• Completed • -‡- Spider infestation II -‡- (Mature, Graded)

[Coroth]

Vhalar 3rd 719

-‡- It was after they passed the fork in the corridors, where the squad had separated to go both paths, that this scene would unravel. For along the corridor that was pursued to catch up with the leader of the squad, and those who had followed her through it's length, Coroths ears began to hear the distant sound of lorien being hollered along the echoing walls. Through the echoes, he could feel the conflict of another encounter, one perhaps more critical than the ones they had encountered so far. One which the remaining handful of avriel who were with him were quick to look at one another to confirm the decision that was to be made amongst them.

In another breath, their gear sounded in his ears jostling where they were strapped upon their figures. Weapons were being deftly pulled from sheaths and breaths began to take in the chill in the air that the cavern was providing for them to breath in. Yet, the air had an acidic taint to it. As if there was some pool or source of pungent nature within the caves that would cause such a taint to spread so far from sight. The avriels though, rushed to their companions aid with as much haste as their rarely used legs could muster.
Coroth himself had trouble keeping up as he found himself falling behind. As an archer, he was already in the back position so his bow could be used and put into practice. Yet as young as he was, he was not used to relying on his legs, and the soreness of muscles began to thicken and disrupt his run as his breaths began to labor, and panting breaths were quick to pour forth from his lungs. He though, pushed himself to continue, he had no choice, to stop would be betraying his kin. To stop would be the chance that one of them would die without his aid, even if he was not as skilled as the others. So he had to keep going, and he did. Even as his legs began to burn with the distance, that turned out longer than they were hoping it would be*. For the longer it began to take, the longer someones life might not have for them to be reached.

None the less, afterwards his breaths would cause him to keel over onto his knees to gain them again, the others began shouting at the tops of their lungs, to distract the haired beasts of spiders that were within the opening chamber before them. One of the avriels of the first group was already paralyzed, unmoving, and wrapped up in a length of silk or perhaps the weave of a quickly spun web that kept him pinned to the ground where only the most subtle movements occasionally could be noticed that hinted that he was still alive.

Two other of the avriel were flanking a larger spider than the ones they had encountered earlier. Its' fangs were dripping venom onto the floor beneath it. It's many legs were quick and lethal as they allowed it to prance about between the two fighters who lunged at it with spear and sword in turn. Their aggravation at their inability to kill it was upsetting them. For it was quicker than them, and one of them was already covered partially in webbing, though some of it was noticeably torn free, and hanging loose from the leather pauldron upon his shoulder.

There was another spider too, similar to the other, brown with linings of fur along it's limbs that led to a darker torso that they were all attached to. Beneath one of it's legs, one of the avriels was pinned, covered in webbings which disabled him from moving, the body was being pulled hungrily from the line of other avriels to draw it away, so he could be eaten, or kept for later at least. Yet the few others of the separated group were there, fighting it, or trying to keep it from taking their kin with it.

Coroth in turn, when his breath had regained enough from the run, loosed an arrow from the satchel at his back. Beneath his wing a quiver was harnessed upon his back. The arrows were tied in a sack at the top of it so they would not fall loose during flight, but it was still open from earlier. And the arrows were able to be quickly withdrawn. The feathers were eyed as they came before his eyes whilst notching at the bow. His tongue sent to speed up the process of fixing one of the feathers along its' end to straighten them. Something he hastened to figure out in that moment, and found it worked good enough to suit his whims*.

In another moment, he concentrated on his breaths, on holding them to shrill movements in the cage of his chest as his lungs labored to feed his body oxygen from the pumping of his legs only seemingly a handful of moments earlier. His concentration was set as he fought to determine how best to aim with his bow. And pointed the tip and brought the arrow shaft near to his eye so he could determine it's geometrical path. Then it was loosed. It whirred through the air, the feathers a blur of spinning color to the wooden spur that struck into the spider a moment later. Only it missed the body, driving into one of it's legs to protrude through it's other side.

He silently cursed at his luck, and ill skill. Yet, his fingers were taking up the habit of retrieving another arrow to fit to his bow as his muscles took up the habit from memory like a machine on its' own accord. The shaft was drawn backwards to try again with the aiming, taking a few moments as the spider weaved from side to side as it evaded the lunges of spears and blade that were sent to marr and scrape through the fur that concealed just how much farther they would have to slice to get at the flesh beneath.

The next arrow flew through the air, shattering with an echo against the cavernous walls beyond the spider. Perhaps he was not aiming as well as he hoped. A sigh of degradation at his abilities to help his kin was released. Another arrow was watched as his fingers pried it towards him. The bow felt bending more and more at it's ends as its strength was put into use. Waiting then, as he aimed, for one of the avriel to clear the shot for him as they danced a dance of death and lethal blades with the creature.

