He thought while he was whiling away the early afternoon, staying out of the blazing sun and escaping the hottest time of the day, he might take the opportunity to take the VO Falcon out of the case and familiarize himself with the prodigal hunting rifle.
“Gwala! Go fetch my...”
Vane sat erect when the surveillance alarm went off, chirping loudly. He stood and yanked the Desert Eagle out of the shoulder holster. He saw a green sensor light flashing on a post staked twenty feet from the encampment. Looking around, he saw more of the warning lights blinking, meaning that there was more than one intruder.
Gwala stood next to the Land Rover. He threw back the bolt on his rifle and proceeded to comb the inside perimeter of the camp.
Vane cocked back the hammer on his big handgun. The constant chirping was getting on his nerves. He picked up the key fob remote off the table and silenced the piercing noise with a push of a button. Now that it was quiet, he hoped to hear the interlopers.
There was something moving behind the off-road SUV parked fifteen feet away.
He dropped down to one knee so he could see under the vehicle. An animal scampered from behind the front tire and hid behind the rear tire.
“Gwala! There’s one behind the truck!”
The guide ran over, aiming his rifle, but before he could get off a shot, the animal lunged out from behind the Land Rover.
Gwala screamed as the eighty-pound Chacma baboon slammed into his chest and knocked him to the ground. The gray monkey clawed the man’s face and chomped down, ripping the man’s throat out with its sharp teeth as it flung back its head, shaking blood everywhere.
Vane walked up on the carnage and fired his gun.
The high-caliber projectile riddled a hole clear through the baboon’s skull, sending purple brain matter splashing onto the dirt.
Vane heard footfalls behind him and turned. Another baboon rushed him. He took careful aim and halted the animal with a bullet to the chest. The baboon tumbled and ended up facedown in the dirt only a foot away from Vane’s boots.
A black insect the size of a dinner plate was attached to the baboon and looked like an absurd backpack with eight legs. The head was burrowed into the baboon’s fur, the body bloated like a water balloon.
Vane aimed and blasted the giant tick. The ruptured body exploded in a bloody mist. He looked around, expecting another attack, but he didn’t see any more baboons lurking about.
He held the big gun down by his side and walked over to Gwala. Even though the guide’s eyes were wide open, the man was clearly dead. Blood continued to drain out of the savage wound and form a crimson pool in the dirt.
“Damn it to hell,” Vane swore. He wasn’t upset that Gwala was dead. Sure, he’d miss being chauffeured and having his own personal servant. What really irked him was that he would have to be the one having to perform the menial task of breaking camp and stowing everything in the Land Rover.
He decided there was no hurry and went back to his chair to wait out the heat and drink more champagne.
Hopefully he wouldn’t have to deal with too many flies.
26
As there was only enough room in the Jeep for the four of them, Frank decided they would have to go back to the clinic and retrieve a larger vehicle. Turned out, Isoba was more than happy to help when they returned. Frank and Isoba made a trip out to the village in the flatbed truck and brought back the dead ant that Frank had killed earlier.
When they drove into the compound, a couple village volunteers were shocked when they saw the cargo. They watched nervously as Frank and Isoba got out of the vehicle and went around to the back of the truck.
Ryan was standing by to help as well. He shook out a large tarpaulin and placed it on the ground by the rear bumper.
Frank grabbed a leg and Isoba grabbed another, and they pulled the giant ant off the bed and let it fall onto the tarp.
Ryan reached up, put his arms around the severed gaster, and lifted it off the truck. “This has to weigh a good fifty pounds.”
“Lay it on the tarp,” Frank said. “I think the three of us can carry it in.”
Ryan lowered the segment and rested it in between the enormous ant’s gangly legs folded up against its body.
Isoba looked over at Adanna, who was seated just outside the animal enclosure where they were keeping Duna detained. She had been watching the men offload the giant ant. “Father, have you told them?” Adanna called out.
Frank looked at Isoba. “Told us what?”
“We did not mention it before because we thought you would think us crazy.”
