The snails around me started aggressively smashing into my shell.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
My heart jumped with each of their hits.
They hit my shell with more force than they did before. Thump. Thump. They went as they tried to get at me. With the leftover strength I had within me, I held on tightly as I could on bark below me. I dreaded the possibility of being knocked over and having my body exposed to their spines.
...
Thump. Thump. Thump. Minutes had passed and I was still holding on for dear life. With each subsequent attack, I felt my foot numb as the vibrations of their hits rebounded within my shell throughout my body. I was getting nauseous. I knew I needed to find a way out of my situation because eventually my shell would break or I would be knocked off the branch.
'Why did I even bite that snail?' I thought as my memory of what happened just a few seconds before had instantly disappeared out of my mind. 'I remember I was hungry...' I thought to myself.
At the time, I didn't know about my gift. Well, my gift that was also a curse. But you'll find out more about it later...
Suddenly, a high-pitched scream broke my train of thought from the outside of my shell. Just as I thought that I couldn't hold on much longer they had stopped. Taking this chance, I tried to poke one of my eyes out of my shell to see what they were doing. But before I even got a chance, I felt a huge force pull me upward. They had changed tactics. The screech was a suggestion by one of the snails. Since hitting my shell couldn't get me to come out, they decided to pull me out.
I held on as tightly to the branch as I could but to no avail. Millimetre by millimetre, I felt my body slowly leave the safety of my shell as my body was slowly being pulled out. 'I can't let them attack me.' I thought as I released my grip. Like releasing a taut rubber band, I sprung back into my shell for safety. In that instant, I was briefly able to see that four of the Spiked-shells had latched onto my shell with their giant feet.
I receded my body as far as I could back into my shell. As I did, I heard another screech and then I felt my momentum shift. 'We are moving.' I thought. Cautiously, I poked my eye out once more. I watched as the branch below me began to shift. 'They are taking me somewhere... but where?'
Soon I got my answer. It as the edge of the branch. I looked at the curved part of the branch below me as I felt their grip on my shell change. I watched as a drop of their mucus dripped off my shell and fall into the curved part of the branch below me.
'WAIT? They can't be thinking about dropping me over the edge right?' I asked myself as they moved further and further out from the edge of the branch. I left my body once more, I didn't care about some superficial holes in my body anymore, I wanted to live. I shook back and forth in hopes of getting out of their slimy grip.
Their grips were too strong. Slowly was brought over the edge of the branch. I had a clear view of the green abyss below. I couldn't help but take in a sharp breath. Soon my breathing and heart rate picked up as I thought about the possibility that I was going to die then and there. I remember my body begin to shake from the fear of dying. I was scared. I was scared of dying.
Controlling myself, I looked around instead. I knew it wasn't worth struggling anymore. I was going to die then and there. I gave up for the first time in my life and hung there like I accepted my fate.
I felt the warm air. I took in a few more breathes and stopped struggling. Instead, I looked around to have my last view of the world before my life had ended.
'It was a good life, a long 18-day life.' I thought as I looked around.
I looked across and into the distance. I saw more branches. I saw more trees. I didn't know the extent of the forest. I remember thinking that I would regret not being able to explore those trees, those new forests and that my story was going to end soon.
Then I turned my vision towards the branch we were on. I look down the branch and saw the green leaf in the distance. It was our new leaf, our home. On the leaf, I could see bright coloured twinkling lights that dazzled under a ray of sunlight that had somehow passed through the blockade of clouds above us. It was my siblings.
'I can't die here. I can't just let myself fall to my death like... like 13.' As a vision of 13 being blown off of our birth leaf. 'I can't die here.' I thought to myself once more. 'I need to protect my family. I need to get revenge against those clouds. I need to fix this situation with the Spike-shelled snails... I want to live. I have so much to live for!' I thought as I pulled myself back together. 'I can't give up now. I need to try for myself and for my family!'
So I swung my body back and forth. I did it for that lucky chance that I would swing myself towards the side of the branch at the moment that they let go. That way I would have a chance to grip onto the branch once more and save myself. Yes. It was a bold and extremely dangerous move on my part, but I had no choice. I was at the end of my line.
Or so I thought.
Suddenly, a screech broke the silence. It was faint and barely audible as it came from a distance away. I looked in the direction of where it came from as I continued to swing desperately in hopes of having a chance to save myself. In the distance, a familiar snail came within sight. It was the large leader of the Spike-shelled snails that I had seen a few days ago. It screeched once more as it travelled towards us. I felt the hold on my shell from the Spike-shelled snails shift once more and soon muffled screeches filled the air. They were discussing something, but I ignored them. I continued to try to free myself.
Suddenly I felt my vision shift from the view of the abyss back to solid bark. I felt myself crash into it as my shell skidded across the branch. I slapped my foot back onto the bark before I had bounced off too far.
To my surprise, the snails that were holding me up turned and threw me back onto. "Oh thank the heavens!" I shouted out as I felt the solid feeling of the branch below my foot once more. Soon, I saw the eight Spike-shelled snails move and reform their wall of spikes around my body. I didn't care as I tried to control my breathing and my beating heart.
I didn't die.
Soon the largest snail of the Spiked-shelled snail's had slid up and approached us. He or she seemed to be in a bad mood as it crawled towards as. I looked at its intimidating height and size as it stared down at me and its subordinates.
Its next action surprised me. Without saying a word, it gave each of the eight snails a smack across their eyes. It was clearly angry, but not at me. It was angry at them. Staring them down, the eight smaller Spike-shelled snails screeched in an attempt to explain themselves. I couldn't understand them so I won't narrate their conversation. I just stood there and watched.
During their conversation, the leader snail turned and glared at me with its large buggy eyes and howled. I think it was angry that I had killed off some of their snails and or kidnapped 60. But soon, it turned around and showered the other Spike-shelled snails with wails and mucous as well.
After a few minutes, it turned around and screeched once more. Then it looked at me and seem to gesture for me to follow it. I complied. I really didn't know what to do, but I was relieved. 'I'm still going to be a hostage.' I thought.
Slowly, we slid into the distance towards their leaf. After being lectured and smacked by their leader, other spiked-shell snails seemed to lose their energy. Their eyes slumped more and more as we slid.
We reached their leaf after a few minutes of travelling with the large Spiked-shelled snail in the lead.
Walls and walls of Spike-shelled snails were waiting for us. With a wave, the leader seemed to dismiss them and they turned and left in their lines. I, for one, didn't pay too much attention to this. All I could think about was the fresh leaf below me. I was so hungry that I couldn't control myself and started eating the moment I got on their leaf. Soon a wave a delicious leaf juice entered into my stomach. It quenched my thirst and my hunger. Instantly, I felt refreshed as I began to produce a normal volume of mucous once more.
As I ate, we slid deeper into their leaf. We passed by more and more walls of snails who let us through. Finally, after a few minutes, we reached the inner circle of their colony. It was literally a circle of large snails.
"RE... RE..." The leader of the Spike-shelled snails called out. The circle of shells slowly opened up and as it did, I saw some familiar colours through the gaps. Those colours of the rainbow that I was used to on those two specific shells.
I was reunited with 7 and 11.
...