by James Lay
Chapter 11
It was a satisfying experience to be able to control flight without any visible effort. The nearest Carl had ever come to the feeling had been in his dreams. He had always been a flyer, perhaps it was foretold in his stars!
The HUD display flipped over to the topographical details and began to give orientation and vector lines to their initial target spot. The ground was five miles below them now and didn't resemble exactly the drawings Rint had given them. Gone were many of the larger landmarks, some of which were bridges, others massive buildings, all gone. Possibly they had crumbled down over the thousands of years. Also completely gone were about 99% of the highways. It was now all forest, or more like the Brunei jungle, as Pat pointed out.
There was a large coastal bay where none was indicated on Rint's drawings. Could it have been ground movement or the rising of the sea level?
“Hey Pat,” Carl shouted across to him, now that they were in thin atmosphere,” that river we were going to land next to has gone.”
“Bloody hell, what's been going on,” he replied,” looks like a different place altogether.”
Carl now spied the minor mountain, which was above one of the cavern entrances, the one Rint had entered by. The cross hairs on his HUD drew an intersection that did resemble the point Rint had detailed, at least that was still there.
“The air is not so clean where you are,” George informed them,” I register a high bacterial count but not one that is harmful. I suspect it is the breaking-down process of the fallen trees in the forest below you.”
They were now within one hundred metres of the position where the cavern entrance should have been, but it was completely obscured by trees. They approached a little closer and set themselves down where the approach road should have been.
“This place has been totally taken back by the forest,” Carl observed,” can't see where the doors are at all.”
“You know what's happened, don't you?” Said Pat,” There's been a bloody rock fall, we should be fifty meters from the hillside where we are now, but it's 20 away.”
“That's buggered it,” said Carl,” we'll have to see if there's a break in the rocks nearer the entrance.
They both moved off and started climbing a slight hill, heading to where the entrance should have been, searching for any access to the caverns. They could have powered up using their modules, but it was pleasant to stretch their legs and get a bit of exercise. The area was smooth earth with fir-like trees growing thinly about and generously covered with a 'heather' type of scrub.
“No entrance anywhere around here,” Carl observed,” let's climb a bit higher, see if we can get to the rock face.”
They were soon right under a sheer rock face that rose some two hundred metres above them, which then sloped away out of sight. At the point of the cliff face they encountered large boulders, some of them reasonably fresh from a fall.
“The bacterial count is very high where you are standing,” George relayed to them,” I have isolated the strain and the news is not very hopeful. The group appears to be of a type found throughout known space. It breeds on decaying flesh.”
“Are you saying it could be coming from the caverns?”
“I am saying just that Carl.”
“We'd better search around and see if there's a way out for the bacteria, could also be a way in for us.” Pat said.
They moved to their left and began clambering over and around massive boulders, keeping close to the cliff face.
“Bacteria has reduced,” George informed them,” Perhaps you should try in the other direction.”
They turned about face and ploughed the other way. Their parangs were coming in very handy. They cut through fern-like plants as if they were butter. They also didn't show any tendency to slip out of their hands.
Their scrambling went on for another ten minutes until they were stopped by a slimy black substance that was spread on the rocks and the ground around a crevasse in the ground, the crevasse also ran into and up the cliff-face.
“What the heck's all this bloody muck?” Pat asked.” It's going into that crack, or is it coming out?”
“Look at that rock deposit line.” Carl said, pointing to a change in colour in a seam in the rock.” The rock face has moved vertically about 20 metres.”
“It's not too old, as breakages go,” Pat added,” wonder if this is what caused the hibernation problems?”
“Could be,” agreed Carl,” but what's all this slimy crap, is it mud?”
“Carl, Rint has said it could be the trail of a type of sliding creature they have on Io,” helped George,” I see from your thought pictures you note that as being a slug. This type of slug grows to fifty metres in length and is quite vicious. Please take care, it has a nasty bite.”
“Fifty bloody metres,” blurted Pat,” that means its mouth is going to be four or five meters when open. Don't like the sound of this.”
This was not a very healthy development, that's all they needed, a ruddy great slug sliming over them. The problem was not its bite, their shields should take care of that, no, it was getting free from it, if they became trapped, that could cause a problem, especially in a restricted space. It could be possible to go clattering around walls if they powered their modules away too fast, like a ricocheting bullet. Care they would take.
“This crevasse is quite wide further down,” Pat said, pointing about twenty meters down,” and you can see it opens out as it enters the cliff face. We ought to have a go at entering here, I just don't fancy all this black muck.”
“The shields will keep it off, it's already absorbing a very high concentration of bacteria, the spot you are in must be the entrance. Have no fears about the slime or the bacteria, it is like food and energy to your shield.” Said George.
