Sam was not quite certain what was going on, but his current leading theory was that he was waiting to hatch out of an egg after dying and reincarnating.
His evidence for this?
He had been falling in and out of consciousness for an unknown amount of time and he could feel a hard enclosure around him that grew smaller each time he awoke. His body also felt different from a human's, and it was gradually becoming easier for him to think. Hopefully, the newly born members of his new species would be more capable than a newly born human.
Sam did not want to flop around uselessly for years.
Oh, and he also remembered his death. That was a fairly important piece of evidence.
One of the benefits of his current circumstances was that he had plenty of time to process his emotions while he was incubating. He had already cried and despaired, and even if he hadn't fully come to terms with his death, he accepted it as something he could not change.
Now, most of his focus was on trying to move his new body and escape his prison, but he had no idea how long it would take for him to hatch. He could tell that he had extra limbs, but it was difficult for him to guess what species he had been reincarnated into.
Sam hoped he was something awesome, like a dragon. Those extra limbs could be wings, right?
While Sam found himself awake, he usually spent his time testing the confines of his prison until he ran out of energy and fell back asleep. It was during the middle of this routine that he felt something prodding at his prison from the outside, causing Sam to feel a thread of panic.
I really hope I'm not about to be eaten by some predator before I could start my dragon adventures.
As his egg was breached and he saw something aside from darkness for the first time in this life, the first thing Sam felt was disappointment that he wasn't a dragon. He knew he was not a dragon because dragons did not have eight eyes.
The second thing Sam felt was terror because he was being stared at by the hideous face of a giant spiderlike creature.
Sam felt himself freeze in fear as he was lifted from his egg—viscous liquid still dripping from his body—and manipulated back and forth by the giant monster.
After a few moments it seemed as if the creature was satisfied, and it placed Sam down on the floor to move onto another egg. As the creature turned its attention elsewhere, Sam gradually calmed down when it became obvious the monster didn't intend to eat him.
Looking around, he found himself in a dark cavern filled with large amber-colored eggs that looked to be covered in strange pustules and wreathed in webs. Several other small versions of the spiderlike creature were standing around and also looking around and taking in their surroundings.
Sam looked down at his hands only to have his fears confirmed when he saw that he had three scary-looking claws and an arm that was covered in chitin.
Well… this fucking sucks. Why couldn't I have been reborn as something other than some kind of ugly spider monster?
He took note of the fact that the other newly born spider monsters seemed to be much more aware of their surroundings than a newly born human would be. Sam was also able to move around with an acceptable amount of dexterity despite not being used to having so many limbs.
Unless all of the other spiderlings were also reincarnated individuals, it seemed that the newly born of this species were intelligent and physically capable from the moment they were born.
Could be worse I guess. If these guys are intelligent then they must have developed some kind of society and I don't feel mind controlled so they're probably not some kind of hivemind.
Sam focused on analyzing his surrounding to the best of his ability in order to avoid thinking too hard about his death or his new body. He had done his best to come to terms with his circumstances while he was incubating, but having the harsh reality shoved into his face was not pleasant.
If he was going to reincarnate, Sam would have much preferred to be something humanoid if he couldn't be a dragon.
Hopefully, these spider folk didn't follow the standard tropes common to insectoid races in Earth's fiction. Sam didn't want to be treated like some kind of disposable cannon fodder.
Thankfully, there were some positive signs in that regard. The spider creature who was continuing to free the young spiderlings from their eggs seemed to be doing so with a significant amount of care.
If Sam was about to be sent to die like an expendable zergling, he doubted the creature would be so careful.
He could see that the adult only had a few more eggs to examine, so Sam decided to use that time to acclimate himself to his new body.
Moving each of his three digits one by one, Sam discovered that his fingers were still flexible despite being encased in chitin.
That was a bit strange, but Sam decided to ignore it. There were so many things about this situation that didn't make sense that focusing on them would be a useless endeavor.
Sam moved all six of his legs as he walked around in a circle, marveling at how natural his movements felt. Feeling emboldened, he decided to try spinning around in circles, curious as to whether or not his new body could handle it.
A few moments later, Sam was dizzily interrupted by the sound of a skittering sound that drew his attention to the adult spider thing that was looking down at him.
Sam froze and looked back and forth between the adult and a nearby spiderling that had decided to mimic him by spinning in circles. Sam hoped he wouldn't be eaten for being a bad influence.
He and the adult had a short staring match before the creature made some more skittering noises—noises which Sam was beginning to suspect was a language—and picked him up.
