SODIUM Trilogy Part One

by Stephen Arseneault

  The demon walked to the ship, putting a leg up into one of the dome-shaped cutouts, followed by a second leg. When secured, it lifted its third leg and pulled itself up into the cutout. It was a perfect fit. The alarm bells then started going off in my head. The ship had five such cutouts. It carried five such demons. Were there two more walking around we had not yet seen?

  This information was huge, and I would want to get it back to the others as soon as possible—that and the fact Kyle was not there. I dreaded being the deliverer of the bad news, but there was no alternative.

  When the demon secured itself in the cutout, it was almost a seamless fit. The rim that once outlined the top of its body was now almost imperceptible on the bottom side of the demon ship.

  The rotating eyes, which had stopped when the demon approached, were once again on the move, going around every fifteen seconds. With nothing more to see, I turned my gaze toward the animal parts and other gathered resources.

  After scanning them, I stopped and focused my eyes on what looked like a human hand. A chill ran down my spine as I stared at what I thought might be part of the remains of Kyle. I was not certain of what I was seeing at the distance I was, but I could not venture closer to get a better look, not without the risk of getting caught. It was time to return to the others with what I knew.

  As the ship's eyes rotated away, I slowly crept my way back through the brush. I waited a few minutes at the other end of my natural cover to make certain the damaged demon was not lurking about. I then stood and quickly moved from tree to tree until I once again reached the open area. This time, instead of belly crawling, I decided on an all-out run to get below. It was too steep of a downhill angle to move quickly. Half of the energy for each step was spent trying to slow myself down.

  When I reached the other tree line, I stooped to get my pack. Once it was again secured, I moved at as fast a pace as I could control. The steep terrain along with the many tree roots and loads of pine straw made for a slippery and dangerous trek.

  It had taken me more than two hours to get to the top of the summit, but only twenty minutes to come down. The sun was beginning to get low in the sky, and I did not want to be stuck out in the dark by myself. I continued moving at a hurried pace, as much as I was able.

  I was soon back around to the ridge where the others lay. The hike up to our new camp was extremely tiring, as I had been hurrying to make it back before dark. The last glow of the already set sun was fading fast when I finally reached them.

  I was out of breath and had to sit for a few minutes before I could speak. I told them Kyle was nowhere to be found, but I did see what I thought was a human hand. This of course, sent Susi into a sobbing depression.

  I gave her a long hug and whispered to her that just because I had not seen him did not mean he was not still out there. It was all I had to offer. I then told of the mothership and the five cutouts. We were up against a formidable opponent and would have to plan accordingly.

  Chapter 14

  * * *

  The girls had been fast at work during the day and had gathered quite the stockpile of wild strawberries, gooseberries, pine nuts, and a number of different tubers. All were edible, according to Bull and Allie, and while some were not the best tasting, they all went down good. It brought a bit of satisfaction to the immense hunger I had been feeling.

  As I sat back with a moment to think, I was amazed how it was not too terribly difficult to live off the land if one knew what they were doing. I briefly thought about the local Indians who had done it for centuries before being run off by the new Californians just before the Civil War. I was so used to buying everything in a can, bag, or box, or from a butcher, that it had never occurred to me that nature offered quite the bounty. It was all-providing if you knew where to look and how to make use of it.

  As I sat and ate, Allie continued to comfort Susi. I began to tell of my other findings. I told of the fact there had been five demons, even though we had only seen three. I told of the fact they were gathering material and stacking it near their ship. I told of the poacher Scott and how he had been bound to a tree and seemingly drugged.

  I then told about the trap I had almost been caught in and about how we would have to be careful with any approach of the summit; there were bound to be other traps waiting. The alien machines were crafty, and we would have to watch our every step. We would also have to be wary on our hikes, as they were constantly on patrol.

  Bull was emboldened to hear I had not spotted any weaponry on the mothership. It was only speculation on my part, as there was no reason to be displaying weapons if there was no imminent threat. But it gave us hope nonetheless.

  With Kyle still missing, we considered leaving. We could always get the authorities to come back to rescue Scott. But Bull was adamant about freeing the human hostage. He was not going to leave his fellow man to the mercy of the mechanical beasts. It was a trait I had always admired in my friend: he would always stand up for what was right, even in the face of ultimate danger.

  We talked for several hours, throwing out any idea that came to our minds. We finally came to a consensus that we first needed to reduce their numbers before considering an assault of any kind on the mothership; that was, if we would be able to get close to it at all without having it fly away.

  Our initial plan was to try to lure the demons away from their camp one by one. I liked the boulder trap they had nearly gotten me with, but there was no way we could move enough of the large rocks by ourselves without the proper equipment. The demons certainly had strength on their side for setting up something like that.

  We would need to be clever. And in order to lure them in, we would have to use ourselves as bait. I quickly volunteered as the piece of meat for whatever trap we came up with. After my day’s recon adventure and our battle planning, I was charged with adrenaline.

