~ Issue #2: Kraneea ~ (Part 2)

The following day, Claire woke up around 6:00 AM in the morning, more than an hour before her alarm clock went off. In her half-asleep state, she got off the bed by pushing herself with her back-legs and then quite literally moved her body to the bathroom while her human feet were dangling in the air. 

With eyes half-closed, she brought herself closer to the mirror and snorted at the sight of her reflection. 

“She looks like a bomb went off in her head.” she said and then moved to the shower. 

Once inside, she retracted her back-legs and then took a quick cold shower. She didn’t even flinch when the droplets touched her skin. 

Half an hour later, after she finished with the bathroom, she walked out wrapped around a clean towel and sat down on the bed. Picking up her phone, she first checked her battery level and then looked at the latest news on the net. 

What’s with all this? she wondered with a furrowed brow. 

The entire news feed was flooded with clips and articles about superpowers, supernatural situations, and all sort of other things one would normally see only in a movie or comic. One clip showed a man jumping from one building to another. Another one showed a boy backing up from a crowed and then releasing a powerful shock wave at them that knocked them back. The last clip she watched was of a news report. 

“This just in, but in the past 48 hours, crime in Manhattan has gone up by a staggering 34%, with thefts and acts of aggression being reported almost constantly. The Bronx is seeing an increase in street gang activity. Brooklyn isn’t fairing any better either, with a new mysterious gang already spreading its influence all over the place. While Queens and Staten Island appear to be the only two boroughs in New York City that have yet to be struck by this sudden crime wave. So far, until the situation returns to normal, the police advise local residents to travel in groups and if possible return to their homes before sunset...” was what the anchor reported in the first part of the clip. 

Claire did not listen to the rest of it, but she was indeed worried about what was going to happen from now. She had the feeling that whatever she witnessed on the day of her transformation had something to do with this entire crime wave taking the city by surprise. As she kept scrolling down the list, she noticed that this was not a localized event either. There were similar incidents all over the world, but while few in number, their unusual circumstances were what drew the media’s attention. 

Putting her phone away, Claire got off the bed and looked out the window. The streets were mostly empty spare for a beggar and a man standing at the corner, buttoning his phone. 

Opening her forehead eyes, Claire was able to zoom in on what the man was writing. He appeared to be bragging about something, the text was mostly sexually in nature, but what caught her attention were the words ‘rape’ and ‘scream’. She felt a jolt in her body and her back legs immediately extended out as if entering in a defensive posture. 

That man... he’s dangerous... she thought and then stepped back from the window. 

The idea of being raped washed over her with a bucket load of fear, and when she saw her rather erotic appearance in the reflection of the window, she realized that while she could easily tempt a good man, the same applied for bad men as well. 

Do I really have to fear for myself now just because... I look pretty? she wondered with a gulp. 

If when she was overweight she didn’t even so much as think about something like that happening to her, her newfound beauty made her worry about it. As a woman, she wanted to feel proud and happy about her body, but she did not want to do so while holding the fear of being dominated or raped by a man every time she passed by a dark alley. 

“It’s not fair...” she thought as she took another step back. 

One of her back-legs brushed passed the side of the bed, which made her look that way. All of a sudden, she remembered that she wasn’t just a fragile woman anymore, she had some means of defending herself. 

With a clenched fist, she extended the blade hidden in her forearm and strengthened it with a pulse of electricity. 

“So, it’s like this... I can easily lure them in now, but I can also take them down...” she thought and then let out a small laugh. 

The fear that washed over her a moment ago was now gone. She did not worry about what other men would try to do to her because if they did, they would be the ones who would have to worry about her chelicerae-like blade stuck in their gut. 

At around 7:14 AM, when she calmed down and returned to her human form, Claire went to the fridge with the intention of preparing for herself a light breakfast. When she opened the door, however, she found it empty enough to have a tumbleweed rolling around. 

With a disappointed sigh, she closed the door and decided to go out to eat. On the way back, she would drop by the market and restock her fridge. 

After putting on the new pair of sneakers, jogging pants, t-shirt, and hoodie she bought yesterday, she walked out of the apartment. 

The place Claire wanted to go to was a bit to the South, but rather than taking the buss there, she decided to try out her new body and go for a run. At such an early hour, there weren’t that many people walking about, so she could afford to try out a few things as long as they didn’t force her to open her forehead eyes or extend her back-legs. 

Claire started off slow at first, with light steps. She felt sluggish, but she did not want to force herself or reach the store sweating like a horse on a hot summer day. The speed went up little by little until she was running as fast as a normal human at a marathon, but it was still too slow for her. 

