“Good to know you had such faith in us before boss,” Jordan said with a chuckle, clapping him on the back.
“I did. I do. Now it’s just higher than it was.”
“Uh huh,” Jordan said, “Now, can we set up camp and settle in for the night before temperatures drop to unmanageable?”
Jaime tossed each of them a round disc. “We each get our own tent. Now isn’t that just the last word in luxury?”
There was a general rumble of good-natured disagreement before everyone picked a spot to set up their tent. A few minutes later, there were seven tents in a circle on the hillside. They set up a fire in the middle and warmed up their rations.
“It’s a long time since I’ve been camping,” Jordan said.
“Yeah? You do that for pleasure or you mean for a mission?” asked Zorica.
“My brothers and I used to go out into the hills of Sumer where there are still trees so tall and close it’s as far from civilization as you can get. We’d follow lycan spoor and spot hyenas and wild dogs. It was fun.”
“You miss them,” Uzochi said in a voice that indicated that it was an alien concept to him.
“They’re my brothers.”
Uzochi simply nodded and looked away.
“Do you not have families on Brekson?” Jaime asked.
“We are egg-hatched in batches; we grow in age pods until the age of maturity and then go off to the wild to find our eye.”
“Really? That’s fascinating. So your pod mates are like your siblings?” Jordan asked.
Uzochi frowned at him. “They are my age cohort that is all.”
“Okay,” Jordan said and grimaced.
“Zorica,” Jaime said with a smile, “What about you? Any siblings?”
She narrowed her eyes at him and looked disgusted. “No, no siblings.”
Jaime’s smile faded and he looked around at the group. “Anyone of you got family?”
There was general silence from the group.
“My mother died when I was ten. I lived on the streets of Terra after that. I’ve been alone most of my life,” Jaime told the group. His confession was met with silence. “Hey, maybe we can be each other’s family, how about that?”
“You’re very corny for a commander,” Jordan said.
Jaime laughed. “You love me.”
“You wish,” Zorica said grinning at him.
“We could try that if you think it would be beneficial to the team,” AX put in.
“I think it would be beneficial to us as living beings to have a connection to each other.”
“How very Zen of you,” Ash said.
“What is Zen?” Jaime asked.
Ash laughed. “It is amusing that you don’t know that, yet it originated on your planet.”
“Well, you should know that I’m not as well read as I probably should be.”
“A self-made man. I have read your file,” AX said.
Jaime sighed. “Is that legal?”
AX just stared at him.
Jaime let out a slight chortle. “Stupid question, right? Okay then, now that we’re done with the bonding, let’s get some sleep okay? Tomorrow, we will have a reproduction of the smuggling tunnel we’ll be going through. We’ll need to time ourselves; we have to get in there as fast as possible. A drone will be bringing a reproduction of the blink for us to use. This is a trial run. Bring your A-games. We cannot afford mistakes.”
Several choruses of “Yes boss” later, and Jaime was left alone to smother the fire and get to his own bed.
Chapter Seven: Blink
The ship brought them to the edge of Martian atmosphere and they waited for the timed patrols to sweep their sector. Azloic had opened a passage for them but they had to get there on their own.
“People, we’re going complete quiet for the next twenty. No phones, no comms, no live streams. Shut everything down, Arnold.
“Shutting down now.”
The ship went dark and silent, floating on a trajectory. It was shaped out of the inside of an asteroid and, with that camouflage and no electronic activity, the ship would register as just another falling rock in the sky. Before they shut down, they had set a trajectory to sector nine on the edge of Martian landfall. If they had calculated the speed of their fall correctly, they would be able to restart the engine just before crashing into the mountain they were heading for, where an associate of Azloic was standing by to lead them through the maze.
They strapped in and waited, used to the freefall. This wasn’t anyone’s first rodeo.
