Max walked forward down the crude tunnel, straining his eyes as he tried to make out details in the dark. Thankfully there appeared to be some kind of bioluminescent plant growing sporadically in the rock, which he used as a rough gauge for the contours of walls and ceiling. Taking slow steps, he kept his feet close to the ground in an effort to minimize the sound and vibrations from his walking. Every few steps he would reach out with his right hand, confirming that the wall was still nearby.

After what felt like a few minutes, Max came across a large area of the glowing plants, the cave stretching to double its width. Crounching on one knee, he released the safety on the crossbow, his eyes scanning through the trails of light. Not finding what he was looking for, he relaxed his gaze. He placed the sword on the ground next to him, hilt near his knee, then settled himself more comfortably and continued to watch the area in front of him with eyes slightly unfocused.

His knee was beginning to ache when he suddenly noticed motion to one side. Slowly turning his head, he noted a small patch of luminescence moving across the wall. As it moved it became apparent that the glow was camoflage for a creature of some kind. Max guessed that it was similar to an angler fish, as if not for parts of its body blocking light from the plants as it moved, he would never have guessed it was an animal at all.

Well, it helps that I was warned as well.

Moving slowly, he took aim with the crossbow, doing it as much by feeling as by sight. He pulled the trigger and was rewarded by a loud screech, followed by a loud approach of the creature. He set the crossbow on the ground and pulled the spray can from his leg as he stood.

As the mobile luminance approached him, he braced himself, holding the spray can loosely next him. The beast was nearly on top of him when he managed to spot the vague outline of a spider, the arachnid nearly the height of his waist. Aiming at its face, he lifted the can and pressed hard on the trigger.

There was a scream as the outline of the spider was lit up in phosphorescent paint. It flailed around, Max dropping the can as he lifted the sword point-down above his head. Holding it with both hands, he shuffled around trying to aim for the spider's head as it skittered about. When it paused for a moment, he brought the sword down hard, crunching through the exoskeleton as he used his body weight to drive the sword down.

Breathing heavily, he waited until the spider's body stopped twitching. When it did, he planted a foot and pulled at the buried sword. It took a few attempts, but he managed to wrench it free of the corpse. Holding it loosely, he shuffled slowly back to where he'd left the crossbow.

Disoriented by the dark, it took two sweeps before his foot bumped into the bow. He crouched down and reloaded the bow by touch, fumbling slightly as he struggled to feel through his gloves. Thankfully he'd practiced enough that soon he heard the click as the bolt settled against the retention spring. He picked up the crossbow and started walking further into the caves when he realised he'd lost the spray can in the rush of the fight. Cursing, he cast his gaze about, futilely trying to spot the can in the darkness of the tunnel.

He retrieved his phone and hesitated, the conditions of his plan flitting through his mind as he considered his next step. After thinking it over, he swiped on his phone and turned on the torch, immediately sweeping the area with the light. He spotted the can some distance to his left and turned off the torch, but didn't move. When his eyes had readjusted to the darkness, he carefully made his way over to where he remembered the can. Having replaced it on his leg, he waited again, straining his senses for any sound or movement. Minutes later, he decided he was satisfied that nothing was attracted to the brief burst of light, and proceeded on through the caves.

At the next large area of plant growth, he repeated his hunting progress, this time remembering to slap the can back on his leg before brandishing his sword at the spider. This died in the same style as the first, and with added confidence he kept moving.

Three more spiders were hunted down like this, each found alone where the plant growth was most prolific. When the last spider stopped twitching, Max let out a breath, collapsing to the floor as the adrenaline wore off. He slid out of the backpack, relishing the lack of weight.

Praise fucking be, that's done. Why did it have to be giant fucking spiders, regular sized ones are bad enough-

He screamed as something jumped on his back, pushing him forward as it scratched at his reinforced collar. He swatted at it with his arm, twisting around as best he could, only to have this new spider jump at his face. In a panic, he tried to grab the spray can, only to have it knocked out of his hand by one of the spider's legs. The weight of the arachnid pressed him down, and Max struggled to push it off.

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Suddenly recalling his dagger, Max gave the spider a sharp shove and shot his left hand down to his leg. He'd barely managed to grasp the hilt when the spider was atop him again. He defended himself as best he could using the armor plating on his free arm, while attempting to stab it from below with the dagger. However, between the awkward angle and the spider's exoskeleton, the dagger didn't dig in.

