03-27-2018, 04:16 PM
Whooooosh.
It felt like standing in front of an industrial-grade fan. The small spider was carrying her near to the speed of an arrow - maybe two-thirds of one by Viola's estimate. Regardless, they were going fast. Actually fast. Not the cheaty-fake-fast Viola could manage back at her homeworld by manipulating time to turn her walk into a sprint. This was real, evident by sheer force of the air they were ploughing through.
With a silent scream, she held onto the spider legs supporting her with her one good hand, blood still trailed from the other. Numbing, turning her world grey. It wouldn't take long before the fight was a speck in the distance, but could Viola wait that long to heal and rest? She was never one for restoration magic. And, while she was clinging to the spider, she didn't think she could leave its sticky grip even if she wanted to. I might be planning to eat her - another beast just looking for an easy meal. And she didn't even taste nice! The tangy metallic taste of her own blood frothing at the back of her mouth made her want to puke.
Hit with a sudden wave of inspiration, a spell that should have been obvious flashed to the front of Viola's mind. Her magical arsenal was drastically weakened by Omni, and since coming here she'd been alerted to the fact that she'd somehow forgotten about most of it, many spells hidden just beneath the surface of her mind. Granted to her too late to be useful the first time.
Dwelling on the past would get her nowhere, she was still alive - for now - so she was going to make the most of it. Gritting her teeth through the dull pain, Viola focused her magicks towards her wound, freezing it, suspending it in time by a fleeting thread. A small strand holding it back, preventing it from progressing. A deadly chill spread throughout the limb, killing it. For all intents and purposes, the stump was dead. It wouldn't heal. No blood pumped through it. The cells were inactive. But, the bleeding stopped, as if time around the stump has simply paused - which it had. A success, assuming she could reverse it later.
If only she'd done that earlier.
Taking a deep breath, Viola relaxed back, submitting to her ride. Passively, in the background, her prime powers worked away, slowly restoring the blood she'd lost without her noticing. Her cheeks were naturally pale, but the slow transition from the stark ghostly chalk to the more subtle hues of peach would become notable over the coming hours. Unbeknownst to Viola, all she needed was a day's rest and a good night's sleep.
So tired.
Her ride's speed levelled off as they gained more distance, but the volume of air never decreased to a pleasant level, keeping her alert and conscious.
Yawning, Viola succumbed to wave of dizziness. Her voice let out a sharp hiss - like an airlock - as her cry caught in her frail throat. Flailing both her good arm and the stump, she flopped to the side, long twintails fluttering behind her. The world warped once again, it felt as if her brain had walked into a brick wall - yet also calming, warming. Invisible mana splurged around her form, unable to stop the events, but merely delay their progression from within Viola's mind. A few precious seconds to prepare her own calculated response when-
Viola barely fell an inch before the spider steadied its grip, adjusting its passenger. Moments later, it began to slow down further, eventually reaching a halt. Approximately half way between one of the distant gates and the dry fountain.
Gentle stick legs pressed around her midsection, placing her down on the floor in a seated position. The spider eyed her up for a moment and waved some of its legs, pointing at the ground, wiggling them a bit, and then at Viola's stump. Although she had no idea exactly what it was originally trying to say, she felt it was something along the lines of, 'stay here, I can help with your arm'. It seemed like she'd been given a universal wavey-spider-legs translator, but the spider's intending wording would likely be vastly different, at least in dialect.
Scuttling around in a small circle, a silky white rope-like substance trailed out from the arachnid's behind, forming a small coil. Eyes widening, Viola stared, shuffling back. She didn't see how spider silk would help her unless the spider planned to drag her along the ground. Her head span, filled with half-lucid ideas of being trussed up in a near cocoon, hanging from the roof of the spider's den for use as a future snack.
Helplessly, Viola waited. Not enough mana to use combat magic. No strength. And a highly limited spellbook. Even if Viola chose to run, she'd be caught easily. There was no point exerting any more strength, regardless of her sheer lack of trust for the eight-legged monster.
Unabated, a set of sleek legs reached out, the silk dangling between them. Carefully, the spider began to wrap it around Viola's stump, plastering it over the cut. Instinctively, she winced, but couldn't feel any pain from the region, just a throbbing around the ghost of a hand that was no longer there.
Swallowing, Viola nodded. "Thanks."
The spider bounced its head up and down in response. Silence followed for a moment.
