Chapter 86: Chapter 86: A Bit of Housekeeping And A Hard-On For Revenge

They made camp in the old maugrim fort that night. After meeting Fluxwell, Nay had gone up with Ilyawraith to retrieve the Marrow from Celyne’s corpse. She was disturbed to discover that the Marrow was her eyes. She had grimaced as she plucked them out of their sockets with Thorn. She couldn’t help but feel she was mutilating a corpse.

She shook off the haunting thought that she was performing a violation, and reminded herself she was a Marrow Eater and that this was just a cycle of cultivation and survival here.

---

[You have acquired Eyeball Marrow of Celyne]

---

They returned to their camp in the maugrim fort and Nay set to preparing the Marrow for consumption. She consulted a Jezabelle Childe recipe.

Harpy Eye Soup. This is a great recipe inspired by Nyppanese cuisine, that far away nation who have managed to stand strong against the Phantomhead.

For this recipe, I’m using one of their ideas for a winter melon soup and using that as the base.

Ingredients: winter melon, mushrooms of your choice, chicken broth, ginger and green onion.

Nay happened to have a half pound of winter melon in her inventory, the good stuff from Moonglum Farms. She cut it into cubes and boiled it in water. She also had a jar of chillbloom mushrooms in her inventory from Volva Serrilda’s garden. She soaked these in water for a bit and then dumped them into the pot with the melon.

Nay kept several jars of different broths in her inventory, her favorite being chicken broth and bone broth. But she grabbed a jar of chicken broth and poured it into the pot with the rest of the ingredients.

She plopped Celyne’s eyeballs into the pot with slices of ginger. She set it to a simmer and the others save for Fluxwell joined them to take a look at the cooking soup. Blue and green motes of Marrow light floated out of the pot.

“The eyeballs kind of ruin the presentation,” Nom said, “but it smells good.”

“I think it both looks and smells delicious,” Tuk-Tuk said.

Nay cut up the eyeballs, so everyone could get a piece with the broth. When it was done, Nay served the three of them bowls of the Harpy Eye Soup. When she offered it to the others, they declined.

“I think I’ll just have a pastie,” Quincy said, not hiding his disgust.

The three of them sat down and looked from their bowls of soup to each other. The partial eyeballs staring up at them.

“Well, let’s dig in,” Nay said.

And they all dipped their spoons into the broth.

“It’s surprisingly refreshing,” Nom said.

Nay agreed. “The winter melon and ginger really makes this nice. It’s warm, but cool at the same time somehow.”

The part of the eyeball was gelatinous, like chewing into a lychee that burst flavor into her mouth. But the melon and ginger and chicken broth just made it to taste savory and pleasant. She finished off the broth and let the effects take hold.

---

[Opening Delicacy Tree]

[Marrow Abilities 7/12]

---

Opening Ability Tree for the Delicacy: Bladegland of Icescythe.

You have five open slots in this Ability Tree. You have consumed Eyeball Marrow of Celyne. It has syncretized into [Blade Rush ability. Would you like to use slot for [Blade Rush Y/N?]

She accessed the ability description.

Blade Rush. Harpies, in addition to their more toxic tactics of throwing their own refuse, also like to rush their prey with their talons. This ability allows you to charge your target at 200% movement speed and land a strike with each of your blades. The damage from the strikes also effects nearby enemies. Cooldown: 45 seconds.

She accepted the ability. After the rush of dopamine and the euphoric effects settled, she asked Nom, “What did you get?”

Nom was lying on the floor, content, glowing blue. “A new tentacle attack. It zips me to a target and I automatically hit them with my whip tendrils. It also affects nearby enemies. I’m calling it Tentacle Rush.”

So, much similar to her Blade Rush.

“Cool,” she said.

#

After they had eaten and had settled into their bedrolls, with Tuk-Tuk taking first watch, Nay spent some time in her interface reviewing her abilities.

Rank: Iron (7%)

Nay still had a long way to get to Bronze. She wondered if she would make it that far.

TRAVELER (also known as: ELSEWORLDER, WORLDTRIPPER, ISEKAIZEN, VIAGGIATORE 0, REISENDER X)

Passive Traveler Abilities

Seer’s Cartography (lvl. 2)

Rosetta Stone (lvl. 2)

Detect Aura (lvl. 2)

Chef’s Kiss (lvl. 4)

---

DELICACIES (2/3)

Tongue of the Hierophant (Class: Culinary, Category: Epic)

Bladegland of Icescythe (Class: Combat, Category: Common)

Available Delicacy Slot (N/A)

---

ABILITY TREES

Tongue of the Hierophant (3/12)

Marrow Abilities

All Marrows within this tree are of appropriate level.

