Return To The Center Of The Earth

by Return To The Center Of The Earth (epub)

  Two by two the group descended. They’d used a ring on the bolt, and doubled their rope, so when the final person had descended to the end of their length they shot in another bolt, added a ring, and then released the rope to slide it through their upper ring for recovery.

  In caves, rope was critical, and a limited resource. They could climb without it as they had proved last time when they scaled back up. But then Michael and the rest of them had lost twenty pounds, and though he had been weakened from the muscle loss, it meant he had less overall mass to haul up or down a rock face.

  Jane, Penny, and Harris went next, and that left the last four: Alistair, Mike, Ally, and Pete Andreas. Mike stood on the edge watching Jane’s descent, as the others joined him.

  “Two by two?” Mike asked. “Who goes last?”

  Ally looked out along the sheer and seemingly never-ending rift wall. “Screw that, Mikey.” She pulled her bolt gun and fired in another bolt. “All four at once.”

  In seconds all four of them were roped up, and Ally gave him a small nod.

  “Okay turkeys, let’s do this.”

  She gripped the rope and leaned back, sliding down the rope a good forty feet before she struck the wall, and then hopped again.

  The others bounced down as well. In a while they came to a rock perch only a few inches wide but the first of their group down had shot in two bolts about fifty feet apart and rigged a rope between them. It acted as a hammock-like temporary ledge and gave them time to rest and prepare for the next drop.

  They’d continue to do this until they touched bottom, still hundreds of feet below them. Mike estimated they were down at about twelve thousand feet now and there was a hint of a warm breeze blowing up into their faces that carried smells of dank water, rotten fruit and he also couldn’t help thinking it smelled of body odor.

  Harris organized them again, and the first two went over the edge for the last few drops that were to be the longest and deepest.

  Alistair, Mike, Ally and Pete had once again agreed to descend together. The four watched as the last team disappeared into the blackness, and Ally, close to him, spoke without looking up.

  “Your girl is a good caver.”

  Mike snorted softly. “She’s very good. But not my girl.”

  Ally looked him up and down for a moment. “Her loss.” She hooked her ring up to the drop-line. “Ready?”

  He nodded, and then over they went, separated by about ten feet on either side of their fellow cavers.

  It was about fifty feet down that Mike eased past a vertical split in the rock face and saw what looked like greasy matting deep within the fist-sized opening.

  He paused, staring into the hole: maybe some sort of unknown plant growth but probably more like a common form he’d come across before that was an obligate troglobitic fungi like Acaulium caviariforme or maybe Aspergillus baeticus. He looked along the wall and for the first time noticed more of the pockmarks having the same matting around their edges.

  Because of their fading glow stones, they’d obviously missed these on the climb up. Mike lifted his hand with the flashlight on his wrist, pushed it into the hole and shone it around.

  “Shit.” He jerked his hand back. What the hell. Did something move in there? he wondered.

  “Argh!”

  Andreas’ yell snapped Mike’s head around to where the man hung on the wall.

  Mike’s brows came together as he tried to make sense of what he was seeing in his light beam. With his free hand, Andreas punched at something that extended from the rock face and looked like a long arm complete with hand on the end that was scrabbling to get a hold of his belly.

  “Goddamn get off me, you motherf…” Andreas hung on tight with one hand and used his other one to grip the thing around its, what…throat, neck, wrist? It was impossible to tell.

  “Hang on. I’m coming at you.” Ally began to walk to the side and then swing back toward her colleague, and Mike did the same from the other side, while Alistair just stared with wide eyes and open mouth.

  “Argggh.” Andreas threw his head back as the thing finally managed to get a grip on his belly. “Goddamn, biting into me…”

  “Clear,” Ally yelled, with enough momentum on her swing to reach him. She held onto her rope with one hand while holding up a long-bladed knife with the other.

  Andreas’ face was screwed up in pain but he pulled his hands free and in one smooth movement, as Ally reached him, she swiped the blade down hard, completely severing the thing.

