The First Bird: Omnibus Edition

by Greig Beck

  Carla breathed in and out deeply, hyperventilating. “No, worse. We need weapons – we need, we need … fire.”

  “We need to get back; we’ll use our tunnel.” Matt looked at it warily, his dry lips moving in a silent prayer.

  *****

  “Do you think he’s still alive?” Matt whispered.

  Kurt wrapped a couple of spare shirts around his forearms. “From what we’ve experienced so far in this hellhole, and after what Carla described?” He shrugged. “Doubt it. But we’ve got to check.” Kurt doused another shirt in lighter fluid, then knotted it tightly around a stick. He had his hunting knife at hand, and even had Megan’s golden rod stuck in his belt – a magnificent club for close-quarters combat.

  “I should go with you.” Matt handed him some matches.

  Kurt shook his head, his mouth turned down in thought. “Not this time, but thanks anyway. Besides, if some ugly fucker gets in my face and decides he isn’t scared of fire, I’ll be backing out – fast. I certainly don’t want anyone behind me.”

  “I think you’ll find—”

  “No.” Kurt’s steady gaze left no room for argument. He gripped Matt’s shoulder and nodded, then turned away, the conversation effectively over.

  The big guide stood in front of Carla, looking down into her face. “I’ll find him.” He tightened a few more straps at his waist. “You were about eighteen minutes in, right?”

  She nodded, still subdued from her ordeal. He grunted his understanding, then walked the few paces to the small opening and stood looking down at it. He checked his watch briefly and paused, thinking, then turned to Matt.

  “Listen, if I don’t come back out, just be ready in case something else does.” He took a breath, and then without another word, ducked down and disappeared into the dark tunnel of rock.

  Matt watched the halo of light dim as Kurt disappeared. In just a few minutes the cave was dark once again. He turned to Carla and Megan.

  “I should go after him.”

  Megan shook her head. “No, he’s right about needing a clear path if he wants to back out. Besides, there’s no room to fight side-by-side.”

  “Yes … you should go.” Carla had been biting her lip, the professional scientist now a sunken-eyed ghost. She sniffed. “He’ll need help; he doesn’t know what he’s getting into. Bravery and stupidity are sometimes the same thing. You should go.”

  Megan shook her head slowly, and Matt hung his head for a second before looking to Joop for the deciding vote. Joop also shook his head. “I’ll go.”

  Matt snorted. “No, you’re way bigger than me – that would be a bad idea.” He squared his shoulders, then turned to them. “Get anything else we might need, and be prepared to meet us at the end of the cave at the red pool. Once we have John, we might need to get out of here – fast.”

  Megan nodded, her eyes welling up. She shoved him in the chest, her face momentarily angry, before grabbing him and pulling him close.

  “I love you – be careful,” she whispered, and then pushed him again. “Idiot.” She turned away.

  Matt checked his flashlight and ducked into the tunnel.

  *****

  Kurt moved quickly for the first ten minutes, then slowed. Sweat dripped from his face to the mire on the ground. Some of the sweat was from the unusual humidity in the jagged rock pipe, but some, he knew, was from the tension. He stopped and listened, calming his breathing so he could concentrate. There was noise up ahead, rhythmic, like rain on a metal rooftop. As he focussed on the sound, it started to remind him more of the clack of knitting needles … but hundreds of them, all working together. He pulled the fuel-wrapped stick from his belt, and then touched the matches in his pocket. He decided to pull them out as well, to be ready.

  He continued on, placing one hand in front of the other, and trying to keep the matches and the accelerant-soaked cloth out of the damp soil underneath him. His light only penetrated about twenty feet, and then the wall of blackness closed like an impenetrable curtain. Now that he was closer, he thought he could also hear tearing, like canvas sheets been torn down the middle. A smell enveloped him – ammonia-sweet, with something else underneath it, metallic and meaty. He knew what that was.

  Up ahead, something appeared, roiled and twisted momentarily, then melted back into the darkness. Kurt quickly fumbled for his matches, pulling one of the waterproofs from the box and striking it. It caught and he touched it to the fuel-soaked rag, which flared into an orange tongue of heat.

