Latest / The Monster Catcher's Journal / NuroSpike

Transcript

NuroSpike · The Monster Catcher's Journal

0:36
Hello Travelers and Monster Catchers Abound,
0:39
I'm Stella Ferris and you have crash landed on
0:41
the Monster Catcher Journal Podcast. Welcome
0:43
back! Logged by Stella Ferris, 1 .33 AM, Blackroot
0:49
Caverns. Some glyphs strike with claws, some
0:53
with fire, but this one, it burrows into your
0:56
mind and lives there. Deep beneath black root
0:59
caverns, the tunnels pulsed with a humming frequency
1:02
just beyond hearing. Xenna kept flinching, even
1:06
Orabique twitched like he was dodging something
1:08
invisible. That's when the earth split slow,
1:11
deliberate. From the cracks slid a living nightmare,
1:15
Nura Spike. A massive worm -like glyph, covered
1:19
head -to -tail in rigged black spikes, each one
1:22
twitching like in tinny. Itied was pale and half
1:27
-transparent. pulsing with psychic veins, but
1:31
where its forehead would be was a glowing crystallized
1:34
panenial gland shimmering purple and blue like
1:36
a star trapped in amber. Xenna clutched her head.
1:42
It's thinking in pictures like it's already imagined
1:46
how wealth will fell. Orabique made his weird
1:53
little chirps and Luna said, this isn't an ambush,
2:00
it's a prophecy. Nor a spike didn't slither it
2:04
or squirm it hovered an inch above the ground.
2:08
Gliding through the air and stone alike, its
2:11
spikes hummed with a telepathic static, sending
2:14
flashes of false futures, crumbling outcomes
2:17
and alternate paths. We saw ourselves fleeing
2:21
to feed it, turned against each other. And I'm
2:25
the one that spoke next. Neurospike isn't hurting
2:29
us, it's warning us. But when we tried to strike
2:32
the illusions were stronger, blending memory
2:34
and nightmare, every wrong move we imagined came
2:38
alive. Then I stopped fighting the visions and
2:42
embraced the real. I closed my eyes and focused
2:45
on what I knew was real. My feet on the stone
2:47
or beak swings brushing my side. Xenna breathing
2:50
beside me. The illusion cracked. Neurospike froze,
2:54
sensing it. And for the first time, it lowered
2:57
its spikes and let us see it not for a monster
3:01
but as a seer, longing to be believed. Name.
3:08
Alright, sorry. I have to start it like this
3:10
because this is how Professor Lang wanted me
3:16
to start these from now on. It's filled notes,
3:19
name, neuro spike, type, psychic ground, form,
3:23
giant worm with sharp black spikes and a radiant
3:26
exposed pineal gland. Abilities, mine fracture,
3:30
overloads, targets, senses with false outcome.
3:33
Spine scatter, launches psychic charges that
3:38
charge, sorry, psychic charged spines. in all
3:41
directions, burrow dream, travels between layers
3:44
of reality while underground, behavior, haunts
3:48
places of deep psychic trauma or ancient prophecy,
3:52
not hostile and less cornered, feeds on thought,
3:56
memory, and instinct, believed to dream entire
3:59
futures while in hibernation, and captured method
4:04
is you must Remain grounded in truth and self
4:08
-identity. Neurospeak respects mental resilience.
4:12
That's the only way he will let you catch him
4:15
in a glyphot. You know, some people forget that
4:20
glyphs aren't just magic made flesh. Some of
4:23
them started as some something else. Neurospeak
4:27
isn't just some strange celestial accident that
4:29
slithered in from the stars. Before the glyph
4:33
awoke inside it, It was a creature, an ancient
4:37
worm that tunneled through the deepest crust
4:39
of Nibiru. The old miners called them echoworms
4:43
because if you shout it into the caverns, the
4:45
sound would bounce back hours later, twist it
4:48
and delay it. That was them listening and learning.
