Chapter 7: Trust Exercises - pt.2
Twigs snapping underfoot, crunching of leaves and the quiet rustling of plants accompanied the trio in their descent into the jungle. Despite the serenity presented, they knew that it was merely a cover, masking the terrors that could be lying in wait. Lynn was at the forefront of the group, bow in one paw and arrow in the other. This paired with the fact she wasn't as talkative as usual put the two officers at unease. The cat did eventually speak, if only to issue a warning.
"Now we should be gettin' in the danger zone any second now, I want y'all to stick reeeeal close," Lynn advised in a slight whisper. She walked at a steady pace, but with emphasized diligence as her steps were relatively quiet. "If'n y'all hear or see anythin', don't be afraid to holler, sometimes the noise is enough to scare some critters off," she added before pausing briefly. "Actually, on second thought, don't holler, it might make some critters mad too or, y'know, attract somethin' worse."
"Then what the heck are we supposed to do?!" Nick questioned her, his whisper having a frustrated tone to it. He clutched his hatchet while looking all around him, emerald eyes darting left and right, up and down, surveying his surroundings.
"Well, I reckon y'all could-" Lynn began, halting abruptly mid-sentence, stopping altogether.
The pair stopped with her, watching the cat. Lynn's ears moved around, seemingly tracking something. Judy attempted to do the same and picked up a faint noise, drawing her machete. The cat drew her bow, pulling the string back. She pointed the arrow directly in front of her as the other two watched. Slowly she brought the arrow around, turning behind her and in between the pair. Nick and Judy continued to watch Lynn, their eyes growing wide as she brought the arrow to point behind them. Nick gulped, wanting to look back, but refraining from doing so out of fear. Judy refused to look back as well, She however was paying more attention to Lynn. There was an unfamiliar ferocity in the cat's eyes, her pupils contracted into slits, brows furrowed in fury.
"Foxy…duck." Lynn ordered the fox in a cold whisper. In a split second, Nick ducked his head as Lynn aimed where it was, firing the arrow. A thud echoed out from behind the pair, now looking back. A shrill screeching sound emanated from the plants behind them and a large insect fumbled out with the arrow lodged in its eye. The long insect thrashed about in agony before turning tail with its wings out, flying off into the jungle.
The pair looked on as the bug took off. Nick's heart was racing, and the sight of the insect didn't help it any. He let out a small sigh before turning to Lynn. "Ok, what on earth was that?!" He stammered out, getting back onto his feet.
"Assassin bug," Lynn replied flatly, her eyes still in slits as she watched the area the bug flew off too. "N' their name tells ya exactly what they do," she added before getting another arrow out.
The coldness in her tone and the fierce look in her eyes put both officers in unease. The unease only grew as Lynn looked at the pair with beaming eyes and a smile once again.
"Alright, well let's keep on truckin', gotsta make it to the river n' back b'fore nightfall!" Lynn stated jovially before resuming the hike.
It already astonished the pair to know Lynn was capable of anything but her happy-go-lucky demeanor, but even more so now knowing it could be masking something far more sinister. Judy pondered to herself, the happy cat was capable of being fierce when she needed to be, and she was all the more curious to know just how far it could go. Of course, with none of it directed at them.
"Uh, Lynn, why exactly do we need to come back before it gets dark?" Judy asked their guide, her ears even more vigilant now. "And also, was that assassin bug really that dangerous?"
"What, the assassin bug? Nah, they're more a ambushy type o' predator!" Lynn stated in a hushed tone. "N', well, the thing about dusk is that it's when all the real nasty critters come out, see, like the cockroaches!" Lynn pointed out. Just knowing the island had giant cockroaches made Nick and Judy shudder. "But them there roaches are the least of our worries," she added, to which Nick could only think, 'Of course…' "Nah, see, the real problem is gonna be the huntsman spiders!" Lynn stated, causing the pair to stop again.
Nick looked at the cat in wide eyed terror at the mention of spiders, not having been desensitized from his encounter with Spidsy quite enough. "Uh…did…did you say that spiders comes out at night?" he asked gulping dryly.
"Mmhm! N' boy howdy, the huntsman spiders 'ave gotsta be the scariest things y'all will ever lay eyes on!" The cat replied turning around to the pair. "They're not like other spiders, no sirree, them their huntsmans live up to their names, see, they're a roamin' species, n' soon as they decide that somethin's gonna be their next meal, they'll run it down n' snatch it up!" Lynn explained, gesturing out the action of the spider grabbing its prey.
Nick's façade faltered evermore at the thought of a giant spider chasing him or Judy down. He gulped once again as he composed himself. "That's…great…" He stated sarcastically before walking again.