  Dark blood splashed, and Andreas was left with the stump still clinging to his belly.

  “Freaking monstrosity.” He ripped it free and held it up, squeezing it as though trying to choke it to death. “Bastard!” Andreas exclaimed as he stared at it.

  Mike was close enough to see that the end of the thing that had been trying to burrow into his stomach was a fleshy pipe with a hole in the end that was surrounded by three long claws or teeth he had thought were fingers. It was basically a mouth on the end of a column of muscle.

  Andreas lifted his arm.

  “Don’t,” Alistair yelled.

  Too late; Pete Andreas flung the thing far out into the darkness.

  “Now we’ll never know what it was or get a chance to examine it,” Alistair complained.

  “I don’t give a shit what it was; I just wanted it dead and gone.” Andreas turned his red-hot glare on Alistair. “You get one of those things trying to eat their way into your belly and see if you want to play with it a while.”

  “Okay, big guy?” Ally asked.

  “Yeah, yeah, fine now.” Andreas wiped his brow roughly with his forearm. “Hey, Ally, thanks, owe you one.”

  “No sweat. Let’s all get on down.” She began to drop again.

  Mike sucked in a deep breath and still felt a bit shaky. “There are more holes in the rock face. Avoid them if you can.”

  “No shit,” Andreas retorted. He checked his belly one last time and then began to slide down his rope.

  Mike began to drop as well, this time avoiding any crevices or holes in the rift wall.

  In another half hour they had all reached the bottom of the sheer rock face, and Harris was waiting for them.

  “What the hell happened up there?” Harris demanded.

  “Something attacked Andreas,” Mike replied.

  “Came right out of the wall.” Andreas pointed at his belly where the shirt was torn and bloody. “Tried to eat me.”

  “Get that cleaned up, now,” Harris ordered.

  “On it.” Andreas rapidly started to remove his shirt as Penny gathered some iodine and gauze.

  Harris turned back to Mike and Alistair. “What was it?” he asked.

  “Looked like some sort of lamprey. Came out of a crack in the wall and tried to fix itself to Andreas’ belly. We didn’t encounter them before,” Mike said.

  “Lucky you.” Harris shook his head. “I don’t like surprises, Mr. Monroe.”

  “No one likes those sort of surprises. Maybe those things didn’t hear us before, or maybe the blue light of the crystals didn’t rouse them. What do you want me to tell you?”

  “My job is to keep everyone alive. Your job is to help me do that by giving me a heads-up when there could be trouble. Sounds simple, right?” Harris’ gaze was unwavering.

  “Can only do that if I know there’s danger.” Mike stared back just as hard.

  “Lamprey, did you say?” Alistair asked.

  “Yeah,” Mike said out of the side of his mouth.

  “They’re one of the oldest life forms on Earth.” Alistair nodded slowly. “Some have a protein coating that is waterproof, so if their lake dries out, they can ride it out until it refills, days, weeks, or even years later.”

  Mike turned away from Harris. “You think it was a cave adaption?”

  “Why not? You said your hairless creatures walked up these walls. So makes sense that an ancient parasite adapts to preying on them. That thing bit right through Andreas’
tough shirt; imagine if it latched onto the bare skin of one of your wall climbers. Never get it off.” Alistair raised his eyebrows.

  Jane scoffed. “Every predator has its prey, and sometimes, every predator has its predator.”

  “Yeah, very interesting.” Harris called his group in and immediately sent one of his soldiers in each direction of the cave they were now in. This time the men had their rifles held out in front of them and lights emanated from their helmets and gun barrels.

  Mike and Jane walked a few feet along one end of the cave, and Jane stopped and then crouched.

  “Cave floor is churned up. I’m sure this is the direction we took but I was expecting to see our footprints still marking the dust,” Jane said.

  Mike got down beside her just as Harris loomed behind them. The man lifted his light over their shoulders. “Looks to me like there was a lot of activity after you guys departed. This is an out-there question, but as the V5 cave is open to the public, could there have been other people down here after you guys?”

