Chapter 126
Fear the Reaper
The group of researchers that was close to where Erin’s group was happened to be the same one that Travis, the person who had complained to the redhead and her friends about the noise they were making, was part of. After getting Erin to pull Zeldana away from one of his colleagues, Travis had expected their research to go without too many issues. While there was the occasional loud noise from the group he had complained to, their work was progressing smoothly. In all honesty, he had a really good feeling about their day so far.
However, he was about to find out that his day would soon turn for the worst.
“Hey, Halsey! How’s things looking over there!?” Travis called out to another member of their group, only to not receive any response. “Halsey? You over there?”
The person Travis was calling out to was the one who was in charge of watching over their seismic sensor, which was used to be on the lookout for creatures that lived underground. This was an important role, as detecting possible attacks was the key to survival in this area. If there wasn’t someone watching out for underground attacks, it could easily lead to the death of the whole group.
Having not received a response from the person with such an important role was something that caused Travis to immediately worry. Heading towards the place where Halsey had last been at, he hoped to find the silent team member just listening to music or something, while still keeping his eyes on the monitor.
But when he came to the place Halsey was at, Travis only found the seismic sensor on the ground, seemingly abandoned.
“Halsey, you prick… You better be having some serious bathroom trouble or else I’m going to-” Travis grumbled to himself as he went to pick up the sensor, only to stop upon noticing something that turned his face pale.
Next to the sensor were traces of blood.
Realizing that his colleague had most likely met a gruesome fate, Travis turned around and tried to run towards the others in order to warn them. Yet despite his best efforts, he didn’t get far before being grabbed by something right beneath him and dragged underground.
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Meanwhile, the recent attack didn’t go unnoticed by a certain kobold.
“What the hell!?” Lexton said, having seen the same strange and large blip appear on the screen for just a brief moment before disappearing. The first time he could have placed it on his eyes playing tricks on him or an error in his device, but the second time he saw it very clearly.
Not only that, but this time he had noticed something else that was very disturbing. At the spot where the large blip had appeared, had been a smaller one, indicating one of the nearby researchers. Now it was gone.
“Something the matter, Lex?” Erin asked, having heard the kobold’s cry of shock. “Is the device not working properly or something?”
“That would be terrifying, considering I made it!” Lexton said. “However, I fear this might be far worse than just that!”
“What are you talking about?” the redhead asked in a worried tone as he walked up to the kobold. “What’s going on?”
“You see the dots on the screen? Those indicate moving things. In this case, it’s showing our group and those researchers nearby,” Lexton explained as he showed the monitor to Erin. “However, besides the ones you see here, there’s this very big one that keeps appearing every now and then. It’s there for less than a second, but you can clearly see it. And I hope I’m wrong on this, but I think the people in the group-”
Just as the kobold was finishing up his explanation, the big blip appeared on the screen, before disappearing as quickly as it had appeared. As it did this, another signal indicating one of the researchers was gone.
“There it was again! What is that!?” Lexton asked in voice that was both frustrated and scared at the same time. “Not only that, but one of those researchers disappeared yet again! What the hell is going on over there!?”
However, while the kobold hadn’t yet fully figured out what was happening, Erin had. Her lone eye was wide in horror and her face turned pale when she came to the realization of what was going on.
“Lex, I think I know what that thing is,” the redhead said. “I think we might have found the creature we’re looking for.”
“The Reaper Maggot? While I get what you’re saying, I don’t see how it could be the case,” the kobold said. “Dangerous monster or not, the Reaper Maggot is still an animal. I don’t see how it could be able to do something like this.”
“It might be an animal, but not just any ordinary one. You have to remember that we are dealing with an apex predator that has ruled this place for years,” Erin began to explain. “During that time, would it be unbelievable to imagine it has learned to hunt people like us? How we seem to detect it before it can even get close? I think it has and is now using tactics where it attacks people one by one so fast that they don’t have the time to react. If that is the case, it would completely explain what is happening.”
Lexton wanted to keep denying it, but the evidence was there right before his eyes, telling a different tale. The fact that all other creatures had seemingly stopped coming, because the most dangerous predator around had come. The large signal on the monitor that could only belong to a creature of a similar size. And the fact that they were dealing with a monster that even most experienced hunters wouldn’t want to mess with.
As they were discussing this, another researcher’s signal disappeared on the monitor after being covered by the very large one. Whatever it was, even if not the Reaper Maggot, they were dealing with something very big that was skillfully picking off people one by one.
Just as this realization dawned on them, the rest of the research group’s signals disappeared through similar means. It was now a question as to where it would happen next, although both Erin and Lexton had a pretty good idea as to where that would be.
