That Way Lies Madness

by James R Tuck

  Jerking the wrench popped it free of the creatures hold. Its antennae pulled loose from my hand, waving wildly in the air. Without thinking I swung, hitting the creature with the wrench. It flew across the FTL Drive bay, squealing like a warning whistle as it sailed through the air. It bounced off the side of the FTL transfer casing with a dull metal thunk.

  Hannigan ran over, metal ramp banging with every heavy step. Long red dreads swayed around his shoulders, fwipping against his waist, as his bulk moved onto the walkway. Scooping up the creature, he cradled it in big meaty hands. It cowered, burrowing against his chest. A wide crack gaped across its shell, pink movement like writhing worms deep inside the split.

  I pointed the wrench at the thing. "What the hell is that!"

  "Easy boss, easy." Hannigan had one hand out in a peaceful gesture. "It's a trillusk. It's harmless."

  "Where the fuck did it come from?"

  "We picked them up a few planets ago. The scientists got them to catalog, but they turned out to be smart. Not human smart, but trained monkey smart. They only want to help and they're good at it too. They fetch and carry, bringing us stuff we need." He held it out. "Here, make up to it. You scared the poor thing half to death."

  I watched it, eyes narrowed.

  It was curled in on itself, tiny legs interlocking, keeping its shell curved up to protect it. The small face watched me warily, quivering on Hannigan's palm. It was kind of cute, and it hadn't done anything wrong. My hand started to rise, reaching to touch it.

  Something moved in the corner of my eye.

  Turning ever so slightly, I saw another trillusk tucked behind a conduit cover. I scanned the FTL Drive bay. I knew the place like the back of my own hand. There were dozens of small, black-shelled creatures sitting in nooks and crannies, snugged away here and there. All of them watched me.

  My hand fell to my side.

  "You keep that damn thing away from me or I'll do a helluva lot more than scare it half to death." I gestured with the wrench. The small creature hissed, turning its face away. Hannigan stroked its shell, big, blunt fingers mindful of the crack I'd had made.

  The trillusk turned, moving up his arm on a wave of tiny legs. The skin on my neck crawled as the creature wrapped itself around and nestled in the crook of Hannigan's shoulder. It peeked out underneath his mass of dreads. Its hundred tiny legs continued to trill along the big man's skin. His eyelids fluttered with pleasure.

  Bile rose in my throat on a wave of revulsion.

  "Do you two need a room?"

  Hannigan's cheeks flamed scarlet above the wild beard. Veins popped on swollen temples, running over brow and up to red hairline. "You don't got to like 'em Molly, but leave the little fellas alone." His finger came up. "We're friends. I'm the only one who can handle your attitude since your daughter, but if you go mistreatin' the trillusks it won't go well between us."

  Cold washed over me. I took a step back. The sprocket wrench dropped to the end of my hand, its weight held behind my back, ready to swing. My voice was quiet, the words precise. "Are you threatening me?"

  Go low. Take the knee. No matter how big a man is he can't hurt you if he can't stand.

  Hannigan's palms rose. "Hey, hey, take it easy now. I wouldn't do that.” His hands waved back and forth, meaty flags of surrender. “You'd kick my ass. I'm just saying, everybody on board likes the trillusks, so you should be careful with them."

  I looked around at the other crew moving about the FTL bay. Humans and Klatuu worked separately and in groups, swarming like bees over the building-sized FTL Drive. They were all still working, but I felt them watch me from eye corners and eye segments as they did.

  Every one of them had a trillusk nestled against their neck or within arms reach.

  Another shiver chased down my spine. I turned back to the access port I'd been working in, not looking at Hannigan when I spoke.

  "Just let me get to work so I can get the hell back to Sleep."

  Chapter 5

  “What do you -tik- mean there is nothing wrong with the FTL Drive?”

  “I mean exactly what I said. There's nothing wrong with the damn drive.”

  “You must -tik- be mistaken.”

  “I don't fucking think so.”

  “Then why did -tik- we drop out of hyperspace?”

  "It's not the FTL Drive so it's not my job to know. Can I go back to Sleep now?”

  “No. Stay awake until -tik- we are sure you are not needed.”

