by Paul Moxham
The alarm on Muscles’s watch beeped and he stood up. “Action stations, men.”
Everyone stood up, and after each grabbing a weapon, they were on their way.
Xavier and Peter watched the others head for the service elevator. Once they were safely in without any trouble, Xavier turned to Peter. “Let’s check out the generator.”
They walked toward a large room with a closed door. A sign on the door read: “No Admittance.” Xavier realized it was locked, so he got out his pocket knife and jimmied the lock.
Within ten seconds, it was open. The two men strolled in and looked around. The generator stood in the middle of the largely bare room. It hummed away and lights flickered here and there on various controls.
“Should we place the explosives now, in case something happens later?” Peter asked.
“After we do a thorough check. You do the inside, I’ll do the outside.” As Peter nodded, Xavier left him and headed outside once more.
It didn’t take long to ascertain that there weren’t any men about, and so, feeling the urge to go to the toilet, he found a corner and relieved himself. Before he was finished, the sound of footsteps started to approach. He quickly zipped up his jeans and turned around to scan the area. He saw no one.
Wondering if he’d been mistaken, he walked back to the generator room. He was just about to round the corner when several shots rang out.
Pulling out his pistol, he hurried forward, only to stop and gaze in shock. He stared at the generator room as Peter, with blood pouring out of his chest, fired three shots at a group of heavily armed men that were dressed in khakis and hiding behind a car.
As the generator door slammed shut, the men hurried forward, firing into the door.
Xavier grimaced as he heard bullets thwacking against the door. Luckily, the door was thick, and none of them seemed to penetrate.
As they pounded against the door, Xavier quickly thought of what he could do. There were only four of them, but there could be more somewhere else. It was the uncertainty that worried him. Was this just a random patrol, or had they somehow been told what was about to happen?
It looked more and more as though Jet was right, and there was a traitor. If so, it clearly wasn’t Peter. Deciding that he couldn’t just stand still and let Peter die in a pool of his own blood, Xavier raised his AR-15 and flipped the safety off.
He squeezed the trigger, and the weapon jammed. Cursing, he was forced to hide behind the corner as one of the men glanced back in his direction.
Xavier didn’t want to make any noise, so he just stood there, waiting for the man to rejoin his comrades who were trying to force the door open.
But he didn’t. Taking hold of his M-16, the man walked toward Xavier, his footsteps echoing loudly over the asphalt.
~*~*~
Derek awoke feeling cold. Sitting up, he noticed that the fire was down to just embers. He cursed and stood up. As he did so, he heard something. Wondering what could be making noise at this time of night, he glanced around. The humming grew louder.
It wasn’t coming from across the water.
Something red shot down from the sky and hit the bushes near the tea house. With a start, he realized it was a Seod aircraft.
Another burst of red shot through the darkness. He realized that red bolts were deadlier than green bolts, judging by the shower of debris sent up by the former with every hit. One shot would likely mean death.
“We’re under attack!” Derek sprang into action. He ran from person to person and shook them awake as more red bolts hit the surrounding ground.
Kenneth took one look up at the sky. He couldn’t see much, but enough to realize that they were facing a Striker.
As a red bolt smashed the fireplace, sending brick fragments flying through the room, Molly screamed. Derek and Molly disappeared into the bushes, heading for the boat.
“We can’t fight what we can’t see!” Kenneth shouted to George, who had hesitated as he searched for his shotgun.
“But—” George cried out.
“No buts! Come on!” Kenneth ran into the darkness as several bolts hit the walls of the tea house, blowing through the structure with ease.
George followed and soon the two of them had reached the teens.
“Did you get the briefcase?” Derek asked, looking toward Kenneth.
“Shoot!” Kenneth glanced back at the tea house. There was still nothing to be seen, but as the roar of the aircraft was quite loud, he knew the Striker had to be right overhead. “I completely forgot. Do you have a weapon in the boat, George?”
