"Seth, what did you make on The Test?""What did you make on The Test, Jasper?"
The two boys stared at each other, as if admiring their own twin looks. Ah, the joys of being identical twins, even if it meant that only one would pass The Test, especially since they were male. The silence hung heavy in the room, their brown eyes locked in what seemed to be a heated staring contest. At the exact same time, the boys would run a hand through their hair, then rest said hand on the back of their neck. Sometimes, even the Teacher thought of them to be of the same mind. Alas, that was proven wrong on many occasions.Upon staring at each other for at least a good two minutes, they seemed to come to some type of agreement, even though no words had been spoken since.
"Might we say it at the same time, Jasper?" "Exactly what I was thinking, Seth."
Despite the agreement that the two had come to, they seemed to fall into an awkward silence, nervousness churning in the pit of their gut. At the same time, the two would clear their throat, straighten their ties, and then finally speak up at the same time.
"I failed, brother."
The heavy silence returned, both of their eyes widening. What was once a calm attitude would suddenly shift into one of pure fury between the two. "I failed so you could pass!" "What?! I failed so you could pass, you imbecile!" Once the harsh insult slipped past Jasper's lips, Seth would take a step back, his eyes wide in shock. It would be a cursed lie to say that Seth's eyes didn't get watery, didn't almost spill said moisture and cause tears to streak down his freckled cheeks. It would be a lie to say his voice didn't hitch, his lips didn't tremble, threatening to release choked up sobs. Such a small insult was slanderous against their glorious society, the society based on intellect, based on brains and not brawn. Jasper hadn't realized this until it was too late. Too late to take back, to make amends in only a few moments. "Brother, I didn't mean-" Alas, his words were cut off, seeing on how Seth's eyes seemed to instead smolder in rage, his shaking hands clenching into tight fists. "Enough-" began his brother, his voice shaky at first. "I will not stand here like a blubbering.. A blubbering imbecile. We must tell Mother."
Such a dreaded task was not wished upon anyone who had failed The Test, who had proven a failure to their society, even if slightly. Jasper, of course, was taken aback. However, as been taught for years and years in the Society, responding to a task with defiance and ignorance was next to treason. "But of course, dear brother. Though, might I ask how you will be telling Mother?" "Question denied. Assignment to be done alone."
Two hours. Two hours after the siblings has spoken, the Mother was home. It was Jasper who seemed to set his plan into motion first. With confident strides to the living room, he'd stand with his hands behind his back, smiling at The Mother. Her hardened, plate-like hide, molded green and chipped from years of being a Caretaker, would glint against the dim lights of the room. At Jasper's clean scent distracting her from her own scent, that being similar to a corpse that had been left out for a good week or so, her head would rotate completely around, the rest of her body turning a few moments later. Upon spotting him, her beady eyes, all twelve of them, would hone in and focus on the male. The pincers that caused her hollow cheeks to bulge would snap twice in anticipation, followed by the yellow fluid sploshing out and onto the ground, along with some pre chewed chunks of her last meal. How long it had been for the last meal to digest? How long had she been longing for another meal? It had to have been at least fifteen years. That was probably why her bulging, transparent stomach was reflecting the yellow acid in her body, bubbling up and rising up to where the transparency ended, rising to about her chest. Eight legs- each attached with the miniature, sticky hairs- would help rear its large body up. As Jasper stood there, attentive as always, the low buzzing of its four wings would begin. Jasper himself would watch as The Mother hoisted herself off the ground, marveling on how his caretaker could take to the air so easily in such a massive body. A screech came from its jaws, and the boy could've sworn that he saw right down her slimy, mucus-coated throat.
"Mother-" Jasper's voice would grow shaky by that point, nervousness clouding his thoughts and making him shift back and forth to try and quell such a feeling. In fact, Jasper couldn't recall a time when he ever felt this detective, this detached from their glorious society. With a deep breath in, then a slow exhale, he'd collect his thoughts. "I failed the test."
That dreaded silence would last for a good five minutes. As much as Jasper wanted to run and flee, he had been taught obedience from a young age. A few more seconds and The Mother screeched. The Mother curled its body forward, letting its old stinger be showed, the backwards barbs on it seemingly freshly sharpened. Must've been from finding food for them. As Jasper stood there, obedient as ever, the mother would swing her body forward, rocking so that the stinger would pierce right through his abdomen. The scream from Jasper, along with the screech from the mother, would fill the house soon enough. With a flex of her mighty body, The Mother would lift her 'son' up by the stinger violently, then swing back down. The satisfying ripping sound of shredded clothes and flesh would urge her on, watching as her own 'son' was ripped from abdomen to skull. The feeling of intestinal track, a dash of saliva, and the squishy feel of splattered brain-matter on her stinger just urged her on. Over and over again, The Mother would thrust her stinger in and out of Jasper's fallen, already mangled corpse. An eye was smeared down the side, smashed bones from the force grazed upon The Mother's impressive hide, and over and over again, she would cherish the sound of the ripping flesh. Upon mincing and mangling the body, The Mother dropped to her eight legs, letting her pincers take hold of the mostly ruined skull of the boy. A few seconds of squeezing, and said skull would be sliced into and falling down the slimy, dripping throat of The Mother. Like this, what with the crushing and slicing into small pieces, The Mother would get about devouring her 'son'. While the shredded fabric was a rather... annoying taste, she'd still swallow. After all, it was too matted into the meat to pry it out.
A soft light emitted from the computer, highlighting a corner of the splattered room. The Mother would glance from the remains of her son, staring at the light. Said light would attract The Mother; she knew that light well. When her tongue lapped against the ever changing, raised screen of the computer, she didn't feel the soothing reward as normal. Alas, she felt a sting in her swollen tongue, making her screech and stumble back. That taste was foreign, was wrong; it was toxic. As her body was swelling up rapidly, her bulging stomach and limbs beginning to bloat up more and more, she spotted Seth from the corner of her eyes. A distressed call came from her as she rolled upon her back from the pain, her legs curling inwards. The only thing she could spot from the blurring surroundings around her was Seth's soft smile.
"Mother, I believe I've won The Test.
