Zephyria soared over the forest slowly looking for stronger prey. Everything I've learned of those heroes paints them as unassailable forces of nature. I knew I was lucky to get out alive, but I never considered how lucky I was I caught them fresh after a powerful hunt. They were arrogant and lazy, letting me take one of them out. I won't get another opportunity like that again. Undoubtedly they are doing whatever it is that mortals do to strengthen their mortal mana-cores as well. I must stoke my heart-flame and grow even greater than these honorless mortals.
With thoughts of revenge and power in her mind, Zephyria spotted several smaller enemies. A pair of Wolzards there, a small pack of Iron Wolves here. Nothing worth her time. Randomly flying is never going to work. Perhaps if I take inspiration from my books? Powerful magical creatures were always at locations of significance. Are there any landmarks around? Zephyria scanned the distance rather than trying to peer through the trees from above. Ahead of her, she spotted a massive tree in the distance with oddly white leaves. To her right, she saw a small mountain with a fairly level looking top and to her left the trees seemed to grow even denser than ever before. Behind her was the city Asher was in.
I'll need to ask Asher about some of these locations, maybe the mortals have explored them already? I've never had to ask someone about directions before though, what is that system the mortals use? Cardinal? I know one of my stories was about an explorer, I'm still upset I ruined that one years ago. I never did find a replacement. But, I think I remember enough, I just hope my story holds true. West is the direction of the setting sun, east is the rising. North and south are harder to remember. Never Eat.. Something. It moves to the right so north is to the left of the east.
Having somewhat poorly remembered Cardinal directions, Zephyria committed the locations to memory. The city is behind me to the east, and our meeting spot is further east of that. The giant tree is east of the city, the mountain is south east of the city and that oddly dense stretch of forest is north east then.
Zephyria kept traveling east towards that oddly white and massive tree. The longer she flew the more she was surprised by the sheer size of this tree. Its canopy cast shadows upon dozens of normal trees. As the canopy itself came into a more clear view, she realized this massive tree's leaves weren't white, they were wrapped up in something pale and slightly glistening. What could have wrapped an entire tree like that? Flying closer, she noticed that many of the closest trees had this odd substance as well, though far less. Even the ground around the tree seemed to glisten oddly.
When she got close enough to the tree to see details, she circled it a few times. This is the work of something alive. It reminds me of spider silk but I've never seen a spider bigger than my claw before. Surely this isn't a colony of spiders that small? It would take numbers beyond what I can count to create this. This must be the work of giant spiders, but I didn't think they were real! There must be another explanation. Spotting something she flew a bit closer. There's something moving among the canopy of the trees along the edge of the webbing. I cannot tell if the creature is dark in color, or cast in shadows deeper than what is natural. They are large too, although thankfully seem to be few in number. Maybe a single one per tree? It's eerily quiet here too, not even the sounds of birds or insects.
Playing it safe, Zephyria landed far outside the webbing and walked closer to where she saw the creatures. Before she had even realized, it she had walked through a web that was almost invisible in the shade of the surrounding forest. Whatever this web is supposed to be, it isn't sticking to my scales for some reason. Is the web simply not sticky, or am I fortunate in some odd manner? The web was growing denser as she powered through it all unimpeded. Passing through net after net, Zephyria was loosely coated in webs now. She periodically shook herself to dislodge most of them but they still tangled annoyingly around her horns and between her claws.
The eerie silence was broken by a loud squeal to her right, A boar? Is it being attacked? Zephyria crouched and stalked towards the sounds. Drawing close, she kept to the deepest shadows the best she could and laid eyes upon the boar. She saw as its hooves were stuck firm in the web. It had clearly just walked face first into one of the many invisible webs as Zephyria had, but the outcome was wildly different. The web had snapped off the tree canopy above and dropped on top of the boar catching it like a net. The webbing stuck fast to the creatures fur and adhered to the webbing on the ground creating a firm and sticky trap. Zephyria lifted a claw and watched as a few loose strands fell off her like loose cloth. Why am I different? My scales? My heart-flame? I will take any advantage I can, but I see no reason for me to be seemingly immune to the webbing. The way it stuck to itself once it was stuck to the boar is incredibly odd as well. The webbing must be magical in nature, but that only brings more questions as to why Its acting as though I'm not even present.
