88 Bugs and Lizards
1522 Words
Janus petted the Basilisk, it wiggled its head as he scratched its neck and inspected its body.
It was around six feet long and stood four feet high. Its tough scales that had a texture that closely resembled molten lava. He inspected it's frills and saw that he could fan it back and forth without annoying the creature.
He kept check of the creature's demeanor. It wasn't as if it let him touch or inspect it freely. It was simply tolerating him.
Tai'dra stepped beside him, nodding. She scribbled frantically in her notebook.
"It's a female, one of the few adults I've seen. They haven't been this close to the territory before, but we've been getting more sightings of them in the last few months. Mostly from Master Roban and the merchant caravans."
"That explains it. Their after the liveshhtock then. How long do you think we have left 'til our friends get back to normal?"
"Should be around five minutes."
"Great. We don't have an ox, but I think we can let this thing move the wagon with just some adjustments to the reins."
Janus winced. The itch in his face had gotten easier to bear, giving him more flexibility for speech. But the allergies were now creeping down to his stomach.
He commanded the Basilisk to follow him to the wagon, and it patiently obeyed. If Otis were here right now the dog would be extremely jealous.
He and Tai'dra adjusted the reins on the wagon and tried to fit it around the Basilisk's neck. The creature tilted its head in confusion but didn't move otherwise.
"That should do it. Now let's get to our friends and----"
Janus heard a sound coming from the direction behind them. It echoed and rumbled throughout the vast expanse of the forest.
"Are those bats?" he said.
Tai'dra's eyes rounded in horror. Her ears twitched as she tried to make out the sound.
"No, those aren't bats. It's a swarm. It's the Millipedes."
Janus looked behind him, where all the statues of their companions were left standing. Behind them was a large swarm of Stag Millipedes all approaching with a thousand skittering pulses. It sounded like a stampede of crickets and swarmed like a mass of locusts bearing on a field. All twitching for revenge.
"It's headed for us!" Tai'dra yelled.
Janus quickly undid the reins of the Basilisk and climbed on its back. It's stance was a little low to the ground for his liking, but there was no time to be picky.
"Run to the swarm." He commanded.
The Basilisk raised its head and scurried towards Haruna and the others. Tai'dra came running behind him, rummaging through her satchel while yelling. "We're dead, we're dead, we're gonna die!"
Not if I can help it. Janus thought.
He led the Basilisk by its frills. Struggling to brace himself and adjust to its movement. He tried hard to hold on to it while exerting as little pressure on the creature. It didn't seem to mind him though, its skin was hard as rock after all. There was no way he could tear through its hide just by latching on
Tai'dra's notes specifically mentioned around two or three reinforcements were common for the Millipedes, but right before them was a whole swarm raging creatures. He guessed that no one has ever seen one before, or lived to tell the tale.
The sight put a shiver to his spine. They blended into the grass and moved through the trees and bushes. It was like a tidal wave of critters scurrying around for blood. The horns of one had torn a gash through his nose, imagine what a swarm of them could do.
"Hold position." He commanded the Basilisk.
The Basilisk yielded, seemingly aware of the danger that's running towards them.
"Tai'dra. Close your eyes!" Janus yelled.
He waited until the critters were around a few feet closer. He wanted maximum coverage.
"Now! Lizzie! Stun them!" He yelled, covering his eyes with his elbows. Unaware that he had named the Basilisk.
The creature raised its frills like a sunflower displaying its grandeur. Janus felt the light flash before him and the sounds faded.
He opened his eyes. He was panting now, torn by his allergies and the stress of keeping everyone alive. He was frantically in need of a drink.
"There's more!" A voice yelled, it seemed to be coming from above the tree. So Ramgol had already awakened.
Indeed, a hundred more of the critters emerged from behind the swarm. Crawling on top of their petrified brethren.
"Lizzie do it again! Stun them." Janus yelled in frustration.
The Basilisk wriggled its head. Its frills were now limp, Janus could feel the creature's labored breathing. No, that was enough. The Basilisk's ability must have taken a toll on its energy reserves.