Judy looked at Nick, knowing full well that a new found fear of spiders was still imprinted onto him from his nightmare. She certainly couldn't blame him; the thought was more than terrifying. Even she had to admit the vision of being chased by giant spiders repulsed her.
"N' there are plenty o' other beasty bugs, but the real problem we're gonna have is with Sheila!" Lynn finished, speaking louder and louder still, unbeknownst to her.
The pair looked at each other, confused at the mention of a name. "Who's…Sheila?" Judy asked. The rabbit was beginning to realize that Lynn had a habit of naming things of importance.
"A pandinus imperator!" Lynn proclaimed, turning to the pair with her hands on her hips.
The two officers were even more confused at this point. Nick could only scratch his head, their guide was making less sense as the hike continued and he was certain he would have grown used to it by now. "Uh…the what?" he asked, still trying to figure out what Lynn had just stated.
"Oh, uh, emperor scorpion!" Lynn stated, smiling wide while the pair's faces fell to despair. "Well, in this case though, it'd probably be more accurate to call her an empress scorpion." Lynn pointed out, tapping her chin.
"Oooookay…giant scorpions, good to know!" Nick blurted out.
"Oh don't worry yer pretty lil' head off there Foxy, She only comes out at night! So as long as we-" Lynn stopped midsentence, her eyes wide as she clutched her mouth. The pair stared at her quizzically, wondering why she stopped so abruptly. Lynn shook her head as she let go of her mouth. "Not that loud, I should not be this loud…" she whispered to herself. Just as she stopped speaking, her ears moved around erratically, eyes growing wide once more.
In a split second, Lynn drew her bow and aimed to her left, just as a large green beetle charged her down. In the blink of an eye, a snarl, followed by a sharp scream, the sound of bodies colliding and a hiss. Lynn was brought to the ground by the charging beetle just as an arrow connected with the creature's mouth. The pair had little time to react as the beetle erupted from the brush, following suit with their own screams as Lynn wrestled the beetle. The cat eventually tossed the beetle off of her, panting as she drew another arrow, promptly shooting the abdomen of the beast. They stepped back cautiously as Lynn got up with clenched fists.
The cat turned to the pair, ferocity in her eyes once more. "Funny Bunny…could you pass me that?" Lynn asked while panting, more so from anger, pointing to the machete in the rabbit's paw.
Hesitantly, Judy passed her the large blade. The pair watched in silence as their guide walked up to the writhing and screeching beetle. She spoke not a word as she swiftly swiped down on the beetle, sending the head rolling off, its screeching silenced suddenly from the execution. The pair continued to watch, horror on their faces as Lynn continued her savagery. She ripped the limbs from the beetle and sliced the body every which way. What disturbed them most of all was how she hummed whilst butchering the body.
With a content sigh Lynn turned back to the pair, her eyes cheerful once more. "Ok, no more loud noises from us and we won't have any more attacks like that," Lynn whispered. She gave the machete back to Judy, picking up the items she dropped and continued walking. The pair stared in worry, looking back at the butchered carcass Lynn had left behind. The fact she was capable of such cruelty while being able to resume her usual happy self was cause for concern. Regardless, the pair bit their tongues, feeling it would trigger another episode.
Judy swallowed the lump in her throat, working up the courage to speak again. "So…Lynn, uh, what should we be worried about during the day?" She asked while trying to hide any indication of fear.
"Well, for instance, like that there tiger beetle I just killed," Lynn began in a whisper. "And all kinds of other creepy crawlies, of course the spiders, but as long as y'all don't get in their webs y'all will be fine," Lynn stated quietly as she ducked under a fallen log. The pair followed along as she continued, "and then there're some critters y'all won't be able to see 'less you're real close cause they got that there natural camoumoflage and what have you, and boy howdy, let me tell ya, they can give ya a real fright if you're not-" Lynn cut off abruptly once again, this time holding her paw behind her to signal the pair to stop.
Nick and Judy gulped nervously. 'is something there? Is something going to attack us?' Judy thought, her ears frantically trying to pick up anything that might be approaching.
"Foxy, Funny Bunny, I need y'all to back away real slow like…" Lynn ordered the pair as she too backed up.
The pair looked ahead, spotting what the cat was trying to redirect them from. It appeared to be a den, thin silk-like threads adorning the ground, all connected to a strange circular mass of thread and vegetation. Quietly and carefully, the trio walked away and around the strange obstruction. It was only after they were past the object and at a good distance that Lynn stopped holding her breath.
"Phew, boy howdy that was close," She exclaimed, albeit still in a whisper.
"What is that?" Nick asked, staring at the clump.
"That there is a trapdoor spider's den," Lynn pointed out, much to the disgust of Nick. "But y'know, I don't even reckon if anyone's home or not…let's find out!" Lynn stated before picking up a rock. Before either of them could stop her, the bold cat tossed the small stone onto the lid of the spider's den. Sure enough, a colossal spider emerged from the latch, bursting forth in a fit of deep growls that emulated a roar. Its front legs were raised as were its body, baring its massive fangs.
