Alien Infection

by Darrell Bain

  "All or nothing, huh? I like that. Can you contact your friends and tell them what's in the works now that we've sort of halfway decided what to do?"

  Tera flashed one of her smiles. “It's not necessary. They've been listening."

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  A cabin in the mountains with the bathroom consisting of a crevice in the rocks way back in the cave where another (but smaller) stream trickled over the edge isn't the best place in the world to make love, not with an air mattress barely big enough for two and a couple of sleeping bags for warmth, but we managed. Mona saw to it that most of the bodily fluids were contained, so to speak, but it was much harder to keep my voice down during the proceedings. If we were heard, I'm sure the others understood. Such a momentous day deserved a climax and I can't think of a better way it could have ended. And, as we were becoming accustomed to, the act was so intense and brought us so in touch with each other that it was almost like switching bodies for a time.

  Of course it didn't end there. That too-small air mattress made cuddling and conversation afterward really nice, even if somewhat serious.

  When we were relaxed enough to talk about something other than how much we loved each other and how close we felt, Mona brought up the main subject. “Mike, do you really believe all of this? Alien space travelers who are actually humans, a bug that may wipe out most of the population on earth? And most of all, do we have to leave earth forever?"

  The whole thing was still sinking in with me, especially the idea of leaving earth. “Yes, I believe it,” I said reluctantly. “And according to Tera, there's not going to be much choice about us leaving earth. Remember, she said there was a variety of human races and groupings among the volunteers and the Tershas killed them all. Unless there's something we're missing, it appears we haven't much choice about leaving in order to protect everyone else. Of course we still have to make that possible."

  She stroked me with her free hand. It was like a little sizzle of low grade electricity moving over my chest. “It's not going to be easy, is it?"

  I thought that one over. “Sweetheart, as near as I can figure right now, we'll be damn lucky if the whole gang of us isn't caught before we're ready to even try gaining access to that lander. And then I can think of all kinds of ways for it to go bad if we do try. I've seen it in the army over and over again. You make what seems like a foolproof plan, then at first contact with the enemy it all turns to shit. The thing is, you have to guess what the other fellow is going to do and you almost never get it completely right. I see no reason why this should be any different. Shucks, if it weren't for Jim, I don't think it would even be possible."

  "Why not?"

  "Oh, first off, he has so many contacts in the military and among the members of the Cherokee Nation that I believe he's one of the few persons I know who can put an operation like we're talking about together. That's assuming it is some genes peculiar to Cherokees. He's a brilliant man too, and not just as a pathologist either; he can fight if we have to. He went through Ranger school with me when I was a young man. He was twenty years older and he outdid all of us."

  "What was a pathologist doing going through Ranger School?"

  "He wanted to. He knew he was going to be in some more wars."

  "And he was, I take it?"

  "Oh yes. We were together in one of them."

  "Which one?"

  "It doesn't matter. You could probably guess, knowing how old I am, but I just mentioned his training to make you a bit more comfortable. No matter how we try doing this thing, it's going to be dangerous. I wish you had some military training, too."

  "I do. I enlisted in the Marines. They train everyone to fight, women included. I went to flight school and flew choppers, but I was never in a war. I got out and went to school with the college fund I got when I enlisted."

  That startled me for a moment, but it was just an old reaction from the era I was born into, back when women weren't in any of the combat arms. That fact got me to thinking about getting into the lander, but I didn't want to bring it up. Another old reflex that's probably burned into our genes no matter what the avant-garde sociologists say; the instinct on the part of males to protect their females from danger.

  Mona nudged me. “You're not commenting."

  I pulled her closer and stroked her breast, feeling the nipple begin to harden against my palm. “Just thinking. Besides, you know I don't talk much.” That was true. I never was much of a conversationalist. I lived in books so much as youngster that I never became comfortable with every day socializing.

  "Well, let's think about it tomorrow. If there's a chance of us dying, I want to get a lot of loving in beforehand."

  I was willing. And I didn't worry about being too loud because just then I heard other noises that suggested our guest was trying to see just how well the Tersha had rejuvenated Colonel James Shell.

  Afterward, just before I dozed off, I thought of what a wonderful woman Mona was-and not just because the empathy-inducing Tersha effect. I think I would have fallen in love with her, regardless. Despite two marriages, I had never met a woman who affected me at such a deep level, down where I seldom even look myself. Perhaps it was a flaw in my character, but I had always been reluctant to commit to a woman unreservedly until she came along. Nor do I think it was adverse circumstances that melded us together. I guess sometimes you just get lucky in choosing your partner, even if it is late in life. That's how I was feeling now. There might even be a bonus. If we lived through the coming encounter I could look forward to many more years, according to Tera. I fell asleep vowing to do whatever it took to make her as happy as I was.