Maybe I can go a little faster? I don’t feel like I’m sweating at all. she thought as she wiped her forehead and then looked at her palm. 

It was as dry as a rock in the middle of a desert. 

“Alright!” she said and then burst into a sprint. 

What she didn’t know was that she started from running at a normal speed of 27 km/h and then reached a world-shattering record of 45 km/h. In the blink of an eye, she was running almost as fast most slow drivers in the city. 

When she reached the crossroad, the lights turned red for her, she put on her breaks and came to a complete stop before taking one step on the street. 

As the cars passed by in front of her and she watched her reflection in their windows, she realized that she was not even huffing from all that running, she was just breathing slightly faster than usual. She did sweat a bit, but not that much. 

That was... fast... she thought. 

After the light turned green for her, she crossed the street and started running towards the St. Nicholas Park. She was running at an average speed this time, a bit slower than earlier so she would not catch any attention. 

Maybe it was because of all the recent strange events, crime rising and stuff like that, but the park wasn’t very populated. At this hour, one would expect a bunch of other joggers, but there weren’t that many. 

I need to be inconspicuous... she thought and pulled her hood all over her head, to hide her hair and face as much as possible. 

Looking at the mostly empty strip in front of her, Claire ran as fast as she could, startling all those she passed by. Her speed had reached a little over 65 km/h, that was triple the average speed of a human being and by almost half that of the fastest human alive. 

This... This is INCREDIBLE! she thought as she felt the rush going through her body. 

Her heart was beating fast, and she could feel her blood rushing through her veins and the air flowing through her lungs. While her legs were also moving very fast, each of her steps had a stride length of over three meters, and she felt like she was barely touching the ground. 

Claire ran like that until she caught sight of someone in the distance taking a video of the scenery. She lowered her speed to that of a normal human before she entered their shot and continued at that pace until she left the park. There was a big smile on her face as she was quite excited about what she had just discovered. 

The rush of power and speed she felt was amazing, almost intoxicating, but after running so much, she felt so much better and awake than before. 

Maybe my body requires a lot more movement than before? she wondered as she wiped off her sweat and moved towards a nearby diner. 

A good intake of calories was exactly what her body was craving for right now, and they just happened to have a special on chicken legs. She did not hesitate for one second to order two large plates, a beer, and a coffee for a good mix. The waitress was a bit stunned by this because Claire looked nothing like someone who would stuff themselves with chicken legs. 

After she paid the bill, she walked out of the diner and looked up at the building across the street. It was just your average apartment building made of bricks, the type that were commonly widespread across New York. The metal fire escape stairs looked old and covered the right side of the building like a spider web, all the floors from the top to the bottom. The rooftop of most buildings in the area were flat as a board, which made them perfect for outdoor exercises or other similar activities. 

Luckily for Claire, during December, when temperatures dropped below 10 degrees Celsius, people were not that much in a rush to spread their yoga mattresses on the rooftop. 

By far, it’s the best place for me to try out my new powers, especially since here, on the ground, I’m bound to be caught on camera by someone. she thought as she walked up to the streetlight and waited for it to turn green. 

Getting up on the rooftop wasn’t supposed to be that difficult. Most buildings didn’t keep the door to the rooftop locked, and if anyone were to ask, all she had to do was pretend that she was living there or visiting someone. 

This time around, she got lucky. The door was unlocked and everyone she passed by didn’t so much as cast a second glance at her. The hoodie also did a good job to keep her face hidden for the most part. 

“This is quite high up.” Claire said as she leaned over the side. 

The people down there looked like ants, and the wind was a bit chilly, but she didn’t feel it. Out of all the people in NYC right now, she was probably the only one who didn’t have a problem with doing yoga in the middle of winter. 

Taking a step back from the ledge, she took off her hoodie first, then her t-shirt and carefully extended her back legs so as not to rip off her bra as well. From her right hand, she extended her chelicerae blade and cut a hole in the back of the t-shirt, just enough to all her legs to slip through. She used her back legs to get the size right. It was a bit of a messy work, but it would have to do for now. It wasn’t as if she was going on a job interview or something. 

Claire retracted the blade and her back legs, then she put on the modified t-shirt and tied her hoodie around her waist. With the hole in her back, she able to freely extend her legs. It was going to be the first time she would use them outside, and this in itself brought a whole new wave of emotions for her. 

