Is ANYONE still reading? I only have 2 more chaps to go...about...
Chapter 13
Spider and his clan continued to help repairing the village, after a couple of days the heavy stuff was done and the clan wasn’t needed anymore. Spider had tried talking to Jas again, but Jas was usually pretty cold toward him; it wasn’t particularly directed at the crossbreed, as since things had changed Jas was pretty icy towards everyone. Spider, though, naturally unfamiliar with this “new” Jas, took the older creature’s bluntness as a direct insult – perhaps as though he was in some way blaming him for what had happened…
This of course always made Spider feel bad, but after a while it started to irritate him… then anger him. Shriek could see this and tried her best to keep him calm… but one day he just blew…
Jas had to leap to one side to avoid Spider’s sudden charge; automatically he dropped to an offensive pose, one shoulder down, quarterstaff ready. Spider by then had stopped and turned to face him, back fully arched and teeth bared.
“You try jump on me once more, mongrel, and I’ll find meself a place to put this,” Jas threatened, softly. “What d’yer think yer playin’ at, any way…?
“Why do you seem to be blaming me for what happened…?” Spider asked in response, his eyes burning with fury, but also with sorrow.
“No-one’s blamin’ no-one,” Jas spat back, tensed.
“Then why…” Spider growled, “Why are you bein’ so cold toward me? I never did anything to you intentionally.” he crushed his eyes closed, trying desperately to keep himself under control, but it wasn’t working. “I apologized for being ignorant about her death Jas!” he closed his eyes again, hot tears streaming down his face and his body trembling, “WHAT THE F*CK MORE DO YOU WANT ME TO DO!?”
Skan stepped between the two. “Come on you two,” he said, firmly. “I don’ want to have ter shoot either of yer, but I will if yer keep this up…” he hefted the lightweight dart-gun and swapped a meaningful glance with his younger pack-mate. “You don’ want another little while in solitary to cool off, now, do yer Jas…? Not befitting a councillor, y’know…”
Jas glared, but straightened, and mooched off.
“I don’ need a lesson, thanks” the big crossbreed managed, softly, and turned abruptly to leave, not giving Skan a chance to explain anything. Blinded partly by rage and partly by anguish, he didn’t see the pole that was close by and he struck it hard, the pole getting him in the neck just behind his head. He staggered about a bit, disoriented.
“Spider…? you alright?” Skan approached him, cautiously.
Spider looked at him confused a moment, then managed a smile.
“I…think…ARGH!” Spider suddenly howled with pain and reared up onto his tail. His body was convulsing as if being electrocuted…in fact he was somehow being electrocuted, as small arcs of electricity could be seen arcing from his body. His howl was more like a wailing keen as he remained suspended in that pose. After what seemed like an eternity…Spider stopped convulsing and collapsed, unconscious.
“Spider?” Skan approached cautiously – he’d had enough adverse encounters with electricity to know what it could do to you – and dropped to one knee beside the crossbreed’s insensate form, checked for a pulse… There it was, although unsettlingly faint. The smell of charred and burnt flesh was evident and made him gag. Looking on Spider’s neck he found a large burn mark, right behind his head; apparently this was where the source of the ‘attack’ came from… but he wasn’t sure. It wasn’t long until the clan came running.
“Spider!” Shriek cried as she ran up and embraced his unconscious form, “What… what happened?”
“Ain’t sure…” Skan shook his head, baffled. “Looked like he got electrocuted…”
"There is nothing I can do..." Invy said with a sad shake of her head, "Is there a healer near by?"
"Medcentre ain't far." The older slig said, "But it's gettin' him there..."
With a concerted effort from several other townsfolk, they were able to transport Spider to Medcentre. The clan could do nothing but wait, while Doctor Simvass – the surgeon currently on duty – operated on him.
Shriek refused to leave the door; she laid right next to it, as close as she could possibly get to the operating theatre, right across the corridor, snout pressed against the door, whining. That was to the obvious annoyance to the medical staff that were trying to get in and out of that part of the hospital, though they sympathized with her at the same time.
Skan had shown the rest of the clan to the nearby waiting room, although it hadn’t been built for such large creatures and so was a fraction too small for all of them… They were too worried to really do anything other than wait... oh and how the waiting was agonizing! A concerned few of the townspeople came by once in a while – mostly the ones that had been helped with rebuilding work – to see if there were any updates... but there was no word at all.
Finally, just as it was starting to get dark, Bas stepped out... looking both relieved and exhausted.
"Is he alright?" Shriek asked, whining slightly, her eyes full of worry.
The rest of the clan approached and waited eagerly for Bas' answer….
[ January 25, 2002: Message edited by: Dragadon ]
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