Underland Chronicles: 1 - The Border's Edge (A Gregor the Overlander FanFic)

Chapter 11

When Pandora woke up, she heard hushed noises. She sat up and realized someone must have moved her off Nike -- her head was resting on her backpack. Rolling her shoulders back a few times, wincing when she felt pain in her left, she stood up and walked to join the group of travelers that were sitting in a circle.

As her eyes adjusted to the dim light of the lone torch that was lying in the middle of the circle, she lurched to a halt just before she reached it. A wave of nausea hit her along with a feeling of great alarm. She was petrified and couldn't seem to move an inch closer... because two black scorpions stood just a few feet away.

They were even more hideous than ones she saw in pictures; of course, the ones she saw in pictures were never bigger than someone's hand. One scorpion was twice the size of Ripred, the other one three times as big. Her breath caught in her throat as she warily watched the torchlight make their smooth black shells shine.

"Pandora," Pan whispered. "It's alright. Come and join us," he raised a wing, gesturing for her to sit next to him. Pandora's gaze shifted to Pan, but she made no move to join the circle. She swiftly shook her head, her breathing becoming ragged.

Pan took a quick glance at the scorpions and realized that Pandora was terrified of them. "Don't be frightened. They are probably more scared than you are. The cutters have indeed attacked them in their own domain."

Pandora tried to talk to him, but the only thing that came out was a strained squeaking sound. Pan fluttered to his feet and waddled to her side. "Why don't we sit over near the packs and have some water?"

Pandora nodded, and, as quietly as she could, walked back to where all the packs lay, as if making any loud noises would upset the two giant scorpions. She saw Pan quietly talking to Ripred and Howard before he made his way over to Pandora. They sat near a canteen of water. From where Pandora sat, she could no longer see the ring of travelers.

If Pandora listened intently, she could hear the hissing and clicking noises of the scorpions. As much as it disturbed her, she couldn't tell if Hazard's hissing and clicking sounds upset her more. They were speaking back and forth, almost like they were rushing.

Pan offered her the canteen, and she clasped it in a shaking hand. Her joints felt stiff and she had some trouble unscrewing the cap. She took a quick swig before offering it to Pan. He clasped it in a claw and drank. Pandora fiddled with the cap, eyes still wide. She jumped when Pan offered the canteen back to her. She took a deep breath and put the cap back on. Pan set it down beside him.

"You have arachnophobia, I'm assuming," Pan said soothingly. Pandora nodded, still not finding her voice to speak. "It's a good thing the spinners and stingers keep to themselves then," he started to chuckle, "because if they had been walking around Regalia, well then..." Pan stopped chuckling when he saw Pandora's face at the comment. He cleared his throat, "then we wouldn't have needed to go on this journey."

Pandora took another deep breath in reply. Pan continued, "Ripred suggested that I should divert your attention. How about some math problems?" Pandora shook her head. "We could talk about Sandwich's prophecy," Pan suggested, but again Pandora shook her head. "Do you have a certain subject in mind that you like besides math?"

Pandora wet her lips and replied speedily, "Philip of Macedonia improved upon the Greek's main military strategy, the phalanx, and then used it to conquer Greece in 355 BCE."

"Oh, Overland history!" Pan exclaimed. "What else?"

"Alexander the Great, Philip's son, became king of Macedonia in 336 BCE, and led his army across the Hellespont in 334 BCE to conquer the Persian Empire," Pandora stated. Her body started to visibly relax and Pandora found it easier to talk. "He conquered so many cities that his army started to rebel because they wanted to go home."