Chapter 80 – The Spider's Nest
The dungeon never seemed to catch its breath. A constant, echoing drip from somewhere deep within the cave marked time against the rough stone walls. Wilkens took the lead, his helmet's crystal casting a faint green beam into the oppressive darkness as he navigated a fractured stone ridge. Behind him, Jean-Daniel grunted, dragging his hammer. "You ever notice," he mumbled, "that every time we go deeper, it just gets worse?"
Kemi, wiping sweat from her brow, offered a pragmatic shrug. "That's kind of how dungeons work, isn't it?"
Jean-Daniel snorted. "Yeah, well, whoever built this place could've at least put up a warning sign." He paused, then, with mock drama, declared, "Attention visitors: turn around now before something eats you."
Kemi actually chuckled, a brief release of tension. "Honestly, that might be helpful."
"You're the one that need to watch where you're Stepping, Daniel. Also a person didn't dig the dungeon, if you had say beasts did it, it'd make more sense." Wilkens spoke..
Wilkens suddenly stopped dead, forcing Jean-Daniel to nearly collide with him. "What now?" Jean-Daniel asked, annoyed.
Wilkens slowly pointed to the floor. Movement. Tiny shapes, at first indistinguishable from shadows, began to spill from the cracks in the stone. Then, one of them rose, its body flat and red-brown, about the size of a cat. Its legs clicked against the rock as it advanced. Another appeared, then another, and another.
Wilkens' face contorted. "Ugh, that's disgusting."
Jean-Daniel hefted his hammer. "What are they doing?"
Before anyone could react, one of the creatures leaped, landing squarely on Jean-Daniel's chest and Kemi's leg. Kemi shrieked, "Get it off!" The thing was already trying to burrow its needle-like mouth into his armor and her skin.
Jean-Daniel froze, looking down. "It's… trying to bite me."
"Don't move," Wilkens ordered, drawing a dagger. A flick of his wrist, he aimed to kill both creatures like bugs, and the creatures were sliced in half, dropping to the ground in a twitching mess. Jean-Daniel stared at the remains. "Okay," he said, raising his hammer again. "Rule number one: don't let those things get on you." Wilkens nodded. "Pretty sure they drink blood." Kemi grimaced. "Great! more pain in the arss."
"Alright then," Jean-Daniel declared, and the swarm descended. Hundreds of them poured from the walls and ceiling, their tiny claws scraping against stone in a horrifying symphony. Kemi reacted instantly, flames erupting from her fingertips. "Move!" she yelled as she unleashed a torrent of fire into the advancing horde. Dozens were incinerated, but more kept coming.
Wilkens weaved through the chaos, his daggers a blur, slicing through the monstrous bugs. Jean-Daniel brought his hammer down with a mighty BOOM, crushing several of the creatures, but the relentless swarm was overwhelming.
"These things just keep coming!" Kemi gasped, her breathing growing ragged.
"Then burn more!" Wilkens shouted, ducking under a lunging attack and stabbing upward.
Kemi closed her eyes for a moment, her flames flickering, then intensifying. "Alright," she murmured, opening her eyes again. "Let's try something new and see if those little blood fuckers.. I.. I mean blood suckers stands a chance." She said embarrassingly. Fire surged around her arms, and instead of unleashing it outward, she compressed it, the heat growing brighter, more focused. With a shout of "Flame Wave!" she unleashed a searing wall of fire that swept across the cavern floor, engulfing the swarm. Dozens more turned to ash.
Jean-Daniel whistled. "Well damn, I didn't know you had that in you, girl I'm in love."
Wilkens chuckled. "Now that's what I'm talking about."
Kemi eyes wide open as they darted starring blank at Jean-Daniel " Oh! shut it Jean-Daniel, before I roast you like those bugs"
Jean-Daniel gulped and swallowed hard "No need to be harsh and I'm just kidding" he laughed nervously.
The last few creatures scattered back into the cracks, and the cavern finally fell silent. Jean-Daniel leaned on his hammer, a weary sigh escaping him. "I hate bugs."
Kemi scrubbed the grime from her face. "Those weren't bugs," she stated, her voice raspy. "They were nightmares."
Wilkens peered further into the cave. "Speaking of nightmares," he murmured.
The narrow tunnel suddenly gave way to a vast chamber, so immense it felt like stepping into a small arena. And there, in the center, something colossal shifted. Jean-Daniel froze, a choked "Oh" escaping him.
"Don't move, I think I may had been right after all, this looks like a boss room, and this creature might be it." Wilkens whispered, his gaze fixed on the creature. It was a monstrous spider, its red and black body a stark contrast against the stone floor. Eight legs, like gnarled spears, splayed out around it. Its eyes, a baleful red, gleamed in the faint green light from Wilkens' helmet.
Beside the spider lay the carcass of a giant ant, almost as large as the arachnid itself. It was completely encased in thick strands of webbing, its legs occasionally twitching.
On its back there are 5 spikes like horns and the ant beneath it has only 4 spikes like horns "Looks like this was a fight between an A and B rank Beasts, and obviously the A rank won," Wilkens observed quietly.
Jean-Daniel nodded grimly. "And the spider won."
The giant spider's head snapped towards them, its glowing eyes locking onto their position. "We should leave... Now!!" Jean-Daniel breathed, a hint of panic in his voice.
"Yep!..Immediately," Kemi agreed, already turning. But they both stopped dead.
The tunnel they'd just exited was now swarming with spiders. Smaller ones, at first, then dozens, then hundreds. "Fantastic," Wilkens groaned.
Jean-Daniel let out a sigh. "Well," he said, hefting his hammer, "guess we're not leaving through where we came from."
A ear-splitting screech erupted from the giant spider as it launched a thick stream of webbing at them. Wilkens reacted instantly, his daggers a blur as they sliced the sticky strands apart mid-air. Jean-Daniel charged, the ground groaning and cracking as he tore earth and rock from the floor, binding it around his armor. His hammer felt heavier, imbued with his resolve.
"Alright!" he bellowed, his voice echoing in the cavern. "Big ugly spider! I'm your problem!" He swung his hammer with all his might, the impact a thunderous boom that slammed into the creature's leg. The spider shrieked in pain.
Behind him, Wilkens and Kemi were battling the relentless swarm. Flashes of lightning and bursts of flame illuminated the cavern, but more spiders kept pouring from the tunnels. "There's too many!" Wilkens yelled.
"Just keep cutting them down!" Kemi shouted back, blasting another group with fire.
Jean-Daniel swung his hammer again, forcing the spider to recoil. It then lunged, its massive fangs striking the stone floor where he'd been standing moments before. He'd rolled clear, narrowly avoiding being crushed. "That thing almost took my head off," he muttered.
The cavern became a chaotic arena of fire, and stone. The giant spider roared as Jean-Daniel landed another blow. Then, reality itself seemed to rip open behind them.
A shimmering portal materialized in mid-air. Wilkens stopped, his eyes wide. "Wait! What is happening..." Jean-Daniel turned. "Is...Is that...?"
Peterson and Naëlle burst through the opening. Jean-Daniel stared, incredulous. "Hollyshit! Am I dreaming or I can really see Peterson and Naëlle?"
Behind them, the portal flickered violently. Something immense slammed into it from the other side, and a colossal pillar shot through the opening. The cavern shook, the portal struggling to close. And from somewhere beyond, the furious roar of a king echoed through a brewing storm.
End of Chapter 80