uglier. Hehehehe, ow.”

David faltered for a moment, jaws opening and closing in confusion before he licked his chops nervously and peered into the water. He was almost totally bald, the withering effects of the Corruptor’s slime having spread across his body from his lower back and leaving him… odd-looking, to say the least. The fur on his head and face had begun to grow back in patchy clumps, giving him the appearance of wearing an extremely poorly maintained thin toupe, and he almost looked like he had an ugly mustache where a poof of fur had been spared at the end of his snout.

“Oh for fucks…” David sighed, “Do I even want to look at the rest of me?”

Claire continued her giggling shamelessly, “Probably not, it’s hilarious. You eeidiot! Hah! Hehehe!”

“Hrmpf…” David grumbled as he flopped back onto his butt and stared at the sky grumpily for a moment.

“We did it though!” David continued after a moment, “Decent chunk of xp, another token, and I got a Mutagen…Oh! I got the Bloodline too, ‘Corruptor’ it says.”

“Oh, Joy!” Claire guffawed loudly and shoved her snout into the reeds like she was burying her face into a pillow, “You’re going to need a backward hazmat suit here pretty soon, maybe one of those cylinder things they stick aliens in…Eeidiot! Bahaha!”

David studiously ignored her and pulled up the notification for the new Mutagen he'd received before making any hasty decisions with his new Token or using the Bloodline, and he didn’t particularly feel like asking Claire how to use it at the moment. Reading quickly, he nodded and pulled up his Status.

–Corrosive Mutagen C: Your bodily fluids become acidic, weakening enemy defenses, and dissolving unprotected flesh.–

User: David Fisher

Species: Twilight Seeker Ω

Rank: E

Health: 190/190

Stam: 425/425 (++)

Level: 11

Exp:1172/1750

Special: Echolocation D

Traits: 4/4

Nocturnal E: +12% Damage, Stam Regen, Exp Gain at night.

[3/10]

Echolocation D: Manipulate high-frequency sound waves to see with more than just your eyes. Multi-stage ability: Repeated uses against the same enemy builds Combat Expertise, and may trigger an Echo.

[7/10]

Flight D: Allows for flight and gliding. Mild Stamina drain. (stam+)

[4/10]

Small: Your form is small, weighing no more than 115lbs. (stam+)

[n/a]

Abilities: 4/4

Screech E: You emit a loud screech, damaging enemies in a cone. Low Stam consumption.

[5/10]

Moonsong F: A soothing melody that adds a greatly increased Regeneration rate to yourself and your allies for a short time. Moderate Stam consumption.

[5/10]

Gloom C: Your wingbeats spread Dusk powder with every flap. Enemies under the effect of Gloom are inflicted with visual hallucinations. Stacks up to 8 times.

[7/10]

Nocturnal Strike C (4pts): A quick, lunging attack that steals a small percentage of the target's Stamina.

[6/10]

Mutagens: 5/5

Dread Mutagen C: Your form inspires dread, which may cause enemies to reconsider aggressing you. Enemies that meet your eyes may find themselves unable to look away, eventually causing them to be afflicted by Fear.

Atavistic Mutagen D: Form becomes primal, strengthening your body.

Soporalytic Mutagen E: Your attacks have a moderate chance to inflict paralytic sedation, inducing muscle spasms and rendering targets unconscious.

Secretive Mutagen E: You become more elusive, making you harder to track and detect.

Apical Mutagen C: Assert your dominance, add bonus effects to Abilities dictated by Ability Type. [Control: Drain a small percentage of Enemy Health and Stamina] [Offense: Sunders a percentage of Enemy Defenses] –

Hrmm…looks like I'm full on Mutagens, but I still got basically two from the boss Quest? I don't even know how that works...do they go to the same place the Skill Tokens and Bloodline went? Ugh...fiiiiiiine, I guess I'll ask her.

“Hey Claire, does that Bloodline take up a slot somewhere?” David asked grudgingly as he turned to look in her direction.

“Eh? Let me check….” She trailed off for a moment, “Yeah, it takes up a Mutagen slot. Says Bloodline: Crusher and then a bunch of stuff though.”

Well, I guess I’ve gotten do some Fusing then, let’s see here…