“Not funny. I told you I don’t like spiders.”
A guard kicked out with a boot and spun around, checking the ground nearby him.
Another guard asked, “What’s up with you?”
“Damn red spiders. Watch your pecker.”
“Huh?” The first said.
“Jumping spiders go for warm and damp places. Get in your pants or armpits. Woods around here are full of them, they say.”
“I heard they’re so small you hardly see them,” another guard broke in.
Gareth spoke up. “I’ve never actually seen one. That’s how small they are.”
The guard who had kicked out with a boot to start the conversation said, “If they bite you on the pecker they say you never have kids.”
Gareth closed his eyes to grab a few moments of sleep before dawn and felt hope rise. If the guards were any indication of the general fear, the plan might work. Then he opened his eyes long enough to ensure there were no spiders near him.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
The changing of the guards woke Gareth an hour after dawn. All six surrounding him were relieved by new sentries. The replacements looked tired, uniforms disheveled, hair uncombed.
*They were too busy looking for red spiders to sleep.*
“Good morning to you, too.”
*I’ve been too busy to sleep. The River John lies to your west. Close enough you can run to it without taking a break if you’re running for your life. Beside the river is a fishing village with boats and canoes pulled on the shore. The people living there are leaving because of the red spider invasion last night. Most have already departed for the homes of family or friends. I’m working on clearing out the rest.*
“I still have to get from here to there.”
*Listen to me, carefully. That village beside the river is infested with jumping red spiders. They may even be coming from the water, who knows? They’re leaving the water and heading inland, a mass of spiders so thick the ground looks red. They are heading directly to your camp!*
“No, I don’t like this at all.”
The voice grew louder in Gareth’s mind. *Close to the river the ground is covered with so many red spiders it moves like a blanket. Red. They’re crawling everywhere.*
“Just thinking about them makes me squirm and want to run to the mountains.”
*Good! You’re doing good, Gareth. Your mind is spewing fear and loathing, more than I ever could have imagined. The entire area between you and the river is nearly evacuated. I cannot see a single soldier out that way. However, we still have to make your guards shift their attention, as well as putting the rest of the arm in disarray. Now listen. It just takes one spider bite to give you a fever and a bite swells like a boil. They go for the face when you sleep or lie down.*
“Sleep? Who can sleep with the nightmares you’re creating?”
*The Field Lieutenant is planning to move you shortly, take you to the king despite Tom’s stalling. We do not have the luxury of allowing our plan to build over time, today, so we go sooner. Think about spiders and how you fear them.*
“I am. Nothing else is on my mind.”
*Look at your guards and tell me what you see.*
“They look scared. A couple of them are talking. One is pointing west. Where the fishing village is.”
*Time for our final assault. Cinder is ready to fly, but first, you need to call Blackie and have him near you. Be ready to run. We have no time to waste.*
Gareth located the dragon with his mind and ordered him to come stand next to him. The six guards looked each other, none noticing the dragon slipping past them. “Ok, he’s here with me.”
*You have the overall plan, but now we really mix things up. I need your complete attention because this is new information to you and I want it broadcast to every soldier in that forest. Red jumping spiders attack dragons and drive them crazy. The dragons are in so much pain they take to the skies, shrieking and spitting, and they attack anything they see. So many spiders attack dragons that their skin turns red, but spiders also fall off as the dragon flies. Enough spiders fall that it looks like smoke.*
Gareth stood, his imagination full of spiders floating down from the sky.
A shriek split the air. Then another, longer and louder.
All eyes turned up to the sky, including those of his guards.
A massive black dragon swooped and spun in the air, screaming and shrieking as if mad. It flew between the camp and the river, and then it rose so high it looked like a toy before spiraling down. It fell, wings barely moving before recovering and flying so low it seemed a man could reach up and touch it.
*See the red coloring on it?*
Gareth looked.
*You have to see it, Gareth! See it in your mind. Spiders are falling by the thousands.*
“Run,” Gareth shouted, not trying to hide his fear at all.
Three of his guards glanced at each other, and broke into sprints, in three directions. A fourth joined them when Cinder swooped over again. Gareth spared a glance at the nearby campsites. Men were running everywhere. Some shouted. All watched the sky, and the mad dragon twisting and turning, shrieking as it did.
A guard tore his shirt off and inspected his chest before running.
Most ran away from the river.
Cinder looped and flew low over the ground between the camp and river one more time.
More men ran away from Cinder and the river, all heading for the nearby hills. The dragon screamed as if mortally wounded. The few men not running away broke and headed inland. Cinder made another pass, flying directly at Gareth, black spit spewing a wide swath of death to plants, or anything else. The last two guards with Gareth disappeared into the depths of the forest.
*The river, Gareth. Run for the river and get yourself a boat and paddle for your life. I am asking you for permission to block emissions from your mind so none can follow or track you.*
“You have it!” Gareth scooped up Blackie in the crook of his arm and ran. He encountered no soldiers and saw only a two in the distance fleeing inland. In a few steps, he left the trees and brushed aside undergrowth in a wild race to freedom. He stumbled onto a trail and turned slightly to follow it so he could run faster.
The dragon in his arms wrapped his tail around Gareth’s forearm and tucked his head between his arm and chest, holding on with claws that pierced skin. Gareth ignored the pain of the claws and lengthened his stride. He glanced over his shoulder and found no pursuit.
Cinder swooped back into sight. It made a low pass behind Gareth, spewing a steady stream of black acid along the ground parallel to the river. Grass and trees withered and died wherever the black touched. The smells of hell rose to singe noses. No soldiers would be following Gareth through that. The dragon flew on before turning and making another pass, closer to the river.
“Hey, don’t let Cinder get too close!”
*You just concentrate on your escape. That ‘friend’ of yours called Tom is rallying forces to follow you. He has a dozen armed men coming after you, but Cinder will slow them down.*