Chapter 40: Poison Against Poison
The familiar walls of the rock shelf overhang closed around Gray like a comforting embrace. He squeezed through the narrow gap and settled into the hollow space beneath the stone, his bell flattening against the cold sand. The regeneration bonus activated with a soft chime.
[SHELTER: ROCK SHELF OVERHANG]
[Regeneration: +20%]
Several hours later...
[STATUS: FULLY RESTORED]
Gray rose from the sandy floor, his bell pulsing with quiet energy. His tentacles spread wide, refreshed and ready. His body hummed with the pleasant warmth of full restoration.
’Time to go.’
He squeezed through the overhang’s entrance and pulsed toward the volcanic slope. The kelp forest swayed around him, its fronds parting before his silent passage. Hollow Cloak rendered him nearly invisible, a ghost drifting through the dark water.
The crevice came into view. That narrow slit in the volcanic rock, barely wide enough for his compressed bell.
He approached cautiously, his tentacles extended to read the vibrations within. The cavern beyond was still alive with movement. The Broodmother’s massive presence thrummed at the center of it all, a deep, resonant vibration that shook the stone itself.
’They haven’t sealed the entrance. Good.’
He positioned himself at the crevice opening, his bell just outside the gap. His tentacles reached into the narrow passage, feeling the water flowing from the cavern beyond. The current was slow but steady, carrying the taste of eel and phosphorescence.
’Alright. Let’s test this.’
He deployed Neurotoxic Drift into the crevice.
The invisible cloud of venom drifted through the narrow passage and into the cavern beyond. Gray couldn’t see its spread, but he could feel it — the microscopic particles dispersing through the still water, settling over the nearest stalagmites, seeping into the gills of the eels coiled there.
Then the damage ticks began.
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 14 DAMAGE]
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 13 DAMAGE]
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 15 DAMAGE]
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 12 DAMAGE]
The notifications cascaded through his vision, too many to count. The eels closest to the crevice convulsed, their bioluminescent stripes flickering erratically. Their small bodies thrashed against the stalagmites, but the venom was already in their systems. There was nothing they could do.
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
’YES!’
The cavern erupted into chaos. The surviving eels uncoiled from their perches, their synchronized stripes pulsing with frantic yellow-green light. They darted in every direction, searching for the source of the attack. Some fled deeper into the cavern. Others shot toward the crevice — toward him.
’Here they come.’
The first eels reached the crevice entrance, their small bodies squeezing through the narrow gap. Gray deployed Neurotoxic Drift again, filling the passage with fresh venom. The eels swam directly into it.
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 13 DAMAGE]
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 16 DAMAGE]
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
But more were coming. The crevice was narrow, but the eels were small and fast. Too many to kill before they reached him. The first one broke through the venom cloud and lunged at his bell, its tiny dorsal spines glistening with neurotoxin.
Gray activated Overcharge.
The electricity erupted from his body in a dome of crackling light, catching the eels in the crevice and the ones still emerging. Their small bodies convulsed, stripes flickering wildly as the current overloaded their nervous systems.
[OVERCHARGE — 57 DAMAGE]
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
The crevice went still. Dead eels drifted in the narrow passage, their bodies limp, their stripes dark. Gray absorbed them quickly, his oral arms processing the small corpses one by one.
[LEVEL UP!]
[You are now Level 15.]
[10 Stat Points available for distribution.]
[2 Skill Points available.]
’Already?!’
He pulled up his status and allocated without hesitation. Eight points into SPD, two into INT.
[SPD: 54 → 62]
[INT: 48 → 50]
[MP: 400 → 420]
The cavern beyond was still in chaos. The surviving eels had retreated deeper, clustering around the Broodmother’s massive coil. Her stripes flared brilliant yellow-green, and her deep, resonant growl vibrated through the stone.
’She’s angry. But she can’t reach me.’
He deployed Neurotoxic Drift into the crevice again. The venom cloud drifted through the passage and into the cavern, spreading toward the clustered eels. The damage ticks resumed.
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 14 DAMAGE]
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 15 DAMAGE]
More eels convulsed. The Broodmother’s growl deepened, and she uncoiled from her stalagmite with terrifying speed. Her massive body surged toward the crevice, her stripes blazing.
Gray tensed, ready to retreat. But the Broodmother stopped short. Her head was too large — she couldn’t fit through the crevice. Her oversized eyes peered through the narrow gap, locking onto his translucent form. Her jaws opened, revealing row after row of needle teeth, and she let out a roar that shook the water itself.
’That’s right. You can’t reach me. But I can reach your children.’
He deployed Neurotoxic Drift again.
The Broodmother’s roar faded, and the water around the crevice began to change.
It started as a faint discoloration—a sickly yellow-green hue seeping through the narrow gap, the same color as the bioluminescent stripes that lined her massive body. Gray’s tentacles tingled with warning, his enhanced senses screaming that something was wrong.
Then the toxin reached him.
