Chapter 27: -The Hunt [5]
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A/N [1]: This is a bit of a long chapter, but the next one is so long that I've sectioned them off in bits of three. So this is as small as this chapter is getting. Sorry.
A/N [2]: I will be taking a trip to my grandmother's to check up on her and help her with some personal problems. She doesn't have internet, so I've stockpiled a few chapters, will be gone until this upcoming Wednesday (a week).
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Pillars of stone, their bricks cracked and worn by time, reached to the sky holding up a large cathedral like room. The walls were filled with indents, their archways being filled with the stone statues of warriors.
The floor was a mix of both root, dirt, and etched stone, its cracks leaving the impression of ancient and worn feeling to it. A feeling of something lost to time.
The room was grand, its surface was large enough to hold a dragon, bit enough to fight a war, and detailed enough to be a burial tomb.
Which is exactly what it was.
Along the walls, behind the statues that were dug all along the wall, lay coffins made of stone, their statues representing them in their prime.
This entire room was a burial tomb.
But Lia couldn't find any interest in it, she didn't turn over the runes carved on the walls, or pry back the stone coffins to find rare artifacts from times of old to use. Nothing in the room caught her eye.
Except him.
Spiderwebs dotted the corners, strung bridges across the sky, and held stone in place hoving in the air.
The pitter patter of spider claws scraped against the stone, as the sound of hundreds rang out in echoes, filling Lia's ears with that horrible sound.
Clutching her ears, she ducked her head down into a squat, her eyes wide and never leaving the scene before her.
In the center, towards the back of the room, stood two large pillars of stone, crumbling from time. In between them spiderwebs were strung from one pillar to the other, and within the center hovered a man.
A man whose arms, legs, neck and head were wrapped in a tight squeeze between the thistles of web, and dyed with red blood, the webs held open the gaping wounds of the man.
Lukali.
His unconscious body was strung up, slashes and bites dotted his body, tuning his skin red with blood, where it would be dark tan.
'So much...there's so much blood.'
Lia couldn't even tell where the wounds began, or where they ended. There was so much blood she didn't know where the wounds could have been.
"Dear god."
Rian, who stood behind Lia, nearly fell on his own but from the sight. But what was more shocking, was the giant spider, at least five meters tall.
Its jaws were drenched in saliva and blood, its talons left miniature craters in the ground, and its form was so large that Lia could see several of the 'smaller' ones she had fought with climbing over its body.
"Is that the one that took Lukali?"
Rian asked, looking around, trying to get a feel for the situation.
"N-no. The one that took him was smaller. A guard maybe?"
Taking a firm look at the large beast, Lia could tell that it was far smaller than the one that took Lukali. Meaning the one that took Lukali had to be some type of guard for the nest, leaving the only other possible reason for what this 'thing' was.
"The queen.."
Both Lia and Rian's voices echoed out the silence that settled in.
The queen, having not yet taken notice of them, turned and made firm eye contact with Lia, who could see her own reflection in the eyes of the monster.
"Ah.."
Lia's voice made a weird sound as her mind finally began to click into place.
'So this is why they had such small tunnels. It was to keep the bigger ones at bay.'
When it finally clicked and made sense to her, the reason so many had died in the mines when venturing out was because of the nest.
'They're trying to dig her out.'
It explained why the spiders were so defensive, and so plentiful in the mines rather than in the deep caverns. It was all because of the queen, being too big to fit down the same tunnel it must have crawled into.
"Rian..that-"
"I know."
Raising his gauntlets, the menat gears made one loud sounding creak, before he smashed them into one another, signaling his start of the fight.
The queen, who had been observing her opponents until now, let out one shilling shriek that pierced their ears and made their faces contort.
"Cyaaaaaaa!!!!"
The sound of bugs grew louder, as the claws of the spider breaking apart the stone was the only thing they could hear. The sound of some horrible death.
Before they could think for themselves, over a hundred large and small spiders gathered in one large wave headed for their direction.
"Here they come."
Rian however , wasn't afraid, nor was he showing any signs of hesitance.
To Lia, it looked as though the man knew he would die, but was fine with his fate, so long as he took a few with him.
This scene, this very scene of Rian calling out to the spiders was etched into her mind as the face of a Mordinian. A warrior. A barbarian.
"Come on then you filthy buggers!'
Rian rushed forwards, smashing the head of a guard spider, its blood paining him blue.
Turning around, Rian wasted no time in blocking an attack from his side, before spinning back to his right to punch away another, smaller spider that had leaped at him.
