Inseminoid (12 page)

“Ahhh!” Holly broke for the other end of the control room and began to retch.

“It’s still alive. It’s still alive,” Sharon repeated mechanically. “Oh what is it doing to the poor girl?” The horror was so gruesome she couldn’t bear to watch any longer.

The creature had somehow returned to life, if in fact it had ever been dead. It squirmed in a pool of blood on the floor surrounded by the bits and pieces that remained of Kate’s body. Tubes and hoses leading from the life support machine hung limply at the side of the bed. The woman’s entire bottom section had been devoured. Her arms had been pulled out of their sockets and were being ravaged by the beast. The crew watched, thoroughly sickened as the creature’s teeth ground through the woman’s skin, flesh and bones. Kate’s head rested on its side behind the creature, yet to be consumed. Her once long blonde silky hair was matted with her own blood.

Holly returned to her senses. She threw the remote lock although she knew that the Being would once again smash through the door just as effortlessly as it had done the day before. At best it could only slow it up.

“Listen to me!” she said firmly. “Pull yourselves together. We have to move fast. It doesn’t know we’re aware that it’s alive. We still have the element of surprise on our side. I don’t want to lose that.”

Holly raced to the emergency hold in the corner of the command room and with a key on the chain around her neck she unlocked the door. A second went by and she returned with two large laser guns. They resembled primitive bazookas in that they were to be fired slung across the shoulder. Their beam was so high-powered that it could bring down a small space craft. She handed one to Mark. “We’re heading down to the lab. Get Gary on the intercom to back us up. This time we’re going to do your dissecting work for you, Doc. There won’t be anything left worth putting back together when we’re finished with it.”

With that Holly and Mark raced out of the room and down a flight of steps to corridor two. Only a stretch of runway and the door separated them from the creature.

Sharon spoke through the intercom to say, “Still have it on the screen, Holly. The creature is not aware you are approaching.”

Sharon brought Holly and Mark up on the corridor scanner. They were waiting flush on either side of the portal for the door to slide open. When Sharon saw they were in position she pushed a button and shouted, “Door activated.”

The door slid open and the creature was caught by surprise. It reared up on its legs and, still dripping with Kate’s blood, let out a thunderous roar. Sensing danger it grabbed Kate’s head, sticking its claws into the eye sockets, as one might do with a bowling ball, and slung it with a tremendous velocity at the intruders. The skull smashed into Holly with such force that it knocked the wind out of her and the laser gun fell from her hands.

The creature zeroed in on Mark. It spread its legs apart preparing to leap forward. Its eyes spun around and its claws flexed open and shut. The yellow liquid spilled not only from the being’s mouth but from every orifice in its body, including its sexual members. The foreskin rolled feverishly along the two rods.

The beast reached to its side and picked up an examination table, brought it over its head as if it were a paperweight and was about to hurl it into the corridor.

Mark dropped to one knee and took aim. He released the safety catch and squeezed the trigger. But the beam was high and it sliced through the table.

The creature let out another roar and leapt high in the air. Mark squeezed the trigger again and this time the beam was right on target. Just three feet from Mark the laser sliced through the creature, burning diagonally from the shoulder to the hip. The bottom part of the body dropped to the floor with a heavy thud but the top section continued its flight with the original momentum and landed on top of Holly, spilling its green and yellow substance all over her.

“Get it off me,” she screamed. “Get it off me!”

Gary stormed down the corridor and helped Mark pull the thing’s remains away from Holly. The creature had become like a balloon with the air let out. It had no bone structure. Apparently only muscle tissue had kept its body upright. Enormous muscles and nerves were exposed and palpitating, much like a frog’s leg after it’s been severed. Even the creature’s eyes were still rolling and its tongue still darted.

Mark put his arm around Holly’s waist and lifted her up.

“Hurt bad?” he asked.

She shook her head and tried to catch her breath.

“Don’t try to speak,” he said. Gary came around to the other side and together they supported her.

“No, really,” she gasped, “I’ll be all right.”

“Commander or not, you’re going to the infirmary. Karl—can you hear me?” Mark shouted through the intercom.

