by M. C. Elam
“Be ready to run. I’m going to lure it from the opening.”
“It will kill you.”
“I’ll make it. Run through when it moves.”
Terill crept across the ledge until he neared the giants head. Hawk thought he intended to do something to startle it awake, but instead he climbed down the rock face and moved along the length of the ledge until he came well past the giant. He regained the top of the ledge. Here the expanse of rock widened. One huge foot extended into the open space. Terill slipped the dagger from his belt. He plunged the sharp point into the giant’s foot through the thick skin over its anklebone. The giant sat up grabbing for the spot.
“What bites at Galrunda’s ankle and brings pain to my sleep?” Galrunda shook his fist and looked around scenting the air.
Terill huddle close to the wall and reached into his bag for a river stone. As hard as he could he threw the stone down the ledge. It bounced against the surface and created a clattering sound, much like footfalls. The response was immediate, and if he had not seen it with his own eyes, Terill would not have believed it. The giant climbed to its feet like any six-year-old and skipped toward the sound. If Galrunda was the child, Terill had no desire to meet its parents. He looked back at Hawk and pointed toward the opening. He need not have worried. Hawk was already moving. Terill waved. He wondered if he had time enough to follow, but Galrunda had already turned around and was coming back. Terill ran unseen between its legs and threw another stone.
***
During the first hours Hawk waited for Terill, Galrunda kept up a steady flow of irritated stomping and roaring. Alarmed by the commotion, Hawk considered going back to help, but then reason returned. Galrunda’s movement meant Terill still controlled the chase. He must be trying to move a safe enough distance from the giant to make his own escape into the cavern. His appearance now might distract Terill and prove fatal for both of them. Understanding when not to act was never a strong point with Hawk, and despite knowing that the strategy depended upon his patience to see it through, the decision to wait felt awkward. He marked the pattern of Galrunda’s movement by the ruckus he made. When the noise grew loudest, the giant boy blocked the light that came through the opening and dropped a blanket of darkness over Hawk, but before his eyes had a chance to adjust, the light poured through again. Hours of waiting made him edgy, and he jumped at every sound. He didn’t stop to think what the waiting might be like without Galrunda lumbering about until, like the sudden end to a violent storm, nothing more came to him, no foot falls, no groans, no panting breath, nothing at all. Surely, now Terill would come.
A high-toned hum pierced the inside of his brain and began to fluctuate, first louder and then softer, it pulsated between his ears, blared at him in endless fury. Hawk tried to block the constant, dreadful whine by squeezing his hands hard on either side of his head but only succeeded in revealing a deeper rhythmic thu-thump, thu-thump, the beating of his own heart. Here lived the excruciating sound of silence. Frightened more than he wanted to admit, Hawk began to sing, not a tavern song, not a warrior’s ode but something soft and sweet. The kind of song his mother sang when she held him on her lap. The kind of song Evangeline sang when she played her lute, a song about precious dreams and stars and hope, a song to blot out the deafening silence.
He didn’t remember falling asleep or even being drowsy, but when he awoke, an awareness of the passage of many hours overwhelmed him. “Terill.” He called the name into the dark corners of the cavern. Not here, not yet, something must be wrong. The dreadful foreboding came back. He crawled along the ledge to the opening and looked through. No sign of Galrunda, but no sign of Terill either. Wait, what was that? His outstretched hand closed over a smooth flat river rock. So Terill did come back, at least he threw one of the stones here, but why so close to the opening. How far could he possibly throw a stone? Hawk moved out on the ledge. He saw the glow from the lava river in the distance. Impossible, the lava channel had closed after they crossed. He remembered the image of Roland, perched on a chunk of lava rock. If lava flowed in the channel again, did that mean Roland might be somewhere down there, too? Someone must need to cross. Terill? Terill must be on the opposite side of the lava with Galrunda. Now the silence made sense to him. Hawk went back into the cavern for his pack. He meant to go back, all the way if need be. He had to find Terill. He felt along the wall of the ledge, touched the strap, pulled it over his shoulder, and turned toward the entrance.
