Sixty-Seven Salamanders

by Jeffary Joseph

  The next couple weeks were a blur as I took Dean Dexter’s words to heart; the briefing did become my bible. I prepared for my first real mission to the point of obsessiveness that I was starting to get on my teammates’ nerves about it, but there was no way I was going to let us fail. The mission was to Alaska and I didn’t know much about the state except for two things - it was cold, and there were igloos, so the first thing I did was go shopping for winter clothes.

  Team Umbra’s job was to infiltrate HAARP, which was basically a facility that housed a bunch of superpowered radio towers that were used for research into better satellite communication and broadcasting. Then, we were to extract the classified information regarding Project Vita, which only I knew and then disappear like we were never there; it sounded simple enough.

  The big mission day came up fast, and I was more than ready, well almost; I had to tie up some loose ends first. Walking into the learning center along with my luggage, I saw Kei at her usual spot behind the desk and greeted her once near. “Hey, Kei.”

  She looked up from her seated position and adjusted her glasses, giving a friendly smile. “Oh, hello, Adin, here for your booster shots?”

  Before all missions, Organization members received booster shots that slightly enhanced their senses and physical ability. They were actually incomplete strains of the virus, but I and only a handful of people were aware of that fact.

  “Yup.” I leaned forward on the counter. “Man, you do a lot around here, don’t you?” Along with a million other duties she had, she also administered the booster shots.

  She pushed her glasses up again, this time in a bashful way. “That’s not true… I just do what I can.”

  “Still, it’s amazing. “I smiled. “So, are you ready to give me the shots?”

  She glanced to her right. “Well… there’s actually someone in front of you right now, but you can come with me.”

  We walked down a hallway to a door that had a keypad, and she punched the correct code in. Grunting and groaning could be heard in the room as soon as we were inside, putting me on alert.

  “Do you hear that?” I strained my hearing to locate the source of the noise.

  There were leather chairs that lined the walls on both sides of the room and a bend in the right corner that likely lead to whoever or whatever was causing the strange sounds.

  “Adin, wait –” Kei shouted after me, but it was no use.

  My duffel bag dropped to the floor as I moved towards the corner and opened the lone door that waited around the corner.

  “What the hell are you doing…” Vince was keeled over on the floor in the white as can be room with his head hanging over a bucket.

  “I heard someone, and it sounded like they were in some serious pain… Are you alright?” He didn’t look it; his eyes were red, beads of sweat clung to his forehead, and his breathing was labored.

  “God, don’t you know anything?”

  I folded my arms. Even when he was halfdead, he managed to be a jerk.

  When he registered my continued silence, he sighed. “The booster shot side effects; they’re a B.”

  I grimaced. This is what I have to look forward to?

  “Adin! You’re not supposed to be in here…” Kei was doubled over breathlessly behind me.

  “It’s fine.” Vince got up from the floor, or at least he tried, as soon as he was up swaying to the right.

  But I managed to catch him before he buried his head in the wall.

  “Let me go; I’m fine.” He struggled to get out of my grasp.

  “Stop being an ass and let me help.”

  He glanced at me with a scowl on his face, but finally stopped struggling, so I could help him hobble over to the small bed that was in the corner of the room.

  “Thanks...” Vince stared down with his hands on his knees once sitting.

  “I didn’t know you could say thanks.” I stood in front of him.

  He looked up with a smirk. “The drugs, remember?”

  “Um…”

  I turned around. I'd forgotten Kei was still in the room with us

  “I have to make some preparations so I’ll leave you two alone…” She backed away slowly and left.

  “Mind if I sit down?”

  He shrugged.

  I took that as a yes and sat next to him. “And mind if I’m nosey for a second?”

  He looked at me warily. “Probably, but go ahead.”

  I’d thought of a million ways to broach the subject of him and his brother, Eric’s dysfunctional relationship, but in the end, decided the straightforward approach would be the best. “You’ll probably tell me to F off, but I’ll ask anyway. What’s the deal with you and your brother?”

