Tabitha

by Hall, Andrew

  ‘Just mental scarring for the rest of us,’ Will joked, walking over from the wall.

  ‘You saved my life,’ said Tabitha, getting up and hugging him tight.

  ‘Well, technically you saved your life,’ he replied, smiling at Jim and Paul coming over.

  ‘We just stopped all the life leaking out of you.’

  ‘You did make a bloody mess though,’ Jim chipped in. ‘I was up all night scrubbing that courtyard. Don’t you ever do that to me again, lass. Frightened the life out of me, seeing you like that.’

  ‘Sorry Jim,’ she said, looking up into his tired old eyes. She gave him a tight hug.

  ‘I’m so glad you’re alright,’ said Sylvia behind her, coming down the steps from the wall. ‘We were so worried.’

  ‘Thanks,’ said Tabitha, giving her an awkward hug. There was something off about her, though. Like she was holding back; distancing herself. Tabitha supposed she shouldn’t be too surprised about that.

  ‘How are you feeling?’ said Chris, coming down from the wall. It was a cursory question though, nothing more. No trace of concern in his tone. A formality.

  ‘Much better, thanks,’ she replied. ‘Hungry though. Really hungry.’ She couldn’t miss the way Chris stared at her then. He couldn’t hide his feelings to save his life. He looked afraid of her.

  ‘Yeah, we thought you might be hungry,’ Will replied warmly. ‘We kept the spider for you.’

  ‘It’s round the back of the keep here,’ said Will, as if it was completely normal, walking with Tabitha down the circular path from the garden. Tucked away around the corner was the dead spider that attacked her last night, sat in a pool of dried silver blood on the cobbles.

  ‘Is there anything you need?’ he said, watching her approach it.

  ‘Oh, no thanks,’ she said with a smile.

  ‘Well, I’ll leave you to it then,’ he said brightly, awkwardly, and walked off back round the corner. Tabitha looked at the metal corpse at her feet, and felt a surge of hunger inside her. It was a primal hate and a nervous lust; some strange new feeling she’d never felt before. Any kind of etiquette she’d felt obliged to maintain flew out of the window. She threw herself down on the dead spider and ripped its armour open, and sank her teeth into stringy white muscles. She bit down with a fibrous creak and sucked at silver blood. A cold deliciousness filled her mouth, like juice bleeding from the flesh of an orange. A liquid thrill, tasty and potent. She gulped it down, gasped at the perfect taste, and quickly went back for more. How long had it been since she’d kept a meal down? Two weeks? Three? She drank another mouthful of bliss and threw her head back, staring at the bright blue sky with the taste of life on her tongue. Orgasmic.

  ‘Oh I’m sorry, I didn’t realise you were here,’ said Sylvia in surprise, getting a good eyeful before she turned to walk back around the corner.

  ‘Yes you did,’ Tabitha called to her. Sylvia stopped and looked at her, affronted. ‘You knew exactly what you’d see here,’ said Tabitha, sitting back on the path with silver blood coating her chin. ‘Was it the kind of freakshow you’d hoped for?’

  ‘I’m not here to judge anyone,’ Sylvia snapped.

  ‘But you do it anyway,’ Tabitha countered, getting to her feet. The blood’s silver-glass psychedelia changed the world as she looked around. She felt her core thriving on it; easing her muscles and blowing down her fears like an old brick wall. Horny voltage peeled away her old nature, until she felt her new self deeper inside. She’d had enough of Sylvia’s matriarch routine, standing there staring like a grim nun. All her righteous distaste and bulletproof snobbery.

  ‘You know, it’s a shame you can’t try that silver stuff,’ Tabitha told her with a sensuous tone, licking her lips slowly as she walked over. She got up in Sylvia’s face. ‘Because it’s so, fucking, good.’ Her lips dripped silver. Her gold eyes smouldered under blood-red curls. Nervous, Sylvia edged back a little. Tabitha studied her face; that look in her eyes. ‘Say it.’

  ‘Say what?’ Sylvia replied, backing up a step.

  ‘Whatever you’re thinking about.’

  ‘Nothing we haven’t already discussed,’ she said awkwardly. ‘Just stay away from my family.’

  ‘They’re not your family,’ said Tabitha, wiping the silver blood off her chin. ‘And any problem you’ve got with me, come out and say it. I don’t like the way you look at me.’

  ‘Well, I don’t like the way you look.’

  ‘How do I look?’

  ‘Feral,’ said Sylvia. ‘Unnatural.’ Tabitha grinned.

