I sleep for an eon, one eye open. The cold is absolute. The dark is not, and I go towards the light. For half an eon I roll downhill, for the second half I roll up, to slow myself. All the while, my hunger grows. I reach the place where my prey waits for me, watching for me, signaling me to come, although it knows it not. I poise myself over its burrow, a spider who needs no web, lowering my delicate and deadly thread. Then I wait. Time passes. What is an eon? I have waited one, I can wait another.
My prey comes. Creeping up my thread, slowly, cautiously. Fearing what it will find, but drawn irresistibly regardless. I open my mouth. My mouth is filled with the bones of prey past. I have learned: prey is drawn to prey. The prey enters, I can feel it move through the bones. I wait. More will come. Patience is always rewarded. The prey leaves, taking the bones. I wait. More will come. Patience is always rewarded.
The prey returns, more in number. They fill my mouth with their bones, and I am satisfied. I retrieve my thread, my deadly, delicate thread, and my mouth closes. I am filled. I look to the next light, for the dark is not absolute. The cold is, however, and I sleep for an eon, one eye open.
3 comments:
I am confused and slightly creeped out.
It was a story idea I had, and simply have no time to write, so I just wrote it as an "Extremely Short Story."
Have you heard of "space elevators"? It's basically an elevator that goes from Earth to space, along a (very very very) long cable. Not quite feasible yet with the science we have, but we're getting close.
Anyway, the idea I had was a giant, space-flying spider of sorts, who visits planets and lowers its thread to the surface of the ground. Enterprising lifeforms on the ground (e.g. human scientists) would want to explore, and would climb up the thread. The spider would then eat them, and fly on to the next planet.
I sorta pictured the "bones" being scientific instruments and other indigestible detritus.
And hey, since you're already spending thousands of years flying from one planet to the next, if there's no lifeform capable of climbing your thread on the current planet, just sit in orbit and wait for them to evolve.
That's the story idea in a gist. :)
Your explanation was as long as the story!
I also was creeped out, but in a good, futuristic way.
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