The spiders kept coming, their numbers ever growing, and soon Lia was forced to follow suit of Rian, drawing her own blade, though dull, with only a few strikes and easily dispatched the spiders that flung themselves at her.
'This is a lot harder than what Master Shir taught me.'
'Left.'
Hearing the command, Lia swung to her left, slicing a spider in half where it stood positioned on top of a large rock, evenly in height with Lia.
'Thanks Cain.'
'There's no time for that.'
"Huh?"
The sternness in his voice surprised her a little bit, but she simply wrote it off as battle focus.
'Alright then Cain, what do you need me to do?'
Knowing the situation was definitely not in their favor, Lia was more than willing to hear Cain out on any information, strategy, or possible victory plan he had in store for her.
'Anything is better than dying to these bugs!'
She swung again, this time to her right in a downwards motion, bringing the sword up in an arch, taking out three spiders in total.
To her, it didn't matter how many there were, she didn't even need to aim in order to take down a few at a time.
Much less if Cain had a plan, then they could execute it with little effort, and easily win this battle.
But what Cain said next left Lia studded and shocked.
'Leave them. Head to the Queen and dispatch her. She doesn't have good defense so it's best if you aim for -'
'H-Hold on. You want me to leave them.'
Taking another swing towards the ground, Lia dispatched another spider, though he was quick to be replaced by the others.
'Yes Lia, I thought that was clear when I said 'Leave them.' They won't do anything to help you, the most they can offer is a window of opportunity.'
'No, I won't leave them.'
Dispatching yet another spider, Lia was faced with a scene she couldn't quite name. Whether it was heroic, foolish, or just field by sheer balls, the scene left her awe struck.
Rian stood within the midst of the horde, his body being attacked countlessly from all sides. Jumping spiders desperately tried to sipe at him, their claws razor sharp, and sending thin wisps in the air.
But they were merely foolish bugs, as the moment they stepped out of the circle of protection they had created, they were smashed to bits by the fists of Rian's gauntlets.
It was so quick and so fruitless to the spiders, that they had even begun setting up a circle, a ring of sorts, away from Rian, keeping him at a distance from one another, and not daring to get any closer.
For those that did, they met their end faster than the others could regroup.
'They're afraid.'
It was true, even thought he was winning, even thought the odds were all against him, Rian looked to the spiders and their stupid little ring of protection, and beconed them forward.
"Come one then you bastards!!"
He rushed forward, smashing bits upon bits of spiders in blue blood of mesh. Yet still, many chose just to get mauled over by Rian rather than fighting him. Their fear getting the better of them.
'How is he doing that?'
She received only the most indirect of answers.
'He carries the same rage his forefathers once carried. And it can either be your salvation, or your destruction Lia. You must choose now.'
Shaking her head, trying to drown out his voice, Lia was only left with the sound of the sea of arachnids that came rushing forward.
'Lia, you don't have a choice here. Either you die by these beasts, or you use Rian's distraction to kill the queen.'
'No!'
She yelled, clutching her head in her hands.
'Lia, he would want this! Why else do you think he's fighting so hard?'
Currently at a stalemate, Lia didn't know what to do. In some ways she disagreed with what Cain was saying. Rian was an ally she wouldn't want to lose, at all.
He was strong, caring, and offered more than her own fair share of protection and defense. But above all that, he had a warm feeling to him, a feeling that made her comfortable.
'It's called friendship Lia, and you don't have any need for it from him.'
'Friendship. Ah, that's what it was.'
'Lia?'
Smiling, Lia raised her blade, pressed her foot to the ground, and pushed off, sailing over the sea of spiders and down into their clutches.
She didn't remember much after that. All that she could feel in those moments was a numbing feeling to her body. Her sword was slick and wet with spider's blood, but she kept swinging.
She could remember catching a glimpse of Rian's faltering figure, overrun with spiders like a wave crashing down against him.
She could remember the feeling of a sharp pain in her back, the feeling of a talon ripping apart the flesh on her back.
Unbeknownst to her, being positioned with her back against the arch way was the best position for her to have in this fight, as the spiders would not dare to leave their borders while their queen was in danger.
But throwing herself into the sea of mass spiders only left the creatures with an opening straight to some of her most vital places.
Her sword broke, the shattered bits cut her. The spider's venom didn't take effect, but it slowed her down. The loss of blood became staggering, but even then she pressed on.
Rian was still standing, his rage speaking levels throughout the tomb. The men and women buried here, warriors until the end, would have been honored to have a man such as Rian join them in peace.
But Lia wouldn't allow that.