The spider reared back for another lunge, and in a desperate attempt, Max shoved the dagger into its open mouth. There was a crack from one of the plates on his arm as the creatures mandibles bit down. He twisted the knife around as much as he could within the spider, trying to saw upwards and cause maximum damage. As the attacks from the spider lessened, he ripped out the dagger and pushed out from underneath it. Aiming for a set of eyes, he stabbed down, which appeared to seal the creature's fate. Soon it had stopped moving altogether.

Heart pounding, Max scrambled backwards on his bottom as the familiar cold weight of a panic attack settled over him. Pushing himself against the wall, he turned on his phone's torch and looked around wildly, no longer caring about stealth. An Interface notice popped up in his vision.

Mycene Nesting Grounds Challenge: Stage 1 complete!

The gate to the final phase has appeared! Please proceed to the gate with your fellow Challengers!

Relieved from potential further attacks, Max closed his eyes and attempted to calm himself. However, without the need to stay combat-ready, the panic and fear washed over him with full force. When he began to hyperventilate, he pulled off his helmet and curled up as best he could.

I'm fine. I'm okay. I'm fine. I'm okay. I'm fine. I'm okay. I'm fine. I'm okay. I'm fine. I'm okay.

Some time later, he stood on shaky legs, nausea still sitting heavy in the pit of his stomach. Gathering up his things, he did a quick inventory check. Seeing that he still possessed everything he needed, he took out two arrows from his quiver, then looked at the dead arachnids with some trepidation.

Feeling the panic threaten to rise again, he scowled and marched over to one of the bodies, determined to push through. After a moment he walked back, strapping on the helmet again and bringing down the visor.

Using the dagger and referring to notes on his phone, he pried open the exoskeleton surrounding the head. Minutes later, he grimaced at the fluids and body matter splattering him, but continued to excavate until two glands near the jaw were exposed.

Taking the arrows, he plunged both into one of the glands, twisting them a few times before pulling them out. They came out covered in a semi-viscous fluid that quickly dried in the air. When they were completely dry, Max repeated the process with the other gland, then carefully placed them back in the quiver in the backpack.

Scraping himself clean as best he could, he peeled off his gloves and threw them into the backpack after twisting them inside out. He collected everything and looked around, using his phone's torch to examine the area.

"Hello?" he called.

He waited a moment to see if there was any response, but heard nothing. Since the cave didn't seem to have any branches, he continued on through the tunnel, calling out as he went along.

After a while, Max heard a quiet cry in response to his shouts. He clambered through some stalagmites and turned a corner to find a dark-haired girl rushing towards him.

"Over here!" he called, and raised his visor. The girl stopped just short of barrelling into him.

"Thank goodness, I thought I was going to be stuck here alone forever!" she cried, slightly out of breath. He aimed the torch at the floor so as not to blind her, and while he thought it unlikely to be anyone else, confirmed that this was who he was supposed to be looking for.

"Are you Mari?" he asked.

"Yeah, but who are you?" she responded, wariness instantly entering her stance.

"My name's Max, your friend Maria asked me to help find you. Are you okay, any injuries or wounds?"

Mari sagged in relief at the reply and shook her head.

"No, I'm fine. I was just thrown in a cave and haven't seen anything down here other than you. This huge door rose up out the ground a while back, but nothing happened after that."

Max nodded twice, pleased both to have found the way to the next stage and that Maria had made it through unharmed. A few questions revealed that Mari also had the initial prompt screen to start the Challenge, although she hadn't accepted it, fearful of what would happen if she did.

"Alright, here's what we'll do. I still need to complete the challenge by going through the door. There's nothing left in the tunnels to threaten you, so you'll be safe to stay here and wait. Once the challenge is done, I'll come grab you and we can get out of here together."

"Okay, yeah, sure," Mari replied. "Good luck?"

"Thanks," he said with a smile. He flipped down the visor and walked down the tunnels. Soon he spotted yellow light further down the tunnel, and turned a corner to discover the door mentioned by Mari. Looking at it, Max felt that the word didn't do it justice at all. The monolith in front of him stretched five metres high, two wide and was made of dark stone, carved with abstract curling designs. It was surrounded by a number of flaming torches, giving the double doors a steady glow.

Taking out one of the treated arrows, he loaded the crossbow and prepared to head in. Bracing himself against the doors, he pushed, only to be greeted by a message.

Gate cannot be opened without all Challenge participants present.

Participants present: 1 of 2

Max stared at the screen, mentally swearing as he processed the message.

She didn't even start the Challenge!