This is Science Frictions on Hudson River Radio dot Com. Episode nine, The
Spitting Spider of Stony Points. It was a warm evening in the spring of
nineteen fifty four in Stony Point, New York, and the caviar and vodka
were flowing at the elegant home of the world renowned Russian scientist doctor Paulina Emkovna.
Doctor Amakovna, your place is lovely. We are quite delighted and honored
to receive your invitation to this dinner party. My pleasure. Professor styles.
People of learning need to get together and exchange ideas, speaking of which I
was hoping to discuss your ideas on matter transfer theory specifically. Oh good,
heavens, what is that? Slithering Out from under the couch came a huge
cobra, which promptly rose and fanned out its distinctive hood right next to the
hors d'oeuvres on the coffee table. Oh, don't worry about Charlie, he's
my daughter's pet spitting cobra. Just don't make eye contact or make any sudden
movements. Calmly walking over to the grand marble staircase, Doctor Amerkovna, a
very poised and aristocratic looking woman of about forty shouted up to her young daughter
Alexandra, Charlie is out of his cage again and frightening my guests. Coming,
Mom, Sorry, I guess I forgot to close his cage store again.
What have I told you, young lady about letting the inhabitants of your
venomous little najerie run around the house. Sorry, Mum, I won't let
it happen again. Come on, Charlie, you bad boy. The dinner
party guests, which consisted of scholars, scientists, and doctors from the Hudson
Valley University and all across the Hudson Valley, froze in terror at the sight
of the menacing deadly cobra, and worse than stunned when little Alexandrov walked right
up to him and picked him up as if he were a harmless bunny rabbit.
Sorry, everyone, he only spits his venom in your eyes when he
feels threatened, and you all look very friendly. Once Charlie was gone,
the guest all exhaled in relief. Three or four vodkas later, the incident
was all but forgotten as the party lingered into the wee hours well again It's
been a great pleasure, Doctor Amarkovna, and I do hope you will let
me in on your secret project very soon, of course, Professor Styles,
I do expect to make major breakthrough any day now. While the rest of
Stony Points slept, Doctor Amrakovna went into the basement of her extensive private lab.
Bizarre looking instruments and electronics line the walls, humming and beeping and whirring.
Possessing many important and lucrative patents and inventions. She felt her life's work
had all led up to these latest experiments, the dm RM pods, which
stood for dematerialize rematerialize. In other words, Doctor Paulina Amarkovna had discovered how
to teleport solid objects from one location to another. Every object in living creature
I have teleported from Pod A to Pod B has that I've intact and unharmed.
But before I present my discovery to the world, I must try ultimate
experiment, teleporting myself. The pods on either end of the lab looked like
futuristic phone booths on stairs roids, and when powered up, they caused all
the lights and Stony Point to dim momentarily. If this works, it will
be greatest invention in history of the world. I can feel it. I
am just moments away from something most scientists have never even imagined. I will
revolutionize the world. Setting a series of dials and knobs, doctor Emerkhovna took
a deep breath and stepped into Pod A. She had planned every detail except
for one tiny thing, something less than half an inch long. It had
eight spindley legs in a brownish body with black markings that looked like question marks.
It was known as Skyto's thoracica, commonly called the spitting spider. Doctor
Emerkovna's daughter Alexandra had named her pet spider Alice, but Alice had managed to
escape her glass enclosure and find her way into the lab, right into pot
A. Specifically, this is the moment, the moment that will change everything.
Doctor Amira Kovna didn't exactly know what to expect, but when all her
test animals appeared unfazed by the teleportation process, she hoped she wouldn't feel anything.
But now something felt terribly, horribly wrong. She felt torn to pieces
and rearranged with something foreign, alien, terrifying. What happening me? Twenty
minutes later, two shadowy figures jumped the wall to the Amira Kovna estate.
Tell me again, Tony, what are we looking for? A teacup?
No, you idiot, not a teacup? A tiara? What's a tiara?
