Blood Thirsty (Tri System's Edge Series Book 2)

by Ron Schrader

  “Alright, well, let’s see where this fence goes then. Good a place as any to start with.” She began walking the perimeter toward the back side of the base.

  Kalla led the way, following the fence line that ran nearly fifty meters to the back of the base. From there, it made a sharp left turn and headed toward the mountainside.

  When they reached the last fence post, which stood right next to the side of the mountain, Kalla turned and looked through the chain-link fence. Trying to figure out what to do next she located a group of soldiers spread out a few meters apart from one another. It was dark enough, and they were far enough away, that Kalla wasn’t worried about being seen. Her initial thought was that they would be easy to take out one by one. But upon further consideration, she decided that in close combat at least one of them would probably get a shot off—which would alert the rest of the base to their presence here.

  “So, what now?” Davis asked.

  “Not sure yet, still thinking,” Kalla said, as she watched the movement of the soldiers.

  “Well, while you’re thinking, I have an idea that might work.” Jarek turned away from the fence and pointed to a large boulder on the ground behind them that looked to be nearly a meter in diameter. “I bet I can bounce that off the side of the mountain, maybe cause enough noise up there to create a diversion that doesn’t involve exposing ourselves, and then we sneak in.”

  Kalla nodded. “Yeah, that might work. Let’s just be ready to move.”

  “You sure?” Davis objected. “That rock looks pretty heavy. Sure you can throw it far enough?”

  Jarek just smiled and walked over to the boulder, reached out with his right arm, and dug his fingers into the rock until he had something to hold onto. Then, as if it weighed no more than a small pebble, he lifted it up with one hand and turned back toward Davis. “Watch and learn,” he said with a wide grin.

  He began swinging his arm back and forth, using the weight of the large rock to build momentum. Then suddenly and without warning he released it into the air, launching it with great force up toward the side of the mountain until it was almost out of sight.

  There was a silence at first, then a loud boom echoed down the mountain, followed by a succession of crackling noises and the growing thunder of rock and dirt as it came crashing down toward the ground.

  “I think you overdid it,” Davis said, as he started backing away from the fence, and then headed toward the tree line in the distance. “Looks more like an avalanche than a diversion,” he called out.

  “I guess that’ll work too,” Kalla said, as she grabbed Jarek’s arm to draw his attention away from the disaster in progress. “Let’s just not be here when it all hits the ground,” she added.

  They rushed toward Davis, until all three of them were safely concealed in the thick trees.

  “Watch and learn, huh,” Davis said, just as Kalla and Jarek reached him.

  “Still worked, didn’t it?” Jarek replied with a grin.

  “Sure did,” Kalla interrupted, “and now we need to get ready for phase two.”

  “And what exactly is phase two?” Davis asked.

  Kalla turned back toward the fence line and watched as the chaos came to an end and the dust started to clear. “I’ll let you know as soon as I figure it out,” she said, admiring the mess Jarek had made. For several minutes, she remained silent and took in the scene of dirt and rock that had washed down like a flood. The force of the boulder had indeed caused an avalanche that had buried the fence a good six to eight meters out from the side of the mountain, gradually sloping down toward the ground. Kalla guessed the rock slide had probably taken out at least a few of the guards nearest to the fence as well, which meant she and her companions had a small window to act before more soldiers arrived on the scene.

  “Keep up or stay here,” she said abruptly, and bolted from the cover of the trees.

  “Wait . . . what?” Jarek replied as she ran past him.

  “Move!” she yelled back.

  “Do as the lady says,” Jarek said.

  Kalla sprinted at full speed toward the low end of the landslide, and when she reached it, she started up the pile of dirt, maintaining momentum on the steep slope. It wasn’t long before she ran out of road, having reached an almost vertical section of the mountain. Without breaking stride, she jumped with her full strength, launching herself into the air. As gravity began to bring her back down, she caught hold of a narrow ledge that stuck out from the otherwise smooth face of the mountain. She could see it was just wide enough to make for an uncomfortable perch, so she pulled herself onto the ledge and stood up.

