Codename: Bear: Secret Agent (Codename Universe Book 1)

by Geoffrey C Porter

  The main building hosting the rave was surrounded by derelict buildings almost caving in on themselves. It's possible Centurian's men would be set up in one of them. The main building was a century old factory, and they had removed all the rusted out hulks of old machinery to make room for a dance floor. There was parking, but we'd be walking most of the way there. We planned to be late to the party, after all the drugs had been passed out.

  Thomas was going to pretend to be a dope dealer and spark up joints, passing them around to dancers. He was wearing a long bullet proof trenchcoat with bags of pre-rolled joints tied to the insides. Thomas was really beaming happy, too, like having that much marijuana on his person was giving him a buzz.

  The plane landed, and we were five, six hours early to the party. We went to the Museum of Natural History to pass a few hours. It wasn't too bad. Better than waiting in an Agency facility. We drove to the warehouse district with the rave.

  I stepped out of my vehicle, and the tiniest thump of a vibration carried through the ground into my toes. At first, I wasn't sure what it was, then I realized, that's the rave.

  "I can feel the sound," Jet said.

  Thomas passed out ear plugs to all of us. The way the vibrations were carrying through the ground I didn't think the plugs would help.

  Zen and Sphinx took the lead. Enigma went right after her. Jet and Thomas followed. I hesitated. This was how agents died. Walking right into the maw of a hornet's nest with nothing but stunners and our good looks. Thomas didn't even have good looks on his side.

  I raced to catch up with the others. The music grew in intensity. Zen walked faster. Jet started to dance with every half step. A homeless guy was curled up by the side of our path. Well, he may not have been homeless. He wore layered clothes, and they were dirty, and he was passed out.

  "Keep moving," Thomas said.

  Yes, good idea.

  The vibrations started creeping up my toes into my feet. They reached my ankles when I started noticing them in my chest, too. Lights raged through windows in the building ahead. The bass went Boom and Boom. Some people were outside smoking cigarettes. Thomas walked right up to a group of smokers and lit a joint, passing it around. Jet stepped up to a girl about twenty years old, with purple hair, and said, "Hi."

  The girl smiled at him, and he smiled back, and I knew Jet wouldn't be with us on this mission.

  Sphinx stepped into the dilapidated factory. Zen and Enigma started to dance, gyrating their bodies to the massive thump-thump that filled the air. If I was high, I'd likely say I could see the sound, but the way the vibrations traversed the structure, I could see the sound, and I wasn't high at all. Although the building was filled with a dense smoke, I felt fine. Sphinx pushed her way through the crowd, and I followed, losing Zen and Enigma.

  The music was like nothing I had ever heard. It had both high pitched mechanical sounds that clearly came from a synthesizer, and the low bass ranged from quickly paced tapping kind of sounds to great thuds and booms that you could hear with your whole body. People tried to get me to dance, pulling on me. A man shoved some kind of pill in my hand, and I pretended to eat it, pocketing it instead.

  Sphinx and I moved towards the center of the mass of twisting and turning bodies. It was dark other than random flashes of lights and lasers. The smoke started to get to me, and I wanted to go outside. I looked at members of the crowd, trying to match up faces with pictures I had memorized. The oldest faces in the dance were thirty years old max, and the images I was mentally comparing them to were in general thirty to forty years old, so the whole process wasn't working.

  A beautiful woman pulled me in close and kissed me. She pushed a pill of something into my mouth with her tongue. I tucked it off to the side and danced with her for a moment. In a spot of darkness, I took the pill out and put it in my pocket with the other one. I figured our labs might want to analyze them. I had lost track of Sphinx, but I knew I needed to push forward. The DJ was spinning discs and controlling the music at the far end of the building, but that area was in darkness for me.

  I figured, if there were Centurian's people anywhere, they'd be driving the music at the far end. The bass went Boom-Boom, and I tried to dance as I advanced. Tried to make it look like I knew what I was doing.