“Lovely, eating ruddy slime, I'm just glad it filters out the smell. It must be bloody awful if it's what I think it is.” Carl said, and sHuddered a bit. It could be Io people who were rotting away. In fact it just had to be.
“Let's get down there Pat,” Carl said, feeling a sudden urgency about the whole operation,” I think we are needed more urgently than we suspected.”
With that, as one, they stepped off of the edge of the crevasse and allowed their jump modules to slowly lower them down, whilst they kept themselves centred by pushing away on the crevasse sides with their hands.
As they came down to the opening of the fault they could see it was very wide, about three metres, with the crevasse going down into blackness, and the black slime trail directly ahead of them.
“Looks like we follow the trail, could be an easy way to find our way in and out.” Carl suggested.
“Let's go,” said Pat,” wonder how deep this crack is?”
“Just thought of a problem Pat.” Said Carl, in a frustrated voice.
“What's that?” He asked, stopping and looking around.
“No bloody torches.”
“You're right, bloody typical.” He said.
“Carl, Pat,” came George’s voice,” you need no direct light, use your I.R. sight. Just try to see in the dark and you will see the infra red reflected back to you from your emissions or from the rock and surrounds if they are warm.”
“I.R, I'd forgotten about that altogether, let's go to it.” Came Pat's confident voice.
Carl followed and, sure enough, even before it had become really dark, he could see Pat shining away just ahead of him, and the rock was only a little less radiant.
“I can see for bloody miles,” said a very pleased Pat,” in fact I can make out that black trail even better than before.”
They hovered on and suddenly emerged into a huge open area, which was literally as bright as day with I.R., they were definitely in one of the hibernation caverns.
“Oh my God, look down there.” Pat had stopped and was pointing.
Carl looked where he was indicating and all he could see was a mass of grotesque slugs, all 'looking' up towards them. There were
hundreds of them.
“See what's going on Pat.” Carl pointed.” They are actually breaking the covers of the caskets where the people are asleep. How the hell are we going to get them away?”
“Let's give them a dose of tangle-web and see what happens.” Suggested Pat.
They descended to within ten metres of three slugs, aimed their right hands and activated a very short blast of tangle. The effect was instantaneous, with a violent jerk the whole mass of slimy black creatures launched themselves upward at them. Both Carl and Pat were taken completely by surprise as the whole morass of slime engulfed them. Giant jaws were open and were in the action of ingesting them when they all fell away. The slugs rolled up into very tight balls and went into a compressing-type of muscular spasm. White lines appeared all over their skin and they then just rolled about, still in balls. They had been completely knocked out and immobilised.
“That was an experience I don't want to go through again,” said Carl,” but it looks as if the old Tangle Web has got them.
“That's the answer,” Pat shouted,” why don't we fly along, over the whole lot, and give them all a bloody blast?”
“Damn right, I reckon we could cover a hundred metres a second,” said Carl,” let's programme a non collision course to follow the cavern interior and get the bloody lot. I'll do the left from floor to ceiling and you do the right. Fan spray our tangles.”
The caverns were set out with hibernation casks on veranda levels. Ten levels in all. They knew the caverns were pretty vast but their HUDs gave them a total journey time of one minute to the right, to the end of the cavern and then back to their present position and ten minutes the other way. Carl noted with satisfaction that their power reserves wouldn't drop at all for the total period.
“Ok Pat,” Carl suggested,” let's go right first, to the end, and then all the way back to the other end.”
“We'll end up at the end where the 'Constructor' should be, by his private stateroom, or whatever he called it.” Pat answered.
They turned right, set up their tangles and took up a course for the end of the cavern.
It was a horror story from the moment that they began. The slugs were everywhere, on all levels, and they couldn't see a single casket that hadn't been broached. It looked bad for the future of Io all right.
They came to the end of the cavern and turned round and set off in the other direction. It was fascinating to travel at around three hundred miles an hour in a tunnel, the tunnel being the cavern system, the impression of speed was awesome. What was also awesome was the quantity of the slugs. They had set up home in the caverns and were systematically stripping it of the sleeping population. There must have been millions of the disgusting creatures. They saw the effect their tangles were having, at speed, when they flew back, past their first blasts. The slugs had fallen to the ground level and were static, in tight balls. They both wondered how long they would stay that way.
Carl could now see that a great many of the caskets were intact. Mainly on the middle to upper levels, and it was possible to see a general increase in the I.R. glow from the living people who were inside, although it wasn't actually possible to see through the covers.
After what seemed like the longest ten minutes Carl had ever lived through, they had completed their first and very important task, to stop those slugs.
Now to try and locate the Constructor.