Karl had watched the entire episode on the monitor and called out, “I’m on my way.”

Karl got to the infirmary a moment before Holly arrived. Sandy sat up in bed when the door swung open.

“What’s all the commotion?”

“The creature wasn’t dead after all. It apparently was only wounded and . . .” he caught himself.

“Well, don’t stop there.”

“It fed on Kate’s body. She’s gone. It was pretty grisly.” Karl prepared a syringe with a tranquilizer and had it ready when Holly was brought in, but as soon as she saw the needle she waved him off.

“I’m not hurt. Just stunned. Help me get these clothes off.” The creature’s stink permeated the room.

Mark and Gary set Holly on a bed and moved away from her.

“Get back to command, Mark,” Holly ordered. “And see if the sun shields are down yet on the space station.”

“We’re leaving, then?” he asked.

“I didn’t say that.” Holly was regaining her composure. “But Central Control should be made aware of the present situation.”

“But . . .” Mark insisted.

“Mark, I’m still in charge here. Don’t argue with me. Just do what you’re told!”

Mark grew red in the face. “Yes ma’am,” he replied. He didn’t try to conceal his anger. He swung round and left the infirmary.

“I’d better go too,” Gary announced.

Karl pulled a curtain across the room giving Holly the required privacy for the examination. He helped to peel the saturated garments off her body. The fluid had congealed and it made the task difficult. When she was finally naked, he motioned for her to wash off in the shower cubicle. She turned on the water and let it run over her body good and long. She lathered her hair three times to get every last trace of the substance off. When she was satisfied she was clean she turned the water off and Karl handed her a towel.

They spoke while he examined her. “A close call,” Karl said.

“Real close. If it weren’t for Mark’s quick thinking we might all be that creature’s dinner.”

“You shouldn’t be so hard on Mark. He’s a good soldier.”

“He’s a good soldier all right. But he’s got to learn who’s running this show.”

“You gotta understand it’s hard for him to take second place after having a command of his own for so long. Especially,” Karl hesitated, “second place to you.”

“As far as I’m concerned, Mark is just another crew member. But I’ll tell you what I will do. We’ll have a meeting and decide there whether to continue with the expedition. If the vote is no, we return to the space station as soon as possible. Is that fair?”

“Fair enough.”

Karl continued the examination.

Holly smiled “Why is it that a doctor’s hands are always cold? Anything wrong with me?”

“Doesn’t seem to be. Here’s a robe. Get some clean clothes on and you can get back to work.”

Holly took the robe and Karl pulled back the curtain. Sandy was lying on her bed staring at the ceiling.

“How’re you doing?” Holly asked. “Karl says you’ll be back with us tomorrow.”

Sandy’s face turned a bright shade of crimson. “I’ll get back to work just as soon as I damn well please and no bitch like you is going to tell me what to do or when to do it!”

Holly’s smile turned stone cold. The commander eyed Karl who looked as taken aback as she did. “The lieutenant’s been under a psychological strain,” Karl tried to explain.

“The lieutenant,” Sandy mimicked him, “has had a gut-full of all of you. Both of you, leave me alone!”

Karl ushered Holly out of the room and closed the door behind them. “I don’t know what’s come over her. There wasn’t any sign of emotional stress before.”

“Maybe this latest incident just set her off,” Holly suggested.

“We’ll see,” Karl said, returning to the infirmary. “We’ll see.”

He closed the door and stared at Sandy, legs spread apart and hands on his hips. He was waiting for some sort of an explanation.

“Well?” he said when it seemed none was forthcoming.

“Well what?” Sandy asked.

“What was that all about with Holly? She could have you in chains for talking to her like that,” Karl said.

Sandy smiled coyly and let the top of her robe fall open, revealing a large nicely shaped breast. Sandy reached out to Karl and in a low husky voice replied, “Doctor, I don’t know what you’re talking about. Now come over here. Just for a moment.”

“What’s got into you, Sandy?”

She let out a loud laugh, “Nothing yet, but we’ll see what we can do about that. Come here, Karl, I want you.”

Sandy lowered a shoulder and the robe fell down to her hips. “I want you now, Karl.”