Things thankfully went like clockwork and Jaime was the first to step off the ship. They would go through the underground bunker together where intel reported the blink to be kept. Then they would split into two teams, one creating a distraction and the other retrieving the weapon. After that, they would rendezvous at checkpoint six where Azloic would show them the way out and where, hopefully, a Federation ship would be waiting to return them to the base.
It was raining as he stepped out of the ship and he spared a moment to be glad that their weapons were waterproof. A Martian was waiting for them, dressed in leather chapsticks, a tasseled jacket and not much else. His head was covered in a leather helmet and he had a motorbike at his side.
“I don’t want to burst your bubble or anything but we won’t all fit,” Jaime said.
The Martian reached out to the throttle and revved it. A sound like a pop, and his single motorbike now had a carriage large enough to house them all.
“It is too far to go on foot. You will ride with me,” he said.
Jaime nodded, stepping forward and taking a seat on the circular bench that lined the carriage. The others piled in behind him and the Martian took off at warp speed.
They would all have been flung to the floor if seat belts hadn’t automatically closed around them. The Martian stopped a few moments later, in front of a monolithic building, seemingly made out of red soil held together by iron magnets. The magnetic qualities of Martian soil were well known but this was the first time Jaime had seen it in action. The Martian stopped in front of a door, placed his hand on the sigil drawn there and the door disappeared, opening a dark passage going underground.
“At the bottom of this passage is a door. When you reach it repeat the words, asinum: Osculer, oro. It will open.”
Jaime turned to him. “I thank you.”
“You have paid us.”
“Still, thank you.”
The Martian bowed, went back to his bike and took off.
Jaime looked back at his team. “AX, you are first. Activate infrared and all sensors. Zorica, summon your imps to clear the way. Jordan, after me. Epone and Uzochi, flank. Ash, at the rear.”
They got in formation and set out, all activating night vision to see in the dark, silent mode on all signals.
The descent was uneventful, and the door was where the Martian said it would be. Jaime repeated the words and the door opened. He signed for the team to split up, team A heading south to the blink, team B heading north.
Jaime headed toward rendezvous point, keeping all teams updated on the status of the other and scanning for threats ahead. He reached the rendezvous point, keeping an eye on his team. He scanned the entire complex, knowing that time was short, searching for the blink.
“A floor below you, there’s a lot of warm bodies, south-east corner of the building.”
Zorica led the way down, her imps neutralizing any magic barrier the Martians might have put up, as AX scanned for other types of threats.
“Three warm bodies in front of the door, armed,” Jaime said into his earpiece.
Zorica directed her imps to swarm them and AX went in with his knives. This was a clandestine operation, which meant no loud weapons. Three warm bodies became three cold ones pretty fast, and now they just had to get through the door.
“It’s warded, even my imps can’t get through.” Zorica’s voice floated in his ear, low and somehow seductiv
e.
“Can you suss out what kind of wards?” Jaime asked.
“Perhaps I can,” Uzochi said. “If you enhance my magic.”
“What do you need me to do?”
“Just what you did in the lab.”
Jaime closed his eyes and tried to direct his energy toward his teammate. He felt a tremor through his body and Uzochi exclaimed out loud. The seer stretched his hand out, pushing at the air in front of him. The door shook and shuddered as if there was something on the other side resisting the force of Uzochi’s magic.
“More,” Uzochi said in Jaime’s ear, and Jaime pushed harder, pushed all his essence toward the seer. Uzochi’s hand shot out further and, suddenly, there was a gap between the door and the jamb.
Zorica reached out, placing her hand on Uzochi’s shoulder, adding her own energy to Jaime’s. The door banged open and they rushed in, weapons up.
They all stopped short when they caught sight of the blink.
He was sitting on a small cot, legs crossed, wide green eyes on the door.
“Don’t hurt me,” he wailed.
Zorica took a step toward him. “My name is Zorica Killa Warwick. This is my team. We are from the Galactic Federation and we are here to rescue you,” she said softly, holding her hand out. The child took her hand and stood up.
“You’ll take me home?” he asked.