  Right away, Vince’s demeanor became darker; you could almost see the cloud hanging over his head. He opened and closed his right hand twice, the same one his brother had mercilessly stomped on. Luckily it had only gotten sprained. His gaze was intense, and his lips were sealed in a straight line, probably replaying the gruesome scene in his head. It made me wonder how many times. Vince and I weren’t really friends, so I didn’t expect him to tell me his life story and pressed on my knees to stand.

  “Eric, my brother… I’m going to kill him one day.” He revealed in little more than a whisper, but his statement couldn’t have been any louder.

  I stared at him, unblinking. He had said something so damning, so nonchalantly. But I believed every word. What possibly could his brother have done that was so bad that he wanted to literally kill him? Before I could open my mouth to ask, he waved his hand at me.

  “No offense, but I don’t exactly feel like spilling my guts to you, Adin.” He slowly stood up and after a quick balancing act managed to get his legs under him and wobbled to the door. “Maybe, one of these days when I’m drunk enough.” He chuckled and left.

  I’d had Vince pegged as your typical asshole. You know, those fun guys in high school that knocked your books over for the fun of it but saw him in a somewhat different light now. Maybe his grudge against Eric is the reason why he seemed so bitter at times. Kei appeared in the doorway soon after his departure with various items that she was struggling to hold, and knowing Kei; they were seconds from spilling all over the floor.

  So, I jumped up from the bed and grabbed them from her. “Here, let me help.”

  “Oh, thank you…”

  “No problem.” I smiled and set the items on the desk near the door.

  She walked over to it and uncovered the lid off a plastic box. Four syringes were inside, each a different color; red, purple, yellow and pink.

  She opened a drawer on the desk taking out a ziplock bag full of blue gloves and put a pair on. “Okay, are you ready?"

  “No, but I don’t have a choice, do I?” I sighed and retook my seat on the small bed.

  She sat next to me with the items in her lap. “Where do you want the shots, abdomen or arm?”

  “Uh…” I thought about it for a second, then rolled my right sleeve up. “Arm.”

  “Okay.” The Asian girl ripped open one alcohol packet and wiped my upper arm. “I’m just sterilizing the area to make sure it’s clean.” She then grabbed the red-filled syringe. “You’re going to feel a slight pinch like last time, okay?”

  I nodded and a moment later, the needle pierced my skin, invading my flesh.

  Kei emptied the contents of it slowly into my arm and repeated the steps with the other three, then took off her gloves and tossed them in the trash bin Vince had been using, along with the other trash. “Adin, are you feeling okay…?” She had a look of concern on her face.

  “Yeah, I’m fine, why?”

  She leaned sideways and pressed her forehead against mine.

  I jerked my head back in surprise. “W-What are you doing?”

  She threw her hands up. “I’m sorry, I was just trying to check your temperature!”

  I gave an embarrassed laugh. “It’s fine, just warn me next time. I thought you were trying to
headbutt me or something. But why were you trying to check my temp?”

  “Well, the boosters have a ninety-six percent chance of making the injected person ill, but you seem to be fine…” She was staring at me like I was an abstract painting she was trying to figure out.

  Damn. The last thing I needed was anyone getting suspicious. It was most likely due to the virus that was already in my system. I had to think of something fast. “Oh… my stomach…” I doubled over with my hand on it. “I think the side effects are starting to kick in...” I peeked one eye open to see if she was buying my little act.

  “Oh! Do you need a bucket? Or maybe some water? Wait, I’ll get you a cold compress!”

  I put my hand on hers, holding in laughter. Maybe I was too good of an actor. Or she was just gullible - I suspected the latter. “I’m okay, really. I just need a few minutes.”

  “Are you sure…?”

  I smiled. “I’m sure.”

