Zacchaeus can’t believe his eyes. He hasn’t moved from the door, his back is still pressed against it like he hopes he will pass through it. He can’t move, he can only watch the unbelievable and listen to the conversation.
“Monster,” the spider says in the voice of a human man, “that is an interesting choice of words. You are the Needy, who has lurked the darkness for countless millennia with the goal of wiping out all life. That is monstrous…”
“That is purpose,” the inky, black figure responds forcefully with it’s wet voice that seems to bounce around the walls. “I consume in order to realize the natural state of this universe. I work against the growing tide of sentience that is a cancer on the pristine existence that was afforded to the children of the makers of all things. And what are you? A stranger, a trespasser, but your fate will be the same as the humans; I will wipe you from existence.”
The spider laughs as the inky, black figure advances and tendrils of its blackness move with it, poised to strike like snakes. But when the figure attacks the spider to wrap it in its blackness and consume it, it can’t touch the spider.
“Surely you must know that I am not of this planet,” the spider giggles. It is still crouched against the back wall, but it pushes against the Needy as a strange blur that is like a forcefield appears when the spider makes contact with the black form.
“As an arcane being,” the spider continues, “your magic is only calibrated to work on things of your relative spacetime. I have been on this planet for years, but I am from so far away that it will be a while still before my body becomes vulnerable to your magic. Seeing as you were ignorant to this fact, I imagine that you are not so skilled in universal arcana to be able to harm me. That’s my big tunk,” the spider says gleefully. “Now that all cards are on the table, let us make a deal.”
The black form of the Needy is now closer to Zacchaeus as they both watch the spider spread out to stand comfortably. The sight of it makes Zacchaeus’s stomach turn and the worst part of it is its mouth that is exposed to speak to the Needy.
“You underestimate my mastery of arcana, monster,” the Needy says and Zacchaeus can tell that he is bluffing. “But I will deal with you to end this encounter immediately.”
“Very well,” the spider says. “I require your assistance in bringing my family to this planet. As a follower of the Dark Way, of the Fearsome House of Tylak who serves your master, the Omega, I know of your power and of your purpose. I am humbled by this meeting, and Fearsome Tylak will be very pleased with me if I can secure an alliance with you. If we are successful in bringing my family, then the two of you should meet. You would make a powerful ally in your quest to consume life. And the all-mighty, the Omega, will be pleased.”
“I seek only to end this encounter, monster,” the Needy said impatiently. “What can I do for you so that you will leave this place? And be assured that we will meet again. When we do, you will pay for the insult of forcing me to do your bidding. Speak now, or things will become messy.”
Zacchaeus hears confidence as the Needy speaks. Maybe he couldn’t lay inky, black hands on it, but it seemed that the Needy had a plan of action to rid the Canned Heat of the spider that he hoped to avoid, but would not hesitate to use if the spider attacked.
“I know enough to open a portal,” the spider explained, “but I don’t know enough to travel off of Druont. Can you open portals for travel across vast distances?”
“You want me to use my magic to create a portal in tandem with yours? And where will we be unleashing your gruesome family on the Earth?”
“You can’t bring more of them things here!” Zacchaeus yells, despite his fear of the two beings.
“If he doesn’t,” the spider says, “then I will consume you, and I don’t need magic for that. Be quiet, human, consequential beings are talking.”
“Don’t do it,” Zacchaeus says to the Needy and he tries to put a hand on his inky shoulder, but when he touches the black form, Zacchaeus becomes one with it. He watched as his body is wrapped and then he stares up at the spider with confidence. He can feel the protection of the Needy, he can feel it in his mind and he knows everything that he knows, though Zacchaeus can’t be distracted with that now.
“I only want to bring three of my fellow razews,” the spider says. “That, or I will peel your body from that inky mess piece by piece.”
Just do it, Zacchaeus hears the Needy say inside his mind. You can close your portal at any time, and we can find them all and destroy them after we know better how to deal with them. I don’t want to risk your life any longer. Mavis Turner will be upset that I was unprepared for this.
There is a hidden backdoor to Mavis Turner’s backroom, and Zacchaeus leads the spider out as it changes back into the form of the man who had sat across from Zacchaeus when they first sat at the table.
“I will still help you Sublime,” the odd man says. “I am grateful for your help. Don’t assume the worst, my family will be happy to make Earth their home. We don’t want to disturb it. Not too much, anyway.”
Zacchaeus wears an inky, black cloak that gives off black smoke, and his face is obscured by the hood on his head. He moves as the Needy directs as unfamiliar words issue from his mouth. The smoke around him coalesces into a circle.
“A portal of passage to this location,” Zacchaeus says.
The odd man moves his hands and says strange words until the smoke portal is surrounded by a thick, red band that appears to be metallic. It glows like it is extremely hot. The odd man says more strange words, and after a few minutes, three of the spiders, or razews as the odd man had referred to them, emerge through the circle. One is as large as the man had been in his razew form, and the other two are a few feet shorter, though they are all scary-looking beasts.
“Your assistance is most appreciated and I will repay it,” the odd man says as the other spiders seem to turn their bodies inside out to expose their muscle-red inside, that changes color as their form condenses to replicate the body of the odd man. It was strange to see so many copies of the man.
As the four copies of the man walked away, they seemed to disappear before Zacchaeus eyes, but the Needy changed his vision and he was able to see the shapes of them grow long limbs to flee the area quickly.
“What is happening?” Zacchaeus says when the things has gone. “What is you?”
The Need separates from him and stands as a black figure.
“I am your destiny,” the Needy says.
Zacchaeus shakes his head slowly. When he’d been bonded with the Needy, he’d seen his grandmother had done the same thing. She had fed hundreds, maybe thousands, of people to this thing and now the thing wanted him. It wanted to use his face, his skill, his hands to feed a hunger, and it wouldn’t be satisfied until there was no life left in the world.
He couldn’t believe that his grandmother had agreed to help or serve this thing. If she couldn’t resist it, then neither would he, no matter how horrible the reality.
The adventures of Zacchaeus, with the fastest hands on any side of the Mississippi, will continue in Vol. 2 of the PRL Serials!
PRL Serials 