by Ian Woodhead
I saw no sign of his bright blue Range Rover; not that it meant he hadn’t escaped. Even with the knowledge that dad wasn’t likely to still be in Lorchester, I still had to find mum. I had to be sure. There was somebody else I needed to find as well.
“Me and you are going to have a few words, Mark,” I growled, pulling back the bolt, and pushing the gate open.
“Are you still intending to embark on this great journey without the pleasure of my company, young Fitzpatrick?”
I spun around, biting down the scream. I hadn’t even heard him creep up behind me. “You scared me.”
He nodded, grinning. “Yeah, I know.” The man pointed over to a pale blue portacabin. As far as I could tell, it was the only building in here. “Mr Daniels, that’s the chap who owns all of this, in case you thought this was mine. Well, he generally lets one of his security guards to stay in there on a Saturday night. He’s a decent fella, you see. Although he knows full well that the scrotes that the agency sends over just end up sleeping in there, he makes no complaint.”
Stu jumped over a deep tyre track full of muddy water, and strolled over to the closed door. I think he expected me to follow him. To my surprise, I did just that, after giving those cars one last look.
“You see, Mr Daniels knows that his beloved yard will stay free of potential thieves, arsonists, and other nasty little tossbags. He knows this, cos the chap has me. In return he lets me stay here. He even leaves me a food package every so often. I’ll tell you now, his lovely wife makes one hell of a cottage pie.” He sighed. “I’m so going to miss her cooking, you know.” Stu climbed the three stairs, and stopped directly in front of the door. “Come on, join me. You’ll need to see this.”
Curiosity got the better of me, and I joined him on the wooden platform. I now noticed that he had a rucksack on his back, and a small fire axe jammed into his belt. It wasn’t quite as impressive as the one Mark wanted to pull off the wall, but unlike Mark, I suspected that this talkative but strange individual would know how to use it.
“Good man. Now lean to the side, and take a peek through the wire mesh. Of course, it is an 18 rated viewing, but I won’t say anything if you don’t. Don’t worry, there’s no nudity.”
I did as he asked, and looked through the window. The two other windows on the other side of the portacabin let in plenty of light, showing me exactly what had happened to the security guard. “Oh Jesus.”
“Ample warning was given, young Fitzpatrick, although, to be fair, I was well within my rights to stay quiet. After all, it’s nothing more strange than something seen on a nature documentary. Saying that, I think even David Attenborough in all his extensive career, would have gone pale at the sight of one of the newly changed.” He moved closer to me. “It’s the connotation, isn’t it? Both you and I know that this poor thing was once human. Yeah, that is the weekend security guard. The tragedy is that I have no idea which one. Just how sad is that?”
A five foot column of thick red flesh rose up from the wooden floor, ending in a serrated purple cap, dimpled, just like those mushroom things. Its almost phallic appearance was only offset by a dozen thin black bands around its middle; they reminded me a little of wire coiled around a tube. I couldn’t help but gasp as its entire body curved until that cap now faced the window. Those black bands had loosed, hanging down to the floor.
“It’s darkened in colour since I last peeked in on our strange little friend.”
I jumped back, crashing into him as something slammed into the window on the other side, cracking the glass. “What the fuck?”
“That’s the black ropes. They all have them, you know.” He placed his hands on either side of my head, and turned me to face the gates. “All of them, including those trapped in the cars.”
The implication of his words hit me like a sledgehammer. I wouldn’t have even gone five yards before seeing movement coming from those cars. The sight of those black ropes whipping out of a dozen bus windows would have been my last ever sight. I had no doubt that they were malevolent.
“Come back to the fire, Travis, at least for a few more minutes? I know that the yearning to find your family is hard to ignore. But you won’t last long away from the safety of this refuge without a little knowledge.”
I didn’t resist as the man gently led me back to his fire. Somewhere in the distance, I heard a scream. It sounded human. I looked back over to those cars, but then again, I couldn’t be sure. I had woken up in an alien world, nothing now felt familiar. I looked down at the quilt cover wrapped around my body, and wondered what had happened to my clothes.
