Bright sunlight streamed in from the window, illuminating the entire room. Warmth flooded in and I slowly opened my eyes. I looked around. I lay there, confused as to where I was then I remembered last night. I was in the old house where I found a silver thing. Seb was missing but I heard clanking downstairs. I rolled over and pushed the blankets off me. I sat up and stretched, regretting staying up so early. I walked out onto the old balcony and gasped.
It was as if the garden had suddenly become alive overnight. Cherry blossoms fringed it, spreading beautiful pink petals all over the path that wound between the rainbow tulips. Brilliant white and blood-red roses, stunning yellow daffodils and big blue flowers I didn't recognise grew on the banks of a tiny, crystal stream that snaked its way gracefully through the garden. Assortments of fruits and vegetables were spread along the back, ripe and delicious.
I couldn't believe it. Just last night I could have sworn the garden was dead and overgrown. I saw it there in the last light of the day, lying like a big dead thing. The scents wafting up from it were heavenly.
After gaping at the magical garden for more than a few minutes, I hurried downstairs to see what Seb was doing with all the banging and crashing. I got down the stairs and it was as if the house had been transformed.
Not a speck of dust or hint of cobweb. Vases on shelves gleamed and held fresh flowers. The floors were polished and clean which meant the dust patterns had disappeared. The fabrics looked freshly washed and the pillows were extra plump. Everything seemed new and the air held a faint scent of vanilla, my favourite smell.
I spotted Seb opening and closing cupboards, looking for something to eat. The kitchen and the bar had been cleaned too. The glasses and kitchenware shone in the morning light.
"Seb," I said, loud enough for him to hear over his racket. He looked up and smiled.
"Did you clean this place while I was sleeping?" I asked
His smile faltered. "No, I found it like this morning. Are you feeling alright? You look pale."
I was feeling a tiny bit dizzy. I managed a fake smile. "No, I'm fine." I spotted a young woman hovering in the doorway across from the bar. She saw me looking and ducked away. "Who was that?" I asked, pointing to the door where she disappeared.
"Oh, that's Claire. I found her this morning on the porch. She was cold and is as thin as a stick. I gave her some of the clothes I found in the bedroom. She's really nice." He called to her. "It's ok, it's my sister, Hawk. She won't hurt you."
She poked her head through the doorway. She was quite pretty, with bright red lips, pale face and silver hair. She wore a plain gown with no shoes.
"Hi there," I said, trying to appear friendly. "Why don't you and Sebastian go look at the garden? It's beautiful."
Seb walked over to her and took her hand. She blushed, followed him to the back door and looked out in amazement. I took my chance and bent down to examine the floor. It was no use searching, the marks from last night were gone. I grew wary. I shivered as a chill rode up my spine. Something was nagging at my mind. I felt like we were in danger. We needed to leave.
"Sebastian!" I called nervously, "we should leave!"
He poked his head inside the glass door with a puzzled look on his face. "Why? No one is living here and it's a beautiful place! We could stay here with Claire!"
"But it isn't ours! It was nice to stay for the night but we are trespassing. We don't want the neighbours phoning up the police to report a couple of shady teenagers." I said as I walked towards the staircase.
"Ok..." He said unwillingly, "but I still think we should stay. Should Claire come with us?"
"I don't know, we'll see!"
I climbed the stairs and walked around the bed to my backpack. I opened it, checking I had everything I came here with. My hand brushed the silver cylinder and my vision wavered. The room melted and a horrible vision took its place. Bloodied animal skins took the place of the hand-sewn quilts. Crude and violent drawings replaced the delicate artworks. Dirt was everywhere, covering everything. Grime was smeared all over the bathroom and dried blood stained the floor. Most of all, there were cobwebs everywhere. In every corner of the room, spiders lurked in their webs, waiting for the perfect prey.
I drew back, shocked by what I saw and the vision disappeared. I looked down at the cylinder, heart racing and desperate to escape its bony gaol. The shining silver object winked in the light as if to say 'I am the key, pick me up and don't lose me'.
I grabbed it and instantly the vision returned. No, not vision. This was reality! The old and pleasant house was an illusion! I could feel the thoughts that were being put into my head by the thing I held in my hand. I snatched up my bag and bolted down the stairs. The whole room had been transformed.
The kitchen was smothered in grime. Fresh blood littered the utensils and chopping boards. The fridge was open and oozing red packages stained the brown interior. The bar held bottles of brown, red and orange liquids, most were cloudy and had large chunks. The glasses were stained and the smooth wood was rough, full of marks and notches. Again, webs stretched across the room endlessly. The small hairy creatures waited, unnaturally still.
I felt sick when the stench hit. The vile smell of rotting flesh, blood and filth. Little did I know, I would become very familiar with that stench.
Seb opened the door and smiled at me, unaware of his true surroundings. Claire was standing right behind him.
"Hey, look at this orchid I found! It's the same colour as our eyes!" He smiled, holding his hand out, palm up.