  I laid down for a short while before leaving. There was still a little time to spare before Team Umbra met up, so I decided to head for Dean Dexter’s office. After what just happened, I didn’t think it’d hurt to inform him. When there, I reached out to knock on the door, but my hand stopped in the air before it could make contact. Voices were coming from inside his office, which I wouldn’t think much of except they sounded angry.

  Still, it wasn’t any of my business to listen in on the conversation, so decided to leave, but didn’t make it too far as the voices abruptly stopped, which only meant one thing. The hallway had two different routes you could take to enter or exit. In a panic, I hurried down the left one, not wanting to be caught standing outside the door when whoever was in there exited.

  They might think I was eavesdropping and sounded upset enough as it was. There was a click of a door being opened as I just made it around the corner. Carefully poking my head out to see the person leaving the dean’s office revealed it was Candace. What was she doing in his office and what had they been arguing so heatedly about? She was the president of the student council, so I’m sure it could’ve been an infinite number of things, but I still felt strange about their meeting for some reason.

  I could tell Dean Dexter about the injections later, suddenly not in the mood to discuss it anymore. Besides, I had only one thing on my mind anyway. The mission.

  Chapter 28 - Travel

  I entered the large parking lot that was located at the back of the school and was surprised to see all of Team Umbra already gathered, even Noir. We hadn’t really spoken since our fight in the locker room. “Wow, you’re all here.”

  “Well, you wouldn’t stop nagging us about –” George began to say, but was elbowed in the ribs by Bianca.

  “Ahem, what he meant to say was we adopted your very responsible attitude.” She grinned.

  I smiled proudly. “Well, I guess we might as well leave now since everyone’s here.”

  “I’ll call for the Ubers.” Bianca took out her smartphone.

  Josh walked over to me. “Didn’t think you of all people would be the last one here.”

  “I know, right.”

  “Okay, guys. They’re on their way.” Bianca announced a little while later.

  “Woo, good. I made it in time.” Candace walked over to the group, wheeling a purple suitcase. “I thought you guys might already be gone.”

  “Candy!” Bianca rushed up and assaulted her with a tight hug.

  “What are you doing here?” I glanced at her luggage.

  She released herself from Bianca’s death hug and looked at me. “I’m accompanying Team Umbra on its first mission.”

  I frowned. Does this have anything to do with her argument with Dean Dexter?

  “Why wasn’t I informed?” Mina asked, annoyed.

  She put her finger up. “Because it was a last-minute decision to put an experienced advisor on your mission.”

  I guess it was a valid enough reason, but I was still a little skeptical.

  “This is gonna be so fun!” Bianca shrieked.

  “This isn’t a slumber party. We’re here to do a job.” Mina admonished.

  I inclined my head towards Mina who was standing to my right. “Mina’s right, we have to stay focused.”

  “Party poopers.” Bianca pouted.

  Several minutes later, two cars arrived that would take us to the New York airport, and from there we would fly to Seattle, then from Seattle, we’d drive a grueling twenty hours to Gakona, Alaska where the HAARP facility was located. Hope, Vince, Candace and I got into one Uber while the others got into the second. The ride to the airport was short, and we checked in to board our flight.

  It was only my second time on an airplane, so the excitement from the first time was still very much present, though I managed to act somewhat civilized around my teammates. Once in Seattle, we gathered our belongings, got a quick bite to eat, and then headed for the car rental area. We were supposed to rent two for the long drive up to Gakona. Hope had been appointed team treasurer, so she was handling all the funds for the mission.

  “What’s taking her so long?” George complained.

  “Ah, here she comes.” Bianca pointed towards the entrance of the car rental shop.

  Hope pushed the glass door open and approached us with two keys jingling back and forth in her small hand.

  “What kind of cars did you rent; spacious like I said, right?” I asked.

  She nodded. “Mhm.” Then waved her hand to the right. “The garage is this way.”

  We all followed her there and were met with a sea of different colored vehicles. Hope detached herself from the group and pattered up to a black SUV.

  “Nice.” Vince commented.

