Strangled - Predator and the Prey

Chapter- 4



I could see a tiny helpless soul dying in front of me, killed and eaten by a Spider. This behemoth really knew how to use his numerous giant legs; he held his prey in his two feelers and stung it with his other two poison fangs, within seconds only one living creature existed on the web. Oh! I hated this goliath monster so much. If I had the power, I’d have loved to torment him to death for torturing such poor creatures and eating them. But sadly I was feeling so small and helpless, filled with mixed emotions of anger, frustration and fear!


I questioned myself that was he was MY predator as well? Will I be eaten next? If he was Argiope, even my life would end soon and I’d perish in these woods, may be next minute or next second, depends on his jumping speed, from that web to mine. I dint wish to think of his swallowing speed though. Gulp! I choked, there was a blob in my throat and I stay still on this viscid death bed. I was talking to myself again, “why am I dying so soon, what wrong had I done? Just that I was playful kid and I didn’t listen to my Mom and my friend. (That’s called being disobedient, I know) Well, I am sorry Mom, I really am and now I am scared. God help me!”


I was trying to respire without moving my nostrils and my belly, and tried to face the freak in his eyes. This monster had four eyes on the top-front of his head, big brownish-black legs on the sides of his body, scary hairs popping out and I could hear him breathe, something which I couldn’t do at this point of time. I lay numb, half dead.


I could recall, I had seen him imbibe the tissues of his “prey”, I looked at his face and he appeared quite satisfied and I wished his hunger had died and his appetite was full. He jumped down from that web for a while, then with one of his legs, started pulling a thread towards his own self, I was wondering what he was trying to do, and there were broken threads one after the other, he was destroying his own well-knitted mesh. I was trying to reckon,” what is the concept behind it. First make a shiny white web, invite poor little preys (like ME), trap us in sticky webs, lasso it with sticky bolas, mimic the prey, to avoid detection, or run it down and after all this hard work, destroy what was made. They dint kept any proof of their crime. COWARDS…!” I felt so proud for a moment, that I called his specie a Coward.


At the same time, I thought, why are the birds or wasps not eating him? And my observation clicked again, may be ‘coz he’s a little smart, as his coloration was camouflage that helped him to evade his major predators. Huh..! So my predator was a smart and coward one, I’d call that as a “Smartorward!” Which ability counted more? None, but his ability to kill me..!


And our eyes met, the predator and the prey, and my heart skipped a beat, all thoughts vanished and my mind gave a Blank signal. I was sure my heart beat must be showing a Straight line now, and my eyes were wide open, not that I was admiring the demon’s beauty, but I just couldn’t move anything, simply nothing. The smartoward enormous monster approached towards ME..!!! Gosh..!!