Terry smiled. His sentiments exactly. He put a hand on James’s shoulder. “Good job, son. Get back in formation now.”
The corporal returned to his position at the head of his squad. The others joined Mark in cheering.
No more beatings. Good morale had returned.
“Listen up!” Terry called to get their attention, but he was interrupted by the crack of a vehicle going faster than the speed of sound. It passed far overhead, then slowed and circled back. The younger members of the Force looked afraid. All of them were anxious. No such technology survived the fall, or so they’d thought.
“ATTENTION!” Terry yelled. “Lock your nasty bodies at the position of attention!”
Char joined him as he turned to watch the vehicle descend not far from where they stood. “What the hell is that?” she asked, her face showing, just this once, a small amount of concern.
He whispered, “Holy fuck, it’s a Pod. God, I hope TQB has returned…”
CHAPTER EIGHT
“Are we there yet?” Ted asked.
“Why have I let you live?” Timmons replied. “For a month and a half, you’ve been asking that same stupid question. The answer is always no.”
“But someday it will be yes,” Ted countered. “And on that day, it won’t be a stupid question.”
“On that day, you won’t need to ask the question, because you will know that we have arrived.” Timmons slapped the man on the back, understanding a little better why Ted wanted the diversion, the distraction that they weren’t yet there but would eventually get where they were going. “You know what, Ted? I think we’re probably only a few days away. Then the real work will begin.”
“I think we should go into the town first,” Sue suggested. “Humans coddle their women. They won’t think we’re a threat, just some girls, lost in the wilderness.” She raised her voice, blinking her eyes, “Save us, please, save us!”
Sue cried, laughing so hard that tears came out.
Shonna looked at her friend her eyes then turned to look into the distance. “I could use a hot bath. Do you think they have hot baths in that town? They had electricity when we left. They should be able to heat water for a nice, hot, luxurious bath,” she said dreamily.
“I’ll second that.” Xandrie stood up and started dancing. Her oversized clothes were cinched tightly with random pieces of rope. “Ladies first, bitches!”
Timmons shook his head as Shonna joined Xandrie to dance together. They all missed the music. New York City had been vibrant. No matter where they’d gone, there was always something playing, something unique. From rock, to opera, to rap, there had always been music. No one thinks about how much they would miss it until it was gone.
“Wouldn’t a nightclub be something?” Adams asked, looking at the She-Wolves in a new way. Dancing and drinking. Being forever young. He wanted to see that again.
“A nightclub,” Timmons stated. “I think that I’d settle for sleeping in a bed, then work my way up to being inside during a rainstorm.”
“It’s about having the right goals, isn’t it, Timmons?” Merrit asked. The two had gotten past their squabbling and were closer than ever.
“Indeed. Shall we head to higher elevations? Run in the cooler air, thinner, yes, but cooler, and I feel that we’ll dine on elk today,” Timmons said hopefully. The others were responding to his leadership. He was feeling more and more like an alpha. He needed to eat, build his strength, for when they found Marcus and the pack challenged the great Werewolf’s leadership.
Timmons smiled at the others. He would not have to stand alone.
***
The pod settled to the ground in an open area not far from the formation.
“Stay behind me,” Terry cautioned Char.
“Bullshit!” she answered. He stopped and turned, grabbing both her arms. She started to fight, but saw the look in his eyes.
“Please. These people will know that you’re a Werewolf. One sideways look and they can kill you, without hesitation. There will be nothing you nor I can do about it. Don’t do that to me, Char. Don’t you fucking die on me now!”
Terry dropped her arms, but held her hand. He kept her behind him as he continued toward the pod. The back hatch dropped and a man stood there, the man he’d met in Syria. A Japanese man wearing a single katana at his side stepped out.
A well-used, ancient katana.
He had come back to earth. Maybe he never left, Terry didn’t know.
“Welcome back, Akio,” Terry started, not sure how much to say to the soft-spoken vampire. “I’d like you to meet my wife, Charumati.”
