Gardens of Destruction

Chaos reigned in the base as the sun soared past its zenith. An urgent evacuation was in full swing. Scientists and staff frantically loaded their belongings onto trucks, while boarding buses that had arrived specifically for this purpose. A sense of relief was palpable among the evacuees, eager to distance themselves from the asteroid and its mysteries.

“Relieved to be leaving, aren’t they?” General Patterson observed, watching the departing scientists through his office window.

Professor Bernstein, engrossed in reviewing the previous day’s mission recordings on his monitor, responded without looking up, “Most, but not all. For one, I’m glad to be staying.”

“I never promised you such a luxury!” General Patterson feigned indignation.

Bernstein, missing the jest, replied earnestly, “I have nowhere else to go, nobody waits for me.”

“Relax, Joseph, you’re not going anywhere,” Patterson reassured his white-haired colleague.

“But you see how dangerous it is here! I can’t count on the base successfully defending against more of those... things out there.”

“The ingenuity of nature is terrifying,” Bernstein mused, nodding. “Our millennia-advanced weapons failed to stop those creatures. It suggests nature equipped them with formidable defenses. I shudder to imagine the survival battles they must have fought on their home planet.”

“Do you think they were the original inhabitants, the builders of... this thing?” the general inquired, intrigued.

“My guess is they were ткяш soldiers, assuming they have such a hierarchy,” pondered the professor.

“Perhaps they’d hesitate to reveal themselves, and we’re still unsure about their living conditions. They might not tolerate our atmosphere, or maybe they don’t need one at all. Who knows?”

“Enough with your theories! They might intrigue you, but not me. I want to rid us of these intruders quickly, with minimal casualties if possible.”

“Is the captain coming?” Bernstein asked, changing the subject.

“I’ve ordered him summoned as soon as he wakes up. He’s been sleeping for over eight hours since our brief talk last night.”

“Wasn’t the treatment of that Russian a bit harsh?” Bernstein looked reproachfully.

“What, placing him under guard? No, everyone here must learn that orders are to be followed. They knew they weren’t allowed near the asteroid. But no, they had to check, risking their man’s life for more information!”

“Aren’t we doing the same?” pondered the professor.

“Regardless of your thoughts, my orders and prohibitions will be followed in this base, or it’s anarchy.”

“But he saved the captain, didn’t he? And he’s seen things up close. Don’t you want to call him in to learn more?”

“No, Bernstein, it’s a matter of principle. I didn’t want their help. I won’t ask for it now. Don’t worry, the others are leaving. I’ll keep the big guy locked up for a few days, then send him on his way. Let’s not let him know our plans, though; he needs to learn discipline and respect.”

“May I then go see him? I would like to talk to him.”

“Do you know how annoying you can be?” Patterson frowned.

“I know, and it’s hard for me to bear myself!” Bernstein smiled, revealing coffee-stained teeth.

Patterson carefully opened a box of cigars, taking one out. A hint of pleasure crossed his face as he sniffed it but didn’t light it.

“Fine, you can go see him,” he sighed, sinking into his armchair.

Bernstein’s smile widened in triumph. A sudden, anxious knock at the door disrupted the moment.

“Come in!” barked the general.

The room grew tense with anticipation as the awaited figure silently entered. General Patterson invited the newcomer with a calm demeanor, “Please, Captain, take a seat with us.”

The soldier approached a chair and sank into it wearily. The heavy bags under his eyes betrayed his fatigue and stress, a stark contrast to his usual demeanor. His clothing, crumpled and carelessly buttoned, suggested an indifference to the general’s potential reprimand for his unkempt appearance.

“You alive, Captain?” General Patterson inquired formally.

“I’m fine, Sir,” Mark replied listlessly, his gaze wandering, barely focusing on anything or anyone in the room.

“Are you sure? You don’t exactly look fine, despite what the doctors say,” Patterson observed suspiciously.

Captain Davidson exploded in frustration, “What do you want me to say, Sir? How should I be? We failed our mission, didn’t save the child, my men are all dead, and I narrowly escaped death from that metalic monster. And the man who saved my life is in custody. How would you feel in my place?”

“Calm down, Captain!” Patterson said more gently. “We didn’t summon you to torment you. The professor and I just want a personal account of what happened. You’re seemingly the only survivor.”

“And the Russian,” Mark added.

“Yes, let’s leave him be for now. We don’t know what he did there and how far he got. We prefer to hear your version.”

Captain Davidson paused, then began his narrative uncertainly. In a crisp, methodical manner, he described the obstacles encountered during the mission. He spoke of the chamber with humans attached to bizarre devices and detailed the altered humans’ attack, their resilience to death, and their strange weapons. He then recounted the creature that slaughtered everyone, his voice quivering slightly as he remembered the horror.

“Would you like something to drink, Captain?” Professor Bernstein interrupted, his voice full of genuine sympathy.

