“Thank you, Jaxx,” came Zara. “Maybe you’re worth your weight in stress after all?”
“No problem, Zara.” Jaxx swung his craft low. “I’m heading in for a landing.” Jaxx observed the fight around him. “We’re doing good up here and holding these bastards off well, so I’m going to capture this Agadon asshole and see how he does what I do.”
“That’s a negative. I advise against that, Jaxx.”
“I’ll be fine.” Jaxx eyed a meadow below, finding the perfect place to land – only about a mile from the downed Agadon starfigher.
“What are you going to do when you capture him, Jaxx?”
“I’m going to ask the man a million questions.”
“Not a good idea. I sense his power. He is stronger than you.”
“There isn’t anyone stronger than me,” Jaxx replied.
“That statement says it all. Your ego gets in your way. Pull back and re-engage the fight.”
Jaxx’s consciousness lessened and he was back in his tight, inflexible body. He had almost forgotten what is it was like to be free and outside of his body. He let out a breath. “I know what I’m doing, Zara.” He pressed a few holographic buttons, readying his craft for a landing. “I’ll be back up before you know it.”
“Goddess-speed, Jaxx. I’ll send someone to watch you, to keep you safe. Out.”
34
Edge of J-Quadrant, Starship Atlantis (Slipping Further Away from Jupiter)
Slade went through the mutineer’s checkpoints untouched. It was strange and unintelligent of them, but they did manage to take his sidearm. Apparently, Ken had been waiting for him. He wanted to talk. Slade shook his head, frowning at Ken’s ridiculous mistake. You don’t let your enemy come to your front door, especially one who wants to kill you.
Slade strode forward, watching Ken on his holovid as he quickly made it down the empty hallway. No doubt cameras were on him, watching every move.
Slade couldn’t care less.
And there was Ken on the holoimage, talking to his lovely wife again. Too bad she didn’t know Ken would be a dead man sooner than later.
“Dear, you need to leave the room.” Senator Ken Furr sat at his desk and tapped a button. A secret compartment in his desk drawer opened. He pulled out some documents and a pistol, then set them on his desk.
His wife touched her chest, splaying her fingers just below her neck, shocked that her husband had just pulled out a gun. “What are you doing?”
“Slade is on his way.”
She frowned. “You let him through? No, that’s not a good idea, Ken.”
“He was checked. No weapons on him. I need to talk with him.”
“I’m staying,” she demanded.
He stood, his face stern. “You will do no such thing.” He pointed to the door.
She opened the door, hurt in her eyes.
Slade, reaching the door, stopped and watched it open. He feigned a smile and tipped his head. “Donna...it’s a pleasure to see you.” He turned off his holodisplay.
She merely nodded and hurried out of the room.
The door shut behind Slade. He crossed his arms at his chest. “This is why you called me here? To threaten me with your little gun there?”
“No, I’m not threatening you. I’m protecting myself, just like I’m attempting to protect the rest of this starship and crew from you turning us over to the Kelhoon. I intercepted yours and Kajka Okbak’s communication streams.”
Slade knew very well what Ken intercepted. “We’re setting Okbak up. The Kelhoon leader wants to take over Callisto. We’re not going to allow it. And, you and your mutiny are clogging shit up. Do you understand this?”
“I am steering us back to Earth. You convinced us to leave because of the coming Earth changes when we cross over from global warming to a descent into the ice age. If that’s the case, I’m wondering why you didn’t take Jaxx’s recommendations? When we go back to Earth, and I’m saying when, because we will, we’ll be implementing his recommendations.”
“Really? What are those recommendations, Ken?” Slade took a seat on a couch and crossed his legs. He draped his arms on top of the quilted backrest. He popped a piece of gum in his mouth and winked. “What ya’ gettin’ at, Ken-dog?”
“You didn’t even read his books, did you?”
Slade wiped his pants, as if wiping the question away. “Not a single page.”
“We didn’t even need to leave the United States of America.”
Slade shrugged, jutting out his lower lip. “Please explain.”
Ken cocked his pistol and stood, pointing his gun at Slade.
