The Black: Arrival

by Paul E. Cooley

  Mike nodded. “And then we pray a lot.”

  Neil pulled a mask from his belt. He’d managed to salvage two of the filtration masks from the storage cabinet. There were no more of them in bio-lab. Chem-Lab might have them, but he wasn’t going in there. Standing this close to the barrel was bad enough. Being directly below the opening the M2 had used to escape? Fuck. That.

  “Put this on,” he said and handed a mask to Mike.

  Mike looked at it and pursed his lips. “This is going to mess up my hair, isn’t it?”

  Neil laughed despite himself. “Yeah. Although I have news for you. It’s already pretty messed up.”

  Mike smiled. “So this stuff is toxic?”

  Neil shrugged. “Depends on what kind of halon and what kind of exposure. If you bleed it wrong, it could kill us on the spot for all I know.”

  “Great,” Mike said. “No pressure.”

  “None at all.” Neil pulled on his mask and fought with the uncomfortable plastic straps. It pinched his skin and he gritted his teeth. He breathed through his nose. The air tasted like rubber. He wrinkled his nostrils.

  “Yeah,” Mike grinned. “That looked pleasant.”

  “Straps are the least of the problem.” Neil’s voice was muffled by the mask. “Wait until you smell it.”

  Mike laughed as he pulled on the mask. It was awkward because he was still holding the bolt cutters, but he managed just the same. The boss was nothing if not dexterous. He shook his head. “Feel like I’m breathing through a condom.”

  Neil nodded. He knew Mike couldn’t see his expression, but he was grinning just the same.

  “Well, let’s see if we can screw this up. You watch that barrel.”

  “I will,” Neil said. He turned so he could keep an eye on it.

  He heard the sounds of Mike grunting and metal clinking. After a few seconds, the room echoed with the solid snap of metal breaking. He winced at the sound. The barrel didn’t move.

  He didn’t think M2 was capable of hearing anyway. Otherwise, the creature would have found them long before this. Bill posited that maybe it was sensitive to sound waves as well as light waves. Neil didn’t think he was right about sound, but light? That made more sense. How else could it “see” without actual eyes?

  Or were those stalks with the orbs really some kind of visual mechanism he didn’t understand? If the goddamned thing wasn’t so dangerous, he’d love to actually examine a sample of its appendages. But that was impossible.

  The real question, however, was whether or not the people outside, those Federal people, thought it was too dangerous to study. Based on what the voice had said on the radio, they wanted it for that reason. They couldn’t have it. If they still thought they could control it after battling the M2 at Ben Taub, their judgment was obviously in question. You’d have to be a complete moron to—

  The metal shield creaked and groaned as Mike pushed it open. Neil’s thought train derailed at the sound. He held his breath as Mike walked inside the shielding. Through the gap in the shield, the huge, brushed metal tank looked as though it hadn’t been serviced in a very long time.

  A cloud of dust rose into the air. He couldn’t see what Mike was doing, but he was definitely wiping at something.

  “Can’t even see the damned gauges,” Mike’s muffled voice said. “Remind me to get this thing serviced.”

  “Considering you’re about to destroy it, that might be a good idea.”

  “Smartass,” Mike said. His voice, filled with tension, had a trace of humor just the same. “I’m wiping these gauges so I can see the readings. But I have no idea what I’m looking at.”

  Neil shook his head. “Once you cut the feed line, it’s not going to matter. Just stay the hell away from the pressurized gas. It’s going to jet out at pretty high pressure. Might even cut a finger off.”

  “Great,” Mike said.

  Neil turned back to the barrel. He blinked. The lowest rib looked like it had bulged a little more. And then he heard it. A pinging noise. Something was hitting the barrel from inside. Didn’t take a PhD to know what that was.

  “Hurry, Mike. We may not have much time.”

  “What? I don’t have time for a pee break?”

  Neil shook his head. The rib pulsed. “I think whatever’s in the barrel wants to get out.”

  “Fuck.” More clanging from inside the shield. “Okay. I think I’ve got the feed line.”

  The barrel trembled. “Cut it. Now!” His ears rang from the sound of his own voice.

