The decontamination shower room was too small for more than one person at a time and was required before entering and when exiting. In addition to the door he entered, there was another door to exit. There were no windows in the small dimly lit room. After insuring the entry door was closed, Drenon pushed the red button and the door locked with a click. A light stream of steam laced with decontaminates poured from nozzles all around him. After ten seconds the steam stopped and air to dry the outside of the suit was pushed into the room through the same nozzles. The entire process took thirty seconds. Once done, the red light above the door, which was also linked to the light outside in the lab, turned green.
Drenon opened the door and a man in a yellow suit lay prone on the floor, unmoving. He raced over and recognized Jaws through the large plastic faceplate. Placing both hands on his shoulders, Drenon shook hard trying to revive his research assistant and friend while loudly calling his name. "Jaws! Jaws!"
Suddenly Jaws' eyes popped open and a huge smile came across his face.
"You’re messing with me?" Drenon exclaimed! He fell backwards into a sitting position and nearly wept with relief.
"Yeah, payback for that eggnog incident at the Christmas party." Jaws was laughing so hard his teeth nearly touched the faceplate.
Drenon often wondered how the two of them had gotten this old, yet never grown up. "Well, it's too late to grow up now," he thought to himself as he stood up again chuckling with relief.
Jaws had managed to walk over to an enclosure about the size of a bathtub with clear walls to the ceiling. He had not been idle. The small cotton tree was literally planted in dark brown soil.
"I told you it would come in handy someday," Drenon said, referring to the enclosure.
"Well, you had different plans for it, but it works for the tree. I covered the back three walls and floor in thick plastic and I have put clear acrylic around the front door. Except for the filtered vent up top, it should be airtight when the door is closed. We will need to open the door to water it every few days, but that should be the only reason. The sun coming in through the skylight should be enough light for our squirming friends."
Drenon asked, "What do you suggest for a first step?"
"According to what we know, the moment we put the worms in here, they will disappear inside the tree just like in the wild and we will never see them again until the tree dies, or maybe they pupate. I suggest we cut the thickest limb off and put it in an aquarium with a few of the worms and see what happens."
"Sounds good, let's set it up"
"I already have over on the far counter. We just need to select a branch."
Drenon replied, "go ahead and cut one off. I want to take a look at what you put together." He walked to the large aquarium and saw the usual assortment of fake branches and leaves. There was no top on it, but a large plastic lid leaned against one side.
Jaws showed up a few minutes later with a branch almost an inch in diameter cut at both ends to fit into the aquarium. "I put those two artificial branches off the bottom to lay this branch on. I don't want them hiding under it." He positioned the cotton tree branch about six inches off the bottom.
"We just need the worms then, let's see what happens."
Drenon retrieved three worms from the large plastic bin which had become their home in the lab. He moved them over to their new home and placed them on the bottom. The worms immediately sensed the nearness of their food source and eagerly started blindly climbing anything they could to reach it.
Eventually the first worm reached the branch and crawled to the end where it started chewing avidly. It was anticlimactic to say the least. They watched for about ten minutes, but the branch showed no real affects. the other two worms eventually found their way to the branch and all three were working on one end where the branch was cut.
"I expect the branch to start to show signs of being separated from the tree in a couple days. I imagine they will lose interest in it then," Jaws offered.
"Don't be so sure. Remember how the trees seem to thrive in the wild even with millions of the worms eating them from the inside out. They could sustain this tree branch as well."
The two spent the day in the lab making improvements to the tree's enclosure and watching the worms at work. Eventually they started making some progress and a shallow pit appeared inside the tree branch. The worms did not touch the outside of the tree, only working on the soft inner wood.
The two men took a break for dinner, but did not leave until almost midnight. Drenon slept peacefully through the night and woke early, eager to get back to work.
~ Chapter IX ~
It was 7:42 AM. Drenon was in the car on the way to the lab when his phone rang. The caller ID on the phone said Slavin. He was in before 8:30 two days in a row.
"Good morning, this is Drenon."
"When you get a chance this morning, stop by and check out your pets," Slavin replied in his Russian accent.
"Are they still alive?"
"Good question, see you later." The phone hung up in Drenon's ear.
He was anxious to see what Slavin was talking about, but also did not want to have his current good mood brought down by Slavin's presence. As he parked his car he said a quick prayer for patience and headed towards Slavin's lab. Drenon made a conscious decision to be overly nice in defense, and secretly hoped his graciousness got under Slavin's skin a little.
He walked into Slavin's door at 7:59. He was over where Thing had been left yesterday observing the cages. Drenon could not see past the doctor to what was on the counter. Taking a look towards the back of the room he noticed Jennifer was not at her desk.
Drenon walked over to the counter, mustered his cheeriest voice and with a smile said, "Hello good doctor. It is a pleasure to see you this morning. What do you have for me today?"
In response, Slavin looked over his shoulder with a scowl. The look itself threatened so suck any joy right out of Drenon's body, but he was prepared and refused to let it get to him.
"Come see."
