Free Range Protocol- Tales of the Tschaaa Infestation

by Marshall Miller

  “Yes, it does. But I did not want to dull things.” David looked into the empty glass.

  “I took the job of working with Wild Bill in my Dad’s memory. The President wants this Great Compromise to work, and he supported Madam President. So, I want it to work.”

  The bar staff brought another round of whiskey and beer. The man and woman sat drinking, lost in thought. Heidi broke the morose mood and shocked David all at the same time. She stood up, stepped to David's side of the table and put a legendary liplock on the young Agent. He surprised himself by kissing back with passion. Heidi sat on his lap.

  “Your place or mind, Tex,” she whispered.

  “Ma’am, I…am not a one night stand kind of guy. My Mom and Dad raised me differently.”

  Heidi looked into his eyes and searched his face to see his true mettle. Then she sighed

  “Wouldn’t you know it,” she said. “Find this big hunk of Texan who turns me on, and he is one of the Last Gentlemen.”

  Heidi started to rise off his lap, and David stopped her. They looked into each other's eyes. Then David spoke.

  “I just don’t want you to think I’m going to use you as just a quick lay to relieve stress.”

  “You killed over a woman you loved, didn’t you?” Asked Heidi.

  “Yes, Heidi, I did. She didn’t love me. The guy she thought she loved hurt her bad. So I killed him.”

  “Not out of passion. You killed the guy with ice-cold blood after the fact. Which got you the twenty to life.”

  “Yes, Ma’am.”

  “So that makes you no good, right? And now you have something to prove.”

  David sat silently. For the former Coastie had hit it on the head. He was no good and was trying to prove to himself otherwise. So, he had taken the assignment with a Squid, connected to beings who killed or helped to kill family and friends. Heidi slowly stood up.

  “Come on. You can walk me home. I have a suite the Admiral set me up in a few blocks away. The night air will sober us up. Then you can walk home.”

  Heidi paid the tab, (“Hey, I asked you out!”) and they left Charlie’s. Like opposite magnets, their hands found each other. A silent minute later and they stopped, turned and kissed. Then Again. Then one more time. Heidi looked up into the tall and lanky Texan’s eyes.

  “This does not feel like a one night stand to me, Tex,” said Heidi.

  “We hardly know each other, Heidi,” David answered.

  “Wrong. We know each other because we have suffered much the same. And we still try to do what is right, despite our pain.”

  David’s mouth displayed a small smile in the night.

  “You have this all figured out, Heidi. You must be smarter than I am.”

  “Could be. So if that is the case, my Texan, kiss me you fool. Before the mood escapes us.”

  David tried to sneak out of Heidi’s place and was tackled by this muscled and voluptuous woman. She had him down on the carpet and wrapped up in some arcane martial arts hold in seconds flat.

  “ I warned you I grew up in a Dojo,” Heidi growled in his ear, then nibbled on it. “You can’t get away that easy, Tex.”

  Somehow David moved his hands enough to caress some of Heidi’s sensitive areas. She almost purred with pleasure.

  “Someone taught you nice things, Tex.”

  “Why must everyone from Texas be called Tex by everyone else?” David asked.

  “Because it’s easier to remember, David, Especially in a fit of passion.”

  In a mutual movement, David was then on top with Heidi’s legs wrapped around him.

  “You mean like this, lady?”

  “Why yes, Harvey. Just like…that. God.” Heidi stopped talking as she kissed him deeply. As their mouths parted, David spoke.

  “Yer right purty, Murien.”

  Heidi began to laugh, and David joined with her, in more ways than one.

  David had a large cup of coffee in hand as he neared the berth for the AMPHITRITE. He saw water motion and some bubbles which told him that Wild Bill was already checking the hull of the Open Fisherman. The human wondered to himself if Tschaaa had a drink like coffee to help them after a long night. Hell, did they have “long nights’ like humans? David kept walking and let out a loud whistle that he knew would be heard underwater by a sensitive Tschaaa. In a moment the need and eyes of the giant cephalopod popped above the surface. With a quickness that still surprised David Wild Bill had slithered up onto the dock and greeted him.

