Beneath The Mantle

by Ahimsa Kerp

  Stuart stopped. “I really don’t want to go into that deep grass again,” he said.

  “Are you afraid of plants?” Doctor Gomez asked. The ladies had just caught up with them.

  They looked amused and Stuart wondered if they were not also fans of Nirvana.

  “And you such a lady killer too.”

  Stuart scowled. “I told you. There are dangerous beasts out here. I’d really rather stay on the stairs.”

  “Are you serious?” she asked. “After we walked all the way down here? With the wounded captain? Dying shipmates?”

  “Not really, no,” he admitted. There weren’t any excuses he could think of, and fear of looking cowardly had inspired men far less afraid of him. They set off cautiously, disappearing into the grass.

  He held out his hand to Doctor Gomez. She stared at him as though he was offering a poisonous snake. “We could easily get lost in the grass,” he said to her.

  Reluctantly, she grasped his sweaty palm. Her other hand reached back and found Baruna’, who was in turn attached to Keshav. The honeymooners both grinned, happy as clams in this new world.

  “The sky is so purple,” Baruna marveled.

  “It’s like we’ve gone back to the dawn of time,” Keshav said.

  Moments later, they heard low thunder.

  “I think it is coming from the ground,” Keshav said.

  “Quick, back to the stairs,” Stuart said.

  “We’re too far,” Gomez insisted. “Press on. Didn’t you climb the statues last time?”

  “That barely worked!” He couldn’t hide the panic in his voice. “I can’t do it again!”

  The ground rumbled again, more deeply. Stuart could feel it in his gut. A sharp, bird like caw sounded; it was feral, terrible. Stuart turned and ran back to the stairs. His tired legs ached but fear lent speed to his efforts.

  The others followed him, none of them objecting now. Long legged Doctor Gomez passed him, her graceful stride bespeaking a practiced runner.

  As they reached the stairs, lungs burning and breathing hard, the ground rumbled and the birdlike roars were louder than ever.

  “Look,” Stuart said.

  A dozen, nay a score of three meter tall birds with cruel, massive beaks ran in formation like geese on land. The “V” swerved through the grasslands. The terror birds did not seem to be hunting the humans and they rumbled off, away to the north.

  The four of them stood there, in awe. It took some time before they began to breathe normally again.

  Stuart turned to face Doctor Gomez. Her tanned skin was flushed from heat, or fear, or excitement, or all of them. Her eyelashes lowered as she briefly closed her eyes. When she opened them again, they were apologetic and full.

  “What do you think, Doctor? Those still look like emus to you?” he asked.

  “Stuart, I am sorry I did not believe you,” she said. “I feel like an utter asshole.”

  Chapter 9

  The purple light never faded. It stayed exactly the same brightness, and after a while, the idea of time itself seemed a foreign notion. None of them wore a watch, as all had come to count on their phones.

  Even Stuart’s camera, which did still work, wouldn’t display anything other than a blinking 12:00.

  Keshav and Harper had smart phones, but they hadn’t worked even on the ship, and they’d been left with the warm clothes at the top of the stairs.

  The four underdressed explorers pressed on from the stairs, though all felt the fear that Stuart had first voiced. They came to the statues where Stuart had taken photos.

  Doctor Gomez was flabbergasted. “Why are these here?” she asked.

  “Depends on where here is, probably,” Keshav said.

  Soon after that, they found the shattered remnants of a tripod, along with dried blood on the grass. It was quickly decided that there was no need to stay in the area.

  They crept, once more hand-in-hand, through the tall grass until at they last emerged from the green plains onto a small hill. It had good visibility of the surrounding area, and it was here they stopped to rest. Stuart nudged Keshav.

  “I’ve been thinking about what you were saying,” Stuart said.

  “Eh?” Keshav asked. He was sweaty, his blue undershirt soaked through, and droplets of moisture ran to the ends of his beard.

  “About the whole ‘depends on where this is’ thing,” Stuart said. “What you said back at the statues.”

  “Right. You’ve got some insight?”

