The Queen stilled for a second after witnessing my over-the-top reaction, even the wiggling tubes on the sides of her face ceasing movement. At least I think she was stunned. That face was far too disfigured for me to tell. In any case, she seemed pretty pissed off right now.

"You... dare... insult... This Queen... shall..."

Just as she kept talking nonsense, I used the opportunity to inspect the large space. There was a large lack of the wax like substance, the cave seemingly natural, holding many holes and crevices. Sharp stalactites covered the ceiling, droplets of water dripping down. Some of the stalagmites on the ground were broken off while others grew up high enough to connect with the top.

“Dare... ignore... me... die.” I heard a hiss just as a huge rock was tossed at me. Jumping to the side, it was easy enough to dodge, but the force of the throw shattered the rock into tiny pieces.

I kept my eyes on the monster, seeing that those feeble looking arms should not be underestimated as the creature once more released a loud screech. In the next instant, I could have sworn that her face split into a vicious grin.

Without waiting for her next move, I spread my wings slightly and tensed my legs. As my muscles contracted and released, my figure blurred slightly from the speed as I lowered my body and appeared right below her. Seeing her react faster than expected, I barely dodged as one of her sharp legs swung down at my previous position, cracking the ground in the process.

While her upper body lowered slightly to swipe her claws at me, I answered by raising my wings a bit and moving away, slashing in quick succession. Her abdomen split open as I passed around her overgrown body, lashing my claws at the unprotected legs. Once I was satisfied with the damaged I’d managed to inflict, I wanted to make some distance. However, two of her sharp legs lashed out suddenly, hitting me squarely in the chest.

A small crack sounded as I flew through the air before rolling on the ground. Catching myself in a crouch, I patted my chest to assess the damage but was surprised there were no bones sticking out for once, though the small amount of acid on her limbs was enough to sting like hell. My ribs were certainly fractured, making it painful to breathe. Knowing my body was already working on repairing the damage, I looked up to see my own handiwork.

The bitch shook, her hands trying to keep the incision I made closed. However, it was too large as some disgusting mass fell out at the sides. I grimaced at the sight of underdeveloped eggs splattering out of her belly onto the dirt. I couldn’t help but gag again, the vile stench of her innards forcing the bile up my throat. I have never been squeamish, in both my lives, but this... it was a whole new classification of revulsion.

Letting out a squeal of rage, she glared at me before releasing the wound. Seeing there was merely a thin line, her flesh stitching up, I sucked in a sharp breath. The bitch could regenerate. Even the legs I’d managed to remove were slowly growing back and would be fully recovered in a few minutes.

“You... will… pay...” She hissed as more acid seemed to seep down her arms, the rock sizzling under her. Moving from her position for the first time, I watched in apprehension at seeing her speed. Those legs moved in perfect sync as she crawled up the ceiling and weaved around the stalactites with a scary amount of agility.

Shit.

Not wasting time, I moved but the bitch was above me in no time, following me step for step before flinging herself at me. Feeling like time stopped, I knew she would drop on top of me within seconds. Knowing that if I stopped or continued forward, I couldn’t dodge. Gritting my teeth, I stopped and spread my wings before violently flapping them forward. The force was enough to fling me back as I lost my footing and slammed against a stalagmite, shattering it in the process and snapping the bones of one of the wings.

The bitch landed where I would have been had I continued forward, the ground and surrounding rocks breaking from the force. Seeing she missed her mark, her head turned backwards unnaturally, “Accept... your... doom...”

Not wasting my opportunity, I rushed at her again and sliced her open a bit lower, a bunch of slime-covered eggs falling out once more. Before I could react to the fact that her reproductive system was clearly weaved through her entire body, I felt impending danger when three of the blade-like legs aimed for my body like scythes.

With a grunt, I managed to dodge the continuous attacks from her bladed limbs, receiving gashes on my chest and thighs, the splatter of the acid doing far more damage to my whole body. It was like fighting a goddamn lawnmower, the blades coming at me in fast succession as she pushed me back. She had already turned around at this point, using her superior size to the fullest, her claws slashing down at me with great force. Maneuvering myself away from her bladed limbs, I lifted my arm to deflect her attack but soon learned my mistake. Though I had managed to cut off many of her numerous legs, she still had six, clawed arms.