  “I’d never say never, but it’s unlikely. We would have heard about it on the speleological grapevine if someone found new, deep caves in the V5.” Mike nodded to the cave floor. “Besides, do they look like bootprints to you?”

  “No sir, they do not,” Harris replied.

  “I’m not a tracker, but these are like the prints we saw above. And I see no heel or toe marks from caving boots on these either,” Mike said.

  “Then let’s have a closer look.” Harris got down on his haunches and held his light up. “Look here.” He used a finger to draw a broad box in the dust, and then scraped some of the excess debris away from within it. Sure enough, there were prints, or rather some sort of animal pugmark.

  “Like a dog or big cat,” Jane said softly.

  “Toe walker,” Harris said. “Animals like dogs are what’s called digitigrade animals, meaning that their digits—toes, not their heels—take most of their weight when they walk. Because of this, dog toe bones are very thick and strong.”

  “These things might have been people once,” Mike said softly.

  “Humans usually walk with the soles of their feet on the ground.” Harris stood. “But that’s not much use if you live in caves, right?”

  “Boss.”

  Harris half turned. “Yo.” He turned back to Mike and Jane. “Duty calls.” He headed back toward the main group.

  Mike lifted his light in the opposite direction that Harris had taken and stared down along the dark cave. There was no dust in the air and his beam of light was able to travel far. But still the cave kept on until it finished in a black nothingness.

  “You know, I think we came from that way.”

  Jane looked about. “I can’t remember. Our lights were fading and so was I. But maybe you’re right.” She turned to him. “So you think these things are what happened to the race of people from the cave city below? The ones that escaped up into the caves?”

  “Maybe. The zoological DNA analysis was inconclusive, but the probability was high. De-evolution, inbreeding, cannibalism, plus for all we know the effects of the long-term radiation. In ten, twelve, fifteen thousand years, they might have reverted back to become primordial savages.”

  “C’mon Mike, you’ve seen them; they’re more than just savages. They looked like an entire new species,” Jane replied. “Horrible.”

  “Inbreeding creates deformations.” He shrugged. “So does radiation-forced mutations.”

  “You’re right, but all of the changes were selective adaptations, perfect for living in a cramped, lightless environment.” She lifted her light. “The only way to evolve and keep it beneficial to the environment a creature is living within is to bring in new blood now and then, rather familial inbreeding that can result in debilitating physical distortions.”

  “Mike, Jane.”

  Harris’ voice came out of the darkness.

  “Sounds like he found something.” Mike allowed Jane to step ahead of him, as he didn’t want her behind him and out of his sight. The old protective urge kicking in again, he thought. Even though she’d probably reject it if she knew what he was doing.

  In a few minutes they found the group standing around the outside of another cave mouth, one no more than three feet around and Harris was crouched at its entrance. He waved them closer.

  When Mike and Jane joined him, he turned. “Smell that?”

  Mike sniffed and got the musty acrid scent of an animal’s den. “Yes, might be where the creatures came from, or their lair.”

  “You never went this way?” Harris asked.

  “Nope, never saw it. I’m fairly sure we came up from way back that end of the passage.” He thumbed over his shoulder.

  Harris peered into the dark hole a moment more and then stood. “Bull, take a look.”

  “Seriously?” Mike’s mouth dropped open.

  Bull quickly checked his weapons, adjusted his light and pulled the communication set over his head and the bead in front of his mouth.

  “Check, one, two,” Bull said.

  “Receiving.” Harris nodded, and then slapped the large man on the shoulder. “Stick ‘em, big guy.”

  Bull crouched, shone his light around for a few seconds and then went in fast.

  Mike couldn’t believe the guy’s courage. But guessed that was his job, and also he’d never actually seen one of the creatures.

  “Fifty feet in, all clear,” came Bull’s first message.

  Harris had pulled the receiver from his ear so they could all hear the interaction in the quietude of the caves.

  “Proceed,” Harris said.

  “Branching at eighty feet, all clear,” Bull said, out of breath.

