His body straightened and his Chi vibrated inside him like a giddy race horse ready to spring from the starting gates.
He cringed, his back arching like someone had thrown a harpoon through his back and pulled. He pushed out his breath with a ferocious force, and yelled loudly.
A pulse blasted through him. The ship shuddered and bounced with turbulence, and the inside dome lights blinked on and off.
He ricocheted into the back of a seat and collapsed face first onto the floor. His was hotter than hot and sweat dripped from every pore, soaking his jump suit.
He opened his eyes, seeing nothing but blur. He heard voices call his name, clapping their hands, and snapping their fingers to get his attention.
He was weak and his breath came slowly. “Did…it work?”
An echo filled his mind. “Yes.”
“Who said…that?”
No response.
Every movement, including his own, rushed at him like pictures in a slide show.
A soft touch, and another, rested on his skin. He could tell it came from the children.
His body strengthened and his vision normalized. He blinked, pushing himself into a seated position.
Megan snapped her finger over Jaxx’s ear. “Are you back?”
Why wasn’t she piloting the craft?
Jaxx remembered. It was on autopilot. Good, his mind was coming back around. Jaxx nodded at Megan’s question and swallowed, his mouth and throat dryer than a dessert. “Any water?”
They looked around.
“Sorry, Jaxx. No water,” responded Megan, crouched by Jaxx’s side.
“What were the results?” asked Jaxx, moving his toes and fingers around to gather his bearings.
Lily walked over to the cockpit and stood between the pilot’s and co-pilot’s chairs. She viewed the scene in the sky outside.
Jaxx grabbed onto a seat to help him into a standing position, grunting the entire way up. Damn, he was dizzy. He held onto cabin chair after cabin chair as he made his way over to Lily, doing his best not to fall over. He leaned on the pilot’s seat and looked out the window. His jaw slackened.
“Holy shit,” he said, plopping down on the pilot’s chair, rubbing the back of his neck.
In front of him and below were a myriad of starfighters plummeting to their death. Explosions filled the outskirts of Denver, and fire ravaged across the yellow and green land. Trees were ablaze and the yellow grass might as well have been doused with gasoline by how quickly it was turning into an inferno.
“It worked,” he mumbled.
At least a quarter of the Agadon fleet was decimated, and the portion that had been headed toward them was gone as if deleted from reality.
Out of the corner of Jaxx’s eye, a projectile shot across the sky and into the distance, heading right for one of the large star carriers leading the charge. It ignited twenty or so yards in front of the ship’s massive bow, hitting the craft’s front shields, and an electric charge spread from the impact, sending out streaks of lightning.
It died down, then another missile struck and another.
“What’s happening?” Jaxx moved his transport ship farther from the Agadon fleet, doing his best to sneak away, and brought up his starboard camera view, watching the scene unfold on his holodisplay.
Marine fighters, jets, and helicopters were in full force, flying toward the incoming Agadon fleet. The war was back on and it was going to be messy.
In tandem, the Marines let loose, sending a shitload of projectiles and energy weapons toward the enemy. The sky lit up red when they hit, some penetrating through the shields, others hitting enemy starfighters, ending them before they could get a shot off.
Jaxx’s stunt not only worked, it distracted the Agadon long enough for the Marines to assemble and kick ass.
A firework display filled the sky and Jaxx banked his craft more, putting distance between him and the fight.
The cockpit beeped. Not good. He glanced down, eyeing the radar. Several Agadon starfighters had broken off their fleet’s formation and were headed his way.
He made a fist and pounded his armchair. He glanced over his shoulder, seeing Lily back with Mya and Damion, watching through the cockpit window with curiosity. And Megan was next to an unconscious and dying Drew, wiping the drool off his face.
Jaxx spoke through gritted teeth, more pissed off than ever. Can’t anything be easy? “Strap in, everyone. We’re not out of this yet.”
27
Lakewood, Colorado
Drew opened his eyes, feeling someone touching his chin. Or, were they wiping something off of him?
