The Spider Queen

Sophie opened her eyes and found herself standing in a strange place. Well standing was not quite the right word…

The hybrid girl looked down and discovered that she was floating a few feet off the ground. That was not the only peculiar part about her current state.

Sophie glanced at her body and saw that her skin was now vaguely translucent and there seemed to be stars blinking in and out of existence inside her body.

What the hell was going on?

She appeared to be floating in what seemed to be a large cave with stalactites growing down from the ceiling.

The interior of the cave was quite dark, but one could see a thin beam of light illuminating the darkness.

This source of light came from a large circular object that hung high on the wall opposite to her.

This object was unlike anything that Sophie had ever seen before.

It appeared to be split in half. A neat vertical cut as if someone had torn it apart using a blade.

The two halves were now connected by thick fleshy threads that prevented the halves from falling away from each other.

Sophie furrowed her brows in confusion and tried to think about what to do next.

One minute she was cultivation in the amulet space and the next second she was somehow a… a… ghost?

Wait… was she dead?

If this was the afterlife, then honestly… it was kind of shitty…

Sophie panicked slightly as she waved her hands around and saw that they passed through the wall of the cave.

No… no… calm down… calm down…

The hybrid girl took in a few deep breaths and gently exhaled. No air entered or left her body, but the familiar routine helped her regain control of her emotions.

There was nothing she could do except explore the nearby surroundings and see if there was a way that she could return home.

Sophie floated aimlessly in a certain direction.

The cave was much larger than she initially assumed with hundreds of side passageways and hidden rooms.

This interconnected underground network was like a labyrinth. Sophie floated around for what seemed like hours with no end in sight.

Was she going to be trapped here for all of eternity?

Suddenly Sophie felt a warm feeling in her chest that got hotter and hotter with every passing minute.

She felt something calling her in a northern direction that was slightly upwards.

The hybrid girl felt a bit wary about this strange feeling but seeing as there was no other alternative except to wander forever in the cave…

What other choice did she have?

Sophie floated upwards and passed through the ceiling of many of the cave rooms.

She kept floating in the direction of the feeling where something or perhaps someone was calling out to her.

Time seemed to have no meaning in this strange state and Sophie could not tell how long it took her to finally reach what appeared to be the entrance of the cave.

She looked around and saw a figure lying down on a messy bed poorly made from grasses and leaves.

The figure had her back turned to Sophie, but one could see six blade-like appendages jutting out from her back.

Someone from the Arachnais tribe?

Sophie was about to float a bit closer to get a better look when the mysterious Arachnais turned around.

"What? Mom… is that you?" Sophie muttered in shock as she stared at the Arachnais who had very similar facial features to her.

The Arachnais woman lying down on the bed bore a striking resemblance to her.

Of course, there were obvious differences in their body physiques since the woman was… more developed but their faces were almost identical.

"Mom?! Mom It's me!" Sophie cried out excitedly as she waved her ghostly hands and tried to get the woman's attention.

Thai'lle stopped writing and prepared to put the sheet of paper back under her bed when her instincts flared up once more.

The former princess glanced in Sophie's direction, but it was like she knew something was there but could not see it.

Sophie smiled happily when her mom stared at her, but her smile gradually faded when she realised that Thai'lle was unable to observe her in this strange state.

What could she do? What could she do?

The hybrid girl willed her body to float down to the ground and attempted to write something using the dust.

She didn't know if it was possible for parts of her body to turn solid, but it was worth a try if she could communicate with her mother.

In Sui Meng's memories there were stories of ghosts lifting up objects so maybe it was possible…

Sophie stretched out her palm and attempted to use her fingers to write out a message that her mother could read.

She tried for around a minute until finally giving up. Alright so it was clear that she could not touch anything when she was in this form.

Sophie fingers curled up into a fist as she felt a surge of frustration and annoyance rise up in her heart.

She finally got a chance to meet her mother, but it was impossible to talk or even interact with her.

"Who are you?" Thai'lle coldly spoke as she approached the direction where she sensed a being was lurking.

She reached into her pocket and pulled out a sharpened blade with an edge that gleamed under the light of the moon.

Her instincts told her that the mysterious being was not a threat, but Thai'lle refused to let down her guard in this dangerous place.

"Mom! Mom! It's me…" Sophie whispered softly as she saw her mother approach with wariness and caution in her eyes.

The hybrid girl floated towards her mother even though she had a weapon clenched tightly in her palm.

Sophie stared at Thai'lle face that seemed to be an older version of her own. If this was how she would look in the future, then she really had nothing to complain about.

Her mom was a big beauty!

The hybrid girl stretched out her palm to touch her mother's cheek when her hand sank into Thai'lle skin.

It was a complete accident but soon Sophie realised that something unexpected was happening.

Sophie jolted in shock as she felt a strong bond or connection instantly form between the two of them.

Thai'lle froze in place as she felt a warm feeling enter her body from her left cheek. She closed her eyes and when she reopened them, she saw… she saw…

No… this was impossible…

"Sophie?" Thai'lle exclaimed in disbelief.