  “Well, at first I thought this was a cave, of course. A big fucking cave, sure, with weird growth and such,” Stuart said.

  Harper Gomez, sitting cross-legged, was absently listening.

  Baruna had her eyes closed and her head resting on the shoulder of Keshav.

  “These animals that Doctor Gomez told us about got me thinking though.”

  “Megafauna,” Doctor Gomez interjected.

  Stuart blinked at her.

  “Call them megafauna. You know. Wooly mammoths, saber-toothed tigers, terror birds: all classified as megafauna.”

  “Crikey, now I’m worried about tigers with swords for teeth sneaking up on us,” Keshav said. “Sorry, carry on.”

  “Okay, these megafauna,” Stuart repeated. “The statues. The purple sky that never fucking changes color. It’s not just the size of this place, it’s all these things.”

  “What are you getting at?” Doctor Gomez asked.

  “I’m just saying it’s not impossible that we’re in a different dimension or something.”

  “A different dimension?” Doctor Gomez asked. The skepticism was evident in her tone.

  “Something like that. You know … ‘Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.’ ”

  “There’s another possibility,” put in Baruna. Her eyes were still closed.

  “Yes, jaanu?” Keshav asked her, using the pet term in Hindi.

  “It’s hotter than blazes, and we’re being stalked by terrible creatures. I think we died on the ice and went to Hell together.”

  ***

  They splashed through bogs and along muddy streams. The mud splashed on bare legs as all had stripped as far as modesty would allow. The heat was oppressive, and all of them had patches of sweat on their clothes. It was almost an impossible contrast to the arctic weather of the morning. The rocks surrounding them grew thicker, in shades of green and brown. More than anywhere else in this lost world, it felt like an alien planet. Some flowers vaguely resembling daisies grew, but they were not close to the water. In fact, no life grew next to the stream.

  “The rocks are serpentine,” Doctor Gomez said. “They’re called that because they’re green and scaly. The water is toxic to plant life.”

  “Would it hurt us?” Keshav wondered.

  “You’re not a plant are you? It’s perfectly safe for humans.”

  “How do you know so much?” Stuart asked.

  “I’m a bookworm paleontologist,” she answered. “The things I know are many and manifest.”

  She spoke with exaggerated dramatic intonations and the other three smiled. Stuart liked this playful Doctor Gomez. He remembered why he’d hit on her the first night they’d met. She was a smart, funny woman.

  All of them were thirsty, and they stopped and drank deeply from the river. Dr. Gomez cautioned that they could not be sure it was safe, but each of them risked it, and none felt worse for the wear.

  Around them, plants grew. They were tall, like everything here. Two to three meters. And they were beautiful. Most of their height came from long stems, but the top ended in a kind of pitcher. They were either red, or green, or a combination of both. The leaves were reddish purple, covered in intricate patterns. Their tops curved, like an upside down “J.”

  They grew in scattered clusters, all of them well away from the stream trickling over those hard, green rocks.

  Doctor Gomez stopped. “I don’t like these at all.”

  �
��Do you know what they are?” Baruna asked.

  “I think so. But this is a hundred times larger than they grow in our world.”

  “What are they?” Keshav asked. “They’re remarkable!”

  “Well, they have a lot of names. In Latin, it’s Darlingtonia californica. Colloquially, it’s a California pitcher plant, a cobra plant or, my preference, a cobra lily.

  “They do look like cobras,” Keshav asked. “Do they spit?”

  “God, I hope not. No, they’re called that because the tubular leaves resemble a rearing cobra.”

  “Totally tubular!” Stuart said. No one smiled. “We were all thinking it,” he protested.“Why don’t you like them, Doctor Gomez?” Keshav questioned. “They’re truly beautiful.”

  “Oh, I like the way they look just fine. It’s just that one’s of this size make me very nervous. You see, in our world, these plants don’t get enough nitrogen. To compensate, they eat flies and other insects.”

  They all showed how gross that sounded with their disgusted faces.

  “A plant that eats people?” Stuart wondered. “I don’t think my travel insurance covers that.”