  Kurt squinted from the light, and had to hold it away from his face as it scalded him in the confines of the small cave. He held it out, his fingers locking down on the stick as the source of the noise was lit up on a macabre stage.

  John Mordell, or what was left of him, was a moving mass of long, segmented bodies. Sharp, telescoping legs gripped their prize hard, and muscular mouthparts sawed at both flesh and bone. Kurt grimaced; the frantic, bloody mass plugged the entire cave, and while he watched, one of John’s arms was detached from his body and hauled into a side tunnel. No sooner had the creature disappeared than another was disgorged from a different tunnel to take its turn in the boiling knot of chitenous plates and needle-sharp mouths.

  One of the creatures, at least ten feet long and a foot wide, started back toward Kurt, but a wave of the flaming torch dissuaded it from coming any closer. Instead, it turned, trying to muscle its way back into the pile of meat that used to be Dr. John Mordell.

  Kurt’s jaws had clamped tight in disgusted horror. A brief, mad idea of trying to use the flame to drive the creatures away from the man was jettisoned, as the thought of sending the many-legged beasts into a frenzy was insane. They only had a few directions to go in – and one was toward him. Besides, Mordell was dead, and he didn’t think anyone would be impressed if he dragged a ravaged and limbless torso back to the group – least of all Carla.

  Another beast took an exploratory trip toward him, and once again, he waved it back.

  “Sorry, John.” He swallowed, his mouth dry, and started to back up.

  “Ah, shit.” Something sharp pinched the calf of his leg. Whipping his head around, he saw the waving antennae of one of the creatures, its long, many-legged body half out of a small cave as the other half made its way up his limb, sharp legs cutting through the tough material, and then into his flesh.

  He screamed and kicked, but nothing happened. The hard-bodied creature simply hunkered down over its prize, sharp legs clinging tight, the tips now deeper into his flesh.

  He lay there staring at it, knowing that bringing the torch back around would allow the boiling mass of monstrous creatures from the other end of the tight tunnel to descend upon him from the dark.

  “Fuck it!” He was trapped.

  *****

  Matt could hear the yelling from farther up ahead, and once again increased his speed, working already bloody hands and knees into pulp in the tight tunnel. In another few minutes he came upon the bizarre scene of Kurt sandwiched between a large creature that looked like a giant centipede, and dozens more balled up just beyond him.

  The beast hooking onto his leg looked enormously powerful, and was only halfway out of a side cave. From the six feet of creature that he could see, Matt calculated that it must be at least twice that length, and probably weighed in at over a hundred pounds. A very formidable predator – especially in the tight confines of the underground tunnel.

  “Matt, thank God. Goddamn, get … it … off … me!”

  The thing was rearing up, sharp legs still clinging tight to the meat of his calf, and powerful-looking pincers opening wide. Kurt’s teeth were gritted, and he kicked back with his boot time and again, but the thing might as well have been made of stone. All he was doing was tearing his own flesh where the legs hooked in tight.

  Use the flame, Matt thought. “Why don’t you …?” But then his mouth clamped shut, as Kurt shifted and he saw the moving, knotted mass beyond him – the mass that was only held at bay by the flaming torch, w
hich was rapidly losing its heat and light.

  “Get it off … now!” Kurt’s scream smashed into his ears, and he felt himself begin to panic. Matt swallowed down his revulsion and inched forward. Pulling out his knife, he reached out and lifted it as high as the tunnel would allow. Then, aiming for a joint in the segments, he brought it down with all his strength.

  There was a crackle-crunch, and his blade sunk in about five inches. The monstrous centipede exploded into furious activity, detaching itself from Kurt’s leg and folding back on itself, diving first toward the blade, and then at Matt’s face.

  Matt recoiled, arms up and eyes crushed shut, waiting for the impact. But there was another loud crunch, and the attack never landed. He opened his eyes to see Kurt’s boot jammed down hard on the back of his blade. It was too much for the long creature, which pulled itself back into its lair and disappeared.

  The light in the tunnel was a dull orange now – Kurt’s torch was exhausting its fuel. Matt didn’t wait another second.

