Rude Awakening by Trilobites
Subsequently, the duo fell asleep. However, when Hendrix woke up, he couldn't see or hear anything.
'I wonder if Priya is still asleep or not.' Hendrix thought before clinging to her, trying to warm up more.
"Zzzzz..." Priya slept while holding Hendrix even tighter unconsciously.
Hendrix listened to her heartbeat, breathing, and the blizzard outside, all-encompassing a calming ambiance that relaxed his weary and broken mind. Additionally, he relaxed all his muscles as he sunk further into Priya's gentle embrace.
'It's so peaceful here. I wonder when I'll feel this again in the real world after today.' Hendrix thought while smiling, not having felt this in the real world ever, only in Ackalons realm.
Meanwhile, Ackalon watched the sight in her ethereal scroll form and floated about. Additionally, a thin layer of snow blocked the opening of the cave.
{These peaceful and serene moments are unforgettable.}
Hendrix continued to rest for three hours while clinging to Priya feeling very safe in her arms, before falling asleep again. Afterward, he slept for one and woke up again and still felt safe.
'I never believed I could feel safe in this world. I only thought I could feel this way in Ackalons realm.' Hendrix inwardly stated while he smiled once more.
After another three hours, Hendrix fell asleep again, but after he woke up, something was not right. He wasn't in Priya's embrace anymore, and his head was on the rock-hard ground. Subsequently, a silhouette flew at him and hit his face.
"Agh! What was that?!" Hendrix yelled before looking around the cave and seeing himself bruised. Additionally, he saw Priya trying to fight off many Trilobites, and more kept coming into the cave from outside. Also, the blizzard has passed.
"Hendrix, we've been assaulted by these things. I apologize for being unable to protect you from these." Priya apologized while she threw a Trilobite at a wall.
"It's fine. It's out of your control." Hendrix replied before being hit by another Trilobite and gritting his teeth.
Priya nodded before she kept trying to throw them away from her in pain.
"Priya, how durable are the Trilobites?" Hendrix asked.
"These creatures are called Trilobites? Well, I tried using my sword and swinging with all my strength outside, which did no damage to them. They also don't have any weak spots." Priya replied.
"Well, we should probably leave the cave and make sure all the Trilobites stay inside. Additionally, we should try to fit as many as possible inside and then throw lots of wood and burn them alive." Hendrix suggested.
"Sure, let's do that." Priya replied before getting up and trying to escape the room.
Hendrix also did the same, and eventually, the duo escaped through the open hole. However, when they got out, they saw a large group of Trilobites. And Hendrix got an idea after this.
"We should throw as many Trilobites inside the cave as possible and light them at the entrance. Afterward, we can do it repeatedly until we kill them all." Hendrix suggested while throwing a Trilobite into the cave and knocking one's trying to escape back inside.
"If we do, that is such a waste of resources." Priya expressed while standing before the cave and dodging a Trilobite at the last second.
Subsequently, the Trilobite flew into others, and they all tumbled inside.
"Well, our goal here isn't to get resources but to survive. If we kill all Undead here, we can have a safe area for the remaining duration." Hendrix explained.
"Alright, and how will we follow through with this plan?" Priya questioned.
"I'll go grab as much wood as possible and place it nearby, and when the cave is full of Trilobites and enough wood. I'll block the opening with more wood and rocks and watch them burn." Hendrix stated.
"That sounds like a good idea Hendrix. Good luck." Priya replied, knowing she couldn't protect Hendrix right now.
Hendrix nodded and started leaving the area and picked up different-sized sticks before bringing them back. Subsequently, he did this for four hours while taking breaks, and after finishing, a large pile of sticks lay a bit away from the cave. Additionally, he willed his Tlyacuv to appear on him and provide him some protection against the elements.
"Priya, is the cave full of Trilobites?" Hendrix asked.
"Yes, it is Hendrix. Do you need my help?" Priya countered.
"Just make sure none of the trapped Trilobites escape." Hendrix stated.
Priya nodded and continued blocking the path and throwing large rocks at the crowd of Trilobites to keep them inside while dodging new ones attacking her from the direction of the frozen lake.
Hendrix sighed before grabbing sticks and throwing them in front of the cave. After ten minutes, they blocked the cave opening. However, the Trilobites slowly pushed the rocks and sticks through repeated attacks.
"It's time to light them ablaze." Hendrix stated before striking two rocks together for five minutes before they lit a branch, and eventually, all the sticks blocking the cave ignited.
Consequently, the hitting on the sticks intensified for a few minutes before finally stopping and followed by many cries of agony that lasted for five minutes.
The cries caused the other Trilobites trying to attack to flee in terror. Subsequently, Priya and Hendrix watched as the fire continued to burn, and it died out at nightfall.
[You have killed a level 1 Cryogenic Undead Trilobite]
[You have killed a level 3 Cryogenic Undead Trilobite]
[You have killed a level 2 Cryogenic Undead Trilobite]
[You have...]
"Let's see what's left of the Trilobites." Hendrix stated before he used a branch to push away the burned ones, and he looked at the carnage.
[You have killed thirty-five Cryogenic Undead Trilobites of levels 1-3]
[You both share the rewards and gain 27 xp each.]
'I guess I have thirty-one out of one hundred fifty xp.' Hendrix thought before looking at the cooked Trilobites.
"Hendrix, should we eat these?" Priya asked.
"I'll eat them and see if their meat harms our bodies greatly." Hendrix replied before he picked up the Trilobite closest to the entrance and smacked its dead body on a rock.
Eventually, after hitting the corpse on the rock for a minute, it cracked open, and a delicious aroma came from the Trilobite carcass.
"That smells delicious. How is it possible?" Priya questioned.
"I'm not sure, but my guess is because they were perfectly preserved and frozen. In my old world, some people had eaten frozen mammoths that went extinct over ten thousand years ago and were perfectly fine." Hendrix stated while remembering their undead before taking a bite of a cooked part.
The texture was similar to squid or octopus if broiled, but they were greasy like bear meat, and juices fell from the meat with a hint of salt.
The flavor caused him to salivate as he wondered how an undead creature could taste so good.
"Hendrix, is it good?" Priya asked.
"Yes, it is. It tastes amazing. However, we should wait a bit, and if I'm fine, you can eat some too." Hendrix replied while taking a bite from a raw part. This one tasted like sashimi and had a bloody aftertaste.
[Undead info.
Species: Cryogenic Undead Trilobite.
Rarity: Crimson
Length: 1 feet
Height: 6 inches
Level: 2
Stage: N/A
Stats are not available.
Skills
Fortified Exoskeleton: This passive normal skill allows the user to have no weak points on your armor, and you are impervious to damage from all Unranked objects and weapons.
This skill has no time limit or cooldown.
Ram: This active normal skill allows the user to ram your opponents. It causes 0.1 damage per hit.
Undead race traits
Chilling Cryogenic Aura: The user's aura will slow down everything about your opponent by an infinitesimal amount. It impacts mana, emotions, opponent's mind, opponent's body, opponent's soul, etc. However, this trait only is effective within ten feet of them.
'Well, these creatures are extremely tough to kill but are only annoying unless they swarm you like we were.' Hendrix thought to himself before smiling.
After two hours, Hendrix told Priya the food was safe to consume, and they both dined on the scrumptious meat of the Trilobites.