by Dean Henegar
Your forces have killed Fangweb Spider level 2. You have gained 25 experience.
I disentangled from the spider’s grasp and quickly stood. The cavern swirled around me as vertigo set in from the venom. I fell to my knees and vomited onto the floor. I stayed down until the last tick of damage from the poison wore off and my health began to regenerate. The rapid healing of this virtual world was one of the more pleasant aspects of the game. Once out of combat, I was regenerating about one health every ten seconds. Private Grado brought me my sword and shield which I had dropped when the spider landed on me. Gaining my feet under me, I surveyed the room. Five spider corpses were scattered around the floor of the cavern where they had fallen, their legs curled up in death the same as the spiders you would find in your house. The second group of soldiers had also appeared. Their tunnel eventually led to this cavern, as I had thought. They had killed two spiders and taken no losses getting here. The soldier who had been initially attacked was still alive, after the medic pried the fang from his leg and applied a bandage to stop the bleeding. I sent two soldiers to carry the unconscious man back out of the cavern. They could also report our progress to the mayor before heading back to join us. I next turned my attention to the dangling bundles that held the victims of the spiders. The soldiers carefully cut them down and began to use their daggers to cut away the strands of web. Most held the desiccated remains of what appeared to be goblins. The victims held nothing of value, being clothed in little more than rags and having not even a copper in their coin pouch. We used torches to burn away what webs we could. There were also several sconces placed at irregular intervals on the walls. The sconces all held crudely made torches that we lit to improve visibility in the cavern.
Once the lighting improved we could see the cavern was once an active mine. More copper nodes were revealed when the webs were burnt off and there were even several burlap sacks of harvested ore lying about, as if dropped from the miners when the spiders struck. There was only one more exit that we hadn’t explored. We proceeded in that direction to try and find the villager, Jimmy, once the two soldiers we had sent to carry our wounded man returned. The passage was like the one at the entrance, and we proceeded for about one hundred yards before we heard the yipping cries of goblins and the clash of weapons ahead of us. We hustled forward, wanting to get out of the narrow confines of the tunnel if we were going to face a new fight. The passage opened into a cavern that appeared to be a mirror image of the one we just left. The torches in the room were lit and giving off enough light to see what was going on. The far side of the cavern revealed another opening like the one we were exiting. Midway down the cavern it looked like part of the cavern wall had collapsed, revealing a new opening. The dark opening was covered in webs and I saw a spider carrying a wrapped figure scurry into the opening. A group of a dozen, or so, goblins were on the far side of the cavern facing off against a similar number of spiders.
The goblins were dressed in rags and wielded mining picks and hammers as their weapons. The spiders were getting the best of the goblins and there were already several goblins lying on the floor out of the fight, either dead, or poisoned into a stupor. Only one spider corpse was seen, but I could see the thick grey of their blood covering a few of the other spiders, showing they had taken some wounds from the goblin’s improvised weapons. While no fan of goblins, I didn’t want to assume they were hostile. I did know the spiders were hostile, so I ordered the men out into a line of ten with seven and myself in the rear, as a reserve. Once formed up, we marched to within thirty yards of the spiders and readied the one and only javelin we each had brought with us.
“Aim for the spiders. Try to avoid the goblins if you can. Once we throw our javelins, move into melee. Again, try to avoid the goblins, but don’t hesitate to defend yourselves if attacked,” I ordered. We then threw our javelins, drew swords, and charged the spiders. The wave of eighteen javelins landed, and bronze tips cracked through the carapace of the spiders, pinning several to the ground, their legs curling in death. A much better performance than we had weeks ago against the other goblin tribe, it seemed a few levels made a big difference. Five of the spiders were left alive. They scurried about, not knowing which group of foes to attack. We didn’t give them any chance, and with shields leading the way, began our attack. The spiders died quickly, unable to overcome our superior numbers and weapons. They had only had a chance in the first fight earlier, due to their ambush, but now we were the ones with the element of surprise. The goblins, seeing that the spiders were focused on us, ran back toward the exit at the end of the cavern. Instead of going through, they stopped and presented their weapons as a warning to not approach.
