While Benny stood frozen in fear, the mutated roaches were approaching, clearly investigating the area where they'd detected faint vibrations.
Benny had been stuck with the illusion that he'd be safe if he didn't move, but he was already surrounded by the creepy things. He had no real defense against hundreds of them crawling all around him. But the bugs couldn't get near him—why was that?
As he was distracted by his racing thoughts, he slowly began to calm down. He noticed something he would have missed if he'd kept his eyes closed, praying for the creatures to pass him by.
These critters wouldn't approach him within five feet. Was it because of the two light crystals he was carrying? Was there something special about them that gave monsters a blinding effect—like with the mutated rat before—and now provided some form of camouflage against these bugs?
So many questions with no answers. But he was standing in the middle of hundreds of them. Small movements from him got reactions from the bugs, though they couldn't enter the three-foot radius where Benny stood.
They could sense him standing there, but something was blocking them from entering his space to investigate. With all that in mind, Benny carefully moved one of the crystal light sources he'd brought.
He could only pray this would actually work. If not, these bugs would certainly maul him to death.
He began moving one of the crystal lights away from him to test his theory. After carefully observing the monsters' behavior, he confirmed that the light had some kind of effect on them. Though he didn't know why it hadn't affected the mutated rat the same way.
Maybe it had limitations, or maybe this was why the sanctuary was a safe zone—because of how many light crystals were embedded there, creating a very wide buffer zone.
But now he was surrounded on all sides. "Fuck, what should I do?"
After calming down, he could see clearly the enemy he was facing. Creepy? Yes, very much so. Their faces were alien and disturbing, and there were hundreds of them.
Wait—maybe he could use this to his advantage. If the roaches couldn't get near him, maybe he could strike them down from inside his protective bubble.
To test it, he pulled out his broken sword and swung with all his might at the roaches that had nearly blocked him on all sides.
It didn't matter if he only targeted one—there were so many that he could hit several in one sweep.
As he swung his sword, he failed to account for the reach of his broken weapon. The blade cutting through the air alerted the bugs to his presence.
But they couldn't properly locate where the attack was coming from because of the light crystal in front of them. To the bugs, it was like looking at an impenetrable wall, but instead of stone, this was a barrier made of pure mana. The mana interfered with their sense of direction, which was why they constantly moved their antennae and feelers around. The light crystals consumed and stored mana, creating what was essentially a ball of concentrated energy that blocked their senses.
Then the sword slash came through, completely unexpected. Cutting the underside of these monsters was probably the best approach rather than trying to bash through their heavily armored backs.
But he only managed to slice a few of them, severing legs and opening one bug's abdomen. Green blood squirted out, and the injured creature let out a high-pitched screech.
This alerted the entire colony, which immediately went into a frenzy.
They no longer cared about the mana barrier or the light crystal protecting Benny. They rushed toward him, intent on destroying whatever had dared attack them.
Benny could only curse his luck. It wasn't a physical wall but more like a sensory disruption device. Now his camouflage would no longer work.
It was time to run. He had to break through, so he swung his sword toward his rear—the direction he was confident led back toward the sanctuary.
But he'd failed to account for one crucial thing: he'd lost his sense of direction when the bugs surrounded him. He was actually running toward where the bugs had come from—the area where he'd thrown the mutated rat's innards and head.
By the time he realized his mistake, it was too late to turn around easily. He needed to make a wide U-turn to avoid the wall of bugs chasing him. Luckily, the creatures seemed more focused on following the moving light crystal than on him specifically. They were overriding their natural instinct to avoid it, diving toward the area where the light crystal moved and attacked them.
It was the first time they'd encountered a moving, attacking light crystal, which further enraged the roaches.
Of course, Benny couldn't escape them completely. They used their short bursts of flight to attack wherever he was moving. The bugs slammed into his armor, back, arms, legs—everything. They crashed into him like rocks thrown by angry humans, making him stumble and nearly fall.
Each impact sent jolts of pain through his body. His makeshift armor absorbed some of the damage, but he could feel bruises forming wherever the creatures struck. Their sharp legs scraped against the metal and leather, looking for gaps they could exploit.
"Shit, shit, shit!" he gasped, swinging his sword wildly as he ran. He managed to clip a few more bugs, sending them spinning away, but there were always more to take their place.
His lungs burned as he sprinted through the darkness, the light crystals bouncing wildly and casting crazy shadows on the walls. The sanctuary had to be around here somewhere, but in his panic and the swarm of attacking insects, everything looked the same.
Would he survive this encounter, or would he become bug food in this godforsaken labyrinth?