The hairs on the legs tingled from the cold breeze, and just by touching the rooftop, she could feel the many vibrations that were flowing through it. By closing her eyes and allowing her back legs to spread across the rooftop, she could sense where the people were, who was walking, who was running, who was jumping, or who was making a lot of noise. Just like a spider would feel the vibrations sent through her web, she too felt the vibrations sent through the ground. 

Opening her eyes, Claire took a deep breath in and then lifted her body up with her back legs. Now she had a far better view of the city around her. It was like gazing upon the surrounding area from atop a water tower. It felt pleasant, but at the same time, she realized that she was not afraid of either falling down or feeling sick. She actually felt at ease standing at that height, almost as if that was her natural place to be. 

Claire took a moment to relax, to simply let her thoughts fly away and simply take in the view as her body was caressed by the gentle breeze. It was a bit cold, true, but she was not bothered by it. 

When she finally decided to come down, it was time to test out what her back legs could really do. 

She started off by doing a couple of stretching exercise to see the length she could reach and how flexible they were. Moving them felt natural, almost as if she had them for her entire life, but she was conscious of the fact that she had yet to unlock all of their secrets. After all, she had no idea she could use them to feel the vibrations in the ground until just a moment ago. 

The back spider legs were different from those of the arthropod in many ways. They looked similar, but the internal composition was one that suited Claire’s new mutated body. They were far more flexible than them and sturdier too. If she focused well enough, she could send a pulse of electricity through them or even generate small electrical discharges between the tips of her fingers. How they were insulated from the rest of her body, she had no idea, but her main guess was that she probably didn’t need to. Only a specialized doctor who did a thorough investigation on her could give a proper assessment. 

Claire continued with a jumping exercise after she was done with her stretches. Her normal legs helped her reach a decent height, and her back legs dampened her fall in such a way that the people who were living in the apartment below her didn’t feel or hear a thing. 

Moving on, she tried to use her back legs to jump. At first, she used what she believed to be a light jump, a simple hop if one could call it that. 

“Whoa~!” Claire was surprised by the height and at the same time astonished by the view from up there. 

With that single hop, she was already up to five meters in the air, and she landed back on the rooftop without any difficulty. 

“Good! Now for a bigger one!” Claire said as she knelt a bit more and then jumped again, this time using only 30% of the power of her back legs. 

The height she reached was at around 12 meters, more than double of the previous hop. 

The landing was effortless this time as well. Spiders were well known for being able to survive falls that were many times the length of their own body. Some of them could even glide through the air thanks to their legs, but Claire had neither their light weight nor their size, which meant that she had to adjust on the go how she was dampening the fall. 

Upon reaching this height, it was clear that she could go for a lot more. How much farther she could jump was completely unknown to Claire, but upon looking towards the building across the street, she felt the itch to try it out. 

Walking up to the ledge, she tried to estimate the distance. 

“It’s around 15 meters...” she said. 

Earlier, she jumped around 12 meters up in the air, but she had no way of knowing that. Her gut instinct was telling her, however, that she could easily handle such a distance. 

This was going to be the first time in her life when she made such a huge leap. As she stepped back and prepared herself for the jump, she was washed over by an exhilarating feeling, one that she only felt back when she received Kraneea as a little spiderling through the mail. 

With a smile on her lips, she started running as fast as she could towards the ledge, but in the rush of the moment, she forgot that right now she was not a normal human anymore. By the time she reached the ledge, the speed she reached through running alone was of 34.6 km/h, then her back legs moved into position, with the tips on the ledge and tucked up behind her. Then, when she pushed herself off the ledge, she felt the muscles on her back tense and her back legs acted like coiled up spring that was finally released. 

The moment was so intense that she opened her upper eyes and began to look at all the details around her. For a moment, everything moved as though it was filmed in slow motion. Her own body traveled forward with a speed that far surpassed her initial estimation, and she knew from the moment her legs didn’t touch the ledge of the building that this jump was too powerful. 

I won’t land there... Claire thought when she looked at the spot on the rooftop of the building across the street, where she initially believed she would land on. I’m going past it... when this thought crossed her mind, she moved her gaze forward, and tried to take in the whole scenery. 

If not for her upper eyes, she may not have been able to notice all the little details around her. There was a flight of pigeons to her far right that took off from the rooftop on the other side of the intersection. A bit farther than that was an old man who was spreading a bunch of newspapers at his feet. To her left, she saw a red-tailed hawk that was looking straight at her. It was perched on the rails of a water tower. Down on the ground, a taxi was just making a pass around the corner, and an old lady was petting a stray cat. A group of children just happened to be coming back from school and were talking with each other at the streetlight. It was a red sign. A lady of around the same age as Claire was having a smoke on the balcony of the building to her far left. 

