Chapter 28: 28. A Tangled Web

Almost right away, we encounter a horde of Carrion Beetles. They're about the size and shape of skateboards only more rounded on top. They're also level 1, and despite their number, we rip through them with little to note. Except, we get to watch Lynesse in action. And, yup, her flesh missiles are about what you'd expect. They're around five inches long and pinkish skin colored. Although they're smooth and uniform like a dildo rather than a piece of anatomy. Each blast sends three of them at a target. And they dissolve in a horrific manner once they meet a solid surface.

Next, we cut down a dozen or so giant rats. Then, more beetles, Then, more rats. And it goes on that way for a while. It's a bit of a tedious grind, to be honest, I've played plenty of virtual games where you hack monster after monster, but doing it when everything feels real is wearying. Not to mention, these monsters are just nuisances.  No challenge. No loot. Not even much experience. All they seem to be there for is to slow down our progress. And even if they're easy to defeat, we eventually have to rest and replenish our health and magic.

The tunnel we have been following has wound from left to right and sloped up and down but hasn't branched off. There have been no rooms or side chambers, and the best place we can find to rest is a spot where the passage is a little wider than usual, so we can stay close together. We huddle in a circle, then switch off for eight hours.

The next morning, we come across a different type of monster. At first, they appear as three furry little men. They have yellow-brown fur with black stripes and large pointed ears. They're completely naked and have sheathed penises like dogs on their lower bellies. The largest of the three has a sword, but the other two are unarmed, except for the fact they all have a mouthful of fangs and claws.

Immediately, one of the unarmed creatures bolts, but the other two stand their ground. The tunnel is too narrow for all of us to fight or for anyone to use ranged attacks without hitting those in front. So, Bronte takes the one with the sword and Kerda attacks the other. They make quick work of them, but we can here the squeals of alarm from many more up ahead. Their cries echo in the dark and send a chill up my spine.

"Shit!" Vladimir says. "That little bastard warned the others. What do we do now?"

Astra replies hurriedly, "The echoes. There must be a larger chamber up ahead. Get to it before they attack. We need the room to maneuver."

I want to object that it will give them more room to surround us, but everyone is running, and I'm caught in the middle of the group. We spill out into a large open cavern. Veins of luminescence light everything in an eerie blue glow and stalagmites and stalactites look like row after row of giant sharp teeth. A stream cuts the cave in two and a pile of broken stones forms a bridge. A mass of those Hyaenas swarm over it. There are nearly a dozen on our side and more right behind them.

"Goddamn!" Bronte says. "How can this many be called a pack?"

Astra screams, "Ranged attackers stay back here with me! Everyone else, try and stop them at the bridge! No, Morgan, stay with us!" Morgan's fearlessness is making them forget their role as the healer and is becoming a liability.

I follow the warriors into battle since my spells work at pretty short range. Arrows, darts, and flesh missiles whiz by us, taking out a few of the low level targets. I unleash a Wail at the last second before we're in melee range since some of the effect only last a couple of rounds. My shriek bounces off the ceiling and rings out as a truly terrifying sound. Three break from their aggressive stances and try to get back over the bridge, sewing confusion.

A begin to dance, and Bronte and Kerda take the brunt of the assault for a while, but finally one of the Hyaenas breaks through and goes at me with its claws. It tears into me a couple of time, gouging deep grooves into my arms, but it soon drops dead at my feet. 

There's only one left on this side of the bridge. The fleeing creatures are blocking the others from crossing, and they're not smart enough or cooperative enough to let the others pass quickly. Kerda hacks and slashes the remaining monster, while Astra pumps arrows into it. The rest of us takes a short breather until it's dead and more Hyaenas begin crossing over.

They come to us in a steady stream. This means that we're never overwhelmed by them, but as soon as we strike one down another takes it's place. One particularly big brute comes at me with a sword and gets in a few savage blows, reminding me just how much pain it's possible to feel in this game. But between my life steal and Morgan's support, I never get dangerously low. When I start running out of Mystic Energy, I down a potion. But it's almost isn't necessary because, soon after, I level up, and my magic pool is expended by 10 points. However, the double increase in magic leaves me in a good position when the Hyaenas finally stop coming over to our side and make a final stand.

A horrifically large female who wields a sword in each hand rallies the three creatures that fled from my Wail, and the four of them prepare to defend their territory.

Bronte, Kerda, and I race over the bridge before they can close it off and force us to face them one by one. The rest of the party advance to the edge of the stream and launch their ranged attacks.

Despite their imposing stance, the creatures are out numbered and lacking magic resistance, so we have them at a disadvantage. They put up a hell of a fight, but we soon have the remnants of the pack slaughtered and are alone in the cave.

As a side note, I noticed something for the first time during this fight: spell-users have lower health, can't wear armor, and have very limited pools of magic, but few monsters have any protection toward magic. So, even Lynesse can do massive damage each attack. It almost seems unbalanced, except we can't just stand there and take blow after blow like Bronte and Kerda can. And if we don't have some mystic potions in reserve, we're practically useless after a few rounds.

However, I know some creatures do have magical resistance, such as dragons. Us spell-users would be cannon-fodder against such foes without warriors to support us. Sure, their resistance wouldn't stop all damage, but they'd be able to hold out longer and deal plenty of damage each round.

Also, along my original line of thinking about my magical advantages, I realize the huge benefit I have with my main attacks Wail and the Dance of Death. Both effect a large number of opponents, allowing me to level up faster due to the shared kill system.

But back in the cave, it's hard to believe the fight is over. There were so damn many of them, making it one of the longest battles any of us had seen since Katie rewrote Feronia. Nearly everyone has leveled up, and we're all still reasonably healthy. So, there's a celebratory air to the group. Also, finding loot raises our spirits even more.