  “Come on.” He backed up, fast. Kurt, as he had promised, came at him at a frightening speed, holding what was left of the flaming torch behind him as he came. Matt only just managed to stay in front.

  “Wait, wait, I need a second here.” Kurt stopped for a moment, wheezing heavily and holding the torch out behind him. “I think we’re okay, I don’t think they’re following. I reckon they’ve got enough meat for the time being.” Kurt continued to hold the torch out the way they had come, and lay on his side, panting.

  Matt gratefully collapsed, looking at his wristwatch. They still had about another ten minutes of tunnel before they could join the group.

  “Was … that meat … was it?” Matt lay on his back, still gasping.

  “Yeah, yeah, it was Mordell. Those fucking big worm things took him apart.” He leaned forward. “Don’t tell Carla. I think … they liked each other.” He felt his leg, groaning. “Hey.”

  “What?” Matt looked up.

  “Thanks.”

  Matt nodded. “I just want to go home.”

  “I hear that.” Kurt got back up on his hands and knees. “After you.”

  *****

  “There was nothing we could do; he was already dead.” Kurt unwrapped the cloth from around his arms and let it drop to the ground. He wouldn’t meet her eyes.

  Carla nodded, and then walked away, her head down and arms folded. She didn’t cry, or seem surprised. Matt guessed she had expected the worst.

  Matt sat down and leaned back against the wall of the cave, Megan beside him, hugging his shoulders. She had given him some water, which he had first poured over his head, and then gulped down in a few big sips. He was relieved to see that everything they needed was stacked at the back of the larger cave. He’d had enough of this place.

  “Ready to go?”

  Megan nodded and rested her head on his shoulder.

  Matt would have liked a few more minutes to rest. He would also have liked to bathe the wounds on his elbows and knees, and he would really have liked something to eat. But after seeing the carnivorous arthropods up close, he knew he couldn’t rest until they were out of the caves. They were obviously the things that had made the strange tracks in the soil all around them, and that meant that sooner or later they would come boiling out of the smaller tunnels.

  Kurt went back to packing his gold, and Joop stood watching him. He threw a backpack over his shoulders. “A few mementos, yes?”

  Kurt kept packing. “Well, no bird, and no job; Brenner, Steinberg, Jian, and now Mordell, dead. Without the gold, it’s all been for nothing.”

  Carla joined them and stood close to Kurt, holding up several vials of red water she had collected from the pond where they had first entered the blood jungle. “No, not for nothing; I came for the sarcoptes scabiei primus retardant, and thanks to Jian, John, and even Max Steinberg, I think we’ve found it.” She looked hard at Kurt. “This is my gold.”

  Kurt smiled and afforded her a small salute.

  Matt got slowly to his feet and stretched – it didn’t help. Every part of his body ached and stung from abrasions. Coulda been worse, he thought, a momentary image of John in the knotted mass of arthropods flashing into his mind.

  “Okay, let’s go, everyone. I’ll lead off, then Megan, Carla, Joop, and then you can bring up the rear, Kurt.”

  Kurt nodded. “You got it buddy … and watch the side tunnels, okay?”

  Matt grunted a confirmation.

  *****

  This time, the crawl through the claustrophobic rock pipe seemed to go on forever. They were already fatigued, their nerves were wire-tight, and they were in a damned hurry to be free.

  At last, they pushed and pulled one other from the small tunnel and stood up straight in the open cave. The red pool was a little less bright. Checking his watch, Matt saw that it was getting on for late afternoon.

  “We need to hurry. I don’t want to do this in the dark … and we’re not sure where we’ll pop up.”

  “So long as it’s on the other side,” Megan said.

  Carla knelt at the edge of the pool and scooped some of the water into her hand. She sniffed at it. “Good, it’s infused with the red flower – we need to fully douse ourselves. Leave nothing dry – even our backpacks should be totally saturated. We certainly don’t want to leave with any mites on our bodies.”

  The few remaining backpacks were undone and anything sealed was opened – if it couldn’t be satisfactorily soaked, it would be left behind. They worked quickly, and in a few moments, they stood ready, looking into the darkening water.

