They were advancing on him, moving together as a unit. All their eyes fixed on his face, their spears held out straight in front of them. Brett kept his nerve. Out of the corner of his eye he could see his friends disappearing out of the garden into the wooded area. What he did next was instinctive. He knew on some deeper level that if there was one thing these creatures were afraid of it was Queen Bebo and her rat traps.
“Your royal Majesty,” He bawled. “Thank you for your protection.”
The mass of little bodies stopped, confusion flitting across their faces, their strange green hair blowing across their foreheads. They looked behind them and then back at him. Brett waved his hand at the bedroom window. “Yes,” he yelled, “I’ll get my friends and we’ll join you for breakfast. Thank you for asking.”
The group fell backwards, their spears dragging on the grass. They began muttering to themselves, a couple of them pointing at the bedroom window. Brett knew now they thought he couldn’t see them and he watched with satisfaction as they began dispersing into the bushes. It seemed he was right, these aliens were afraid of the Queen. He wondered what hold she had over them. A nasty suspicion was forming and as much as he tried to dismiss it, it wouldn’t go away.
Queen Bebo reminded him of something. He thought about her sitting in her palatial home surrounded by food that the aliens supplied. They looked after her, kept her nourished and she got fatter and fatter. But she wasn’t just fat, was she? the little persistent voice rattled on in the back of his head, Oh, no, Queen Bebo was pregnant. Inside her she was carrying probably thousands of new aliens, the next generation of Choolies.
She was the Queen Bee.
The house was her hive and the aliens were her drones. No wonder they obeyed her. Brett thought the little creatures might be impregnating her using cucumbers filled with their own life seeds. If there really were thousands of these aliens swarming around the Island then Queen Bebo must have given birth many times before. Maybe she knew, or maybe they extracted their offspring’s from her after putting her under sedation.
Brett thought about Gary Wurner; the tiny buzzing blood red insects who had swarmed over him bringing him down and he suspected that at some point as they grew bigger they would change into the alien shape of their parents, the Choolies. The thought that Queen Bebo was hatching thousands of these creatures inside her enormous body made Brett feel queasy.
He wondered who she really was and a memory of a conversation came back to him. Robbie had told him about a woman named Beatrice who was second Chef on the Princess May and apparently fancied Gary Wurner; a big woman whom the waiter had nicknamed Queen B. Could she have floated onto Sandy Island when the ship went down sixty five years ago? Was it possible the creatures on the Island were using her as a vessel to carry their life cargo? The thought was outlandish but to Brett it had a ring of truth to it.
He didn’t believe Hope’s version that the Choolies were fattening the Queen up for a feast, she was after all just a little girl and didn’t posses the understanding to work out what was really going on, though he couldn’t rule it out altogether. The one thing that did worry him though was the amount of cucumber sandwiches Robbie had consumed; he just hoped that those terrifying red insects weren’t already growing in his friend’s stomach.
The garden was empty, the aliens had scattered so Brett followed his friends passageway to the woods. He was glad he had his small torch, it was now eight fifteen and the darkness of evening had fallen. There was no moonlight and the blackened branches seemed to sway inwards trailing their thin twigs over his head. He brushed them away, not liking the feel of them, not trusting them. There was no breeze and he felt hot and uncomfortable.
He didn’t dare call out; not knowing what might be in the woods watching him. One of the branches twisted around his neck and he stopped and stood still. It felt like a noose and it was tightening squeezing his windpipe. He put his hand up to grab it and cried out.
It wasn’t a twig, it was a snake and it was slithering and coiling itself around his throat. Dropping the torch into his pocket he used both hands to try and pull the snake away from him. His breath was coming in short sharp gasps. The snake was slippery but though it was long it was thin bodied. Red dots began to appear in front of his eyes and Brett knew he had only seconds left to live.
