With the route to Hullbreak being scouted, you’d think the home front would be nice and quiet. Or at least I’d hope it’d be nice and quiet, but there are two things looking to ramp up. Firstly: we’re starting to see more scythemaw activity. None are wandering out of the water yet, but we’re definitely seeing more of them closer to shore.

So not quite defcon 1… or is it defcon 5? I always forget if it counts up or down. I’ll just say we’re at three: a moderate pucker, but still nowhere near a panic. The bypass isn’t done yet, and I seriously doubt it will be done by the time this thing kicks off, but I’m not ordering Coda off the project. I’ve given him the suggestion, but he wants to keep working. I’m proud of that bat.

The other thing that’s ramping up is the spider enclave. It looks like they’ve figured out what the bottleneck was. It was their leadership. Folarn may have been stepping up into the role, but she very clearly doesn’t actually want the role of leader. So, between the various preparations for dealing with scythemaws and in making their enclave the best it can be, two other major figures have arisen, each from the other two main spider types.

From the widows and orb weavers, comes the Master Seamstress Norloke. She seems to be more of a pumpkin spider than a widow, which is interesting to me. I would have thought one of the widows would have stepped up, but that’s just not the case. I think partially because Norloke is just a really good fit for leadership.

She’s a bit chunky and quite orange, as any healthy pumpkin spider should be, and has that air of a mom who knows everything that happens under her roof; the kind to wield a wooden spoon both to make dinner and to keep rowdy children in line, yet can be more soft and caring when needed, too. She’s definitely more focussed on keeping the enclave running smoothly and dealing with internal issues, though.

From the hunting/jumping spiders, we have the Huntsmistress Vernew, who seems to be based on a jumping wolf spider, or at least what we used to call them back home. Small and lithe, colored in various stripes of grey, she’s one of the smaller jumpers, but probably the best hunter. It was actually her plan that led to them getting that one scythemaw not long ago.

She’s pretty brash and boastful in the enclave, but is all business when out on a hunt, at least so far as I’ve been able to tell. Some of the expeditions spot her doing her thing, or more often cleaning a kill after she’s done her thing. She seems focused mostly on hunting, obviously, but also on other threats that the deeps might send the enclave’s way. She’s also the most spiritual of the three, and keeps a small orange gemstone on a string of her own silk on her at all times. I wonder if she might become a shaman or something, instead of a ranger.

And of course, Folarn of the tarantulas is more or less the military leader, and reluctant face to outsiders. She’s very good at keeping her people safe, but a bit out of her depth when it comes to the other duties of leadership. Norloke is excellent at keeping them housed and clothed, but despite her expert wielding of the mom voice, she’s not a fighter. And Vernew can keep the spiderkin fed, and talk about The Weaver of the Threads (me, bleh), but has little desire or skill to do much else.

Which I think is why they were stalled for a bit. I think Folarn understands the problem, though, so she’s asked the other two to meet with her to discuss things. Folarn’s home is rather spartan, unsurprisingly, but she has done what she can to make her guests comfortable. She has a few different slings hanging from the ceiling for them to relax on, and has prepared a couple cave lobsters for them to eat.

Vernew is the first to arrive, and greets the large tarantulakin with a smile. “Folarn! How’re you doing? Those delvers aren’t making you rub a bald spot on your butt, are they?” she jokes before hopping onto a sling to lounge. Folarn simply rumbles a soft chuckle and shakes her head as she moves to relax on her silken floor.

“No, they’re no trouble. Aside from the inspector and the two green children, it’s mostly miners who venture this deep. They’ve traded for a few things, but say they can’t do much more until we become officially independent from Weaver Thedeim.”

Vernew slightly bows her head at my name. “Yeah, I hear the ratkin had to deal with the same thing. But you said you think you know why our bars are stuck?”

“Yes, but I would like to wait for Norloke before explaining. If I’m right, it will require at least us three to resume the progress of our bars, and our ascension to true dwellers and spiderkin.”

“I like the sound of that. The delvers have all kinds of interesting things to trade for, and we might be able to do some hunting up there once we’re recognized. Maybe we can get some bread from that bakery across the street, too. The Reader of the Web says the Weaver of the Threads likes baked stuff. I’ve never actually had any!”