  By the time she turned to gauge her companions’ progress, Jarek had reached the ledge and was already pulling himself up, with Davis following close behind.

  “Have to admit, I wasn’t sure I was gonna make it,” Davis said, as he pulled himself up and stood on the ledge.

  “That was easy,” Jarek boasted. He threw a friendly jab of his elbow into Davis’ ribs.

  “Yeah, I guess,” Davis replied with a cough. “So what now?”

  “I’m still working that out,” Kalla answered. She paid close attention to the ground below as a swarm of soldiers rushed toward the scene of the avalanche. Two large spotlights suddenly came on, one pointed at the huge pile of dirt from the slide, and the other shining up the mountain.

  “Looks like the cavalry’s arrived,” Jarek said, “and there’s no cover here.” He glanced upward and said, “We better hurry and get up to those trees.”

  Kalla dug her hands into the steep hillside, climbing toward the trees as fast as she could, looking back only once to make sure Jarek and Davis were following.

  Just as she reached the thick patch of trees growing from the mountainside, a spotlight beam lit up the ledge where they had all stood only moments ago. It moved slowly from right to left, then back again, carefully working its way up the mountain, until it finally reached the tree line.

  Kalla stood with her back against a large trunk as light flooded between the trees. It was bright enough that she closed her eyes and didn’t open them again until the piercing light had passed.

  “It’s gone,” Jarek said.

  “I know,” Kalla replied. “Just trying to figure out what to do now.”

  “Well,” Jarek started, “I’d need to get a better view, but it looks like all the guards around the outside of that gate are gone. Maybe now’s a good time to drop down inside the gate?”

  Kalla turned her head and looked down. Jarek was right. From where she stood, Kalla couldn’t see any guards patrolling there. Without another thought, she rushed back down to the ledge to get a better look and still couldn’t see any soldiers.

  “What do you see?” Davis called down.

  She turned and stared up the mountain. “It’s clear. Let’s go,” she replied, waving for them to join her.

  Seconds later, Jarek reached her side. “Spotlight keeps moving up the mountain, so we’d better go now before it comes back down,” he said.

  “Already gone,” she said. She began running along the narrow ledge until she was just above the small bit of structure that protruded from the mountain. She paused for a moment, then jumped over the side, falling several meters to the ground below, landing just inside the barricade.

  Before she had a chance to turn around, a sting of bullets pierced her back and knocked her to the ground. She stayed down, knowing Jarek was on his way, and not more than a few seconds elapsed before she heard a loud thud behind her. Another short burst of gunfire rang out, then she heard a low growl.

  “Not nice,” Jarek yelled.

  Kalla pushed herself up off the ground and turned around just in time to see Jarek wipe blood from his sword and slide it back into its sheath.

  “You alright?” he asked, walking toward her.

  “Yeah, I’m fine,” she replied as she dusted herself off. “Just getting tired of all the holes in my clothes,” she said, as she peered around Jarek to see two b
odies lying in the dirt. Behind the bodies, she noticed there were two large metal doors which marked the entrance to the mountain.

  “They look pretty solid,” Jarek said.

  Kalla nodded. “Where’s Davis?” she asked, realizing he wasn’t with them yet.

  Jarek pointed up. “Still up there,” he said.

  Kalla looked up and saw Davis still standing on the ledge above, looking around as if trying to figure out another way down. “Just jump!” she yelled. “We have to go!”

  Davis froze and stared down at Kalla.

  She couldn’t make out every detail of his face, but she knew exactly how he felt. She was reminded of the cliffs on Paradise, and how not very long ago she’d had the same fear. She remembered watching Jarek jump—to what she’d presumed, at the time, would be his death. It seemed like a lifetime ago to her now, but she still remembered the feelings she felt.

