Aquifer: A Novel (31 page)

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C
HAPTER
T
HIRTY
-F
OUR

Nesting Chamber

An hour-and-a-half later two ambulances, with their lights still flashing, along with the Sheriff’s SUV and several Search and Rescue vehicles, were parked in the dirt parking lot at the trail head to Blue Spring. A dozen men scurried about the vehicles unloading assorted equipment – medical equipment, stretchers, diving equipment, searchlights and other paraphernalia.

Tina’s Jeep came barreling down the gravel road and skidded to a stop beside the Sheriff’s SUV. Larry was in the front passenger seat. Tina appeared to be somewhat agitated and yelled, “Sheriff, what’s going on?” Without waiting for his answer she continued, “We don’t have time to waste like this. It’s over a half-mile hike to the spring, and with all that stuff you’ll need to make several trips. Load that equipment back up, we’ll take the service road that goes right to the spring.”

Without waiting for his reply Tina spun the tires on the loose gravel and peeled out, headed for the crossbar that blocked the service road. She rammed it, breaking the lock and exploding the crossbar open, then headed up the dirt service road.

“Well, what are you men staring at?” barked the Sheriff to the Search and Rescue team. “You heard the lady, let’s go.”

*

“I can’t believe you rammed that gate,” exclaimed Larry in amazement as the Jeep bounced up the hill along the rutted and chuckhole-laden road.

“I’ve always wanted a good excuse to do something like that. I guess I figured that if I didn’t do it now, I’d never get another chance,” responded Tina playfully. Then more seriously she added, “Besides, Ellie Jo may not last much longer. We’ve got to get to her as quickly as we can.”

The jeep crested the hill and headed down the other side. At the bottom it sloshed across a shallow creek and followed the weed-infested, overgrown service road until it finally came to rest on a grassy strip bordering the spring. Tina and Larry got out of the jeep and started unloading their scuba equipment while waiting for the others to arrive.

*

Moments later all the emergency vehicles were parked around Blue Spring. Dr. Welton assisted Clayton and Search and Rescue personnel in unloading two large scuba planes, along with other equipment from a trailer, in preparation for the dive.

Welton had seen scuba planes before but none that looked like these. The ones that he was familiar with resembled a torpedo with handles on the back end for the diver to hold onto. The planes he was helping to unload, however, were considerably different. Each appeared to be composed of two regular scuba planes spaced about four feet apart. They were connected together with a metal housing and mounted beneath a cargo platform about the size of the bed of a large pick-up truck. Each cargo bed could carry two stretchers secured side-by-side with enough remaining room to transport whatever equipment might be needed.

The unusual-looking scuba planes seemed very out of place to Welton.
What are these things doing out here in the middle of the Ozarks
, he wondered. The Search and Rescue Team Captain noticed the quizzical expression on Welton’s face and volunteered, “We use them all the time for deep water rescue operations in the big lakes.”

Welton still looked a little perplexed so the Team Captain reached into the cab of his pickup and pulled out a Missouri State map. He unfolded it and placed it on the hood of his vehicle while motioning for Welton to join him. Then he reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a pen.

As Welton drew close the Team Captain drew a rather crude circle on the map with Eminence at the center. “We’re sitting here in Eminence like the hub of a giant wheel,” the Team Captain explained. “Scattered around the edges of its spokes are several massive lakes - well, technically they’re actually reservoirs, not lakes. We’ve got Table Rock over here, then Bull Shoals, Wappapello, Clear Water, Lake of the Ozarks, Stockton, and a bunch of others. Some of these lakes are over 200 feet deep, up to five miles wide, and have hundreds of miles of shore line as the dammed-up rivers back up into the mountain valleys. All this deep water makes scuba a very popular sport among Ozark tourists. That requires us in Search and Rescue to be equipped, trained and prepared for underwater rescues.”

Suddenly it all made sense to Welton.