  But as Bull and Allie began to talk strategy with each other, my eyelids suddenly became like lead weights. The day’s activity, with only the trout and berries to eat, had left my body weary. I decided I would just rest my eyes for a few minutes as the others talked. In half that time I was fast asleep. The night passed quickly.

  We were all up at first light, discussing what we might do. I was somehow bursting with energy. Woods Creek was just below our encampment. Our ridge was not visible from the creek, and the creek was not visible from Woods Ridge... or by the demons. The terrain on either side of the creek moved steeply uphill and offered many places for an ambush.

  It was decided I would lie in wait until only one demon was visible from up on the ridge. I would then try to draw its attention and lure it down along the creek. Bull, Allie, and Susi would be waiting with an ambush along the steepest section. They would have good cover and it would be difficult for the demon to reach them. The girls would each have a 9mm, Bull would have his .45, and I would be running for my life.

  I hiked up and down the section of creek where we wanted the demon to give chase. I wanted to be as familiar with it as possible... and able to move as fast as I could when I needed, as the demons were agile. I would be running without my pack, which would be a big relief. After a week in the woods, my legs felt much stronger than when we had started our trek.

  I had a surprising amount of energy given the fact I had hardly eaten for several days. I was all pumped up and ready to take out another alien invader, with only my bat if need be. As a precaution, I made my way to a pool in the creek, knelt down, and made my call to Minhafa. Again, I was after any advantage I could gain.

  It was mid-morning by the time we decided to set the trap. I made my way to the base of the creek, just out of sight of the demon camp, still almost a thousand feet away. Allie and Susi got themselves into position to get their best angle of attack. They would be well protected if the demon began another rock-throwing barrage.

  Bull had his spot picked out and had moved around on the ridge. He was scanning the demon camp for the lone demon. Two had been moving about all morni
ng, and one had just gone around the ridge toward the mothership.

  Always the prepared outdoorsman, Bull had a small signal mirror. He would use it to give me the go-ahead. Since Allie was also the prepared outdoorswoman, she had also packed a signal mirror. I was given her mirror to use to try to draw the demon's attention from as much of a distance as I could. With all the pieces of the plan in place and with the single demon visible on the ridge, Bull decided it was time to go. A set of bright flashes from his mirror set the plan in motion.

  As I began moving into full view of the demon camp, I knew I was in for a wild ride. If anything were to go wrong, such as a slip and fall, or if any other mishap were to slow me down, I could easily be overtaken by the beast before reaching the others.

  I got to within eight hundred feet before I began flashing the demon with the bright sunlight from a cloudless day. The demon was facing away from me when I began. It stopped doing whatever it was doing when it noticed the glow reflecting off the terrain around it.

  The lone demon slowly turned its body around until the red eyes were facing directly at me. For almost a minute it just stood and stared as if daring me to come closer. Once I had its full attention, I began to jump up and down and swing my bat around in as cocky a manner as I could.

  It then began to slowly move downhill in my direction. I turned and began to move away while still making as much of a commotion as I could. As the demon came toward me it began to pick up speed. At that moment I knew it was time to hustle down the creek.

  I turned and ran back toward the cover I had left just moments before. I stopped and gave one last look back to make sure I was indeed being pursued. Our plans and my fears were both confirmed. I could see the demon was in a full run and was gaining on me fast.

  I turned again and began the run for my life down along the creek, bounding from rock to rock and from open space to open space. I felt good about my lead and the fact I knew exactly where I was going.

  But that feeling did not last as the first barrage of fist-sized rocks began to strike the terrain around me. Any of the projectiles coming from the demon could prove instantly deadly, or at best, could stop my progress cold.

  I had nowhere to hide as I ran and jumped while moving down the creek. Distance and the fact I was naturally moving from side to side were my only defenses. The demon continued its run at full speed as it picked up and launched its missiles.

  It was covering three times the ground I was, and it was gaining on me fast. With each step closer it got, the more accurate its throws became. I was beginning to believe I had cut it too close when our ambush area finally began coming into view.

  One of the small rocks burst on a boulder as I was passing, showering me with painful bits of debris. Just one of those throws properly placed could spray me in the face with enough shrapnel to halt my run. I was within a hundred feet of the ambush when a rock brushed my side, leaving a small scrape on my ribs as it tore a hole in my shirt.

  I began to bob and weave as much as possible while still trying to keep my balance and speed. My goal was to reach a large boulder, where I would be provided a moment's protection while the others opened fire. The last hundred feet seemed to take an eternity.

  As I reached sixty feet, the demon decided to use my hiding place against me. It began to relentlessly target the side of the boulder as I approached. I would have to run directly through the frag of the shattering rocks in order to make it behind cover.

  The rocks disintegrated one after another as I got closer to the boulder. As I raised my arms and bat to try to shield my face, I heard the first shots being fired. The last of the rocks hit and sprayed the ground before me just as I reached the boulder.

  Our timing could not have been better. The girls and Bull had the demon caught in a crossfire as I hid behind my stone shield. The demon moved closer to their positions. They had the high ground, and it would have to fully expose itself to their fire to make any attempt at an assault.

