Mandible

by Ian Woodhead

  "What are we going to do now?" cried Marty. "Throw books at them?"

  Ellis ignored the man. She ran to the other side of the stall and leaned over a collection of horror paperbacks. The sit in takeaway belonging to Aroon's dad was in sight and, from what she could see, the route looked clear. Ellis was pretty sure that there were more of those things hiding inside the stalls but as long as they stayed in the middle and stayed quiet, they should be okay. She made her way along the stall and explained her plan to Lorraine. Ellis didn't bother saying anything to Marty. Despite her telling him to stay together, the older man had taken to hugging his legs while rocking from side to side. “Lorraine. Can you sort out Marty?” She reached the counter and silently moaned at just how far the monsters had now spread. The bastards had almost reached the bottom of the book stall. Ellis leaned over the counter and yelped when one of the things reared its head up. She snatched a hardback graphic novel from the clear plastic shelf beside her and hit the damn thing as hard as she could. “Jason!” she shouted. “Meet us at the café!” Ellis had no idea whether he heard as her voice acted as a trigger. Every insect that had left the coffee shop suddenly turned and raced toward the book stall. “Oh fuck!”

  Ellis spun around and ran out of the book shop, thankful that Lorraine had managed to get Marty on his feet. They were already at the café and Jason was sprinting along the edge of the shops heading towards them.

  “Oh, God, Ellis. You have to run faster!” screamed Lorraine.

  She risked a look over her shoulder and saw why. Those insects were right on her tail and gaining on her! “Get inside!”

  “We can't, the door's fucking locked and bolted!”

  Oh Christ! There was no magic archway to save them this time. They really were screwed.

  “I can see a shadow behind the door!” Lorraine pushed past Jason. “Come on,” she yelled, while banging on the glass. “I know there's somebody in there. Let us in” Lorraine looked over her shoulder. “Oh God, please!”

  A key rattled in the lock. Jason grabbed the handle, pushed it down and slammed the door forward before pulling everybody into the dark shop. Ellis was last to enter. She caught her breath when something hard and sharp touched her back. Lorraine's eyes bulged. The older woman grabbed the front of her blouse and pulled Ellis forward. Jason slammed the door shut.

  “Help me out here!” he yelled.

  Both Ellis and Lorraine threw their bodies against the door but even with their combined weight, whatever was outside was still managing to open the door! Ellis didn't want to know what Lorraine had seen out there. “Marty, don't just stand there, help us out here!” she cried. The older man didn't even turn his head, he looked comatose. The person who unlocked the door came to their aid instead. “Aroon, thank you, man. You saved our lives.”

  “Not yet he hasn’t,” muttered Jason, still trying to turn the key.

  Ellis heard the glass behind her back cracking but she dared not move away, knowing that could doom them all. Instead, she did her best to tune out the noise, still her rampant imagination which now had decided to show her a dozen insectile hollow barbs, each one full of glass-eating acid, all scratching the small window and getting reading to punch through the glass and then into her spine. “Shut the fuck up,” she hissed. Finally, Ellis heard the sound of the key turning.

  “Done it! Jason pulled her away from the door. “Come on,” he urged. “All of you. Over to the back wall. It might make them go and hunt somewhere else.”

  Ellis sat in her usual spot and watched Jason and Aroon barricade the door with a couple of tables. It seemed like a pointless exercise, especially considering her boyfriend had just made it clear that the monsters were not going anywhere if they knew this place was literally packed with tasty human treats. It also occurred to Ellis that this was the first time that Aroon and Jason had met. Granted, it's not like Aroon was her ex-boyfriend or anything except maybe in his mind but Ellis believed that Aroon was the closest friend she really had. It did seem stupid to start thinking about pointless rubbish like that considering their present dire situation but try as she might, Ellis just could not stop that rebellious mind of hers from imagining Jason dropping that table, pulling the other guy across it and stabbing him repeatedly in the chest while accusing the dying man of sleeping with his girlfriend.

