by SD Tanner
Once they’d cleared the second set of gates, they were met by a wide expanse of lawn, and a huge four-story building sat in the center of it. Made of steel and painted cream, every window was shuttered with a matching cover, and they blended so well with the walls it was hard to tell where they were. The central doors leading into the building were also closed, and the driver stopped next to the stairs leading to them. He was about to ask how they were going to get inside, when a concealed side door at the top of the short flight of stairs swung open.
A man dressed from top to toe in black stepped outside into the daylight. He was wearing a visor and helmet similar to the one Lexie had worn, and across his shoulders was a heavy looking thick armor that travelled the length of his arms. His hands weren’t visible under the boxy gloves, but the barrels from his weapons were. Around his waist was a thick, wide belt filled with large cartridges he assumed were ammo for the guns mounted on his shoulders and along his arms. His legs were built like tree trunks, and starting at his knees was a solid boot that clearly provided even more armor to his lower body. He was over a foot wider than your average man and a foot taller. With the significantly heavier and more complex armor and weapons, Lexie’s gear was clearly lightweight by comparison. He assumed he was looking at the type of Navigator they referred to as a tank.
Lexie didn’t wait for them and she was already out of the vehicle. She skipped up the stairs, slipping on them as she went. For someone who was so nimble in her armor, she was ridiculously clumsy without it. As he climbed out of the truck, he heard her shriek in delight.
“Tank!”
The enormous Navigator dwarfed her, but somehow managed to bend one stiff looking arm to return her hug.
“Eww, you stink! What have you been playing in?”
Tank flicked his lower helmet up and said blandly, “Critters.”
Their squad was emerging from their trucks and slowly making their way up the stairs. Tank stepped aside from the door, and waved a huge arm at them indicating they should go inside. With only his lower face visible, he wasn’t sure how to respond to the man, and he obediently walked through the door. Behind the faceless façade of the building was an entirely different world. Bright lights shone down into a huge open area. There were hundreds of workbenches surrounded by boxes, screens and hanging Navigator suits. People were working on the different types of armor and hydraulics, and large screens hung from the ceilings. Music was playing in the background, and there was a rumble of hundreds of voices talking at once. Helmets were propped up on the tables, where people wearing metallic goggles were using fine tools on them. He wasn’t sure what he expected to find at CaliTech, and the hub of energy and clearly well-organized activity caught him by surprise.
While he stood slack-jawed and trying to understand what he was looking at, a man rolled forward in an electric wheelchair. Half his face had been burned and large patches of his hair were missing. His jaw was uneven, giving him a twisted mouth, and he suspected it had been reconstructed. It appeared the man was missing his legs from the knees down, and when he checked the man’s hands, at least one finger was missing from each. The hands had also been burned, and they had the complex puckered scars consistent with that type of injury. It was obvious the man had been torn apart, and they'd reconstructed him as well as they could.
None of his wounds detracted from the sharp and intelligent eyes that stared back at him from the scarred face. They were a deep and vivid blue, and the unnaturally smooth skin around them crinkled oddly when he smiled. Despite being caught off guard by the man’s profound injuries, he found himself smiling back at him.
“Leon,” the man said in a steady voice he instantly recognized.
“Ark.”
He put his hand out to shake his, but Lexie pushed it aside and threw her arms around Ark. “I’ve had a horrible time. Don’t send me into real combat again.”
Ark pulled her into his lap and wheeled himself forward. “I make no promises, Two One. Stop complaining.” Looking up at him, he added, “Welcome to CaliTech. Dunk the Skunk liked to keep people onsite for month long shifts, so we have a dormitory here for the workers that you can stay in. We’re just getting a full manifest of what we have in inventory. There’s training facilities in another building plus a small hospital.”
“And a cafeteria,” Lexie added, and he guessed she was hungry.
The mention of food reminded him they hadn't had a full meal since before they'd been captured and almost killed. They'd been constantly on the move for six days, and he was beginning to realize just how tired he was under the adrenalin that had kept him going.
Ark nodded. “Dunk’s a crazy asshole, and he kept a warehouse full of basic materials, including weapons and food, so we’re set up for a while at least.”
Following Ark, they all began to walk the length of the building. Donna had already disappeared, but he supposed for her and Lexie this was their home. Lexie had bounded from Ark’s lap, and he guessed she’d gone wherever Donna had. No one was paying much attention to the dirty, well-armed soldiers walking across their production floor, and they didn’t seem surprised to see them. Ark was explaining what they were doing on the workbenches, but he wasn’t really listening. He looked across at Tank who was walking next to him. In response, Tank turned his head so he could see his own face in the visor covering his eyes.