Sparks flew as our attacks connected, letting me know she was a lot stronger than her bugs. The acid had no effect until it reached my elbows, making me grit my teeth as the smell of my melting skin permeated the surroundings. Another one of her arms immediately followed, slashing on the other side with accuracy. Cursing, I managed to lift my tail in time, feeling a sick sense of satisfaction as the arm fell limply to the ground. With an infuriated growl she added a second hand to the one that was pushing me down, forcing me back step by step while poking and prodding with her bladed legs, too far now to do deeper damage. My veins bulged in exertion, using all I had to hold my ground.

She didn’t attack with just one claw this time. Goddamnit that acid burned! Using all three remaining arms, she slashed down from different angles. Knowing I was screwed if that hit, I released my resistance and moved forward with a low stance. Losing her balance from the sudden disappearance of struggle, she fell forward slightly. Though thanks to her unnaturally long body, she managed to keep herself standing.

Despite being in a position to attack again, I refrained and made distance instead. This was not working. Her recovery was too fast, she didn’t seem to care about pain and, worst of all, I felt the only thing I’d accomplished so far was pissing her off more.

Panting, I glared at her as she turned. Despite my expectations, she didn’t charge again. Normally, I would try to do the same thing I do to all large enemies. Get on their back and butcher them with superior speed and flexibility. However, it wouldn’t work here. The way her body moved in unnatural ways was proof enough that my usual tactic would be my death. And worst yet, I had no clue where to hit to make it hurt save for her head which was too far up to reach. It was as if her innards were just one huge reproductive system.

Scowling, I growled in annoyance, "You seriously have a morbidly huge vagina..."

The Voidhal Queen’s eyes widened at my words as she screeched in fury. I groaned in pain as my ears bled before all I could hear was a high pitch ringing. The bitch ruptured my eardrums. Glaring in loathing, I watched her wounds heal even quicker as new limbs popped out almost instantly, splattering her black blood everywhere. She finally closed her maw, her eyes glowing a bright orange.

Her mouth seemed to move as she spoke but I could not hear anything past the ringing. She suddenly disappeared into thin air. Stumbling back in shock, I felt the temperature of my body lower to a chilling degree. As the ringing in my ears receded, all I could hear was the loud drumming of my heart. I could sense nothing, see no trace of her and it carried on for long enough that deep paranoia began seeping its way into my bones.

My entire being was rigid with tension as my eyes fell on the glowing, orange crystal. It seemed to pulse slightly as I realized she was drawing from it to empower herself. Biting the inside of my cheek, I knew that the moment I moved, she would strike and considering her strength and speed, the chances of escaping that were unlikely.

My eyes kept flying from left to right, trying to foresee from which direction the bitch would strike. Finally deciding on my course of action, I began gathering my mana into my hands before guiding it to my legs. But, before I could succeed and without any indication whatsoever, I felt myself lurch forward as I stared at the clawed arm sticking out of my midsection.

Not giving me a chance to retaliate, the clawed hand moved out with blinding speed before my body twisted painfully. The strong impact made me fly through the air, causing me to collide with the wall, with a near shattering force, this time thoroughly breaking my wing. It was a whole new level of agony.

Toppling to the ground, a mouthful of blood escaped my lips while pain racked my body. This was too fucking dangerous. Glancing up, I once again saw no trace of her. I could sense my body was in overdrive, trying to repair the gaping hole but the acid greatly slowed down my healing. My blood seemed to have no effect whatsoever, this acid clearly quite a bit stronger than the one in my blood. Seeing where she aimed, I was sure a good chunk of my liver was gone. This was too slow, at this rate I’ll faint from the loss of blood. If that happened, I was as good as dead. Frustration built up along with my anger before an idea struck me. If she can empower her healing with mana, why couldn’t I?

Focusing inward, I drew upon my mana gland and directed the mana to the hole in my midsection. With a gasp of pain, I stared in shock as the flesh stitched itself with incredible speed until only smooth skin was left. Seeing as she still didn’t attack, she must have thought I had no chance now. She wanted to play with me, to torture me. My pride and rage flared as I stood with a snarl, “You’re not the only Apex here bitch!”

