Worst off, he was on an Agadon transport heading somewhere that must be over the rainbow because it was taking forever.
He slouched. His innards burned like acid boiling his skin.
A flash of heat washed over him and the ship jarred to the right, then steadied itself a moment later.
He went to move, to turn, to see what the tremor on the ship was about, but his body was weak and shivered like he had a fever. Except, he was now cold and his hands were clammy. He caught a glimpse of a gorgeous woman sitting next to him. She was touching his arm. Who was she? Did he have a girlfriend? Damn, if so, she was hot.
“Drew, the ride is about to get more bumpy, okay?” said the woman.
She talked to him like a mom to a child. Wait, was this Laura, his mother? No, it couldn’t be. Where was his mom? She usually arrived in times like these.
He rubbed his eyes, the pain growing in his stomach. A bullet was lodged deep inside him and he was beginning to lose his mind, forgetting what was what, and who was who. He winced. “I don’t know you. Please help me.”
Her voice was soft, comforting. “I’m Megan, your friend from Whitefish, Montana. And we’re getting you to help.”
“My friend?”
The ship bounced up and down. Drew pitched forward, agony searing up his abdomen and all the way to his throat.
“We’re heading into a shit-fire,” yelled someone up front. “Hold on.”
Was that the pilot?
It didn’t matter because right now, and more than anything, Drew needed water. He was thirsty. In fact, he’d take a pitcher and down it right here and now. He smacked his lips again, his mouth parched, and turned his head left and right. No faucet, no glasses, and most of all, no pitcher of water was in view.
He went to get up. Nope. Misery. Searing, hot misery. It was the burning I-hate-you kind of pain. He leaned his head back, the ache wanting to take him to death’s doorstop. He’d accept it to just get over this bloody-hell agony.
“Hey, pretty lady?” said Drew in an intoxicated tone. “Can you shoot me right here?” He touched his forehead. “End me qui —”
The transport bucked hard, then trembled as if it was being pelted by thousands of rocks. His stomach balled up, the burn taking him farther and farther away from life. The last thing he saw was the craft’s ceiling, the blue iridescent lights subtly pulsing. He shut his eyes and everything faded to black.
8
Denver, Colorado
Jaxx tilted the craft, doing his best to dodge a stray burst blast coming from a starfighter battle a few miles away on the gray horizon. Broken pieces of dead and blown-up ship debris found its way to Jaxx’s transport on a wind’s gust, slamming into his craft like hail against a car.
It probably did little damage, but he needed to be alert and careful. Bigger chunks of destroyed wings and engines may be out there.
He lowered the craft, successfully moving away from another debris cloud that was headed for him. He leveled the ship, searching for more shit heading his way, viewing tinges of green and blue ships avoiding weapons fire, some blowing up to shreds.
They needed to be on the ground, and fast.
He huffed. Where was the Secret Space Program when you needed them most? Hell, they never made it to Callisto, not that he could tell. Perhaps Slade, now dead and gone, had orchestrated some type of catastrophic event that ended Starship Atlantis and the entire SSP fleet?
He doubted it. More than likely, they were off finding another place to call home.
“Oh my God, Drew,” shouted Megan.
Jaxx twirled in his chair, seeing Megan doing her best to wake Drew. His nephew was as white as a vampire. Jaxx sucked in a quick breath, his nerves getting the better of him. Was Drew dead? He switched the autopilot on. He didn’t have much time. They’d be landing at the military base soon and he needed to be at the controls.
He unstrapped and made his way over to Drew. He leaned his ear next to his nose. Air. In and out, in and out. Drew was breathing, though faintly.
Mya unbuckled, along with Damien, and hurried to Drew.
Mya put her hands on Drew’s feet. “Damion, touch his forehead. We’re going to run healing energy back and forth, okay?”
Damion nodded and did as he was told, closing his eyes. For several minutes, the cabin was quiet and Jaxx and Megan looked on as the two kids worked the best miracles they could find.
Mya took her hands off of Drew. His breathing slowed and was deeper. In a way, Drew seemed a tad better and pink rose in his cheeks.
