Queen of the Sandworms

Chapter 9: Time on Saturn

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Beetlejuice had nightmares of a million Sandworms chasing him.

-Their multiple eyes glowing in the inky darkness. Beetlejuice tried running as fast as his striped legs could, but he couldn't. He looked down and found himself sinking in the sands. He tried to pull them free, but every time he did, he found himself sinking deeper.

Beetlejuice turned his head back and found the Sandworms looming over his small body. They opened their mouths and allowed their other heads to come out. The second heads hissed as their yellow eyes glared down at him with hunger-

Beetlejuice screamed himself awake. He sat bolt upright and hunched over. His eyes were wide as he breathed heavily. Sweat trickled down the sides of his head and stained his messy, tattered striped suit. Once he started breathing normally, he blinked and looked down at what he was laying on.

It was what looked like an attempt of a mattress. It was a bunch of huge leaves sewn together and was filled with what could be feathers, leaves, and fluff from the alien plants in the exotic jungle oasis. Beetlejuice turned his head upward and looked around the small room like hole he was in.

All around were items created from the weird alien plants from the oasis, and possibly other oasis areas dotted all over Sandwormland. One wall of packed sand was covered by a huge, tattered green leaf, which acted like a curtain.

Beetlejuice turned his head to his left and found Lydia in her Sandworm costume. Her back was turned as he looked out the huge gaping hole and down upon the squirming, writhing Sandworms below. Beetlejuice stared at the back of her head. Her real head.

He still couldn't believe she sided with the beasts. Why would she do that? Beetlejuice groaned when he felt pain shoot up his arms and legs. Lydia turned her head slightly, but didn't look at Beetlejuice. "I told you to leave," she finally said.

Beetlejuice looked up from his arms and over to her. He felt his heart sink like a stone into his stomach. "I couldn't just leave you here. You don't belong here..." he stopped and realized he had no idea where here was.

"Wh-...where exactly are we?" he asked. He couldn't quite recall what happened before he entered Sandwormland. Lydia didn't turn around as she stared out to the huge room as Sandworms came in and out of the tunnels. "You are in the Nest... home of the Sandworms," Lydia answered in a flat tone. Beetlejuice felt his insides twist. His throat closed up and he was unable to speak.

Lydia finally turned her whole body to him, her tattered ends flapping behind her. "I told you I was fine where I was. I do not always need you to keep saving me every time I get in trouble-" "But you are in trouble! If you didn't notice there are a million Sandworms everywhere!" Beetlejuice blurted out as he tried getting up, but failed. He groaned in pain as he gently sat back down in the handmade mattress.

Lydia narrowed her eyes at him, then came up to him. Beetlejuice flinched when he found himself face to face with Lydia. Lydia glared at his wide, green eyes. Beetlejuice stared back at her cold, dark brown eyes.

"Let me tell you something, BJ! Ever since I was sentenced here, I cried and waited for you to rescue me...but you never came. So I had to become my own hero. I became independent and learned to survive on my own."

Lydia removed her face away from Beetlejuice's and straightened up. Beetlejuice felt a cold feeling go through him. He stared up at Lydia who now loomed over him. She still had that glare on her face.

B-but...I...it was only a week...j-just a week..." he said, but his voice faded. Lydia raised an eyebrow. "Oh? a week? Really..." She moved away from Beetlejuice and went over to the curtain like leaf that covered the wall. She removed it and revealed the sand wall, except it had a bunch of small lines decorated all over it, from the top to the bottom.

Beetlejuice's eyes widened in horror.

"I have been counting each day...waiting for you. So now... why do I need you?!" Lydia said as her voice began to get louder and angrier. Beetlejuice's jaw dropped.

It wasn't possible!...How could it be? He...he was only in his house for three days...or was it? Did he really lose track of the days?! He might have...he didn't even know what today was! Beetlejuice began racking his brain.