  After a few deep breaths, I peered around the boulder to see what was happening. The demon was fully in the water of the creek and keeping itself close to several large boulders, just under Bull's position.

  Neither Bull nor the girls had a good shot at the demon where it was, but only if it stayed in that position. Its only attempt at an attack was to throw the occasional stone up in their direction. It was unable to achieve an accurate throw without exposing itself.

  After a few minutes I began to wonder if we were just in a waiting game, with the other demons perhaps circling around to outflank us. I decided I would have to make a move to try to draw it out before we lost our advantage.

  I stepped further behind the boulder and began to slowly climb up the steep sides of the creek's embankment. Susi had given me her .22, so I felt if I was able to get into a good position, I might be able to flush the demon out into the open... or to at least aggravate it.

  The demon kept up its occasional throw toward Bull or the girls. Bull would throw back down a rock of his own just to let it know he was still there. With their limited amount of ammo, they had to shoot sparingly.

  I was in full view of the demon for several minutes as I made my climb, but the demon was preoccupied with the others. It didn't notice my maneuver. I moved along the embankment's upper edge to a point directly across from our enemy. I would be able to pick away at it with Susi's .22 while maintaining cover behind a large tree.

  I took careful aim and when I pulled the trigger, I was delighted to see a quarter-inch-sized hole pop open in the flat surface of the demon's top. It spun around to face me. It then let loose a rock that skimmed the same edge of the tree from where I had just fired a shot.

  The mechanical beast bolted across the creek in an attempted full assault of my position. I did not have the extreme high banks for protection as they did on the other side, but the break in cover was all Bull, Allie, and Susi needed to cut loose with a deadly barrage from their weapons.

  The demon jerked violently with each hit as it attempted to climb the terrain up to my position. It was only four feet from my tree when a round went through what must have been a critical part. The machine stopped its ascent and began to shudder and vibrate as its systems failed.

  Bull and the girls stopped their firing, which gave me the opening to get in another home run swing. I rounded the tree, raised my bat, and came down as hard as I could on the flat section just above the demon's eyes. My swing was well placed, as the machine stopped all movement and then rolled backward down to the creek bed. I followed behind it, sliding down the embankment and landing hard on the rocks beside the downed menace.

  I sprang to my feet and began to relentlessly bash the lifeless machine with my Hillerich & Bradsby S44. No amount of home runs could replace the feeling I got while smashing the guts out of the demonic mechanical beast. I had opened a wide hole in its underneath when I noticed the green canister inside. It began to leak out the same destructive green fog I had seen two nights before.

  I stepped back and tripped over a rock in my attempt to get away just as the canister began to spray a heavy stream of the green fog upward. In my haste I had dropped my bat. I was reaching back for it when a giant hand grabbed my other arm and began to drag me away.

  I gripped the precious wood with two fingers of my broken hand as Bull pulled me to safety. The green fog spread out, covering much of the creek bed and most of the embankment beside where the fallen demon lay. From seventy-five feet, we stood and watched as the remains seemed to evaporate into thin air, leaving no evidence it had ever existed. Nothing was left except for the telltale barren circle from the green mist.

  We made our way back out of the Woods Creek ravine and back up onto our recon ridge as quickly as we could. We would begin the planning for our next trap. We would also have to fortify our recon position against a potential attack as we planned for our next move.

  As we climbed up the back side of our ridge, we noticed a small opening in the rocks. When we investigat
ed further, it turned out to be a small cave going back twenty-five feet into the hillside. It had a chamber area that could comfortably hold several, but not all of us. The smell of the cave was acrid, but not intolerable. No doubt there had been some animal that had used it as shelter in the past. The cave was also close to our lookout point from where we observed Woods Ridge. And the opening was too small for a demon to enter.

  If need be, at least two of us could use it to keep the demons at bay. But it would only work for a short period of time, as we still required food and water to survive. Since the demons were machines, we surmised they would be able to sit outside and wait us out if they so desired.

  Susi was given the task of observing the aliens while Bull, Allie, and me planned our defense. Previously, there were two demons moving about their base camp. With only one showing itself and with five likely to have existed, we would need to keep on the lookout for at least two more.

  We stacked our heavy rock walls and cleared a few shrubs that would give us a better view back down the hill. We also stockpiled as many fist-sized rocks as we could, just in case we were left with no more ammo for our guns. Bull cut a dozen saplings with his hatchet and piled them up with the hope of making some crude arrows for his bow. With our immediate area somewhat secured and stockpiled, we left Susi to observe while we moved down to the creek. We needed to see if we could come up with more traps for the remaining demons.

  We had been down at the creek for half an hour when Allie decided we should check on her friend. As we made our way back up toward the ridgetop, Bull put out his hand in that now-familiar stop gesture. As we listened, we could hear the occasional cracking sound of rock hitting rock.

  It was Susi, and the demons were after her! She had turned and looked back down toward us and had spotted a demon heading our way. She then moved over to the cave entrance and picked up and threw one of the small rocks down at it.