Author's note: For those of you who are not familiar with Death Valley, it is located in Southern California. At 282 feet below sea level, this desert is the second lowest area in the world that isn't covered by water. To learn more, go to my author's page and follow the link I've posted there.
I'm awakened by someone kissing my cheek.
"It's time to get up, my love," he whispers into my ear.
Still half asleep, I roll toward him and fall out of the cot. Now I'm really awake. Abe is kneeling next to the cot that I was sleeping on. I'm now in his arms and he's laughing. Feeling silly, I start laughing too.
"That was pretty swift of me, wasn't it?" I ask, laughing.
"Very," he answers.
Then he leans down and kisses me. The feeling of silliness disappears and is replaced by an aching need. I wrap my arms around him and hold him closer. He starts running his fingers through my hair. I can hear movement near by, but I ignore it.
"Geez, you two. Why don't you get a room?" grumbles Hellboy.
I stop kissing Abe and look across the way at Hellboy. He's lying on a mat on the floor, staring at us. Liz is lying on one of the cots just above him. She's starting to stir.
"We tried that," I tell him. "You walked in on us."
With some satisfaction, I notice that he seems to turn a darker shade of red. He's also now looking any where but at us. Luckily for him, John picks that exact moment to walk in with a tray of coffee and bagels. He's also carrying a bowl of something, but I can't see what it is from down on the floor.
"Good morning," he says cheerfully. "I brought breakfast."
"Wonder…ug," I manage. The smell of sulfur is overpowering and I put my hand over my mouth and nose. I see Liz shoot out of her cot and head for the nearest lavatory. Then I hear her losing it just after she manages to shut the door.
"Geez, Myers," Hellboy yells. "You know that Liz is pregnant! What are you doing bringing those things in here?"
"What is it?" I ask from behind my hand.
"Rotten eggs," growls Hellboy.
"What in the world are you doing with rotten eggs?" I ask John.
"They're my breakfast," Abe says quietly.
I turn and stare at him. He starts turning a darker shade of blue. He doesn't seem to be able to look me in the eye now.
"And you were planning on telling me about this when?"
"Ummm…" is all he can manage.
"Great," I say.
I stand up, grab a cup of coffee and a bagel and then head for the back of the plane and fresher air. Back in the cargo area, I find my bag. I pull out a hair band and put my hair into its normal French braid. Then I find the mission folder and sit down with it. While I'm eating, I go over the report.
It seems the Wyrms appeared a few days ago. At first there were only three, but as time went on, more arrived. Anyone who approached them was frightened off by Wyrms bursting out of the ground just in front of the person. There's also a description of their movements. They can move in and out of the ground like a dolphin moves through water, leaving no trace that they've just passed. The most disturbing part of the report is that bullets don't seem to affect them. The thought of someone intentionally hurting one of these creatures upsets me. I take the photo out and look at it again.
There's nothing to give a sense of scale to these creatures, but I know that they can reach lengths in excess of thirty feet. They have several pairs of short stubby legs along the lengths of their bodies. The older the Wyrm, the more legs it has. The head consists of a long snout and a large mouth. The nostrils and eyes are very small. There's a fringe around the back of the head. I know that the ears are located behind the fringe, and that the males have larger ones than the females.
"We'll be landing shortly. Find anything of interest?" asks Manning. I hadn't really notice him come in. It's hard to hear anything above the drone of the engines. Though he does slightly startle me, I refuse to give him the satisfaction of knowing that.
"I'm curious about the first three Wyrms," I say looking up at him. "I wonder why they came to Death Valley. And why are all these other Wyrms joining them?"
"I guess you'll just have to ask them when we get there," he says.
"I intend to," I tell him.
"I was joking."
"I wasn't."
John comes in followed by Hellboy and Liz. Hellboy has his arm around Liz's waist, she seems a bit shaky and pale and she's leaning on him. Abe comes in last. I catch a whiff of mint coming from him, which reminds me of something I need to do. Before any one can sit down, I get up and head for the lavatory with my bag. Once there, I wash my face and brush my teeth.
When I return, Abe is sitting at the end of the bench by himself. I go and sit next to him. He's still not looking at me.
"Thank you for brushing your teeth," I say quietly.
"You're welcome," he replies just as quietly, still staring at the large boxes across from us.
"One favor?" I ask him.
