Aquifer: A Novel (49 page)

The water dispersal version however, posed a new problem. Tina had used all the metering devices available. She improvised by puncturing the lid of a half-gallon jug containing the pheromone. Then she tied a cord around the jug’s neck and the other end to a rock. Finally she heaved the jug and rock into the river that flowed through the main nesting chamber. It sank to the bottom, releasing the liquid into the river’s channel as a slow trickle.

Larry finalized the installation of loud speakers and connected the power feed cable from the amplifier. Immediately, whale songs eerily filled the air in the main nesting chamber, echoing the same songs that were already blaring in the main tunnel. His task completed, he began assisting Bill and a group of deputies in packing napalm around an egg cluster.

“Isn't this stuff fairly sensitive?” asked Larry.

“Not really. Napalm is basically jellied gasoline. This stuff's a rather crude application but it'll work just fine. Just don’t let a flame or a spark touch it until we’re ready. Once the switch is thrown and this Nichrome detonator is heated . . . POOF,” replied Bill as he brought his fists together and suddenly extended his fingers while quickly moving his hands apart to simulate the exploding fireball.

Thirty minutes later the newly discovered main nesting chamber was covered with napalm. The deputies made sure that everything got saturated with the incendiary material. In fact, so much of it slopped onto the floor that it was almost becoming too slippery to walk on safely.

Bill was connecting the blasting cap to the last of the ANFO explosive drums when they heard shotgun blasts coming from deep in the main tunnel.

*

Johnny and his friends were running through Fears Cave when they too heard the distant shotgun blasts reverberating throughout the tunnel. They stopped immediately.

“I'm not so sure about this,” moaned Frankie.

“Come on, we'll miss everything if you don’t hurry,” Johnny coaxed him.

“Well, shouldn’t we at least have told the adults about this connective tunnel?” shouted Frankie as he reluctantly hurried to catch up with Johnny and Austin who had already started running again toward the sound of the gunfire.

*

In the main nesting chamber Bill’s radio cracked to life with an urgent plea.

“Salamog-4 this is Frogodile-3,” yelled the commander of the team at the impact crater. “Get out of there, NOW! The aliens are returning in great numbers. That pheromone stuff must really work. Secure the area and evacuate immediately through the Blue Spring exit, ‘cause you can’t get out this way.”

“Roger Frogodile-3,” Bill replied. “Initiating evacuation. Out.”

“Okay everybody,” Bill yelled to his team members scattered throughout the main nesting chamber. “It’s show time. Let’s get out of here. Head for the Blue Spring exit.”

*

At the impact crater, thousands of aliens of all sizes, ranging from adults to youngsters only a couple of feet in length, even recent hatchlings, were moving through the river and along the dry bank. Small-arms fire filled the air. Personnel with makeshift flame throwers lined the rim of the crater’s hole keeping themselves at a safe distance from the creatures in the cave tunnel below them. Short blasts from their flame throwers kept the creatures in the river channel, herding them farther down the tunnel toward the Blue Spring chamber.

Their efforts to move the aliens along turned out to be unnecessary. Basic animal instincts and powerful compelling pheromones drove the aliens in a near frenzy. Their biological drives, frustrated at being congregated at Meramec Caverns without finding fulfillment in the source of the potent pheromone, only heightened their resolve, resulting in a crazed, agitated, mindless rush of the numberless herd. They stampeded over each other as they blindly pressed forward in an effort to be the first to arrive at the new source of the alluring pheromone.

*

In the main nesting chamber, Bill and his team hastily raced toward the subterranean lagoon in preparation for their evacuation.

Bill was the first to arrive. “Let’s get a move on, people!” he yelled to the stragglers. “We don’t have much time.”

The first three men to arrive at the lagoon ran past Bill, as he motioned them toward the water. They ran into the water and dove into the channel that flowed into the exit tunnel. They hadn’t swum more than a few strokes before several large aliens surfaced in the channel and immediately attacked the swimmers.

