From A Distant World They Came Part 8
Posted: Sunday, September 18, 2011
by Kellie Hastings
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Little Hope
Dr. Joanne Morrison couldn’t comprehend the existence of such an unpredictable skin ailment, and she couldn’t come to terms with the onset of one of the worst outbreaks since the plague.
She had taken the samples in two weeks ago but nothing had come back. They couldn’t find a damn thing, no one could. It was all over the news that these boils were spreading like crazy yet; they were no further ahead than they were three weeks ago.
Maybe our modern medicine was not so modern after all, she thought.
Maybe this time, they were using the wrong approach. And this time, the tools they needed could not be found in some laboratory; and the cure could not be derived from some drug.
Thomas Avery had discovered something though, something she herself would never think of.
The idea of this thing hiding right under their noses intrigued her, for it seemed to fit.
Like being robbed in broad daylight amidst a large crowd, yet no one can see it happening.
The perfect camouflage she thought the ideal deception.
She gazed upon the mound of work sitting on her cluttered desk.
“Too much paper work,” she grumbled, “way too much, it’s pointless.”
She checked her watch; it was still early, 10am. She was to meet Thomas by noon.
“Two more hours,” she sighed. She grabbed some money and left. She needed some coffee.
~
Thomas Avery had been at it for hours now, and each time he found the same thing.
He couldn’t believe it, and he had never anticipated such a find would fall into his hands.
The idea of course was preposterous, but something compelled him to do it anyway.
The new lighting around his table had served as the perfect tool, an innovative alternative to the usual fluorescents.
Mysterious Discovery
And they worked, worked perfectly. He adjusted the twin lamps once again before placing the sample beneath his microscope; he then turned them on.
The switch on the wall was turned off. The only lighting in the room now, was the glow of a simple black light, his preposterous idea. How ingenious he thought, as his green eyes pressed against the rubber of a narrow lens.
“Now go ahead Thomas,” he mumbled to himself, “go ahead and tell me what you see,”
His eyes focused on the large worm shaped outline, on the iridescence of its clear body as it slithered within the confines of its liquid environment.
He could see its determination, its self-control as it fought to break free.
But it didn’t dare move beyond the safety of the blood it sat in, like it had a mind of its own.
~
“A sign of intelligence,” he moaned, “a scary thought.” He looked up, gazed around the room, and wondered. Somehow, someway, he thought, this thing found its way into a human recipient. And all this time, they had fooled us. All this time, they were right in front of us.
But how do we get rid of the damn things, he wondered?
How the hell are we supposed to do it without harming the patient? He lowered his head and peered through the lens. The subtleness in its development was already evident, and its liquid environment was nearly consumed. The little blood “What the hell,” he gasped as he raised his head. “The little leech drank it. Blood sucking parasites, is that what they are? He fed it some more, some more blood.
He needed to keep it alive; it was the only way to study it.
But the more he fed it, the more it grew. Soon, the glass sheet it was lying on was too small and was replaced with a shallow tray.
And when the tray had served its purpose, Thomas resorted to a clear plastic container.
He asked himself. “Is there no end to its hunger?” He decided to find out.
***
The lab was deserted as Joanne walked in, it was Sunday, and Thomas was the only person there. They preferred to work alone without the interruption of wandering eyes.
She looked forward to finding out what he discovered as she approached the wooden door to his lab. With coffees in hand, she turned the knob.
But images of Mr. McCollum flashed before her as she entered the lab.
It had been two weeks now since his death, and still, she couldn’t shake it.
She couldn’t rid herself of the horrible condition of his body, the twisted fear on his face. Organisms she thought, they were nothing but living organisms. They must have a weakness; all living things have weaknesses. She hoped that Thomas Avery had found one.
The door to the lab creaked as usual, Joanne entered. The small area on his desk greeted her with an unusual lavender glow. The darkness surrounding it was creepy.
The lights had been turned off, why she wondered?
She fumbled around for the switch, flicked it on.
The fluorescents above her offered the usual, as the annoying stream of light assaulted her eyes. Trying to gaze around the room she squinted.
He was to meet her here at noon, yet his table was a mess; she checked her watch, 12:05.
“So where is he,” she mumbled? “And what happened in here?”
His microscope, lying on its side, was broken. Slides, trays, and plastic containers lay scattered, some on his table, and others on the floor.
All were empty and all were soiled with fresh blood.
She couldn’t understand. What was he using them for, and why? The twin lamps had been turned over yet, they were still on. “Black lights?” she whispered.” Since when did he use black lights?” She walked up to his table. Too hot to touch she thought, much too hot.
She leaned over to pick them up.
Huddled behind the table, he laid there in a puddle of blood, coagulated blood.
The lifeless body that lay before her was none other, than the remains of Thomas Avery himself, or rather what was left of him.
Terrified, Joanne pulled back dropping the coffees. Covering her mouth, she screamed as her blue eyes widened, as the hot liquid splashed against her thin pants before pooling around her feet. But there was no one there to hear her, no one there who knew.
Cradled in a fetal position, he looked like Mr. McCollum, only much worse. The fear etched upon his gaunt face was revealed in his vacant eyes, his haunting stares. And like Mr. McCollum, his body fat was depleted.
Look for parts 1 to 9 here on SearchWarp
It's been a pleasure sharing with you my fiction
Kellie Hastings copyright 2006
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