  “We really don’t have all day,” Jarek said. “Jump!” he yelled up to Davis.

  Kalla searched for encouraging words as she stared up at Davis. “I promise you’ll be fine. Trust me.”

  Davis nodded, stepped back from the edge, and after another second of hesitation, thrust himself over the ledge. As he fell, his arms waved about, as if trying to grab onto something, anything.

  Kalla couldn’t help but smile a little at the look of fear on Davis’ face as he approached the ground, and she laughed when he landed hard on his chest. “It’s a lot better when you land on your feet,” she said, reaching her hand out to help him up.

  “That shoulda killed me,” he said.

  “Would’ve if you were still human,” Jarek interrupted. “Now let’s move. We have company.”

  Kalla walked up next to the gate and could hear voices and the sound of weapons being cocked. “Yeah, they’re just outside the gate, so let’s see if we can hurry and get through those doors into the mountain. Think you can you open them?” she asked Jarek.

  “Not sure,” he answered, as he walked up next to one of them and rammed his shoulder against it. “I don’t see a knob anywhere.” He took a step back and threw his shoulder against the door a second time. Dirt and rocks sprinkled down around him, but the door stayed shut.

  “What about that keypad?” Davis offered, pointing to the wall just right of the doors.

  “Oh, do you know the code?” Jarek replied sarcastically, just before ramming himself into the door again.

  “Well . . . no, but maybe we can bust it open and try to hot-wire it? Just trying to help.”

  “You can both help by joining me,” Jarek grunted as he charged the door once more.

  More dirt and rocks fell around him, but the door refused to budge.

  Kalla joined in and kicked the door, but her attempt only confirmed that it would not be easily breached. Then she heard the sound of the large outer gate starting to open, and realized they were out of time. “This is going to get painful if we don’t figure something out quick.”

  “Both of you, backs against the doors,” Jarek ordered.

  Kalla and Davis obeyed, and she watched as Jarek started kicking a large support beam, one of two that held up a section of overhanging mountain just above the door. When she realized what he was doing, she joined in and began kicking the other beam until she’d knocked it loose.

  The earth above them came crashing down, cutting them off completely from the soldiers outside who would now have a lot of digging to do in order to reach them and the entrance.

  “Great plan,” Davis mumbled, as the large flood of dirt spilled up against the metal doors, burying the three of them up to their waists before it finally settled and became quiet again.

  Now caught between a mountain of dirt and two steel doors that didn’t want to budge, Kalla began looking for a solution to their new predicament. “Maybe it’d be worth a try to hot-wire that keypad,” she suggested, as she used her arms and legs to push the dirt away from her. “Can you reach it?” she asked Davis.

  “Yeah, but what if the doors open out?” Davis asked.

  “Then we better make more room,” Jarek replied, as he started punching and pushing the pile of dirt in front of him to create more of an opening, packing it tightly in front of him. “You gonna just stand there?” he said to Davis.

  “Guess not,” Davis said as he joined in. “Can I just point out how crazy all of this is?”

  Kalla laughed. “That it is,” she agreed.

  C

  HAPTER 10

  General Quinn hurried through the door to the medical lab anxious to check on the progress of his test subjects. Upon entering the room, he approached Dr. Jameson from behind. “How’s our test subject? Is he the same as the other one?”

  The doctor jumped as if startled, then turned around to greet his visitor. “General . . .” He fumbled with his glasses, then said, “We’re still monitoring the first subject, but he does appear to be like the one you brought in earlier.”

  “So it’s as we thought, then?”

  “Yes. The introduction of the alien DNA in a human subject is all that’s necessary to begin the process,” Jameson replied.

  “And what about controlling them?”

  “Well, sir, it’s still too early to know for sure. I’d like to start the process with the others, so we can do more extensive testing, if that’s alright.”

  Though mildly irritated, the general nodded. “That’s fine. I just want to see some results soon.”

