Slimer

round out there on his own. Serves him right if that thing gets him.’

‘Good riddance,’ said Chris darkly.

Mark, trying not to watch as Linda assisted Rochelle into her clothes, was sincerely hoping that Alex was alright. It wasn’t Alex he was worried about, of course, it was the heroin. If he didn’t get a fix soon…

‘Mark, you and Chris stay here with Ro,’ Paul told him, ‘Linda and I are going to go collect the stuff we need. When we leave see if you can block the gap under the door. ’

‘What stuff are you going after?’ Chris asked him. ^!

‘Food, tinned fruit… and extra weapons. Including those two home-made flame throwers we left in one of the kitchens with the rest of the guns.’

‘What’s the use?’ asked Chris listlessly. ‘If flamethrowers were any good against that thing the people who used them would still be around.’

Paul turned on her. He grabbed her by the arms and shook her violently. ‘Now listen to me, Chris! That sort of crap isn’t any help at all. You may be ready to give in but I’m not! I intend staying alive. So does Linda. But our chances are better if we all try and lick this thing together. You understand me?’

Startled, she nodded yes.

Paul let go of her. ‘Good. Now everyone stay right here until we get back.’

Later, as he and Linda edged their way warily down the corridor towards the kitchen Linda said, ‘That was a good speech you made to Chris back there. You almost had me convinced. But what do you really think our chances are?’ He was about to lie to her but decided against it. He was tired of playing the hero — the man with all the answers. The strain was getting too much. It would be a relief to share some of the burden with Linda — she was. tough enough to handle it, he knew — so he told her the truth. ‘Our chances are shit. That thing has been designed to survive. It’s probably unkillable. It can adapt to take anything that’s thrown at it. As Shelley said on one of those tapes — it’s instant evolution. Unless…’ He paused.

‘Unless what?’

‘Unless there’s a way of destroying it faster than it can adapt. That’s why I think the flame throwers are our best bet. If we could incinerate the whole thing fast enough it might not have enough time to develop the means of protecting itself. Or there’s another possibility. If we could hit it at once with two different types of danger — say we spray it with acid and then burn it — it might be able to only adapt to one thing at a time. If the acid fails but the fire works or vice versa…’

‘Yes.’ She sounded doubtful. He knew what she was thinking. So her next words came as no surprise. ‘But that stufl can move pretty fast, can’t it?’

‘Apparently.’ Might as well continue being honest with her. ‘According to Mark it practically shot up the side of the crane cabin.’

‘So cornering it long enough to carry out some complicated manoeuvre isn’t going to be easy.’

‘No, not easy..’

They arrived at the kitchen and entered it slowly. It seemed full of potential hiding places for the creature and Paul felt very vulnerable and exposed as he moved to the centre of the room, his eyes scanning for the slightest indication of movement.

While Linda kept watch he then went and examined one of the flame-throwers. It was a jerry-rigged affair consisting of a fuel container linked to a cylinder of compressed air or some other gas. It looked as if it would be just as dangerous for the user as for whatever it was aimed at but he had no choice but to try it out.

He carried it over to the doorway. He studied the valves on the two tanks until he was satisfied he’d worked out which did what then he turned them on. There was a hiss of gas from the long nozzle he was holding. Nervously he lit a match and applied it to the invisible stream of gas. There was a flash and a blue-green flame extended from the nozzle. Taking a deep breath he aimed the nozzle through the doorway and turned the small handle at its base. A long jet of burning liquid was suddenly arcing its way some twelve feet down the corridor with a frightening roar. Caught by surprise, Paul could only stare at it in fascinated awe for several moments before he realised he was wasting precious fuel. Then, hurriedly, he switched it off.

‘Horrible,’ said Linda with distaste. ‘That’s the sort of thing only a man could invent. Imagine being able to use it on a human being.’

Small pools of burning fuel were spattered along the floor of the passageway. When he was certain they would go out harmlessly he turned and carried the device back into the room. ‘We won’t be using this against people. The thing we’re fighting isn’t human.’

‘No, but it has people trapped inside it, in a sense. People who can still feel and think.’

‘Some of the time, I guess. But they’re dead really. Except that…’ he frowned, not wanting to go on.

‘Except that they don’t know it. Or don’t want to know it.’ She said, and shuddered. ‘They’re dead and yet they’re still alive in a horrible kind of way. They’re trapped in a sort of purgatory.’

He could see the depth of her fear in her eyes and it alarmed him. ‘Don’t think about it,’ he advised.

But she wouldn’t leave it alone. ‘Paul, promise you won’t let it get me.’

Misunderstanding what she meant he said quickly, ‘Of course I won’t let it get near you.’

‘No. I mean if it looks as if we’re going to lose I want you to kill me first — before it can get me. I don’t want to become a… part of it… Do you promise?’

He looked at her and swallowed hard. He would never be able to bring himself to kill her, he knew that, but he lied and said, ‘Of course. I promise.’ And for her added peace of mind he didn’t tell her what Shelley had said about death possibly not being protection against the absorption of one’s personality by the creature…

Later, as he was piling up a collection of supplies on one of the tables she said, ‘There’s something else worrying me.’ ‘Yes?’

‘It’s Mark. He said the thing, the slime in the crane, didn’t attack him.’

‘That’s right.’

‘Paul, how do we know he’s telling the truth? What if it did attack him? What if he’s part of that creature now? Has been all along.?’

Patiently, Paul said, ‘He can’t be. He’s been with us when Shelley and the others, including good old Charlie himself, have made appearances.’

‘Yes, but Paul, how do we know there’s only the one creature?’

Paul stopped what he was doing and stared at her. It was a good question.

Chris was getting worried about Rochelle. There was some4 thing disturbing about the way she was lying there, her eyes wide open and watching both of them so intently. Mark, hadn’t seemed'to notice — he was too busy fighting a losing battle against his body’s craving for that damned drug — but it was beginning to get on her nerves.

Finally she got up and went over to her. ‘Ro, why don’t you try and get some sleep. You’ve had a pretty nasty experience. You need rest. You — ’ Suddenly she screamed and recoiled.

Immediately Mark leapt up, grabbing for one of the Ml6s. ‘What’s wrong? Is it here? Where is it?’

Shaking, Chris managed to regain control of herself. ‘I’m sorry. It’s nothing. My imagination’s working overtime. I’m seeing things.’

‘Seeing what?’ he demanded.

She shook her head. She couldn’t tell him that for a moment she could have sworn she saw Alex’s eyes staring out from Rochelle’s face…