  Chapter Forty-Eight

  Sphinx caught my eye, and I pushed forward. A fine twenty-year-old girl with golden hair painted in spikes danced right in my way. I moved to go around her, and she pressed her body against mine. She kissed me on the lips and damn if I didn't kiss her back. Bodies pressed against us. The movement of the crowd. The crazy lights and sound. She planted another tablet of something in my mouth and held on tight. I could feel it disintegrating. I broke free of her and spit the mess out. What the fuck just dissolved in my mouth? Whatever it was, I had a mission.

  The DJ tables were close enough that I could see some men. Two of them matched pictures I had memorized. I advanced. Sphinx was right on my side. The men saw us, and something must have tipped them off that we weren't ravers. One man I recognized moved towards a door. The other man moved in the other direction. Was the floor solid in this section of the warehouse? It seemed to be wobbly. Sphinx pointed to the man on the left and raced after the one on the right.

  I chased him outside. Stepped through a door, and a baseball bat hit me in the gut. I went down. The baseball bat hit me on the upper chest. I looked around. Two men I didn't recognize standing over me. The third man I did recognize was sparking up some kind of smoke.

  "Kill him," the smoking man said.

  I pushed myself up the closest man's leg, pulling on his clothes. In my best pitiful, whimpering voice, I said, "Don't kill me. I'm just here for the party. I'm just a kid. Please."

  By then I had climbed my way up the chest of the man with the baseball bat.

  "Kill him anyway," the man I recognized said.

  My right hand moved so fast it surprised me. So fast it was reptilian, leaving a trail of hands in its wake. It formed into a flat spear and punched through the first man's thorax and throat. He choked and fell. The other man next to me pulled a pistol, but my left hand caught it and moved it off target, while my right hand curled in a fist, lashing into the center of that man's face. His whole face caved in. Dead before he hit the ground.

  My heart was beating so fast I thought it was going to explode. What the fuck was that tablet?

  The man I recognized dropped his smoke and turned to run. I ran faster. I hit him on the back, and he clumped to the ground. Wanted to hit him again and again. Orders, asshole. I still had my stunner, so I stunned him. Then I got the zip ties on him. Bound his wrists, ankles, then I tied those two ties together as closely as I could. My very soul wanted to go back into the rave party and dance, and find the blond haired girl with spiked hair and just dance. I lay down on the ground and looked up the stars, and they moved with the hum of the music from the rave.

  Enigma stood over me. "What did you take?"

  "Like I fucking know."

  She pulled out her cell phone. "Bear got one. We need to evac."

  Thomas came running. Jet was following close behind him. My stomach felt hollow inside, and my heart was still racing faster than if I'd run five kilometers.

  I couldn't even get up. Of course, I wasn't trying very hard. The ground comforted me, and I had the stars. Enigma shined this crazy ass light in my eyes, and it burned my retina.

  "Give him an antidote," Thomas said.

  "I have ten different antidotes, which should I start with?" Enigma said.

  "I'm calling the locals. We need to haul off this one and the one Sphinx got."

  I said, "Sphinx got one? Awesome."

  The music that carried from the rave was still loud, and I could have happily been dancing. I smiled. Thank the gods above I hadn't eaten the whole tablet.

  "He needs coffee," Thomas said.

  "The last thing I need is coffee," I said. "My heart is going a million miles an hour."

  Enigma rea
ched down to my wrist and touched me. "Your heart rate is 72. You're just confused."

  "He also killed two men," Thomas said. "Directly against orders."

  "I saw everything from the window. He had no choice. If he hadn't killed those men, he'd be dead."

  "You'll swear to that?"

  "On my honor."

  I smiled again. Enigma didn't totally hate me. I wanted to fuck so bad. Jet was even looking good. What the fuck? I looked back up at the stars.

  Zen and Sphinx joined us with their man in tow.

  "What happened to Bear?" Sphinx asked.

  "Beautiful girl. Tablet in my mouth," I said.

  "Fucking idiot."

  "Yes."

  Locals showed up. Paramedics looked me over. "You have two choices. We can take you in, put you in a padded room, and wait it out. Or you could find a nice 24-hour diner and drink coffee and eat pancakes."

  "Coffee shop!" I yelled.

