The swamp buzzed with a quiet energy as Sophie's senses extended through her domain. She felt a growing connection to the land, the plants, and insects. But her musings were interrupted by a heavy, rumbling growl that echoed through the swamp. The Mana Behemoth Tiger had sprinted straight to her location.
The beast emerged from the shadows, its massive form rippling with power. The beast's size could be compared to an adult tiger on Earth, but the pure power this beast exuded made it much more formidable. Its glowing amber eyes locked onto Sophie's trunk, and with a deafening roar, it charged. Sophie's branches trembled in alarm, but she quickly steadied herself. She had to think fast.
"System!" she shouted. "Give me options!"
The system's familiar glow appeared.
System Message: No current suggestions at this time, The host will have to make a decision herself. This function can be further upgraded once you unlock the full capabilities of the system.
"Great," Sophie muttered. "So now I also have a faulty system, No pressure."
The tiger lunged, its claws raking the air. Sophie instinctively extended her roots, tripping the beast mid-stride. It crashed into the swampy ground with a snarl, spraying mud and water everywhere. Sophie immediately called upon her Entomocommunication skill.
"Everyone, help me out here!" she commanded.
The swamp erupted with activity as beetles, swamp bark ants, dragonflies, and swamp wasps rallied to her call. The ants swarmed the tiger's legs, biting with precision. They used their acidic bite to gradually corrode the tiger's legs and fur.
The dragonflies buzzed around its head, shooting small crackles of light magic that seemed to damage the behemoth little by little. The crickets and swamp beetles latched onto the beast, slowly disorienting it's emotions and perception, while absorbing it's magic power . The swamp wasps delivered stinging venom, targeting the tiger's exposed areas.
"OWWRRR"
The tiger roared in frustration, swatting at the insects. It leapt at Sophie's roots again, its claws delivering a striking vertical slash to her bark. Just the force of it created a gust of wind that shot everywhere.
Pain shot through her trunk, but she stood firm. Her branches lashed out, whipping the beast across its face. The tiger staggered, shaking its head.
"Come on, big guy," Sophie taunted, her voice filled with both fear and determination. "You're not taking me down that easily!"
As it leapt up again numerous 8 inch veil spiders flew out of the crevices of Sophie's bark and started to shoot the tiger behemoth with strong, silky, white webbing. But this unfortunately proved useless when the tiger just tore through the webs and swiped at all of the spiders around it.
The tiger growled, crouching low as it prepared for another attack. Sophie felt her energy waning. She needed a new strategy.
"System, any other tricks up my sleeve?" she asked desperately.
System Notification:
Skill Opportunity: Activate Swarm Command for concentrated insect assault. This will result in almost every insect in the vicinity to immediately attack the tiger.
"Do it!" Sophie yelled.
Her connection to the insects intensified. She directed the fireflies to blind the tiger, their lights flaring brightly in its eyes. The ants redoubled their efforts, crawling into the tiger's fur and targeting sensitive areas. The dragonflies dove at its face, their sharp wings cutting shallow wounds and light attacks burning it even further. Swamp wasps swarmed in tighter, injecting venom that slowed the tiger's movements. Even more insects started to crowd and surround it throwing out stings, bites, shocks, and lots of other attacks.
The tiger roared in agony, thrashing wildly. Sophie seized the moment, using her Branch Manipulation to slam a thick limb against the beast's side. The impact sent it sprawling into the mud.
Finally, Sophie felt was the perfect time to test out her new skill in battle for the first time. When the tiger stopped flying through the mud, Sophie concentrated all of the energy she could muster in her tree body. One of her branches got bigger and brimmed with life and vitality as she went into her photosynthesis mode. Solar Flare!
The blinding light shot and killed every shadow 30 meters out the area, and the tiger was at the center of it all. It now blinded. began thrashing around through the mud and swiping and clawing at everything it could. Sophie feeling it was the perfect opportunity to strike again, instantly sent a root flying out and hit the tiger square on top of it's head - disorienting it further.
As the tiger struggled to rise, Sophie felt her depleted energy, struggling to course through her roots. The system chimed again.
System Notification: Predator severely weakened. Initiate Predator's Bond?
"Yes!" Sophie shouted without hesitation.