"I am Viola." She spoke like royalty, calm and serene, yet while she enunciated each word clearly, her voice was devoid of any tone. No emotion. A speaking style made distinguished by its lack character, but obviously not synthetic.
Viola received the waving of legs in response, mimicking various symbols she remembered from one of the foreign cultures of her homeworld. 'Ku-mo-ko'
"Kumoko."
The spider - Kumoko - nodded, Viola having pronounced it perfectly with her first attempt.
"It is nice to meet you." Forcing a shallow smile, Viola's eyes gravitated down, expression grim. With Kumoko's response performed above her gaze, Viola missed most of it, but assumed the spider had returned the pleasantries. A few seconds later she felt a tap on her leg, rubbing her tights. Looking up, her hand gravitated to her skirt, twirling and flicking through the frills.
'Hop on.' Kumoko waved its (her? it/she was pink) arms, gently trying to pull Viola back up to her prior riding position.
Considering Viola could barely move a tenth of her new friend's speed at the moment, she decided it was probably a good idea to go along with it for now, or even in the future when she wasn't wounded. Ideas of her riding a spider into battle came to mind. Amusing, but it would take practice to handle the speed, and preferably a saddle.
Hopping on without complaint, Viola steadied herself better than before, allowing Kumoko's legs some respite - only one was bent behind the spider's back this time. Accelerating cautiously, Kumoko picked up speed but never carried Viola as fast as they'd travelled originally. This pace was more 'casual', a bit faster than a trained horse's gallop.
The distant archway grew larger in Viola's vision, leaving her some time to think. Sure, she thought, Omni had to have gifted her with something useful after dragging her to this world. Being crippled wasn't particularly interesting - his supposed primary reason for taking her - although her arm wasn't really needed for fights. With that in mind, she turned her attention to her stump, recalling the rainbow substance Pennywise had used to make a balloon. Concentrating intently, but making sure to hold on to Kumoko, she pictured the gloopy orb flowing through her veins, knotting the wound shut.
Within seconds, blood began to gush out the wound again, trapped by the airtight silk. The dead biomass from her earlier spell got a rapid jumpstart, and pain shot through the surviving neurones. Gritting her teeth, Viola held on tightly, doing her best to focus on her injuries despite the renewed burning agony it wrought. Much too slowly, new cells formed under the makeshift bandage, gradually beginning to close up the wound.
It felt like standing in front of an industrial-grade fan. The small spider was carrying her near to the speed of an arrow - maybe two-thirds of one by Viola's estimate. Regardless, they were going fast. Actually fast. Not the cheaty-fake-fast Viola could manage back at her homeworld by manipulating time to turn her walk into a sprint. This was real, evident by sheer force of the air they were ploughing through.
With a silent scream, she held onto the spider legs supporting her with her one good hand, blood still trailed from the other. Numbing, turning her world grey. It wouldn't take long before the fight was a speck in the distance, but could Viola wait that long to heal and rest? She was never one for restoration magic. And, while she was clinging to the spider, she didn't think she could leave its sticky grip even if she wanted to. I might be planning to eat her - another beast just looking for an easy meal. And she didn't even taste nice! The tangy metallic taste of her own blood frothing at the back of her mouth made her want to puke.
Hit with a sudden wave of inspiration, a spell that should have been obvious flashed to the front of Viola's mind. Her magical arsenal was drastically weakened by Omni, and since coming here she'd been alerted to the fact that she'd somehow forgotten about most of it, many spells hidden just beneath the surface of her mind. Granted to her too late to be useful the first time.
Dwelling on the past would get her nowhere, she was still alive - for now - so she was going to make the most of it. Gritting her teeth through the dull pain, Viola focused her magicks towards her wound, freezing it, suspending it in time by a fleeting thread. A small strand holding it back, preventing it from progressing. A deadly chill spread throughout the limb, killing it. For all intents and purposes, the stump was dead. It wouldn't heal. No blood pumped through it. The cells were inactive. But, the bleeding stopped, as if time around the stump has simply paused - which it had. A success, assuming she could reverse it later.
If only she'd done that earlier.
Taking a deep breath, Viola relaxed back, submitting to her ride. Passively, in the background, her prime powers worked away, slowly restoring the blood she'd lost without her noticing. Her cheeks were naturally pale, but the slow transition from the stark ghostly chalk to the more subtle hues of peach would become notable over the coming hours. Unbeknownst to Viola, all she needed was a day's rest and a good night's sleep.
So tired.
Her ride's speed levelled off as they gained more distance, but the volume of air never decreased to a pleasant level, keeping her alert and conscious.