  Matt re-slung his pack as Kurt came up behind him, talking softly. “Matt.” He had some of the gold in his hands. “Matt, I need a favor. Can you bring some of this through? It’s way too heavy for me on my own … I’ll share it.”

  Matt looked at it dismissively, and shook his head. “I don’t need it.”

  “I do. I can’t keep doing this, and I’ll be broke now. It’s a new start for me … please.”

  Megan got up and walked to the rear of the cave. Matt waited until she was out of earshot. He looked down at the gold in Kurt’s hands, mentally calculating its weight. He reckoned about seven to ten pounds. It would be a little like a diver’s belt, and he was already bone tired.

  “Shit Kurt, I’m beat. I’ve already—”

  “Please, Matt. I’ll owe you big time.”

  “You already do.” Matt pulled a face, and then took two of the items. “Do not take this as me endorsing the stealing of artifacts in any way.”

  “Thanks.” Kurt bowed slightly, and then straightened and clapped his hands. “Okay, who volunteers to be the scout?” He placed his hands on his hips, knuckles still bleeding from the cave crawl. From the expression on his face, he obviously expected to be nominated.

  “Shussh, be quiet.” Megan’s tone silenced everyone.

  Matt turned to where she was down on her knees, her head lowered and tilted, by the smaller cave where they had pulled Carla out only hours before. She turned to him, her face pale.

  “They’re coming. I can hear them.”

  Matt rushed over and bent down to listen. From far back there was a familiar sound, like thousands of knitting needles working furiously … and they were getting louder.

  He got to his feet, pulling her up. “We’re about to have company.” He turned to her. “Ready?”

  She nodded. He turned to the rest of the group. “Listen up. Forget the scouting – we aren’t going back. Either we come up on the other side of the crater wall, or we end up somewhere else inside … and if that’s the case, it’s got to be better than here.”

  He looked at Megan and smiled. She leaned in quick, kissed him, and then dove into the pool.

  Matt looked back toward the small caves. The click-clacking was growing louder now, coming from several of the openings. He guessed their abraded hands and feet had left a blood trail that was irresistible. Death was coming quickly, and their time was up.

 
; “Go, go, go!” Carla and Joop jumped in, disappearing below the surface. Kurt gave him the thumbs up and dove.

  Matt took one last look back – his breath caught in his chest. The first creature filled the tunnel mouth, and had a glossy black head on its fire engine-red segmented body. Its antenna waved for only a second before it came at Matt like a locomotive, legs moving so quickly they blurred.

  “Shit.” He jumped, feeling something scratch at his hair as the extra weight of the gold quickly pulled him below the surface.

  Sinking fast, he wished he had taken a larger breath. He had to swim hard to keep from being pulled down and was quickly using up the oxygen in his lungs. In a few seconds, his ears felt the pressure of the depths as he frantically swam under the shelf of rock and toward the dimming light.

  *****

  Matt broke the surface and dragged in several gigantic, lung-filling breaths. His arms and legs felt like rubber, but he still thrashed hard to stop the weight in his pack from dragging him back down.

  He hung on the pool edge for a moment, mentally and physically recharging. It felt good to be free of the oily slickness of the warm cave and the constant itch of the small mites. He pulled himself out and rolled onto his back, the tightly curled grasses beneath him acting like the softest bed he had ever felt in his life.

  He slowly sat up, pushing the wet hair back off his face. “Whoa.” It was lucky they came up as far from the wall as they did. The crater face, covered in the thorned vines, reached down to the surface of the red pond. If they had come up just a few feet back, they each would have worn a crown of deadly thorns. He let out a long breath and laughed softly. To escape the horrors of the primeval world beyond the crater wall, only to be poisoned at the exit – now that would have been a curse.

  “Are we safe?” Carla sat with her arms wrapped around her knees, her hair hanging in strings over her face.

  “I think so; I think we’re … out.” Megan walked around the edge of the pool, looking at the more normal plant life. She stopped and turned. “We need to find Moema … if he’s still here, that is.”