It was a familiar touch, one that he liked a little too much. It was Megan. He lifted his head. “I…wuv…wu.” A pang pierced his heart and adrenaline pounded through him, waking him up more. He opened his eyes wider. “Wait, what did I say?”
Megan leaned over. “Get ready for more bumps, Drew.” She patted the back of his hand.
He glanced around, his stomach not as painful as it was before. Was he in a ship? The kids were behind him and a bit to his left. They were strapped in, glaring out the cockpit window as if it was a movie playing before them.
“Where are we going?” he asked.
The ship shook back and forth, and went into a wide, hard turn. Drew grabbed Megan’s armrest so he wouldn’t flip on his side with the wheelchair toppling on top of him.
“I’m sending all gravitons to the port side shields. We have incoming ion cannon fire. Brace!” yelled Jaxx.
The craft bucked and twisted as a barrage of blasts knocked against the shields.
Drew squeezed the armrest tighter, his knuckles whitening.
God, why did I have to wake up for this?
“Stop your bellyaching, Drew.”
Was that his mom? He heard laughter. It was definitely his mom, cracking up at her own lame bellyaching joke. At least his stomach wasn’t aching like it was earlier, so it wasn’t that funny, mom.
He glanced around as Jaxx put them in a tighter turn and into a fast descent, pressing this craft to its limits.
“Drew,” it was his mom again. “You’re coming closer and closer to me. Are you ready to let go of your life or do you wish to continue your journey on Earth?”
He jerked back when he saw his mom on the floor, sitting with her legs crossed and staring up at him. The craft rose. “What do you mean, mom?”
She looked at him intensely, yet there was compassion in her eyes. “You’re dying, Drew. You don’t have much more time in this physical plane. Understand that when you pass over, I will be here for you.”
She blinked out and Drew’s heart palpated. He knew he was dying. He just wanted it to come now to get it over with.
“Drew,” came Megan. “We’re heading to Machu Picchu.”
“Wha…where?” questioned Drew.
“There is a pyramid under Machu Picchu that will help you heal.” There wasn’t much confidence in her voice.
Drew snorted. “Yeah, right.” A pyramid couldn’t heal his body, no matter how many theorems Jaxx threw at him. It was a building. The only building that could heal him was one full of doctors and Drew had suddenly become a doctor’s worst nightmare. He’d ask for help. They’d die. It was as simple as that. It shouldn’t have been, but it was. At least the corpsman was able to get the bullet out of him, but it didn’t extend his life but for five minutes, he guessed.
“Sending gravitons to aft shields,” said Jaxx. “They are tailing us and closing in.” There was nervousness in Jaxx’s voice. “Hold on a second. What are they doing?”
“What do you mean, Jaxx?” inquired Megan, leaning forward, her eyes glued to the cockpit window.
“They are slowing down. Why…” Jaxx spun around in his seat. “Lily?”
Drew did his best to turn, catching Lily out of the corner of his eyes. She was unstrapped and touching the ramp, her palms against the flat metal.
“Keep going, Jaxx.” Lily’s knees became weak and she los
t her balance, falling to the floor. She managed to keep her hands on the ramp, even though she was now lying on her side.
“We’re losing them, and fast,” replied Jaxx. “It’s almost like they are stopped and hovering in mid-air. Did you do that, Lily?”
She nodded her head, her eyes closing. “Yes.”
Jaxx probably knew it would cost her vital energy, just as Drew did as well. She was making a great sacrifice for them all.
“Thank you,” said Jaxx, turning back around, steering the ship on another wide turn, diving the craft toward the Colorado terrain.
Drew leaned forward from the descent, scrunching his stomach up against his thighs. A rush of pain spread up his chest and around his lower back. “Ease up, Jaxx. You’re killing me here. And I mean that literally.”
Jaxx eased up on the control stick and brought the craft level. “Sorry, Drew. I was putting even more distance between us and the Agadon.”
“How does it look back there?” questioned Megan.
“If you’re talking about Denver?” Jaxx shook his head, his eyes falling away and to the co-pilot’s chair. “Not so good.”