4:52
Over centuries, something in those depths, maybe
4:55
a burst of psychic energy, maybe the weight of
4:58
countless forgotten dreams, changed one echoworm
5:02
forever. Its instincts fused with prophecy, its
5:06
body hardened into living its antenna. Its mind
5:11
cracked open like an egg and something looked
5:13
back. So, and that's what we got from it was
5:20
Neurospike. We don't know. Everything that we
5:25
have on Neurospike right now is just speculation,
5:28
but we'll figure it out as we continue this endeavor
5:33
of Finding out what we can about every glyph
5:37
in the brew So it wasn't born a glyph it became
5:41
one Luna ask Zen as eyes went wide. It's like
5:46
it evolved through thought alone That's what
5:50
makes an aerospike so different. It still remembers
5:52
the soil It still remembers the rhythm of tongue
5:55
tunneling the instinct to hide and listen beneath
5:59
all the visions and illusions there is still
6:02
a worm trying to understand the world it grew
6:04
beyond. When it hovered closer, I could feel
6:09
it. Not just in my mind, but in the trembling
6:13
ground. A living creature and a glyph overlapped,
6:16
struggling to exist as both. And for a heartbeat,
6:19
I didn't see a monster. I saw a tired, ancient
6:22
animal that had seen too much. I set the glyph
6:27
it down carefully, it's crystal casing catching
6:30
the faint glow of the cavern light like a star
6:32
trapped in glass, and I set it. It clicks softly
6:36
against the stone floor, the sound echoing into
6:39
the shadows like a drop of water into a still
6:42
lake. For a heartbeat, nothing happened. The
6:45
air hung heavy, thick with the humming psychic
6:49
tension that had been gnawing at the edges of
6:52
our minds since we stepped into black root cavern.
6:55
Then everything shifted. The ground shuttered
6:57
beneath our feet, as if something massive had
7:00
taken a deep breath. A low guttural rumble ruled
7:03
through the tunnel walls, vibrating through my
7:06
boots, through my bones. And then the stone split
7:09
open like a mouth. A blur of pale, spikes studded
7:16
flesh, shot upward, then down again, vanishing
7:20
into the earth with frightening precision. Neurospike
7:23
dove beneath the surface, carving through rock
7:26
as if it were nothing but water. The glyphid
7:30
didn't even have a chance to bounce. One moment
7:32
it was there, gleaming softly. The next go on
7:35
swallowed whole. Xena stumbled back with a startling
7:39
gasp clutching at her jacket or a beak flared
7:43
as wings letting out a chirp echoing caw that
7:48
rang through the cavern like a warning bell.
7:51
But me, I didn't panic. This wasn't the first
7:54
time. catch have gone sideways with and with
7:57
neuro spike panic was exactly what it wanted.
8:02
I studied my breath and reached into my satchel
8:05
fingers brushing past catching nets and flash
8:10
bombs until they found what I was looking for
8:13
my carnivora plant. When I pulled it out the
8:16
air changed the thick fine wrapped pot quivered
8:20
as the plant's flesh mouth opened in a wet hiss,
8:25
rows of thorn -ridged line and petals, glistening
8:30
with sap that smelled faintly of blood and sweet
8:33
nectar. The aroma curled through the cavern like
8:37
a sirens call primal and tempting. Neurospike
8:40
felt it. The ground beneath us trembled again,
8:43
not like before, but curiously a ripple of movement
8:46
passed through the cavern floor like a pet predator
8:49
circling just beneath the surface of a pond.
8:52
Then the first spikes emerged. They rose slowly,
8:55
cautiously like a dark forest, pushing up the
8:58
stone. Each spike twitched, vibrate with low
9:03
telepathic hums that clawed at the edges on my
9:06
thoughts. I could feel him testing us, probing
9:11
the air for traps, scanning our minds for intent.