  A sudden rush of air filled the room. Mike jumped backwards out of the shielded area. A blast of whitish gas rose to the ceiling with a roar. He couldn’t hear anything over the sound.

  Mike stumbled into him and Neil reached to steady the CEO. The bolt cutters fell to the floor and bounced. Then his skin began tingling. The tingling started to burn.

  Neil put his hands on Mike’s shoulders and led him through the secure door and back into the bio-lab. As soon as he closed the door, the sound of the pressurized gas escaping the tank disappeared, but the ringing in his ears was nearly as bad.

  Mike stumbled forward and leaned against one of the lab tables. His shirt was ripped at the left cuff and his skin was red and raw. The parts of his face not covered by the mask and straps were blistered.

  “You okay?” Neil asked.

  Mike reached up and pulled off the mask. A long, thin swath of skin peeled off the side of his head where one of the straps had been. A drop of crimson beaded out of the wound, but didn’t flow down. “Yeah. Just fucking dandy.” He spat a wad of phlegm to the floor.

  Neil pulled off his mask. He hadn’t gotten the full dose of the nitrogen/halon mixture, but that didn’t mean his skin wasn’t itching like mad. He pointed to the sink. “Wash your skin. Try and get that shit off of it.”

  Mike said nothing as he headed to the emergency sink. He placed his face in front of the large shower head and pushed. Water welled out and sprayed against his skin. He gave a short-lived scream and then simply shook beneath the water. When he ceased the flow, he turned around and looked at Neil. “Well, that was bracing.”

  “Cold?”

  Mike shook his head. “Not until you get that shit off you. Then it’s freezing.”

  Neil stepped past him and followed the same procedure. Mike hadn’t been kidding. The water seemed warm for the first few seconds and then was icy cold. He fought through the discomfort until he’d bathed his face, arms, and neck. When he stepped away, he was freezing.

  “Brisk,” he said through chattering teeth.

  Mike leaned against one of the tables. The man was in fantastic shape, but he looked as though he’d just run a marathon through hell. “That was step one. Right?”

  Neil nodded. “Yeah. But I think we have another problem.”

  Mike rolled his eyes. “Now what?”

  He pointed toward the secure room. “The barrel. It’s moving inside the barrel. I think it’s trying to break out.”

  Bill giggled. And then he belly laughed.

  “The hell is your problem?” Mike asked.

  Bill held his head in his hands as he laughed. The sound in his throat abruptly died and he looked up. His lips were set in a stony grin. “It can’t—” he searched for a word, didn’t find it, and shook his head. “Dissolve? Dissemble? Absorb? Hell, I don’t know what it does. But it can’t do that to metal, right?”

  “From what we’ve seen, that’s correct,” Neil agreed.

  “But it can grow solid appendages. Sharp ones at that. I’ll bet that’s what it’s banging against the inner metal.”

  “Yeah?” Mike asked. “So?”

  “Simple physics,” Bill said. “How could it possibly do much damage unless it can get leverage? It would have to be pressing against at least two points of the barrel to make it bulge.”

  Neil blinked. The rib had been pushed out on one side, not all the way around. But he hadn’t checked the side facing the wall. And he sure as shit wasn’t going to
walk close enough to check. “So what do you think, Bill?”

  “Maybe it’s more corrosive to metal than we think. Maybe it needs time to weaken it.” Bill pointed to the chem-lab and the pipes leading to the dispensing station. “Those pipes are thick, but not as thick as that barrel. If it’s doing damage to the barrel, what’s to say the stuff trapped in the pipes isn’t doing the same?”

  Neil bit his lip. He tried to imagine what the M2 was doing in the pipes. Once the vacuum pump was connected to the barrel, its contents rushed into the pipes and whatever didn’t fit there remained in the barrel. So was it one contiguous organism? Just spread out over the ten meters of piping and the barrel itself?

  “Oh. Shit.” Neil scratched at his arms. “That’s bad.”

  “Okay,” Mike said. “Maybe I’m stupid, but I don’t get it. We’re going to burn the goddamned stuff anyway.”

  Bill nodded. “And the sooner, the better.”

  *****

  “Wish I’d taken up knitting,” Jay said. “Then maybe I’d carry some needles on me.”