“Oh crap… Guys! Don’t move!” Erin quickly shouted at the others who were still in the process of trying to lure the Reaper Maggot to them. “Don’t make any movements! We think the Reaper Maggot is here!”
“Huh? Wasn’t that the whole point of-?” Ryle began to ask, only to stop upon a sudden feeling of dread hitting.
If you were to ask the blonde, she wouldn’t be able to properly describe it, but the sudden feeling she got screamed about a danger coming right at her. It was specifically coming from right below her, like this deathly void was rising towards her in order to swallow her completely. Considering what was actually going to happen, her description wouldn’t have been too far away from reality.
Acting upon reflex, she jumped away from the spot she had been standing on, avoiding the certain death that almost got her. Just as her feet got off the ground, the ground where she had been standing at exploded into a cloud of dust, almost like a buried bomb had just gone off.
Realizing the threat they were dealing with, Ryle then dashed towards Arkay, knowing that he wouldn’t be able to protect himself from such a creature. Scooping the cat boy in her arms, she held onto him like her life depended on it and ran to where Erin and Lexton were at.
Durge was the next to act. Much like Ryle, he could also sense the monstrous being that was coming up from below and knew that he needed to act fast. Grabbing his new weapon, he turned on the rocket boosters and jumped in the air, before hitting the ground with all of his might. While this didn’t do anything to the monster that was trying to get him, the impact created a blast that managed to push him backwards, sending him where the rest of the group was hiding.
Now that they were all within the same building, Erin let out a small sigh of relief. Even if it wasn’t the best possible shelter, the rundown ruins would at least offer some protection against the attacks.
However, just as she allowed herself to feel relieved, she soon noticed someone was still missing from their group. Zeldana was no longer where she had last seen her. It was like the elf had simply disappeared and the redhead couldn’t help but fear the worst.
“Guys, where’s Zeldana!?” Erin whispered to the others in a panic. “I can’t see her anywhere!”
“I don’t know. She was over there a moment ago,” Durge whispered in response while pointing at the place he had seen the elf at. “Don’t tell me that she…”
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Erin felt how the color on her face was drained as the horrifying realization that one of their companions had most likely just been killed. She didn’t want to believe it, but there seemed to be no other explanation as to why they couldn’t find the missing elf anywhere.
Just as all hope seemed to be lost, a familiar voice spoke up.
“Uhh… I’ve been here the whole time,” Zeldana whispered from behind everybody else, causing them to turn around to look at her in shock. “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t take me for someone who would die that easily.”
“What the-!? When did you get there!?” Erin asked in a whisper that was a mix of shock and anger, with a hint of relief.
“Around the time the first of those other guys got turned into maggot food. Remember these ears of mine? They’re not just for show,” the elf explained as she pointed at her ears, which she wiggled a bit. “I could hear what was happening over there clear enough to tell me that I needed to get a move on, so I did. I’ve been hiding here the whole time after that.”
“And you couldn’t warn the rest of us because of what exactly?” Ryle asked as she glared at Zeldana.
“Hey, how was I supposed to do that, when noise attracts that thing?” the elf asked back. “Besides, it’s not like any of you guys got eaten or anything.”
“Why you little-”
“Quiet, you morons!” Lexton suddenly whispered to the group. “Look outside.”
Everybody turned their eyes to outside the building they were hiding in and saw something that sent chills down their spines. They saw how the ground would occasionally rise up, showing that something was moving right beneath the surface. The most terrifying thing was the sheer size of the creature in question, as it was very large. Judging by what little they could see, the creature must have had about the same width of body as the dragon they faced. However, even though they couldn’t see anything but just a small part of its body that was covered with the ground, they could tell that it was much longer. It had to be the largest creature any of them had ever faced.
“Holy crap… That thing is enormous,” Ryle said as she stared at the creature with wide eyes. “I’m starting to think that we might have had a better chance with the warlord.”
“I was just thinking the same thing. We might have bitten off more than we can chew with this one,” Durge said. “I suppose this is to be expected of a legendary creature, though. It was bound to be an impressive sight to behold.”
“What is it doing?” Arkay asked. “It seems to be just slowly moving around the place. Almost like it’s looking for something.”
“That’s because it is. It’s looking for us,” Lexton replied. “It knows that we are here. It just doesn’t know our exact location. My guess is that it’s doing this in the hopes of coming into contact with one of us or that we attack it, thus revealing our location.”
“So it’s kind of doing the same thing we were doing not too long ago? Smart bastard,” Zeldana said. “It must have learned about the methods people use to either hunt or avoid it and has adapted to them. This honestly makes it far more terrifying, as beasts that are simply strong can be easily fooled or avoided. It’s the smart ones that are the really dangerous ones.”
