They made no noise, but tiny fires marked the creatures’ progress as they darted to and fro across the bridge. As they took each step a pinprick of white-hot light would burst suddenly into life, shine like a star for a few seconds, then disappear. Most of the fires faded out but some of them dropped to the ground, as though the concrete itself had melted.
There were dozens of the things, but I couldn’t see where they were coming from; they seemed to just flow into existence from the bridge itself. As I watched, they swarmed across the concrete and began to make their way down the support pillar towards the ground. I ducked down, flattening myself against the rock, hoping they wouldn’t notice me but at the same time wondering whether I could risk taking a photograph.
Most of the shadow creatures flowed off the support and scattered into the darkness, heading towards the city, but three of them paused, seeming to sniff the air. I held my breath and waited for them to hurl themselves across the rocks towards me. After a couple of minutes two of the creatures began to pick their way towards the dead bodies. The third hesitated, as though it was unsure of the best course of action, and in that moment another creature leapt off the bridge and onto its back.
The air was filled with a shrill whining as the creatures rolled on the ground, scratching and biting at each other. Tattered wisps of smoke-like flesh hung from the creatures like rags where they’d clawed at each other. The other two shadow things had stopped halfway to the bodies and were perched on top of a block of concrete watching the fight. The rest of the creatures continued to make their way down the pillar and out into the city, seemingly oblivious to the battle being fought in their midst.
And then it was over. One minute the creatures were a violent blur of shadow and then one of them was gone. The victor lay on its back for a moment, then twisted itself upright. It was larger than before the fight, almost twice the size it had been just moments before. It flicked its tail, then joined the two creatures on the concrete block and the three of them continued towards the bodies.
When the creatures reached the corpses they stopped, sniffing at the blood-soaked ground. Impatient, the larger one forced its way past its companions and headed towards the woman’s body. The other two split up, taking one of the men each. All three circled the bodies warily, occasionally taking time to nudge the body they’d chosen with their nose. The larger one reached the woman’s outstretched arms and began rubbing itself along the exposed flesh. There was a hissing sound and the smell of burnt flesh filled the air as the creature’s touch scorched the woman’s skin.
It reached her head and clambered up her face and onto her back, raw red blisters marking its progress. The creature lay there, its tail tracing scarlet welts across her body as it flicked from side to side. Its companions explored their own prizes until they too were perched on top of the bodies.
The larger creature began to nuzzle the wound in the back of the woman’s head and for a moment I thought it was going to begin eating her; then I realised with horror that it was burrowing its way inside her head. There was a soft sucking sound as it forced its body through the shattered bone and I gagged, struggling to keep my lunch inside me. I glanced at the other bodies just in time to see the vaporous tails of the other creatures disappear out of sight.
The flow of creatures from the bridge had almost stopped. A few stragglers were just slinking out of sight around the pillar. I lay on the rocks, my mind reeling. All thoughts of the curfew gone, I knew I needed to get away from the bridge, find a patrol and warn them about the creatures. Even though I was sure I’d be treated as a crank at best, I had to try.
I was beginning to move when one of the corpses stood up.
It was the woman. Her movements were slow, confused, as though she were learning to walk again. She stumbled and almost fell, but managed to steady herself. She slowly looked around, her jaw slack. The bullet that had killed her had exited through the front of her head and there was a ragged scarlet hole where her left eye should have been. The woman coughed, a harsh retching sound that echoed off the concrete around her, and a thick river of blood began to flow out of her mouth and down her chin. I forced a fist into my mouth, stifling a cry of disgust.
The woman wavered, and for a moment I thought she was going to fall back down, but then her whole body twitched twice and she suddenly seemed to gain full control of her limbs. She tensed, looking around until she saw the other bodies. The nearest of the two had raised itself up and was crouching unsteadily on the concrete. The second was just beginning to stir. Without hesitation she took three quick steps towards the nearest body, reached around its neck and twisted it sharply to the right. There was a cracking sound as the neck snapped and the body slumped to the ground, lifeless once more.
