Forces from Beyond (32 page)

“That could get us all killed,” said Happy. “Direct mental contact with something as big as the Flesh Undying . . .”

“But would it work against that figure?” said Melody.

“I don’t know! Maybe . . .” said Happy.

“Then we have to try,” said JC. “Come on, we’re the Ghost Finders. We don’t take any crap from the Hereafter.”

They clasped hands again. And if any of them felt their hands shaking, none of them said anything.

And that was when Catherine Latimer came forward, and threw her portable Door at the huge shining figure. The black blob turned into a dimensional Door as it shot through the air, growing larger and larger; and then it swallowed up the figure whole. They were both gone in a moment, leaving just a few sparks, dropping harmlessly down the night sky.

“Quite pretty, really,” said Happy.

JC glared at Latimer. “Very good. Now how are we going to get home?”

Latimer showed him her hand, with the black blob nestling in it. “It’s programmed to return to its owner after use. Droods think of everything.”

JC shook his head and looked at Happy. “Are you picking up anything from the Flesh Undying?”

Happy cocked his head on one side. “It’s . . . confused. Its mind has turned to other things. Don’t ask me what. It’s like it’s forgotten it ever noticed us.”

“How long will that last?” said JC.

“Beats me,” said Happy.

“That man is weird,” said Goldsmith.

“Seriously weird,” said Hamilton.

Everyone looked round. The two scientists had left their bunker to come up on deck and were looking around in a surprised sort of way, as though the view was entirely new to them.

“I don’t suppose you’d consider letting us have Mr. Palmer for a while?” said Goldsmith.

“Just to run a few experiments on him,” said Hamilton. “Nothing too invasive.”

“No,” said Melody. “The only one who gets to run scientific experiments on his body is me.”

“Your whole relationship never ceases to creep the hell out of me,” said JC.

“How do you think I feel?” said Happy.

“Heh heh,” said Melody.

“You need to prepare for the bathysphere,” said Latimer.

They all turned to look at her.

“What?” said JC.

“Right now?” said Melody.

“We can’t afford to wait till morning,” Latimer said steadily. “The Flesh Undying could renew its interest in us at any time. We need hard information about its physical form, something we can use as ammunition against it. So you need to go down, right now.”

“But . . . it’s still night,” said JC.

“Where you’re going, that won’t matter,” said Latimer. “It’s always night at the bottom of the ocean.”

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LIFE AND DEATH AND EVERYTHING ELSE

All through the darkest part of the night, Captain Katt had his crew rig up new lights, to better illuminate the deck around the bathysphere. The grey steel ball gleamed dully under lights so bright they didn’t leave a shadow anywhere. Crewmen bustled back and forth, bringing armfuls of the very latest technology to be packed into the waiting sphere. Goldsmith and Hamilton drove themselves on at a fierce pace and yelled at anyone who slowed them down by not being where they were needed with what the scientists wanted. Everyone was busy with something, except for JC and Kim, Happy and Melody. They stood together, well to one side, watching what was happening without feeling any need to get involved. They were thinking about what they were going to have to do once the work was finished.

JC looked more like a rock star than ever, in his white suit, long mane of dark hair, and very dark sunglasses. Kim hovered beside him, dressed once more in a white nurse’s outfit to match his suit, glowing faintly. Her feet didn’t quite reach the deck. Crew members hurrying past made a point of not looking in her direction. Happy looked like someone had found him curled up in a Dumpster, after a week-long drunk. Melody just looked tired, worn-out from the weight of her life.

Catherine Latimer came over to join them, looking neat and tidy in her plain grey suit, smoking a black Turkish cigarette in her long ivory holder. She looked like a retired head mistress, off on a cruise and not giving a damn about what was proper any more. She took in all the bustle and excitement on deck and smiled briefly, in a self-satisfied sort of way. As though they were only doing it to keep her happy. She nodded to the Ghost Finders, and they nodded briefly in return.

“I would have given you more time to prepare,” she said. “But we seem to have run out.”

It was as close as she could get to an apology and was accepted as such.

“More time wouldn’t have helped, Boss,” said JC. “Just given us longer to worry and wet ourselves.”

“And the early-morning wake-up call was nothing new,” said Melody. “We’re used to working the graveyard shift.”

“Often in graveyards,” said Happy. “I’ve had more than enough of sitting on a tombstone with a flask of lukewarm coffee, waiting for something dead to get lively. Ooh! Look at the shooting stars! Aren’t they magnificent?”

They all looked up at the night sky. There were no shooting stars. The moon was barely bright enough to make its presence felt, and most of the stars had disappeared behind clouds. A cold wind came blowing in over the side, making them all shiver briefly. Except Kim.

“Excuse me,” said Happy. “I have to go take my aura for a walk.”

He wandered off down the deck, smiling and nodding cheerfully to nobody at all. The others watched him go.

“What is he on?” said Latimer.