A kind of crown, you know, like what royalty and rich dain's
were like with diamonds exactly, only this one has emeralds, big fat,
priceless green emeralds. Rumor has it that this doctor Emerkovna was actually a grand
duchess back in Russia. Uncle had a dog named Duchess Benny. Were you
born stupid or do you just work real hard at it? You know,
I'm a hard worker, Tony. That's what makes mean. You're such a
great team. You're the brains and I'm the muscle. Well, then muscy
yourself through the spacement door. Oh look at this, it's like something out
of the movies, with all these fancy gadgets. Don't touch anything. God
knows what this stuff does and it could kill us both. Don't worry.
I won't touch nothing. Hey, look there's a light over there. I
think someone's down here. Not likely at this hour. Wait, you're right,
someone is walking around. Quick, get down behind this table. The
two thieves crouched breathlessly behind a bench able, only to see an attractive female
figure from the thighs down. Nice games, she's coming this way. You
want I should slug her, knock her out. Looks like we don't have
a choice. Let's jump her at the same time on my mark three two
one, Ah Jesus, Spider, run, Benny, run for your life.
The two men hadn't gotten more than a few steps when the hideous creature,
who was half human, half spider, and half mutation, sprang forwards,
spitting a potent, venomous web with such force that had pinned the two
men against the basement wall. The monstrous creatures sprayed in a zigzag pattern,
leaving the hapless thieves immobilized from head to foot. Now completely at the creature's
mercy, Tony and Benny could do nothing but watch the enormous fangs of the
spider clamping down on that to finish the job. The ravenous hybrid with two
human legs and four spider legs, then silently crept out of the broken basement
door. Meanwhile, back in pod A, oh no, what's happened to
me? From the waist stone, I am spider, No Staggering on her
four spider legs, the now tiny mutated Russian genius crawled out of the pod.
She needed to get help to somehow find her daughter, but in her
panic and horror, she didn't see the drain in the floor a short distance
away on Lover's Lane, overlooking the Hudson River. Danny, it's almost morning.
We really have to go. I have to sneak into the house before
my parents get up. Just a few more minutes, Charley, I don't
want this night to ever end. No, Danny, my dad will kill
me and you if he catches us. Okay, okay, hey did you
see that? See what? Something over there in the bushes. Stop trying
to scare me now, Really, it's probably some peep in Tom. I'll
teach him a lesson he'll never forget. No, Danny, don't get out
of the car. Just let's go. Hey, you, I see you
come out of there. Ah, it's an enormy spider a rising up from
the bushes. The revolting creature sprayed her, paralyzing toxic threads, pinning Danny
to a tree. She then aimed for Shirley, who was still in the
car. Moments later, the two young lovers were snacks were the horrible spitting
spider of Stony Point. Will be right back with more of Science Friction theatime
on Hudson River Radio dot com. We now return to Science Friction Theater on
Hudson dot com. Stony Point Police Department, How can I help you?
What? Slow down? Honey? I understand you're scared. I see.
I'll send someone right over. Now. You just lock yourself in your bedroom
until we arrive. What's not all about stranger things? Sergeant? It was
the young daughter of that Russian scientist. Lady. She's crying so much I
could barely understand her. But she says her mom is missing and there are
two dead men in the basement. Are you sure this isn't some kind of
prank? Since when does anything like that happen in Stony Point? No,
this sounds legit. I got two daughters, so I know a frightened little
girl when I hear one. All right, I'll personally head over to the
Amerkovnez State. Call O'Brien and Hulback can tell them to meet me there.
Hey, seargeh over here. Someone busted in the basement door. You go
in yet? No? No, we were waiting for you. The three
officers drew their weapons and cautiously stepped into the basement lab for a moment.
They all froze in horror, and O'Brien and Halvack raced back outside to vomit.
