Chapter 25: Solid Progress

Rihelah turned from Michael as soon as he regained the ability to walk. Without hesitation, she sent four streams of pressurized water through the stone crawler once more. Two pierced its last functional limb at the knee before disrupting muscle tissue inside its femur.

The crawler spat more acid in front of its face, but otherwise lay still while continuing to twitch its ruined legs.

[Okay! It’s disabled! Now, to put it out of its misery...] Michael wagged his antennae.

Rihelah shook her head but said nothing as they both set about finishing the poor creature off.

Group kill of Stone Crawler Level 19. Experience Split.

Scythe Saint has reached Level 6! +10 STR, +5 AGI, +5 INT

HP 348/348 (+11HP/30sec.)

MP 248/248 (+9MP/min.)

STR 50

AGI 51

INT 63

Shroud Walker has reached Level 6! +5 STR, +5 AGI, +10 INT

HP 161/161 (+11HP/30sec.)

MP 362/478 (+14MP/min.)

STR 26

AGI 26

INT 111

[Whoa!] Michael flexed his forelegs a few times, then turned to look at Rihelah. [I can feel a huge difference! All my legs are stronger! Much stronger!]

[Me too! I can finally bite through this damn exoskeleton without straining!] She happily sheared off another mouthful while saying so.

Having eaten recently, they divided one of the crawler’s large jumping legs in half and each added that to the larder in their storage.

[You know, I guess it makes sense because these bodies don’t sweat, but it’s kinda weird not needing to drink much water.] Michael mused.

Rihelah looked at him and her mandibles fell open. [I… I hadn’t thought of that.]

[When we were little, you always paid a lot more attention to what was in your books than to the world around you; except when I pointed things out.]

[Michael… You tried to skip over entire chapters when we read Lord of the Rings and the Oz books together!]

[Some things are just unnecessary!]

[Plot? Character development? Setting?]

[Meh. I wanted to read the important parts!]

[I swear… Those books wouldn’t have ten pages each if we took away everything but the fight scenes!]

[It would streamline the reading process quite a lot!]

[It would ruin those stories! They’re classics for a reason, Michael!]

[Yeah, because people eventually slog through far enough to reach the good parts! Actually, I have a confession.]

[Oh?] She asked tersely.

[I’m just fuckin’ with you. I learned to read through stories properly in High School. I went through all those books again. You really thought I was still-]

[You’re a pain in the ass!]

[Yep! But you’re still cute as hell when you’re annoyed!]

[Except now I might literally bite your head off!] She snapped her mandibles at him.

[Hey! That’s not funny.]

[You started it. Dick.]

[Okay, I’ll admit I deserved that.]

[We finally agree on something!]

[Right. Well, we need to get moving. Let’s head toward the water?]

[Sure. For the record, you’re still an ass.] She turned away from him.

[An ass who loves your ass.]

[Sometimes I wonder.]

[Nah, you don’t.] He caught up and walked beside her.

[No, not really.] She “stumbled” against him, then found his antennae with hers.

Having freed herself from the confines of a suit of armor that no longer fit her freshly-formed body, the creature wearing the gorgeous, feminine flesh-suit that had once been Kaleb found suitable garments in the bottom drawer of his wardrobe.

Her raven-black hair and ice-blue eyes appeared striking within the slightly-tan skin she had smoothed and re-purposed from Kaleb’s body.

Two sizable lumps of gangrenous flesh remained after being discarded by her within Kaleb’s boots.

She smiled at the lifetime of information and experience she’d gained while consuming his mind. This had been her first full meal; a sapient being who had offered no resistance at all.

Most importantly, she found it was quite possible that the creatures she sought were still alive.

She exited Kaleb’s hovel to find soldiers filing into the encampment. They quickly restrained her, but thanks to Kaleb’s memories she knew exactly how to deal with such men.

A smile and a wink earned her intimate access to the mysterious invaders. She allowed their officers to make use of her body while she made use of their tendency to brag.

One piece of information in particular stood out.

Sso, the antss and those wicked elves have fled Nytaliss, but their whereaboutsss are unknown…

Eager for as much intelligence on her prey as possible, she entertained eleven such men to the fullest of her new body’s ability, simultaneously earning enough of their trust to avoid being locked up.

During the night, she slipped out of their commander’s bed and crept into the forest before breaking into a mad sprint.

Ducking past trees and bushes, she bared her teeth in a satisfied grin while recalling a particular bit of information from her late host’s memories.

