Derrick peered into the room. He could see light, but not much. Not that it bothered him. He could see it was a bedroom, or rather, a room with a bed in it. Derrick wondered why it was behind an iron door, but that didn't bother him either. What did bother him, though, was the room's occupant. Fine, they couldn't exactly see what it was, but it was large and it had fur. He supposed that it was at least a living thing, unlike whatever the jailor was supposed to be, but that was little comfort considering the only living thing outside of the group that Derrick had seen in this place was the wolfwing. That wasn't to say that the thing in the room was definitely the wolfwing, but he didn't like the odds. And even if it wasn't, odds were that it would not like the intrusion.

"...I kind of feel like we should... Close the door?" Derrick whispered.
@Dusksong@Hekazu

Kenza nodded, mute with fear. Opening the door was a mistake -- the creature was indeed alive and moving, and she'd announced her presence, however mutely. If the creature was anything like the lycan-like Wolfwing, it would have a sense of smell keen enough to pick up the hunters' scent after it awoke, but what was done was done, and Kenza closed the door slowly and silently.

Without a word, Kenza started down the hallway again, continuing in the darkness. Behind her, Mistletoe was silent as well, but with thought. The being they saw was clearly covered with fur, but that didn't mean it was the Wolfwing. But, then again, nothing drowsing with a blanket rather than trapped in a cell would likely be sympathetic to the hunters, and Mistletoe knew it was pure folly to chance it.

So, the three hunters progressed down the hall.

---

@hekazu@lord of evil

At Derrick's words, however silent, the creature trembled in it's sleep and the steady rhythm of it's breathing was interrupted by a menacing growl. It didn't quite seem to wake however, something the hunters used to their advantage by closing the door and leaving the immediate vicinity as quick as possible. Hopefully the minor disturbance would not come to bite them in the future.

Continuing further in the hall, the faint light there had been ceased to be of help at all, and all they could follow was the walls and the wind. They could feel doors at somewhat even distances on both sides of the hallway, but eventually the source of the breeze became apparent: One of the doors long way into the hallway on the right was more than slightly ajar, with some light source shedding some welcome light into the room. It was more than likely from the same place as the wind.

What could be seen of the room was a mess however. Piles of books were strewn around, with several shelves having collapsed and only a few still stood. While part of the room was still in good shape and affirmed further the fact that this indeed had been a library, something in the worse off side caught their attention: Massive spiderwebs.

@Lord of Evil@Dusksong

"Wow." Derrick breathed.
Spiderwebs. Very large spiderwebs. Derrick was no stranger to spiders or bugs, though he was somewhat more comfortable with spiders. Spiders didn't like being bothered, and tended to keep out of the way. A lot of people considered them pests and would rather have them killed, but Derrick didn't see it that way. They kept the bugs away and they stayed out of trouble. It was like him and spiders had a deal - Derrick didn't bother them, they didn't bother him. Still, there were exceptions to that rule.

Derrick inspected one of the spiderwebs. It seemed relatively fresh, no trace of dust. Cobwebs formed from abandoned spiderwebs, fresh spiderwebs meant that the web had either been made recently or renewed recently. Either way, that meant the spider that made it was nearby. That on its own was no worry, but there were 2 things that did worry Derrick: the sheer size of the webs and the quantity of the webs. Spiders tended to leave humans alone, but the larger they were, the less they stuck to that rule. The quantity of webs worried him because it could mean a whole colony of spiders, which doesn't tend to happen with the spiders Derrick was used to. He couldn't even guess what kind of prey they'd been catching but considering this place was a library, it wouldn't be much of a leap to assume that it was humans. And that was what worried him most of all.
"This might cause issues." Derrick said quietly.
@Dusksong@Hekazu

The spiderwebs struck Kenza more as a hindrance and possible threat than anything else since she sympathised with most predatorial creatures and beings. The world was ruled by the selection of the fittest, be that by wealth, intellect, or strength, and spiders participated in that web of relationships just like any other deer, wolf, or human. That being said, she too was worried about the webs and the danger they posed. Judging by the thickness and gloss of the almost-opaque silks, the webs weren't produced by ordinary arachnids that haunted mundane houses. Their thickness also proved a problem because Kenza didn't know whether she would be able to cut them -- the hunters' tools were, put lightly, old, and Kenza knew that spiderwebs were both sturdy and sticky enough to catch their spinners prey.

"Yes. Do you suppose cutting them would be a good idea?" Kenza asked, frowning as she held her sword up to compare with the silky strings crisscrossing the path ahead of the hunters. Beside Kenza, Mistletoe was silent, eyeing the webs warily.