Zephyria was broken out of her contemplation when she saw three utterly massive spiders decent from the trees surrounding the boar. Each somewhere between the size of a wolf and a horse they stood disgustingly wide with long spindly legs. Their torsos were barely held off the ground, their oddly jointed legs spiking into the air before coming back down to the ground giving them an oddly jagged appearance. Zephyria watched as the largest walked to the boar almost leisurely, and then sunk two glistening fangs into the trapped boars neck. Within moments the boar had fallen completely still. The large one used its disgustingly spindly legs to cut at the web the boar was stuck in and tied it into a sack of sorts. She stared unmoving as it dragged the boar back off in the direction of the giant tree, the web of the sac sliding across the web on the ground instead of sticking. That was the most unusual thing I've ever seen.
The other two slightly smaller spiders slowly and meticulously repaired first the webbing on the ground and then the nearly invisible trap. Deciding to take this opportunity she flared her heart-flame and fired a large bolt into the larger of the pair of spiders. Darting forward she noted that it seemed to be paralyzed by the attack. That or she had just killed it outright. Closing in on the smallest of the giant spiders she swung crackling claws at it, the infused claws sliced right through its carapace tearing a large gouge out of it.
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Taking a few steps back, Zephyria studied the spiders. The one she had struck with a bolt was moving again within seconds of her retreating but sluggishly and uncoordinated. The other was dripping an oddly blue blood but otherwise seemed unimpeded. Entirely silent, the bleeding one rushed at Zephyria with its glossy fangs bared. Trying to avoid whatever kind of venom it had, Zephyria was at a loss at how to approach this fight. Were it a normal creature she might even have tried to wrestle it to the ground and tear at it like a beast, but when a single bite could potentially be fatal she simply had to retreat. Jumping backwards best she could she flexed her heart-flame into her maw and fired a weaker but quick bolt into the frenzied arachnid. Its legs suddenly locked still, just like the first had, so she dove in and bit into its middle trying to tear out as much of its flesh as possible. Mistaking the first spider as entirely out of the fight, she felt a pile of webs land onto her from the side as she ravaged her prey. However, just like with the rest of the webs, it slid off her uselessly. Deeming her prey as dead as possible she rushed the still stumbling spider and ripped into it savagely. Not even needing to stun it with lightning again as its insectoid brain couldn't comprehend its web failing to ensnare its prey.
Zephyria stood above two dead giant spiders, uninjured and still incredibly confused. That one shot webbing at me directly and it still fell off, it can't be some kind of remote activated stickiness then otherwise I would be in a far worse situation right now. This is going to bother me incessantly until I learn why I'm immune and that boar wasn't. Zephyria hooked a claw into the larger one's body and tried to dissect it looking for its heart so that she could honor it, but found nothing recognizable to what she knew. I have no idea what a spider heart looks like. Do spiders even have souls to send off? They certainly don't seem to or else their heart would be easier to eat. Resolving herself to not dishonor her prey, however alien, she braced herself and said her traditional prayer, "Be honored, worthy prey, you lived and died well with a bright heart. May your soul join the gods of old as your heart-flame burns through me. If you even have a soul." Before taking a great big bite out of the top of the spider's abdomen. I didn't really taste it the first time around but this isn't bad! I should bring some back for Asher. Do mortals eat spiders?
Amusing herself with her thoughts, she ate most of each of the spider's abdomens and felt her heart-flame swell with power. More than any other creature she'd eaten before. Just what flames have these spiders been consuming? Zephyria stoked her heart-flame and felt it crackle to life. It's not life changing but what if I could consume this entire nest? A few dozen of these spiders and I'd have the strength to challenge those mortal Heroes without fear, if that pyromancer wasn't there.