If it’s refuge they sseek, there is but one posssibility…

[No way! I’m not trying that again!] Michael exclaimed while backing away within the crevasse they’d found just a few meters above the cavern floor.

Rihelah stopped advancing and looked down in frustration. [We-we could maybe-]

[No! We’re not even hungry, and your forelegs still latched onto me!]

[I know, and I’m sorry! This body just does its own thing sometimes!] She buried her face against the back of her forelegs.

[Yeah, and those ‘sometimes’ are when we try to do anything resembling mating! Look… We’ll figure something out. But I don’t want to try again until after our next evolution! You didn’t try to bite this time, for which I’m grateful! But what if your instinct suddenly decides it’s kosher to cast a spell at me?]

[I want to be close with you, Michael! We only got one chance to-]

[There will be more chances! I’m not leaving you, Rihelah. I just don’t wanna end up as a snack!]

[This is bullshit! I hate these bodies…]

[I know what you mean. But it’s not all bad. At least we’re not tiny humans! Can you imagine how squishy and fragile we’d be?]

[Oof… Good point.] She paused for a moment, and her antennae began rising with her hopes. [But still, I think maybe we could-]

[No.]

Rihelah’s antennae drooped at his rebuke.

[Not yet. It’s just not the right timing for that stuff. Think about the long-term, here. I love you, and that’s not gonna change just because we can’t be intimate right now.]

[Easy for you to say, but you’ve had a lot of experiences already, while I-]

[Sure, but I’ve only had one experience that mattered to me.] He said pointedly, while touching his antennae to hers.

[You really mean that?] She looked up at him hopefully.

[I really do.]

[Oh…] She reciprocated with her antennae.

[We can get through this, Rihelah. Come what may, you’re the girl I want to be with. Let’s keep working at getting out of here and try to level toward our next evolution!]

[Okay… We can’t be too far from it! We evolved at Level 10 the first time!] She perked up visibly at his reassurance.

[Let’s get with it!]

They exited the shallow stone cleft to continue climbing the cavern wall, far enough from the waterfall’s edge to avoid being drenched.

The pair had traveled scarcely another ten meters before a piercing shriek assaulted their hearing.

[Ahh! My eargina!] Rihelah cried.

[Your what?!] Michael whipped his head toward her.

[Nevermind that! Look!] She pointed the tip of one foreleg up and he followed her gaze.

The silhouette of a sinuous, undulating body with ominous leathery wings seemed to grow rapidly against the “starlight” of the cavern ceiling.

Michael and Rihelah tensed for a split second until Michael yelled, [This way! Quick!]

She scurried after him, toward possible refuge within a vertical fissure just visible to their left. Another shriek assaulted the pair, and both increased the urgency of their flight along the rock face toward the crack.

They ducked inside with just a couple seconds to spare before furry, clawed feet delved after them and snapped shut just millimeters from Rihelah’s backside.

The huge grasping limbs blocked out most of the cavern’s meager light while slapping around and straining against the aging stone surface in search of prey.

Target info popped up after they spun around to focus upon their attacker’s feet while backing away as they clung to the large crack’s vertical interior.

Target

Status

Elongated Muskbat Level ???

Hostile - Hunting You

[Holy shit!] Rihelah exclaimed in terror, as they both backed further in.

[Hey, there’s a light coming from this direction!] Michael turned to move away from the entrance while seeking the source of a soft blue glow.

[Wait for me, dammit!] Rihelah skittered frantically after Michael, nearly losing her grip upon the damp stone wall in her haste.

[Careful!] He exclaimed, and stopped to wait for her.

Rihelah clung furiously to the wall for a moment, then crept carefully toward Michael while checking each foothold twice.

Once she’d reached Michael, they continued together.

A final, frustrated shriek pierced the air behind them as the scratching ceased and dim light flooded in once more from the main cavern.

[It’s okay. I’m pretty sure that thing can’t reach us in here.] He made a valiant effort to steady his voice despite the adrenaline coursing through his body.

[I’m getting really sick of being hunted by everything!] Rihelah snapped angrily while clinging tenaciously to the rock face.

[You and me both!] He agreed.

The light ahead slowly grew more intense the further they delved into the stone wall of the cavern, and after several meters of travel they emerged into a sloped, mostly-circular shaft that curved away slightly up and to their right, and downward toward the left.

The luminous, smooth stone lining the tunnel resembled what they’d seen inside the fire ant nest.