***
I always thought that opening my eyes to the sweet sound of the chattering vagrant was my wake up call. How wrong could I be? There was worse to come, much worse. My new friend had been through a similar situation to me, but unlike me, this guy had come out to the other side with more answers than I could have ever imagined.
After he’d finished his words, I wish I stayed ignorant. Then again, if I had stayed in that state, you wouldn’t have found yourself on the winning side. Oh, listen to me. Fuck, if Stu hadn’t opened my eyes, myself and the rest of the survivors wouldn’t have lasted more than a week on our newly conquered world.
He offered me some more of his tea before explaining how he had somehow managed to escape the change. Before he did that, there was one burning question that I just had to resolve. What the hell had happened to my clothes?
Burning was exactly what he’d done. Stu had found mirth in my expression as he told me that, not only had he stripped me, he’d also washed me down, removing every trace of the dried goop contaminating my body, even to the point of almost shaving my head, just to be sure. He didn’t explain why, not at first, although, I did find out why later, and his reasoning made me want to hug him very tight.
***
I was glad of the tea, although by now the liquid was lukewarm and contained enough sugar to put a diabetic on life-support, it gave me comfort, showing me that not everything here was strange.
“Feels disjointed to still be sober at this time, you know.” He looked up. “It’ll be close to four by now, time for the out of town supermarket to be closing their doors on their worshippers. The procession of cars driving past the gates was just as memorable as the church bells.”
Stu set the flask down beside him, and dropped a bundle of multi-coloured pencils into the fire. “Yet another liberated item from the cave of wonders. I wish I could have got to the supermarket, Travis. Their stationary section is to die for.” He sighed, “And that is exactly what would have happened to me if I had been foolish enough to have attempted that journey. Unlike you, there was nobody to warn me of the danger. I dare not imagine how many of those things are planted up and down the supermarket aisles.”
“Have you seen anyone else not changed into those things?” I thought of my friend and realised that I hadn’t told Stu about him.
“We take this one step at a time, young, Fitzpatrick. To jump into the middle of a story leaves the ending open to interpretation.”
I nodded, unsure of what the hell he meant by that.
“I used to look forward to a Friday, you know. It meant payday for a lot of the young ones, and after gorging themselves on over expensive nightclub drinks, the next generation generally either staggered to the next club, staggered to a takeaway, or staggered to the taxi ranks. Believe me, people about to fall are usually grateful for a passing stranger to stop them from hitting the pavement. Oh sure, in their inebriated confusion not many of them were aware that their wallet or purse had accidentally fallen into my pocket. Still, a little less money more than makes up than having concussion, wouldn’t you agree?”
He threw another bundle of pencils onto the fire. “Of course, this was a couple of years ago, before my own alcohol habit stuck its sharp claws into my throat. Friday night now meant me finding somewhere quiet to drink myself into a stupor, in the hope that I’d be able to get some sleep without the dreams.”
I pressed my arms tight against my stomach, not believing that I was hungry again. I watched Stu pick up a metal skewer and poke it into the embers of the fire. He’d stopped speaking now, and I wondered if he’d forgotten that I was here. He looked as though he was miles away.
He reached into his pockets, and pulled out a small brass key. “One of the drunken boys who I once saved had this hidden in the pocket of his wallet. Judging from the fact that this key only revealed itself in the ashes of my fire on that memorable Saturday morning, I don’t think he wanted anyone to find it. Our friend worked at the Shop and Save, and this key fits the door located in the minimarket’s delivery bay. I think he was going to use it to do it over, you know. I imagine that my timely appearance had saved the shop a tremendous amount of money. Oh sure, I’ve used it on occasion, since that time, but I only took the odd bottle, nothing that would be missed.”
