บท 62: Wavelengths
The wasp haphazardly rushed in, not caring about the delicate state of the walls and as a result the tunnel caved in as a pile of rubble fell over it. I was too far in to be affected but I kept alert, looking out for any signs of collapse.
When things seemed to settle down I doubled back towards the tunnel entrance. Whether the collapsed tunnel was enough to kill the wasp, was still to be seen, but the important thing was not to be in the tunnel when it awoke.
It was completely silent as I slithered over the rubble, passing the wasp's body to come out on the other side, but soon I detected tiny movements.
It started with a few falling particles of debris and by the time I exited the tunnel, the entire rubble mountain was getting raised. Whole fragments of wall were being pushed back as the wasp stumbled out of the debris to regain its footing.
Some rubble spread towards me but I quickly backed away. In the hive core, I watched the rubble wall that once blocked the entrance start shifting.
The wasp still had some strength even though it was covered in injuries as it pushed the rubble aside to free itself. With nowhere else to go, the rubble rolled fast towards the ends of the tunnel like an avalanche.
I guessed the wasp was trying to push the rubble forward in hopes of trapping me. If I was ahead of it, the rolling rubble would have buried me alive. Little did it know I was already out of the tunnel.
The more it pushed, the closer it got to its own demise, because past the tunnel there was nothing but empty space, where the tunnel opened up to a dangerous drop below. I'd chosen this tunnel for this very reason and I remained silent to not alert it of my presence.
With one final push, the rubble wall gave way and then I made my move. Keeping a good distance away, I slipped into the tunnel that was now rubble free and waited for the moment the wasp was about to fall.
However, there was no need for my intervention as once the rubble gave way, the wasp fell through after it to the chasm below with a surprised shriek.
I was incredibly relieved to watch its figure disappear into the darkness. I was a little regretful to let go of its corpse as it would have been a great way to replenish the HP and SP I lost. But it was finally dead and with it gone, I could relax.
Luckily, this time there were no buzzing sounds of wasps flying below, so there was no chance of a rescue by its fellow wasps. I scanned over the edge of the yawning chasm with [Heat Sense] to make sure. However, when I looked down I saw the wasp had stretched out an arm to catch the jutting surface at the ledge under the tunnel's exit.
To stop it, I immediately struck its hanging arm with [Bite] severing more of its exposed sinew. But before it could completely cut them off, the wasp's other arm stretched out to grab hold of me, painfully proving that its arm still worked well.
I felt my body slide across the floor as the weight of the wasp pulled me towards the tunnel's end. I tried to break free but the wasps grip was too tight. I could feel its claws digging into my scales and I winced in pain.
I was truly in a precarious situation. If I chose to break its hanging arm, it would fall through pulling me with it and if I didn't, we would both fall eventually. I had to cut it loose somehow!
Angry at its persistence I bit down hard on its clawed arm that grabbed me, crushing pieces of its shell between my jaws. Its purple blood flowed out, yet, the wasp stubbornly refused to let go.
It desperately clung to the sides of the wall, slowly inching its way up to try to get a stable foothold. For every second that I couldn't free myself, it climbed up closer.
I struggled to think of a way to loosen its grip and my mind immediately went to the skill [Mind Chain]. Didn't it make me slippery when it was used?
Thinking that it could serve a purpose and I desperately needed to be free before I got pulled down to my death, so I immediately activated it. And to my surprise I felt the wasp's grip immediately loosen.
It was so sudden that the wasp lost its grip on the wall and stumbled back against the pull of its own weight. I easily slipped through its claws with the slime from [Mind Chain] and without its grip on me its claws desperately scraped the floor to hang on.
What just happened?
The last thing the wasp needed was to fall, yet it released me almost like it had done so against its will. [Mind Chain] was a skill that controlled others, but didn't that work a little too easily?
"Did I just use [Mind Chain]?" I asked Sensei in disbelief. But wasn't I supposed to be inside a host body to control one?
«Yes.» Sensei answered simply.
I was annoyed at his lack of input.
"How?" I asked.
«Contact with a Hesperia's larvae fluid, in this case you, and the host's blood creates a link between the two creatures that for the time of contact, the creature with the stronger will can exert their willpower over the other. Your innate desire to free yourself from its grip got transmitted as an order and it immediately let go.»
Oh...It wasn't a bad attribute after all! If I could come in contact with the wasp's blood once more, maybe I could control it fully. The many possibilities sent my mind reeling.
But my thoughts grinded to a halt when a clawed arm appeared over the tunnel's end, followed by another that was more battered with ripped sinew.
The wasp was making a reappearance. It sluggishly dragged itself over the wall, body shaking with painful spasms. Its huge figure nearly blocked the entrance, with its wounded eyes staring menacingly at me.
The wasp was battered and covered in countless bruises and so was I, but it had more injuries and was suffering from a lack of energy along with poison. The winner would be the one with the most endurance and I intended to come out on top.
And now, I even wanted to use [Mind Chain] on it to test how the attribute worked.
The wasp was bleeding from so many cuts on its body, it seemed too good an opportunity to miss. The tunnel was empty and the hive core was isolated, the setting was the perfect place for such an experiment and before it regained a stable footing I attacked.
Quickly slithering up its legs I reached the bleeding cut on its thorax. The wasp's arms came up to deflect but I was faster and its slow moving speed wasn't much of a deterrent. I slipped through its clawed arms and wrapped myself over the cut, feeling the wet film of ichor over my skin meld with its blood, and suddenly there was a system alert.
〚Synchronising consciousness...〛
The wasp's arm veered forward to attack my location and remembering what had happened before I thought really hard of how I wanted its arms to avoid me. To my shock, the arm veered off its path, changing direction to strike above my body. I thought hard and visualised the wasp's arm embedding into its own thorax and the arm propelled itself to achieve my will, driving itself steadily into its own chest until...
〚Failure - Synchronisation 10%〛
Suddenly I lost control and the arm that was so close to its chest loosened, slipped through the air to strike the wall. What happened? I was so close!
The wasp regained control and turned its attack to me once more. Confused and a little panicked I forcefully projected my will again.
〚Synchronising consciousness...〛
The arm stopped in the air as it was about to plunge down, trembling under the control of two wills. I fought for control over it but the wasp was fighting back. The frozen arm visibly trembled moving closer and closer towards me.
I could move my body to dodge in time, but doing so would break my control and release my hold over the wasps blood. I had to take control of it, or I would die.
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