The man doesn’t move, the atmosphere is tense.
“How is McKinnock?”, the Major asks, to keep the dialogue going and to defuse the growing tension.
Hearing the words of their leader, Brimley seems to be convinced and takes a few steps toward Hawk. The spotlight of his weapon illuminates him in the face, then it moves down to scroll over his trunk and limbs.
“McKinnock’s not fine at all, Major. He has not regained consciousness since the accident. He’s heavily wounded, a lot of cuts and abrasions, caused by the fall.”
“He seems okay, Major”, Hawk speaking.
The other soldiers approach slowly, but all stay at a distance from each other, and they look around suspiciously.
Nobody trusts anybody anymore now, and they are all very tired.
Cold on the skin and through the bones…
Silence, suspect…
Fear.
The sky clears faintly on the horizon, while the monotonous shapes of the great sea of sand come alive from the darkness of the night.
The survivors are standing arranged in a circle. Emily Moore is between Macready and Ironside. The only absentee is McKinnock, still unconscious. The marines have taken him out from the cab of the truck driven by Brimley and they put him in the back of the armored vehicle, where Matt Serum medicated his multiple wounds.
“Listen well”, exclaims Macready addressing the group. “We all want to end this thing once and for all. Some of us are injured, needing urgent care. But we can’t allow anyone to leave this place. Not until we are absolutely certain that he isn’t infected. Same thing with regard to the rescue teams. Before their arrival, we need to know if any of us is one of those creatures.”
Silence, while the looks of the men flit from face to face. The tension is palpable, anyone of them could be a dangerous bloodthirsty predator.
“Dr. Moore and Dr. Ivanov had the opportunity to study the creature, devising a test.”
That said, with a gesture of the hand, Macready asks Moore to take the floor. The woman steps forward, clearing her throat.
“The test developed in the laboratories involved the use of chemicals and equipment that unfortunately we don’t have anymore. However, Dr. Ivanov has mentioned the possibility of using electricity to conduct an alternative test.”
Moore waits for a moment, choosing her words before going on. “A strong electric discharge should destabilize the creature, urging her to come out.”
A murmur rises from the survivors.
“Are you saying we should electrocute ourselves, to see if one of us is one of those monsters?”
Matt Serum, the only surviving doctor, has a nervous voice.
“We don’t need a deadly discharge, but it must be strong. We have no valid alternatives.”
“Of course we have”, the doctor insists. “We take the helicopter, we go to the nearest hospital and, once there, they will do all the necessary tests.”
The man looks around, looking for confirmation and support from other soldiers. However his reticence only adds to the suspicion towards him. More than one moves away from him. Ironside and one of the soldiers raises his assault rifle, pointing it in his direction.
“Let’s try to stay calm, drop your weapons. Down the weapons, I said!”, Macready intervenes, lowering Ironside’s rifle with his hand.
“Let me put it this way: those who don’t want to take the test, will be bound and put in preventive quarantine.”
The doctor is going to say something, but the thought of ending up tied together with potential creatures terrifies him.
“Well”, Macready goes on. “Brimley and Hawk, take the batteries of the cars in the hangar, so no one will try to slip away. There should also be others in reserve. Take them out and connect them in the way that Dr. Moore will tell you. Make sure that the two poles are connected to long enough cables.”
The soldiers haste to their job, while Macready, Ironside and two other men predispose an area for testing.
“This is the best we could arrange, given the limited resources that we have today. Here are two electrical cables connected to these metal bars. And these…” the muscles of Macready’s arms are shiny with sweat, while he puts on the ground two big plastic containers. The other survivors have taken out their bio-hazard suits, preferring more freedom of movement to the dubious value of those suits against the creature. “… are ten gallons of our beloved napalm. The test is simple: those who agree to deal with it will have to take the two steel bars, one in each hand. When everything is ready, we will close the circuit from a safe distance. Your body will be crossed by an electric discharge. If all goes well, as I hope, after a while we will open the circuit again, and you can hold you lucky to come home with a couple of brand new blisters on the hands. If something else happens… we will shoot the canisters full of napalm. If there are no questions we can proceed. The sooner we do that, the sooner we can relax and think how to handle the situation.”
“This is madness”, bursts Matt Serum. “Who tells us that we won’t die electrocuted?”
“I’ll go first”, Macready echoes him, walking toward the cables that lye on the ground within fifteen meters. “So all of you will be assured of what I already know. If anything happens to me, Mr. Ironside and Dr. Moore will take command, and you will obey them as you would me.”
Ironside comes forward, reaching Macready briskly. “I better go, Albert. It’s necessary that you keep control of your men.”
Moore approaches too.
The Major lets a bitter smile. “With all due respect, sir…”
“John”, Ironside corrects him, “it’s John.”
The Major raises an eyebrow at that unexpected gesture of confidence, then he steps closer to what he thought was a desk politician, and has instead proved to be more badass and smarter than many soldiers he has known in his career. Macready’s voice is low, while resting a hand on the shoulder of Ironside. “Do you have a family, John?”
The marine gives a pair of pats on the shoulder of Ironside, without waiting for an answer. “Yes you have it. I know that you have someone waiting for you at home, in America. My God, how this word looks sweet. America… Well, put it this way: I have no one left since at least thirty years, John. This makes things a lot easier. The men will follow you, they have seen what you’re capable of. You have their respect, and mine as well.”
The two spend a moment looking into each other eyes, then Macready turns around, crossing for a moment Moore’s gaze. Her eyes shine with deep sadness. She follows him with her gaze as he turns, walking toward the electrodes lying on the ground.
His interest in the fate of the American men of the outpost wiped out in Antarctica…
The yellowed photo in his room…
This is for my brother…
I have no one left since at least thirty years…
Moore realizes the truth behind the mild look of those ice-colored eyes. She would like to tell him something, but there are no suitable words. Sometimes one glance is enough to share thoughts and deep feelings, without the need to express them verbally.
Macready reaches the position, ready for testing. He slips a folded piece of cloth between his teeth, then he bends down, picking up the two electrodes from the ground. The man opens his arms in a cross, nodding to the group of men about twenty meters away.
Thomas Hawk, wearing heavy gloves, closes the circuit contacts. The switch emits a loud pop and sparks.
The body of Macready is shaken, while the electric current passes through it. The voltage, elevated by a circuit with a spare ignition coil, is high and the amperage is substantial. The man’s eyes are closed, the seconds count down damn slowly.