Mana empowered my senses enough to feel the danger coming from below. The stress on my gland was steep as the untrained organ pumped mana into every inch of my body. With speed surpassing my previous movements, I moved away from her claws before grabbing two of her wrists and flinging her at the ceiling with far more strength than I was capable of before. She screamed in pain as some of the stalactites pierced her body all the way through while others shattered from the force.

I didn’t have time to acknowledge the amazing boost in strength as I felt my gland painfully contract. I couldn’t use this long. Dodging the falling rocks, I ignored the squirming Queen who was trying to dislodge herself from the rocks. I reached the crystal within seconds, grabbing it and severing her connection to it by wrapping my mana around it. At this point, I was forced to release the pull on my mana gland.

Panting in exhaustion, I stumbled but caught myself on the pedestal. Not having the time to contemplate, I silently stared as she finally dropped from the ceiling and squirmed in pain. We both tried to recover, glaring at one another in hate. Her eyes no longer glowed as she stared at the crystal in my hand, her wounds not healing as fast either.

“Give... it... back...” She hissed, black goo splattering from her maw.

Tilting my head to the side, I sneered, “N... o...” I mocked before flipping her the bird. Managing to gather mana into my legs, I noticed how different the sensation of using mana this way felt. Using it to empower strained my mana gland while using it for magic drained it. I had some serious questions about mana for Grim now.

Just as the Queen recovered enough to try and attack, I let myself sink into the darkness. It was an odd sensation to say the least as I popped out right from under her nose. This whole place was pitch black with barely any source of light, allowing me to move just about anywhere as long as my mana and focus held up.

Unfortunately, this was only my second try. Clumsily exiting the darkness, I jumped to the side as all six of her arms slammed on the ground in fury before slashing out. She gasped in surprise when her claws connected to mine. Forcing me backward with great force. With an angry growl, I wrapped all of her arms with my tail to immobilize her, flinching at the burning of acid. On an odd instinct, mana gathered in my throat. As I parted my lips slightly, I felt pleasant heat gather in my throat while black smoke seeped out from the sides. Seeing there was no miasma in here, I felt no need to fight it.

Staring up at her with narrowed eyes, I ducked my head as her maw came down in an attempt to bite my head off. With a slight grin, forcefully lifted my head, the horns knocking against her chin with a crunch. With a sneer, I opened my mouth as black flames exploded right into her dislocated jaws.

She shrieked in pain as her head caught fire and her lower body flailed around violently. Desperately trying to free herself from my grip, I found it more and more difficult to hold on. Suddenly, I felt her weight disappear as I stumbled forward, the flames disappearing and leaving me coughing with a sore throat. My eyes widened when I saw the ripped out arms, black blood dripping from the torn limbs.

Looking to the front, I saw her fall down in a tumble. Half of her face was burned off and all of her arms were gone. Hissing and moaning in pain, she gave out an odd sound reminiscent of someone choking on their own blood. Though she was slowly recovering, I knew this was my opportunity to finally finish her off.

I smirk and toss the arms over my shoulder as I charge, wanting to kill before her vision returns. I instantly appear in front of her just as she opens her newly regenerated eyes. Moving my tail, the spear-like tip entered her throat easily before cutting her open from her jugular to her belly. Her guts and organs splattered on the ground, showing there really were some internal organs save for her reproductive system.

The tall figure of the Voidhal Queen slumped to the ground like dead weight. I couldn’t help but feel a great sense of instinctual pride, while at the same time glaring at her remains in disgust. Finally relaxing a bit, I felt the drain my activities had had on my gland. I knew my gland had a decent amount of mana, so I couldn’t understand why the drain was so great. In the end, I had even more questions for my soon-to-be teacher. Despite my dislike of magic, I acknowledged the fact it was an indispensable, lifesaving tool.

As I was about to leave, I heard noise from the holes in the cavern. Sucking in a sharp breath, I watched in shock as hundreds of Voidhals flooded the chamber, moving to their Queen yet ignoring me.