I toggled off my experience/kill notifications specifying generic Fangweb Spiders. The rapid flashing of notices was becoming distracting. I left the notifications up for when a new level of foe, or new foe entirely, was killed.
The goblins looked at us warily, as the last spider curled in death. I tried to motion the goblins over to take their wounded and care for them, but something was lost in the translation. They just kept to their corner and looked at us in terrified silence. I had our medics do what they could for the goblins since we didn’t have any wounded this time. I figured if they saw us helping, it might make them less hostile toward us. I detailed five men to watch the hole the spiders had come out of and sent another soldier to find Phineas and ask if he could come with Chief Bugtug and Kipkip to translate for us. Uneasy minutes passes while we waited for the translators to return; the tension broken only once when a spider appeared through the passage we were guarding. The soldiers dispatched the single creature easily. The medic said that all but two of the goblins were dead. He did what he could for the survivors, and thought they had a good chance to make it once the poison wore off.
A short while later Bugtug, Kipkip, and Phineas arrived into the chamber, escorted by the soldier I sent. All three were carrying their hand crossbows, with Bugtug and Kipkip also sporting their new knives. The group moved over to where we were waiting, and Bugtug looked across the cavern at the goblins for a long moment and then began gibbering at Phineas in goblinoid. Phineas surprisingly responded in halting goblinoid, directing Bugtug toward the other goblins. Bugtug shrugged his shoulders, checked the bolt in his crossbow, and trotted across the cavern, while making a strange noise toward the other goblins.
“He’s trying to find their leader. He will attempt to kill the leader and assume command of the goblins here. Don’t interfere, it’s their way of dealing with these kinds of things. You don’t negotiate with a goblin tribe, you dominate them, or are dominated by them,” Phineas said, while watching the encounter unfold. “Of course, if he fails and is killed, I expect full monetary compensation for my…err that is Kipkip’s loss.” The goblins chattered among themselves before the group pushed one of the scrawnier goblins out in front of them and began scooting back. Bugtug didn’t hesitate, he just raised his hand crossbow and shot a bolt dead center in the scrawny goblin’s head, killing him instantly. The other goblins then began to kneel in front of their new leader, and Bugtug raised his arms, shouting in victory. After a few self-congratulatory moments, Bugtug said a few words to the goblins, who seemed to visibly relax, and then he jogged back to us.
Bugtug spoke with Phineas who then translated for us. “Bugtug, it appears, is now the chief of this group…he seems intent to call them the Bugtug tribe. From what he gathered, this small tribe spent its time mining and foraging in the tunnels, pretty much minding their own business since there really wasn’t anyone or anything else in the area. A few days ago, one of the mining nodes collapsed into the cavern wall, and that opening appeared.” Phineas pointed toward the web covered hole in the wall. “A few goblins were…volunteered to go into the hole and explore. They never returned. Yesterday, the spiders started to leave the hole. At first, just one or two, and the goblins, with some effort, were able to slay them. Soon, the numbers increased and all the goblin warriors, including th
e chief, were killed in the fighting. We arrived just as the rest of the tribes’ miners were making a last stand to protect the women and children. I believe this may be a unique opportunity for the town. We can trade the goblins food and various trade good and they will mine the ore for us…I, of course, will take a nominal portion of each transaction to compensate for my facilitation of this mercantile endeavor,” Phineas said, and I could tell he was already counting the coin and thinking of ways to swindle the newly christened Bugtug tribe.
“That will be a decision for Delling and something the two of you will have to work out once the threat is over.” I gestured toward the spider hole. “We are going to move forward and see if there is a boss, or something, that needs killing in order to end this,” I said as I received a quest notification.
You have saved the remaining members of the new Bugtug tribe from a spider attack. Reputation with the Bugtug tribe is now Unfriendly. The goblins don’t trust you, or like you, but will not be openly hostile without a reason.
