I admit, I am angry about Little-One, no, Little Dancer, our first companion ended by our own fang. I had though that Ol'me disorientation was due to the Swatters and their socials. In and some of it probably was, but not all of it. Certainly not most of it. I had watched the rest of my memory, the slow stumbling of Ol'me as it returned to our beloved [Purple Hat], a far cry from the delighted whirling with Little Dancer.

  But I cannot blame Ol'me for that. In truth, between [Mindless Body] and Ol'me performance, we would not have survived. [Kysa] certainly would not have reacted with the same unthinking agility, and the Swatters would probably have caught me, or any of the [Unended]. But Little Dancer would have been here if I had been in control. It is clear that a Balance must be made, I need to get stronger, I need to find a way to move while in my smartest form. The Swatters could move with a [Hat], surely I can find a way.

  I wouldn't have yielded to him so quickly, and if I had brought him back I could have aided him to get his intelligence up as mine was. Now he is ended, and according to [Arachnid Knowledge] it won't be long before I have a horde of my own. I am in no position right now, I must work fast. To that, I must Progress, and get stronger, maybe larger... gain more skills... and make allies to protect me against the threats.

  To start with, I am Progressing

  ...nothing new, so it will be in [Arachnid Class] Evolution is promising significant upgrades, and if it doesn't I can fall back on [Slayer Class] next level. The main focus is that I need to be able to defend myself and my nest. It would be nice if I could find something that also aided me socially. I was discounting companions before, but the taste of Little Danger... no ughh, I didn't mean that. The feeling of Little Dancer and me was wonderful, and I want to have that again... just with less, ending. I am spending the Level Attribute in Intelligence, just so Ol'me reaches 5 and is capable of most things.

  Great, well I really could have used [Silkweaver 1] So I am absolutely taking that, I did not expect another [Starter Trait], and the Knowledge trait is certainly a nice boon. What to take with it... [General Knowledge 1] has been invaluable, improving it might be useful. I am surprised these don't have description like the [Starter Trait]... can I look them up? Let's try [Knowledge Self Analysis] is missing a number, why is that.

  Well I guess that happened. It will be a chance whatever I take. Well so far I have found the abilities without numbers to be unique and special, so let's take [Knowledge Self Analysis] along with [Silkweaver 1]

  Oh, that is useful, very useful if it warns me of some of these things that have hurt me. Can it tell me why my Thorax was pounding? Oh, thank you [Knowledge Self Analysis] My blood is pumped through part of my thorax, and was pumping very hard due to the situation and instincts. That is also why my folds were straining through so much air. Well just this minor effect is useful, I am glad about this.

  Now onto the main show, Time to Evolve, but just to be safe, my webs are all up, and I will curl up right in the middle of my restful nest. I wasn't going to, but the instincts from [Mindless Body] seem to know what to do.

  Wow, ok, some options then. Wow I really really should go Wolf, it synergizes with [Slayer] and [Ambusher] really really well. But... I am trying to avoid focusing on fighting, even as a [Wolf Spider] Everything is bigger than me. [Scorpion] would at least make me tougher, but I need my silk. I am interested that Grass Spider could be such a good friend. I will have to see if I can seek our one to help me with things.

  So the big question is what Tree, sure the first entry is good, but I understand that more options unlock later on, and it looked like I can come back and start on other trees if I don't want to continue. Some of these look very very interesting, and the abilities granted are significant, this was certainly the best choice. The question is what do I want to do with it. Weaver is obvious, and clearly will work well with what I have. But the drawback is real bad, it's unclear how fragile it makes me, but it cannot be good.

  So basically, if I want to fight, Wolf, Hobo, Bark Scorpian, or Gold Stalker. Wolf and Hobo are sneakier, and Bark and Gold are more like the [Horned Beetle] I fought, tough and strong.

  If I want to communicate, and seek allies then Grass, Harvestmen, or Dreamweaver. The first two seem to be only good along with Arachnid allies. Dreamweaver is very interesting, but the requirement for Effluence is... is scary. Is that easy to get, I don't know, it sounds like a risk. It also has [Divine 1] and that is a drawback, but what does that mean. I think I saw something about [Divine] with the [Serpent] but I don't recall. I am so tempted, but I think maybe I shouldn't risk it.

  So that leaves well Thoughspinner. I really like it, but I already got [Brain Spider] for free. It's important because it means that some other [Arachnids] exist that are not [Mindless] which makes Grass Spider a bit tempting. But I don't know any, and having to consume Intelligence might be really hard. Also, and the most important thing. It says Sets Intelligence to 4. Does that mean it can't be increased, or if it is higher it is reduced? I can have an Intelligence of up to 13 now! I really don't want to be stuck at Ol'me Intelligence.

  Well Orb Weaver gives me everything I really want. It even has nice attribute bonuses, and I need to start getting bigger, and this will let me grow a little. I was hoping for more defense, but maybe I can make a better [Sarong] to protect me. [Greater Spinneret] will let me really push what I can do, and [Stabilimentum] might have some neat tricks, Alright, Orb Weaver it is.

  Wow, ok, some of these are super good, and all are quire nice. It seems that the [Arachnid] Trait can upgrade parts of my body. Well... several of those would make be better at ending prey and I can discount that, Weaver by it's description and capabilities, should not be fighting, which is good for me. I have my weapons if I need other ways to end things. Let's see things that could help me fall into two, no three camps.

  1. Not get hurt, which includes Exoskeleton 2, and both Colourful and Muted Chitin. I am tempted to take Colourful just because the passive avoidance, but hiding could help. But I suspect it neither will fully offset Weavers [Delicate Exoskeleton]

  2. Sense more, and of these Tremorsense is the most fascinating. I didn't think my eyes were bad, but being able to detect things like this sounds really good. But, it implies I can do this via webs. I haven't tried it, but I will definitely do this now. I have noticed very large tremors from time to time, so it makes sense.

  3. The fun general utility. Now upping my Spinneret is the obvious choice, but I just did that with [Orb Weaver], so perhaps I can save it for later. Manipulator Pedipalps seems good, but it may overlap with [Nimble Manipulator] so I can wait, and Bellowing Folds... I know I can hold my breath pretty well, but actually breathing water would let me slip deep into the Deepmarsh, avoiding all the threats... then again I don't really know what sorts of threats might be in the water, and it does not give me any special water capabilities. Web I suspect, will be weak.

  Now the last thing I notice, was Throw Web, Ol'me did that earlier to try to stop us moving so fast. It worked, but badly, is that because I didn't have this. With my [Orb Weaver] I suspect I will be able to do quite a bit with it.

  Alright, that's it, [Orb Weaver] with [Throw Web]