God in Heaven, what on earth happened here? Those two men stuck
to the wall with these fibers. It looks like they dried shells of human
beings. The sight of the two victims became too much, even for the
sergeant, who had seen more than his fair share of atrocities during the war.
Come on, then, we have to get a hold of ourselves and
look for that little girl. The three policemen soon found the courage to re
enter the basement and proceed upstairs to find terrified little Alexandra hiding under her bed.
Did you find my mommy? No, dear, when did you last
year? At the party last night, I had to get Charlie out of
the living room. Who's Charlie? My pet? Cobra? Pet? What
cobra? It's a snake. I have a lot of cool pets. While
Officer Hulvack brought Alexandra to the station, the sergeant, an officer O'Brien searched
the house from top to bottom. They didn't find the doctor, but they
did find her daughter's pet menagerie. Look at all this, Every one of
these things could kill you. All them snakes and spiders and crawley things.
They gave me the creeps, h spiders. I wonder now, what do
you think, in salergeant? What happened to those two men? That fiber
stuff was silky and stinky like a spider's web. Oh Saints preserves, you're
not suggesting a giant spider did that? Are you? I know it sounds
crazy, but hey, sorry, Wilson just called. They found two more
bodies covered with those silky fibers over on Lover's Lane. Good God, we
might need more than just Saints to reserve us. Now. A short time
later, at Hudson River University, Yes, come in, doctor Brewster.
Are you ready to go? What? Where? Who are you? I'm
doctor Peggy Hall. The Stony Point police requested that you and I go up
there. They need our expertise. Oh yes, now, I remember you're
that bug lady, not bugs arachneuds. I'm an arachnologist. Yeah, whatever,
same thing. Not really, It's like saying you're an optical physicist.
Optical physics, that's an insult. It's nothing like nuclear physics. Well that's
kind of the way I feel when people call me the bug lady. But
if that's what you really want to call me, doctor Brewster, that's okay
with me. In fact, you can call me anytime. Why would I
need to call you? You're standing right here. Well, let's stop wasting
time and get this over with. I can't imagine why the police need a
nuclear physicist and a bug lady. Let's go, miss Wall. That's Hall,
Like my office is just two doors down the hall from yours. Whatever.
Poor Piggy Hall had had a terrible crush on doctor Sebastian Brewster for over
a year, but he didn't even know she existed, despite her not infrequent
attempts at throwing herself at him. But he barely spoke two words on the
drive to the address that the police had given them. Doctor Brewster, Doctor
Hall, A pleasure to meet you both. Thank you for coming. What's
all this about, Sergeant? I'm a very busy man, you know,
of course. Doctor Let me get right to the point. Are you familiar
with doctor Paulina Amrikovna. Yes, she's a brilliant scientist for a woman,
of course. Well, she's missing under very mysterious circumstances. I'm sorry to
hear that, but I'm a nuclear physicist, not a detective. Yes,
but we need you to do some detective work in her lab and tell us
what all the equipment is for. And why do you need me brace yourself,
doctor Hall. I said there were mysterious circumstances, but that was an
understatement. There are also two bodies in the basement. Bodies. How dare
you not mentioned as sooner? That's okay, doctor Brewster, I appreciate it,
but you don't need to protect me from such a site. I was
a nurse during the war. I'm not protecting anybody. I just don't want
to be anywhere near any bodies that might be contagious. I'm pretty sure these
men did not die from anything integious, Doctor Brewster. I do apologize,
though, You're right, I should have told you if you would prefer not
to go in, I'll request someone else. There is no one else.
If you need real answers, come on, let's get to it. Then.
Good heavens, that's disgusting. Oh my Oh my, it's beautiful.
What look at those incredible threads and the meticulous zigzag pattern for optimum neutralization of
the prey. The prey you mean, these two human beings who are horribly
murdered. Well, yes, their deaths are unfortunate. But as an arachnologist,
I am in awe. I can't even begin to imagine the size of
the species that did this species? What species, my spider? Of course,
it's obvious spider. You can't be serious. It would have to be
the size of a dog. Oh bigger than that, doctor Brewster, much
much bigger. Do spiders that big even exist food? Heavens no, not
that I know of, at least, and certainly not in Stony Point.
