Bitch the bug is not very stealthy as it crashes into trees and shrubs as I scamper ahead on all fours. I lost the axe after throwing it at an outstretched forelimb. While it didn’t hit the limb with the sharp side, evidently it was enough for the bug to have a useless weapon dangling from its body as it rushes after me into every thorn bush I can bound into. I’m getting my fair share of scratches too, but I think once I get a spot to hide in, the cubes will come out again and heal me like yesterday.

If those guys survive till I get back I’ll heal ‘em too.

Probably.

You can live without an arm or two right?

Unfortunately for me, I seem to have found the sheer face of some big hill or something. This might be the same rock that has my cave so if I-

A gargling hiss comes up from behind me as I was trying to figure out which way to go. It appears that I’m trapped.

Well, I can’t say this has been a long life. Nor a good life. The berries were pretty decent though.

Rather than walking, it could be said that the bug monster hunches forward, that it stumbles onward, that it crawls- wait is that a hand? When did it change the claw into a hand? I imagine trying to chase after something while strapping a large stick to my arm and then nod in understanding. Bugs, full of surprises.

Well, either way, the bug is blocking my path, looks upset, and has a hand. And I am unarmed and very small. My new favorite word pops into my mind with a cheerful ding.

The bug with a hand is now reaching that hand towards me. As it comes closer my earlier feeling of contempt rears its head as I see its bulging eyes and twitching, drooling mandibles. The hand is now in my reach and I smack it away instinctively, but a hiss and a drop in my stomach has me hanging above the gaping maw of the bug monster. I close my eyes.  My favorite word comes into mind again, and as I imagine the cube-goop splatter onto that stupid face I decide to speak again.

“>Fuck.<”

The word falls into the air and the cube follows on its heels. I was expecting one final splat before my inevitable death but rather than a splat and grossed-out gag, I hear a hiss that I originally think is the bug again but a harsh choking noise causes me to peek my eye open.

Visually I think that might’ve been a mistake.

The mouth, which was wide open and vast, now sported gaping holes with sizzling edges that continually expanded. The monster had a mixture of clear and green liquid dribbling out of its mouth and it whimpered in between gurgling, hissing, and snarling.

Huh.

Apparently…the cubes are acid to bugs…?

I can make this work. I remember that just talking produces the cubes so now it’s time to be chatty. Come on Sybil you can do it. Just say whatever pops up.

“>You’re rather ugly. Almost as ugly as you are stupid.<” Hah! Burn. I pause a bit to let the cubes fall out of my mouth with a muted wobble. The bug screeches as it pitches forward and I land uncomfortably on my side with a loud “oof!” as the breath gets knocked out of me. My right shoulder throbs and I shuffle up into a partially lounging position as I continue to watch the monster melt into the ground. It’s mostly twitching uselessly now, hand clawing at air as the bug’s meagre brain spills from the widening cavity. The body is mostly untouched, save the hand and previous damage and distantly, like a path within myself, I feel my stomach growl.

…It was going to eat me right? It’s only fair if I get to eat it back.

My mouth salivates heavily, causing me to have to swallow. This would be my second instance of meat since I woke up; I shake the remaining goop that slowed its dissolving of the arm off, and then pull the arm closer to my face. It smells salty, and warm. I place the limb into my mouth, mindful of the small spikes that hung off the chitin, and then I bite down. The chitin, which easily reflected blades and bludgeons, practically popped itself open in my mouth and my eyes widen as I get to taste that which wanted me dead. 

The flesh is giving, practically popping in my mouth with bursts of flavor that cause me to drool even mid-bite and I swallow the heavenly meat as a tangy, buttery aftertaste teases the swallow. I feel my gums ache a little as they accidentally poke against the shell of my meal but I’m already losing my sense of control as my body practically gorges itself on the meat. I fade a little as I succumb to my feral impulses.

When I come to, I am leaning against the half-eaten body; my belly bulges against the coarse shirt and I shift to relieve some of the pressure. My eyes are heavy but I work my way up to my feet when I remember the two idiot knights that I promised to try and heal. 

I glance back at my handiwork, where the body is torn apart, with only the lower thorax and a leg remaining mostly untouched. I look for a while at the leg, then bend down a little to grab it.

A snack on the way couldn’t hurt.

HelloHound

Fun fact: Demons taste like shrimp!