The Nexus

by Gary M Martin

  James looked to Candace. “Maybe it’s time you filled me in on this whole episode.”

  “Yeah,” Candace said, and began telling him the story of how she, Stone, and Walter came to explore the cave. When she was finished talking, they were just coming upon the blocked exit.

  James looked to Stone. “Are you heading back to this ship of yours, Stone, or are their others you need to find.”

  “Back to my ship. My mission is completed.”

  “Your mission?” Candace asked.

  Stone was silent a moment. “I’m a bounty hunter. That is my mission.”

  “Okay. On this planet, we don’t usually refer to bounty hunters as having a mission.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind.”

  “Whatever this was we couldn’t have done it without you,” Candace said.

  “And I don’t know if I could have made it through without you guys.”

  “There were times when I thought none of us would make it.” She happened to think of something. “When I first saw the cut on your head I wondered if you would be able to continue. But then you healed up.”

  “Like some of these other aliens, I heal quickly.”

  “Yes, but there was something else. “I saw a reflection of something that looked metallic underneath your skin.”

  Stone seemed about to say something then paused before speaking. “Years ago I was severely injured in, eh, a helicopter crash. What you would call a helicopter anyway. That is when I lost my left arm. My face was also damaged. A thin plate had to be placed across my scalp to keep everything together.”

  “Oh, okay.” She accepted his answer but felt there was something wrong with it.”

  After a few minutes, they reached the big boulder that blocked their exit.

  The boulder was nearly round so Stone moved to one side and began to push with all his might. The boulder rolled a couple of inches but no more. Candace, James, and Hands came to Stone’s side. With all of them pushing the big rock began to move. Inch by inch it rolled until they had exposed an opening of nearly two feet.

  CHAPTER 50

  The night was filled with a scattering of stars and a big luminous moon as they exited the cave. The rain that had assaulted them earlier had left when the clouds had drifted away.

  James made a call to FBI headquarters asking for a handful of agents to meet him at the mayor’s mansion. He didn’t go into specifics. Speaking about aliens wasn’t likely to get a positive response.

  Candace insisted on taking Hands back to her house for now. She was afraid of what the government might do to him when they discovered that he was an alien with four arms. She promised she could be back before the agents arrived.

  Stone asked to be dropped off near where he first arrived.

  James was left to figure out what story he wanted to tell.

  Then there was the problem with the electric lady. Maybe the government scientists could help her, possibly removing this electric power she had. Even so, they would likely want to keep her locked away for an extended time since she was also an alien. Neither had a solution for what to do with her.

  Stone Wilson had Candace drop him off a couple of blocks from where he had first started. He didn’t want her to know the exact location in case she decided to follow him.

  He went to the tree where he had placed the communicator. As he waved his hand over the bark the small disc settled into his palm. He opened a slot in the palm of his artificial arm and inserted the disc.

  He thought about what he wanted to do. At once a man in a suit appeared before him. The man was a hologram.

  “Goodevening, Seagram,” the man said. “I assume the mission was a success?”

  “I had a little problem to start with but yes it was a success.”

  “And the two anomalies?”

  “They can be picked up. The man with four arms will be in a separate location. You can find him at the house of Agent Candace Caine.”

  “What about this man-creature?”

  “The creature appears to be dead but I inserted a chip in him just in case. The lady, Mira, is alive so if she somehow escapes you can track her.”

  “Very good. A team will be dispatched to the area right away. The FBI has already been ordered to stand down. We will now be heading this investigation.”

  “So, we're good?”

  “Yes. A helicopter will be dropping by for you in the next few minutes.”

  “Good. I need a good recharge and I need some upgrades to my system. If I had sustained a little more damage someone might have realized that I was neither human nor alien.”

  CHAPTER 50

  He leaned back against the rough surface of the large boulder. It was the first time in a long time that he felt something solid underneath him. How long? He wasn’t sure.

  Walter looked up at the sky. Another day was coming to an end. He had seen many sunrises and sunsets since he had left the cave. In between these times, he had only faint recollections as though he had been walking around in a dream. Though walking was not the correct term. He was more like floating. Seemingly blown here and there by the capricious temper of the wind, many times having no control whatsoever. Just as many times not caring. Drifting in a contented stupor.

  He wasn’t sure where he was. Since the caves, he hadn’t really cared. Until now.

