The Thing From Outer Space

Chapter One. The Thing in the Forest

About one hour after the villagers of Kalinagar, which stands at the edge of the forest of Kaziranga, in the Northeastern state of Assam, India, had celebrated the new year, the night sky had hosted a sudden meteor shower. Nobody really knew how many meteors had passed the village. At the late hour of 2 AM, that night, there was a tremor like a Richter 5 earthquake that extended to the limits of the park. At least the bungalows that stood in that range had experienced the tremors. The tremors had wakened them form sleep, to feel awe and fear. Furthermore, forest ranger Kumar Neog, 36, was on duty at his post and he noticed the tremors too. He started the engine of his rover and climbed in. Moments later, he followed the tremors, which continued for almost one hour, to the source.

In late November, the preceding year, Kumar Neog had applied for the post and the park services, run by Sivaraj Gadke,41. Kumar had just wedded his wife, Amruta Despande,24. She was the only child and daughter. Among the village women of her age, Amruta was very attractive. She had several desirable features. Her arms and legs were thin but strong. Her face was narrower than most women of the village, but not fully ovular. She had round, black eyes and a small nose. Her breasts were full and pear-shaped. Several men her age had asked for her hand; but since her parents, especially her father, Anil, were impressed with Kumar Neog’s appointment, she married him.

Sivaraj Gadke schemed for several nights after the wedding to take Amruta for himself. He imagined stealing the rover and kidnapping Amruta from their bungalow. Besides, he expected that Kumar Neog would be preoccupied with work in the forest. On the evening of December 29, the park services received an unexpected visit. The visitor was a well-dressed man of five feet four inches, with a round face and broad nose, narrow squinting eyes and a pair of pursed thick lips. His manner decried that he came from the capitol, Guwahati. His name was Sunil Bhose. Bhose explained that he was willing to share profits with Gadke, providing that the latter would allow hunters to poach wildlife for one year. His primary goal was rhinoceros horns, but tusks would be added according to inventory. Gadke agreed without delay. His mind conceived of a ploy to deter Kumar Neog.

When the meteors drifted by, Sivaraj Gadke was planning his scheme. Then, the tremors occurred and he noticed them from his office that night. He saw Kumar Neog arrive in his rover. Neog had reached a small oasis in the forest and parked his rover about sixty meters from the edge of the pool. He removed several instruments from the back and set them up near the shore. One meter, a radiation meter, began to jump. Neog watched it.

‘Radiation? This oasis is radio-active.’

He switched on his transistor and called his office. Gadke answered.

“Hello, Neog. What’s the matter?”

“Gadke, whatever crashed here was radio-active.”

“You mean, that collision about one hour ago, right? It is radioactive?”

“Apparently. My meter is jumping.”

“Be careful. It may affect you.”

“Yes, I will. I know.”

Gadke was overtly excited by the report. Expecting that Neog would be contaminated by radiation, he would be free to handle Amruta. Neog would be out of reach. Otherwise, Neog would contaminate her. After closing the call, Kumar Neog spotted a large crater about 32 meters from the pool, and went to look. A faint green glow issued from it. That was followed by an almost clear mist-like wave. Neog felt something touch his skin. He returned to his rover and called Amruta.

“Amruta something strange and dangerous has fallen into the forest. I am studying it.”

“Oh! Kumar, please be careful. It will harm you.”

“I will.”

The glow continued until, at least, Kumar Neog had left the oasis. He felt perilous, but also curious. Nonetheless, he finished his investigation. A hunch about his skin compelled him to check it for radiation. The reading was low and negligible at that time. Kumar Neog replaced his equipment in the rover and headed for the village.

When he was only a few meters from his kiosk, the meter of his instrument registered moderate radio-activity from his body. Kumar Neog halted near the door of the kiosk and shuddered. The thing in the oasis had contaminated him. He had no alternative but to quarantine himself there.

Chapter Two. The Strange Metamorphosis

Kumnar Neog could do nothing except stay in the kiosk and wait until the radiation subsided safely. He could not meet Amruta or his boss. He unloaded his instruments from the rover and locked them in the kiosk store. Then, he walked into his room and locked the door. Naturally, when he failed to call her or return home, Amruta was plainly and gravely worried.  But she had no notion that he was contaminated by radiation.

Not very long after Kumar Neog had left the pool, when the glow had subsided a little.  However, the source of the glow had seeped into the earth below the surface of the oasis and eventually entered the water supply. It entered the water of the pool and slowly seeped into the water piped to the village for household use. By mid-day, the fauna of the forest had approached the pool to drink. They apparently saw the change in the water; but, failing to comprehend the dangers, they bent down and sipped some of it. Satisfying their thirst, they headed for their homes.

By early evening, the village was alarmed by strange water issuing from their taps.  Both household taps and those near the market were releasing the water. It was no longer clear. Instead, it became murky and odorous, and had a dark green hue. Children and housewives screamed in mad fear of the strange supply. When the wives attempted to shut the tap tightly, the water still streamed forth into the basins. Amruta Neog was washing clothes when she noticed the strange water. She stopped and ran to the house telephone. She tried to call Kumar Neog, but the phone refused to respond. She felt lost and frightened. From the bedroom, she heard the cries of the other villagers. They were mad and confused. The voices grew louder for a moment and then faint, as the villagers wandered about, dazed. She was certain that the whole village was affected.

In the preserves, the affected animals had started to change. They were mad by animal standards, by then. They roared, screamed and collided blindly. Some had begun to duplicate limbs. Sivaraj Gadke grabbed his binoculars and observed their activity from his office.

‘Siva’s Trident! The animals are all contaminated.’

Suddenly, his dark side alerted him.