In front of her, she saw a completely different scenery. For the most part, the sensation she got after making that insane jump was that no rooftop was out of her reach, that she was free to jump and stretch her legs as she pleased. This in itself made her incredibly happy inside. It was a newfound freedom she never knew existed. 

The point of landing didn’t really matter now, but she knew she was cutting it close. The building was quite large and taller than the one from which she made the jump. 

If I lower my back legs, I can catch the edge. Claire thought when she saw that she might just slip across the edge of the rooftop and land in the middle of the street. 

A normal human would have missed out on that split-second decision and found themselves hitting the street face first. Then again, a normal human wouldn’t have survived the g-force Claire’s body was subjected to in the moment of the jump. 

Actually, it didn’t even cross her mind how she was still alive and unharmed after something like that, but it could be said that her body adapted to survive the full potential it could display. Much like how a human Olympic athlete was capable of impressive feats of strength without their body breaking down, so could Claire. 

Thus, with her superhuman reflexes, she moved her lower pair of back legs forward to grab hold of the edge she was going to miss by just a few centimeters. Thanks to the momentum, she would have rolled forward if she didn’t us the upper pair to stop herself. The strength in those limbs was phenomenal as Claire came to a complete stop. 

A bit stunned at first, and tilted at an angle of 60 degree forward, she first took a deep breath and tried to calm down her fast-beating heart. The adrenaline was still surging through her body, making her feel like she was ready to simply start a parkour run across all the rooftops in Manhattan. She probably would have too if she didn’t remember the small detail that a beautiful woman with four hairy spider legs on her back was a bit more than unusual even for New York. 

A moment later, after she managed to calm down a bit, she straightened her back and sat down on the inclined edge. The roof tiles were spread underneath her and if she were to let go with her back legs, she could have easily rolled over and fell off. It scared her a bit, but at the same time she didn’t think it could have resulted in a fatal fall for her. 

Looking back, she realized that the jump she made was way over 70 meters. It was an insane feat, and she was just getting started with understanding the limits of her abilities. 

Just thinking about the distance itself made her burst into a loud laughter. It was that unbelievable even for her. 

Once she calmed down, Claire pulled herself on the other side of the edge and jumped down into the small enclosure of the rooftop. The front and side edges were tall enough to prevent others from easily spotting here and when she looked up in the sky, there didn’t seem to be any helicopters or drones flying around. The back side was the only one that did not have a high wall as it was left open. 

“I wonder if I can reach my apartment building from here if I do a bit of rooftop parkour.” she wondered as she walked up to the back side of the building, which gave into an alley of apartment buildings. 

A couple of trees dressed up the area in a more vivid and natural color, but at this time of the year, they lacked their usual bright-colored leaves. If Claire were to do parkour across those rooftops, she would need something to hide her face. 

I only have the remains from my t-shirt... she thought as she pulled out the piece of fabric from her right pocket. 

It wasn’t much, but it would have to do for a temporary mask. If anyone was to take a picture of her with their phone, they would probably focus more on her legs than her face, and all she had to do to avoid such potential situations was to keep her upper eyes opened. They worked better than her normal ones and could take in more information. 

With the piece of cloth tied up over her mouth and nose, Claire prepared herself for another jump. This time it was going to be from this rooftop over to the one on the apartment building in front of her. 

With a much weaker jump than the one before, she spread her back legs and then pulled them forward to dampen her fall. The impact was felt as gentle as the touch of a feather, then she made a run for the next rooftop, jumping across the small edges between the buildings, over hanging clothes wires, or any other obstacle in her way. For the most part, she used her human legs, while her back legs were folded on her back, ready to give her a boost with a kick or make a jump at any given moment. She also used them to maintain her balance. 

Claire ran across the rooftops on the left side of the W 127th street until she reached the Morningside Avenue. Here, she jumped over the street and headed North on the left side of Convent Ave. She kept running North while making sure there was no one around with their phones aimed at her. Considering how fast she went and with so many obstacles in the way, Claire would have thought them to be lucky if they even caught a glimpse of her, let alone had the time to capture a picture. 

Once she reached the W 130th Street, she jumped over to the buildings on the right side of Convent Ave and from there, she made a big jump across to the six-story apartment building there. Because this one was a bit taller than the other one, Claire realized only when it was already too late that she wouldn’t be able to land on the rooftop. 