On the older hunter's part, it wasn't so much fear as it was extreme wariness; Mistletoe disliked venom, and that exact substance was the web owner's weapon of choice. Something about the way the substance sapped away at the prey's life force slowly, draining it enough to slow the bitten down but not enough to kill seemed cruel to Mistletoe. Unlike most weapons, venom was built most times to weaken, poison to kill. So, naturally, Mistletoe had developed an aversion to everything venomous -- snakes, spiders, and other creatures with sharp but hollow fangs and venom sacks.

If she'd been a few years younger and more inexperienced at keeping her feelings in check, she would have immediately recommended that the group try some other way. Now, however, Mistletoe knew that spiders -- unintelligent as most of them were -- were the hunters' best bet, so she held her tongue.

"You'll probably have to cut it clean and fast, if you don't want to get the blade stuck," Mistletoe said. "But, if you do, the web will snap back, alerting the spiders." She paused, frowning. "As much as I hate the thought of having to deal with the biters, I think they're the least troublesome of our worries in this castle -- the flying warden and the Wolfwing being among our most."

Kenza nodded at the archer's words, seeing her point. "What do you say, Derrick?"

---

@hekazu@lord of evil

"Well, I don't see why we would cut it." Derrick said quietly, thinking deeply.
There wasn't much of a point. Sure, it was blocking up some of the books but it's not like they wanted to read right now. Besides, the books were probably beyond reading at this point. Maybe things would change later on down the line. His general policy with spiders was live and let live; it'd go away or die eventually. Although the size of the spiders might change something or other, and the webs would most likely block their passage the farther they went on. But hey, why were there giant spiders in a library?

Derrick snapped out of his thought trance and stammered out a quick explanation of his opinion.
"I mean, If it's in our way, sure, but I figure we should leave it alone otherwise." Derrick said. "Unless... I don't know, do you think there's something worth reading around here?"
@Dusksong@Hekazu

"The other door then?" Kenza asked, feeling a bit of apprehension at the prospect of having to open another door. The last door she'd opened had nearly cost the hunters their lives, almost rousing a mysterious, shadow-shrouded creature from its slumber. However, each door came with the chance of finding new tools and clues to help them escape; the locket and ring were perhaps one of many clues, although Kenza doubted that they were of any real use. She approached the leftmost door, pressing her ear against the wall since the door was closed. Mistletoe waited patiently as the other hunter listened, keeping a lookout into the darkness ahead of them and behind them. She wasn't opposed to opening the door either, but she was just as wary.

---

@hekazu@lord of evil

Going back down the hall to try another door held some appeal, but he saw no real harm in exploring a little further. There was always a chance that whatever made these webs would show up, but there was always a chance that it wouldn't. And besides, there was investigating to be done in this library.
"I think we should at least figure out where the light is coming from." Derrick said. "I don't think it matters much either way."

At least they knew what could be coming in the library. Odds were that the things behind the doors in the hall were similar to the first door they tried - bedrooms to either monsters or nowhere in particular. The wind and the light promised something, at least, that there was either a hole in a wall somewhere or something else that would still probably be worth looking into.
"The light over there might be a way out, or something." Derrick said, pointing in the direction the breeze was coming from. "And, I mean, we may or may not face monsters either way, so..."
@Dusksong@Hekazu

@Dusksong@Lord of Evil

The hunters went through a hushed discussion on whether it would be a smart move to head into the seemingly abandoned library, but decided it would not be worth the risk with the spiders involved... yet. Having to forgo the chance of getting outside that way for now, at least one of the group approached the door on the other side of the hallway and pressed their ear against it, listening for any sounds from within. However their check was met with nothing but silence.

"Nothing," Kenza reported with a softly but firmly. She wasn't about to go through her experience with the last room again, even if this one had the pretense of silence. "We could always double back and check this room out, but just in case we have to find somewhere to hide, should we check it out first?"

Mistletoe considered it, frowning. "I doubt we should run into the room directly across the hall if there really are spiders in the library," she said, shrugging. "I agree with Derrick -- we should just check the library first."

Kenza nodded, figuring the majority would be correct in this case. Besides, she had no real opinion as to which way was better; both seemed equally unfavorable and favorable.

"Alright then. The library it is," she said, leading the way in quietly. Her first few steps were silent compared to usual, but no movement was silent when compared to actual silence, and Kenza knew that, keeping her senses sharp as she progressed inwards.

---

@hekazu@lord of evil

The sound of silence could both reassure and make one nervous. It however remained unknown which of the feelings remained in the more dominant position within the hunter's minds as they pulled back and chose to move into the library, rather than investigate the silence behind the door.

This choice led them towards the fresh air and source of light available, nearer to the spiderwebs that were littered across the room. A few steps in, a glint in the air warned them of the presence of very, very thin threads of silk laid out near the floor, extending towards the main web further away. Some of them fluttered in the slight wind as if broken by something, but part of them remained attached to wherever they were going.

