Just another generic story from another world

And there I was, lying next to the spider's corpse, waiting for my fate. A short life, but intense, I guess. Ignoring the pain, I have to admit, it was actually quite comfortable here, except for one small detail.

"Ahhh! How much longer is this going to take!?"

I had no way of knowing for sure, but I was pretty sure enough time had passed since the fight that I should have died of poisoning at least three times by now.

Then, after a pretty simple thought process — which, to my misfortune, I hadn't figured out earlier — I came to the conclusion that, being a venomous monster, I probably had some natural resistance to poison in general. It'd be pretty ridiculous to die from venom after eating prey, wouldn't it?

Well, it looked like my life was going to last a little longer. Now I just had to escape the web, devour the stupid and reckless spider that dared to stand in my way (which, of course, I destroyed effortlessly), and keep moving forward.

"So, is this web going to dissolve over time or what? Or am I stuck here forever? Because honestly, I have no idea how to get out. My scales don't cut through this; if they did, I'd already be out of here… What the hell do I do now?"

***

"What if I try coiling up like a spring again? Maybe if I move fast enough, I can break something, or at least loosen the web a little. It's not like I have many options, but… if I don't try something, I'll never get out of here. Or, if the web does dissolve over time, I'll just have to wait... and honestly, I don't feel like waiting."

I mentally prepared myself and, with a resigned sigh, threw myself into it again. This time, stretching my whole body to its limit, making my scales scrape against the web as I pushed forward. The effort hurt, but the most important thing was that I felt something give, a slight tension that told me maybe this movement was having an effect. I could hear the strands of the web creaking, and that gave me a spark of hope.

Although, honestly, it wasn't looking great. I mean, what was left on the ground didn't even look like a spider anymore. I could only pray that, at the very least, it tasted good.

***

Hope is... deceptive, you know? Deep down, I knew there was no way that would taste good. But there was a tiny part of me that dreamed, that believed, that by some miracle, it would turn out to be a delicacy. Without that little part, nothing would have happened. But now that I had allowed myself to hope, that I had clung to that ridiculous dream, all that was left was bitter disappointment. Almost as bitter as the spider's flesh itself, but somehow, much deeper.

The best thing would have been to accept it from the beginning. But hope… hope is like an incurable disease, relentless and unyielding. It's the desire for things to be as we want them. But it's also what makes everything feel unfair when it isn't. It's a cruel creator of expectations, always followed by crushing disappointment.

In short: the spider tasted like crap.

"God, I hope that someday I'll be able to eat something decent again."

And there it was again. Hope. Lurking in the shadows.

***

"Well, maybe it's time to leave, but I'm pretty comfortable lying here. That, or the venom is weakening me..."

In the end, I stayed there for a few more minutes. Although, technically, I'm always lying down, right? I don't know what the difference is between just being still and 'resting' with this body. But somehow, it works. It's relaxing. Maybe it's a kind of placebo… I guess. I don't know if I'm explaining myself well, but you'll have to make do with that explanation, I suppose."

I was about to slither out of this place when a sound interrupted my calm. A faint screech, almost imperceptible, reached my ears.

"What was that?"

I quickly turned my head toward the direction the sound had come from... Well, as quickly as this annoying bite on my neck allowed.

At first, I didn't see anything. Just a couple of rocks, more mushrooms, and several massive boulders conveniently placed in a corner. Oh, and there were also some leftover webs from the fight. Wait… now that I think about it, I could have sworn the fight didn't get anywhere near that area.

Pretty suspicious, don't you think? Though honestly, I didn't even have the energy to get nervous. Besides, I wasn't in any position to fight. What was I going to do if something came out of there? Roll around?

"Would it be better to just ignore it? Maybe I could take a look. Honestly… I'm a little curious."

Those were my last words.

Just kidding. Well, sort of. Technically, they were my last words, but only because I didn't say anything until what happened next. Sorry, that wasn't funny. Please don't stop reading, I promise I won't make any more bad jokes. This one was so terrible I'm not even embarrassed. I just… deeply regret it.

I wish I'd had a coin at that moment. I was so indecisive I didn't know what to do. I didn't know if my safety was worth more than my curiosity.

In the end, curiosity won, but only because I remembered that if I wanted my story to be interesting, things had to happen, right? So forcing the plot a little now and then didn't seem so bad… I guess.

Though, honestly, I was going to look anyway. I mean, curiosity gets the better of me. I'm sure you understand… or maybe not.

Come to think of it, forcing the plot when I was in this state wasn't the best idea, was it?