Detect Marrow (lvl. 2)

Chef’s Delight (lvl. 2)

Chef’s Thermometer (lvl. 2)

---

Bladegland of the Icescythe (8/12)

Marrow Abilities

All Marrows within this tree are of appropriate level.

Rupture (lvl. 1)

Dire Knife Imbue (lvl. 1)

Gore (lvl. 1)

Decapitate (lvl. 1)

Salvo of Knives (lvl. 1)

Shred (lvl. 1)

Stealth (lvl. 1)

Blade Rush (lvl. 1)

---

“Hey, Nom,” Nay said. “You still awake?”

She sat up and saw Nom playing the game of bone carving with Tuk-Tuk. She got up, being careful not to disturb the others, and walked over to them on the stone balcony that looked out over the maugrim fort in the cavern below.

Nom looked up from the current roll of the bones. “Can’t sleep?”

“With those two playing dueling banjos with their snores?” she said, nodding her head at Quincy and Fluxwell, who were unconscious and snoring so loud it echoed through the fort.

“They can’t help it,” Nom said. “Maybe we can get Fluxwell to artifice up a device that dampens snores or something.”

“Yeah, like a magical sleep apnea mask.”

“I would think the maugrim would be tired of sleeping,” Tuk-Tuk said.

“Yeah, poor guy accidentally turned himself into Rip Van Winkle,” Nay said.

Both Nom and Tuk-Tuk looked at her with questions on their faces. They didn’t get her reference.

“He’s a guy from a story that falls asleep for many years,” Nay said. “And when he wakes up, he’s super confused. Like he slept through a whole war and everything.”

Nom nods, getting it. “Fluxwell probably slept through many wars by the sounds of it. He slept right through the diminishing of his entire race.”

Tuk-Tuk furrowed his brow. “He’s our responsibility now. We can’t let him die.”

“What do you mean?” Nay said.

“Think about it,” Nom said. “If he perishes in our company, that’s like basically letting the last of the maugrim die. Do you want to live with that kind of burden?”

You are reading story MONSTER MENU at novel35.com

“It’s not like we plan on getting him killed,” Nay said. “He could die of old age anyways.”

“Too bad there’s not a female maugrim out there somewhere,” Nom said. “They’d be able to repopulate the world with their kind. If all the plumbing still works.”

“How have we gotten on the topic of maugrim husbandry?” Nay said.

“Don’t pretend you haven’t already thought about it,” Nom said.

Nay blinked, nonplussed. Then she shook her head. “I actually came over here to talk about something else.”

“Oh?” Nom said.

“I was just taking a tally of my abilities since we got here and I wanted to discuss yours,” Nay said. “Maybe keep some of log so we can keep everything in order.”

“We could use it to develop tactics and strategies,” Nom said. His green fins trembled with excitement. “Good thinking. Alright, well…”

“Hold that thought,” Nay said. She discovered she had a Notes section on her interface. She mentally clicked on it, pulling up her holographic-like keyboard. “Okay, go ahead.”

“What are you doing?”

“I’m going to write down what you say so we can keep all this in order.”

Tuk-Tuk watched the exchange with interest as Nom talked and Nay recorded the information.

---

Nom.

Race: Tentacle & Elseworlder

Racial Abilities

Tentacle Whip

Tentacle Coil

Mind Shiv

Mind Meld

Chef’s Kiss

Siphon

---

Delicacy & Marrow Abilities

Tongue of the Hierophant Delicacy Tree

Poisoner

Detect Marrow

Chef’s Delight

Chef’s Thermometer

Conjure Bevs & Brews Table

---

Death Head of Vampra Delicacy Tree

Disintegration Ray

Mirror Shield

Drill Burst

Displaced Self

Tentacle Rush

---

“You’ve mentioned before that you don’t use vigor,” Nay said. “So, you’re a Marrow Eater but not a cultivator.”

“At least not a cultivator of vigor,” Nom said. “In my world, my kind never referred to it as cultivation because it’s different from a cultivator’s source. Dread Ones use a different…battery, if you will.”