But he backed off. “Uh, it looks like you’re having some problems readjusting, Sandy. Maybe you’d better take one of those pills I gave you before.”

“I don’t want any pills. I want to feel you inside me . . .”

Gary stormed into the room. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t know you were in the middle of an examination . . . Doc, we’ve put the remains of that creature back in the lab. I don’t think it’s going anywhere this time.”

“Let’s hope not.”

“Holly wants you in command as soon as you’re free.”

“I’m free now,” Karl decided.

“Gary,” Sandy said. Her breasts were still bare.

Gary stepped forward uncertainly.

“You’ll screw me if I ask you, won’t you?”

Gary didn’t know what to say. “Er, our rotation was up last month. I’m with Holly now.”

“Come on, you know what it’s like with me. You want it, don’t you?”

Karl broke in. “Sandy’s not feeling very well, Gary. I think it best if you ignore what she’s saying.”

“Uh, sure, Doc.” Gary began to leave the infirmary.

“Tell Holly I’ll be right up.”

When Gary was gone, Karl closed the door and walked up to Sandy. “I don’t know what’s wrong with you, but I’m going to give you a shot that will relax you.”

Karl reached for a syringe and grasped her left arm tightly. She resisted and winced when the long needle penetrated her skin. She lashed out with her free hand, leaving three long scratches on Karl’s cheek.

Karl pulled the needle out of her arm and slapped her hard across the face. Sandy took the blow and said nothing. She only smiled.

“I’ll see you later!”

“Can I have your cock then?”

Karl’s temper raged and he slammed the door hard behind him.

The others had already assembled by the time Karl made it to command. Holly had a clipboard under her arm and when she saw Karl enter she called the meeting to order. “Now we can begin. Mark has made a point. He believes the expedition should abort and we should return to the space station. Normally, I as commander would make the definitive decision. But circumstances being what they are or rather have been, I’m making it a free vote. You decide whether we stay or go. The station’s sun shield is due to be down this time tomorrow and we can be off this planet a day later. What you have to consider is what we’ve accomplished and what more we can do here.” Holly paced around the room as she spoke. “Let’s talk about it.”

Karl began slowly. “We’ve got enough information on this culture to take back with us and study in more secure surroundings. We could load the tablets on the shuttle along with the remains of the creature and our mission would by all accounts have been a success. We’ve already lost three able comrades. And we don’t know how many more of those Things are still out there, waiting to be woken up after God-knows-how-many years of sleep. I believe we should cut our losses and return.”

“No!” Mitch shouted anxiously. “There are no others.”

“How can you be so sure?” asked Sharon.

“Because of the tablets,” Mitch explained. He went to a corner of the room where he had placed one of the rock slabs found in the cave. He carried it to the control console and put it down. “This tablet is the key. There are no more creatures waiting out there.” Mitch motioned with his arm. “It says so here!” He pointed to the slab. “Once this whole planet was populated with them. They were born in pairs and they had a great appetite. Then a situation occurred here similar to what happened on Earth. They reproduced at such a fast rate that all vegetation and wildlife became extinct.

“Now, this part of the slab explains the purpose of the creature we found in the glass case.” The professor paused to catch his breath.

“Go on,” Karl urged.

“Before the species had died out completely a fertile young specimen was sealed in a container. Not to be removed until the planet restocked itself with nutrients sufficient to support a regenerated species or until there was an opportunity to leave the planet for, if you excuse the expression, better hunting grounds.”

Holly understood. “That explains its insatiable hunger!”

“Exactly!” Mitch concurred. “As traditional food supplies grew scarce the inhabitants turned on themselves.”

“You mean they were cannibals?” Gary asked.

“That’s just what I mean.”

A silence fell over the crew as the meaning of this new information sank in.

Sharon moved away from the group while she ran over in her mind what Mitch had just told them. “If we had brought the creature back with us to the space station, it might have ended up destroying all of us.”

“It’s an horrific thought,” Barbra said.

“There’s something still bothering me.” Karl took the discussion a step further. “If this Thing, this monster, was meant to regenerate its species, why is there only one of them? With what was it going to mate, to produce its offspring?”