The will-o'-the-wisp sacrificed itself and its fellow disappeared while the bunyip remained under the water. No more ripples approached, and though TJ kept his attention on the surroundings, there was only so much he could know for sure. Despite everything, he was quickly recovering his resources, and didn't feel any particular sense of danger from the bunyip, especially since it wasn't an elite nor of a level notably higher than his own. While he thought about it, he slowly pulled the remainder of the will-o'the-wisp from the swampy ground—the wrought iron lamp.
As soon as it was in his mouth, TJ was overwhelmed by the strangeness of a fire that slowly froze him, or perhaps a cold that burned his tongue. It was an undefineable discomfort, but even so, it existed, and there was nothing he could do about it. Beyond that, it was mere discomfort, far from the worst thing that TJ had experienced in the… maybe two months? Since the Integration first took place. He looked at the System's warning, of the next event.
There will be no System-guided events occurring in the next 68 days. At the end of the 68th day, there will be an announcement regarding the next System-guided event.
When that announcement had first appeared in his vision, it had said 100. Over a month since the Tutorial ended, then. Not quite two months since this all went to shit. That meant… it was early March? The winter was still clinging to the air, though, nothing like what it usually was like here in south Arizona. Another testament to the strength of the creatures that'd been introduced to the world, given how they influenced the world. Maybe there was some frost dragon or other creature that was extending the winter nearby, TJ supposed, but that left him completely unable to figure out what was coming. Would there be a stormy season? Would the summer be as hot as ever or even worse? Would the year even still be 365 days long?
Too many things could and would change, and there was nothing that TJ could do about it. Most of all, with 32 days having passed since he'd seen Junior, that meant that it'd felt basically like 7.4 hours to Junior since they'd seen each other. In that time, TJ had done so much… and he'd progressed so little. He'd allowed himself to get caught up in any number of random things, from interfacing with the New Republic, which in retrospect went nowhere, to adopting a child because of her Bloodline. Now, he was creating his own settlement while making himself a god and needing to gain levels at an accelerated rate… When would he see his son again?
So much had happened, and Junior hadn't even experienced a full day. It was a blessing that TJ wasn't missing months with his child, since the other option was for Junior to be in the same situation that Luz was, but would that be better, to allow the child to get older quicker, to get levels and possibly grow capable of defending himself? Everything was up in a flux, and though the questions continued assailing him, TJ had no reason or time to think about them further right now. There was nothing he could do at present, and instead, he needed to focus on finding the four teens that were exploring the swamps all around him.
As such, he reared back up, though he still kept half his attention on the water underneath. After all, he'd learned at least part of a lesson from the golem that'd trapped him under the ground and nearly killed him, to say nothing of how easily Acalan could kill him if the Ahuizotl decided to do so. There was no telling what kind of danger awaited him here. This was not his preferred territory, and though he noted that his Bloodline and especially transforming into a coatl shifted the way he thought and rushed into things, TJ recognized that some of that hotheadedness had been something he'd always lived with. There was no reason for him to do anything but to accustom himself to the way his mind worked, because he hadn't been running into traffic or getting into fights with everybody that crossed his path before the System's arrival.
"Molly! Mimi! Seth! Tessie! Let me know you hear me!"
He waited, listening and willing the winds to bring any sounds his way, to listen to whatever the kids said back. There was nothing, and after waiting for a minute, he repeated, "Molly! Tessie! Seth! Mimi! Where are you?"
It hadn't been long enough for them to go far enough to hear nothing if they weren't just sprinting for the horizon, so immediately, TJ felt his tension rise. Were the kids all in danger? Unconscious? Dead? He started to move deeper into the marsh, wanting to make sure they could hear him, but also needing to ensure that he didn't rush deep into the unknown and somehow leave the kids behind him, where they would retreat while he continued to search deeper. If he ended up getting another scouting party sent in after him, it'd be worse…
"Oh, come on." He grumbled to himself as he continued on his path, forcefully modulating his speed to that of an adult's running speed. A part of him desperately wanted to sprint, or slither, as fast as he could manage, but instead he stayed as calm as he could while he continued calling out for the wayward youth. Though he called out again and again, there was no response. His tension continued to grow as he considered what he would do if he couldn't find them. It hadn't been that long since he'd seen them, right? Maybe an hour? Probably less.