  “Of course, sir,” replied the doctor. “My team and I are working as quickly as we can.”

  “I know you are.” General Quinn forced a smile and turned his attention back to Drake, the first subject who’d already completed the transformation. The creature had been heavily sedated and was lying still for the moment, its dark skin glistening with what looked like beads of sweat. “So how long do you expect this all to take? When do you expect to have an update for me?” the general asked Jameson impatiently.

  The doctor fidgeted. “I can only estimate, sir. There’s just still too much we don’t know yet, so I’d say it might take at least a few days before I’ll have more for you.”

  General Quinn took a deep breath and rubbed his fingertips across his forehead. “And you think it will be enough to have more specimens?”

  “I do.”

  “Well, get on with it then.” The general turned to leave, then he stopped. “If you don’t make any progress with multiple test subjects . . .”

  “I’m sure we will,” Jameson interrupted. “It will provide us with a control subject, and the other three will serve as test subjects, as we previously discussed.”

  The general forced a smile, as he recalled the plan. “Yes, of course,” he replied. “And will these subjects be enough or should I prepare more?” He folded his arms and waited for the doctor to respond.

  “Oh, uh, yes, General. These will all be sufficient for now. I’ll let you know if that changes though,” Jameson said. “I’ll get to work now and keep you up-to-date on our progress.” With that, he walked to a cooler, opened the doors, and produced a small vial. He paused for a moment, then closed the cooler and opened a drawer. “Did you plan to watch the injections, sir?” he asked.

  The general laughed. “Why, am I making you uncomfortable?”

  “Oh, not at all, sir,” Jameson said. He pulled a syringe from the drawer and walked toward Willis. He pressed the needle into the vial and extracted some of the dark fluid it contained, then he placed it on a nearby tray. Lifting Willis’ arm, he located a vein and carefully injected the entire contents of the syringe. When he was finished, the doctor turned and picked up the vial, walked toward Newton, and repeated the process.

  “See, that wasn’t so hard, was it?” the general said.

  Dr. Jameson smiled back.

  “I do expect to be kept up-to-date on their progress,” Quinn reiterated as he turned and walked out of the room. Once in the hallway, he began to grin. He’d been waiting a very long time for the power to destroy the Direc
tive and could hardly believe how close he was to that goal.

  ~

  “What is it?”

  “Sir, there’s been an incident in the lab,” replied a muffled voice through the door.

  General Quinn was still groggy, having been unexpectedly awakened by the repeated pounding on his door. “Why didn’t you just use the comms?” he yelled back.

  “They’re down, sir,” the voice replied.

  Standing up from the chair where he’d been napping, the general slipped into his jacket, then went to the closet where he retrieved his gun belt and some extra ammunition that he dropped into his front coat pockets.

  He made his way to the door and pressed the button to exit his cabin. To his surprise, yellow warning lights flashed throughout the ship’s corridor. The soldier who had just knocked on his door was also gone now, and the hallway empty. If he didn’t know any better, the general would’ve thought he had been completely abandoned on the ship.

  Irritated by the situation, he headed to the bridge to find out what was going on. When he arrived at the outer doors, they were shut and locked. He pressed the comm button, but nothing happened. He remembered what the soldier had said earlier about the comms not working and began pounding on the thick metal door in frustration.

  After several minutes of this, without any reply, he pulled the pistol from his right holster and proceeded to pound the butt of the weapon against the thick metal doors. “Let me in!” he yelled.

  The doors stayed shut.

  “Open the doors, now!” he yelled again, pounding harder and more rapidly, believing that someone inside would have to hear him. Satisfied he’d made enough noise, the general paused for a moment, listening for anything to indicate he’d been heard.

  After nearly a minute of waiting, the doors began to open, but just enough for one of the officers to peek through the crack. “Oh, it’s you. I’m sorry, sir,” said the captain. He peered through from inside and quickly opened the doors wide enough for the general to enter. “Please hurry inside, sir,” the man said.