[Another worm tunnel?] Rihelah mused.

[Sure looks like it, though quite a bit smaller than the one we fell through.] Michael agreed.

Both of them looked to the right, then at each other.

[Definitely upward!] Michael turned to move along the upward sloping tunnel, stopping himself to look back at her.

[Mm.] Rihelah responded contentedly as she fell into step beside him.

A few minutes after they’d started walking, they came upon a cluster of familiar blue lights dangling almost halfway down from the tunnel’s ceiling.

[Hey! I saw those things when I first arrived in this world!] Rihelah exclaimed.

They approached with caution, until a slew of identical info windows appeared.

Target

Status

Starlight Creeper Level ??

Patient - Lying in Ambush

[That sounds pretty fucking ominous. They’re too high-level to see that info, and there are dozens of those hunting together.] Michael stopped in place.

[Mm.] Rihelah nodded quietly.

After careful testing, they discovered each starlight creeper immediately attacked when a thrown chunk of fresh scolumendra meat from Michael’s storage contacted the luminous globules of glue at the end of their silken strands.

Once one of them had detected something edible, the others slithered up from their own traps and along the ceiling before joining in the feast.

[That’s a bit unsettling, Michael… Those creeper things are working together!] Rihelah shuddered and pressed herself against Michael’s side while both kept their attention riveted on the sight just ahead.

[You’ve seen them before?]

She nodded. [Yeah, but last time they weren’t so close… You know, these remind me of worms that live in caves on Earth! They’re pretty similar in a lot of ways, from what I remember. The worms on Earth use some kind of toxic secretion against their prey…]

[Fuck that. I’m sick of dealing with biotoxins!] Michael remarked.

[You and me both!]

[Looks like they’re all busy. Let’s see if we can pass underneath. Ready to run?] Michael offered.

[Mm. Yeah… I really don’t like it, but I can’t see any other choice. These tunnel walls are too smooth for us to climb.] She shook her head reluctantly.

[Ready?] Michael asked.

[Not really, but I don’t think we have much choice…]

Michael counted to three and they bolted as quickly as possible beneath the glowing worms.

To their relief, the creepers seemed not to notice their passing in the slightest.

The same held true when Michael tossed a piece of centipede flesh onto the tunnel floor beneath another gathering of creepers. However, not long after he’d picked the meat up and they moved along, the worms began abseiling from the ceiling behind them.

[Shit! Do you think they smelled the meat?] Rihelah’s antennae swept backward in apprehension.

[Seems likely…]

[I don’t want to fight slimy worms that use glue and silk as weapons, Michael…]

[No shit… Fuck that!]

When they came to a third group of creepers, they scrambled past it before Michael tossed another chunk of meat onto the tunnel floor. Within 30 seconds, the worms began rappelling upon silken lines, and within a few seconds of reaching the bottom, they had converged upon the meat like glowing maggots.

[It’s probably a really bad idea to get injured underneath those…] Michael noted.

[Way to make me feel safe, jackass!] Rihelah smacked him lightly.

[What? I’m just saying!]

[Yeah, well I don’t have to like it!]

They meandered slowly upward with the tunnel for hours. Along the way, the mantids passed beneath dozens of patches of worms, along with a few larger groups numbering in the thousands.

In each case, the starlight creepers seemed to prefer a communal lifestyle. Also in each case, they moved as quickly as possible until they had passed completely beyond the intimidating swarms.

The only other signs of life they noticed aside from the starlight creepers were tiny, roach-like creatures that scurried away too quickly to be identified as they approached.

The tunnel’s walls occasionally held cracks like the one from which they’d entered, it seemed the tiny arthropods took refuge within those.

The long tunnel finally came to an end, and both mantids swore when they found themselves back inside Velrake’s enormous cavern.

The difference was, now they stood much higher while looking out from the wall, close to the gigantic ceiling covered by innumerable clusters of starlight creepers.

[Fuck.] Michael muttered.

[How the hell are we supposed to get out of here?!] Rihelah backed away from the edge where the tunnel opened to Velrake’s cavernous Lair.

[[Use your heads!]] A soft whisper from the Dragon’s voice echoed in their minds.

[Right! And if our heads had wings, maybe that would be helpful!] Rihelah spat bitterly.

There came no response, and Michael gave a telepathic sigh.