Saturn's time was different from the Neitherworld and Earth's time. Each couple seconds on Sandwormland was like two to three hours on Earth! So what did that mean? Beetlejuice was not good with math, but he guesstimated that she had been trapped in Sandwormland for almost three months, which must be around five or six months in Earth/Neitherworld time!

"N-No!" Beetlejuice screamed as he staggered to his feet. Lydia let the leaf curtain drape back over the wall with lines and watched as Beetlejuice dragged himself up to her. "Lydia..." He felt tears come down his face as he stared down at the girl.

Gradually, he lifted his hands and placed them on the sides of her face. Lydia narrowed her eyes as she shoved him away. Beetlejuice gasped from the strength of the push as he fell backwards and landed on his back. The striped ghost felt the wind get knocked out of him and groaned in pain.

Lydia loomed over his body. Beetlejuice breathed heavily as his huge eyes gradually went up till they stopped and met Lydia's. She bared her teeth. "Like I said before; I don't want you here... Leave while you still have a body. I have saved you from being eaten from the others..." she growled.

Beetlejuice quickly crawled backwards from the monster before him. He crawled to the furthest corner of the small room and stayed in the shadows. His chest was rising and falling fast. Tears came down his face. He tried controlling them, but they kept trickling down his pale white face. His body trembled uncontrollably as well as the fear ran through him.

Lydia balled her fists tightly against her sides. Suddenly, Lydia's Sandworm's head appeared from the opening. Beetlejuice screamed from the sudden appearance and pressed his back against the wall, staying as far away from the two as possible. The Sandworm ignored the ghost as it turned its huge head to Lydia. It screeched and hissed to Lydia.

Lydia looked out over to the Nest. Some of the adults were going through the tunnels, heading to the surface, while the others, and the little babies stayed behind. Lydia turned back to her Sandworm and screeched back.

The Sandworm lowered its head for her to jump on. Lydia began to climb on, but then stopped when she eyed Beetlejuice's body still shaking in the corner of her room. She huffed in frustration and looked down at the ground. She hesitated for a couple seconds, then jumped off her Sandworm and walked over to Beetlejuice. Beetlejuice noticed her coming toward him and quickly jumped to his feet.

He quickly placed his hands in front of his face for protection, but Lydia grabbed his hands and forced them down. "I want you to come with me. It's time to hunt for food. You can be of use and help us...then me and Edgar will help you return home..." she said.

Beetlejuice was about to protest, but then stopped when he heard her say a name he was not familiar with. "Edgar? Who's Edgar?" he asked, raising his eyebrow in confusion. The Sandworm's head came up from behind Lydia and hissed. It red eyes glowed. Beetlejuice yelped and jumped backwards.

Lydia smirked and patted the Sandworm's nose gently. "This is Edgar. He is my loyal Sandworm," she said, introducing it to Beetlejuice. Edgar glared down at The Ghost with the Most and screeched. Beetlejuice trembled but faked a grin and pretended to tip an imaginary hat to the Sandworm with his shaking hand.

With that settled, Lydia pulled Beetlejuice toward Edgar. "Come on! We need to head to the surface," Lydia said. Beetlejuice's eyes widened even more. He shook his head and held his ground. "Oh no! No! no! no! There is no way I'm riding that...Edgar," he said gruffly, narrowing his eyes up at the striped beast.

Edgar hissed and Lydia's grip tightened around Beetlejuice's hands. "Get. On," Lydia snarled. Beetlejuice winced from Lydia's tight grip. He glanced back to Edgar nervously. Edgar exhaled out of his nose and looked away from Beetlejuice in disgust. Beetlejuice did as he was told and climbed up onto Edgar's head. Lydia did the same and sat in front of Beetlejuice.

Lydia held on to the first spike on the top of the Sandworm's head and screeched a command in Sandworm. Edgar slowly moved his head out of Lydia's room and lifted his head upward. Beetlejuice screamed as he wrapped his arms around Lydia's waist and held on.

Edgar cried out a long cry that made Beetlejuice wince in pain. Then, the striped Sandworm arched froward toward a tunnel and slithered through it at rapid speed, upward toward the surface.

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