Spores

by Ian Woodhead

  Patsy held up her hand, “Wait a minute, did you say alien? Like in outer space and stuff?”

  “Yes, alien. This is just the beginning, Patsy. My new friend has told me a shit load of stuff and…”

  The thing behind her abruptly started to screech. Moments later, the sound of gunfire erupted from the corridor outside. Amber fell back, shut her eyes and rocked back and forth.

  Her eyes then snapped open; she stared at the soldier, “Are you prepared to use that gun?”

  “Of course I am,” he said.

  Patsy could hear the panic in his voice.

  Amber sighed, “Are you sure? That’s your colleagues out there.”

  A swarm of small creatures flowed past Amber and surrounded Daniel.

  “My new friend thinks you are lying. He thinks you will betray us, betray him.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Miles pressed his back against the bricks as the huge creature slithered past; he choked back a scream when its cold flank brushed along the back of his hand.

  “Look, Man. You really are gonna have to lose those bad vibes. Just open up a box at the back of your brain, throw 'em in and like close the lid, man.”

  Dustin climbed off the beast’s neck, giggling when one of its protruding spines wound up the inside of his thigh.

  “Later!” he hissed. “Come on, lass, this isn’t the time.”

  Miles didn’t even want to contemplate what that weird guy had been doing to that great big heap of pulsating flesh. Just the thought of those two interfering with each other made him feel queasy.

  Dustin approached him. “We’re nearly there, man.” He turned and stared at the bright, white light emanating from the end of this tunnel. “They must have used this line to ferry all their gear under the city. I bet this has been here for decades, man.”

  Miles nodded and looked down at the railway track between his feet. A single creature, peeled away from a nearby cluster and weaved through his legs, “What the fuck is it doing? Are you sure your new er friends won’t mistake me for food or something?” he whispered.

  “Well, man. If they do, there’s fuck all we’ll be able to do about it. Take a closer look at it, man. Can you not see the kitty likeness underneath those blue scales?”

  Miles nodded, and then it clicked. “My mum had a cat that did this when it wanted feeding.”

  “It’s a past memory, man.”

  Dustin leaned over. Miles caught his breath, the man smelt just like the big creature now, of a wet woodland floor mixed with ammonia. How the fuck was Dustin able to control it? He sighed and wondered if the man had been contaminated. Maybe it was the other way around, what if the creature was controlling Dustin.

  “As I said, man, just lighten up a bit. You’re making them all jittery. Look, if my gal had wanted you gone, she’d have done so by now.” Dustin grinned. “Come on over, make friends with her, she’s still not sure that she can trust you.”

  Miles barked out a panicked laugh, “It wants to know if it can trust me? Oh, Christ.”

  He allowed the man to pull him towards the huge creature. It dropped its head until its face was level with his. It blinked. Miles felt a shiver shudder through his body. He felt several tendrils tear through his clothing. He moaned and attempted to jump back.

  “Don’t!” warned, the man. “Let her finish this. If you don’t, you’ll not see another dawn.”

  Miles shivered again as its probing scratched his skin. The eyes in that monstrous head were intelligent, it/she held his gaze. He felt the creature probe past his own eyes and delve deep into his brain, searching for any mark of duplicity. She blinked once more before lifting her head.

  Dustin laughed, “Oh, man. How cool was that? She likes you.”

  Miles sank to the floor, unsure of what had just happened. He felt as though she’d just peeled away his inner most thoughts, layer by layer like an onion. Miles reached out and placed the palm of his hand upon her ridged side.

  Dustin helped him up, “Her name used to be Justine. She had two kids, both boys.” She told me that The Wasting had taken away everybody she knew, the only people it hadn’t harmed were her kids.”

  The creature rested her head on Dustin’s shoulder; Miles saw tears drip down her grey cheeks.

  “They’d been sheltering in their local off licence. At the time it seemed like the best place to be, the place was fully stocked with everything they needed and the shop’s shutters were down and locked, nobody could harm them. There were five of them in there, her family plus two other women. Their life wasn’t brilliant but it was bearable; the magazines and newspapers kept the boredom at bay, the only downside was having to use slop buckets.”

  Dustin stroked her cheeks.

  “It had been Justine’s turn to empty the buckets when it happened. They’d been pouring the stuff into an open drain, in the cellar. As Justine pushed open the door, a small yellow creature rushed out and sunk its teeth into her ankle. The other rushed to her aid, but of course; instead of ending it all there and then, they tried to nurse Justine back to health.”

  Dustin sighed, “She turned within a couple of hours. The others didn’t stand a chance.”

  Miles closed his eyes, remembering Edgar’s change; those other two monsters had arrived on the scene not long after. Somehow, Miles doubted that putting Justine out of her misery would have been the end of it.

