27. A Sticky Tarzan
A Sticky Tarzan
Rez
“Well, since you asked so nicely.” Lynx’s sarcasm isn’t missed on anyone as I spin around and turn my sights upwards, where my vision blurs for a moment.
Fuck. Not now. I don’t need to die when people are counting on me, I plead. Blinking furiously to clear my eyes, my stomach drops as a chill runs down my spine, and I take my first look at these Darkstar spiders descending upon us. I don’t think a horror movie could do this monster justice.
“Pincers!” I yell at Blessing. “You completely forgot to mention their body-sized death clappers?” I shriek as I watch one snap their clawed appendages, swinging gracefully and spinning from an alabaster web like they are the star in the Cirque du Soleil aerial act.
What else did he forget to tell us? Okay, Fates, I take it back. You can step back in and help. We might need it.
I pull my weapons and look over my shoulder at Blessing once more, since we have no choice but to fight.
“Any particular way we need to kill them?” I might as well make sure we get this right the first time.
He rips a long metal spear off the wall and gives me a determined look.
“No, just stab until they stop moving.”
“Got it, hack away until they are pieces,” Lynx nods, before turning into a smaller version of his Manticore so he doesn’t take up the entire room. He doesn’t wait and already moves to the back of the cave, into the shadows, to pray on an unsuspecting spider as it comes down the wall into reach.
Slayer, Knox’s Netherwraith form, takes a different approach.
He’s climbing the wall on his way to his first target.
His tentacles propel him up easily and launch him onto the back of the first spider.
It screams as it twists to reach Slayer, but it’s useless as he makes quick work of slicing its throat, silencing its cries.
He makes it look gruesome yet a piece of art. I don’t know if I’m sickened or slightly turned on.
‘You loved it, babygirl.’ Slayer winks before crawling along the wall once again.
Now is not the time to dissect these feelings.
I swallow down the sudden lump in my throat as the spider carcass splats at my feet and I try to focus as four more spiders crawl over the edge of the flight door.
Knots steps forward and takes the lead, which makes sense.
He did work with War and was his right-hand man.
“Levi and JP, use long-range attacks on them as they come in until I need you.” He turns to Zeke and Ryker. “Take out what you can, but protect Blessing.” Ryker salutes before conjuring Hell Fire and coating a few of his daggers.
“Show off,” I mouth, and he sends me a flirty wink.
“Moni and Chester take the right back corner,” Knots orders before turning to face me. I immediately tense, preparing for a fight, but Knots steps closer to me and lowers his voice.
“You and Reaper cause your chaos, just be careful. Please?” he begs with his brown puppy dog eyes.
‘Of course.’ The way he’s looking at me, he could ask for anything, and I would give it to him on a platter.
Although the only thing I want to hand over is myself.
I can practically hear his relief as he kisses the top of my head, and a piece of me melts further for him. I don’t know how I got so lucky to have him in my life.
Instead of trying to limit me, knowing my powers are wonky, he’s trusting me and only asking me to be safe. I know how hard that is for him, and all I want to do is reward him. Show him gratitude by riding him into the ground and tracing every inch of him with my tongue.
Knots shoots me a knowing look. ‘Later. Focus on staying alive first.’ He arches an eyebrow at me before addressing the room.
“I’m clearing those webs and sealing that—”
A water arrow flies by Knots’ nose, cutting him off, and embedding into a Darkstar’s chest in mid-leap, crashing it at our feet.
“You might want to hurry with your explanation.” JP’s awkward smile drops as he forms another arrow and sends it into another spider.
“I’m closing that damn door," Knots yells as his wings flare out and he pushes off into the air.
He aims straight for the mass of webbing that’s blocking the door and starts hacking away at it while more spiders pour through the opening.
They’re completely missing the fact that Knots is right inside, tearing apart their doorstop.
Some spiders drop down, landing on the floors and scattering in different directions, while some crawl along the walls, leaving their webs dangling, as they engage with Slayer and Lynx since he’s made himself known.
I catch a flash of fire and immediately know it’s Reaper, and I turn to see him trip and fall in front of a spider. Shit! I immediately take off running towards him and instinctively try throwing up a shield, but nothing happens except feeling a throb in my side, reminding me of the God’s Trumpet.
“REAPER!” I scream, drawing him and the spider’s attention.
