Dream CLXXVII

We were at an abandoned base out in the wilderness, one that had been doing biological research.  The original team were all gone, as was most of the equipment and the supplies.  We were supposed to make sure that the area wasn't dangerous with biological infections.  The supervisor met us and outlined our mission.

I was to go down a rusted, disheveled corridor looking for signs of infestation.  As I walked slowly, I saw that there were several slimy patches on the wall, some of which occasionally throbbed.

I entered a room where some men sat at a table examining various lifeforms scraped from the walls.  They acknowledged me by nodding, and I nodded to them in return.

Just past a turn outside the room, an enormous yellow ant was building a nest in the wall.  The creature was at least three feet in length, with a skin that looked like polished plastic.  I backed away, and as I got to the corner I spotted something out of the corner of my eye.

It was hard to look at, because it kept shifting and changing to blend with the corridor; only its shadow as it jumped and leapt gave it away.  It looked like a collection of small blobs, each no larger than a grape, all in a grayish-green color.

I knew what it was, though, and I was frightened.  It was said that the touch of these things was enough to cause a man to start transforming into ooze, and this one was headed right for me.

I ran back into the examining room, asking the men to help me.  But one look at their dripping, running faces, with their mournful yet disinterested expressions, told me I was too late--they were already infected with the same parasite.

And then the thing jumped on me.

I duly reported to my supervisor, and noted my condition.  He scowled; I was going to have to go into quarantine.  The other men and I walked into a sealed-off section of the base, and the supervisor closed the door.  But just before he did so, he and I both saw that he was touching one of the globular creatures--it had perched itself on the doorknob.  His expression was one of sheer fright.

The next time I saw him, he was being led into our area.  His face showed the same disintegration.  And the person closing the door had a metal shield covering his hand...