  “It wasn’t your fault. You…”

  He screamed as a dozen of the creatures jumped towards him, Miles fell back, waiting for one of them to deliver the killing blow, but they just ran over his quaking body as if he wasn’t even there. “What the fuck is going on?” he gasped.

  Dustin shook his head. They both watched others following the departing creatures down the tunnel towards the light.

  “Does she not know?”

  Dustin shrugged. “If she does, she ain’t telling.”

  The huge creature’s serpentine head propelled into Dustin’s stomach, he cried out and fell to the floor. She then gazed at Miles, baring her teeth before shuffling at high speed towards the other creatures.

  “Don’t leave us,” cried Dustin. “I need you.”

  “What’s going on?”

  “She wants us to turn back, she fears for our lives.”

  Miles picked the man up, “I thought you said she’d protect us.”

  Dustin shook his head. “She’s lost control of her brood; they’ve smelt the stench of carrion, lots of it.”

  “Bugger staying here.” He muttered.

  Miles shook off the other man’s grip and followed the huge creature towards the light. “Are you coming or what?” asked Miles, looking back. “Or are you going to just stand there like a hen-pecked husband, doing as you’re told.”

  Miles picked up his feet and raced along the tracks, not caring whether the other one followed him. The Institute and his Amber were within his grasp and nothing was going to stop him from finding her. He watched the smaller creatures reach the gate; it reminded him of an ancient portcullis. As Miles neared, he saw that the metal was scarred and pitted, even so, there was no way that the creatures could get inside, the holes were too small.

  Dustin caught up with him and put a restraining hand on his shoulder, “Wait on, man. Can’t you sense their anger and frustration?”

  Miles shrugged the hand off.

  “Stay here! At least for a moment. Those animals will tear you into bloodied rags.” Dustin grabbed the back of his shirt, “Watch her! She ain’t slowing down,”

  The little ones scattered in all directions as she surged toward the barrier. The creature pulled back her neck before slamming her body into the gate. The metal snapped and twisted apart. The other creatures swarmed over her, in the eagerness to get into the Institute. A couple of them even bit into her when they couldn’t clamber past. She responded by tearing the impatient creatures off her body and ripping them in two with her tendrils.

  “She’s lost control of them.”

  “No
shit,” muttered Miles.

  The creature waited for the others to disappear from sight before moving its bulk through the shattered gate. Once she cleared the debris, she stopped and looked back at Dustin. It uttered a single soft cry. To Miles’s ear, the noise sounded like a baby laughing, he shivered.

  “Come on, it wants us to follow her, she says the others are now feeding, we’ll be safe as long as we stay close to her body.”

  Dustin ran up to her and used his hands to caress the bite marks on her body. Miles followed, a little more cautious. Watching those creatures turn on their mistress put a restraining collar on his eagerness. He was also a little reluctant to believe that a single cry from her could mean so much; could Dustin be making it up?

  He ducked under the ruined metal and looked around, this was definitely part of the Institute. Miles recognised the familiar signage but he didn’t have a clue where in the building they were. Not that knowing the location made much difference. Miles didn’t have a clue where Amber was anyway.

  “Do you know where they’ve gone?”

  Dustin took a deep breath and coughed. “I’ve a good idea. Can you not smell it?” he pointed at the creature, she was shivering, “Sorry, no, you won’t, not yet anyway. I’m getting the odour from her.”

  The creature rushed through a double set of fire doors at the other side of the room, knocking them both out of the doorframes. When she moved her bulk, Miles then saw them. He slowly walked forward and the stench of death hit him full in the face. “Oh, Jesus.” He muttered, “What have those butchers done to them?”

  Dustin joined him, “I’m so sorry, man. Look, please wait on; don’t go in there just yet. I know what those creatures are doing is like defilement or something, but it’s not like those dead folks are going to feel it.”

  Miles felt his hand form into a tight fist. These were his friends, how dare he talk about them like that. Dustin must have seen his face harden as he let go and backed away.

  “I didn’t mean any offence, man.”

  They both instinctively fell to the floor as deafening gunfire filled the room.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Amber heard the multitude of voices, beseeching their master to unleash them. Daniel cried out as one of the creatures edged closer. It growled and dug its claws into the wooden floor, leaving five deep scars as it pulled them out. It, like the others, craved the soldier’s meat.

  His will began to waver; something was wrong, he was losing control of his tribe. Amber gasped as all the others suddenly brushed past her and out into the corridor. Daniel breathed a sigh of relief as the ones around him went with them.

  Amber heard his messages, his demands, threats, and finally his begging. Nothing worked; the creatures were now following their own agenda.

  Her new friend pushed past her and the other two and followed the creatures out of the laboratory.

  “I think we’d better go too.” She murmured.

  They raced after the huge creature. Amber never realised that they could move so fast. She heard another burst of gunfire.