  Kate sighed. “And how exactly would that help?”

  He shrugged and clicked the knife in his hands. The tiny, gleaming razor edge jutted out a little further. They’d found the knife in one of the many toolboxes. It had worked well on the last remaining portions of Kate’s chem-suit. Once they’d torn it into strips, he and Kate took turns with the knife as they liberated the metal threads.

  The room was growing colder, not warmer. Instead of just smelling of dirt, debris, and mold, the new building’s lab area also smelled of rain. The storm, the first cold one of the season, was out there. They couldn’t hear it. They couldn’t see it. But Jay damned sure felt it.

  Several long, thin metal threads lay atop a strip of cloth from Jay’s t-shirt. Kate wound them together with nimble fingers. The piece of metal had to be wide enough to make a firm connection to the contacts. Jay also wanted it to be thick enough to not snap.

  He looked up at the ceiling. The creaking sound was more frequent now. More disturbing. The sound of something being dragged through the ducts. They didn’t have much time. And Jay didn’t think they’d have more than one shot.

  Maeve wasn’t asleep, but she had her eyes closed. Her foot twitched with nervous energy. Jay hoped the meds were finally helping. If they could kill the M2, maybe the CDC would even let them out.

  Kate finished winding the threads together. Jay studied them and then checked the rest of their supplies. Strips of cloth. Check. Bits of paper scrounged from the floor? Check. Charged high power battery? Check. Metal for the contacts? Check.

  “Well, I think you made Eagle.”

  Kate blinked at him. She opened her mouth and then started to giggle. “I was never even in the Girl Scouts.”

  “Well, doesn’t matter,” Jay said. “That’s a fine smorgasbord of burnable materials.”

  “Is that the technical term?”

  “I could have said flammable shit. Would that have been better?”

  She punched him in the arm. His bare skin stung from the blow. He faked a wince and then laughed. “You punch like a girl.”

  She hit him again, harder. This time the wince was real, but the laughter was louder.

  “Adults,” Maeve said. “You guys are more immature than I am.”

  A metallic shriek echoed in the room. The three of them flinched. Jay turned and looked up at the ceiling. There was no ductwork immediately above them. Thank god for small favors, he thought. But just a few meters from the circle of light, ductwork criss-crossed the ceiling.

  “Okay,” Jay said. “That was well-timed.” His shaky voice matched the trembling in his hands. “So, Kate, it can’t pour out on top of us. So where do we set the trap?”

  She looked up and followed the ducts as he had. Kate bit her lip. Jay tried to be patient, but it was agonizing. He couldn’t think. If the M2 was coming down the ducts from the second floor, it could drop nearly anywhere. Or could it?

  She nodded to herself and then pointed. “See that vent in the middle?”

  He followed her finger and then blushed. Of course. The ductwork met in the center with a register. The register wasn’t yet complete. Hell, the metal vent covers hadn’t even been affixed.

  “How long will it take us to start the fire?”

  He shrugged. “A minute or two. I think. I never did it with a battery this big. Only ever used a 9-volt.”

  She blinked at him. “You think this is going to work on this kind of battery?”

  “I hope it will.” He cleared his throat. “Unless you have a better idea?”

  Kate sighed. “No. I don’t.”

  Another metallic shriek echoed through the room. A dull thudding noise followed.

  “Shit,” Jay said. “It’s in the ducts.”

  “Well, light this shit!” Kate yelled.

  He picked up the wound wire and jammed one end into the negative contact hole. When he let go, the wire sprang back out. “Oh, fuck,” he said.

  “You mean it’s not going to work?” Kate asked. Her wild eyes bore into his.

  He growled, put the metal back into the hole, and then stuffed one of the strips of cloth to plug it. When he let go, the wire stayed. He snapped off the plastic covering for the positive contact and did the same.

  Jay touched the middle of the wire. The flesh on his index finger burned. He pulled it out and sucked on it. “Well, I think it worked,” he said around his finger.

  “Well, that’s—”

  Metal expanded. Aluminum and steel made to channel air buckled beneath incredible weight. Still holding the battery, Jay walked out of the circle of light.

  “Jay?”

