Phoebe barely yanked Hill clear of the giant ant's charge. The creature lunged towards him with startling speed, its razor-sharp mandibles snapping where Hill's face had been just a split-second earlier. Phoebe's shove sent him staggering sideways out of harm's way.
The ant pivoted—too damn fast for something its size—and immediately renewed its attack. Its segmented legs dug into the ground as it changed direction, jaws gaping wide to reveal rows of needle-like teeth.
Hill hadn't seen that coming. He'd expected it to barrel straight into the wall. Instead, the thing braked with its front claws and whipped around, mandibles clicking shut inches from his face. Another moment's hesitation and his head would've been in its maw.
"Holy shit!" Hill scrambled backward, desperate to put space between himself and the monster. How could something that massive move so goddamn quickly?
The ant kept snapping at his body as he backpedaled. He was able to stay out of range of its jaws as he did so.
Sweat began to trickle down his face as his heart rate skyrocketed. He didn't know what to do against a foe like this. It wasn't as menacing as the ghost from the soulscape, but it had glaring lethal qualities that he couldn't just ignore.
Phoebe hovered beside him, jabbing her finger toward the ant like he needed a reminder of the obvious threat. He scanned the creature frantically, looking for any weakness. Nothing. The thing was too fast, too powerful.
Its jaws lunged again. He dodged to the side as the creature's teeth missed by inches. Phoebe grabbed his shirt from behind, her grip strong like iron as she yanked him back just as the ant's mouth snapped shut where his nose had been moments before.
Screw this! What can I do?
Then it hit him—the status screen from earlier. The one showing his soul art, blessing, and curse.
My blessing!
The moment it clicked, an icy chill swept through his body like the harbinger winds of a coming storm. His entire body seemed to slow down, including his breathing and heartbeat. A strange unnatural calm settled over him.
The ant charged again, its head rushing toward his face. Without thinking, Hill threw a wild left hook that connected with a loud crack. Ice crystals exploded from the impact point, sending the monster reeling backward. It stumbled, legs flailing, jaws clacking at nothing.
What the hell? Hill stared at his fist in disbelief. This blessing is insane. Why hadn't he noticed sooner? He must've been too stressed out about the change of scenery to pay attention.
The ant let out a piercing shriek that echoed through the moss tunnel, raising goosebumps along his arms as the sound passed through him. But Hill knew he had the upper hand now.
As the creature moved in to attack again, Phoebe darted through its head, disorientating it because of the fact that it had just seen something pass through its body. The monster stumbled from the unexpected sight, its jaws snapping shut just inches from the ground.
Hill seized the opening and hammered his right fist into the side of its head. The impact knocked the ant sideways as ice spread across its carapace, freezing a chunk of its head solid.
The creature struggled to rise, movements sluggish and clumsy, its frozen jaws barely moving. Hill didn't hesitate. He kicked it hard, sending it sprawling, then pounced. Pinning the creature down with his weight, he rained blow after blow, ice spreading with each impact until the ant stopped moving, completely encased in frost.
[You have slain a Lesser Lava Ant]
[Rinshu Fragments: 2/1000]
Hill rolled off the motionless creature, chest heaving. His limbs ached. Looking down at the frozen ant, he felt a weird mix of relief and revulsion.
Phoebe floated beside him and flashed a thumbs-up at him. Despite still shaking from the adrenaline rush and the fear still residing in his conscious, he couldn't help but bust out a laugh.
"Thanks, Phoebe," he giggled. "You saved my ass."
She wiggled her fingers in response—her way of saying "anytime."
"Now we just need water," he muttered. Then it dawned on him—he could use his blessing to create ice, then let it melt. The lava cavern from earlier would be perfect; the lava heat would melt the ice instantly.
He explained his idea to Phoebe, who gave him an enthusiastic thumbs-up. She liked the idea.
They backtracked through the tunnel all the way to the cave entrance. The lava lake stretched before them, the heat almost unbearable.
Hill took a deep breath and focused on his blessing. The cold energy of his blessing immediately surged through his veins as he channeled it into his left hand. He punched his right palm, wincing as a series of ice crystals spread across his skin. He hit it again and again, the ice forming faster each time.
Soon his entire right hand was encased in thick ice—heavy, awkward, painful, but exactly what he needed.
The volcanic heat began to slowly melt the ice, and Hill drank the water that dripped off his hand, gradually quenching his thirst.
After a few minutes of this, he turned to Phoebe with a grin.
"First time I've ever drunk my own fluids. Not as gross as I expected."
Phoebe responded by smacking him across the cheek.
----
The ice trick had filled Hill with enough water to quench his thirst. His stomach growled. Now, food was next on the list.
From what he knew, the human body can go many days without eating, but the body will get weaker each day. No way was he testing those limits.
"That tunnel might have something," he told Phoebe, pointing at the dark passage they'd fought the ant in earlier. "But we can't let our guard down."
They entered the damp tunnel where the luminent green moss covered the walls. The stuff glowed just enough to see by. The passage wound forever, taking them deeper underground. After thirty minutes of walking, Hill was losing hope.
Then, he saw some movement. A small furry thing scurried across the floor. Rat-sized, brown fur, beady eyes catching what little light there was.
Hill's empty stomach cramped painfully at the uncomfortable sight, but the thought rose anyways.
Food!
He dove for it, hands grabbing, but the rodent was faster. It disappeared into a crack in the wall.
"Dammit," he said, looking at Phoebe. "Can you go after it?"
Phoebe gave him a thumbs-up and phased through the rock. A few seconds later she came back out with no rat, but acting weird. Her finger kept jabbing at the wall.
"You saw something in there?"
Thumbs-up.
"What was it?"
More frantic pointing at the wall. She was trying to tell him something important, but hell if he could figure out what.
"Can you draw it on the wall? Show me what's in there?"
Phoebe thought about it, then nodded slowly by closing her fist and angling it up and down.
"Show me then."
She put her hand against the moss and started making shapes. Clumsy at first, but she got better. After a while, she'd drawn what looked like a person... a woman?
Phoebe got more worked up. She made another shape next to the first one—definitely an ant.
"The ant attacked her?" Hill guessed.
Phoebe gave a so-so thumbs-up, then shook her finger. Not exactly.
"What else happened? Keep going."
She went back to the woman drawing and made circles all around it. Hill watched, confused, as she kept adding to the picture.
Then it clicked.
"A cocoon," he said. "The ant wrapped her in some kind of cocoon?"
Phoebe stopped drawing and nodded slowly.
Hill felt sick, and not just from hunger anymore.