“Oh no! No! No!” she said as she immediately placed her back legs forward and tried her best to grab onto something. 

“Omf!” air escaped her lungs when she bumped into the side of the wall, but she didn’t fell. 

That something she grabbed onto was the wall itself. 

“Huh?” she was surprised by this, but when her upper eyes caught sight of a little kid who was now staring at her, she quickly skittered up and went over the edge. 

That was close! she thought as she was taking a deep breath in to calm down her fast-beating heart. 

The kid startled her, and for the first time in her life, she now realized how it was to be the bug that runs away from the scary human. Although, in this situation, if it was the mother who had spotted her, she would have screamed louder than a fireman’s siren. 

“So... I can stick to walls?” she said to herself as she looked at her back legs. 

Technically speaking, they were similar to those of an actual spider, but she didn’t feel as though her own hands could actually stick to any solid surface unless she had glue on them. As to why these other pairs were so different, it probably had something to do with the adhesive hairy pads on the tip of her legs. Those were paired up with a tiny pair of claws, through the help of which, she could get a better grip on most solid surfaces. 

Thanks to the sheer size of her legs, however, this meant that she could also stick to surfaces a normal spider would otherwise fall off of. If she did not have anything to grip on, the sheer strength of her limbs could dig up something in the surface or use surface friction to hang in there. 

Taking into consideration this newfound ability, Claire understood that her back legs outside of being creepy enough to cause a heart attack, they were quite useful for moving around. Rather than swinging around on spider webs, she could just parkour over the rooftops of the buildings and use those legs to climb on the sides. 

“Alright! I should get going now!” Claire said with a smile on her face as she walked up to the edge of the rooftop. 

With another powerful jump, she landed on the rooftop of the building across the street and then made her way down Convent Ave. There was still a long way to go until she reached her apartment building but running across the rooftops like this was both an exhilarating and fun activity for her. In no time at all, she found herself smiling and even seeing the imaginary paths that could lead her to her objective. 

The fact that she had nothing to fear in case she slipped and fell on the ground was also another plus, but she would have wanted to avoid this situation by all means. After all, she was carrying four giant spider legs on her back. Not exactly a postcard that said ‘hug me!’. 

By the time she got back home, she was sweaty and actually laughing. At some point, she even forgot to check if there was anyone around trying to take a picture of her. Claire simply got too into the whole spider parkour thing. 

Now, a long shower and something good to eat did not sound that bad at all. Unfortunately, with her fridge more on the empty side, she decided to order some pizza and while at it check for any interesting rumors spreading around the net. 

Normally, news of her mysterious disappearance after being hit by a truck and struck by lightning on top of having a bunch of chemicals dumped on her would have made the headlines somewhere, but the journalists didn’t appear to be that interested in it. Rather, it was more like there was no one out there who could confirm with absolute certainty that there was indeed a victim there. 

In all the news, the toxic chemical spill was marked as a simple accident with no serious injuries. It smelled like a cover-up from a mile away, but even if she wanted to report it, there was no way to prove her words without a proper recording. Besides, the woman that got hit was a bit different from her from many points of view. Even proving that she was the same person would have been a ridiculous endeavor, so she simply gave up on the thought. 

Out of curiosity though, she did search for other similar incidents or anything that could hint at another superhuman like her, but everything was inconclusive at best. There were no one out there flying through the sky, lifting up trucks, and running faster than the speed of sound. Given her own situation, she tended to be a bit skeptical about this. It was impossible that she was the only one, but maybe actual conclusive proof had yet to be made public and the government was simply preparing for it. 

For some countries, individuals with superpowers would have been treasures of unparalleled value from a military point of view. Claire could only imagine how China or North Korea would jump at the opportunity of creating or researching actual super soldiers. 

There was still a long day ahead of her, so she decided to unpack her things and finish up arranging her little studio apartment. Once she was done with this, she made herself comfortable and looked for a new job. With her degree and knowledge, there were a lot of places where she could submit her CV, but she wanted to make sure that it wasn’t going to be a place similar to her previous one. This would require a bit of diving through the forums and time spent searching up scandals on the web. 

By the time it got dark outside, Claire noticed that she was beginning to retreat into her previous behavior pattern. It wasn’t something bad, but she felt like she could try something else now. There were countless of new opportunities out there for which she never had thought possible for her to reach for. Besides, the more she stayed at home now, the more she was reminded that her dear friend wasn’t with her anymore. 