Slade jerked a little, but kept his composure well. He crossed his hands in his lap, figuring Ken didn’t have it in him to shoot an unarmed man.
Ken picked up a mess of pages with his other hand. “This explains it all and was written by Kaden Jaxx. The pyramids on earth have more power than you can imagine, just like what we’re seeing on Callisto.”
“And you’re going to tell me that we could have built pyramids and or activated the old pyramids to slow down global warming and ease our descent into another ice age.” Slade shrugged a second time. “I have better things to do. Now, if you’ll excuse me.” Slade stood and turned to leave.
“No. Sit.”
The words Slade wanted to hear. Whatever he could get out of Ken, the better. “What else you got for me, Ken-dog?” Slade leaned back and put his hands up, smiling. “But let me vent for a second, okay?” He stood straighter, chest out. “You’ve sabotaged our mission to Callisto. Our mission to save a tiny fraction of the human race; a race that will die when the Earth changes come, do you understand? Sustained three hundred mile per hour winds, gusting up to four hundred miles per hour. Tsunamis on just about every coast. Earthquakes devastating every city, taking all electricity and internet offline, and destroying the infrastructure. In a week’s time, all stores will be out of food, people will be starving, dying. Mayhem will then break out. Every soul for themselves.”
“That’s –”
“You took us away from Callisto,” Slade interrupted. “Do you understand how much that pisses me off? It’s not going to go well for you. Now, I’ll give you and the rest of the government twenty-four hours to think it over and change your mind. If you don’t, more blood will be shed, and it won’t be mine.”
“Yes, we turned the entire ship around, Slade. We’re going to ride out the coming storm, the climate change. There are safe places for us to live. After the hurricanes and earthquakes have their way, we’ll re-install the government.”
“We’re working on getting the routing system unlocked. Your trip back to earth won’t be for long.”
Ken took a step around his desk, still pointing the gun at Slade. “I’m old and maybe I’m being a little too much of a humanitarian, so here is what I’m going to propose. We head back and I won’t throw this whole business in your face ever again. It’ll be like it never happened. I’ll put you in command of building these pyramids or powering them on.” Slade could tell Ken was lying. The guy couldn’t keep his damn eyelids from blinking and more importantly, the guys pupils were dilating. It was a perfect tell, but he let Ken continue anyway. “Jaxx wrote about the conductive power of dolomite and I’m convinced building these pyramids the Jaxx-way is the answer. Dolomite is a limestone with a high magnesium content. It’s a type of limestone that conducts electricity – freely. That’s what the Pyramids of Giza and many other pyramids are made out of.”
Slade gave him a blank stare.
Ken hit the papers in his hand with the pistol. “We can make these.”
“You’re an idiot if you think we can replicate what the ancient ones did. You’re a dipshit. And if you make it back to Earth, then I hope you try and try to make one of those pyramids and each attempt crumbles and smashes one of you nit-wit politicians under its rocks.”
“We can make pyramids exactly how Jaxx wanted us to. These pyramids act as a magma release valve, taki
ng the pressure off of the major earthquakes that are coming. We don’t have to go through the shitty Earth changes that you left Earth for...that we all left Earth for. All you have to do is create more of these pyramids in specific locations throughout the world and ease Earth into the next ice age instead of a major, sudden shift into the next ice age. We can do this, Slade.”
Slade slowly clapped his hands. “Bravo. You have solved our problems.” His sarcasm was more than apparent.
“No, it’s more than that. Listen...please.” He cleared his throat and read a few sentences on the pages. “The dolomite limestone core is electrically conductive. The core is wrapped by an effective insulator – dura limestone. When you look at the pyramid’s passageways, you find that they are made out of granite, and granite is slightly radioactive and will ionize and electrify the air, along with releasing radon gases. The shafts are lined with granite to keep the electric charge moving back and forth in the shaft. It’s built like an insulated wire, which also draws the electric charge from the ground.”
Ken looked up and Slade shook his head. “Hold on.” He reached down and grabbed one of his boots. “I’ve got this damn itch that’s driving me nuts.” He untied his shoe laces and pulled his boot off. On the underside, embedded in the sole of his shoe, was a small pistol.
