11 Bad day to be a rat

Making his way through the underground labyrinth that was the city sewers, Finn was getting tired of the smell and scenery. He occasionally passed steps that seemed to lead to a higher level, but after ascending he was always blocked by a locked metal door. If he had a way to open them he might have been out by now, but using his pins and a scalpel were not enough to pick the locks. Well, that, or he was doing it wrong. Unable to use the stairs he had to continue along the murky waters as before.

A few minutes later Finn heard some splashing coming from up ahead. Crouching down and sticking to the wall he approached the source. Suddenly what looked like a giant catfish surfaced up ahead. Terrified, Finn froze, hoping he had been stealthy enough in his approach to avoid it seeing him. The fish's eyes roamed about slowly. In the middle of deciding if shooting it would work Finn noticed a giant rat wandering along the opposite side of the water, every now and then pausing to sniff the air and look around. The catfish sank back down into the murky water, and Finn let out a sigh of relief.

That thing was definitely over three meters long. As he waited for the rat to move on, a sudden splash and shriek made him freeze again. The giant fish had leaped out of the water onto the unsuspecting rat, its long whiskers wrapping around it and shoving it halfway into its mouth. The rat was still struggling when the fish rolled back into the water and disappeared. 'Time to run' thought Finn as he ran away from where the fish was.

Another familiar screech a few minutes later made him pause for a bit before he saw an opening on his right. The metal grate that had been sealing off the room had been removed by someone and and lay cast aside on the ground nearby. Wanting to get away from the water and its dangers he decided to go in.

Finn quietly readied his crossbow, he had grown to rely on it for emotional support whenever he approached anything down here in the dark. Poking his head in through the opening, he saw that the room was bigger than where he rested previously and even had a passage continuing on and around another corner. Deciding to investigate he sneaked in carefully to avoid making any noises.

The room was empty apart from the wet trail leading into the passage. Following it, Finn heard more noises, and going around the corner he could finally see what had made the trail.

One of the giant crabs he had avoided earlier with its greenish brown shell still dripping wet was snapping its serrated claw aggressively in the air trying to attack a rat. It seemed the rats where really having a tough day. It was having a hard time because it was fighting another one of the giant rats Finn had encountered previously. The rat looked injured but it was still faster than the crab and would bite the crab each time it dodged the claw.

Normally the crab wouldn't have had such a hard time, but seeing the two dead rats nearby, Finn assumed this had been a ferocious battle. More evidence included several of the crab's missing legs and one of its claws lying on the ground near the other rats.

Thinking that he should leave before one of them notices him, Finn was about to turn and go back the way he came when he spotted a ladder in the corner of the room. He didn't know where it lead to, but up was a good direction. The problem was he would need to get rid of the fighting beasts before he could continue safely especially that crab which could use its remaining claw to attack him while he climbed.

The rat should be easy to deal with, he had experience dealing with them, his focus was on the crab. Did it have any weak spots? And would his crossbow even work against it? Neither question were ones he could answer.

'As long as the rat was alive it would attack and distract the crab,' thought Finn. 'The crab might not even react to being shot and attack me before making sure it's other enemy is dead.' Maybe it was a bit optimistic, but he didn't favor his chances against the crab in a duel. Even against a weakened one, one snap of its giant claws might result in him losing a limb, the dead rats seemed to have experienced that.

Aiming at the crab was a challenge, it was scuttling from side to side trying to attack the rat. He decided to test the strength of its shell directly, the only target he was sure he could hit was its large body. Waiting until the crab launched its claw out to attack again, he shot the crossbow when it paused fully extended.

Finn heard a dull crunch sound when the bolt hit the crab. The shot caused its shell to crack a little as the bolt punctured into its insides. Success! His celebratory fist pump was cut short when the crab kept moving, twitching a little, looking around and eventually turning around to face him. The way it snapped its claw angrily in the air was scary, but it's intimidation was interrupted by the the rat.

Not missing the opportunity of its foe leaving its back unguarded the giant rat pounced on the distracted crab, sinking its sharp incisors into the crab's joint between its claw and its body. Struggling furiously the crab scuttled to the side, ramming the rat against the wall and knocking loose. The damage, however, had already been done, and another claw lay lifeless on the ground.

Disarmed, literally, the crab was no longer a threat, and while the rat worked on finishing it off, Finn had reloaded his crossbow and started sneaking towards the ladder. Wasting another bolt wouldn't be worth it if he could sneak past now. The crab's claw was what stopped him previously, as it would probably have killed the rat before he reached the ladder and switched target to him.

Thankfully the rat seemed more interested in a now easy meal of crab. Ignoring Finn's sneaking. Eventually reaching the ladder, Finn attached the crossbow to one of his belts and started climbing quickly.