"Calm down, it's me!" Gabriel said, his head sticking out of the ventilation tube. "Could you lower that weapon?"
As soon as the young man appeared, Samuel and Michel aimed their weapons, expecting the worst. They helped their companion out, then helped Bia as well.
The two brought the bottles inside the remains of a leather suitcase, along with pieces of clothing from the mannequins. Bia lowered herself, firmly holding the find.
"How are you, Livya?" Gabriel asked, who was once again struggling to remove the excess dust.
"Better," the young woman replied, pale.
Gabriel realized that it was only a half-truth, but at least she was able to stand. The others looked the same, and by the tired looks on their faces, it seemed like the spiders had tried to invade again.
When Samuel put Bia on the ground, he had a sneezing fit, and like the others, she struggled like a dog to remove the dust. The anxiety quickly grew, moving from the newly arrived pair to the suitcase.
"So?" Naomi asked.
With satisfaction, both the dusty Ravens began showing the items to the others: some bottles and cloths. The mood dropped again.
"What are you planning to do with this?" Naomi asked again.
"These bottles," Bia said, holding one of the jars filled with liquid, "are full of vodka. We can make five Molotov cocktails."
"The barrels are full of gasoline," Gabriel added. "And what if I told you we could escape and blow up at least a part of this place?"
Understanding started to sink in for the four, but concern shifted to Livya, who couldn't run. The new girl noticed this, opened her hand, and showed a small bottle with some white powder inside. The Last Means.
"If we need to run, then let's run," she replied, with conviction.
"Are you sure?" Michel asked, only to her.
With a sad smile, Livya answered him. There were no options, and by the manic looks in Gabriel's and Bia's eyes, the idea seemed borderline insane, but deep down, they all knew it was the only crazy thing that could get them out of the subway.
"That's the spirit!" Gabriel praised, then returned to the explanation. "The plan is simple. When we open the door, everyone will fire, giving Naomi time to throw the first cocktail. That will give us some time to escape and run, but let's not forget, we only have four of them."
"How do you mean, four?" Samuel asked, confused. "There are five bottles."
"Can I?" Bia asked Gabriel, who nodded. "Let's put one in the barrel, with the largest piece of cloth, and when it reaches the liquid, the explosion will happen."
"Maybe it'll work," Naomi murmured. "We'll make a fire wall with the cocktails until the explosion comes. The problem is, they're spiders, they walk on walls."
The excitement of the duo faltered, but Samuel, who had been listening quietly, finally joined the conversation.
"That's why we have the two of them." He pointed to the dusty Ravens. "Ranged combat, right? If needed, Michel and I can help keep them at a distance. If they still manage to get close, Naomi can work her magic."
"So we have a plan!" Gabriel cheered.
They began preparations, carefully opening the bottles and inserting smaller pieces of cloth. Michel, with his knife, forced a hole in the barrel just large enough to fit one of the bottles.
Gabriel checked the ammunition belt hidden under his shirt and saw that almost half was empty. Everyone checked too, just like him. The shells were few.
"I'll be in charge of the cocktails," Naomi said, taking the responsibility. "I'm not much use in ranged combat."
No one protested, as no one wanted such a responsibility. Livya then grew restless and asked:
"What's my part?"
"Run," Samuel replied. "Run fast and don't die."
Michel managed to open the hole to the desired size, but in exchange, the tip of his knife vanished. The rest of the preparations were also finished.
Livya opened the small bottle, brought it close to her nose, and inhaled all the powder. The substance burned like embers as it traveled to her head, making her eyes water and a thin stream of blood flow from each nostril. Her pupils dilated to the extreme of her irises for a second before retracting to normal speed.
"How long does the effect last?" she asked, wiping her nose with the back of her hands.
"About thirty seconds to take effect and five for it to wear off," Michel answered, staring at the young woman.
