Overlord

8

Aaron Steele, privately contracted security guard, leaned against the cool stone of the strange door, metallic blue fidget spinner whirring almost silently on the tip of his finger. Almost silent, but the huge empty cavern was so quiet he could have heard a mouse fart. But for the scattered and muffled drips of falling water and the smooth bearings of his spinner, the space was devoid of all sound. He didn’t understand why the company wouldn’t let him bring ear buds down, listen to music. But they wouldn’t even allow him to bring his phone. He could play tunes, tap away at a handful of cool mobile games he had downloaded, even read an ebook. Anything would be better than the mind-numbing boredom of standing around all day. But company policy was company policy, and the pay was pretty great. It was easy money in that respect, though he looked forward to eventually returning to civilization. And his fiancée. He missed those pleasures far more than he missed his phone.

Aaron glanced at his watch, sighed. Another hour until shift change. Almost time to go back topside. Downtime would be good. Hopefully no one would be hogging the PS4 up there.

Something scraped behind him. Frowning, he turned to look at the closed door. He must have imagined it. Or maybe it was his own utility belt rubbing against the stone as he moved. But he didn’t remember moving. The sound came again, quiet, followed by a rapid series of taps, almost a ticking, beyond the door.

Had some of those geeks been left down there from earlier? No, that was ridiculous. He’d have noticed, or at the least he would have been told. Maybe one of the other security crew had been posted inside. He shook his head. He would know that too if it were the case, and the three armed goons with the scientists had all come back too. You couldn’t miss those guys.

He stilled the fidget spinner, gripped it lightly between thumb and forefinger, and turned to face the door, listening hard. He heard no more noise, save for the softly echoing drips for so long he had just about given up and decided he was imagining things when it came again.

scraaaape-tic-tic-tic

Then once more after only a couple of seconds. Something was definitely moving around back there. Suddenly Aaron wished for boredom and long, empty shifts on his own. He would have to investigate. It was his job, after all. Besides, it might turn out to be the only useful thing he’d done since he got here. But he didn’t like it.

He opened the door, flicked on the bright LED light he wore on a band about his forehead, and played the white beam around the walls of the dark tunnel beyond. Nothing but smooth, slick, slightly damp stone. He knew another cavern lay beyond the long passage, but he hadn’t been there. He just needed to watch the elevator and the door, he was told. He looked into the dark, saw only the faint glow of a tiny patch of the of the strangely luminescent fungus and his light making stark shadows. He moved and his headlight cut through the shadows like a sword blade.

scraaaape-tic-tic-tic

He jumped, turned to the right where the sound had come from, but nothing was there. Weird echoes in the limited space, maybe. Did the sound emanate from up ahead? He crept forward, moving the beam of light slowly left and right, left and right. The shadows seemed to press forward, like the darkness itself tried to embrace him.

scraaaape-tic-tic-tic

Quieter this time, further away. He stalked on, the thick soles of his boots quiet as he stepped as lightly as possible. He reached a slow bend in the passage and began to move around it, wondering how far he should go. There was a radio set back by the elevator, linked by cables to the base, as no signal from a transmitter could penetrate this much rock. He should go back and report.

scraaaape-tic-tic-tic

Forward and to his left. His light showed nothing but rock. Hair-thin veins of soft green striped the walls. He moved forward again, just a pace or two.

scraaaape-tic-tic-tic

scraaaape-tic-tic-tic

He stopped, heart hammering. The sounds had come almost simultaneously, from either side. An echo, or were there two now? Two what? He stood motionless, holding even his breath, ears straining to hear anything but the gentle drips of ancient water. Nothing. He allowed himself a small, silent breath. For more than a minute he stood frozen, listening hard. No more sound, nothing moved. He took longer, deeper breaths, determined to calm himself. He slowly moved his head, let his light play over the walls, up to the curving ceiling of the large passage. Nothing to see but gray stone, shadows, patches of soft green fungus like lightning in freeze-frame here and there.

Two more minutes and not another sound except the pulse in his ears. Whatever it might have been, it was gone. Or perhaps there hadn’t been anything and he’d imagined the whole thing. Echoes of his own restless feet perhaps. He turned back to the mouth of the passage leading to the door and screamed. His bladder emptied at the sight before him, his groin quickly warm and wet. The last image in his mind before pain flooded his nerves was his fiancée waving, a tear in her eye at the airport when he’d left for Cape Town.