  “Good Morning, fellow Lawman. How are you this fine morning?” The Tschaaa Translator still had a West Texas Drawl.

  “Fine, Wild Bill,” answered David. “Have you had a morning meal?”

  “Why yes, David. I found some tasty mollusks and small fish that were unable to escape me when I first entered the water.”

  “So you have an additional benefit while you check out hull?”

  “Yes. I believe you have an expression, kill two flying creatures with one rock. That is what I do.”

  David chuckled. Well, that answered what the Squids thought was a way to break their fast. Fresh sea creatures from Mother Ocean.

  “So, I guess you are waiting on me, Wild Bill.”

  “True. But we are not late, so there is no hurry.”

  David climbed into the boat and stowed his gear. As he did, he thought about the conversations he and Heidi had the previous night and the current morning. David glanced at Wild Bill. The Agent had come to realize he now looked at the Squid as a fellow “person,” not some Bug-Eyed Monster trying to eat them. Maybe it was like that moment when Early Man came to realize that a wolf could be a dog. The Tschaaa must have sensed David was contemplating about something.

  “You are deep in thought, David. May I ask if it has anything to do with your Breeder, Heidi?”

  David laughed.

  “She is definitely not my ‘breeder’. Or anyone’s for that matter. She is very independent.”

  “But you did breed with her last night. At least had physical mating rituals.”

  “Hey, Wild Bill. A new social rule with humans to learn. Gentlemen don’t tell. Shall we hit the road?”

  The Tschaaa male gestured some confusion.

  “Road? We are on the ocean.”

  “Never mind. I’ll explain the expression later. Shall we depart?”

  With natural ease, Wild Bill piloted the AMPHITRITE out into the open sea. The male denizen of the sea brought it to a smooth halt as the two surveyed the expanse of salt water. The Tschaaa slid into the ocean to see if he sensed any communications in the nearby Creche. No sooner had Bill slipped into the water, that he was pulling himself out at speed with his eight arms.

  “Something is wrong, bad, David,” the translator seemed to boom out. “Secure yourself. We must go.”

  Wild Bill had the seacraft almost flying across the open sea. He was so concentrated he explained nothing. But David by this time had come to know that the Tschaaa did not exaggerate.

  David had to use the high powered binoculars to figure out where Wild Bill was headed. He finally picked out a large Sports Fisherman stopped near the official edge of the Creche Breeding Area. As the image cleared, David swore. There was human blood everywhere. Wild Bill cut the boat’s outboards at just the right moment and slid its port side to the starboard of the other seacraft with barely a bump. David lashed the two craft together in record speed. Then with pistol drawn, David scrambled onto the Sports Fisherman.

  “Police! Federal Agents. Is anyone hurt?” No one answered his hail. The boat deck was awash with red blood, making it slicker than usual. David performed a tactical search, with Wild Bill behind him armed with a Tschaaa two shot spear gun. Other than the blood, they found nothing.

  “What did you hear in the ocean, Bill?” Asked David.

  “A Breeder screaming.”

  David knew that for a Breeder to scream meant that young was in danger. But only red human blood was evident.

  “I’ll call this in, Bil
l…”

  Something began to beat on the hull of the Sports Fisherman. Both David and Bill looked into the water and saw the frantic Breeder. David felt the high-frequency communications between the Breeder and Wild Bill. But he knew enough of the visual language to tell that the Breeder, waving and jerking her tentacles around, was on the verge of the catatonic breakdown which leads to Death with the Tschaaa. Somehow, Wild Bill seemed to calm her down a bit. He turned to David.

  “Two armed Tschaaa and two tattooed humans in a small craft came up on this boat. There were five occupants in this seacraft. The Breeder said all were attacked and taken. She surfaced and told Tschaaa what they were doing was a threat to the Young. They threatened to kill her.” As Wild Bill spoke, his arms and body began to darken to almost black. David knew this was the shade of killing rage. This was not a reaction Tschaaa were supposed to have towards each other.

  “She is the Breeder you met the other day, David.”

  “I’ll call for back up,” David said.