[Let’s at least see whether we can find another way up.] Michael moved closer to the edge and gingerly placed one of his front foot-claws outside to grasp around. He found the stone of the main cavern’s wall much drier than what they’d experienced near the waterfall.

His foot-claws easily found purchase against the rough stone, and within two seconds he hauled himself onto the main cavern’s wall, disappearing from Rihelah’s sight.

[Michael! Don’t leave me al-] She started to panic.

[We can climb this!] He popped his head back into view from above.

[Damn it! Don’t go running off on me!] She stepped closer, but seemed reluctant to get near the edge.

[Come on! The surface is easy to hold onto!]

[Maybe so, but this tunnel’s floor is slippery!] She countered, while remaining rooted to the spot.

[Don’t tell me you’re afraid of heights after everything we’ve been through!]

[I wasn’t… Damn you! This is different, Michael! We’re like a mile above that cavern floor, and this tunnel feels almost like glass!] She slid her feet around slightly for emphasis, then stiffened up when they slid farther than she’d intended.

[You can do this. Just grip onto the exterior wall with your claws. You’ll see!] He gestured toward where he’d climbed out with a foreleg.

[I don’t believe this shit…] She grumbled while inching forward.

When she had come within a centimeter of the drop-off, Rihelah flattened herself against the worm-tunnel’s floor and slid upon her belly the rest of the way.

Michael held his breath while sending her encouragement, afraid she might panic. [You can do this, Rihelah.]

[I…] She paused.

Both of them looked out over the expanse of the huge Dragon Lair as something caught their eyes.

A familiar, titanic reptilian shape had started to glow brightly in the distance, illuminating a similarly-massive nest that appeared to have been grown with gigantic vines.

Velrake raised one of her reptilian arms to wave at them, then curled herself up on the nest and faded into the background as she stopped emitting light.

Damn it… Rihelah resumed creeping forward, but stopped when she felt the rough surface of the wall outside.

She had almost started to climb the wall when she made the mistake of looking down. Rihelah flattened herself and started to inch backward as panic set in.

[Michael, I… I can’t!]

[Then I’ll help! I can pick you up easily while holding onto this wall, then I’ll help you get situated.] He moved around until his head and thorax poked up from below the edge of the tunnel.

[Fuck! That’s not okay, Michael! I’ll fall! We’ll both fall! We can’t just go-]

[Rihelah. Do you trust me?]

[I… Of course I do, but-]

[Do you really think I’d let my favorite person fall to her death?]

[Well, no… But that’s not the-]

[Think about how strong we are, Rihelah. Could you lift me up?]

[Uh… That’d be super easy, but we’re talking abou-]

[I’m bigger and stronger than you are. You saw our stats. My strength is nearly twice what you have. You just stay flat on the floor, and get close. I’ll pick you up gently and move you over to the wall. All you have to do is grip the surface, and you’ll be fine!]

[Are you sure? You won’t slip? We’ll never even make it to the bottom before being eaten with those muskbat-things flying around! And even if we did, there’s still scolumen-]

[Rihelah! Stop overthinking! Just keep your eyes on me, and let me help. You’re my girl, and I’m not going anywhere without you.]

[I… Okay.] Rihelah crept timidly forward while clenching her mandibles.

[I’m gonna reach out and pick you up. I’ll start by just lifting you above the floor.]

[…Mm.] She replied apprehensively.

Michael gripped her thorax gently but firmly with his forelegs and hoisted her easily before holding her steadily in place.

[Do you feel safe?]

[The floor’s still under me, so kinda? But it doesn’t feel like you’re straining, so that’s good…]

[Now I’m moving you onto the wall out here. Just keep watching me. Being with you is the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Rihelah. I’ll never let any harm come to you if I can help it.]

By the time he’d finished speaking, Michael had smoothly lifted her and walked sideways along the wall with his four hind legs before placing her against the surface, where her claws fiercely gripped the rough stone.

[Okay! You’re on! Feel better?]

[Kinda… But that’s still a long way down!] She clung tightly to the wall.

[So stop facing downward!]

[That’s-]

She stopped talking and carefully turned herself around.

Rihelah breathed a sigh of relief once the distant cavern floor was in her peripheral vision.

She moved alongside him and rubbed her left antenna against his right. [Michael, I am so kissing you for this if we can ever be human again!]

[I’ll hold you to that!]

[You’d better! Seriously, thank you. I don’t think I could’ve done that by myself.] She laughed nervously.

[Welp, it’s time for us to get moving again! We still have to find our way out of here.]