CH43 Into the Cave of Opportunities
***
Before setting off, Alex made several careful preparations.
First, he uncorked a small vial of antidote—an earthy-smelling liquid he'd personally brewed from various herbs gathered since entering the Subspace—and gulped it down in one go.
The taste was revolting, but necessary.
He was about to enter the territory, and former lair, of one of the deadliest creatures in the entire Subspace. The Sunscaled Viper—a Class 3 apex predator known not just for its deadly venom, but the ambient toxins its body secreted into its environment.
Prevention, in this case, was far better than any cure.
Alex crept his way through the twisted cave passages leading towards the lair, weaving around roaming beasts whenever possible. For those he couldn't avoid, his spells or newly-mastered wristblade made short work of them.
His proficiency with the blade had grown with each fight—close combat, once a weakness, now felt oddly natural.
