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Ivy darted around picking off blue mice one at a time. Slowly, becoming more and more accustomed to the power she had gained. She quickly noticed she could feel herself growing weaker and weaker the more she used magic, as if she used her time as mana. It was probably a side effect of using one of Tsalice's tails as a core, as she had likely also used time as a substitute for mana. So she halted. Knowing this, she realized she should find a way to increase her time, just as Tsalice had mentioned. She had gathered quite a bit of blue mice cores at this point, she could trade these at a village or use them to create a bit of mana herself so she didn't have to use her time whenever she used magic.
Ivy gathered the crystal balls most of them were shining a blueish white and only one shone a deep silver hue. She stared at the balls who danced with their colors. Deciding to first consume one that shone a faint blueish-white, as it was the weakest in overall mana so probably the safest. She bit down on one that quickly shattered under the force. The mana seeped into her flesh but just a tiny bit as the rest escaped into the air. Just before she got the change to go for another did the world decide to give her a stab of pain it made her senses blur and her vision fade into a dark abyss.
Spirit world--
"Hugh", groaning Ivy sat up, her eyes were greeted by Tsalice. "Hello little one," She commented before continuing, "it seems that you recklessly took in a core… Do not fret you're not dead yet." Ivy looked at her, "why did you bring me here?" Tsalice chuckled before answering, "I'm going to tell you how to safely consume cores as you just almost killed yourself AGAIN, firstly always consume a core inside a burrow in case you pass out again, secondly let it bathe in water and wait a bit it takes some time to remove impurities, and lastly biting into it to consume its mana is indeed the correct way to do it"
Just as Tsalice finished a massive ice sculpture appeared before melting as quickly as it appeared, and from it emerged a towering mouse covered in pieces of blue cloth. "You blue fox, some of my children died, but their souls never made it back to me, and I know it was by one…", It stopped before looking at Ivy. "There they are.", It continued. Suddenly ten green strings made their way out Ivy's body heading straight to the mouse before entering one of the numerous strings of cloth on it's body. It simply nodded to her before its body melted into water and falling onto the ground.
Tsalice looked at the vanishing rodent before saying, "One of your kin wants to speak with you." After that Tsalice also melted away and the ghost of a small kit appeared. Ivy looked at it before whispering, "I won't fail you please state your request." The little kit nodded before responding, "The flesh bags killed me before I got the change to get someone to play with, so I want you to grab the soul of a small female kit of one of the flesh bags and offer it to Tsalice so I can get a playmate. In return, I will give you something you need." Ivy nodded solemnly Before stepping towards the little kit and placing her tail on its shoulder.
Physical world–
Ivy opened her eyes, It was dark, and the stars twinkled above her like scattered crystals. She stood up quickly, her mind racing. She needed to find a place to make a burrow. Ideally, it would be near a settlement, but somewhere in the forest would do for now. First, tough, she needed a temporary den to safely absorb the remaining cores. She glanced around and soon found a promising spot. Without hesitation, she began to dig. Time passed, and when she finally finished, her paws throbbed with pain, dirt packed stubbornly between her claws. She licked them clean with quick, irritated strokes before retracting them. Scooping up the remaining cores, she placed them carefully inside before tucking some wet moss around them to extract the impurities. Once enough time had passed, Ivy took the first core into her mouth and a bit down. It cracked easily, mana seeping into her body, so she did for each one. In the end she gained enough to cast at least three low-level ice spells. It wasn't much, but it was something.
Crawling out of the den, Ivy slipped into the forest, her eyes scanning the shadows for any sign of civilization. After what felt like an eternity of wandering, she finally caught sight of a village nestled between the trees. Her curiosity about her transformation ability flared again, and she decided to test it. As she shifted, her fur slowly receded, giving way to pale skin. Her snout shrank into a small, upturned nose, and her sharp teeth dulled slightly—though they still looked capable of tearing flesh. The cold wind slammed against her bare skin like a wall of ice, forcing a shiver from her. She immediately reverted to her original form, deciding that before she could approach the town, she'd need clothes. Turning back into the forest, she prowled through the underbrush. It wasn't long before she stumbled upon a female slayer—alone, unaware of Ivy's silent presence.
Ivy stared at the flesh bag for a moment before deciding to strike. She conjured a low level ice shard, careful not to exceed her tiny mana pool, and hurled it straight at the flesh bag's shoulder. It hit cleanly, but instead of the scream she wanted to hear she got complete silence confusing Ivy a bit. The slayer's face showed a pained expression, but she uttered no sound. The female slayer grabbed the ice spike embedded in her shoulder and yanked it out, clenching on her teeth. Blood spilled freely, staining the ground a vibrant scarlet. Without hesitation, the slayer reached for something in her belt and hurled it straight at Ivy. She leapt out of the way, the daggers clattering against the ground where she'd just stood. As Ivy landed, she summoned another ice shard, but this time she didn't throw it. She did however create an ice spike on the ground next to the flesh bag feet a silent trap promising a lot of pain and blood. She reminded herself to be careful to not use magic carelessly; her dwindling lifespan, now less than a year, demanded restrained.
Ivy quickly lunged for the left leg, causing the flesh bag to hop to the side right straight into the hidden ice spike with her right leg. It shot up, piercing into the heel and deep into her leg. This time, Ivy was rewarded with a scream—raw, agonized, and beautiful to her ears. Wasting no time, She shot the final ice spike into the woman's knee, bringing her crashing down. Ivy shifted into her demi-human form, stepping closer. The woman looked up, her voice hoarse, pained and broken. "Why? Please… don't kill me, I have a child who needs feeding." Ivy's lips curled into a wicked smile. "Perfect," she whispered. Without hesitation, she gripped the woman's neck and choked the life out of her.
After that was done Ivy used her claw to skin her, She then used her shifting ability to remove her tail so she could wear the skin of the slayer. After that she put on the clothes before making her way to the village. After what felt like ages of wandering the bustling streets did she stop a man, "Excuse me I hit my head and lost my memories I don't know where I live could, you please tell me." The man looked at Ivy before nodding and leading her to a house that looked like it was falling apart as thanks to his kindness. She grabbed his neck and twisted it until it broke killing him instantly, after a pausing a bit did she drag him inside closing the door behind her.
Now that she was inside she just needed to find the kid. She walked around searching for the kid. Eventually she found her sitting on a bed completely alone in this dark room they were in. Ivy approached and broke the kid's neck not long after a red string floated into Ivy. Not long after and Ivy offered the red string that entered her to the goddess. "Thank you for giving me a playmate. In return, I give you 2 years and a moth worth of mana of my lifetime I didn't get to use.", the boy's words rang in her head. She smiled to herself she had done it she had found a way to increase her lifespan. She stood up and left the house just as guards went into the neighboring house to do a check-up.
Ivy stared at the entering guards for a moment before quickly making her way out of there back to the forest where she removed the skin suit off her body before returning to her original form. Now she needed to find a good place to make a burrow. Somewhat deeper in the forest she found a highly covered shrub with dense foliage around it keeping a potential burrow safe from prying eyes. I was decided her burrow would be here in this dense foliage under this shrub.
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New characters/character info.
Nothing new.
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Editor note:
Thank you Shard over on scribble hub for the idea that Ivy should have a way to expand her overall lifespan.