Horribly Ever After #3: Webbed Read online

  Horribly Ever After©

  WEBBED

  Thatcher C. Nalley

  All rights are reserved to the author. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in this piece of fiction. This is a work of fiction. Names, character, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  www.ThatcherCNalley.com

  Copyright 2016 © by Thatcher C. Nalley

  Where happily is never before, during or after…

  WEBBED

  There was once an exquisite web maker named Lucine. Unlike any other spider, she had been born with seven kinds of silk glands and eight spinnerets. Her unique body structure gave her the ability to manipulate threads by pulling and stretching in the most confounding ways. Her genius creations were known throughout the wooded forest, but unfortunately for Lucine, her brilliance would soon become her blight.

  Lucine lived among the other creatures of the woods behind an old wooden house occupied by an old jewelry repairman and his vicious black cat. Many of the small wood’s inhabitants had ventured into the house, alas some never came out. It was known that the old man did not like forest visitors and would squash, zap or chop anything not welcomed.

  Lucine had visited the house a few times, but always cautiously at night. She would look for insects to exterminate and suck body fluid from, and then would leave a web behind to declare “I was here”. One night, however, as Lucine was leaving she had come upon the jeweler’s workbench and found scattered clear colored flakes that shimmered in the light. Entranced, Lucine knew what she could do with such treasures and she grabbed up as many of the flakes as possible and scurried back to her tree.

  Lucine worked through the night until dusk weaving her silk and sprinkling precious pieces into her beaded threads. Shaped into the most perfect octagon, the opulent lacework of web was framed with red wood twigs. Carefully, she hung the masterpiece on the lowest branch of her tree right where the morning light was peeking through.

  When day broke, the sun gleamed right upon her web showcase, creating a glorious light show of glowing colors dancing through the trees. The creatures of the woods gathered around the mesmerizing web astounded by its glistening display. She stood proud as the responses of awe began to saturate the air. All at once they began to ask Lucine questions about her work. However, the pretentious spider refused to answer and replied that she needed to sleep, and then sashayed back into her hole in the tree.

  Soon word had spread that the web gave magical powers given to Lucine, which is why she was always able to create the most amazing webs. The truth, of course, was that Lucine had no special powers, but rather a glorious gift. However, even though she had been born with this unique gift, it is important to note that it is not the gift, it is how you use it which makes it special. Unfortunately, Lucine’s head had swollen to the size of her abdomen.

  When Lucine awoke she could hear the wood was all in a buzz about her web. Then came a knock at her tree hole.

  “Hello? Lucine, are you in there?” called the voice of Mr. Mouse. Lucine rolled her eyes, “Yes. Go away I’m sleeping.” “Please Lucine, I need to know if it’s true,” he pleaded. “If what is true?” she snapped.

  “Your web, is it really magic?”

  “I cannot talk about my web, now go away.”

  “Please, I will pay anything if I can just…”

  “Pay? Pay with what?” Lucine perked up and motioned for the mouse to come in.

  “Whatever you want, it’s just that Mrs. Mouse is so ill and I need your web.”

  Oh yes, Mrs. Mouse, Lucine thought to herself. That rodent was always ill with something. However that squeaker did have the most beautiful lace box bed with the softest padded coverings.

  “Bring me her bed,” Lucine commanded.

  “But Mrs. Mouse needs that bed to keep her well. I …”

  “The bed or no web.” Lucine’s eyes pierced through him. “Now go,” she ordered. “Yes, okay. Okay.” Mr. Mouse shook his head then scurried off and Lucine fell back to sleep.

  Later that day the mouse came back with the bed and Lucine gave him the web.

  “Now be sure to take good care of this web or its magic will not work.”

  The mouse nodded and off he went with the web. That night was a bitterly cold night, but Lucine was cozy warm with her new bed and even slept late until a shouting voice awoke her. Lucine slowly got up and walked out to the branch’s end and looked down to see Mr. Mouse at the bottom of her tree.

  “She died!” the mouse sobbed. “She died last night because of you!”

  Lucine tried to keep her patience, “What are you talking about, you foolish mouse?”

  “Mrs. Mouse did not wake this morning and Medicine Mouse said it was the cold night that killed her.” His throat lumped up. “But I say it was you that killed her!”

  “I did no such thing, it was you, rodent.” Lucine shook her head. “You must have messed up the web, so it lost its power.”

  “You fraud! That web was not even magical and you know it!”

  “Yes it was,” she answered, exasperated, “and it is not my fault that you are too incompetent to handle such things.”

  “It’s your fault! I have lost her because of you. How could you?” The mouse sobbed, but Lucine just shook her head with a look of disgust and turned to go back to her hole in the tree.

  That night, Lucine chose to create another web. She remembered seeing some other pieces of green shiny shavings on the jeweler’s bench and decided she could use those with her shimmering translucent pieces to create an even bigger, better web. The next morning all were dumbfounded by the creation of green and crystal shining web glimmering through the woods. They stood transfixed by the masterpiece.

  A couple of days later, Mrs. Bird came to Lucine. She had heard of the magical web and wanted the web to protect her children for their father had been killed in a storm and she needed to get them food. Lucine agreed to give her the web in exchange for her luxurious nest.

