Earth Man

by Richard Paul Evans

  The Second began to slam its arms against the cell wall again and while it did not break, it was beginning to bend.

  “Her?” Danny repeated, hoping to distract it with conversation.

  Keeping it talking meant keeping it human. He took another step forward and he knew the red button was now within reach.

  “We are one!” The Second screamed, slamming its fists against the floor.

  Danny lunged, springing like a dog toward button that would fill the plastic jail cell with fire. His speed was faster than any human on the planet but the Second was faster. It caught his wrist an inch from the button, gripping it tight, his fingers wiggling an inch from the button.

  “Do not touch the mother!” The monster hissed at him, black saliva spraying from between its cracked lips.

  Although the alien was shorter and slimmer than Danny, it tossed him across the room with barely any effort at all, twisting his wrist and sending him flying head over heels. Danny hit the concrete wall and fell to the floor, pain shooting up his spine. The air had been knocked from his lungs but he leapt gracefully to his feet, exhaling slowly to regain his composure. Standing up straight, he locked eyes with the alien. It was on to him now, it knew he was not just another human victim.

  “You. You are the Avatar, aren’t you? The protector of this planet?”

  It suddenly turned its back to Danny as if he were inconsequential. Danny froze in his tracks. The sudden change in tone, the body language, all of it changed so rapidly that Danny was unsure of what to do.

  “Yes.” Danny replied, anger in his voice.

  The creature was too unpredictable; one moment it was furiously attacking him, the next it was leaning peacefully against the plastic cell wall. It was causing Danny to constantly pump adrenaline as his fear jumped and spiked, then bottomed out again. Concentrating his will, he focused his power on his own body and tried to calm down his rampaging heart. Danny was getting twitchy and restless and he knew it made him careless, so he kept his distance from the monster.

  “It was smart to send your servants first, to weaken us. Torture us. Did you learn enough about us? Taking the mother from me for so long. Delaying our conquest. That only made us MORE HUNGRY.” The Second snapped.

  Its mouth stretching wide revealing shifting, changing white fangs.

  “Keep us apart. Keep us weak. We who are one.” It said, striding toward him.

  As long as it was talking, it was not attacking him, so Danny ignored the aching bruise on his back and circled around the creature. The Second kept itself between Danny and the First, close enough to reach him if it wanted to.

  “You know what Chem-X was doing?” Danny bluffed. He wanted to sound tough and in control.

  “Oh yes,” the alien replied calmly, “I have been here a long time. Hiding in the shadows of the continent you call Africa.”

  Its face was suddenly placid and contemplative, but Danny was not fooled by its human expression. Its black flesh squirmed on its own, no matter how human it acted the flesh revealed its true nature. Even its breathing was not real; it was an act, nothing but a mockery of life. The Growth had no need for air.

  “Humanity. So weak. Yet so adaptable. And so full of ideas.”

  One black hand seemed to constantly caress the plastic cell, it never moved far enough away to give Danny a second chance at getting to the incineration button.

  “She had a form once. Like mine. Black flesh. Our favourite. Strong. Fast.” The Second slurred the end words of its sentences and a monstrous tongue licked its lips. There was a force, an instinct pushing Danny to attack it, every movement of its body was disturbing and angered him.

  “You did this to us!”

  The Second leaped at him and Danny barely got out of the way. Before he could reorient himself he creature was back beside the cell again. For a moment it looked as if the Second was going to leap again, as its muscles tensed up Danny prepared himself. Instead the alien closed its eyes and let its arms go limp.

  “So peculiar, time. So much of it lost. What a burden time is, tied to the flesh and pulling us downwards. Stretching on and on as the meat wastes away.”

  Danny had no idea what the alien was talking about, so he simply ignored it. He had no interest in the history of the species or what it had experienced, not anymore. If there had ever been a time when Danny would have listened that time was long gone. Now all he wanted was to destroy the things.

