“He is referring to you, Hubbit” Arida whispered.
“Yeah, I know”
“That alien thought he killed me with his mere weapon, but I got him fooled to think am dead. He missed the headshot and now am going to show him how to shoot like a real Martian guard!” he paused, looked back at his men and brought his attention back to them again. “Now come out of the truck! You know you have nowhere to escape now. I have Khaghins guarding the Prime Gateway so there is no way to the downside of Mars―if you are thinking of it. Come out or I destroy you all together with the truck!!”
Sweat slicked down Donnie’s forehead. He looked at Hubbit and said, “Am not getting out of this truck”
“Me either” Arida added.
“So run them over” Donnie continued.
“Run them over?” Hubbit raised his eyebrows. ‘They are going to die”
“Better them than us. Perhaps, they are going to execute us anyway―so we execute them first”
“No! I can’t”
Donnie’s neutral face changed into a frown. He pointed his pistol on the side of Hubbit’s head. “I know I’ve got one bullet left in my pistol. Either you do it or I shoot your brains out and take charge of the truck” he looked down at Hubbit’s hands on the steer, realizing he wouldn’t know how to drive the truck properly if he kills him. “Even though I don’t know how to drive Martian vehicles, am still going to take my chances―”
“I will drive” Arida interrupted from the back, looking more relaxed.
“Yeah, I forgot she is even back here. You heard her, she will drive when you die” Donnie wasn’t sure of what he was doing deep inside of him. He was desperate to escape from the chief and his guards and wanted to do anything to achieve that.
“Khaghins! Ready your weapons” they heard Hakaz command on the outside.
“So where’s your stand” Donnie pressed the pistol on Hubbit’s skin. Hubbit squint his eyes, sweat sliding down his nose.
“Ready!” Hakaz yelled. Before he could give the next command, the fuel truck’s headlights came back on, the engine started. He gaped at the speeding truck and threw himself out of its way. The khaghin guards also surged out of the way of the coming truck. The truck sped out of the border as lasers were being shot at it from behind.
Hakaz, sprawled on the ground, glowered at the fuel truck escaping into the deserts. He scrambled up to his feet and shouted, “Everyone!” he paused and watched every Khaghin guard up on their feet. “Get every militia vehicle you can find―we are going for hunting!”
They whole place suddenly got deafening with cheers and roars. They rushed into their trucks and sped off to their base in the mountainous wastelands to get more weapons and vehicles.
Hakaz glanced around and looked down at Aulta, still on the ground. He frowned when she looked up at him. “Get up, we are going for a ride”
Chapter TWENTY
“Yeah that’s what am talking about!” Donnie screamed. Hubbit was panting and sweating profusely as he drove them through the deserts. “Where are we heading?” he asked.
“Back to the spaceship of course” Donnie replied.
“No, we can’t”
“What do you mean we can’t?” Donnie narrowed his eyes. Their bodies jerked forward when Hubbit suddenly stopped the truck. He slowly turned his head towards Donnie and answered, “The spaceship is on the Far East and now we are escaping to the Far North―”
“So turn to the east!”
“We can’t” Arida cut in. “We will be surrounded before we can even get to the spaceship” she pushed her head in between their seats and glanced at both of them. “If there is one thing I know about the Upper Rim Militia, they are definitely coming for us”
Donnie sighed and yanked the back of his head into his seat. “Great!”
Dawn was beginning to make its mark and the truck had not moved an inch yet. All the three of them had fallen asleep.
“Hey wake up―oh shit, we fell deeply asleep” Arida slapped both men’s shoulder. “Wake up you two!”
They immediately sat up with glazed eyes. Donnie yawned. “What’s wrong Arida?”
“What’s wrong? Do all humans have short memories or it’s just only you? Have you forgotten everything is wrong up here?”
“Hey! Hey!!” Hubbit shuddered. “Do you hear that?”
The whole place became quiet and they could feel the truck quaking. “The Militia is already here”
Donnie looked into the right winged mirror. Surprise altered his face when he saw signs of militia vehicles. As Hubbit rolled the glasses down, they pushed their heads out of it and gaped at hundreds of militia vehicles that were descending the desert hills towards them.
“What the fuck―” Donnie looked stunned. “Are we at war?”
“We hell are, now” Arida replied and pulled herself back into the truck. Hubbit shook his head with crinkled forehead and also entered back inside. Donnie sighed, gazed at the rising sun and the two fading moons and then followed after Hubbit.
Hubbit held the steer and started the engine. He looked at Donnie. “We will be very lucky if we survive this” he focused back ahead and began to drive.
Aulta sat in between Hakaz and a Khaghin driver in the militia truck. Her hands tied behind her back, she stared at the chief’s face. The chief slowly glared back at her. “Do you see your friends? It won’t be long before we get our hands on them. Now they don’t stand a chance against my army”
Aulta swallowed her breath and said, “Am working with you so why are my hands tied? Why am I being treated like a hostage? Tell me”
“Don’t be a fool, little one, you aren’t with us. You were just the bridge to get to them and now we have them you are of no use to us”
Aulta gasped and squeezed her eyes. The chief forced out a pitiful leer. “You betrayed your own friends, how much more can I trust you then? You are as guilty they are and am going to execute all of you together―no exception” Hakaz turned his head back to the windshield.