  Lorraine sat opposite. "Christ. I forgot this place still existed. My mum used to bring me here back when I was a nipper. Back then, an English couple rented it. Their pie and peas were to die for." She looked over at Marty who still hadn't moved, before she turned her attention to Aroon and Jason. They had finished blocking the door and were conversing in low tones next to the till on the counter. "I wish I knew what to do with Marty."

  "Let's see what those two are twittering on about before we figure out how to deal with our boy in a coma."

  "There's good news and bad news, ladies." Jason sat down beside Ellis and wrapped his fingers around hers. "What do you want first?"

  "The bad news, I suppose," answered Lorraine. "Although I can't see how our situation can get any worse, short of those insects finding a way inside."

  Jason suddenly looked very tired. His hand squeezed hers.

  "I could handle that," he replied. "There's enough sharp knives over there by the counter to turn those things into chopped steak. The problem is, that from what my new pal has just told me, the insects are in no hurry to leave the market. It appears that it isn't as empty as we first believed."

  Aroon sat opposite Jason. "We're not the only ones trapped inside," he explained. “Most of the stall owners went to ground when those monsters appeared from nowhere. Some of the customers did too."

  “Why?” asked Lorraine. “I mean, I get why you felt the need to hide.” She shivered. “Believe me, I really do get that, but what about your homes and your families?”

  “Have you seen it outside?” replied Aroon. “You think it's bad in here, well, let me tell you, being inside the market is a walk in the park compared to what it's like out there.”

  Ellis didn't bother telling the lad that they crossed the outside to get into the market, via a trip to the centre of the fucking planet, obviously. Somehow, she didn't think that tales of humanoid insects, secret agents and teleporters would contribute anything helpful to the conversation. Aroon looked close to breaking point and Ellis had no desire to tip him over. Looking after Marty was bad enough.

  “Yeah, we saw how bad it was out there,” whispered Lorraine. “Sorry, I have this problem of spurting out words without thinking them through beforehand.”

  “That's okay.” The young man smiled at the woman. He then glanced at Ellis. “I too am afflicted with the same problem.” Aroon shuffled in his seat. “That is not to say that people didn't try to get out of here. My father and I saw a few groups attempt to leave. Some were even armed, you know, with shotguns and pistols!”

  “You're shitting me!” Lorraine shook her head. “Christ this place really does sell everything.”

  “Is that a joke?”

  “I think it was, Aroon,” replied Jason. He turned to Lorraine. “A couple of the larger shops further down are owned by, let me say, 'individuals of questionable morals'. I think it's fair to say that the weapons belonged to those people.”

  “Are you police or something?” Aroon looked at Jason for a few moments before turning to Ellis. “Is your fella a copper?”

  “Something like that. He's kept us alive so far so don't knock it.”

  “There'll be no knocking from me, Ellis.”

  “Glad to hear it. I'm guessing they didn't get very far, even with the shotguns?”

  He slowly shook his head. “We watched them climb over the back wall. There were four men and two women. Of course we knew them.” He glanced at Jason. “We also knew about their reputation. The market isn't that large, and word spreads, you know? Anyway, despite knowing they were bad men, my father and I were still hoping they'd escape and come back with help. Through the gates, we watch
ed them creep along the street, they stayed in the middle of the road, away from the walls. We actually thought they were going to make it. There were a couple of the larger insects visible. Huge brown beetles in the distance and some smaller creatures which kinda resembled ants, but none of them were paying any attention to the people.” He took a deep breath. “That all changed when one of the men suddenly made a run for it. The abrupt movement caught the attention of the ants. They rushed towards that running man.” Aroon paused. “Sorry.”

  “It's okay, Aroon. I think we can work out what happened next.” Ellis stood up. She hurried over to the counter, grabbed a bottle of juice and brought it back to the table. She placed it in front of Aroon. “Here, this might help.”

  Aroon unscrewed the top, took a deep swig then replaced the cap. He looked at Lorraine, then returned his attention to Ellis. “I have no idea of the horrors that you four must have experienced since this nightmare began so perhaps you can work out what happened next. Then again, maybe you can't? The ants easily caught up with the running man. Those things really can move. It took them seconds to separate his body into smaller pieces.”