  He looked down at his clothes. They were tattered, stained, and singed. And there was a sharp odor of sulfur, and of something else—a pungent acrid smell—that he did not recognize, emanating from them.

  He desperately needed to get out of his rags and into some nice comfortable clothes. Before that, a good hot shower, some good food, and perhaps a few hours of sleep in a bed would be a welcome treat. That made him wonder.

  How long had it been since he had slept? Or eaten? Then he noticed something quite unusual. What remained of his ragged clothes hung limply on his body. He looked at the exposed skin of his stomach. There was no longer the rounded swell of fat that always hung over his belt. The belly was flat. Somehow during this missing time between the cave and now he had lost an incredible amount of weight.

  He looked around to see where he was.

  He was atop a small mountain. Down below a phalanx of lights had just begun to come to life. It was the downtown area of a small town. It wasn’t Nexus nor any of the nearby towns surrounding it.

  He stood up. He was barefooted. He could faintly remember being that way in the cave but couldn’t remember why.

  He found a two-lane blacktop not far from where he had sat. Luckily a car was just coming down the road as he stepped onto the highway. He figured that if he could get a ride down to the small town, he could call someone to pick him up.

  The driver wasn’t slowing down as he came upon Walter with his outstretched thumb, but just as the car passed him it died. The motor shut down and it drifted another thirty yards before completely stopping.

  Walter ambled toward the stopped car. Two young men who looked to be in their mid-twenties were inside the car. The driver, a lanky, athletic-looking boy had thrown the car into park and was busy twisting the key back and forth trying to get the car to do something. But nothing happened. Not even the interior lights would work. It was as if the battery had completely died. The passenger was a husky boy who simply sat there looking disgusted. When he noticed Walter in the side view mirror slowly approaching the car, he released his seat belt and stepped out of the car. He moved to the rear of the vehicle.

  As Walter stopped within a few feet of him the boy began to eye him curiously, and with disdain.

  “What the hell do you want?” the boy asked in a thick, southern accent.

  “I need a ride to town,” Walter answered.

  “Our car is kinda dead right now, but we don’t give rides to hobos anyway.”

  “I’m not a hobo. I just had a …” he couldn’t explain what had happened to him. He wasn’t sure about a lot of the details himself. “I’m not a hobo,” he repeated. “And, I
think I can get your car started.” He figured he could since he had stopped it by merely wishing it.

  Walter started toward the car. The boy placed a hand to his chest, and he stopped.

  “Man, you smell like burnt rubber.”

  I …” Walter started.

  “Just get the hell out of here before I have to hurt you.”

  Walter placed his hand lightly on top of the boy’s hand.

  The boy suddenly let out a yell, shook spasmodically, and collapsed onto the pavement.

  Walter stepped over to the car, opened the door, and slid into the back seat.

  The driver turned around quickly. “Who the hell are you? Get out of my car!”

  The car roared to life. And with it, the CD player yelled out a popular rock song. The driver cut it down.

  “Your car is running now. Can you give me a ride to town?”

  “But how …? I had turned the key back to off.” The boy looked down at the ignition switch to be certain. The key was still in the off position.

  “Sorry,” Walter said and the key moved to the ‘on’ position.

  The husky boy jumped into the front seat and twisted around to Walter. “What did you do to me? You got a Taser or something?”

  “No. Now, can we go?”

  “Why do you need to go to town?” the driver asked. “You know someone there?”

  “No. I just need to make a stop there. Call someone to pick me up and take me to Nexus.”

  “Nexus?” the boy asked. “Never heard of it. Is that near here?”

  “Not sure.”

  “So, what’s in Nexus?”

  “It’s where I live, or perhaps lived. I’m not sure. Anyway, I have to clean up myself then take care of some aliens.” He said it without even considering how his words sounded.

  “You talking about Mexicans?” the driver asked. “’cause I got a little Mexican in me.”

  “No. Aliens. Like from another planet.”

  The driver looked at his buddy as if to indicate that Walter was mentally unstable. The big boy in the passenger seat stared at Walter a few moments as if sizing him up, then abruptly said, “We’re going with you.” He looked to his friend who was suddenly stunned and unable to find his voice. “Let’s go,” the stocky boy said. “I’m ready to kick some alien ass!”

  The End.