by Ben Hammott
A shiver of fear and revulsion crept down Claire’s spine. She feared and loathed spiders. “Ugh, what a strange spider.”
“Funny spider is right,” commented Greg. “It has more than eight legs, so it can’t be an arachnid.”
“Maybe it’s the alien variety,” offered Wayne. “We should catch it. If it is from outer space, it has got to be worth something to someone.”
Greg liked the idea. “And if it’s alien, as in from another planet, then this is first contact. We’ll all be famous.”
“What about those alien monsters that scientist said he found in Antarctica on board that spaceship buried in the ice?” commented Claire. “You said that was first contact.”
When Greg dismissed it with a wave of his hand, the creature followed the movement with its head. “That was all proved to be a hoax. He made it all up.”
“You’ve changed your tune. Before, you said it was real, and the government was covering it all up just like they did at Roswell and UFO sightings.”
“Yeah, well, that was before we discovered this strange beauty.” Greg looked around the hut. “We need something to catch it in. Preferably something with a lid.”
Still filming, Kathryn backed away a step. “I think we should leave it alone.”
“Me too,” agreed Claire, moving for the exit.
Greg and Wayne were about to argue when the small creature’s body puffed up like a spiky pincushion, and two more squeezed out from the crack that seemed impossibly narrow for them to exit. Claire shrieked and rushed for the door as the creature fired four spikes. Blocking the trajectory of the one aimed at Kathryn, Claire was struck by two. One in her cheek, the second in her shoulder. The remaining two missiles struck Greg and Wayne in the face. Each experienced brief pain then blissful calm as the spores inside them took over their bodies.
In fear of her life, Kathryn ran. The puffed-up alien deflated, its spikes becoming fine hairs again, and screech-clicked at its two companions. They jumped to the ground and gave chase.
The Alpha gazed at each paralyzed human in turn and sensed the spores inside them evolving. It had taken a few tries, mistakes, and deaths to learn the makeup and layout of the human bodies, but now known, they were ideal controllable hosts to do their bidding; with more experience, they should be able to infiltrate the human colony.
Aware it would be a few moments before the humans were ready, the Alpha climbed down the meteorite and exited the hut. It glanced around at the human constructions and spying something through the trees, scuttled nearer to investigate. It barely gave the rusty machinery a passing glance as it headed for the dark entrance inadequately barred by a weathered wooden barrier now fallen to decay. Passing the DANGER! NO ENTRY sign it couldn’t read, it entered through a gap and headed deeper into the mine.
The Alpha halted when the tunnel opened into a small cavern. Rusty ore carts, tools, old lamps, and work clothing scattered the area. Feeling a draft coming from the exit on the far side, it went to investigate. It entered another similar-sized cavern and looked at the shaft in the roof with daylight at its end. It would make an ideal secondary point of entry and exit. Electing the cavern as ideal for its needs, the Alpha returned to the entrance and secreted a few shiny black strands over the timber. Heavily scented, it would lead the others of its kind here.
Returning to the cavern, the Alpha began stretching black strands from wall to wall and from the ceiling.
It paused when another of its kind entered the cavern. As more lifeforms were seeded, their numbers would grow. All would be essential to ensure their species thrived on this strange world. Returning to its task, the Alpha and the newly arrived creature continued constructing the nest for the Propagator. Shortly, their drifting spores would fill the skies, and soon after, the planet would be theirs.
Still not quite understanding what had just happened and finding it impossible to believe creatures from another world had attacked them, Kathryn sprinted up the sloping track. Swamped with guilt for leaving her friends, but at a loss at how she could have helped them, the creature had fired something at them and would have got her too if it weren’t for Claire getting in the way. Although on a smaller scale, it was similar to the porcupine attack she had witnessed against one of her friends, although it had been painful, they had survived. She hoped for a similar outcome for her friends.
She glanced behind and spied the two strange alien creatures in pursuit. Adrenalin and fear powered her legs to move faster. Reaching the top of the track, she turned left toward town.