“Going somewhere, young prince?”
Hawk jumped.
Something moved in the darkness.
“Don’t be so eager to leave.” The breathy voice murmured. “I have waited a long time, and finally you are here.”
“Who are you? How do you know me?”
“You are a son of Ascalla, young prince, and I will care well for you.”
The voice, distinctly feminine and sexual, attracted Hawk enough that he lingered, gaping into the dark for a hint of the seductress. He stood a little straighter, conscious of his appearance and brushed a casual hand through his hair.
“How do you know my heritage?”
“I did not have the pleasure of your father’s company, but I know of your grandfather, and all before him, my pretty prince. I carry the memories of my ancestors”
“Step from the darkness so that I can see you.”
Overhead, Hawk heard a rhythmic staccato-like tapping and throaty laugh. Something stirred the still air, came near, and before he had a chance to see, it retreated into the shadows.
“You play with me. I will have none of the game,” said Hawk. He headed toward the opening.
A tickle crawled across the back of his neck. It sent a shudder along his spine that made the skin pucker and the soft hair rise. Startled he jerked around, lost his balance, and stumbled. Like a helpless bird caught in the headwind of a storm, he wagged his arms in frantic desperation to keep from plunging off the ledge. One pathetic grab after another, found nothing but empty air, and he pitched closer to the edge. A death bash waited on the cavern floor, and he was on his way to attend. But instinct prevailed over logic, and he made a final lunge. His fingers curled around a twiggy bit of something, a vine, or a thick branch, no something boney and covered with soft hair. Gasping, Hawk sank to his knees. Until the furry vine began to pull away, he forgot about the hand clamped around it. Like a man trapped in a dreamscape, his eyes traveled the length of his arm. The branch was thicker than he first thought, stronger too, not a bit twiggy. Creamy white fur cascaded over his fingers and stood out against his tanned skin. A little rivulet of shock spread up his arm, brought sour spit into his mouth, and a quiver in his belly. By the gods, what was he holding?
“A mighty grip you have, young prince, but I think the danger has passed, if you would but let me go.”
His fingers snapped open and the spider withdrew her multi-segmented leg. A three-pronged claw at the tip tickled his palm. So, that was the staccato tapping he had heard earlier, the sound of the spider’s claws as it crawled along the cavern wall. Awed by her, Hawk stared. She was enormous. Curly white hair covered most of the head area and all eight legs, but the voluminous abdomen was transparent. He identified the heart, beating away near the top, and a stomach. Heavy vessels emerged from the heart, and emptied a flood of thick bluish fluid into the body cavity. When it crept closer, Hawk recoiled. The head had no neck, and the constant action of that mouth opening and closing made a gooey slurping sound that revolted him. A thick stalk attached the head section to the abdomen.
“Such a look, Prince Hawk. Does my appearance displease you so much?”
She almost purred at him in that throaty voice he had found so captivating a few minutes ago. That brief fascination was certainly gone. He wished she would keep her distance.
“Who are you? How is it that you speak?”
“I am Coreantha, a resident of the cave. My speaking ability is not unusual. All of us speak, from the tiniest red, bark spiders that dwell in the
forest, to the giant cliff spiders that hide among the rocks.”
“I have never heard spider speech before now.”
“Have you ever listened? You and the rest of your kind grind us beneath your heel and move on, thinking yourselves superior.”
I might, he thought, but not my Evangeline. He remembered her admonishing him for thinking to squish a spider under his boot. She had collected it on a piece of bark. “Poor thing has lost its way, Hawk. Let us set it free.”
“Once I did as you say, but not for a long time now. I learned a better way.”
“Still, can you deny my appearance revolts you?”
“You sense my fear. I might like to call it revulsion instead and not give away my weakness.”
The spider moved closer and grabbed his leather vest. She lifted him into the air and dangled him over the side of the ledge.
“You do well to fear me, Prince Hawk.”
Hawk tried to relax. He knew she didn’t intend to let him fall. That conclusion was far too simple. She had something else in mind. He was certain of it. That throaty laughter gurgled again, and she lowered him to the ledge.