“Everything,” said Melody, coldly. “Or at least, everything left that can still affect him. His brain chemistry is so compromised now, it’s a wonder he can still see the real world from where he is. I hope he’s having a good trip; because he won’t be coming back.” She glared at Latimer. “He’s dying; and it’s all your fault!”

“So many things are,” said Latimer.

“There’s something I need to tell you, Boss,” said JC.

The tone in his voice caught her attention, and Latimer looked steadily at JC as he brought her up to date on his recent conversation with the forces from Outside. Melody listened intently, too, nodding now and again as some particular item confirmed her deepest suspicions. When JC finally finished, Latimer smiled soberly.

“I always wondered why I was chosen. All these years, fighting monsters and demons and dead things, wondering every time
Is this it? Is this what I’m here for?
And now I find out I was just a holding pattern, someone to fill a gap until the real living weapons arrived.”

“Now you know how it feels to be used,” said JC.

“We all have to serve someone,” said Latimer.

“Can we be sure these Forces are any better than the Flesh Undying?” said Melody. “I mean, we only have their word for it that the Flesh is crazy, and they’re the good guys. What if we’re being played?”

Latimer looked down the deck at Happy, ambling amiably along and stepping carefully around things that weren’t there.

“Crazy is as crazy does. We can only judge the Flesh Undying by its actions. Through the damage its agents have caused, and the damage it intends to do to our world by leaving it. The Flesh’s threat is clear; the Forces’ . . . less so.”

“We have to accept any help that will allow us to stop the Flesh Undying,” said JC. “Afterwards . . .”

“Yes,” said Latimer. “There will be time for many things, afterwards.” She took the holder out of her mouth and pinched off the end of her cigarette with thumb and forefinger. She looked at JC and Melody with serious, considering eyes. “You do understand . . . this descent is just an information run. Get as close to the Flesh Undying as you can, let the scientific instruments do what they’re supposed to, then yell for us to pull you back up. Don’t do anything, don’t get involved, and, above all, don’t try to be heroes.”

“I’m not sure what we could do, locked inside a steel ball,” said JC.

“I wonder what the Flesh Undying will look like . . . up close,” said Melody.

“Happy’s probably the only one who could see it clearly,” said JC.

“Smell the irony,” said Latimer.

They all looked down the deck after the telepath as he talked to people who weren’t there and ignored people who were. He was freaking the hell out of the crew, who went out of their way to give him plenty of room. JC almost envied Happy, in being so far gone he probably didn’t even realise how dangerous things were about to get. JC looked at Melody.

“Why is he . . . ?”

“Different drugs are kicking in as his system metabolises them,” said Melody. “Some . . . are more helpful than others. He can keep a rein on them, when he has to. Right now, he’s just enjoying himself. While he can.”

She glared at Latimer, and for a moment JC thought the Boss might actually respond with a kind word, or a touch of compassion; but the moment passed. Latimer just looked steadily back at Melody, until Melody looked away.

“He’s killing himself for you, Boss,” she said. “For the job. Putting his life and his sanity on the line . . .”

“Aren’t we all?” said Latimer. “All that matters is, can he still function? We can’t risk his cracking up at the bottom of the ocean.”

“He’s stronger than you think,” said Melody. “He’s had to be. But you’d better pray he can keep it together; because he’s still our best bet for taking down the Flesh Undying. Even after everything you’ve done to him and asked of him, he’s still a Ghost Finder.”

“Don’t try pushing my guilt button, girl,” said Latimer. “I don’t have one.”

JC remembered Latimer shooting her long-time secretary Heather in the head without the slightest hesitation. Latimer looked at him and smiled briefly, as though she knew what he was thinking.

“We all do what we have to,” said the Boss. “To preserve what we believe in.”

“But you’re not going down in the bathysphere,” said JC.

“Yes, exactly!” said Melody. “Why aren’t you going down with us, Boss?”

“Partly because there isn’t room,” said Latimer. “Partly because you need someone up here you can trust, to make sure they bring you back up safely. This is a Project ship and crew, remember. And there’s always the chance the Flesh Undying might send more of its agents. The ship will need me, then. But mostly I’m not going because I’m not crazy.”

They all managed a small smile.

“We could die down there,” said Melody.

“Yes,” said Latimer. “You could. Try not to.”

JC drew Latimer’s attention to where Natasha Chang and Captain Katt were standing together, some distance away. They weren’t talking to each other, but they were standing together, keeping a watchful eye on everything that was happening.

“I had a word with Ms. Chang earlier,” said Latimer. “Just sounding her out, to see where her true loyalties lie.”

“And?” said JC.

“Don’t turn your back on her,” said Latimer.

“I can honestly say I wasn’t planning to,” said JC. “Keep a careful eye on her while we’re down below. In case she takes it into her mind to tie knots in our oxygen lines, just for the fun of it. We might have common cause, but she is not on our side.”

“Of course not,” said Latimer. “She’s Crowley Project. I will be right beside her, all during your time below.”

“Don’t turn your back on her,” said JC.

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” said Latimer.