  "Whatever.”

  Chapter 6

  The cot was hard, the thin mattress doing little to cushion the organic iron shelf underneath it. The iron-rich scent of rust hovered in my nostrils. It would take several more hours for my nose to fill with it after the pure oxygen of Sleep. Hours before I stopped smelling it with every breath.

  My eyes burned from being awake, skin jittering and nerves jangling from a stream of caffeine and swallowed amphetamines. The reason I signed on to this ship was the nine months of uninterrupted Sleep. There were no dreams in a cryo-capsule. Dreams were the enemy. Dreams were where memories turn sharp and barbed, snagging the skin of my mind like a fishhook.

  Dreams were where I saw my daughter.

  Sweet as rain during an Earth springtime and twice as bright as Sol, my daughter had been everything in life that was good. She had softened my sharp edges, given me a love for life that my own childhood had nearly beaten out of me. My daughter was an angel sent from Heaven.

  And then came the cancer.

  For all the miracles of traveling through the stars in living iron ships mankind still hadn't found a way to stop tiny cells from going wrong and killing wonderful, beautiful, innocent little girls.

  I watched as Shania shrank, pain eating away her light. It had taken two slow, agonizing years before that bastard God finally said enough and took her away.

  Shit.

  Don't lose it.

  My hands were wet and warm as I sat up. I took them from my face, wiping them on my pants. They left dark stains that would dry into a light salt crust unless they were washed.

  I wouldn't bother washing them.

  Tearing my mind away from painful memories I went back to contemplating the FTL Drive. It was in perfect working order. I adjusted and tuned it, but all the transfer sprockets that turned the photon blades were in good shape. The Core Sac had plenty of fission and the dampening rods were all in check. The ship didn't drop out of hyperspace because of my engine.

  Anything outside of the engine I couldn't help with.

  A low shishing noise drew my attention. It sounded a little like a pod door shooshing open, but quieter. Much quieter.

  And it was inside my room.

  Pulling my feet off the floor, I flicked the incandescent on the table beside the bed. Light splashed across the room, driving shadows into the corners and on the other side of the furniture.

  A trillusk sat on the table watching me.

  It was the same creature I whacked with the sprocket wrench, the crack still in its chitinous shell, pink flesh wriggling under the surface. It sat up as if on hind legs instead of a fringe of tiny, trilling fimbria. The upper fimbria were holding a small foil-wrapped package. The trillusk rolled forward, laying it on the edge of the table. Sitting back, its shell scraped the iron surface like a match being struck.

  I stared at the foil square. It was a piece of chocolate.

  Chocolate is next to impossible to have on a deep space trek. Every ounce and every inch has to be accounted for, luxuries quickly get replaced with necessities. I hadn't had a piece of chocolate since Earth. My mouth became moist with the thought of the rich sweetness, mind running to the sensual feel of my last piece of chocolate. Heavy on the back of my tongue, melting slowly, dripping down my throat in a thick, sweet syrup. The physical memory was so strong I could even smell it, like coffee with every trace of bitter pulled from it until only the ambrosia was left, luscious and toothsome.

  I reached toward the candy.

  My e
yes fluttered just a little as my hand drew closer to the sweet, gold-foiled temptation.

  The trillusk made a small cooing sound.

  My hand stopped.

  I remembered the way Hannigan's eyes had fluttered when the trillusk moved up to his neck. I thought of the candy held by tiny legs. Tiny legs touching it. Fondling it.

  My stomach turned, acid spilling up onto the back of my throat, washing away the curdled memory of velvet sweetness. Slowly, I moved until my back pressed against the iron wall of the pod, eyes locked on the small creature in front of me.

  The trillusk waddled closer, nudged the candy with its nose, and sat back.

  "No."

  The trillusk moved forward, picked the candy up and dropped it on the bed. It rolled toward me, bouncing along the hills and valleys of the blanket. My leg twitched, drawing up to keep that tainted sweet from touching me.

  "Fuck you."

  The trillusk turned to look at me with tiny beaded eyes. It lowered its head, looking hurt.

  A small part of me softened.