I will have to run some chests, but this looks like the handy work
of a spitting spider. Day sprey amuselaginous saliva to immobilize their prey, then
come in for the kill. Doctor Ball, you claim to be an irachnologist,
but I think you're a chiropterologist because you obviously have bets in your belfry.
Well, I don't know. There may be something to this. Doctor
Emerkovna's daughter Alexandra has quite a collection of spiders and other creepy crawley things,
any of them six feet tall. I know it sounds crazy, but maybe
this was all some weird experiment gone wrong. Will you please take a look
at her collection, doctor All Peggy Hall was like a kid in a candy
store. In Alexandra's menagerie, there were living species of things she had only
read about and had never dreamed she would see in person. Meanwhile, doctor
Brewster began examining all the exotic equipment in the lab. Unfortunately, at no
point did anyone hear the faint voice at the bottom of the drain. Back
in town, at the high school, local teams, unaware of the gruesome
murders, were gathering for a sock hop. Hey baby, gee gee,
you look swell tonight. Thanks Tommy. Maybe you and me kenwell get some
fresh air. Okay, it is kind of woman here. Tommy and Betty
Jean went to get some fresh air, but when they opened the door,
they were confronted with a horror beyond comprehension. It's a huge spider with human
legs. A monstrous spitting spider of Stony Point sprayed her toxic adhesive threads pinning
Betty, Jean and Tommy to the wall. The other kids tried to run,
but no one got out alive. Back at doctor amer Kovna's lab,
I'm telling you, Sergeant, it's unlike anything I've ever seen before. I
underestimated doctor amer Kovna's work. She is a genius, a hundred years ahead
of modern science. Great, but what does all this stuff do. From
what I can tell from her notes and these two big chambers that she calls
Pot A and Pod B, she has discovered away to deconstruct an object to
an atomic level in one of the chambers, send it across the lab,
and reconstructed in the other chamber. But that sounds like science fiction. So
does a six foot spider. What are you saying? Maybe the bug lady
is right? What if there is an enormous killer spider on the loose?
And maybe you're right too. This could all be an experiment gone terribly wrong.
Maybe doctor Amrikovna is not missing after all. Maybe something happened to her
when she tried to teleport herself. But something is missing in this equation.
Something doesn't add up. I just caught the tail end of what you're saying,
Doctor Brewster, now I think the missing part of this equation is Alice.
Alice, Who's she? I've been carefully examining Alexandro's collection, and there's
a name tag on a glass tank for Alice the spitting Spider. But the
leaders Ajar and Alice is gone. Hang on a moment so I can wrap
my head around this. So what you two are saying is that doctor Amrikovna
tried to send herself across the lab by scrambling her atoms and literally got her
mixed up with a deadly spider exactly. Of course, we'll need to capture
this mutated spider to determine the full extent of that mixing. Sounds to me
like we need to kill this abomination. Oh no, don't kill it.
This specimen would be of enormous value to science. Sergeant, Sergeant, what
is it? O'Brien? What's wrong? The high school dance? Everyone?
Everyone is dead? What they're all dead? My god? What happened?
It's just like the others. That's sticky stuff with spread all over everyone.
Those poor kids didn't stand a chance. That's it. Let's lock and load
and go spider hunting. Sergeant, I implore you, you must try and
capture this creature alive. I can prepare a strong sedative to knock it out.
If you just give us a chance, you can prepare whatever you want.
I have lives to save. Let's go. Wait. Did you hear
something? It's not just trying to stall doctor. No, No, she's
right. I thought I heard a voice too, hen me could God,
someone's in trouble. Where's the voice coming from? While the Sergeant Brewster and
Peggy had been arguing, they were standing next to the drain in the floor
and what was left of Doctor Emerkovna used every ounce of strength and determination to
crawl inch by inch up the slippery, dark drain pipe until she was able
to reach a single human arm through the grating. Oh look there, it's
it's a tiny person. What's the help me? I can't believe my eyes.