Yawning, Viola succumbed to wave of dizziness. Her voice let out a sharp hiss - like an airlock - as her cry caught in her frail throat. Flailing both her good arm and the stump, she flopped to the side, long twintails fluttering behind her. The world warped once again, it felt as if her brain had walked into a brick wall - yet also calming, warming. Invisible mana splurged around her form, unable to stop the events, but merely delay their progression from within Viola's mind. A few precious seconds to prepare her own calculated response when-
Viola barely fell an inch before the spider steadied its grip, adjusting its passenger. Moments later, it began to slow down further, eventually reaching a halt. Approximately half way between one of the distant gates and the dry fountain.
Gentle stick legs pressed around her midsection, placing her down on the floor in a seated position. The spider eyed her up for a moment and waved some of its legs, pointing at the ground, wiggling them a bit, and then at Viola's stump. Although she had no idea exactly what it was originally trying to say, she felt it was something along the lines of, 'stay here, I can help with your arm'. It seemed like she'd been given a universal wavey-spider-legs translator, but the spider's intending wording would likely be vastly different, at least in dialect.
Scuttling around in a small circle, a silky white rope-like substance trailed out from the arachnid's behind, forming a small coil. Eyes widening, Viola stared, shuffling back. She didn't see how spider silk would help her unless the spider planned to drag her along the ground. Her head span, filled with half-lucid ideas of being trussed up in a near cocoon, hanging from the roof of the spider's den for use as a future snack.
Helplessly, Viola waited. Not enough mana to use combat magic. No strength. And a highly limited spellbook. Even if Viola chose to run, she'd be caught easily. There was no point exerting any more strength, regardless of her sheer lack of trust for the eight-legged monster.
Unabated, a set of sleek legs reached out, the silk dangling between them. Carefully, the spider began to wrap it around Viola's stump, plastering it over the cut. Instinctively, she winced, but couldn't feel any pain from the region, just a throbbing around the ghost of a hand that was no longer there.
Swallowing, Viola nodded. "Thanks."
The spider bounced its head up and down in response. Silence followed for a moment.
"I am Viola." She spoke like royalty, calm and serene, yet while she enunciated each word clearly, her voice was devoid of any tone. No emotion. A speaking style made distinguished by its lack character, but obviously not synthetic.
Viola received the waving of legs in response, mimicking various symbols she remembered from one of the foreign cultures of her homeworld. 'Ku-mo-ko'
"Kumoko."
The spider - Kumoko - nodded, Viola having pronounced it perfectly with her first attempt.
"It is nice to meet you." Forcing a shallow smile, Viola's eyes gravitated down, expression grim. With Kumoko's response performed above her gaze, Viola missed most of it, but assumed the spider had returned the pleasantries. A few seconds later she felt a tap on her leg, rubbing her tights. Looking up, her hand gravitated to her skirt, twirling and flicking through the frills.
'Hop on.' Kumoko waved its (her? it/she was pink) arms, gently trying to pull Viola back up to her prior riding position.
Considering Viola could barely move a tenth of her new friend's speed at the moment, she decided it was probably a good idea to go along with it for now, or even in the future when she wasn't wounded. Ideas of her riding a spider into battle came to mind. Amusing, but it would take practice to handle the speed, and preferably a saddle.
Hopping on without complaint, Viola steadied herself better than before, allowing Kumoko's legs some respite - only one was bent behind the spider's back this time. Accelerating cautiously, Kumoko picked up speed but never carried Viola as fast as they'd travelled originally. This pace was more 'casual', a bit faster than a trained horse's gallop.
The distant archway grew larger in Viola's vision, leaving her some time to think. Sure, she thought, Omni had to have gifted her with something useful after dragging her to this world. Being crippled wasn't particularly interesting - his supposed primary reason for taking her - although her arm wasn't really needed for fights. With that in mind, she turned her attention to her stump, recalling the rainbow substance Pennywise had used to make a balloon. Concentrating intently, but making sure to hold on to Kumoko, she pictured the gloopy orb flowing through her veins, knotting the wound shut.
Within seconds, blood began to gush out the wound again, trapped by the airtight silk. The dead biomass from her earlier spell got a rapid jumpstart, and pain shot through the surviving neurones. Gritting her teeth, Viola held on tightly, doing her best to focus on her injuries despite the renewed burning agony it wrought. Much too slowly, new cells formed under the makeshift bandage, gradually beginning to close up the wound.