A strong pulse suddenly erupted from the crystal, easily breaking the mana I’d used to cut the Queen off. Inwardly cursing at lowering my guard, I managed to cut her off again but the damage had been done. Staring in apprehension, my bad feeling intensified as the Voidhal Queen stood up with shaking legs. While her organs regrew at an alarming rate, the other Voidhals gathered around her.

Her maw suddenly unhinged as she bit down on the nearest Voidhal, the tubes on the side of her face connecting to the creature as she consumed it within seconds before moving on to the next one. Stunned at the development, I quickly began slaughtering the Voidhals who focused solely on their Queen. I couldn’t get past them in time, their sheer numbers blocking me off. Within minutes, all of them were either dead or consumed, leaving me alone with the Queen once again. However, I couldn’t help but take a step back. Her previous height of 6 meters had increased drastically. She towered over me at near 14 meters.

What the hell were these fucking bugs?!

The dim orange glow in her black eyes dimmed as she swung her arms down at me. I knew there was no way I could block it. Flapping my slightly recovered wings, I managed to toss myself to the side as the whole cavern shook from the blow, making some stalactites break off. Her jaws clicked together as an insane look appeared on her face, “No... escape... maggot... DIE!”

Maybe I was out of my depth. A sense of dread came over me as the Queen vanished and suddenly dropped from above, landing directly on top of me. The air was knocked out of my lungs as the crushing weight pined me to the ground. I couldn’t budge as I looked up in anger and met the elated face of the Queen, showing off the rows of her needle-like teeth.

I grimaced in disgust and hissed in pain when the dripping acid hit my face, melting a hole in my cheek. The Queen laughed madly as she grabbed my throat with her clawed hand, the acid severely burning, and brought her face close to mine while keeping me pinned.

"Fool... you shall... die... here..., but not... before I... torture you... for at... least... a century... for... what... you... have... done...” Saying that, one of her hands reached for the orange crystal, trying to pry open my clenched fist. Much to her dismay, she could do no damage to my hand, even with the acid dripping down her fingers. Trying to force them open only resulted in her own claws being damaged. She hissed, “Release!”

I narrow my eyes with a mad grin, "No.” Just as rage appeared on her face, I moved my tail with blinding speed, wrapping it around her now defenseless neck. I knew that if I didn’t take her head in this moment, she would take mine. Just as her claws dug into my throat enough to nearly sever my jugular, I cut into hers before wringing it off with a strong tug. Everything stilled as the head fell and tumbled off to the side.

Flinging her corpse to the side with difficulty, I gripped my throat in panic, the blood gushing out like crazy before I was once again forced to save my life by overdrawing my core. Coughing violently, blood splattered from my lips as I took an exhausted breath. Flinching, I realized my legs were broken. With a loud curse and scream, I set them into place. Closing my eyes, I sat up and leaned against a rock, my breathing heavy. Soft screeches could be heard all over the place as the remaining Voidhals confirmed the death of their Queen, all making the same sorrowful sounds before the whole place died down.

My chest throbbed. I knew I’d overexerted my mana gland, leaving me sore and exhausted. As I rested for a bit, I was surprised so see wisps of orange light seep out from the crystal before it turned a crystalline silver color. I watched in amazement, I imagined that this was most likely what diamonds would look like.

As I waited for my injuries to recover, I noticed a small gleam come from the Queen’s severed head. Curious, I dragged myself forward before grimacing and sticking my hand in there. Feeling something bouncy and roundish, I pulled it out. With wide eyes, I stared at the thing in my hand. A small, shining ball of flesh. Squeezing it gently, I noticed it was becoming firmer by the second until it was as hard as stone. This was a mana gland, there was no doubt about it.

However, despite me holding it gently, a crack formed, followed by another as it fell from my fingers, shattering into dust. Scowling, I stared in disbelief as my only loot was destroyed.

Annoyed, I finally stood up as a faint silver wisp flew out of the broken shards of the core and floated in my direction. Curious, I tilt my head and extend my hand out to touch the silvery strings of light. Before I could react, the weightless wisp was suddenly inhaled before a powerful surge of energy filled my chest. Like cold water on a burn, the ache in my core lessened until completely recovered.

Baffled, I suddenly felt violent shocks go through my body. Gritting my teeth, I closed my eyes and sat down, entering a meditative state.