Drenon looked into the cages. The iguana's cage had been moved about ten feet away, but otherwise appeared unchanged. The larvae still squirmed and crawled about as it had the day before. The lizard sat eyeing it, but if it had moved, it was only to get further away.
Thing had moved though. The tarantula was attempting to climb the side of her enclosure directly towards the two men as if trying to get to them. A brown carcass lay behind her, but it was no longer recognizable as the larvae. There was no definition to what had been the outer skin. It was melting as if it were wax in the hot sun.
"Wonderful, she fed," Drenon exclaimed in a good natured tone. "She looks fine. Great job doctor. You were right! Have you seen any adverse effects?"
Slavin was watching Drenon warily now. "You are right, she looks healthy, but watch this."
Slavin walked over to the lizard’s cage and moved it about two feet away from where the spider was. He then backed up a few feet and said, “Back up with me Drenon and watch what happens.”
Drenon moved away from the counter and immediately Thing changed directions. She turned to climb the side nearest to the iguana clawing at the plastic sides, desperately trying to scale the wall.
Slavin went back over to the cages and moved the lizard’s cube back away from the tarantula. The spider quickly calmed down when both the doctor and the lizard were approximately ten feet away.
Slavin said, “It is like she had a desperate need to reach the nearest living creature. Come over here and watch this Drenon.”
The doctor led him over to a laptop. A video camera was connected to it by a cord and an image of the two cages was on the screen. "I set a motion sensing camera up yesterday to capture anything interesting. The lizard has barely moved. If anything, it shows signs of wanting to keep a safe distance from the larvae. However, in the middle of the night the spider decided to have a meal."
Slavin pushed the play button on the screen. The screen showed 2:10 AM in the lower right hand corner and Thing was creeping across the enclosure towards the larvae. A single light above and behind the cage silhouetted every hair on her body and she cast a wicked shadow before her as she crept.
2:11.
As Thing towered over the roiling larvae, she paused. She stood motionless. It seemed like the longest minute Drenon had ever endured. Just as he was wondering how long the camera would remain recording without any movement, Thing exploded towards the larvae and then jumped back. It seemed as if the larvae simply disappeared, but it was now underneath the spider and behind Thing's large hairy fangs.
The spider sat in the same spot. The clock had changed to 2:12 at some point, but Drenon had not noticed it happen. The spider's entire body slowly pulsed up and down as it fed. He had seen this before.
2:13.
Then, something he had never seen before...
Thing dropped the larvae and stumbled backwards unsteadily. Her legs seemed to stop working. Slowly, the long legs curled underneath her and she settled down on top of them. The large body tipped to one side, and she lay perfectly still. Time slowed.
2:14.
Although it seemed obvious, Slavin added, "I think she is dead right here. I guess it is possible she could be unconscious or just stunned, but I have seen a lot of spiders die over the years, and she looks dead. The camera is about to turn off due to the lack of motion, but continue to watch."
Drenon sat transfixed. Before the time on the camera turned to 2:15, the screen went black. Almost immediately, it came back on. The time showed 2:16 and one of Thing's legs moved outwards, followed almost immediately by another.
Drenon felt a shiver of dread travel down each of his arms and he physically shook with the chill.
Within thirty seconds the legs had spread back out and she was unsteadily rising. She finally gained her feet, shuttered once just as Drenon had done a moment ago, and then briefly stood motionless. A few seconds later, the spider turned towards the iguana’s cage and started climbing the side of the cage. A minute later Slavin stopped the video.
“I found her still climbing the side of the cage this morning. She never gave up her attempt to get out.”
"Two hundred sixteen, six cubed, my unlucky number," Drenon said softly. He looked back towards the counter. Thing stood there motionless. His mood was broken.
~ Chapter X ~
"What do we do now," Drenon asked?
"We wait. We watch," Slavin replied. "At some point we need to take samples from the spider and analyze them, but I want to see if anything else happens in the next day or so."
They watched the cages as nothing continued to happen.
"It does not look like the iguana has a taste for the larvae," Slavin said.
Without pause, Slavin yelled across the room making Drenon nearly jump out of his shoes, "Jennifer, I need coffee." Drenon looked back and Jennifer had appeared at her desk.
"I need to get back to my lab," Drenon said shakily. "Please let me know if anything happens."
"Yes, yes... did you call the CDC?"
"No, Kershaw would not let me. Do you have a copy of the video? Maybe I can use it to convince him."
"I will Email it." With that, Slavin turned and walked away. He was busy setting up the video camera again as Drenon let himself out.
Drenon walked across campus slowly with head down in deep thought. He entered his room and suited up before joining Jaws in the secure lab. Jaws listened as he relayed the events and asked questions there were no answers to. They discussed the possibilities and shared their concerns.
After a particularly long pause where both men contemplated the morning's events Jaws looked up and said, "Want to see what's happening with the cotton tree branch?" He got up and headed towards the far corner and peered through the glass walls of the aquarium.
Jaws pointed towards the bottom under one of the leaves. "It looks like one of them is dead."
