The Spider

I'd like to say a word of thanks to M, not only for the excellent- and well needed- editing, but also for all the years of friendship and love. It means more to me than I'm going to be able to express on a story about superheroine mind control forced sex scenarios, so you are just going to have to take my word for it. Thanks, M.

*****

John lay back on the guest bed, his hands folded behind his head, looking up at the ceiling, his eyes glazed and focused on nothing.

"I wonder if it will be a boy or a girl," he said absentmindedly for about the hundredth time.

Amanda was sitting on the edge of the bed, brushing her long blond hair.

"I don't know, honey," she told him again. "We'll have to wait and see."

"I mean, either would be great," he said.

"I know. You mentioned."

"Man."

"Right," she said, putting the brush down on the nightstand. She turned the light off with a click. "You need to get to sleep, dad-to-be. You are going to be needing all the sleep you can get in about eight months or so."

She kissed his cheek and curled up next to him. He reached an arm around her, pulling her close.

"I love you," he whispered in the dark. "I want it all. I want all the future with you."

"I know," she told him. "We're going to get it."

"Man," he said. "Just imagine how beautiful she'll be. If she's a girl. Right?"

"You need to go to sleep, honey. Big day tomorrow."

"Man," he said again, closing his eyes.

But he didn't sleep, not for a while. When he finally did, though, his dreams were filled with sunshine, and laughter, soft footsteps on freshly mown grass as green as deep summer can make grass be.

It was the kind of dream that men live for, the kind of dream that no one ever wants to wake up from. The kind of dream that should last forever.

It didn't, though. When he woke up, he woke up in the dark, confused. Amanda was shaking him awake, her eyes wide with fear.

"Something's coming," she told him. "Something evil.

Dangerous—

whatever is coming, it's coming to kill us. Wake up, John! It'll be here soon. We have to

go."

He blinked in the dark, a million miles away from the sunshine of his dream.

"Now!" she yelled.

His feet hit the soft carpet by the bed.

******************************

The two of them slipped into Heather's bedroom. Amanda shook Heather awake, putting a soft finger to the sleeping woman's lips.

"Shh," she whispered. "We have to get out of here. Something is coming."

Heather bolted upright.

"Are there any weapons here?" John asked her.

"Uh," Heather shook her head in the dark. "Yeah. Yeah. Anna has a safe, she's got a bunch of stuff in there. Shit she uses as the Spider. I don't know all of what is in there. It won't do us any good, though. I don't know the combination to it or anything."

"I'll take care of that," Amanda said simply. "I'll get it open."

John and Heather looked at her.

"Let's go!" Amanda snapped. "Take me to the safe. I'll get it open. We need to

move

, people!"

******************************

"See?" Heather said, pulling on the safe's handle. "Rock solid."

Amanda pushed past her and put her hand on the dial. She narrowed her eyes.

In the dark, her eyes began to glow a brilliant white. The room was illuminated from the glow, and she began to spin the dial.

The safe cracked open.

"Holy shit," Heather said.

Amanda opened the safe.

"What

is

all this stuff," Heather asked. She reached in and pulled out a pistol. "I know what

this

is, at least." She stepped to the side, inserting a clip into the weapon.

"We have to go," Amanda whispered.

John looked in the safe.

"She's got everything in here," he whispered. He pulled a padded vest out, turning to Amanda. "Here's what I guess is a bulletproof vest—maybe you should put this on?"

Amanda shook her head. "I don't need that. There's no time for that, anyway. We have to

go."

"I don't know what all this stuff even

is,"

he went on, not hearing her. "I never used this stuff—I mean, I was in IT before I took the company over and took all the money they stole back. I never was in the military or anything."

He reached inside and pulled out a small oblong object. "Is this a fucking

grenade?"

"Why don't you put it back if you don't know what it is, honey?" Amanda asked him. "Anyway, grab what you all think you need, but the best thing we can do is just not

be

here when whatever is coming gets here. Right?"

Just then they heard a crash from the living room, a muffled scream.

