Necromancer For Hire- Arc 1

Arc 1, Chapter 7

The Jungle

"Dad," Victor groaned, putting an arguably obnoxious emphasis on the a-sound, "It's so hot..."

Due to the fervent heat, the duo had undressed to an extent, both of them now carrying the coat and vest they had previously worn. However, Umbra had insisted that they keep their shirts on, since the glaring sunlight that peeped through the trees threatened to harm them more than the humidity did.

Leading the way, Umbra muttered bitterly, "I know that, Victor. You reminded me ten minutes ago." He adjusted the strap of the black bag that contained his son's supplies. He had located the bag a few feet away from where they had been teleported to, and he assumed it had gotten detached from him when he passed out.

The heat had also made both of them crabby, which was inconvenient for a time that called for at least a grain of teamwork. They had been bickering and snapping at each other for over twenty minutes, mostly consisting of Victor's complaints and Umbra's snarky replies.

Umbra stumbled through the wet foliage, sword in hand to cut down the vines and plants that stood in their procession. He mostly seemed to be using clearing the plants as a sort of catharsis, silently releasing his frustration onto the intruding jungle plants.

"Hey, Dad," Victor murmured, his voice sounding a lot more fragile than his previously bratty tone, "Can we sit down for a second? I'm tired."

Umbra stopped, turning around and blinking at his son in surprise. The boy's face was pallid, garnering his concern.

Whether Victor liked to admit it or not, he was a sickly child. He suffered from anemia, making him frequently feel weak or faint. This had made Umbra quite protective of him and eager to make sure that his son stayed well.

"Right, right," Umbra said frantically, grabbing him by the shoulders and slowly lowering him to the ground. "Just sit down and take some breaths." He brushed the sweat off Victor's forehead.

Victor gave him a sheepish grin, trying to push away Umbra's well meaning hands. "I'm fine, I swear. I guess the heat just made me tired..." Bringing his legs up to his chest, he sat his chin on his kneecaps. "Do we have anything to eat? I'm kinda hungry."

Delighted, Umbra sat down, crossing his legs. He retrieved the black back off his back, yanking it open by the drawstrings. He reached his hand in, pulling out a plastic baggy containing a sandwich and a bottle of water.

Smiling proudly, the fae announced, "I brought snacks in case we got hungry!"

As if Umbra's glee was contagious, a grin rose to Victor's face. He snatched the sandwich out of his father's hand, pulling it out of the thin plastic and stuffing it in his mouth. He hastily scarfed down half the snack, and then he handed the rest to Umbra. In return, Umbra passed him the bottle of water.

Both sat on the leaf litter and dirt, the appeal of food casting a blanket of blissfulness, overcoming their bitter mood from earlier.

Umbra took small and dainty bites out of his share of lunch, trying not to look as famished as Victor did. Even in the middle of a mysterious jungle, he still wished to keep up his air of confidence.

Suddenly, Umbra heard a strange noise, partly between a squeak and a squeal. He cast his gaze upward, adrenaline starting to pulse throughout him. To his surprise, Victor had made the sound, and he looked like something was seriously wrong.

He had gone completely stiff, the water bottle lying on the ground beside him. Oddly, he was holding out his arm, eyes locked on his hand.

"Dad..." Victor whispered, barely moving his mouth. "There's a spider..."

Fear shot through Umbra as he focused his eyes on the arachnid perched on his son's hand. It was a fair size, its body black and its legs incredibly long, making it appear larger than it really was.

Umbra was just as frozen as the boy was, sharing his fear of spiders. "I'm sure it will be okay," Umbra lied, "Just try to, like, shake it off or something."

Victor swallowed harshly, and began to slowly shake his arm up and down in an awkward, jerky fashion.

Just as soon as he began, Victor suddenly became animated, screaming and slamming his hand on the ground. He rubbed the spider into the dirt, and then cradled his hand on his chest.

Umbra quickly glided in front of Victor, tearing his hand from his chest and examining it.

The spider had clearly bit him, as a red welt had swelled on his thin skin. A slight trickle of blood seeped from the wound, showing where the spider had inserted its sharp fangs.

"Am I going to okay?" Victor squeaked. His shoulders were heaving up and down, and his breath was rapid and shallow.

Umbra felt a pang of concern, recognizing the symptoms of a panic attack. He carefully patted Victor's hair, forcing a smile on his face.

"You'll be fine, I promise."

Author's Note- Goodness, I hate spiders so much. I plan to make a Tumblr blog for this story, were I will post art and story links (along with Ask messages). So, if you have a Tumblr, please follow necromancerforhire.tumblr.com!!! It's a WIP as of now, but I'm working on it. Just give me a few days before you go to it.