HISSS!
The clicking from the spider woman rattled through Alexanders bones, shaking his will like a punch.
The cold shiver he continued to have after the night he nearly died came back. He felt his muscles clenched beyond his control, tight with fear and anxiety.
The spider woman clicked her throat in amusement as she watched the terror spread from her preys eyes to his face and body.
"Indeed, this form is a sight to behold, a magnificent sculpture of a queens grace, that I am. As close to the webweaver as a lowly servant dares to get to her divine essence. A mortal like you should be honored to even glimpse this form, even less so, ... whatever you are. You insects all perish the same eventually. But very few get to lay eyes upon my benevolence."
The spider-like woman peered around Alexanders stiff body, seeing no one.
Victory spread her cruel lips apart like a zipper. Intent on her mind and success in her grasps she went for the more softer approach for a child.
"All alone, in this frightening situation. The poor hatchling must have wondered into a strange situation by accident. Yes, that must be it, alone and afraid. Let me help you back home your mother must be worried sick."
Alexander, deep in his darkest thoughts, twitched at the mention of his late parents. His mind was a storm of fear and anxiety before a drop of anger spread out from his chest to his gritted jaw.
'Its stronger than me and I doubt I can out run something with eight legs. I can try and lure it towards the armor and hope it weakens it long enough to escape through some of the buildings.'
The dirt and sandy paths that separated his choices became his sole focus. His mind sped up and different outcomes flashed through his mind like equations.
Variables counted in the millions were listed and sent to Lunaris, her mind the perfect instrument for sorting, while Alexander focused on the technical aspect of the plan. Something that was extremely necessary against a foe you knew nothing about.
Alexander calmed his racing mind with his breathing practice. Something lunaris forced him to do at first but now is as normal to him as regular breathing.
He cooled his sweaty palms with Air magic and then his whole body. His mind and body where calm and now he xould focus on what he needed to do.
His augmented eyes zeroed in on the spider woman's second pair of arms underneat her first. A bundle wrapped in silk, with arcane writing dashed across, held carefully as if to sacrificeher body first.
'Analysis: large bundle of something wrapped together. Wrapping is made of a dense weave of mana strings weaved together to protect the contents. These are very expensive, however the wrappings are haphazardly strewn around the content.' Lunaris chimed instantly with her analysis.
'Haphazardly, you say? As if she..er it, is in a rush. Something tells me this..this monster lady is running from something and needs us to get her out. I know how to deal with uptight people like this.'
Alexander lowered his guard a bit and squared his shoulders. He felt relaxed and calm in acceptance of the outcome he chose.
"The people of my race have a saying, if you needed to escape all you needed to do was ask for help. I hope you are the smuggling kind, not the murdering kind of insect. Lets cut through the false pretenses and get straight to the negotiations. I am Alexander, a trainee with The Hunters Association, on a mission in this area and I am taking command of this situation. "
Alexander kept his long sword to his right. Its well balanced edge a mere thought away from his defense.
"Alexander is it? An elegant yet ruff name is to be expected of creatures of your...spawning."
The spider woman changed her demeanor as by experience to one of a monarch of her station. Her shoulders squared and relaxed, back straight and face returned to one of strong will and elegance.
With an elgant chant in her voice that brokered no foolishness she spoke, "You may address your Queen as, your Majesty. Now that your foolish resistance is done, take me to where you entered this place. I may allow you to live, if you are quick about it. Now! Go!"
Alexander tilted his blade, noticing all the corners and some dust that had clung to the nano-metal, in an attempt to feign unintrest in her boasting and shallow haughtness. He noticed rust had started to set into its edge which should be near impossible.
"You have requested I take you to the place I entered. Which would be a huge problem legaly, let alone, against ever procedure I spent hours studying for this examination. If you wanted to negotiate, threatening the only person who could lead towards your goal seems a bit cliche, your majesty." He commented.
The spider-like woman clinched her anger back however still showing visably through her smooth features. "Testing my patience is a poor thing to do, Hatchling. These hands have ripped flesh from meat for less. Do you wish to suffer my wrath so far from your home?"
Alexander brung his attention back to the woman and gave a smirk. He had dealt with people like her before at the orphanage. She thought she was doing him a favor by just talking to him.
Success in these kind of situations, with the sort of person like the woman, are dependent upon two aspects.
One is what is your goal. If you want something from them it takes kissing up to their egos and playing a long game to get them to do what you want.
The second aspect is what they want. If they want something from you, and you have the advantage, take the low road.
"You want something from me, at a terrible cost to myself, and I want this thing. So shall we negotiate? Or, you could always stay here and hope to find another stranger walking around town. You give me what I want, and I will see that you are rewarded appropriately."
A low rumbling of clicking echoed around Alexander as if it bounced of the webs themselves. Her patience for him was wearing thin to his incompetence.
"You fool of a hatchling, to even hint at getting near that thing is a death sentence. It is a Death knight, one of the Four Blades. Their only mission, before this one was captured, was to bring death to anything alive. To cleave even the soul into, as to never rejoin the life cycle again. It is no object to have, bit a devestationto be locked away. To think, someone wanted to take a deathweaver with them is the most foolish thing ive ever heard. It must have been a jest."
The thought of going against something that made the spider woman worry, gave Alexander a huge pause. 'So, perhaps we don't necessarily need the armor. If that thing has a total nutcase like her twitchy, we should probably not touch it. Many books have been wrote about people who touch ancient things that should not be touched.'
Lunaris felt the answer from their close mental bond and felt a cold sense radiate from her numerous collective nerves,' not many end well..'
"Lets agree to leave the death knight alone and you swear an oath to spare my life instead." Alexanders splayed his weak smile and softer demeanor playfully siding to her sympathetic side.
"Oh, dearie. Your shell was cracked when you were born, wasn't it? We have dealt with slower hatchling before," the spider womans expression changed into one of sadness and pity at the thought.
"I'm not damaged ma'am. I am in my right mind and my egg was not damaged when I was born. Humans are borne not hatched. You should atleast know that before you invade. Assure my life and Ill take you to where I entered."
Alexanders blade hand grew paler with the increase in grip. "Otherwise, I'll die and so will whatever your are carrying in that bundle.
Dust blew up from the sandy part of the center, a slight distraction from the suddenly tense few seconds. Alexanders aura, lazily darkening the area around him and close to the armor.
The high and low pitch of breaking of high tensile wires echoed, through the deadwood of the buildings, around the stone and back between the two adversaries.
How long have you been leaking your essence near that monstrosity?Quickly, before it awakens!
Thwack! Thwack!
The millions of near invisible webs that attached to the blade and armor quickly broke away as the armour trembled and swayed. It was breaking free of its bonds.
"Was that thing not just dead? How come its freaking out now?"
"You fool of a hatchling! How long were you feeding the Death Knight? Its waking up!"
The dark armor some how became darker with a vile sheen as if breathing life back to skin.
A raspy and terrifying voice rumbled through their bones and minds, "And so the reaping begins anew."