The [Rallying Call] bounded and rebounded off the walls of the outbuildings, each time it seemed to gain force and intensity. The spiders, with the strangely sharp sound of carapace against carapace, moved with a creeping grace that sent chills racing down Lucky’s spine. He glanced over toward where Lobo’s Man was helping the last of the calves through the gate. There was a certain paleness beneath the big man’s dark skin.
“Why did it have to be spiders?” Lobo’s Man’s voice sounded more like he was talking to himself. Louder and this time directed at Lucky, “I wish I had a flamethrower. Flamethrowers are good for spiders.”
Axel snorted. “They’re gonna swarm.” He sounded much calmer than Lucky felt.
There was a long moment where the big multicolored dog considered whether or not they really needed to fight the spiders at all. Lobo’s Man was right, however, they were too close to the Farm to leave them. “We should keep moving then. Pull ‘em in different directions. It’ll be a while before the others get here and there are a lot of spiders.” Lucky said.
“We don’t know what kind of venom they’ve got.” Lobo’s Man said. “Keep out of range of their fangs as much as you can.”
“Venom.” Axel almost spat the word. A shiver ran down his broad back, lifting his brindle fur. The big mastiff’s growl had an almost hollow sound.
Lucky reached deep, stretching to find his own growl. It came out sounding just as hollow as Axel’s. Still the big dogs hesitated. There was something instinctual in that hesitation, some long buried prohibition, deeper than the need for breath. That chitinous clicking grated at the courage that Lucky had gathered, clawing at him, weakening him. Lucky snorted, his growl dying away. Before it could abandon him entirely, Lucky sunk his teeth into the dregs of his courage and gathered himself. He soared between the two fence rails with an easy grace, his fur barely brushing up against the top rail.
His big paws slammed into the ground on the pasture side of the fence, one after another as he fell into a sprint. The spiders were closing in, tightening the circle that surrounded the pair of dogs. Quick thuds jarred his bones as he raced over the firm ground. The first rifle shot cracked the scene like a baseball impacting a window. Everything seemed to rush together all at once. There was a hissing sound and Lucky barely dodged out of the way as a ball of sticky webbing trailing a long string brushed along his right flank, ripping out more than a few clumps of soft fur.
Axel’s pounding paws weren’t far behind him, though they were moving in the opposite direction as Lucky raced toward the right edge of the pasture.
The closer he got, the more overwhelming the scent of the spiders was and his nostrils burned with it. One of the spiders had closed in on Lucky and the big dog dodged it with two quick direction changes, slipping between a pair of its legs and under its abdomen. A blinding glare flashed off the darkly shimmering chitin covering its legs and Lucky’s eyes went to slits as he [Charg]ed in, using his powerful [Bite] to sink his fangs deep into the armored rearmost limb. With one last skill slotting into place, the big dog [Trip]ped the spider, bringing it down behind him as he raced out of range.
The spider, injured and off balance, took long enough to right itself that Lucky was well out of range. Axel, wreathed in flames, stormed through the ranks of spiders, moving so quickly they could hardly track his movements leaving a swath of fire behind him. Another spider fell to Lucky’s [Trip], but it too climbed back to stand on the spiky tips of its legs. The multicolored dog wove through the maze of webs, staying away from the sticky strands as best he could. A spider reared up, lifting its four front legs, its pedipalps reaching for the dog.
Lucky went down, skidding along the ground as he desperately tried to turn away. His big paws scrambled against the ground, kicking up dirt and grass. He lost control of his momentum, headed directly toward the towering spider. It lunged down, reaching for him. Lucky drew in a deep breath and felt [Breath of Light] click into place in his mind as he exhaled forcefully. The spider reeled back as the brilliance washed over it and the remainder of Lucky’s breath left him in an oof of sound as he crashed into one of the spider’s legs. There was the crack of exoskeleton and the spider went down, collapsing on top of Lucky as he was stopped abruptly by the force of impact.
Dark fluid spilled over Lucky’s fur and he struggled beneath the weight of the spider. It moved sluggishly over him, trying to get its many legs organized. The big dog shuddered and tried to rise, his back pushing against the spider’s abdomen and trying to push it off him.
**DA-DING!! You have gained +1 Strength!!**
Despite the voice’s cheerful announcement, the spider didn’t feel any lighter or easier to shift. The crack of rifle fire split the air and the spider above Lucky stopped moving entirely.
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
Lucky dragged himself from underneath the still spider and shook himself, spraying black ichor everywhere, a shudder raced up his spine. He, who had rolled in more interesting smells than he could count, was disgusted by the slimy, strangely cool feeling of the ichor that dribbled down the side of his face. Axel had leapt onto the back of one of the spiders and was riding it to the ground, his teeth firmly set into one of its eyes. The spider collapsed and Axel rolled with the momentum, a wet popping sound echoing as the spider’s head came with him.
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
The big dog, his colorful coat now a matted grayish black, raced back into motion. [Trip], [Body Slam], and [Bite] snapped into his mind again and again as he ricocheted from one spider to the next. He could hear the roar of flames as Axel’s teeth ripped through spider after spider. The voice almost stuttered over itself as it kept repeating.
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
Guns barked again and again. Some sharp and rapid, some slower and booming, others small and almost light. Barks, growls, and yelps filled the air. The whole thing was a confusing mix of sounds and smells as other dogs, coyotes, and people joined the fray.
Stolen novel; please report.
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! You have gained +1 Endurance!!**
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
Lucky’s view unexpectedly changed and a pair of massive fangs sank into him, just to either side of his spine. He yelped, reaching for [Healing Howl] even as he tried to make sense of his new surroundings. Girl stood over him, guns in her hands. There was an almost simultaneous pair of enormous sounds that made his ears ache. More ichor splashed over him before his view changed again. More fangs descended upon him, there was a shattering sound like breaking glass and he was moved again.He latched on to the smooth forelimb in front of him and held on for dear life as he heard Sugar behind him chanting [Healing Touch] again and again.