Quest updated: Eliminate the spider threat. Find and eliminate the source of the spiders.
Reward: 250 experience, 10 gold, improved morale, improved relationship between the Bugtug tribe and Hayden’s Knoll.
Accept Y/N
I accepted the updated quest, pleased that the game was increasing the reward, since this seemed much more difficult than we first thought. Just before we entered the web covered hole, a pair of villagers arrived to tell us that other soldiers had arrived. I figured one of the resource gathering teams must have made it back early. I had a feeling we could use all the help we could get. The village messenger was sent back to tell the other soldiers that we were going into the spider lair, and to hurry along as quickly as they could, leaving a small guard to help protect the village.
Chapter 30
The webs around the tunnel entrance proved to not be much of an impediment to our movement. Unlike the other webs we’d encountered, the webs near the entrance were not very sticky, and reeked like a dead skunk had rolled around on them.
“Gads! Since when do webs stink like this?” One of the privates whispered, while holding his nose as we clambered past the smelly entrance to the tunnel.
“From what Quimby taught me, sometimes insects mark paths for the others to follow…like this might mean “food here” to the other spiders. I know spiders aren’t insects, but these seem to behave almost like an ant, or termite colony,” Private Tremble added. I was glad we had him, and a few of the others, train with the halfling rangers. It looked like he had been paying attention during his lessons.
The tunnel was only a crawlspace for the first few yards, and then opened to resemble the other tunnels we were in earlier. The area we passed through looked like it was once part of the mine and had collapsed at some point, sealing off this section of the mine. Only one spider was encountered in the tunnel. This one was scrawny, and its carapace was soft and white like it was a half-baked spider. A soft, blue glow began to appear in the tunnel ahead as we neared another cavern. The lead squad moved into the cavern, then stopped and stared in stunned silence, looking deeper into the cavern.
“Make a hole, private! Don’t block the rest of us!” I ordered and forced my way passed the stunned private blocking the cavern entrance, only to stop and stare myself as the rest of the men filed into the cavern behind me. The cavern was even larger than the one we encountered the goblin miners in. This tunnel was the only entrance and at the other end was the source of the blue light, and the horrifying source of the spider threat.
At the other end of the cavern, a large swirling blue light covered the wall, a portal of some sort. In front of the portal a spider the size of a small house was pacing about. The spider looked like a bigger version of the Fangweb creatures we had fought earlier, save for the fact it had the face of an elvish male. I quickly scanned the creature.
Vhareax the Fangweb Sire: Level 10 Elite (Unique). Vhareax reigns over his spider brood, seeking more victims to feed upon, and more surrogates to spawn his offspring.
*Note this unique creature will not respawn once killed.
Vhareax was guarding another creature that made me retch as I saw it. A large all white spider was standing over four female elves. Surrounding the elves were the web-wrapped bundles of the Fangweb’s victims. The elves were all laying face down on the cavern floor and had their hands and legs wrapped tightly in webs keeping them from moving. A large, opaque blister covered the back of three of the elves. The fourth had an open, bloody wound where the blister would have been and was lying unconscious with just a sliver of health bar left. The other three elves were hissing slightly, in what I thought at first was pain, but which was then revealed to be hunger. The large, white spider noticed the hissing elves and moved a bundled victim in front of each of them. The three elves opened their mouths to reveal a large pair of fangs where their teeth should be. The fangs moved almost as if they had a mind of their own, snapping onto the bundled victims in front of them and slowly draining them of their fluids. What made the scene even more horrifying were the tears streaming down the elf faces, as I understood they, too, were victims in this horror show as well.
Fangweb Midwife: Level 5 (Unique): The Fangweb Midwife tends to the surrogates needs, feeding them and helping them birth new spiders.
Fangweb Surrogate: These poor souls are the humanoid victims of the Fangweb Sire Vhareax. They are condemned to live unnaturally long lives with their bodies twisted and modified to give the new spiderlings a place to grow.