“Sigh... I miss you already, Kraneea.” she said as she thought back at her pet Huntsman Spider. 

The thought of getting a new pet spider did cross her mind, but for now, she was just going to leave it at that. Kraneea was irreplaceable for her, and she needed time to mourn the departure of her eight-legged friend. 

With the thought of going out for the night, she got changed into a navy blue winter dress with an easy to reach back zipper, just in case she needed to stretch those back legs of hers. To accompany the dress, she put on a pair of crème short heel shoes and took her crème mini purse, in which she dumped her phone, lipstick, wet wipes, wallet, and a few other essentials. 

Once Claire was out the door, she walked over to a taxi and went straight to Chelsea at one of the more famous clubs there, where she heard there was good hip-hop music. If she didn’t like it there, she could always go for one of the clubs in West Village, and although farther, but it promised to be better, the Bushwick area. 

Claire, up until her recent transformation, was never one to even try thinking about going out to party, but tonight, she felt like she had nothing to fear. Maybe it was the adrenaline she felt earlier that day when she went parkour over the rooftops of Manhattan, but she definitely felt like she was a new woman. 

The changes that happened to her were not only related to her own body but also to her mind and heart. Those feelings of power, confidence, and freedom were definitely not something she experienced before in one big cocktail of awesomeness. 

What was a bit evident, but which she kind of wished she didn’t see, was the fact that these feelings couldn’t have sprouted from within her if they weren’t there in the first place. 

Still, when was the last time she allowed them to surface? When was the last time she allowed herself to experience her own life? Probably only when she was a little innocent child. 

As soon as she reached the club, she decided to get herself a drink, a cocktail with a small kick in it for courage. The music was ridiculously loud for her rather sensitive ears, but she got used to it quite fast. Her body moved to the beat and with her new and enhanced senses, she could spot the good dancers here and copy some of their moves. 

After her fourth drink, the barman asked her if she was alright, to which, she looked back at him a bit confused. It was then when she realized that alcohol didn’t have that much effect on her, but she was too afraid right now to order a coffee, seeing how spiders could get drunk on this. She was going to test out that theory once she got back home, for now, she enjoyed her drink and walked up to the ring to see how well she could move that body of hers. 

For three hours straight she continued to dance and enjoy herself. Claire got lost in the music, and her instincts kicked in, making her movements more sensual and enticing to those around her. Just like a spider using her body to lure her prey into her trap, she too was releasing this almost irresistible aura. 

Although the night was still young, and there were plenty of others who had just joined the party, for Claire it was enough. She had her fun, and she wanted now to get back home. 

Instead of taking a taxi, she decided to take the subway. Unlike those around the world, the NYC one never slept and continued to run at every hour and every day of the year, which was great for those late-night party folks. 

She got off on the 145 Street Station and then started to walk all the way back home. It was a beautiful night outside, with a clear sky and rather quiet streets. There were not that many cars zipping by at this late hour. However, this did not mean that there were not any night owls around. Leaving aside the occasional homeless, there were those who could be considered a bit troublesome by the locals. 

Groups of two or three misfits were undressing Claire with their eyes as she walked past them, but other than whistling or tossing a snarky remark at her, they didn’t dare to make a move. Just because they weren’t acting on their words didn’t mean that Claire wasn’t feeling the pressure of being stared at like that. It sent chills down her back and made her fangs fidget in her mouth almost as if she was ready to bite them in self-defense. 

Maybe I’m just being a bit over-conscious... she thought as she got farther away from them and felt as though the pressure was subsiding. 

When she saw her apartment building in sight, three individuals stepped up in front of her. It was as if they were waiting for her there. 

She stopped and looked at them carefully, her senses were on high alert and her fangs were ready to pop out. The reason why she didn’t immediately ask them who they were was because if she did, they would see her fangs. Thankfully, they did the introductions themselves. 

“Rejoice, for we, of the Father Light’s Protectorate are here to bring you salvation!” the man in the middle told her with an authoritative tone of voice, unsuited for the rather gangster appearance he sported. 

 The three men wore long hoods that hid their faces, black jeans with big black chains tied to the side. Each one of them carried a gun that they made intentionally visible as a way to threaten her. The one on the right already made a step closer to her. 

Seeing them like this, the first thought that went through Claire’s mind was to run away from them as fast as she could. With her adrenaline spiking, and her heart beating faster and faster, she didn’t waste another second as she turned around and started running. At first, she was slow but as she gained speed, she noticed the alley on her right and dashed towards it. 