“What’s the plan, Tank?”
Tank snorted softly, but didn't reply. Ark looked up at him and said, “We need nav boots out there, so you’re gonna get some training.”
He glanced at Tuck who looked back at him with his mouth set in a fixed grim line. Shaking his head, he said bluntly, “I don’t wanna be blinded like Lexie.”
With a loud creaking, Tank lifted his heavily armored hands to his head and pulled his helmet off. To his surprise, the visor came away with the helmet and Tank looked at him coolly. “We’re not all blind. The orbs are only needed for advanced vision.”
Ark chuckled. “So, what do ya reckon? Think you want some training?”
For the first time since he’d almost had his head cut off, he grinned widely. “So, what kinda weapons have you guys got?”
Rolling his chair forward, Ark gave a flamboyant wave of his scarred hand. “Let me show you our armory.” Suddenly he stopped rolling and seemed to be listening intently to his earpiece. After a short pause, he said sharply, “On my way.”
Turning his chair abruptly, he began to roll towards a set of elevators tucked away against the far wall of the vast production floor.
Picking up on his shift in mood, he asked, “What's wrong?”
“The missiles are flying,” Ark called over his shoulder.
“What does that mean?”
Ark was already well ahead of them and Tank replied grimly, “They're bombing the cities.”
“Why? The critters are in the desert.”
“They probably don’t know that.”
If they were bombing their own cities, then NORAD must believe the entire country had fallen. Worse still, they didn’t even know their enemy was forming camps, and they were targeting the wrong places. Destroying their own cities was an act of desperation, and he worried even more about Amelia. What if they’d bombed Seattle?
Ark had already reached the elevators and was waiting for them to catch up. As he walked towards him, he studied the profoundly injured man thoughtfully. His wife and unborn son were probably already dead, there was no military left, the cities had fallen, and no one could be trusted anymore. If they were going to survive, they’d have to learn to fight an enemy they’d never planned for. The Navigator technology might give them an edge they couldn’t get any other way, and clearly Ark was already thinking about how they could take back control. He was quite possibly the only person who had a plan for their survival that had any chance of success.
Standing in the elevator next to Ark, he leaned down and said firmly, “Okay. Let’s kick some alien ass.”
EPILOGUE (Steve)
He was feeding in a thousand parts and satisfying the hunger that had been growing inside him. Buried deep under the earth, he leaned back into the sticky mud and sucked at the wall, drawing moisture into his body.
This was the cycle. Seeding the colony was only the first step. Birth was followed by food. Food was followed by colonization. Colonization was followed by domination. Domination was followed by exploration, and the cycle would begin again. It was a perfect cycle.
He wasn’t alone. He was never alone. There were more minds just like his, with millions of creatures under their control, and he knew they were feeding just as he was.
NAVIGATOR BOOK TWO
NOW AVAILABLE
BLIND SIGHTED (Purchase Now)
Leon and Ark elect to train their new Navigator squad outside the wire, while Bill works with the weapons engineers to solve the bigger problems. The medical team are taking the critters apart, desperately looking for anything that will give them an edge.
There's growing friction between the crew and someone needs to step up, or a ruthless and cunning enemy will take complete control of the world.
Blind Sighted is the second book in the Navigator series, which will be published throughout 2016. It's a fast paced, action-based story following the people who will need to become a tight knit team if they are to defeat an enemy capable of taking over mankind.
Also by SD Tanner
Books in Hunter Wars Series
(Series One of The Hunter Wars)
Book One:
EVE OF THE HUNTER WARS (Purchase Now)
Book Two:
HEAVEN MEETS HELL (Purchase Now)
Book Three:
ARMY OF ANGELS (Purchase Now)
Book Four:
GIFT FROM GOD (Purchase Now)
Book Five:
RIGHT TO RULE (Purchase Now)
Book Six:
CALL TO WAR (Purchase Now)
Books in Eden Lost Series
(Series Two of The Hunter Wars)
Book One:
HIDDEN EVIL (Purchase Now)
Book Two
DEAD ALIVE (Purchase Now)
Book Three
BATTLEFRONT
(Release: 2016)
Books in The Locke Files Series
Book One:
TIME TO DIE (Purchase Now)
Book Two
TIME TO KILL
(Release: To be scheduled)
Books in NAVIGATOR Series
Book One:
ENEMY LINES (Purchase Now)
Book Two
BLIND SIGHTED (Purchase Now)
Book Three
KILLER EDGE
(Release: 2016)
Also by SD Tanner
Books in Hunter Wars Series
(Series One of The Hunter Wars)
Book One:
EVE OF THE HUNTER WARS (Purchase Now)
Gears, Pax and TL are brothers and soldiers in the US Army when the world comes to an abrupt halt. Thrust into the apocalypse, they decide mankind deserves another chance. Their ruling puts them at the center of an epic battle between good and evil, and they uncover the hidden truth behind the Devil in the land of the undead. Along the way, they meet a woman they name Ip and their true role is revealed.
