Ghostfinders 02 - Ghost of a Smile

said JC. “When you’re up close like I was, you can sense what they’re thinking, what they want. Though it’s not so much thought—it’s more like brute, basic instinct, turned up to eleven. They want something from us . . .”
    “What?” said Melody. “What does a living organ want?”
    “They know they can’t survive for long like this,” said JC. “They were built to survive, but they’re not self-sufficient. So they want in, where it’s safe. Don’t you get it? They want to get inside us! ”
    “I am leaving now,” said Happy. “Women and children should try and keep up.”
    “Too late,” said Kim.
    They all looked at her, and she pointed behind them. While they’d been discussing the situation, the living organs had quietly surrounded them. They were crawling across the walls and the windows, and hanging from the ceiling, and rows of the red and purple things had moved to block the way back to the exit doors. And all of them were slowly closing in on the group, with blind, unstoppable purpose.
    “Now can I use my machine pistol?” said Melody.
    “Be my guest,” said JC. “Go for it.”
    The machine pistol was already in Melody’s hand. She smiled tightly as she opened fire on the living organs. Hearts and livers the size of heads exploded messily, spattering the surrounding organs with rich red blood. The membranous surfaces drank it all up thirstily. Melody raked her gun back and forth, blasting away organ after organ; and then she ran out of bullets. She looked at the gun and shook it angrily, like that might help. She swore briefly and looked at the others.
    “You have used up a lot of ammo recently,” said Happy. “Dare I inquire whether you have any more? Only I think we really should— Oh shit! ”
    “Don’t let it touch you!” yelled Kim, as Happy retreated quickly from a rapidly pulsing heart. “It could be really bad if it touches you!”
    “Blunt-instrument time, people!” said JC, grabbing up a very large, very heavy microscope from a nearby table. The others quickly armed themselves with similar items, except for Kim, who drew up her legs and hovered, sitting in mid air. The living organs hunched up and launched themselves through the air at their targets. They flew at impossible speed, on the unseen wings of unknown energies. JC lashed out with his improvised weapon and caught a pulsating heart in mid air. His hands and arms vibrated painfully from the impact. It was like striking something really hard and solid, and he remembered that a heart is basically one big muscle. But the sheer impact smashed the oversized organ apart, scattering bloody pieces like a rain of offal. More organs launched themselves, and the group stood together, guarding each other’s backs, lashing out with their blunt instruments, sending blood and bloody pieces flying through the air every time they connected. It was hard work, every impact shaking the group to their bones, and they were soon sweating profusely and gasping for breath. And still the living organs came, driven by brute basic instinct to get back where they belonged, inside a human body. Happy cried out with disgust every time he hit something, and Kim moaned in terror as the things drew steadily closer.
    An oversized liver, dark purple like a veined balloon, shot straight for Melody’s face. It came at her from an unexpected angle, and she only got an arm up in time to block it. The heavy organ clamped onto her arm, wrapping around it, and the sheer weight was almost enough to pull her over. The heavy muscles in the liver ground against her arm, trying to crawl up the arm to reach her face, her mouth. Melody dropped her weapon and grabbed at the organ with her hand. Her fingers skidded helplessly from the tough, leathery exterior. Secreted acids stung her palm and fingers.
    “Don’t let it near your mouth!” yelled Kim. “It wants to crawl inside you!”
    “I know!” yelled Melody.
    She stopped grabbing at the liver, pulled back her head, and head-butted the ugly thing. The impact sent her staggering backwards, but the liver lost its grip on her arm and fell away. It hit the floor hard but didn’t break. Melody picked up the nearest chair and clubbed the organ to death.
    Happy tried to stop the advancing organs with a telepathic blast, summoning all his mental strength to force an attack past the deadening oppression that weighed on his mind, but even his concentrated disbelief couldn’t affect things that had