Selene's Journey chapter 2

Selene packed the remainder of her camping gear in her cavern bag. The smoke from her deceased fire floated at the mercy of the forest breeze. It had been several days since she departed, and she was close to the base of the Erathen mountains.

She unraveled the job request parchment rereading its contents. The request was made by Christina, one of Selene's acquaintances. Her business is facing dire straits, and her request was declined by most of the guild members. Usually, a group would have to complete this particular type of request. But the shortage of willing adventurers and abundance of open jobs meant Selene would have to help out Christina herself alone.

As Selene traveled deeper into the woods, the forest path became darkened by the thick canopy of the trees. The ambiance of the forest quietened as she got closer to the mountains. Selene stopped and checked the path. Animal tracks were heading down the trail by the appearance of a deer or similar animal. Selene followed the tracks as they weaved down the path and stopped. The deer tracks ended in the middle of the trail and ceased with no more in direction. It was like the deer disappeared without a trace.

Selene glanced around. There were no signs of a struggle, and the path ahead was smooth as if it was swept. She would have to move quietly now. Selene walked off the path toward an outcropping of rocks. She began to undress and store her clothes and shoes in the cavern bag. She placed the cavern bag within the rock pile when the call of a bird rang and then silenced.

Selene returned to the path. She crept slowly and softly deeper down the trail. The soft soles of her feet made no sound as they sank in the cold earth. In front of her, a fallen log lay on the forest path. Approaching closer, a white piece of material fluttered on the bark. Selene grabbed the substance. It was white and silky, and as she rubbed it between her fingers, very sticky.

The light darkened around her. Selene glanced up. A large shape was dropping from the tree canopy. She stepped back, but it pounced on her knocking her down into the soft earthen ground. Pinning her to the dirt was a large charcoal-colored spider, an Erathen spider. Selene attempted to rise, but her limbs were held in place by the large hairy legs of the spider. It was pushing down with the force of its four hundred-pound weight and muscles.

Selene began to struggle beneath its weight. The spider leaned itself forward and placed its fangs over Selene's shoulder. She felt its quick rapid breath on her neck. She now saw the color of its fur and released what her attacker was and that it was a male. The spider leaned down and sank its fangs into Selene's breasts. Venom dripped off her chest into the dirt, and Selene relaxed her body and went limp.

Now at the mercy of the male spider standing above its catch. It lifted Selene with its second set of legs and began bringing up silk from its spinnerets to its first set of legs. It spun Selene's limp body and wrapped her in layer and layer of the soft, sticky spider silk. He was keeping her bound and silk tight and coating her head to toe, pausing to remove the silk cover her eyes and nose.

Gazing at Selene's eyes and watching her nostrils and the rising of her chest within the webbing. Pleased that she was still alive, it returned to finish wrapping her.

The spider surveyed its work. Even with the silk covering her body, Selene's Feminine form was visible within the cocoon. Attaching the cocoon to its abdomen, the spider dragged its hairy legs on the dirt path sweeping it clean and concealing the evidence of the attack. Hopping into the treetops, It scurried along the branches toward its lair with its meat in tow.

Time passed, and the spider jumped from its final tree made its way to a cave at the edge of the mountains. It entered cautiously into the cave, and the walls were lined with webbing, and bones littered the floor. Selene caught a glimpse of a large form approaching from the back of the cave. Another spider the size is at least eight times bigger than her captor. But this one was colorful with light brown and gray pattern encompassing the body and striped legs. It was a female spider, an Erathen Matriarch.

The Matriarch raised her legs and stomped them against the floor. The pressure of the impact shook the webbing and rattled the bones. The male bowed his head, detached Selene, and placed her cocoon on the floor. He backed away slowly, leaving his offering to the Matriarch to judge.

She crawled forward and inspected the cocoon, lifting Selene with her front legs to her eyes. The Matriarch began to gently poke and prod different places on the cocoon with her other legs. She flipped and rotated the offering for several seconds, pausing to look at Selene's eyes.

The Matriarch made a loud chittering noise summoning the male. He hurried forward excitedly and climbed onto her abdomen to mate. Selene

watched as the Matriarch opened her mouth wide, revealing a dark purple mouth and throat. a Noxious rotting smelling breath wafted over Selene. Grasping the sides of the cocoon, the spider slid Selene headfirst into her mouth. The throat muscles pulsated, pulling the cocoon deeper along with Matriarch pushing her inside with her legs.

