by Phil Maxey
He grumbled something she didn’t catch.
She slowed the pickup and they moved past the two large gates, but was only able to get a short distance further, because of the ring of turreted Humvee’s and the larger ring of heavily armed soldiers all pointing their weapons towards them.
She stopped the pickup and turned the ignition off, then looked across at her passenger. “Welcome to the outpost.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Zach looked at the intensely dark object which seemed to absorb the light around it on his computer monitor in his cramped office. It seemed impervious to gravity as it just floated above the powerhouse near the dam. General Trow with a headset on was inside a small rectangle on another part of the screen.
“So the good news is we have a Hulathen, and we also have whatever the hell that thing is,” said Trow.
“Right. And the bad?”
“The bad, is the alien might be dead. We can’t tell. And we have no idea what the black thing is. We thought it was its space ship or something, now the tech guys are telling me it’s something else entirely, but they’re not sure what.”
“We could do with Raj.”
She nodded. “Ain’t that the truth.”
“Still no word from up there?”
She shook her head. “Only dead air.”
“And your team have made a start on another possible toxin with the Hulathen you have?”
“Started is a relative term. They’re having trouble getting a sample of its blood.”
“Okay, keep me informed of any progress of any kind.”
“Will do.”
He went to click her screen off when she went to talk again.
“How’s Michael holding up?”
“I’m not sure. Fiona said he hasn’t spoken a word to anyone but his stepdaughter since they returned. Actually I’m about to go see him now.”
“Tell him that my thoughts are with him and his daughter.”
Zach nodded and the general’s screen went black.
He sighed and stayed looking at the strange black mass for a few seconds more then got his feet and left his office. It wasn’t long before he was in another part of the bunker system, standing in front of a door, which had been the entrance to a former maintenance cupboard, but now was a small bedroom. He knocked.
“It’s me Zach. I’m just here to see how you are?”
Only silence came from beyond the door.
He went to knock again, but his hand wavered. “If you need anything, my office is always open, just—”
“Sir?”
Zach turned around. A soldier was standing at the end of the corridor.
“Yes?”
“There’s a communication from the outpost. They are saying Abbey Reisner and a man called Clovis have arrived.”
Zach turned back to the door. “I’m sorry for your loss.”
He walked away towards the soldier. “I want a soldier stationed at this door. If private Chang, has any requests then it’s that soldier’s job to make them happen. Got that?”
The soldier nodded. They then walked to main operations. Zach placed one of the available headsets on. “This is General Felton. Over.”
“Zach?”
A strange mixture of relief and joy flowed through him at the sound of Abbey’s voice. “Abbey? I’m here, are you okay? Over.”
“I’m okay Zach. I have the toxin, Raj gave it to me before I left. Over.”
“It works? Over.”
“I don’t know. But I have it. Over.”
Zach paused for a moment, trying to work out the best way to get the biochemical contents from Kentucky to Texas.
“I was thinking maybe a plane to get it to you? Over.”
“Yup. That’s probably the best way, it’s a gamble, but probably less of one, than trying the overland route to here. I’m not sure though our friends in the skies will allow us access to our runways. But I’ll see what I can do and if it’s possible I’ll set it up. Over.”
“There’s something else. Over.”
“Clovis was with you? I know. Over.”
“Yes, but that’s not it. He said he wanted to hand himself in. Pay for what he has done. Over.”
Zach didn’t believe Clovis wanted to do that at all and waited for the catch.
“But there is something else, Zach…”
Here it comes.
“He says he has information, regarding your family. Over.”
Abbey’s words flashed though his mind making him shudder. “My family? What about my family? Over.”
“He says he has information about your daughter. Over.”
Images of blood and body parts forced their way into his mind, and vertigo started to get the better of him. He sat down on a nearby desk. “My daughter is dead. Abbey. Over.”
“I know. But he say’s that he was told something from Tinley…I know this must be incredibly difficult to hear. I don’t know what to say. He’s probably lying. I hate him for doing this. But I had to tell you. Over.”
Zach knew she was probably right and his dizziness started to be replaced with rage. “Why does he want to tell me this? Over.”
“I don’t know. He says he wants to tell you in person. Over.”
“Does he want leniency for what he has done? Over.”
“He says he doesn’t want anything for the information. He just wants to tell you in person. Over.”
I want to kill him.
“Tell him, I will meet him, when he’s here…” He paused before continuing, emotion threatening to overcome his words. “It will be nice for us to stay in one spot for a while. Over.”
The sound of sniffling came from his earpiece. “We will Zach. We will. Over.”
He then suddenly remembered the supposed explosion at the Boston camp. “What was all that about a bomb in the bunker network? Over.”
“That was Clovis. He was meant to cause a distraction for us to get away. I had no idea he was going to explode a bomb. Was anyone killed? Over.”
