Without You - Chapter 21: Snare

He knocks me to the ground
His fangs
Knife through me
Pathetic
Is my retreat
The poison acts quickly
Though I feel
Little of it
He is not dissuaded
By the stench of decaying flesh


Damn.


He spins his web
Turning me over
Like a spool of yarn
Drags me
Through the door
He came in
My best hope
Of escaping this tomb
Fading
Fading
Gone


The tunnel spins
Or perhaps
It’s just me
The labyrinth extends for miles
Narrow passages
Snaking
Through the vast underworld
Like a colony of ants


I hope to fall
Into dreams
Forget about this cruel place
But linger on the cusp do I
Between life and death
Always


The spider edges closer
A thousand dark hollows
Gazing over me
Quite the specimen
We have here
The rasp of a man’s voice
Echoes through the cavern


You…speaking…to me?
I manage


And this one even talks
He squeals like a teenage girl
Who hasn’t had sex
For an entire week


A blue burst of light
Scans over me
Blinding me
For a few moments
As my vision returns
I notice the metal braces
On its legs
The sheen of its titanium shell
Hiding its furry core
Cybernetic optics
In place of eyes
And a car speaker
Gratuitously tacked on top


What…are…you?
I mumble


Nobody
Just like you
Pleased to make your acquaintance


You’re perfect
You know
I have a talent
For spotting such things
Heard your transmission
Bad call
Could have killed us all
Including my little playground
I’ve sunk so much into
One of the few dark pleasures
Left on this scorched earth


The republic sent their drones
But they know better
Than to come down here
A shame really
The beacon
And all it stood for
Tactical
Defensible
Some real souvenirs down here
And from the looks of you
I unearthed
The biggest of them all


Need…to find…Valtryst


Valtryst?
He roars
Don’t we all?


The spider crawls
Up the silk wall
Hanging me from
A thorny perch
Jutting out
From the rock walls
I look around
Bones dangle
From unkempt strands
Thousands caught
In his sinister snare


A femur falls
Into the webbing below
Three spiders pounce
Squabbling over
The musty bone
Snapping it in half
And scurrying off
With the pieces


What…do you want…from…me?
I ask


Whatever I can get for you
I’m afraid
That’s the way it is
Around here
Don’t worry
Rest up
Precious
Get some beauty sleep
My minions
Will look after you
Even share a few scraps
If you play nice


Perhaps
I’ll feed them
Scraps of you
My voice darkened
Bold and forthright
Not a slur among my words


A rare gem indeed
The old coot cackled
And switched off his microphone
All the while
This wicked piece of me
Brooding
Ready to be unleashed