  ‘If only you could feel what I feel,’ Tabitha replied quietly, holding Sylvia’s stare.

  ‘Tabitha!’ said Will, running back round the corner. ‘It’s the spiders, they’re outside!’

  ‘How many?’ she said, leaving Sylvia standing there. Will looked terrified.

  ‘All of them,’ he said.

  ‘Oh my god,’ Natalie muttered, watching the silver swarm from the curtain wall. They’d massed on the field below, a chittering horde of fifty at least.

  ‘What’s happening?’ said Robert, looking up at everyone on the wall.

  ‘Come inside now,’ said Sylvia, taking Robert and Grace by the hand and leading them back into the keep. ‘And you, Natalie.’

  ‘I’m staying with them,’ she replied. Sylvia stared at her; Natalie looked defiant. ‘I want to help.’

  ‘You’ll help them by coming inside, out of the way,’ Sylvia told her.

  ‘If Natalie wants to fight, we’ll gladly have her,’ Will chipped in, looking to Paul.

  ‘But she’s too young!’ Sylvia protested.

  ‘I’m nineteen!’ Natalie shot back. ‘And I’ll do whatever I like Sylvia, thank you!’

  ‘Natalie,’ Paul warned her.

  ‘What?’ she replied, watching Sylvia hurry the twins inside and shut the door. ‘No one tells me what to do. Especially someone I’ve only known a few weeks.’

  ‘I like her,’ Liv muttered to Tabitha. The group lined the wall and watched the horde with morbid fascination. The spiders had come for them in force.

  ‘I’ve seen them massing like this before,’ Tabitha told the group, nodding at the spiders down in the field. ‘They swarmed when they were chasing us through town, but this is different. Now they’re coming together to hunt us.’ She thought back to the horde that had scuttled down across the motorway, storming the village over the distant field. She’d just brought the car to a standstill, and watched them go. It was all she could do.

  ‘We can set fires down there and kill a few at once,’ Will suggested, watching the spiders scuttle and lurk on the field.

  ‘It won’t work,’ Tabitha replied, remembering the crashed fighter jet. ‘I’ve seen one sitting in a fire before. It didn’t even flinch.’

  ‘We’re safe behind the wall,’ said Chris, looking for someone to agree. ‘We don’t need to do anything. They’ll find out they can’t get to us, and they’ll leave us alone.’ Tabitha noticed how shaky his voice sounded.

  ‘That’s n-not going to work,’ said Liv. ‘They’ve been here before and given up trying to get to us. If they’re back now, then that means they’re d-determined to get in.’

  ‘Liv’s right,’ said Jim. ‘They’ve come back here for us. They’ll try to get up over the wall.’

  ‘So they’re here for a fight,’ said Will, watching the silver shapes. ‘Well let’s give them one.’

  ‘What do we need to do?’ said Paul.

  ‘We’re getting the riot gear on,’ said Will, nodding at the keep. ‘And the shields too. Paul, Natalie, you go with Chris. He’ll show you how to use the assault rifles. I’ll keep an eye on the spiders. The rest of you… you know what to do. Just be ready when it starts.’

  ‘Come on girl,’ said Tabitha, leading Laika upstairs into Liv’s room. ‘You stay here now. Stay. Good girl.’ She stroked Laika’s head, and looked into her mismatched eyes. ‘I don’t want you running out there playing hero, dog face,’ she told her soft
ly, while she reached for her belt and hunting knife under the bed. ‘We both know how that turned out at the petrol station.’ She ran her fingers over Laika’s scar on her side, where her fur was growing back. ‘Be good,’ she said, leaving Laika whining as she closed the door. Her riot gear was hot and awkward to move in. Better to have it on, though.

  As Tabitha headed back downstairs, Robert and Grace looked up at her with frightened faces. Sylvia was fussing over them, trying to read them a book. She paused to wipe some dirt from Robert’s cheek with a tissue from her cardigan sleeve.

  ‘Tabitha, what’s happening?’ said Grace.

  ‘Never mind, Grace. Come on, let’s read this next page together,’ said Sylvia, as she tucked the tissue back into her sleeve.

  ‘We’re fighting the spiders,’ Tabitha replied, smiling at the twins’ interest. Sylvia gave Tabitha a quick dark stare, as if she’d let slip a terrible secret. As if it was best to just not talk about the danger outside.

  ‘Are you going to beat them with your special powers?’ said Robert.

