Nisse and Diane ran for their lives, but the arachnoid was close on their tail. Diane felt she could out run it, but Nisse was having a hard time keeping up even-though she was flying. Diane looked down at the armor she was wearing and the sword in her hand and decided she had had enough. She was supposed to learn to be a fearsome warrior, and she wasn't going to do that running from every treat that came her way. Diane looked at the trees around her and formed a quick game plan in her head. She slowed down just enough that Nisse was now ahead of her and the arachnoid was about ten feet behind her. The arachnoid put on an extra burst of speed sensing it a kill within its grasp. Just as it was about to lunge at her Diane jumped to her left planted her foot against the tree and sprung off to her right now coming down directly over the arachnoid. The arachnoid's quick reflexes allowed it to spin in the air and try to grab on to her. But it didn't matter what it did Diane held her sword in a two handed grasp point downward. Driving with her right knee and her sword tip she slammed into the belly of the arachnoid. The added force of her body crushed abdomen while her sword pierced its upper body. Diane was winded and breathing heavy. She realized it wasn't from the exertion but from the adrenaline still pumping thru her veins. She looked up at Nisse who hovered a few feet away and started laughing. She could do this. Facing her enemies didn't seem so impossible anymore, not after this. She was just standing up to continue their journey when she heard several more baby cries.
"I was afraid of this. That one was a member of a pack. They will be here any minute now. They will try to circle around us and trap us in their web." Nisse said.
"How many are usually in a pack?" Diane asked her.
"No less than four and no more than six. Why aren't we running Mistress?"
"Because I am tired of running away and being the victim. I'm going to stand and fight!"
As the arachnoids came into view Diane launched herself toward them. She allowed her mind to call on Tryna's moves and used these hideous creature as practice. Holding her sword in her right hand with her right arm bent across her chest, she slashed to the right taking the head off the first creature she came to. She used the creature she just killed as a spring board and leapt to her left landing six feet up the tree on her left feet first, crushing the arachnoid there. Before springing off and to her right traveling eight feet over to the next, stabbing her sword thru the arachnoid there impaling it to the tree. Using her sword to brace herself against the tree she looked around to see where the next two where. One was directly below her but the other had gotten past her and was racing toward Nisse. Diane sprang off the tree heading back in Nisse's direction. She cut the arachnoid in front of her down without even breaking stride. But no matter how fast she ran she knew she wouldn't make it in time.
Nisse saw that Diane was sprinting for her but wasn't catching up to the arachnoid barreling down on her. She had nothing to defend herself with and she waited too long to run. Anything she did now the arachnoid would still catch her. Her only how was to try to stall it long enough for Diane to get there. Nisse decide to send a fireball. It would barely hurt it, but it would at least distract it long enough to put some distance in-between them. As it closed in on her Nisse closed her eyes, put both her hands in front of her, and created the biggest fireball she could. It shot from her hands with such force it pushed her backwards, sending her tumbling thru the air. It hit the ugly creature incinerating it instantly.
Diane stop running and stumbled when her momentum didn't stop with her. One second she saw Nisse, the next she saw a huge explosion and Nisse and the arachnoid were gone. She reached out in her bond and found Nisse twenty feet away from where she should have been. Diane ran to her and found her laying on the ground laying on her back. Her right arm was laying across her face and she wasn't moving. Diane knelt down next to her hoping she was ok. As Diane reached for her Nisse body started to randomly shake, to the point that Diane thought she was having a seizure. As Diane leaned in closer get ready to pick her up she saw a huge grin on Nisse's face. Nisse couldn't hold it in anymore. She started laughing hysterically.
"Did you see that! I have never made a fireball that big before in my life! It was HUGE!! Bahahaha!" Nisse said filled with glee.
"I thought you said your spells were supposed to be weak? That did some serious damage." Diane said
Nisse sat up and looked at Diane like she was trying to figure something out. "It has to be you. Because or bond goes both ways I must receive some of your strength's and you must receive some of mine. Let's try something. See if you can make a fireball."
"I have no clue how to do that."
"Just take the knowledge from my head, like you do with my language."
"I take your language? But aren't you speaking my language?"
Nisse giggles, "No Mistress you have been speaking my language this whole time. Now I will open my mind up to you completely. You must open yours to me so that we can share my experiences."
Diane looked around and saw a small boulder that had a flat top to it. She sat down and closed her eyes. She could feel Nisse's mind melding with her own. Nisse had dropped all the boundaries separating them, so she did as well. As soon as she did she felt a very disorienting affect at first. She was able to see Nisse's life, her as a baby being held lovingly by her mother. Then it skipped to her as a toddler, waiting anxiously for her parents to come home for a visit. Then she was a young girl of eleven and her powers had just awakened. Then Nisse was thirteen and her grandmother was teaching her the fireball spell. She had just cast it successfully for the first time. When Diane opened her eyes Nisse was hovering in front of her with tears in her eyes.
"I am so sorry Mistress. I didn't know you suffered so as a child..." Nisse said flying into Diane's arms and hugging her.