In a commanding tone, Agatha issued orders to her army to head to the state of Missouri. The military convoy set out towards the city of St. Louis, embarking on an expedition into the unknown.
She understood that the stakes were high, and the lives of her comrades depended on every decision she made.
Friends and acquaintances of Thanatos sat in the same armored Hummer as before, their transport leading the way.
— In "Pierce Life" laboratory, there's everything necessary for protection against ordinary monsters, — Nemesis said, trying to reassure Agatha once again.
As a Major General, she valued any information about the new location, abecause she had blindly trusted an unauthorized civilian.
Nemesis took out her phone and charged it with her own energy, showing pictures of two skyscrapers, one of them oval in Mars-style architecture.
— What the hell, Nemesis? There's a flimsy fence! The monsters have already breached the defense of your main laboratory.
Nemesis gently stroked a disgruntled Agatha's head, replying, — Firstly, skyscrapers are just a facade; the main operations take place underground in an underground complex. Secondly, I've given my scientific staff and combat units instructions on cultivation methods. Thirdly, stop pestering me and being so insolent.
Thanatos chuckled with a smile as he listened to the girls' bickering. He thought to himself, «And I'll have to spend the whole trip to the laboratories surrounded by beautiful women, listening to their constant debates and discussions. There are pros and cons to that, although the positives will be more numerous».
Along the way, the surviving soldiers encountered various difficulties, including traffic jams of abandoned cars and hordes of zombies. However, Nemesis used her abilities to clear the path, creating powerful gusts of wind to scatter the obstacles.
The rear rows of cars dealt with trolls, ogres, undead, and goblins using mounted machine guns or assault rifles.
Agatha's troops journeyed towards Missouri for 24 hours, despite exhaustion. The uncertainty that awaited them ahead frightened the ordinary soldiers.
The grueling journey drained their mental and emotional strength, as the abandoned cars, roaming zombies, and aggressive ogres served as constant reminders of the planet Earth's decay.
During the arduous journey, Thanatos found solace in conversing with Spica, Nemesis, Evelina, and Agatha.
— The world is slowly fading, — he said with a touch of sadness.
— No, brother, it's evolving. The world is adapting, just like its inhabitants. But the natural selection is too complex and cruel, leading to the unfortunate extinction of a large part of humanity.
Spica sat in the backseat between Evelina and Nemesis. She discreetly pinched her cousin's side and whispered in her ear, — There is no need to lighten Thanatos' burden. If he goes soft, he won't be able to accept the brutal rule of the DGES Alliance.
— I forgot to ask for your opinion, tsk," Nemesis tsked and turned away when Spica began to rebuke her for being puny to her younger brother.
Halfway through the day, Thanatos noticed the girls grew somewhat quiet. The grim reality drained their good spirits. Determined to uplift them, he employed his infectious charm and sense of humor.
Short respites from the fading world were essential for each individual. The girls' moods quickly lifted, strengthening the bond between them.
As they progressed on their route, the gasoline in many SUVs began to run out, forcing them to stop at a suburban gas station near St. Louis.
During the refueling, Agatha spoke with her commanders, cultivators, and Lieutenant Colonel John.
— Ma'am, if the new place isn't as safe as you promised us, it will doom any remaining survivors to certain death, — John warned.
— Don't state the obvious to me, Lieutenant Colonel. I trust Nemesis and Thanatos — Agatha replied confidently
However, amidst their conversations, Spica's warning broke through like a gust of cold wind in the night, — Guys, my extrasensory perception of nature is telling me that a horde of unknown beings is approaching us at an alarming speed. Multiple energy signatures, two kilometers to the east. They've been following our military convoy all this time.
— Who ? How many of them? — Agatha inquired, sensing a growing unease. Such a calamity was neither timely nor appropriate.
At that moment, Victor, Samuel, and Emma stood among the other commanders, listening to their conversation.
— There are too many of them to determine the exact number. Around ten thousand, if my enhanced senses aren't mistaken, — Spica replied, furrowing her brows.
Agatha's heart started pounding wildly as Nemesis' intuition confirmed the approaching danger, — Now I feel it too... I feel the danger.
Thanatos wasn't encouraged by the words of his relatives, as he understood their power levels. If they were worried, it meant that the overall situation worsened with each passing moment.