As the others were busy staring at the creature, Erin was too busy trying to figure out a way out of the mess they were in. She had foolishly applied the logic of the game she used to play into the world she was in. In that, all you needed to do to face the Reaper Maggot was just walk around the area it would appear in and wait for it to come to you. Then it was a question whether you were skilled enough to actually slay the thing.
However, such logic naturally wouldn’t apply here. This was the apex predator. The top of the food chain. There was no way it would simply come to you and negate its natural advantage. It would play up to its strengths and hunt in a way that was a lot smarter. Had they not realized what was happening, all of them would be dead by now.
How could they fight against something that had complete control over its surroundings like this? There just seemed to be no way for them to win.
Just as Erin was deep in her thoughts, the sound of someone calling people out could be heard. The redhead and the others turned their gazes to where the sound was coming from and saw the members of one of the other groups walking over to the area where they were. Judging by their equipment, they had to be hunters.
“Hey! Anybody there!?” one of the hunters called out. “We heard some strange noises and came over here to see what was going on!”
Realizing the danger the hunters were putting themselves in, Erin tried to call back to them in order to warn them. However, just as she was about to yell, Zeldana’s hand quickly covered her mouth, silencing her warning into nothing but muffled noise.
The elf looked at the redhead and simply shook her head. Erin quickly realized why she had been prevented from responding to the hunters. If she were to call out to them, she would risk attracting the Reaper Maggot towards them. Zeldana was essentially telling her to let the group of hunters walk into their demise so that they themselves could live.
Erin looked at her other companions and saw that they were on the same page as the elf. They all knew that trying to warn the others would endanger their lives, so the logical solution was to not do anything. However, the redhead could tell that all of her friends had varying degrees of regret on their expressions.
Suddenly, the sound of something erupting from the ground could be heard, followed by terrified screams. The Reaper Maggot had given up on looking for Erin’s group and had decided to try its luck with the hunters.
Upon realizing what was happening, the hunters grabbed their gear in order to defend themselves. They tried to put up a fight, but it was of no use. Almost as soon as the beast made its appearance, it would sink underneath the ground, taking its newest victim with it. This continued with the Reaper Maggot picking off the hunters one by one, until only one of them remained.
The last hunter didn’t seem to have a weapon of any kind on them, only a large bag. Having seen all of his companions get devoured like nothing had naturally had an effect on him, as he was visibly panicking. With no rationality behind his thoughts anymore and lacking anything else he could do, the hunter simply threw his bag at where the Reaper Maggot had last appeared, before turning around and running away.
As the bag was thrown it opened up, spilling its contents on the ground. What came out of it was some sort of a dark purple powder that dyed the ground in a similar color. Soon after it had landed, something that shocked everyone in Erin’s group happened. The Reaper Maggot suddenly burst out of the ground while letting out a furious screech. The last remaining hunter barely managed to let out one final scream, before the jaws of the beast clamped down on him, devouring his body in an instant.
image [https://i.ibb.co/t3TkzVq/Ch-126-Pic-1.jpg]
Due to this last attack being far more furious than the previous more calculated ones, Erin and the others were able to get a look at what the Reaper Maggot looked like. Much like they had already assumed, the beast was massive. It had a grayish brown skin that seemed to be covered in small black spikes, which were used for movement underground. Despite being a creature that lived mostly beneath the earth, it still had four massive eyes, which were most likely meant for use when it came to the surface from time to time. Its mouth opened up into four large mandibles that were lined up with numerous sharp teeth that would tear and shred any unlucky victim that got caught into them. There was also a dark red mane on top of its head that made it look even more fierce. Lastly, there were four claw-like appendages coming from the sides of its head.
The Reaper Maggot didn’t waste time when it came to dealing with the last hunter. Once it was done, it disappeared beneath the ground once again to search for its next victim.
With the beast now gone from sight, Erin and the others were left wondering about their current predicament. While the others were thinking about whether it was possible for them to escape from there alive, let alone kill the monster, the redhead’s mind had taken notice of something else entirely.
“Did you guys see that thing!? It was enormous!” Ryle whispered as she tried not to panic from the nightmarish sight they had just witnessed. “How the hell are we supposed to take that thing on!? This is a suicide mission! We should just get the hell out of here!”
“Weren’t you the one who earlier was completely fine with this? Would you mind and pick a stance on this already!?” Lexton whispered back. “However, I do agree with you. This has turned out to be far more dangerous than I could have ever anticipated! I don’t see how we are going to stand a chance against such a creature!”
“I agree. This isn’t an opponent that we have the abilities or the equipment to beat,” Durge said, keeping calm despite feeling quite disturbed as well. “Even if our chances with Rayleen aren’t exactly the best, I doubt they are worse than what we have here.”