  * * * *

  I didn't mention that Tera had been wearing a small backpack where I presume she carried items to freshen up, and the change of clothes she was wearing, because she was already up and around when Mona and I made our appearance. She looked as rested and alert as she had the day before, and had on a different top, a bright red one that went well with her wavy dark hair. I was surprised. From the putative event we had overheard last night I thought she and Jim would have slept in after staying up later than Mona and I. Jim is such a discriminating man that I couldn't imagine him going to bed with a woman he had met only hours ago, not without getting to know her better than he had when Mona and I left the room. On the other hand, I was already aware that I seemed to need less sleep than I used to. Maybe the same applied to him. We hadn't slept more than six hours on top of several very strenuous days and yet I still felt refreshed. I guess they did, too. Jim had a big, slightly guilty grin on his face as he greeted us while sliding an arm around Tera's waist. I guess her empathy sense had shown her quickly what a fine man Jim was. Or perhaps there were other factors peculiar to Cincans that played a part.

  "Coffee's ready,” he said, “along with some decisions if you two agree."

  I was ready for coffee too, and while I was anxious to hear what they had to say, I doubted that I would disagree with much of it.

  Mona poured for both of us and we all sat around the old wooden table again. It reminded me of my youth before leaving home, when the kitchen table was also the coffee drinking and conversational area for a big part of every day.

  "Tera and I have been up most of the night,” Jim announced after we were all seated. “I listened in and participated in the conversation over Mona's PDA thingy. We made some tentative plans."

  I didn't mention what else they had done, nor was it necessary. If anyone ever knew what he was doing it was James Shell. “We talked some, too.” I said. “I guess we're as ready as we'll ever be."

  "'Twere best done quickly,'” Jim quoted. “We've broken the problem down into several categories and assigned priorities, so let's take it in order. Feel free to comment as we go along. In fact, try playing Devil's advocate.

  "First off, there's security. There's no getting away from the fact that I'm the only one General Melofton's boys don't realize is involved, so I get to be the loner, the one who makes c
ontacts and so forth and gives Tera's specs for the spare part to a place that can fabricate it. She already has the plans drawn up, by the way, so that's no problem. Also, rather than risk all of us getting caught together, I think we should operate from two separate groups with only periodic contact. Let her friends stay where they are so that they can try again if we fail. They'll be monitoring us all the time, so if we make mistakes, they'll learn from them.

  "Secondly, I'd like us to move our operations to the city of Ft. Smith-that's a city, not a military post.” He clarified that point to be sure Tera knew, then continued. “It's fairly close to where Tera says the lander went down and I know some people there, mostly retirees from Ft. Chaffee. We can all communicate through the PDA's the Cincans carry. Tera assures me that we can't be traced through them. Also, Ft. Smith isn't too far from the area where I know a lot of Cherokees through working with some Cherokee Nation groups after I retired. I'll rent a place and set us up a base there."

  I wondered about the security of the Cincan's PDAs, but decided to take her word for it. “Where will you be?"

  "I think I know someone who's capable of setting up an impromptu biolab with facilities for scanning and comparing the DNA of every potential recruit against what I'll call normal controls, that is, those of non-Cherokee heritage. We'll start our planning but try to identify the genes the Tershas key on that allows humans to accept them before taking any action. Which brings up the next point. Why recruits? Why not try subterfuge? Simply put, General Melofton may be a bigoted idiot with an unstable mind, but he's no fool. He'll be running an extremely tight ship after some of his prisoners escaped. Tera and I are agreed, there's absolutely no chance of us passing her or any of us off as someone from their testing program that survived. That leaves force, and for that we need a few more bodies. If we succeed, then we can think about how to rescue her companions, but right now that's not a good bet at all. We may simply have to sterilize the whole area with the mother ship in order to save the planet."

  Tera dropped her gaze as Jim said that. I knew she must be thinking of friends and cohorts she was very close to. You don't go on a years-long expedition with anyone who's incompatible with the group, and as time went on they must have gotten to know each other extremely well. That's if their society and thought processes functioned anything like ours do, and by then I figured they had to be somewhat similar, if not so prone to violence.

  Jim continued with his discourse. “As far as that goes, we may all get killed trying for the lander, but let's assume we're going to make it. If we do, we'll pick up Tera's friends in Dallas and go from there.

  "As I said, some of this depends on identifying the gene or genes that we three-and presumably Tera—carry. That and getting the part fabricated is our first priority. Otherwise, we're simply working on an assumption that may or may not be valid. Once that problem is solved, if it is, we try for the lander. And that's where it gets hard and where the details will depend on how many recruits we think we need, how much military training they have, how we decide to go about the thing, what the good general has been up to in the meantime, and so forth."

  "Do you have any ideas yet?” I asked, hoping he would come up with something other than what I was thinking about.

  "Oh, certainly. Tera and the other Cincans will map out the area of the lander as best they can from memory and from the surveillance devices inside it. We form an assault force, perhaps even two; one a diversion to draw off their strength and the other to take the lander. If possible, it's probably best to come in by chopper directly down to it. That's if we can find a chopper pilot who has the right genes. All of this is very broad and a very brief outline of the final phase, and certainly subject to change."

  "Why not just hire a mercenary force for the diversion?” Mona asked. It was a good question.

  Jim shook his head. “It's going to be hard enough to convince anyone of this tale to begin with. I won't take a chance on mercenaries. In the first place, I doubt that we could find anyone willing to go up against the army except nut cases. In the second place, mercenaries are always undependable. Best to have people who have a vested interest in the outcome."