It was then, that he looked up, and determined that the ceiling of the chamber was high enough for him to fly. He did just that, his wings unfurled behind him, and pushed him off of the ground. Raising him to a height that allowed him to feed off a series of arrows as he new his supply was beginning to run out. One of them finally buried itself into the creature below after a few were sent from above.* The angle sent it burying into the creatures head, perhaps it was with luck. For as he sought to send another one into it to make sure it would die, it flew too wide, scraping past one of it's legs to bounce and break into the stone of the cavernous floor it stood upon.

It was then that the beast began to stumble as it's blood was loosed from the impaling shaft. Two of the avriels took the opening and charged in to stab and pierce at it's underbelly several times with quick repetitions. Pouring its lifes goo from the opening of orifices. It was then,that Coroth felt a blood raging need to join in. His bow was slung over his shoulder to hook at the quiver behind him so it would not fall away. In a searching breath, his hand grasped at the spear that was harnessed beside the quiver, also beneath the side of his wing at his back. Wings that flapped and caused winds to stir around him as he watched. As his lithe digits fought at the harness' latch to release it, and finally, blindly remembered how to bring it into his grip.

In another breath he was descending, a charge from the air. The spear was long enough to be held at a distance from his side. Both hands were upon it to give it a rigid position to be sent from. His wings fancied the dankness of the caverns air as they shifted, and were quickly batting through the emptiness around him to send him into a quickened flight. A descent that would impale the creature crumbling below as it now fought for the remnants of its' life.

From above it, it saw him in his approach, saw the sharpened end of his spear as it was aimed directly for it. His ability to fly in the cavernous surrounding wavered some as he drew too near. For the spider suddenly saw him, and reared upwards, its fangs dangerously large and of a size that could easily pierce through his head alone. He had to shift his dive, causing the spear to bury into the creatures flank. Blood ran out in short spurts as the laceration was made, as fur was lunged through, and the spears tip skidded across hide to gauge again, here and there, before it had to be pulled away. His wings suddenly keeping him from landing on top of it as it reared upwards to catch at one of his continually weaving wings.

One of his wings was suddenly obstructed from use as a glob of silk webbing was sent against it's interior in those quickly flickering moments of action. It caused him to fall suddenly behind it. The softness of the feathers at his wings were felt through his leather curraiss as he rolled onto the ground. The last echoing cries of the creature sounding off into the corridors adjoining to the chamber and to his very ears as the others of the squad took the moment to finish it off completely.

Breaths were still panting from his lungs after attempting to encounter such a large spider so close. The rearing of the creature could have captured him, and done more damage. He was sure of it. The sounds of his kin boosting each others moral passed to his ears as they rushed to help stave off the second spider that was still fighting for it's life with a fiercer menace. His own moral was felt increasing with the flow of adrenaline, and the rush of the moment. His hands pushed against the dirt upon the stonery beneath him, pushing himself back onto his feet to join them. =‡=

[Coroth]

Vhalar 3rd 719

-‡- Coroth was still prone on the ground as the others rushed to the aid of the remaining avriels who were still fighting one of the arachnids. The spinning weave of silk, hastily cast had collected on a portion of his left wing. Some of it spent in a glob of stickiness that weighed upon the light hang of feathers from concealed flesh and tendons. He flapped his wings strongly from the straining muscles along his back. Sending the silks to loosen some in silent hope. Yet, it seemed plastered upon it. His attentions then were drawn to the fallen avriel nearby who was more covered by the webbing than himself. Unsure if he was alive, he rushed to his prone figure.

He had to crawl a portion of the way back to his feet as he shoved his wings back behind him and out of the way, hoping the webbing wouldn't do more than it already was when they'd fold in amongst themselves. When he reached his fallen comrade, his fingers pulled upon the webbings at his face, along the sides of it to keep from poking at his eyes. The silken encovering had spun a wider weave of silk around his head, with lengths of thicker cords of the silky substance surrounding it and along the rest of his body. A body that wasn't completely covered up by the webbing, but enough that it had sent the avriel to the floor, and had gotten tangled up in it in his attempts to get free that it had wrapped more tightly about him in the process.

When his mouth was revealed, a sudden gasp was drawn in by narrow lips that had begun to grow pink from lack of oxygen pumping the blood into his system. With the sudden intake of air, more would follow until the avriels lithe body could do so normally again. The clang of the battle behind them was easily caught by his ears as they fought on, shouts of aggression and winning the battle erupting from their avriel throats into the cavernous walls that echoed such to any who had ears to listen.

Coroth meanwhile went into haste to free his comrade of the rest of the webbing at his arms so he could help himself. His wings were in a captured state of disarray beneath him and would take several more moments to free compared to what was on his own. What their fate had in store for them in coming moments he knew not. But at least he was breathing again.