“We will. Come with us and you will live.”
The boy nodded his acquiescence and Zorica picked him up.
“Let’s go,” she told the other two.
Uzochi and AX flanked her and they made their slow way up to the rendezvous. Jaime activated the homing signal for the galactic vessel to find them. There was no more need for stealth. The Martians would have known by now that the blink was gone. Their response would probably involve closing up the skies trying to prevent their departure. The asteroid ship could not get through the other way. The only way out was the combined magic of Epone, Uzochi, and Zorica. It might drain them of their life force, but Ash could counter that. Everyone just needed to get to the rendezvous point in one piece after team B had laid enough of a false trail to buy them some time.
Jaime paced as he waited, anxiously snapping his fingers. A disturbance in the air had him turning to see a small transport, vaguely resembling a common road vehicle appear just behind him. It was driven by a Martian-resembling AI, who kept his eyes ahead of him and waited. A rustling from somewhere below had him turning again to look down. Jordan and his team materialized, weapons in hand, as Epone teleported them to the site. Five minutes later, Zorica appeared in the wake of several blood-stained imps. They dissipated as team A came up to the transport. Jaime hustled them into the vehicle, which was a lot roomier inside than it looked from the outside.
“Let’s go,” Jaime called.
“Activating stealth mode,” the AI said and then took off at warp speed. They were airborne in seconds.
“Just a few minutes more and we’ll be out of their airspace,” Jordan said.
“We can’t lose focus now. We have to stay vigilant,” Jaime replied. “Good job everyone though. Ash, check everyone for injuries please.”
“Already doing it, commander,” Ash said. Her eyes were closed and she was sitting very still.
She stood up and went to stand in front of the boy. “He has been hurt. In his mind.”
“You mean psychic pain?” Jaime asked.
“Yes.”
“Can you heal him?”
“I can ease the pain. He is unstable in his current condition.”
“Do it, Ash.”
She went down on her knees, looking the boy in his eye. “May I tend to your wounds?” she asked.
The blink just stared at her.
She looked around at the others. “Does anyone know his name?”
“The blinks have no names.” Uzochi sounded scandalized that she would even ask.
“Oh really? Why not?” asked Jordan.
“They are raised in captivity. As weapons, not people.”
“Well, I think we should name him. We can’t keep calling him ‘the blink’,” Zorica said.
“We are simply transporting him back to the Federation. Kindly do not interfere with the weapon.”
“Nobody’s interfering. I cannot heal him without permission, in his unstable state. We don’t know what would happen,” Ash said.
“Uzochi, you can reach his mind, can’t you?” Jaime asked.
“Maybe, but I don’t know if I should.”
“Try it.”
Uzochi closed his eyes, Jaime holding his breath so as not to cause too much disruption to his magic.
“Blink, we wish to heal you of your pain, will you let us?”
“Help. Me.”
“We will help you. I give you my word.”
Uzochi opened his eyes. “He gives his permission. You may heal him now.”
Ash reached out her hand and touched his temples. The blink slumped back, eyes closed.
“Ash! What’s happening?” Jaime asked, standing up.
“He has fainted,” Ash said.
“Will he be alright?”
“Yes. It is from the relief of being rid of the pain. He just needs to rest.”
“Okay.”
Zorica reached out and rearranged the boy’s limbs, made him more comfortable, put his head gently on her lap.
“You’re okay,” she whispered, running her fingers through his curly hair.
Jaime could not help staring.
“You’re good with children,” he said softly.
Zorica shrugged. “He simply needs some rest. That’s all.”
Jaime leaned back, keeping an eye on the monitor. “Gum on my shoe,” he announced, as he noticed three rapidly enlarging dots closing in on their position.
“Can they see us?” Jordan asked.
“AX? Can you hack them?”
AX stood up, facing the approaching vessels, face furrowed in concentration. “They are following our heat signatures. They can’t see the vessel.”
“Everyone activate cold mode on your suits right away.”