— And... what should we do? — Evelina asked, clutching Thanatos' hand.
— For you? The army and all of you should head west to Nemesis' laboratory. The monsters will swallow Agatha's army without even feeling any difficulty in digesting them. As for me, I will stay here, — Spica calmly replied, turning her head towards the approaching cloud of red smoke.
Thanatos nodded at her words and gave instructions to his girls, — Agatha, gather your people and leave together. Nemesis will accompany you as the main support, and Evelina will...
— No! — the short-haired brunette interrupted, holding onto Thanatos' hand tightly. Evelina shook her head vigorously, — You speak as if you're planning to stay here with Spica! I won't leave you...
— Brother, I don't intend to leave either...
Thanatos cut off his two girls with a firm statement, — I've said everything! You will go with Agatha, and that's not up for discussion. Don't worry about me; I'm much stronger than I seem, and I have a few aces up my sleeve.
Nemesis didn't like the idea of "leaving the younger brother without assistance". However, with Spica by his side, she didn't oppose his resolute decision and embraced him tightly.
As they said their farewells, Thanatos kissed Nemesis, Agatha, and Evelina on the lips, and then together with Spica, he watched the columns of military vehicles drive westward, disappearing over the horizon.
Agatha also told the two of them that half a kilometer ahead on the way to St. Louis, they would leave an equipped SUV, so that after the battle, Thanatos and Spica could quickly catch up with their army.
— You say you have a couple of aces up your sleeve? I'd like to see that, — Spica said with a grin, looking at the dusty, red mist that was almost upon them.
Ignoring her, Thanatos deftly changed the subject, — Less pointless discussions, more constructive information. Look at these creatures... are they spiders?
— Fuck... fuck! FUCKING BLEEP! — Spica raised her voice, clenching her teeth in frustration. From beneath the ground, Spica began releasing thick spikes and thorns, preparing for the upcoming battle, — What are these little workers doing here...
— Who are they? — Thanatos asked with tension, covering his hands and body with Chaos energy.
— These are Weaver-Spiders. They consume the bodies of Stellar Cultivators from within and steal the souls of living beings for their mistress.
— How strong are they, and who is their mistress?
— These little spiders are still young. They are quite weak, but if the elders had come, I'd have to fight at full strength. Probably, they came led by the Queen-Arachne, who is nurturing a new generation.
Thanatos shifted his gaze from Spica, who was speaking, to the swarm of spiders, standing human height. The large cluster of smoke and red mist prevented them from estimating the exact number of these monsters, but he knew there were approximately five times fewer than Spica initially stated. She had miscalculated, previously assuming that the monsters moved on two limbs.
These hairy creatures slowed down their run as they approached Thanatos and Spica. While the young Weaver-Spiders surrounded them, Thanatos carefully observed and studied their structure. They had three to five pairs of limbs, red chitinous and protective shells, blood-red eyes, and enormous size.
The crimson spiders instilled fear in the hearts of creatures who understood the nature of their power.
Thanatos sensed a weak thread, a tenuous connection between himself and the spiders, akin to kinship.
«Could they be somehow linked to Chaos?» he wondered to himself, clenching his fists tightly.
While Thanatos' assumption was correct, it was overly one-sided and incomplete.
— What are you doing here? — Spica asked the commanding Weaver.
Thanatos' cousin wasn't foolish. She didn't need an answer to the question, as Spica was buying time, slowly and subtly wrapping the Weaver-Spiders' limbs with deadly spikes.
— We came here to feed, and this male must become food for our brothers and sisters! — The spider spoke with a lisp due to the thick hair around its mouth.
— Really? Can't we come to some sort of agreement?
— Hey, I'm not going to be their food! — protested Thanatos, assuming an attacking stance. He was ready to strike at any moment.
— Kill them! For Limbo, for the preservation of the Universe! — the spider-woman yelled, rallying her thousand-strong horde against the two humans.
In the battle against the hordes of human-sized Weaver-Spiders, the color of chaos and death blazed brilliantly: the desert ground became a crimson rainbow of spider blood.
The spiders themselves were not higher than the rank of First Star System.
