Chapter 91: Beware the fish
Chapter 91: Beware the fish
I hurriedly put my flask back into my bag, even though my tongue still tasted like a city’s dump. Before my eyes, the monster shrunk from a fat worm into a thin worm, and what’s more, the huge hole I cut in its side grew back like the creature was never wounded, and even the missing arms of it were like new.
Regeneration, too? Oh, it would be the worst meal in my life—and since most of that life passed in Hell, that was saying something—but now I had to go through it. I brandished my claws again and readied myself.
The monster lunged at me like a lightning, flying through the air like a hairy spring with one pointy end aimed right at me. Astonished by a sudden burst of speed, I didn’t even start dodging for a moment, and then it was too late.
The beast’s beak hit me right into stomach, cracking my magic armour but, thankfully, being stopped by the more mundane spider silk shirt. Still, the force of it was enough to force me out of the air. The best I could do was grouping myself so when my feet heavily landed on the stone shore, I immediately jumped in the air again, while the beast needed a moment to gather its coils back again. Instead of crawling like a worm, it now stood on its appendages like a centipede, except that this creature had hands—or legs, or whatever—on the back and stomach, too.
I didn’t have time to fly far before it swiped its tail at me—it looked much longer now that it was thinner, and at the same time spit not one, but three globs of acid at me in a spree.
I needed to make a choice what to dodge. My wings carried me away from the beast’s tail, but I let the claws graze my magic armour so I could avoid the acid. One glob flew so close that a few drops fell on me, but the armour stopped them.
Yeah, if this was the weakest spell, I was curious to see the rest. Until now I’ve been stingy with my EXP, but maybe after this encounter I would let Pest get more of it.
Once again, the beast didn’t let me rest or prepare as it launched its next attack—another attempt to ram me with its beak. Still, this time I was more prepared. I didn’t know where this sudden burst of energy came from—there was no glow like from “Berserk” ability, and it came with an increase in size, not decrease, but what was important was to kill the beast!
Which meant attacking. One time, the beast failed to wound me, and that crack in the magic armour had already restored itself. I bet on that, and instead of concentrating all I had in defence, I focused on the offence.
The beak of the monster grabbed at my leg with enough strength to crack my armour once more, but I was already retaliating by clawing at its head. Without the fat, it was much easier to see the creature’s skill and to go for it. I had a hope to get to the brain.
Too bad my weapons were too short. I made a good gash in the monster’s front, but then it let me go with a final throw onto the shore. I bounced up from that again and hovered a meter above the water, but the beast was relentless—and I already saw the wounds I left regenerating.
Maybe it would be the best to retreat and find the creature later. It was a tough one. Next time, I would be better prepared, with abilities tailored against it specifically.
I just had time to think about it, when with a splash, a fish jumped out of the water and bit into my leg. It must’ve been attracted by all the blood that had been dripping off me into the water. Stupid me, forgetting about the fish!
The small beast didn’t bite through my armour, but its appearance itself distracted me enough that when the worm monster spit more of its acid at me, I noticed it far too late. I only had time to turn towards the incoming threat, and it was right there, in my face. My only vulnerable zone.
As the horrible pain of the acid eating through my flesh filled my entire being, I vaguely registered more of it dripping down my armour. It didn’t matter anymore, though.
With all the speed I could muster, blind and scent-deaf, I dove into the water, forgetting about the man-eating fish and other dangers of it—anything to wash the acid away. I hurt, it hurt so much, just like evolution—but I didn’t have a luxury of curling into a ball and waiting for it to pass.
Instead, I washed the acid off my face as well as I could in five seconds, and flew out of the water again. Now I was the blind as bat one, with only hearing to guide me—and what I heard was the sound of many claws hitting the stone as the worm beast followed me.
I flew away from it, reaching out with my hands until I hit the wall at full speed. Then, after a second to shake off that impact, I followed the wall in the same direction—away, away, away. I needed to rest, a good, long rest. And evolve something for my face again. It was ruined, completely ruined, and more importantly, were ruined my eyes and nose.
Until I regenerated them or evolved another way to navigate in the dark, I was essentially helpless.
I flew, and then walked, until I couldn’t hear anything around me—no monsters, no river, no wind. That’s when I realised that in my hurry and pain, I didn’t leave any marks on the walls I passed. I wasn’t just blind and helpless. I was also lost.
Alone, with only Pest for a company, in the dark, surrounded by giant insects, reptiles and abominations of all kinds.