  ‘Yep,’ Tabitha replied, picking up her riot shield and helmet and heading for the door. ‘You two be good and stay in here, ok? It’s not safe outside.’

  ‘Ok,’ they said together, watching her go. Sylvia glared at her as Tabitha shut the door behind her.

  ‘Any news?’ said Tabitha, walking up onto the wall to join the others. Liv, Jim and Will were in their riot gear too. Everyone held a rifle. Everyone looked scared.

  ‘Nothing n-new,’ Liv replied. ‘Just some alien spiders swarming on our doorstep to kill us.’ Paul coughed nervously. ‘But at least they’ve not m-moved, and there aren’t any more of them.’

  ‘Oh, and two more soldiers to join the fabled Ghosts,’ Will told her, motioning to Paul and Natalie.

  ‘Congratulations,’ Tabitha said with a smile, buckling on her belt. ‘How are you feeling?’

  ‘Ready to fuck some spiders up,’ Natalie replied, lifting her assault rifle.

  ‘Oi, language,’ said Paul, glaring at her. ‘…But yeah, me too. It’s about time we got some revenge.’

  ‘Just remember, shots are a last resort,’ Will cautioned the group. ‘Unless they’re climbing up the walls, don’t shoot.’

  ‘Yeah, I’ve told them already,’ Chris chipped in.

  ‘Well I’m saying it again,’ said Will. ‘If they’re on the walls or getting through that gate, then you shoot. Aim carefully and take single shots. If they’re not getting in, just watch and wait from a distance. And talk to each other. Let everyone know what you’re seeing.’

  ‘I’ll take the gate,’ said Tabitha. ‘If one gets me through the bars, at least I’m not done for.’

  ‘Agreed,’ said Will. ‘Paul, go with her please mate. You can cover her from the wall. So Jim, where did you hide those spears?’ Jim tapped his nose to hint at his secret, and headed back towards the keep.

  ‘Spears?’ said Liv, watching him go inside. ‘The ones propped up in the corner?’

  ‘Yep,’ said Will. ‘Except they’ve been gone for a few days, if you noticed?’ Liv shook her head. ‘They were totally blunt,’ Will told her. ‘Jim’s been sharpening them up again so we could use them. And hiding them from the kids, of course.’

  ‘He kept that quiet,’ said Liv. Looking around though, no one else seemed surprised. A lightbulb went off in her head. ‘Wait, that was the project you two were always whispering about!’ she said. Everyone was smiling. ‘Why did it have to be a s-secret?’ Will shrugged.

  ‘We just thought it’d wind you up, not knowing,’ he said, grinning like a schoolboy. ‘We saw you snooping around the castle sometimes, trying to find out what we were up to. It was too funny to spoil it.’

  ‘You little sods!’ Liv snapped. Will laughed. ‘What was the point in that?’ she said, frustrated. Will shrugged again, grinning. ‘As if anyone would be that immature!’ she said, stomping her foot. ‘And you all knew about this?’

  ‘Yep,’ Tabitha said with a smile. Chris, Paul and Natalie nodded, grinning.

  ‘But that’s s-so childish!’ said Liv. ‘Why?’

  ‘Mystery solved then?’ Jim called over, carrying the pair of spears back up the courtyard.

  ‘You sneaky git!’ Liv snapped at him, watching him grin like a big kid. ‘Was it worth it, really?’

  ‘Oh yeah,’ he chuckled, climbing the steps onto the wall. ‘Sorry, lass. You’re just so easy to wind up.’

  ‘Oh, piss off,’ said Liv, crossing her arms in a sulk.

  ‘Wow, good job sharpening them,’ said Will, taking hold of a spear. Jim smiled proudly as Will admired his work. The spearheads were aged and dull for the most part, but they had fresh keen edges that shone cruelly in the sun.

  ‘What do you reckon?’ said Will, passing the spear to Tabitha. ‘Are these going to be much use against them?’

  ‘Er, yeah, these’ll do it,’ Tabitha replied, dumbfounded, staring up six feet of wooden pole at an evil point on the top. She’d been in on the joke on Liv too, but she hadn’t seen Jim’s project until now. Suddenly the shining hunting knife on her belt didn’t seem all that impressive.

  ‘They’re getting closer,’ said Natalie, watching the spiders creep up the field.

  ‘Right,’ said Will, watching the silver shapes moving. ‘Tabitha, take that spear and go to the gate please. Paul, go with her for supporting fire. Liv, you and Natalie take the middle stretch of the curtain wall please, and Chris and Jim, take the far end of the wall around the side. I’ll take the other spear and move between all of you. Just keep the talk up if anything happens.’ The Ghosts spread out to their positions. They stood in silence for the most part, watching the spiders and waiting.