A swirling aura of destruction surrounded Thanatos' body, emanating otherworldly energy. His fists, covered in the same chaotic hue, struck the spiders' red chitinous shells with force capable of warping space itself.
The clash of two identical colors but different shades created tense uniformity, representing the natural selection within a single species.
Meanwhile, Spica's powers manifested through erupting and vibrating branches. When she summoned crystal spikes and thorns, they emitted a fierce white light, contrasting with the spiders' sturdy armor.
— Ha-ha-ha, die! — Spica commanded the Energy of Nature. The spikes coiled around the spiders' legs and dragged them underground, rendering them completely lifeless. In one move, she dispatched around fifty spiders, saying, — It's not every day you get a chance to play with beings from Limbo.
Thanatos remembered those words but didn't discuss them in the heat of battle.
Throughout the fight, he moved with incredible caution and agility, each of his maneuvers marked by a bright red streak.
— Try to jump on me, — Thanatos provocatively mumbled as he swiftly moved left and right like lightning, evading the spiders' artillery attacks.
The spiders looked like mortar shells that propelled themselves towards Thanatos and Spica.
The air crackled with chaotic energy, concentrated in every cubic foot (meter). Every time Thanatos struck their shells with his fist, an explosive blast followed, accompanied by their aggressive cries.
— Kraaaa-ahh, they resist our noble mission, resist the will of our Mistress, — muttered a wounded spider before meeting its end.
— Unacceptable insult. I command you to intensify the assault, tear their mortal food apart, — ordered the main spider.
Throughout the duel, the spiders relentlessly attacked from all sides, their movements depicted in a furious crimson-black color. They attempted to bite through Thanatos and Spica's protective energy films.
Breaking through Spica's defense seemed impossible for them since she didn't give them any advantage, and Thanatos possessed the same predisposition as they did - Chaos Energy. Their powers canceled out each other's destructive properties. They were losing to Thanatos for the simple reason that they were young, and their Chaos Energy wasn't as primal and pure as his.
«Darn, it's a shame I broke my sword! He would help a lot against those spiders,» Thanatos thought to himself.
For thirty minutes, he had been fending off an incessant wave of hairy monsters at a tolerable pace. Thanatos wouldn't be able to kill the Weaver-Spiders without Spica since her Nature Energy thinned out dense groups of enemies.
The epic battle continued, forcing Thanatos and Spica to intertwine their bodies in a dynamic dance of combat. Standing back-to-back, they constantly swapped positions, advancing deeper into the spider army.
The battlefield was littered with countless spider corpses, their blood blending into an acrid cocktail, as the two Stellar Cultivators relentlessly pressed on.
For the two of them, the concept of time blurred until two hours had passed, spent in an unyielding struggle against the relentless monsters.
One might think the two cultivators were the aggressors, as the spiders merely sought food. However, they didn't arrive on this planet by chance. This battle was only the initial stage of the conquering campaign of a powerful Arachnid.
Eventually, the spiders fell under the unstoppable might of Thanatos and Spica. The colorful canvas settled, displaying a mixture of exhaustion and triumph.
Thanatos left the last spider, the army's commander, alive.
— Well, will you say something to save your life? — he asked the wounded spider-woman lying beneath him.
Moving her fluffy whiskers, she whispered smugly, — Our lives hold no value, unlike our peacemaking mission. Despite our kinship, you are a Heresy, one our brothers and sisters will surely rid themselves of. Our Goddess has rendered her verdict, and this mission will someday be... c-completed.
He listened to her speech, after which she lost the spark of life and died.
«And what does all this mean? If they came from the 'Limbo' dimension, I'm in big trouble. They're the ones in charge of the reincarnation of the souls of dead stellar cultivators. Damn, what did I do to displease them? Or, more precisely, what did I do to displease their Goddess! Too many questions and too few answers... Maybe I should involve Spica in the underground game, but it's too dangerous,» Thanatos pondered, considering whether he should pull Spica into the intrigues.
He wasn't sure if he could persuade her to join his side and "betray" her own family.
What would be her reason to support her cousin and go against mother Syrma and the two aunts?
For about ten minutes, Thanatos pondered this question while Spica collected the spider corpses and their blood into spatial rings. The battlefield was scattered with precious ingredients that were nearly impossible to find throughout the Universe.