  “Bloody hell.”

  “Those three monsters snipped off his legs and his arms then scurried back a couple of metres while this shrieking man lay in the middle of the road while his life fluid pissed out of the four gaping, ragged holes. The bastards didn't do anything else until that poor man's noise finally stopped. Only then did they finish the job and take his head and slice his torso into three smaller pieces.” Aroon, took the cap of the bottle, placed it on the table and peered inside the bottle. “You know, my DVD collection is packed with horror movies. Both my parents think it’s not healthy to watch movies that, in their opinion, worship and celebrate death. They keep banging on that I should expand my horizons and start watching movies which celebrate life instead.” He lifted the bottle and finished off the drink. “I believe that, if I get through this, I shall burn all my DVDs in the back garden.”

  “Jason, when are the authorities going to arrive? They can't just forget about us.”

  He held up his hand. “Lorraine, one thing at a time. Aroon hasn't quite finished yet. Please, carry on. What happened to the men with guns?”

  “I guess that because they had the shotguns, they'd have no problem in putting down those ants. After all, unlike the beetles, those monsters weren't covered in shell. Plus, there were only three of them. The man in front, the one who tried to stop the other one from running off, walked to the end of the street. He raised his weapon and waited. By this time the ants had eaten that other man. All that remained was a large lake of blood. I guess they must have seen this other long man as yet another meal. They raised their heads and ran, but they stopped suddenly, right at the edge of the road. It didn't matter to the man with the shotgun, their movement had obviously spooked him. He fired twice. One of the ants took both hits but it didn't put it down. Can you believe it?”

  Ellis could. They certainly weren't dumb.

  “That's when all hell really did break loose. No, that's not right. I mean, it looked like every hellish monster from the depths of hell suddenly appeared. I suppose the sound of the gun must have brought them out of hiding. They came from everywhere. Under cars, out of the trade bins, through the windows, out from behind walls. I've never seen anything like it. I'll be honest, I never saw what happened to the people in the street. Within seconds, the place was full of them, of every type, size and shape. I don't remember seeing any of the really big ones though. Apart from those beetles who stayed where they were. I don't even think those people had time to even scream before that living carpet consumed them."

  "And that's what you mean, Jason. About us being trapped in here?" Lorraine sighed. She stood up, walked over to the counter and helped herself to one of the drinks. "So what the hell are we supposed to do now?"

  'You said there was good news?" announced a voice from the other side of the shop.

  "Marty?" Ellis jumped up and ran over to the man. "Thank Christ you're alright. I thought something had seriously gone wrong with you."

  "I think I'm okay," he replied. "I guess the shock must have caught up with me." Ellis helped him to his feet. "I can't believe how hungry I am."

  Aroon brought him over a plate of samosas. He handed two to Marty then invited the others to help empty the plate.

  Jason took one of the samosas. He then took the plate from Aroon, took it back to the counter and returned with a large chef's knife. "I lied. There is no good news. Only more bad news, I'm afraid. Aroon. I think you had better repeat what you said to me earlier on."

  "I think it's better if I showed you." He too went over to the counter and picked up a large knife. He looked over his shoulder. "Follow me please." Aroon then vanished into the next room.

  Ellis followed him inside. She'd only ever been back here once, and that was last year when Aroon had asked her to help him bring some cans in to stock up the fridge. She had agreed, partly for curiosity. She had, of course, told him that if he tried anything on with her, she'd throat punch him.

  It had shocked Ellis at first to discover just how homely the place looked. Aroon had pointed to the single seat sofa, positioned opposite a huge flat screen TV. He had explained that's where his old man spent most of his time while he had to do all the work. Aroon had told Ellis that while he served customers, cooked the food and cleaned up, his dad sat right there, watching pirated Pakistani action movies while drinking mango lassi.

