Terraformed Skies
Page 15
“I am more than capable of doing so, Dr. Clark,” he replied. “Tell me what you need.”
Grateful that he had volunteered for the job, Lena gave him a list of items she needed from storage and sent him off with a radio. General Haynes walked carefully to the hospital and entered through the front entrance with the key card that all of the generals had in order to access different buildings. He followed Lena’s instructions exactly and found the closet that held the necessary items.
Just beyond the wall was the field containing many enemy aliens who held up large disintegrators in their mangled arms. An opposing line of human soldiers met them in the middle. Trevor stood at the front.
General Sanders shouted for their leader, to which the Vihatagons responded in their garbled language. Staring at the strange aliens before him, General Sanders shouted again, demanding that their leader meet them to discuss a treaty. Again, the Vihatagon at the front line responded with a gurgle and then raised his disintegrator.
“Ready!” shouted General Sanders.
The line of Vihatagons chortled, spewing goo everywhere.
“Aim!”
Another ship appeared in the background and added to the collection, expanding nearly the entire length of the field. The alien in front positioned himself in front of the general. A silence fell over the field, dust kicking up around the still bodies waiting for their cue.
“Fire!”
Rays erupted from the line of soldiers, showering the disfigured bodies with colorful wounds. The ground rumbled as Vihatagons fell into puddles of their own body fluids and gurgled angrily at the winning side. Seeing an opening in the enemy’s line, Trevor sprang forward and began to shoot his way through the mass of aliens, knocking limbs left and right wherever his cybernetic arm aimed. The Vihatagons tried to no avail to take out the front line of soldiers. A few of the soldiers disintegrated into thin air, but most of them remained and held their positions.
Trevor continued to punch his way through the aliens as they tried to sprint forward. The general stood in the middle of the chaos, shouting encouraging commands to his soldiers who were valiantly facing their fears. Beyond the mess of bodies, Trevor heard a familiar laugh. Walking between the stream of fire was Mike who extended his tentacles forward to embrace Trevor.
“Oh, hey buddy!” called Mike over the sound of ray guns and disintegrators. “I’ve missed you.”
Trevor jumped back from the fleshy suction cups, knocking them away. As Mike reared his tentacles back for another strike, Trevor put his cybernetic palm forward and shot at the squishy appendages. Mike screamed as he fell to the ground. A quick recovery had him back on his feet and charging the cyborg who put his arms out. The hybrid alien grappled with Trevor for a short time, their surroundings filled with the sound of ray guns and bodies hitting the ground. All of it faded away as Trevor pinned Mike to the ground and wrapped his cybernetic hand around the fleshy throat.
“This is the last you will ever betray us,” announced Trevor.
“I will come back as many times as possible in order to stop you, Trevor,” stated Mike.
“I’ll be waiting.”
Clenching his fingers together, Trevor choked Mike until his last breath, gasping as the life left his eyes. Trevor stood, feeling both victorious and guilty. He looked around at the blue carnage surrounding him, watching as the rest of the Vihatagons fell against the green rays. A roar of cheers broke out after the last alien had fallen and Trevor went to meet his general who was smiling wide.
“We did it, Commander,” he said through pearly whites.
“Indeed, we did,” responded Trevor. “But there will be more.”
Frowning in response, General Sanders followed Trevor back to the main building where the soldiers gathered to rest and celebrate their victory. Trevor greeted Lena inside. He was worn. A fever had taken hold of his body as exhaustion turned into illness, causing him to collapse in one of the private bedrooms on the second floor.
“I’m not sure how much longer I can manage this, Lena,” he said through dry lips. “It’s too much.”
“I know, Trevor. We’ll make it through this. I designed the spacesuit and we ran a few tests on it. It’ll get you up into orbit so you can take down the mothership,” Lena replied.
“I don’t even want to think about that right now,” said Trevor.
“Well, what do you want?” Lena asked, tracing his freshly showered body.
“You.”
In an instant, Trevor pulled Lena on top of his tense body, rubbing hands up her blouse and removing the soft fabric. A valley of skin awaited his kiss that he devoured passionately, fingers exploring secret places that elicited moans. His lips savored every bit of her flesh all the way up to her chin as she gripped his back. Heat formed between their aching bodies, the separation having inspired an intense longing that made itself apparent in this private space. Brazen hands removed the barrier of her underwear and dove beneath the creamy skin hiding her garden.
The bold caress of his tongue breached her every defense and she wrapped her slim legs around him. His body surged into hers with intensity, skin zapping with every collision. An array of soft moans echoed between them as they complied without thought and consumed the skin of the other. Eyes narrowed, she felt herself growing weaker in his arms, the grip of her climax coming on stronger with every roll of her hips. The sensation came in molten waves that tickled her skin and made her shudder with each touch. He could feel her shake and plunged deeper into her sweet depths, slipping seamlessly between her folds as fluid abounded.