For a moment a part of him believed he was about to die, but the creature simply placed Sam gently down onto its large abdomen. Strange instincts compelled him to hold on to the creature tightly, and he somehow knew that he would have no trouble adhering to the adult.
As soon as Sam was properly situated, the adult spider turned its attention to the rest of the spiderlings. The creature moved its forearms in a strange motion and a moment later its hands seemed to glow in a strange, whitish purple color.
Sam flinched at the sudden and strange feeling of a foreign presence in his mind. The telepathic message did not come in any words that he could understand, but a clear meaning was conveyed regardless.
"Ascend my body, hatchlings."
The other newborns seemed just as surprised as Sam, but they did not hesitate to obey the adult's orders. Soon enough, Sam was sharing his mount with eight other baby spider monsters, although he was too busy marveling at the display of magic to notice.
If Sam was given the opportunity to learn magic, it would almost make being reborn as a spider monster worth it.
Sam was pulled out of these thoughts and he turned his focus to holding his grip as the adult suddenly started moving at speeds a giant spider monster should not be allowed to achieve. Very quickly, Sam was carried out of the caverns in which he was born, and he got his first glimpse at the society he had been born into in this life.
Sam found himself being transported through a giant cavern wreathed nearly completely in webs and filled with black and gold structures. These webs reached from the roof of the cavern to its lowest level, allowing members of his new species to quickly skitter in and out of the numerous tunnels connected to the cavern that was larger than Sam could estimate. In addition to the spider people that were skittering around, there were also strange creatures that looked like some unholy combination between a spider and a bat flying through the air in packs.
As the adult carried him through a confusing series of tunnels, Sam was looking at his surroundings, feeling both a sense of awe and growing dread.
Awe, because this completely alien society was one of the most amazing things he had ever seen. Dread, because his surroundings were starting to seem a bit familiar.
Then he was brought into a smaller cavern with what seemed to be an ornate temple built into the wall and connected to the rest of the cavern by a bridge of webs. On either side of the doorway allowing entrance to the temple were two obelisks that floated over some kind of magical rune etched into the floor.
The architecture was like nothing he had ever seen. It most resembled ancient Egyptian or Mesopotamian style architecture except visibly influenced by the presence of magic and the spider folk's large sizes. The area was illuminated by crystals engraved into the wall that glowed an eerie blue and the structure was built wide and open to allow for the massive spider people to come and go in comfort.
A few of the spider folk were skittering in and out of the temple, but they paid no attention to Sam and his fellow hatchlings or his mount as he was carried inside. He noted with interest that the spider folk inside the temple seemed to be wearing black and red silk robes.
This was in stark contrast to all the other spider folk he had seen before who wore nothing at all.
Eventually, Sam was brought into a room occupied by a spider person with a uniquely strange appearance. While all the other spider folk he had seen before looked like some kind of six-legged spider with two arms and a spiderlike head connected to a humanoid torso, this one was completely different.
It had a spiderlike head that connected to a humanoid torso with four arms with three fingers, each that moved dexterously to cast magic as Sam and his peers were brought further into the room. Its lower half had only four legs, but where the rest of the spider folk looked like centaurs that were longer than they were tall, this one stood up straight to reach a massive height.
The adult spider person Sam was clinging to carefully lowered its body and bowed while saying something in its strange clicking language. The taller one ignored it and finished casting its magic and a violet-colored magical glyph covered the floor of the entire room.
Sam was still staring at the magic in wonder when the spider person he was riding spoke again.
"Hello, hatchlings."
Sam nearly fell to the ground in surprise, the adhesive properties of his new body's limbs the only thing keeping him from doing so. Even though the sounds the creature was making did not meaningfully change, this time Sam found he could understand its meaning.
With a quick glance around, he could tell his fellow newborns were similarly surprised.
The creature let out a harsh clicking sound that Sam somehow knew to interpret as laughter.
"That is always amusing. Do not be afraid, hatchlings. The magic of Seer Kuk'ir allows you to understand our language without having learned it. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Custodian Kriltes."
Sam wasn't sure if he should respond—or if he even could—but Kriltes continued speaking as if he was not expecting a reply.
"Welcome to Kilah'Kuk, a city belonging to Azjol-Nerub. We are Nerubians. That means little to you now, but you will be taught all of this soon enough," said Kriltes, unknowingly causing Sam's growing dread to reach a peak.
"I have brought you to Circle of Viziers for your Naming Ceremony. Seer Kuk'ir has cast a Glyph of Comprehension so you are able to understand the significance of this moment even if you have not yet learned to speak our people's language," explained Kriltes as he began removing the newly born Nerubians from his body one by one. "Seer Kurk'ir cannot maintain the Glyph indefinitely, so we will begin the ceremony immediately. I have watched and guarded over your eggs, as is my duty, and now I shall name you."
