The Spider's Web
"Mokou, wait!" Joshua said, holding up a hand. "Just calm down, okay?"
"Calm down? You want me to calm down?" Mokou shook her head in disgust. "Damn it, Josh! The hell are you even thinking? Walking about in the open like this, hollering away like a crazy person, it's a miracle that every youkai in a hundred kilometers hasn't zeroed in on you! Hell, maybe they have! Maybe you're just lucky I got to you first!"
Joshua had to admit that she had a point. Certainly his way of searching hadn't exactly been wise. But damn it, what was he supposed to do?
"I was just-"
"I know! You wanted to go save the kids! I heard the whole thing. But by the gods, Josh! How the hell are you supposed to help anyone if you get eaten before you even find them? Or for that matter, even if they do hear you hollering, how are they supposed to answer? They got taken by spiders! Spiders always at the very least gag their prey, and you'll just let those crawly fucks know you're coming!"
To this, Joshua had no answer.
"And if your God decides to blow all of your accumulated good will in getting you there unnoticed and undevoured, the hell where you planning to do then? Fight them? Sneak the kids out without any of them noticing? They're spiders! They probably got them all webbed up, and you don't even know how to fight to begin with!"
Joshua slowly breathed out. "Yes, I do."
"What?"
"I do know how to fight. I've done it before. A lot, actually."
Mokou stared at him. "Oh, yeah? You mean back where you came from? In the Outside World?"
"Yes," Joshua admitted.
"Well, that's great and all, but that won't help you here! The rules of fighting are totally different, and you don't have any of your fancy Outside World weapons to help you!"
"I know how to use danmaku," Joshua said. He pointed a finger at a nearby bush, and a spray of glowing blue orbs shot out to pulverize its leaves. "I can shoot bullets just fine."
"Well, goody golly-licious for you," Mokou said as she sarcastically clapped her hands. "So do they! And they've been using it a long longer than you, and definitely more regularly! Have you ever even gotten into a danmaku battle before? Ever had to shoot your bullets at someone outside of fun or practice?"
Joshua bowed his head. "No."
"Well, I guarantee that they have! Probably pretty regularly at that! You'll be lucky if you even managed to nick one of them before they riddle you full of holes! And then they'll eat you!"
"I brought this though," Joshua said as he slid the anti-youkai knife from its sheathe. He held it up so Mokou could see the runes on its handle. "This will-"
Mokou's hand suddenly came up, smacking the bottom of the knife. Taken by surprise, Joshua's hand reflexively popped open and the knife sailed up and away.
Mokou snatched it out of the air. "You see how easily I did that?" she said, pointing the blade at the dumbstruck man. "You are completely out of your depth here. So go home, Joshua. Go home and let me handle this."
As flustered as he was, and as embarrassed as he was, Joshua still managed to keep his shaking legs planted on the ground beneath him. "No," he said.
"No?"
"No. I'm not going back." Joshua said. "Don't you understand? I was the ones watching those kids. They got taken under my watch! I can't just stand aside and do nothing!"
Mokou's face twisted up in annoyance. "Oh, spare me from kind-hearted fools!" she groaned as she slapped a hand across her own face. "Josh, I have exactly zero time for your guilty conscience, so back off and leave this to the professionals! Specifically, me!"
Joshua was a fair bit shorter than Mokou and thus had to incline his head to look her in the face. As such, he was in the perfect position to take notice of something moving in the branches behind her. Something with gleaming orange eyes. "Mokou…" he said.
"Because if any of those kids got hurt because you held me up, then I swear-"
"Mokou, watch out!"
The shadow had leapt from its branch right at Mokou's back. Joshua reached up to grab Mokou by the arm in hopes of pulling her out of the way.
Several things then happened, either at the same time or in such quick succession that it might as well have been at the same time.
First, the moment that Joshua's hands closed around Mokou's arm, it abruptly swung to the side, lifting him right off his feet and hurling him to the ground.
The second was the sound of something whistling through the air right over his head, something fast enough for him to feel the wind of its passing.
The third was a feminine voice grunting in pain and surprise.
Joshua rolled onto her back and sat up. He wasn't exactly sure what he was expecting to see, but what he found waiting for him surely wasn't it.
