Deluge: The Conqueror Worms II

CHAPTER 75

The rain fell like nails and sheets of mist curled up from the ground far below. It was hard for Henry to see anything on the landing, but he assumed that one or more of the creatures must have made it back up the stairwell, because Novak unleashed a gout of flame and shouted at him and the women to fall back. The liquid fire lit up the dark, and something inhuman shrieked.

“Back inside,” Novak yelled.

“We can’t,” Gail hollered. “I shut the door already. We fall back now and they’ll have us trapped. We’ve got to push through!”

“God damn it.”

More fire erupted from the nozzle of the weapon, and was followed by a second shriek. Henry closed his eyes against the sudden flare of brilliance. The heat from the blast brushed against him. He smelled something like burning hair, and hoped it wasn’t his. When he opened his eyes again, there were spots in his vision.

“Okay,” Novak said. “Stick close.”

The tower buckled and swayed as they made their way down the stairs. Henry gasped when he saw the extent of the damage to the steel beams and girders that held the structure aloft. They were overgrown with white fuzz, and twisted and bent in places where the metal had grown soft and started to liquefy.

“Jesus,” Sarah gasped behind him. “If we had stayed here any longer…”

She didn’t finish the sentence. She didn’t have to. Henry felt the same way. The imagery in his head was of the World Trade Center towers collapsing on 9/11. He’d been younger then—elementary school—and while he hadn’t understood all the implications of that fateful day, he remembered being awestruck that the support beams in the skyscrapers had melted and liquefied. The same thing was happening now, only at a much slower pace.

“Soft…” The voices echoed from below.

“I’ll turn you soft, motherfuckers!” Novak released another gout of flame, bathing the landing below them. More creatures howled.

“Careful,” Gail said.

Henry turned around and saw that she’d been cautioning Sarah, who had almost brushed against the hand railing, which was covered with the sickly-pale fungus.

“Thanks,” Sarah said, shrinking away.

Henry smiled. She still seemed cowed and unsteady, but at least she wasn’t freaking out anymore. Maybe they’d get through this after all.

His hope and bravado faltered when at last they reached the ground—because he wasn’t sure it qualified as ground anymore. The mold grew thick, covering the rocks and trees and soil. Tendrils of it hung from the underside of the ranger station, swaying in the rain like vines. He sidestepped, avoiding one particularly low-hanging bit, and then froze as one of the fungal zombies crawled toward him on its hands and knees. It paused, reaching for him, and then melted before Henry’s eyes, quickly transforming into a watery pool of muck. The liquid trickled toward them.

“Don’t get it on you,” Gail warned. “Novak?”

Nodding, he complied by training the flamethrower on the remnants. They evaporated within seconds.

“How do we get to your boat?” Henry asked. “That stuff is everywhere.”

“I made a path on the way in,” Novak said. “But you can see how quickly it grew back.”

Frowning, he strode forward, sweeping the weapon back and forth, and burning a pathway for them. Swallowing, Henry trotted along behind him, hurrying to keep up. Sarah and Gail followed. A moment later, Gail’s rifle boomed.

“They’re coming in behind us.”

“I’ve got them up front, too,” Novak yelled. “Henry, Sarah? How’s the sides?”

Henry glanced to the left and saw shadowy figures lurching through the mist.

“I reckon they’re trying to flank us,” he said.

Sarah screamed. Henry turned to the right and saw that the creatures were closer on that side, almost within arms reach. Their bodies and faces were completely covered with the fungus. Even their mouths and noses were obscured. Their eyes were sunken pinpricks of dull grey. Many of them had root-like appendages sprouting from their arms and feet.

“Stand and fight,” Novak ordered. “Backs together. Form a circle!”

They did as he commanded. Henry and Sarah dropped the supplies they held in their arms. The items splashed on the wet ground, sinking into the mud. Henry shrugged his shoulders, readjusting his backpack’s weight. Then the creatures were upon them. Gail and Sarah squeezed off shot after shot, and Novak swept the flamethrower in a wide arc, spraying burst after burst. Henry gripped his hatchet, feeling worthless.

One of the things made it through the gauntlet and reached for his head. Moaning, Henry swung at it with his hatchet. The blade bit through the monster’s wrist like soft butter. The appendage burst, and Henry was reminded of the water balloon battles he’d had with friends when he was younger. The creature reached for him again. The fungus on its face split open, revealing a toothless maw. Henry buried the hatchet in its mouth. The creature exploded. The stench was nauseating—musky and damp. Henry closed his eyes and turned away. He felt something splatter against him, but he didn’t know if it was the creature or merely the ever-present rain.

The battle continued. Henry acted as a spotter, calling the other’s attention to the creatures as they attacked. More and more of the things emerged from the mist—both humans and animals. All of them were covered with the same disgusting mold.

“We’ve got an opening,” Novak screamed. “Let’s go. Gail, you take point.”

Sarah bent over, reaching for the supplies they’d dropped, but Gail rebuked her.

“Leave them.”

“But we need them,” Sarah said.

“We do,” Gail agreed, “but they’re infected now. Leave them.”

Gail charged forward with Henry and Sarah hot on her heels. Novak brought up the rear, blasting the hordes with sheets of flame. They reached the rowboat and piled inside. Behind them, the darkness returned as the flames flickered and died. Novak dropped the flamethrower on the ground and climbed into the boat.

“What are you doing?” Gail frowned, her expression perplexed.

“I got mold on the barrel. No sense bringing it back to the ship.” He turned to Sarah. “Can I borrow your handgun, please?”

Nodding, Sarah handed the weapon to him. Novak waited until they had rowed away from the steadily shrinking shore. Then he fired three shots. The third bullet hit the flamethrower, and it exploded, creating a fleeting false dawn. The monsters screamed and moaned as the flames engulfed them.

“Very pretty,” Gail said, “but it still seems like a waste to me.”

“It ain’t like we’ll need it again,” Novak said. “Where we’re going, it’s all ocean now. These things won’t be there.”

“Where are we going?” Henry asked.

“Pennsylvania,” Gail said as they rowed into the fog. “We’re going to drop anchor above a place called LeHorn’s Hollow.”

Henry shook his head. “Where? I don’t understand.”

Gail sighed. “The end of the world, kid. We’re going to the end of the world…”

Behind them, there was a loud, echoing splash as the tower finally collapsed.