9:16
Zena's eyes widened up as Neuro -Spike's head
9:19
followed his pale, half -transparent body slid
9:22
up. from the earth gleaming faintly in the dim
9:25
light and there on his forehead the crystalline
9:28
panennial glands shimmered like a captive galaxy
9:32
deep purple swirling into electric blues his
9:35
gaze locked onto the plant and then he licked
9:38
his lips it wasn't just a gesture it was instinct
9:41
deep old animal hunger rising to the surface
9:44
for all his psychic power beneath the glyph he
9:48
was still a creature driven by primal urges Oh,
9:52
he wants it. Xenow whispered eyes wide. Studying
9:56
my breath, I gripped the plant. Good. Then let's
10:00
make him come and get it. The cavern felt like
10:04
it was holding its breath. Or a big step forward
10:09
talon scraping softly against the rock, wings
10:12
slightly spread as if ready to launch into the
10:15
air at any moment, then a shifted to the right,
10:17
silent and deliberate, circling like a hunter
10:20
lining up the kill. I lowered the plant closer
10:25
to the ground, letting its sweet, meaty scent
10:27
thicken and pull in the still air. The carnivora
10:31
plant responded eagerly, its petals opening wider.
10:35
Then strands of sticky sap drooling down its
10:37
vines. Neurospike covered, closer. The spikes
10:42
along his back vibrating and rhythm with the
10:44
strange psychic hum to fill the cavern. I could
10:48
almost feel his mind brushing against mine showing
10:51
me flashes of false futures. A vision of him
10:54
lunging, me failing, the plant crushed, Xena
10:58
screaming. I forced myself to focus, my boots
11:01
on the ground, the weight of the plant in my
11:04
arm, the real solid world. He was trying to scare
11:09
me off, but this time I wasn't giving him the
11:11
satisfaction. This wasn't going to be about brute
11:15
strength, this was going to be battle of patience
11:18
and wits. Then I caught my eye from across the
11:21
cavern and mouth. Now, I shook my head slowly,
11:24
not yet. The key to catching the respect wasn't
11:27
rushing in, it was drawing him out. And judging
11:30
by the way his spikes were rising, the way his
11:34
glands pulsed brighter with each passing second,
11:38
he had his full undivided, or sorry, we had his
11:42
full undivided attention. I crouched low, the
11:48
carnivora plant cradled carefully in my arms.
11:51
It's vines curled restlessly like it could already
11:54
since the psychic predator circling nearby. Nura's
11:58
spike hovered just beyond the fractured stone,
12:01
half in shadow, half bathed in the soft purple
12:04
glow of his panenial gland. His body coiled like
12:08
a spring, spikes quivering with anticipation.
12:13
This was it. No more stalling, no more hesitation.
12:17
In one smooth motion I set the plant down on
12:19
the cavern floor. Its mouth opened wide, dripping
12:22
with sap that's sizzled faintly as it touched
12:26
the stone. The scent thickened in the cold air,
12:31
heavy and medium possible to ignore. Then with
12:34
my other hand I reached into the satchel and
12:36
grabbed a fresh glyphid. Its crystal core faintly
12:39
pulsing or waiting for the chance to catch. The
12:44
moment my fingers brushed its surface, the runes
12:46
inside flared to life, sending faint golden light
12:49
lines swirling across the shell like veins of
12:53
light. I placed it carefully on the ground beside
12:57
the plant, setting it with a practiced hand.
13:03
The glyphic clicked once as it anchored itself
13:06
then began its silent charge. Drawing in ambient
13:11
energy from the cavern and from my own steady
13:13
breathing, golden light began to climb its surface
13:16
slow at first, and then quickening like a rising
13:20
heartbeat. Santa moved behind me, silent but
13:24
ready, eyes locked on near a spike, or a big
13:27
perch tire on a jagged rock, wings partially
13:29
spread for quicker maneuvering. He'd flown up
13:33
there a few minutes ago. Kind of annoying, but
13:36
hey, he's there still. None of us spoke. The
13:40
air was too heavy for words. Neurospikes gazed,
13:43
locked onto the Cornivora plant, and all restraints
13:46
snapped. With a sudden surge, he lunged forward,
13:49
hovering low but fast, a pale blur streaking
13:53
across the cavern. His spikes hummed like a thousand
13:57
tuning forks. As if he cut through the air, the
14:01
stone floor cracked beneath the force of his
14:03
movement, sending a vibrations rippling through
14:06
my boots. I held my ground. Every instinct screamed
14:09
at me to move, but this was exactly what I needed
14:12
him to do. The golden light continued to climb
14:15
the glyphid surface swirling towards its point
14:19
at top like liquid sunlight. Neurospite closed
14:23
the distance fast, his mouth opening, tongue
14:25
flicking hungrily as he zeroed in on the plant.