Ken looked away. “I know what you’re thinking,” said Ken.
Slade slipped his gun out of the sole of his shoe, pointing it at Ken. “You have no idea what I’m thinking. If you did, then you wouldn’t have taken your eyes off of me. I could have blasted you ten times by now. That’s the difference between my intelligence and your intelligence. You want to go back to Earth and fix things. I know they aren’t fixable. They simply are not. I’m practical – a realist. You’re an optimist.” He grinned. “Give me the documents. We have no time for your silly ideas. We have no time for your mutiny.”
Ken backed away, thrusting his gun forward. “And, why would I do any of that?”
“So no one gets their paws on these and starts thinking optimistically.”
“Dag nabbit, Slade! We can power Earth with these things. We no longer need fossil fuels. No longer need natural gas. We no longer need wars over land resources.” Ken started shaking, bringing his eyes back to Jaxx’s writings. “Many pyramids have water beneath or near them. The gravity pull from a pyramid yanks water from underneath it and/or near it. In essence, it draws water closer to the surface and closer to the pyramid’s base, creating a primitive aquifer, doing two things. One, it pulls up minerals and two, it moves water through lime or chalk aquifers, producing electricity and changing the magnetic field inside and around the pyramid. It’s a giant battery.”
Slade aimed at Ken’s head. “I get it, Ken. Pyramids are power sources as well as goddamn terraforming devices. Now, drop your pistol and I’ll let you live. If you don’t, you’ll be on the ground in three seconds, dead.”
Ken put the pistol on his desk. “I want to save us all, Slade.”
“Your ideas are in the right direction, just not in the direction to keep us 100% safe. Callisto is our best bet. It is tidally locked to Jupiter, just like our own moon is tidally locked to Earth – the same side always faces the planets, and because of that, there is virtually zero earth change activity. And most likely never will be. We’d never need to worry about global warming, natural disasters, and the like again.”
Slade reached in, swiping the papers out of Ken’s hands. “Thank you for your cooperation.” He pushed the small gun back in his boot’s sole and put his boot back on. “Now, if you don’t turn this ship back to Callisto’s trajectory and convince the rest of the government to abide by my rules, then there’ll be dire consequences, starting with your wife. Do you understand? Or, I could just kill you now and get it over with.”
Ken paused, thinking. Finally, he nodded. “I’ll see what I can do.”
“Good man.” Slade left the room. Andrea’s office was his next stop.
35
E-Quadrant, Earth ~ Alliance, Nebraska
The helicopter vibrated. The cabin’s back and forth movement nearly drove Drew bat-shit crazy.
Segarra eyed Drew as if Drew was a pedophile, the worst filth in the universe.
Drew hadn’t kidnapped his daughter, used her as bait to get Segarra to do his bidding, or Anderle’s bidding. He needed this man to see the truth.
Mya wrapped her arms around her father’s forearm. She said something in her dad’s ear and he shook his head – the third time in as many minutes.
Drew tapped his helmet, then gestured for Segarra to put the helmet in his lap on.
Segarra again shook his head.
Drew jiggled the helmet mic near his lips, mouthing, “Let’s talk.”
Segarra dropped his shoulders and clenched his jaw. He placed the helmet over his head and pushed it down, bringing the mic closer to his lips. He crossed his arms, almost dragging Mya over his lap. He paused and ruffled her hair, forcing a smile. One glance back at Drew and the smile disappeared. “What do you want?”
“I kept her safe. Her mom –”
Segarra lifted his chin. “Where is my wife?”
Drew hesitated. He didn’t want to tell Segarra the truth. He’d tell him anything at this moment, especially not about his wife, who was a bloody mess, dead and decaying in a Charlotte, North Carolina car dealership, along with Segarra’s son. Drew didn’t want this incredibly buff man’s hands around his neck, choking him out in front of Mya.
Maybe if Drew had some weed on him or a bowl, they could smoke out for a while, and make some peace with their deaths, maybe eat some grub and call it a night.
That wasn’t going to happen. Drew pressed the mic closer to his mouth. “She is in North Carolina.”