Mokou was standing balanced on one leg, the other held straight out, her foot shoved up against the throat of another woman. The woman was of medium height and slender in build, with grey-ish blue skin, softly glowing orange eyes, and bright orange hair tied into a pair of pigtails. She was wearing a sleeveless black-and-blue striped blouse, a tattered purple skirt, and black-and-orange stripped leggings. On her hand she wore a sort of cap that had a pair of floppy horns made of felt.
Mokou had her pinned up against a tree, and she was clawing at the foot pressing at her larynx.
"Juniper Spice," Mokou said. "Well, as I live and breathe."
Joshua gawked at her. "Wait, you know this person?"
"We've met," Mokou said. "We're not friends."
The youkai woman identified as Juniper choked and coughed. "I…I didn't know…it was you," she said. "I didn't!"
"Yeah, well, tough." Her foot still keeping Juniper trapped, Mokou flicked Joshua's knife up between her fingers.
A second later Joshua realized what she intended. "No! Mokou, wait!"
It was too late. Mokou hurled the knife. It sailed straight and true to embed itself right in Juniper's forehead, neatly between her eyes.
Juniper's whole body jerked and she let out a small squeak. Then, as bright red blood ran down her nose, her whole body started to convulse.
As Joshua stared in horror, Mokou lowered her foot. Juniper stayed where she was, shaking and writhing as black steam rose up from where the knife was stuck. Foamy spittle bubbled up from her mouth to drip down her chin.
Then she slumped lifelessly, and her body began to dissolve.
Orangish vapor billowed into the air to disappear, and when it had all dissipated, nothing was left of Juniper Spice, no evidence of what had happened to her save for the knife itself, which was still partially embedded in the trunk of the tree.
"You killed her," Joshua said in disbelief.
Mokou calmly grabbed the knife's handle and yanked it out. "Uh, yeah? She was trying to kill us. Hell, she probably had been stalking you for some time. If I hadn't come along she would've gotten you."
"But…"
"Relax, Josh. She's a youkai. Getting smoked like that is part of their everyday life. Give it a few minutes, and she'll come right back with a bad mood and a healthy amount of respect."
"You…Wait, are you sure?"
Sighing, Mokou tossed the knife into the dirt in front of Joshua. "Yes, Josh. I'm sure. I've killed her before. For fuck's sake, you've been in Gensokyo how long? This is basic youkai stuff."
"Oh." Despite having lived in Gensokyo for many years, there were still some aspects of it that he had trouble wrapping his head around. He picked up the knife and stood up.
Mokou looked around and sighed. "You're really set on saving the kids, aren't you?"
Joshua slid the knife back into its sheath. Then he looked up into Mokou's eyes. "Yes," he said. "I am."
"Fuck," Mokou muttered. "If I send you back you'll just get snapped up. Gods only know how you made it this far." She shook her head and sighed. "Fine, fine. Tag along if you must, but stay out of my way, don't slow me down, don't do anything stupid, and as much as I like you, if it comes down to either saving you or saving the kids, I'll be sure to say something nice at your funeral. Got it?"
Harsh, but completely fair. "I understand."
"Fine." Mokou turned and headed off. "Keep up, then. Rumia and Kohta went off on their own to search as well, so we have to find them too."
Joshua stumbled. "Wait, they did what?"
"You heard me! Now shut up and keep up!"
…
"Okay," Kohta panted as he leaned up against a tree. "I think…I think we lost him."
The effort of trying to catch her breath had bent Rumia down over her knees. "You think?" she got out between gasps.
"Well…he hasn't…caught us…has he?"
"Maybe…maybe he's…in the trees…and…" Something tickled Rumia's ear. "Stop touching me!"
"I'm not."
"Then…what was…"
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
The two children froze.
Crunch. Crunch. Rip. Snap.
"Is that it?" Rumia whispered. "Is it coming?"
"I don't…it doesn't really sound like footsteps." Kohta tried to straighten up, but then suddenly jerked back. "Hey!"
"Huh?"
"I'm stuck! Something's sticking to me!"
Something tickled Rumia's ear again. She slapped it away.
