Clickers III (24 page)

fucking coming down on us!”

“More like Space Invaders,” Clark said, trying to remain calm. His pulse raced, and his head hurt.

The path the rampaging Clickers and Dark Ones were taking toward the shore was now shifting. Clark sensed something in the air change, as if some malevolent force was aware of their existence on the island. He paused briefly in his engagement, taking stock of the situation to their right. A series of deep roars, as if from a thousand bull alligators, sounded from the jungle, accompanied by approaching footfalls and clicking noises.

“They’re all around us,” Clark yelled.

“We’re almost there,” Ruby shouted back. “Move ahead at ten o’clock!”

Clark turned in the direction she indicated and Tony followed, shooting down a trio of Dark Ones on mounted Clickers emerging from another thick stand of trees. Amethyst joined him in the gunfire, taking the creatures down in a spray of blood and gunk.

Running as fast as they could under the conditions, with Diamond and Amethyst bringing up the rear, they quickly covered more ground. Clark’s sole focus now was in getting them to the entryway to the catacombs beneath the ground. If they could reach them, they would lose their pursuers and hopefully Ruby and the other Black Lodge agents would know where Jennifer Wasco and the rest of the surviving scientific team were hiding. As for stopping Dagon, he’d leave that to the Black Lodge agents and Tony. He had no idea what Tony’s role in all this was, but apparently the Black Lodge agents needed him for it.

“We’re almost there.” Ruby panted for breath. “Just another twenty yards, behind that stand of trees to the left.”

There was a sizzling noise slightly behind them followed by the sound of falling trees and great thrashing. Clark’s focus was on the stand of trees Ruby had indicated and he sprinted toward it. The others fell behind him, except for Tony, who ran alongside him.

“The fuck is that shit?” Tony asked.

“What?” Clark asked.

“
That!
” Tony gestured with the barrel of his M16.

Clark looked and his eyes widened. “What the…?”

The sizzling noise grew louder. Trees fell to the ground in tatters. A thick plume of smoke rising amid dissolving wood and plant matter. Tony and Clark stopped in their tracks, momentarily stunned by what they were seeing.

Emerging from the dissolving stand of trees was a gigantic black Clicker. Clark had never seen anything like it. Roughly the size of a bulldozer, it waved its gigantic pincers and knocked down several small trees. The stinger on its tail was enormous. It thrust its tail forward and Clark saw venom shoot out of the bulbous appendage. The venom splattered against the trees fifty yards from them and immediately began dissolving the foliage. The Clicker hissed angrily and advanced toward the humans on its spindly legs.

“Holy fucking shit!” Tony said.

“Goddamn!” Clark agreed.

Behind them, the Black Lodge agents appeared stunned, but they quickly recovered their senses. Clark recovered just as quickly and noticed the stand of trees Ruby had been steering them toward. It was only ten yards to their left. The thick jungle foliage was covering whatever opening to the catacombs that lay there. If they could just get to it—

Amid the thick smoke and the sizzling trees and brush, the black Clicker charged at them. Its tail was raised over its back, ready to jab its vicious stinger downward. Its speed belied its size.

Time seemed to suddenly slow down for Clark as he yelled “
Shoot it!
” He brought his M16 up, hoping he could destroy it before it reached them. Beside him, Tony raised his weapon, his mouth open in a scream.

And just as suddenly, Tony was flung out of the way and Onyx was in his place, weapon raised. Tony thudded to the ground beside Clark and his finger inadvertently squeezed the trigger, sending a volley of shots into the sky and the tree branches overhead, shredding branches and leaves and dropping arboreal animals to the ground. Clark dove for cover and barely managed to avoid the black Clicker’s deadly assault.

Onyx never got off a shot. The black Clicker jabbed its tail forward and its massive stinger impaled him. The stinger jutted out of the agent’s back, toxic venom shooting out to hit the ground and foliage behind the agents as it lifted Onyx in the air, waving him back and forth. Onyx screamed. His abdomen started to smoke as the corrosive venom began to eat at his flesh. His skin sloughed away, dripping from his body.

Clark raised his weapon and fired at the creature, tearing it apart with a staccato burst. His shots penetrated the creature’s face, flipping it over and giving him access to its softer underbelly which quickly became shredded meat as he unloaded the magazine. It flopped to the ground and Clark ejected his spent magazine and quickly slapped in a

fresh one as he scrambled to his feet.

Tony had bounced up and had his weapon ready amid the chaos. Onyx was screaming in pain, still impaled on the stinger. Smoke was rising from his abdomen and his flesh looked like it was turning into a thick soup. Parts of him were leaking onto the jungle floor. The tendons along Onyx’s face grew taut as he thrashed and screamed. Tony didn’t hesitate. He brought the stock of the M16 against his shoulder, aimed, and fired a single shot. Onyx’s scream was cut off amid a spray of blood and brain matter.

“Couldn’t let him suffer,” Tony said.

“Agreed,” Clark said. His heart was racing. Off in the distance, more Clickers and Dark Ones were honing in on them. They’d apparently changed their path and were heading straight toward them.

“Onyx pushed me out of the way,” Tony said, mostly to himself. “That could’ve been me that got nabbed by that fucking thing.” He looked at the remaining Black Lodge agents. “Why?”

“We were serious about keeping you safe,” Amethyst said. He cradled his M16, his features impassive in light of losing one of his own. “You are one of The Seven. It is our mission to ensure your safety above all else.”