  “I won’t let the other men take you,” said Daniel.

  Up in front, she saw the creature had stopped, there was no sign of its followers.

  “What’s going on?”

  Amber shrugged; her new friend had fallen silent, he wasn’t responding to her questions. One thing was clear though, he didn’t want them to come any closer.

  They slowed down, Amber watched in disbelief as his body compressed like a wet sponge. Thick, milky glutinous fluid seeped out from under his base. He twisted his neck and bared his teeth at Daniel. Amber grabbed his arm. “You really do need to stay here.”

  The creature had shed most of its bulk. It squeezed through the open doorway into the next room.

  Daniel shook off her hand, “I’m sorry, Amber but I’m not going to let a giant slug tell me what to do.”

  He ran towards the door.

  “Wait!” Patsy spun around and grabbed her friend’s arms. “We can’t let him go, Amber.”

  She sighed and, against her better judgment, she followed the soldier. He stopped just by the doorframe. He heard them approach and held out his arm, “You really don’t want to see this.”

  The two women pushed past him and gazed in horror at the scene in front of them. It looked like a living carpet of primary colours. Then she noticed lumps of bright crimson matter beneath the seething mass. Amber slapped a hand against her mouth. Those things were sliding over the remains of the rest of the Institute personal.

  “What the fuck has been going on?” She watched her friend gaze up, towards the walls. “Oh my God, those evil bastards.”

  Amber followed her gaze and felt hot bile rise up her throat when she saw the dozens of small holes gauged out of the plaster. Amber knew bullet holes when she saw them.

  “They’ve executed them,” cried Patsy. She bared her teeth at Daniel, “tell me you knew nothing about this.”

  “Of course I didn’t.” He replied, stammering.

  Amber looked down at the things on the floor, wondering why the approaching invaders would bother to go to such elaborate length to wipe everyone out. All they needed to do was sit up there in there spaceships and just let us do it for them.

  She backed away a couple of steps and then turned away, unable to watch any longer. It was time to go, to get the hell out of here.

  “That’s Miles!” shouted Patsy.

  Amber looked back, “Where, I can’t see him.” She saw the creatures fighting amongst themselves then she saw another creature just like her new friend, in front of a set of double doors on the other side of the room. Amber then noticed a couple of men crouching on top of a metal desk. The other creature was clawing toward those two men.

  “That’s Jackson,” muttered Daniel.

  Amber’s new friend lunged forward, sliding over the smaller creatures. It growled then his head darted forward like a striking cobra and sunk his teeth into the other creature’s neck.

  Then her eyes found Miles; he stood behind the other creature wrestling with a tall man with long black hair. The other man managed to escape Miles’s grip; he pushed Miles back then ran into the room.

  Both the creatures turned at this intrusion. Amber watched the two soldiers look at each other then they stood up and fired a volley of shots into the mass of creatures below them.

  Amber’s new friend screamed when a couple of stray shells created scarlet geysers on his flank. He responded by reaching down and grabbing the scruffy man’s arm. He lifted the shrieking man up and threw him into the wall.

  Daniel raised his gun at the approaching man and fired, the soldier’s bullets creating a bloody path through the creatures.

  “I’m sorry,” he said to Patsy, “but I just can’t murder them.”

  The other creature had retreated and now headed towards the broken body of the scruffy man, it sounded like it was crying.

  Jackson abruptly stopped; he grinned at Amber then fired into her new friend.

  “No!” she shouted.

  Amber saw it collapse and sprinted up to it, Jackson and the other soldier ran past up to her.

  “You’re supposed to be dead, bitch.” He bared his teeth, “well you will be soon.”

  The other soldier pushed him back, “Leave it, Jackson, Do you want to die here? There’s a gun trained on us.”

  “Get the fuck away from here!”

  That voice belonged to Daniel.

  Amber turned and watched the men flee; Daniel and Patsy moved back and allowed them to leave. When she turned around, she saw that the other creature and gone through the other doors, the smaller creatures were following it.

  “I never thought I was going to see you again!”

  Amber gasped as Miles ran to her and grabbed her hand, “Come on, we need to get out of here before they come back.”

  Amber threw her arms around his neck, “Oh my God, you came back for me.”

  He nodded, “Of course I did.”


  Through tear-blurred eyes, she saw Daniel and Patsy approach them.

  “We need to rescue the other girls,” said Amber.

  “We can’t,” replied Daniel, “They have a helicopter gunship, if we try anything, they’ll blow us away.”

  Patsy stroked Amber’s hair, “We’ll see them again, I doubt they’ll harm them.”

  Miles looked into Amber’s eyes, “We need to find somewhere very safe. This is just the start of it.”

  Amber nodded, turned, and watched the last of the creatures go through the doorway, leaving the four of them standing in the middle of a human abattoir.

  The End