Chapter 4: Frenzy Strain
Gray hung there in the water, motionless except for the gentle sway of his tentacles.
The tiny fish drifted obliviously, its silver scales catching the faint glow of Gray’s bioluminescence. It seemed almost hypnotized by the soft pink and blue pulse, just like the skill description had said. Minor attraction effect on curious creatures.
’Come on,’ Gray thought, forcing himself to remain still. ’Just a little closer. You like the pretty lights, don’t you? Come look at the pretty lights.’
The minnow flicked its tail. Drifted up another inch.
’That’s it.’
Another inch.
’Almost there.’
The tip of Gray’s lowest tentacle brushed against the minnow’s flank.
It happened instantly, faster than conscious thought. The nematocysts fired on contact, microscopic harpoons punching into the fish’s scales and flooding it with paralytic venom. The minnow convulsed, its tiny body seizing as 3 damage registered in a flash of red text above its head.
[GLASS MINNOW - HP: 12 / 15]
[PARALYZE - 2 seconds]
The status effect icon appeared beside the fish: a tiny frozen figure, blinking with a two-second timer.
’YES!’
But the minnow was already thrashing. Paralyzed but not dead, it bucked wildly in the water, and Gray felt his tentacle tear slightly from the force. The fish broke free and shot upward directly into another cluster of tentacles it had missed in its panic.
[NEMATOCYST STING - 3 DAMAGE]
[GLASS MINNOW — HP: 9 / 15]
’Double hit! Get back here!’
But the minnow was done playing. The paralysis wore off after two agonizingly short seconds, and it darted away with a burst of terrified speed, putting five feet between them in the span of a heartbeat.
Gray pulsed after it. Once. Twice. Each contraction pushed him forward maybe ten inches. The minnow was practically teleporting by comparison.
’No no no no—’
The fish slowed. Stopped. Turned.
And then it did something Gray had not anticipated.
It came back.
The minnow swam directly at him, its tiny body weaving through the water with aggressive, jerky movements. Its mouth opened a small, round hole lined with minuscule teeth that Gray definitely had not noticed before.
[GLASS MINNOW - HP: 9 / 15 - USING: NIBBLE]
’Wait—’
The minnow bit him.
Pain flared through Gray’s bell, sharp and immediate and deeply insulting. A red number flashed across his vision.
[-4 HP]
[GRAY ASHFORD — HP: 6 / 10]
’OW! WHAT THE—’
The minnow circled back for another pass, emboldened by its success. Gray’s bell throbbed where the tiny teeth had torn a small, translucent chunk from his margin. A faint, shimmering fluid leaked from the wound.
Gray pulsed backward, his bell contracting with as much force as he could muster.
’Okay. Okay okay okay. Think. THINK.’
The minnow circled, its tiny black eyes locked onto him with a hunger that felt deeply personal.
’I can’t outrun it. I’m basically a floating plastic bag with a bad heartbeat. And I can’t catch it either, every time I get close, it’s already three feet away like it’s mocking me.’
His tentacles twitched with frustration.
’Static Discharge,’ he thought. ’Fifteen MP. It’ll leave me nearly drained but it’s guaranteed damage. Eight to twelve. It could one-shot if I roll high.’
Gray held his position, forcing his body to remain still even as every newly-awakened instinct screamed at him to flee. The minnow circled once, twice—a silver needle threading through the dark water, tasting his scent, calculating the risk. He could see the tiny gears turning behind those black, empty eyes.
’Come on. Come on. I’m just a helpless little jellyfish. Nothing to be afraid of.’
The minnow’s fins twitched. It had made its decision.
It lunged.
’NOW!’
[STATIC DISCHARGE — ACTIVATED]
The crackling sphere of blue-white lightning erupted from his body. The water around him lit up like a camera flash, and threads of electricity arced outward in all directions. The minnow took the full blast directly in its face.
[-11 HP]
[GLASS MINNOW — HP: 0 / 15]
[GLASS MINNOW DEFEATED]
The fish went rigid. Its body convulsed once, twice, then stilled. The silver in its scales faded to a dull gray as it floated belly-up, drifting slowly downward into the dark.
Gray stared at it.
’I won. I actually won. I BEAT THE FISH!’
[MP: 10 / 25]
A pulse of something warm and golden washed through his body. The system chimed.
[EXPERIENCE HAS BEEN GAINED]
[LEVEL UP!]
[You are now Level 2.]
[10 Stat Points available for distribution.]
[1 Skill Point available.]
Gray’s bell flared bright with pure, unfiltered joy.
’LEVEL TWO! TAKE THAT, YOU STUPID FISH! WHO’S THE BOTTOM OF THE FOOD CHAIN NOW?!’
His celebration was cut short by a new notification, smaller and less celebratory.
[WARNING: Multiple vibrations detected approaching from the east.]
[Analysis: Defeated prey is leaking bodily fluids. This may attract scavengers. Larger predators may also be drawn to the scent.]
Gray’s glow dimmed.
’...What?’
He turned his perception eastward. At first, he saw nothing. Just endless blue. But his tentacles felt it before his eyes confirmed it, rhythmic pulses in the water, growing stronger.
Shapes emerged from the gloom. Small at first, then larger. Dozens of them. Sleek bodies with angular fins and too many teeth for comfort. They moved with the coordinated precision of a pack, their black eyes locked onto the scent trail of the dead minnow.
[GLASS MINNOW (FRENZY STRAIN)]
Level: 3-5
HP: 20-35
Threat: Frenzy Formation — Highly aggressive when blood is present.
The first of them broke from formation and fixed its gaze directly on Gray.
’...I should not have celebrated so loudly.’
Gray pulsed backward, slowly, carefully. But it was too late. More eyes turned his way. The swarm spread out into a crescent formation, surrounding him.
There were at least fifteen of them.
’My MP is at ten,’ Gray realized, the number burning in his mind like a countdown. ’Ten. Static Discharge costs fifteen. I can’t use it again until I regenerate. And I don’t even know how fast MP regenerates in this body.’
He pulled up his status screen with a frantic thought.
MP: 10 / 25
MP Regen: 1 per 60 seconds.
’One per MINUTE?! I need FIVE MINUTES just to use my only real attack once!’
The swarm circled closer. Their jaws snapped in the water, tasting the blood. Tasting him.
’...The minnow.’
He looked at the dead fish still drifting below him.
’They’re here for the blood. If I push the corpse toward them, maybe they’ll fight over it and I can slip away while they’re distracte—’
The lead Frenzy Minnow lunged.