  The contrast to how she remembered the place to how it looked now could not be any starker. It looked like a tornado had been through the room. "Bloody hell, Aroon. It looks like you've been burgled. What the hell happened in here?"

  Jason urgently tapped her wrist while violently shaking his head. A moment later, it clicked. Aroon said earlier that he'd watched the carnage outside while standing next to his father. Where was he? Watching Aroon circumnavigate the devastated room, idly picking up a table and kicking pieces of a broken vase under the ripped up sofa, Ellis decided that she didn't want to know what happened to Aroon's father. Something told her that this choice had already been taken out of her hands.

  Aroon had reached the far corner of the room by climbing over a table. He stopped beside a wardrobe, turned and coughed. “Sorry about the mess. Weird, really. You know. I mean, even through this, my father still ordered me to clean all the tables, chairs and the counter, while he sat in his chair.” He grabbed the sides of the wardrobe and pulled it back a couple of inches. Aroon then walked around the side, pressed his back against the surface and pushed. “Bit harder than I thought.” He looked up. “Jason, could you help please?”

  Her boyfriend hurried over, shifting the table to the side first. He joined Aroon and helped him push the wardrobe away. Ellis slowly walked towards them, her gaze fixed upon what the wardrobe had previously obscured. Aroon stood beside her.

  “My father had no chance at all, really. I mean, we didn't expect them to actually come through the walls. I heard it happen. Well, I heard him shriek out followed by the sounds of struggling.”

  “Didn't you try to help?”

  Aroon glared at Lorraine. “What, you think I cowered under the table and waited for them all to piss off, or something? Of course I tried to help. As soon as I pushed my head through the curtain, my father immediately shook his head, and told me to stay where I was, then when one of them started to turn towards me, my father used the last of his strength to boot it.” He looked at them all, one by one. “There were five of six of them in there, with more coming through. What else was I supposed to do?”

  Ellis took his hand. “It wasn't your fault, Aroon.” She gave his hand a comforting squeeze. “Can you tell me what happened next?”

  The lad's gaze shifted to Jason before discreetly pulling his hand out of her grasp. “I'm afraid I went into one of the corners, holding a knife tight while waiting for them to start pouring into the shop. I heard them trashing the back room. It felt like
they were in there for hours. None came though, and then the noise abruptly changed to a kind of wet crunching noise. I might have started crying about that time, thinking that those evil fuckers were actually eating my father. I remember standing up and rushing in here, ready to kill them all, and,” he sighed, “and I found this.”

  Marty pushed past them and crouched beside the hole. He gently ran his fingers down the rippled surface. “It feels like glass,” he murmured.

  “What the hell is it?” Ellis looked at Jason. “Do you know?”

  The man just shook his head. “I've not seen anything like this before. It certainly isn't something the Deltin do anyway.”

  Aroon gave Jason a curious look but kept quiet. Ellis peered over Marty's head trying to make sense of what they were seeing. It was a fabricated tunnel made from, she guessed, a secreted resin. It must run the length of the market, going through the middle of every shop on this side. Aroon climbed inside. “What the hell are you doing?”

  “Don't worry. It's strong enough to support our weight,” he replied. “This is what I need to show you.”

  Marty was the first to follow Aroon inside. The man had not stopped touching the damn stuff. Ellis climbed in next. She did everything she could to avoid touching the resin. It felt repulsive, like frozen dead flesh but warm. Aroon moved a little further down the corridor and as she followed, Ellis spotted a junction.

  “This is it,” Aroon said.

  The junction opened out into a clothing shop. Ellis recognised the place almost immediately. She bought a pair of jeans from here a few months ago and had to bring them back because she didn't realise until she got home that there was a rip in the leg. She remembered that old witch of a shopkeeper trying to convince Ellis that it was the fashion and they'd been made like that. It took her ages to get the money back and she would never forget the face the woman pulled after Ellis bid her a good day and walked out of the shop.

  She was still here, but encased in some kind of pod-like structure which hung from the ceiling. It wasn't the only pod in here, dozens of them filled the interior. “Oh my God. What's happening to them?”