Her hand was suddenly filled with several silky, sticky strands.
"Uh…" She pulled it away from her head. In her hand was something thinner than paper and glistening white.
She then slowly looked up to where Kohta was still trying to free himself from the trunk of the tree. The tree was covered with the stuff, like a paper sheathe.
"Kohta, stop," Rumia whispered.
"What?"
"Look…up."
Catching her tone, Kohta swallowed and obeyed.
The entire forest around them was draped with what looked like a silk net. It covered the tree trunks, it was laid across the tree branches, it was even laid across the forest floor in places. Here and there things that looked like giant moth cocoons hung from the branches. One or two of them were twitching. Most of them were not.
Rumia felt the blood drain from her face. Those were no cocoons.
"Webs," Kohta said hoarsely. "Spiderwebs."
Crunch. Munch. Slurp.
The two children exchanged one brief look. Then Rumia hastily ripped the web from her fingers and seized Kohta's arm with both hands and yanked with all her might, ripping him free from the trunk.
"We need to-" Kohta started to say.
Crunch.
Something had broken under Rumia's feet. The two of them looked down.
A half-buried Human skull grinned up at them, webs draped over it like a burial shroud. Rumia's foot had landed right onto its right eye socket, caving it in.
"Ah!" Rumia was about to run again, but then Kohta's hands clamped down on her bicep.
"No!" he hissed. "Get a grip! You start running and screaming again, and the spiders will hear us!"
Every instinct in Rumia was screaming for her to completely disregard Kohta's point and run as fast as she could while screaming as loud as possible.
But she had done that twice already. And each time it had just sent her into an even scarier situation. So she bit back on the screams she felt rising and slowly removed her foot from within the skull.
Then they turned in the direction of the sounds. Up ahead was a ring of web-covered trees, and within seemed to be a small clearing.
The sounds were coming from the clearing, and between the web-covered trees she could see movement.
Rumia and Kohta exchanged a glance. Then, gripping tightly to each other's hands, they crept toward the clearing, careful to avoid the webbing on the ground and anything that might be another pile of remains.
The clearing was playing host to a ghastly scene. The whole place was draped with webs, and weirdly enough there was furniture scattered about. Rumia saw a bookshelf filled with what looked like odd trinkets and weird bones; a hat stand holding a top hat, a bonnet, a straw hat, and a weird thing that looked like a stripy inverted funnel; a grandfather clock; a few easy chairs; a cabinet holding chipped tea cups; and four beds. Strapped to four of the trees along the perimeter was a child, each of their bodies partially wrapped up like decaying mummies. Rumia's heart skipped a beat. Keine was among them, her face pale and her body limp. Rumia couldn't tell if she was breathing or not.
Fastened to another tree was Kana, who for once was silent. And next to her was Haruko, and next to Haruko was Hayate.
Unlike the others, Haruko was wide awake and staring. Her mouth was gagged with webs to keep her from screaming, but judging by the look in her eyes she would if she could. She was staring at what was happening in the center of the clearing.
There, the four spider youkai that had attacked the Children's Home were gathered. Now that Rumia saw them up close, they seemed even more monstrous than they had when viewed at a distance in the bright sunlight. They seemed to be the kin of that slender thing in the woods, with limbs that were twisted, elongated, and malformed, with twice as many joints than they ought to have. Their necks were longer than they had any right to be, and their grey hair almost looked like spiderwebs themselves. Two of them were wearing torn and filthy dresses, one that once had been white with blue stripes and the other a color that might have been orange once. Another had on a long, red coat over a shredded black shirt and a black skirt. The one male had on the remains of what had once been black slacks, a black vest hanging unbuttoned over a filthy white shirt, and a grey tie hanging loosely around his neck like a noose.
All four of them were paying little attention to their ensnared captives. They were crouching on their haunches around a dinner table, tearing at something with their hands and mouths. Rumia couldn't make out what it was, but she caught glimpses of something red. One of the spider-youkai raised its head. Blood was running down its gaunt face, and there was something white and stringy hanging from its mouth. It gulped it down and ducked its head back down again.