Forming the first of their bases, they call survivors to their side and unwittingly make enemies of the undead and the living. Determined to succeed, they take drastic steps to secure safe havens for those left alive.
Book Two:
HEAVEN MEETS HELL (Purchase Now)
New friends are found, but the face of evil makes its presence known in the safety of their bases. Pax makes a mistake and Ip pays the price, but Gears refuses to let his new enemy rule the day.
Book Three:
ARMY OF ANGELS (Purchase Now)
Determined to fight fire with fire, Gears offers the survivors the choice of infection. Mackenzie does the unthinkable creating a remarkable outcome that makes Gears question everything he knows about life.
Book Four:
GIFT FROM GOD (Purchase Now)
Desperate to find safe land where they can grow food, they take the drastic step of seeking safer shores. The Devil takes Pax to a place he never knew existed and Ip learns who she really is. Captain Ted makes a mistake that Gears must undo or they'll lose everything they've gained.
Book Five:
RIGHT TO RULE (Purchase Now)
Fed up with the Devil’s play, Gears is determined to enforce his right to rule. The Devil disagrees and does something they didn't expect, setting them back again. Captain Ted is forced to make a terrible choice and they stand to lose more than they gain. The land is dying and hunger grips their world.
Book Six:
CALL TO WAR (Purchase Now)
Gears witnesses the impossible and they learn there's more that the Devil can do. Faced with disaster, he calls the game to an end and prepares for a final battle. Mankind must make their true intent known or all will be lost for a thousand years.
Books in Eden Lost Series
(Series Two of The Hunter Wars)
Book One:
HIDDEN EVIL (Purchase Now)
It's been five years since they put the Devil in his place, but all is not well in Eden and our Horsemen have dug their way out of their graves. It seems the Devil wasn't done and neither were they. Gears must uncover his new mission, and he believes he needs another army to defend his right to rule. America is at war with itself and he needs to know why.
Book Two
DEAD ALIVE (Purchase Now)
The hunters have returned, but they're not the same as they were. Gears, Pax and TL decide they need to look for the problem in Eden and uncover more than they ever expected. Ruler is playing them all for fools, and Gears finds a unique solution to save America.
Book Three
BATTLEFRONT
(Release: Scheduled 2016)
Books in The Locke Files Series
Book One:
TIME TO DIE (Purchase Now)
Jack Locke was an Army Intelligence expert and a criminal investigator. In 2050, scientists learn how to extend life by five hundred years, but the technology also opens the way for race-based genocide and genetic engineering.
Struggling to deal with his tragic past, he finds himself trying to stop the President from using DNA-based biological warfare to cull an over populated world. Locke must protect the world from a technology that aimed to help, but could change what makes us human.
Book Two
TIME TO KILL
(Release: To be scheduled)
Books in NAVIGATOR Series
Book One:
ENEMY LINES (Purchase Now)
After nearly being executed in a war zone, Staff Sergeant Leon Shield finds himself urgently recalled from deployment, and lands back home to a defeated country. In a matter of days, and without a single shot being fired, a new species has taken over the world. Determined to survive Armageddon, the only chance to fight back is to find a man called Ark, and use an untested technology to become Navigators.
With hydraulics, armor and advanced vision, Navigators are soldiers of the future, and in the game of survival of the fittest, they become the only hope man has to fight for their right to dominate.
Book Two
BLIND SIGHTED (Purchase Now)
Leon and Ark elect to train their new Navigator squad outside the wire, while Bill works with the weapons engineers to solve the bigger problems. The medical team are taking the critters apart, desperately looking for anything that will give them an edge.
Book Two
KILLER EDGE
(Release: Scheduled 2016)
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