“You read me well. Your time to die is not yet ripe.”
“What do you want from me, Coreantha?”
“A soldier to guard my possession. In return I will help you find your friend.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Come close to me and listen.”
Hawk dreaded that glistening mouth but stepped nearer.
Coreantha sighed, “I suppose that’s your best.” She climbed down from the wall and rested her abdomen on the ledge. “The possession of which I speak is not far from here. It is my egg sac. My children move within the sac, and hatching time nears. I must leave to hunt for them and fear something might happen to the sac while I am gone.”
“Hunt what?”
“The vermin on the cave floor, rats, roaches, juicy slugs. They make a fine feast for my children.”
“What good am I?”
“The same vermin I hunt seek my little beauties, but you are almost as large as I am. They will stay away from the sac if you stand guard.”
“And you promise to help me find Terill.”
“Better than that, I’ll find him and bring him to you. Do we have a bargain?”
Hawk studied the spider. Something else lay at the heart of the plan, but if she intended some mischief at his expense, why had she saved him from falling? The request sounded genuine enough and her reasoning plausible. By the gods, he was making deals with a spider.
“Did my father make a similar bargain?”
“Nay, I struck no bargain with him.”
“You said you knew him.”
“Nay again, dear prince. I told you I carry the memories of my ancestors. One day I will pass them on to my children.”
“Your memories do not include my father.”
“Perhaps your father chose another path. Now, what say you, Prince Hawk, do we have a bargain?”
“Show me the sac.”
He followed her around the base of another rock protrusion into the blackest part of the cavern. Past the opening to the lava cavern the only light came from the spider. The abdomen part of her body cast a weary blue-green glow that turned everything nearby cold and pale. He suspected Coreantha hid something. Guarding the egg sac didn’t make sense. For the past hour, she had left it unattended while procuring his cooperation. If she wanted to kill him, she could have let him fall from the ledge instead of saving him.
“Ah, here we are, safe and sound.”
She crawled out of sight above him somewhere so that he could see the egg sac, all aglow and pulsating with the movement of baby spiders. When he approached, the movement stopped and the glow dimmed.
“Why did they stop moving?” he asked.
“Instinct keeps them silent. You might be an enemy,” said Coreantha. She climbed beyond him to the egg sac and encircled it with her front legs. She cuddled against the sticky globe shaped bag, humming until the glow brightened, and the baby spiders began to move again. “I told them you will care for them while I work. They fear you no more.”
“Coreantha, do you really need me to protect them?”
“I swear to you, that before the day is done, you and your friend, Terill, will save my children and be united.”
“How can you know?”
“Trust that I do.”
She crept away toward the cavern floor before he could ask another question. Alone he began to inspect the egg sac. When he touched it, his hand came away sticky, and he wiped it against his trail leathers. His legs felt heavy and tired. He sat down next to it and noticed that the baby spiders congregated near him. Whenever he changed positions, the spiders moved to the point nearest him. Through the silk, he heard their tiny voices calling to each other. Their speech came out muffled accept for two words, mother and man. Listening to them fascinated Hawk, but as hard as he tried, beyond those two words, their conversation mystified him.
Coreantha appeared from time to time. Silk spun pods stuck to the bottom of her abdomen. When several lay in the open area of the ledge, she spun a web to hold them, carried each to a place away from the surface, and secured it. Hawk knew that each pod held something alive. Sometimes he heard a creature cry out, high-pitched squeals that a rat makes when trapped. He hated the cries and hated Coreantha for torturing her prey. If not for Terill, he’d leave now, abandon the bargain, and seek his own way out.
“Here is the last,” said Coreantha. She attached yet another pod to the web. “A nice fat slug. I read your thoughts, Prince Hawk. You think me cruel, but don’t you eat the flesh of animals?”
“That’s different.”
“How is it different?”
“I do not torture the animals.”
“And you think that I do. Of course, you would because I ensnare them. What of those beasts you quarter in pens? You select the fattest and juiciest, and drag them to slaughter. Examine your own conscience. Mine is clear.” She started up the wall. “I’ll seek Terill now.”
