Page 30 of Trapped By Claws
Tagger didn't even make a sound as he leaned out a little farther, his gaze flicking over the passage. Then he stopped.
Soft scratches on the stone drew closer. A cat-sized cave rat darted into the light from the left tunnel. It stared at us, its bald snout twitching.
Well, that was manageable. Especially if it was just one.
Wait.
Tagger hadn't moved. He was staring at a point beyond the rat. A point far deeper in the darkness.
The rat scuttled across the passage.
A massive blue claw slammed out and speared it. The poor creature barely squeaked before it was dragged into the darkness.
I fell back, eyes wide. Tagger moved with me. My knuckles whitened as I clutched the crowbar tighter.
What was that?
A grinding series of clicks followed. Then a heavythud thud.
The ground vibrated. Six pairs of small eyes glittered in the light, moving independently. As it entered the ring of light, the eyes clustered together.
I blinked, struggling to process what it was.
It was…a crab?
The twelve-eyed crab stood more than eight feet in height as it crept along the passage, its spear-like legs striking the floor. As its eyes wobbled on stalks, its mandibles worked in rapid succession. The left claw was massive, similar to a fiddler crab's but with enormous spikes at the back and base. The right claw, though smaller, had numerous spines alone the back of the claw. It moved toward us sideways.
Salt's bane.
How did you fight a giant crab?
Tagger jutted his chest out and barked.
"Stay back, baby," I said, nudging him with my leg.
The otter growled at the crab. His fur puffed up and his tail went razor straight. Hackles bristled along the back of his neck.
My muscles tightened as we continued to retreat. I had to think fast.
The rocky walls and uneven ground of the cave tunnel offered little advantage. A few loose stones littered the path, and numerous stalactites and stalagmites protruded. Some were sharp like spears, but how could I use them? Was there anywhere we could hide? A boulder I could pry loose maybe? No—even if I found one, we were moving downhill now. It'd just crush us. Damn it!
The crab stalked toward us. It waved its larger claw in a fat, lazy circle. The pinchers clicked shut, sounding like heavy pruning shears.
I continued backing up, nudging Tagger along. The otter kept grumbling and barking and hissing, but he didn't seem inclined to leave me.
If I hadn't seen how fast that crab had speared and devoured the cave rat, I might have made the mistake of thinking it was slow. Right now, it was just curious.
I stooped, slipped the orb into the same hand as the hand with the crowbar, and picked up a rock. I then chucked it so that it struck the wall behind the crab.
The loud clatter and tumble caught the crab's attention. Its antennae twitched and swayed in never-ending circles.
Please go. Please.
It scuttled into the darkness.
Claws scraped, and rocks clattered as it moved back deeper into the cave.
Then silence.