  “But the nest keeps my young ones off the ground and safe,” she pleaded with Lucine.

  “If they have my web they will be protected by its magic and not need the nest.” “I don’t know…”

  “Fine, then leave me be. I have others willing to pay well for my web and I may not make another one after this one.” Lucine gleefully began to march away, but Mrs. Bird stopped her.

  “Okay, Okay, I will bring you the nest.” Mrs. Bird brought it to her later that night.

  “Now you must take care of this web or its magic will not work,” Lucine warned. Mrs. Bird agreed to do so and flew off.

  A few days later, Mrs. Bird came back and threw the remains of the web at Lucine.

  “This is what’s left of my children!” she screamed. “That and some feathers and black cat fur! You said they would be protected! You said…”

  “Don’t you yell at me!” Lucine’s chelicerae rose, which bared her fangs, while moving toward Mrs. Bird, “I told you, little fowl, to take care of that web and it’s quite apparent that you did not!”

  Mrs. Bird carefully backed away “ I … I did..” Lucine went to move closer and Mrs. Bird quickly flew out of striking range.

  “You are a cold hearted liar!” screeched the bird, “and I will tell everyone!”

  “Be careful what you say, Mrs. Bird, for I know where you dwell as well, and I will come in the night.” Mrs. Bird glared at Lucine through her watered eyes then jetted off.

  “Stupid bird,” Lucine sneered and went back to her lace bed which lay in her nest.

  Later that day the local law Lizard came to Lucine to inquire about the misfortunes of her webs. She explained how she had instructed them to care for the webs but their haphazard ways are what led to their tribulations. The lizard inquired about the truth of her webs being magic.

  “Well yes, of course they are!” Lucine assured him. “How can something so magnificent be anything less than magic my dear Lizard?”

  “Well maybe I need to have one myself to see for sure,” he challenged.

  “That I can do…” she smiled, “for a price.”

  He looked at her with hesitance, “What do you mean ‘price’?”

  “I mean, my dear Lizard, that I need a special ingredient only you could get for me.” She walked up to him. “I need something from the old man’s house. A special green stone.”

  “No way, you crazy spider,” the lizard profusely shook his head, “that kook would chop me up and have me for dinner.”

  Lucine shrugged and walked away. “Fine, no deal. Someone more courageous will come for my web anyway and they will be the one to get my final web.”

  “What do you mean final web?”

  “Exactly what I said, I am too exhausted to keep going on like this, so I have decided to make one more magical web, and be done.”

  “Alright, alright I will do it. I will find another to go in with me for protection and bring you the stone you want later tonight. But so help me insect if—”

  “—Good. Well you must go now and I will begin on your web right now.” Lucine shooed him off and begun to spin her next web.

  The night had become darker and darker and there was no sign of the lizard. She began to wonder if he was going to ma
ke it back, although if he didn’t she could find another to go in for her. Lucine was half way through the web when she heard something,

  Thump, thump. Thump, thump.

  “Lizard? Is that you?”

  Thump, thump.

  “Lizard?”

  Thump. Thump. Thump.

  “I’m not playing, Lizard! Is that you?”

  Lucine crept closer to her entry way and then, from the darkness, a big shadow with glowing red eyes entered her lair.

  “Yes it's me,” the lizard hissed, “and my mother!” he hurled a headless lizard body which fell in front of her. Lucine looked at the carcass and then at the lizard that was slowly walking toward her. Lucine immediately bared her fangs.

  “Don’t do anything stupid, Lizard, or I will…” Thwack!

  The lizard’s tail hammered the spider and she flew through the air landing in her own web. She struggled to get out of the mesh of web but the more she squirmed the tighter the hold became. Breathing heavily, Lucine begged the lizard for help. The lizard smirked, “You have weaved your web, now die in it.” He began to walk away and then turned back around.

  “Oh, I almost forgot, Lucine,” the lizard pulled out a big green stone. “This

  is for you!”

  He leaned back then hurled the green stone as hard as he could at the spider. It struck Lucine right in the abdomen, ripping her body from all eight of her legs. Lucine screeched in pain. Blood quickly drained out of her body, as it dangled, bobbing up and down.

  “Well Lucine, looks like you were right,” the lizard mocked, “that web was magical—it made an unscrupulous spider disappear!”

  The lizard picked up his dead mother’s body and started to head out, but then stopped. He turned to look back at the stone below the spider’s body.

  Well I can’t just leave a precious stone like that lying around, he thought to himself, and maybe it does have some magic or something. Maybe if I just break off some pieces with my tail. These critters around here do pay well for some possible magic. Of course they will need to take care of their piece, the lizard clarified to himself while picking up the green rock and wiping off the blood, ‘cause they ain’t blaming me for any misfortunes, oh no!

  The lizard then shoved the gem down into the body where his mother’s head once was, then journeyed out of the tree.

  Thump, thump.

  Thump, Thump.

  Thump, thump.

  THE END

  Available on Amazon

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  www.ThatcherCNalley.com

 

 

  Thatcher C. Nalley, Horribly Ever After #3: Webbed

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