14:29
The carnivora plant hissed in response as petals
14:32
snapped once like a living trap. For a split
14:35
second, the cavern was filled with the sound
14:39
of two predators sizing each other up, one of
14:43
the soil, one of the thought, and then the glyphot
14:49
reached critical. The golden light climbed to
14:53
the very tip of the crystal shell and concentrated
14:57
into a single blinding point. Yeah, blinding
15:01
point. A sharp beam of golden energy shot upward,
15:07
flaring brighter than a lantern. The air crackled
15:11
as the capture mechanism activated, pulling with
15:15
a force that made my hair whip back and since
15:19
loose dust swirling in spirals. Neurospike didn't
15:24
have time to retreat. The beam latched onto him
15:27
mid -long lunge. Wrapping him in rings of radiant
15:31
light that spiraled around his worm -like body,
15:35
he thrashed, spikes flaring, sending psychic
15:37
noise, exploding into my skull, images of breaking
15:41
stone, collapsing tunnels, failure after failure.
15:46
But the glyph it held firm. The pull intensified
15:51
golden rings tightening like chains, forged of
15:55
pure willpower. Neurospy covered moments Sorry.
16:01
Neurospikes hovering momentum faltered as the
16:04
energy dragged them backwards away from the plant,
16:07
away from the shadows and directly toward the
16:10
waiting trap. The glow reflected off the walls,
16:14
bathing the cavern in warm light as if the sun
16:19
itself had been lit underground. Zinni showed
16:23
her eyes, yelled at yelling over the roar. It's
16:26
working, Stelliferus! Or a beak cried out triumphantly
16:29
from his perch, wings spread wide as if announcing
16:33
victory to the whole underground world. I didn't
16:36
answer. My focus was locked on Nora's spike,
16:39
on the way his psychic illusions tried to claw
16:42
at my certainty. Visage of the glyphic cracking,
16:47
of him escaping, of us losing everything flashed
16:50
like lightning in my mind, but I pushed them
16:53
aside. This was real. This pull was real. This
16:57
trap was working. With a finer guttural screech
17:01
that echoed through the both air and mind, Neurospeak
17:04
was yanked off the ground and pulled into the
17:06
glyphot. There was a blinding flash and then
17:09
silence. The light collapsed and word in the
17:11
glyphot clinked, softly against the stone floor,
17:15
still and silent. Its golden veins dimmed to
17:18
a warm glow as faint psychic ripples faded into
17:23
nothing. For the first time that night the cavern
17:28
stopped humming Neuro spike was caught not through
17:32
brute force but through patience precision and
17:35
a little bit of bait that smelled like dinner.
17:39
Oh Yeah, I just wanted to clarify something for
17:42
anybody that's wondering there is two versions
17:45
of the carnivora plant There's the one that's
17:48
living and then the one that's kind of since
17:51
not really sentient at all Which the one that's
17:55
not really sentience as well is the one we use
17:57
for our ritual here on Nibiru Though I should
18:02
have I didn't bother going to Orion he just yell
18:06
anyway There's one thing I've learned it's that
18:10
waking up Waking him up in the middle of the
18:13
night with a few glyph captures, usually ends
18:16
with a lecture about reckless behavior and endangering
18:19
the team before I can even finish my sentence.
18:22
And honestly, after everything with Neurospike,
18:25
I wasn't in the mood to be scalded. I told myself
18:27
I'd break the news tomorrow. As for Lang, yeah,
18:31
that was another problem. I wish I could have
18:33
told him. I wanted to tell him, but he was still
18:38
mad at me for missing our date and just... Or
18:41
not just any day, one we'd planned weeks ago.
18:44
I belled last minute to chase down Neurospike.