“A whiskey would be nice, Professor,” Davidson nodded, smiling faintly at the anticipated relief the alcohol would bring.

After a few sips that calmed his nerves, he continued. He described the Russian’s sudden appearance, how he used one of the deformed humans’ blades, probably found among the bodies left behind, to stab the creature. The creature’s reaction to the stabbing, though not fatally wounded, bought them some time.

He then spoke of their escape through the tunnels, their encounter with the strange beings, and how the Russian stopped him from shooting at them. Professor Bernstein listened in awe, his mouth agape, absorbing every word, as if attending a lecture by a Himalayan guru.

A heavy silence settled in the room as everyone processed the captain’s account.

“An intriguing story, Davidson. You’re the first to give a firsthand account of the asteroid’s interior,” General Patterson concluded wearily.

“You’re a hero in my eyes,” he added without a hint of irony.

“Nonsense, Sir! I’m a coward!” Davidson started dejectedly. “I abandoned my comrades to those creatures, didn’t save the child, I don’t deserve your praise.”

“Enough, Davidson, you’re not Superman! I didn’t expect you to single-handedly conquer the asteroid. You did all you could, we know not those people couldn’t be saved, they no longer belong to the human race.”

“Besides,” Patterson continued, “you made first contact with them and provoked them enough to reveal themselves and pursue you. We’ll analyze everything and maybe be better prepared next time.”

Professor Bernstein sat silently, deep in thought.

“Captain?” he began. “Are you sure you didn’t encounter the barrier when you entered?”

“No, Professor, I told you before, and now that you ask, I don’t remember feeling it on the way out either.”

“Strange,” Bernstein mumbled. “Why would they remove the shield? It must have hindered them. If it indeed works both ways, they probably had trouble moving in and out, especially at high speeds.”

“Let’s not delve into that, Bernstein,” the general interjected, dampening his enthusiasm.

“The important thing is that the object is now open for an attack from the air!”

“When do you plan to order the attack, Sir?” Mark chimed in.

“Why do you ask?” Patterson eyed him suspiciously.

“I want to go back there, Sir! With more people, I want to get revenge...”

“Hold on, calm down. For now, we won’t send more people there. Now that their shield is gone, we’ll first try air strikes to neutralize the object. But we must finish the evacuation first.”

“Yes, I noticed all the civilian personnel leaving,” Mark noted.

“We’re not just evacuating them. We’re evacuating all towns within a hundred kilometers. We need to ensure that if the object falls, it won’t land on a populated area. And we don’t know how they’ll react to the attack, or whether they’ll depopulate another town as punishment.”

“Understood, Sir!” Davidson nodded. “Do you need me for anything else? I’d like to withdraw.”

“Yes, my boy, go rest,” General Patterson dismissed him.

After Captain Davidson left the room, General Patterson turned to Professor Bernstein.

“What do you think?”

“The boy is in shock. We have the videos, but we can’t imagine what it’s like to experience it live. This man faced unknown life forms and fought for his survival. I suggest not bothering him for a while. He needs to cope with the stress.”

“Bernstein, many around me, including myself, have to deal with this stress,” Patterson said.

“And what about Jana, General?” Bernstein changed the subject with a concerned tone.

The general sighed heavily and leaned back in his chair, eyes fixed on his desk clock.

“I don’t know, Joseph, I don’t know. How do you tell a mother she’ll never see her child again? She refuses to leave, convinced the little girl is alive! What do we do, send her to a hospital, or an asylum? They’ll destroy her completely there. I have no idea how to handle this.”

“She needs to be sent for treatment, General,” Bernstein said gravely. “Her condition might worsen if she stays here. And she might harm herself when she realizes the truth.”

“I feel guilty, Bernstein, I couldn’t protect the child, my arrogance didn’t consider that they could abduct people from an entire town.”

“This is a trial for all of us, nobody is infallible. The important thing is that we’re trying to protect humanity!”

“Thank you, my old friend, I need that confidence!” Patterson forced a smile.

***

A humanoid figure, draped in a purple mantle, stood eerily still, surveying the lifeless form of the spider-legged monstrosity. The air thrummed with a low, angry whisper, a sound that seemed to emanate from the very essence of the strange being. Among the carnage, one soldier, barely clinging to life, caught the creature’s attention.

With deliberate, unnerving grace, the creature approached the dying man. Its hands, unnaturally wide and deft, reached out, gently but firmly prying open the soldier’s chest as if it were no more than a cabinet of curiosities. There was a sinister gentleness in its movements, a meticulous care that belied the horror of its actions.

Within the cavern of the soldier’s chest, the creature placed a small, luminescent crystal structure. The crystal glowed faintly, pulsating with an otherworldly light, as if imbued with a life of its own. The air around them seemed to shimmer with a silent power, a moment suspended in time, blending the macabre with a twisted form of beauty.