The Spider Queen

"When our land disappeared, our rivers began to dry and the grass beneath our feet slowly withered away.

Our people were trapped in a dying world.

Everyday the food and resources would become less and less.

The fragile truce between the neighbouring tribes vanished almost overnight.

Refugees were expelled and the large tribes fought one another for control over the dwindling resources.

War once again raged through the land but this time it was different.

We all expected to die, and it was only a question of when.

It seemed that the gods were too busy to answer our prayers and for the first time….

Some of the younger generations questioned if the gods ever existed.

I joined my fellow tribesmen on the frontline and fought a three-month war for control over the largest lake on the grassland.

The war only lasted for three months because the warring tribes and factions who opposed us slowly vanished.

At first the elders of the tribe assumed that infighting had thinned their ranks but soon members of our own group would disappear mysteriously.

An atmosphere of panic erupted and no matter how the elders tried to restore some semblance of calm, it seemed that their influence was no longer as strong as before.

I don't blame my fellow tribesmen.

Imagine the fear you would feel if you fell asleep next to your mate only to wake up the next morning to an empty nest.

You frantically call and search every inch of the surrounding area, but it was as though your loved one had vanished into thin air or never even existed.

The following night you close your eyes not knowing if you would be the next to disappear.

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Coincidently with every disappearance it was observed that the loss of land would accelerate.

There was clearly a link, but no one knew what to do.

Neither science nor magic nor divinity could provide the answers we so desperately sought.

Finally, after the grassland had shrunk to the point where only the lake remained, the young of our tribe started to have strange and frightening visions.

Children swore that a dark-skinned creature with eight heads and ten eyes would visit them in the night to bring them presents and gifts.

These gifts were the body parts of our people carefully woven and crafted into leather clothes and sickening toys.

Of course, no such relic was ever found when the children opened their eyes, but this was the only clue.

Beyond the lake was nothing more than an endless abyss of darkness. The brave warriors among our people ran into this darkness to try to find an answer.

None ever returned.

The remaining tribesmen were forced to stay in the shallow part of the lake but soon the cold caused many to freeze and hundreds more to drown.

I had always been a strong swimmer but as I saw my fellow tribesmen sink beneath the choppy waves, there was a part of me that simply wanted to give up.

Perhaps we truly were abandoned by the gods.

The last scene I can remember before my body finally gave out was the beautiful night sky filled with twinkling stars."

Khul paused for a moment and tears ran down the sides of his cheek. His green body trembled as he shook with grief.

Sophie reached into her storage bag and pulled out some tissues for the emotional alien to wipe his eyes.

"Here you go," Sophie spoke warmly as she placed the tissues in Khul's knobby hands.

"Thank you chosen one," Khul whimpered as he hurriedly wiped his eyes.

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Sophie waited patiently for the goblin-like alien to regain his composure. While waiting she carefully mulled over every detail of the story.

Clearly the most important point to note was the mysterious eight-headed figure, but Khul had said that the land had started to disappear long before it was active.

Was the creature the cause of the loss of land?

Or was it a symptom?

It was impossible to tell.

The entire story did not make much sense and there were numerous plot holes and suspicious parts.

Any civilisation even war-driven ones would have some degree of progress. To have their technology level remain the same over thousands of years was peculiar.

Furthermore, Khul had stated by the end of his tale that the grasslands were little more than a lake but that was clearly not the case now.

And how had he even survived?

Sophie noted down these points of suspicion and decided to listen to Khul's story with a bit more skepticism.

She always kept in mind that this was another part of the trial.

Khul seemed like a guide or the central person in this stage but who knows if he was a friend or a foe.

"Are you feeling better now?" Sophie asked kindly once Khul had finished rubbing his eyes.

"Yes. I suppose you must be wondering how I survived and what happened to the rest of my tribesmen?" Khul lightly smiled.

"Please," Sophie nodded and gestured with her hand.

Khul sat down on the ground with his wrinkled limbs spread out in an uncomfortable position.

His lizard-like tail flickered from side to side as hesitation appeared on his face.

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"I… I don't know…" he finally admitted.

"I woke up alone with my body aged to the point where our people would have just a few more weeks before we reached the end of our lifespan."

"The grasslands had been partially restored and now I was the only one. Truthfully, it has been years since I have even seen another living creature."

"Despite my aged appearance…. I can no longer die."

Khul's face twisted into a monstrous expression of both bitterness and deep hatred. He slammed his green fist into the ground and bellowed in rage,

"I cannot die!"

"No matter if I do not eat or drink!"

"No matter if I do not sleep!"

"No matter how many times I have tried to kill myself!"

Mad.

Sophie realised the terrible truth as she saw the goblin-like alien thrash around on the ground while scratching his throat with his long fingernails.

Blood dripped down to the ground as Khul pierced his own flesh and ripped out chunks that he held in his palms.

His wounds instantly healed.

Immortality had driven this lonely soul to the depths of madness.

Who knows if his story was true or another delusion?

Sophie even wondered if any part of his story was true.

"Then one day before you entered this world… I received a vision from a being who claimed to be my god," Khul stared at Sophie with an almost religious fervor.

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"He told me that a chosen one would slay the hideous monster that was responsible for my people's demise."

"By defeating the monster…. you can bring my people back to life!"