  Mona continued with her questions. “Jim, best case, how many people do you think we'll need?

  Jim thought for a moment. At the very least, we'll need at least one, but preferably two chopper pilots; that's unless we want to assault the guard force infantry style. And Tera says it will take a little while to make repairs after we get inside, so we have to have someone to keep them busy while it's being done. And she says the lander has defenses, but it won't stand up forever to concentrated explosives should they decide to try disabling it or destroying it completely rather than let it be taken."

  "If we go in by chopper, you're thinking of a small force,” I said. “Why not use the other three Cincans?"

  Tera answered for herself. “It's not that I'm afraid, or my friends are afraid of risking our lives. It is simply as Jim said: we may fail. Some of us have to stay free to try again. However, if it turns out that Jim is unable to find others who are compatible with the Tersha, then I suppose we'll have to risk it all on one tumble of the dice."

  "Roll,” Jim said, grinning.

  "Roll of the dice. What an intriguing language."

  Mona began speaking. I thought I knew what she was going to say before she opened her mouth but she eased into it instead of blurting it out. Not only that, she came up with something none of the others of us had thought of. “Jim, regardless of how we go about this, I think the sooner the better. Remember, we believe our whole planet is at risk."

  "Agreed,” Jim said.

  "Fine. Then let's keep it simple. Go ahead and get started on the fabrication of the part we need, and in the meantime recruit a few of your most trusted Cherokee friends who are willing to help and willing to take a chance on the Tersha. Perhaps you should recruit people like you and I who are very ill and have nothing to lose.

  Jim nodded and let her go on. I was very interested now too.

  She turned to the alien woman. “Tera, you said your landing craft got back down after the part began failing. Jim also said it would take a little time for the repairs. Do you think the lander could make one more short trip, say a few miles, the way it is now?"

  "Yes, I think so,” Tera said, somewhat reluctantly. “At least I'd be willing to try it if it simplified matters, so long as it wasn't any farther than that."

  "What is all this leading to?” Jim asked. Both he and Tera were eyeing Mona in a new light, still unsure of what she was getting at. I knew what was coming, though.

  "In a minute. Last question: how quickly can the repair be made?"

  "If the fabrication is done right, it's mostly a matter of plugging in the part. If the fit isn't right, I might have to improvise but I could still make it work by rigging some connections, but it might take a while."

  "All right. Get the part made, find our help and round up an old Blackhawk helicopter. Then I'll fly us in."

  "You?” Jim exclaimed. For once, I saw him taken by surprise.

  "Of course. Didn't I tell you? I flew helicopters with the Marines."

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  After a long moment of dead silence, Jim finally shook his head. “Mona, you'll have to forgive an old man. I didn't mean to imply that you're not competent. That was simply a reflection of my upbringing and of the times back then when women mostly stayed home and raised kids. By God, that doesn't solve everything, but it does make it simpler. Tera, my apologies to you too. I simply took what information I had and ran with it. You should have stopped me."

  "It's your world Jim. I thought you must know best."

  "Sure, but I guess I really am old. I missed even asking you whether the lander could make it any farther and how fast the repairs might go. This certainly simplifies things even if it is still chancy.” I saw him think of a possible obstacle. “That's assuming a chopper can get us in close to the lander. Tera?"

 
"The landing craft made sort of a path along the top of a ridge before it slid down into a little ravine. I think one of your slicers can land there."

  "Choppers!” Jim laughed, correcting her. When he sobered, he asked Mona “Why a Blackhawk?"

  Mona didn't laugh but she did manage a chuckle at the malapropism. “The marines always get the old stuff, don't you know? I've been out of the marines for a while and the Blackhawks were getting old back then. I believe the first models that went into service have probably gone into surplus by now. I imagine they were stripped of munitions and anything else civilians shouldn't have, then sold. You should be able to find one without too much trouble."

  Jim stopped to pour himself more coffee then sat back down. He glanced over to where I had Mona's hand enclosed in my own.

  I was busy absorbing the simple plan Mona was proposing. I still didn't like to see her in any sort of danger but that was just my old bones talking. The way she laid it out would take less people for not much more risk. There was just one more point that might be a drawback that I hadn't heard mentioned.

  "Tera, you said your friends were using gambling as a means of earning enough money for your replacement part. What is it made of to take so much money? And for that matter, where are we going to get the money for a helicopter?"

  "Oh. I guess I didn't say, did I? Mostly diamonds, along with some platinum, some super hard steel and a few short superconductor connections that either operate at ambient temperature or have coils to cool them to where they are superconducting. How much would a helicopter cost?"

  "Enough, but first things first,” I said. “Let's get the part made. I see why you would need a lot of money for it. Well, I've still got a few thousand that I managed to withdraw before I had to run. You're welcome to it."

  "Don't worry about that part,” Jim said. “I have enough money, and if I don't, I can get it."

  That surprised me. I didn't know he was wealthy. He saw the expression on my face and grinned. “I've been riding with some of the smartest players in the market for a long time now. It's just a matter of cashing in enough stock without arousing suspicion."