Dungeon Life

Chapter Seventy-Six

The aranea/spiderkin are developing a lot differently than the ratlings/ratkin. I dont know why that surprises me. Basically the only thing they have in common is that they come from my spawners. I guess the biggest difference is the dimorphism and trimorphism? Have I mentioned Im not a biologist?

The ratkin ladies gained boobs as the bar filled. Not enough to go bouncing around me, but enough to feed their children like the mammals they are. The spiderkin are well, Im pretty sure if I was a biologist, Id be yelling about how thats not how any of this works. Where do I even start with how theyre changing

Well, Ill start with the male spiderkin, since theyre not changing much at all. Well, ok, thats not fair. But compared to the women, their changes are pretty minor. Their faces are changing, gaining a bunch of smaller chitin plates that can move a lot more, making them way more expressive. It makes me think of maybe a detailed helmet or mask with some animatronics. Theyre getting over the hump from being ugly to being cool. I wouldnt be surprised if some version of power rangers had helmets like their faces. Their mouth is also kinda sideways, its weird to explain. I think that might be more like their lips than their actual mouth parts, though. Theres a jagged vertical line around a rough square for their mouth. Ive seen them yawn, though and past the lips is a nightmare of mandibles and pedipalps and whatever the words are. Still not a biologist.

The males arent growing larger, though. Im pretty sure most male spiders are smaller than the females back home, so I guess it makes sense. I just thought theyd grow to similar size when theyre smart. The other big difference between the spider sexes is that the males are still staying pretty low-slung. While the two pairs of legs at the front are gaining definite hands for both sexes, the male hands are still being used to help walk. They kinda knuckle-walk on the ground, and then use the hands to actually grip when climbing stuff. The women only sometimes use their hands to help climb, and theyve been moving more towards a spider-centaur body shape.

So Im pretty sure theyre growing a lot of extra bits. Pretty sure spiders only really have two sections: the butt that has their organs or equivalents, and the section that has all the legs attached. I think the head just kinda is tacked on to that part? I could just go look, but thats not really my point. My point is theyve gained a torso bit that stands more or less straight up, and that two sets of arms have migrated there. They also have actual heads. They seem to still have eight eyes, but only the two in the normal eye spots are big. They even have an irising lid, like a camera. Its really cool. The other eyes are smaller and ring the head and are easy to forget about if youre not looking.

They also appear to have grown something on their chests. It could be boobs with a chitin plate covering them, or spinnerets, or venom sacks or even just muscle. I honestly havent been brave enough to try to take a closer look. The nightmare of seeing inside the mouth of one still haunts me.

The part that I really think would make a biologist have a fit, though, is I think theyre growing an internal skeleton or maybe just in certain places? Or certain species? This is what I meant about the trimorphism earlier. While the males are smaller and a lot different from the females, Im also seeing three races, I guess would be the proper term?

Theres relatively small ones that seem built like jumping spiders. There are a lot of different colors and patterns, though the classic wolfspider grays and stripes seem to be the majority. Theyre busy little spiderkin and seem the most inclined towards going out to hunt. Theres always at least one party of them out in the tunnels and caverns past my borders, looking for food. Im not exactly surprised by that, at least. Ive never heard of a spider growing mushrooms to eat or anything like that, so my spiderkin being carnivores is no big shock. I do wonder if theyll be able to eat other stuff, too, or if theyll be staying with meat.

The normal sized ones are definitely more based on black widows. They have shiny black carapaces, rounder backsides, slender limbs, and have the red hourglass marking. I expect they have potent venom, too, but they havent really bitten anything. Instead, they seem more content to stay inside the area for their Enclave and build. Widow web is supposed to be stupidly strong, so I suppose it makes sense. Interestingly, the males help out a lot with building, too. They seem to be the ones to use the picks they brought with them, and with stone and webbing, the Enclave is coming along nicely. I think theyre even building a little animal pen, so maybe theyll be able to ranch later? Oh, I should have Aranya try to introduce them to fishing. Theres gotta be something aquatic around here worth eating, and should be a lot easier to domesticate than something like a scythemaw, or whatever else wanders around on land down here.