As George shook his head, Kenneth muttered and cursed. “I have to risk it.”
“What?” Molly said, confused. “You can’t go back up there.”
“I have to,” Kenneth said. “That briefcase could be the deciding factor in this war against the Seods, so I have to take that chance.” He turned to George. “If I don’t come back within five minutes, get the hell out of here, okay?”
As George nodded, Kenneth turned and hurried up the hill toward the tea house. He had to get to the briefcase before the Seods found somewhere to land.
As he approached the stone walls, he noticed that the red bolts had stopped. But as he could still hear the hum of the Striker overhead, he clung tight to the wall.
Why was it hovering in the sky? Why didn’t it land somewhere? These questions puzzled him, but as he reached the open doorway of the tea house, he found out the answer. In the dying glow of the fireplace, he saw two Seods standing side by side.
Kenneth was shocked. It was one thing to avoid the red bolts, but quite another thing to avoid the aliens. He couldn’t see much, but it was evident they were searching for something.
Realizing they hadn’t found the briefcase gave Kenneth hope, but then he remembered that he had stowed it behind a bush. And that bush was right next to where one of the Seods was standing.
Kenneth realized he had to attract the attention of two Seods in the next few seconds. There was only one thing for it. He stepped into the doorway of the tea house and whistled.
~*~*~
Logan wanted to check out the sky lobby on the fiftieth floor, so instead of going all the way to the top, they stopped at the sky lobby and got out.
It was pretty clear to him as he glanced around that Sanchez hadn’t been using the lobby for some time, as it was very messy. Hurrying back to the elevator, Logan glanced at Muscles. “What floor are we getting off?”
“Seventy eight. We don’t want to be too close to the action just quite yet,” Muscles replied.
Logan nodded as the doors slid closed and the elevator began to rise once more. He watched the number above the door head past fifty five and continue to climb.
Suddenly, without any warning, the elevator halted and the lights went out as the power died.
~*~*~
The two Seods swiveled around and spotted Kenneth in the glow of the fireplace. Not waiting to see what would happen, he turned and stumbled down the path, with the creatures in pursuit.
Hearing one of them closing in, he attempted to slide down the rocky slope. One moment he was in control, and the next he was tumbling down the slope.
Fortunately, there was an even patch of rocks at the bottom and he stumbled to his feet a few moments later. Glancing upwards, he realized he had only gained a few seconds.
Hopefully that’d be enough, just as long as George was ready to set off. He raced to the sandy shore where the boat was. Stumbling past the bushes, he emerged from the undergrowth and froze in shock. The boat was gone!
He glanced left and then right to make sure that he was in the right place. He was. Everything was just the way he had left it just a few minutes earlier. All except for one thing—the boat was no longer there.
As the full impact of what had just happened set in, he heard a rustling of bushes coming from the right and he glanced at the ground, searching for a rock.
After picking up the biggest one that he could see at
a glance, he hurried to the nearest bush. He bent down and waited for the Seod to show.
Maybe a rock was a crude weapon, but it was better than nothing. He was in a desperate situation, but he wasn’t one for giving up without a fight. He was all alone on an island with two Seods and a craft hovering overhead, and if that wasn’t enough to scare him, there were probably more Seods on the mainland if he did choose to try to swim to shore. But since he wasn’t a good swimmer and the water would be freezing at this time of night, that was out of the question.
He’d just have to rely on the element of surprise. The bushes parted, and without waiting a second longer, Kenneth slung back his arm and let the rock fly out of his hand.
Chapter 22
Xavier’s brain raced as he thought of what to do in the darkened parking garage. He heard the men calling to each other and imagined one of them would soon pull out a flashlight.
If he had night-vision goggles, he could have solved the problem right then and there. But he didn’t. Glancing in the direction of the generator, he saw nothing. Just darkness.
He’d have to flee and hide. He didn’t like leaving Peter, who was likely on death’s door, but he couldn’t think of any other option.