“But I did nothing wrong?” Aulta’s words got stuck in her mouth when the chief turned his head to her with a frown.
“Shut your mouth and watch what we are going to do with your friends” he turned his attention to the driver, saying, “Give me the microphone. Its time”
The driver looked at him and nodded. He shoved his hand under his seat and handed him a microphone covered in dirty rags.
Hakaz opened his side of the door and climbed onto the top of the truck. He watched the numerous vehicles that followed behind them and then the vast wasteland, its surface brightening in gold from the rising sun.
“Well done faithful guards and protectors of the Upper Rim!” Hakaz’s voice echoed through the desert. Khaghin guards pulled their bodies out of their militia trucks, jeeps, modified pickups and hummers, their weapons clutched in their hands and stared at their chief speak through the ragged microphone. “Today we continue to fight for the land our ancestors died for―those criminals ahead of us have let us crossed a lot of boundaries we shouldn’t have. They have made us to be seen as criminals on the Lower Rim. Are you going to stand there for an alien and a criminal to terrorize your wives, kids and the whole Upper Rim?”
“NOO!” they roared.
“Are you going to stand there and watch your own people die?”
“NOOO!!” they roared again, this time much louder.
“Are you going to stand there and watch the peace our ancestors fought for to be destroyed by criminals?”
“NOOOOO!!!” they roared the loudest, accompanied with the hitting of their weapons on their vehicles. Hakaz watched with an evil smile on his face. He raised the microphone back to his mouth and continued, “Yes! We won’t stand there and watch those criminals do whatever they want―today we pursue them with everything we’ve got, even if till the end of Mars” he paused and took in a deep breath. “Today we eat!!”
The Khaghin guards cheered
with intensity that it could be heard miles away through the wastelands. Hakaz raised his 24mm laser rifle and watched two mini militia saucers sped up above them.
Chapter TWENTY ONE
Arida thrust her hands on the sides of her waist belt and pulled out the two laser pistols looking like 500mags from their holsters. She raised them to her eye level and nodded as she scanned them. “Hey Don, got any weapons?” she asked.
Donnie turned and looked back at her. “Only the weapon from my planet”
“Take” Arida grabbed a 24mm laser rifle from her seat and handed it to him. Donnie threw his head back with widened eyes. “Where do you get all these weapons from?”
“Don’t ask me Don―we are criminals, remember?”
Donnie shook his head. “Says who?”
“Hey take―made it for you” Donnie turned his head again, then looked down at Arida’s stretched hands. A little box laid in her palms. Donnie took the box and opened it immediately, and inside were bullets for his earth pistol.
He furrowed his brow, raised his head and looked at Arida in shock. “You made it? How?”
“My library taught me how to”
Donnie continued looked her with a taut jaw.
“Arida is a lot more than you know her to be” Hubbit interrupted, his eyes still glued to the windshield. “She was trained by the chief of the Lower Rim; Chief Balain. Arida is more like a daughter to her since―”
“Enough Hubbit!” Arida frowned.
“Is it true?” Donnie asked her.
“This isn’t the right time to talk about my life” She paused briefly and tilted her head at him. “And you are welcome”
“Oh yeah, thank you” Donnie turned away from her and focused on stuffing the pistol with the bullets.
They sat quietly without anyone saying a word after they had prepared their weapons. Donnie could feel his palms sweating out of anxiety, they could hear the militia shouting far behind them.
They jolted forward when a laser struck the end of the fuel tank behind the truck.
“Damnit, they are shooting now!” Arida shrieked.
“And the tank is going to explode. There is fuel in it!” Donnie exclaimed.
“No its not. The tank is laser proof. I knew what was at stake so I bought the best fuel truck― the laser proof one”
The truck shook again when another laser struck the tank. Hubbit pushed the gear stick back and forth, stepped on the gas pedal and continued driving, now at top speed.
Arida climbed out of the window on her right, moved slowly on the side and hanged on a ladder on that side of the fuel tank.
“Donnie!” She bellowed.
Donnie pushed his head out of the window and stared back at her, her ponytail blowing to one side through the speeding winds and lasers flying on all sides of the truck.
“Are you crazy!” Donnie shouted.
“Yeah I am― hand me the 22mm laser rifle on my seat!”
Donnie quickly pulled his head inside, grabbed the weapon and pushed his upper body out of the window again.
“Take!” he flung the rifle and she quickly grabbed it.
She heaved the laser rifle and looked back at Donnie with a grin.
“She is the craziest lady I have ever met in my entire life” Donnie shook his head slowly, staring at her.
“You better grab the 24mm laser rifle, climb out to the other side of the ladder and let’s flush these motherfuckers back to where they came from. Go!” Arida shrieked, turned around and started to fire at the pursuing militia vehicles.
Immediately he pulled himself back into the truck, his eyes got caught with Hubbit’s. He chuckled. “Good luck with Arida’s death plan”
“Fucker” Donnie muffled and clutched the laser rifle on the seat.
