(Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 4)

[DracoOmega]

>Is that arm numb as well, or simply useless?
>If we don't hear anything on the other side of the tunnel, start crawling through.

>It does feel like it's grown slightly numb, especially around the wound, but not enough to mute the pain entirely, and sensation in the lower arm is close to normal. In terms of mobility, you essentially can't move your shoulder joint at all, while your elbow can bend a little with concerted effort. Your fingers feel clumsy, but you still have a decent range of movement in them.
>Judging the chamber ahead silent, you crawl into the tunnel and work your way through. Emerging on the other side, you find the chamber is perhaps even smaller than you expected. It is roughly oval and little more than 10 feet across at its widest. Against the far side are several large silken structures, roughly spherical and affixed securely to the walls and floor with a mesh of webbing. The weave of them is too thick to peer inside.

[Oldmansour]

>Other than the way we came, does this hatchery have any exits?

[DracoOmega]

>Other than the way we came, does this hatchery have any exits?

>It doesn't appear so.

[Oldmansour]

>Just how large ARE those coccoons?
>Do they appear to be the only thing of interest in the chamber?
>How hot is it in here?

[DracoOmega]

>Just how large ARE those coccoons?
>Do they appear to be the only thing of interest in the chamber?
>How hot is it in here?

>They range from about 2 feet in diameter to nearly 5.
>As far as you can see.
>It is perhaps a bit humid and clammy, but you wouldn't describe it as hot. If anything, this cave is on the chilly side.

[Oldmansour]

>Do we know enough about spiders' egg sacks to determine if these are said?
>If so, can we determine if they are close to hatching?
>So far as we know, cows were the only things that went missing, correct?
>Is it possible that the larger coccoons could contain anything humanoid?

[DracoOmega]

>Do we know enough about spiders' egg sacks to determine if these are said?
>If so, can we determine if they are close to hatching?
>So far as we know, cows were the only things that went missing, correct?
>Is it possible that the larger coccoons could contain anything humanoid?

>They do look quite similar to some normal-sized ones you've seen. You wouldn't be at all surprised if that is what they were, though the events of the day make that a rather disquieting thought...
>You have no idea.
>At the very least, you've heard nothing about any other disappearances.
>Some of the larger ones are certainly more than big enough to contain a humanoid, even a relatively tall one if they were in fetal position.

[Hello Purvis]

>Take our damaged arm in our other hand, and try to move it around a little. See if it's just dead, or if our muscles are locked up.

[DracoOmega]

>Take our damaged arm in our other hand, and try to move it around a little. See if it's just dead, or if our muscles are locked up.

>You try moving your left arm around with your other hand. It seems about as flexible as normal, even if you can't get it to move this way on its own.

[Oldmansour]

>Turn around and get out of here. Whatever's in there isn't going anywhere.
>Once we're out of here, start down the way we were going before we came in here.

[Hello Purvis]

>If the way seems clear, try to work our arm a bit more, maybe assuage our shoulder, and get some life back into it. But only if the way seems clear.

[DracoOmega]

>Turn around and get out of here. Whatever's in there isn't going anywhere.
>Once we're out of here, start down the way we were going before we came in here.

>You decide to leave the contents of the room alone. You turn and crawl your way back to the main tunnel.
>Then you continue on as the tunnel winds further downward. After another few dozen feet, you spot a second side tunnel, a little larger than the last. It, too, is sealed with webbing.

>If the way seems clear, try to work our arm a bit more, maybe assuage our shoulder, and get some life back into it. But only if the way seems clear.

>The way does seem clear for the moment, so you decide to try working your injured arm. The wound still feels quite tender when you try massaging your shoulder, but the rest of it feels little different than usual. You're not sure whether this is helping much, though.

[Hello Purvis]

>It's like licking a wound to make it feel better, really.
>Examine this next webbed over door. Can we see through it?

[DracoOmega]

>It's like licking a wound to make it feel better, really.
>Examine this next webbed over door. Can we see through it?

>That may be so, but it's a very disquieting sensation to be moving a limb which you cannot otherwise coax to move.
>You cannot, at least not very well. There is just enough transparency to suggest another chamber beyond it, but that's as much as you can tell.

[Oldmansour]

>Melt that thing open, see what we can see.

[DracoOmega]

>Melt that thing open, see what we can see.

>You set the torch to this web as well and burn it away quickly enough. On the other side, you see what looks like a similar chamber to the last, perhaps even smaller. There are hints of more silken spheres at the edge of what you can see around the corner of the tunnel's exit.

[Oldmansour]

>Do these silk balls seem about the same size as the last bunch?

[DracoOmega]

>Do these silk balls seem about the same size as the last bunch?

>You can only see the very edge of one or two at the moment; the bulk of them is around the corner. That being said, the contour suggests they are likely similar.

[Oldmansour]

>Have a sniff down there.
>If our nose reveals no different scents than the last chamber, continue on down the tunnel.

[DracoOmega]

>Have a sniff down there.
>If our nose reveals no different scents than the last chamber, continue on down the tunnel.

