8 Double Dubble Trouble

Chapter 8 DOUBLE DOUBLE TROUBLE Uh-oh, thought Andrew. His heart was pounding in his ears. Will we ever get out of here alive? "Move it, Judy!" he hollered. "The spider's right behind us!" "EEEEEYAAAAA!" hollered Judy. She lost her hold on the strand of spider silk and fell on top of Andrew. Eek! "Go, Oody! Go!" squeaked Thudd. "Spider gonna bite with fangs. Spider juice turn Drewd and Oody insides into goo. Then spider suck out Drewd and Oody goo like milk shake."

Judy got a grip again and scrambled furiously up to the top of the hole. Spider silk covered the edge of the entrance. Andrew and Judy grabbed on to it and pulled themselves out into the cool desert night. Sssss… sssssss… ssssss… The shadow of a giant claw passed over Andrew's head. He looked up. In front of them was a lobster-like creature as long as a person's hand. Its fat front claws jabbed the air. Its spiked tail curled over its back. "AAAAAAAAACK!" screamed Judy. "Scorpion!" She tried to run. She fell. Her feet were tangled in the silk that surrounded the edge of the spider burrow. "HELP!"

Eek! squeaked Thudd. "Scorpion eat anything that move. Eat other spiders. Even eat baby scorpions." Andrew's knees wobbled. Judy was screaming and kicking. "Play dead, Judy" said Andrew. "Scorpions eat what moves." Hssssssssssssssss… came a sound from behind them—from the spider hole. meep… "Whistling spider whistling," said Thudd. "Whistle when it scared." Andrew shuddered and looked around. Leg by furry leg, the whistling spider was creeping from its burrow. It reared over them like King Kong. The scorpion's tail twitched above its head. meep… "Scorpion getting ready to sting," said Thudd. "Got poison claw at end of tail!" The scorpion's claws jabbed at the spider. "HELLLLLP!" hollered Judy, still caught in the silk. The clawed feet of the spider and the

scorpion scraped against her as their battle raged on. Andrew crept in among the furry legs and the armored legs. He grabbed Judy's hand and tried to pull her up, but a furry leg knocked him away. The spider was pacing quickly back and forth, trying to avoid the scorpion's claws. Andrew crept behind a pebble and waited for another chance to get Judy. Hssssssssssssssss… Ssssss… ssssss… sssss… With its front legs, the whistling spider furiously scraped hairs from its abdomen and tossed them at the scorpion. meep… "Spider got poison hairs on abdomen," said Thudd. "If poison hairs land in eyes of scorpion, on soft parts of scorpion, scorpion leave, maybe." "What if the poison hairs land on Judy?" asked Andrew. "She's right under the spider!" meep… "Hurt a lot," said Thudd.

The scorpion clamped a claw on to one of the spider's legs. The spider backed away. The end of the spider's leg snapped off! meep… "Spiders got skeleton outside of body," said Thudd. "Called exoskeleton. "To grow, spider gotta shed old skeleton. Called molting. When spider grow new skeleton, spider grow new leg." "Wouldn't it be great if people could do that!" said Andrew. Andrew caught sight of something racing toward the spider-scorpion battle. It was moving so fast that it was hard to see. But Andrew could

tell that it was about the size of a mouse. It leapt onto the scorpion! The scorpion let go of the whistling spider. The whistling spider turned and scrambled back into its hole. Judy finally yanked herself free of the spider silk. She raced over to Andrew behind the pebble. "A mouse attacked the scorpion!" said Andrew. meep… "Not mouse," said Thudd. "Animal called fat-tailed dunnart. When dunnart find lotsa food, extra fat get stored in tail. "Fat-tailed dunnart is marsupial like kangaroo. Tiny babies born small as grain of rice. Crawl into pouch to grow." "It's cute!" said Judy. "And it saved my life. If it hadn't come along, the spider or the scorpion would have stepped on me or eaten me!" meep… "Dunnart look cute," said Thudd. "But dunnart is scary fighter. Attack big prey." The dunnart had turned the scorpion on its back and pinned it down with its paws. The scorpion was frantically waving its claws. In the shadowy