Metamorphosis

Ars' footsteps echoed through the dungeon hallway. Even if he were to try so hard to not make a single sound, the deafening silence would be still broken by his soft breathing.

The path ahead was ominous, the cold atmosphere and unsettling silence a foreboding warning of danger. As he reached the end of the hallway, two paths emerged from the darkness. One was going to the left side and the other one led to the right side. Either way, both path were dark and quiet.

Ars followed his instincts and took the left path. Only the flickering light of the blue flamed torch was his sole company in this darkness.

"A pile of bones," he muttered to himself. The large fanged jaw bore a striking resemblance to that of an orc's. But in this place, it hardly even matters whose bones they were.

As he continued down the dark hallway, a faint rustling caught his attention. Unable to hide himself by extinguishing the fire, knowing it would just make things worse again like what happened last time, Ars quickly threw the wooden torch towards the dim end of the hallway and pressed himself against a small pillar, concealing himself into the shadows and hide his presence.

"..."

A ticking noise on the floor broke the silence.

A slightly hairy long and thin black limb slowly emerged from the darkness, gracefully approaching the flickering blue flame of the torch. One after another, the spider-like limbs revealed themselves until the entire form of the monster appeared. It was both beautiful and grotesque.

An alluring woman with delicate, elegant spider-like limbs, a fanged maw, and eyes that glowed like rubies in the dark.

It was an Arachne.

As Ars walked deeper into the dungeon, he remembered Orthus' warning about the lurking spiders. They were agile and deadly, their venom capable of killing a man within minutes. Avoiding their fangs was a must. But despite their lethality, the spiders had a common weakness: flames.

Throwing away his only means of defense, Ars regretted his rash decision.

Without any much choice, he pressed himself against the wall, trying to hide his presence from the spider and hoped that she would eventually leave.

"..."

A thick web suddenly struck him, the sticky strands clinged to his skin. Annoyed and startled, he tried to wipe the webs away, but as he did, he felt a sudden weight of gaze upon him.

As he turned his head, he could only mutter one word to himself. "Fuck..." The arachne's multiple red eyes glowed in the darkness as it stared to him.

The arachne made a sound of guttural clicks that echoed through the dungeon.

"Crakkakkkak."

Suddenly, her limbs lunged at him, fangs bared and dripping with venom.

Ars tried to dodge, but her speed and agility were too much for him. Her hairy limbs crept around his skin, pulling him close as she sank her fangs deep into his flesh.

Ars could only grit his teeth, wanting to rip her mouth out, but his body was completely paralyzed. He felt his body growing heavy as he realized he was slipping away.

'I will come back for you... bitch.'

...

Ars slowly opened his eyes, but it felt as if they were still closed. Everything was pitch black, but this darkness felt different. Had he gone blind? He wondered to himself.

He rubbed his eyes with his hands, but his vision was still in black. Unable to see anything, he reached out and touched the surface where he was sitting. It was smooth, but hard.

Carefully, he tried to stand up, moving slowly and cautiously like a newborn learning to walk for the first time.

Suddenly, there was a spark, a flame emerged out of nowhere. It was small and faint. Fortunately, he hadn't gone blind, at least not yet.

The flame was a shade of crimson.

Slowly, the flame started to grow. It danced like a dream, its motion wasn't smooth. As the flame grew, it started to form a silhouette of an eye.

As it flickered to life, it slowly grew both ears, similar to an elf. Left and right arms with long fingers that resembled a talon.

Its serrated teeth showed as it gave a big, dreadful smile. Although it didn't have an eyeball, Ars felt himself being gazed upon by it.

He tried to move, but his body wouldn't follow. He only sat there as he watched the faint flame take the form of a crimson silhouette, presumably a demon, in the midst of darkness.

"..."

The silhouette stopped smiling. It then raised its right hand, and a similarly small and faint flame conjured from its palm. But the color of the flame was violet.

And slowly, it took the form of a human. Although it had no face shown, for it was facing its back.

Gently, the crimson silhouette placed the violet flame down.

It turned around and started to look around. It looked confused, despite its face painted with a blank expression.

Ars didn't know or even have the slightest idea what was happening now, but the silhouette of a demon started to raise both of its arms and crimson flames appeared everywhere. The pitch-black place turned to red, and the silhouette became black.

Everything was silent. He could see the crimson silhouette laughing, its eyes almost closed, but there was no sound.

The violet silhouette panicked as it started walking around, but everywhere was burning in flames.

The crimson silhouette grew bigger and bigger, its smile was enough to devour them whole

...

—!

Ars woke up, his body covered in thick webs. He groaned as he felt aching pain in his head and the arachne's fangs still in his shoulders.

Looking at the flickering blue flame of a torch lying on the ground, he broke away from the arachne's fangs; tearing his flesh away.

Despite the determination, his legs were weak, and he suddenly collapsed. Desperately, he crawled towards the torch. Finally, Ars reached the flickering blue flame of the torch laid on the ground and pulled himself closer. He felt a surge of energy course through him as he used the torch's flame to burn the webs and free himself.

However, the arachne's sharp limb suddenly pierced Ars' back. But it wasn't enough to make him let go of the torch he tightly grasped.