Tina had already donned her wet-suit and was standing knee deep in the spring. She felt saddened and a little guilty about the damage they were about to cause to the delicate foliage that grew in the shallow water along the edges of the spring. But saving Ellie Jo’s life, and possibly others as well, was more important at the moment. Larry entered the spring and stood beside her, ready to receive a quick lesson in scuba diving.

“There really isn’t much to it, especially since we’re not going very far and we’re not going very deep. Just put this into your mouth and breathe through it normally,” she said as she picked up Larry’s mouthpiece and shook it for emphasis. “The only rule you need to keep in mind is that this mouthpiece can handle anything. If you cough, sneeze, or even throw up, just do it into the mouthpiece. It’s designed to handle all that, and more. If for any reason something really serious should happen, just remember that we’re only twenty feet from the surface and you can easily swim that far without breathing. Any questions?”

“No. You make it sound really simple. I thought there was a lot more to diving.”

“There is . . . so, like they say on T.V., don’t try this at home. But for what we’re doing here that’s all you need to know for now. Besides . . . , didn’t I tell you that I’d get you diving before the end of the summer?” she teased.

“Yeah, but this isn’t exactly what I had in mind,” Larry responded quite seriously.

“I know, me either . . . let’s go rescue some people.”

The Search and Rescue teams were securing extra scuba tanks and stretchers onto the scuba planes, as well as stowing other equipment and medical supplies into water tight bags. Suited up, four members of Search and Rescue, along with Clayton, Tina, and Larry, entered the spring. They submerged the scuba planes and headed toward the bluff wall on the far side of the spring’s four-hundred-foot-deep lagoon.

*

Arriving at the bluff they began searching for the cave opening. Finding it, they turned on their underwater lights and entered. The scuba planes passed through the forty-foot long tunnel in single file, entered the subterranean lagoon and then gradually surfaced inside the cavern.

While the others began climbing onto the dry embankment two of the Search and Rescue team members secured the scuba planes to boulders at the water’s edge. They then climbed out of the water onto the embankment to join the rest of the group.

As soon as Larry removed his mouthpiece and swim mask he took a deep breath of cave air and immediately let out a little cough. “Oh man, what’s that awful smell!”

“Probably a dead animal of some kind,” replied Clayton, who was standing next to him.

The rescuers began removing their diving equipment. When this task was completed the Team Captain addressed them. Pointing to Clayton, Larry, and Tina he gave them their instructions. “You three fan out and search along the riverbank in that direction,” he said as he pointed to the left, downstream. “If you find anything, holler.”

He turned next to two of his men. “You two spread out and go through the center of the room.” Then, pointing to the last man, he said, “You and I will follow the river in this direction,” motioning in the other direction.

The three groups fanned out in their designated areas and began their search. Clayton and his group began by searching along the shoreline. Within forty feet they discovered a large pile of dead fish that was about fifteen feet across. The fish pile floated in the water and was anchored to the shore by a mucusy film that encased the entire bundle.

“Well, now we know why the fishing has been so bad,” remarked Clayton.

Larry wrinkled his nose at the smell and turned his head away from the pile of fish. “That odor’s enough to gag a maggot.”

“But what would cause these fish to be piled up like this?” inquired Tina.

A faint splashing sound came from the base of the fish pile. Clayton lowered the beam of his flashlight to shine upon the water. To his surprise the water was teaming with hundreds of alien hatchlings that were feeding on the fish.

“I believe that the answer to that question is now self-evident,” remarked Clayton.

“What
ARE
those things?” Tina sneered.

Clayton squatted down with one knee on the ground for a closer inspection. “Very interesting. They appear to be some type of amphibian.” He reached into the water and scooped up a small creature no more than a couple of inches in length. Shining his flashlight directly onto it he stood up with the small amphibian in the palm of his hand. “Would you just look at that? This is incredible. A brand-new species that . . .”

At that moment the tiny amphibian opened its oversized mouth revealing two rows of razor sharp teeth on each jaw. Before Clayton could react it lunged for his finger and bit, drawing a pinprick of blood. Then the tiny hatchling released its grip, sprang from Clayton’s hand and flipped back into the water.

