AN: So, the next update. A lot faster than the last one, but also a lot shorter. Oh well. Figured I post something so I don't get stuck endlessly rewriting what I got, that way lies madness.

I also posted the Character info separately, that way I don't blow up the word count and people who are not particularly interested in that don't have to read it, but its still there in case anyone wants to have a look. By the way, making those characters and skills and everything takes a crap load of time, a lot of effort that you as the reader never really see, but let me assure you, its there. For example, the number of attributes the Grimm has, or its skills, its level etc, all connected and I hope at least somewhat well thought out.

Lords of Dust and Demise, will you remember me?

Lords of Death and Destruction, will you remember me?

When the time for dying comes, when I stand alone against the enemy?

Lords, will you remember me?

When our world is crumbling and everything we know falling apart, will you remember me?

Be it heroes or villains, maidens or knights, beasts or monsters, will you remember me?

When the ending comes, and everything we know is overrun, who will remember then?

Oh Lords, will you remember me?

Will you remember how I stood?

Will you remember how I fought?

Will you remember how I fell?

Lords, will you remember me?

-old folksong, origin unknown

My night was filled with visions of distant stars and things that might never be.

A spiraling bolt of light and energy raced through the cosmos, from an uncertain beginning to an unknown ending. Filled with no more awareness than necessary for the realization of its own existence, that bolt of light had found itself fulfilled.

There were no desires, for there was nothing that could desire and so nothing that could be missed. There was no sadness, for there was nothing to be sad, and so there was no joy, for there was nothing to be joyful.

There was only the travel, the endless race from one end of the Universe to the other, endless in scope and infinite in distance. And in that race was found a deep boundless satisfaction, for when nothing is desired and nothing feared, nothing to be hoped for and nothing to be lost or gained, the only thing that's left is satisfaction.

Or so at least the bolt thought, for as much as it could think, for there was little space for thought in its shape, everything had been given for the race.

Everything that it had been, everything that it could have achieved for that endless race, every hope and every nightmare, every fear and every desire given away, traded for a simple, single purpose. The race was the purpose and in fulfilling that purpose it found satisfaction.

There was nothing else. There could be nothing else. There would never be anything else. Only the race.

The rising sun greeted my dream filled mind, and pulled me back into my body.

A night filled with stargazing and aura training, a dim awareness connecting me to my body leaving just enough conscious thought to allow the simplest aura techniques.

The visions of that infinite starlit sky slowly faded, leaving only impressions of vast distances and a strange unfulfilled longing mixed with a bitter feeling of regret.

Congratulations! You have unlocked a new Skill!

You have unlocked the skill "Basic Aura Regeneration". Through concentration on the connection between their soul and their body the user can learn how to generate their aura faster and faster the higher their skill level grows.

As I gazed upon the summarized description of my entire being I felt it was time for some reflection, of what was happening, of what I had chosen and of what I was becoming. I could already feel an obsession growing within me, beyond the fear of death, beyond anxiety and stress, there was the hunger, the unending hunger for more. More power, more skills, more ability's, more everything.

I had gained several levels in several skills and my attributes had been raised through that. I was already thinking faster and more clearly than the day before, my aura had grown stronger and was regenerating almost a quarter faster than what I started out with.

My senses had grown sharper, my eyes could see farther, my ears hear more, even my sense of smell had gotten stronger, if ever so slightly.

I could see myself getting used to this, this sense of gratification, that everything I did mattered, that no matter what I did I would grow stronger.

Would that than be my future? An endless race for power, for one skill level more, for one level more? Would that be enough? Should it be enough?

I was contemplating my far away future when something much more immediate caught my attention.

A deep growl right behind me followed up with a wash of hot air. I froze and slowly turned around, making no fast movements, which seemed surprisingly easy for me. It was with no amount of hesitation or fear that I turned around, merely a faint sense of anxiety that rapidly faded under the flood of adrenaline or its Grimm equivalent in my veins.

The first thing I noticed were the teeth. And how could I not, they were mere centimeters away from my face. Long, sharp and bleached white they made for an almost pleasant contrast with the deep glowing red mouth of the Grimm.

The second thing I noticed were its eyes, deep pits of gleaming red set deep within the bone plated skull. But for all their bestial nature I could still see cunning in them, a cruel, bestial intelligence which was likely the only reason it had not attacked me on sight. For in these eyes I could feel a spreading confusion, like oil on top of a lake, the lake in this case being an unending hunger and eternal rage.

I realized two things in that moment.

One, I did not smell like a human, since I wasn't one, which must have been the reason this Grimm had not found me before, it simply did not have a reason to, even if my pact of darkness had attracted it.

Two, I had a soul and emotions, which the Grimm could feel which meant I was not a Grimm. But I was a Grimm or at least smelled and looked like one. It did not understand that and got confused.

I knew then that I had to use that confusion before the Grimm made its mind up to eat me anyway, just in case.

Trusting in my instincts, new and old as they were for me, I slowly crouched until I could make full eye contact with the beast, one hand slowly raising, I could feel its emotions, strange and familiar as they were come to a conclusion. My hand now on a level with its nose.

Attention!

Your Skill level and Attributes are not high enough for the task you are attempting. Please raise your Attributes and Skill level before trying it again.

A deep huffing breath, inhaling my scent and coming to a decision.

A last eye contact, searing into my mind, a feeling of inadequacy the connection lasting for an instant and yet seeming far longer. Then it turns around, having weighted, judged and found me wanting.

It was with conflicted emotions that I watched the tail end of the Grimm vanish into the forest. One part of me was happy that I did not get eaten, but another part of me was sad that I did not get an oversized monster cat as a pet. Oh, well, with my new skill, I could just try again later.

Congratulations! You have learned a new Ability.

