Chapter 68: Change of Pace
Gray swam slowly after a small glowing fish drifting ahead of him, its body pulsing with faint silver light. He wasn’t hunting it, he just following its path, letting the current carry him while his senses swept the darkness.
’Time to find different prey,’ he said, his tentacles reading the water with practiced ease.
Cindy’s voice slipped into his thoughts, soft and curious. "Why? Are you bored already?"
Gray moved past a cluster of tube worms, their phosphorescent tips retracting as he passed.
’Not really. I just want a change of scenery.’ He paused, his electroreception brushing against the faint signatures of distant life. ’Hunting the same creatures over and over gets stale.’
Cindy made a skeptical sound. "You say that so casually. Is there no predator here stronger than you?"
Gray’s crystalline barbs clicked as he adjusted his course around a jagged rock formation.
’There are. I can feel several high-level presences scattered around this area, and I’m avoiding them. I don’t want to die a stupid death again.’
Cindy was quiet for a moment. Then she let out a soft sigh.
"That’s wise. Let’s stay safe. You’re no good to me dead."
’Glad we agree,’ Gray replied, his tentacles curling with faint amusement.
The glowing fish ahead flickered and darted away, vanishing into a thicket of black coral.
Gray scanned the terrain ahead, his senses sliding over every contour of rock and sand. Then, near the edge of a dark sand field, he felt it a familiar vibration.
He angled toward it, Hollow Cloak folding around him until he was nearly invisible in the gloom. The bioluminescent glow of the distant forest cast just enough light to see.
An Obsidian Crab was picking at something half-buried in the sand. Its massive crusher claw raised and lowered with patience, cracking open the remains of some smaller creature. The crimson glow of its eyes swept the area with slow vigilance.
Gray watched it for a long moment, then let out a low pulse of satisfaction.
’Perfect,’ he murmured.
Cindy’s voice tightened. "What is that?"
’An Obsidian Crab,’ Gray replied. ’Strong armor and strong claws, which is exactly what I need.’
Cindy’s voice softened with memory. "Ohh, I know that creature. Crab is delicious! I tried it once at a noble banquet. It was so expensive they only served a single claw per guest." She paused, her tone shifting as she studied the Obsidian Crab. "But this one is different. Its shell looks almost... toxic. Is it poisonous?"
Gray drifted closer and replied.
’Probably not,’ he said. ’I’ve eaten them before. The meat’s dense, but it won’t kill you.’
Cindy let out a long, wistful sigh. "Now I’m jealous. I’d love to taste it again."
’Then watch me enjoy every bite.’
"That’s not what I meant," Cindy huffed. "I meant if I had a body. Though even then, I wouldn’t want to eat it raw like some wild beast."
Gray’s tentacles danced briefly, as if suppressing a laugh.
’Raw is all there is down here. No kitchens in the abyss.’
Cindy made a small, defeated sound. "I know. It’s just... I miss proper food."
’Then let’s survive long enough to get you back to the surface,’ Gray said. ’But right now, I’m going to eat that crab.’
The Obsidian Crab was still feeding, oblivious to the translucent predator circling behind it.
’Let’s see how strong you are.’
He opened with Cavitation Pulse, aiming for the softer joint where the Crab’s rear leg met its carapace. The superheated jet of water and crystal shrapnel shot through the dark and struck true.
[CAVITATION PULSE — 52 DAMAGE]
[OBSIDIAN CRAB — HP: 868 / 920]
[20% DEF PENETRATION — APPLIED]
The Crab screeched — It spun with surprising speed, its massive crusher claw sweeping through the water in a blind arc. Gray pulsed upward, 135 SPD carrying him clear. The claw smashed into a volcanic boulder, shattering it into fragments.
"Careful!" Cindy’s voice cut through his focus. "That claw is dangerous!"
’No kidding.’
He deployed Neurotoxic Drift, flooding the Crab’s position with venom. The invisible cloud settled into the gaps between its armor plates, seeping through the joints.
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 18 DAMAGE]
[OBSIDIAN CRAB — HP: 850 / 920]
[PARALYZE — RESISTED]
’As expected,’ Gray muttered.
