[Calibrating]

Ok, what now?

[...]

Ummm, h.e.l.lo? Weird voice I just found in my head? Got anything to tell me, like how you got in there? It's not like I can feel my head, I'm just a.s.suming one's there because I can actually think. Or I'm just amazing. Either one works for me.

You know, it's not like I know how I wound up here. One minute I'm jumping around, having fun and everything, next thing I'm here.

Suddenly my brain freezes and I hear the weird voice again.

[Calibration finished. Selecting Species...]

[Species selected… EarthWorm.]

[Combining]

[Combining complete, have fun!]

HEY!

I'm back. Wow, that was not an experience I want to go through again. Like, I just kinda froze, you know? Not very fun.

AHOI! What's this? A body? I think it's a body? The good ol' disembodied voice sure did mention a species.

Hold on.

I can't see anything. Check. I can't seem to move any external limbs. Check.

CLACK

Ouch, that hurt! I tried to clack my mouth, but I seem to have some… mandibles? Interesting. I suppose that's a check. Moving on, I don't seem to have a skeleton. Check.

Okay.

Deep breaths, deep breaths. It's ok man, it's all fine. Don't freak out, you're just a worm. By what the voice said, you're an earthworm. Okay, it's all good. I'm okay with this. Now tell me Mr. Voice, what the h.e.l.l is going on here?!

[...]

What, nothing?

[For detailed viewing, please say status]

Fine. Status. And I'm calling you Jeremy from now on, you unemotional f.u.c.k.

[...]

Haha. Anyway, WOW! This is so cool. It's like a computer game!

As I check my stats, I come to a startling realization. I suck. Like, I am terribly weak.

Status: David

Species: Earthworm

HP: 100/100

MP: 0/0

Strength: 5

Speed: 2

Toughness: 8

Cunning: 34

Will: 25

Skills: Tunnel, bite, Heat Sense

I mean look at that strength stat! Don't even mention speed to me. I am a worm! An earthworm according to the system status. Not gonna lie, this sucks. I mean, at least I'm a little tougher than strong, though I'm not sure if that's good or not. d.a.m.n, look at that cunning. I'll be scheming for days with this kind of intelligence. At least that's what I a.s.sume cunning relates to. My will ain't so bad either. Can't force me to do anything, haha!

GURGLE

Oh, I'm hungry. I guess I should figure out where I am. Hold up, I don't even have a stomach. I'll just die without food. Oof. Ok, so let's figure this out before I die. I can't see, if it wasn't obvious, I don't have eyes. I can somewhat sense my surroundings, namely dirt. A s.h.i.+t ton of dirt. Beyond that, I can sense heat, which helps here. I suppose that's from the heat sense skill I saw in my status. There's even a ma.s.sive form of heat over to my left! Let's check it out!

I give my body a test wiggle to get used to it, and I actually move! Here we go! I hum a tune as I wiggle and writhe my way towards this huge resource, eating and digesting dirt as I go, which strangely enough doesn't seem too nutritious, considering I'm an earthworm you know. Ugh this low speed stat sucks.

DING!

[Tunnel leveled up.]

Aha! I may move slowly, but this is a welcome surprise! My tunnel skill is pa.s.sive, and it leveled up! I enthusiastically writhe faster, trying to sense a change, but I sense little change. Oh well, I guess level two isn't all that great anyway. Hopefully I'll see a greater change farther down the line.

I continue to wriggle towards the big heat source, before I fall out of the dirt with a plop. I seem to be in a tunnel now, interesting. The heat source is not too far away now, and I can barely make out two smaller heat sources near it. Are those... worms? Centipedes? They have legs, so not worms, at least. Wait. Is the big heat source eating them? Oh G.o.d. It is. I am both fascinated and probably visibly terrified. What is that thing? It's f.u.c.king huge! Oh my dear good lord Jeremy what the actual f.u.c.k.