Chapter Text
Caz hit the button, raising the cargo hoist and letting Innes out of the container he was trapped in. The older man silently ran to the crew lift, only looking back when he was surrounded by the metal of the lift tower. Caz sighed in relief; now it was his turn. He felt the waves of fear from the parasite, compounding with his own, but he shook it off. He had to be fast, before Muir saw either of them.
His hand stuck to the fence as he grabbed it to crawl under. He felt another stab of fear and frustration, it bringing a picture of Muir to the front of his mind. He tugged at it, sending back his own frustration, but it wouldn’t budge.
“Oh, I’m sorry, you poor wean,” he sarcastically whispered. “We’ll just stay in here and wait for Muir to find Innes. I’m sure that’ll help us get to the lift-”
“I CAN HEAR YOU!” Muir shouted, stumbling by the open area Caz was trying to get into. He jumped, shifting to hide behind some tanks, his hand coming free with the movement. He waited until the monster wandered farther away to give a silent sigh.
Look, we have to get to the crew lift, he thought at the thing, grabbing a wrench. The chopper’s gonnae leave soon, and we can’t let them leave without us, and especially not without Roy. He crawled part way under the door, throwing the wrench as far as he could into the fog. Just sit still and don’t do anything. It didn’t try to stop him this time as he stepped out.
Muir heard him as soon as he hopped over a crate, roaring and quickly giving chase from the other side of the deck. Caz picked up the pace, rounding the corner and heading straight for the crew lift. Innes ushered him in as he made it, hastily pressing the button and going to close the gate. Before he could latch it, a spidery leg shot out, shaking the entire structure and making them lose their balance. A tentacle shot of and grabbed Innes by the foot, trying to pull him out.
Caz managed to grab his wrist before he was taken. He held on, both feet on either side of the gate to keep them from being pulled out, but he could feel his hands slipping. He pulled harder, but the tendril around the other man’s ankle was stronger.
A little help?! he desperately thought, digging his fingers in. He felt the thing send back a suspiciously familiar mixture of frustration, annoyance, and smugness.
“Oh, I’m sorry, ya poor wean,” it brought up the memories of what he’d said earlier. Just sit still and don’t do anything.
Are you serious?! he snapped back. You annoying, disgusting wee-
“Ach- Caz!” Innes shouted up at him, hand slipping.
Alright, I’m sorry! he shouted in his head. I won’t complain so much, just help him! His hands slipped further up Innes’ wrist. I’ll let you out more! You can use your fucking tendrils! Christ, what else could you want… I’ll make Roy cook something for you? A bolt of excitement shot through him, and veins quickly pushed through his gloves to engulf his hands. Are you serious?
“C-Caz?!” Innes gasped, seeing the bony claws carefully forming to keep a hold of him. Tendrils flowed up Caz’s arms, curling around his shoulders and forming twisting and skeletal patterns across his back. Fleshy masses pushed through his boots, traveling up his legs and forming sharp claws at the ends.
They planted the balls of their feet on the railing and pushed off it, using the lengthening of their legs as extra force to pull Innes halfway in. When they were sure they wouldn’t lose their grip, they reached out one arm, stretching it to grab the back of the man’s boiler suit. They pulled him a little closer before lunging, lengthening the other arm to slice through the tendrils grabbing his ankle. They went tumbling back in the crew lift, Caz quickly recovering to check on the other.
“Innes? You alright?” he asked, crouching down on awkward legs to get a look at him. Innes scrambled back, leaving a small trail of blood from his ankle.
“Caz… You’re- you’re one of the monsters…” Innes quietly muttered, looking up at him in fear. He probably didn’t mean it, but Caz couldn’t help feeling hurt. He was suddenly aware of how hunched his back was, how his arms were bent at odd angles to avoid touching the ground, and how veiny his skin looked… Yeah, he probably really did look like a monster.
Before he could think of a response, the crew lift ground to a halt. They whirled around to see Muir pushing down on it with one of his spidery legs. “You… don’t… LEAVE ME!” he screamed, pressing down harder and suddenly tilting the platform when the mechanisms gave way. They both started sliding toward the open gate, but Caz shoved Innes out of the way, catching the injured man on the railing. They tumbled out, falling a short way to the ground. The tendrils fully wrapped around his head and the rest of his torso, cushioning their landing. They pushed themselves to their feet, twisting their head around.
Can’t see! Can’t see! Caz thought, panicked. He was met with impatience and a shifting in their face. Several points around the glowing eyespots opened up, blinking at the sudden light. That’s… that’s a lot of eyes, Caz experimentally moved a few. They were so spread out, they could see overlapping images in a wide angle all around them. They saw something coming at them from the side, but floundered in responding to it, not used to the new vision.
A tendril slammed them in the neck, immediately retracting to fling them across the deck. They spread their veins around their feet, anchoring them to the ground. They swirled their mass around the tentacle, forming a deep divot around it. Jagged pieces of bone erratically pushed through their flesh, lining the edges of the pit. In barely a second, sharp teeth slammed down, severing the tendril with a snap!
Muir cried out in pain, retracting it back into his mass. They ignored him, freeing their feet and beginning to circle. Their head barely reached his main body when he was low to the ground, and they were probably less than half his mass, but that wouldn’t stop them. He was just another puppet, thoughts and mind so suppressed, it couldn’t think straight. Them? They felt complete and very, very aware. Innes was still injured in the crew lift, and they had to keep Muir’s sights off him.
They trailed their claws just over the ground and opened their mouth, releasing a warbling growl. They had a meal to earn, after all.