“Who put a bee in her bonnet?” Dorin grumbled as we watched the harpy stalk away.

  L’aera just sighed. “She is still bitter about the injury Suri inflicted upon her, but there is little to be done. K’esil cannot regrow bones.”

  “And I don’t think I can restore a lost limb,” I added.

  Did I feel a little bad about E’rina’s injury? Yes. But only a little. She’d been trying to kidnap me, and at the time, the harpies had every intention of using me as an ingredient for ritual soup! It was self-defense.

  Besides, it wasn’t like I took her wings. With help from Dorin, maybe she could get her talons back in a different form. Of course, he’d need more materials, and a forge in which to work them, but the point was that it was possible. Maybe I could find some sharp rocks to forge into the claws? Maybe, some magical components, they could be even better than before?

  Of course, that all presumed that she would be nice to us when the damage wasn’t quite so fresh…which wasn’t a guarantee.

  L’aera bowed her head. “On behalf of the colony, please accept our apologies for the way you both have been treated. It is not our way to deny care to those in need of succor. If there is anything you require, you need only to ask.”

  “Anything we required” turned out to be a very generous offer, something which I realized much later as I polished the rocks on my tiny set of stairs. I’d been working on it for the better part of three weeks. Scouting a viable path had been the first challenge, since the colony cave system was vast with many exits out to open air. The last thing I wanted was to have my stairs fall out from under me if I carved them too close to one of the entrances.

  However, surveying the cliff face presented its own challenges. From the bottom, I couldn’t see all the way to the top because of the limited range on Arcane Sensitivity, and asking Dorin and L’aera for assistance hadn’t worked out as well as I’d hoped. They would describe veins of color in the rock face, places where the rock was darker or lighter gray. Those descriptions, though well intentioned, were not very helpful to a creature who can’t see the colors of light.

  Instead of visually examining the rocks, I had to take a more pods-on approach. Different types of rock tasted different, and by climbing between the rock cracks, I was starting to get an idea for the types of rock that made up High Ridge.

  Most of it was made of a cold stone. Deep within the rock, I could taste the same flavors left behind in other rocks by fire and heat, but whatever fire had created High Ridge had long since grown cold. Large crystals had formed in its wake, giving the mass a variety of smaller flavors that came together to make a delicious whole. After studying my geology book with Dorin, I was reasonably sure that High Ridge was made mostly of a type of lava rock called granite.

  Near the top, the mass of impassive granite gave way to an amalgamation of many rocks with sand filling the gaps between. Though my book had a section on rocks it called “sedimentary,” I hadn’t done much research on it yet. Dorin’s time to read to me was limited, and it was far better spent trying to figure out the third major flavor present in the stones of High Ridge.

  The Wrong-fire-rock. No need for a complicated name when you can have one that sums it all up. Wrong-fire-rock was wrong. It gave me a sense of unease. Unlike in granite, the fiery mana of this rock still seemed present, yet it showed no signs of heat that an arcane-insensitive being would find. The rock wasn’t on fire, and it wasn’t particularly warm to the touch, but its spicy taste burned into my slime and made my core itch. More than once, I’d tasted the rock, only to have my arcane instincts shift my magic to Slayer’s Stance without even thinking.

  Unfortunately, it was almost impossible to avoid. Traces of Wrong Fire coated the insides of the caves, particularly further in the main colony cavern. Digging deeper into the rock showed that it rarely penetrated into the granite mass, save for the occasional vein or wall-crack. What was most interesting, though, was that Wrong-fire-rock was never found in the tunnels between the caves. All I could assume was that whatever created the unsettling stone had done so before the tunnels were made, which was long before the harpies had settled there.

  Nothing in my geology book had shed light on the Wrong-fire-rock. I’d spent hours with Dorin, pouring through its contents, and hours more staring at the page on my own, willing the inked words to magically turn into…well…magic. Maybe then, I could read it on my own.

  Maybe having light sight wouldn’t be so bad, I thought one night as I stared at the blank pages. Only if I could keep my arcane vision, though. It’s far more versatile than fleshy eyes.

  But with the rocks identified and a rough path traced most of the way up the cliff, I turned to actually eating out a small staircase for myself. Carving the rock didn’t take long, only a few days. At first, the harpies watched with interest, but they quickly become bored and moved on. Matters of the earth rarely concerned them. Every so often, L’aera or K’esil would stop by to see me before carrying on with their various daily tasks.

  I polished off the last bit of rock, rubbing the last stair with a pseudopod until it sparkled…or at least, I hoped it did. Once I was completely done, the Creator offered me a reward for my hard work.

  [Evolution path: Rock Eater Slime, Tier 3

  Requirements:

  This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  Consume Rocks: completed

  Consume dungeon bronze: 2/10

  Catalogue unique types of rock: 1/5

  Consume Mana-dense rocks: 1/5

  Unknown: 0/3

  Substance Eaten:

  Stone: 22/100 to ability unlock]

  I wobbled happily, pleased with my progress. It was my first evolution path with a revealed name! I could definitely see myself becoming a Rock Eater Slime in time. After all, rocks were one of my favorite topics. I just needed to figure out what the last unknown requirement was and fulfill it.

  “Hey, Suri!” Dorin beckoned me over.

