I need some way to get out of their line of sight. I look back behind me as I run. They’re still there, weaving past the large trees but otherwise charging straight at me. Maybe Flora Camouflage? I have enough room to stop for a moment if they decide to keep charging. I slow down a little bit, preparing to stop and activate the skill. With another glance behind to confirm that they won’t get to me immediately, I come to a dead stop and activate Flora Camouflage.

  My head is still turned back so that I can gauge the reactions of the boars and see if I need to start running again. They don’t stop charging, seemingly ignoring the fact that I’m, to all appearances, suddenly gone. Heightened Danger Sense, which has been quietly warning me of the obvious danger, continues to go off. Okay, definitely still have to keep running! I turn back around and start sprinting, trying to regain a bit more of my lead. Once I’m far enough ahead, I fully deactivate the skill and reappear as more than a blur.

  Well, that wasn’t all that helpful. I still don’t really know if it worked or not. Maybe they just would’ve ran to that spot and checked to see if anything was there, or maybe they knew exactly where I was the whole time. I really should have thought that through more. Now my lead is diminished and they know I can go invisible. Another landmark passes by, marking the second line of trees to the clearing. I’m already this close?! I thought I had more time than this! I’ve gotta come up with something fast!

  Think, think, think. What can I do? Even as I desperately go over all of my abilities, my body enters the clearing, running almost automatically. My movement slows down until I completely stop somewhere in the middle of the clearing. Maybe if I can just hide I’ll be fine. It needs to be somewhere they can’t reach, though. The omnipresent sound of the boars growing closer forces me to consider options faster.

  I look around the clearing, checking to see if there’s any extraordinary hiding spot I just hadn’t noticed until now. I’m too big to climb up trees now, and they’re too close for me to have the time to do that. As I continue searching for some miraculous solution, my gaze drifts higher and higher until it finally reaches the cliff where a majority of the earth spider fell from. Past the edge at the top, there looks to be a semi-enclosed valley that’s almost entirely hidden from the ground. This is exactly what I’m looking for! But how do I get up there?

  The strange instincts, previously silent, finally decide to help. It draws my attention to my wings with a quick twitch. Oh yeah, I know how to fly! In theory, at least. It should be enough to go up that small height, though. I spread my wings, lift them up, and smash them towards the ground. The strange energy flows throughout my body, especially concentrated in my wings. I shoot up in the air a bit, then bring down my wings again and again to keep pushing myself up. Each successive beat leaves the energy circulating less and less fiercely throughout my body, making each successive beat also much more difficult. It’s working! I just need a good flap or two more and I’ll be there.

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  I smash my wings down one last time before letting my wings spread out, then glide down and land at the very edge of the cliff, with my feet on the verge of slipping off. My body moves instinctively, stepping away from the edge to keep myself from falling off. That was close. Luckily I was able to get away from those boars in time. My wings are sore in the way underused muscles suddenly put under immense strain tend to, and I can feel myself panting.

  I take a deep breath, calming myself down. In the ensuing silence, I realize that the sound of squeals has almost disappeared. Weren’t the boars on the verge of entering the clearing? Where did they go? I hear a sudden snort, causing me to peek over the cliff. I guess I should have expected that… The whole group of boars is gathered in the center of the clearing, sniffing around and clearly searching for me. One of the smaller ones abruptly looks up and I hastily duck behind the cliff. It didn’t see me, did it?

  Neither Heightened Danger Sense nor my instincts go off, and I don’t hear any sounds that would signify the boar alerting the others, so I peek over to check if it’s doing anything. The boar is already back to searching the ground. It didn’t see me then. Good. I move away from the edge to avoid being seen by the boars, then ponder on what to do next.

  I should probably get out of here, because this clearing clearly isn’t safe anymore. But to do that I’d have to get down from here and there’s no way that’d go unnoticed. And there’s absolutely no way I’m going to get over these cliffs. I look up to see the towering walls of rock that look slightly larger than the cliff face I just flew over. So I guess I’ll just have to wait. This does seem to be a safe enough spot, and night will be falling soon anyways. An involuntary yawn reminds me of how tired I am and I come to a quick decision. Looks like it’s time to sleep.

  I carefully search the valley and finally notice a subtle indent in the ground close to the farthest rock face. I could probably lie down there. Looks comfortable enough. A quick examination reveals something a bit odd. The ground in that area is suspiciously smooth, almost as if the stone had flowed out. I guess that would explain why so many parts of the spider came from up here. Well, it’s dead now, so this spot is open. I also shouldn’t be visible if something just peeks over the cliff.

  I enter the miniature crater and curl up. Despite the fact that the crater is made of solid rock, the sheer smoothness still keeps it surprisingly cozy. I close my eyes and try to go to sleep. The exhaustion caused by the high pressure and long day starts to sink in, letting me fall into a deep slumber rather quickly.