When he thought about it, Hawk saw her logic. She hunted to feed her children, a noble act of devotion. Could he say the same? The squalid conditions of the Falmora slaughter pens revolted him. He knew men who killed, and killed repeatedly, for no more reason than the joy of the hunt. Wasn’t that blood lust? How could he reconcile his conscience with them? The baby spiders gathered close to him. He felt the egg sac throb and wondered what he should do if they hatched before Coreantha returned. The hum of their tiny voices made him drowsy.
***
“Wake up, brother.”
Hawk opened his eyes. Terill shook him again.
“We must hurry. She’ll be back soon and catch us sure.”
“What? Terill, you’re here.”
“Aye, I’ve been here the while. Saw the whole thing.”
“Coreantha’s looking for you.”
“I’m sure of that. But I don’t plan to be here when she returns.”
“I promised to guard the egg sac,” said Hawk.
“Guard it? You’re the first meal. She’s bound you up pretty well too.” He worked away with his dagger to separate Hawk from the sac. “I expect she intended me to be next.”
“No, she didn’t do that. I leaned against them. I guess I stuck fast.”
“And saved her the effort.”
“You have to be wrong about this, Terill. She only wanted help.”
“Brother, if I have to knock you over the head, you are going to leave here with me.”
“I?”
“Who do you trust more, Hawk, me or that hairy nightmare.” He pulled Hawk to his feet but let him fall when his knees buckled. She’s poisoned you, and you don’t even recall the bite. Did she touch you anywhere?”
“Only once, hours ago, here on the back of my neck.”
Terill looked. “As I thought. You have a small puncture back there. That must be when she did it. Now come on. You have to get y
our legs under you.”
Hawk tried to stand and slumped against Terill. “How do you know her intent?”
“Galrunda. I trapped him on the other side of the lava flow. He told me so I would help him get back. He was never after us at all. One of her kind fed his parents to her hatchlings. He wants revenge.”
“Is that why he sits in front of the opening to the cavern?”
“Aye. When I threw the stones they clattered about, and he thought she got by him.” He linked his arm through Hawk’s. “Find your legs so we can get out of here.”
Hawk held back. “Even a spider her size is small compared to that giant. I don’t believe they killed his parents. Something’s not right.”
“What are you saying? Come on. She’ll be back any minute.”
“No. I gave my word to guard the egg sac.”
“Your word? What of your word to a friend?”
“A friend would not ask that I abandon my word. Get back from me. I don’t know you.”
“Indeed you do not.”
Terill’s features began to blur and shift. His head stretched and twisted into a pointed triangular shape with huge compound eyes. Hawk saw his reflection mirrored the way it did in the multi-paned glass of the castle widows. The arms grew shorter and the hands stretched into narrow pincher like appendages. Razor sharp hooks protruded from the underside of the forearms. The body contorted and stretched in a ludicrous manner to accommodate four segmented legs. When the morph completed, a large mantis moved toward him.
The dagger rested in his hand and he studied the insect trying to decide the most vulnerable place to strike. He could hear its mouth working and a bubble of brown spittle began to form. A ghastly odor permeated the cavern. The mantis reared on its legs, and distracted by the sound and the stink, Hawk stepped sideways. Spit flew from its mouth and caught him at knee level. He fell like a tree before a woodsman’s axe. The mantis lunged and caught him up with its front legs. The head turned first one way and then the other looking for the best place to begin its meal. One strike, Hawk knew that was all he had. The dagger glinted, and his arm rose. The mantis had no chance to react. The blade snaked out and severed the head from the body in a single clean blow. The head tumbled against the rock ledge, bounced once, and rolled against the wall. The forearms contracted around his middle until drawing a breath was impossible. He felt the body rise on its hind legs. Wings that Hawk had not even noticed before quivered. The sound they made whistled an eerie echo across the cavern. When its death grip finally eased, Hawk fell. The mantis listed sideways, dropped to the ground, and lay still.