"Let's go," Heather said. She ran down the hallway.

John and Amanda followed.

******************************

The Hawk landed gently on the thick living room carpet and looked around in the dark. She saw a stylish and sparsely outfitted condominium. A couch, a television, a coffee table.

Glinting in the moonlight were bottles. She took one of the bottles from the table, smelled it. Beer. Almost full.

She began to gulp it down, taking in her surroundings.

Across the dark living room was a glass sliding door.

Beyond that glass was a dark night sky. Sky as big as anything she could have dreamed of.

She stretched her wings unconsciously.

Sky big enough to get lost in. Wherever she was, she could make her way to where no one would find her ever again, where there were no monsters, no spiders, no evil that would enslave her. She could be free, she could leave her wings behind once she landed safely, wherever she landed. She could take her wings off. No one would ever know she was the Hawk.

Invisible.

She made her way towards the sliding door.

Free.

She caught her foot on the leg of the coffee table and fell into it, knocking the empty beer bottles over. One rolled onto the carpet as she picked herself up, rubbing her shin.

"Fuck," she hissed in the dark.

"Fuck."

She made her way quietly to the sliding door, slipped the latch up, heard it click. She began to slide the door open quietly.

Free.

Then the light clicked on behind her, flooding the room. The Hawk spun around, blinking in the bright and unexpected light.

When she cleared her eyes, she looked into the flat and emotionless eyes of a tall woman. A woman who was holding a pistol pointed directly at her chest.

"Who the fuck are you, and what are you doing in my living room," Heather said flatly.

The Hawk raised her hands into the air.

"Please let me go," she whispered.

"I'll ask you once again," Heather said evenly. "Who are you, and why are you here? Move away from the door—that's it. Don't make me shoot you. That's it."

"Something terrible is coming. We're all going to die here."

"Don't make me say it again! What are you

doing

here? How did you fucking

get

here?"

John pulled Amanda close and whispered in her ear. "Is this woman what you were scared of? Is this what woke you up?"

Amanda shook her head no.

Heather's hand shook slightly as she glared at the Hawk. She had never shot at anyone before.

The Hawk broke open with a sob.

"It's here," she whispered. "Oh God. It's here."

She pointed her finger across the living room, over to where the kitchen and the front door met. The wall turned translucent, then opaque with clouds.

Red eyes burned from inside the clouds. A low hissing came from the window, a growl.

The Red Eyes stepped from inside the cloud into the room, its back to the door.

The only door.

Its long tongue snaked out, tasting the air. It looked around the room, sniffing.

It saw the people. Its eyes narrowed into red slits, its tail lashed back and forth, black liquid dripping from the sharp spike at the end of it. Its lips curled back in anticipation, revealing razor sharp teeth.

The Red Eyes lurched forward with a hiss.

Without a word, Heather stepped forward, firing the pistol. One shot, two shots, a third shot.

The creature stepped forward, unfazed. If she'd hit it, it didn't matter in the slightest to the beast.

"You're wasting your time," Amanda said, pushing Heather out of the way. She looked the creature in the eye and squared her feet. Amanda took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

She stretched her hand out.

White light burst from Amanda's eyes and arcs of the white power streaked from her hand, looking like so much lightning. The lightning coursed across the length of the room, exploding into the creature, knocking it back with incredible force.

The animal smashed into the wall and collapsed. The Red Eyes lay in a heap in the dust of broken drywall and plaster.

Amanda's eyes fluttered. Her knees buckled and she collapsed onto the carpet, hitting her head on the coffee table.

John rushed to her side. Her eyes were half open, rolled back into her head. Her breath was jagged and low.

"Oh my God—"

"Get out of the way," Heather demanded, pushing John away from Amanda. "I'm a nurse. I'll take care of her. You keep an eye on the rest."

She handed him the pistol and knelt by the semi-conscious woman, checking Amanda's neck for a pulse. Erratic. Whatever Amanda had just done, it took a lot out of her.

John stood up, surveying the room. The creature's tail lashed slowly. It was only stunned. They needed to get out of here. It wouldn't be out for long.