  ‘It’s so tempting to take a shot from here,’ said Natalie, watching the spiders across the field down her rifle scope.

  ‘It really is,’ said Liv, trying her own scope. ‘I’d have that cocky one there, the one sitting out in front on his own.’

  ‘Oh, that’s mine,’ Natalie replied, smiling. ‘I saw him first.’

  ‘You think you c-could hit him from here?’ said Liv.

  ‘Pretty sure I could, yeah.’

  ‘Well, we’ll s-see about that.’ said Liv. ‘Will, we’re taking a shot!’ she called across the wall.

  ‘No, absolutely not,’ he called back from the gate.

  ‘Do it anyway,’ Liv muttered to her, nodding Natalie to the wall. Natalie aimed down her rifle scope, paused, and squeezed the trigger. An echoing crack, and the spider in her sights dropped dead.

  ‘What did I just say?’ Will yelled. Natalie looked at Liv guiltily.

  ‘Sorry, I misheard you!’ Liv called back, grinning with Natalie. She looked down her scope at Natalie’s kill. ‘Jesus girl, you’re a g-good shot,’ Liv told her. Natalie smiled. Her dad caught her eye by the gate and turned away from Will beside him, and gave her a discreet thumbs up. Natalie grinned proudly, and shrugged as if it was nothing.

  ‘Has the fighting started?’ said Tabitha down by the gate, picking up her helmet off the ground.

  ‘No, it’s just Liv being a knob,’ Will muttered, climbing the stairs onto the wall beside her. ‘Paul, you might be better off coming up here actually mate. You’ve got a better shot on the other side of the gate from this corner of the wall.’

  ‘Right,’ he said, jogging up the steps. He tripped near the top, but managed not to fall. ‘Sorry,’ he said nervously, joining Will on the wall.

  ‘It’s fine mate,’ Will said brightly. ‘You’re in good hands with Tabitha. Just stay relaxed. Stay focussed.’

  ‘Right,’ said Paul, breathing out. He shook his legs like he was ready for a football match.

  ‘We’ll be alright,’ Tabitha told him, smiling. ‘They’re not getting through this gate.’ Paul nodded with a tense smile, and breathed out nervously.

  ‘They’re coming!’ Liv shouted across the wall.

  ‘Right!’ Will called back. ‘Are you two good to go?’ he asked them.


  ‘Yep,’ said Tabitha, putting her riot helmet on.

  ‘Yeah,’ Paul replied nervously.

  ‘Alright. I’ll be back down as soon as I can,’ said Will. He glanced out over the park. The spider horde was creeping up the hill towards the castle walls; a shining deathly tide come to wipe them out. This was war. Will breathed deep in a moment of silence; looking for the words.

  ‘Right everyone, stay calm, stay focussed!’ he shouted across the wall, making his way along the battlements with a spear in his hand. ‘This is where it all starts! Remember everything those monsters took from you! Find all your anger and all your hate! Use it! Rain it down on them! They do not climb these walls! These are our walls!’

  ‘We’re going to fuck them up!’ Liv yelled. She thought about her family. Everyone the creatures had taken from her.

  ‘Come and get it you little bastards!’ Jim shouted down, thinking about his wife and kids.

  ‘Pay them back for everyone they’ve taken from you! From us!’ Will yelled across the walls. His voice echoed in the dead town. ‘Here and now, this is where the Ghosts rise up from the dead! Today we do more than just survive! This isn’t survival, it’s domination! This is where it all starts! This is the day the world fights back!’ the Ghosts’ shouts echoed off the curtain wall.

  ‘They’re coming up the steps!’ said Jim, peering over the wall. Down below the spiders were winding their way up the hill.

  ‘Come on then!’ Tabitha roared, smashing her spear against the gate. ‘I’m going to carve you open and drink your fucking blood! Come on!’ Paul watched her from the wall with a shocked fascination.

  ‘Are you ready Paul?’ she yelled.

  ‘Ready!’ he shouted back, aiming his rifle down at the steps outside. A sudden tide of silver shapes rushed and clattered up the steps and crashed fierce against the gate. Tabitha yelled and drove her spear deep into the first one that reached through the bars. She ripped the spear out with a gush of silver blood, and thrust it through a second with a tinny crunch. Twisted, pulled, blood gushing, and buried the spear tip in a shrieking third.