18:47
Even though I tried to explain, he didn't want
18:49
to hear it. I can't blame him. It's hard to understand
18:55
why I drop everything for these creatures if
18:57
you've never stood face to face with one. If
19:00
you've never felt that mix of fear and awe swirling
19:03
in your chest as something ancient and powerful
19:05
as it looks right through you, So instead of
19:11
heading back to base, I wandered out into the
19:14
night. Nibiru's fall season had arrived in full,
19:18
and the world had taken on the strange, quiet
19:20
magic that only happens this time of year. The
19:26
air was crisp, carrying the faint scent of sweet
19:29
leaf trees and cool river stone. Overhead, the
19:33
twin suns and the three moons hung low and bright.
19:38
bathing the forest in soft silver slash gold
19:43
light that made every branch and leaf look carved
19:47
from glass. The trees had already begun their
19:52
annual transformation. Their wide leaves shifting
19:55
into deep copper burn burnished golds and mute
20:00
purples. When the wind swept through it sent
20:04
them drifting down in slow spirals carpeting
20:07
the forest floor in shimmering colors. It wasn't
20:10
like Earth's Autumn. Nibiru's forest glowed faintly
20:14
at night during the fall. The veins and the leaves
20:17
absorbed and reflected the starlight. The ground
20:21
looked like it was sprinkled with constellations,
20:26
tiny galaxies at my feet. I tilted my head back
20:30
and breathed in deeply, letting the cold air
20:32
fill my lungs for a moment. All the tension from
20:35
the hunt, the shouting, the illusions, it all
20:38
faded. No glyphs, no team drama, no arguments
20:42
waiting for me back at the base. Just the quiet
20:45
beauty of Nibiru's fall night. I was happy in
20:50
that moment, yet for some reason I couldn't shake
20:54
the feeling of wondering why we didn't use our
20:59
regular words that we had been using for 800
21:03
years since we left Earth. Standing there beneath
21:09
the glowing trees, I wondered why. We left that
21:15
planet 800 years ago, eight centuries since the
21:18
last ship tour through the Vell, carrying the
21:20
final scattered pieces of humanity to this strange
21:23
breathing world. Nibiru became our refuge, our
21:27
home, its skies, its forest, its creatures. They
21:30
shaped us, changed us. We learned to survive
21:33
here while the rest of Earth decided to stay
21:37
on Earth because that's where they wanted to
21:39
be. We've learned to build our lives beneath
21:44
foreign stars and yet for some reason our tongues
21:47
never truly left the soil of the old world. The
21:51
wind rustled through the autumn leaves, and I
21:53
caught a few words drifting from my own thoughts.
21:56
Earth words familiar, heavy with history. Why
22:00
did we keep them? What is it habit? Or was it
22:05
pride? Or was it something deeper, some desperate
22:09
instinct to hold on to who we are? Even as a
22:13
planet remade us. I kicked at the glowing leaves
22:17
under my boot. Watching them scatter like tiny
22:20
galaxies, the night was quiet except for the
22:22
whisper of the trees and the faint hum of distant
22:24
creatures awakening under the twin suns and the
22:27
three moons. Sometimes it almost felt like the
22:31
earth was a dream. A story passed down through
22:34
generations, like a bedtime tell no one quite
22:37
believes anymore. The language that remains stubborn,
22:42
clinging to us like old scars. Eight hundred
22:45
years. whole empires have risen and fallen in
22:48
less time. And yet, somehow, a word spoken by
22:52
ancestors across the dying sky still sits on
22:55
our tongues tonight. Strange, isn't it? How some
22:59
things refuse to fade. Even me. Now, I don't
23:03
even call our fall. I don't call it what it's
23:09
supposed to be called. Yet, I don't know. As
23:16
I stood there wondering about the state of my
23:18
world and how it had ended up where it is and
23:22
why we had rewrote it back to the old ways, the
23:28
crisp autumn wind of Nibiru tugged gently at
23:31
my cloak. A shadow stretched across the golden
23:34
leaves at my feet, I blinked, pulling myself
23:37
from the daydream just in time to see a tall,
23:39
familiar figure slowly emerging from between
23:41
the towering emberwood trees. The always -present
23:45
sun, suns and moons caught the edges of his coat,
23:53
lining him like some ancient centenelle, returned
23:56
from the stars it was Orion. His posture was
24:00
as... As stern as ever, hands clasped behind
24:03
his back, eyes sharp in searching for a heartbeat
24:06
I considered slipping away before he noticed
24:08
me. But it was already too late as Gaze locked
24:10
onto mine with the unmistakable mix of authority
24:14
and quiet disappointment. The wrestling of the
24:17
leaves filled the silence between us as he approached.