The body of the second man was still lying on the ground, twitching slightly but largely unmoved. There was a concrete block lying on the ground next to the woman’s feet. We both saw it at the same time and I knew what she was going to do even before she picked it up and smashed it down onto the skull of the still-twitching corpse.
With her rivals dispatched, the woman began to take in her surroundings. She spent several minutes staring up at the underside of the bridge where she’d first appeared with her companions before slowly looking around, methodically taking in the sights around her. I ducked down as she looked towards me, holding my breath as I waited for the touch of her hands as she snapped my neck.
I stayed out of sight for as long as I could but when I peered back over the rocks, she was still staring towards me as though she knew I was there and was just waiting for me to give myself away. When she didn’t move I was convinced she was just toying with me, letting me get my hopes up or waiting for me to make a break for it, but after a few seconds she looked away. She stared up at the darkened apartment buildings across the river for a few seconds then turned and headed up the pathway towards the city.
I stayed huddled among the rocks for what seemed like hours. In reality, just under ten minutes had passed when I began to hesitantly make my way up onto the road. There was no sign of either the woman or the rest of the creatures, and no indication that anyone else had seen them.
I was still standing on the road, trying to decide where I should go, who I should tell first, when the patrol arrived.
. . .
The man they called Murphy was tall, well over six feet, heavily muscled and a bully. The four soldiers who’d bundled me into the armoured car hadn’t been interested in my story of the lizard creatures, but as soon as I reached the Pembroke Avenue command post, I was taken to an interrogation room where Murphy was waiting for me.
I sat in the chair, my arms handcuffed behind me while Murphy stared down at me impassively. The room stank of sweat and fear and there was a deep brown stain scattered against one wall. The plaster there was cracked, as though something had been smashed against the wall. A skull, perhaps. All I could think of was how many people had died in this chair.
I waited, trying to ignore the terror nestling in the pit of my stomach. The silence grew, became oppressive. Murphy stared at me, waiting, just as I was.
For a moment, fear turned to anger. I wasn’t a criminal; I had information, important information. I opened my mouth to start my story, to explain what I’d seen, when Murphy launched himself towards me with remarkable speed and hit me in the face.
. . .
I don’t know if the creatures are the cause of the war or just a symptom, but I know I’m not the only person who knows they exist. Murphy knows. He didn’t say as much, but I could see it in his eyes as I struggled to explain the situation in the pauses between his blows. I like to think I even saw a faint tinge of sorrow pass across his scarred face when the others came in to inform me that I’d been found guilty of treason.
According to the priest, the soldiers will be here soon. Even now, I’m wondering whether I would have been allowed to live if I’d kept my mouth shut, or promised to.
I doubt it.
W
hatever the creatures are, someone is determined to keep them a secret.
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About the Author
Philip Harris is a speculative fiction author and video game developer. Originally from near Oxford, England, he now lives on the West Coast of Canada where he spends his days developing video games and his nights writing speculative fiction - anything from horror to science fiction to fantasy.
His first publication, Letter From a Victim, appeared in the award winning magazine Peeping Tom in 1995. Since then he has been published in numerous magazines and anthologies including Garbled Transmissions, So Long, and Thanks for All The Brains and James Ward Kirk's Best of Horror 2013.
He has also worked as security for Darth Vader.
His science fiction novel, Glitch Mitchell and the Unseen Planet, is an homage to the old Buster Crabbe Flash Gordon serials and is available now. Visit http://solitarybooks.com/cfunseen for more information.
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Also by Philip Harris
Novels
Glitch Mitchell and the Unseen Planet
Novellas
The Girl in the City
Short Stories
Bottled Lightning
Saviour
Only Friends
Curfew
by Philip Harris
Copyright © 2015 by Philip Harris
All rights reserved
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author or publisher.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living, dead or supernatural, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
ISBN 978-0-9938887-3-1
11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2
Cover design by Humble Nations
Copy editing by Carol Davis
Formatting by Polgarus Studio
Published by Philip Harris
http://www.SolitaryMindset.com
Table of Contents
Curfew
About the Author
Also by Philip Harris
Curfew Page 2