  Thomas went with the locals and our two suspects. He wanted to make sure they got taken to the right places. Sphinx and Jet helped me to my feet, and we made it back to the cars. I did not drive. We found a 24 hour restaurant. I mostly sat and smiled. Surrounded by three beautiful women, and a not terribly ugly male, and I was definitely not getting laid that night. I kind of needed it, too, but the word, 'charges' danced in my mind any time I looked at any of them.

  Chapter Forty-Nine

  Three or four in the morning rolled around. The restaurant was mostly deserted. The women all wanted to go home. Well, not home, but our beds at the Agency building in Los Angeles. I wanted to look for farm animals or higher life forms and stick my penis in them over and over, but I conceded that sleep might do me good. I stood in the hallway, staring at the lights.

  Enigma approached me. We were alone. I tried to wipe the stupid grin off my face, with no real luck. It was permanent. She handed me a packet. "Take this."

  I had enough drugs for one night. "What is it?"

  "Something that will help you calm down, you've been a walking boner all night."

  I paused and was relatively hard. Had been up and down since the rave. Went to the drinking fountain and took the pill from Enigma's magic packet.

  I still wanted to know what I was taking. She snuck up behind me and squeezed me around the middle. I snarled. "What the fuck?"

  "Oh, sorry," she said. "I wasn't thinking."

  I turned and looked into her eyes. There was something in those eyes. Wanting maybe? Regrets? I was too high to even think about it. The wall was white behind her, and there were colors dancing in paisley patterns.

  She said, "Goodnight." Then she ran away.

  I went and took a leak, which isn't so easy with half a hard on, but I knew I'd never sleep if I didn't release some pressure. I thought of Ussilla, wondering if one of her sisters were around. Enigma shouted in my brain, "Sleep."

  So I went and curled up in my bed. My mind started to wander. Relocated from my stomach to my back. I closed my eyes. At first, I was flying through clouds, then they transformed into vicious black and grey monsters, throwing lightning and fire. Yes, the clouds were throwing fire.

  A lightning bolt hit me, and I plunged to the ground. My feet touched the Earth, and I started to dance. Ussilla visited me in the dream and milked me dry. Best sex dream I ever had. The alarm woke me, and I tried to shut it out. It got louder and louder. My skull ached. A hot shower really helped. My hands shook when I shaved, but I didn't nick myself. I jogged to the eatery. They were serving lunch, but they had made coffee, too.

  My teammates smiled at me, and I sat with them. Thomas asked, "How are you feeling?"

  "I feel like, if a girl at a rave party kisses me, I should learn to keep my mouth closed."

  "At this point, my prognosis is you're going to live," Enigma said.

  "On a serious note," Sphinx said, "the men we captured. They have given us their names. The one Bear grabbed, his picture has 'AD' written on the back of it. The one I captured, had 'BC' written on it."

  "What names did they give us?" I asked.

  "Apple Danish and Bear Claw. But we never told them about the initials on the backs of their pictures, so we truly believe they are legit."

  Jet let out a chuckle. "Apple Danish? Bear Claw? Pumpkin Spice? You've got to be kidding me."

  "They've been distributing powerful narcotics, even alien narcotics, for over twenty years," Thomas said. "Can you think of better names for them?"

  "That's a valid point."

  Sphinx let out a low hiss. "They've also been running extortion rackets, kidnapping, sex slaves, murders for hire."

  "The drug trade gives them almost unlimited resources," Thomas said. "When it comes to bribing judges or police officers, you'd think they'd be unbribable, but they're not when you offer them millions."

  "Why though? What's their ultimate purpose?" Jet asked.

  Nobody said anything.

  "The running theory is they want to dismantle our governments, so the Razdoran can step in and claim us as a colony," Sphinx said. "If our governments start to crumble, the Razdoran can claim our planet as their territory. They will strip Earth of resources, ship our young people to work in factories on slave planets. If the Razdoran can step in, mankind will never join the interstellar community as equals."

  Damn. I was determined before. Now I was hell bent. And Enigma was sitting right next to me, and she smelled so good. Wildflowers and coconut. Her knee was pressed up against mine. She had plenty of room for her knee on her side of the damn table, too.

  "What are they going to do with these men Bear and Sphinx captured?" Jet asked.