  “I can’t say if it does,” she clarified. “They haven’t done anything aggressive yet. It’s possible that humans have a different chemical build; too much nitrogen, or too little. Or too much of another element. It would be fascinating to study,” she trailed off and saw the three wide eyed faces staring at her. “Now, let’s not stand here all day.”

  They traveled some more across the strange serpentine rocks and through the enormous cobra lilies. They traveled this way for some time, what felt like a couple of hours, although there was no real way to be sure. Energy waned as appetites grew, but Stuart had a few granola bars in his backpack that somewhat helped stem the hunger tide. The purple light remained the same.

  Gradually the brook expanded, swelling into a creek that babbled along beside them. When it veered off to the left, so did they, reasoning that following the water would lead them somewhere. Somewhere possibly with people, or an exit out of this all-too dangerous world.

  Ahead of them was the largest cobra lily of them all. The stalk was almost seven meters high, and the pitcher like bulb was easily large enough to swallow a human or two.

  “I do not like the look of that,” Keshav said.

  “Yikes. Me either,” Stuart said.

  “Theoretically, the fact that none of the smaller ones attacked us, or even visibly registered our presence, indicates that this one will likewise abstain from violence,” Doctor Gomez said, her tone more hopeful than authoritative.

  “Theoretically,” repeated Baruna.

  “Well that’s all we have to go on,” Doctor Gomez said. “Come on.” So saying, she strode toward the cobra lily.

  The others exchanged a quick look, and then quickly followed after her.

  Stuart caught up with her.

  Baruna was right behind him, and Keshav was in the back.

  The Sikh’s arms were crossed, and he peeked upwards, a warning scowl on his face.

  Doctor Gomez strode past the plant. It didn’t stir.

  Stuart passed it, heart beating quickly, and mouth dry. It didn’t stir.

  Baruna slipped by nervously, without ever looking up. It didn’t stir.

  Keshav walked slowly by, hard eyes warning the plant not try anything funny. It stirred.

  He had almost caught them when the plant dipped down, its head slipping around the bearded man. It instantly and completely enveloped him, and within moments, before any of the three could even breathe, it was back in place three meters high. There was no sign of Keshav.

  “Keshav! No!” Baruna screamed. She ran at the plant, her small hands clenched into fists, but Stuart grabbed her and restrained her.

  “There’s still room in that pitcher for another person,” he told her. She stopped wriggling so much.

  “His eyes,” Doctor Gomez said. “That look in his eyes.”

  This caused Baruna to weep, but Doctor Gomez did not even notice.

  Stuart realized she might be in a state of shock.

  “We have to save him,” Stuart said. Baruna continued to struggle and he had to hold her wrists.

  “How?” Doctor Gomez asked.

  “Does anyone have a knife?” Stuart asked. Neither of them said anything, and he took that to be a negative.

  “How do you fight a giant plant?” he said aloud. He glanced around, at the creek, the other plants, the rocks. It occurred to him to grab a piece of serpentine and saw through the stalk, but the rocks were small, and the stem was thick. It would take several minutes, and he had every suspicion that the plant would defend itself.

  “All right, I have an idea,” he said, speaking quickly so that his conscious brain would not have time to discard the plan. “Follow me. Stay a couple of steps behind me. When you see my feet sticking out, grab them.”

  Their puzzled expressions did not stop him, and he strode forward. He stopped to pick up a few rocks, which he threw at the plant. Most missed, but one stuck in the fleshy stalk. The plant quivered, the pitcher on the top turned slowly.

  “Come on, you homicidal houseplant! Try me on,” he shouted.

  He had reached the stalk, and it still hadn’t done anything. A quick glance showed that the two women were just behind him.

  He thought the plant would have already attacked him. He had to make it come down, had to try and pull Keshav out before it sucked all his nitrogen out. Nitrogen.

  “Sorry ladies,” Stuart said. He pulled down his boxers and peed on the plant. Urine was, after all, full of nitrogen. If he showed this plant he could provide it with the nutrients it craved, it might just come after him.