The pain from the wound on the Raven's thigh disappeared, and an abnormal wave of energy made her stand up. She knew the fever hadn't gone away, and the pain had only been temporarily hidden.
"Let's hurry with this then," Naomi said, holding one of the cocktails along with her companion's lighter.
Everyone agreed, and Gabriel, Bia, and Michel moved to where the door would open, their weapons aimed. Samuel was already holding the doorknob, ready to open it.
Naomi lit the cocktail with the barrel and waited for the others, which seemed like hours to her. Then, with a sudden movement, the door opened. Along with the sound of gunshots and legs—hundreds of legs. She set the cloth on fire and threw the bottle, which hit the floor, causing a small explosion.
They rushed out at the same time the screams, which sounded like hundreds of cats, echoed down the corridor. The gunshots didn't stop, and bodies fell from the ceiling and walls. Then, another of the cocktails hit one of the spiders directly, burning it and all those around it.
The sea of legs seemed to pause for a moment, but a quick ball of fire engulfed some of its members, though it quickly returned to its frenzy. This time, the remaining two cocktails were thrown at once, creating chaos among the creatures.
Here is the translation of the text into English:
Amid the flames, a spider jumped, still on fire, heading toward the group. At that moment, Naomi grabbed her katana and waited for the spider to lunge, which didn't take long. When the still-burning body flew toward her, she made a crescent-shaped motion, lowering herself just in time to strike the attacker in the abdomen, cutting it in two.
Three others managed to pass and focused on Naomi, as if to avenge their fallen partner. The first lunged toward the young woman's head, but she moved to the left and placed the blade in the path of the body. It was deeply cut by its own force.
Coming from the right, the other approached using the wall and jumped, aiming for the Corva's legs. Naomi stopped abruptly and made the blade descend. She struck the back end of the spider's round body, cutting off less than half of it, but enough to make its organs fall out.
Naomi started running again and paid attention to the last one. It seemed hesitant, but the lunge came just like the others. This time, the blade sliced through the space and struck the side of the animal's claws, throwing its body backward with a deep cut along its torso. The impact made Naomi stagger for a moment when the gunshots resumed.
The firelight faded, and the murderous wave accelerated. Gabriel looked back and saw the entire corridor covered with legs and gleaming fangs. He felt his lower back starting to ache, fearing the worst. The light from the entrance was close when the explosion came.
A fireball entered a part of the corridor with a deafening sound. The impact almost knocked the group down. The walls began to collapse in several places, trembling as they did.
The spiders went into disarray, losing sight of their prey. Gabriel ran with all his strength and didn't pay attention to it. But then something hard hit his eyebrows, making something hot and wet drip down, which made his vision difficult.
Livya was the first to get out, followed by the others. The tunnel collapsed over the group of spiders, and the unpleasant sounds of bodies being crushed could be heard. A cloud of dust covered the five, who threw themselves to the ground, protecting their heads.
They lay there for a while until all the crashing noise faded, and the dust slowly settled. Livya was the first to stand up, holding her axe.
She fired toward a body that had been half-smashed, bringing the axe down directly between the spider's eyes, repeating the motion a few more times to ensure its death.
She grabbed her weapon and shot at the other injured spiders or those trying to hide back in the rubble.
"What's happening?!" Naomi shouted, standing up, alarmed.
"I'm putting an end to these damned things," Livya replied, going back to attacking with the axe.
The Corva didn't care, she just kept cutting through their bodies violently. Naomi joined the action.
"Is everything okay?" Gabriel asked, sitting up, with one eye covered in blood.
"Yes," Bia replied. "They're taking care of the injuries. What happened to your face?"
"A rock fell."
Something caught his attention, making him look toward the road where the trucks from the next day were returning. Several people were watching, stunned.
"It looks like they saw us," Samuel muttered.
They soon returned to the cars, leaving the way they had come. Gabriel lay back down on the concrete floor and said:
"We'll tell them."
"Not yet," Samuel replied. "Let them have some fun first."