They hadn’t been officially married, but he didn’t have time to explain.
Akio’s eyes flared red as he recognized the Werewolf for what she was.
“I was sorry to hear about Melissa,” Akio replied, never taking his eyes from Char. “Purple. Interesting.” He turned his attention to Terry. “Do you trust her?” Akio asked.
“With my very life,” Terry answered without hesitation.
“As it may be,” Akio replied in a low voice, noncommittally. “We have been watching, Terry Henry Walton. The Nomad is no longer lost.” Akio flicked his eyes to the town, “To humanity you bring civilization. To the world you bring discipline and vigor.” Now he looked at his men, looking back at him, “Tell me of your troops.”
Terry showed the way, staying between Akio and Char, keeping a firm grip on Char’s hand. If she were in Werewolf form, her hackles would have been straight up. Terry knew it. She was emitting a strange odor that even Terry could smell. There was no way Akio could miss it. Terry gripped her hand even more tightly.
When they reached the formation, Terry pointed for Char to stand in the back. Reluctantly, she walked away, but the pleading look on Terry’s face hastened her steps.
Terry turned toward his people. “This is Master Akio. If anyone is my boss, it is this man and the people he works for.” Terry nodded to Akio and then gave Akio his full attention as he spoke.
“These men and women represent the foundation of the Force de Guerre, the FDG. Like Camelot, the Knights of the Round Table came together and swore on their personal honor to protect the innocent, show them the way to live worthy lives. That’s what the Force does.”
He nodded to his people, “We train harder to make sure no one can stand up to us. In the modern days, we called it peace through superior firepower. That’s what we’re trying to build here and as long as we have someone in charge who is faithful to the code, the Force will remain a force for good.”
Terry wondered if he sounded like a used car salesman. He was proud of his people, but they had a long ways to go before they were anything like the group he commanded before the fall.
Akio looked over the formation, slowly looking from one person to the next, assessing them. Terry understood that this moment was make or break for his future and maybe even the future of all mankind. If he couldn’t convince Akio that the Force could eventually do the Queen Bitch’s bidding, then they were no better than the raiders who attacked them in the Wastelands.
Clyde stood nearby wagging his tail, looking happily at Akio. He nodded to the dog, using his mind to continue sending thoughts of love to the animal.
Akio looked back up and his eyes locked on Char. He stared at her. The corner of her lip raised in a snarl.
Please, Char, no! Terry mouthed.
“Please come, both of you,” Akio said as he nodded to those in front and then walked toward the pod. A Japanese woman and a shorter child were waiting for Akio at the bottom of the ramp. Terry hadn’t seen them before.
Char hadn’t waited for Terry to call her. She’d heard Akio clearly. When Terry made to wave her over, she was already there. “Please,” he whispered, then put his forehead against hers. “I love you.” She relaxed at his touch and concern.
Akio stood behind the pod, waiting patiently as Terry and Char, hand in hand, strode up to him.
“We approve,” Akio said simply
. “Here’s a way you can call me, if the need arises. Use it sparingly.”
He handed Terry a communication device, started to turn away, then hesitated. He looked Terry in his eyes, “I hear the north side of the town called Chicago has potential,” he said softly. He waved the other two inside, followed them, and the ramp closed.
The pod lifted off soundlessly, then raced away to the east, gaining altitude until it disappeared into the blue of the morning sky.
***
“Did you see that?” Timmons said, squinting into the northeastern sky. “I thought I saw an aircraft.”
“Airplanes haven’t flown these skies in more than twenty years,” Adams said. “I didn’t hear anything. You know, the modern world used to be so noisy. It’s nicer now. You can hear everything. What makes you think you saw an airplane?”
“A dot, far away, but it flew straight, not like a bird at all. Too big. It had to be massive to see it from this distance,” Timmons replied.
“Interesting,” was all Adams would commit to. No one else seemed concerned, already dismissing it as a mirage.