“What, you’ve seen the giant ants before?” Frank asked.
“No, not ants,” Isoba said. “We saw a giant dung beetle.”
“That is crazy,” Ryan said, almost about to laugh.
Isoba scowled at the young man. “The night we captured Duna, his men were killed by bombardier beetles.”
“I’m sorry,” Ryan apologized. “When you said dung beetle...”
“I think what Ryan is trying to say is it’s all too weird,” Frank said in Ryan’s defense. “Let’s get this inside and see if we can make sense of all this.”
It was a tight squeeze getting the cumbersome creature through the doorway and down the narrow corridor, but they finally managed to get to the examining room. They lifted the larger portion of the ant onto one table and put the gaster on a gurney covered with plastic.
Frank turned when Dr. Tomie and Dayo came into the room. The two women gaped at the creature on the table.
“Oh my Lord. I had no idea it would be this big,” Dr. Tomie said. “Even after you described what happened at the village.”
“Where’re Wanda, Ally, and Dillon?” Frank asked.
“Over at the dining hall with Celeste.” Dr. Tomie said.
“Okay. Where would you like to start?”
“You’re the expert, you take the lead.”
“Very well,” Frank said. “Let’s start with the gaster.”
Dayo pushed a cart with a large tray of surgical tools over to the gurney.
Frank slipped on a purple pair of nitrile exam gloves. He reached into the tray and grabbed a scalpel. He attempted to make the first cut but the exoskeleton was too hard for the blade to penetrate. “I’m going to need a bone saw.”
“There’s one on the cart,” Dayo said. She picked up the hand tool with the circular blade and handed it to Frank.
“Thanks.” Frank pushed a button and applied the spinning blade. The tool made a loud grinding noise as he sawed through the length of the gaster. “Give me a hand and let’s flip it over.”
Dr. Tomie and Ryan, who had both donned gloves, picked up the gaster and rolled it onto its opposite side. Much of the internal fluids leaked out onto the plastic sheet, some even dripping onto the floor.
Frank started the saw and ran the whirling blade from one end to the other. Once he was through, he put the saw down. “Okay, let’s pop this sucker open.” He inserted his fingers in between the halved shells and pried the gaster apart so that they could examine the cross sections.
Three large, connected organs flopped onto the plastic.
“What is all that?” Ryan asked.
“Well, first of all you have to remember that ants cannot digest solid food. They actually excrete a chemical that liquifies their food. After they lap it up with their tongues, the liquid is stored in the crop. That’s this here,” Frank said, pointing to the organ that was closest to the severed end.
“How much do you think an insect this large could consume?” Dr. Tomie asked.
“Ants can be gluttons. I’ve seen a lab test where ants were allowed to drink as much sugar water as they wanted. Imagine a one-inch ant with a stomach the size of a Ping-Pong ball.”
“So, what’s this one do?” Ryan asked, pointing to the next organ.
“That’s the midgut, where the ant gets its nutrients. The other organ is the rectum. I don’t think I need to explain its function.”
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Frank reached down and carefully removed a foot-long spine with a sharp point and a small sack attached at the other end. “This is its stinger.”
“What’s that bag?” Ryan asked.
“That would be the poison gland.”
“How poisonous do you think these things are?”
Frank held up the sack, which was the size of his fist. “I’d say there’s enough venom here to kill an elephant.”
27
Frank rubbed his hand over the ant’s smooth head then tapped his knuckles on the polished exoskeleton. “It’s like a hard plastic.”
Dr. Tomie and Dayo stood on one side of the table and observed as Frank explained the ant’s functions as though he were conducting one of his entomology classes back at UC Davis.
“Ants have what’s called the ocellus, which means they have simple eyes much like ours and have only a single lens—unlike flies, which have compound eyes and multiple lenses.”
“So do they have good eyesight?” Ryan asked.
“No, some ants are actually blind. By the looks of this one, I think its vision is blurry at best. I’d say it reacts to sudden movement.”
“So, if you weren’t to move, it wouldn’t see you?”