Seeing his men mercilessly devoured, Bill held up his hands to prevent anyone else from entering the water. “Stop! Retreat to the back wall,” he yelled.

Time had run out for Bill and his team. Hundreds of aliens of all sizes began emerging along the bank of the underground river. They continued to pour into the room until it quickly overflowed, effectively blocking the way out.

Bill’s group hastily retreated away from the river, while being pursued by several of the creatures. As Bill ran for cover he reached for his handheld radio to inform the sheriff of their predicament but stumbled over a small stalagmite in the semi-darkness. He fell, hitting the ground hard. The jarring impact knocked the radio from his hands and it bounced behind him. Frantically he scrambled to his feet and whirled around to retrieve the radio, but before he could do so it was stepped upon and crushed by an adult alien towering above him.

Their eyes locked. For a moment Bill and the creature stood transfixed, staring at each other as if each was daring the other to make the first move. Then an adolescent creature dashed between them knocking Bill to the ground and momentarily distracting the older creature. Quickly, Bill jumped to his feet and sprinted to safety, hiding behind a large drip-water column.

*

At the command center the radio operator made a report, “Sheriff, Frogodile-3 has completed evacuation of the impact crater. They report that the aliens are returning by the thousands and are quickly filling the tunnel and nesting chambers. But I can’t reach Salamog-4 at the main nesting chamber. They’ve had plenty of time to reach us by now.” The operator paused momentarily, “I think they’ve been overrun.”

The Sheriff frowned in sorrow for their loss.

*

In the main nesting chamber Larry, Tina and three of the Deputies became separated from Bill and the others, cut off by several large creatures blocking their escape.

“Follow us,” yelled Larry. “We know another way out.”

The deputies followed them to the small tunnel. The last man grabbed a 5-gallon plastic pail of napalm. He removed the cap and poured a trail of the jelly onto the cave floor as he went. Arriving at the exit tunnel Tina and Larry wiggled through, followed by the deputies, the last of whom continued to pour a trail of napalm.

They emerged into the Blue Spring chamber but were immediately confronted by Gimp Foot and three other adult aliens. A few feet away lay the smouldering carcass of the alien Larry had incinerated with Tina’s Molotov cocktail mixture.

As they cautiously backed away from the advancing aliens, the team leader pointed to the smouldering carcass and asked, “What happened here?”

“We had some friends over for a barbeque,” Larry responded. “Tastes like . . .”

“Don’t tell me, chicken - right?”

“No! Actually more like frog legs,” Larry said with a wink.

Gimp Foot growled menacingly as he took a step toward the group. The aliens were very agitated, yet cautiously aggressive. They pressed the group of five tightly against the back wall of the cave.

“What do we do now? We can’t go back the way we came!” pleaded Tina.

The Search and Rescue leader nodded toward the two street sweeper shotguns on the cave floor about forty feet away. “If we can make it to those we might have a chance.”

The five huddled tightly together and slowly started toward the shotguns. The aliens eyed them cautiously. After taking only a few steps, however, they heard splashing coming from the water at the Blue Spring exit lagoon. The sound also aroused the attention of the aliens.

*

Clayton surfaced in the lagoon of the Blue Spring nesting chamber and swam to the edge of the embankment. He lifted up the heavy 5-gallon plastic bucket filled with mutated Chytrid and shoved it up onto the dry ledge. Then he climbed out onto the bank.

Removing his swim mask he looked around but saw no one. He was oblivious to the danger lurking at the far end of the cavern. Detaching a short rope from a carabiner dangling from his waist band, Clayton tied one end to a stalagmite near the river bank and the other end to the handle of the bucket. He lowered himself to sit on the edge of the embankment with the red bucket beside him. His feet dangled in the water with his back toward the aliens and his friends. He then unsheathed a hunting knife and savagely punctured the bucket’s plastic lid several times.

