Descending the Temple Depths

It is disorienting navigating by the strangely-shining light from scattered fungus growths. And, while the weapon-glows help to illuminate what's nearby, they are not directed, and the light coming up from them gets into the eyes, making it hard to see further away.

There are definitely small bodies moving away up ahead --you can see them as they pass between you and the fungal lights, but they seem 'more afraid of you than you are of them' (as the saying goes)... until... the skittering stops and they all seem to scatter away even faster, as though more afeared of something other than yourselves.

... At the same time the moss and fungus covered floor, over by the wall the group is passing, moves! A seven or eight foot section separates from its surroundings and sprouts legs... hundreds of disgusting tiny legs!... as a giant centipede turns --lightning quick-- to attack Deoring, venom dripping from mandibles almost as long as your forearm.

Anyone with Reflexes has a moment (or half a moment if that is possible:) to act.
‣ Who is close to Deoring in the marching order?
‣ What do you all do?

You all see Deoring bravely hold his sword between himself and the hideous monster bearing down on him, faster than he can react.

- Rook -

You are able to do something before it hits, but there are lots of slow people milling about between yourself and the action.

What do you do?

- Albert -

This thing moves fast --faster than you usually do, anyway. It will take a monumental effort on your part to interpose your staff (of yourself, if you are not careful) between it and its intended... meal?

What do you do? ('defending' might require a roll, probably +DEX?)

- Deoring -

Shockingly fast, the centipede bites at you. If it sees the sword held out between it and its prey, it does not seem to react --though, of course, maybe it does not know what a sword is.

The glistening mandibles close on your shoulder, your leather armour slowing their penetration slightly, possibly giving you one last chance....

• What do you do to resist?

Deoring, shocked that he’s been attacked by this giant creature, pulls his shoulder back and tries to twist away from it. Scared out of his wits, survival instincts taking over. Just trying to get away from the attack.

- Deoring -

The monster's bite is deflected by the tough leather on your shoulder and instead plunges into the soft flesh at your neck. It does not hurt nearly as much as you expected, and there is almost no blood spilling from where the smooth mandibles are still attached to your body.

It really is not that bad, so far as you can tell, though you don't notice the insidious path of the poison yet.

Your sword bounced off the hardened underbelly of the beast, and is now pinned between you and it. You are at risk of cutting yourself with it if you try to use it before being extricated from this hideous embrace.

- Roald -

Your heroic leap is a tad hampered by the passage's roof close above you --more space would make it even more spectacular-- but it still affords you access to the monster's back, out of the way of your other companions.

Whether your sword's glow does anything is hard to tell, but the blade clearly hurts the beast, which instinctively lashes out at you with the pincers on its tail. Its intent seems to be to dislodge your irritating presence from there, more than to inflict injury, but the blow still hurts.

• Do you let yourself get tossed away (back among your companions), or do you try to keep on it back there? If so: how?

Despite having many legs, the centipede does not seem to like having any of them chopped off... or maybe it just objects to the smell, which is pretty nauseating as whatever it uses for blood spurts out from the stumps.

Albert's blow to the 'eye' causes it to rear back, temporarily releasing its hold on Deoring.

It is very hard to judge motivations from such an alien creature, but maybe it does not want to be surrounded by all these attackers who invaded its 'bedroom' and disturbed its sleep? If afforded the chance --and possibly some continued violent-incentive-- it may be inclined to flee?