TJ thought he heard something and pushed his senses as far as he could, listening to the whispering of the wind, telling him about some sound at least a mile further in through the thick marshland. As he considered what to do, he finally decided to rush forward, paying close attention to see if he could manage to find them before he got too far in. Despite himself, he made the deliberate decision to focus more on the world that spread further away from him than on his immediate surroundings, ready to accept the hit from a bunyip, if they were brave enough to try him again. The winds rushed back to him, carrying the hint of a person's voice.
"… over there…" was the only remnant of a brief whisper that he heard, the rest of the conversation lost to the space between them. TJ followed it nonetheless, his ears stretching to follow this faintest hint he'd gotten. After all, it was only the specifics of the speaking individuals' location that were lost on him. Even so, following after it was the best option available to him—
Only at the last second did TJ hear the splashing of water just behind him. Despite months of fighting mostly as a coatl, he wasn't used to dragging such a long body behind himself. When the sounds reached his ears, about 100 feet away from his tail, he then needed to twitch out of the way to keep himself from falling prey to some creature's attack from a place that he, as a human, never would have had to concern himself about. As it was, the bunyip caught TJ's tail and crunched through scale, a couple feathers, flesh, and into bone. TJ roared in pain and rage as he whipped his head back to deal with the beast. It pulled back as it swam away, keeping his head from making progress towards the monster, but his jaws were far from the only weapon available to TJ. In fact…
TJ transformed back into his human form, the agony of his tail being chewed on becoming that of his leg being nearly torn off. That didn't matter right now, though. He immediately transformed back, his body now directly beside the bunyip. So confused by his constant changes, the monster didn't try to escape immediately. It wouldn't have been able to get away anyways, but the beast within the man longed for an opportunity to hunt, chase, and destroy. Instead, the fight was nearly immediately over as TJ's coils wrapped around the monster's neck and crushed down. Its breath wheezed through the crushed larynx, but he didn't make the beast suffer for long. With a quick bite, he ripped its head free and tasted the rich iron of its blood while the kill notification flashed in his eyes.
Bunyip (Copper I), Level 31, Slain. Experience gained.
Occupation: Savage Shaman (Copper (I)) has advanced to level 29.
Attribute points allocated: Strength +5, Agility +5, Endurance +5, Vitality +5, Toughness +5, Wisdom +12, Intelligence +12, Perception +12, Willpower +12, Fixation +12, Free Points +15. Additional Free Points currently available.
TJ's HP and MP both renewed themselves and he felt his tail lengthen by nearly a foot as the notification flashed in his vision. The growth of his Occupation swelled in him, and TJ smiled as his Attributes climbed and his awareness stretched further than before. He could more clearly hear the murmuring of voices, as well as specifically where they were. Surprisingly, they were a mere quarter mile or so away, and as TJ followed the auditory trail towards the children. Once he was closer, maybe 100 yards or so, he could finally understand what was being said. A part of him asked the System why he couldn't hear clearly when his Attributes should have allowed him to understand the words spoken from almost a mile away, so long as they weren't being whispered.
Another creature's Skills or the conditions of an environment can both serve to suppress the effectiveness of any number of Attributes in Participants or other creatures.
With that nonanswer, TJ sighed and turned his attention away from the System to instead listen to the teens' conversation.
"I… think I prefer the world like it is now." Molly's quiet voice, barely above a whisper, struck TJ to his core. He paused where he was slithering along before, unable to force himself to interrupt the conversation. Molly continued, "I don't know if I actually think that, though. Do any of you understand? I feel like I'm changing, and not just from trauma or whatever. Like, every day, I forget the world before a little more?"
Something in her voice dripped with fear, of worrying about being rejected. She didn't have to have worried as Sam's voice answered, "Well, I think your life before the Integration was probably a bit better than me and Mimi's but even so, I think I get that same feeling. Mimi's said something like that, haven't you?"
"I can speak for myself, Sam." Mimi huffed. "But yeah. It's something that seems to be… deeper than just changing. Especially with taking Battlefront Disciple and Amazon? I don't care about blood being on me anymore, even on my face or anything. I don't get hurt as easy, and I'm more… I don't know what."
"I just feel broken most days." Tessie's words were a whisper, but TJ barely pulled them to his ears. "I'm not Tessie, just something that I tried to build up in the vacuum that she left behind. Just… a broken doll that looks like Tessie."
"You're not broken." Molly retorted without delay. "You're living in a shitty world. Not your fault."
TJ could hear the shrug in Tessie's voice as she said, "Ok."
The group went quiet, and TJ slithered through the brush, uncomfortable with continuing to eavesdrop. Before he could get to them, though, he heard Sam's armor appear over him as he told the others, "Get ready. Something's in the water."
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