The feelings were quick, the flash of memories, though dull, left a fleeting feeling in her heart.
Rage, fuelled by passion.
The last thing she could recall, from what shattered memories played out to her, was a lone and silent voice, not too quiet, but not too loud. Yet it echoed to drown the noise out.
"Fine. I'll do this myself."
Darkness.
***
"Lia?"
Muffled voices filled her head, like a fuzzy feeling of nausea but without the sickness.
"Lia."
Pain was all she could feel. The sharp agony in her back, the blunting pain in her sides, and the stinging cuts that dotted her body and her skin.
The pain was so great Lia didn't want to get up, she just wanted to lay there in sleep, resting until it all slipped away.
But she never got that luxury, as her eyes, though droopy, began to open, showing her the fuzzy outlines of a man, no hair, who was leaning above her.
"Lia!"
The sudden rush of consciousness hit her like a hammer, as she sat abruptly upright, gasping for air.
"Oh thank the Gods."
She felt two burly arms rap about her back, as Rian brought her in close for a hug, a deep bear hug that, though it surprised her, but settled her nerves.
"Rian…What happened?"
Pushing her back by the shoulders, Rian didn't answer her question, and instead, began looking for any obvious signs of gashes or wounds.
It was then that Lia could vaguely remember the feeling of getting stabbed by one of the spiders. Though she didn't remember much, she at least knew that there were probably more.
"You look to be fine?"
Rian seemed confused that no large wounds were present anywhere over her body, but with a small shifting of her hands, Lia was able to tell just how much blood there must have been.
'Is that why I passed out?'
Though, if she had passed out by blood loss, who else would have healed her in her unconscious state other than Cain.
All of a sudden, Lia was grateful to have Cain by her side, helping her.
"Rian, what happened to the spiders."
Instead of answering her question, there came an unknown voice that answered instead. But to Lia, the voice was anything but unknown.
"The spiders are dead. Long since."
Slowly, she turned, her hands against the cold ground covered in blood. But it was only until her eyes panned out to what was around her, did she realize the blood wasn't her's.
'Blood. There's so much blood.'
Spiders, covered in blue blood, laid on the ground. Some smashed to pieces, others cut to dust, while many just had huge gaping burn wounds across their sides and front.
'Massacre.'
"Correct."
Her eyes landed on the owner of the voice, his back to her, as he stood above the barley breathing corpse of Lukali.
"Lukali.."
Lia wanted to yell and run to him, to make sure he was alright, but even with no visible wounds, her body was too sore to move even an inch.
"He's fine. Just a few broken bones and some internal bleeding. Other than that, it's a miracle he was able to survive for this long in these conditions."
"You call that 'fine?'"
Trying to stand up once again, Lia felt a force of pressure so great, that it smashed her butt against the ground, forcing her to sit down.
"Stay there and heal. I'm in no mood to kill off more spiders just to heal you."
"You killed the spiders?"
"You ask that like you don't know. It was mostly 'him'. I dealt with healing."
"Him?"
Taking one of his hands away from the glowing hue around Lukali, Cain pointed behind Lia, without turning around.
Looking to where Cain was pointing, Lia was shocked and surprised to see a man dressed head to toe in black leather and loose black clothing.
At his sides were strapped daggers and short swords, across his chest were needles and throwing stars, and across his face sat a mask with carved teeth, silver against the black.
"Who?-"
"Meet Kal. He's one of ours."
Said Cain, focusing back on his task of healing Lukali.
"One of ours?"
Taking a moment to think, Lia poured over the past encounters where Cain would indirectly mean something. Something she couldn't put her finger on.
Suddenly-
"Wait…You mean he's…"
"Correct Lia. He's one of mine, and now he is one of yours. The best Rogue I know of, Kal Odyssian."
Smiling, Cain made a half turn of his head to lay his eyes on Lia's shocked expression.
"Treat him well child"
Turning back to the man, Lia was once again left astonished by how quietly he stood. In fact, Lia wasn't even aware what silence sounded like when you were standing, since most of the time you never made any sound.
This meeting with Kal had changed that.
"Wait-"
A sudden thought struck her as her mind reminded her that Rian was still present and must have been as confused as he could be during their conversation.
But again she was proven wrong.
"It's fine."
Said Cain, brushing his hands against his leather jacket.
"I've already told him everything he needs to know. Though there might still be some rough spots, Rian should know the gist of it all."
Passing her eyes between Rian and Cain, and seeing the both of them nod their heads, Lia was forced to sight and come to terms with the situation.