Using both of his hands he twisted the snake’s body as hard as he could. He heard it snap into two and he tugged at it until it gave way and he was holding half a snake in each hand. He flung the two halves onto the ground. His breath was rattling in his throat as he tried to pull some clean air into his lungs. Unbelievably the two halves of the snake were slithering away into the undergrowth and Brett could see the slime on his hands where he’d pulled the creature apart. He wiped them down on his trousers, his harsh breath still rattling in his throat as he tried to take a deep lungful of air down his gullet. Almost staggering he carried on along the path, overwhelmed with relief when he heard his friend’s voices.
“Where have you been” Jade was fretful as Brett reached them. “Robbie won’t wake up properly. He keeps making silly noises.”
Cassie ran up to him, “Are you okay?” she asked. “Your face is red.”
“It’s just the heat,” Brett lied. He didn’t want to tell her about the snake, he knew how frightened she’d be.
Robbie was propped up against a tree, he lifted his head up and began warbling, a vacant smile on his face. Jade walked over to Brett, her face grim. “I’m worried about him, Brett.”
“Don’t be,” Brett assured her, “He must still be under the influence of those drugs he ate; it might take ages to get them out of his system. It’ll pass.” And Brett hoped that was all it was causing his friend to behave so strangely.
“But he was all right before,” Jade insisted.
“We don’t know what he took, Jade, maybe it’s a drug that comes and goes, I don’t know how long it will stay in his system.” Brett ran his hand through his hair distractedly.
“And what do we do in the meantime?” Cassie asked. She was sitting cross legged on the path. She felt exhausted; trying to prop Robbie up had been hard. It was at least a mile walk back to the beach and the surrounding darkness was getting to her. “I don’t want to bump into that giant Spickler whatever it is.” She stood up and stretched, and joined Jade and Brett.
Jade managed a tired grin, “I think the little girl was having us on,” she told Cassie, adding, “A sand monster, really?”
“Maybe,” Brett agreed, but we can’t take any chances, we stay on the path and we stay together, agreed?”
They agreed. “We need to support Robbie though,” Jade said.
“Where is he?”
Cassie stared around in disbelief. “He was right here slumped against the tree. He can’t have gone far.”
“Maybe he’s just...disappeared.” Jade whispered.
“Stop that!” Brett said sharply. “We’ll find him, come on and stay together.”
Not sure why he was thrashing his way through dense undergrowth, Robbie nevertheless ploughed onwards. A funny little tune was running through his head and he realised he was humming it out loud. It was something about a sandman luring little children away from their homes while their parents slept on unaware. Or at least the version running through his head was, though he wasn’t sure it was the right one. “I’m so alone,” he sang aloud; “please turn on your magic beam.”
Up ahead a light flickered on. I’m back at the house, Robbie thought surprised. How did that happen? And why weren’t his friends behind him? He must have got lost. “Ain’t got nobody to call my own,” he muttered vaguely. “Mr Sandman, send me your dream.”
“Robbie! Over here, I’m glad you could make it. We’re about to have a picnic party. Come and join us.”
Robbie stumbled into a clearing. He knew he was weaving from side to side but he couldn’t seem to help it. This was great. The sun was shining and he blinked several times. He’d thought it was evening bu
t it seemed he was wrong. Maybe he’d slept the night away, there was a thought. He grinned stupidly. A party was going on in full swing. Music was blasting out from a speaker in the corner of the clearing, hard rock and roll, just what he liked.
“Come and dance with me, Robbie,” A girl, he thought her name might be Serena, a blast from the past when he’d dated her briefly in college, was holding her hand out to him. She said, “I love the cockroaches, don’t you? This is their best number by far.” Still grinning Robbie nodded and began gyrating to the heavy thumping beat. This was more like it, he thought, a beach party, just what he’d imagined when he’d agreed to the holiday. What had Brett been thinking, a boat ride with an old man? This was much more fun.
Someone thrust a drink in his hand and he gulped it down greedily. It tasted odd, bitter but it didn’t matter, he was having such a good time.
