To a Fungus Unknown by Tracy William C

Author:Tracy, William C.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: colonization, fungus, hard sci-fi, LGBTQ+, mycelium, queer, science fiction
Publisher: Space Wizard Science Fantasy
Published: 2023-05-23T00:00:00+00:00

* * *

41 years 9 months after landing

Juliane blinked his eyes open.

“Where are we today, hmm?” he addressed the branch hanging above him. Branch wasn’t the right term, really. It drooped like a wilting stalk of celery, and the frond at the end shaded him from the sun. Creatures crawled along the length of it, seemingly made mostly of legs and eyes. They trailed strings of waxy material in patterns as they crossed over the ferny branch.

How long had he been outside the colony this time? At least a few weeks, he thought, by the state of his clothing. Every time he left, it quickly became covered with various sorts of ooze. That was from the creatures that climbed over him while he slept. Father Alvin had completely refused to launder his clothes the last time he visited. Probably for the best, as he didn’t want to be around them for long.

Now why was that? Even Father Alvin wasn’t that nagging. Why wouldn’t he want to—

He shuddered violently, until he could control himself once again. As his hands brushed his body they touched the pale skin on his chest, thighs and upper arms where creatures had—

He hadn’t been this rested in years, it felt like. Working for that dead-end accounting job had drained his very soul, while here…

Screaming, inside his head and out. His mouth tore open, and his yell shook the frond above him—

He had more muscle tone too. That’s what walking everywhere will get you, as well as climbing trees—or what passed for trees in the biomass—and the growing walls of the city.

Juliane got to his feet, pushing aside the hyphae that had climbed across his legs and chest as he slept. Tiny creatures flitted away, though he’d find some in his pockets later. He always did.

His hand shook so hard he couldn’t grasp the handle of the briefcase at first. Then it quieted. Everything always quieted.

“Can’t forget that, can I?” It was the most important thing. He carried it everywhere. Because if he let it out of his sight, that was when the screaming started in his—

“There. All ready for the day.” Juliane stretched, slung the briefcase across his back on the resinplast strap he’d made a few months ago, and started off deeper into the biomass, stepping through growths that reached for his legs as he walked. But nothing out here threatened him, past a few nips and scratches here and there.

He’d walked most of the morning before he saw another person.

“Morning!” he waved, and the other person waved back. Or at least he thought they did. It was hard to tell, with all the growth on them. It kept them upright, though barely. The head lolled to one side, one arm longer than the other. This one was one of the worst off he’d seen lately. Mostly they didn’t talk. Not the ones this far gone. Sometimes they screamed a little. He could do with screaming himself—

It was another hour before he saw Mancin, though he had felt the connection for some time.

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