  “No time nor need. Another Tschaaa has tracked them up to an islet in Key Largo. We go to capture or kill these Kraken and Tschaaa.”

  “Kill fellow Tschaaa?” David asked.

  “They and the Kraken with them are monsters. They should die. We go.”

  David called the situation in on the radio as Wild Bill once again made the AMPHITRITE fly across the Atlantic Ocean. The Tschaaa seemed to be able to pinpoint the destination based on the information from the Breeder. The Agent knew this was a horrible situation. Tschaaa and human Krakens ‘harvesting’ innocent people? Threatening to kill Breeders? Was the Great Compromise about to collapse? Not on his watch, David said to himself.

  Wild Bill piloted the Open Fisherman into the channel on the north end of Key Largo. A lot of the mangroves had grown back during the Infestation due to reduced human activity. Thus the channel was partially overgrown. This was a good thing as newly broken branches marked the very recent passage of a boat. The Tshaaa Lawman throttle back and the Open Fisherman crept around a bend.

  “There,” David pointed to a shadowed area created by some dense brush. Human voices were heard cursing as David noticed a large bulk floating and twitching in the center of the channel. “The bastards hit a manatee, smashed their boat…”

  Wild Bill slammed the engine throttles full forward as the AMPHITRITE took off like a raped ape. As he did, David saw two things. Bills color was turning black, and two Tschaaa males were halfway in the water, trying to free the boat.

  The two men’s heads jerked up at the sound of the racing outboards. One seemed to be reaching for a weapon as Wild Bill Hickock spun the wheel and cut the engines at the same time. A wave from the decelerating speedboat hit the trapped craft first, then the starboard side slammed into the Kraken’s seacraft. David managed to brace himself enough to keep from being thrown overboard. Where the renegade Tschaaa were was anybody’s guess. The two Kraken’s were thrown onto the branches of the mangrove trees. David jumped on to the Crisscraft boat and unholstered his father’s former Texas Ranger .357 pistol as he confronted the Krakens hung up in the mangrove trees. The one on his right sporting a full face tattoo pointed some type of handgun at the Agent and received a killing round through the chest.

  “You want some?” David yelled at the other. He then noticed the Kraken had a broken branch impaling his right arm. He wasn't going anywhere.

  The loud sound of an overstressed Translator jerked his attention back to his own watercraft. He looked to see Wild Bill grappling with two adults Tschaaa. As he raised his pistol to shoot, the three Squids toppled over into the water.

  “Fuck!” David yelled as he scrambled back to his boat. He shucked his gun belt, grabbed his massive bladed Texas bowie knife and dove overboard into the murky water.

  “He’s coming around.” The voice seemed to David to come out of thin air. Then his eyes focused on a man in an EMT uniform.

  “How many fingers am I holding up?” The EMT asked.

  “Three.”

  “Good. Agent Jackson, you had a whole bunch of people worried,” the EMT stated. “You have a large and varied fan club.”

  “Yeah?” David said.

  “Yeah, asshole. Like me.” Heidi’s face came into view. “You know, I have had a lot of men try to ditch me in my lifetime, but this is the first time someone tried to drown themselves. All you had to do was say something, and I’d leave you alone, you hard-headed…”

  For all her joking, Davis saw tears on her cheeks. He reached up a finger, captured one, and fed it into his mouth.

  “Heidi, I have tasted your salt from Mother Ocean. I am honored.”

  Heidi’s chin began to quiver, and she buried her face into his neck.

  “Damn you, damn you, damn you,” she muffled into his throat. “You are not supposed to make me care for you. Not this soon.”

  “Heidi, where is Wild Bill?” He asked as he stroked her hair.

  “I am here, David.” The translator's voice sounded as before, Texas drawl and all. “But you must remember. I am the one who is the amphibian, can breathe underwater. Knowing this, why did you jump in to help me fight?”

  It took a few moments for David to form the answer he wanted to convey.

  “Because you are my pardner. My pard. Texan for partner. You may be ugly, with too many limbs, and the weirdest sexual practices, but you are my pardner. Never forget that.”

  The Tschaaa male gestured his social tentacles to signify honor.

  “You pay me an honor I will work to deserve.”