Sam could not bring himself to pay much attention to the ceremony, despite its apparent importance. The moment he had learned that his new people were called Nerubians, Sam had completely stopped paying attention.
The Nerubians were an insectoid race of sentient spider people in Warcraft, a popular high fantasy franchise created by Blizzard Entertainment. The Warcraft universe primarily focused on Azeroth—a death world that was constantly being devastated by the schemes of multiple Lovecraftian deities and an endless army of planet-destroying demons led by an insane god.
The Nerubians were a race that lived on the Azeroth's northernmost continent of Northrend. They largely played little role in the world's history until an orcish shaman by the name of Ner'zhul had his soul mutilated by the second in command of the demons. Ner'zhul's mortal form was destroyed and he was bound to a cursed sword and helmet, becoming the Lich King.
The Lich King then set out to conquer Northrend and create an army of undead that he could use to attack the rest of Azeroth. The War of the Spider lasted a decade, but in the end, the Nerubians were not able to survive the Lich King's endless aggression and were almost completely slaughtered and turned into undead slaves.
A small portion of Sam's attention managed to overcome his turmoil and focus on Kriltes as he approached Sam to give him his name.
"I have seen your inquisitive nature, hatchling. The intelligence in your eyes is obvious, even if you have not been hatched for long. Maybe one day you might grow to become a Vizier," said Kriltes solemnly. "I name you Krivax."
Kriltes moved on to the next hatchling, leaving the newly named Krivax to come to terms with the fact that he had been reborn into a species fated to be nearly completely destroyed.
Fuck…
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Krivax called on his mana and carefully pushed his intent into a strand of silk threads, desperately hoping that this time he would succeed in infusing the simple spell into the material. Custodian Kriltes had told him that if he wanted to become a Vizier, then this would be good practice.
So far, he was not having much luck.
Krivax clicked his mandibles in frustration as the spell once again failed and the silk fell to pieces. With a sigh, he started the uncomfortable process of creating a new thread with his spinnerets.
It felt… extremely strange, and Krivax didn't know if he'd ever get used to it.
"Peer Krivax, what motivates you to put so much effort into an exercise that frustrates you?"
Krivax turned his attention to the young nerubian, who was watching his actions with curiosity. It had taken some effort, but he had become fairly proficient in deciphering nerubian expressions.
"You know that it is my goal to serve our people by becoming a Vizier, Peer Masruk. Why do you ask?"
Masruk fidgeted and swayed back and forth in a motion Krivax recognized as a sign of nervousness.
"We were both born in the same cluster of eggs, yet you are so certain of your future path and I am not."
It's not like I have many options if I don't want to become some kind of undead abomination, Krivax mused, with no small amount of frustration.
After learning he had been reborn as a nerubian, Krivax had put a lot of thought into how he could avoid being killed by the Lich King. He had settled on a few different ideas, depending on information he did not currently have, but all of them required him to gain the knowledge and political power of a Vizier.
Still, there's no point in getting mad at Masruk. It's a bit comforting to know that young nerubians stress out about picking their future careers as much as humans.
Krivax had been worried at first that his new people were one of those fantasy races that were cartoonishly evil, but instead, they were just isolationist xenophobes. Which… wasn't great, but at least he didn't have to worry about being forced to do evil things himself.
"There is no need for you to already be certain of your path, Peer Masruk. Many of our peers also remain uncertain. That is why our elders have arranged for today's demonstration."
Nerubian society was not as simple as Krivax had expected. He had assumed that they were like ants, with everyone being born into a role from the moment of their birth and answering to the Queen without question.
Krivax was glad to learn that was not the case.
The nerubians did reproduce through Queens and those Queens did hold a lot of political power, but it was not absolute.
Both the Spiderlords and the Circle of Viziers also held considerable political sway in nerubian society. In hindsight, this was not that surprising, given that the Queen spent a significant amount of time creating new nerubians, during which she was too distracted to rule.
The caste system was another thing Krivax had learned was different from his expectations. Most Spiderlords and Viziers were born and raised for their roles, but there was some room for exceptional baseline nerubians to elevate themselves.
According to Kriltes, it was possible for the Queens to reforge the bodies of those who proved themselves particularly useful to the Kingdom. That had done a lot to motivate Krivax's fellow hatchlings, the lure of ascending to a higher caste was powerful.
Krivax did not know everything about Warcraft lore, but he was fairly confident nothing like that had existed in the franchise, a fact which made him feel both relief and apprehension.