Lips opened wide to release a low cry as she shivered with delight at the heavenly sensation between her legs. Watching her encouraged his eruption and he grunted as he gripped her shoulders, keeping her body from flailing off the bed. The satisfied couple grinned at each other and pressed their foreheads together while listening to the sound of the crickets chirping outside their window. A somber silence had befallen the entire base, the hush of sleeping survivors who swore their victory in the days coming. Trevor and Lena cuddled on the sheets until they joined the ranks of those in contented slumber.
***
The next morning, Lena and Trevor woke up smiling as they stretched and reached for open flesh. Memories of the previous day sank in slowly as they came to consciousness and Lena shot up from the bed, feeling around to make sure her body was still whole.
“Sweetheart, is everything okay?” asked Trevor from the pillow.
“Yes, of course,” she replied with a sigh. “I just have jet lag from that drone.”
“Was it that bad?” he asked.
“No, it was painless, but it was strange having my molecules broken down and stored in its memory compartment. It feels like I’m a copy,” she explained. “I’m pretty hungry, too. Let’s go eat.”
A yawning Trevor pulled on his borrowed Navy uniform as Lena dressed in the same outfit from the day before, cringing at the wrinkled fabric. Out in the main area, the scientists and two generals had already set up breakfast and welcomed the rested couple.
“Good morning,” said General Sanders.
“Good morning, sir,” said Lena as she took a seat.
The group helped themselves to the food and drank their fill of coffee before being briefed to go back out into the field. As the general discussed how they would prepare, he intermittently asked Lena for advice on the coming wave of enemy aliens. Lena explained that they could defend themselves like they had the first time as long as they had enough men to fill the field.
“But what about the rest of the world?” asked General Haynes.
“Inform them to use the same methods. I’ll create a sheet of instructions on how to deactivate the drones and release the multitudes of people inside,” replied Lena.
“Do you know how many they hold?” asked Dr. Snyder.
“I’m not sure. I could find out by disassembling the one I used in the field, if it’s still there,” she responded.
“Well
, let’s get to work,” said Trevor, rising from the table.
“Absolutely, Commander,” said General Sanders.
Staying behind were the group of scientists going over Lena’s picture of the mothership’s interior. The generals, Lena, and Trevor were accompanied by a few soldiers.
Lena opened up the drone and began tinkering with the controls. It was difficult to discern the information as it was written in the alien language, but she figured out the most important pieces and turned to report it to General Sanders.
“Sir, it seems to hold up to two hundred copies at a time,” announced Lena while shutting the control panel. “It’s all set to fly back up to the mothership, too.”
“Two hundred?!” cried the general. “How many of these things have been spotted?”
General Sanders turned to the soldiers around him, imploring them to give him an accurate answer with his arms outstretched.
“Well?” he asked.
“Sir, no one knows how many exactly,” spoke one of the soldiers.
“There have been reports of hundreds.”
“Even thousands.”
“No one really knows.”
A grim expression crossed his face realizing how fatal the event would be to the survival of humanity.
“Dr. Clark, is there a way you could find out?” asked the general, calmly turning to Lena.
Lena looked over at the drone and then back at the general, shrugging.
“I have no way to find out unless I could get back on the ship and maybe hack into their files,” she replied.
“Can you do that, Trevor?” asked the general.
“I’m sure I could do just about anything with Lena’s help,” replied the cyborg, wrapping a confident arm around Lena.
The gesture made her blush and she covered her mouth.
“I can give you instructions through an ear piece. Let’s get that spacesuit fixed on you,” she said.
Just as Lena was about to set up the spacesuit’s oxygen mask over Trevor’s nose and mouth, another wave of transportation ships appeared above them and the entire camp was thrown into a frenzy. The generals each shouted orders to their troops and got into formation, encouraging their soldiers to remain strong in the face of adversity.
Lena and Trevor stood behind a huge collection of troops. She gave Trevor one last kiss before he hopped on top of the drone and rose up over the collection of Vihatagons on the field. Using his cybernetic arm to direct the drone, he flew up beyond the upper atmosphere, and then up to the underbelly of the mothership.
Behind General Sanders Lena was being escorted back to the main building when suddenly, another round of fire from ray guns erupted. Her eyes followed the black dot in the sky disappearing beyond the clouds. I love you, Trevor Noble, she thought as she watched. I will always love you. Pushing through the double doors, Lena approached the table full of scientists and asked if they had made a breakthrough on their plan. Dr. Warren replied that they had not.
“Well, how do you expect to take our enemy down if you don’t come up with something?” she asked heatedly.
“Dr. Clark, we’re doing everything we can. We could also use your help,” replied Professor McLeod.
“My brains have gotten you this far. Let’s get further,” she said, changing her tone.
Lena hadn’t realized that the stress of Trevor being up in space was much heavier than anticipated. They hadn’t been able to fully test the spacesuit, and she wasn’t sure if he was even alive. Pulling up the communication application on her cyber watch, she tapped in a few numbers for the ear piece she had loaned Trevor and spoke loudly.
“Trevor, do you copy?” she said.
Crackling static responded from the watch.
“Trevor,” she said firmly. “Do you copy?”
Another wave of static came through the watch and Lena shook her head, fighting the thoughts that were trying to convince her that Trevor was dead.