“That’s what I thought.”
Drew’s face reddened. These people needed to understand how much in the way he was to them, to everyone. They probably could have been to Machu Picchu and back by now if it wasn’t for him. “Why didn’t you leave me? I guarantee you would have been much better off and could have left sooner to this Machu Picchu place had you not been rolling me around this entire time.”
Mya touched the back of his shoulder. “Because you’re important.” She leaned over, pressing both hands on his belly. A warm sensation filled him like hot cocoa on a cold, snowy day. His pain diminished. She took her hands off and stepped back. “You’ll be meeting them soon.”
Drew glanced at Megan and then back at Mya, wanting an explanation. “Meeting who?”
“The Blue Avions. They are assisting us on a higher level than we can see,” responded Mya. “They will be here shortly.”
Drew tapped his wheelchair. “They’ll be here? On this ship?” What the hell is she talking about?
“No.” She sat back in her seat, as if she said too much.
Drew gave her a double take, thrusting out his palms. “What are you saying?”
“I said too much,” she looked at her hands in her lap. “They aren’t sure you’re going to survive.”
“The Blue Avion aren’t sure?” asked Drew. The ship bucked and Drew whipped his head around toward Jaxx, wanting to know the status.
Megan gripped his arm.
Jaxx laughed. “You see that? We’re past supersonic speed right now.”
Drew took his eyes to the window. The clouds were whipping by. He couldn’t tell exactly how fast they were traveling, but hell, they were moving fast.
“We’ll be in Machu Picchu soon. We’re almost crossing the Mexican-Texas border right now.”
“This soon?” stated Megan, her voice high, shocked.
“And —” Jaxx tightened, his shoulders almost rose to his ears. “That dagnabbin piece of shit.”
“What?” asked Megan.
“My old friend, Taz, the immortal asshole, is back. I can tell by the way he is flying the craft tailing us.” Jaxx let out a loud breath. “Lily, see if you can slow that one down, too, will you?”
No reply.
“Lily?”
Drew followed Jaxx’s eyes, glancing back at the rear of the craft. Lily was on the ground, unconscious.
28
Del Rio, Texas
Jaxx exhaled loudly, his mind still spinning from sending out his energy and short circuiting a portion of the Agadon fleet. He was weak, but not as weak as Lily.
Jaxx unstrapped and rushed to the back of the craft. Lily was listless. He put his hands on her. “Mya, Damion. I need your help.”
They unclipped and rushed to Lily’s side.
Damion’s eyebrows squished closer together and his nose scrunched up. “You’re in the way, old man. Now, move aside.”
Jaxx backed up, glancing at the cockpit, wondering how much closer Taz was gaining to them. No beeps or buzzes blaring into the cabin told Jaxx that Taz wasn’t in weapon’s range just yet.
“Megan, can you monitor the controls?” questioned Jaxx.
“Sure,” she rubbed Drew’s back and headed to the front of the ship, plopping down on the pilot’s chair.
“She’s cold,” frowned Mya, placing her hands on Lily’s feet. “We’ll need you, Jaxx.”
“For what?” He wasn’t a healer like these two kids were.
“Get on your knees and put your hands on Lily. Then bring in all the Chi you can muster, concentrating on healing her body. She’s weak. She just needs energy.”
Jaxx dipped his head, wondering how this would work since he was weak himself. “Okay, I think I can do that.”
“We know you can, numb nutz,” replied Damion, shaking his head. “Stop stalling.”
“Right.” Jaxx put his hands on Lily’s arms and brought as much Chi into his body as he could muster and concentrated. He formed an energetic ball in his core, imagining bright light coming in from above and through his head, growing the ball even more. He then brought it up to his arms and down to his hands.
He took in a deep breath and exhaled, sending Lily as much energy as he could.
Lily stirred.
“Keep going, Jaxx,” said Mya, smiling from ear to ear. “Do you understand what Chi is really meant for yet?”
Jaxx gave her a look. Yeah, it was to kick ass and take names, but he knew that’s not what she was thinking. Chi was a healing power, something that Abdu, his now dead Leonian friend, had told him on a few occasions.