Eyes darted forth around him, to where torches had been dropped and illuminated so and so much of the caverns surroundings. A spark caught in his chest as he paid attention to them, and the slow weaving dance of their ends that reached up in a narrowing weave of its' own that sought more air to send it's weave of smoke into the air above. Smoke that he watched continue to slowly drift upwards as if nothing around it mattered in the least.

It was one of such torches that he attempted to concentrate on. Eyes narrowed as if he sought out the spirit of the elemental residing within. The sudden sense of his hearing seemed to grow more enhanced, as if the sizzle and crackle of the miniscule sparks that he could barely see suddenly were his to watch as they spoke to him in its' subtle whisperings. He silently begged it from within for it's aid, an aid it coherently listened to as he seemed most kind in his manner. Aid clarified in another length through the spark between him and it, seeking for more light to reveal more of the chamber. He wanted to be sure there were no other threats in the ceiling above, or beyond the light that it was providing.

Moments were passed as the flames remained the same, the sounds of the air pulling and tugging at the flames perhaps having a silent battle between whether it should aid the avriel who spoke with it or not. It was not asked to do as it was told, but was asked for it's aid instead. And so, a short conversation passed, and it suddenly was given a brightening hue as more of the torch was burned through with an unseen hunger.

The surroundings grew brighter to Coroths' astonishment. Perhaps he had figured out how best to speak with the elementals when he sought their aid. The sudden illumination had another affect as well. For the spider knew little about fire, it was a nocturnal creature, and the sudden blare of light from the flame scared it, threatened it that it would do that on it's own. It was in the middle of fending off a spears tip when it was suddenly distracted by the light. Reeling backwards from the source, it got distracted from his surroundings long enough for one of its' assailants to finally land a blow. A blow that severed its flesh as it moved onto the end of the blade with it's own momentum. Impaling itself deeply enough that it screeched against the walls of the cavern in pain. Its screech intensified as cooperating combatants moved in and took their own hits to finish it off and assure that the advantageous opening was put to use. Blood began splattering the stones beneath it as it was flowing quickly through its heightened movements. Blood that leapt from openings as they were made and spraying forth freely until it would run dry.

And just as suddenly as the light exposed the lack of any more threats on the ceiling above, it died away. Yet, Coroths attentiveness to the ceiling had allowed him to notice a weave of webbing that seemed to spread along it's entirety. An entirety that could conceal openings, or more spiders..or even more. His own inner spirit felt the need to thank the elemental for aiding him. His spark sent it a wave of relief that he found out how to be nice to it and a mutual feeling was shared for a few frethings of a moment before had to give the prone avriel further aid in disentangling himself from the webbing before another attack might come upon them. =‡=

[Coroth]

Vhalar 3rd 719

-‡- As the avriels recuperated from their cavernous excursions, wounds were looked after, fallen comrades were revived to a point that they were able to walk again and be led on further into the cavernous abodes. Enough time was being allowed to pass for them to regain their constitutional clarity. For their health to return to a state where they could be relied upon in combat and not become mere fodder to become a victim a second time if they encountered an even worse situation.

In the meantime, Coroth went about gathering the handful of arrows that had been sent out into the cavernous darkness. A few had snapped like the twigs they sometimes seemed to be. A torch was within his hands, held high to illuminate the distant ceiling high above where if a dark menace were to move about, it would at least be just barely noticeable enough to catch his eye as a forewarning.

It was as he neared the opposing wall of stone and aged mountainous rock that his eyes traveled over the aged layers of webbing that covered other stretches of it's expanse that led elsewhere, and further into the depths of the plateau they were exploring. Seeking to rid the area of these dangerous creatures as their main priority.

Eyes of a dulcet amber shifted before the dancing light of the torch he held. The continual whispering flickers of it's flame being licked at by the air continued to berate and muse with his thoughts. Thoughts that were not his own, and pursued a course of thoughts that his own had to fall silent in their persistence. They thus, were still something he was getting used to listening to. Sometimes his thoughts would clash and cause bursts of anger to ignite within him, as if to fight with it over what was right to think about, and what was not. His ethics secreted away a continual foundation for him to rely upon and resort to as he questioned himself as to whether or not he could rely on the words of the whisperings. Yet, when it began to whisper to him to put it against the webbings, it hungrily goaded him to do so. As if begging him to have something else to burn at. Something else to eat away and dance upon. Or something even more that he could not wholly understand that were difficult to put into words, even the ancient words of Lorien.