Still holding the AR-15, he turned and began walking, going slowly to keep his footsteps as quiet as possible. He hadn’t studied the parking garage in any great depth, but as his feet made contact with a tire, he realized he was probably beside one of the parked cars.
Using his left hand, he ascertained that he was right. From memory, there weren’t a whole lot of vehicles parked in the garage and, of the ones that were there, most of them probably had been sitting in the same spot ever since the alien invasion.
A light appeared. He twisted around. The men had turned on their flashlights. Fortunately, all three were concentrating on breaking down the door, which meant no one was coming after him.
Remembering that his gun had jammed, he took a look at it. He soon unjammed the weapon, but before he could head toward the men, another light pierced the darkness from the other side of the parking garage. Two men armed with shotguns were walking in his direction.
Things were getting serious. He had to hide quickly before the power came back on. He hurried away, moving lightly on his feet.
~*~*~
As Kenneth released the rock, he saw it was Derek and not a Seod emerging from the bushes.
As the rock whizzed by Derek’s head, he ducked and prepared to launch himself at whoever had thrown it. He relaxed after seeing it was Kenneth.
“Thank God it’s you,” Kenneth stated as he emerged from the bushes. “What happened to the boat?”
“It’s moored on the other side. Did you get the briefcase?” Derek asked.
Kenneth shook his head. “No. There’s at least two Seods on this island …” He paused as Molly suddenly screamed.
“Molly!” Derek turned and raced through the bushes.
Kenneth followed the teen as they twisted and turned to avoid the trees. Ten seconds later, they emerged on the other side of the island. By the light of the moon, Kenneth spotted the boat against the shore. In the dim light, he spotted two figures struggling by the back of the craft.
As he and Derek got closer, Molly raced along the side of the boat and gasped. “George is fighting a Seod!”
Kenneth scrambled over some rocks, reached out for the railing, and pulled himself on board the boat. After grabbing the nearest thing he could see, a paddle, he rushed toward the fight. Before he could get there, the two combatants tumbled over the edge and into the water.
Kenneth cupped his hands to his mouth. “George!”
Light flashed onto the water and Kenneth glanced backward. Molly held a flashlight.
“No!” Kenneth grabbed the light from Molly and quickly switched it off.
“But—” Molly said.
“We can’t let the Seods see us,” Kenneth interrupted, turning back to the water. He saw nothing. He wasn’t one to give up hope easily, but a person could only hold their breath for so long.
The three gazed down at the water, each hoping that George would appear. After five minutes, Kenneth realized it was time to move on.
“It’s all our fault,” Molly cried out as Kenneth tried to comfort the teens.
“No, it isn’t,” Kenneth replied.
“Yes, it is. He tried to help us, just like Doug. And now both of them are dead. Everyone who tries to help us dies. We’re cursed!” Teary-eyed, Molly ran away from Kenneth.
Kenneth looked at Derek. “Do you believe that we’re cursed?”
Derek solemnly looked down at the water. “Molly is right. People die because of us. But it isn’t because we’re cursed. It’s because of that stupid briefcase. If you hadn’t wanted to take it to that stupid general, then—”
“That briefcase is important,” Kenneth interrupted. “Can’t you see that? These Seods will stop at nothing to get it back. And that includes killing people.”
Derek sighed. “Good thing they’ve got it then.”
Kenneth frowned. “I’m not too sure about that. They probably did find it, but if so, why haven’t they left?”
A yell suddenly rang out. It was in a strange language that sounded like gibberish to Kenneth. He turned to Derek. “We need to get out of here. If that alien is trying to find his friend, we’ll end up like George if he finds us here.” He headed to the front of the vessel. “We’ll start this boat and hope for the best.”
“But they’ll hear us,” Derek said.