He turned to the window and saw the Hawk sliding the door open, trying to be quiet.

"Stop."

She turned and saw him holding the pistol at her.

"Where are you going," he demanded.

"I'm not part of this. I need to get out of here. I'm sorry—"

"No," he said, stepping closer. "You take one more step and I'll shoot you."

"Please," the Hawk begged him.

"Those wings—you can fly?" he demanded.

"What?"

"Can you fly?"

"Yes—"

"Then take these two down to safety. Can you do that?"

"I need to get

out

of here!"

"Can you

do

that?"

Heather slapped Amanda's face lightly and whispered to her.

The Red Eye's tail lashed, cracking into the wall. The creature began to stir and pull itself up, but it was groggy from the attack.

John shook the Hawk.

"Can you get them to safety? Can you take them down to the ground?"

"No!" she cried. "It'll catch me! Those things are faster at flying than I am—even

if

I wasn't carrying two people! It'll catch me in the sky and rip me apart!"

She sobbed. "Please let me go! I don't want to be here!"

John narrowed his eyes and slapped the costumed woman. He grabbed her by her arms.

"Look at me," he growled. She lifted up her head to face him.

He began to push into her with his mind.

Her eyes flew open as she felt the intrusion.

"No," she whispered, her mouth open wide. "What are you doing to me?"

John bit his lip. He pushed in harder, faster than he'd ever opened anyone up before. He was vicious, and harsh, ripping past her mental defenses with a madness that he'd never used with anyone before, hurting her, breaking her.

"Take them down to the ground," he whispered.

The Hawk's mouth tried to form the word no.

The Red Eyes got to its feet, letting out a scream of anger and hate.

"John," Heather said. She pulled Amanda to her feet. Amanda was rubbing her head, her eyes unfocused. "John."

"Take them down to the ground," John whispered again.

"Now."

"Take them," the Hawk repeated after him, her eyes glazed, mouth slack.

John pushed her towards Heather and Amanda. The Hawk grabbed the women.

"Come," she said, pulling the barely conscious Amanda and Heather towards the sliding door. She opened it up and inhaled the night air. It smelled cool and fresh, like freedom. The Hawk pushed the women out the door.

"John?" Amanda whispered, shaking her head clear.

John pointed the pistol at the Red Eyes. The creature was shaking its head, clearing its mind from Amanda's attack. It began to focus its eyes on the man standing in front of it.

John fired another useless shot.

"Go," he said. "Go!"

The Hawk pushed the women outside.

John slid the door shut, useless glass. It wouldn't stop the creature for a split second.

The Hawk gathered Amanda and Heather up in her arms, turning to face the night.

Amanda looked back at John.

"John?" she yelled. She could barely see him through the glass.

"I wanted all the future with you," he said, his hand on the pane. "I wanted it all. Never forget that."

"No," Amanda whispered. "No."

The Hawk gathered up Amanda and Heather quickly, before Amanda could resist, and leapt with the two women off the balcony and into the cold night.

John removed his hand from the window pane and turned to face the Red Eyes.

"Fuck you," he whispered.

The Red Eyes crawled towards him, letting out an inhuman shriek. Its tail lashed back and forth violently, black poison dripping from its barbed tip.

John fired one last shot. Useless. He threw the pistol away.

The creature lashed out with its tail, almost faster than John could see. It caught John in his belly, puncturing right through him. John grabbed at the tail, pulling futilely at it as the creature lifted him up in the air. He felt his lips going numb and knew the venom was working on him already.

The Red Eyes shrieked as it pulled him in, opening its mouth, revealing a row of razor sharp teeth, ready to rip his head off, and drink his blood and soul.

John reached in his pocket and pulled out what he hoped was a grenade.

He pulled the pin.

"God damn you," he whispered. "You don't know what you've taken from me."

The creature screamed again, pulling John's body towards its maw, drooling in anticipation at ripping him apart.

The explosion blew out the windows, pouring shards of glistening glass down like rain, falling into the empty street below.