The larger ones seem to be based on tarantulas. Theyre built stockier and their carapace looks like its growing around muscle. It makes me think of roman ab-armor, as seen in movies. But the presence of abs is why I think some of them are growing internal skeletons. Normal spiders dont really have muscle. Instead, they have hydraulics, basically. Muscles need internal bones to be able to leverage for movement. I wonder if theyre doing a hybrid kind of system? Muscles for fast movements, hydraulics for strength? However they actually work, the tarantulas are taking the place of guards, with a couple helping move around heavy stuff.

Interestingly, Tiny has taken a couple trips down to the Enclave, too, along with Aranya and Teemo. The big guy has apparently been dispensing the Wisdom of the Weaver, which even has Aranya listening. Great, just when I thought the whole cult business might quiet down. Hes also apparently being something of an oracle, saying he can read the pattern of the weave. I would usually ignore that kind of talk but I do have Fate affinity. I probably should have expected at least one scion would lean into that aspect, instead of whatever else they have.

I should actually try to grill the big lug about how that works, come to think of it. I poke Teemo about the fishing potential, and he squeaks at Aranya from her shoulder.

Hey Aranya, the Boss suggests trying to teach them how to fish, maybe with weighted nets? He says a rod and reel might be a bit much for them to try right now.

The kobold brightens at that. Ah, fishing! That should be a lot simpler than trying to teach them how to domesticate whatever is walking or flying in the deeper tunnels. Thank you, Thedeim! she says with a slightly-bowed head, and Teemo takes the chance to hop off and onto Tiny.

Im gonna stay here with the big guy. The Boss wants to talk with him. Aranya simply nods at that and heads off to gather as many spiderkin as she can to teach how to fish. Tiny shuffles his legs slightly when he hears Teemo say I want to talk.

So. Reading the weave?

I cant hear anything from Tiny as he explains what he can from my question to Teemo, which makes me wonder how my favorite rat actually hears everything. I cant chew on that puzzle for very long, though, as Teemo starts talking.

He says he can see the tapestry you're weaving, and if he concentrates, he can see the greater tapestry around us being woven as well? says Teemo, clearly weirded out by the description. Thats pretty cool, though. Can he tell if the winter will be a harsh one?

Teemo asks and is answered, and shakes his head. He says he cant read that far ahead or that far away? He says theres a lot of distance between the cause of a harsh winter, and the effect of feeling one.

Hmm. I probably shouldnt expect him to be a more accurate weatherman than people with radar and satellite images and stuff. Maybe if he could get a read on more of how the weather is on the entire planet, hed be able to make a guess. I go to ask Teemo another question, and see him rubbing his head. Oh sorry about that.

Its ok, Boss. You werent too focused on those things, so it was more disorienting than painful. Ive been getting better at ignoring deeper implications for things, but how am I supposed to ignore the idea of an eye so high up it can hide in the stars? He shakes his head and chuckles. Were both getting better at it, though. What else did you want to ask him?

Oh. Uh I was going to ask him how he reads the stuff, whats it like. He must be using Fate magic to do it, but I know almost nothing about it, and only have the vaguest ideas of what it even could be.

Teemo relays the information, and soon replies. He says its like he can see a web as its formed right now, also also see the ways it might be finished, all at once?

Ah, brace yourself then, Teemo. That sounds like quantum superposition. Ask him if looking changes things.

Even with the warning, it looks like Teemo loses his balance for a moment, but thankfully only a moment. He looks a bit confused at my question, but relays it anyway.

He says no?

Maybe not quantum, then? Or magic can measure without changing the results, because magic, heh. Either way, thats very interesting. Does he spot any potential snarls in my web?

Teemo shakes his head. Tiny says he doesnt see anything, and he likely wouldnt say anything even if he does, barring something catastrophic. He says you integrate problems much too smoothly for him to try to keep them out.

I chuckle at that. Well, tell him thanks, I suppose. Im a regular Bob Ross over here, making happy little accidents, heh. Still, that does make me want to keep prepared for something potentially dangerous. He seems to need to be able to observe the various causes to see how the web will change, so some big surprise could make a mess of things and blindside him, and so us.

Tell him thanks for me, and to keep up the good work. The hedge maze is the wild success it is because of him. And hes the only one who seems to be delving into the Fate magic, so Im sure Ill need to pick his brain about it eventually, too. I get the feeling I wont be able to ignore that magic forever.