Selene's silk encased feet entered the jaws, and the Matriarch's mouth clicked shut, and she bobbed her head and swallowed. The muscles in the moist throat came to life and ferried Selene into the stomach chamber. Now bound in the warm darkness, spider belly, Selene found herself growing drowsy as her cocoon was rocked side to side by the motions of the spider's innards. Like the spider she was within sleep came to claim her, Selene fell asleep.

Many hours had passed when Selene awoke. The interior of the stomach walls contracted and spasmed. She was pushed back into the throat and out the spider's mouth. Held in the spider's embrace now in a different cave, this one was smaller and not as deep. The Matriarch could not fit her whole body inside except her front portion. The cave walls were covered in fresh layers of spider silk, and The Matriarch gingerly attached Selene's cocoon to the webbing. She placed the cocoon so Selene was upright facing the cave entrance.

Now with the offering secure against the wall, the Matriarch gently removed the warm silk covering Selene's abdomen, allowing the cold air to flow against Selene's exposed belly. Selene caught a chill and shuddered. The Matriarch paused.

The spider reached beneath her abdomen and brought forth gelatinous orbs. Sticky warmth returned to Selene's stomach as the spider's eggs were placed one by one, coating her exposed skin with a dozen spider eggs. The Matriarch brought forth her silk and covered the eggs. The task completed, the mother spider backed out of the cave and left her eggs to incubate.

Selene hung in the back of the cave with the clutch of eggs affixed to her flesh, waiting to devour her when they hatched.

An hour passed, and no visitors appeared, nor did the Matriarch return. The time was now, and Selene began to flex her arms against the webbing. The silk strands snapped, and her arms were free. She freed her legs and removed the webbing from her body, except the silk protecting the eggs. She checked her breasts and wiped away the dried venom. In the male's excitement, he failed to notice he didn't penetrate Selene's thick Scisperian skin. Her flesh, though soft, is very resilient and allows for an opportunity to survive where others would perish.

She exited the cave and began to descend the mountainside, and she was careful not to disturb or damage the sack of eggs. The forest came into view, and Selene picked up the pace. She heard a scuttling noise behind her and turned around. In front of her was another male Erathen spider. He prepped his body to pounce then stopped. Its eyes saw the egg sack, and it smelled the Matriarchs silk. It would do Selene no harm, and the scent of the Matriarch would keep him at bay.

Selene returned to the forest unchallenged, retrieving the cavern bag she redressed. Unable to wear her leather chest piece Selene opted for a silken gown to cover herself and the eggs. She started down the forest path to head to Christina's farm.

After several days of careful journeying, Selene arrived at Christina's farm. The eggs on Selenes stomach have doubled in size and cling to her for warmth, and the egg sack enlarged, nearly bursting at the seams, giving Selene the appearance she was pregnant in her silken gown. Navigating the rural maze of seed plots and busy farmhands, she made it to the barn.

A thin woman with blonde hair exited the barn and waved at Selene.

"What brings to my farm, Selene?" The woman shrugged her shoulders, "You know you are always welcome."

Selene smiled, "I saw your request at the guildhall, Christina."

"Are you organizing a group together for it?" Christina replied, taking off her gloves looking at the bulge in Selenes dress. "I guess some lucky guy finally claimed you, was he man or beast?"

No, I came to collect for the job," Selene said as she raised the gown, revealing the egg sack attached to her torso.

Christina's eyes widened."We need to get those off now," She motioned for Selene to follow her into the barn.

Selene recounted the ordeal as Christina removed the eggs, attaching them each to a chicken locked in a row of cages.

"I knew you were crazy," Christina took a drink from her cup."I didn't know you were insane."

"You posted the request, and I completed it." Selene sipped her drink.

"I could have gotten by with the two spiders I have left while you took the time to get a proper party together." Christina scolded.

"I handled it," Selene replied.

"Silk business or not, my friends' safety is worth more than all the shadow silk those spiders can produce." Christina sat her cup down.

"This is not my first encounter with beasts, Christina."

Christina handed her the guild token for the reward. "Selene, you should consider bringing people with you on these outings." She breathed deeply, "So when you have a stupid idea like this, they can talk you out of it."

"How soon before I can order a shadow silk dress?" Selene smirked.

Christina rolled her eyes," Why make you clothes when you barely keep them on."

They both laughed together as the sun began to set and the day came to a close.