Zach’s chain of thought stuck on the word ‘us’ before he forced himself to answer her question. “No. Only minor injuries, but Mitchell sent out some people to look for you. She say’s you’re a danger to all Cascaders. She seems a little bit unhinged, well more than she was when I was up there. Over.”
“We saw them looking for us, but they didn’t find us obviously. I have to go now, but we can talk again later. Let me know when the next plane out here will be. Over.”
“I love you.” He blurted the words and waited for a comeback, but there was only static on the line.
*****
Abbey put the headset down and thanked the comms officer whose seat she was in.
Brad was seated alongside the large table nearby, looking at her. “How is he?”
She smiled. “Confused.”
Brad smiled. “There’s a lot of that going around.”
“He’s well secured right?”
Brad hesitated then understood whom she was referring too. “He’s in one of new cells outside, with an armed guard. We also have a soldier keeping an eye on his pet, and we have Cascaders patrolling the perimeter night and day if he manages to snag any of the other E.L.F’s from afar. We got him Abbey. He’s done.”
She shook her head. “I just feel as if there’s something I’m missing, but I just can’t—”
“What do you make of all of this stuff about Zach’s daughter?”
“I don’t know. Tinley was the one that killed Zach’s family—” She swallowed uneasily. “Maybe it’s possible he passed on something to Clovis, but for what reason I don’t know. I doubt it’s anything good.”
“I think it’s just a ploy to avoid being pushed up against a wall and shot.”
“If it is, it’s not going to work. He’ll probably be shot either way.”
“Did he say anything to you during your journey down here?” He puffed out his cheeks. “That must have been something.”
Abbey smiled. �
��It was strange. But no, I think he said maybe ten words since we left Boston.”
Brad went to reply when Major Hoxted appeared walking down the steps towards them. She stood near the entrance and Abbey realized that there was a soldier standing just behind her.
“What’s going on?” Said Brad.
“Abbey needs to be debriefed, she might have valuable information that we need to know,” said the Major.
Brad went to talk again but Abbey stood holding her hand up towards Brad. “It’s okay, she’s right.”
She followed the soldier and Major out and into another building on the compound. An hour later she was walking back out into the afternoon sun. Around her were faces she hardly knew and she felt as if she was in an entirely new location from the one she and Zach stumbled upon some months before.
The main house remained the same though, and as she walked back towards it, she stopped, looking up and smiled remembering herself teetering on the roof edge and then falling.
Brad appeared in the doorway, slightly out of breath. He waved her towards him. “There’s a C-130 that’s just left the camp. Will be with us in a few hours if it makes the journey.”
Abbey nodded and went to walk inside when something stopped her. She looked at Brad. “Which is these buildings contains the prison cells?”
Brad walked forward. “Now Abbey I don’t think—”
“I need to do this. Which one?”
He frowned. “Follow me.”
They walked around the back of the building she had just left and immediately up to another. A guard was at the door, whom opened it for both of them. After following a series of narrow corridors, each with its own secured door and guard they finally arrived at a large room, with cells along both sides. A soldier opened the final door. Before walking inside Brad turned to Abbey. “There’s no reason for you to do this.”
“Maybe, but for the first time since I left Boston I feel I can be free with him. Ask him what I want, without fear of reprisals.”
The soldier walked inside and slid open a small panel in the cell door, he then turned back to Abbey. “You can talk to him through there. You got five minutes.”
Abbey nodded and she walked inside. The door behind her was closed and locked.
“Come to see how I’m doing eh, girly,” said Clovis from the cell.
A flash of surprise crossed Abbey’s mind, then was quickly replaced with the realization that he must know her signature now as a Cascader.
“Zach has changed his mind, he doesn’t want to see you.” It was a lie, but she wanted to see how he would react.
“What?!” The door to his cell shuddered as he slammed into it. “I was told he would see me! I have to see him!” The door shook again, this time making Abbey stand back. The door to the cellblock opened and Brad and the soldier entered.
“Settle down prisoner!” Shouted the soldier.
Abbey watched as the man that had been as calm as a lamb for the past two days was now an image of rage.
With each new impact he made against his side of the door, a memory from the last few days flashed through her mind, like her brain was naturally putting together a puzzle she didn’t even know existed. Finally she was back in the Cascaders living quarters, getting to her feet, then walking towards the end of the room, towards the source of the blast, and looking down at Erin.
She walked back towards the door. “Clovis?”
The charging at the door stopped.
“Yes?”
“If you tell me what you need to say to Zach about his daughter, I can tell him. It will be the same.”
“No!” He bellowed. “I have to see him in person.”
“But why?”
“I…I…don’t know. I just have to.”
The image of Erin lying on the ground forced its way into her mind once more, and the final pin of the lock that was holding the secret which she had carried with her from Boston finally fell into place.
“Erin told you to come with me, didn’t he?”
There was silence on the other side of the door.
“Erin told—”
“I heard you the first time Abbey.”
Abbey staggered back for the voice which came from the other side of the cell door was not entirely Clovis’s, but was similar to the man she thought had been injured in the bomb blast.