"What?"
"No rotten eggs at the wedding. My grandmother would flip out."
"Agreed," he says. He looks at me and smiles. I smile back. He puts an arm around my shoulder and pulls me toward him. Sighing, I gladly lean against him.
"Ok, listen up people," says Manning. "We're going to be landing shortly. We're going to have to drive out to the site. The sun's going to be up shortly, so Abe and Hellboy will have to travel the usual way."
"What's the usual way?" I ask.
Manning walks over to one of the large boxes across from me and slaps it. That's when I notice the stickers on the side that say "Live Cargo." I also notice the large holes drilled near the top.
"You pack them in crates!?" I ask, outraged.
"Well, we can't let them be seen," Manning answers.
"I've seen rabid animals treated better," I respond angrily.
"Sorry, but that's the way it has to be," Manning says as he turns and walks away.
I sit there and quietly seethe. Suddenly, the plane hits a pocket of turbulence. Abe holds me closer and then kisses me on the head.
"It's all right," he whispers in my ear. "We're used to it."
"Well, you shouldn't be," I say turning and facing him. "It's not fair."
"Life seldom is, my love," he says.
Then he tenderly kisses me, driving my anger away. As my anger fades, so does the turbulence until we are flying through clear skies again. We're still kissing when the plane lands a short time later. I could definitely get used to that.
I watch with sadness as Hellboy and Abe are placed in their crates. Liz stands next to me watching.
"I've seen them do this more times than I care to think about," she says. "I still can't get used to it."
"That's not much of a comfort," I tell her.
"I know," she replies.
We continue to watch as the crates are placed on a flat bed truck and strapped down. Manning and the other agents climb into SUVs and trucks while Liz and I climb into the cab of the flat bed truck next to John. Finally, we're ready to move out.
We sit in near silence for the next hour and half. Before we enter Death Valley, we have to cross security checks. Since the Wyrms are growing in numbers, the entire valley has been quarantined. As we cross the valley floor, I can "feel" the Wyrms off in the distance.
Soon, though, we're able to see them. The trucks leave the road and head toward the moving mass of Wyrms. We stop about 300 feet from the creatures. We sit and watch them in amazement.
"There's more here than were in the picture," says John. I "reach" out and "feel" them.
"There are sixty-three of them now," I tell him. He whistles his surprise.
To read about their movements is one thing, to see it in action is another. They're all brown, so it's hard to tell where one begins and another one ends. They move in and out of the soil as if it wasn't even there. Every once and a while, one will rear up into the air, open its fringe and then dive back into the ground. It's breath taking.
John and Liz exit the truck. Reluctantly, I pull my eyes away from the Wyrms and follow them. I hardly notice the organized chaos that's going on around me as agents secure the area before letting Hellboy and Abe out. I'm too fascinated by the magnificent creatures before me. I start walking toward them.
I don't move to quickly since I don't want to startle them. They're vegetarians, so I know that they won't eat me. But that doesn't mean they won't defend themselves if they feel threatened.
When I'm within a hundred feet of them, I send out a small tendril of energy to let them know I'm here. The reaction is instantaneous. More than sixty heads turn toward me, fringes out. Then the one with the largest fringe suddenly dives into the ground and disappears. I can "feel" him heading toward me, so I stop and wait.
A second later, the Wyrm bursts out of the ground in front of me. He shoots at least thirty feet straight up into the air before arching over and diving back down directly behind me. I figure he must be nearly forty feet long. He does his intimidation routine several more times. I stand my ground and wait. Finally, only his head surfaces and he turns to face me with his fringe out. He stares at me with those small dark eyes. They look like polished obsidian. As I get a closer look at him, I realize that he isn't just brown, but several different shades of brown. His mottled hide shimmers in the morning sun. He's almost as beautiful as Abe.
Who are you? He asks with soundless words.
"I'm Margaret Susan Cavendish," I answer. "I am keeper of the Wind and Earth."
Why are you here?
"Because you are," I tell him. "What is wrong?"
Our problems are our own and do not concern you, mortal.
"I want to help," I say. "Please tell me what's wrong."
Nothing you can help with, little one.
"The others with me want you to leave, and they will force you if you don't go," I reply. "If you tell me what's wrong, we might be able to fix it."
FIX IT!? He screams indignantly. YOU'RE KIND CAUSED IT!