  “He shouldn’t be in there by himself,” Jane said.

  “He knows how to handle himself,” Harris said without turning. “Besides, if the crap hits the windmill, he’ll be able to back out a lot quicker if he’s got no one behind him.”

  “Phew, reeks in here,” Bull whispered. “I’m now in the main cave; looks like no one’s home. Looks like a freaking nest in here.” And then. “But they were definitely here.”

  Harris turned to Jane. “Think we scared ‘em off?”

  “Unlikely,” Jane said. “Ask him how many does he think were in there?”

  Harris nodded. “Bull, how many dog people were in there, you think?”

  “Ah…” Bull seemed to do a quick count. “Lots; fifty maybe.” He grunted. “Hard to breathe with the stench; methane and ammonia.”

  “Okay, you can wrap it up,” Harris said.

  “Hold that; got an alcove, looks weird, I’m going in.” Bull grunted again and there was the sound of scraping as he obviously jammed himself in somewhere tight. “Got a body, or what’s left of it. Human skeleton. Hey, it’s wearing something around its neck.”

  Mike frowned and leaned closer.

  “Lana,” Bull said softly.

  “Lana.” Jane gripped Mike’s arm. “Katya’s sister; who went missing.” She turned to Harris. “I need to see that body.”

  “Me too.” Harris turned and snapped his fingers at Penny. “Doc, you’re coming with us.” He put a hand to the mic button. “Bull, stay where you are, we’re coming to you.”

  “Roger that, I’ll be here,” Bull said.

  Jane, Mike, Harris, and Penny crawled into the small and narrow cave. In just a few minutes they could see Bull’s bobbing lights. But he’d been right about the smell; as they got closer to the main den it was miasmic to the point of being eye-watering. The odor was a combination of rotten meat, faecal matter and urine, and something like old sweat, all hanging in a cloud of ammonia vapors.

  Bull waved them on. “In there.”

  “Stay on point,” Harris said to him.

  Mike and Jane went into the smaller side cave first, followed by Penny and then Harris. The small alcove was no more than eight feet around and only four high. But at its rear there was a skeleton stretched out on the ground. Jane got clos
er and lifted the small gold chain from around its neck.

  She turned to Mike and nodded. “Yes, Lana.”

  “Take it; for Katya,” Mike said.

  Penny moved her eyes over the bones, her hands hovering but not actually touching. “This young woman suffered.” She grimaced. “Both arms and legs had been broken while she was alive.”

  “To stop her crawling away,” Harris replied. “They immobilized her.”

  “They kept her hostage?” Mike asked.

  “There’s partial healing in the bones, so she was kept like this for several years.” Penny brought her light closer to the groin area and indicated a discolored patch underneath it. “Poor woman, in pain, lying here in her own filth for all that time.”

  “Why? Why keep her alive?” Jane asked.

  “I think I know,” Penny said softly and leaned over the bones. “See here?” She pointed. “See these shotgun pellet-sized pockmarks along the inside of the pelvic bone? They’re caused by the tearing of ligaments…” Penny straightened, “…during childbirth.”

  “Oh, they raped her.” Jane squeezed her eyes shut. “A nightmare.”

  “Worse; they used her to breed.” Mike turned to Jane. “It’s how they got that new blood into the pack.”

  “I’m going to be sick.” Jane turned away and threw up.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Harris said. “Bull, you bring up the rear.”

  Mike took one last look around. “Katya had said coming down here was Hell for her. But it was nothing compared to what happened to her sister.”

  “This would never bring Katya closure.” Jane wiped her mouth with her forearm. “It would only torment her guilt even more.”

  “We’re done here, people.” Harris turned away and the group followed.

  *****

  Bull waited a full minute for the group to exit. He then shone his barrel light around one last time, illuminating the skeleton, material that looked like piles of hair or fine roots that had been pulled together as some sort of bedding or nest, and also peered into any nooks and crannies he could locate.

  Creepy as fuck, he thought.

  He turned away, about to exit.

  Tock.

  He froze.

  Tock.