The Spider's Price
by A.J Wardens
Galla Fehler always loved spiders. Where everyone else saw creepy, beady little eyes, she saw them as round and adorable. Where they saw large, spindly legs, she saw fuzzy appendages that weaved beautiful webs.
Galla often returned these arachnids outside when they got stuck in her small home. With a kind smile, she would wave to them and say, "Today, when given a chance, I saved you. Tomorrow, if given the chance, you'll save me."
When she was little, there would be a huge ceremony held. Her stuffed animals would cheer as the spider rushed into the grass of her backyard. Her more sentimental toys would shed tears as she repeated the sacred vow.
Over the years, the ceremony became less extravagant, and fewer spectacles would join. Soon the only one to witness her release of the house spiders was a potted fern that desperately needed water.
One night, she placed a spider on the ground and waved at it, whispering, "Today you, tomorrow me." Her yawn echoed through the yard as she stretched her arms to the sky. It was late, and her bed called for her to curl under the blankets and sleep.
Galla turned toward her home, the place where she was safest, and slid open her back door. She glimpsed a shadow's fast-approaching reflection in the glass, setting fire to her movements. She rushed inside.
"No!" Galla yelled to keep her heart from leaping into her throat. The carpet bit into her feet as she turned to slide the door shut behind her.
The shadow was too quick, forming into a masked villain. He stabbed the sharp knife through the air and jammed it between the glass and the door frame. It clattered to the ground as he pushed the door open. Before she could scream, he had a hand over her mouth and a gun pressed into her temple.
The cold from the metal seeped into her clammy skin and sent shivers down her spine. Ice gripped her heart and lungs. She couldn't breathe with his sweaty hand covering her nose and mouth.
"Shh," his breath smelt flammable. "Scream, you're dead. Move without permission; you're dead. Impede in any way, and you are dead." The man removed his hand from her face and pressed his pointer finger against his stubbled lips. Once he was sure she wouldn't scream, he nodded. "Give me anything of value, and I'll leave."
Her throat was too tight. The words stuck in her windpipes, but once they found her lips, they spilled forward, "I-I believe it was W-Will Ferrel who said, 'before marrying someone, you should have them use a really slow computer. That way, you can see who they truly are.'"
The man stared at the shaking woman in shock. "What?"
"...He was probably talking dial-up slow, you know?"
"What was that?" asked the robber.
"Valuable knowledge?"
"I can't sell 'valuable knowledge' in a pawn shop!"
"I-I mean, you could if you wrote it down in a book?"
"It's already copyrighted!" the man yelled. He started to pace back and forth.
Galla found her opening and dashed for the stairs. She ran into her bedroom and slammed the door in the robber's face. Galla sprinted to the other side of the bed to distance herself from the door. It flung open with a bang. The handle smashed through her wall, leaving a hole in the plaster.
The man raised his gun.
Her heart drummed in her chest. There was so much she wanted to do, so much she wanted to see.
He pulled back the hammer.
What was everyone going to think? The house was a mess. She hadn't done her dishes, and her clothes were everywhere. The crime scene investigators would be so disappointed in her.
"You just had to get smart with me," his voice cut through her racing thoughts. "I didn't want to kill you, but here we-"
A spider landed on his exposed arm, cutting off his evil words. It waved its fuzzy little pedipalps in the air while its mandibles bobbled up and down. If the little spider had eyebrows, one for each of its many eyes, they would be furrowed and angry.
The robber flicked the spider away and turned his attention back to Galla. "As I was saying," he raised his gun towards her again, only to have another spider land on the weapon's sights.
This one hiked up its abdomen and wiggled it in the air as if there weren't a care in the world. It stretched its front legs out in front of him. The spider launched through the air and landed on the robber's exposed lips. With as much grace and charm as a horrible kisser, the spider sunk its chelicerae into the soft flesh.
The robber released a high-pitched scream. He held onto his lips and jumped around in circles. Thousands of spiders poured from cracks and crevices in the ceilings and floors. They covered the man as he wildly flapped about. He dropped his gun to get more coverage for his slaps.
Galla shook the surprise from her mind. She grabbed the gun and held it up. "Mr. Robber, I think you should leave. The spiders have spoken, and you have been found unworthy."
The man ran out of the room. He rolled down her steps after missing the first one. He jumped to his feet and threw the sliding glass door open. The spiders all gave him a fair well bite before jumping off. The man disappeared into the night as quickly as he had come.
Galla leaned on the door. She smiled as the thousands upon thousands of spiders skittered back up to her.
"Today, you saved me; tomorrow, I'll save you," she said. "I have fly traps filled to the brim with flies for you and ice cream for me. Come friends, let's celebrate life, no matter how small."
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