At the end of the cavern, set into the end wall, was a pair of metal sliding doors. They looked in good condition. To the left side of these doors was another large door, which was off its runner and leaning at a dangerous angle. They had a look inside and it was similar in build to a massive operating theatre in a hospital. Equipment was mounted around the walls and set on pedestals on the floor. Most of the floor-mounted devices were knocked over or leaning at precarious angles, with old dried-up slug slime everywhere.
“Over here Carl,” Pat indicated,” looks like a casket set in the wall, the slugs have had it though.”
They took a careful look. There was nothing inside, but on the side away from the broken entry cover was a terminal set into the wall, inset back about half a metre.
“I think we have found our target at the first go,” said Carl,” George, it looks like we have a computer terminal here, I'm going to try to get it out.”
As he gently pulled the instrument it came out of the wall, turned away from the wall through ninety degrees, tilted forward, lowered a little and up popped a screen which lit up. This was the computer contact for sure.
“Can't see any wires or cables,” he mumbled,” I'll put the interface onto this strut.” So doing, George came straight back.
“We have a perfect signal and I can begin to format the information, it is going to take some time, why not see if you can locate a way out.” George suggested.
“Bossy bastard.” Said Pat.
It was a sound idea though. They went out into the main cavern and had a look at what they could only assume were the main doors to and from the cavern. Carl hadn't actually seen any doors on their flight through the cavern system but that was not really surprising, they had been travelling at a very high rate of knots.
“Any controls over there Pat?” Carl asked.” I can't see any here.”
“None here either. Hey look at that slug.”
Carl turned and saw a slug about ten metres away. It was turning a cold white in colour and looked awfully flaccid. Carl carefully approached it and gave it a prod with his parang. The slug was the consistency of warm butter. It was falling apart.
“We must have done the bloody sods in,” Pat shouted,” cop hold of that yer bastards.” Sticking a middle finger in the air.
Carl was more than a little relieved to see the effect the tangle web had on the slimy creature, he only hoped it had the same effect on the rest of them.
“Pat, Carl, I have hacked into the system and identified the door controls.” Advised George.” If you will stand well away from the doors I will command them to open. It would appear the Constructor had all the angles to keep the people inside.”
“Ok George,” said Carl,” give it a go, we are well away.” Amongst the dead and slimy slugs.
There was an enormous bang and the doors jerked sideways and then slowly parted to reveal another set of doors. The same thing happened, the bang, as if the doors had set themselves solid, and then they also began to slide open.
Sunlight poured into the cavern. The lower part of the opening was full of earth, rocks and plants, but from about two meters up there was clear air and a view of tree trunks and leaves.
“You've done it George, they're opening and we can see the trees outside,” Pat called,” try some of the others, maybe we can get some fresh air in here.”
They began to hear bangs and thumps from back in the cavern and then there began a rush of air around them, going out through the door they were stood by.
“Stop it there George,” Carl said,” the air is on the move but we don't want too many uninvited guests in just yet.”
The cavern became silent, with only the rush of air in the trees outside.
“Pat, Carl,” It was Rint,” you have succeeded beyond my wildest dreams. If I give you my casket co-ordinate could you go there for me please?”
“Of course.” They both replied in unison.
Their Huds lit up with a construct of the cavern layout. There were two dots at one end and there was an arrow about two miles away.
“We see it.” Said Carl, as they both set off at high speed. Their 'dots' were soon at the arrowed location and now their Huds gave them the terrace and cask position.
They stood at the foot, or head as it might be, of Rint's casket.
“We are at your casket Rint.” Carl informed him.
“What are the two caskets to your right like?” Came a quiet Rint.
“Ok matey,” said Pat,” why?”
“They are my wife and two children. The children are in the further one, and they ar
e intact?” asked Rint.
“Why yes,” said Carl,” I'm glad to say.”
“I have the casket relay commands,” said George,” the release will take about ten minutes. It is a life-sustaining awakening and must be carefully controlled by the computer. I am confident the computer will not misbehave but is the cavern safe for the opening of all the caskets?”
“I don't reckon that's a good idea George,” Pat warned,” just open Rint's and his wife's. He can decide what to do in his own time.”
“That's a good idea George,” said Carl, agreeing with Pat,” they are going to need help in the initial stages and Rint knows who to get awake first, let's leave that up to him.”
They noticed that Rint's and his wife's casket covers were a lighter shade than the dull grey of the others. The light wasn't too bad where they were, there was an entrance door about fifty metres away and it was flooding the immediate area with bright light.
“Can you put on any lights George?” Asked Carl.
“I'm afraid they do not respond, I am getting an open circuit indication in the power feedback system, it would appear that the computer and caskets are on a protected separate system to most of the other general circuits.” George responded.
“Hey Carl, it's opening.”