A slow clap came from the cell. Brad and the soldier looked at each other. The soldier went to open the cell, when Abbey raised her hand to stop him.
“Who am I talking to?”
“Oh I think you know who this is.”
“Erin?…” Her legs felt weak and her breathing labored.
“Si, it is I. I must admit I’m surprised it has taking you this long to figure it out.”
She knew Cascaders could see through the eyes of E.L.F’s, Wyatt had supposedly managed to do this when he was hypnotized, but she had no idea one could do it to another Cascader, let alone take control of that person.
“But I don’t understand…why do this? Why—”
The big man sighed. “Because I have no choice. At first I left your mind alone. I resisted the urge to control you, I wanted you to be mine by choice. I said to myself, ‘Give it time Erin’, she will come around. See you for what you are. A man to unite all Cascaders. And she will want to join and be part of what I’m trying to build! And for once I will not have to use my abilities on a woman. You were going to be different. You were worth waiting for. But despite all the evidence, you would not see things like I do! Like real Cascaders do! So—”
“So you tried to control me.” Abbey’s stomach gurgled and she leaned back on the small table which rested in the center of the room.
“Yes, I tried. Oh boy did I try, and you know what I found? That the connection you had with Zach was stronger. I did hope that once he left the bunker, it would fade. But even then it was not possible to get what I wanted. So instead I came up with a new plan.”
Abbey looked at the plain gray door as a realization struck her. “You were going to kill him! It was a lie, to get to Zach!” She wanted to grab the soldiers sidearm, throw the cell door open and shoot dead the man within. But then she knew the monster just a few yards away from her, was not the monster she would be killing.
“Abbey. Zach is not one of us. You and I are Gods compared to the likes of him. We will rule this planet, and there is nothing the humans can do to stop us.”
“What about the aliens?” Interjected Brad.
“The aliens will leave at some point, or when your kind have bloodied their nose. I know about the toxin. I have always known about it. Clovis wasn’t just meant to kill the man you love Abbey, but also to protect you and to help to get you to the outpost. Now though, things have changed…”
“What do you mean?” Said Abbey.
“Now, I think it’s time I paid a visit to the outpost in person.”
Abbey stood upright. “You’re coming here?”
Brad straightened his back.
“Of course. Now, Clovis. Do you wish to kill him? Or do you want me to do it for you?” A crunch sound came from the door.
Abbey’s eyes grew wide. She looked at the soldier. “Open the door!”
Another crunch pounded against the inside metal frame.
Brad put his hand up. “No. Let him kill him! I’m not having that thing out here!”
She shook her head. Brad was right. What did it matter if Erin killed Clovis, but there was something about what Erin was doing, that she couldn’t live with.
The door shuddered again, but this time was quickly followed by the sound of Clovis dropping to the floor.
Abbey looked at Brad, with pleading eyes.
“Okay fine!” He took his own rifle from his shoulder then clicked on his radio, asking for backup. He then looked at the soldier who produced a set of keys and quickly unlocked the cell door.
A stream of blood ran down the inside of it and Clovis was lying in a heap on the floor.
CH
APTER FOURTEEN
“How badly do you want to hold onto whatever that black cube is?” Said General Trow to Zach, as he stood in main operations.
“Why?” He whispered to a nearby soldier to bring up the feeds from the cameras that were still at the dam. The perfect geometric dark shape sat in the sky, in contrast against the setting sun.
“Because we got three bogey’s coming in real hot towards it, in fact they are probably—”
Three other black shapes zipped into view, alongside the first one.
“— Are already there. This time though they are going to be in for a shock.”
A series of small explosions heralded the launch of multiple rockets from mobile launchers placed all around the local area. Two of the flaming projectiles missed their targets completely as the black craft dodged to the side, but another three hit home, causing a wave of energy to emanate across the surface of the alien hovering objects. Gunfire then started as well and streams of red neon streaks flew from the ground to the craft, that were just a few hundred feet away.
“I don’t know how long they will be able to hold out!” Said Trow, also talking to people around her. “So do we send more people and equipment out there to try and hold on to this thing, or do we give up on it?”
Zach paused in thought. Just as he was about to reply, the door to the main operations opened and Fiona and Sam appeared.
“There’s action at the dam again?” Said Sam.
“Looks like they want their ship back,” said Zach.
Fiona stood closer to Zach, looking directly at him. “This is our chance Zach. They obviously give a shit about whatever that thing is, if we make it difficult for them…”
He nodded, then looked back at Trow. “Yes. Send more units. I’ll coordinate others at this end.”
She nodded and the communication ended.
Zach looked at Fiona who smiled and nodded. She then turned and with Sam quickly left.
A short while after, while the battle raged around the powerhouse, Fiona was driving a turreted Humvee, with Sam, Sean and two soldiers next to her, while behind were two other vehicles each with a similar accompaniment.
As the light dwindled, the convoy sped around the winding dusty lanes.