You have learned the Ability "Dominate Grimm". Users of this ability can try to tame any npc Grimm of the same or of a lower level than themselves. A higher Level Grimm can be charmed with additional difficulty depending on level and attribute differences.

Sitting on the rough Beach sand I pondered the Information I got from using Identify on the Grimm.

Onza

Race: Grimm; Onza

Size: 1.43m

Weight: 303kg

Level: 10

Age: 14

DR: 258,68

HP: 1916

Advantages/Disadvantages:

Ageless Growth, Acute Senses (Hearing), Acute Senses (Smell), Low-Level Light Vision, Supernatural Sense (Empathy), Enhanced Resistance (Poison), Enhanced Resistance (Pain), Enhanced Resistance (Injury), Enhanced Resistance (Sickness), Enhanced Regeneration, Transcendent Dexterity, Berserker Rage, Murderous Instinct, Hated by Humanity, Soul-less Monstrosity

Notable Skills:

Enhanced Injury Resistance lvl.15 Enhanced Pain Resistance lvl. 16, Enhanced Regeneration lvl. 32, Basic Tracking lvl 53, Basic Endurance Running lvl 35, Basic Swimming lvl. 32, Basic Natural Weapons lvl. 32, Natural Armor lvl. 45, Sense Emotion lvl. 23, Free Climbing lvl. 16

Basic Attributes

Body:

Brawns = 84,28

Toughness = 191,62

Nimbleness = 68,88

Mind:

Brains = 15

Charms = 15

Noticing = 42

Soul:

Aura = 00 (L)

Luck = 00 (L)

Netherness = 00 (L)

History: The Onza are quadrupedal ambush predators. They bear a strong resemblance to the great cats of the jungles of the dark continent and prefer selfsame jungles as hunting grounds.

Their base color is bone white with dark marking akin to spots of ink. Their heads bear the normal Grimm bone plates and their tails end in a long bone spike that is used mostly in defense against attacks from behind.

They prefer hunting in the dark or during dusk or dawn, but will also take an opportunity during the day if it presents itself.

The Onza rarely attacks groups of humans head on and prefers to stalk and ambush them when they least expect it, but that is mostly the case for lone Onza.

In a group Onza either follow the commands of an alpha or elder or if no such Grimm is in place, attack as a group simultaneously from several directions.

The Onza have one of the strongest bites amongst all known Grimm in their size class.

It was when I was having a closer look at the attributes and abilities of the Onza that another window opened up at my side.

Congratulations! You have unlocked another Option.

By using Identify on your first Grimm you have unlocked the International Grimm Index. In it you can find information about all the Grimm you have encountered so far. Grimm that you have merely heard about or have only second hand information on can also be found here, however all information about them is suspect to change.

Congratulations! You have unlocked an Achievement-path.

By learning the Ability "Dominate Grimm", you have unlocked the Achievement-path "Gotta tame them all!" The achievements on this path can be accomplished by successfully, or not so successfully, taming Grimm. So, go out there and tame them all, you know you want to!

"Hm, that line about taming them all seems somewhat familiar, even though I cant really place it."

INTERNATIONAL GRIMM INDEX:

Welcome to the International Grimm Index, or short Grimmdex. You can look at Grimm either alphabetically, by territory, seen or tamed or highest and respectively lowest observed level.

At that point the Grimmdex contained only a single Grimm species, so the various sorting options did not really do anything. The entry about Onza did not contain much more information than I already knew, apart from a black and white world map with a red tint wherever these Grimm lived.

"More information can be made available by taming an Onza or by gaining appropriate skill levels."

My sharp claws scratched a place were some sand had gotten stuck under my feathers. "An appropriate skill?" With a roll of my eyes,"like what, Grimm 101, how to skin a live Beowulf with only your teeth and a single lemon?" Shaking my head I loosened the last sand grains that had gotten stuck on my head, "I wonder were that one came from? Cant really remember. Although, something about a mustache maybe? Or a man? Or maybe a mustache-man, or something like that?" Shrugging my shoulders I put my attention on the character screen of the vanished Grimm.

"Now, lets see those skills of yours. All those attribute points have to come from somewhere."

Basic Endurance Running lvl 35

The user has learned how to pace themselves for the long run, giving them the necessary endurance for hours and hours of running. All this running eventually pays of and gives greater and greater ability to regenerate your stamina.

The user gains +70% sp, +70% sp regeneration, + 18sp regeneration

Basic Swimming lvl. 32

This skill not only allows you to move faster and further through water while gaining less exhaustion, it also toughens your entire body the more you train.

The user gains +64% sp,+64% Toughness, +160% swimming speed.

Basic Natural Weapons lvl. 32

The character has learned how to use the weapons nature has gifted them with. This is less a combat style and more a combination of Nimbleness, Brawns and killer instinct.

The user gains +62% Damage, +62% Brawns, +62% Nimbleness

Natural Armor lvl. 45

This skill governs the natural armor of some beings, namely those with especially hard or tough skin or shells. The more of it you have, the tougher you are. However this skill is not easy to train, and most often a lot of time is necessary to get anywhere with it.

The user gains +90% Toughness, +90% of Toughness as DR

Free Climbing lvl. 16

The skill to climb freely on any scalable surface using nothing but the tools mother nature gave you. Training this makes you stronger, tougher and more nimble.

The user gains +32% Brawns, +32% Nimbleness, +32% Toughness

"Yeah, that would explain that. Still, those skills look pretty nice, and definitely something that I can get as well. Easily even, now that I don't have to be afraid of Grimm eating me."

AN: As always, read and review. If you have questions, for example about my sanity, or the story, and what have you, ask away. If you just want to congratulate me on my awesome writing, than by all means don't hold back.