Not Timmons. He knew what he’d seen. His Werewolf eyes wouldn’t miss something like that. But what did it mean? Why was an aircraft flying from that ridiculous little town where they’d last seen Char?
Char. What was she doing? They’d run thousands of miles to find her, bring her back into the pack, find Marcus, and hopefully kill him. Timmons’s ambition had grown with every step he’d taken away from Cancun. His hatred of Marcus had grown with it. His fury at the thought of the great, black-pelted Werewolf boiled just below his surface.
He was no longer afraid of the alpha, and what better way to take over than to take the alpha’s mate as his own? If they could find Char, Timmons would have her, and she’d welcome him, because he was different.
He was better than Marcus.
Timmons leaned back and relaxed for a few more moments. Soon, they’d be running, eating away at the miles that kept them from the last place they’d seen the other members of the pack.
“I’m coming for you, Charumati,” Timmons whispered.
***
Billy sent a runner to summon Terry Henry. The runner position was new to the mayor’s office owing to the mass influx of people. Billy Spires needed a runner to carry word to the broad range of work locations where the good people of New Boulder could be found. He’d hired one of the Weathers’ boys because they were fleet of foot and the Weathers family had been good to New Boulder. This was Billy’s way to give a little bit back.
The young man showed up at the barracks where Terry and the Force had just returned after Akio’s visit. Terry knew that it was not a coincidence. The young man was breathing hard, but maintaining his composure. Terry just looked at him, waiting for him to speak.
“The mayor, Billy Spires requests the pleasure of your audience as soon as you can make the time,” the young man spouted formally.
“Let me guess what he really said. ‘I want to see that fucking bastard right God damn now!’ But you were raised right and are too much of a gentleman to repeat such language?” Terry posited.
The young Weather’s put up a finger, took a deep breath and spoke. “Not too bad, Mr. Walton. It was more like this. ‘What the fuck is that thing? I bet Terry Henry had something to do with it. Tell him to get his ass in my office ASAP!’ I believe those were his exact words.” The young man grinned.
“Your name is?” Terry asked. It had been years and he didn’t remember ever getting introduced to the whole Weathers tribe. They’d traveled the Wastelands together and he didn’t know their names. Terry shook his head.
“I’m Clemson, sir,” the young man answered. “Dad named us after the SEC football teams, whatever that means.”
“No shit?” Terry said, earning him a cuff on the arm. Char looked sideways at him.
“Thank you, Clemson,” Char informed the young man. “You can tell the mayor that we’ll be along shortly. We need to have a private conversation with the Force first. It won’t be long.” He nodded and ran off.
“Circle up!” Terry called. Mark, James, and Blackie gathered their people and edged in close to the major and the colonel.
Terry looked around at all of the anxious faces looking back at him. He nodded to where the Pod had been sitting, “Akio is one of the chosen few, a very special man. He already knows everything there is to know about you. He knows about the Force, and most importantly, he approves of what we’re doing here,” Terry told them, seeing a wide variety of questions on all their faces.
“I can’t answer any of your questions. I didn’t know he’d survived the WWDE or that he was still around. I don’t know if The Queen Bitch has returned or not.”
Char had questions, too, and he would answer all of them, to the best of his ability, but later. “The Queen Bitch. Sounds like an ominous title, doesn’t it? But you will find no greater protector of the people of this planet. The reason anyone survived the WWDE was probably because of her. The reason this planet is here at all is because she is somewhere else in the universe, fighting an alien threat. I think she’s winning, otherwise the aliens would probably be here right now, causing us some major grief.”
Terry thought about how much he wanted to tell them.
Maybe it was time.
“Let me explain a little. Bethany Anne is her real name, most of those who didn’t appreciate her called her a bitch. So, the story goes, she took that epithet and made it her own. She told people there had better be a ‘Queen’ in front of that bitch, or they would find her size seven’s up their asses. She was and might still be the greatest Vampire that ever lived.”