  “Good choice. “Josh also seemed impressed.

  But after a second, she sidestepped from it to a blue minivan that any soccer mom would’ve died for. “Ah, here it is.”

  Vince put his hand over his face. “Of course. I forgot who we were dealing with.”

  I small laugh escaped my lips. “Well, it is spacious.”

  “I’m almost scared to see her second choice.” Mina added, George grunting in agreement.

  Hope scurried across the lot to halt in front of a station wagon.

  “Ta-da.” She announced proudly with her arm in the air.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me…” Someone behind me muttered.

  “Why did we let her choose again…?” Another voice added that I think was George.

  I scratched my head. Even I couldn’t defend her choice this time. A station wagon? And not one of the newer models either, it was the type of broken-down station wagon you saw in old, western movies.

  She giggled. “I saw it on Thelma and Louise.”

  This time there was a collective groan that echoed in the car-filled garage.

  I turned to face my teammates. “Okay, so who wants the station wagon?”

  Everyone suddenly found interest in the ground.

  “Babies.” I walked over to stand beside Hope.

  Josh sighed and followed me. “I’ll take one for the team.”

  Candace emerged from behind the rest of the group and also joined our station wagon clique. “I can’t keep an eye on you from the other car, can I?”

  I rolled my eyes. “Any more takers?”

  Noir stepped forward; all focus immediately shifted towards her as if she were a black hole that would suck in anything that dared to enter her vicinity. She made her way to stand next to Hope who was obviously overjoyed by the grin spread across her face.

  After realizing everyone including myself was still staring at her, I clapped. “Okay people, let’s get this show on the road.”

  “Show on the road?” Candace asked, a smile tugging on her lips.

  “I heard it as soon as I said it.” I answered immediately.

  George, Mina, Bianca, and Vince were the leftovers, so they would be taking the minivan. Mina walked over and took the key from Hope, then made her way to it.

  “Can
I have the keys to open the trunk?” I asked, and she placed it in my outstretched hand. “Guys, you can give me your bags.” Back there, I put their luggage in the station wagon trunk and we got in our oldie time station wagon after to drove off.

  There was nothing but green and brown for as far as the eye could see. Maple Hills had trees, but they looked like twigs compared to Seattle’s; we were on the highway only a couple hours into our twenty-some wad hour drive.

  Ahead of us was the minivan that held the others. I glanced at my speedometer that read sixty, but they were distancing themselves with each passing minute. Whoever was driving definitely liked to push the gas. A shiver ran through my body once again, forcing me to grip the steering wheel tighter. It was getting colder and colder the further we drove, so I reached out to turn up the heat to find it already maxed out.

  Out of my peripheral, Josh was playing with the watch-like device I’d seen in his room a few months back. “So, what exactly does that do?”

  He stopped what he was doing and looked at me. “It’s simple; it disables any electronic locks we may come across by overloading it with a static shock and short-circuiting the mechanisms that enable it.”

  That was supposed to be simple? “You made that?”

  He nodded and went back to his work. Sometimes I didn’t think he knew how amazing what he did was. My eyes drifted to the windshield wiper’s mirror to see Noir sat pressed up against the right-side window with her attention intently focused on an unfortunate chocolate bar, which she enthusiastically bit into it. RIP. Hope was next to her bobbing her head to the country music that played in the background; it seemed to be the only station that worked.

  I shifted my gaze to Candace who sat near the opposite door, her head buried in a book. She and Noir didn’t really seem all too friendly, making me recall her words to steer clear of Noir. “Hope, I’m a Gakona local. Where are you from and what are you doing in my town?”

  She stopped bobbing her head and looked at me. “We’re students from USC, and we're here to… Uh…” She hesitated.

  “And bam, our cover’s blown.”

  “Sorry.”

  “We're on a trip funded by the university to tour the HAARP facility in order to get a better understanding of how the program can be used to advance satellite communication.” I reminded her.