“But why? I don’t fucking get what’s so fucking special about me.”

“All will be revealed in due time,” Diamond said.

Tony whirled to Ruby. “How come you didn’t know that black Clicker would attack? I thought you were supposed to read minds and shit?”

“I can’t read the Clicker’s minds, Tony.”

“Why not?”

“It is not within my ability to do so. They only possess a rudimentary intelligence.”

“Well, a lot of fucking good you people are.”

“Guys?” Clark eyed the periphery of their location with rising nerves. “If the doorway to this tunnel is nearby, we better get moving.”

“Come.”

Ruby took the lead and darted toward the stand of trees to their left. Clark and Tony were right behind her, followed by Diamond and Amethyst. Behind them came roars and thrashings and frenzied clicking noises as their pursuers honed in on them. A moment later they entered the stand of trees and Ruby seemed to dive headfirst toward the base of a tree and disappear. Clark rushed forward and almost fell into a yawning pit, which was obscured by vines and brambles.

Ruby’s voice called out, receding rapidly as she delved into the tunnel. “This way.”

Without a moment’s hesitation, Clark and the others followed.

“Down the fucking rabbit hole,” Tony snickered.

Behind them, Amethyst said, “I didn’t take you for an Alice In Wonderland fan, Tony.”

“I’m not. I used to date a stripper whose daughter liked the cartoon.”

They plunged ahead into the darkness and the earth closed over their heads—not stifling the sounds from above.

CLICK-CLICK…CLICK CLICK…CLICK-CLICK…

Jennifer was surprised that the tunnel’s downward descent continued unchecked. Surely they must be below sea level by now. Just the very thought of all that water pressing against the rock made her woozy. Ignoring it, she kept running. Wade and Susan were right behind her, with the Dark Ones chasing after them several yards behind. As they darted down the winding passageways, Jennifer kept the lead, letting instinct lead her onward through the gloom. Their pursuers roared—heavy footsteps pounded, echoing throughout the corridor. They were so close that Jennifer could hear the echoes of their talons clicking against the stone floor.

She paid the sounds no heed and continued running, not even stopping to hesitate when they came to a fork in the tunnel system. She took the right hand passage, hoping it would take them toward the surface. Instead it took them deeper beneath the mountain. What little light there was seemed to come from the rocks themselves.

“I can’t keep this up,” Wade choked.

Susan gasped for breath. “Shut the hell up and move your fat ass.”

Then, without warning, the tunnel slope grew steeper and narrower. Jennifer, Wade, and Susan were forced to hunch over and slow down lest they fall forward and roll down the passage. Judging from the sound, the sharp descent and the narrowing walls were a hindrance to their pursuers; Jennifer heard bellows of rage as the larger Dark Ones became stuck. She knew that wouldn’t last long; they’d manage to break through soon enough. She’d seen them rend steel at Peachbottom. Stone would only be a temporary nuisance.

And break on through they did, with angry roars and hisses and the crashing of rocks. The Dark Ones forced their way through the narrow crevices and wormed their way down the tunnels. It sounded like their pace had been slowed. She hoped the delay would be enough to allow them to escape.

Why are the tunnels so narrow in this section?
Jennifer thought as she slid down the slippery floor, the soles of her hiking boots providing some traction as she and the others went down the tunnel like a slide.
If the Dark Ones created this, wouldn’t they have made them to fit their size?

“This isn’t a tunnel,” Wade said, as if reading her mind. “It’s a cave. The tunnels must have joined up with it.”

She’d been too focused on fleeing to notice it, but Jennifer realized that he was right. The walls were smooth and slick like the inside of a natural cave, not rough and rocky like the man-made tunnels they’d been running through. Likewise, there was no dust or dirt caking the walls and floor. It was also growing colder as they kept descending. The illumination had grown subtly brighter, but she was still unable to find the source. There were no signs of phosphorescent lichen or hidden torches.

When they reached the bottom, Jennifer had to recover her senses to find out where they were. The light source had dimmed again, reducing visibility to a few feet around them. Wade and Susan slid to a stop behind her. She felt their welcoming presence as the Dark Ones roared in frustration far behind.

“Where the hell are we?” Wade asked.

“I don’t know,” Jennifer answered. She looked up. Despite the mysterious light source, the shadows above them and in the corners of the chamber were deep and ominous. She raised her right arm over her head and groped for a ceiling. Finding none, she cautiously stood up. Wade and Susan tentatively rose to their feet, as well.

“Do either of you have a lighter?” Wade asked.

“No,” Jennifer answered. “Ed was the only one of us who had one.”

“Damn,” Wade muttered. “I hope he and Keoni are okay.”

“I’m sure they are,” Susan said, but her voice lacked conviction.

“We’ve got light,” Jennifer pointed out. “I’m just not sure what the source of it is. And right now, it’s not doing us much good. Do either of you have any ideas?”

Wade and Susan shook their heads in unison.

“I’ve lost all my bearings,” Jennifer moaned. “This is hopeless.”

“If we stay close together and keep moving forward, maybe we can find another way out of here,” Susan suggested.

Jennifer was about to agree with her when the frenzied thrashings of the Dark Ones grew louder. From the sound of it, they were still having a difficult time making their way down the cavern.

“We’re no doubt in a limestone cavern,” Wade said. “The Dark Ones are strong enough that they might be able to break chunks of