The music changed to a sentimental ballad and he found himself in the arms of another charming young woman. Holding her tightly he dipped and swayed, closing his eyes enjoying the sensation of her body pressed against his. Should be Jade, he thought vaguely but she wasn’t here. He couldn’t quite grasp why not. They were on holiday with their friends, Brett and Cassie, so why weren’t they here enjoying the party? Music, free drinks, good company, what more could you want?
“Do you want to kiss me, Robbie?” the girl asked slyly. Robbie, his eyes closed, nodded. Lips pressed down on his, hard and demanding and he opened his eyes startled. A few inches away from his face was Queen Bebo, her huge glistening lips bruised and pouting, her eyes sparkling.
“No!” Robbie gasped and pushed her away. He stopped dancing and looked around. The music was slowing down, the beat almost stuttering as if it was stuck in a groove, and he realised that the other dancers had stopped and were watching him. He tried to carry on but his legs felt like lead weights, they refused to move. The slow rock music was grinding to a halt, the voices growling.
In slow motion a man, holding his head down, walked over to him. Robbie could hear the crunch of twigs under his feet and he tried to walk backwards away from him but found he couldn’t. After what seemed like ages the man was standing in front of him, his head slowly lifting up.
Robbie stood face to face with Gary Wurner. He tried to speak but no sound would come out of his mouth.
The waiter was smiling but it was cruel and mean and when he opened his mouth he breathed a disgusting obnoxious stink over Robbie. “One down, three to go,” Gary Wurner’s words were spaced out and drifted across the clearing. Someone began to slow hand clap and then others joined in. The music had stopped altogether but Robbie still couldn’t move, and out of the corner of his eye he saw the party goers begin swaying languorously, still clapping their hands, the expression on their faces blank, free of emotion.
Gary Wurner began slowly circling around him. He was dressed in his white waiter’s uniform and he drew out a long handled knife from the pocket.
“Say hello to Mr Sandman, Robbie,” he said softly and plunged the knife at his throat.
Robbie’s knee jerked up and he felt it connect and then he ducked his head down in an automatic gesture of self defence. The tip of the blade slid into his eye.
“No!” Robbie screamed.
“Thank God,” Jade said hurrying to him. “We thought we’d lost you.”
Robbie was lying on the ground; he looked up at his friends. “What happened?” he asked.
“You wandered off, not far, but we were worried. How do you feel?” Brett asked as he helped him up. He peered closely at him. “Christ, what happened to your eye?”
“My eye?”
“It’s swollen up, probably a wasp or a bee sting.”
“No. I saw him, the waiter; He stabbed me, I wasn’t dreaming, it was him. He’s still coming after us.”
Brett’s face was grim. A few hours ago he wouldn’t have believed Robbie, now he knew better. “Then we’d better get a move on,” he said.
Chapter 15
Flashing his torch directly ahead, Brett couldn’t make out what the shapes were. They were shadowy, flitting across the tree tops, almost swooping down and then retracting back and hovering. There was no sound so he didn’t think it was the swarm of tiny buzzing red insects, these shapes seemed larger, more defined.
“You can see them too,” Jade said flatly as she walked alongside him. She’d been watching them for a while, at first thinking they were some kind of large birds but birds didn’t fly at night and it would be impossible for them to be this silent with flapping wings. They were high above the tree tops so that ruled out the little aliens, the Choolies, she’d seen no sign that they could float in the air.
Robbie seemed to be regaining some of his strength. He’d stopped making weird noises and was walking more or less unaided now, even though every now and then he would stagger slightly.
At one point he leaned against a tree and heaved up a mixture of green and red fluid and Brett just hoped he was ejecting what the Choolies had implanted the cucumbers with.
He thought they might have added something else to the sandwiches, some sort of strange alien drug that acted like a blanket, hiding you from the truth about what was going on. The massive woman, Queen Bebo, was an enigma, she seemed welcoming but there was a sense of menace in the aura that surrounded her. It was possible she didn’t know what was going on around her, that she really was simply so embedded in her luxurious and curious lifestyle that she’d lost the ability to see outside of her own little world. Even so, Brett didn’t think she could be trusted.