He reached into the rucksack, brought out a foil wrapped package, and handed it over. The smell reached me before I could even unwrap it. Two more bacon sandwiches stared at me, and just like before, sliced into neat diamonds.
“On this Friday, though, I took two bottles of Jack Daniel’s. Strange really, I’ve never been a great lover of that brand, but it’s all I could find. Anyway, after the first bottle and a large amount of walking, I found myself on the edge of Meadow Hall primary school. Do you know it?”
I nodded, and hurriedly swallowed my first mouthful. “Yeah, I used to go there.”
He grinned. “Well, ain’t that a coincidence? So did I. They’ve fenced the place off now, and that green metal fence is pretty high, and the tops are pointed. Not that they stopped me. Even in my drunken state, I got over in less than a minute. What I landed in, though, wasn’t what I expected. My boots did not hit wet grass.” He stopped and stared. “I think you know exactly what I found.”
“Yeah, a field full of mushrooms.”
He laughed, “Is that what you called them? Yeah, I suppose the name fits. I saw a field of tennis balls, at least at first. My vivid imagination, coupled with a full bottle of whisky, soon put paid to that idea. I then saw dragon’s eggs, thousands upon thousands of stone eggs.” He chuckled. “Yeah, logic never plays any role in a drunk’s fucked up mind. I mean, if they were made of stone, then how could my boots have smashed through their shells so easily?”
“I wasn’t alone when I encountered them,” I whispered. “My best mate was with me.”
“Yeah, that much I’d already figured out, Travis. Were you both drunk, though? Well, that’s a daft question, of course, you were. Otherwise, you’d now be looking like a Dali painted stick of celery. They were eggs, though. You do know that now, right?”
I blinked. Until he mentioned it, that thought hadn’t even surfaced; now, though, it did make sense.
“I kneeled down and stared at the closed egg, my befuddled senses trying to make sense of what I was seeing. Travis, what happened when you touched it? No, don’t tell me, I already know. The egg expanded, and then burst, covering you in some kind of foul smelling crap. Well, I did exactly the same. I don’t know how you managed to escape the thing inside, but I’m thankful that you did. I’m used to being alone, but at least I know that our species were carrying on around me regardless. The sight of all these things gave me something that I hadn’t felt since my time in the service. I felt scared, Travis. It permeated down into my bones, and settled there. This was no natural occurrence, and I knew that these things did not originate from this world. No way would Mother Nature create something so abhorrent. My first reaction was to get the fuck out of here, and contact the police. Yet, I didn’t.”
That last meal sat heavy on my stomach. I had a feeling what he was about to say next, and I wasn’t sure that I was ready to listen.
“That remaining bottle in my coat pocket brushed against my thigh, reminding me exactly what was waiting for me as soon as I left here. I also knew that as soon as I finished that one, I’d end up raiding the Shop and Save again, and probably staying there. I reached out my arm, the tips of my fingers brushing against the skin of the nearest egg. My eyes widened as it grew to the size of a football before splitting open. Before I could react, this…this black spider thing was crawling up my fucking arm! I felt a sharp pain on my forearm. Well, the old training took over. I pulled the fucker off me, and slammed the vile thing against the fence, squashing it flat.”
Stu rolled up his sleeve and showed me his arm. Straight away, I saw three puncture marks in the shape of a triangle. The skin around the wound was bright red. I looked into his eyes, “You’re telling me that you’re infected as well?”
He shook his head. “No, I would have turned by now. I don’t think he liked the taste of me, Travis.” He picked out a bottle from his pocket, the amber contents reflecting the fire. “I’d advise you to take a good swig of this, Travis. I think you’re going to need it.” He leaned over, and pushed the bottle into my hand. “Seriously, take a good swig, my young Fitzpatrick.”
I saw the look in his eyes, and did exactly what he asked. That mischievous sparkle had gone. I felt as though I was now looking into two dark mirrors. The liquid burnt its way down my throat and set my guts on fire. I never have been a great spirits drinker. Unlike Mark, I preferred to just stick to ale. The sudden thought of my best friend gave me a clue as to what Stu was about to tell me. “It’s about my friend, isn’t it?”
