Interlude from the surface. Through the eyes of a familiar spider.

Pylon one is a success! A minuscule spider, barely the size of a grain of rice and covered in a thick coat of spiky, white fuzz, clings to the tip of a grey stone spire, engraved with a series of glowing runes and shapes saturated with an almost visible density of Mana. Looking even closer, one might miss the microscopic threads wound around the pylon, nestled within the runes in an intensely fine nest of exponentially more complex patterns. Ready to connect the array to caster!

Through the eyes of a familiar spider

"Mungroot soup?" "Boo! We want pie!" "Give us pie! Give us pie!" Three white spiders skitter across a pristine kitchen counter, spouting off complaints as they block the possibility of any cooking with their fuzzy bodies. "Lyla... We had pie last week. One must not be too greedy." An elderly maolas replies. His white fur shimmers with tips of silver, his eyes glazed pale as if blind, yet still able to see and track the three miscreants with ea- "And I can hear as well."

...

"""Huh?""" "Nothing. Don't mind it. Now please let me cook." "No way!" "We know you want it too!" "Pleeease!" All three stand together, giving their best puppy dog eyes. Which of course means somehow making their eyes extra shiny. "Perhaps if you tell me what you heard from Nila, I'll consider making some." """No fair!""" "You know we can't!" "They told us to wait until reaching the surface to start telling people..." The maolas shakes his head, nose twitching in humour. "Then mungroot soup it is." """Noooooooo!"""

Through the eyes of a familiar spider

Pylon two... being delayed. Some weird blond guy with a sword keeps distracting me. The tiny spider atop another stone spire waggles her stubby pedipalps, shooing away the nuisance of a human boring a hole into her with his gaze. "You are a divine beast, yes?" "What's it to you?! Leave me be! I'm busy!" "Well, I'm just curious you see. What manner of ability do you possess?" "I'm super strong. And once my true form is unlea- uh... Scratch that last bit. I'm super strong. Now go away." The man's head takes a slight angle, his brows furrowing and lips pressing into a form of disappointment. "Stop with the painted on expression. I wasn't born yesterday." "Painted expression?" His face morphs back, lips and eyes curving into a friendly smile. Ugh... Hate this type... Just like the demon. You can never tell how much is a lie with them.

"How about this? If I tell you one of my abilities will you tell me one of yours?" "Will it make you go away if I do?" "Yes." "Fine..." She sighs, skittering up to meet him at eye level. "Observe! Cower in fear before my ultimate laser-beam attack!" Her tiny pedipalps wave, streams of light drawn in the air at their tips before coalescing and firing out an intense beam of light... the width of a hair. "Fuehehe, bet you're impressed now!" "Indeed... Anyway, I'll be off." "Huh? Right... Hey, wait! You didn't show me your..." And he's gone... And I'm out of Mana... This counter rune is going to take forever...

Through the eyes of a familiar spider

"What if I call the dragon Bahamut?" A ball-shaped spider offers, disproportionately small limbs almost hidden between dense layers of fur. "None of the names you've suggested even count as nicknames! She's called Aleph, right? Just call her Ali!" Pleads the young maolas girl holding her, kicking up loose twigs and leaves from the forest around them in irritation. "Honestly... Kids these days have no creativity. How about the elf then? What if I called him King Arthur?" "I thought the monkey was the king." "No, he has a sword you see. And he's kinda strong, just like the real King Arthur. I'm still stronger of course." "Who is King Arthur?!" The girl complains, almost throwing the spider in frustration.

"So uncultured... Bet you don't even know what Anime is..." "Uuuugh..." The pair collapse back into the brush, the spider proceeding to snuggle comfortably atop the girl's belly. "You said you were going to cause chaos at this year's reverence festival, right?" "Yes! And it shall be glorious! Fuehehehe..." She declares pridefully. "Ah, I am going to need this body for it though. You're fun to hang out with though, so I'll send you a mini-me to keep you company." "Can't I go with?" "No. In fact, I bet you're gonna try anyway, so change of plans. I'm sending you one of the mini-mes with venom to stop you doing anything stupid." "Hey!" "Don't feel bad. Half the people I hang out with have asked the same thing."