Mya gave Jaxx a melancholy look. “We’re losing him.” She slumped and a tear fell from her cheek. She became rigid, her muscles tightened, and her chin quivered. “We don’t have much time.”
“How much time do we have?” Jaxx inquired, raising his eyebrows and swallowing down a knot forming in his throat.
“What do you think, Mya? A day?” asked Damion.
Mya shrugged, her eyes falling to the floor. “Maybe two.”
Shit. Jaxx rushed to the cockpit. He had to get to a doctor, and fast. “Strap in.”
Segarra’s craft descended.
Jaxx slowed the transport, following Segarra toward a large brick building — rounded in the front and covered in windows — attached to several square buildings. It looked like a half-crazed castle that the contractor — halfway through the project — decided a castle really wasn’t what he desired.
Other strange buildings surrounded it, some bigger, some smaller. A large fence lined the area, and white bags filled with sand or something thick, enclosed the fence line. Turrets, rail guns, heavy weaponry, and military crafts topped the buildings and littered the ground.
This place meant business.
He brought his ship to a hover and descended. He checked the holodisplay, the ground, and the holodisplay again. “Need to be careful here,” he said to himself. Parking the small beast in between two crafts wasn’t so easy.
Space-age parallel parking.
Vvvvwapock!
The craft gently bounced as the skids touched down. Jaxx turned the ion drives off and the ship hissed, powering down.
He pounded the ramp button, and steam wheezed, unsealing from the craft. The ramp lowered, clanging loudly against the pavement.
Jaxx stood and paced over to Drew, full of concern. He stifled his emotions and quieted his mind. If he had learned anything during combat by fighting both the Kelhoon and the Agadon, any distractions within himself was a distraction from his mission. Every second counted. Every emotion could be dealt with later.
Megan took off her shirt, revealing a tank top. She balled up her shirt and put it between Drew’s head and the wheelchair’s head rest. She wheeled him forward and toward the ramp, while every few seconds adjusting Drew’s head, keeping it from flopping forward or to one side or the other.
Drew was in good hands.
“Do you need help?” Jaxx asked.
“Yes. Let’s find a doctor.” She pushed Drew onward, hastily moving by Jaxx.
Jaxx took a quick step forward, ready to help, then halted for a moment. He bent down next to Mya and Damion. He didn’t have kids of his own, and wasn’t used to them, but he had to be strict. “Stay by my side, okay?”
Mya put her hand up. “Hold my hand, Jaxx.”
He did and a soft energy oozed up his arm and wrapped around his body. He stood straighter. Damion grabbed his other hand. Jaxx lurched back.
A new child popped into his mind, one he knew was the third piece they were looking for. She had blonde hair, blue eyes, and was maybe seven years old. Jaxx couldn’t tell, but her aura was just like Damion’s and Mya’s. “What’s her name?”
“Lily,” mentioned Damion. “You’re not going to mess this up, Jaxx. We’ll make sure of it.”
Jaxx glanced down, seeing a very strong boy gazing up at him. Damion wasn’t about shits and giggles. He was about getting crap done and efficiently.
Megan was off the ramp and well on her way to somewhere,
ignoring anything but her hell-bent objective to get Drew some help. And rightly so.
Jaxx hurried toward the ramp, both kids still holding his hands.
Segarra turned the corner, placing one foot on the ramp, the other remaining off. “Hi, baby doll.”
Mya let go of Jaxx and ran to her papa. She wrapped her arms around the back of his neck as he scooped her into his arms. There was real love, Jaxx couldn’t deny it, but there was also negligence from a father to a daughter. Segarra was using his daughter against the Agadon, putting her in grave danger.
Jaxx would make sure to put that to a stop. But later. He needed to get Drew some help, and now.
Vvvvvvvvkichu! Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!
Jaxx ducked, then eyed the ceiling. “What the hell?”
Segarra chuckled. “Don’t worry, Jaxx. It’s our base’s force field. It turned off while we flew in. And as you can hear, it’s now on. You’ll hear a buzz around the base the entire time you’re here. It’s annoying, but needed.”