Jade’s foot cracked on a twig and she heard Cassie next to her gasp.
“It’s okay,” she whispered.
“No, it’s not,” Cassie hissed back. “I just saw the shape of a large monkey jump down from the tree over there.” She pointed and Jade’s eyes caught the branches as they bent and snapping back into place.
“Brett,” she whispered, “Check that tree over there, I thought I saw something moving.”
“Stand still,” Brett warned as he moved across the path. A rustling sound alerted him and he stopped, carefully letting the beam of his torch spray over the area. It was a large bush thick with what looked like blueberries. He put out his hand to touch one and fingers crawled out from between the green leaves. Brett pulled his hand away feeling his heart banging in his chest. “I think someone’s hiding in the bush,” he said, keeping his voice low.
“Go away,” a small voice squeaked from inside the bush.
Brett frowned. “Is that you, Dink?”
The rustling continued and Jade gasped as a small head protruded from between a clump of blueberries. Two bright inquisitive eyes shone out.
“Nothing to do with me,” the little rubbery mouth opened and closed, the voice high pitched and trembling.
“What isn’t?” Brett asked.
“You, Queen Bebo, the Challis of Truth. Nothing to do with me.”
“So who are you?” Cassie asked.
“Pilly, rhymes with silly.”
“Why are you hiding, we’re not going to hurt you.” Very slowly Brett parted the leaves. The little creature sat trembling inside the bush.
“Jesus,” Robbie breathed in disbelief, “It’s a Troll.” He stared at the round head and pointed ears.
The creature’s head shot forward and the mouth turned down in disgust. “How dare you, I’m not a Troll, they’re vile, I’m a Goblin.”
“My mistake. I thought they were the same thing.”
“You thought wrong. I’m waiting for my boyfriend, he’s hanging around somewhere, if you see him, tell him to come home and I’ll burst his bubble.”
For one mad moment Jade wondered if the words were a Goblin code for having sex but her mind shied away from it, it was too ridiculous.
“What are you doing inside the bush?” she asked.
“Collecting berries, same as you, except I’m allowed to eat them and you’re not. Some things aren’t meant for outsiders so be careful. Got to go
now, I don’t have all the time in the world like some people.” The little head disappeared and the twigs snapped back into place.
“Berries,” Robbie said, his eyes lighting up and without warning he plunged his hand deep inside the bush and jiggled it around. “The goblin’s gone,” he muttered. He thrashed his hand around and Jade frowned.
“What are you doing, Robbie?”
“Getting us some food.” He withdrew his hand.
Cassie stared. “Shine your torch on his hand, Brett,” she instructed.
Robbie’s fingers had turned bright red. He laughed. “It’s the juice from the berries,” he licked his hand and grimaced. “Bit sour, still, mustn’t grumble,” and he continued to lick his hand.
“For Christ’s sake!” Jade watched him in despair. He was bent over his hand, his tongue flickering in and out. Slowly he raised his head and stared at her. His eyes had turned bright green and she gasped, taking a step backwards.
Robbie opened his mouth wide, making a frantic gurgling sound in his throat and Brett could see what looked like scales running across the ridges of his tongue. They appeared to be almost transparent ending in sharp points, rising and falling as he gulped for air. Brett watched him flapping his arms around, his green eyes rolling in their sockets. And then something terrible happened.
Robbie bent over and began retching and from his open mouth there poured what looked like thousands of the tiny red insects. They clung to his face, climbing into his nose and covering his eyelids, dragging the skin over his eyes and blinding him. He dropped onto his knees on the path obviously struggling for breath as the insects continued to cascade out of his open mouth.
“Do something!” Cassie screamed at Brett.
Robbie began rolling from side to side on the path, his chest hitching with every agonising breath. Brett could only watch helplessly, there was nothing he could do. If he tried to stop the insects from coming out then he’d be trapping them inside Robbie’s body to fester. He just prayed it would be over soon.
Ark Of Hope: Beyond The Dark Horizon Page 18