Through the eyes of a familiar spider

Pylon three, requesting radio silence... You realise that's physically impossible, right? Yes, but it seems appropriate given this situation. A near-microscopic spider, barely visible to the naked eye hides within the grooves of a stone spire, scarcely allowing a single breath as she sits under a light warping cloak and suppresses her presence from the beast circling her. Why is he here? Does he know? A grey lion prowls the area, muscles toned to perfection and its mane flowing as if underwater. Is he trying to seal the rest of me? Navy eyes burn into the pylon, a stalwart scrutinising every detail in search of even a pebble out of place. Will he see the threads? They should be too small, but...

As if beckoned by her concerns, one of her threads breaks loose, reflecting in the sunlight as it sways from its place. The lion's eyes immediately latch on to the thread, tracing it along to find the source. Shit! I didn't have time to fix it in place! Okay, emergency backup is a go! Sorry buddy... Tugging one of her threads, she disrupts another spider. The black and spindly critter skitters from its nook, waving its legs at whoever deigned to disturb its mighty slumber. Clack! A claw pierces through the critter's abdomen, pulling away to observe it before the lion huffs and walks away. Rest in more than one piece. I'll never acknowledge something so gross and spindly as kin, but your sacrifice will be remembered. Now... Should I bother getting another spider?

Through the eyes of a familiar spider

"And then, she makes her wish! To destroy all witches, future and past, overwriting causality itself and making her into a functionally omnipotent guardian who protects all magical girls throughout eternity!" "Wooah! Time travel stories are crazy! Do you think I can time travel?" Asks the thumb-sized spider skittering excitedly around the hand of a bedridden human girl. "Well, magic is real so I don't see why not." "Awesome! I'll try it now with my caster form! So what's next? What's next?! Can we finish that one about the brothers trying to restore their bodies with funky alchemy magic?" "Lyla... It's midnight... We've been at it for hours. And I still don't know which ending to tell you first." "Aww, okay... G'night." "Goodnight."

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

Through the eyes of a familiar spider

Hunter reporting. I can confirm that blightlynx does in fact taste like chicken. The likelihood that whatever a chicken is, it's actually some kind of cat, has been increased. A man-sized spider stands over her prey, happily sinking her sharp fangs into the large predatory cat below her. Pale fur coats the white carapace of the spider, petering out at the blue tips of each javelin-like leg. This is almost every large predator in the vicinity of the city. I'll need to do a few sweeps to be sure though. Maybe I should get the faster mes to help with that?

Having eaten her fill, she stands. Legs raise and trace through the air, moving almost mechanically as they follow a rigid path within the air. Lights follow behind the tips of each limb, swiftly forming an array around the spider. As she finishes her motions, the array glows red, coating her in flames and leaving the spider surrounded by ash. Shaking off the soot, she sets off in search of her next prey. The next target will be those cream bears. They're skittish so I can probably just drive them out. I wonder what they taste like though...

Through the eyes of a familiar spider

"In order to cast magic, you must first form a spell. To do this, most draw runes infused with will and intent, each describing an aspect of the spell." I already know this... but it's always good to brush up on my basics. Maybe this year they'll have some more new insights. A small jumping spider rests upon a web in the corner of a lecture theatre, naturally blending in from a perfect vantage point to attentively listen to the old human at the podium. "The runes can be tailored to the individual, so long as you understand that rune to mean something specific. For example..." He raises his hand to the marble board behind and scribbles two sharp looking symbols atop it. Placing his hand at the tip, he infuses it with Mana, causing it to glow red and spew a small stream of threads, much to the excitement of the class. Hmph! Of course when he casts a tiny ember, it's cool and exciting. but when I cast an epic inferno people freak out.

"This is my rune for fire, and my rune for spewing forth. Without the latter, the flame would peter out too quickly to see." That just sounds like a skill issue to me. "If any of you have taken the combat courses you may find they recommend learning multiple runes for each concept. One for common use, and one or more for use in battle to avoid prediction from your opponents. To begin with though, we will be teaching you to cast without runes, so you can get a feel for the intent. Once comfortable with this you can begin associating the spell with runes to allow much greater consistency and reliability in your casting."