“Interesting base,” commented Jaxx as he stepped out of the ship, Damion squeezing his hand like he was holding onto a leash.
“We’ve taken over the Denver Public Library and the Denver Art Museum, plus the buildings around it,” explained Segarra. “We’ve made it our own home…for now.”
Damion squeezed harder and Jaxx looked down. Damion bounced up and down, his eyes darting left and right. Jaxx put his finger up, telling Segarra to hold on a minute. “What is it, Damion?”
The kid shook his head. “I don’t know.”
Mya gasped. “Oh, no.”
Segarra eyed her. “Are you okay, honey?”
The buzzing-sound stopped and Segarra gave a funny look. He scratched his chin. “That’s odd.”
Wampoom! Wampoom!
A concussion rocked the base. Jaxx lifted Damion and dashed away from the craft, Segarra following him with Mya in his arms.
Wampoom!
A direct hit, and a building next to the library and museum burst into flames, a quarter of the building breaking apart like a concrete waterfall. Chunks and rubble spilled into the street, and a puff of white dust rose toward the sky.
Metallic voices reverberated off the buildings. The Agadon. They were inside the base walls.
The base turrets turned, spun, and spewed energy blasts toward a destroyed portion of the fence line. Dirt and blacktop blasted into the air, turning the area into a thick, messy fog.
The turrets shut off and everything went quiet.
“Move,” said Segarra. “We’ll hunker down in the library. We’ve set that place up well. It’s damn near impenetrable.”
Segarra had to be the world’s biggest optimist, or an idiot. The Agadon could find their way into just about anything. Nonetheless, Jaxx was out of options, and his nephew was in need of some serious medical attention. He turned, dashing after Segarra.
“Jaxx,” came a metallic voice.
Jaxx glance around, continuing after Segarra. An Agadon emerged from the fog. It began to laugh. Was that Taz — the Agadon that had the same powers as him?
The base turrets zipped to life, sucking in, then blowing out thick, energetic balls of hell. The Agadon jumped out of the way, missing the concussion blast by mere inches. Again, the turret’s died down. The smoke cleared and there was no one there.
Jaxx shook his head. No way could Taz be on the planet. The guy met his doom back on Callisto during Jaxx’s prison escape.
“Jaxx.”
It was the voice again.
He turned, back peddling away from the voice. And there he was, the blue asshole, standing behind the gate.
Shit.
It was Taz. Somehow, the prick was back.
9
Denver, Colorado
Megan stopped the wheelchair. Drew woke up and immediately wanted to throw up. The bullet felt like it was moving back and forth inside the goo that kept his organs attached.
He touched his belly. It was protruding more, bloated from internal bleeding. He shook his head in dismay. He wasn’t going to make it.
He glanced at the gorgeous woman pushing him, and his memories flooded back. Yes, that was Megan. The trauma had induced amnesia for a brief period, but he was glad his memory was back. Where in the world was he now?
Megan backed the wheelchair up and heaved forward, pressing Drew onward and over the newly formed bumps in the wheelchair ramp by the explosions nailing the area nearby, shifting the concrete.
Drew glanced around, looking for Jaxx and the kids. They were leaving the confines of the craft and rushing toward him. Segarra was with them and Drew nodded to himself. Yes, he was at Segarra’s base. They mentioned he could get help here.
An explosion sparked up, tearing apart a turret near a security gate, portions of the weapon thrown across the building they were about to enter. Thick smoke wafted to his nose, sharing with it a mix of gun powder and burning asphalt.
They came up to the front glass doors. Megan pulled the handle.
Locked.
She pulled again, staring at a wide eyed woman in military garb on the other side of the glass doors. She pulled the handle again.
It didn’t budge.
Another explosion and Megan ducked. The military woman ducked around a corner, disappearing from view.
Megan pounded the door. “Let us in.”
Another woman marched her way to the door, peeking through it. She held herself strong, but Drew could tell that underneath she was starting to crack, panic setting in.