24:22
Each measured step echoed like a reminder that
24:25
tomorrow's conversation had just arrived a night
24:28
early. What do you think you're doing?" Orian's
24:33
voice sliced through the quiet night like a blade.
24:36
Sharp and unforgiving, his eyes glared at me
24:39
cold and piercing, each glance like a knife digging
24:42
into my chest. I came out here to catch Norro
24:44
Spike, I replied, squaring my shoulders, though
24:48
my voice wavered slightly. Orian shook his head
24:50
slowly, the weight of his disappointment heavier
24:53
than any lecture he could give me. My stomach
24:56
twisted into knots under his gaze, shame burning
24:58
hot in my chest. You're not my dad, Orian. I
25:01
suddenly shouted. The words slipped out before
25:05
I could stop them. No, I'm not. He fired back,
25:09
his voice booming through the autumn air. And
25:12
you'd better be grateful I'm not, because if
25:14
I were, I would have taken away your glyphs and
25:16
glyphs a long time ago. His tone was icy, deliberate,
25:20
each word meant to sting. I don't need to— Doubting
25:24
me I snapped it's not like you care anyways.
25:26
You're always yelling at me That's because you're
25:28
always doing reckless things or in frustrate
25:31
or Orians frustration finally erupt it like a
25:33
storm You never think Stella Ferris you charge
25:37
in headfirst chasing danger like it's something
25:40
some kind of game His voice cracked at the edges,
25:44
but he pushed on louder now his anger mixing
25:48
with something else Something that almost sounded
25:51
like fear. You know what? You don't have to worry
25:54
about me anymore. I won't stand by and watch
25:57
you kill yourself just to catch one more glyph.
25:59
Before I could form a response where I interned
26:02
sharply and disappeared into the night, his figure
26:05
swallowed by the shadows between the trees. I
26:09
stood frozen, speechless, the echo of his words
26:12
lingering in the cool air like a wound I didn't
26:16
know how to heal. And just like that, I had managed
26:22
to upset the only person other than Lang and
26:24
my two best friends who truly cared about me.
26:27
The weight of what had just happened sank in
26:29
slowly, like cold water seeping into my bones.
26:32
I replayed my words over and over in my head,
26:35
each one sharper and more careless than the last.
26:37
I hadn't just argued with Oryan, I hurt him.
26:40
I could see it in the way his shoulders had tensed
26:43
before he turned away, and the slight tremor
26:46
in his voice when he... shouted. guilt gnawed
26:50
at me, relentless and unforgiving. He didn't
26:53
deserve that. He'd only been trying to look out
26:56
for me, even if his way of doing it was harsh
26:59
and unbearing. Sometimes. Deep down, I knew he
27:04
cared maybe more than I wanted to admit. I let
27:07
out a long, shaky breath, staring up at the amber
27:12
-colored leafs, drifting through the night sky.
27:15
or what could be considered a nice sky since
27:18
the sun's and moon's never set. The silence felt
27:21
heavier now, like the forest itself was disappointed
27:24
in me as well. I clinched my fist, determination
27:29
welling up through the regret. I'd fix it, maybe
27:32
not tonight, but soon. I owed Orion that much.
27:36
I wouldn't let my stubbornness break one of the
27:38
few bonds I still had left. And that my friends
27:44
is another episode of the monster catcher sternum
27:46
podcast. I hope to hear you next time Hear you.
27:52
I meant I hope that you hear me next time Coming
27:55
at you from Nibiru, and I will see you next time.
27:59
Bye