Then a human arm flopped out of the cluster. It was wearing a grey sleeve, and a pale hand hung limply at its end. Blood ran down the fingers to drip to the ground.
Rumia's hand went to her mouth. By process of elimination there really was only one person that could be.
Eiko.
"Oh my gods," Kohta whispered, so low that even Rumia barely heard him. "Oh my gods, oh my gods, oh my gods."
As for Rumia, she didn't have the stomach even for whispered curses. Sour nausea twisted up her gut, and she was able to keep from retching only by constantly reminding herself that the spiders would hear the noise and eat them as well.
The two of them had never liked Eiko. She had been whiny and nosy and pretty mean most of the time, always doing whatever Haruko had told her to do, always butting into their business and helping push around the smaller kids.
But sweet spirits, nobody had ever, even in their darkest, most private fantasies, wished something like that upon her!
If there was one blessing that could be gleaned by the whole terrible scene, it was that the four spider-youkai were so absorbed with feasting on poor Eiko's remains that they were paying no attention to either their remaining captives or the two invaders that had trespassed on their nest.
It was time.
Rumia knelt down to spit out the wad of saliva her nausea had produced and swallowed back as much of the sick feeling as she could. Then she tugged on Kohta's sleeve and angled her head toward where the other kids were being held.
Kohta's eyes went wide and he emphatically shook his head.
Baring her teeth, Rumia pointed to where Keine was hanging. Then she pointed at the gruesome feast.
Kohta's face twisted up as the impulse to flee joined forces with the sheer terror surging through him and waged war on his desire to save his friends. In the end the latter won out, and he let out a small sigh through his nostrils and nodded.
The two of them crept around the clearing, careful not to step on anything too loud, especially careful not to keep glancing over at what the spiders were doing, but it was difficult.
Fortunately, the other kids weren't fully cocooned like the other bodies they had seen. They only had a couple silk restraints splattered onto their wrists and calves, pinning them to the tree trunks. Webs were also smeared over their mouths as gags, though the spiders had left their eyes free, probably to make them watch.
The first that they reached was Hayate, unfortunately. Rumia and Kohta produced the knives they had brought along and went to work. The webs were strong enough to keep her from tearing away on her own strength, but they parted like grass beneath the steel blades. The enchantments were working.
Hayate seemed to have passed out, but after they managed to free one leg and one hand she began to stir. She didn't look at all well though. Even with the tremendous scare of what she had been through, her skin felt cold and clammy. Even in the pale moonlight Rumia could see dark veins on her arms and around her neck.
As they worked to bring her down, Rumia glanced at the other kids. Haruko, the only one still awake, had noticed them. She was staring with wide eyes, her hands twitching beneath the webs. She glanced quickly at what the spiders were doing to her friend and then back at them, silently begging them to hurry.
As Rumia and Kohta lowered Hayate to the ground, she started to come around. Rumia started to cut away the gag, but then Kohta covered her hand and shook his head. For a moment Rumia was confused, but then she understood. Hayate was going to be confused and scared when she woke up, and if she screamed, that was it for all of them.
Sure enough, Hayate opened her eyes moments later. She blinked groggily and squinted up at them. She frowned in bewilderment, as if she had no memory of where she was or why she was there.
But then enough pieces apparently pieced themselves together in her mind and her eyes suddenly bulged out.
"Shhh!" Rumia slapped a hand over Hayate's gagged mouth to prevent any sound from escaping. "Quiet!" she hissed into the terrified girl's ear. "We're here to save you, but you have to be quiet!"
Hayate was trembling violently, but she managed a slight nod.
Hoping that she would keep her word, Rumia and Kohta then turned their attention to the next bound captive, which thankfully was Keine.
Keine also had weird veiny blotches on her skin, but she started stirring more quickly when Rumia and Kohta touched her. They hastily cut the sticky strands away and brought her down to the ground.
"Keine!" Kohta whispered. "Can you hear me?"
Keine sleepily blinked her eyes. She moaned beneath her gag.
"Shhh!" Kohta put his face right in front of hers so that she would be able to read his lips. Don't say anything. Youkai are near. Stay still and quiet.