The woman shook her head, saying something Drew couldn’t hear.
Megan hit the door again.
The woman mouthed, “Bullet proof.”
That must have meant that no matter how much you pound on it, it wasn’t going to break.
Megan pointed to Drew’s stomach. “He’s been shot. We need a doctor.”
The woman’s face slackened and the corners of her eyes drooped down slightly. She shook her head, glanced at a clipboard in her hand. She looked up, mouthing, “I’m so sorry.” She pointed over Drew’s shoulder. “Doctors…city…that way.”
Megan turned Drew’s wheelchair around. Over yonder, where the damn grunt was pointing, was chock full of small mushroom clouds and toppled skyscrapers, their charred and pointed remains thrusting toward the sky.
The city was taking a beating Drew didn’t want to attend. He blinked away his stomach pain a few times. “Not a chance in hell.”
Megan let out a big sigh. That wasn’t comforting. “We have to. I know it’s a hike, but we have to find help. Or…” she paused.
“I’ll know. I’ll die.”
Segarra, Mya in his arms, dashed past Drew and Megan. He swiped a card on a panel next to the door. It beeped and he pulled the door open. He touched Megan’s shoulder. “Get your guy into emergency surgery. There are doctors, surgeons, and hell…it’s like a medical Disneyland in there. Just don’t step on the weapons.”
Jaxx was behind him, holding the Damion kid. Why couldn’t they just do their magic and heal him?
Megan pushed him through the doorway and into the…library? Books were everywhere, lined on shelves in a thousand rows scattered throughout the building. People were shouting, and Marines were marching around gathering equipment, guns, speaking on devices strapped to their shoulders, and rushing out doors.
Explosions shook the building. Some Marines ducked, others flew into action and out more doors, going God-knows-where.
“Follow me,” shouted Segarra. He rounded a corner so fast, Mya’s head whipped back. She held on tighter, her hands gripping his camouflage jacket like a cat with claws hanging on for dear life.
They came to a wide stairway, white and granite-looking, or marble. Right now Drew couldn’t tell. His eyes were starting to blur.
Segarra frantically eyed the area, then put Mya on the ground. “Jaxx, put down the child. I don’t see a ramp. Help me lift Drew down the stairwell.”
It was an order, not a question. And
Jaxx complied. Megan skirted out of the way as Jaxx took the wheelchair by the push handles and Segarra grabbed the forks just above the front caster wheels.
They lifted and Drew bobbed up and down as they descended, step by hurried step, to the lower floor, not seeming to care if it jostled the shit out of his abdomen and everything inside.
But it didn’t hurt as much as it should have had. Drew was numb and beginning to turn cold. And for some reason, his stomach didn’t ache anymore. That had to be a bad sign.
They put him down and Megan took over, pushing Drew forward, following Segarra as he paced quickly down a corridor.
“Just up ahead,” said Segarra, motioning them along.
A whining sound filled the hallway, then a pop and a fizz. Immediately, Segarra threw himself at Drew, waving his hands in the air like a maniac. “Get the kids out of here.”
Krakakakooj!
The building rocked, and the room they were heading toward turned into a hot mess of rubble and fire. Drew was thrust backward, his wheelchair spinning and tipping to the side. He landed with a grunt, pinning his arm against himself and the chair’s armrest.
Megan was thrown to the side, where she lay motionless.
10
Denver, Colorado
The blast was loud, and painful. Jaxx was on the wrong side of the explosion, not really knowing how he was thrown in that direction.
He was on the ground, covered in thick rock and gray dust. A ringing sound filled his ears, doing its best to annoy the shit out of him and confuse him at the same time.
He coughed, and rubbed his ears, pulled them, and wiggled — anything to taper the sound.
Bratatatatatat ratatatatatat! Wapoom! Bratatatatat ratatatatatat!
Machine gun and turret fire pounded the air like a muffled war movie.
He coughed again, pushing a cement chunk off his body. A breeze brushed across his skin. He glanced up.
The Complete Atlantis Series, Books 1 - 5: Ascendant Saga Page 95