Segarra pursed his lips. “Take me there.”
Drew thumbed over his shoulder. “I’m not the pilot or the one in charge.”
“Tell them to turn this thing around and take me to the rest of my family.”
Mya raised her chin toward her father’s ear, saying something.
He shook his head.
She flopped on his lap, dejected.
“What does she keep saying?” asked Drew.
“Nothing to worry your mind about. Now, tell me why you can’t take me to North Carolina.”
“I don’t know.”
Segarra leaned forward, twisting Drew’s shirt in his hands, pulling Drew closer. “You better –”
“Take your damn hands off him, or you’re not going anywhere, partner.” T-hacker held a gun, aiming it directly at Segarra’s face.
Segarra eased up his grip and backed off, coddling Mya, turning her away from the gun. “Where are you taking us?”
Anderle chimed in. “We’re taking you to Whitefish, Montana but we’ll be making several pit-stops to fill up. So, make yourself comfortable. If you have to use the bathroom, well…don’t.”
Segarra stood, baring his teeth, knocking his head against the ceiling. “Dammit.” He sat down hard and massaged his neck. “Why are we going to Whitefish? That’s the last place I want to go.”
“Why?” Drew inquired. That was a strange reaction to a rather peaceful place – at least peaceful when he’d visited it a few years back.
Anderle turned. “Don’t answer that.”
For a moment, there was silence. Segarra scratched his chin, eyeing Drew. “You’re not part of this...thing...whatever this thing is, are you?”
Drew frowned. “What thing?”
“You’re like me. Did they capture you as well, use you as bait for something you’re not privy to? Mya keeps telling me you’re nice. I keep telling her that you’re not. Maybe she’s right.”
The helicopter violently dipped and a rumble rattled inside the cabin and cockpit.
“Shit!” screamed Anderle. “Bogeys, bogeys. Or, whatever the hell you call them. Uh...jet fighters.”
Segarra looked around Drew, doing his best to see through the cockpit window. “Are they American?”
“I believe so,” said T-hacker, doing some computations on the helicopter’s console. He nodded. “Yes, they are.”
“And you’re in a Chinese goddamn helicopter? Now doesn’t this just fit like a nice rotten cherry in an apple pie,” responded Segarra.
The helicopter shook again as another jet fighter roared by.
“Yo, co-pilot,” said Segarra. “Put us on their channel. I’ll talk to them and let them know we’re friendlies.”
T-hacker ignored him, computing more info into the remote control.
“They’ll shoot us down if you don’t let them know who we are!”
“I’m in control, Master Sergeant,” said Anderle, putting the craft in a steady descent. “We’re landing at Alliance Municipal Airport. Now settle down. We’ll get back up in the air when those two fly boys run out of gas, ’cause there isn’t any room for them to land and refuel at Alliance.”
“What the fu –” Segarra looked everyone up and down. “Are you boys criminals or something?”
“Nope,” replied Anderle. “Us boys are not and we need your help. That’s why we’re going to Whitefish, and with you, if you like it or not.”
“Put me on their channel and I’ll tell them –” Segarra flinched as another rumble filled the cockpit. “Son of a bitch. You have to let me tell them we are friendlies. They’ll leave us alone.”
“That one was Chinese,” said T-hacker.
“We’re being targeted,” warned Anderle, pointing the nose of the helicopter down, speeding the bird at a faster pace. “By the Chinese.”
“Get down to the ground,” yelled Segarra, gripping his seat, his knuckles white, his forehead covered in perspiration.
Mya squeezed his arm, closing her eyes tightly.
“I’m not making this up. We don’t have much time,” screamed Segarra.
“Weapons lock is on.” Anderle was panicking. “The Chinese aircraft just let one loose.”
“Fly to the floor, pilot. Go, go! They are likely shooting an air to air missile, not an air to ground, meaning the closer to the ground you get the more chance the guidance will stop tracking you and track something else. An air to air doesn’t have top attack capabilities,” shouted Segarra.
The Complete Atlantis Series, Books 1 - 5: Ascendant Saga Page 66