“Dried moss…”
Elias crouched beside a patch growing between the rocks.
Kaya looked back.
“Huh?”
“Animal fat is energy-dense. It should burn well once we get it going.”
He brushed his fingers across the moss. The upper layers crumbled beneath them.
“But fat is difficult to ignite directly.”
Parker tilted his head.
“So?”
Elias pinched off a brittle tuft.
“This isn’t fuel.”
He held it up.
“It’s tinder.”
Silence.
Everyone looked at Sid.
He was crouched over a pile of bones.
Arranging them.
Again.
“Wonderful,” Sid said without looking up. “Now figure out ignition.”
“Ignition isn’t the difficult part.”
Elias rose and examined the pale stone around them.
“There’s flowing water nearby. Limestone too, by the look of it. If we’re lucky, we may find flint or another silica-rich stone.”
Parker stared at him.
“That’s good?”
“We hit the correct stones together, we get sparks.”
Sid placed a femur precisely beside another.
“Wonderful.”
Tap.
His hands stopped.
Tap.
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
Everyone looked down the tunnel.
Tap tap tap tap tap.
Sid stood.
The blue crystal in his hand cast a narrow glow ahead.
“What in God’s name is that?”
The tapping accelerated.
Tap tap tap tap tap tap.
Too many impacts.
Too fast.
Something moved at the edge of the light.
And it had far too many legs.
“DOLPHIN FETUS!”
Everyone turned toward Parker.
He slapped both hands over his mouth.
The tunnel answered anyway.
DOLPHIN FETUS.
DOLPHIN FETUS.
A shape rushed through the darkness.
Parker lowered his hands.
“…I’m sorry.”
The creature entered the light.
Spider was the closest comparison Sid’s mind could provide.
Eight jointed legs carried a swollen body nearly eight feet across. Dark eyes clustered across its head, reflecting pinpricks of blue light. Two heavy fangs flexed beneath them.
Sid turned.
“Nope.”
He ran.
Nobody questioned the decision.
Four skeletons bolted through the tunnel as the tapping erupted behind them.
Tap tap tap tap tap tap tap.
Bones cracked beneath their feet. Ribs scattered. Skulls rolled across the stone.
Every step announced exactly where they were.
Kaya fell behind.
Her shorter stride couldn't match the others.
“No, no, no!” she shouted. “This cannot be how I die!”
Her foot caught beneath a loose femur.
CRACK.
Kaya hit the stone.
The spider closed on her.
Parker looked back.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake!”
He turned and charged.
“Parker!”
His altered frame slammed shoulder-first into the creature.
The impact knocked the spider sideways.
Parker bounced off.
He flew into the wall hard enough to crack stone.
“KYAAAAAA!”
The creature shrieked.
Parker dropped to one knee.
His thicker, altered bones had held.
Sid spun around.
“FUCK!”
He ripped the blue crystal shard from his belt and charged back.
“Weapon!” he shouted at Parker. “Take out your fucking weapon, you dangly fucker!”
Parker dragged himself upright and reached for the red crystal blade.
“JOINTS!” Sid yelled. “HIT THE JOINTS!”
The spider reared.
Its front legs rose above Kaya.
She twisted across the ground.
The creature struck.
Its fangs snapped shut inches from her skull.
Parker hit it from the side.
The red crystal blade plunged into its abdomen.
Barely.
The point cut a shallow groove through its outer shell before skidding free.
The spider whirled.
One leg struck Parker across the chest.
CRACK.
He hit the ground.
Before he could rise, the creature lunged.
One fang punched between his ribs.
Parker jerked violently.
“FUCK!”
The spider twisted over him.
Something white shot from beneath its abdomen.
Silk.
It struck Parker across the chest.
Another strand followed.
Then another.
Arms.
Legs.
Torso.
Parker thrashed as the spider worked with terrifying speed.
“OH FUCK! OH FUCK! OH FUCK!”
Layer after layer tightened around his frame.
Within seconds, only flashes of green remained visible beneath the white.
Sid reached Kaya and hauled her upright.
“Move!”
She stumbled to her feet.
Then both of them stopped.
The spider wasn’t pursuing them.
It was wrapping Parker.
Elias stood several paces away, red eyes fixed on the creature.
None of them moved.
The cocoon twitched.
Parker’s muffled thoughts escaped from somewhere inside.
“THIS IS SOME BULLSHIT!”
The tunnel returned them.
THIS IS SOME BULLSHIT.
THIS IS SOME BULLSHIT.
The cocoon jerked once.
Then went still.
The spider hooked two legs around its prize.
Sid tightened his grip on the crystal blade.
The creature turned away.
And dragged Parker into the darkness.