The adventurers gathered around the campfire for what little warmth and comfort it could offer. Iris crouched down the closest to it and outstretched her hands for warmth, drops of rain that made it through or around the crude awning sizzled when they landed on hot coals and ash. The activity of getting here had fought off the cold for a while, but now it crept back into her bones like a terrible ache. The light of the fire made it hard to tell, but she suspected that the sun was setting beyond the canopy and clouds. She passively listened to the others converse as she searched the faces of the other survivors around camp.
"One of our scouts made contact with a group led by Ranger Kerrick," Cameron was explaining, "and Kerrick's in contact with another group, led by the Dreamweaver. They're working out the details of how and where for us all to rendezvous without attracting a horde. Until then, current orders are to hunker down and survive the night."
"This whole mission's gone to shit," Whirl said, "we should be retreating. Getting the fuck out of this web before it kills us all."
"You're not the only one thinking that way," Cameron said, "but mutiny wouldn't help anyone right now."
"The way I see it," Eli said, "we all knew what we were signing up for. I don't like the way things are going any more than anyone else, but it is what it is."
Whirl scoffed, "it'll be a lot harder to say that when you're bleeding out."
"Don't talk like that," Iris snapped.
"You don't talk to me like that, at your level you're lucky you've even lived this long," Whirl replied.
Iris stood to face Whirl as sudden anger boiled in her blood, "which one of us almost died today? Because I'm pretty sure I remember feeding you a potion and carrying you here--"
"You'd be lost and dying alone in the dark without me," Whirl bowed up at her.
"And without me you'd be useless and waiting to die!"
"That's enough," Cameron said, stepping between them.
Eli placed a hand on Iris's shoulder and gently pulled her back.
"Take a walk," Cameron said to Whirl.
"Me? I'm injured, she--"
"Now," he commanded.
Whirl spat on the ground and glared at Iris for a moment, then slowly limped away.
Cameron turned back to Eli, "make sure this doesn't happen again."
"Yes sir," Eli nodded.
"Why are you telling him?" Iris asked, "I'm right here, he's not my babysitter."
Cameron pointed a finger at Iris and almost raised his voice, "until you're about twenty levels higher and a few years older, yes, he is. There's not a soul on this expedition outside your party that would have voted for you to tag along if they knew your level, and since he brought you here, you're his responsibility."
"Let it go, Iris," Eli said sternly, his hand firm on her shoulder.
Iris huffed and stormed off. Eli and Cameron exchanged unhappy looks, then Eli followed after Iris.
"I can't believe you told him my level," Iris said over her shoulder to Eli as he followed her to the edge of camp.
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"I was trying to convince him to send a rescue party--"
"Because there's no way I could handle myself out there, right?" She spun around at him.
She waited for his response, already preparing her next retort, but he said nothing. His shoulders slumped, and he rubbed his temples wearily. The rain ran off his face in sheets, and his soaked through clothes clung to his skin like glue.
"Let's not do this," he said softly after a moment, "you're capable and strong, I know that, and you know that you're way out of your depth here. We don't have to go over it again."
Iris looked perplexed for a moment, then relaxed the tension in her body and voice, "yeah, you're right. Sorry. Whirl just really pissed me off back there."
Eli accepted her apology with a nod, then spoke after a moment, "do you-- do you know anything about Titus or Autumn?"
"No," she said somberly, concern quickly overtaking her anger, "last I saw them was in the battle before we got split up, they were holding their own, but I don't know what happened to them."
"Me either," Eli said, "I'm trying to find out if they're with one of the other groups, but no luck yet. Messages are at a premium right now, and we're not the only ones looking for our friends."
"They'll be alright," Iris said, "they're both tough as it is, and they're tougher together."
"Yeah," Eli said errantly.
"Hey," Iris said, changing the subject for both their sakes, "do you know that girl in silver robes? I've been looking for her since we got here, but haven't seen her. She's the only reason me and Whirl even found you guys."
"I don't know anyone in silver robes," Eli said, curious, " Cameron might, but I'm pretty sure besides Vic and that shadow guy, this is everyone."
"I am not about to go talk to him right now," Iris said, almost laughing.
"Good call," Eli said with a half smile.
There was rustling in the leaves, and blurs darker than shadows darted amongst the webs. Eli grabbed Iris by the arm and pulled her further into camp, then unslung his staff and took aim at the dark woods. The noise of the rain muffled the sounds of scurrying, but soon others around camp began to notice the movements all around them. Adventurers stirred quickly into action, drawing swords, knocking arrows, and charging spells as their eyes darted back and forth at the movements.
"Hold fire!" Cameron shouted just loud enough for his voice to carry through the rain, but not echo through the woods.
They waited nervously as the spiders flooded all around them, parting like a river current around a boulder. This continued for nearly a minute, which felt like an eternity to the tense adventurers, but no attacks came. Eventually, the scurrying petered out until just a few stragglers were sprinting past, and then the only motion and sound was the splashing of rain.
"Stand down," Cameron announced, uncertainty clear in his voice. A few weapons were sheathed and a few arrows were lowered, but most stayed in a half-ready stance.
"Stay here," Eli told Iris, then jogged over to meet Cameron near the center of camp.
"What the fuck was that?" Eli asked.
"I have no idea," Cameron said, staring off in the direction the spiders had gone, "but they're heading towards the Matriarch."
Eli followed his gaze to the floating marker the Dreamweaver had placed in their minds and vision, "that can't be good," he said flatly.
Iris eyed Eli and Cameron from afar, but couldn't make out what they were saying. She scrambled to fish the sending stone from her pocket as she noticed a muffled voice. Victoria and the shadow guy must have made good time, thanks to moving unimpeded in a straight line towards their destination.
"--the mage is under control," Victoria's voice was coming through the stone, "he has no idea where he is, but he's cooperative for now. There was a flurry of activity in the webs a moment ago, dozens, maybe hundreds of spiders heading northeast, but they didn't attack. We'll be ready to begin the return trip shortly, please advise."
Iris sighed, wishing she'd handed off the stone to Cameron so she wouldn't have to speak to him right now, then blipped over beside him and Eli. She repeated Victoria's message as close to verbatim as she could, then gave him the stone.
"The spiders passed us too," he spoke into the stone, "move quickly, there may be other waves still to come. They're clearly moving towards the Matriarch, I'd wager with a purpose, if we're lucky that gives us some leeway with disturbing the webs. I'll assume you're on your way shortly, save your remaining messages for emergencies."
Cameron pocketed the stone and nodded appreciatively at Iris. She could hear the seriousness in his voice, and the gravity of the situation far outweighed any petty feelings she felt towards him at the moment.
"We'll need to make contact with Kerrick about this," Cameron spoke, half to Eli and half to himself, "maybe he'll know more about what's going on."
"That was enough spiders to swallow this camp whole," Eli observed, "if they'd attacked, most of us would already be dead."
"I know," Cameron replied, "that's what has me worried. The Dreamweaver told me these spiders are smart, and we've seen that in their ambush tactics. If an army of them ignored us for something else, then that something else is important."