‘Neog must be affected too. I’ll grab his rover and visit Amruta.’

He rushed to his bicycle and checked the tires. There was enough air. He sat down and pedaled over to Kumar Neog’s kiosk. He needed not to enter. From the window, he saw Neog sitting and staring into the space around him. Neog was breathing faintly.  That confirmed his suspicion that Neog was affected.

‘Neog is mad now. What a pity! He’s leaving her for me.’

Gadke found the key in the ignition and climbed into the rover. Then, he started the engine and headed to the village. Certainly, Neog would not pursue him. When Gadke arrived at the village, the lanes nearest to the park had been seriously contaminated. The lanes included the lane in which the families of Dhanai, Ghondi and Bulbul had set up homes.  Gadke saw children run outdoors, shrieking madly.  He was both shocked and thrilled.

‘Now, the whole village must be contaminated. It will be a good excuse to take away Amruta.’

 Chapter Three. Gadke’s Connivance

Knowing the general panic in the village, Sivaraj Gadke conceived quickly to use it as an excuse to kidnap Amruta Neog. While he was heading for the bungalow, he noticed that the rear of the rover contained some needed supplies such as dust rags and rope. There was a length of hemp rope, abouit ten meters long, and two rags for dusting. His darker mind conceived of tying her up and gagging her before carrying her away. He revved the engine of the rover and rushed towards Kumar Neog’s bungalow. Amruta suddenly rushed out, screaming fearfully. He observed that she was confused and frightened, but not yet mad like the others. She almost collided into the rover. He swerved and braked.

“Mister Gadke, where is Kumar?”

“He must be at his kiosk, Amruta. He is dangerous. Get in. We’ll go to my house. It is safer.”

Amruta was scarcely able to suspect his motive. Since the village was affected by then, the preserves must be seriously contaminated and Kumar Neog would be too. She climbed into the rear of the rover. She overlooked the supplies and sat down. Gadke climbed after her and grabbed the rope. Within moments, he had bound her hands behind her back. She stared at him, puzzled and scared. He stuffed a rag into her mouth and tied her scarf over that. Then, he resumed his seat at the wheel and rushed away. En route to his bungalow, about two kilometers from the park service office, he warned her with a sneer in his voice.

“Amruta, there is no chance of rescue. Neog must be seriously poisoned by radiation, like the village. If he comes, he will surely contaminate you. You’d best stay with me from now.”

“Mmmmmmmmmm!”

Amruta could scarcely believe that he would use the situation to kidnap her. He raced away from the village limits and headed back to the preserves. As he drove past, he noticed the extent of the contamination.  Trees and shrubs along the trail had dulled to gray hue and the bark was dry and brittle. He swerved the rover to avoid falling dead limbs and branches. Forms close enough to be seen no longer resembled the fauna of the forest. They were neither quadrupeds nor known species. Rhinoceroses had huge, sharp horns growing from their noses and their eyes were essentially blind. Their feet were lined with sharp nails. Elephants had grown to mammoth size and their trunks, when raised, seemed to include eyes or claws.

Gadke hurried onward to his bungalow. The plot around it was unaffected  and he parked the rover beside it. Then, he unloaded Amruta. She was duly frightened, since she had seen the transformations too. He carried her inside over his shoulder and lay her on the floor in a corner.

“Don’t hope, Amruta. No one will come for you.”

“Mmmmmmmm!”

Chapter Four. Night and Nightmares

Certainly, Kumar Neog would not try to rescue Amruta. He sat in his kiosk and his skin, poisoned by radiation on contact, began to change. Its hue darkened into a coal black and decayed. It lost moisture too. His face had deformed into a horrid mask of dissolution, as though burned by acid. He writhed and moaned in agony and stared blindly at the space around him. His teeth began to rot. Eventually, he lost his senses and the darkness engulfed him.

The village children included the boys who volunteered to help Neog, were equally deformed. Some of them went mad enough to be locked away. Their mothers were no better off. When the house owners of the village returned home, they discovered that their homes were as erratic and wild as lunatic asylums. Wives and children were wan and pale, and starved, and howled madly into the night air. A spontaneous exploration of the premises revealed traces of radioactive water in the urinals of their outhouses and the tap water in their kitchens. One outhouse had an unbearable odor like putrefaction and the same green glow as the preserves.

  Night slowly fell over all. In the preserves, the vegetation became iridescent and glowed like light bulbs. It seemed that a retroactive particle within them suddenly became proactive and re-activated. The fauna continued to mutate.  They assumed unrecognizable shapes with numerous limbs, some with heads growing from their chests, and they lost their appetites. Carnivorous predators avoided their herbivorous prey, suspecting that the herbivorous animals had digested radioactive vegetation. However, the herbivores had avoided the affected vegetation.

In his bungalow in the park, Gadke telephoned Sunil Bhose to warn him.

“Bhose, we will have to postpone our venture indefinitely. The game is affected by an unknown radiation.”

“What? Radiation?”

“Right! A meteor crashed in the park and apparently it contained radioactive matter. The game has mutated.”

“Oh, my GOD! OK. Just  call back when things revert.”

“Of course.”

Amruta sat and stared at him, but he ignored her momentarily. Having vaguely overheard his dialogue on the telephone, she was shocked that Gadke colluded with someone about hunting and poaching in the preserves. He was not the man she thought he was.

“Ummmmmmm!”

Gadke turned to her for a moment.

“Are you surprised, Amruta. He is Sunil Bhose, and he outfits game hunters. He planned to start here this year but the animals have changed. You can know, but you have no chance to tell anyone.”

She shuddered. She tried not to imagine how he would dispose of her. He declined to tell her at that moment.