Nick yelped reactively, reeling back and landing on his haunches as the massive black and brown spider erupted from its den. "Are you crazy?!" Nick couldn't help but snap at the cat, doing his best to keep it down to a whisper still. "Why the hell would you piss it off like that?!" He questioned her, quickly getting back on his feet.
"Oh don't get yer britches in a bunch Foxy, it ain't gonna come after us or nothin'," Lynn stated, resuming her path. "Trapdoor spiders are ambush predators, n' they'll only grab up anythin' that happens to walk near their lil' doors," she pointed out, "that there fightin' display? I reckon it's just grumpy that I threw a rock at it."
Nick rubbed at his face, frustrated at the cat but he did his best to keep calm. He knew full well that any major outbursts might attract unwanted attention. The kind of attention that has giant limb cutting mandibles, or perhaps a venomous bite or sting. Whatever the case may be, the fox kept his cool for everyone's safety. The other reason he kept quiet was knowing full well at this point that making Lynn mad could be a possible death sentence and no amount of police training would help them in Lynn's home turf.
"Don't worry y'all, I reckon we're just an hour away now," Lynn stated as she marched along the path. "N' don't y'all fear none, there's plenty o' bugs that won't up n' try to kill us," Lynn stated.
"Such as?" Nick asked, skeptical at the thought of anything harmless on this side of the island after seeing the locals.
Just as he asked, the ground gave way beneath the trio, finding that they were standing atop a red and black shell of an insect.
"Oh! Hang on, don't move or nothin' y'all, I reckon this here is a trilobite beetle, real harmless," Lynn pointed out as she even sat down to make her point on the beetle's harmlessness. "N' hey, she's even goin' in the direction we're headin' off to."
"Lynn, a-are you sure this is safe?" Judy asked as she tried to remain standing, wobbling as the insect trudged off deeper into the jungle. Nick was trying to do the same, with even less success as he landed face first onto the hard shell. The rabbit was eventually knocked down as well, now forced to sit on the broad back of the bug.
"Ah don't worry y'all, trilobite beetles are vegematarians," Lynn pointed out as she helped Nick into a sitting position. "Y'all just need to sit back n' enjoy the ride," Lynn stated, smiling and looking at the path ahead.
By this point the pair were well seated on the back of the large bug, left now with the choice of walking or enjoying the free ride. They chose the latter, sighing and reclining on the insect taxi service. Lynn's statement of the bugs preferred diet put them at ease, trusting her word as she hadn't been wrong yet. The leisurely pace of the bug allowed the trio to relax as it scurried along the jungle floor. Despite the ever lurking dangers, the bug carried on unhindered.
"Now, this here is a female, and the weird part 'bout trilobite beetles is that the females don't really change much from the larva stage," Lynn explained, patting the back of the insect. "See how she looks kinda like a big armored caterpillar? Well, that's b'cause she basically IS a caterpillar!" Lynn added with a small giggle.
Nick and Judy nodded as they listened to their guide. Lynn even went on to explain, still in a hushed tone, just some of the things they were passing by. Some such things being a pair of male stag beetles fighting over turf. She explained to them about tree wetas, particularly regarding the male that threatened them as they passed. They even rode by a mantis as it snatched a cricket off the ground and she even identified the type of mantis from just a glance.
"You're surprisingly well informed about bugs, huh Lynn?" Judy pointed out, genuinely impressed by how much their guide seemed to know about the local fauna.
"Well, I did say I'm from a bug ranch, sweetheart, see, I wanted to teach young'ns 'bout all kinds of creepy crawlies, so I studied a lot o' bugs in mah spare time," Lynn explained, smiling fondly as she went on. "Yessiree, see, I didn't wanna be a rancher like mah folks, I wanted to be a teacher." The pair had to admit, despite the cat's behavior, she did seem eager to teach and she certainly knew plenty. Lynn sighed as she continued, "but y'see, schools don't really teach that sort o' stuff in a class of no kind, 'cept for biology probably, n' even then it's really only a one time, one hour deal," she explained before lying down. "Nah, see, I gotsta go to the big city, and teach 'bout buggy bugs in a museum," she went on with a wide smile, "then I'll getsta teach the young'ns n' grown folks alike 'bout bugs durin' tours n' such."
Judy couldn't help but smile hearing Lynn's dreams of teaching. "Y'know, I think you'd actually make a pretty good tour guide," she assured her. Nick smiled at that, having gotten a similar statement from the rabbit when they had finally gotten along a year or so back.
