The Scourge

by R. Tilden Smith

  “Moji,” Ray said, “you ok? You looked spooked.”

  “Ray! Crystal!” Moji exclaimed, rushing to wrap her arms around them both. “I'm so happy to see you! I thought…”

  “We were dead?” Crystal finished for her.

  “I...I just heard the screams and the squealing…”

  “Nothing to worry about,” Ray said, holding up the tire iron, “this baby did the trick. There's a lot of them and they make a scary noise, but they're stupid and slow. They didn't stand a chance.”

  “Ray, baby, can we get out of this cave?” Crystal said, “All of a sudden, I don't feel so good.”

  “Crystal, what's wrong?” Moji asked.

  Ray felt Crystal stumble. He slipped his arm around her waist to keep her on her feet. “Whoa there, I got you. Moji, we have to get her patched up. She tussled with one of those things and it tore up her back pretty good.”

  “Oh my god Crystal!” Moji said, “I’m so sorry! This is all my fault!”

  Crystal didn't say anything and Ray felt her grow heavier in his arms. “I think she's out of it,” he said, “we’d better go before she passes out completely and I have to carry her.”

  “But what about those creatures...the unborn?”

  “Here,” Ray said, handing her the tire iron, “if one comes too close, just swing at it with this. They pop like water balloons.”

  “No!” Moji said, pulling her hands away from the slime-covered piece of iron, “I can't! Please Ray, don't ask me to do that.”

  “Ok ok, no problem. We’ll figure it out as we go.”

  They turned and began to walk out of the culvert but stopped when they saw four dogs, side-by-side, blocking the way. One of them was Tyson. They slowly moved forward, heads hung low, growling in unison.

  Ray glanced at Moji. “Friends of yours?” he asked.

  “No, I don’t think so, not anymore,” Moji replied while backing up slowly, retracing her steps.

  “Where we gonna go? That's the only way outta here.”

  “I don't know, but I'm not gonna try them. You saw what they did to those things outside, they tore them apart.”

  “Look, they’re only dogs. You hold on to Crystal and I’ll shoo them away with the tire iron.”

  “No! I can't let you do that! What if you hurt Tyson? Besides, there’s too many of them, you won't be able to protect all of us. There's got to be another way out.”

  They had backed into the darkest part of the tunnel. Ray glanced behind him; he saw nothing but a wall of pitch black. “Now what? If we go any further we won't be able to see shit. God knows what's hiding in this storm drain.”

  “What else can we do? If we try to get past them they'll attack us.”

  “What's to stop them from attacking us once we're further in the drain? We won't be able to see them coming.”

  “I don't know how I know this, but I don't think they will bother us as long as we keep moving away from them.”

  “I hope you’re right, because if you’re not, we’re dog food.”

  They turned and limped into the darkness. The dogs didn’t follow.

  52

  Josephine was drowning in a lake of fire. As she flailed in the molten brimstone, the flames consumed her flesh, boiling it until it burst. She opened her mouth to scream and the burning sulfur poured in, tearing at every nerve ending, and filling every orifice with unspeakable pain. Stop! she begged, Stop! Stop! Stop! I can't take any more!

  Oh, you can take much, much more, it said, and you will.

  She awoke screaming.

  “Sergeant Peters! Sergeant Peters!” the nurse said, “Wake up, you're dreaming!”

  “Oh god stop!” Josephine blurted as she woke, her heart pounding loudly in her ears. She felt feverish, and the garment she was wearing—a flimsy cotton hospital gown—was soaked through. She tried to sit up but the nurse placed her palm on Josephine's chest, pressing her gently, but firmly back down onto the cot. ”Calm down Sergeant,” she said, “you're gonna be ok.”

  Josephine lay back on the cot and tried to relax. But something was wrong. Thoughts climbed out of her subconscious, jumbled, confusing thoughts. Thoughts in a language she didn't understand, that had no meaning. Thoughts that were not her own. “Where...Where am I?” she said.

  “You're in the infirmary dear, or the part of this hell hole that we’re calling an infirmary. You don't remember being brought in?”

  She tried to focus, tried to remember what happened to her, the life she lived, who she was. But she couldn't hold on to it, it was all falling away, draining into a bottomless abyss. She felt the fire pouring in, filling her up. She looked at the nurse, confusion and panic in her eyes. “I don’t...I can’t remember!”

  The nurse held her hand. “Oh honey, try to relax, you’re gonna be ok. You probably bumped your head and earned yourself a little concussion. Captain Lewis found you unconscious during the floor-to-floor recon. He said it looked like you may have overexerted yourself and fainted while trying to double-time it out of the building while carrying the little girl. You check out but you should rest a bit before trying to go back on duty.”

  The girl! She wasn't a girl. She was... Josephine didn't have the words for it. She was falling faster now. The fire in her belly intensified. “Where...Where is she?”

  “Oh, you mean the little girl? They took her to the decontamination facility to get checked out. Poor thing was so scared. Wouldn't talk or even open her mouth. I'm so glad you found her when you did. No telling what might have happened to her out there.”

  “I have to go,” Josephine said, sitting up, “I have to leave right now.”

  “Are you sure honey? The general’s got every soldier working overtime getting ready for the president’s visit. God knows what he's got them all doing. You would think with the city in shambles and ten percent of the population sick, dying, or injured, that he would be focused on getting things stabilized, not rolling out the red carpet for a presidential photo-op. Anyway, once you leave the infirmary he’s guaranteed to put you back on duty. If I was you, I would milk the unscheduled R and R a little longer.”

  Josephine stood up and pulled back the rolling curtain that separated her private area from the hundreds of others in the stadium's ground floor concourse.

  “Hey!” the nurse said, surprised, “don't you want your clothes?”

  Josephine didn't answer. She walked steadfast, naked save for a damp, loosely tied hospital gown, through the throng of medical personnel, equipment, and survivors that stuffed the concourse. She could feel the fire churning in her gut, spreading across her pelvis and into her loins. Hurry, her mind warned, hurry before your time is up, before you are condemned to the lake of fire to burn for all eternity. She was mostly ignored as she pushed, shoved, and dodged her way up the outdoor pedestrian ramp, with only the occasional taunt or stare from those who were too engrossed in their own survival to take much notice of someone who looked as desperate as they were.

  She reached the suite level. The entry was guarded by two MP’s. They recognized Josephine and saluted as she approached the door. She stopped and stood silently, staring at her reflection in the glass of the double doors.

  “Uh, Sergeant Peters, ”the first MP inquired, “are you ok?”

  “I have to see General Adams,” she said.

  “Uh, Sergeant, ma’am, I don't know if you know this, but you're out of dress code. The general will chew your ass out if he sees you like that.”

  The second MP stepped forward and looked at Josephine from the rear. He let out a low whistle. “Damn Sarge!” he said, “Your ass is hanging all out of that gown! Hey Jacobs, maybe she's looking forward to getting her ass chewed.”

  The first MP looked nervous. “Shut up Gates! I'm sorry ma’am, please forgive Corporal Gates, sometimes he forgets his manners when addressing a superior officer.” He glared at Corporal Gates, admonishing him with his eyes. “First Sergeant Peters, please accept our apology.”

  Joseph
ine continued to stare blankly straight ahead. “I must see General Adams.” She reached for the door handle.

  Corporal Jacobs stepped aside to let her through. “Go ahead First Sergeant. You know where the general’s quarters are.”

  Josephine flung the door open and stepped through the threshold, quickly disappearing down the dimly lit hallway.

  “I sure hope she knows what she's doing,” Jacobs said.

  “Crazy bitch,” Gates added.

  As she neared the general's suite, Josephine could hear the voices of the damned ringing in her ear. She heard her mother's voice praying to God to turn the course of her daughter's wickedness, to rid her of her sexual sin. She could hear her father's screams as he mocked her for daring to love on her own terms. The pain in her abdomen intensified. It was a growing knot in her uterus that twisted and turned; she felt as if she were being eaten alive. She stood before the door of suite 232 and vomited. The blue-black substance rolled slowly down the door jamb, smelling of rotting eggs and death. Go now! her mind groaned, You are the deliverer of new life! Go now, flush your soul of the sins you carry in your womb. Josephine looked down at the floor as a clear liquid began to run down her leg and pool around her feet, creating a dark stain on the maroon carpet. Now! the voices screamed at her, Protect your queen!

  Josephine thrust the door open and entered the room.

  Saul was alone, sitting behind his desk. “What in the hell is going on here?” he said. He stood and came around the desk, charging toward Josephine. “First Sergeant, what in the fuck do you think you’re doing barging in my quarters half naked?”

  In one fluid motion, Josephine slammed the door shut and pulled the hospital gown over her head. She walked up to Saul and put her arms around his neck and pushed her face towards his, until their lips touched. “I’ve never had a man,” she said, “I want you to...take me.”

  “I swear to god Peters,” Saul said, “if this is some scheme to stick me with trumped up sexual harassment charges, I will make sure your army career ends right here, right now.”

  Josephine twisted her body, surprising Saul and throwing him off balance. They fell to the floor; Saul landed on his back, Josephine fell on top of him.

  “Hey,” Saul said, surprised but excited by the prospect of rough sex, “take it easy. You could've hurt me with that move.”

  “I want you to take me! Take me now!” She straddled him, then reached between her legs and tore at his zipper with her left hand. The liquid dripped steadily from her vagina, staining Saul’s pants.

  “Ok! Ok!” Saul said, pushing her hand away, “Wait one damn minute! Don’t tear up my uniform! Let me get my johnson out of my pants.”

  “Hurry!” Josephine said, her breathing was fast and heavy, “I don’t have much time.”

  “I’m going as fast as I can,” he said, as his hands, slippery with Josephine's warm excretions, fumbled with his belt and zipper. “Damn woman, I've never seen someone so ready. You're gonna owe me a new pair of pants.”

  Josephine began to gyrate and thrust her hips uncontrollably, she didn't know how much longer she could last. “Takemetakemetakemetakeme!” she whispered.

  Saul held Josephine firmly by the hips. “Alright little filly, stop bucking so much and let me put it in.”

  As he entered her, Josephine's pelvic muscles involuntarily contracted, locking their bodies together.

  “Shit, you’re definitely a virgin. You're tighter than a duck’s ass and twice as wet!”

  Josephine pushed her hips into Saul's crotch, pressing him into the floor. “It's happening!” she said, her breathing rapid and uneven.

  “It sure is!” Saul exclaimed in quiet excitement, “God, I've never felt a woman so hot. You're gonna give my johnson a heat rash!”

  “It's coming!” Josephine screamed. Adrenaline flooded her body as she pushed Saul’s head to the floor, covering his nose and mouth with her hands. The alien larva uncoiled from her uterus, tore through her cervix, and descended into her birth canal. Its mouth, a donut-shaped muscle laced with thousands of serrated teeth, engulfed Saul's manhood and began to devour it, engorging itself on the high pressure blood supply.

  Saul’s eyes went wide. He tried to throw Josephine off, but she was able to keep him pinned beneath her. He pried at her arms and punched her face, breaking her jaw. But she held on, muffling his screams until he ceased to fight and his movements were reduced to sporadic spasms and convulsions. Blood gushed from her crotch as the larva left her body and entered its new host. She released her hold on Saul and collapsed beside him. Lying in a pool of her own blood, Josephine turned Saul’s head to face hers and gazed into his near dead eyes and pale blue lips. “I am free,” she mouthed, a hint of a smile frozen on her lips, as the life slowly bled from her body.

  53

  Ray reckoned they had been walking for about an hour. He had no idea how far they'd gone; it was hard to gauge distances when it was so dark that he couldn't even see his feet. There were a few things he was sure about though, the culvert was getting smaller and the water was getting deeper. “We're going to have get out of here soon,” he said, “I don't think I'm going to be able to hold Crystal up too much longer. She needs to rest, and so do you.” Crystal had started to come around. She was still delirious, but she was walking under her own power.

  Ahead of him, he could hear Moji's footsteps sloshing through the calf-deep water. He knew she heard him, but she hadn’t said much since her dog sentenced them to this particular exile. Ray was fine with that. She said she knew where she was going, where the queen was, he thought. He shook his head. He still didn't understand why he was tagging along with these ladies. Common sense told him he should have ditched them as soon as he was clear of the monster chick and those crazy, gun-wielding rednecks. But then Moji touched me, he thought, and I had that weird flashback. Now, I can't stop thinking about her. My gut says run away from the crazy chick who can control wild animals and who’s convinced there's a queen she needs to find in a bombed out city overrun with mutants. But my heart says she's gorgeous and I need to get to know her better. Maybe I'm crazier than she is.

  “There,” he heard Moji say, “I think that's a way out.”

  In the distance, several vertical poles of light spanned the culvert. “Yeah,” Ray said, “looks to be a manhole cover. Let’s hope there's a ladder.”

  The diameter of the culvert reduced significantly as they approached the manhole vault, so much so that they had to crouch to enter the vault itself. The vault was the convergence point of three pipelines, each at a different height above the vault floor. A severely rusted iron ladder rose from the center of the vault to the manhole cover above, about twelve feet overhead.

  “Can you hold on to Crystal?” Ray said, “I'll climb up and make sure it's safe.”

  “Yeah, ok,” Moji said, slipping her arm around Crystal's waist.

  Crystal moaned and her head drooped, chin to chest, as Ray transferred her weight to Moji.

  “Ooh, she's heavy!” Moji said.

  “Yeah, but she's not completely unconscious,” Ray said, “so she can kind of stand up. Just keep her on her feet, like helping a drunk person to bed.”

  Even in the spotty light, Ray saw the look on Moji’s face. “No,” he said, “I do not make it a habit of taking drunk women to my bed.”

  “Ray, I didn't—”

  “You didn't have to. I saw the look.”

  “I'm sorry. I don't know what made me even think that.”

  “No harm done.” He hooked the tire iron in his waistband then grabbed one of the ladder rungs. “Let's see what's going on topside.” He gave the rung one hard tug to test its strength and then began to climb.

  Crystal suddenly perked up. She lifted her head. “Ray?” she said, her words were slurred and sleepy.

  Ray halted his climb and looked back. “Yeah?”

  “Where you going baby? Please don't leave me...I...I need you.”

  Ray was mortified. “Uh,” he st
ammered, “don't worry Crystal, I'm just going to check if the coast is clear. I'll be right back to get you and Moji out of here.”

  “Ok!” she said with smile and half-hearted drunken wave of her hand, “I love you!”

  “Moji, she's delirious and probably in shock from whatever poison those things put in her when they tore up her back. She doesn't know what she's saying.”

  “Yeah Ray, I know,” Moji said, “just hurry up and come back, ok? I don't want to be down here by myself, you know?”

  “Moji, I'm not gonna let anything bad happen to you. You know that, right?”

  “Yeah, I guess so.”

  “Just hang tight, this won't take but a second.” Ray continued his climb. He reached the top of the vault and hesitated, listening carefully for any noise on the other side of the manhole cover, before pushing it up and sliding it out of the way. He popped his head out and looked around. The manhole was surrounded by a stand of recently planted saplings. It was in the middle of a wide esplanade that was bordered on either side by two lanes of traffic. The empty cars in the street were bumper-to-bumper, frozen in a gridlock that their drivers had long abandoned. Other than windblown trash, there was no movement. No people, no dogs, and most importantly to Ray, no mutants. He dipped his head back below street level and climbed down the ladder. “Everything looks kosher, no bad guys anywhere,” he said.

  “Are you sure?” Moji asked, “I got a bad feeling.”

  “I can't be sure, but if you got a bad feeling I guess we better hurry up. We don't need a bunch of half-born, mutated humans crashing our party like they did at the zoo. Come on, give Crystal back to me. You go up first and I'll help her.”

  Moji nodded and released Crystal into Ray’s arms. Crystal, her eyelids half open, threw her arms around Ray's neck and nuzzled her nose into his chin. “My king,” Moji heard her whisper. Moji quickly turned, grabbed the highest rung on the ladder she could reach, and started her ascent. She has no right to him! her mind raged at her. She emerged from the manhole to a stiff breeze blowing in her face. She licked her lips and tasted the bitter tears of jealousy and anger on her tongue. She crawled a little ways from the manhole opening then stood and waited for Ray and Crystal to make the climb. “Ray is right,” she reminded herself, “Crystal is sick and is not in her right mind. She is my best friend, I should be worried about whether or not she’s going to be ok, not jealous of her.”