It wasn’t like Neurotoxic Drift. It didn’t need to be inhaled or absorbed through gills. The Broodmother’s venom was a contact poison, and it was thick—a dense, viscous cloud that clung to his bell and tentacles like oil. The moment it touched his translucent flesh, pain detonated through his body.
[-25 HP]
[TOXIN — 8 damage over 8 seconds]
[GRAY ASHFORD — HP: 320 / 345]
’What the—’
He pulsed backward, retreating from the crevice entrance. The yellow-green cloud continued to billow outward, spreading through the water like a living thing. The kelp fronds nearest to the crevice wilted on contact, their surfaces blackening and dissolving.
’This bastard... using poison against me?!’
He retreated further, putting distance between himself and the creeping toxin. The Broodmother’s growl rumbled through the stone, and more venom poured through the crevice. She was flooding the entire area, creating a barrier of contact poison that would kill anything that tried to approach.
’Poison against poison, huh? Not bad.’
He drifted behind a volcanic boulder, using the stone as cover while he assessed the situation. His HP was still ticking down from the initial contact.
[TOXIN — 8 DAMAGE]
[GRAY ASHFORD — HP: 312 / 345]
’She can attack at range. Neurotoxic Drift can reach her, but so can her venom. If I stay near the crevice, I’ll take constant damage. I need to find a way to hit her without getting hit myself.’
Then his tentacles sparked with realization.
’Wait. I’ve already thought about this.’
He allocated both Skill Points into Neurotoxic Drift.
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — Lv. 5 → Lv. 7]
[Damage per second: 12-16 → 16-20]
[Paralyze chance: 26% → 34%]
[Symptom delay: 1 second → 0.5 seconds]
[Cloud duration: 14 seconds → 18 seconds]
[Cloud radius: 2.5 meters → 3.5 meters]
His venom glands pulsed hot, the nematocyst sacs along his tentacles swelling with fresh potency. The neurotoxin grew denser, more concentrated, the particles smaller and more numerous. His body hummed with the power of the upgrade.
’That’s better. Now let’s see how she likes this.’
He positioned himself at an angle to the crevice, staying behind the volcanic boulder for cover. The Broodmother’s venom cloud was still spreading, but it was slower now—she couldn’t produce an infinite amount. He could work around it.
’I don’t need to be directly in front of the crevice. I just need line of effect. The venom particles can drift around corners. Through gaps. As long as there’s a path, they’ll find her.’
He deployed Neurotoxic Drift at maximum concentration, directing the invisible cloud toward the crevice from a diagonal angle. The venom drifted through the narrow gap and into the cavern beyond, avoiding the thickest part of the Broodmother’s toxin barrier.
Then the damage ticks began.
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 18 DAMAGE]
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 17 DAMAGE]
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 19 DAMAGE]
He couldn’t see the Broodmother, but he could feel her reaction. The vibrations of her massive body convulsing. The deep, pained roar that shook the stone. The frantic flickering of her bioluminescent stripes.
’How does it feel? Being on the receiving end?’
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 20 DAMAGE]
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 16 DAMAGE]
More eels died in the crossfire. Their small bodies couldn’t handle the upgraded venom, their HP bars draining in seconds. The EXP notifications cascaded through his vision.
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
[STRIPED SPINE EEL DEFEATED — 45 EXP]
[LEVEL UP!]
[You are now Level 16.]
[10 Stat Points available for distribution.]
[2 Skill Points available.]
’Another level! She’s not even dead yet and I’m already gaining!’
He allocated quickly—eight into SPD, two into INT.
[SPD: 62 → 70]
[INT: 50 → 52]
[MP: 420 → 440]
The Broodmother’s roar intensified. The stone around the crevice began to crack. Her massive body was thrashing inside the cavern, her tail lashing against the walls, her head ramming against the narrow opening. She was trying to force her way through.
’She’s panicking. She knows she can’t reach me, but she’s going to try anyway.’
He deployed Neurotoxic Drift again. And again. Each cloud drifted through the crevice, avoiding her toxin barrier, settling over her massive body. The damage stacked. The venom accumulated in her system.
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 18 DAMAGE]
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 19 DAMAGE]
[NEUROTOXIC DRIFT — 17 DAMAGE]
[BROODMOTHER — HP: 720 / 850]
’This is going to take a while. But I’ve got time.’
The Broodmother’s thrashing grew more violent. The volcanic rock around the crevice splintered, chunks of stone breaking away as she rammed her head against the opening. The gap was widening.
’She’s breaking through.’
He pulsed backward, putting more distance between himself and the crevice. If she managed to force her way out, he needed room to maneuver.
’Come on. Keep ramming the wall. Every second you waste trying to reach me is another second my venom eats through your HP.’
He deployed Neurotoxic Drift again, this time aiming directly for the widening gap. The venom poured into the cavern, enveloping the Broodmother’s head as she charged the opening. She roared in pain, her stripes blazing, but she didn’t stop.
The rock cracked further. The crevice was almost wide enough now.
’Almost. Just a little more...’