In a fit of rage, Ars pointed the torch at the arachne and threatened to burn her alive. But his headache then worsened, and without thinking, he threw the torch towards the arachne.

The arachne recoiled from the heat of the blue flame, screeching in pain as her flesh sizzled and burned. Ars' body began to feel lighter as the venom subsided. He stood up and watched as the arachne screeched in pain.

"Fucking bitch," he muttered under his breath, picking up the torch. The arachne tried to attack Ars again, but her movements were sluggish due to the pain and injuries she had sustained.

"Just die already!" Ars yelled as he tried to run away.

Ars tried to run away but the arachne followed him, not yielding yet to the blue flames. Just as the arachne got closer to him, a blue ray of flame appeared and melted her entire body.

Swooz!

Its body was melted in half, only the remainings of her limbs was left on the ground. Ars dropped the torch he was holding in surprise.

Thump!

Thump!

Loud stomping noises were heard from the dark hallway. A demon... no, it was more than a demon that suddenly emerged from the darkness. It was towering, its head almost reaching the ceiling. It had tall horns protruding from its forehead and lower jaw, along with torn wings extending from its back. Its skin was a deep shade of red, and its feet resembled those of a goat.

It stood in front of Ars, its gaze full of sinister intent. At that moment, Ars felt a familiar feeling wash over him...

Fear.

The demon's eyes bore into him with malice, as if it was relishing the opportunity to crush him. The demon raised a massive claw, ready to strike.

He was frozen with fear, unable to move a single inch as the demon's colossal hands surged towards him. But then, his body moved on its own.

"...!"

He landed in a crouch, using the sharp arachne's limb that was on the ground as a makeshift weapon, Ars poised for a counter-attack. The demon's claw crashed into the ground where Ars had been in, sending a bunch of stone debris flying.

The room was bathed in darkness, save for the flickering light of the blue flame torch. The only sounds were the demon's heavy breathing and the thud of its footsteps as it stalked towards Ars.

Ars knew he had to keep moving, to keep dodging the demon's attacks. He lunged forward as a counter attack, using the arachne's limb as his weapon, striking the demon's leg. The weapon was sharp, it made a deep laceration.

"GAARGH!" The demon roared, unaffected by the attack. Rather, it only seemed to anger the demon further, as it continued its onslaught with barely any pause.

Ars felt a sense of hopelessness wash over him. How could he hope to defeat this monstrous creature? It seemed invincible, unstoppable.

The fear was paralyzing him, making his body hesitate. But a flicker of something inside him was rejecting these feelings, like his soul is telling him that he must keep fighting, even if it meant to fighting until he lose consciousness.

"HAAAH!"

Ars screamed. His mind was a blur of twisted emotions, a mix of fear, rage, and sadism.

"FUCK! I DON'T KNOW ANYMORE!" Ars shouted in frustration, swinging his weapon with a sudden outburst of wrath.

The demon swung its massive claw again, hitting Ars and sending him flying to the wall. He felt a sharp pain in his side as the demon's talons grazed him.

"Kukh... I can keep up with you, fucker!" Ars grunted, feeling the searing pain of the wound inflicted by the demon. But instead of being discouraged, he felt a twisted sense of amusement, like a psychopath in the throes of bloodlust.

With a fierce determination, Ars lunged forward once more. He aimed his weapon at the demon's face, hoping to blind it. The demon raised its arm to block the attack, but Ars struck with all his might.

The demon slammed Ars to the ground, his body convulsed in pain, his body trembling with agony. He could feel his bones shatter, his organs rupturing, and his life slipping away. The pain was all-consuming, like he was dying a thousand deaths.

Ars wanted to give in to the pain and let himself slip into unconsciousness. But his body refused to comply. It felt as though some primal force inside him was commanding him to fight, to kill.

He gritted his teeth and rose to his feet, his head fueled with bloodlust. He could no longer see the demon as a fearsome monster. Rather, as a prey that needed to be destroyed.

He lets out a twisted smile, a sickening grin spreading across his face as he began to laugh. His throat felt raw and ragged from the exertion, causing him to choke.

Ars was no longer himself—his eyes had turned white. His body at this moment was nothing any longer but a vessel fueled by an unrelenting anger.

Thud.

Ars' body collapsed to the ground, his body battered and bruised. It seemed like he had finally reached his limits.

Even the strongest of wills can falter, and the mightiest of warriors can reach their limits. For the human body is but a fragile vessel, capable of enduring only so much before it shatters into pieces.

Everything was dark, as if his eyes were closed. But Ars could feel something touching his body. Two hands that felt like tracing his arms with its fingertips.

Although it was complete darkness, Ars could envision that someone was cradling him. A woman it was, as she spoke solemnly.

"...I swear upon my life, I shall shield you from all harm and pain that may befall you starting this time."

Her voice echoed through both of his ears. It was merely just words but it felt so sincere and warm.

"No longer shall you suffer, for I will bear the weight of your burdens and the brunt of all that may come."

As Ars finally fell into unconsciousness, the voice spoke for the last time.

"I will be this light in the darkness you've become."