Empowering light seemed to fill him as the pain of his injuries lessened. It didn’t fade completely, but it was enough to have him again darting toward another target.
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
The voice was an almost constant refrain in his mind. While the spiders were large and threatening, they didn’t seem to hold up to damage too well. Clash flashed by him, moving almost too quickly to see. She barreled into a spider, somehow bowling the massive arachnid over as she continued on her way. Girl was suddenly next to him again, Sugar at her side. Her pair of revolvers were holstered at her side.
“I’m out of ammunition.” She said quietly.
Lucky’s breath was heaving. They hadn’t been fighting for long but it was taking an enormous toll on the large dog. “‘Nother weapon.” He panted, swallowing past a dry throat.
“Or more ammo.” She replied.
“See to calves.” It was hard to form enough breath to talk.
Girl glanced over her shoulder, back the way she had come, her leafy eyes taking in the chaos behind and around them. “Good idea, it’s something I can do. I’ll get them across the street.”
“Right.” Lucky brushed his flank against her leg and her nose wrinkled.
“Gross.” She muttered.
“Imagine how I feel?” His breath was coming back. He surveyed the surroundings carefully before dashing off and back into the fray. Girl watched for a moment before she ran the other way, weaving through the battlefield, and avoiding the many webs.
Lobo’s man kneeled behind the fence, rifle resting on the top rail as he aimed and shot repeatedly. Exchanging one magazine for another as his well of bullets ran dry. The stench of burning webs scorched Lucky’s nose and he sneezed twice in quick succession. After a third, even more forceful sneeze, a spider almost caught him with its fangs and he danced backward. Balanced up on his hind paws for a moment, Lucky sunk his teeth high into the upper portion of one of the spider’s legs and threw himself down toward the ground, hind paws kicking up behind him with the effort. The spider’s limb snapped off and the spider wheeled back, stumbling. Lucky spat out the spider leg and bolted off to another fight, leaving the wounded spider behind.
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
It didn’t matter how many times the voice repeated the words, it felt like there were still more spiders. Lucky’s Endurance had gone up twice more and still there were more spiders. His reactions had slowed and his paws felt much heavier than they should. Scrapes and cuts littered his hide, all coated by multiple layers of the disgusting black ichor. Most of the Flock seemed to have arrived and it was true chaos. Two dozen canines of various sizes and species, almost an equal amount of people, and the bodies of twice that many spiders.
Lucky disentangled himself from the latest spider, wrenching his teeth free of the chitin. He stood, panting, for a long moment, his head lowered and his eyes struggling to stay open. The big dog couldn’t even bring himself to shake the ichor from his fur.
**DA-DING!! A Mirage Spider has been slain!!**
**DA-DING!! You have gained +1 your primary class!!**
The voice washed over him with a swell of soothing energy and his body straightened, head lifting. His pale eyes scanned over the battlefield. Dogs and coyotes alike were sagging with relief as they too saw that none of the spiders were moving any longer. A yawn cracked Lucky’s jaw and he shook his head before flopping down into the grass.
His eyes were closed and he had no idea how long he’d been laying on his side sprawled next to the last spider he had killed. He heard paws coming toward him, but he couldn’t smell anything over the stench of burning web and the slimy scent of the ichor. Lucky cracked one eye open. Intrepid was crouched low as he slunk toward the big dog and his posture had Lucky on his feet in a second. “What is it?”
“Qui-” Intrepid began, then he swallowed, “Quigley is asking for you.”
“Asking for me?” Lucky asked, his pale eyes sweeping over the dogs and people gathered in the field. There was a cluster near a large grouping of spiders.
Intrepid sunk even lower. “Uh-huh.” He swallowed audibly once more. “He’s hurt bad.” The gray dog’s gray eyes flicked over toward the gathering and Lucky was off before he could say more.
The crowd parted as Lucky approached them. Lobo’s Man and one of the women Lucky wasn’t familiar with, were sitting down next to the black and white bull terrier. Quigley’s breathing was coming in shuddering, pained, whines. Lucky reached for the [Healing Howl] and felt it slot into place as he closed the last of the distance between them.
“Luc-” Quigley coughed, red foam flecked his lips and he struggled more for breath. “Lucky.”
“I’m here, Quig. You’re gonna be alright. We’ll get this healed right up.”
Next to Quigley, Sugar was curled in a tight ball, a constant low whimper escaping her.
“Can’t.” The black and white terrier gasped. “Venom.”
“Heck.” Lucky spat the curse.
Lobo’s Man laid a hand on Lucky’s back despite the mess of his fur. “Sugar about burned herself out trying to heal him, but it didn’t make him get any better, just made him get worse more slowly. He asked her to stop.”
“You too, Luck.” Quigley fell into another coughing fit. His breathing rattled a little when the fit faded.
“Intrepid said you were asking for me.”
The black and white ears flicked back against Quigley’s skull. “Heard something when I fell.” His whole body went tense and he panted through some sort of painful spasm. “Voices, talkin’ about us. Said a bunch ‘a stuff, but the important bit,” The dog was shivering, his skin twitched and his eyes clamped shut. “They said you found a way in but it weren’t the way in. Had to tell ya to keep lookin’. I don’ think they wanted me to, don’t think they knew I was there. But I had to tell ya. Don’ go in the way you already found.”
Lucky nuzzled his cheek against Quigley’s. “We won’t. I promise.” He gently cleaned the fur of the black and white terrier’s face as the other dog’s breathing grew more and more labored.