The first Void-Crawler dropped from the inverted pillar with the silent, sickening speed of an iron plummet.
It was nine feet of segmented, oil-black horror.
Its eight jointed legs were tipped with curved hooks of natural silver-steel. It shone with a semi-clear violet sheen in the darkness.
Its back shell was formed of tightly packed deep-sea carbon. Diamond-hard shell formed under millions of sea-weights of earth-shaking pressure, capable of glancing aside masterwork cold-iron spears without leaving a scratch.
As it crossed the threshold of Lu Chen’s domain, the creature spat.
A jet of skin-burning, pale-green stomach bile shot toward the wagon’s canvas cover. It hissed as it cut through the air.
Lu Chen didn’t draw his weapon.
He took a single half-step forward, planting his left boot into the dark rock.