  Her voice barely registered in his mind. Once his eyes adjusted to the dark, he saw the source of the noise. Jay’s mouth opened and his eyes widened.

  The metal ducts closest to the far wall were warped and dimpled. He watched as each successive duct sagged and lost its rectangular shape. M2 had squeezed itself in. Jesus, he thought, how big is it now? The sliding, dragging sound became a roar. The ductwork started to shake in the ceiling. Metal rattled. A bolt gave way and one of the duct connections buckled with a shriek.

  “JAY!” Kate screamed.

  He turned to her. She was screaming for him to start the fire. To do something. Anything. But his brain was slow. It took forever for his eyes to glance down at the cloth in her hands. Fire. He was supposed to start the fire. But she was so far away. And the noise was so loud. And—

  The ground shook as something dropped from the ceiling. Jay turned back to the noise. Most of the ductwork had come loose and crashed into the concrete. A cloud of dust rose from the floor.

  Jay stared into the dust. Kate’s screams barely registered. He could hardly see anything through the motes hanging in the air. But what he did see unhinged him.

  The ducts were a wreck of metal. They had collapsed into the floor leaving dented concrete and shards of steel in their wake. The very center of the line of ducts trembled. Metal squealed and then crunched as a black tentacle shot out through them. It descended and formed into a hook. It ripped along the duct seams like a can opener and then split apart.

  The metal detonated as an impossibly black form rose from the wreckage. Appendages squeezed out of the ooze. Tentacles. Spidery legs. Stalks that ended with orbs darker than space. It stood on seven, one meter-high segmented legs. The appendages were several meters long and growing. A huge maw opened in the creature’s midsection.

  A circle of teeth appeared, their ends lighter than the gaping hole behind them. Its eyestalks waved and then stared straight at Jay. The thing seemed to roar, but was silent as death. Then it started to move.

  Its spidery legs crackled and smashed through the remaining duct steel. Its talons clicked on the concrete floor as it scuttled forward. Jay was lost. His eyes were locked on the orbs. Lost within them. It was coming. He could do nothing.

  His hand started to burn, but he couldn’t look away. He gritted
his teeth against the pain. And then something smacked him in the shoulder. He was dimly aware of movement, and then someone was wresting the battery from his hands.

  Kate moved into view. She was running toward the creature even as it moved toward them. It was only five meters from her when she stopped, wound up, and threw the burning battery at the creature.

  The cloth, Jay thought. The cloth holding the wires must have caught fire.

  The creature’s eyestalks all pointed and tracked the fireball as it flew through the air. The creature tried to back away, but it only managed a step. The battery fell into its gaping maw even as it tried to catch it with its tentacles.

  For a moment, nothing happened. The creature stared at them, its razor sharp tentacles stretching toward them. Jay was still frozen in place when Kate turned and ran at him. She tackled him to the floor and then the world exploded.

  The creature detonated in a fireball. Its tentacles didn’t come off. They just ceased to exist. The same with its legs and the center that had once been a terrifying, razor ringed mouth. The fire spread out along the concrete floor, setting anything flammable alight.

  Jay’s mind finally snapped back into place. His hand screamed in pain and he was pretty sure Kate’s tackle had sprained his ankle. Or broken it.

  He raised his head and looked over her shoulder. The creature was gone. Only fire remained.

  Kate rose on stiff limbs and offered him her hand. “You okay?”

  Jay winced. “Sufferin’ succotash, woman! You nearly shattered my back!”

  “It was either that or risk you getting torched.”

  He took her hand. She pulled him to his feet. He hobbled on his ankle past her so he could see the carnage.

  Dark smoke rose above the flames. “Jesus,” Jay said. A massive scorch mark lay where the creature stood when it combusted. The concrete was stained and looked as though it was broken in places.

  He stifled a cough and then failed. The smoke was starting to be a little too much. He turned back to Kate. “We have to get out of here.”

  “How?” she asked. “They’ve got the outer doors locked and blocked.”

  Jay stared at the stairwell door and pointed. “That thing is gone. We can go back upstairs, get into the NOC, and see if there’s a phone or anything still working. Hell, maybe our cellphones will work up there.”