Relief, because that meant the world he found himself in was more than a video game with contradictory lore and multiple species whose people possessed one-dimensional personalities.
Apprehension, because that meant he couldn't guarantee that his knowledge was accurate.
What if an important plot point was changed because it was too internally inconsistent to be translated into a real world? At the time that he had died, the Warcraft franchise was nearly thirty years old, after all. There were bound to be plenty of things in the lore that didn't make sense.
Krivax pushed away his negative thoughts. Ultimately, there was nothing he could do about it other than be mindful of the possibility that his knowledge might be wrong. He already wasted an entire week worrying about the possibility that the Lich King would start conquering Northrend before Krivax could make any preparations.
Eventually, he decided not to worry about things he couldn't change, which was probably good advice for someone who knew too much for his own good.
"Peer Krivax, the demonstration is about to begin," said Masruk, pulling Krivax from his wandering thoughts.
Sure enough, a few groups of adult nerubians were skittering into the center of the amphitheater that had been reserved for the Warriors, Weaver, and Viziers to present themselves. They bowed to the group of Custodians, who were sitting in their own section of the amphitheater, before the Warriors stepped forward to present themselves first.
"Hatchlings of Kilah'Kuk, you have worked hard for several months to make yourself fit to serve your people. When your education is complete, Underking Kuk'arak will send where you will benefit our people the most," said a large armored Nerubian who represented the warriors. "However, your placement will be heavily influenced by both your talents and your interests. I am Warrior Nishalmis, and I am here to explain how you may serve your people as a Warrior."
His tone was firm and full of conviction as his voice easily carried over the amphitheater.
"The Warriors are the protectors of Kilah'Kuk. We enforce the laws of the city under the direct command of the Underking, and answer to the High King of Azjol-Nerub during times of war."
Most of this had already been explained to Krivax and his cluster by Kriltes, so he returned part of his focus to his spellweaving. However, he didn't completely ignore the presentation as the Warrior explained their duties. If you read between the lines, it was possible to learn a lot about a society by paying attention to how they structured their propaganda.
One interesting thing he had learned was that the Warriors were responsible for controlling the city's Jormungar, which were giant worms nerubians used to carve out tunnels.
Eventually, Nishalmis finished explaining their responsibilities and moved on to the practical demonstration that would allow the Warriors to show off their skills.
Everyone else gave Nishalmis and his sparring partner—another large armored nerubian—room as they moved to the center of the stage. The venue grew completely silent as the two Warriors stood completely still and brandished their spears at one another.
Just when the tension was reaching its peak, Nishalmis moved almost faster than Krivax could track and thrust his spear at the other Warrior. The sound of their weapons colliding sounded like a gunshot in the otherwise quiet amphitheater.
The two warriors traded blows with strength and grace that Krivax felt should not be possible. He could even see small fractures forming in the structure of their makeshift arena.
Both Krivax and the other hatchlings were completely captivated by the display.
Eventually, the unnamed Warrior made a mistake that resulted in Nishalmis disarming him of his weapon. He tried to compensate by stomping on the ground with enough strength to cause a clap of thunder to sound out across the venue and fissures to grow around his feet. The sound and shaking ground caused many of the younger nerubians to stumble or flinch, but Nishalmis easily kept his balance and ended the fight by placing the end of his spear to the Warrior's neck.
The hatchlings did not cheer or clap—nerubians were generally not prone to such public displays of emotion—but Krivax could tell they were enraptured.
The defeated Warrior surrendered and bowed to Nishalmis, who returned the bow and turned back to face his audience.
"If you wish to protect your people and gain the power I have shown you, listen to your Custodians. They will instruct you on how you can better your chances of becoming a Warrior."
Krivax distantly noted he had become too distracted and his spellweaving had failed again.
What he had just witnessed was not something that was naturally possible. Of course, arthropods as large as the nerubians were already impossible by the standard of his old world, but regardless, the Warriors had displayed strength far beyond what they should be capable of.
Kriltes had already explained Intuitive Magic to them in great detail, but it was still amazing to see it in person.
Intuitive Magic was the explanation for why people carrying pointy sticks could compete in a world with guns, magic, and spaceships.
Every living being in this world possessed magic. Spellcasters actively transmuted their magic into one of the greater magical forces in the universe and used that magic to achieve their goals. Eventually, their magic became so attuned to one of these forces that using other kinds of magic, while still possible, became significantly more difficult.
On the other hand, Warriors like Nishalmis honed their skills to such a point that they instinctively use their personal magic while fighting. Intuitive magic explained how Warriors were able to accomplish impossible feats of strength, Rogues were able to turn invisible and nonsentient lizards were able to breathe lightning.