I don't know if I've said this already, but I really should stop rambling so much in my thoughts and start telling the story more clearly, being more descriptive… Well, I'll get better at it.

Wait. Did I just ramble again? Whatever, it doesn't matter, I'll stop now.

Anyway, the point is that I climbed onto one of the rocks in the room, raised myself like a tower to look over the boulders, and what did I see? More webs. Or rather, a giant web, so big it looked like the spider's nest… No, it didn't look like it, it was a spider's nest.

Right there, next to the web, was the huge corpse of a winged creature, twice the size of the spider. It had a peculiar shape, and it was… How do I put this? Well… It was half-eaten, but ignoring that, it was quite imposing. It looked like a stork, but with scales, and its legs, though thick, were long and slender, with four claws and digitigrade feet. They weren't very fine, more like prominent, yet they still maintained a kind of strange elegance. Maybe I should have said an ostrich instead of a stork.

However, its torso was thin, and it had disproportionately large wings. I know, it sounds like something pretty deformed, but honestly, it had its charm, or it would have if it hadn't been plucked. Its torso, with feathers, would probably have looked more… majestic?

I felt a bit of revulsion at the fact that it was mid-decomposition, but at the same time, I was in awe of its anatomy.

I've always found animal anatomy fascinating, how all the species in our world are so different from one another. But in a fantasy world, where nothing makes sense and monsters can take any form, no matter how bizarre… I don't know how to explain it, but I found it incredibly interesting.

That's why, whenever I played games like Beast Hunter, I'd spend ages in the bestiary, studying how the beasts moved, what each part of their body was for, their weaknesses, strengths, habits… Sometimes I wouldn't even hunt them, I'd just go on an expedition mission to observe their habits and how they interacted with the environment.

"I'd give anything to have hands right now and be able to make a bestiary in this world…"

I didn't have much artistic skill, but I'm sure I'd get better.

I'm rambling again. Anyway, while I was mesmerized by the monster, the same shrill screech from before pulled me out of my thoughts.

I focused on the nest and saw a strange ball with… a beak? Wait a second… Is that the monster's chick? No way, it's barely bigger than my head. Although, come to think of it… maybe this world has some kind of rapid evolution. I guess that would explain it, though if that's the case, it'd ruin all the fun of watching creatures grow.

Well, its mother is dead, and the spider that was going to eat it… I ate. So I guess it'll be trapped there for eternity. You can do it, little chick, I believe in you.

"If you'll excuse me, I'll continue on my way."

But just as I was approaching the exit, the screech rang out again. As if it were begging me for help.

"Dammit, I guess I'll try to get you out of there… if I can find a way."

With a sigh, I approached the rocks and faced my first problem: they were way too high. I thought of a couple of solutions and debated between trying to jump over them or stacking rocks and rubble to make a staircase… Though honestly, that'd take a lot of time and effort, wouldn't it? It's not like I'm in the best shape, thanks to that damn spider's venom, but I felt like I could manage. I hoped that maybe I could reach the top with a single jump.

Two words: absolute failure. All I achieved was smashing myself against the rocky wall and landing flat on my face. Once again, that damned hope betrayed me. Unfortunately, I'd have to go with the slow method. If it weren't for that stupid spider's venom, I wouldn't be in this state — I'd definitely have made it… Well, no, probably not. But come to think of it, I was starting to feel the effects of the venom less and less. I wasn't sure if it was wearing off or if I was somehow gaining a resistance to it.

***

After who knows how long… Hours? Months? Years? I stacked enough rocks to finally climb up. I really hope this chick is magical and grants wishes because this was way too much trouble.

In the end, I made it up and got a better look at the chick and its mother, or what was left of her. Up close, the creature was even bigger and more menacing. How the hell had the spider killed this thing?

As for the chick, it still had its feathers, but I couldn't really tell what color they were. They were kind of gray, but with reflections of other colors, though none of them stood out in particular. I guess when it grows up, they'll change… if it lives long enough.

It's not a threat or anything, it's just the harsh reality. I suppose.

When I climbed down into the nest and approached the chick, I tried to get it out of there. The chick seemed surprised to see me, maybe it hadn't even noticed me when I climbed up the wall, and it just screeched, hoping for a kind soul like me to pass by.

And guess what happened next? The bastard tried to claw my eyes out. Missed by a hair.

"You little bastard… Fine, stay there, good luck."

I turned around, ready to leave… until I froze in place. I hadn't thought about how to get out.