Here, grab onto this pencil. Using both hands as well as her
four spider legs, doctor Emrekovna grasped the pencil and was lifted out of the
drain and gently placed on the table. Officer O'Brien fainted and the others stared
in silent astonishment. Thank god, you hurt me. I am doctor Paulina
Amrakovna? Am I really looking at half a tiny Russian scientist in lingerie attached
to half a spider? Yes, I attempted to teleport myself and there must
have been a spider inside the pod with me. This is beyond comprehension.
What does the spider half feel like a living nightmare? You must put me
back together, Bun. But we don't know where the rest of you is.
You must find it soon. I can fear of the human and spider
biology battling one another. I won't last much longer. Doctor Brewster. You
stay here and learn everything you can about the teleportation process us in doctor Hall.
You come back to the station with me, and we'll see about trying
to sedate this creature. We'll be right back with more of science fiction Theaton
on Hudson River Radio dot com. And now for the exciting conclusion of science
fiction Theaton on Hudson Radio dot com. All hell had broken loose at the
Stony Point Police station, as the army had taken over when it rolled into
town with special response teams in strange protective gear with chemical trucks. Colonel,
what's this all about? We're here? You have a nasty spider problem.
Oh, we're evacuated in town, so we can spray everything with a heavy
duty pest aside. No one will be able to live here for a few
years. We can't let this deadly infestation spread. You don't understand. It's
just one giant mutated spider. Yeah, that's a good one. I figured
you'd say anything to save your town. Now get out of here and let
us do our job. We're already begun to spray there on the north side
of town. You can't do that. You have to listen to me.
Many escort the sergeant off the premises, and if he resists, perhaps a
butt of a rifle persuade him. Sergeant, please, let's just go.
I need to get to my lab at Hudson River University so I can make
the sedative solution, and we need to find a tranquilizer. God, all
right, go to your lab. I've got a buddy and animal control and
I can get a gun from him, and then I'll meet you within any
hour. As army trucks hastily transported terrified citizens out of town to make yourt
refugee camps, doctor Piggy Hall tried to calculate the amount of sedative to use
to bring down the human sized spider. Too much and it would kill it
and doom doctor Mrokovna to horrible death. Too little, and she would find
out firsthand what it was like to be the victim of a spitting spider.
Meanwhile, back at doctor Emerkovna's lab, No, seriously, you said that
to Albert Einstein. I swear it's the truth. Can I have another drop?
Okay, but go easy, this is very potent vodka. You have.
One of us needs to stay sober. Doctor Brewster used an eyedropper to
take some vodka out of his drink and then lowered it to the lips of
the miniature woman spider. He thought that, even as tiny as she was
and so hideously mutated, she was the most beautiful and fascinating woman he had
ever met. So once this is all over and we put you back together,
maybe you and I can have dinner to discuss physics. Of course,
I would like that, Doctor Brewster call me Sebastian. Please back at Hudson
River University, Oh, sergeant, right on time. I just finished preparing
the mixture here poured into these tranquilizer darts. How long will at last,
it should be enough to knock it out for hours, if we can find
it, and if it doesn't kill us first. Gee, thanks for the
pep talk. I'm just trying to be a realistic sergeant. You know this
is all a long shot, I know. So where do we begin to
look? Fiders prefer the dark. It will be light soon. Is there
anywhere near the high school? It could hide like a cave or an abandoned
building. No, wait, there is an old mine. We keep boarding
it up, but kids keep breaking into its party. Let's go. Half
of Stony Point had already been sprayed with the highly toxic pesticide. By the
time the sergeant and doctor Hall arrived at the entrance to the mine, dawn
was about to break, but it was still pitch black inside. Doctor Hall
switched on her flashlight. Here, look in the dirt at those footprints.