Stu stared at me in silence for almost a minute before finally nodding. “When I said we were alone, I may have embellished the observed truth somewhat. You see, on the surface, there are a few figures on this Dante landscape that give the appearance of being human, and your pal, Mark, is one of them.”
I had already prepared myself for his announcement, but it still shocked the hell out of me. After all, how else could I have explained his behaviour? “Wait, just how the hell do you know Mark?”
He shrugged. “How else, Travis? It’s been two decades since I left the forces, and in that time, I have never left the haven of Lorchester, and most of that time was spent out in the open, under the clouds and stars. You’ll be surprised at what I seen on my travels. That includes watching your exploits.” He nodded. “Of course, I’ve known about you and Mark for a long time. How could I not, considering I served with your father.”
I’ve seen Traveller Stu around the town for as long as I can remember. Not once had I believed that he had been watching me. To say that I found it a little creepy was an underestimation. Then again, maybe I should be looking at it differently. Dad would have known about his old army buddy; he wouldn’t once let the guy do anything untoward. It was more probable that Stu was watching over me. Hell, no, I still found it creepy.
“There were thousands of eggs in that field, Travis. I bet where you ended up, you saw more than a few as well. Now, can you imagine how many other places in our quaint little town were similarly infected? Don’t get me wrong here, I guess most of them didn’t find any hosts, but I know some of them did.” He stood up, and helped me to my feet. “Travis. I’ve seen them. I’ve seen your friend as well. Do you want me to show you?” He picked up his bottle. “Although, I do suggest that you finish off the bottle, as it doesn’t get any easier from now on.”
***
The man hadn’t been lying. What I saw—and fought—once we’d gotten past the things inside those cars finished off what had started back in that field, back when two pissed up teenagers decided to take a shortcut to grab some cheap and nasty takeaway.
He told me he’d seen lots of humanlike figures on his last scavenge, none of them saw him, though. He wanted it to stay like that, as well, considering he witnessed one more survivor, another one just like us, who’d been lucky enough to escape the change and not to be infected by the spiders. His luck had ran out when the old man had encountered two humanlike figures. Stu said they didn’t even give him chance to cry out before the pair of them cut into him with machetes. They then fed the pieces to three nearby stalks. It was the first t
ime that Stu had seen them use those flexible ropes, and soon discovered just how effective they were at consuming meat.
His first experience with them was conveyed to me just as we both reached the gates. He wanted me to be sure of what I was about to see if I left the relative safety of the scrapyard. I didn’t know it back then, but the man had found a reason to continue living. He had found someone to protect.
***
By the time we had reached the edge of town, dusk had already fallen. None of the streetlights had come on, and I saw no lights in any of the hundreds of widows in front of us. I had at least expected the streetlights to work. After all, it had only been a couple of days since this had happened. Could our machines have already broken down in such a short space of time? It didn’t seem possible. I sat down and rested my back against the side of a bus shelter where Stu had thrown me.
“It’s all clear,” he whispered, sticking his head back inside. “They’ve all gone. From what I can tell, they’re heading towards the police station. I wonder if they’re all going to hand themselves in.” Stu sat on the bench opposite me. “Yes, sergeant. Although I previously was the guy who used to stuff letters and junk mail through your letter box, I’m now a danger to what’s left of the human race. You see, an alien spider crawled into my mouth and took me over. Just give me a machete, and I’ll show you exactly what I mean.”
“Man, do you ever stop talking shite?” I secretly didn’t mind that much. Better to have him yap on about anything and everything, than for me to turn inward and allow the reality of our dire situation really sink in.
“If he was confessing to me, Travis, the fact that he’d been filling my house with junk mail would have been enough to get him strung up. Just imagine how many trees must have perished in the making of all of that junk mail posted each and every year.”