Consumed with thoughts of power and revenge, Zephyria stalked through the edge of the spider's territory and sought another group. She tried everything she had to try to track them; scent, hearing, sight, but these spider's were nearly undetectable in the trees. If they were even here. Hours passed with no success, gradually Zephyria grew frustrated sneaking around a seemingly empty forest. Her anger boiled over and she and lashed with her tail against a tree in irritation. Within moments two more spiders appeared from the canopies and rushed her. Caught unprepared, angry, and with her heart-flame smoldering she panicked and rushed the pair with her claws and fangs throwing caution to the wind. The spiders were on either side of her, so she whipped at one with her tail sending it skittering back with the force of the blow. Then leapt onto the second one while disregarding its dangerous fangs. She stoked her heart-flame frantically and infused her fangs the best she could before biting down on the spider's equivalent of a face. The sloppily channeled lightning right in such a sensitive location brought the creature down immediately, though not without risk. Her scales had grooves dug in them from the spider's fangs. The only reason it hadn't bitten her in the neck was her unrelenting ferocity in killing it before it could respond properly.
She felt a sharp piercing pain, followed by immediate numbness in her tail. With a roar she whipped around. The movement ripped the second spider's venomous fangs from he trail while spraying an arc of blood through the air. In unrepentant fury, Zephyria's heart-flame thrummed into an inferno as she let out a deafening crack of lightning, illuminating every shadow in the forest for a moment. The spider tensed and then never moved again. Panting in fury and fatigue, Zephyria leapt at the spider anyways and tore into it in a fury. The spider was an unrecognizable pile of bug parts within moments while Zephyria was coated in its strikingly blue blood. She furiously ate from its abdomen and carelessly stomped over the other, tearing into that one as well. She tried to whip her tail in fury but couldn't feel or move it, it was completely dead to her.
Zephyria started to admonish herself, but before she could even get a thought out, a half dozen of the strange magical spiders circled her. Noise and movement! Void take my soul and feed it to the corruption. The spiders hunt by noise and movement! I've really stuck my muzzle in the corruption's maw this time. Not seeing any other way out, Zephyria leapt straight up and flapped her wings hard. With a tremendous crash she tore through the tree canopy while breaking dozens of branches along the way. Before flying off, she saw another half dozen spiders moving to kill the intruder in their midst. I brought the entire nest down on my head with that stunt and it nearly killed me. Foolish, Zephyria, foolish!
Unsteadily flying towards the late afternoon sun, Zephyria tried to make her way back to Ironwood. After a few minutes her limply hanging tail proved to throw off her balance enough she was forced to make a rough landing in the middle of nowhere. Landing in a fairly sparse section of the forest she stopped and inspected her tail. The wound looks healthy as far as wounds go. No rotting or odd colors, thank the old gods. Means this didn't go as bad as it could have. I just need to rest here for a time while the toxin fades.
Frustrated and angry with herself Zephyria laid down for however long it took for the toxin to clear. She rest her head on her paws and watched the afternoon sun fade into evening before she gained enough control of her tail to fly properly again. It was still numb and she couldn't quite control it, but she could keep it steady and somewhat level with her body as she flew. Taking off and setting towards the meeting spot with Asher she continued to simmer in frustration with the continued consequences of her mistakes.
She watched the evening sun slowly glide into the horizon, set, and then settle into twilight before she made it back to their agreed upon spot. Landing hard, she tried to whip her tail about in frustration but could still barely move it properly. It had been half a day and the toxin was still debilitating. She had only received one bite near the end of her limb. If that first spider had sunk its fangs into my chest I would have died. Once again I rushed into a fight and nearly got myself killed. Foolish. She sulked for a while, waiting to see if Asher would show up but he never did. Resolving to sleep here for the night and try to conquer the spiders tomorrow, she laid next to the long extinguished campfire and tried to let the night take her into dawn.
Not even her cranky attitude could keep her from sleep long.