The aliens veered into the forest on a more direct route through the undergrowth. Kathryn turned to the rustling foliage hiding the creatures moving toward her; they were fast. She couldn’t outrun them. Determined to survive, she lifted the hunting rifle strap from over her shoulder. Aware the small fast-moving creatures would be impossible to hit with such a weapon and would soon be upon her, she reverted to caveman tactics and held the barrel, turning a hundred years of advanced weaponry engineering into a simple club.
She halted, her feet sliding on the stony track that hadn’t seen maintenance since the mine closed. The creatures shot past her and jumped onto the road. They stopped and six inches apart aimed their featureless heads along the track where they had expected to find their prey. A footstep spun them. Swinging the rifle like a baseball pro, Kathryn scooped them up and sent them flying into the forest. Kathryn fled while they were still airborne.
The creature that tumbled across the pine needle-strewed ground righted itself, and none the worse from the attack headed back after its prey. The other one still impaled on a twig, glanced at its brethren when it scooted past below. Its tentacles gripped the tip of the twig and dragged itself along its length until it was free. It dropped to the ground and also none the worst for its injury, continued the hunt.
Spying the sweeping curve of the track leading up to the town, Kathryn glanced behind at movement in the undergrowth. One of the creatures suddenly appeared. Its tentacles carried it swiftly toward her. Doubting she would be able to hit it with a head-on attack, she threw the rifle at it; she could move faster without it.
The creature leaped to the side to avoid the object and tumbled into a spider web. As it struggled to free itself from the sticky trap, the spider moved in to subdue its meal for later feasting. It raised its front legs menacingly and prepared to bite and inject its venom. It darted down at its prey. The creature expanded. The spider became impaled on its hair spikes; the hunter had become the prey.
The creature slipped the dead spider from its spike with its tentacles, snapped the sticky strands trapping it, and dropped to the ground.
Spying the alien coming, Kathryn realized that if she took the route up the curved track with the speedy creature on her tail, it would soon be upon her, she was already feeling the strain. She drew her gun as she skidded to a halt and turned. The creature ran at her. Fighting her panic, she thumbed off the safety and aimed. It sprung at her face with tentacles reaching for her. When it was only a hand width from the barrel, she fired. The bullet obliterated the creature; the mist of black blood carried off by the breeze.
Searching for the other one, Kathryn swept the gun around. She spotted it coming, wispy web strands trailing from it. She fired two shots. It dodged both but wary of the threat that had killed its companion, it slowed down and entered the forest. Kathryn followed its swift climb up a tree; it was going to come at her from above; whatever they were, they had a certain amount of intelligence.
Electing the upward track as a no go, she fled along level ground. The trees thinned out by the river. If she could force it back to the ground, she might be able to get in a lucky shot. If that failed, she’d jump into the river to escape and let fate and the current take control.
With worried glances at the movements in the trees from the creature that was falling behind, Kathryn halted at the fast-flowing river that blocked further progress. She would have to make her last stand here. She gazed at the waterfal
l on her right, cascading into what was known as the Devil’s Cauldron, a deep bowl-shaped depression which local legend alleged was bottomless, and yet it still overflowed to form the river choked with rapids. A glance around furnished her with an idea.
The creature, having lost sight of its prey, dropped to the ground when the sparsely-spaced trees halted its lofty travel. Reaching a grassy area littered with rocks, it searched for the human. Spotting something red poking above the boulders by the river and identifying it as the thing the human wore on her head, it dashed across the grass and jumped onto the rock next to it. From its position, it saw there was no head under the hat, only a rock. It darted its gaze to a sound behind it. A log splattered it into a foul mess of oozing black sludge with tiny pale filaments wriggling amongst it. To make sure it was dead, Kathryn angrily smashed it a few more times. Panting heavily, she hurled the goo-stained club into the river and watched the swift current speed it away.
Again, Kathryn wondered what in hell’s name the creatures were. They seemed more plant than animal, like the head of an undesirable mushroom that no one would want to eat, and with tentacles instead of a stalk. Desperate to seek help for her friends, she headed back to town.
