The Only Thing We Have To Fear

Incoherently yoy;rf [sty @$

Natalie listened very carefully in the dark, waiting for her captures to return. Despite her thorough wrappings, she was cold. She shivered, hoping the temperature would rise as soon as someone, anyone, entered the room and felt the inhospitable cold uncommon inside a building with heavy foot traffic or regular employees and turned up the heat, unaware that, beyond her spider silk wrapping, was the second largest industrial freezer she'd find herself in, and the largest she'd been in to date.

"Hello," she whispered with the vague hope that someone would hear.

Natalie awaited a response, but none was returned.

"Hello?" she muttered again, a little louder.

Before anyone could respond, the freezer door opened. Through her sticky confines, she heard footsteps. These footsteps didn't sound like they belonged to a spider, but rather a human. He dragged something heavy behind him, but he made distinctly human grumbling sounds as his two feet struggled to gain traction on the smooth floors.

Natalie perked up. Those who passed out or survived the first round of the massacre had been brought here, to this icy wasteland, and she figured this out soon after she woke up as she had been part of the group that had done the former rather than the latter. The spiders, with their incredible strength, had dragged dozens of bodies in after her, and this was the first human she'd heard in half an hour.

"Who's there?" she called.

The man groaned and dropped his heavy load on the ground, then glanced around the room. "Which one of you said that?"

A chill ran down her spine at the sound of his voice. She remembered him distinctly. She never got sent to his office, but she'd heard troublemakers had. He put the fear of God in them. Although she found him attractive with narrow angular features the way Roman was, he wore a permanent scowl on his face, and he always sounded like he was one incident from snapping. This was him snapping, she figured, and she had no intention of being killed due to his rage.

His footsteps echoed in the large room.

"Say that" he growled "one..."

He took a step closer. 

"More..." 

He took two more steps closer.

"Time..."

He turned sharply on his heel, and she heard as he circled the room around her left.

"Which one of you said that?"

Natalie shuddered. Malice simply dripped from his voice. He's still in human form, she thought, maybe he's not as bad as the others. She hoped this in vain, trying to be brave though his voice alone scared her to death.

"Here," she squeaked. "I'm here."

He turned sharply again. Natalie could feel his soul-piercing gaze through her wrappings. The sounds of his shoes clicking on the floor approached her. Mr. Fish leaned in close to her and said, "What's your name?"

She hesitated before answering, "N-Natalie."

"Natalie?" he repeated slowly. The malice draining from his voice. "Natalie, do you remember how you got here?"

She let out a sigh of relief that she wasn't going to die on the spot and answered, "No. I passed out in the cafeteria, then I woke up here."

He paused. "Interesting."

"What's happening?" she asked hastily. "Did the spiders wrap me up? Can I go home?"

She felt him tap her cocoon, and she gently swayed a bit, understanding that she must be hanging from the ceiling somehow.

He muttered something she couldn't hear.

Mr. Fish took a moment to think, then walked back to the door. Natalie hoped he was going to get scissors or a knife or something else to free her. However, he grabbed whatever he was dragging before and gave it one great heave.

SLAM!

He closed the freezer door behind him and then continued to pull the thing across the floor. He dropped the thing on the floor right in front of her.

"Bill, meet Natalie. Natalie, meet Bill," he said. She could hear the smile on his face. Mr. Fish groaned as he picked "Bill" up again, then she felt something lean against her chest.

Natalie blushed deeply at the pressure right on her breasts.

"Have fun," Mr. Fish chuckled before turning a perfect 180 and walking right back out.

The freezer door creaked open and slammed shut again, leaving Natalie alone with "Bill" who was leaning right on her chest.