Lynn got up with a smile, opening her mouth to speak. Her face instead turned to a distressed expression as her ears twitched. She quickly looked to her right, the pair looking with her to hopefully see what she was seeing. The large insect they were riding upon continued marching, unaware of what might be coming…
"Oh no…" Lynn started, getting up and off the insect quickly. "C'mon y'all, we ain't safe on the ground!" the panicked cat exclaimed.
The pair followed suit, panic taking hold now as they watched Lynn run to the nearest tree. In a few graceful leaps she was high up in the tree, where she quickly tossed down a few vines. "Quick, climb up!" she shouted, holding the vines in a way as though she was prepared to start pulling them up.
"Lynn, w-what's going on!?" Judy shouted back, beginning the climb with the help of Nick.
"No time to explain, just get up!" Lynn ordered hastily while looking out in the direction she had been staring at earlier, her eyes wide with fear.
Without another word, the pair quickly climbed the vine while being pulled up by Lynn at the same time. Then they heard it. What seemed at first like the rumbling of an earthquake quickly became obvious as to what the source was. An armada of large ants were on the war path, headed in their direction. The pair screamed, climbing as fast as they could to the branch the cat was perched upon.
The surge of black and red carapaces came like a flooded river, quickly drowning the land below the group. Lynn looked to the trilobite beetle they had been riding upon just moments ago, wincing at the sight before her. Nick and Judy looked too, immediately regretting the decision, seeing that the docile creature was being torn apart by the voracious army. They could hear its cries amidst the stampede and all they could do was pity the poor insect. Despite the savage onslaught, the ants stuck to the ground, carrying the remains of the trilobite beetle as well as those of several other insects.
Lynn watched the ants carefully, making certain none of them were going up the tree. She held her spear this time, ready to fend off anything that might try and take them. The wait was long and stressful as the tide of ants didn't seem to end. Despite this, the fierce cat held her ground, trying to steady her breath as ant after ant passed by. Nick and Judy clutched their own weapons, preparing for the inevitable attack from the ants.
Much to the trio's relief, the attack never happened. After nearly thirty minutes had passed, so too did the last of the ants. They sighed in unison, watching the jungle floor and the carpet of black and red disappearing into the distance.
"Those…weren't your average ants I take it?" Nick asked, looking below to see if there were any stragglers.
"Army ants, and boy howdy are they mean," Lynn stated in a less then cheerful tone, dropping the vines once again for the pair to get down. "They'll eat dang near anything that's in their way, don't matter if it's a small itty bitty larva or a big ol' tarantula, if it's there, it's food to them," she said flatly before descending from the tree one branch at a time.
The pair could see her scouting the area before looking up, motioning for them to come down. They slid down the vines carefully, landing beside Lynn.
"Now the river is just past that there hill, listen, ya hear that? That's the waterfall," explained, holding one paw to her ear to listen carefully. They all stood there to listen, the faint white noise of running water greeting them from the distance.
"Ok, so, any warnings regarding the river?" Judy asked.
"A few things to take to heart. The one important thing is to not go in the river, stay by the falls instead. Trust me, there are plenty o' big ol' fish in the water that could easily swallow us whole," Lynn pointed out, the pair cringing reactively. "But them there fish are the least of yer worries, if y'all get caught by a toebiter…yer done," Lynn stated flatly, enough to put both officers in unease.
"A… Toebiter?" Nick repeated, finding the name humorous, but seeing how Lynn reacted to it he knew it was probably far from being funny.
"Wait, I've heard that name before…" Judy began, thinking back carefully. Her eyes went wide as one memory returned to her, cringing and shuddering. "Oh sweet cheese and crackers…THOSE are here?" she asked, clutching her machete.
"Wait, you know what those are, Carrots?" Nick asked, now genuinely curious.
"My siblings and cousins all went wading in a stream by my Uncle Roger's house once, my cousin Dean screamed and hopped out of the water on one foot. The other foot had some weird bug latched onto it, and when we took it off, it left this nasty wound," Judy recollected, cringing again before turning to Lynn. "And now you're telling us that a giant version of that could be in the river?"
"I'm 'fraid so Funny Bunny, n' they're just as mean bein' all hugified and what not," Lynn stated with a nod. "That's why I need y'all to stay by the falls, toebiters don't like bein' near rough water," she advised, walking to the hill. "Trust me though, I can make sure y'all'll be safe," the cat assured the pair, smiling confidently.
The pair looked to each other, nodding to an agreement that was not spoken. They trusted Lynn for now to be able to keep them safe. With a sigh, they followed behind their guide, looking ahead in the direction of the river, mentally preparing for the nightmare that could be lurking in the depths.
A/N: For an idea of how tall Ocelynn is, she is about a foot taller than Nick. Also, all bugs presented in this fic are bugs that actually do exist, a Google search will show you exactly how they look if you wanna follow along on what creepy crawlies I use.