It looks like a combination of spider tracks and high heels. That's what all
the best giant spiders are wearing the season. Look out here it comes.
The bright beam of light fell upon the hideous face of the massive spider.
Its six glistening, bulbous, pearly white eyes and the gaping jaws of its
mouth that were preparing to spit. As terrified as he was, the sergeant's
ears of military and police training kicked in and he stood his ground and raised
his rifle. You hit it. It's staggering. The sergeant moved forward with
the rope to tie all of its legs together, but he didn't notice it
was still conscious. Look out, it's going to spits. Peggy sprang through
the air and pushed the sergeant out of the way, just as a stream
of sticky, toxic threads shot across the tunnel. Thank you, I've never
been so happy to be tackled by a woman. Now, let's get this
disgusting thing to doctor Amrikovna's lab and pray we can reverse the process before it's
too late. Ten minutes later, doctor Brewster, we captured the creature.
Help me get it out of the car and into the pod. My god,
it's even more horrible than I imagined. Nice Gams, though really quick,
we don't know how long this thing will be unconscious. The two men
carried the monster into pod A. Then doctor Brewster carefully lifted doctor Amerkovna on
his finger and placed her in the pod. Sebastion promise me. If this
doesn't work, you you won't let me suffer. But it will work.
It has to work. You know how to work these controls. Yes,
Paulina explained everything to me. Hurry, we're running out of time. The
army trunks are just minutes away. Brewster's hands played across the complex control panels
like a concert pianist. The pod sprang to life, and all the lights
and stony point dimmed for a few moments. Here it goes, I'm initiating
the process. Did it work? Is she back together in the other pod?
Yes? Yes, she looks humid again. And look there in the
corner is the little spitting spider. Thank the Lord, Paulina, Paulina,
can you hear me? Yes? I think I'm okay, but I feel
drugged. That must be the sedatives. It was still in your legs when
they were reattached. It should wear off shortly. We have to go.
The chemical trucks are getting closer, Sebastian, you must stop them. Come
closer. Brewster lowered his ear so doctor Amerkovna could tell him to call a
certain general at his private number, as well as what message to give him.
Five minutes later, all of the chemical trucks were recalled. Let me
carry you upstairs so you can get some rest, and I'll put knock a
little Alice back in her tank. Two weeks later, at police headquarters,
So sergeant, what kind of report are you going to file? What can
I say? If I tell the truth, we'll all end up in strait
jackets. You're right, it's best if we keep quiet. And Paulina is
pulling a lot of strings and I don't mean spider silk, to get officials
to find new homes and jobs for everyone who has been displaced. So you
and doctor Amrikovna than spending a lot of time together. Yes, she's a
truly remarkable woman. The fact that she turned into a giant killer spider and
murdered dozens of people doesn't bother you, no, Strangely, it just adds
to the whole fascination. But how about you and doctor Carl. She couldn't
stop talking about how big and strong and brave you were, the bug lady.
No, thank you to be nice. I took her to dinner and
all she talked about were meeting habits of tarantulas. Meanwhile, back at doctor
Emerkovna's house, Mommy, are you sure you're feeling all better? Yes,
dear, I'm fine. Stop blaming yourself for what happened. I was foolish
to try such an experiment on myself. Well, I decide to give up
on my menagerie. I'm going to study physics now and I'll be just like
you. Oh, dear, I don't know if that is such good idea
either. Now you're on along and have breakfast. I'm going to have a
nice hot bubble bath. As doctor Emerkovna went into the bathroom and slipped off
her robe, she nervously turned to the mirror to look at her back.
There were two large marks that were getting darker, marks in the shape of
question marks, the marks of the spitting spider. This has been Science Friction
Theater, a production of Hudson River Radio dot Com written by Nda Simony.
Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast so you'll never miss an exciting adventure.
See you next time. Don Science Friction Theater