CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE—THERE ARE SPIDERS AND THERE ARE SPIDERS

“Shiro! There are more!” Ali said, turning about and shining his rock ahead of him.

That was not good. Would they be swarmed, carried off by these arachnid monsters and strung up, forced to wait and watch before being eaten?

“You take those,” Shiro said calmly, adjusting his grip on his sword. “And I will kill these.”

“Shiro!”

“Pull yourself together, Adventurer!”

“Umm—all right!”

“Now fight!” Shiro shouted, taking three strides toward the spider in front of him, but keeping the one crawling above on the pillar in his peripheral vision.

He came down with his sword, but the spider recoiled, then lashed out with its front legs. Shiro lopped them both off with two quick strikes, and the black monstrosity before him jumped back and scurried away.

The dark blob at the corner of his vision lurched.

Shiro didn’t think. He jumped as far as he could and rolled, his katana scraping against the dungeon floor as he turned and righted himself. He screamed, rushed forward leading with his scimitar held to the side, angled back. He came at the second spider with a powerful arching slash that cut deep into its head.

The monster slackened and to pull his sword free, Shiro had to use a rocking motion to ease the blade out while Ali grunted, swinging his scimitar expertly, taking a spider’s leg off then parrying a lurching attack from another.

Once free, Shiro assisted the other adventurer and finished off the first spider Ali had attacked but only managed to cut the end of one leg off.

“The thing about spiders,” Shiro called, going at another, “is that they are not fighters.”

“Aha!” Ali shouted, finishing his off. “Once wounded, they recoil and flee!”

‘Hai!”

“Back to your mothers!”

Shiro laughed.

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“Well,” Ali said, taking a sweep of the area with his stone, “that wasn’t so bad. I was worried for a moment.”

“Worried is an understatement.”

“I don’t like spiders!” Ali shot back. He shivered, making a noise of disgust.

“We should go to the surface, otherwise we may be stuck in this dungeon all night.”

“A agree my friend.”

Something hissed from the corridors on both sides of them. Spiders didn’t make such noises. Which meant there were other monsters about.

“What is that?”

Shiro readied his sword as he glanced about for whatever made that noise. “Be ready!”

And then they came into the light projected by Shiro’s stone still on the floor. There were two of them on Shiro’s side, wielding scimitars and slithering toward his glow stone.

“What are these?” Ali asked.

“I don’t know,” Shiro said. “But I have two.”

“Me too!”

“Then let’s fight!” Shiro called, rushing forward. He deflected the scimitar strike of the first one and then cut it in half, the human-like portion of the snake flying in a stream of blood, the snake half writhing in agony.

Before the second monster could attack him, Shiro whirled on his hells to get some distance, its scimitar blade missing him by inches.

Too close!

But his sudden attack had achieved an element of surprise resulting in only one opponent now. Shiro quickly guarded in a defensive stance, his sword held forward over his head in one hand, his other out for balance. He could sweep in and attack quickly, or move his blade defensively if needed.

The hissing monster, almost human in its upper appearance took notice of its fallen companion and then lashed out at him. Shiro exchanged glancing strikes with the beast. Its swordsmanship skills were not to be trifled with.

Jumping back, Shiro deflected several more blows, taking note that Ali was having trouble with his two monsters.

Instead of fighting on the defensive, Shiro pushed forward aggressively, his blade moving in flashing arcs. But then the beast went on the attack. Shiro crouched under its strike that would have sheered his head off and slashed this second beast in the scaly midsection. The monster howled and hissed, writhing to its death.

Taking quick note of his surroundings to make sure other monsters weren’t going to ambush him from behind, and seeing none, he moved in to assist Ali, who was swinging his sword furiously at the two demi-snake monsters.

Shiro cut one down by putting a deep slash down its back. The death of its companion distracted the other, and Ali cut it down, then brought his scimitar over its writhing form upon the tiles, its blood splashing over his face.

Shiro glanced about, then moved to pick up his glow stone still on the dungeon floor.

“Are there anymore?” Ali asked and glanced about.

“That is what we asked before when more came. We need to leave!”

“Yes!” Ali said, moving to the steps behind them. “With haste!” But he paused, looked up. “Wait—wait!”

“What is it?”

He lifted his stone.

“What do you see?” Shiro asked, rushing up beside him and raising his stone as well.

“Oh…” Ali said dumbly. “Ahh…yes, well…”

There were at least twenty more of the demi-snakes slithering down the steps in what looked like a battle formation—spears up front and angled down at them, their deadly heads sharp and gleaming. Behind the spears were more with scimitars and behind them—

“Bows!” Shiro called.

Ali didn’t wait, he turned and ran, screaming, “Run!”

Shiro followed.