Janus tried to form a spell, but in between nausea and the pressure of the creatures in front of him, he couldn't help but freeze. Like he was struck in the Basilisk's stony gaze himself.
Is this the end of me? Getting swarmed to death by a thousand wriggling feet? Can I keep my Library in the afterlife?
Janus breathed deep, bracing for the inevitable.
He saw something fly in the air. The light of the afternoon sun glinted through. He had seen this before, in one of the workshops. It was a round bottle full of swirling liquid.
The bottle smashed open and oil spilled across the thousands of approaching creatures.
Another bottle fell to the ground. This time it didn't contain any liquid, instead, it contained light.
The glass shattered, and the reaction from both its contents created a wildfire that erupted before him. Janus scrambled behind the Basilisk's body for cover. The creature didn't seem fazed. It stood there, calmly marveling at the thousands of critters squirming and running for dear life.
"Take that you worthless maggots!" Tai'dra yelled behind him.
The fire had stopped the Millipedes in their tracks, but it was now climbing to the trees and threatening to reach the canopy. They were now in danger of falling branches and debris.
Janus looked back, and took a sigh of relief.
There Haruna stood, awake, and active. Holding her staff high. Muttering incantations and forming barriers above her.
Janus smiled.
She mouthed "sorry" before continuing with her spells.
The others had also regained consciousness. Luffin, Rozon, Ramgol, and Tai'dra were now running towards the wagon.
Haruna diffused the fire and installed a large barrier to clear their escape from the Millipede. Not that they were interested in pursuing them any further.
"Good job Lizzie." He patted the Basilisk's head. "I'll get you some food when we're in the village okay? But first I'll need you to pull us home."
The ride home was awkward, but it was manageable. The wagon wasn't designed for a creature that stood so low above the ground. The Basilisk walked and moved like a giant monitor lizard, its body was designed to crawl under the undergrowth of bushes and dens.
In between the journey they had to stop by for water and to feed the poor creature. Haruna had to cheat and electrocute a small patch of water. The Basilisk devoured every fish that rose to the surface. The I'reen who were with them were salivating. But they had no time to waste. Janus' allergies were already crawling to his lower torso. His body was getting numb, and stiff. He only managed to speak enough for the Basilisk to obey.
They were finally met by another patrol on the way home. The soldiers and scouts transferred their party to a fresh horse-drawn wagon that moved speedily through the village to reach Lakeside, with instructions to bring the ointments needed from Yashiek's tribe.
Father Galvan's Holy spell worked wonders to alleviate the pain. It removed the itch completely, supposedly removing every last bit of the allergen from his body. Still, the boils and the aftermath of inflammation remained, he still needed some rest and a good helping of ointment to heal the scarring.
The band they came with suffered several minor injuries. All those who were caught by the petrification spell suffered muscle fatigue, which can only be healed by nourishment and rest. They had a good helping of meaty stew and vegetables.
They all stayed at the infirmary that night.
Out of all of them, only Tai'dra was left relatively unscathed.
"By the way Tai'dra. What was the thing that you used to keep the critters away? I swear it looked just as good as a fireball spell."
"Well, it was one of the new prototypes from Aiden's workshop. A vial of oil plus a vial of arcane lightning could spark a large explosion. It wouldn't work on the Basilisk, but it sure was enough to drive Millipedes away."
"Impressive. Looks like Aiden's coming up with really good inventions lately. I'm gonna have to take a tour of his lab one of these days. Is this being distributed to the others?"
Tai'dra shook her head.
"From what I know the Mystic Flames aren't interested in them without proper testing, but Mistress Jundra had been handing them out like to a few trusted subordinates. Still, I'm hesitant to use it unless there's an emergency, we could have burned down a large portion of the forest right there."
"Yeah thank the Almighty Haruna stepped in, right my Lady?"
But Haruna didn't respond. She was lying down on her bed. Staring at the ceiling.
- Writer