"I'm sorry."
In the end that was all she could say.
"I'm sorry I lied to you. And I'm sorry I almost got you killed."
Chuckling to himself, Rian patted Lia on the shoulder, comforting her.
"Don't worry about it kid. Though I'm still a little bit in the dark about the whole situation, I can kind of guess why you were so…well…"
"Stange?"
Lia said finishing his sentence.
"Haha, I suppose you're right. Besides…"
He dropped his voice down to a whisper.
"Besides, your friend over there isn't one for small talk all that much. So that's enough reassurance for me, at least until we get out of here."
"I heard that."
Walking over to Lia, Cain squatted down so he was level with her eyes, peering deep into dark pupils of his own.
"Lia, I need you to make a tough decision here."
"What.."
At the tone of his voice, Lia didn't want to know what type of decision this entailed.
"I've healed both your wounds, Rian's wounds, and Lukali's wounds, who might be the worst off of all of you. The problem is, my magic can't heal major injuries, unless I make an even exchange. To heal you, I used the souls of the dead spiders here to repair most of your major injuries, and for Lukali, I used the queen."
Lia didn't like where this was going, just the thought of Cain's power stealing away the life of these monsters to heal them was one fear of hers, the other was what it could do to them.
As if reading her mind, Cain shook his head.
"No, it won't give you any mutations or spider legs. All I did was use them to heal you. But there is one problem we have to deal with."
Looking over his shoulder to the breathing body of Lukali, Cain sighed, before turning back to Lia.
"The trauma and pain he's gone through is too much for his mind to handle. In fact, healing his mind is what took me so long until now. But still, his mind is too broken for him to be the same…"
He struggled to say the words as his eyes narrowed.
"...friend."
Thinking over what Cain had just said, Lia could find many truths in it, as when she found Lukali, he didn't look as joyous and arrogant as he used to be. He looked…dead.
Even if it was her or Rian, she knew they would be in the same position as Lukali now, if they had gone through similar experiences.
"So what do you want to do?"
She asked, her eyes resting on Cain's.
"I can erase his memories, and you can make up some story to explain it, but he will still experience some nightmares from time to time. Things he won't be able to explain. You'll have to bear the weight of that burden for him, which isn't always good."
Taking a deep breath, Lia exhaled, letting it all sink in.
"What is the next option?"
"You let him wake up, experience a flash of all the trauma he's been through, and let him heal, slowly, and steadily."
"Why wouldn't I choose that one?"
Smiling, Cain shook his head, standing up.
"Because, sometimes it's better to let the mind heal naturally, rather than just delaying the inevitable."
Thinking, her mind became a mess with questions, doubts, and ideas. But more than anything, her heart felt a jabbing pain inside, as she looked upon the body of Lukali, who struggled to breath, shifting in his sleep, dreaming of a nightmare.
Making up her mind, she opened her mouth, when suddenly…
-Bang!
-Bang!
-Bang!
THe sound of the wooden doors, Lia didn't even know were there, blocking the entrance, rumbled with some unseen force.
Before she could get up or question what was going on, she felt her ears prick up.
"Looks like we have guests. I'm afraid we'll have to hold off on this little talk of ours."
Snapping his fingers, a glowing outline of a sword appeared in his hands, before vanishing, replaced by an actual sword.
Its tip was not curved like Lia's broken one, and the length of the blade was straight and narrow, but towards the hilt, a section barely longer than her hand, was wider and thicker for support.
The hilt curved inwards towards the blade, with spikes and spires shooting out in pairs of three on each side, making a total of six curved spikes, running down the blade, each one after smaller than the other.
The back of the hilt was what caught her attention the most. Like a talon or claw, wrapped around a red glowing gem with a darkened, almost blackish look.
"What is that?"
In the end she couldn't keep herself from asking, her curiosity getting the better of her.
"Yours."
Dropping the blade, flat against her lap, Cain looked to the silently watching Kal and gave him an order.
"Guard the boy while I deal with our guest. Kill anyone you deem a threat that gets too close."
Kal didn't even bother to say a word, nodding his head, he disappeared instantly, faster than Lia could follow, and soon she came to a realization.
'So that's how they beat those spiders. His speed.'
Tapping Lia on the shoulder, Rian stood up, joining Cain on his far left, raising his gauntlets ready for a fight.
Clearly they were waiting for her.
Getting into position by Cain's right side, Cain glanced back at each one of them before nodding his head, and with one swift motion of his arms, the doors lock cracked open by some unseen hand.
"Time for a little bit of fun."
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone