The Inosculation Syndrome

by D. B. Reynolds-Moreton

  He knew that a search party would not be sent, as the possibility of finding him was so remote that it would not even be contemplated. He wished he could tell them that he was all right and enjoying life, but there was no way that he could do so.

  Once more the safety shutters were put up, and the crew retired to sleep and dream their dreams, that’s if they did dream. Kal thought he would enquire one day, although how he could get that concept across was beyond him at the moment.

  As he thought about it, he drifted into sleep, and dreamed that he and the little people were talking together, later he could not recall what they had been saying, although he seemed to understand it at the time.

  When they awoke next morning, they found that they had camped at the foot of a long smooth track that ran up into the mountain range.

  The early morning meal was hurried as excitement grew at the prospect of the exploration, as it was quite evident that it wasn’t a fluke of nature. The steam wagon had a hard time of it in one or two places as the gradient was quite steep, but with most of the crew walking beside it in the steepest places, she made it.

  One thing they did have to watch out for was the width of track, as they didn’t want to get into a position where they couldn’t turn around if they needed to.

  At last they came to a large flat space that once perhaps had buildings on it, or maybe was a transport parking area. It was clear now, and as the track ended here they turned the wagon around ready for the return journey down the hill.

  Kal expected to see something up here to justify the presence of the track and the flat area at its end, but nothing obvious could be seen.

  The crew split up into small parties and began exploring the sides of the flat space for clues. They were surrounded by towering cliffs of rock on all sides and there certainly wasn’t another way down than that which they had came up by, so what went on here?

  A loud squeaking caused all to run over to one party who sounded as if they had found something. A pile of loose rock was just a little too tidy to have been naturally formed, and this was what had been spotted by the ‘squeakers’.

  Closer inspection proved them right. A tunnel or cave was carefully covered up by the rocks, and the crew set to with poles and a couple of bronze bars from the wagon to lever out some of the bigger rocks, so that they could see what lay behind.

  As the last few rocks were removed, the entrance to the cave was revealed. Lamps were lit, and all went in except a couple of guards left at the entrance as a precaution, against what they were not sure, but no chances were being taken.

  The featureless walls had been hewn from the living rock, and they were about to give up after a few hundred metres or so and return, when the light from the leading lamp sparkled on something.

  Kal went over, and found a crystal of water clear material, possibly quartz, lying on the floor of the tunnel. Picking it up, he saw that it was a true cylinder with flat ends.

  Kal didn’t know of any material that crystallized out in this form, as most crystals of quartz were six sided, and he had never seen a naturally round crystal of anything.

  He passed it round for all to see. Kal took it again and looked in the dim light to see if there were any signs of it being manufactured.

  It was perfectly smooth, and holding it in his hand, he gave it a tap on the end with his bronze knife to try and get some idea of how hard it was.

  He was not ready for the nasty electric shock he received for his pains, and nearly dropped the crystal. Now he knew what it was.

  The phenomena had been known for a very long time, but the crystals were usually manufactured, although he had heard of them occurring in nature sometimes. The effect was known as piezoelectricity. Some crystals had it, and if struck in a certain place, would generate an electric flow.

  Also if the crystal was subjected to an electric current, it would change shape slightly. This crystal certainly packed a punch, and all sorts of ideas flashed through Kal’s mind.

  They must find more of these crystals and bigger ones if possible. This was conveyed to the crew and they set off along the tunnel to find the main source.

  Side caves began to appear, and this slowed down the advancement along the tunnel, as everyone had to be checked. Nothing more was found and Kal began to wonder if the crystal had been brought into the tunnel system and left here. A little further on, and they heard the first sound in the tunnels, apart from their own foot falls.

  It was as though something was shuffling along, and the crew immediately formed up to surrounded Kal, with spears at the ready. He then realized that they had been told to protect him at all costs.

  ‘It is very flattering to be of such value to the tribe, but could get in the way of progress if taken to excess’ he thought. The shuffling noise grew louder, and two of the crew with lamps held out on long poles, advanced into the cave from which the sound was coming.

  The sound stopped, and before them was another of the giant white maggot things they had seen before in the main caves back home. This one was not all that big on closer inspection, but too big for the little ones to fight.

  Kal stepped forward pushing through the group of protectors, and flung his spear with all his strength at the maggot.

  It landed squarely in the middle of the head, just above the mouth slit, and sank in so far that only a little of the shaft remained in view. The creature opened its mouth and uttered a soundless scream, and the crew dropped their weapons and clapped their hands over their ear holes to shut out the noise. They could hear it, but Kal only got the feeling behind the sound.

  He felt sorry for the poor creature, for after all they were invading its domain, and attacked it without provocation.

  His pity melted away faster than it had come when the end of the spear fell to the ground, the rest of it having been dissolved away inside the creature. He signalled a retreat, and they backed off towards the point at which they had entered the cave, but the maggot followed.

  As it drew closer, and more light from the lamps illuminated the hulk, its true hideousness became more apparent to those huddled at the cave’s entrance.

  There seemed to be a tough outer skin which was translucent, enclosing a jelly-like substance, and the organs of the creature could be clearly seen within the mass. It had no eyes and only a slit of a mouth.

  It was the transparency of the creature that made it so horrible to confront, all those bits floating around inside. Whatever internal juices it had, they were very corrosive, as the remains of the spear had indicated.

  They would have to fight it to the death or find a tunnel which was too small for it to follow them into. The crew raced along the tunnel and entered a new one which was slightly smaller and on an incline, hoping the creature would not be able to follow.

  Unfortunately it did, although it was a tight squeeze for it. As they had gained a little distance from the monster, and they didn’t see any profit in running from it forever, Kal made a decision that they would fight.

  He took two of the blade-like swords which were carried by some of the crew, and jammed them into a crevice in the tunnel wall such that they stuck out like knife blades, one on each side.

  Kal didn’t know if they would be long enough to do what he had in mind, but it was the only way they could stop the creature, apart from standing there and throwing spears and that didn’t seem to be a good idea after what happened to the first spear he had thrown.

  They bravely stood their ground as the maggot forced its way towards them. At last it reached the blades but didn’t seem to notice them at first, and then it screamed again and stopped. The screams rent the air again and again, and the crew were almost paralysed by the sound as they held their hands over their ears and gyrated around in agony.

  Kal could only detect the sensation of the sound, almost like a vibration, felt but not heard. He had never experienced anything like this before, and was relieved as the sound died away.

  The creature seemed to be
shrinking as they watched, the head section lowering itself to the passageway floor and a gap appeared between the main body and the tunnel roof.

  It took some time for the corrosive fluid that made up most of the maggot to drain away, but it did eventually, and they were left with a pile of skin with a few lumps and bumps in it, which they supposed were its internal organs.

  A gentle draft was flowing down the tunnel taking the smell and fumes of the fluid away from them, or they would all have suffered the fate of the passage floor, which was being dissolved by the leaking juices of the maggot.

  Once the bulk of the creature had totally deflated, they were able to carefully walk over the skin, avoiding any damp patches, to inspect the carcass.

  There was not much of it left really, apart from the skin, the lumps that contained the internal organs, and the head section, and that proved an interesting piece of equipment.

  It had been furnished with a set of jaws that appeared to have moved in and out rather than up and down, and rows of what they assumed to be teeth.

  At the rear end of the carcass was the greatest surprise of all. In a big bulge they could see a collection of the crystals, and being very careful, were able to cut the skin, hook out what seemed to be a transparent bag containing the crystals, and drag it clear of the body.

  Once on safe ground the bag was cut open, and the contents washed with a little of their precious water supply to remove any of the corrosive fluid which might have remained.

  A selection of the cylindrical crystals glittered in the light from their lamps, and were gingerly picked up and stowed away in one of the carry bags they had brought with them.

  Some time later, Kal was able to work out what the maggot was all about. He was not totally sure of his finding, but they seemed to make as much sense as anything else did.

  The original ‘miners’ had either brought the creature with them or had found it here, and possibly altered it to suit their needs. The crystals, which were the key to the whole operation, were held in a matrix of an unusually tough stone-like material, and breaking it up damaged the crystals themselves.

  Somehow, the creature was quite happy to eat this particular kind of stone, and in fact thrived on it, the crystals being of no use for some reason, and probably a form of irritant, were ‘saved’ in a skin bag inside the creature.

  Whether they were expelled, or the creature had to be slain, Kal never found out. It was certainly the most unusual mining operation he had ever heard of, and the whole concept of using a live creature to do the work of selecting what you want from a pile of rocks, amused him.

  They didn’t like to risk going back down the tunnel past the remains of the maggot, as the corrosive fluid was still attacking the ground over which it had flowed, so another way out of the complex had to be found.

  They went up the passageway until they came to a large cavern with many openings leading to a myriad of caves. Some looked as if they had been carved out of the rock, while others looked natural, possibly water worn.

  A vein of the crystal bearing rock could be seen in one case, and Kal tried unsuccessfully to extract a crystal, but damaged it in the effort, so he abandoned the idea.

  They chose a tunnel which was leading down towards the level from which they had started after the first encounter with the maggot, and followed its twists and turns for a distance that was far longer than they calculated it should have been.

  Kal was getting worried that they were about to get lost, despite the fact that they had marked their way as they went along. The temperature was rising, and there was no longer a draft from behind them.

  What little air flow there was, seemed to be coming from ahead of the little party, and it had a dusty metallic smell about it, which irritated their noses.

  A feeling of unease soon pervaded the little troupe, and progress was much reduced, as every nook and cranny was closely scrutinized.

  Suddenly the tunnel took a steep downwards dip, and faced with the option of going all the way back, which they thought they may have to do, or go on to see if there was a way out ahead, they chose to press on.

  It was almost like going down a steep stone slope, except they were hemmed in on all sides by the rock walls. It was getting hotter, and although they could still breathe, it was most unpleasant and dried their throats.

  Water, or the lack of it, was going to be a problem if they were not careful. Small regular drinks were taken, mainly to lay the dust which they were inhaling.

  The tunnel opened out in a huge cavern just ahead of them, and a vast crater was in its centre.

  They gingerly crept forward, ever watchful for any sign that the floor would give way, until they reached the rim of the crater. Looking over the edge was a bit like looking into what most people thought hell would be like.

  There was a dull red glow engulfing everything. A hazy mist or smoke drifted up from holes in the base of the pit, accompanied by the occasional fierce jet of steam or gas.

  At the bottom of the giant pit, the ground was covered in strange tree like growths with what appeared to be the odd limb attached here and there, but it didn’t look like any form of vegetation he had ever seen before.

  The only conclusion Kal could come to was that it was a mineral formation of some kind, caused by the gases rising from the holes in the crater floor, and being deposited rather like stalagmites in a limestone cave.

  No one was going down to find out, so he only had his theories to go on.

  Opposite to where they had entered the cavern was another tunnel, and as this was the only way out, apart from going back the way they had come, they took a chance that the fates would be with them, and entered it.

  Before long it had narrowed down and was a tight squeeze for Kal, although the rest of the party got through all right. He could feel the heat of the rock walls on his flesh, and realized that if they stayed here too long, they would probably cook in their own juices.

  The passage opened out after what seemed like several kilometres, but it was in fact only a short distance, and they were on their way upwards again.

  The hot dusty air still blew from behind them, and they longed for the fresh clean air of the open plains, which at the moment seemed a long way away.

  Kal thought it strange that what appeared to be volcanic action in the crater had shown no sign of its existence on the surface of the planet. This was unusual, but then so were most things here.

  The climb up was getting harder, and the possibility of losing one’s footing and sliding all the way down again was causing some concern. They reached a point where the tunnel was almost vertical, and had to use the spear poles to enable them to reach the next ledge up.

  This was the most frightening part of their journey so far, and with a sigh of relief, they reached a section of the tunnel where it had levelled out a little, and they all took a break for food and a drink from their fast diminishing water.

  They had reached a point from which they could not return the way they had come, and survive. The water situation was getting serious and all were feeling tired.

  The heat had taken a lot from their energy reserves, and progress was slow and painful to say the least. It was at this point where they were not paying sufficient attention to their surrounding, that the first casualty of the trek occurred.

  One of the little people who seemed to have more energy than most, had gone up ahead, and in so doing probably saved the lives of the others.

  The passageway ahead took on a different appearance to that in which they were travelling, and the energetic one had stepped into the darkened area which immediately enfolded him in copious layers of what looked like dangling flesh.

  He was gone in an instant, remaining as a slight bulge in the wall of the tunnel for a moment, and then was no more.

  The rest of the party skidded to a halt just outside the range of whatever it was that had take their companion, in sheer disbelief and horror.

  The monstrosity that lined t
he walls of the tunnel did so for several metres, and as there was no way around it, they were trapped unless they could come up with some way to fool it or remove it from the walls.

  Kal advanced until he thought he was just outside its range and offered the tip of a spear. It was grabbed instantly and wrenched from his hands so quickly and with so much force, that he nearly followed it.

  The spear was rejected by the creature and lay on the floor of the tunnel just outside their reach. Not wanting to lose a valuable weapon, Kal reached forward with another spear, and managed to hook the fallen one back.

  The bronze end had been corroded with a brown slime like liquid, and they were very careful not to touch it.

  A serious impasse had been reached. They wanted to go up the tunnel, and the thing on the wall wanted a meal. They prised a few rocks away from the tunnel wall, and threw them at the creature, which, after the first one or two, ignored the rest of the bombardment.

  The sketch board came out and ideas flowed back and forth, but none seemed to be worth trying. Kal wondered if fire would cause the creature any concern, and poured a little oil on a piece of fabric torn from one of the carry bags. Attaching it to a spear end, he applied a light from one of the lamps, and advanced towards the thing on the wall. As the smoky flame touched the fringe of the creature, it shrank back, and Kal knew that they had it beaten, if they had enough fuel.

  He took two of the precious oil containers, and removing the bungs, threw one of them up the passageway so that it landed in the middle of where the creature hung, and sloshed the other one around the entrance of the danger zone and up towards where the other container lay.

  The flaming spear was then applied to the oil moistened edge of the horror, and they all moved back to see what would happen.

  The flames leaped, and a thick black acrid smoke curled up from the writhing lengths of the entrapping tentacles of the creature as it caught fire. It crackled and popped as the flames and smoke spread rapidly up the tunnel, and luckily away from them.

  It must have contained a high degree of fat or something like it, for it was truly ablaze in seconds, and the crew had to retreat back down the tunnel some considerable distance to get away from the heat.