*
“And then I saw you lot gathered here,” concluded Kathryn.
The small crowd looked at Kathryn in stunned silence.
Deputy Jim Rickmeyer took off his hat and scratched his head. He had known Kathryn for more years than he can remember; she wasn’t one prone to flights of fancy or to make things up. Although she was—as were her hunting buddies—partial to smoking a little weed now and again, and she liked a drink; he had witnessed her drunk on more than one occasion. As he spoke, he casually leaned toward her to see if he could smell the residue of narcotics or alcohol on her breath. “Well, Kathryn, that was a tale and a half sure enough. I don’t rightly know what to make of it.”
For a fearful moment, Kathryn thought Rickmeyer was going to kiss her, but hearing his nasal passages draw in air excessively, she guessed the reason for his closeness and pushed him away. “I’m not high, and I’m not drunk. Though God knows I feel like becoming both at the moment. All I have just told you is true, and I have proof.” Kathryn pulled her phone from her pocket and navigated to the alien video. She pressed play and gave it to Rickmeyer.
All keen to see evidence of the alien from Kathryn’s story, the crowd formed behind the deputy, those at the back standing on tiptoes to see the small screen. A shocked gasp rippled through them when the strange creatures emerged from the rock.
When the video had finished playing, Rickmeyer handed it back to Kathryn.
Kathryn glared at the deputy. “Now will you go to the mine and help my friends?”
“After watching that video, I’m even less inclined to go anywhere near it. Anyway, what makes you think they are still alive? Whatever those things are, they didn’t seem friendly.”
“Hope makes me think they’re alive, that’s what,” replied Kathryn. “Either way, dead or alive, you need to go and find out.”
“Dealing with meteorites and aliens isn’t exactly in my job description,” he argued, sweeping his eyes over the crowd for support.
“But protecting the citizens of this town is, which Wayne, Claire, and Greg most definitely are.”
Rickmeyer gazed at the felled radio mast, the crumpled crashed airplane wing, and the road leading to the mine. The crashed plane was strange enough, but mysterious space rocks filled with alien creatures that shoot spikes were beyond him. He returned his gaze to the airplane wing. It was military, that much was certain. There were no strange rocks or creatures here before it arrived, so it stands to reason the aircraft must have brought them here. Deciding it was more a military matter than anything he should be messing with, he turned to Kathryn. “I think I need to make a phone call. Get someone better qualified and equipped to come and deal with this.”
Exacerbated by the deputy’s reluctance to do his duty, Kathryn pointed at the downed mast. “And how are you going to contact anyone when the plane destroyed our only means of communication with the outside world?”
“Oh yeah, I forgot about that. Still, with the plane crash, someone’s bound to come. As secret as whatever they were carrying might be, someone must know it’s here and will want it back.”
“There’s also those who parachuted out,” reminded Wes Stickley. “They’ll be here soon, I expect.”
Grasping his way out of the predicament with both hands, the deputy silently thanked Wes. “Exactly! It’s their responsibility, and I don’t think it would be advisable for any of us to go poking our noses into top-secret military matters that might be best we had no knowledge of.”
Kathryn sighed. “Are you saying you won’t go and find out what happened to my friends, people you know well, is that right deputy Rickmeyer?”
Rickmeyer nodded. He wasn’t going to be intimidated when his life might be at risk. “Yep, that about sums it up. We wait for those who jumped out of the airplane to arrive and take control of this alien menace. In the meantime,” he turned to the crowd, feeling Kathryn staring daggers at his back, “those with guns go and collect them, and we’ll set up a barricade here to guard against these aliens if they decide to invade our town.”
Cheers greeted his proposal. They were enjoying the day’s excitement.
Wondering what made the deputy think the aliens would only enter the town past his blockade when they had the whole perimeter to come from, Kathryn brought their cheers to a faltering halt when she called out, “Who will accompany me to the mine?”
She glanced around at the lowered faces.
“I’ll go!” called out someone from the back.
All turned to the voice.
