Back and forth the two of us went, neither one of us able to land a solid blow on the other. I could see why this thing was dangerous - it was fast, able to keep up with me, and it had far too many limbs. It was able to use its extra limbs adeptly, lifting onto just four legs at times so it could strike at me with both arms and two of its chitin covered legs. A normal person would not have been able to keep up with this monstrosity, would have been overwhelmed by the flurry of attacks.
I was able to keep up, barely. I was once more grateful for the genetic mutation I had subjected myself to when I was missing my memories - this was not the first time that the changes that had been wrought within my flesh had given me an edge against one of the beasts that haunted the night. I dropped out of the way of a blow, enhanced reflexes letting me slip my shoulder out of the way of the stinger. My foot scuffed the dirt, kicking up a small cloud of dust as I launched myself forward, throwing myself into the face of the spider-abomination. Its pitch black eyes widened, and its horrid mouth let out a guttural noise that I faintly registered as shock.
I didn’t have time to bring my blade around. Didn’t have time to punch or kick the thing. So - I slammed my head forward, smashing my face against the thing’s. My hat flew off my head as the spider beast reared back, and I staggered back myself as my head swam. That had been… stupid, but it had worked. The thing seemed dazed, and had clearly not been expecting the sudden attack. It shook its head, and glared at me as it leapt back further. It proved, here, that it was a spider, as its six legs smoothly clambering up the beams of the building. It hissed down at me, and I snarled back up at it. Damn thing, retreating where it thought I could not get it?
“You fight in vain, Ar’Tuel. I will feed tonight!†Again that rattling, ready, unnatural voice. I felt a glimmer of satisfaction in the back of my mind. This thing still thought I was an Ar’Tuel. I didn’t know why, but that was fine with me, if it meant that it was fighting me, dying here, instead of trying to go after Amari. I snapped the Saw-Spear into its primary state, the blade closing over my hand and shortening down. I was planning on jumping up there after the damn thing, and having the blade extended would just increase the likelihood of accidentally getting caught up in the ropes that were strung across the building. I crouched down, preparing to leap up - when the thing let out an unnatural shriek again. This time though, there was more than the ear-splitting sound.
A wave of black smoke shot out from the monstrosity’s mouth, expanding into a massive cloud. The dark cloud swept across the construction site with an alarming speed, and washed over me before even my enhanced reflexes could let me react. It - the cloud stank. It stank fiercely, like tar mixed with feces mixed with rotting flesh, and even through my treated face mask the smell was so strong that my throat closed up as my body tried to retch. My eyes watered as the pungent aroma washed over me, and I leapt to the side, throwing myself back as I tried to avoid what was obviously a follow-up attack.
Which…. Didn’t come? I rolled to my feet and stared up at the thing, as it glared back at me with a slack-jawed expression. I didn’t know if that boded well for me, or horribly. I quickly pulled my mask and spat to the side, trying to clear some of the utterly foul odour from my mouth, my eyes remaining locked on the abomination.
“NO!†The thing was now clearly enraged. What in the name of the moon was that cloud, that my being relatively unphased by it filled the abomination with so much anger that I could hear it dripping in a single word?