Folarn chuckles once more. “Scion Tiny is likely right about that. I’ve heard some of the miners complaining about only being able to afford hard biscuits for a week because of a failed wager on something. The Weaver likes to see all enjoy the small comforts in life. Scion Honey says it is mostly wheat, and I’ve seen a picture of the plant. Perhaps we can obtain some and try to get it to grow down here.”

Vernew winces a bit at that. “I don’t think it’ll work, at least not without someone with a good affinity for it. Stuff down here grows way differently than on the surface.”

Folarn shrugs. “You’d know better than I. Still, I think we could figure out something.” The two chat for a few more minutes until Norloke pokes her head in at the entrance.

“Folarn? Ah, you’re both already here!” she says with a smile and Folarn gets up to embrace her while Vernew simply waves.

“Come take a sling and relax. Folarn says she has a plan to get our bars finished.”

“I do, but first, let us enjoy a meal together. If my plan works, I feel we will be doing so regularly.”

Norloke looks interested in the idea, but is patient enough to climb into a sling and accept a cooked whole lobster from her host. The three eat quickly, and for me, it’s like watching a trainwreck. Their mouths have so many moving pieces… you’d think they’d make a huge mess. But no, all those pieces grab and move and… bleh. This must be how some people come to be afraid of spiders and bugs.

Thankfully, it doesn’t take them long to eat, and once they’re done, it seems Vernew can’t hold her curiosity in check. “So? What’s the idea?!” she asks with excitement, earning a motherly smile from Norloke, and an amused sigh from Folarn.

“I have, reluctantly, been taking the role of leader of the enclave for a while now,” she starts, and the two simply nod. “But there is much I can’t do.” She looks over to Vernew first. “I can’t go out and hunt, or go out and gather. While I’m certain I could fell any beast out there, with the possible exception of a scythemaw, I’m also certain I would ruin much of the meat.”

“Yeah. Spears and javelins are great because they put smaller holes into important bits. A big axe would kill the thing dead, but make a huge mess to try to dress,” she small spiderkin says, nodding. Folarn nods and turns her attention to Norloke.

“And while I can keep the enclave from outside danger, I can’t give them homes and jobs and guidance.”

“Oh, don’t sell yourself short. But I get what you mean. Trying to keep the fighters fit while also trying to organize and place everyone… that’d be too much for even tarantula strength to bear.”

Forlorn nods at that once more. “Then you two see the problem. I can’t run this, but I think you two, together, can.”

Vernew stands in her sling and points a dramatic and accusing finger at the larger spiderkin. “No way! You’re not getting out of this that easily!”

Norloke smiles and nods at that. “You most certainly are not, no. The outsiders are too used to you now, for you to try to step into some quiet subservient role.”

Folarn looks pretty unhappy at that, but she doesn’t argue. “Fine. We three together can run this enclave. Vernew: the hunting and the spiritual needs of our people. Norloke: the internal needs of clothing, housing, and peace between ourselves. And I will handle our protection… and our diplomacy, if you two insist.”

The two smile wide and nod, with Vernew speaking first. “Think of it as punishment for trying to get out of this.”

“You’re much better at it than you think you are, Folarn,” adds Norloke. Folarn doesn’t look too convinced, but she’s not going to try to overturn the decision of her fellow councilwomen.

While I’m glad for them figuring out the hurdle, the timing makes me a bit nervous. I think they’ll want to do a ceremony like the ratkin did to finalize the transition, and they sure seem to want to do it before the scythemaws do their thing. On the one hand, it makes sense. They’ll probably have to wait quite some time for the scythemaws to settle down, if they try to wait.

But on the other hand, they’ll be fully independent, so they can’t respawn if the worst happens. Ugh, it’s no wonder Hullbreak went nuts when some of his dwellers died. They’re like my children, in a way, and I want to see them succeed, and do what I can to protect them.

But I won’t make Hullbreak’s mistake. Maybe my perspective is weird from having died, but… danger is part of life. People can be bottled up, and sure, they might survive. But people don’t want to simply survive. They want to live.