The Loctorian Chronicles Intercept

by Andi Feron

  Chapter Thirty-One

  John-January 18, 2015

  Scorch let us use a Jeep-type vehicle to go out to the underground tunnels. Talon drove since he knew where we were going. When we got there, I noticed a large hole in the ground.

  “We have to drop down the tunnel,” Talon said.

  He pulled rope from his bag and anchored it around a large rock. We propelled down one after the other. We put on our night vision goggles to illuminate the otherwise dark chasm. Talon led the way around several curves. I found that his ability was a lot more useful than I’d thought it would be when I was first told he could find things.

  I mockingly thought our keys and cell phones would always be accounted for, and those lost socks would not be able to taunt us from unknown places. Rather than a dull ability, he proved to have one of the most powerful, and his tier-seven status made what he located precise.

  I heard a wisp of air as Talon put his finger to his mouth, indicating we needed to maintain silence. We tiptoed by the creature. His eye opened, and he stretched his neck around to devour us. I couldn’t make out what he looked like in full, but he had snake-like eyes that shone brightly. His scales were thick and dark. We dodged his snapping, and I told the others to hold off on any weapons. I concentrated and forced his mind to open up.

  I expected to quickly kill him, but he spoke, “What do you want?! You creep into my mind as though you were invited.”

  “We need a rock.” I showed him through my memory the picture Scorch had shown me. “We need it to save our friend.”

  “That is my rock. You can’t take it,” he roared.

  “Can we make a deal?”

  “What kind of deal?”

  “I can tell what you want more than anything is your freedom.” I had forged deep into his mind.

  “Yes, but there is no way out and my claws were removed, leaving me unable to dig myself free.”

  “We will free you if you leave the rock behind for us.”

  “If you free me, I will not stop you from having my rock.”

  I released his mind and asked Talon if he could find a way out. He told us all to stand back and took his proton blaster out, putting it on full. He evaporated a large portion of the dirt ceiling above us. The creature, whose name I learned was Grosthon, thanked me in my mind and flew away with long, black wings. Seeing all of him now I could tell he looked similar to a dragon but with sharp, spiraled horns all the way down his back and two larger ones on his head.

  “Talon, where’s the rock?” I asked. Talon pointed to a large pile of black mush. “That’s not…” I paused in disbelief.

  “Poop? Yeah. Yeah, it is. It’s inside that large one there.”

  I glanced at the others. “Any volunteers?”

  “You know what they say, a leader should never ask his followers to do anything he’s not willing to do himself.” Gabriel gave me a pat on the back.

  I took a deep breath and put on a long-sleeved shirt and gloves from my bag. I dug through the largest pile, crap stuck to my sleeves as though it was glue. I pulled out the stone. I wasn’t sure I would get the smell out anytime soon. We scaled out of the tunnels and found a stream to wash the stone in. I left behind the shirt and gloves.

  We walked back into the prison to give Scorch the rock. He wore a black tux with a red bowtie and had a large top hat on his head. The image was much more interesting than the bland robes typically adorned by Loctorians.

  “Well, well. You return with the stone, but you have released my monster,” Scorch proclaimed his disappointment.

  I narrowed my eyes. “Your monster? Why would your monster be guarding the stone you wanted? Couldn’t you have gotten it yourself by freeing him?”

  “If I had really wanted the stone, yes. Really, I just enjoy sending men to their deaths on pointless endeavors. But I will keep my word. Your friend is yours.”

  Scorch commanded his men to release Deron. Deron apologized and thanked us for saving him. Then Scorch told us to enjoy his city, and we could partake of whatever we wanted on him. We impressed him by being the only team to return from Grosthon’s den.

  As we turned to leave Scorch stopped me, “John Trammel, you have a destiny to fulfill as a great admiral of fleets. I advise you to give yourself a few back-up females, or you will need to call upon the favor I now have waiting for you.”

  His words made me uneasy, but I said, “I think I’ll take my chances on the one I got.”

  “Very well, then may peace go with you.” He tipped his top hat with a bow.

  We headed back to our hotel

  “Whoa! What’s that smell.” Deron waved in front of his nose.

  “That’s our buddy John.” Morgan laughed.

  “It’s a long story, but let’s just say you should be glad you’re worth digging through shit for.” I shot Deron a serious look.

  I took three showers and still felt I reeked. I made use of the base spa and thought that maybe now I was bearable. Despite protests from the guys, I finished my paperwork. We needed to get back to base in the morning. After all my work was complete, I felt more comfortable going out with the guys. Colin, Morgan, and Deron went to find some exotic dancers. I had ordered the gambling tables off limits as not to repeat our previous adventure.

  Talon, Gabriel, and I sat at the bar. We already had the only women we cared to interact with. Talon said goodbye to his old friend Elliott. Elliott put his apron up, indicating he was off duty for the night. A woman with dark hair walked up, and Elliott kissed her. They walked away, holding hands, and I saw Talon smiling in their direction.

  “You seem extra chipper, Talon,” Morgan said, having noticed Talon’s grin as well. He had joined us at the bar, saying the dancer didn’t hold much appeal for him.

  “An old friend finally found peace. What’s better than that?” Talon watched Elliott and his girl disappear out the door.

  The ride back to base felt like an eternity. I couldn’t wait to get my arms around Allie and feel her presence again. She balanced me and was the only thing that lured me from the responsibilities of war. Lila leapt for Gabriel and Seraphine pulled Talon close to her.

  I went to the back of my ship and found Allie. The feeling that pushed itself deep in my chest each time I saw her was now magnified by the fact that she would soon be my wife. I kissed her intensely and slid my hand into the back pocket of her jeans.

  “Now wasn’t that fun and relaxing? No paperwork, missions, or responsibilities for a few days.” Allie wrapped me in another hug.

  “Yeah, it was perfect,” I said.

  I saw Gabriel smirking at me and I shrugged my face.

  As I held the woman I loved in my arms, I thought about how far we had come in almost three years. The young college students we were vanished long ago, and we had been transformed into soldiers. I didn’t know what the war, Loctorians, or driving force of fate held for all of us next. All I knew was with my team, my family, next to me, we would meet the next challenge, and we would defeat it. We would fight the war in the hopes that one day we could go home.