  The aliens had been here long before he got his abilities and he resented that. With more time, he could have been better prepared, or perhaps the Growth would not have been so strong. The Second was obviously insane, its behaviour was far more erratic than the last one Danny had faced. The Growth had come to Earth to conquer and instead one major corporation named Chem-X had somehow brought them to a standstill. Danny felt stupid for trusting them, all along they’d known what was going on. He’d taken money from them in good faith and now he wondered if he’d ever really know the cost of that mistake.

  There were cameras in two of the corners of the room, recording everything that had happened. Once again Danny was glad for his helmet, he didn’t want to know what could happen if the internet got a hold of that footage. Chem-X had been playing with fire and now they’d just gotten burned. Danny couldn’t help but feeling he had been manipulated all along. They must have known the aliens would eventually reunite, that the Second would come and find its partner. Dr. Glass had said nothing to him. Glass had made it seem as if they wanted to learn from Danny’s experience when all they’d wanted was another piece on the chess board.

  Danny clenched his fists together in anger and he moved toward the Second, but before he could attack he heard something with his enhanced senses. He could smell the metal and rubber, sense the fast moving bodies. Armed men, soldiers, heavily armoured, were coming up the building stairwell fast. When they’d open the stairwell door a gust of wind had caught their scents and pushed it ahead of them. The smell of the men rolled into the room and the Second caught it as well. The military had arrived in the form of six armed and angry United States Army men.

  Phil Morrison sat with his feet dangling over the side of the bed, wearing only his undershirt and blue briefs. Wiping the sweat from his face, he shook off the remnants of sleep. He’d been dreaming; something terrible and dark and frightening enough to wake him from an afternoon nap. Downstairs his ex-wife Monica was puttering around in the kitchen. Phil was long past the point of chastising himself over their affair; he’d been sleeping with his ex-wife occasionally since the day they met and regardless of whatever title they gave their relationship, he knew it wasn’t going to end any time soon. Phil wasn’t the kind of man to lie to himself or regret his choices, in fact the reason he hadn’t married Linda was to keep his affair with Monica. They’d been terrible living together, but they had a passion for one another that never seemed to fade.

  The day after was always awkward for them and Phil immediately set his mind to getting out of the house as fast as possible. Just as he knew without a doubt they’d sleep together again, he also knew the day after meant a fight. Monica was going to feel guilty and want to hurt him for it. Any moment her sex buzz was going to fade and all the things she’d held back from saying earlier were going to come pouring out of her like a machine gun barrage. Then it would get ugly between them and they wouldn’t talk again for a few months. Her guilt would make her more abrasive and condescending. As he gathered up his clothes he glanced at the clock. He’d only slept for a half hour which meant it had only been about forty five minutes since they’d had sex last. That meant she still might be in a good mood, Phil thought as he pulled on his socks. Once she changed, once Monica let loose, Phil knew it would be hours before he got back on the road.

  Phil buttoned his beach shirt as he crept down the stairs. The television in the living room was surprisingly loud and Phil didn’t think Monica would hear him. He picked up his shoes but stopped when he heard the news alert.

  MILIT
ARY PERSONNEL HAVE TAKEN UP POSITION AROUND THE BUILDING AND THE CENTER FOR DISEASE CONTROL HAS URGED ALL CITIZENS OF SAN DIEGO TO KEEP THEIR DISTANCE. . .

  Phil slipped his loafers on and grabbed the door handle.

  “Philip!”

  It was Monica in the next room. Phil let go of the door handle and angrily kicked off his shoes.

  “Come in here please.”

  AMATUER VIDEO TAKEN FROM ACROSS THE STREET SHOWS A MAN ENTERING THE BUILDING AGAINST THE ORDERS OF ARMY PERSONNEL. .

  Monica stood in front of the fifty two inch flat screen they’d bought together years ago. She wore a pink slip under a long blue housecoat, the straps for which were in her hands. When she motioned Phil into the room, she did not look at him but used her housecoat straps threateningly.