  It turned its back, hunched over, tiny body shaking like it was crying. I relaxed my leg, the softness growing inside me. I reached out. The trillusk shivered, segments of shell clicking edge to edge.

  My hand stopped moving.

  The trillusk was bigger than it had been a moment ago.

  It wasn't much, but I could tell. I'm an engineer, trained to measure in tiny increments. The trillusk had swollen, filling more space on the table. Wider, taller, thicker. I moved back, eyes casting around for a weapon while still trying to watch the creature between me and the door. Strain shot electric jabs of pain from the corners of my eyes.

  Slowly, the trillusk turned. Air squeezed out of my lungs, a band of dread clamped across my chest as its head rotated. The face was gone. Cute beady eyes and button nose wiped away leaving only shallow indentions and a thin line for its mouth. It twitched. The line pulled apart in a sheet of mucus that tore into ribbons and shreds.

  Teeth.

  Sharp triangles of razored enamel jutted haphazardly, a hedge of murder and carnage. Yellow, putrescent ichor dripped off chitin edges and sharp points. Two sucker-filled tendrils flailed from the throat, waving pink in the air as both sides of the mouth yawned apart, opening wide. The body turned to match the head. I watched in horror as the creature's underbelly split open with a sound of tearing paper. Tentacles spilled out in a wash of sticky foam. They flopped and twisted, moss green and spotted dark with decay.

  A putrid smell rode the air, smothering the breath in my lungs. Bile spilled over my gorge. I tried to hold it in, hot and sick behind my teeth, throat convulsing, mind screaming for me to swallow. My throat rebelled, spewing sickness out onto the bed. My eyes tore from the thing on the table as I turned away.

  Looking back it was gone.

  A trail of foamy slime smeared from the puddle on the desk. Wiping my mouth, I rocked to my knees. Slowly I peered over the edge, the floor revealed in inches. The trail ran down the iron table, puddling on the floor before shooting off by the bottom of the bed shelf. My spine grated on itself, tension singing in my shoulders as I turned, eyes following the frothy rut. It disappeared around the corner where the bed shelf met the floor.

  Pain shot up my neck as I leaned, trying to stay on the bed but still see the trail. I leaned further. A small splash of vertigo slapped me and I felt like I would pitch headlong to the iron floor. Blood ran cold in my veins.

  Slime puddled at the wall, streaking up.

  Behind me.

  I turned to see the mutated trillusk suctioned to the wall, tentacles waving, teeth chomping. Foul air flushed from it watering my eyes. With a high pitched shrill and a wet sucking sound it leapt off the wall towards my face.

  I fell, arms crossed in front of me. The trillusk hit heavy, like a bag of dismembered body parts. My own fist smacked my nose, gush of blood hot and salty down my face. Obscene tentacles wrapped my arms, slapped my face, waved toward my throat. Blood smeared from my upper lip out across my cheeks.

  Fingers clamped on smooth shell, the many-legged rim cutting my palms. Tentacles pulsed against my arms, rubbery skin gripping, tacky where it touched. They pulled, trying to break my grip and latch on. The mouth shot forward, snapping the air in front of me. It hissed, spattering yellow ichor against my skin. The droplets began to sizzle and burn. One tentacle stretched under my arms, circling my neck.

  It flexed, slithering tighter, squeezing my trachea. Breath was cut off by a sharp, shooting pain under my jaw. Choking. Fuzzy spots of light popped on the edge of my vision, becoming brighter as the tunnel of black closed around them. Coherent thought fled. Mindless with panic my fingers tapped a frantic rhythm on the shell. My arms began to shake with strain, growing heavy, falling down.

  My finger found the hole in the shell.

  Without thinking, I shoved it in.

  Deep.

  It was cold. My mind flew to the void of space as the shock of it painted my nervous system with adrenaline. My finger was numb except for the bone deep ache the cold brought. That and the feel of tiny things wriggling against my finger.

  Crawling.

  Moving.

  Biting.

  The trillusk screamed through a mouthful of murder.

  The tentacle circling my throat whipped away, trying to flail at my hand. Sweet air rushed into my lungs, driving darkness from my vision. Anger surged, rushing after the adrenaline burn in my nerve endings. I whipped the thing in my hands around and drove it into the unyielding iron corner of the table.

