Master Of None

”Those aren’t flies, are they?” The small tan thing that one of the archers made out was definitely a fly. But what had stopped him and made everyone gather toward the sight was that the fly was easily the size of a horse.

”That is a fly. The tan desert flies will go after any scent they think of rotting flesh. They prefer to go after the dead saw toothed sand worm bodies.” Ethan caught everyone’s attention and began to explain. ”The saw toothed sandworms will go to the surface when they die. They have eggs in their bodies so when other monsters eat them, the eggs hatch and seat those monsters inside out. The flies will help spread the eggs unwittingly like that so the sandworms live. But the flies also use the leftover body as a breeding ground. It’s symbiotic.”

Now that they all knew the disgusting facts about how the two monsters bred, no one wanted to push forward. ”I would assume that if we are seeing one here, then there is a body somewhere? What should we worry about now?” Walker was sure that there would be more to this. He knew that he couldn’t remain thinking about the light and wind attacks he wanted to learn when danger could be just over the next sand dune.

”It is best to avoid the bodies of anything here. Even the flies will leave when they have had their fill. Many other monsters will come for the scarce food they need to live. The flies don’t attack living things but they will be prey for other things. They can’t fly high either so they will stay low to send, that makes them easier prey for other monsters.” Ethan was explaining thai while Walker examined the odd look of the fly.

”However, that fly we are looking at is no longer alive. I would say that it is dead and has been dead for about three days. It is just bait for the devil toad that attached it to its tongue to attract anything that tried to eat that fly carcass.” no one wanted to know what a devil toad was. But they were already in the position that they had to know.

”I can see it now. Just under the sand there are eyes.” Gil managed to spot it and point the spots out to everyone. Walker soon caught on and was able to use the all around appraisal skill.

’Devil toad

The devil toad is one of the many monsters that hides in the sand. Their tan skin perfectly melds with the denser sand and their white spotting matches the lighter white sands across the surface of the desert. It also assists in keeping their body cooler in the sun.

The best way for them to hunt is to use their barbed tongue to capture prey. They will often capture a weaker prey and absorbed the moisture from it through their tongue. Then they will let their tongue remain outside their mouth waiting for another prey to attack the already defeated prey.

Once they attract another prey, they will release the old prey and attack the new prey to start the cycle over again. This leaves a dried and non nutritious body to slowly degrade back in to the sands of the desert. They are called the devil toad because they have sharp horns that are reminiscent of devilish drawings.’

”I can see it too. It’s been waiting for another prey… I wonder how it learns to attack like that?” Walker was more amazed that a monster was able to develop this way. It truly showed that the world was an odd place. The desert itself was definitely one of the places that he had not expected to be in again. There were so many odd things here.

”We are taking a path around it. Time to move.” With the new danger explained, Su pushed everyone on. The royal dragons just looked at the monster they deemed weak and wondered if they should hunt it. But Ignus began ignoring it since there was no merit in hunting it for food or anything. He was too far above it.

As they rounded the sand dune that the devil toad was waiting in ambush on, the group caught sight of even more tan sand flies. These ones were moving though. They were moving dune to dune clearly trying to get in to the sands around them. ”I would say that there is something around her under the sands.” This made everyone wonder what might be uncovered as they watched. Moving coil alert whatever was here.

The result of their sudden stoppage rewarded them with the sound of flies buzzing past them. The large flies were all attracted to the same place around them. A perfect angel that the army could see from where they had stopped. ”They will dig things if another monster has hidden it under the top layer of sand, I have never seen it.” Ethan had taken a journal from under his cloak. He was writing notes. Many of the other Fel angels were doing so as well.

This was definitely a sight that not many had seen, but what the tan sand flies began to pull from the top layer of sand was nothing but terrifying. Just as Ethan had explained, there were saw toothed sand worms here. The one being brought up was easily five times as long as Onyx in his largest state. ”They managed to find a juvenile saw toothed sandworm. I assume it was hunted by a prickled mantis. Rare but they like to bury their prey until the night sets in. Then they will be able to survive the temperature better to dissect their prey. That should mean… ah, over there is a perfect place.”

All of the Fel empire angels looked toward a small mass of tan bushes. Anyone would expect that they were just wind blown dead bushes, but it soon became clear that this was only half true. The bushes were being held together by a tan colored praying mantis. Small prickles on its body made the little dried bushes hold to it so that they became its camouflage.

”There are more monsters around this desert than I could have imagined. We are even nearing the sandstorms and these sights are unaffected. I thought that monsters would run away or something.” Remey was sure that everything they knew about deserts was a mystery now. So many monsters somehow living here. None of them are fleeing the storm coming. All of them are ready to kill one another or dig out food in any way possible.

”I am still trying to figure out how that massive sandworm thing is just a baby. It’s massive!” Gil was trying to understand what size the adult saw toothed sandworms would be. The one they were looking at was clearly larger than anything he had seen. Even the other worm type monsters he had read about were small by comparison. Much smaller.

”Look, the mantis has started to get angry that its prey was found. But the flies will gather more and more. Let’s see what will happen.’’ The sun was deadly to the prickled mantis which was why it was forced to use camouflage and cover itself in the dead bushes. It blocked it from certain heat death.

However, the group watched as the mantis started to move slowly toward the flies. With a sudden burst of speed, it struck out and decapitated one fly. Walker was barely able to see the explosive force the mantis used as it sliced at the fly. Its sharp arms easily cut the attacker that tried to steal its food.

As a result, the flies took to the air but some were too slow. The mantis struck out again and again while trying its best not to sit in the sun too long. Unfortunately, it was fighting a losing battle. As the sun hit it, the group could see that the body of the mantis was suffering. The tan coloration was darkening which was a clear show of how fast it cost the moisture in its body.

In just a few moments, the mantis was forced to bury itself in the sand causing the small bushes attached to it to appear like a cluster again. The flies returned to the dead sandworm and began their actions again. They had found food and a place to lay eggs. Why would they abandon it just because a few of them had died? They were not a pack or swarm. They don’t care about losing fellow flies. Just survival.

”What a great chance. We can keep this for fellow researchers.” Ethan and the Fel empire were completely in their own world upon witnessing all of this. It was a great addition to their knowledge. But it made everyone else wonder what other dangers were around. What else they didn’t know about.

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