While going through was possibly an option, there was no such thing to be seen if they went straight between the shelves that were still standing. The webs did indeed seem to be focused on the more run down parts of the room. A coincidence? Maybe. But one would not bet on it.

Derrick breathed deep, trying to remain quiet. The atmosphere in this place was fairly stale, and the breeze was certainly a breath of fresh air. He sputtered a bit as he realised the pun he'd made. Funny how he could think that in a place like this, far from home and hounded by who-knew-what. He supposed that the light and the breeze was making him relax a little. He could feel how sore his muscles were, the dull sting of his wounds when he stepped forward. And he was getting a bit tired, it'd be good to sit down for a bit...

Derrick pinched his cheek, forcing himself to remain alert. Relaxing right now was definitely not a good idea. There could be just about anything around the corner. Even more than usual, considering the nature of the inhabitants of this fortress. Maybe it was a castle of some sort where some noble guy collected a bunch of weird stuff. Derrick stared at the spines of what books were left on the dusty shelves. Not that he could read very well, but he thought they could've shed some light on where they were. As he did, though, he noticed trailing webs coming from the next few bookcases.

He looked ahead and saw more trailing webs, leading through the maze-like structure of this library. As he looked on, he noticed that most of the intact webs were in the darker corners of the rooms, around dilapidated bookshelves and generally congregating around the worse areas of the room. That wasn't exactly odd behavior for spiders, but it did strike Derrick as somewhat odd, though he couldn't pin down why.

Derrick glanced around the library a little more, gripping his halberd tightly. He didn't see any obvious signs of anything different just yet, but maybe that was because the signs weren't so obvious. Or maybe he just didn't know what to make of it. He hoped whatever it was they would find at the end of the library would be something useful for them.
@Dusksong@Hekazu

Overwhelming wariness — that was how Mistletoe felt as she followed Kenza further into the cobwebbed library. The spiderwebs, while generally off to the side of the room and tucked out of the way of the main path inwards, were still acutely noticeable in the corner of Mistletoe's eyes, looming over the trio like a huge monster in the shadows. Still, she kept on, knowing that her fears were somewhat unfounded. After all, how big would spiders have to be to pose a real threat to three armed and experienced hunters?

Kenza, on the other hand, kept her eyes trained forwards into the darkness. The breeze clearly came from inside the library, but she couldn't fathom where or why it did. Was it just another small, hopeless window like before, or would this one be an actual way out of the gloomy garrison?

The hunters continued deeper into the shadowed room, sidestepping stray webs and books alike as they peered into the darkness, hoping to get a glimpse of the source of the wind they'd felt.

At the opposite end of the room where the shelves still stood upright, the light was darker and the breeze not nearly as prevalent as it had been. However, here the obstacle of the webs made itself more scarce as well, something few as experienced hunters as them would deem a coincidence. Here in the darker part of the room it was difficult to tell whether the smaller strands of webbing still hung before them, but at least for now there were none in sight.

The room remained eerily quiet, other than the occasional stronger gust of wind that pushed out of the door and made the hinges creak. It wouldn't be too far fetched to assume their freedom could await just beyond a few corners... but it was no reason to get careless. Perhaps even on the contrary.

@Lord of Evil@Dusksong

Derrick was growing to be rather suspicious of the library the more he stayed. The spiders that were apparently there hadn't yet completely infested the area, which was odd considering he hadn't seen anything that would oppose something large enough to spin webs of the size he was seeing. Another thought occurred to Derrick - the group hadn't yet seen the spider's food source. The spiderwebs looked fresh enough so he thought that they must have a regular food supply, or else there'd be fewer webs around. Spiders didn't tend to stick around when there was nothing to eat. So what was it that they were eating?

Derrick looked around the desolate library as the group explored the windy library. For the second time today, Derrick hoped that giant spiders didn't eat humans. And while he did want to keep going, he was starting to feel like he kind of... didn't.

Derrick hummed discontentedly as he thought about it, but the more he thought about it, the more he realized that thinking wasn't getting him anywhere. And now he was making himself confused. He glanced at his teammates and tried to gauge their emotions to help him come to a decision.
"Say, should we keep going?" Derrick suddenly said. "Not sure if it's a great idea at this stage..."
It was probably best to leave the thinking to others. They'd surely had more experience than he did, at the very least.
@Dusksong@Hekazu

"Perhaps we should turn back," Mistletoe said, looking around at the books. "These webs aren't exactly welcoming, and what are the chances that there's an exit from the library?"

Kenza paused, looking around at the walls intently. It was too dark to tell whether there were webs there, which concerned the hunter. What if there was something waiting there in the darkness, looking for an opening to strike?