“I know. That’s why I said we’ll have to hope for the best.” Kenneth reached the wheelhouse and opened the door. It was too dark to see anything, so he risked turning on the flashlight. He looked around. “I wonder where the keys are.”
“George might have had them when he went overboard,” Derek said.
Kenneth nodded. “Go and ask Molly—”
“Ask me what?” Molly said, standing in the open doorway.
“Do you know where George’s keys are?” Derek asked.
Molly hesitated as she thought. “I don’t know. I can’t recall seeing them.”
Kenneth searched the cabin. Muttering to himself, he left the wheelhouse and walked over to the railing. He shined the flashlight in both directions in case the keys had been in George’s pocket and had fallen out during the fight.
Molly hurriedly came up to him. “Turn off the light,” she whispered.
Kenneth frowned, confused. “What?”
“The light! Turn it off. I think the alien might have seen it.” Molly glanced back at Derek, who was keeping watch at the front of the boat.
Kenneth flicked off the flashlight and put it back in his pocket.
Before he could say anything, Derek tiptoed toward them. “I saw the alien. I think he’s heading this way.”
Muttering to himself, Kenneth looked at the teens. “Head to the back of the boat.”
“But—” Molly said.
“Go!” Kenneth shouted, pointing. As they left, he quietly walked to the front. He wanted to make sure that a Seod was coming in their direction. He was halfway to the railing when he stopped in shock at the sight of a hand grasping the bottom rail.
A moment later, another hand appeared and grasped the railing. Stumbling backward in fear, Kenneth turned and retreated.
Hoping the darkness would hide him, he tiptoed all the way to the wheelhouse. He leaned against the door and wondered if he had enough time to follow the teens.
He put his head to the door and listened. He couldn’t hear anything. He breathed a sigh of relief but paused at the dreaded sound of footsteps.
They were coming fast and heading his way. There was only one thing he could do. He opened the door to the wheelhouse and slipped inside the room, closing the door tightly behind him. A moment later, footsteps echoed along the wood as the Seod walked past.
Kenneth relaxed then stiffened. For a moment, he had forgotten about Molly and Derek. What would they do? What if they
thought it was him? A moment later, he opened the door and slipped out into the moonlight.
~*~*~
As soon as the elevator stopped and the power went out, Logan knew something was wrong. This wasn’t part of the plan. Fortunately, he had easy access to his flashlight and soon the elevator was brightly lit as Muscles also switched on his own flashlight.
“I wonder why the power went out,” Baldy said.
“Whatever the reason, it can’t be good,” Jet said, his eyes narrowing. “I bet the traitor has struck again.”
Logan stared at Jet. “Xavier isn’t a traitor.”
“Then Peter—” Jet said.
“Quiet!” Muscles glanced at each of them. “Arguing about who is and who isn’t a traitor isn’t going to get us out of this elevator.”
“We could wait till the power comes back,” Baldy suggested.
“What if it never comes back?” Jet asked.
Logan sighed. “I wonder what happened.”
“It doesn’t matter what happened,” Muscles replied. “What matters is that we have to change our plan. Once we get out, we’ll have to walk up to the eighty-third floor.” He glanced at his watch. “We’ve got just over half an hour.”
“Good thing we came early,” Jet said.
“How are we going to get out?” Baldy asked.
“I’ll see if I can pry open the doors.” After handing his flashlight to his son, Muscles walked over to the doors and tried his hardest to open them. But he couldn’t.
“What if we work together?” Logan handed his flashlight to Baldy and gripped one side of the door, while Muscles took the other side.
“We go on three,” Muscles said. “One, two, three!”
With muscles bulging and biceps straining, the two men tried to open the doors. Nothing happened for the first few moments, but then the doors slid open.
Gasping, Logan let go and grinned at Muscles. “We did it!”
Muscles didn’t answer as he looked through the gap. He had hoped there would be another set of doors opposite them, but that wasn’t the case. The elevator had stopped halfway between floors, which meant the doors were a few feet down.