She calmly moved away, so she could just casually bump into Katt and Chang. Melody scowled at JC.

“How much help could she be, realistically? One old lady on her own, surrounded by Project people with guns?”

“Come on,” said JC. “This is Catherine Latimer we’re talking about.”

Happy came back to join them. His mood had changed, or the chemicals had changed it for him. His face was full of shadows. His mouth was a flat line, and he darted suspicious glances at Goldsmith and Hamilton as they oversaw the loading of even more scientific equipment into the bathysphere. Happy moved in close to JC and Melody, dropping his voice to conspiratorial levels.

“Can we really trust those two? How can we be sure they’re not putting a bomb in there?”

“As you have already pointed out,” JC said patiently, “a bomb wouldn’t work against the Flesh Undying.”

“It would work against us,” Happy said darkly. “If Katt or Chang decided they wanted to get rid of us.”

“He may be a brain-damaged paranoid, but he does have a point,” said Melody.

“Who’s brain-damaged?” said Happy.

“We’re too valuable to kill off,” said JC. “If you’re really worried, Happy, why not listen in on what they’re thinking?”

Happy’s scowl deepened. “Can’t. I’ve had to batten down the mental hatches, lock all the doors, and throw away the keys. I’ve suppressed all my abilities, to make sure the Flesh Undying won’t be able to see me coming.”

“Then what use are you going to be to us, down there?” said JC. “Maybe you should stay up here, after all.”

“No,” Happy said immediately. “If it should all go wrong, I can wake up in one hell of a hurry. I’m your last best hope. You are looking at me doubtfully, JC, as well you should. If I were you, I’d be very worried. About everything.”

“I am,” said JC.

“Good!” said Happy. “That makes me feel so much better. I’d hate to be this worried on my own.” He stopped and looked around. “Where’s Kim?”

She’d gone again, when they weren’t looking. And, as usual, no-one had noticed.

“I wish she wouldn’t keep disappearing like that,” said JC. “It gets on my nerves.”

“Women,” Happy said wisely. And then winced and looked wounded, as Melody elbowed him in the ribs.

For differing reasons, they all decided to watch the action around the bathysphere for a while. Goldsmith and Hamilton were standing before the open air-lock, consulting a checklist and arguing quietly with each other. They ran carefully through the list, twice, then tossed it aside and marched over to join JC, Happy, and Melody. The two scientists looked very professional, very focused. Exactly the kind of people you’d want to be in charge of your descent into the unknown. And then they went and spoiled it, by looking at each other and waiting for the other to speak first. Up close, they both looked like they’d been awake for far too long.

“It’s all in place,” Goldsmith said finally. “Everything you’ll need for the journey. The equipment is set to run itself, it knows what it’s doing, so please don’t touch anything.”

“We’ll be lowering you right on top of the Flesh Undying,” said Hamilton, in her most severe Nordic tones. “Which realistically means within twenty to thirty feet. If all goes well.”

“There are so many imponderables beyond our control,” said Goldsmith, apologetically.

“What happens if you get it right on the nose?” said Melody. “And we end up bumping into the Flesh?”

“Best not to think about things like that,” said Goldsmith.

“It’s not like you’d waken it,” said Hamilton. “One small steel ball, bumping along the side of a mountain?”

“Why would it even notice?” said Goldsmith.

“You’re both sweating,” Happy said accusingly.

“It’s a hot night,” said Goldsmith.

“No it isn’t,” said Happy.

“There’s a phone cable connecting the sphere to the
Moonchilde
,” said Hamilton. “Use that for all communications. We couldn’t risk anything else. But even on a direct line, I would still advise you keep contact to a bare minimum. Just in case.”

“How will we know when the work is done?” said JC.

“The machines will know,” said Goldsmith. “Don’t worry, no computers; it’s all simple timers. The equipment will shut itself down once its various tasks are completed; and then all you have to do is phone home, and we’ll haul you back up.”

“Do we have any weapons, for emergencies?” said Melody. “Any defences?”

Goldsmith and Hamilton looked at each other.

“Stop doing that!” said JC. “Whatever it is, just say it! We can take it!”

“The bathysphere’s outer shell is strong enough to protect you from the pressure, and all natural dangers,” said Goldsmith. Like a parent assuring a child there isn’t really a monster under the bed.

“You can electrify the outer shell if you should happen to encounter any threatening creatures,” said Hamilton. “But there shouldn’t be any. Nothing lives in the shadow of the Flesh Undying.”

“What if there are Flesh creatures on guard duty?” said Happy. “It could happen.”

“Try not to be noticed,” said Goldsmith.

“But if something really interesting should turn up, the equipment will take photos,” said Hamilton.

They nodded and smiled to JC, Happy, and Melody, looked at each other to check whether there was anything else they ought to say, then turned and walked briskly back to the bathysphere. With a definite air of having done all that could reasonably be asked of them. Captain Katt and Natasha Chang let them get out of the way, then came forward to take their place.