He had explained to Jaxx that Chi wasn’t just a powerful force in the Universe to use as a defensive technique against evil, angry sons of bitches ready to take his life. On the other hand, it was a healing energy — if you knew how to use it correctly, and by correctly, using it for the benefit of yourself and others.
Jaxx, however, mostly knew Chi’s defensive purposes, and the Taz character following them only used it as an offensive weapon. He couldn’t wait until it bit Taz in the butt, hopefully.
Mya nodded, as if reading Jaxx’s thoughts. She spoke, giving Jaxx a wink, reminding Jaxx of Slade, though thankfully, Mya didn’t have the negative vibes like Slade. “People don’t understand that if you live by the sword, you die by the sword. That could be said for other things as well. And with Chi, if you use it to purposely harm another Being, you’ll eventually be harmed as well.” She tapped her temple. “Keep that in your mind, Jaxx.”
Jaxx nodded. The little girl spoke like she was ten years older than she really was. Hell, thirty years older than she really was. She wasn’t like that when he met her. It was as if she was growing up right before his eyes. Her mind was rapidly evolving.
Lily yawned and she twisted onto her stomach. She pushed off the ground and to her knees, yawning again. “What happened?”
“You used too much of your energy,” said Damion. “Next time, have one of us help you, okay?”
A beep sounded across the cockpit to the cabin. “Uh, problem,” hollered Megan.
“Buckle yourselves up, kids,” ordered Jaxx. “More bumps are coming our way.”
He hurried past Drew, laying his hand on his nephew’s shoulder as he hustled by. “Are you okay?” he shouted over his shoulder.
Drew’s eyes were fading. He lifted his head and smiled, holding up a thumb. “Don’t worry about me, captain. Fly us to safety.”
Jaxx feigned a smile back to him. “I love you, man.” He’d only spoken those words a few times in his life to Drew, and that was when Drew was five or ten years old. He couldn’t remember.
Drew perked up. “Love you, too.” He closed his eyes, moving from consciousness back to sleep.
Jaxx bit his lower lip, needing to get at the biggest problem at hand — Taz. He entered the cockpit. “He’s gaining on us?”
>
Megan got up from the seat and gestured for Jaxx to take it. “I think he will be able to target us soon.”
Jaxx’s eyes went wide. “Nope, not soon. Now.” He sat down hard. “Hold on.”
Jaxx couldn’t wait. He had to evade. He pushed the control stick to the side, banking his craft just as an ion cannon blast flew past their port side.
Megan tumbled head over heels, slamming into the starboard wall. Another clunk and Jaxx knew Drew had taken a spill as well.
“Get into your seat quickly,” Jaxx yelled, pulling back on his control stick. Megan slid toward the back of the craft, along with Drew and the wheelchair.
“Shit,” complained Megan, her eyes wide, her breath coming quickly. “Sorry. I’ll get this…”
Jaxx took a fast look over his shoulder. Megan was crawling toward Drew and the kids were strapped in.
“Anti-gravs, anti-gravs.” He searched for the button, any button, that would ease up the G-forces he was about to put everyone through. The last thing he needed was conking all his passengers out while performing constant high G-force maneuvers.
Another beep and he pressed the control stick forward, praying like hell that Megan was back in her seat with Drew by her side, in his chair and safe.
The wheelchair pounded against the co-pilot chair. Jaxx clenched his jaw and made a fist. He wanted to end Taz, but in this craft, it wasn’t going to happen.
Words flashed across his holodisplay: ENABLE ANTI-GRAVITY FUNCTION.
He tapped the holoscreen and the pressure inside the craft eased up, allowing him a nice deep breath of air. The ride would be less strenuous, but Taz on his ass wouldn’t bring down the stress much more.
He leveled out the craft, seeing Taz was out of weapon’s lock, and grabbed onto the wheelchair’s arm rest, worry in his voice. “You okay back there?”
The Complete Atlantis Series, Books 1 - 5: Ascendant Saga Page 103