There was Rint, lying there, looking more than a bit grey, more like bright white, but his breathing looked regular. He was festooned with wires that were attached to hundreds of parts of his body. These were beginning to be moved away by slim remote metal arms. Similarly, tubes were being extracted from his nose, mouth and anal region.
“So far so good.” Said Carl, a satisfied smile on his face.
A couple of minutes later -”Hello Carl, Pat,” came a very creaky voice,” I cannot talk, it is too painful.”
“That's ok, you just take it steady, your wife's casket is open and she looks well, so don't worry about a thing,” said Pat,” pity we can't get you a drink of water or something.”
“In the cabinet.” And Rint's right hand moved a little and his index finger pointed to a small door set into the side of the casket. Carl opened it and inside were bottles of clear liquid and packets of what must be food, or biscuits or something. The bottles had drinking straws set into the tops and were released by pulling a rip-ring that released the straw, ready for drinking. Carl put the plastic straw to Rint's lips and let a few drops trickle onto his lips. His tongue came out and licked up the liquid. Slowly both Rint and his wife, Tainy, began to show more activity and flexibility, but it was a long haul. After at least two hours, with their help, they could sit up and take a look around.
“It is what I suspected,” said Rint,” there has been a severe earth movement and the caverns have been breached. Thank you for the efforts you have gone to. We have a lot of work ahead but it is of no concern, we are alive and I do not feel too bad.
“You look bloody great for a 5000 year sleep.” Pat laughed.
“Rint, you look awful,” said Tainy,” but I'm sure with some hard work you will soon look better.”
“Just like a bloody woman,” Pat murmured,” nagging him already.”
After Rint and Tainy had been walking about a bit to loosen up muscles and joints, Pat and Carl took them a couple of miles along the cavern, flying piggy-back style and they were both horrified with the scenes of devastation the slugs had caused.
Happily they didn't see a live slug anywhere. They had flown from one end of the system to the other and as far as they could tell they had all perished. Only the doors at the terminal end of the cavern were operable, there was one door at the other end that had begun to open but had jammed with a gap of two meters. At least a fresh breeze was whistling out the foetid air of the cavern system.
Carl had gone out of the end door, the one next to the Constructors room, and brought Shadow down from space to hover just outside, their home and comforts. They gave the Rint's the luxury of their bathrooms after they had released their children, to clean up, and then they had some food and coffee and began to discuss the release process for the rest of the population. Rint and his escape group had it all worked out, they had certainly had plenty of time! Rint was to operate the computer until the computer specialist was up and about. The Shadow crew soon scuppered that idea, George could do that initially. So Rint and Tainy were to help two others to revive, then two more, then four, then eight, soon to be an army of helpers until the whole of the surviving population were released.
No time was lost. It started straight away and continued without a rest for two days, even then they were only half way through. It certainly was a long haul. Rint came to see them every now and again with a friend or two who wanted to thank them, it was becoming somewhat embarrassing.
“I think they are ok now,” said Pat, looking over at Carl,” we could go.”
They were in their lounge, which was facing the now fully open end doors, watching the clearing-up process begin. Everyone was so white and frail, they certainly hoped they would be ok. The Io’s had to go out on food hunts which soon resulted with them coming back with small, large and medium sized wildlife that they had trapped. Barbecues were all the rage here. They certainly wouldn't starve.
“I think you're right Pat, let's see if we can find Rint.”
It didn't take too long to find him. He was 'down-town' in the local assembly building. This was a very low ground level structure with more than one hundred levels below ground, mostly undamaged. They hovered overhead and landed when they saw Rint appear from the entrance.
“Rint, we must be on our way,” Carl explained,” we have our world to find and it could be anywhere.”
“Yes, I realise you have pressing business,” Rint answered,” I was so hoping you could stay longer, we wanted to thank you properly.”
“We've had all the thanks we will ever need,” Pat said,” me bloody hands're worn away.”
“You will be remembered by our people for ever more,” said Rint,” you know where we are. When you are ready, please return and we can have a good celebration.”
“That's a promise Rint, say cheerio to Tainy for us, we'll go and let you get back to your problems.”
“Yes, we have a few,” said Rint, with a smile on his face,” thank you again and I hope to see you very shortly.”
“Thanks for saying that Rint, we'll be back, even if we haven't found Earth.” Carl assured him.
“Bye Rint.” Said Pat, patting him on the shoulder.
“Bye my friends.”
They rose back to Shadow and moved into the cockpit.
“I'll take her up to a safe altitude and then we'll sod off.” Said Pat.
“Well put.”
They gained altitude rapidly and went into a 500-mile orbit. Carl stopped Shadow there.
“Whatcher stopped for?” Asked a surprised Pat.
“Two beers.”
“Good idea.”