The Crab lunged, its serrated left claw snapping forward. Gray pulsed sideways, but the claw clipped his bell margin, sending a shock through his armor.
[-24 HP]
[GRAY ASHFORD — HP: 666 / 690]
[VENOMOUS RIPOSTE — ACTIVATED]
[TOXIN VULNERABILITY — APPLIED]
The venom-tipped spines along his bell lashed out, injecting concentrated neurotoxin into the Crab’s claw joint. The creature faltered, its limb twitching as the venom spread.
"Now, while it’s open!" Cindy urged.
Gray was already moving. Abyssal Lance activated, his body compressing into a spear of crystalline barbs. He launched directly at the Crab’s wounded rear leg.
[ABYSSAL LANCE — 104 DAMAGE]
[OBSIDIAN CRAB — HP: 746 / 920]
[50% DEF PENETRATION — APPLIED]
The barbs punched through the joint, and the Crab howled. Its rear leg collapsed, leaving it dragging on five limbs. Gray wrapped four tentacles around the wounded leg and activated Grip Jaw, crushing the already-damaged joint.
[GRIP JAW — 30 DAMAGE]
[GRIP JAW — 28 DAMAGE]
[OBSIDIAN CRAB — HP: 688 / 920]
The Crab thrashed, its crusher claw swinging blindly. Gray released his grip and pulsed back, letting the creature exhaust itself. The venom was working now, Toxin Vulnerability amplifying every point of damage.
Gray’s tentacles went rigid. A subtle tremor passed through the water — coiled and rapid, like several limbs moving at once, closing in from the darkness beyond the sand.
"Gray?" Cindy’s voice came softly, almost hesitant. "Your mind just went cold. What is it?"
’Something’s coming,’ he said. ’And it’s big.’
The Obsidian Crab sensed it too. Its crimson eyes shifted from Gray to the open water behind them, and its posture changed. It forgot Gray entirely. Its claws raised in a defensive stance, the crusher snapping once in warning.
Then the sand exploded.
A massive octopus erupted from the seafloor, its body a mottled grey-green that shifted rapidly through shades of red and orange. Its arms spread wide, all eight of them thick as tree trunks, each lined with two rows of suckers that pulsed with a faint bioluminescent light. Its eyes were huge and gold, slit-pupiled and gleaming with intelligence.
[REEF KRAKEN — JUVENILE — Level 26]
HP: 480 / 480
Threat Level: HIGH
« Analysis »
A juvenile Reef Kraken, a highly intelligent cephalopod predator. Unlike the Chromatic Krakenling, the Reef Kraken relies on raw strength and grappling ability rather than elemental tricks. Its arms are powerful enough to crush armor, and its beak can pierce even the hardest carapace.
Behavior: Opportunistic. The Reef Kraken prefers to steal kills from other predators rather than hunting its own prey. It will attack wounded or distracted creatures without hesitation.
Weakness: Soft body beneath the arms. Vulnerable to area attacks. Slow to retreat once committed.
A quiet click ran through his barbs as frustration settled in.
’Another thief, coming to steal an easy meal,’ he muttered.
Cindy’s voice was sharp. "What is that thing?!"
’Something that wants the same kill,’ Gray replied.
The Reef Kraken ignored Gray entirely. Its golden eyes were locked on the wounded Obsidian Crab, the easier prey. Its arms spread wide, coiling through the water like living ropes.
The Obsidian Crab snapped its crusher claw in warning. The Reef Kraken answered by slamming two arms into the sand, sending a shockwave that cracked the seafloor.
The Crab snapped its crusher claw once, a sound like breaking stone, then charged. Its massive body tore through the water, every leg driving it forward like a living battering ram.
The Kraken met it head-on, arms wrapping around the Crab’s shell. The crusher claw clamped onto one of the arms, crushing it with brutal force. The Kraken shrieked but its other arms were already coiling around the Crab’s legs, its beak probing for the gaps in the armor.
Gray watched the two monsters clash, his own body tense and ready.
"This is... insane," Cindy whispered. "What do we do?"
Gray hovered at the edge of the chaos, watching every movement as he calculated his best angle of attack.
’We wait,’ he said. ’Let them weaken each other. Then we finish them both.’
Cindy hummed, clearly pleased. "I like the way you think."