“Ouch,” Clayton exclaimed.

“Hey, that’s the same kind of salamander Johnny caught at Rymer’s Ranch,” noted Larry.

“You mean you weren’t joking about that salamander with teeth?” asked Clayton incredulously.

Larry pointed to the numerous hatchlings feeding upon the fish ball and to Clayton’s bleeding finger, “I rest my case.”

“What can I say? Salamanders aren’t supposed to have teeth, at least not ones from this planet. I apologize for doubting you,” Clayton conceded.

“Here, let me see that,” said Tina as she reached for Clayton’s hand.

“I’ll be okay, its only a scratch,” protested Clayton as he reached into his pocket, extracted a handkerchief, and wound it around his injury. “We’d better keep looking for Ellie Jo before we end up like that pile of fish.”

They left the shoreline and headed toward the interior of the cave.

“Being a student there are a lot of things I don’t know about zoology, but you said that salamanders
from this planet
don’t have teeth,” commented Larry.

“They don’t!” Clayton responded.

“Just curious . . . do you think these things might be what survived the alien crash?”

“Perhaps. Life is an enigma. It exists to challenge its adaptability. Therefore I believe that . . .” but before Clayton could finish, Tina who was about fifteen feet ahead of them, called out:

“I think I’ve got someone.”

The beam of Tina’s flashlight highlighted a foot protruding from behind a stalagmite. The three rushed forward to give assistance. Rounding the stalagmite they found what appeared to be a lifeless body lying face down on the ground. They turned it over and to their horror discovered that it was Ellie Jo. Her eyes were wide open in a glassy stare, though a tear trickled from the corner of one eye. She was comatose with a lifeless expression on her face. Her body was covered in thick mucus, and most of her exposed skin had gelatinous amphibian eggs adhering to it with squirming tadpoles wiggling inside.

“Oh, my Gosh! This is worse than I imagined,” gasped Tina as she began to gently shake Ellie Jo and called out her name. “Ellie Jo, can you hear me? Ellie Jo! It’s me, Tina Chitwood.”

As Larry assisted Tina in tending to Ellie Jo, Clayton slowly swung the beam of his flashlight in a wide arch. He spotted the now burned-out Coleman lantern which Johnny had left behind. He continued sweeping the area with his flashlight, illuminating the numerous horses, cows, and dogs that littered the cave floor.

“Well, I think we’ve also solved the Sheriff’s rustling problem as well,” remarked Clayton. Then, about thirty feet away he noticed something. “There! I think there’s another one.” He rushed over to another body and found Honace Webber.

Larry propped Ellie Jo into a sitting position with her back leaning against the stalagmite. Tina placed her two middle fingers upon the inside of Ellie Jo’s wrist. She counted the pulses while watching the sweep second hand on her wrist watch. Frantically Tina yelled across the cavernous room to Search and Rescue, “I’ve got a pulse over here, but it’s very weak. Her heart rate is only twenty-seven and her breathing is very shallow.”

From the other end of the room, about sixty feet beyond Clayton, the Search and Rescue Captain yelled back “We’ve got two more over here. Try to revive them if you can.”

Larry opened the first aid kit he had stowed in his waterproof fanny pack and took out a vial of smelling salts. He crushed the ampule and wafted it under Ellie Jo’s nose. But she did not respond. “It’s no use,” he yelled to the Search and Rescue Captain. “Nothing works.”

From across the cavernous room the Captain’s voice pierced the darkness, “Get them over to the lagoon and we’ll prepare them for the swim out.”

Clayton picked up Honace and hoisted him over his shoulder, fireman-carry style, and began carrying him to the river.

Tina and Larry pulled Ellie Jo to a standing position; then Larry placed his right arm under her shoulders and his left arm under her thighs. Cradling her thus, he picked her up and started carrying her toward the river, too.