“I’m here!” he called through the speaker. “I copy!”
Relief washed over her and she smiled.
“Good! Have you reached the control panel?” she asked.
“Not yet. I still have to locate it. I’ll let you know when I do,” he responded.
A number of explosions shook the ground, forcing the group to exchange looks of fear. Lena remained relatively calm. Her expertise had taught her to adopt a sense of confidence when handling emergencies. It had served her well as a doctor and now it would serve her in saving the people of earth from being abducted by their enemy. She walked over to the digital display of the interior and began to brainstorm with the other scientists, some of them using terms she hardly understood. Even though it confused her, she proceeded as if she understood the terminology. It got to a point where she had to pause the conversation to clarify.
“There is no shame in asking questions. That’s what I tell all of my students,” explained Professor McLeod.
“You’re a woman of medical and cyborg science. Our knowledge and expertise are different, but we can use that to our advantage,” said Dr. Snyder.
“I agree. My apologies, gentleman. Let’s proceed,” said Lena.
After going over the picture a few times, the group was able to discern that the mothership could be disarmed by the interior controls of the bridge. Trevor would have to board the ship and defend himself against the Vihatagons to gain control before they could send a rescue team up to release the people who had been taken. Lena hoped that those people were safe and that they could be rescued in time. If they weren’t, it would be thousands of deaths on their heads. Could they live with that?
Would they even live to feel guilty about it?
***
Underneath the great mothership, Trevor balanced himself on top of the drone while searching for any indication of where the control panel might be located. Was Lena sure it was under the ship and not inside? Why would someone put the control panel on the outside? It seemed counter intuitive to protecting the enemy aliens from infiltration. As Trevor formulated a plan to board the ship, he located the control panel and opened up the hatch. A few wires and buttons decorated the inside. Trevor put his finger to his ear to transmit through the receiver.
“Lena, I’ve reached the panel. What should I do?” he asked.
“Find the wires under the circular label and clip the green one,” she instructed through her watch. “And be careful not to clip any other wires.”
As Trevor followed Lena’s directions, the captain of the ship was gurgling loudly over the main controls on the bridge. An alarm blared over the speakers, shaking the humans who occupied the huge cargo area.
“What is that?” asked Alexis.
“I’m not sure,” replied one of the other humans. “It sounds like something is going wrong.”
“That doesn’t bode well,” said another.
“It poses the perfect opportunity. We can gather a group of us together and charge those guards over there. They don’t look too menacing,” said Alexis, pointing in the direction of the two ugly Vihatagons in the corner.
“But they’re gargantuan,” said a man with a spiked collar. “How can we overpower them?”
“A number of us could easily take them down,” Alexis assured him. “But we have to all be on the same page.”
On the bridge, the captain was still screeching over the blare of the alarm, shouting for his soldiers to locate the source of the threat. They checked each screen and found that Trevor was beneath the ship, pulling apart many of the pieces of their control panel. The drones that had been sent over the earth were losing power. Many of them crash-landed in the streets and highways, decorating the surface of the earth with little black dots that the Vihatagons could see from space. The field where the great battle had commenced echoed with cheers from the human soldiers. All of the Vihatagons present realized that they were losing, and started retreating for their transportation pods, alerting their captain that the drone program had been compromised.
“Dr. Clark, are you alright?” he asked, steadying her balance.
“I’m fine. I just...” her words trailed off as she watched the Vihatagons escape. “We have a lot of work to do, General.”
“That we do. There are fifty drones in this area alone. Who knows how many there are everywhere else?” commented General Sanders.
“We’ll have to unload them one at a time, sir. I’m not sure how these people will appear once they’re unloaded from the memory banks,” explained Lena.
“Lead the way, Doctor. We will follow,” said the general. “Admittedly, I’m not used to being led. I have always been in charge.”
“I suppose it’s a humbling day for both of us, sir,” said Lena, recalling her embarrassment with the scientists.
“That it is,” replied the general.
The vastness of space greeted Trevor as he looked around while balancing on the drone. A great darkness stretched on dotted with white, purple, green, and pink stars. Planets in the distance winked at him and the moon was just beyond the ship, glimmering in the black sky. What a confounding experience it was to acknowledge the wide stretch beyond the atmosphere of earth. Trevor felt insignificant. He knew in that moment that he had disarmed the drones that his people were that much closer to victory, but the space surrounding him was colossal. It took a great deal of energy to comprehend it.
Of his twenty-eight years spent on the earth, he had never stepped foot inside of a spaceship. He had only ever seen pictures of the stars and had studied the solar system, its planets, and the galaxy they occupied. The Milky Way had seemed small on paper, but now he could see in every direction. Who knew what else was beyond the borders of this galaxy? The Vihatagons had likely traveled many light years just to destroy them. What benefit does it do them to harm us? Trevor asked himself as he perched on top of the drone. It troubled him to think of Lena being captured to the point where it nearly drove him mad with rage. He slammed his fist into the belly of the ship, marking the metal with the outline of his own metal knuckles.