Spider World 05 - The Magician by Colin Wilson

Author:Colin Wilson [Wilson, Colin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Sci-Fi., Science Fiction
Publisher: Grafton
Published: 1992-04-03T23:00:00+00:00

As he approached the hospital, Niall saw that the main doorway was blocked by a small crowd. The hall beyond was also full of people, and a babe in arms was crying lustily. Niall made his way round to the rear entrance, and was relieved to find it deserted. The first person he saw when he stepped inside was Phelim.

"What's happening?"

"Word got around and they've all come looking for relatives."

At the far end of the corridor, three nurses were forming a human barrier to hold back the crowd, and a powerfully built woman, whom Niall recognized as the matron, was admonishing everyone to make less noise. The door of the room in which the unconscious bodies were laid out stood open. As they approached, a woman rushed out, her hands over her face, wailing noisily. Behind her, Simeon was shaking his head with angry disgust.

"Damn fool! She wants to take her husband back home. I told her he'd be better here." He noticed Niall, and made an obvious effort to regain his equanimity. "Hello, my boy. You can see what chaos we're in."

Half a dozen people were wandering around among the prostrate bodies, peering anxiously into unconscious faces. One of them, a dark-haired girl in a simple yellow dress, seemed vaguely familiar.

Boyd came into the room, carrying an oblong metal container, with a large and badly worn book balanced on top of it. He was obviously pleased with himself. "Look what I've found."

Phelim said resignedly: "Go on. What is it?"

"An ECT apparatus."

Simeon said: "A what?"

"Electro-convulsive therapy. Look, here's a piece about it." He opened the book and handed it to Simeon, who fumbled in his pocket and took out a pair of gold-rimmed spectacles, which he balanced on his nose.

Boyd watched his face anxiously as he read. "Worth trying, don't you think?"

Simeon said nothing for several seconds, then shook his head. "No. It's for curing depressives. And it recommends administering a light general anesthetic before use. These poor devils are already anesthetized."

"But it might wake them up."

"Too risky." The experiment with the snake serum had obviously made him cautious. "Thanks anyway."

Boyd shrugged disconsolately. As he left the room Simeon called after him: "Keep trying."

Niall said: "I think I may have the answer."

"To what?"

"Waking them up." He produced the box from his pocket, and slid back the lid.

"What on earth's that?"

"I found it in the hideout."

Simeon stared at it through his spectacles, then held the brown bottle up to the light. "What do you suppose it is?"

"I think it's antidote to spider venom."

Simeon's face brightened. He took up the quill and squeezed the bulb. "You could be right. This is obviously a crude hypodermic needle." Two spots of red on his cheekbones were the only indication of his excitement. He turned to Phelim. "What do you think? Should we risk it?"

Phelim said cautiously: "That's your decision. I'm only the assistant."

Niall understood his doubts. If the "antidote" killed the patient, it would be hard to know what to tell the relatives.

Simeon turned to Niall.

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