He wrinkled his forehead as he continued to stare at the grin on Hubbit’s face. “Will you focus on driving before you get us killed?”
“I don’t have to―there are no roads or road signs around here, so I can drive into any direction I want”.
Donnie shook his head. “You are such a fucker” he punched Hubbit’s shoulder slightly and moved to the back seat.
“What’s a fucker!” Hubbit shrieked, but Donnie was already out of the left window.
He was now on the left side of the tank, one hand gripped on the ladder and the other hand clasped on the laser rifle. He pointed it at the speeding militia vehicles and began to fire at them.
Aulta secretly loosed the rope off her hands. Hakaz was back inside, all of them staring at Donnie and Arida hanging on both sides of the fuel tank and shooting at them. Aulta turned his head and looked at the driver. The Khaghin driver sluggishly looked back at her, narrowed his eyes and looked down at her hands suspiciously.
Aulta’s chest heaved as she struggled to control her breath. She realized the driver had seen her. She quickly turned her body and stamped the driver before he could shout. The truck’s door opened as soon as he yanked into it. Somehow, the driver managed to escape from falling off completely, he gripped on the opened door’s handle whiles his body slid on rough ground.
Hakaz noticed it instantly. He crossed and pressed his heavy arms over Aulta’s neck. Aulta began lurching her body, trying to break free from the chief’s grip. Her eyes started to glaze as Hakaz choked every air from entering in and out of her lungs.
She then managed to get hold of Hakaz’s hand and bit it, hard enough to rip off his skin. Hakaz screamed in agonizing pain and pushed her away then looked down at blue blood gushing out of his lower right arm.
Hakaz frowned, his head shivering with anger, he stamped Aulta out of the opened door. He quickly pushed himself to the edge of the driver’s seat, held the arm of the khaghin driver who had almost passed out and pulled him back into the truck.
The driver was panting, every part of his body wet with sweat and the knees, down to the bottom of his brown cargo pants torn out of friction.
“That bastard! She nearly killed you” Hakaz yelled.
The driver held the steer with his trembling hands and continued to drive. “She will probably die―the speeding vehicles will run her over”
“They better do, cause if I ever see her ever again, I will kill her again and again and again!” the chief gritted his teeth and looked down at the blue blood that was seeping out of Aulta’s bite. “Fuck!” he slammed the back of his head in his seat.
Arida and Donnie had been able to destroy only a single militia jeep. Donnie was panting, almost consumed by terror just when a laser from the militia guards missed hitting him.
Their truck ascended up a desert hill. Just as they were descending to the other side of the hill, Hubbit shouted from the inside, “Radiation sandstorm!”
Dread altered Donnie’s face when he turned his head to see the two hundred feet radiation sandstorm far ahead of them. He knew there was no way they could turn back now, the militia will crush them when they try to turn back ―and what laid ahead, he didn’t know what to think of it.
Arida climbed her side of the ladder onto the tanker. She walked five steps and looked down at Donnie, hanging on the ladder at the other side. “Afraid?” she asked.
Donnie jerked his head up as soon as he heard her voice. “That thing right there is going to kill us”
“Not really― it will only kill you instantly when your mouth, nose, ears and eyes are exposed to it directly. Even if you cover all your sense organs and you spend more than thirty minutes in there, you wouldn’t survive” she looked at the radiation sandstorm ahead and looked back at Donnie. “The Khaghins have a chance over us in there. The radiation don’t affect them” Arida squatted and continued, “They eat and breath radiation”
“Then we don’t stand a chance now, we are definitely going to die in there”
Arida disagreed by shaking her head leisurely. She didn’t say another word again as she straightened up herself. She walked to the head of the truck, laid down, pus
hed herself down and looked into the left front window, where Hubbit sat.
Hubbit screamed out of terror. “Damn Arida! You scared the hell out of me”
Arida giggled. “Get me the radiation masks from the back seat”
“You brought radiation masks too? What else did you bring? Food?”
“Like you said, I knew what was at stake”
“You sure knew” Hubbit nodded and threw his hand to the back seat. He grabbed a bag and raised it onto the front seat. He unzipped it and looked up at Arida.
“Give me two and make sure you take one and put it on”
“Sure” Hubbit pulled out two and handed them to her.
“And close the windows― and be fast when we enter that thing”
“What? What did you say?” he looked up and she was gone.
Arida walked back to Donnie and squatted.
“Any plan?” Donnie asked.
“Yeah, this, put it on” She handed down a radiation mask to him. “It will protect you from the radiation, let’s say buy us enough time to get out of that thing alive”
Donnie handed her his laser rifle and took the radiation mask which looked like exactly a gasmask, except it was being worn like a helmet. After putting it on, she gave him back the rifle. “And watch out for the militia when we get in there” she winked at him and walked away.
They could hear the militia shouting for joy when they descended the hill and was approaching the sandstorm.
“Here we go” Arida whispered and wore the radiation mask, a feet away for them to enter into the giant sandstorm.
Donnie’s heart began speeding as they entered into it. He clasped firmly on the laser rifle, hearing every breath that goes in and out of his nostrils. All he could think about was death, coming right at them.
Lost On Mars Page 9