"We're here!" Annabella woke him up.

Seeing her face up close first thing as he awoke was a pleasant thing.

'I could get used to it,'  he thought with a smile on his face.

"What?" she asked, smiling back.

"Nothing," he replied, getting out of the weird bed.

"Come on, you've got to see this!" she went out of the hatch and it would seem the rest of them did too.

How the doctor get out through the hatch, was the first thing that crossed his mind, but then ... he stood up.

My limp ... it's gone?

He tried to move his leg and indeed, it was fully healed. He then noticed his whole body lacked any usual small pains and he felt invigorated.

"Come on Smythe!" he heard her voice again.

"Coming!" he yelled cheerfully, going first to get his cane out of the dashboard and then rushing out to see what was so exciting.

As soon as he protruded his head he recognized the place. It was the place from his dreams, with many unexplainable colors and black tubes connecting its various parts.

"Come with me, we should hurry ... " he tried to warn them, remembering a certain creature that rendered him blind in an instant. He knew they were safe inside the tubes where the creature doesn't fit.

"Wait, wait, wait ... "said Pickman, "Where do you think you're going with the cane? Leave it in the vessel."

"Why? This way no one can leave without the others," Smythe protested.

"No one except you," Pickman replied.

"Then all you have to do is keep an eye on me," Smythe winked.

"And you bet I will," said the archaeologist.

Smythe led them into the tubes. They were dark, ribbed, and slimy. The group had to take it slowly, talking about how it was a miracle that their wounds are healed. After some time, they reached a large chamber. It was full of peculiar things and everyone went their way to examine what was most interesting to them.

"Look at this ... it can't be," the archaeologist had his hands on an oddly shaped skull.

"And this ... what is it?" Annabella examined a strange glass pod with a small creature inside, like a glowing mouse, but larger.

Leah was examining some strange instruments.

Come to me ...

He finally heard it. Smythe was wondering when the voice will turn up and his desires were met. Seeing everyone occupied, he snuck away into one of the hallways. After following it for a bit, he finally reached the chamber with a yellow light coming from an organic bubble.

"I'm here ... I'm here my love," he came closer and took off his glasses.

The bubble opened, letting the liquid out and revealing the being inside of it.

"A-aaaaaagh! W-what ... what ARE you!?" Smythe screamed in terror as his eyes ran over the strange engrossing details of the creature.

It had many eyes in rows along the edges of a greyish face that looked like a vertical slit, from which protruded many white wet tendrils. Its head was a messed up jumble of too many parts sticking out with purposes unknown and unimaginable. It moved in an unnatural way, twitching and jolting as if its very existence was a painful experience. It had small transparent wings on its back and stood on five small spider-like legs, but was as tall as the man himself. Its body was symmetrical but in a way that was just repulsive. Not with a simple left and right side but with five symmetrical parts, each having a long squiggly limb trying to reach for the professor's arms and legs.

His face bore an expression of horror and dread at the sheer ghastliness of the creature.

1 ... 2 ... 3 ... *click*

Smythe thrust his blade into the creature's slit and the song in his head turned into a voice of deeply disturbing screams and words unpronounceable by the human mouth.

He turned and ran. Ran as fast as his legs would carry him. Not caring where the rest of the group was, he tried to reach the vessel, only to find that it was gone.

"They ... left without me ... " he knelt and despaired, "How could they ... how could they leave without me?!!"

Smythe! ... .Smythe!!!!

"Professor  Smythe! Wake up! We're here!"

"What?" he held his head, trying to make sense of things.

"The vessel stopped in a cave of some kind and the hatch opened on its own," said Annabella, "Come on! Everyone's already outside."

"Wait ... " Smythe grabbed her arm, "How did Leah get out?"

"You won't believe it but his injury is completely healed!" she said enthusiastically.

Smythe's eyes widened. He quickly stood up but to his surprise, still had the limp and almost fell.

"Take it easy!" said Annabella who misinterpreted his mistake for excitement.