Skt...Skrrrtch… Skt ..Skrrrtch Sk ...Skarrritch.
The sun finished its luxurious trip to meet the horizon, crashing into the silhouette of distant hills in an explosion of orange and rose-tinted hues.
Skrrtch… Skt… Skrrtch
Flat against the dirt and scrub grass just on the outskirts of Blackway, one of the arthropodic creatures moved slowly across the ground. Its left side, limbless, pockmarked, and seared, dragged uselessly.
It used its remaining pincer to pull itself forward inch by inch. The grotesque deformed creature chittered and clicked, occasionally stopping and clumsily moving its misshapen head from side to side.
The sun was well below the horizon when the broken creature reached a rocky outcropping drenched in the shadows that remained as the last strains of light faded away.
A ragged sibilant voice leaked out from an unseen portion of the rock. The Erebus (the proper name for this fearsome insect) turned its head towards the sound, chittering and clacking at intervals with the hissing voice.
The sounds rose and fell in response to each other for several minutes. The unseen voice grew louder, rising from a hiss to a guttural growl that reverberated off the surrounding rocks.
The Erebus stiffened, shuddered, and lay still. A curved, jagged blade stuck fast in between the largest of the creature’s compound eyes.
A sickly green light engulfed the rocky outcropping, swept to and fro hungrily then disappeared as quickly as it arrived. An acrid smell filled the air. The ground glowed red like a recently extinguished fire. The remains of the Erebus were gone.