Meanwhile, the three men were taken by surprise by her behavior. Most of the women they had encountered so far wouldn’t even dare to run away like that. They weren’t fools, they picked their targets carefully, checking to see if they were the type capable of escaping them or not. Tonight, they considered Claire to be an easy target with her short heel shoes and restrictive winter dress. 

As soon as they saw her go into that dark and creepy alley with no way out, a big and evil smile formed on their lips as they ran after her. They were well aware that poor Claire had nowhere to go, she was trapped like a rat in a cage and would soon have to submit to their will. 

The three men thought they had cornered a lamb, a woman they could easily overpower and have their way with, but their target had something else in mind when she ran into that dark alley. Her intention wasn’t to get trapped or to lure them there but rather to find a place with no possible camera or witnesses where she could extend her back legs and then make a run for it towards the rooftops. 

Claire could hear them getting closer, but when she was about to undo her back zipper, she noticed something in the corner of a window to her left. Inside the building, where it was warm and nice, a small spider was walking on the frame of the window, getting closer to the a big web, on top of which was a much bigger spider. 

Is that a male trying to court the female? Claire asked herself as she looked at the two, almost entranced by them. 

She had but a moment to spare, to extend her back legs and run away, but she didn’t find herself that afraid of the three ruffians. On the contrary, while she was watching the big spider on the web, which was the female, as it stayed motionless, just looking at the eager male, she remembered the way these tiny arachnids courted each other. It wasn’t the female that tried to catch the attention of the male but the other way around. Males often fought against each other or used various dances and other signals to impress the female. Very rarely was it that the male would choose the female it wished to court and didn’t use any of those tactics, those were the exceptions which confirmed the rule. 

He’s doing it wrong... Clair thought when she looked at the little male spider approaching the web of the female spider. 

Why this was wrong was quite simple. The female was looking straight at him, and he didn’t even try to dance for her or check through various signals if she was eager to mate or not. 

“Looks like Father Light blessed us with a wonderful capture, brothers!” the man in the middle declared as he spread his hands wide and showed her a big grin. 

The three men felt far more powerful than they should be at this point, and their menacing getup with black chains tied to their black jeans accompanied by hoods that partially covered their face acted as an empowerment tool. At this moment, they felt like nothing Claire would do could change the situation she got herself into. That was why they started walking slowly towards her, with each step showing their self-confidence, and with a smile on their lips that showed how endearing they were. 

The ‘victim’ in question, however, wasn’t even paying attention to them. She was looking at the little spider that got close enough to the female spider’s net to try and tap it two times. 

You shouldn’t have done that, little fellow. thought Claire as she watched the tragic event that was about to unfold. 

The moment she felt the vibration crossing through the thread, the female spider rushed down and attacked her prey. In the blink of an eye, she got close enough to the little spider to jump in for an attack. The little male wasn’t able to react fast enough to even attempt to flee, and the next thing he knew was the death embrace of the female. Her powerful chelicerae pierced through his abdomen and a wave of venom flowed through him. 

The little spider who didn’t even try to see if the female was available for courting ended up as her meal instead. It was the survival of the fittest for the little arachnids, but for Claire, this event reminded her of a couple of things. 

First of all, she wasn’t the same weak-willed woman as she was before. Her fears and worries had vanished with her transformation, but it wasn’t anything drastic like brainwashing, just more like finally having the curtains drawn from the windows to let the light shine over the truth that had always been there, inside of her. 

Second of all, her boost in confidence was also reinforced by her physical changes which allowed her to achieve feats beyond a normal human’s capabilities. Her body had changed into something that for others was monstrous, but inside, she remained the same woman as always, only... freer and more open minded now. 

And lastly, there never was a female spider who was at the mercy of her male partner. There never was a female spider who had to dance for the male to catch his attention. No, if the male wanted even a sliver of a chance of having the honor of mating with her, then he had to work for it. He had to fight, dance, and use any means necessary to attract her attention. 

Then... why should I run away from these three? she wondered and then felt a shiver of electricity run down her spine. 

The sensation washed away her previous fear. That was the old Claire reacting like that, always running away from conflict, only cowering away in front of danger, never assuming the responsibility for her own actions and decisions. There was no need to erase that old part of her, she had to heal it and slowly change it to how she really wanted to be as a woman. 

With a purr and a smile forming on her lips, she looked back at the three men who up until now kept calling out to her. They said something about some guy named Father Light and that she was a good catch or something like that. Claire tried to remember what they said, but she felt as though their words just went through one ear and flew out the other, which meant that whatever they said was useless. 

