I'm a Stingray?

Chapter 19 - Vengeance, exacted

Tim was severely drunk, however, he did eventually find his way to the reef, and even closed in to the den, where Harold the eel was living in. He had spiraled like a WW2 warplane for a while, but at least he swam near the spot that he had aimed for.

He was as confident as a drunkard could be, so at some point, he shouted. “Harold, get outta there and face me, you retard!”

Tim’s intent was clear, and some may even think that what he was doing was suicidal. However, regardless of how dangerous his idea was, he didn’t plan on backing down! Anyway, since his vocal cords were very limited volume-wise, Harold didn't hear him whatsoever, he wasn't in trouble.

This gave him a bit more freedom to attack, and he did exactly so! Just moments later, in that drunken state, he came up with an idea that was both crazy, and perhaps effective. He simply rushed into the snug den, and aimed to bite anything in immediate sight!

Harold was still in there, in the den, by pure luck! With that considered, Tim managed to ambush this horrid eel, quite efficiently!

Harold couldn’t move much, as the den was snug, so Tim pounced on him, and then bit him several times in seconds! His speed was very dependable, thanks to the flaming fins that he still bore, and since he was drunk, every move of his was very unpredictable! Harold couldn’t stop him.

Within seconds, he noticed how Harold’s dark-blue flesh started changing its color. It adapted this pungent, bright red color at first, and then, that color switched into a pitch black, odorless shade! Whole patches of Harold’s flesh, dried off and then broke down into millions of pieces, right off of him!

When a few of Harold’s bones started getting exposed, Tim was very sure of himself, and this victory that he just bagged. He won, as he beat this fat, and three-meter long enemy, in the cruelest, and most unfair way possible. Everything had been to the little stingray’s advantage, and he didn’t feel bad whatsoever about that, or of the way he ambushed the other. He was victorious, and that was all that mattered!

Moments later, while floating upside down, he faced Harold head on, and watched him as he passed away. In that drunken state, he had a couple of words to share with the other.

“Harold the eel, let me just say one thing… I’m so happy that your long ass is dying, I killed your ass, and you deserved it. You tricked me, and stole my home too; That’s a horrible way to treat a kid, and in my world, you’d be in prison right now for it. Fuck you, and i hope you go to hell!” He mumbled.

What he just said wasn't so easy to comprehend. He jumped from one topic to the other, but considering the circumstances, it wasn’t like anyone could stop him from blabbering on like a baby. A third of Harold’s skeleton was exposed, for example, so he couldn’t really react all that much.

“What the flip…” Harold grunted, and then, his conscience faded away forever, and for good. Those were his last words.

However, Tim was in no condition to celebrate. He ate one sardine too many, perhaps, as he crashed down two minutes after his enemy died off. The drunken state he was in, was what knocked him out.

He was safe here, nonetheless. Most creatures didn’t know about this den, as it was hidden within some sea plants, so it was unlikely that he’d be eaten in his sleep. Tim could spend many hours here, safely!

…

Tim woke up, possibly several hours later, and once he did, he felt as heavy as a rock. The rotter sardines he ate had really worn him down, and now, he was experiencing what had to be a hangover. He felt this splitting headache that no fish should feel, and as for a child, this headache was almost crippling! It wasn’t right.

The system didn’t seem to care about his condition, as Tim was alive and that was all that mattered. Instead of talking about his pain, she made an important announcement.

She said, [Congratulations, Timothy! Through some drunken effort and also dumb luck, you successfully killed a shivering var-blood eel ~ In exchange, you won 1,200 system points as a reward.]

“Holy shit!” Tim celebrated, while he looked at the eel’s carcass. “I killed him out of spite, not for the points… I did not expect a reward, not at all.”

The system then followed along, [Well, you got the points, and now you’ve accumulated 17-hundred of them, so, you better buy those upgrades as soon as possible. Also, you stole the eel’s powers, and can use them for a whole week. You can swim faster now, basically, and can freeze the blood of anyone you swim close to! Have fun with that.]

Furthermore, she added. [Though, I advise that you don't eat the eel… his flesh is mostly rotten by now, and you already absorbed a fraction of its powers, just by sleeping near the eel for several hours. Find something else to eat, you have other food stashes.]

“I stole his powers, huh? Vengeance can’t get sweeter than this… I really am the best!" Tim muttered with himself, he was excited, and even ignored his crippling hunger for a moment. He was happy!

Anyway, the drunken state didn't allow him to celebrate for long. He needed twenty minutes to pull himself together, which was a whole challenge on its own, as he felt very worn down.

Tim noticed that dusk was just a couple of hours ahead, so it meant that he had been sleeping for at least eight hours here, in his den. That alone, would be enough to disorientate him, even if he hadn't gotten drunk hours prior!

Hunger-wise, he won't be able to last any longer. His digestive system had already processed all the sardines that he ate, and he even had excreted a massive piece of shit in the den. He was really hungry now!

“Gotta get to my crabs now… let’s hope I don’t get lost. Harold is done for, so I don’t have to worry about anything else today.” Tim muttered.

He was nervous about swimming right now, because he was still disoriented, however, he didn’t have another choice. Harold was stripped out of life, as half of his skeleton was exposed by now, and that rotter venom really messed him up. In other words, it was considerably safe for Tim to swim across the reef now, carefree. He started moving!