Drenon looked closely. It was difficult to tell, but Slavin told him to look out for the larvae to pupate. He had also done some research on the internet and it looked correct. The outer skin had expanded slightly and formed a hard white shell. It is possible this is what had happened.
"Let's get it out of there. Can you go get a small specimen container to put it into for me?"
Jaws walked away towards the supply cabinet while Drenon lifted the lid. He reached down, moved the plastic green leaf, and gently lifted the larvae with a pair of forceps. Jaws was back by the time he lifted it out of the aquarium and he placed the specimen into the clear plastic bowl.
Before Drenon put the lid back on, Jaws offered him a bright flashlight.
"Take a look in the branch," Jaws suggested.
The end of the branch now had a perfect hole bored into it. With the naked eye, there was nothing to see except blackness. Drenon shined the flashlight into the hole and could make out the end of two worms only a half inch inside.
"They have been busy. I guess two months without anything to eat will do that. Slavin has a motion detecting video camera. We should get one of those."
"I will start the paperwork," Jaws said. "Man I hate paperwork."
"Tell you what" Drenon continued, "I will start the paperwork if you take this dead looking worm over to Slavin. I don't think I can be around him again today."
"Deal," said Jaws. "Anything is better than paperwork."
"Wait until you meet this guy. You might change your mind," Drenon predicted.
~ Chapter XI ~
Drenon was sitting at his desk working on the requisition form for the video camera when Jaws came walking in the door less than an hour later.
"Wow, nice guy," Jaws said as he strolled back into the lab.
"I told you."
"He said to tell you the spider and lizard have not moved. He also said he was sure what I brought him was a pupae. He actually had a drawer full of them and pulled them out to show off. He must be quite the lady’s man," Jaws said with a toothy grin.
"Did he tell you how long it would be before the pupae opens up?"
"He gave me a guess of three to four weeks, but said it was impossible to know for sure with a new species."
"Well, glad you are back," Drenon said as he stood and stretched. "I need to go talk to Kershaw. I have an appointment set up with him in fifteen minutes. I emailed you the video of Thing eating the worm Slavin sent me. I am heading out."
Drenon walked over to Kershaw's office. The man was busy as usual when he walked in. Drenon did not know when the man slept and never saw him away from the desk.
Kershaw was a handsome man. He was in his late forties, but looked younger without a streak of white in his thick brown hair. His face was closely shaved with a strong finely lined jaw. Green eyes looked up and offered a welcome greeting of their own.
"Good afternoon Drenon. Do you have the video you told me about?"
Drenon reached into a pocket and pulled out a flash drive. "Right here sir." He handed it to Kershaw who inserted the drive into the side of his laptop.
Kershaw watched expressionless until the haunting video ended. "So, what do we have here? Was the spider unconscious from some chemical it ingested?"
"Slavin believes the spider died for a time, and then came back to life."
Kershaw smiled, "well, since we know that is not possible, what other explanations do you have?"
"I don't have any. The toxicology reports don't indicate any toxins known to be harmful to a living creature. I am sorry sir, but I feel like we need to contact the CDC. Even Slavin is way over his head on this."
"I have been thinking about it, and I still do not want the CDC here."
"But sir..."
"Just a second Drenon… I will give you whatever time you need to drive everything up to the CDC. I agree it is not something we should be responsible for, but nothi
ng good can come from inviting them here. I am going to keep everything quiet, and when you get there I will contact the CDC myself and pave the way for you."
Drenon thought a minute. He could find no problem with Kershaw’s plan.
"Slavin might have an issue giving up his new pets," Drenon mentioned.
"I will take care of Slavin. Why don't you go pack a bag? Oh, and please make sure you have all of the specimens accounted for before you go."
"Yes sir. Should I leave tonight?"
"Tomorrow will be fine," Kershaw said, “Give me a call when you get there.” Once again he became buried in whatever he had been working on when Drenon arrived.
Drenon walked back to his office to discuss the decision with Jaws. He then headed home to pack while Jaws stayed at the office and started gathering all of the evidence into a large plastic bin for transportation.
On his way home he called Slavin's number and did not receive an answer. Drenon left a message summarizing the plan and explaining he would be by to get everything the next morning.
Drenon was an expert at packing for trips. His bags were packed within minutes. Knowing he had a long day coming up he was fast asleep by 9:30 PM.
~ Chapter XII ~
Drenon showed up at Slavin's lab the next morning at exactly 8:00 AM. The doctor was already there packing everything up to go.
Drenon said, "Good morning, I see you got my message."
"No, I did not" Slavin replied. "I got a visit from Kershaw. He wouldn't take no for an answer."
"Once his mind is made up he is very stubborn," Drenon agreed.
"I put everything on the counter over there. Please make sure it is what you were expecting. I removed the larvae from the iguana's container and put it with the one that was left. I dissected the others that are missing yesterday. I would have included their remains if there were any, but they dissolved overnight."
Drenon wandered over. There were two larvae wiggling around in one container. The iguana and spider were alone. Thing was climbing the wall towards the lizard at first, but shifted towards Drenon as he got close. The pupae lay in the same small container Jaws had brought it over in. "So this is it?"