CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
The creature did indeed resemble the small crustacean in its long, slender body and numerous tiny legs. The whole body was a rainbow of vibrant colors that, because of its transparent exoskeleton, reflected all the hues around it. There were some very important differences other than the sheer size. Its tail ended in a sharp point like a scorpion and the antennae atop its head were wrong. They were as long as one would expect but far more flexible than I could have imagined. Those things weaved about like the writhing snakes atop Medusa’s head.
The creature’s bulbous eyes zeroed in on me and it opened its mouth to reveal four long rows of chompers stacked one on top of the other. My face fell and my eyes bulged out of my head. “Oh damn.”
The gourd shot past my
