continues from part four
Part 5: Explanations
“Ma’am?” Blinking her eyes, Quinn awoke, looked around. She was back inside her house; she could hear the rain pouring outside, mixing with the crackle of a nice, cheery fire that burned in the fireplace, warming the house. But there were other sounds, now, of feet moving, and hushed talking. “Ma’am, are you all right?” Jolting up, Quinn saw that her house was filled with several strangers, some dressed in Egyptian attire, others dressed in thick rubber clothing like her own. Only one man appeared to be normal, and it was a relief to see him. But he wasn’t the one who had woken her. Looking over, Quinn saw that it was the spider man who had spoken. Seeing it a second time was enough to make her shriek and fall over, trying to get away. “Please, do not be afraid,” the spider man said, bringing his hands up. “I mean you no harm, and neither do the others.” “Who-no, what are you?!” Quinn demanded. “My name is Prince Theodore of the Drider species.” “Drider?” “Yes, that is what my kind is called. And before you ask, we do not eat human beings. That is against our laws and our culture.” Quinn looked at the prince, trying to decipher if he was telling the truth, or feeding her a lie. He seemed truthful, and his body language (or at least, what she could read of it) showed that he was being sincere. “All right, Mr. Theodore, but what in heaven’s name are you doing in my house? And for that matter, what are all of you doing here?” “That’s what we’re trying to figure out,” the man before her said. “And who are you?” Quinn asked. “My name is Gromet; I’m a website manager.” “What kind of website?” Gromet hesitated for a moment, seemingly embarrassed. “Never mind. Now will you all please tell me what you’re doing here?” “We’re not sure,” Theodore said. “We’ve been discussing it while you were unconscious, and can’t come up with a solution. We were hoping you’d be able to enlighten us.” “Me?” Quinn shook her head. “I don’t have a clue about what’s going on, other then several people, a half human half spider thing, and a killer whale have popped out of the sky into my front yard. How am I supposed to explain that?!” “Her name is Jude,” a woman said. She was wearing a wetsuit, and looked as out of place as everyone else. “What?” “Jude. The killer whale. That’s her name.” “And you are?” “Nia, her trainer. We were practicing a new routine at the park when there was this bright flash, and the two of us were sucked into it, and landed in that lake.” Her story seemed as rational as any Quinn had heard so far. Turning, she looked at a man and a woman lying on her sofa, both tightly bandaged and wrapped like Egyptian mummies, though the man’s arms, while wrapped, were loose and able to move around, while the woman’s legs were the same. “Okay, what about those two? Why are they wrapped up like that? Did any of you do this?” “No, they didn’t,” the man said, shifting slightly. “And who are you?” “My name is Robert.” “Okay Robert, what are you doing wrapped up like that?” Robert looked down at his bandages. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.” “There’s a giant spid-drider in my room. Try me.” Robert thought, trying to figure out how best to tell his story. “Well, I was kidnapped by the Egyptian god of the dead, wrapped up like this, and condemned to be his sex slave for eternity, much like poor Aalyia here.” The woman looked up at Quinn. Unlike Robert, her mouth was bandaged over, silencing her. “Woah, woah, hang on,” Quinn said. “Egyptian god of the dead? You’re not talking about Anubis, are you?” “The very same.” “Oh come on! Anubis is a myth, something made up. He’s as real as Thor, Odin, and all the other pagan gods throughout the centuries.” “I know it’s hard to believe,” Robert said. “I didn’t either, at first, but he’s real. I can prove it.” He looked around. “Xesex?” There was a crashing noise in one of the nearby rooms. Then, a tall, snake like being pulled itself through one of the doorways, and into the living room. “Yes Robert?” Then, upon seeing Quinn, it said, “Ah, greetings human! I do apologize for all this, but you see, we were suddenly dropped here, my friends and I, and don’t know where we are.” Quinn said nothing, staring at him. “All you all right?” “Just stunned, I believe,” Theodore said. “It appears that humans of this area, are not familiar with encountering creatures of our type.” “I am a god, actually. Not a creature.” “No way,” Quinn said, getting her voice back. “Gods aren’t real. And even then, I’ve never heard of you.” “I am not surprised,” Xesex said, shaking his head. “The belief system I belonged to died out long ago. But I can prove my divinity to you; it would be quite easy.” Quinn hesitated, unsure of what she had gotten herself into. “Well, okay, but as long as it’s not permanent or evil or mischievous.”
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