All his drowsiness instantly disappeared. Right when a drop of water fell on the back of Alec’s neck.

This water was coming down from the stalactites, which grew from the roof of the cave. One of which Alec directed his gaze at, moving his chin up to look directly overhead.

Due to the dim lighting in the cave, his dark brown eyes appeared much darker. Close to if they were black, much like the shade of his hair. As the strands of his hair were facing down.

The rest of his body was not very visible though. Due to being covered from neck to toe, inside a cocoon of web. One that he could stretch out from underneath, but not stretch in when pressed from the outside. Or even leave a scratch from the outside.

Something that he tried to do earlier, through the means biting and pulling from within. None of which worked at the end. Only leaving him exhausted, and leading the drowsiness which he had earlier.

Inside the cave in the area close to Alec, few little changes were happening.

The few that were, included a slight increase in brightness. Occurring from a range between every couple of minutes, to at most half an hour.

The quiet but barely audible breathing from Alec, as he kept his sights still at the very same stalactite. And last was the slowly accumulating water, coming from the roof of the cave.

That had gathered in three of the dozens of stalactites.

As they fell down together one drop after the other.

-Drip! Drip!

Yet only two landed on the ground.

The third one somehow suspended in mid air, defying the many laws of physics.

Staying afloat for a couple seconds, the droplet moved forward in air and then instantly fell. At last buckling under the forces of gravity, and then surface tension.

-Drop!

Falling down inside an already present, small puddle of water.

The sound of that drop was followed by a deep sigh. Which Alec had heaved after slacking his gritted teeth.

One that he held starting from when the droplets first fell, including from the stalactite right over his head. The same one he was keeping his eyes on.

It was the drop of water that showcased a brief flight, and avoided the individual who was tied under it. The entire flight path was orchestrated by Alec, simply through him exerting an invisible force on it.

He referred it in same manner, as how it was done in popular media. The supernatural ability of telekinesis.

Observing the small puddle with a less tense expression now. He remembered how it slowly came to be, as he gave flight to many droplets. Just like how he did earlier, all in order to avoid getting wet. Although he had missed previously.

A short distance away that puddle laid a broken rifle, splintered right from the middle. Staring at the gun Alec questioned in his mind.

‘Would it be possible to get it fixed somehow?’

The answer was clear to him, but he was reluctant to accept it so readily. As this was a gun he had never bought, but rather ‘borrowed’ in a loose sense of the word.

It made him feel a sense of sorrow, seeing the state of how it had ended up in. Yet not as much as he did for his own state of being.

So in order to derail himself, from not having a rant about his situation. He then thought.

‘Maybe I could still salvage something off it. The bullets are a given, the muzzle too, and the handle might have been as well. If not for the large broken chunk. But my invisible reach just can't reach that far.’

After that chain of thought, he saw a large shadow moving towards him from a distance. Seeing which instantly made Alec’s back feel cold, creating moisture in his eyes and turning his lips dry.

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After quickly inhaling a few sharp breaths, he tried to calm himself down. While averting his eyes, and turning his neck ever so slightly.

It took about half a minute, and multiple number of steps, for that silhouette to become clear. Finally when it did it in its place appeared an abominable creature.

One whose lower-half was that of an arachnid, and the upper-half of a humanoid shape. Looking similar to a demon, having multiple sets of eyes.

Then stepping past the broken gun, and also the small puddle. It readily got closer to where Alec was, only stopping at a few feet away from him.

In that duration, Alec had long turned his head sideways. To avoid looking at the looming multi-legged creature.

The creature in question then stretched it’s arm forward.

Grasping at the web with the claws on its hand, and easily pulling out a few strings. From the cocoon which Alec could not even scratch.

Shaping those strings into a makeshift handle, then grabbing with one hand and lifting Alec up. While in doing so, making him feel no direct contact.

This sudden lift made Alec visibly flinch, as he tried to struggle but to no avail.

Easily carrying him by its side, the spider like demon began moving. Over to the deeper part of the cave it had came from.

This made him feel extremely helpless and dejected.

As a looming sense of despair started to settle inside Alec. Making him feel continuously feel more listless. Leaving him in a mood as to not even think anymore, but before it could fully take root. Alec got briefly startled seeing a face.

With wide eyes he saw a face completely resembling his own, as the what he saw was his very image. Reflected on the small puddle he had given shape some time ago.

In the following few seconds after that, Alec's expression changed a couple many times.

Finally till it settled down on his current one. Showing a mix between solid determination, and a disgruntled form of acceptance.

Meanwhile prior to this showing of his various emotions, and before his reflection passed him by. There was a small floating text he could see, right above his head in that reflection.

[0 days : 0 hours left]

One that he clearly saw, but forcefully chose not to address. In the favor of something much more imminent. Leading to his current change in bearing, and this line of thought.

'Looks like this is how far as it goes. I won't be escaping from this, and shedding tears won't help either. But hey, at least I tried. Maybe I should remain calm, and even reminisce a little bit. Ok- ow, ouch! Why am I swinging so wildly!?'

The sudden experience in motion, was due to a small boulder in their path. Which the spider demon chose to walk through over.

Throughout the climb Alec's inner monologue got increasingly loud, until the point where he ended up exclaiming out.

"Ugh!"

He immediately turned his head to see if the spider demon reacted. But to his pleasant surprise, the creature showed no significant change, and simply kept on moving as it did before.

'I read it in a book that spiders have limited hearing, maybe this monster functions in the same manner. This damn web I've been stuck in proves some of that.'

Still struggling in the web he thought on this logic, no longer feeling like stifling his next complaint. Positioning himself a little to face the spider like demon, in the limited capacity he had, Alec proceeded to voice it.

"At least say sorry for the rough handling, you half-spider half-ugly thing."

It came out in a quieter tone than he intended. Perhaps not quiet enough though, as he saw the spider demon stop and turn it's head at him. For the first time since it began carrying him.

Then it spoke.

"I. Apolo-gize. In. Our. Last. Inter-action. I. Could. Not. Talk."

Uttering words in one or two syllable at a time, with equal pauses in between, by the end of which its voice got more static and gravelly. Becoming too painful for its listener to bear.

Closing its mouth and ceasing the use of its voice, it went quiet after that.