Keine blinked. Then she stiffened as the memories caught up with her. She glanced at him and Rumia and nodded as well. However, she did sit up and throw her arms around the two of them, and they did the same. Though she was still tense with fear and revulsion, Rumia finally felt a small bit of hope. They had gotten Keine back. They weren't out of the woods yet, but they at least had her.
Keine, at least, could be trusted. She angled her head to one side and let her friends cut away her gag. Once it was out of the way she started clawing at her mouth and silently gagged as she tried to get rid of any remaining strands. One particularly large wad made her shiver with disgust.
Rumia caught sight of Hayate staring at them. Once she had Rumia's eye, the other girl pointed at the wad of silk covering her mouth. Rumia shook her head. Hayate blinked, then she scowled and let out an angry snort.
Two down, two to go. And the next was the one that they wanted to save the least. Still, there were some things that even blood feuds were suspended for.
Haruko had been watching the whole time. As they approached, the only two fingers she had free started to rapidly beat against the tree trunk.
"Stop it!" Rumia hissed. "Do you want them to-"
"Oi!"
One of the spiders suddenly turned toward Haruko, his neck curving around like a snake. Rumi and Kohta ducked out of sight.
"Stop makin' dat noise!" the spider growled, his voice thick and gummy. "If yer so impatient, den it'll be yer turn once we're done wit' yer itty-bitty friend 'ere!"
The other spiders laughed, and they all went back to their meal.
Rumia forced herself to release the breath she had been holding. Her heart was still pounding away like a war drum though.
Baring her teeth, she set back to work, cutting away at Haruko's left hand and leg while Kohta worked on her right side.
Once she was free, Haruko had no problem with being led behind the tree and out of sight. She immediately threw both arms around Kohta's shoulders and squeezed him tight while she hyperventilated.
Rumia's right eye twitched, but she did nothing.
Kohta winced but tolerated it, though Rumia suspected that was more due to no wanting to risk attracting attention than respecting Haruko's feelings.
"Okay, okay," Kohta muttered with an awkward pat on the bat. "Um, you gotta let go. Seriously. I need to go help Kana. Let go, please."
Rumia rolled her eyes. Then she saw that Hayate was up on her knees and was slowly crawling toward Haruko, her hands outstretched and tears pouring from her eyes.
That should work. Rumia took her by the elbow and helped her come in closer. Then she jostled Haruko's shoulder to get her attention. Once Haruko saw that Hayate was near, she immediately abandoned Kohta to seize her remaining friend in another squeezing embrace, and unlike Kohta, Hayate was more than happy to reciprocate.
Kohta shook his head and sighed. Then he caught the look Rumia was shooting him.
What? he mouthed.
Rolling her eyes, Rumia just went over to where Kana was hanging.
The weird girl looked like she was the worst off. The dark veins were more pronounced on her skin, and she was sweating profusely. What was more, she didn't stir at all when Rumia and Kohta started working to free her.
Rumia swallowed. She prayed to whatever meager gods that would hear her that Kana was still alive and kept cutting.
The girl barely seemed to weigh a thing as they took her to the others and laid her down. Keine, who seemed to have shaken off whatever the spiders had done to her quicker than the still tearfully embracing Haruko and Hayate, knelt down at Kana's side. She leaned over to place her ear against Kana's chest while holding a finger under her nose. Rumia held her breath as she waited for the diagnosis.
Keine sat back and nodded. She held up a hand with her index finger and her thumb only a few centimeters apart. Rumia and Kohta understood. Kana was breathing, but only just. They needed to get her back as quickly as possible.
Kohta crouched down and lifted Kana onto his back. He nodded to the others and tilted his head back the way he and Rumia had come. They started to creep away, but then Hayate seized Rumia by the arm. She jabbed a finger at the web still covering her mouth.
Oh, fine. Rumia pulled out her knife and went to work cutting it away. Like the others, Hayate gagged as she spat out all the gunk in her mouth.
"All right," Rumia whispered. "Now let's go!"
Hayate looked at her like she had lost her mind. "No!" she whispered back. "What about Eiko? We can't leave Eiko!"
Rumia felt like she had been kicked in the gut. Oh gods, Hayate had passed out before Eiko had been eaten. She didn't know!