  “You already deserve it, Pardner. You just saved my ass. That is enough work.”

  A voice cut through the commotion on the dock where the EMT vehicle was parked.

  “Somewhere I have a Special Agent…oh, there you are.”

  Federal Law Enforcement Commissioner Paul Miller pushed his beefy form through a group of people.

  “Agent Wild Bill. Glad to see you pulled David’s chestnuts out of the fire.”

  The Tschaaa gestured confusion.

  “Just an expression. But you did save this young man from drowning, yet still, managed to arrest those two Tschaaa miscreants.”

  “To be fair,” responded Wild Bill, “David cut the two evil ones with that large blade of his, which I recovered. That seemed to shock them and make them easier to restrain.”

  “Well,” continued the Commissioner, “That just showed excellent teamwork. So, Madam President and I want to express our gratitude for a job well done. Take tomorrow off, you two. The paperwork can wait.”

  “Sir, what happened to the people…” David tried to ask.

  “Dead and butchered,” Paul Miller responded. “Thanks to the new drug trade, some of the surviving Krakens and Squids have formed a new unholy alliance.”

  “What? I don’t understand,"David said.

  “Some Tschaaa and some human scum have developed a new form of drug, a chemical substance we are still trying to figure out. It not only makes the Tschaaa feel great in an addictive manner, but humans get a craving for human blood. Right now the street slang for it is Dracula. For the first time, an equal opportunity abuser between two species. I came down here to check on you and to coordinate response to this crap. It seems it appeared here first.”

  “So, I’ll have even more work to do,” said David.

  “No rest for the wicked.” Paul Miller looked at Heidi. “Miss Faust, can I place this man in your capable hands so you may ensure he rests tomorrow? And checks with the medical staff at the Key West Operations Base before he goes back to work?”

  “Yes. Sir,” Heidi said with a grin.

  “Good. Carry on. See you later.” Paul Miller walked off as Heidi grinned at David.

  “Hear that? You are in my charge, David Jackson.”

  “Well, it could be worse, Heidi. I could be dead.”

  Heidi gently squeezed his arm. Wild Bill noticed the action with his highly accurate eyes.

  “So David, does this mean Heidi is
your Breeder?”

  Heidi began to laugh as David blushed.

  “Pardner, do me a favor. Shut up.”

  PEST CONTROL

  WYOMING, UNITED STATES OF NORTH AMERICA

  Bobby Parsons walked back into the campsite with fresh meat for the pot. The twenty-one year old, who was tall and slender, with broad shoulders had managed to snare a rabbit and a squirrel with his Alabama hunting skills. His dad had taught him well. Then the Tschaaa had come, and his father was killed. Since then, he had done what was necessary to keep his sister and mother alive.

  This led him to this camp with two other men. Despite the fact he had helped save the Voice of the Free States—Alesha Taylor—years ago, he had served as a guard in Cattle Country, where the aliens had kept their dark meat. Thus, he was a Squid lover, who few wanted to employ. Now, he was out bounty hunting for Eaters, the nasty six-limbed creature brought by the Tschaaa.

  He walked over to the older one everyone called Pops McCracken. No one knew if that was his actual name, but he was gray, grizzled, and looked older than dirt when he woke up in the morning. He was also a drunk, a fact Bobby and the other member of the small group had found out late in this adventure.

  “More fresh game, Bobby?” asked the third member of this official Pest Control Team. Brian Ramsey, the source of funds for the team, was one of the fortunate humans during the alien Tschaaa Infestation. His immediate family, mother, father, and sister, were helping him settle in as a freshman at the University of Wyoming Laramie on a sports scholarship when the first space rocks hit. As everything fell apart, his family was able to use some wealth and social standing to find permanent lodging in Laramie. His mother was a nurse, so she had a marketable skill in the survival society that arose as the cephalopod Tschaaa took control of all the coastal areas. Their spacious home outside the Bay Area in California was gone. Brian’s father was a Light Colonel in the Reserves, so he was immediately re-activated into what was to become the armed forces of the Free States of America. Thus, Brian and his sister Susan were never in any danger of starving or being harvested.