  It did. The cobra lily moved so quickly that he didn’t even see it coming. One second he was peeing, the next second he was encased in a sticky darkness. Sharp little hairs stabbed him in all directions, and the stench was something fouler than the grave. There was room for two humans here, but they’d be pressed together very closely. The cobra lily pressed him down, and Stuart saw a brown arm.

  He grabbed it and wriggled his feet. He hoped, but wasn’t sure, that they were even still sticking out of the plant. Two things happened: pressure on his ankles revealed that the women had him, were pulling him free. And Keshav’s head emerged. His orange turban was askew, and he was coated in juices that seemed to be sinking into his skin, but he smiled at Stuart.

  “Bloody plants. I’m beginning to regret being a lifelong vegetarian,” he said to Stuart, with a wan smile. His voice was strangely muffled by the plant.

  With a plonk, Stuart felt them pulled back up, out of the pitcher. The hairs were erect now, clinging to him, scraping him, and stabbing him.

  “Grab my other hand!” he said to Keshav.

  “That one isn’t working,” Keshav said. Grab this one with both of yours.”

  Stuart grabbed it. Another big pull, and he felt his waist emerge from the plant’s hungry mouth.

  It grew stickier as the cobra lily fought back. Stuart gagged on the stench of carnal rot. Another long pull, and he was free to gasp clean air. His feet remained in the air as the two women continued to pull.

  “He’s alive,” Stuart called out. “Keep pulling.”

  The plant pressed down on Stuart’s hands.

  Keshav started screaming.

  “Put my feet down,” Stuart said. When they had done so, he started pulling himself. “Push on my shoulders,” he said, leaning back.

  They pressed on him and with slow, relentless force, they pulled Keshav slowly out.

  At last his feet plopped out. They pulled him back quickly, retreating from the furious flower. It flung itself at them, like a dog on a leash, but they were far enough out of range that its rage was futile. Keshav was in bad shape. A bone of a small animal jutted out of his shoulder. His skin was mottled and slightly sizzling.

  Baruna rushed to hug the beleaguered man, but Doctor Gomez stopped her.

  “G
et him in the stream now,” she said. “Stuart too. The acid is eating through them even now.”

  Chapter 10

  Washed and scrubbed, with a certain orange turban wrapped firmly back in place, they left the barren of cobra lilies. Keshav had a broken arm from being squeezed into the plant’s stomach. His face was mottled from the plant’s digestive juices, and it looked as though he’d be scarred for life. He was in high spirits though.

  “I thought I was dead. And what a way to die. Like that monster in Star Wars, getting slowly digested for years.”

  “I always wondered about that,” Stuart said. His body stung all over, but he’d been in briefly enough that there was no visible damage. He had taken the first aid kit out of his backpack, and Baruna had cleaned their wounds and bandaged them up. “Wouldn’t you just die in a day or two? From hunger and thirst?”

  “What if it somehow keeps you alive?” Keshav asked.

  “But it’s trying to take your nutrients. Why would it want to give you some back?”

  “Are you guys seriously arguing about Star Wars?” Doctor Gomez said. “Besides, the Sarlaac is totally different from cobra lilies. “

  “Wait,” Baruna said. “Look.”

  They were coming out of the serpentine soil. A few small cobra lilies still clung to life, but they were small, half-a-meter tall affairs. Ahead of them, just beginning to become visible, was a tall mountain range lurking on the horizon.

  Much closer than the mountains were four figures. They all looked to be humans, or at least humanoid. One was flat upon the ground, and the other three surrounded it like jackals, aiming kicks at their prone target.

  “We have to help him,” Keshav said.

  “Are you kidding? We don’t know anything about that fight,” Stuart said. “You might be helping the bad guy.”

  “That is not the bad guy,” Keshav said with some certainty.

  “How do you know,” Stuart asked.

  “The bad guy is never one versus three,” Keshav said.

  “Even if that’s true,” Stuart said. “We don’t have weapons. We are two against three, and you have a broken arm.”