by J. F. Halpin
In less than a minute, the room had emptied out.
Only their group remained.
Then, a handful of heavily armed soldiers arrived on the other side. They wore the same rubber suits Asle had seen on the colonel’s men. The colonel gave them a nod of approval.
“Delta!” the colonel yelled from the far wall at the other side of the portal.
“Sarge . . .” Summers called to Nowak. “Get everyone over. I’ll follow once we have the others clear.”
Nowak hesitated for a moment, glancing between Summers and the portal.
“Cortez, Asle, you’re with me. Pat, Synel, and Bard next. We’ll cover from the Earth side.”
Cortez nodded, hefting her gun.
“C’mon.” She held out a hand to Asle.
Asle walked to the machine, turning back to look at Summers as she approached the threshold. To her surprise, he was focused on them, not on what he was doing, not even on the men who had come to “handle” their reception.
And for whatever reason, he seemed sad.
He’d been trying to sell all of them on his world, ignoring any troubles he’d face by leaving. Or even the problems he’d bring to his “Earth.”
And suddenly, she understood what was happening. Asle stopped just as they crossed the threshold, then started walking back.
“Asle!” Nowak shouted.
“Shit, what’s she doing?” Cortez held her gun aimed at the thin man.
But neither of them followed.
As Asle approached, Synel gave her a small smile.
“He’s a terrible liar, isn’t he?”
“Asle, get back over there.” Summers spoke harshly.
Asle didn’t move. None of them did.
“You were planning on staying, weren’t you?”
Summers hesitated.
“Please . . . go,” he repeated.
Pat moved up beside him. The twins followed.
Orvar cast a quick glance to the portal, to Cortez, before he too moved to Summers’ side.
“As I said,” Pat began, “I trust you. We trust you. If this is your path, then it’s our privilege to follow.”
“And as much as I prefer living, life in a cage would be much lonelier without company,” Synel added.
“Goddamn it,” Summers muttered.
The thin man listened to the exchange, still grinning.
“Wonderful. You’ve made a wise choice.”
Summers gave the man a harsh look before he raised his gun.
Asle saw both Cortez and Nowak bolt toward the portal as one. Summers acted before they could, firing into the machine beside the Anchor.
“Summers, you a—”
Cortez’s voice was abruptly cut off as the portal collapsed, leaving the room much smaller, and emptier, than it had been.
Summers allowed his gun to drop, letting out a long breath.
“You want to know the difference between me and you?” Summers started as he looked at the man known as Wendel. “I don’t try to justify what I’ve done as some greater good.”
In one swift move, Summers’ hand shot out, wrapping around the thin man’s head.
“Wai—”
The thin man was cut off as his body immediately froze, then went limp. Summers let him fall to the ground before lifting his rifle and putting two shots into the back of the other man’s head.
“In fact, I’m kind of an asshole.”
Then, everything was silent.
Synel took a step back as blood began to pool around their shoes.
“That was violent.”
“Yeah . . .” Summers agreed. “Sorry.”
Asle stared down at the body, impassive.
“Don’t be.”
After a moment, Summers turned back to the group, giving a pointed glance to the missile a few feet away from him.
“So . . . we should probably get out of here sooner than later.”
<<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>><<>>
Boom!
Even from this distance, the explosion that came from the bunker shook them to their core.
Figuring out how to detonate the missiles was easier than Summers would have expected, having watched them set it up.
“No way in hell that Anchor survived, but we should double-check either way.” Summers shaded his eyes with a hand.
“So, what’s the plan?” Synel prompted. “I assume you have a plan.” She gave him a severe look.
“I didn’t plan for you to be here,” Summers retorted.
“As if you’d be rid of us that easily. Come now, you’re their commander.” Synel gestured to the four men beside him.
He turned to the others. Tired as they were, there was life in their eyes, even Asle’s.
They were fighters, each of them. He should have seen it sooner. Every fucked-up monster he’d faced was something these people lived with all their lives. Of course they wouldn’t balk at the idea of a bigger threat. It was just what needed to be done. It was life. Impossible as it may be.
“Just because we closed their way home doesn’t mean this thing will stop spreading. It’s only a matter of time until someone like Wendel shows up again, right?”
“Most likely,” Synel answered.
Summers sighed, still staring at the base.
“Then we get ready. We have a world to save.”