*

Their view blocked by numerous stalactites, neither Larry and his group nor the aliens could see Clayton. The sound of his repeatedly puncturing the bucket, however, reverberated throughout the cavernous room. It attracted the attention of the aliens and they turned their heads in his direction.

*

Clayton stood up and grabbed the handle of the bucket, heaving it into the water, where it made a loud splash. There it floated, tethered to the stalagmite, leaking a red dye. He then stood and started across the room in search of his friends.

The loud splash of the bucket aroused the aliens’ curiosity. They focused their attention on Clayton and began stalking in his direction.

Not knowing where his friends were and believing that the pheromone released at Meramec Caverns had congregated all the aliens, eliminating the danger at the Blue Spring site, Clayton yelled out, “Larry, I've got the Chytrid.”

“Dr. Clayton, get out of here!” Larry yelled back.

*

At that moment, unbeknown to anyone else, Johnny and Austin emerged from the small tunnel at the far end of the Blue Spring nesting cavern, about eighty feet behind Clayton.

*

The creatures started to close in on Clayton, though he still was not aware of their presence.

“Clayton, FREEZE!” screamed Larry.

Clayton suddenly realized the danger and immediately froze. Gimp Foot was the first creature to arrive at Clayton's location and began to sniff him while baring its teeth and snarling. The three other aliens arrived and they all began circling around Clayton.

Larry, Tina, and the three deputies silently rushed forward, military style, using the stalagmites and columns for concealment. Two of the deputies retrieved the street sweepers. Both of them pumped new shells into the shotgun's chambers. The sound caused the creatures to all turn their heads.

“Wait!” shouted Clayton frantically.

One of the aliens immediately turned upon Clayton and attacked with lightning speed, grabbing him in its powerful jaws.

The closest deputy let out a loud yell as he clenched his teeth and charged the alien. When he was only four feet away he blasted the upright creature in the stomach with three rounds from the automatic shotgun. The alien roared and dropped Clayton to the ground. The wounded alien staggered, taking several steps backwards toward the spring, then fell into the water and sank.

Simultaneously the other deputy rushed forward blasting at Gimp Foot and the other two. All three of the aliens scampered in momentary retreat.

The deputy who had saved Clayton tossed his shotgun to the third deputy then ran to the detonation control box by the edge of the river. He knelt and inspected the control box, which appeared to be undamaged, just disconnected. He immediately started reconnecting the wires that had been trampled.

Tina and Larry rushed to Clayton's side. He was badly mauled.

“That bucket,” gasped Clayton, “is leaking the mutant Chytrid with a red tracer dye. If any aliens escape our inferno the Chytrid will insure their destruction.”

“Don't talk, save your strength,” Tina said pleadingly.

“Don’t worry. It takes more than a salamander to do me in. I just never thought I'd be one to intentionally spread pollution,” Clayton chuckled, then coughed as he spit up blood.

At that moment everyone was startled back to the urgency of their situation by Johnny's voice yelling . . .

“TINA! TINA, look out!”

One of the aliens had returned and was stalking from Tina’s blind side. She and Larry whirled around to see Johnny and Austin standing beside the tunnel, eighty feet away, just inside the nesting chamber.

“Johnny!” Tina yelled, her face revealed confusion at seeing him standing there.

At that moment though, Gimp Foot also saw the boys and immediately darted across the cave in pursuit.

Tina yelled a warning to the boys, “Johnny, get out of here!”

The boys dove back into the tunnel – just escaping Gimp Foot’s crushing jaws. In his hasty retreat, Johnny hit his helmet on the roof of the tunnel entrance and knocked it off his head. Gimp Foot relentlessly clawed at the tunnel but was too large to get through it.

Simultaneously, Larry and the group had their hands full struggling to keep the other aliens at bay as they continued toward the river.

Frustrated, Gimp Foot snorted and backed away from the tunnel, sparring with Johnny's helmet in the process. At that moment a small, adolescent alien, about the boys’ size, ran into the tunnel and emerged on the other side of the wall, where the boys were.