An enthusiastic student in the centre raises his hand, the bright light of untainted youthful optimism blazing with the undying radiance of a star within his beady eyes. Seems like we have a participating audience this year. I always feel bad for the poor bastards stuck with a silent crowd for a whole year. "What about incantations and instant casting? Are they not possible?" "Ah, yes. Incantations are a good alternative to runes, depending on what you use them for. You don't need to carry around sigils or spend time drawing them, but in turn you are always limited to how fast you can clearly speak and can easily be interrupted. To begin with though, we will be teaching you with runes since they are generally more stable and easier to learn than incantations. As for instant casting, while we do always start without using runes or spoken words, it is impractical for any spell you aren't intensely familiar with. A rogue thought is all it takes to disrupt the spell."

Pretty basic stuff as usual. Nice to have a reminder of the basics though. "Now, time for practical lessons. I would like each of you to try manipulating the cup of water you have been provided with." Hell yea! My favourite part! Time to fuck with some students! Did that guy already drink his water? Well, there's always one of those.

Through the eyes of a familiar spider

Giga-me disguise is a success! Phew... This is hard work. A large spider with thick legs and a robust torso wipes her nonexistent brow, satisfied with the large pile of grass-covered dirt in front of her. Now to hide this me! Atop her pile sits a lady frowning at her failed spell-cast. The spider gives her a salute before sticking her forelegs into the ground and lifting a layer of earth atop herself, forming a small and very out of place mound. Perfect!

Through the eyes of a familiar spider

"Okay, so what else you got? Any names for fire-based attacks?" A melon-sized, and shaped, spider asks, rolling around with her stubby legs tucked in. "Well, how about something simple like heat wave or fire blast?" A criminally pale man offers with an almost weary grin, his jet black hair covering one eye as he leans down to watch the tumbling critter. "Boo! Boring! Come on, I know you're holding out on me." "Hmm, how about... Inferno overdrive?" "Hell yea! That's more like it! Where you come up with these I have no idea, but damn they're good! Okay, how about a lightning attack? I'm thinking of one where I coat everything around me in electricity." "Discharge?"

The spider halts her rolling to give him a look. What look, even I don't know, because she lacks any capacity for actual facial expression, but give it she does. "Um... Gigavolt havok?" "Fuahaha! Perfect! I knew you had it in you! Wow, this is going great! People are going to think I'm so cool! Now, laser-beam from the moon?"

Through the eyes of a familiar spider

A lady sits atop a mound of dirt and ruggedly placed grass which barely passes as a hill, swinging her legs idly. Her white dress and silver hair hold still, as if undisturbed by the blowing winds. Her cyan eyes flicker to the side, focusing on an approaching speck of white. "Hiya caster-me!" "Hiya mini-me!" "I bring you a thread to the first pylon!" "Ah, of course, all according to plan!" ""... Fuehehehe!"" Is someone coming this way? The tiny spider skitters along her arm to hide under a veil of hair as she turns to face the approaching disturbance in the ambient Mana, she stands.

"Are you sure it's this way?" "I'm sure." "Are you suuuure?" "Yes! Stop asking!" Hmm... They are coming this way. Hopefully they don't notice anything. "Was this hill always here?" Fuck. "Hey, who's that creep on top?" Double fuck. And what do they mean creep?! I'm fucking beautiful thank-you very much! "Hey you! What are you doing up there?!" Damn, he's talking to me... I wonder if any of the people I'm talking to have suggestions... Kick them? Maybe, but I'm not there yet. Hug them? You precious soul... No. Gigavolt havok? Hmm... May- "Hey! Are you listening to me?!" Oh right. Conversations are a time sensitive matter.

"Uh... None of your business. Go away." "Do you know where the lake is from here?" Hmm... I think this is where I need to use human body language to emphasise my point. Her head snaps unnaturally to the side, hair seemingly forgetting to obey gravity as she brings a hand up and smooshes it to her chin and stares down wide-eyed at the pair. "No clue. Go away." "What the fu... Uh, let's just go." "Y-yea..." The pair scamper off, the occasional worried, or possibly traumatised, look thrown back before they vanish from sight. Great! They're gone! I think I'm getting better at this human thing.

Though now I guess I have to relocate... And it took so long to find this place too... Oh well! Her feet lift from the ground, her body displacing through the air as she turns to peer at the hill. Mana bursts forth from her form, wrapping around the hill and the out of place mound beside it like a net, and with a snap of her fingers it is all pulled into itself, vanishing within the span of a blink. Waving her hand, she smooths over the cratered ground, pulling grass over to leave it in a natural state. Maybe this time I should just replace an existing hill?