“Well, not right away. Ants have a keen sense of smell. They can even use their antennae to sniff out food. Plus, they emit pheromones, which attracts other ants.”
Ryan reached down and touched the jagged jawbone of one of the mandibles. “These things must really be strong. I saw the way it picked up that goat.”
“A normal ant can carry twenty times its own weight,” Frank said.
“Are you serious?” Ryan said. “Heck, this thing must weigh...”
“Let me make a rough guesstimate,” Dr. Tomie said, “and say maybe three hundred pounds.”
“So, you’re saying...” Ryan did a quick calculation in his head. “This thing could carry six thousand pounds?”
“Hard to believe, but true,” Frank said. “I think we are looking at a new order of insect.”
“What do you mean?” Ryan asked.
“Well, about one hundred eighty million years ago, it was believed that South America and Africa were one continent. Over time, they were separated by ocean due to a seismic rift. Once that happened, similar species that were once in parts of the Old World in Africa had to learn to adapt to the New World in South America. Ants are a classic example. You hear more about fire ants and bullets ants in South America and driver ants and army ants in Africa even though the species are closely related.”
“And how would you categorize this?” Dr. Tomie said, referring to the giant ant lying dead on her examination table.
“There’s definitely an evolutionary unbalance here,” Frank said. “For all we know, this might very well be the coming of the Next World.”
28
By the time Wanda reached the clinic after leaving the dining hall, her shoulder was beginning to act up again. Once Celeste had told them about the strange siege on the village, Ally and Dillon had been excited about rushing over to see the giant ant. That was until they arrived and saw Frank had rendered the thing almost unrecognizable having dismembered the limbs and dissecting the head and body.
Frank used the tip of a scalpel to illustrate the different organs in the cross-sectioned head. “Because the ant has to break down its food into a liquid before swallowing, the head is made up of various saliva glands that aid with the process.” He began pointing and identifying each gland. “This is the labial, over here the pharyngeal gland. You’ll notice how it branches off and connects to the brain.”
“Where’s the heart?” Ryan asked.
“Ants don’t have hearts as we know it.” Frank moved to a section of the thorax that was cut open on the table. “See this tube?”
Ryan leaned in close. “Yeah, that’s it?”
“Runs the entire length of its body, same with the nervous system. If you would...” Frank stopped when he realized Wanda, Ally, and Dillon had been watching him lecture.
“Hi, dear. Feeling any better?”
Wanda took one look at the jumbled ant parts. “Not as bad as that thing.”
“Holy moly, Mom. Will you look at that?” Dillon said, running up to the examination table.
“Don’t touch,” Wanda warned.
Dillon grabbed a severed leg and almost fell backward when the appendage slipped from the table. Ryan reached over and saved his little brother. “Better listen to Mom,” he said and positioned the leg where it wouldn’t fall off.
Ally walked over and joined Dr. Tomie and Dayo. “I didn’t know ants got this huge. Is this an African thing?”
“No, no. This is quite unusual,” Dr. Tomie replied.
“So what do you think caused it to get so big?” Dayo asked.
“I think I might know,” Celeste said, entering the room. She was carrying a yellow apparatus by the handle that was no bigger than a lunchbox. It had a black push button on the top and a selector dial in the middle next to a round meter.
“You brought a Geiger counter?” Frank asked incredulously. “What in heavens for?”
“You’ll see.” Celeste walked over to the examining table and turned on the Geiger counter. The reader began to emit a ticking sound. She held up the machine and placed it near the ruined ant parts. The ticking sped up a notch.
“Are we saying this thing is radioactive?” Wanda said. “Ryan, pull your brother away.”
Ryan grabbed Dillon and they both stepped back.
Even Dr. Tomie backed away and instructed Ally and Dayo to do the same.
“Frank, step away from that thing,” Wanda pleaded with her husband.
“I don’t think there’s much need for alarm,” Celeste said, studying the meter for a moment then turning it off before looking up at everyone. “There’s only a residual amount showing on the meter.”
“And what does that mean?” Wanda asked.
