The distant sound of snarls sends a trickle of worry down Sodina's spine "Come on. Slash might need our help," she says to the others.
Walking slowly into the darkness, Sodina leads Amanda and Lorenz with her staff illuminating the path ahead. The split in the path appears before them. Looking down, she observes footsteps in the dirt.
"Let's go left," Sodina says.
"This cave gives me a bad feeling," says Amanda, her eyes flitting this way and that.
Walking through the hallway, the group makes it to Slash, who is looking around the room.
"Nice of you to join me," he says, crossing his arms. "There is a door over there, but I wanted all of us to be here before proceeding."
Slash starts to walk toward the door. A massive sound echoes from the darkness above. He jumps backwards as a massive ten-foot-tall spider drops to the ground before them.
"I hate these stupid things," Slash yells.
"What in Astra's name is that monstrosity?" Lorenz says.
The spider steps back, its eyes twitching in different directions.
"We need to take out its vision, or we have no chance of beating that thing," says Slash.
"Let's do this, baby!" Sodina shouts, charging forward, smacking Slash on the butt.
Slash runs toward the spider, tripping on an unseen hole in the ground landing in front of the hairy arachnid. The spider takes one of its legs and slams it toward Slash. He rolls to the right, avoiding the crushing blow.
"Be careful, Sodina!" Slash yells.
Sodina nods, sprinting toward the spider and slamming her staff into its legs. The spider jumps back, barring its long, dark fangs.
Slash runs at the spider and jumps. He crashes his sword down onto the spider's back, just barely avoiding its fangs. The spider screeches and tries to buckle him off.
Distraught by the screeching pain of the sound, Slash is caught off balance and falls.
"Slash!" Sodina cries as the spider turns around quickly and lowers it fangs toward Slash.
He rolls to the left and right as the spider continues to attack him, with poison dripping from its chelicerae. Sodina runs toward the spider's backside and slams the pointed edge of her scepter into one of the spider's legs. The spider turns and swings a different leg at Sodina. Flying back, she slams against the stone wall then falls to the floor.
Coughing up blood, Sodina glares at the spider. Her vision blurs as she closes her eyes.
Amanda's wide eyes follow the spider as it turns back to Slash. She quickly moves to Sodina, crouches down, and puts Sodina's head in her lap "Drink this." She gives her a bottle filled with green liquid.
Lorenz glances down at his leg, wishing he could join in the fight. He pulls out his bow and shoots three arrows in rapid succession. The arrows hit the spider on its underbelly as it beats its chest.
"Right in the cheeks." Lorenz chuckles.
The spider turns away from Slash and scuttles toward Lorenz.
"Not today!" Slash yells.
Slash runs behind the beast and cuts off one of its legs. The spider rises slightly, scuttling from its injury. Lorenz shoots three more arrows at the spider's abdomen. Slash runs up and cuts another two legs off, throwing the spider off balance. The spider lets out another screech.
"That noise is unbearable," Lorenz grunts, kneeling on the ground. "Slash!" Sodina yells across the cave floor. "Go for the rest of the legs!"
Slash nods, charging once more toward the spider. "Okay, here we go," Sodina says. "Freezing Tempest!"
She stands, lifts her staff in the air, and points it at the creature, unleashing a stream of ice wind toward the spider's legs and freezing them.
The spider tries to free itself from her spell's frozen grasp by squirming about but topples over and slides across the room helplessly. Slash grips his sword once more and swings his blade, slamming it into the frozen legs of the creature. Shattering each leg with ease underneath his furious blows. Lorenz shoots five arrows at the spider, blinding the beast as it nears its imminent death. Slash runs around to the front of the spider, thrusting his sword between the beast's fangs. Green slime sprays out of the spider's mouth covering him completely.
"Ugh." Amanda turns her head in disgust.
The spider's blood continues to ooze on the ground as Slash walks away from the carnage.
"That was a close call," Lorenz says.
Slash saunters over to Sodina.
"Give me a hug, baby," he says.
"Don't do it," Amanda shrieks.
Sodina ambles toward Slash and embraces his blood-covered body as her arms crawl and slide through the disgustingly sticky juices.
"True love," Lorenz says, slapping his chest.
"I couldn't do that," Amanda says, looking away in disgust.
"If you love someone, you love them in the most intense moments as well," Sodina says.
"Always cheerful, that one is," Lorenz adds.
Slash sits on the ground after the kiss, wiping the slime off his body Sodina walks across the room, pressing her hand on the door and accidentally releasing the internal magical lock. A giant rock door slides open. Sodina's face lights up with excitement at the room beyond.
"Something amazing is in there," Sodina says. Her eyes wide with awe, she looks back at her friends.
Slash shoots straight up and runs toward the door, eyes wide open. "Oh, by the Goddess." Slash's mouth drops open,
In front of them is a pool stretching to at least forty feet long, and a fountain giving off hot steam. The room has a welcoming atmosphere, with a twin twenty-step stone staircase at the end of it. Amanda puts Lorenz's arm over her shoulder, walking toward the door.
"Be cautious, you guys," Amanda reminds them.
Slash, with his sword still drawn, walks cautiously toward the step leading into the pool. It glows with a green light.