Jennifer's Journal: Chapter 1
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Kalvin took his first steps alone on his prosthetic today. They were not great steps, and I should probably call it what it is, a peg leg. I don't know if that matters to anyone reading this, but I wanted to start with something good and simple.
I wouldn't call Kalvin simple, but he has been a becon of hope for me. I know that must seem strange since I've basically carried him up this mountain, but he truly is amazing. He travels around the world and volunteers at soup kitchens for refugees. He doesn't do anything else for money because he doesn't need to. His whole family died in a car wreck, and I think he feels guilty. It broke my heart when he told me, but he immediately tried to brighten the mood by telling me that he had a package of animal crackers on the plane. He couldn't eat them though, because the 'seal' was broken.
My name's Jennifer, by the way. I saw Marie writing in a journal and figured since she went with the scouting group, maybe I could start keeping track of our group here in the nest. I'm a middle school teacher from Long Beach, Florida, an amateur poet, and an advid Dungeon Master (role playing with dice) after school. Now that my introduction is out of the way, I should tell you about Draco.
Draco was on the plane with his parents. They were supposed to be vacationing in Venezuela, same as me. I tried to talk to him a bit, but he's still rattled from the loss, understandably so. While all of us adults were pacing around and cowering in the nest, Draco did something productive. Part of me wishes he hadn't.
As I was sitting here prodding a campfire and watching Kalvin stumble around, the kid just crawled out of a bush in the cliffside. It was as if he had just walked out of the wall. Once me and a few others gathered around the excited child, Muarice came over and ripped the bush out of the ground with his bare hands.
The entrance to the cave was so low that you had to crawl. Some of us had to go prone even, but just past the entrance way was a wide cavern tunnel. Leave it to a child to uncover the hidden wonders of this desolate jungle.
The tunnel opened up slowly. I placed my hand against the wall and helped Kalvin to his feet. I tried to pull my hand away from the wall, but it stayed. I managed to pull it away, but I brought sticky strings of white thread with me. It dawned on me immediately, but when I looked up to shout for the group, I was too late. A cluster of eyes opened up down the path. They illuminated the webbed tunnel more than Maurice's lighter.
The giant arachnid didn't jump straight to violence. It simply reached its long arms over our heads and placed a square of webbing over the entrance. It was gentle, calculated, intelligent, and so close it could hug us. We were frozen in horror as its fangs dripped poison over our heads.
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It seems so cynical
It took a journey to the edge of the world
To find love and rest
Atop the lovebird's nest
At first, so clinical
Nursing his leg made my heart unfurl
Kalvin makes me better
At least we'll die together
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