Terry jerked a thumb back at where he has spoken with Bethany Anne’s representative, “Akio is one of her closest people. He’s a Vampire, too. Major Charumati?” He nodded to her. “She’s a Werewolf. If these terms don’t mean anything to you, well that’s fine. We can talk more about it later.”
Terry looked around at his people, gauging their acceptance, “If you think you know about Vampires and Werewolves, understand one thing. There are good and evil versions of everything. Char is one of the good ones, and she will protect you with her life, as would I. Akio is one of the most honorable men I’ve ever met.” Terry tapped his head, “He will know if you’ve strayed from the path and will dispense justice quickly and mercilessly,” he finished evenly.
He hoped they got the message.
“What about you, sir? If the major is a Werewolf, then what are you? How could a normal man ever hope to stand up to a Werewolf?” Mark asked. Terry should have told him before, maybe told all of them.
“I’m just a man, but I do have a little something extra in my blood, thanks to Bethany Anne and her people. They saved my life, and I am forever in their debt.”
It was the truth, but not all of it. Terry didn’t think any more than that was their business, like how old he really was, or that he would outlive them all. As would Char. “And none of that information is to be shared with the people of the town. None of it. If they ask, you will not lie, just direct them to me to address their questions.”
Terry let out a breath, “The best news from Akio’s visit is that good people are still watching over us. A lot of people died. A lot. But without Akio and his like, we may have all perished. I’m relieved he’s still alive, and you should be, too. I was in one of the worst hell holes on the planet, before the fall, during an endless war, and Akio arrived to save us and all the people we were supposed to be protecting.” Terry waved the communication device, drawing their eyes. “And if we ever get that deep into the shit again, God Bless, Akio is one call away.”
Terry dismissed the group and he, Char, and Clyde started walking toward the mayor’s house. Clyde took off after an unknown animal that was moving through the brush.
Terry hoped it wasn’t a skunk. God, he so hoped it wasn’t a skunk.
He’d seen one recently and knew Clyde would not avoid it. He didn’t need another M
argie Rose wooden spoon beating, or sleeping outside with the dog.
He didn’t want to be anywhere other than in bed with Char. They were making up for lost time, and although neither was getting enough sleep, he had nothing to complain about.
Terry smiled to himself. His Werewolf wife, a Vampire master, and an old lady with a wooden spoon. He daydreamed that he was back in the rapids, racing downstream, but this time, he was in a cushy raft, not even getting wet, while a butler that looked alarmingly like Clyde served him cold beer.
“Penny for your thoughts?” Char said, wondering what could have caused the stupid expression on his face as he stared into the distance.
“Huh? Oh. I’d tell you, but you wouldn’t believe me,” he responded, continuing to look mindlessly toward the town.
“Try me.”
“Clyde was serving me cold beer while I rode a raft down the rapids of life,” Terry said simply, finally looking at Char. He stopped, turned toward her, and caressed the silver streak of hair cascading down the side of her face.
“Taffeta, darling,” she whispered as she ran one hand down his chest.
“What?” Terry was confused.
“Young Frankenstein? Honestly, TH, I thought you were more cultured.” She pushed him away playfully. “Billy’s waiting, and as much as I enjoy trying to make up for a lost two years, we may have to delay things until after dinner.”
“Right. After dinner. Do you think Margie Rose knows?” Terry asked.
“For Christ’s sake, Terry, we shake the whole house! Of course she knows.”
“Not that, I mean that we’re different,” Terry corrected.
“She doesn’t care. She sees what she wants to see, as does almost every other human in the world. It’s what makes humanity great,” she paused a moment, “and it’s humanity’s greatest weakness.”
Terry looked toward the barracks, wondering what the Force thought of Akio, the pod, Char, and Terry himself. Actions speak loudest, and Terry Henry Walton’s actions could not be disputed.
Nomad Unleashed: A Kurtherian Gambit Series (Terry Henry Walton Chronicles Book 3) Page 7