“The blink has no suit,” Zorica said.
“We can camouflage him. Activate cold mode now.”
∞
General Klaus himself was waiting at the rendezvous, pacing up and down as the battered vehicle landed. When the bodies had gone cold, the Martians had resorted to shooting balls of heat in wide swathes in the general direction of Earth. They’d gotten in some lucky hits before the AI had managed to recalibrate and change direction. Jordan and Zorica were hit as they covered the blink with their bodies. Ash had done what she could but they needed more than what she could do. All three of them were rushed to the medical unit while the rest headed to the conference room for debriefing.
∞
“Congratulations Squad M15-F175, attached to Platoon Z-58 of the Galactic Federation’s 18th Expeditionary Fleet, on a job well done,” General Klaus said. “Your first major mission as the Marine Misfits and you have come through for the Federation. As a reward, your unit earns a permanent station on Terra one. The Federation will call on you soon, I have no doubt. For now, you are dismissed.”
They filed out, Jaime leading the way.
“We could have at least received a commendation,” Epone grumbled.
“To do that, they would have to publicly acknowledge us. I don’t think that’s in their plans,” Jaime replied.
“Oh yeah, I forgot, we’re the misfits. Suicide missions personified. Need some cannon fodder, look no further,” Epone said bitterly.
Jaime turned to look at her. “Cynical much?”
Epone turned to face him. “It’s like you don’t even know me.”
Jaime laughed. “Oh I know enough. I even agree with your assessment. But at the end of the day, life is a choice. And we can choose to succeed.”
“For someone who has never heard of Zen, you sure
do have a lot of quotes from that philosophy.”
Jaime continued to laugh. “I’ll be sure to look it up, now that we have downtime.”
∞
Zorica startled awake and knew right away where she was. The medical unit at the command base. They were brought here with the blink who had sustained a gut shot. If it hadn’t been for Ash, they would all be dead.
She moved her hand to feel her arm, which was emitting a painful throbbing warmth. She sighed, thinking about her foiled plans to escape. She had planned to go down after they retrieved the blink, thinking that the blink was some kind of weapon; not a little boy. He had clung to her like she was his life force and she had been unable to abandon him in an attempt to play dead.
It just meant that she might have to wait a bit longer to get out of this prison of the Federation’s making. She was still reeling from the realization that the Federation bred humans as weapons, although in retrospect, why should she even be surprised?
A movement in her peripheral vision had her turning her head to see Jaime sitting beside her bed.
“How are you feeling?” he asked. He looked very concerned.
“I’m fine,” she said.
“Your arm…they grew it back. How is it feeling?”
The memory of the heat ball slamming into her came back in living color and she turned slowly to look at her arm. It was red and inflamed but otherwise whole. She shuddered inwardly, remembering the blinding pain of severance.
“All things considered, it’s great. How is Jordan doing?”
“He broke his left clavicle and bruised a few ribs. Otherwise, it’s all superficial injuries.”
“Glad to hear it.”
Zorica burrowed into the warmth of her coverings, closing her eyes so that the commander would leave. She just wanted to be alone with her thoughts and her body for a bit. Figure out how she was feeling and what came next. She felt a different kind of warmth cover her hand and she knew it was Jaime’s.
“I’ll let you sleep,” he said.
“Thanks.”
She listened to his footsteps recede until she couldn’t hear them anymore before she let the tears fall.
Chapter Eight: The Rise of the Syndrome
Jordan sat up in bed, listening to the activity going on in the hospital. It seemed busier than a military medical facility should be. There were lots of rushing around and nurses talking in urgent whispers. Something was up and he wanted to know what it was. He knew he was the last person anyone would tell anything to, however. After all, he was a human truth receptacle. He was learning to control it, to bend and skirt things so as to give away nothing but the bare minimum. Still, he could understand why nobody would trust him. He lay back down, staring at the ceiling and fell asleep that way.
Mage Marine Misfits: Book 01 Page 6