* *
*
Rated: EVERYONE
We finished our tea in silence. A heaviness hung in the air and I knew she was like me. She really didn't want to return back to that place. But if Tricia found Trudy's tools there, it could spell disaster for her.
"Okay," I'm ready I said with more confidence than I felt.
"Yeah, me too, I guess." she said shakily.
We stopped back by her place one more visit. This time she brought out a wicked looking BB gun. She handed it for me to admire.
It was heavy, like a real gun.
"Loaded ?" I asked her.
"Yep, with metal BBs. I decided we might as well go metal pellets instead of rubber. What - whatever that thing was down there may decide it doesn't like the sting of metal against it's - self."
I nodded. It was still strangely quiet. I guess everyone was off doing something else. We approached the elevator and watched it open in silence. Almost like a yawning mouth from some demonic region.
"Ladies first." I said.
"Weenie." she retorted. I smiled back at her. Damned straight I was a coward, and it's gotten me this far in life, no sense in not admitting what you aren't.
She stopped the elevator back between floors but this time the elevator doors flung open. And not regular speed either, it was as it was if some great invisible fingers pried them open, eager for our return.
I swallowed hard and repeated, "Ladies first." holding out a generous hand for her to exit.
But this time Trudy was behind me and kicked me in the butt to get me out of the elevator first, "Then don't keep us waiting, dear." she said in a sarcastic voice.
I smirked at her, but after a minute - she did creep out to join me. The air to this place seemed even stranger, colder, and - wet ?
Dampness - in this place ? And then I heard it again. That strange kind of low moan. But this time it wasn't where we could locate it. It sounded from all around us.
Just a few feet ahead was Trudy's bag of tools. Sensing a trap I got down on the ground to stretch my hand out from floor level to bring the bag close to me.
Sure enough as soon as the bag shifted there was movement from around the corridor in here. Something - BIG, that was the only way to explain it.
A fine mist hung in the eerie green light and I didn't dare look to see who - or what - was following us.
"Time to leave !" I said suddenly and almost somersaulting over myself I scrabbled to get back in the elevator, but Trudy was nowhere to be seen !
I waited, and the waiting seemed like hours. Then I saw what was after us. It was like a big shambling mound of a man - or - beast, I couldn't quite tell, but it glistened in the light as if it's fur were wet or - slimy ?
I heard Trudy firing off her gun in the distance, but there was no visible sign of her.
"Trudy !" I whispered in a loud voice. While the beast seemed to not know where I was earlier, me calling out like that definitely made it hone in on me. I saw a large row of shiny yellow teeth glint out from the mist, definitely a smile - and to me - a mistake for calling out when I did.
I couldn't do any worse than I already had so I called out for her again louder, "Trudy, d****t ! Let's go !"
* * *
And then there was a prolonged silence. Suddenly I heard a pounding sound. At first I thought it was the footsteps of the heavy beast but realized after a moment it was my heart pounding out of my chest.
Did I doze ? For then the beast was upon me ! It grabbed the elevator doors and tried to pry them open further. I had enough. With barely a whisper of, "God forgive me," I hit the button to close the elevator doors and they did - slam shut quite tightly.
The beast groaned in pain and it was clear it was trying to pry back open the door. I had only to hit the [1] in the elevator and this nightmare would be behind me. Coward that I was, I did.
The horrid green light faded and I was back into reality, holding Trudy's dufflebag of tools.
"She can find her way back." I lied to myself. I got back to my room, tossed the tools in a corner and collapsed on the bed. My nerves and wits were shot, drained like an empty glass. And despite my concern for Trudy I fell asleep right then
I awoke to a cold and clammy hand near my face. I jerked so hard I fell out of bed and Trudy was there, laughing at me.
"Did you see that ?" she began. "I shot that thing so full of holes he musta felt like a slice of swiss cheese !"
I realized it was Trudy and apparently she was cold from having stayed on that mystery floor longer than I did.
"You're okay then !" I said and stood to hold her elbows at her side.
"Yeah, and why wouldn't I be ?" She said. Then added, "Not very heroic of you to leave me like that."
She gave me a leer, "That'll cost you. I'll figure out some way of getting even with you - but later. I'm - glad you're okay in truth. I knew I could take care of myself, but I wasn't so sure about you."
"I'm fine." I said, and I was. The -thing- didn't even have a chance to touch me I was in such a haste to leave.
"You didn't get - ah - bitten - or scratched or anything, did you ?" I asked Trudy.
"Naww, I'm fine. But now we have to ask ourselves a question. Just what the HECK was that on the mystery floor ? Certainly nothing normal. And that creature I had a good look at. It was like a walking set of vines with claws and teeth, bipedal, but still alien in nature."
I nodded, "Maybe you have it right there - alien. What we saw was alien in nature. Not necessarily supernatural or scientific - but ALIEN - not of this world."
She nodded. "There's still a few things I haven't told you about this place. We should go back for a better look."
I blanched, "What !? You mean back where that ivy-league beast is ? Forget it ! I had all the adventure I can take for a good long time."
She sputtered, "God you're such a weenie ! Where's your sense of adventure ?"
"It went right out the window when that -thing- started to pry open the elevator doors."
"Well I'm going back," she sniffed. "I didn't get a really good look around, but there was a computer console to the far left - the likes of which I had never seen before. And I want to see what it does."
"You'll get killed by that -thing- !" I warned her.
"Naaw, it's a pussycat. I plugged it at least a dozen times. It backed off once it realized I was armed."
"Not now, can't you wait till tomorrow before you go again ?"
"Yeah okay. I guess I can do that." she looked around for a second, then back at me. "You just stay here - where it's safe, and I'll let you know what I find out."
I was going to add something to say but suddenly she ran out leaving me alone.
END
OF CHAPTER 24
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