Chapter 7: Vacuous Triumph -------------------------- The duo sized up the Queen before making their initial attack. It had large, black, compound eyes on either side of its head which threw a dull bluish glow onto the otherwise lightless cavern walls. It had a long cylindrical body with short, stub like legs, not unlike a caterpillar. Extending from the torso of its body were two long, slender limbs, each with razor sharp claws located at the tip. It had a huge, circular mouth which was all one could see if one looked at the creature head-on. Huge sword-like teeth, dripping with saliva, jutted out from its jaws and blocked out some of the vast emptiness of its mouth, making it look more like a prison of death than anything else. Completing the crawler's anatomy were two long antennae at the top of it's head, which never ceased to move wildly about in all directions. All told, it stood about two stories tall when it raised the front portion of its body in its ancient battle stance. It was intimidating, to say the least. Baram was the first to break the building tension. He leapt at the crawler and delivered a solid slash at its bright underbelly. Green, viscous fluids poured out in response and the Queen cried out in pain. Baram lept back just in time to avoid being dashed into the cavern floor by a set of deadly claws. The creature's attack came down with such force that its right limb became embedded in the ground; Siegfried wisely took advantage of the situation and dashed foward. With one mighty blow, he lopped off a large portion of the immobile limb. While it was distracted with the agile gladiator, Baram once again attacked the beast's soft ventral side. He jumped up, and at the height of his leap, stabbed into the crawler's skin. He left his scimitar imbedded in the hapless mother crawler as gravity tugged at him, creating a messy incision on the bottom half of the crawler's raised trunk. The Queen reeled from the blitz. It instictively utilised its trump card; its busy antennae grew even more active, and something in its ancient, time-tested mind clicked. A spark of magical power, long dormant for lack of necessity, fizzled into being. The spark spread throughout the empty cavern space like a brushfire and invaded the minds of Baram and Siegfried. It slowed their reactions, blurred their common sense and judgement, and dulled their honed warrior instincts; basically, it disrupted the harmonic balance between mind and body. Men in olden days named this attack "discord". Both fighters became momentarily stunned. The mother crawler wasted no time in pressing its advantage. It swiped at Siegfried with its remaining limb. The thin, branchlike appendage was deceiveingly strong; Siegfried was driven into the stone walls with such tremendous force that deep fissures appeared in his onyx armor. Ignoring Baram, it continued its onslaught on Siegfried. It moved in for the kill as it leaned ominously foward, preparing to devour the gladiator in its vicious jaws. All this time, the mother had been ignoring Baram. This gave him a chance to focus his mind and move past the effects of discord. He continued his meditation in earnest as the gargantuan crawler dominated Siegfried. He felt the familiar rush of adrenaline burst into life and course through his veins. The world around him seemed to disappear as the sword technique process progressed. Tapping deep into himself, he achieved a gratifying peace and harmony of his mind, body, and soul. he thought. A blue aura flashed around his body like a bolt of lightning. He sprinted foward purposely and lashed out at the unsuspecting crawler, unleashing four deadly strikes upon it. The crawler, on the verge of death, responded with sheer animal instincts. With remarkable speed that belied its bulky frame, it turned a sharp right angle and grasped Baram in its jaws. Lethal teeth penetrated his armor and made their way deep into his body, puncturing a lung and causing massive internal and external bleeding. It swung Baram around like a rag doll and finally relented, with the momentum from its swinging throwing him hard into the marshy ground. The vicious monster turned its attention away from the lifeless Baram and once again advanced towards Siegfried, looking to finish the job it had started. Siegfried, in a desperate attempt to finish the battle, removed a shrapnel shell from his shoulder strap. The heavy lead ball was filled with explosives and sharp, lightweight pieces of various scrap metals. He threw it blindly at the crawler, but his aim couldn't have turned out better. The deadly projectile flew into its gaping mouth and blew off the left side of its head. The crawler let out one final death cry, and collapsed limply to the ground. * * * Siegfried was exasperated. He felt like resting, but more important issues took precedence over his desires. He stood with difficulty and walked over to Baram to observe his wounds. The damage he had withstood was extensive. Siegfried thought to himself. He took some Fenix Down from his sack and spread the smooth red feathers over Baram's injuries. There was no response, however. The bleak situation was made worse since every vile of cure potion he had brought with him was damaged during the fight. There was only one option left. Siegfried journeyed further into the cave, with only a dim torch to light his way. * * * Pain. Suffering. Trauma. Oh, it was so sweet. And it was present; unmistakingly, undoubtedly, overwhelmingly strong pain. Unfullfilled dreams and desires. A hopeless quest; a guppy swimming against the flow of the Serpent Trench. Instability. Fear. Self-doubt. It was awakened by the surge of negative emotions. Its eyes opened slowly for the first time in over a year, and discounting its brief resurgence, for the first time in thousands of years. A sadistic smirk spread across its face. It was awakened. Nerapa was awakened. * * * Siegfried progressed further and further down the cavern. The concentration of crawler eggs had decreased signifigantly. One thing which was stubbornly making itself more and more known to Siegfried's nervous system, however, was the heat. The area past the now fallen Queen Crawler had sloped gently downward at first, but now was descending at an ever increasing steepness. Just when he thought he was about to step into the fabled underground Dwarf Kingdom, a glint of metal caught Siegfried's eye. He looked over at the source; a treasure chest! The wood was old and rotting, and it was decorated with cobwebs. The lock had seemingly trapped shut from rust, but the decaying wood gave way to a few solid kicks. Siegfried made his way through the splinters of wood and found a small, clear phial which gave off a pungent smell. "The megalixir," he remarked to himself. He took it gently in his hands and hurried up to Baram. * * * Siegfried returned to the site of the battle. The dull rumbling sound of worker crawlers enforcing the building of the colony beyond the cavern walls once again greeted his ears. He searched the premises for a few seconds, only to find Baram's motionless body being carried off by a group of crawlers! They probably intended to use the carrion to feed larvae... Siegfried ran forward and had little trouble dispatching the worker crawlers, which weren't equipped for fighting. He checked for a pulse on Baram's neck; it was present, but just barely. He removed Baram's helm, but couldn't see any facial details in the dim light. He tilted his head back and poured the precious liquid down his throat. Baram slowly but surely came into conciousness. After a time, he groggily asked where he was. When he heard Siegfried's response, he jumped up energetically, with a sense of urgency. "The crawler breeding grounds...! Where's the megalixir? Do you have it?" "Yes. I ventured deeper into the cave and found it, and..." "Where? Where? Give it to me!" Baram was almost in a frenzy. "You were wounded pretty badly back there by the crawler queen... I had to use it to revive you." "You... what? You..." Baram's excitement melted away into grim defeat. "...Get out of my sight." "What...?" Siegfried was genuinely surprised. Baram walked off in utter emotional turmoil, leaving Siegfried behind in a state of confusion and shock. "Baram...?" Baram stopped in midstride, and didn't bother to look back at Siegfried. He lowered his head. "That megalixir was my last hope... now... now she'll surely die." "Ah..." Siegfried said, realizing Baram's dilemma. He looked down at the ground in thought. "Siegfried." "Yes?" "Thank you for assisting me. I won't forget this... friend." With that, Baram disappeared into the shadows, leaving Siegfried behind to ponder about the pain-filled and sorrowful enigma known as life.