If any of Krivax's peers expressed a desire to become Warriors, then Custodian Kriltes would teach them the appropriate exercises to hone their skills enough to use Intuitive Magic.
Seeing that the Weavers were about to start their presentation, Krivax once again turned his attention to spellweaving. If he managed to attune himself to arcane magic, the Underking would almost certainly assign him to the Viziers.
Feeling a bit motivated, Krivax tuned out the Weavers completely and put his full focus into his spellweaving. The nerubians practiced a form of magic that allowed them to put magic into their silk and then use it at a later time. It was similar in principle to the Rune magic that the vrykuls used.
The Weavers were a group that took care of everything that the Viziers and Warriors didn't, so Krivax didn't feel a need to pay attention to them. They did the farming, building, crafting, and general labor for nerubian society. The only reason they were called Weavers was because nerubians used their silk for pretty much every occupation in their society.
There was probably some historical or political explanation as well, but Kriltes only had a general overview of nerubian history.
Krivax was surprised when he successfully infused his intent into the silk thread; this was the farthest he had ever gotten into this exercise.
The next step was for him to transmute his personal magic into arcane and push it into the thread. According to Kriltes, this was the easy part; all he needed to do was focus on his mana and think 'orderly' thoughts.
Despite being told that it'd be easy, Krivax was still surprised when his hands glowed with the violet color of arcane magic and the silk thread began to release a white light.
Krivax wanted to jump up and start dancing, but nerubians didn't do things like that nor was this the appropriate setting. Instead, he stopped the silk from glowing by deactivating the spell, tied it in a particular knot that would help preserve its magic—somehow—and stuck it to his abdomen.
"Congratulation on your success, Peer Krivax," said Masruk.
"Thank you. Have any of the presentations caught your attention?" Krivax cheerfully asked his fellow spiderling, feeling greatly relieved by his achievement. Succeeding in the exercise meant he was much more likely to attune to arcane magic and be assigned to the Circle of Viziers.
"Yes. I wish to become a Warrior," Masruk said firmly.
Krivax tilted his head at the certainty in the voice of his… friend? Acquaintance?
"Are you certain, Peer Masruk? The Weavers and Viziers have not yet finished their presentations."
"Yes. I am certain."
Krivax watched for him to explain, but instead, Masruk just continued to stare longingly at the group of Warriors.
With a nod, Krivax turned his attention to the Weaver, only to find that they had already finished their speech.
The tall Vizier languidly walked to the center of the amphitheater and silently swept his gaze over the audience. When the Vizier's gaze reached Krivax, they seemed to pause for a moment before immediately resuming their scan of the crowd, leaving Krivax to wonder if he had imagined the moment.
After the Vizier finished looking over the crowd, they nodded once to themselves and immediately began speaking.
"I am Vizier Malas. Most of you will not meet the requirements to join the Circle of Viziers, but for the few who may, I will explain to you our function in nerubian society," said the Vizier with obvious disinterest. His bored tone and his disinterested body language made it clear he did not consider this a valuable way to spend his time.
"The majority of the Circle's members will find themselves handling administrative work for the city. At this point in your education, your designated Custodian has already administered basic lessons on nerubian laws and history," Malas drawled. He sounded as if he was reciting a rehearsed speech he had given one too many times. "If you demonstrate proficiency in these topics, you may be assigned to become a Vizier."
"The rest of our organization is dedicated to the acquisition of knowledge in all of its forms." Malas still looked largely disinterested, but Krivax could hear a glimmer of passion in his voice.
"Whether through the creation of new magics, the discovery of old knowledge, or the study of the lesser races, the Circle of Viziers seeks a greater understanding of the world."
I'm not really sure why, but I'm getting major Sith vibes from this dude, Krivax thought with a small amount of trepidation. I hope not all the Viziers are like this guy.
"If you seek knowledge and power beyond your imagining, speak to your Custodians and begin walking down the path of magic."
With a wave of his hand, Malas conjured a fire that flew through the air and circled the audience. Many of the young nerubians cowered when the flame turned into multiple streams of fire that twisted and turned through the crowd before flowing back into Malas's palm.
In a display that Krivax felt was a bit theatrical, Malas crushed the ball of fire in his palm and began walking away without further comment.
With all the presentations concluded, the Custodians started making their way to their respective clusters of hatchlings.
As he followed Kriltes out of the cavern, Krivax couldn't help but feel that regardless of how theatrical the Vizier had been, Malas's display of magic had definitely been highly motivational.
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