The Hyaenas have nothing on them except for the few who have swords. But their weapons are crude iron short swords that no one wants. However, we find treasure among the huts at the back of the cave. The domed shelters have been constructed out of random debris and plenty of bones. The collection of them creates a small ramshackle (and macabre) village. Here and there, we come across the remains of other adventurers. The monsters have stripped the flesh from their bodies, but simply tossed their belongings into trash pits.

We divide up the coins and the potions, and then, we find ourselves with the strange phenomenon of there being one useful item for each of us.

Kerda takes a plate helmet that is essentially just a headband with several long tines rising from it. Four of the spikes barely rise above the top of her head but two extend like horns. Astra upgrades her tank-top to a higher tier crop-top, exposing her belly and the piercing in her naval. She has a small gold butterfly nesting there that I hadn't seen before. Vladimir gets some banded leather armor cut like a very tight T-shirt. It clings to and extenuates all his curves. Bronte gets new knee-high boots. They're black leather with 3" heels.

We find a thong with a Life Force bonus. I'm tempted by it because I've been going commando since the aftermath of the Basti-lust fight. But it makes more sense to give them to Lynesse as she has the least health of anyone in the party. Instead, I take a simple earring that has a Spell Casting bonus. This leaves Morgan with a belly-ring that seems custom made for them. Not just it's size, but the sapphire gem allows them to heal themselves when they heal others.

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We stay in the cave for an hour or so until our Mystic Energy is restored before continuing on.

The only exit is a small tunnel. It runs straight and downward for about forty feet, then deposits us in the spider's chamber.

There is absolutely no doubt about where we are. The giant cavern is bowl shaped and we enter up at one of the highest points, giving as a sweeping view of it. The chamber covered in webbing and magical blue balls glow all over the place. The orbs are about the size of billiard balls but appear to be pure energy. There is an eerie similarity to a Christmastime tableau. The webs are white and covering everything like a dusting of snow. And the orbs could be decorations or fairy-lights.

There's no sign of the spider. But from the documentation, it should stay hidden unless we become affected by one of the orbs.

Astra says in hushed tones, "Can anyone see the exit?"

No one can, but my compass points off in the two-o'clock position, when I check it. 

"Okay," Astra says, trying to spy out what's actually in that direction, but strands of webbing block any clear view. "We should head that way. And I don't think I need to say it, but... don't touch those balls!"

Someone in the group sniggers and not knowing who the culprit is, Astra glares at all of us. "This is no joke. I'll take the lead. Triste, I want you right behind me to make sure I keep on course. Bronte, you back us up. Then, Morgan, Lynesse, and Vlad. Kerda, you watch the back and make sure nothing sneaks up on us. Now, everyone stay close. Considering the size of this lair and all those webs, we might be attacked from any direction, including above.

We descend downward on a narrow stair chiseled into the rock to reach the web strewn floor. There's a mission impossible aspect to our traversing the cave, except instead of bending ourselves around laser beams, it's spiderwebs. 

We've barely gone a couple of yards, when three large spiders jump out at us. We're caught by surprise, and they attack quickly, darting at various points on our flank. Without even thinking about it, I begin dancing. My feet tear at a few webs, leaving them dangling, but it doesn't seem to cause any more of the spiders to come for us. As fast as it started, it's over, and the monsters lay in pieces at our feet.

"I don't get it," Kerda says. "I thought this spider would be a lot tougher than that. Not to mention, wasn't there supposed to be only one?"

 Astra says, "These are just regular Large Spiders. They must also live in here. But don't underestimate them. We got lucky. Their venom can paralyze you. Keep your eyes open. There's probably going to be more."

We're about a quarter of the way across the cavern, when two more strike. Again, they don't pose much of a challenge.

But even though they're not a serious threat, my nerves are raw as we make our way toward exit. With all the webs, I can't see much more than a few feet in any direction. And the light of the lantern reflects off them creating glare, making the ones close to us glow and hiding the others in darkness. My imagination creates the sound of scurrying, even when there isn't any. We often have to zigzag our way, and the path takes on a labyrinth quality as we avoid sheets of webs large enough to hold a fully equipped human warrior suspended and immobile. At one spot, the orbs are so thick we have to backtrack until we can find a safer route. But the compass helps as keep in the right direction even when I've lost all sense of where I am.

Suddenly, a cluster of the spiders swarm on us. There are so many, I have no choice but to use the dance, but I don't just have my feet to watch, I also have to twist, twirl, and limbo around the glowing orbs as several hang near. A few members of the party become paralyzed by the creatures' bites and are left defenseless as the monsters gnaw on them with their viscous fangs, but the rest of us are too busy trying to deal with the ones flinging themselves at us.

Half our party falls prey to their venom, but slowly we turn the tide, and there's only two of the creatures left. My feet are moving frantically in their mystic patterns, and I'm sure another twirl of the dance will finish them off, but suddenly I can no longer move. Everything is darkness.

I've been paralyzed.

No. Not paralyzed. I can move, a little. I must be caught in the webs.

I thrash, but my limbs are held firm. A blinding light from above me fills my eyes. Some huge shadowy figure moves into view blocking it. My mind races into panic mode. What new horror is this?!?

The shape resolves itself into a man—a teenager really. Some high-school senior with no muscle mass wearing khakis and a blue polo shirt with the RoboDyne Game Center logo. 

"Please just relax," he says. "I'll have you out in a minute. Something has gone wrong with your game's AI, and we had to terminate your session. Please calm down, and I'll help you out of the game-pod."

 

 

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