  “Come here, Phil!” She said playfully. Her kindness caught Phil off guard and he stood next to her apprehensively, dragging his feet like a petulant child.

  “Is that Danny?” Monica asked, pointing at the screen. She’d frozen the image, which meant she’d upgraded her cable package. Phil didn’t see a control in her hand and he was puzzled by how she’d controlled the television.

  “Look at the screen, Phil. Is that guy Danny?” Monica said, pointing directly at the television. The image was taken off a poor resolution video, but it was easy enough to see a man in black motorcycle gear slipping into what appeared to be a dental office or mail center. When the scene changed to a shot of the same building but from a farther, wider angle, Phil leaned forward and squinted to see it better. The entire building was covered in a large make-shift quarantine bubble.

  “Go back.” He ordered Monica.

  She just held up the controller, as if it was obvious they were watching a live news report and she couldn’t rewind it.

  “It’s hard to be sure. This is from the news?”

  “Yes. This is live, I think.”

  “It could be him,” Phil said, scratching his chin, “hard to say with the helmet on.”

  “I’m sure that was Danny.” Monica stated.

  “Yeah? How can you be sure?” Phil asked.

  “How long have we known Helen and Danny? Almost twenty years. I’d recognize that man’s ass in a pair of jeans or leathers any day, Philip.” Monica answered.

  She placed her hands on her hips and looked Phil dead in the eye; he knew there was nothing he could say in response.

  The news broadcast finished and it left Phil deeply troubled. There was no doubt Monica was right. It was Danny and his gut instinct told him he had to go. The danger that had followed Danny since their trip had reached him in the city, a heavily populated American city at that.

  THE EXACT NATURE OF CHEM-X CORP’S ROLE IN THIS INCIDENT, IF ANY, REMAINS TO BE SEEN.

  “Danny must have been going to see the guy from Chem-X.” Phil said.

  “So it is him? Holy shit Phil! What the hell had Danny gotten mixed up in now?”

  Monica turned the television off and marched toward the kitchen.

  “That boy is getting himself into some major shit, Phil.” She said over her shoulder.

  “How far away is that?” Phil asked, running for his shoes.

  “That building? Across the city. Why? What are you going to do, run to his rescue?” Monica shouted from the kitchen, Phil could barely hear her as he yanked open the front door.

  “Yeah something like that.” He replied.

  “Well do up your pants first, hero.” Monica said, appearing in the doorway behind him.

  Standing on the front step, Phil looked down and saw the top bottom of his pants was open, showing his belly and briefs. As he buttoned them up, he leaned over and kissed his ex-wife passionately. She pulled away, shaking her head, but he saw in the corners of her mouth the trace of a smile. Sucking in his gut, he tucked in his shirt and ran for to the car. Monica waved him off with the back of her hand.

  “Same bunch of fools they were in high school.”

  Danny could hear all twelve pairs of combat boots as they rushed up the emergency staircase. He could hear the fabric of their clothes rustling together, the clinking of tiny metal parts on belts and buttons, even the hushed whispers of orders as they took up position in the dark. There was only a moment left before they burst through the room and Danny wasn’t sure what to do. All he could think of was what it would look like to them; a man in a weird helmet talking to an alien butcher. With their fingers on the trigger, there was no reason for them to hesitate.

  “Look I can help you.” Danny suddenly said.

  Why he didn’t know but he didn’t think it could hurt to offer the thing a chance. Perhaps somewhere inside it there was still some bit of humanity that he could appeal to. The six soldiers took up positions around the room and the monster just watched them, patient as a viper.

  “Humanity is compassionate. Let us help, you can both be together.”

  “Help?” The alien shouted. The soldiers were not speaking; they had no intention of taking anyone or anything alive.

  “Help by letting her out of this house of pain!”

  Five of the soldiers had their guns aimed at the Second, only one covered Danny. The creature hissed at them and sprayed black spittle in their direction. One of them squeezed the trigger as he dodged the black bile and three bullets tore into the Second’s chest. One of the soldiers yelled for the others to cease fire and Danny removed his helmet.