>You take a sniff of the tunnel. You don't note any smells obviously different than the last chamber, although you're starting to suspect that the dense concentration of webbing and perhaps whatever is inside those spheres may be a large part of the unidentified smells you were noticing in this direction.
>You continue downward. You had been hearing faint spider movement in the distance of this direction for some time now - since before your last fight, even - though it had not drawn closer. Now, as you close the distance yourself, you are growing inclined to suspect it may in fact not be distant, but simply quiet. And numerous.
>You spot a third side tunnel, smaller than the first but otherwise remarkably similar, with webbing once again covering the entrance. You're... fairly certain much of the movement you're hearing is coming from behind it.

[Hello Purvis]

>Try to look through the webs.

[DracoOmega]

>Try to look through the webs.

>Like before, the density of the weave leaves little transparency. You can see another chamber beyond, but- ...you think you just saw something small move in front of the other side of the web.

[Oldmansour]

Hey, Hanzo. Are spiders poisonous from birth, or does that develop later?

>Back away from the baby swarm. That's more trouble than it's worth, without a better source of fire handy, or a Marisa.
>Are there any more of these sounds coming from furthur down?
>If not, continue down the tunnel.

[Hanzo K.]

Some are, but that's negligible. As their fangs, or whatever else they have to use it, are generally too weak to damage anything.
However, these aren't the average spider...
Sadly, I have no commands as of right now.

[DracoOmega]

>Back away from the baby swarm. That's more trouble than it's worth, without a better source of fire handy, or a Marisa.
>Are there any more of these sounds coming from furthur down?
>If not, continue down the tunnel.

>You back away from the side tunnel. If those little things are content to stay on the other side of that web, you're more than content to let them. Had enough spider bites for one day, as it is...
>You don't believe so, at the moment.
>You continue down the tunnel. The wide curvature of its path soon starts to straighten out, stretching away far beyond the range of your sight. The rock around you grows rougher and more uneven here, with long angular slabs running along the cavern walls almost like narrow ledges. Small pieces of loose debris are scattered about. The path starts to narrow as you continue forward, nearly imperceptible at first, but undeniable after you've traveled far enough and the walls start to press in towards you. You wouldn't even have room to spread your arms now - assuming more than one of them would respond to the attempt. You have neither seen nor heard sounds of any more spiders, though you can faintly hear the sound of running water somewhere in the distance ahead, growing clearer as you proceed.
>Eventually the tunnel comes to an abrupt end in a pile of interlocking slabs and smaller rocks, barring the way forward. It looks like this may be the remains of an old rockfall. However, a closer inspection reveals a narrow gap along the left side where a fallen slab itself seems to have shielded part of the tunnel from debris. Moving the torch towards the gap, you can see what looks like open ground again after a half dozen feet or so. It look large enough for you to squeeze through with a little effort.

[Oldmansour]

>Assess that gap, and what we can see beyond, with sight, sound and scent.
>Do we think we can safely widen that gap without collapsing it all together?
>Have a listen behind us to make sure nothing else followed close behind that spitter.

[DracoOmega]

>Assess that gap, and what we can see beyond, with sight, sound and scent.
>Do we think we can safely widen that gap without collapsing it all together?
>Have a listen behind us to make sure nothing else followed close behind that spitter.

>The gap is something more than a crawlspace, but less than an actual walkway. It is formed between the tunnel wall and a large slab of rock fallen against it, with some smaller rocks scattered about its course. It is narrow enough that you cannot see much beyond it, except hints that the tunnel carries on a little further. The only sound you can currently hear in that direction is rushing water; it sounds like a sizable volume of it. The scent is... indeterminate, though you think this place has seen less spider activity in general than the earlier sections.
>You aren't certain the slab could be disturbed without upsetting the pile of rock resting upon it and causing the entire thing to collapse like a house of cards. That being said, this is mostly academic, since moving it is almost certainly beyond your strength. Maybe if you had an oni in tow...
>You pause and listen, but don't hear anything moving close by.

[Oldmansour]

>Rushing water, eh. Did we see/hear any rivers or sources of water at all, for that matter, around the entrance to the lair?
>Glance backwards one more time to make sure the babies are staying snug in their hole, then crawl through as carefully as we can with a useless arm.

[DracoOmega]

>Rushing water, eh. Did we see/hear any rivers or sources of water at all, for that matter, around the entrance to the lair?
>Glance backwards one more time to make sure the babies are staying snug in their hole, then crawl through as carefully as we can with a useless arm.

>You saw none near the entrance, though there was a river further west. You aren't certain its course once it gets much further north of Easthaven.
>You take another glance back to reassure yourself that you aren't about to be swarmed by tiny giant spiders, then work on squeezing your way through the gap, flattening yourself against the tunnel wall and sliding sideways. The rock grazes roughly against you at several points and a protrusion near the middle requires some extra time and finesse to work your way past, but your arm manages to not be a major impediment. You eventually make it clear to the other side.
>The tunnel here is much like it was on the other side of the rockfall, rough but fairly straight. The passage remains narrow, but you think you can spot a wider chamber in the distance ahead.

[Oldmansour]

>Any furthur alcoves that appear to be birthing chambers like the one's on the other side?
>Proceed anyway, slowly.