Ectoplasm.
Glasgow, Kentucky.
May 20, 2010.
He ate what he could, but his stomach was twisting into anticipatory knots. He stood by the porous stone that showed through to the river, running his fingers over the lichen hanging from every hole. When he shined his light through, he caught the glisten of water, and the rugged shore, but it was only a taste of what was flowing beyond.
Gene came over after an hour, stretching out his back and groaning. "Ready?" he wondered. He fastened one of the wires to his belt, and Mulder saw that he was already attached to the central stake. Gene handed him another wire attached to it, cocking an eyebrow.
"Safety first," he commented, latching it onto his belt loop and heading for the distant exit to the chamber. He took the first left he could find, squeezing through a narrow opening and rolling out into the open. Gene followed him, getting caught on one of the rocks in the opening. He yanked and maneuvered it while Mulder went on ahead.
He couldn't help himself from walking closer to the river, despite the danger it presented. It ran quickly between two raised shorelines of smooth rock and mud. He had to hold onto boulders as he went to avoid slipping all the way down into the water.
It was gorgeous, to say the least. When his headlamp ran over it the water sprayed all kinds of colors onto the cave ceiling, and he saw the bodies of fish turning silver beneath the rush. He could barely see the other shore, but he felt more passageways leading out of this area, and on into the darkness. It was a sight to behold, ferociously powerful, swift, and perpetually dark. He wondered about the creatures who inhabited those water, about their fluorescence, about the monster he thought might be running rampant in this subterranean world.
Gene finally freed herself and came to join him, but he went around the other side of his boulder. Before he could speak to him, or comment on the majesty of this place, he heard his boots scuff on the rock and his wire jerked violently forward.
His heart dropped into his stomach.
"Gene?" He hissed, climbing around the boulder and finding him sitting just inside the rush of water, facing away from it, dangling by his belt loop. His wire was caught on one of the rocks and it held him on the surface, keeping the water from taking him away.
He was groping at the rocks, and when Mulder's light fell on him he made contact with one and started pulling himself toward the shore. His wire was slipping from its place.
"No, stay there, let me get you," he said, continuing down toward him, digging his hands into any crevices he could to avoid getting into the same situation. He propped his foot on one of the shore rocks and turned his body sideways, reaching out. "Gene! Grab my hand!"
Gene gasped, pulling his head above the surface. "I can't see it."
He tipped his head down so his headlamp could guide his companion. Gene's hand slipped from his a few times before he got a good grip on his wrist. He yanked him onto the rocks, grabbing his shoulder when he could, and then the back of his pants to haul him back behind him, where the dry rocks were. He freed Gene's wire and threw it back in that direction.
He climbed back up, soaked from the spray of the river, and laid on his back beside Gene.
"Are you hurt?" he asked.
Gene ran his hands over his hair, gasping. "Just my pride."
"I won't tell anybody."
"I was so afraid you were gonna fall, I guess I forgot to watch my step," he admitted.
Mulder sat up, yanking off his headlamp to use it as a flashlight. He scanned the shore, finding the pile of gunk Gene had slipped in. His boot print was very visible. "Yeah… what is that?" He leaned closer, squinting, but he couldn't distinguish it from the surrounding rocks. It just looked like shadowy gunk from here. "I'm gonna get a sample of that. Give me a tissue or something."
Gene dug through his bag, handing him a Q-tip. "Don't get too close to the edge."
He slid over on his bottom, digging the Q-tip into the pile. He withdrew it, grimacing at the long line of goo that clung to the instrument. He passed it back to Gene. "Do you know what that is?"
Gene turned it around, making a face. "I know what it smells like."
"Sharp, like burning plastic." Mulder grinned, twisting it around. "It looks a lot like ectoplasm to me." He had encountered ectoplasm three times in his life, and each time it had this pungent odor like Barbie dolls melting in the drier. It was always stringy, goopy, and corrosive.
"I can't believe you just used that word in a sentence."
"What? Ectoplasm is a known phenomenon. When spirits interact with the corporeal world, they have to use ectoplasm to do it. It's like… battery juice. It's the only thing they leave behind, aside from cold spots and blurry photographs."
"It may have come from the creature," Gene said, frowning.
"I'm telling you, I know what this stuff is."
Gene got to his feet, wobbling a little as he walked back toward the group. "Ectoplasm," he scoffed.
Mulder smiled and followed him, amused by his dislike for that word. He always got strange looks when he used it, but it had become a normal thing to him. He imagined most people were not accustomed to hearing it – like hearing werewolf or vampire in serious conversation.
In the main chamber, only Russell remained. Wires stretched out in different directions, occasionally tightening up or loosening as the others explored. Gene handed the Q-tip to Russell and Mulder hung nearby, pulling his bag of sunflower seeds from his pocket and snacking on them. Now that he was standing still, the back of his head began to throb.
"We found it by the river in a pile, at least three pounds of it," Gene told Russell, frowning at the Q-tip he had handed him. He took a step back, shooting a glance at Mulder, as if daring him to object. "It looks like animal waste to me."
"There are no known animals in this cave system large enough to produce this kind of waste. I've never actually seen… this particular type. It has some of the properties of reptilian waste but…"
"But what?" Mulder prompted.
"I don't know why it would be so stretchy. It's almost like this is an undigested material. Can you show me where you found this?"
"I can… point it out for you," Gene volunteered, glancing at Mulder. "You look pale. You should try to get some sleep."
He shrugged. "Stay away from the shore."
Gene smirked, tugging on his wire. "You should hook up, Russell. This thing saved my life."
"Oh, yes, of course."
Mulder left them, going through his pack and spreading the sleeping bag near the artificial campfire. He laid across it, kicking his muddy boots off and folding both hands behind his head. He felt like he hadn't slept in days, though he was sure he had been sleeping last night. Gene said he was awake, toying with his tablet, but his memory failed him.
He stared at the ceiling, listening to the water, and to a soft conversation between Gene and Russell, until his mind managed to wander away.
He saw something in the shadows, watching him, waiting for him to come after it. He found himself in the caves, wandering in the darkness, somehow finding his way despite having no light to guide his feet. He felt the creature drawing near, he felt the rumbling in the ground, and he felt its soft growling in his gut.
He walked toward it, thoughtless, and waited for it to consume him.