  He’d tied his hair back with a leather strip while he worked. Near the edge of the bone pile, he’d started collecting a pile of large stones, as well as some logs and leaves he’d brought in from the forest. Ostensibly, the materials were there for the benefit of the harpies. Stones could be carried up to nests to serve as small tables and chairs while wood could be used for fires or carved into small talismans.

  But, I knew better. Life in the colony was difficult for Las’hik. Despite the harpies’ best efforts to feed him, clothe him, and make him feel welcome, there were just some things that the colony was not equipped to handle. Chief among which was accessibility. Though my small stairs had been approved without L’aera even bringing it to the rest of the council, stairs big enough for Dorin would never be approved by the colony. He was forced to climb, hand over hand, all the way to the main colony nest. From there, he could take tunnels to L’aera’s dwelling. There, he’d been given a bed of his own where the wing mother could keep an eye on him.

  A few nights ago, Dorin had returned well after dark. Only the night patrols were awake. And me, of course. I’d been wandering through the cracks in the cliff-face low enough to hear him grumbling about the inconveniences of being a flightless bird in a nest of falcons.

  I hopped across the bone pile to where he waited with his pile of materials. The knight was scowling at the stones, but nodded as I approached.

  “I see you finished your stairs,” he noted, glancing back at the little staircase carved into the cliff face. It was scarcely big enough for a rabbit to climb, but it was enough for me. “You busy?”

  “Not anymore,” I answered in both words and wobble.

  “Would you mind helping me clear out the bones? I got permission from L’aera this morning. They just have never cared to take the time.”

  “Sure!”

  I’d been meaning to take the time anyway. There was an ability locked behind those bones, and even if I didn’t take it, having the option was worth the time it would take.

  However, I paused after only taking one hop towards the pile. As soon as I’d begun moving, Dorin had lowered his head and softened his gaze. It was almost as if he were trying to hide it behind my back…forgetting, of course, that I have neither back nor front.

  “What are you thinking about?” I asked.

  “Nothing,” he answered, correcting his expression and returning to the gruff soldier he showed to the world.

  “Okay.”

  I wasn’t sure if I believed him. His flame burned strong, but more dimly than usual. But, if he said he was fine, then I wouldn’t push the issue. Instead, I had a bone pile to clear, and I was ready to dive in with gusto.

  My official opinion on the matter is that bones aren’t as tasty as rocks. Even the Wrong-fire-rock was tastier than the pile. The spicy flavor of that rock made my slime tingle, but at least, it had something interesting in its flavors. By the time I cleared a decent chunk of forgotten remnants of long discarded meals, I was tired of the chalky taste of sun-dried bone. Still, I awaited the Creator’s praise with excitement as her progress tracker ticked over to complete.

  [Substance eaten:

  Bones: 40/40

  Ability Unlocked: Bone Spike

  Bone Spike: Mana cost: 10. By channeling mana, create a spike from the ground to deal damage to a nearby enemy. Additional mana may be applied in order to increase the size and durability of the spike.]

  Interesting.

  I couldn’t deny that having access to an ability that I could use at even a short range was enticing. Seeing L’aera in the fight against Dorin had really driven home just how effective speed and avoidance could be as tactics. By staying away from the enemy, she was almost never in any real danger.

  But…what if there was a better ability to come? I only had two ability slots left, and didn’t know how to get more.

  However, as soon as the thought entered my mind, the Creator provided an answer.

  [Ability slots are determined by a creature’s [Versatility] stat. The higher a creature’s versatility, the more ability slots they will receive at every Tier. Additional ability slots may be awarded by gaining tags or through certain abilities.

  Ability slots awarded per tier: 3

  Ability slots available: 2]

  Only two left…

  Even working towards my Tier 3 as fast as I could, I didn’t have any fully realized paths before me. Both Rock Eater Slime and the other unknown evolution path had 2 unknown requirements, and without knowing anything about what they required, it could be months or even years before I fully unlocked my path to Tier 3. Would it be better to wait on Bone Spike? To get a few more options before deciding the last two that would fill out my ability list until my next advancement?

  Range would be nice, but so would speed. I was pitifully slow compared to other monsters. My native fighting style involved ambushes and fights in close quarters, not anything on a wide field. In Dragon’s Gate, I was perfectly suited to the conditions, but as evidenced by the conflict with the harpies and the shamblers, I couldn’t choose to only fight underground. Bone Spike could help with that by giving me an option to fight further away than my regular pseudopod attack reached.

  Or, I could just explode. Wild Magic Wave is fairly large. That was especially true when paired with the mysterious Arcane Ascendent. When I’d used Wild Magic Wave on the decayed harpies, the blast had been immense. I’d seen as much before immediately passing out from the magical strain on my core.

  In the end, I set Bone Spike aside. The ability was already unlocked. It wasn’t going anywhere. Until I needed it, it was more useful to keep my options open.

  I returned to Dorin. The draken knight eyed the sizeable hole in the bone pile with a nod.

  “Thanks Suri. You did that way faster than I could have.”

  I wobbled my joy from the praise. “I’m always hungry. What are you working on?”

  If he said anything other than “my new house” I was going to call him out as a liar. Even a shed would be easier to live in than climbing the cliffs every day, and with all the materials he’d gathered, it was obvious.

  However, before he got the chance to say anything at all, a piercing shriek cut through the mid-day forest. A harpy shot out of the trees, flapping her wings wildly to stop mid-air.

  “Wing Mother! Wing Mother! Death walkers! They’re gathering!”