The Spider Queen

(Alpha Star System- Planet Gaia)

(Peterlor Estate- Sophie's Private Laboratory)

Today was the first day of the new semester and for Sophie that meant that her online classes would now officially begin.

Professor Macabre's class would be in the morning while the combat pet lecture would occur in the afternoon.

It was impossible to say that Sophie was not feeling a little bit nervous. Going to classes and becoming a regular student again…

This mundane life would have seemed like a dream merely a few months ago.

Sophie took a few deep breaths and then gently exhaled in order to calm down her nerves. The hybrid girl headed towards the newly constructed building that housed her private laboratory.

The duke had spared no expense for his daughter's education and Sophie was looking forward to seeing how the inside of the laboratory had been constructed.

She had purposefully avoided visiting the laboratory until today. 

Finally, after five more minutes of walking, Sophie arrived at a massive square-shaped building that resembled a cube.

Its exterior was covered in a heavy metalloid substance that shone under the artificial light source above the mechanical city.

As she took a closer look, Sophie observed numerous small vents placed around the top of the building which she assumed were part of the circulation system.

Poison cultivation sometimes involved chemical processes that produced dangerous gases as a by-product, so these vents were necessary.

While Sophie was confident that her body would be able to handle exposure to toxins in the event of an accident…

It didn't hurt to be careful and maintain proper safety standards.

There were always exceptions in the universe, the physiology of the Arachnais tribe did have the ability to assimilate or withstand most poisons but there was always a possibility…

A simple fingerprint scanner was placed in front of the entrance to the laboratory. Sophie approached the machine and pressed her thumb against the surface of the scanner.

The scanner emitted two beams of green light that swept the length of her finger multiple times before flashing blue.

A door soon appeared in front of her that swung open to reveal a white corridor. Sophie entered the building and the door swung shut with a bang.

Sophie powered on her wrist communicator and checked the floor plan of her private laboratory. 

She quickly picked out a direction and then headed towards it. The first step was to go to the changing room and put on her gear.

The changing room was located a few doors from the entrance, so it didn't take long for Sophie to find it.

Sophie stepped inside and saw what looked like a giant closet filled with rows of basic equipment such as lab coats, gloves, masks and other essentials.

After a few minutes of changing, Sophie now had a completely different appearance and the hybrid girl paused for a moment in front of a mirror.

She wore a plain white coat with multiple pockets, a black mask was placed over her lips and nose and her hands were covered by a pair of purple gloves.

Sophie's golden eyes were now protected by a pair of heavy goggles and her hair which Cleo had tied earlier was done in the style of a single ponytail.

"I look like a mad scientist," Sophie whispered to herself as she posed in front of the mirror. 

There wasn't much time left before class started so the hybrid girl stopped playing and headed towards the main experiment room.

Sophie walked into the room and was instantly taken aback as she saw how impressive the interior was.

The laboratory could only be described as sleek, futuristic and excessive. 

There were multiple benches each with a private station that came equipped with all the essential equipment that Professor Macabre had requested.

The storage room for the reagents and chemicals was around the size of a small apartment and was located at the back of the room.

Robot androids stood silently against the wall ready to obey any commands and fetch anything she wanted from the storage room.

There was also a room for extra laboratory equipment although Sophie knew that she wouldn't have to use it.

There was more than enough equipment on the benches. Everything from titration flasks, volumetric cylinders, microscopes, droppers, thermometers and so much more.

And of course, there were safety equipment to be used in the case of emergencies. 

An air purifier caught Sophie's attention for a brief moment, but she was soon distracted by the other sights inside the laboratory.

A thrill ran down Sophie's spine as she had to resist the urge to explore around the room and check out everything.

There would be plenty of time for that after the lecture, so Sophie decided to reign in her curiosity. She approached one of the benches and sat down.

Sophie pulled a small circular device from her storage ring and connected it to her wrist communicator.

Bleep! Bleep!

Harsh ringing sounds echoed through the laboratory but eventually Sophie saw the [Connection] icon appear on the top of the device.

She pressed the icon and the circular device vibrated softly. A holographic window was projected in the air and soon a website was displayed on the screen.

There were several videos already uploaded to the site as well as a section for homework and another section for assignments and quizzes.

According to the syllabus that her professor had sent, the first classes would just deal with basic theories, so Sophie had to watch those several videos carefully.

After the first week then they would switch to live sessions where Sophie would be able to ask questions and interact with Professor Macabre.

Sophie clicked on the first video and saw Professor Macabre standing in front of the class while mixing two reagents carefully.

Inside one of the flasks was a deep purplish-black mixture that occasionally bubbled and hissed while the other contained a green gooey substance that bounced up and down.

"Now class today we will be discussing the different types of antidotes," Professor Macabre spoke clearly.

"Chemical, physiological and mechanical. I expect you all to become very familiar with each type over the course of this semester."

"Now let's begin with the mechanical type which will prevent the toxin from being absorbed in the first place…"

This was an old video that had been recorded from the first class after the midterm. Sophie pulled out her notebook and a pencil from her storage ring and began to take notes.

The hours passed quickly as Sophie rediscovered her studying groove and got lost in a world of scientific theories and poison cultivation.