“...Did you guys notice something?” Erin asked, gaining the attention of her companions. “That last hunter… He had something in his bag. Something that the Reaper Maggot reacted to. It caused it to come to the surface, instead of safely picking him off like the others.”
“You mean the dust that was in his bag?” Lexton asked. “That’s called Aggressor Dust. There are several types, all for different types of environments and creatures, but they all have a similar function. It causes the animals that fall under its effect to go into a blind rage and charge towards it. Hunters use it to draw the prey they’re hunting into traps.”
“So they use that to get the creatures that live underground to appear in order to hunt them. I was wondering about how professionals hunt these things,” Arkay said. “Did you have any of that stuff prepared, Lex? You know, for the Reaper Maggot.”
“Nah. I have made some variants of it myself and could have bought the real stuff at a store, but decided against it,” the kobold replied. “As you saw, that stuff isn’t exactly something to play around with. While you might get the thing you’re hunting to go into a blind rage which makes leading them into traps easier, it also comes with a big risk. Depending on what you affect with that stuff, you might end up calling a living avalanche to come crashing down on you that will blow through whatever traps you have set up.”
“And having us walk around and stomp our feet in order to attract that thing was better because of what exactly?” Ryle asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Considering your skills, I figured that once I got a signal of that thing approaching, you guys would have been more than capable of avoiding it on your own,” Lexton replied. “It was my mistake that I didn’t consider it to be much smarter than your average creature, which put you all in danger. I’m sorry…”
Upon hearing the kobold’s sincere apology over his mistake, everybody else in the group turned to stare at the blonde with judging stares. Getting such looks directed at her caused her to soon feel rather uncomfortable.
“W-Who was trying to put the blame on you!? Certainly not me! Not me at all!” Ryle said very awkwardly under the pressure she was in. “Besides, we all make plenty of mistakes, so no need to be too upset about it! It’s all about, you know, learning from that stuff and all, right!?”
“Guys, would you mind and stop it with your antics for a moment? I think I’ve got an idea,” Erin said, getting her friends’ attention. “Lex, do you have any of your golems with you?”
“Plenty. I made sure to prepare before coming here,” the kobold replied. “I’ve got the big ones that are for fighting, the explosive ones and the stealthy ones. Which ones do you need and for what exactly?”
“I’ll tell you soon, but first I need to do something else,” the redhead said. “I need to find a suitable place for my plan to take effect.”
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Meanwhile, the Reaper Maggot was moving underground, looking for its next prey. By this point, it had calmed down from the effects of the Aggressor Dust and had returned to its more calculated method of hunting. From the vibrations it sensed through the ground, it could tell that there were more people up ahead, unaware of its presence. Having spotted its next prey, the Reaper Maggot set out to pick them off one by one, before any of them could realize what was even happening.
However, the beast suddenly stopped advancing towards the unsuspecting prey upon noticing something. It was a strange odor that came from the direction it had just come from. Not only that, but there was something about the stench that absolutely angered it. Whatever was behind it needed to be killed, if for nothing else than to appease the anger of the beast.
Following behind the aggravating smell, the Reaper Maggot picked up its speed. All it was thinking about was tearing apart whatever it was that was at the end of the trail it had picked up. As it followed the trail, the creature noticed that it had risen up from the soft ground up on much harder ground. This was something the Reaper Maggot wouldn’t be able to move through like it normally did.
However, this didn’t matter to the beast. All it cared about was killing the thing that had angered it. Everything else was secondary.
Bursting through the ground like a missile, the Reaper Maggot landed on what was almost like a platform created by the ruins of the fallen buildings. Back when the city had first sunk into the ground, these buildings had crumbled in such way that they had made this spot, almost like it was on purpose.
That purpose would normally be for hunters and other explorers to escape from the underground beasts. Now it was used to trap the greatest monster the area had ever known.
The Reaper Maggot soon found the being that had angered it. It was a small golem, created from sludge that had absorbed some of the Aggressor Dust into itself and had then created a trail leading to this spot by dragging along the ground.
The simple golem was quickly destroyed by the enraged Reaper Maggot in an instance. However, the ones behind it were about to make their entrance.
“Hey!” Erin called out to the monster, who turned its four eyes towards her. The redhead stood before it with her companions scattered around, surrounding the beast. “Glad you came. It’s time we got this over with.”
Shooting a small flame out of her artificial hand, Erin hit a flammable liquid that had been spread around the place, creating a ring of fire that surrounded them. Their greatest battle so far had now begun.
image [https://i.ibb.co/pZdYcjs/Ch-126-Pic-2.jpg]