  It buckled with a deep CRACK! and a squeal from the thing that sounded like a steam whistle. Raising it over my head I drove it down again. Rage ran through me like rocket fuel as I smashed the thing into the table over and over and over again. I smashed it until the shell was pieces in my hands and tentacles hung and quivered. Slime coated my arms, spattered across my face and chest. Already drying into a shellac, it pulled my skin tight as it shrunk.

  Strength fell away as rage dissipated. I cried between deep, sucking breaths. Disgusted, I dropped the shattered shell and its contents which quivered and leaked onto the organic iron floor.

  I sat on the edge of the bed, the abomination steaming between my workboots. A whirlygig of terror, violence, and exhaustion lapped at me, threatening to pull me under.

  I was reaching for my pillow when the door to the room swooshed open.

  Chapter 7

  "What -tik- happened here?"

  I was on my feet, fists clenched in hard knots at my side. A male did not come into a woman's pod without invitation.

  Not with good intentions.

  "The little bastard attacked me and I bashed it to death on the corner of the table." My shoulders drew tight, muscles tensed.

  And I'll do the same thing to you if you try anything.

  Klactac looked down at the mass of tentacled pulp in a bowl of shards. He stood absolutely still. Focused on the dead trillusk, he wasn't watching me, didn't realize I was slowly lowering myself, preparing to attack.

  One of his secondary arms unfolded from his back, a coil gun held in a three fingered hand.

  I stopped moving.

  Purple-blue light traced a double helix spiral up the gun's glass cathode, casting a crazy highlight across his insectoid lenses. Each individual cell of his eye had its own separate gleam as he turned toward me, five-joined finger locked against the micro trigger button.

  The coil gun was a deadly delivery system for gamma radiation. It condensed the gamma wavelength into a pinprick of destruction and could kill without harming the ship itself.

  I knew this because they were my recommendation to the company. Security without endangering everyone on board. A weapon that could destroy flesh without harming my ship.

  "We have a -tik- problem Molly. You need to come with -tik- me."

  “I'm not going anywhere with you.”

  A humming noise vibrated through the pneumatic door. Klactac's head turned on the mid
dle joint of his thorax, spinning toward the door while his body faced me. For the first time I didn't feel the creeps in my lower stomach when he did it. I might never feel them again after what I'd seen with the damn trillusk.

  His head spun back to me, mandibles working. “I do not have -tik- time for argument. You do not want -tik- them finding you.”

  “Who?”

  The humming had grown loud enough for me to make out words. Words chanted by many voices. Words that made no sense but filled me with a dread that sank into my bones, turning them to frosted lead. They pinned me in place. Trapping me still. If I moved I might be noticed, might be seen, might be found. Awful and terrible, the words choked out as if not meant for human throats.

  Shhhuubbbb . . . Niiigggg . . . uuurrrrr . . . raaaath!

  A three fingered hand clamped on my arm, dragging me from the bed before I could fight. Klactac yanked me up and shoved me towards the door. I didn't know the Klatuu were so strong. I'd worked side by side with the bug-eyed engineers but they never showed strength like this. He propelled me out of the room and into the hallway with a shove.

  The metal grate walkway clattered under my boots. The chanting was louder, thrumming into my organs, vibrating the squishy things deep inside me. I turned right to see the hall filled with crew members. They walked in lockstep, shambling towards us as one unit.

  An even four dozen of them.

  A full crew of fifty, minus me and the insectoid pilot that had my arm.

  Glistening around their necks sat trillusks, each black chitinous shell forming a collar. Green tentacles cupped the throats of every person, pulsing and throbbing, slime dripping and running in jelly trails down collarbones, across chests. Eyes stared, pulled wide and covered in skeins like pale white fish bellies. Mouths hung open in gates of spittle as they chanted, calling out those dreadful, terrible words.

  Klactac fired the coil gun as he pushed me to run. The double helix flared to an eyesearing white, discharging a gamma beam with the CRACK! of split molecules. My nostrils felt weird, tingly and crackly, coated with the chemical-laden scent of split ozone. The beam flashed, cutting into one of the crewmen, vaporizing a hole through the center of his chest.