  “Guys you have to run this thing is not going down that easy!” Danny shouted. They flashed their lights from the creature to Danny and back, unsure of what to do. Whatever their orders had been, they had not been prepared for what they’d found and the soldiers began to move backwards. One of them shouted into a microphone on his mask.

  “Get on the ground now!” One of them shouted at Danny, clicking the safety off his gun. Danny stepped back toward the wall, the Second was beginning to move around and Danny knew it was going to attack.

  “RUN! RUN!” Danny shouted.

  Danny and the Army Captain locked eyes and Danny saw no fear or compassion. The Second began to move and blood suddenly spurted from the soldier’s neck. The other men opened fire and the room exploded with the light from their gun barrels. Bullets tore up whatever was still standing in the already ruined laboratory and Danny moved as fast as he could toward the bulletproof plastic cell. One of the soldiers moved close to stop him and Danny disarmed him quickly, instinctively using the man as a human shield. Amazingly the Second fell over, the bullet wounds in its chest sending tiny curls of smoke into the air. The remaining soldiers suddenly turned their guns on Danny and he froze. The man in Danny’s arms was more calm than Danny expected and he felt terrible using the man as a hostage.

  “Easy guys! Come on now, okay, I’m one of the good ones okay?”

  Danny placed his helmet on the ground and released his prisoner. Instead of walking away the former hostage turned and slammed Danny against the wall, twisting his arm behind his back.

  “Whoah, easy okay! Hey!” Danny shouted.

  As he pushed the man off him, the Second leaped to its feet. A long tentacle with a razor sharp barb on the end flew toward Danny and he moved quickly out of the way. The razor nicked his right arm and caught the soldier as it recoiled, severing the man’s head clean off. The tentacle had grown from the center of the monster’s chest and it waved back and forth as it stalked the men. Their bullets ripped through the black flesh and still it continued relentlessly toward them. Its arms had split and spread into large praying mantis style claws and it tore through the men easily with them; grabbing them and crushing them open like walnuts. Danny formed an armoured carapace around himself and lunged for the red incineration button. The cell burst into flame, blinding everyone in the room. The First began to squeal and pop but the sound ended in a split second, the fire inside was hot enough to burn the corpse to ash in moments.

  The Second screamed and walked toward him but there was still one soldier left alive. The remaining soldier shot at both of them and the
Second hesitated, trying to decide which one of them deserved to die first. The bullets from the M16 flattened against Danny’s red body armour but he still recoiled, leaning against the now hot plastic. The Second wrapped its tentacle around the man and lifted him into the air. It pulled him into its arms and it snapped him in half, easily breaking his spine. The alien stepped over the soldier but he was still alive and Danny saw the grenade in the soldier’s hand. All he could do was drop to the floor, hoping his armour would protect him. Rather than flee, the Second rammed its arm into the soldier’s chest, pushing it in deep up to the elbow. Its face was so distorted with rage it no longer resembled anything human. The power in the building came on just as the grenade exploded.

  The force blew the Second across the room and took out a large portion of the ceiling above and the floor below it. The plastic cell took a large part of the blast and Danny was safe, but the cell had exploded and the heat and fire within created an inferno when it reacted with the force from the grenade. White halogen lights suddenly flickered on. The ceiling and floor began to collapse simultaneously where the grenade had exploded and Danny pushed himself across the floor, farther away from the flaming hole that had formed. Smoke began to fill the room and the air was rich with the smell of blood. Danny looked around for the alien but he could see nothing in the smoke and flame. Danny found his helmet on the floor while searching for another exit from the room. When he’d first spotted it he’d been startled by it, thinking its black surface was a part of one of the aliens. He was tense, his nerves were rattled and his heart was racing. The helmet was only slightly scuffed up one side and he put it on. Inside it his breathing was amplified, but he managed to calm himself down and look around at the wreckage. The temperature was rising fast from the fires in the room and he could hear exposed electrical wiring buzzing somewhere.