Right now, they are just three males tapping on my web, thinking they have the right to court me, when in fact, they are nothing more than a bother... not even lunch. Claire thought as she ran her gaze left to right, trying to assess if any of them was indeed dangerous for her. 

“What you thinkin’ about, honey?” the man on the far right asked. 

Claire lifted the corners of her lips into a tantalizing smile and tilted her head a little to the left. 

“About you three...” she replied with a purr in the tone of her voice. 

As soon as they heard this, the men felt a rush of victory and looked at each other with a foolish big smile. In their mind, Claire was already degraded form a frightened good-looking woman to a whore that could not wait to jump on them, maybe a nymphomaniac? They had no idea that the closer they got to her, the easier it was for her to catch them in her web. 

She took a step forward, her hips swaying with a naturalness that evoked the alluring erotic potential of her body. The three were simply entranced by this sudden drastic change in her behavior, so much that they did not even suspect for a second that something could be wrong. 

With her right hand, she pulled down the zipper on her back and then took another step closer to them. The man in the middle, the boss of the three, felt entitled to be the first one to have a go with her, so he welcomed her embrace when she got close enough to him to move her arms over his shoulders and around his neck. His own hands moved over her body, trying to get a good grope, but before he could even touch her properly, he felt a stab in the right side of his neck. 

Claire’s fangs, which popped out from the back of her mouth stabbed right into his flesh and delivered a reasonable dose of her potent neurotoxic venom. 

“W-What t-the...” the man mumbled, but she placed a finger on his lips to keep his mouth shut and then looked into his eyes. 

She let out a soft giggle and then pushed him to the side a bit so he wouldn’t fall over her. The man dropped like a rock in the garbage pile to her left. 

When they saw this, the other two were snapped out of their trance, and the spell Claire cast on them was broken. Their gaze moved from him to her, but they couldn’t make heads or tail of what just happened. 

This moment of confusion was just exactly what she needed in order to get close enough to them to grab a hold of them. She caught the one on the right by his shoulder and the one the left by his arm. With a strong inhuman pull, she sent them flying towards each other. The impact was powerful enough to put them in a confused state, so before they snapped out of it, Claire used a long side movement to slam her left palm into the one on her left. The force pushed the man into his friend and sent them flying in the wall on her right. 

They let out horrible groans of pain after they landed in the garbage pile on the ground. A few of the black bags burst open and released a rather putrid and horrible stench of expired food. The two men didn’t know now what was more terrible, the pain they were feeling or the smell that burned their nose hair. 

“Now boys, I’m going to give you just one warning.” she told them with a purr in the tone of her voice “If you or any of your friends dare to try the same thing again with me.” her tone turned more menacing now “I won’t hesitate to break each and every single one of the bones in your bodies or rip out your arms right out of your shoulder sockets.” 

She then pulled back up her zipper and walked out of the alley. Thanks to her natural allure and the element of surprise, she didn’t even need to use her back legs. While the three men would have a bit of trouble trying to explain to their bosses what just happened, at the very least they wouldn’t need to go to a hospital for sever injuries. 

With a satisfied smile on her lips, Claire made her way back to her apartment. She wasn’t afraid that the envenomed man was going to die from her venom because she knew by instinct just how much she had to inject. Depending on the situation, she could even send someone into cardiac arrest with it. Although she had yet to try it out on someone, she didn’t need to do so in order to understand its potency. 

On her way back, she didn’t encounter any other suspicious fellows who tried to invite her in dubious factions or get their hands on her just because she was a nice catch. Even if she did, she highly doubted she would feel that fear and panic she did before. On the contrary, she would feel confident in her own strength and abilities. She understood that normal men could not handle her with force because she was far more powerful than them. 

At her apartment building, just as she was about to turn her keys in the lock, she saw her neighbor walking up the stairs. 

“Good morning.” she greeted her. 

“Good morning.” she replied back, but as she walked past Claire, she caught a whiff of her smell. 

I can feel the scent of several different men on her... Not just cologne but also... the scent of sex. What was she doing at this late hour? she wondered, but she hesitated in asking her anything about it. 

A question like that was a bit too impolite to ask. It wasn’t her business, anyway, and as long her neighbor didn’t disturb her with anything, it didn’t matter to her. 

As soon as she stepped inside her apartment, she considered the long night over and with a sigh escaping her lips, she let herself fall in her bed. Despite how late it was, Claire didn’t feel tired at all, but this didn’t mean she didn’t need to sleep, she simply required less time to recover.