Richard approached Kathryn. “I’ll go to the mine with you to check on your friends.”
“And who in darnation are you?” demanded the deputy.
“Richard Smith,” Richard half lied, deciding to keep his first name to avoid complications.
Wearing a suspicious frown, Rickmeyer took two steps closer. “What yer doing in our town.”
Richard smiled at the man as he quickly thought of what to say. He held out his hand. “I’m a travel reporter writing a book about the remotest towns in America. A category which Devil Falls undeniably belongs to.”
“He’s right there,” said Martha Torball.
“Ass end of somewhere no one wants to visit,” added Trev Stoker.
The deputy reluctantly shook Richard’s hand. “Bit of a coincidence that you turn up the very same day a plane crashes in our town.”
Richard shrugged. “Yeah, I saw it flying low. Make a good bit for the book, though; how the town handles the catastrophe. Maybe you, Sheriff, can do a one-on-one interview on how the local police force under your guidance, responded to the crash and its associated problems. My readers will love that.”
Rickmeyer mellowed. “I’m a deputy, not a sheriff.”
“Not for long after everyone sees what a major role you played in saving Devil Falls from an alien threat. Your idea to set up a roadblock was inspirational.”
The compliment chuffed Rickmeyer. He yearned to be sheriff; he already ran things. His superior, Sheriff Lansdale, was rarely in the station nowadays.
“I know an alien lifeform landing in your town is, at first, far from welcome, I believe, if handled correctly, it could turn out to be a God-sent opportunity.”
“How so?” asked Wes, intrigued.
“You’ve all heard of the Roswell incident in New Mexico way back in 1947, yes?”
Nods and mumbles of agreement came from the crowd.
“Then you know they had no concrete proof that extraterrestrials had actually crashed there and yet a whole tourist industry has been built around it and is still thriving today with thousands of tourists visiting each year. So, imagine what will happen when news gets out that extraterrestrials have visited Devil Falls, and you have proof to back it up.” He nodded at Kathryn. “You
r video footage alone is probably worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, or more, as it proves alien life exists. First contact if you like.”
Excitement rippled through the crowd.
“However, to realize the potential of your town becoming a tourist haven that will bring thousands, if not millions of dollars, into the town’s coffers and the associated businesses that will spring up to cater for them, we need to handle the current situation to contain or destroy the aliens before they start spreading. Something else you all need to be aware of is that if the government discovers that you have proof that extraterrestrials exist and are on Earth, they will take it from you and instigate a cover-up to hide it from the public. To this end, I advise that you keep Kathryn’s video, and any other photographs or video we might be able to collect when we return to the mine, a secret until it is time to release it to the press.”
Kathryn observed the stranger curiously as he sweet-talked the deputy and the crowd. There was something not quite right about the man. “Nice to meet you, I’m sure, Richard Smith, but time is of the essence. You said you are willing to accompany me to the mine to help my friends.”
Richard nodded. “I am. You said there were three of these creatures, and you killed two, so as far as you know, there is only one remaining.”
“As far as I know, but that rock could be full of them. Might be their nest or something.”
“Then, if that is the case, we had better be suitably equipped to deal with them.” He turned to the deputy. “As your expertise is needed here to safeguard the town and its citizens, I propose, with your permission, that Kathryn and I go to the mine to see what’s what and to ascertain the condition of her friends. However, we will need certain items to ensure we don’t fall victim to the aliens. We’ll also need to destroy any that might remain; thus, under your guidance, Sheriff, sorry, deputy, Devil Falls is saved.”
Rickmeyer liked the idea the more he heard. He would be responsible for saving Devil Falls, but with no risk to his life and every chance that it would boost his career. By the end of the week, the townsfolk could be demanding the lazy good-for-nothing Lansdale step down and elect him Sheriff. Even if the shit hit the fan and this stranger got himself killed, who would care? The thought of Devil Falls becoming a tourist boom town was exciting and something it badly needed. He would go along with Richard’s plan to see what happened. “Tell me what you need, Mr. Smith, and I’ll see that you have it.”