Ryan's head was still buzzing from the explosion.
Even after the serpent's head was blown off, the sharp stench of blood and burnt flesh lingered in the air so strong that it made breathing difficult.
Ryan didn't remember falling unconscious. But when his eyes opened again, he found himself lying near a dimly flickering campfire. The others had set up a makeshift camp inside a narrow chamber of the cave—one that hadn't collapsed from the fight. The flames cast shaky shadows across the jagged walls, painting them in red and black.
Kaito lay beside him, breathing faintly. His head was wrapped in bandages, face pale.
Grace sat near him, staring into the fire, her eyes hollow lost.
Daniel and Jackson were arguing in hushed voices near the far wall. Ryan could barely make out their words through the ringing in his ears.
"we can't stay here forever," Jackson muttered. "That thing might not have been the only one."
Daniel sighed, rubbing his temples. "You think I don't know that? But half our men are injured, the tunnels are unstable, and we're out of rations. We need a few hours to rest."
"Rest?" Jackson hissed. "In this place? It's cursed!"
Their voices echoed faintly, mixing with the steady drip.... drip…. of water.
Ryan pushed himself up slowly.
Grace turned to him instantly. "Ryan! You're awake!"
He gave a weak nod. "How long?"
"Maybe three hours," she said softly. "We didn't move far. Daniel thought it was safer to regroup here."
Ryan looked around. The bodies of the fallen had been covered with tattered cloths. Their blood had already soaked into the stone. The stench was unbearable.
His eyes drifted to Ayaka's necklace—Grace had picked it up and placed it near the fire, as if keeping her spirit close.
For a moment, silence wrapped around them all. The crackle of fire. The echo of dripping water. The weight of loss pressing down like a mountain.
Then something else.A faint skittering sound.
Like nails scratching against rock.
At first, Ryan thought it was the echo of the fire crackling. But then it grew louder. Closer.
Thousands of tiny legs moving. Crawling.
Grace frowned. "Do you hear that?"
Daniel raised his weapon. "Everyone—light check! Jackson, Evan, take the left tunnel!"
Jackson clicked on his flashlight and swept the beam along the walls. The light trembled, bouncing off wet stone. Nothing at first.
Then the beam caught movement.
Dozens of small shapes—shimmering, black, slick crawling along the ceiling.
"Holy " Evan froze. "What the hell are those?"
Before anyone could answer, the entire ceiling seemed to move.
It wasn't stone. It was alive.
Hundreds --no, thousands—of centipedes, each the size of a man's arm, crawling and writhing above them. Their chitinous bodies glistened in the firelight, legs clattering in a horrifying rhythm.
The firelight flickered, and then they fell.
A rain of segmented bodies. Hissing, screeching, swarming.
"OPEN FIRE!!!" Jackson roared.
Gunfire exploded through the cavern.
Bullets tore into the swarm, splattering green ichor across the walls but there were too many. The sound of legs and mandibles drowned out everything.
One of the soldiers screamed as a centipede latched onto his neck, digging its fangs deep. Blood sprayed. Another man's leg was wrapped, dragged to the ground. The swarm moved like a single, living tide.
Grace grabbed a burning log from the fire and swung it wildly, setting a few creatures ablaze. Their bodies sizzled, filling the air with the smell of burnt flesh and poison.
"Kaito!" Ryan shouted, shaking him. "Get up! We need you!"
He groaned, barely conscious, but his eyes opened red, furious. "Again? Damn it. "
He grabbed his sword, still unsteady, and rose to his feet.
"Grace cover the left flank!" Daniel barked, tossing her a spare knife. "Ryan, take the front with me!"
Ryan nodded and drew his blades. Their metal gleamed faintly in the dim light. His body ached, but adrenaline pushed the pain away.
The centipedes lunged from all directions. Ryan swung hard, slicing through two—then three green fluid splattered his face, burning like acid. He hissed, wiping it off.
"Stay away from the venom!" he yelled. "It's corrosive!"
"Tell that to them!" Jackson shouted, firing into the horde.
A dozen more poured out from a crack in the wall. They weren't just attacking they were defending something.
Then Ryan saw it.
Farther back, half-buried in stone, a giant silhouette. A centipede queen. Its size dwarfed the rest its head like a monstrous crown of spikes, its eyes glowing faint amber.
"Oh no…" Grace whispered. "That's not just a swarm. That's their nest."
The queen hissed, the sound shaking the walls. The swarm moved faster, more viciously now.
"Kaito!" Ryan shouted, "Can you use your Blood Moon again?"
He nodded weakly. "Only once more then I'm done."
"Then make it count!"
They charged together.
Kaito's blade glowed crimson as he unleashed Blood Moon Slash—a massive wave of red energy tearing through the swarm, incinerating dozens instantly. The queen screeched, writhing, its scales glowing under the impact.
"Now, Ryan!" Daniel yelled.
Ryan leapt forward, channeling every ounce of remaining energy into his blades.
Phantom Eclipse Strike!
He sliced through its leg joints, cutting deep into its armored body. Acid blood spilled, eating into the ground.
The queen thrashed wildly, slamming into the wall, crushing two of its own children. The entire chamber trembled. Rocks began to fall from above.
"Everyone, move!" Jackson shouted. "It's collapsing!"
But Ryan wasn't done. Not yet.
He climbed onto the queen's back, gripping one of its spines for balance. It shrieked, twisting violently, trying to throw him off.
"Stay down, you damn monster!"
He drove both swords deep into its skull. The creature convulsed, legs flailing, before going still.
For a moment---silence.
Then its body split open in two, collapsing with a heavy thud.
Green fluid splashed across the floor, sizzling.
The remaining centipedes scattered, retreating into cracks and shadows. The sound of their legs faded—until nothing remained but their ragged breathing.
They stood amidst the carnage. Blood. Acid. Ash.
The fire had nearly died. Only a faint ember glowed now.
Grace dropped to her knees, gasping. "Is it over?"
Daniel nodded, lowering his rifle. "For now."
But Jackson wasn't convinced. He kicked one of the corpses. "For now? These things were nesting here! What happens when more come?"
No one answered.
The air was heavy again. The silence almost familiar.
Ryan looked down at his hands still trembling, coated in green blood. His reflection shimmered faintly in the dark liquid. For a brief second, he thought he saw Ayaka's face again smiling faintly, her lips moving soundlessly.
"….Master…"
He blinked. The image vanished.
Grace touched his shoulder gently. "Ryan you okay?"
He exhaled slowly. "No. But we need to move. Before the next thing finds us."
They gathered their remaining supplies, barely enough to survive another day. Daniel marked the path forward on his map.
As they prepared to leave, a faint hum echoed from deeper within the tunnels. Like whispers carried on the wind.
Kaito frowned. "You hear that?"
Ryan nodded. "Yeah. Whatever's waiting ahead… it's worse than what we've seen."
They left the ruined camp behind, stepping once again into the darkness where every sound, every shadow, felt alive.
And somewhere in that darkness something laughed.
Heh..heh..heh..
To be continued.