“Even if this creature was exposed to a high dosage of cosmic radiation, it doesn’t seem to be registering high at the moment. I don’t know if you’re aware, but we’re exposed to radiation from the sun every day. The higher the elevation at which a person lives, the more radiation they can expect to receive—something people should consider if they live on the coast and are contemplating moving to the mountains.”
“We live in the mountains,” Wanda said.
“You mentioned cosmic radiation,” Frank interceded. “Why?”
“Well, I believe the meteor showers we have been experiencing might have a direct correlation to the appearance of these abnormal creatures,” Celeste responded.
“This isn’t the first time we’ve seen them,” Wanda said. She looked over at Frank. “I’ll let Frank explain.”
Frank faced the group. “A year ago, we went and vacationed at a jungle resort in the Amazon.”
“Let’s just say it didn’t turn out quite like we’d planned. Sort of like this one,” Wanda said, directing everyone’s attention to her arm in the sling.
“Which is true,” Frank had to admit. “Anyway, everything kind of went to hell in a hand basket, and we ended up deep in the jungle in unexplored territory. It was there we saw creatures such as this one.” He looked over at Dr. Tomie and saw the skeptical look on her face.
“Mom, you never told us about that,” Ally said.
“Yeah, I don’t remember any giant ants,” Dillon blurted.
“That’s because we didn’t want you to know. I mean, it all sounds pretty crazy, right? Imagine telling your friends and what they’d think,” Wanda said. “Ryan knew, but he promised never to breathe a word of it.”
Ryan nodded and gave his sister a sheepish grin.
“But that makes perfect sense,” Celeste piped in.
“It does?” Frank said.
“I’ve been tracking and recording these meteor showers for the past three years.”
“So?”
“The first two years, the brief events were over the sam
e remote region of the Amazon. But this year, the meteor activity seems to be directed over the Tomie Reserve.”
“Any reason for the change?” Frank said.
“I can’t say for sure,” Celeste said. “We need to find one of those meteorites.”
29
Satisfied that he had gathered enough scientific data from the giant ant’s autopsy but not wanting to discard the carcass, Frank asked Dr. Tomie if there was somewhere he might store the remains. She offered her walk-in freezer located in the rear of the kitchen.
After Frank and Ryan had bagged up the cross-sectioned ant and put everything on a pushcart, Wanda, Dillon, and Celeste followed them out of the examination room.
Ally and Dayo got to work cleaning up the mess left by the cross section. They wore masks and rubber gloves and filled two large buckets with soapy water.
Dayo gathered up the goopy protective sheet from the gurney and placed it inside a garbage bag. She went over and began sponging the table, while Ally got down on her hands and knees and scrubbed the tiles clean of the thick gunk that was already starting to dry, making it difficult to clean.
Dr. Tomie had taken the surgical instruments over to the sink and was soaking them in a disinfectant. She carefully took out a set of forceps, put it on a tray to air dry, and turned around. “You know, I’m rather worried.”
“About what, Dr. Tomie?” Dayo asked, wringing her sponge out in the bucket.
“Sasha and her cub. What if there are more of these... for lack of a better word, mutations out there?”
“But won’t they be safe as long as they stay with the pride?” Ally asked. She tossed her grungy sponge into the bucket of water.
“I want to go check on them.”
Dayo looked at the clock on the wall. “It will be dark in three hours.”
“There’s time,” Dr. Tomie said. “Hurry, finish up. We’ll leave right away.”
Fifteen minutes later, Dr. Tomie was behind the wheel of the safari Jeep. Dayo sat up front and Ally occupied the first bench seat.
Ally had to hold on tight as the veterinarian sped across the savanna, the suspension creaking as the vehicle bounced in and out of chuckholes and veered through treacherous ruts, the experience similar to being tossed about in a thrill ride simulator at Universal Studios. At one point, Ally thought for sure Dr. Tomie was going to run them off an escarpment. The doctor cranked the wheel just in the nick of time—a rear tire actually slipping off the edge—narrowly avoiding ending up in a gulch.
The Next World Page 6