I looked at his hand and almost vomited. He was holding a decaying eyeball, half deflated and covered with dirt and blood. I ran over to him, not looking at the vile thing in his palm. I grabbed his other hand and pressed the silver object into it. He jumped, seeing, with new eyes, the room as it really was. He saw what was really in his hands and he dropped it, clutching at his throat and mouth. As he let go of the cylinder, the veil was once again pulled over his eyes.
"What the hell was that?!" He exclaimed.
"What you're seeing now is just an illusion, a trick to get you to stay. This thing shows the truth." I said quickly. "We need to get out of here now!"
A smooth, voice echoed throughout the house: "Where exactly would you go?"
It seemed to come from everywhere at once. I spun around, trying to detect the source. I realised that Claire was gone. I gave the cylinder to Seb so he could see everything. My vision didn't return to the cosy, warm illusion but instead stayed fixed on the horror of reality.
"Stay here...relax....you will be safe here..." The hissing voice flowed through me. I felt strange, safe and calm, despite seeing everything that was around me. I fought to control myself, wanting to leave but somehow unwilling to.
"The outside world is cruel and harmful. Stay here with me and alleviate my boredom." I jumped and spun, hearing it right beside me. What I saw made me freeze.
The young woman's face was covering my vision. Her snow-white skin contrasted her blood-red lips. Her black eyes were wide open, staring into the pit of my soul. Large fangs protruded from her mouth as she smiled. Stitches held the torn corners of her mouth together, giving her an extra wide and never-ending smile. She drew back and laughed manically. That's when I saw that she didn't have a human body.
The gown she wore was torn and ragged at her stomach. Where her waist ended, a hairy spider abdomen grew. Large, fuzzy legs seemed to burst out of her body, spreading her creepy reach. A large, wicked stinger was visible at her rear end.
Sebastian was as frozen as I was, all he could do was stare. My heart thudded as she circled him.
"Oh my, what a handsome prey you are!" She giggled and gently stroked my brothers face. "I'll save you for last."
She swiftly moved onto me, legs barely rustling as she moved. She regarded me with distaste. "I wish you hadn't seen through the lovely house I thought up for you. You were going to have a quick and enjoyable death. Pity."
She pressed her face closer to mine. She drew a ragged breath. She reeked of an odour more foul than her house. I staggered back and tripped. I hit the floor hard. Sebastian just stared in horror, frozen by shock. Sweat lined his face and his grip loosened. He dropped a silver object. It landed with a soft thump and rolled towards me. The spider woman didn't notice. I crept my hand closer. I needed to distract her.
I am the key, pick me up and don't lose me
My mind worked quickly under pressure. "What are you?!" I almost screamed at her in the rush to get the words out.
She drew back, surprised by my sudden question. Then she broke into laughter.
"I didn't think anyone still cared! I'm mostly forgotten, after all." She look down at me. "I'm a Jorōgumo! I'm not surprised you don't know me. I'm from ancient Japan. I am born when a spider grows over four hundred years old! My kind have become rare since filthy humans like you keep killing off my children!"
I inched closer to hope as she talked.
"I'm going to enjoy feeding on you!" She leapt at me, beating fangs and stinger ready. I jerked back, fingers grasping the smooth silver surface. I felt something sticky wrap around my waist. It grew tight and yanked me into the air. I held on to my little cylinder, unsure of how exactly it could help. I flailed in the air, trying to get my bearings.
Claire was holding me up by the web she wound around my midsection, bloodlust burning in her red eyes. Extra mouthparts had grown around her lips where the stitches used to be. She drew me closer and bared her fang-like mandibles. Her stench was ten times worse when it came from her mouth. She was staring at my neck, specifically, my jugular where my blood pumped at a million miles per hour. She opened her mouth wide and leapt forward. I did the only thing I could with the one object in my hand.
I smacked her in the eyes.
She screamed and retreated, releasing the web that held me up. I crashed to the floor, tangled in the gooey stuff. Claire recovered and lunged at me. I held my hands up instinctively and screwed my eyes shut, waiting for the final blow.
But it never came.
Instead, I heard a sliding noise of metal on metal then screeching and cursing. I gingerly opened my eyes and gasped. The silver cylinder in my hand had extended out of the plain end and now a sharp, decorated blade ran backwards, following my arm. It flowed out of the handle, making three small points, facing forward, before beginning the blade. Another metal piece wound its way around my arm, giving me a firm grip and a less likely chance of it flinging from my hand. It's outer edge was almost glowing. Coiling plants and majestic beasts were engraved on the blade as delicately and beautifully as the handle. The word "Dragon" was engraved largely and it glowed like fire. I looked up at Claire and saw blood dripping down from under where her hands clutched at her face. Something grabbed to my arm and was pulling me.
I looked and saw Sebastian, finally out of his shock, pulling at my arm, yelling for me to get up and run.
I stood and staggered blindly towards the doorway. Sebastian scooped up my bag as he ran past, making a beeline for the exit. I followed him, very aware that Claire had recovered and was coming after me. My feet pounded on the floor and the fallen door as I bolted out the house, closely following Sebastian.
We made it out onto the street but we didn't stop. Fear made us run until we were halfway across the city and struggling to breathe. I stared at the silver weapon in my right hand. As I gazed at it, the large blade retracted, returning to its original form.