As Reaper raises his head slightly to see me, he turns more, so he’s completely on his back. I slide like I’m an all-star baseball player and kick him so he’s further under the spider’s abdomen, and I take his place. The place where those pincers are in line to cut through me.
Aww man. I was really hoping to live longer than this.
‘Twist, brace, twist and cut,’ that elusive voice in my head urges, not even giving me a chance to think as I feel the pull to move!
I twist up out of the path and up onto my hip, pulling my glaive right as a claw reverberates against it, long enough that I can brace and twist, slicing through the joint with my other hand. A scream follows, but I don’t have time to celebrate as the other claw comes for me.
I spring up and stumble over the downed appendage as I twist, brace the new killer claw, and repeat, taking it down at the weakest joint. I turn to grab Reaper, and the spider screams and starts to move as its arm comes down trying to grab me, but he’s missing.
“Reaper?” I see nothing but the bloody pincers. “Reaper!” Fuck! Where did he go? I move underneath the body to at least stay away from the arms and scan the room for any glimpse of fire, but I don’t see any. As I continue to back up, I feel heat along my back and glance up.
“Eww.”
The suckers underneath this thing give off heat as they pulse and suck, trying to pull anything that comes in contact against its belly.
The only thing I can compare it to is octopus suckers.
They look like empty caverns just waiting for their loot, except…
that one in the back. That one is wrapped up tight in red webbing.
I’m going to gut this bitch if that’s what I think it is.
That is, if she stays still long enough.
I feel like I’m dancing with a drunkard, trying to stay underneath her as her body sways from the pain of her lost limbs.
I move closer and put my hand on the webbing that’s slightly moving.
It’s warm. Warmer than the rest of the body.
“Reaper?” It wiggles hard. “I’m coming, baby,” I tell him as I try to pull my hand off unsuccessfully.
“Okay. Well, no one ever said your mother was smart.” I bite my lower lip as I think of a way to do this.
Why did I have to touch the sticky sack with my hand and weapon to make sure it was Reaper?
At least I still have one hand left. I use my left hand to cut into the sac and into the webbing underneath my right hand, freeing myself as I sidestep along with the swaying spider.
I take great care trying not to fuck up my good hand, but it’s hard as the spider bitch is still trying to get to me and won’t stop moving.
Once I’m free, I slice into the sac and maybe part of the spider until I see flames flare out and Reaper happily falls into my arms.
“Reaper!” He gives me quick kisses but doesn’t stay long as he growls and jumps out of my arms.
He immediately starts ripping at the spider’s legs, breaking them, and sending it crashing. Welp, I can no longer hide down here, I guess. Apparently, he wants revenge.
As Reaper runs to each leg and begins taking this thing down, I start hacking away at her abdomen as I run out. These suckers have sucked their last suck.
Yeah, I think that was cheesy too.
With that done, I wipe the blood off my leathers and run to the spider I see trying to sneak up behind Levi and JP.
‘Behind you, JP!’ I scream, but I also know his arrows work better at a distance, and this thing is too close.
JP’s eyes widen as he turns and throws up a water bubble around himself and Levi as a claw swipes down at them. Instead of cutting through their body, it only rolls off Levi and JP’s bubble.
I don’t know if the God’s Trumpet has affected this voice in my head or not, or if it’s just now a part of me that I know to look for things, but I inventory the spider in front of me and notice a weakness. Its right back leg is lower and seems to be out further. That’s my way up.
‘I’m coming to take it out,’ I tell JP, as I run to the leg and quickly climb the hairy stick.
It kinda reminds me of the rope swings back home.
This spider is so focused on trying to pop JP’s bubble that it doesn’t even feel me crawling along its back and up behind its humanoid body portion.
It’s not until I jump onto its back and wrap my arm around its neck that it realizes its mistake.
“Night night,” I whisper, and I slice across its neck, allowing warm blood to spill across my forearm. I hold on tight until the monster crashes unmoving to the floor, and I can slip down safely.
“Thanks for the warning.” JP smiles as he releases them from the bubble.
“Need a clean up?” Levi calls, worry etched on his brow.
“Save it. I think Knots finally needs you.” I point up to where a few spiders are heading his way.
“Shit,” JP mumbles before sending an arrow into a spider’s back, causing it to fall to the floor. Lynx spins and stabs it in the heart before throwing it into a flurry of plants.
What the fuck have I been missing?