When he dismissed the girl's fear by talking about spiders, he did not expect to be right. Making the good guess has never gutted him as much.
Holy shit of the many Gods, what is… that…
The mute volunteer - who wasn't so mute when it came to talking to women! - was acting all heroic, shoving the girl behind him. In front of them, monstrous mixes between men and spiders were climbing the walls of a dark cavern Aesop did not want to explore.
He was frozen for a few precious seconds, unable to reconcile what he was seeing.
"What happened to the "stay away from any danger"?" said Jov, the other male volunteer, with an unsure voice. Aesop got his name when they chatted, earlier.
A smart reaction as I like them!
Aesop was about to offer to run away to the exit, when suddenly, one of the spider monster run on them. Too late, he only managed to think.
Fortunately for the little group, the mute volunteer reacted more promptly. He crushed the first monster's chest with his hammer. The spider let away a growl, filled with what Aesop guessed being a mix of fear and anger.
But what set Aesop into motion was the gaze the mute volunteer gave him, before striking. When the miner said "don't die", Aesop heard "wake up, you stupid kid". He unsheathed his sword, holding it tight with his two sweating hands. He knew how to use his weapon, as he already fought several times before. But only in cities, against humanoids races. Never against horrors.
An other spider-monster was aiming at the girl. She just had the pick they used to mine, and tried to defend herself. He needed to help her or she would just die.
This is like a brawl. Forget that they are enormous spiders, focus on their human parts. Act as if this was a duel, he tried to encourage himself.
He was about to strike the spider in the back, when the monster collapsed. The woman, panting, was still holding the pick, which was now covered of blood and bits of flesh. The head of the human part of the monster was exploded.
"I know how to fight! Help the others!" she shouted at him.
After a couple of seconds of astonishment, he turned away, scanning the cavern. He spotted Jov, pushed in against the wall of the cavern, barely able to counterattack the two spiders on him. Aesop run toward him. Seeing the woman kill the monster broke the spell he was under. They could die, he had the proof of it. He was now thinking more clearly, the fear less incapacitating.
He sliced the right arm of one of the spider, whom did not see him approach. The monster screamed, enraged, and turned toward him. Aesop was watching carefully every of its movements, paring every attacks. A duel, this is like a duel. The spider gave him an opening, and he managed to aim for the heart. For a few second of shock, the spider still tried to hit Aesop, before finally collapsing.
Aesop turned to Jov, who just managed to kill the second spider. He was keeping his swollen left arm against his chest, probably bitten.
"Aesop! There is a small tunnel in the left! They won't be able to follow us, they're too big!"
The adventurer finally noticed the small entrance.
"Go for it Jov! I'll get the others!"
Without checking if Jov was moving, Aesop run toward the two other miners.
"Follow me, there is another exit, we won't make it otherwise!"
Just as he shouted the words, a monster jumped on him from the ceiling. He screamed, from both terror and rage, and managed to slice one of the spider's numerous leg. But the monster was on him now. Too late, he told himself for the second time today, while thrown to the ground under the weight of the spider.