C1E7 — The Tangled Web

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Jamra's Account
When our battle had concluded, we took some time to rest, even given our dismal location. We were badly mauled and spent at least an hour setting bandages and cleaning our wounds of the beast’s venom. Then, just before we were to set off into the breach once more, we heard the telltale footfalls of Syrenixia. I have seldom felt so relieved. When she arrived, she mended what wounds she could, concern flickering in her eyes as she tended to us. I felt far safer with her in the lead than Orentha, even if each step onward made a heavy clank as we walked. Before long we came to a second, larger chamber. This one was festooned with even more webbing, if that was possible. The webs here though had a strange, ethereal quality. They seemed to be wavering a little bit in the half light of the torches and, when one of them went out, the webs glowed with a slight blueish phosphorescence. Then, as Syrenixia struggled to relight her torch, we saw it. A huge, white spider with a bulk that seemed preternaturally fast hurtled towards us. Surprisingly, Orentha was the first to engage the creature and she moved with deadly spend, striking it twice and wounding it terribly. Then, as Syrenixia charged to deliver the killing blow, it vanished. We all spread out through the room, looking back and forth. There was a strange fission in the air and we knew it was not truly gone. Spreading out through the room, each of us tensed, ready to spring. Then I heard it. An ever so slight rrrip. A droplet of saliva fell onto my shoulder, slifding down my arm as I looked up, into the lunging beast’s maw. I threw myself to the ground, scrabbling to get away and interpose my spear between us. Agate came to my rescue, striking the creature with a javelin of emerald light. It twitched once more before falling still, wedged in the cavern wall above me.

After the battle we all breathed a deep sigh of relief, secure in the knowledge we had faced a terrible foe and survived. It was the work of hours to extract the phase spider and its lesser kin from the cave and by the end we were all covered in muck and ichor, but there was a far more valuable prize revealed by our efforts: the phase spider’s egg sac. We carefully carried it and the corpses out of the tunnels before setting off to the taxidermist yet again. Of course the day’s trials had hardly begun. Some oaf of a guard, seeing our prize, tried to stop us and confiscate it. I had seen his like before in the City, those that hid behind procedure for their depredations and sought to deprive tradesmen of their honest wares. I will not tolerate such ever again. We argued with him and, after I carefully informed him who I was, conviced the man to return to Jambiss to see our paperwork. Once that was handled and the accompanying compliments had been received we were free to head to our destination unencumbered by the inquiries of the constabulary.

When we arrived, our contact offered us a handsome price, after some haggling but at the last moment Syrenixia and Orentha of all people had reservations. First they were concerned about what use the creatures would be put to, next about whether they would safely be stored. Despite the asking price of fifty gold pieces, enough money to keep us all fed and housed for a month, they wanted to destroy the eggs! We argued for at least half an hour, with them trying to mortgage our future for baseless fears. Syrenixia I can at least understand. She has a code, a system, and it is ironclad. I think her at least mildly hypocritical but she pursues a coherent vision, if it’s a simple one. She sees the world as a chaotic place in need of order and control, with those who can master themselves duty bound to protect the innocent from those who cannot. Fair enough, though she is more committed to the ideal than the actuality. I haven’t seen her at any soup kitchens or giving alms after all. No, Orentha is the one who disgusts me. She has no self-control, no reliability, she doesn’t even wash and she presumes to lecture me on morality? She talks of risk and harm, but yet she acts like a drunken sailor, battering her way through those who offend her and sullying the streets with violence. She is a hypocrite of the highest order and either desperate for the approval of one who she hopes can grant her absolution or dangerously vacillating. Agate stood with me though. She knows what it’s like to lose, I can tell that. I know she’s seen the scars on my wrists and although I have seen none on hers I know they are on her heart at least. A young girl doesn’t go off on her own without reason. In the end Syrenixia and Orentha walked out, washing their hands of the deal. Yet when Orentha returned later that night, soaked in bear and bearing fresh wounds on her knuckles she wasn’t too proud to accept payment for our “sins.”

Sirenixia's Account
After the tournament I needed some time recenter myself and spent the morning with my lyre on the beach. When I returned I found a note from Jamra informing me of Squad 13’s trial contract with a wealthy man named Jambis Dartheur to exterminate spiders from an underground facility. I met up with Jamra, Orentha, and Agate in the warehouse as they were recovering from a battle with three giant spiders. Quite an impressive feat.

I led the way further into the web filled caverns. The silence lulled us into complacency, when a giant white and blue spider appeared in front of us and attacked. Oretha dealt a series of powerful blows before it struck at me. I was able to deflect its attack, but before I could land a blow, the creature vanished again. We prepared to strike once it reappeared, but when it did, it was behind and out of reach, attacking Jamra. Jamra deflected its strike with a shield spell, and the ensuing onslaught from our party slew the beast.

When no further threats seemed imminent, a thorough examination of the room led to the discovery of the phase spider’s egg sack which we began to cart out of the cave with the rest of the spider corpses. On our way to sell the spider to the squirrel woman we were intercepted by a member of the tranquil guard asking if we had the proper paperwork for the creatures. After some difficulty we were able to work things out. It was good that we did, because I’m not sure I could have controlled my rage much longer. This inane bureaucracy seems to be designed to incite my ire, and that is good for no one.

I do not like the squirrel woman. She may have some skill in crafting magical objects, but she is ill mannered, and I do not take kindly to any who insult the competence of myself and my friends. When we arrived at her establishment, she began inspecting the spiders and disparaging us for the damages inflicted on the creatures in the process of slaying them, insulting our competence after we risked our own well being to provide her with a service. How does she imagine we would come by such creature? Sneak up and strangle them in their sleep? It is foolishness.

Further trouble arose when we learned that, if we sold the eggs, a quarter of them would escape into the ethereal, free to wreak havoc once they matured. I thought the best solution to this problem was to burn them, giving up a small sum of money now to prevent tragedy in the future. Oretha agreed, but Jamra and Agate understood things differently. Jamra was unconcerned with the dangers of release a clutch of phase spiders onto the city and seemed more concerned with his own wealth and well being than the good of others. He claimed that the good we could do with the fifty gold pieces would more than outweigh the harm that may come. If he could know this to be true, he would be right to take the money, for one should also seek the greatest good. But he has no way to be confident in that knowledge and gambling the lives of others should never be done lightly. Unfortunately, it is not my prerogative to command equals, so when Agate and Jamra could not be swayed, I could not rightly require them to give up what was, at least partially, rightfully theirs. Perhaps I should have taken a stronger stance, but I fear that I may have lost myself completely to anger if we had argued much longer. The best I could do was refuse the money received from such an immoral trade.

Dinner later was a pleasant affair. I found a quiet moment with Jamra to apologize for my poor manners during our disagreement, although I remained resolute in my stance, and may not be quite so accommodating should similar conflicts arise in the future.

Oretha arrived late, drunk, and showing signs of fighting. It seems she did not handle the aftermath of the egg dispute well. She did not seem interested in medical aid. I think I may know a thing or two about coping that she could benefit from.