After feeding the three hungry surrogates, the midwife skittered over to Vhareax as a fist-sized spiderling crawled off his carapace and onto the midwife. The midwife then walked over to the unconscious elf, and the spiderling crawled from the midwife and onto the bloody wound covering the elf’s back. It settled into place and then locked its tiny fangs into the elf’s back, feeding on the open wound, more like a tick than a spider. The Fangweb midwife then wrapped the open wound in clear webbing. The webbing must have had some healing properties, and the wounded elf’s health began to slowly tick back up. The sound of several of the men gagging snapped me back to reality.
A level ten elite would be way more than we could handle, but I couldn’t just leave and wait for reinforcements with the victims being slowly drained of life in front of us. I screwed up my courage and addressed the soldiers.
“That is the fate that awaits the whole village if we don’t end this right now. Draw blades and send these abominations back to whatever hell spawned them.” I drew my sword and began to move toward Vhareax, swelling with pride as all seventeen of my soldiers followed, despite the impossible odds. We were out of javelins and there was no time for fancy tactics. This would be a brawl of man versus monster. I activated Command Presence and yelled a challenge as I charged toward the house sized spider.
Vhareax looked to the midwife and hissed. The midwife used her leg to slash the blisters on the back of the three elves that were feeding. Out of each wound a regular Fangweb spider emerged, its carapace soft and white, like the other half-baked spider we fought in the tunnel. The Fangweb midwife and the three newly born spiders joined the attack. I waved Private Tremble and three others towards the midwife and her brood, as the rest of us focused on Vhareax. As we neared, Vhareax reared back and spat a ball of webbing at our approaching line of soldiers. The ball unfurled and tangled up two of the soldiers. Both soldiers began to scream as the web tightened around them, causing damage. Next, Vhareax thrust one of his legs forward toward another soldier. A cracking sound was heard as the leg punched through the shield and then penetrated completely thought the soldier, killing him instantly.
Reaching Vhareax, I slashed as hard as I could at the leg closest to me, the more vulnerable body of the spider was out of reach. The short sword bounced from the hardened carapace of the spider, leaving only a small nick in the armored limb. The soldier next to me had the right idea and swung at the mark I had already made. The crack widened, and milk
y spider blood began to dribble out. I took another swing, chipping a bit more of the carapace away. The soldier next to me wound up for a swing and before he could complete the blow, the leg flashed out and pierced the soldier through his light leather helm. Vhareax then dipped his head down grabbing another soldier in his fangs. The soldier twitched once and was still, Vhareax dropping the dead soldier as an amused smile appeared on his face.
“FEED…Vhareax hungers! You will feed Vhareax and his spawn!” the creature shouted, as it dropped down to snag another soldier in its fangs. The screeching voice seemed to penetrate my very being. How could we stand against such a foe? We were the insects to be swatted and, in this case, consumed by the superior being…wait…why was I thinking this way.
You have resisted Vhareax’s Dominating Shout ability, for the remainder of the fight you will no longer be affected.
I shook my head clearing my thoughts, now that they were my own once again. Only three of the soldiers had resisted the ability. The rest just stood there, waiting for their doom to arrive. Vhareax zeroed in on the soldiers still fighting, skewering one on his leg and grabbing another in his fangs. Vhareax began to confidently consume the soldier in his jaws, no longer needing any weapon other than his deadly, spear-like legs. Looking to the other fight, I could see that Tremble and one of the other soldiers were still in the fight and had killed the Fangweb midwife as well as two of the young spiders. They would soon finish off the last half-baked spider, but I feared two more soldiers weren’t going to make much of a difference. I activated Honor Guard to buy a bit of time, my guard charging to join the only soldier still engaging Vhareax. Having little time to waste, I ran to the closest dominated soldier and began to shake him.
“Get in the fight, soldier! I didn’t give you permission to die yet…go kill that thing!” My yelling and shaking brought the soldier back to his senses, I ordered him into the fight and ran to the next man that was dominated. I saw that Tremble and the other soldier had finished their last foe and were charging to join the fight again.