“What kind of battery?”

“It translates to the Eldritch Void.”

“Eldritch Void? What is it?”

“It’s the space between things, both ancient and vast and full of nebulous darkness.”

“Between what things though?”

“From dimensions and realities to the space between thoughts, to the space between the cells and the molecules that constitute our bodies. From between the folds in your brain, the space between your blood and the arterial walls through which your blood flows, to those infinitesimal moments right between day becoming night. It’s the void that is everywhere, but also nowhere.”

“You have eyes to see such places and things?” Tuk-Tuk said.

“It’s what I was born in,” Nom said. “I can see and know such places very well.”

“Vigor is everywhere too,” Nay said. “I wonder if they’re diametrical forces in some way.”

“The Eldritch Void always was,” Nom said. “Perhaps vigor always was as well. Who knows?”

“Well, one day, when you have your tea date with Aule,” Nay said, “maybe you can ask her. Perhaps she might know about such things.”

#

At first, Fluxwell didn’t want to leave his workshop. “What are you babbling about? Leaving?I just woke up, I have a lot of work to do.”

“Oh?” Nay said. “Exactly what work do you have to do?”

“What work? What work?! There is all sorts of work to do when one is in preparation for war! Where do I even begin? I must get all my weapons and armor and trinkets in working condition. I must collect all my research and designs I’ve been working on since I fell asleep. I must return to Paleforge and begin gathering intelligence on The Scar so I can figure out the best and smartest plan of attack! I must avenge my people and the city of Paleforge! I will destroy The Scar and everything responsible! The maugrim…and I mean me…we must have our revenge!”

Quincy put his hand on Fluxwell’s shoulder. “Just hold on there, mate.”

Fluxwell looked at Quincy’s massive paw on his shoulder and then up at Quincy’s face.

“What you’re talking about is suicide and certain failure,” Quincy said. “One just doesn’t wage war against The Scar alone.”

“Well, what am I supposed to do?” Fluxwell said. “Who else do I have?”

Lain stepped forward. “You have me and my brothers and sisters. I am a Gloom Ranger. We are the first defense against The Scar.”

“Nether hells, probably the only defense,” Quincy said. “The thing is, think about this for a moment. You are the last living maugrim.”

“That we know of,” Ilyawraith said.

“Sure,” Quincy said. “But as far as we know, you are the last. We can’t let you just march off to your death, mate.”

“Then what do you propose I do?” Fluxwell said. “Doing nothing is not an option.”

“The Scar and the things that come out of it are not going anywhere. Not any time soon. Why don’t you take a bit to get your surroundings first. It’s been a long while since you’ve been awake and out in the world.”

“No, I know what I have to do.”

“What I’m saying is, what you have to do can wait a little bit. It will take time for you to approach this with the proper plan and the proper resources.”

“Which is why I need to start now!”

“We’re heading up North. Do you want to know why?”

Fluxwell didn’t say anything, he just sat there irritated. Fuming.

“Something is trying to free the Nether Lord from his prison,” Tuk-Tuk said.

That caught Fluxwell’s attention. His head whipped towards Tuk-Tuk. “The Nether Lord? He’s still alive?”

“He’s trapped in the Black Ice Wastes,” Ilyawraith said. “He’s been trapped in ice for as long as you were sleeping. But there are threats looking to bring him back.”

“What threats?” Fluxwell said. “I will smash them to bits with my rocket mace! He’s also responsible for what happened to my people!”

“He is?”

“Way I see it,” Fluxwell said, “Paleforge probably fell because the forces here stationed at the Fort couldn’t help them. They were preoccupied with this Nether Cunt! So, now I know the plan! I shall start with this Nether Cunt first! And The Scar is next in line!”

Nay turned away and looked at Nom. “Christ. This dude’s got a hard on for revenge.”

“I know,” Nom said. “He’s a fine addition to our party. A fine addition!”

At that, he conjured his table of alcoholic and beverages. He gestured at all the tasty flagons of beer and ale on the table. “Fluxwell, my new friend. It’s been too long since you’ve had any ale! May I introduce you to some new brews that have become all the rage in your absence?”

You can find story with these keywords: MONSTER MENU, Read MONSTER MENU, MONSTER MENU novel, MONSTER MENU book, MONSTER MENU story, MONSTER MENU full, MONSTER MENU Latest Chapter