"I don't think anything in this castle is particularly safe. Even if we turn back, we'd just have to enter another room, open another door, and face another threat," Kenza said, frowning. "I say we continue on, even if only because we've already entered. If we turn back, we'd waste valuable time. The Wolfwing will no doubt be looking to check up on his prisoners soon."

Mistletoe nodded at Kenza's words. "I don't like it, but let's continue for a bit then," she said. "At the first sign of danger, we'll turn back."

So, the hunters continued on.

---

@hekazu@lord of evil

The hunters could collectively agree: Their path was perilous, be it heading forward or back along their own steps. This place seemed to house many more creatures than they had originally believed, but all they could be sure of were the Wolfwing and the Jailor. They had not seen the telltale light of the latter in a while, but that probably wouldn't mean they would be safe in here. And since the road forward held the promise of freedom, they chose to take it, no matter the unknown that awaited.

It didn't take them long to notice that the thin strands of webbing existed on this side as well, as they had to pull some of them off their faces. Nothing in here really seemed to react, however. Nothing moved in the roof, nor on the sides... at least not of the size of what could have created this bigger webbing. The room remained in the eerie silence, only to be broken by the occasional step of a human or a gust of wind.

And as they rounded the fourth corner, they got to see why. In middle of a grand cluster of webbing, from beyond which the light and wind came from, laid a broken and mutilated carcass of a giant spider. It was missing several of its legs and its abdomen was decisively torn open. There was no possibility of that thing still living. It's surface was coverer in smaller spiders crawling all along it, covering most of it in a fuzzy blanket of arachnids. Yes, these spiders seemed to have short, yet in some spots bright orange coloured fur on them.

@Lord of Evil@Dusksong

This wasn't exactly something Derrick had never seen before, but it surprised him nonetheless. He supposed it was the sheer scale of it - he'd never seen any spider so large before. But it was also dead somehow, and how it died as a sticking point. He barely payed attention to the swarming spiders as he wondered how its abdomen had been torn like that. He sort of wanted to check it out, like how he'd poke cicada shells when he was a kid. But the seething carpet of spiders discouraged him heavily from taking that option.

Derrick glanced at his teammates and then back at the spiders. Then back at his teammates, and then the spiders. He started moving back towards the corner and tried to catch his teammates' eyes so they could followed suit. They needed to figure out what to do now, and if the spiders spotted them, it would probably be over.
@Dusksong@Hekazu

The sight of the large carcass froze Kenza not because she was frightened by the spider's size but rather because she saw the sheer multitude of smaller spiders crawling over it. That the larger spider was dead was a relief; it was less enemy the hunters would have to face, and — by the looks of it — one less of the strongest too. However, its brethren — or possibly offspring — numbered many, and the possibility of them spotting the hunters was high. Kenza wasn't sure what the spiders were doing, but they numbered too many for the hunters. A threat indeed.

Mistletoe, on the other hand, widened her eyes at the size of the spider. Monstrous spiders large enough to prey on humans — such played the antagonist in many a campfire tale, but she'd never thought the stories real. A large spider? Sure, but a one of this magnitude? Had she not seen it with her own eyes, Mistletoe would have dismissed the description immediately. The roving mass of smaller spiders served to agitate the hunter further since, clearly, three hunters would not be able to fight off what looked like thousands of arachnids. Flecks of bright coloring suggested the possibility of venom — Mistletoe had met enough vividly-colored creatures to know that beauty was but an indication of danger in the aspects of the natural world she dealt in — and she hated to think of what effects such venom would have.

When Derrick started creeping away, Kenza immediately followed suit, and Mistletoe behind her. His thoughts were clear: Let's get away from the spiders as quickly as possible. As they did this, Kenza looked about the room for where the breeze came from — where their possible exit may be.

---

@hekazu@lord of evil

Having had the time to adjust to the shocking sight of the quite massive creature lying dead in its own web, the hunters began a quick withdraw to avoid alerting the smaller brood. Before they made it all the way out of view, there was just one thing they needed to check... and as far as they could see from here, there was webbing all over the source of light. It would not be too outlandish to assume the fresh air pushed through the very same breach in the wall.

They didn't quite have the time to figure out whether that led directly outside or if there was still some way to go since they evacuated themselves from the vicinity of the fuzzy presumed offspring of the larger, now lifeless beast. The hunters stopped between two bookshelves, marking anything of note on their way there. For a library, this place seemed to mostly have been made to fulfill the purpose of storing books, not much else. Sure, some rugs remained on the floor to muffle the step of the intrepid scholar and the walls had some decoration to them as well, but beyond that there were simply the bookshelves and the books they carried. One of the group managed to spot a piece of wood on the ground at their feet. Perhaps something had been broken recently? It had not gathered much dust.

@Lord of Evil@Dusksong