The Untold Story of Texas and Lappland (Arknights)

Stupid Spiders

The loud alarm startled Lappland, her ears pressing against her skull as she looked around for the source of the noise. The screen continued to flash the words emergency alert ominously in bright red, the lights overhead shuttering on and off like they were in some bad horror movie. Doberman burst through the door, her expression frantic.

Texas was the first to get down to business. "Doberman, what's going on?" Her amber eyes were fixated on the Instructor, attention no longer on Lappland.

Doberman's mouth was a pressed thin line. "Orignium infused slugs (or spiders as everyone knows them) are attacking the lower generator at ground level. The power supply is being damaged."

"Oh! That sounds bad! Is there anything we can do to help?"

"Yes. Lappland, Texas, Exusiai come with me. Skadi and Melantha go report to Doctor Y/N immediately. The control center will need to be notified of the situation." Without waiting for a reply, Doberman turned tail and sprinted off. Wordlessly Texas and Exusiai followed her.

Lappland cast one glance back at Skadi and Melantha. It was a real shame their training session was brought to an end early. "Bye for now! It was fun working you guys!" She didn't wait for a reply before running after Texas's retreating form.

***

The sound of footsteps echoed on the floor as they made their way down to the lower levels. With the electricity acting up, there was no way they could risk using the elevator. The normal lights flickered overhead while the warning bells continued to chime. The red alarm cast everything in an eerie glow, including the operators they passed by on the way down. Lappland didn't know any of their names, though one of them had a massive pincer tail she had to leap over in order to avoid brushing its poisonous tip.

"How much farther is it? We've never been this far down!" Exusiai called out. Her wings were fragments of gold behind her, hardened crystals that seemed to never stop gleaming.

"Just one more set of stairs and we should be there." Doberman's voice bounced off the walls. This far down none of the lights were on besides the red from the alarm. There was a dusty smell in the air that made her nose itch.

Texas made a noncommittal sound as they crossed over the threshold of an open doorway. "We're here." She was the first to see whatever was beyond, having passed by Doberman some point during the run.

Lappland saw what Texas meant a second later. The room was a display of chaos. The energy generator was covered in nasty webs of spindled darkness. A foul musk pulsates through the room, the stink of sulfur and obsidian unmistakable. She pinched her nose shut out of pure reflex to prevent from gagging. Judging by Texas's wrinkling nose, the other Lupus was feeling the same way. Doberman was slightly green but gave no other reaction.

"Wow! That's a lot of slugs!" Exusiai exclaimed. Her gun was loaded, there trigger clenched in apprehension. The slightest click would make it go off.

Lappland found herself agreeing. The generator took up a third of the room, humming lowly with intense energy. Well over a dozen spidery slugs were crawling all over it, shooting out black webbing that was as hot as lava. It made the concrete floor sizzle and burn, making a dent in the floor. Fiery lava pulsates on the spiders' bodies like a ticking time bomb seconds away from exploding.

"Hmm, if any of us deploy too closely and destroy them they'll just explode on us." Texas observed. "Maybe a fast-redeploy would work? Though we'll still take some damage if we get the timing wrong."

"I could shoot a few down. Half of them are in range."Exusiai lifted her gun up demonstratively. Lappland could only guess how many bullets were inside.