Seeing the way everyone was looking at her, Hayate just stared back in confusion. "What? Why are you guys-"
"Welp, dis one's 'bout done," one of the spiders said suddenly. "Onta da second course!"
"All right, all right, keep yer pants on. Which one?"
"Betta make it da 'ickle blonde bit. She dun't look like she got much left in 'er, so we'd bedda get 'er on da table while she's still fresh."
Oh shit.
"Go, go, go!" Kohta whispered.
The hurried away, with Haruko practically dragging the still-confused Hayate along.
"'ey, da fook?" a spider called out. "Where'd da 'ickle morsels go?"
"Are ya fookin' serious? Dey was jus' dere!"
"Well, dey ain't now!"
"Damn it all. Spread out and search! Dey couldn't 'ave gone far!"
The horrible sound of sharp claws scrambling on the trees filled the air. The children increased their gait.
Then a horribly long arm snaked out of the trees in front of them. It ended in a slender hand with fingers that looked as long as Rumia's forearms, each topped by a pointed nail caked with dirt and drying blood.
The hand planted itself on the ground, the elbow bending at an unnatural angle. Another such arm came into view, the hand grabbing onto a tree trunk.
A gaunt face followed, one with hollow cheeks, a pointed chin, and dark hair that hung around the face like a funeral shroud. The face's eyes were sunken and dark, each with four tiny white pupils that glimmered like candles in the dark. Dark blood still was smeared around its pale lips.
The face swung around on its elongated neck to leer at the children. "Well, well, well, what have we 'ere?" the spider said as she ambled out of the clearing. "A wee 'ickle rescue attempt? 'ey, chaps! C'mere!"
The other spiders ambled their way toward her, one loping his way on the ground while the other two crawled across the trees. "You 'ave got ta' be fookin' kiddin' me," growled the male spider.
"Nah, see? Dey missed deir friends so much dat dey come 'ere ta' try ta' save 'em! Ain't dey precious?"
"Precious 'ickle dumplin's," growled another. "So kind dey are. Now we 'ave enuff fer breakfast an' dinner tummarah!"
Rumia couldn't move. Fear had frozen her feet in place. She couldn't even blink. All she could do was stand stiff and still and stare as the four malformed monsters crawled ever closer.
This is it, she found herself thinking. This is how I die. Ripped apart like my family. And I still couldn't save anyone. What a stupid way to go.
Then some blue and glowing shot through the air to splash against the lead spider's cheek.
The one that had been hit flinched back. She held a claw to the point of impact. "Da fook was…"
Then everyone, spider and child alike, turned to stare at the culprit.
Haruko was standing with one hand outstretched, index and middle fingers pointing out, while she held onto her wrist with the other hand. Every centimeter of her was shaking with fear, but it was clear that she had been the one responsible.
"You can shoot bullets?" Kohta said in disbelief.
Haruko glanced at him and nodded. Then she inhaled sharply and fired another blue projectile.
This one glanced off the spider's shoulder. This time, she looked more annoyed than anything. "Really?" she growled. "Fookin' danmaku? Sorry, chitlins. But youz is playin' a grown-up's game." She lifted a hand, which then began glowing purple. "But if it's a danmaku battle yah be wantin', den Auntie Edna is more than 'appy to play!"
Before Edna could fire off her first round, Kohta let go of one of Kana's legs to thrust his hand into his pocket. When he drew it back out, it was holding onto a small piece of paper.
"Uh, hit the deck!" he screamed as he tossed the paper forward. Then he threw both himself and Kana to the ground and covered his eyes. Everyone else did the same. Even the spiders flinched back in anticipation of the spellcard attack.
Nothing happened.
Rumia looked up. The spellcard was lying on the ground, obviously not activated. The spiders, who had all retreated back and covered their faces, were now lowering their arms and glancing at one another.
"Huh," the male said. Then the four of them leered back down at the children. "Well den."
"You idiot!" Hayate screamed. "You have to say the spellcard's name!"
"Huh? Oh, right!" Kohta snatched the card back up and thrust it forward again as the spiders resumed their advance. "Phoenix Sign: Magnificent Inferno!"
And then the forest erupted with light.