A pulse of mana radiated from her trunk, enveloping the tiger. The beast froze, its amber eyes locking onto Sophie's glowing form. The tension in the air dissipated as the tiger's ferocity gave way to submission. Its massive body shimmered, shrinking slightly until it became a smaller, ethereal version of itself. Its eyes softened, glowing with a gentle luminescence.
The tiger blinked and stretched, its paws pressing against the damp earth. Then it looked up at Sophie's trunk, tilting its head in curiosity.
"Hey there," Sophie said, her voice soft.
The tiger huffed, a sound that seemed almost amused, and padded closer to her base. Sophie could feel its presence like a warm ember nestled within her roots.
"After all of that it turns out you're just a big softy huh. You need a name," Sophie mused. "How about… Ember?"
The tiger growled softly in approval, its tail flicking lazily. Green light started to pour out of her trunk into the tiger, and it's wounds began to visibly heal.
At this moment Sophie received a new message from the system:
System Notification: New subordinate Gained Race: Mana Behemoth Tiger (lesser) Skills: Constrict, Venom Bite, Mana Absorption, Nature Magic (lesser) Part One of Mission objective completed (1/2)
"Wait a second, He didn't have the nature magic skill when were fighting. Did he gain it from me?" "But I don't even have that skill!"
With Ember now part of her growing network, Sophie now turned her focus toward the mana node he was guarding. Her roots delved deeper into the soil, guided by her Root Movement skill. She could feel subtle vibrations of power it was giving off. She then pulled her roots closer to the concentrated energy.
Suddenly, a faint, ancient hum coursed through her roots. Sophie concentrated, her senses tunneling deeper. Embedded within the swamp floor was the glowing node of raw, condensed mana—an Ancient Mana Node. It pulsed with energy, each thrum resonating with her being.
"System, is this the mana that I had sensed earlier?" Sophie whispered.
System Message: Yes System Notification: Discovery: Ancient Mana Node. Absorption will result in significant energy gain and the host's level advancement.
Proceed? (Y/N)
Sophie hesitated slightly for only a moment. "Yes."
Her roots wrapped around the node, drawing its energy upward. A torrent of mana surged through her, lighting her trunk with an ethereal glow. The system chimed furiously as her body absorbed the ancient power.
System Notification:
Level Up! Current Level: 2 Level Up! Current Level: 3
Skill Gained: Root and Branch Extension—Enhanced control and mobility for combat and exploration.
Skill Upgrade: Entomocommunication (Mastered)—Nature's Command (lesser) This skill provides the Host with a Broader influence over all insect species and ability to summon rare and mutated breeds. Lesser unintelligent beasts may also be included in this range.
As the mana surged, Sophie felt her body shifting in ways she couldn't comprehend. The system's glow flickered erratically.
System Notification: Now evolving from (Guardian Tree Spirit) to (Greater Nature Spirit)..... System Error: Evolution Sequence Interrupted. Calculating…
Sophie's body glowed brighter as her bark softened and darkened, glowing green veins of mana racing through her trunk and branches. The glow grew too intense to see through, and Sophie felt herself transforming.
System Notification: Attempting Override… Evolution Sequence Adjusted.
When the glow subsided, Sophie could feel her form had changed. Her bark was now sleek and intertwined with ethereal patterns, her branches extended farther than ever before, and her roots pulsed with an ancient vitality. Sophie even had flowers and fruit growing out of her branches! She had become something entirely new.
System Notification:
Evolution Complete. New Form: World Tree - Spirit Guardian Hybrid (lesser).
Sophie exhaled, a sound like the rustling of leaves. She felt stronger, more attuned to her environment, and ready for whatever came next. As the first rays of dawn filtered through the canopy, she looked down at Ember, who rested peacefully at her base.
Suddenly, her vision dimmed and Sophie couldn't sense or see anything around her anymore. "System, Whats Happening?" Her voice surged with panic as she felt the world around her going darker.
The system chimed one last time.
System Notification:
Tutorial Period Complete. Further system enhancements and skill upgrades require increasing your following. Current Followers: All insectoids. Other Races: (1/100) Host Current Stats: Level 3 Race: (World Tree - Spirit Guardian Hybrid) ( Lesser) Skills - Plant manipulation (Level 1), Water manipulation (Level 1), Light Magic (Lesser), Nature's Command (lesser)
"huh...?"