No harm seemed of a mind to come from the act, as there were no more arrows nearby, or within sight, he approached the wall where the webbing had been spread along its expanse. Covering up rock and wall alike along certain lengths as if perhaps they used it to hasten their movements upon its' surface. The torch wavered some as it was leaned forward, the core of the flame shifting so it's tail above remained ever reaching for the thinner air higher above as it ate away at the torches oiled end. The whispering flame began to seemingly chant and enthusingly whisper and dance with anticipating greed to satiate its hunger to burn at the webbing, longer and more beggingly as he let it draw closer and closer.

Then, when it finally touched. The lightest amount of the webbing quickly disappeared, burned away as soon as it was passed over. Yet, there were stronger lengths of the silken webbing that were nearby as well. Lengths of such that began to be revealed as it became a leading passage for the flames to pursue, and eat away at. Nor did the flames cease in their passion to burn away at the webbing just in front of him. Instead, the flames began devouring the entirety of the wall, and the entire connecting portions of it, no matter how small or seemingly fragile in thinness in their weave.

In mere moments, the chamber began to light up, growing brighter and brighter as the flames devoured their meal of spider woven silk. Silk that could perhaps have been harvested, and woven into some fine material to be sold on the market. Gasps and astonished utterings were heard by his attentive ears as the other avriels attention drew to the magnificent display. Perhaps a few even feared they would need to leave the chamber entirely as the extent of the network of webbing was further revealed. Even Coroth began to walk backwards, weary, and cautious as his dancing friend mutiplied into many of such flaming companions.

Yet, they began to do more than just illuminate the chamber into a bright display of hungry flames rhythmically dancing and issuing forth sounds against the smoke inducing air, consuming all that they were led to devour. For in portions of the upper walls, small alcoves in the ceiling were revealed, as well as in the walls. Openings where things had been secreted, buried in webbing, like their avriel companions earlier. But the ones now being revealed had died long ago. For just then, their skeletal remains began to loosen from their above containments.

Sometimes several bones fell at once to clatter and shatter on the ground below. Then at times an entire body would fall away, acrid in smell. Ash and dust causing a cloud of dust to suddenly burst into the air as they struck the ground and pieces of their bodies fell apart due to their aged state of being. But not just one or two fell from above, but more than a handful. One after the other as their silk entombed places of rest had been removed, and they were exposed once again to the eyes of the living.

Coroth had to avoid one of such falling corpses. It nearly fell on top of him as he was backing away. Then decided it was safer with the others as they neared the way they entered the chamber, ready to leave and flee if something else was revealed that they might not be prepared to handle.

Yet, when the flames were done, the room began to darken as less was fed upon. As the dwindling inferno began to die away, and their torches became the remaining sources of light to rely upon to see with. Gesticulations were made for the them to search the bodies and discern if anything of value or importance would be theirs to discover. For they were treasure seekers as well as exterminators in these caverns.

Coroth led two others to begin searching at the disarrayed corpses. His bow had been harnessed earlier, and he took out one of his swords to begin prying at darkened remnants of clothing that still clung upon bone and dried up, shriveled flesh. A sheathed weapon was found, the sheath itself was dried up leather worn with age and rivets that had rusted over and became brittle. He knelt downwards, illuminating the corpse all the more closely as he touched at the sheathed weapons handle. Notches, and grooves had marred away at the corded grip that was layered with dirt and rust. The blade was able to be budged just barely from it's aged home, revealing it had been eaten away by rust, and exposing its loss of worth entirely.

The others would not find much worth value as they took some time to search and realize how long these arachnids had been within the cavernous depths. And they now were imposing upon their long time home, and were killing them off in the process.

"What was theirs will be ours when were through here…let's move on..," the whispered feminine voice of their leader spoke against echoing walls that were now bare of silken encoverings. Perhaps the dead could hear her words, but they would not move with them as they gathered themselves back into a combat readiness and began to head into the next corridor, and further into the depths. =‡=

[Octopie]

Unlocking Your Rewards!

Comments

You write action very well, it was a longer thread but the way you wrote it, it went by quickly. The descriptions of both what Coroth was feeling and what was happening around him were nicely tied in and it felt like a very complete story even though it ended with foreshadowing of more to come. Good job and enjoy your rewards!

Points

10

Can be use for magic? Yes or No

Knowledge

Skill
Combat :Ranged -Bow-Lick arrow feathers to straighten them.
Combat :Ranged -Bow - if allies are in the way, fly to make the shot.
Combat :Ranged -Bow - Barraging the foe with arrows will allow at least one to hit.
Running: You can keep going, even if it starts to burn your muscles.
Running: Having people to run with or keep up with helps you keep going too.
Magic : Defiance - Ask nicely of the elemental and it will be more willing to help.

Non
NA

Loot

NA

Wealth

NA

Renown

+5 for helping murder some spiders

Injuries

NA