  "They both have Razdoran technology implants in their bodies," Thomas said. "We're keeping them in our strongest facility in LA. This facility. But they're transmitting on numerous radio wavelengths. Our team might once again be put in charge of a prisoner transport, but this facility is our second strongest in the USA."

  "That doesn't answer my questions."

  "We're not going to torture them, if that's what you mean," Sphinx said. "We might put them in a cell, and alternate the television between children's cartoons and religious fanatics, but that is all."

  We should cut on them until they start to spill their guts. Wait. That isn't how we do business. "Cut the sugar out of their diet," I said. "Beans and rice, for every meal."

  "That's not bad. I'll recommend it."

  Enigma, that dirty fucking whore, reached down to my leg and gave me a little pat on the knee. What was she doing? Is it still sexual harassment, if it's directed at a male? Should I encourage her affection? I kind of liked female affection, but Enigma was clearly a psychopath.

  Then I kind of got it about her. If she was making the advances, she was happy. If it was the other person making the advances, it screwed with her head. A typical male trait, but not unheard of in women. Interesting.

  Chapter Fifty

  The computer started freaking out over the intercom. A male voice spoke fast. "Intruder alert. Mechanized suits are incoming. To arms."

  Thomas stood up. "Let's go!"

  We left our trays there and headed for the armory. Well, we followed Thomas. He shouted the words out. "If they're using mechanized suits, they're a tough takedown. WP grenades only! Aim for the legs. There are two sensor arrays on the sides of their heads. A lucky shot can take out one, but you've got to take out both sensor arrays."

  "Shit," Jet said. "Shit."

  We reached the armory. I put on a jacket and zipped it up. Thomas said, "It won't help. Seven millimeter cannons built into their shoulders, you might as well put on a piece of paper."

  "I'm wearing it so I can carry two grenades and still shoot," I said.

  "Valid point."

  I put on a holster on my hip and grabbed three extra magazines. A grenade went in each pocket. Thomas pulled up a map of the facility, and it showed red skull and crossbones for each suit. There were three down each end of the hallway directly from us. I went left. Zen followed me. The mac
hines stood easily 2.5 meters tall with shiny black armor plating all over. They were humanoid in shape, meaning arms and legs and head. They looked almost like armored knights from the feudal dark ages-except for the lights and gun. Their sensors were easy to spot as they had little red lights. Their guns weren't tracking me, but I knew it wouldn't be long. I threw a grenade at the lead tank. Then I threw the other grenade at the farther away monster. I ducked into a side passage and waited. Zen was right next to me. Two booms followed, and metal crashing to the floor made my ears smile.

  Zen handed me one of her grenades. "You've got an arm."

  More like she wanted me to duck into the hallway. I did though. If there was a time for heroics, this was definitely it. Chucked the grenade at the third abomination. It exploded in a great ball of molten shrapnel. I wanted to go back to the armory. It was right there. Zen handed me her second grenade. I almost said, thanks, baby-doll, but now wasn't the time. Instead, I said, "Go back for more."

  "Good idea."

  I ran. I knew the holding cells were in the basement, and it seemed that the other red skull and crossbones were headed that way. I stepped into a stairwell, and one of the machines almost stepped on me. Was too close to use the grenade. I did my quick draw thing and greased both sensors, bam bam. Lucky shots my ass. The monster started firing off rounds tearing into the walls and floor. I ran down the stairs. Pausing at the bottom, I glanced down the hallway. Three shapes were at the opposite end. Damnit, what happened to Zen?

  I heard the pitter patter of feet, and Zen's beautiful face joined me. She had bulges on both pockets, and a white phosphorous grenade in each hand. I grabbed both from her and looked back into the hallway. The machines faced the other way, and apparently did not have eyes in the back of their head. I threw both grenades as hard as I could. I had never been a pitcher for a baseball team, but I had practiced with grenades a lot.

  I took out all three of the machines. We weren't even on the prison level yet. We headed down another flight of stairs and another. This was the prison level. I was about to look around the corner, when Zen said, "My turn!" She stuck her head through the doorway, and a gunshot rang out. She fell backwards and clutched at her stomach. She was bleeding bad. I unzipped her jacket and applied one of our magic bandages, but there was a lot of blood. She held the last two grenades up to me, covered in her insides. "There are four of them."