by Ric Dawson
Sven and Mel provided rear-guard.
We ran down several tunnels then emerged into another cavern filled with spheres, running technicians, and Wraith troops.
“Helvete,” Sven said.
The tunnels had muffled the sounds of our approach. They were surprised. We stood out like cocooned aliens at a prayer meeting.
Laser rifles blazed and swept sizzling beams across crowds of troops in the cavern. The guards dived for cover, scrambled for weapons, and returned fire in moments. Many were cut in half by the beams. Enough survived the first blast of laser fire to keep our heads down as we sprinted towards another tunnel. My shield flickered but stopped most of the bullets.
Slugs peppered the wall around us as a surviving sphere rolled out from behind a large metal pillar nearby. The tips of its two guns glowed white.
“Lightning gun,” I yelled.
Kane spun on a dime, jumped into the air, turned and melted a jagged diagonal through the sphere before it could fire. The sphere exploded, sending shrapnel into the team.
Melissa and Jim staggered. Blood splatter stained the ground where they stood. Kane grabbed Melissa and Sven supported Jim. We ducked into another tunnel. Lightning walked a crackling line down the opposite tunnel wall.
“Jävel, they are right behind us,” Sven yelled.
I could smell salt and moisture from a tunnel ahead.
“Quick, in there,” I said.
Sven and Kane hustled forward with Melissa and Jim in tow. Streaks of blood on the floor marked our trail.
Kane had his gun up as he entered and fired in a broad arc. Sven joined him seconds later, arcing his fire as well.
Behind us, a sphere rolled into view. Lightning guns fired as soon as it cleared the wall. I dropped to the ground as lightning streaked over my head. Mel hung on Sven’s arm and sent a hot beam into the sphere. I drilled a hole in its center plate. Metal sloughed off under the beam, then splattered and smoked as it splashed to the floor.
I rolled. It tracked me as I slammed into the wall. I knew I was dead. An explosion ripped the side of the cavern wall next to the sphere and blew chunks of rock into the tunnel. Lightning crackled above my head as the sphere spun before firing. A loud whoosh erupted from the hole in the wall and a powerful jet of superheated steam blasted into the cavern onto the sphere. Guards’ screams in the tunnel grew silent as the roar of the steam increased to a deafening high-pitched screech.
“Run!” I jumped upright and bolted around the corner, slipping down a slanting tunnel into a large cavern with a dock. Waves danced on the water as deep seismic rumbles shook the chamber. Rocks fell from the roof amid splashes and thumps.
A submarine bobbed next to an empty berth. Wet ropes were tossed in disarray nearby.
Kane and Sven wrestled with five Wraith sailors up on the sub deck. A sailor stepped from behind the conning tower, knife in hand. He circled around Kane, who was in a clinch with two others. I hefted the laser pistol, took aim, and fired. A puff of smoke appeared above a small dark hole in the sailor’s forehead.
Another sailor came into view. He fell from a laser bolt through the chest.
Kane twisted his shoulder, snapping the neck of one sailor in a headlock, then jerked his legs in a roll. The other sailor’s body slumped, his head twisted between powerful thighs. Kane jumped up and helped Sven dispatch the two he was dealing with. I ran over to the submarine hatch and dropped down into the sub. Two sailors were at the controls.
“Get us out of here.” I pointed the laser gun at them. They nodded. Kane dropped into the sub then eased Jim in, followed by Melissa. Sven closed and spun the hatch wheel shut.
The crew backed the sub out of the berth, while I held the laser gun on them. I didn’t want to fire inside the sub and they decided not to test my resolve. We made good speed out of the underwater tunnel leading to the open ocean.
The submarine was buffeted from side to side as the tunnel shook. Clanks echoed through the metal walls from falling rock.
The sub picked up speed. The sailors flipped switches. A high-pitched squeal and a torrent of bubble sounds pinged off the walls. The submarine leaped forward. The sudden acceleration caught me by surprise and I fell back against Sven. We both grunted but managed to keep from falling.
“You there, helmsman, what propulsion does the craft use?” I asked.
“It’s a super cavitator, sir.”
“And that is?” I asked.
“A high-pressure air mix is blown in front of the sub causing a cavitation. It’s like flying through air, not water.”
A low rumble shook the submarine as a surge of water spun the aft to the left. The submarine slowed rapidly as if it had struck thick sludge. Then the unmistakable thunderous crack of a loud explosion was followed by a roaring gush. I spun the periscope around to see the island. The volcano’s cone had vaporized, sending magmic columns filled with hot gas, smoke, and ash shooting skyward.
The wide-eyed crew trimmed the craft and we surged ahead through muddy froth. The submarine tossed violently as a pyroclastic surge boiled the water overhead and turned it a slurry black.
“Dive. Dive,” I yelled. The submarine tilted downward through thick debris left by the flow.
The sub leveled out once again, and the pilot turned to look at me.
“Where would you normally go?” I asked them.
“Shiomicko,” one of the pilots said.
“Take us to Shiomicko then,” I said.
The pilot nodded and set in his course.
A few hours later, we rose to periscope depth in the waters off Toriakeura Bay.
Mel and Jim were both awake and sported prominent bandages on chest, arms, and legs. The craft came around a small rocky point and I saw a long pier with wide single-story buildings.
“What is this place?” I asked the steersman.
“It’s the Chiba Institute of Science, sir.”
The sun was high in the sky and the skies were clear. People on shore would see its dark shadow gliding beneath the waves. But that couldn’t be helped. The Wraith naval compound may not know of the incident at Aogashima yet.
Uh huh. A volcano exploded three hours ago, showering the ocean with debris and sent a column of ash miles into the stratosphere. Nope. No one will notice that at all.
“Audam! You’re back.”
I’m under attack. I’ve repaired some of the damage but they have seen me. They are coming. Listen. This is important. Don’t–
“Audam?”
A long aluminum building abutted the pier and hung out over the ocean in front of the institute. “CIS” was painted on the side. We had glided into the small harbor before spotting the submarine that bobbed in the light swell at the CIS quay.
The thunder of buffaloes is soft in the snow.
“What?”
A great Spirit walks the path of heroes.
“Would you stop that. This is no time to go into some medicine-man trance.”
Watch for crows amid the stones. Shadows from the Id.
“Audam. Are you okay?”
-silence-
“Audam?”
A shadow lurked in the inky stillness of my mind.
I felt a great sense of loss, a hole in my mind.
Sven had a gun on the helmsman as I fell back into a nearby com chair. Kane glanced at me.
“Something’s wrong here. Maybe we should get the hell out and come later,” I whispered to Kane.
I popped the psi shield. It flared to life as I extended it outward to cover the entire sub.
“At least that’s working,” I mumbled.
“What’s up, Lane?” Kane peered into my face.
“I’ve lost connection to Audam.” I tried to sound unconcerned, but fear caused my voice to squeak. My heart thumped against my chest.
Sparks erupted from the consoles around the submarine control room. Lightning danced across several keyboards and crackling bolts arced into the helmsman’s body as he jerked uncontrollably. The
other seamen slumped over panels and chairs as the submarine dove at an ever-increasing incline towards the seabed.
“Brace!” Kane yelled and I grabbed for the edge of a nearby console. My hands tore free of their grip, and the deck rushed at me. A loud crunch followed tearing screams of metal as I slammed into the deck. I heard the rush of water and sparking from shorted electronics. Dazed, I got to my feet. The submarine rested on the seafloor at a slight angle. Looking down, I saw sea water was already ankle deep.
Sven and Kane were both hoisting Melissa and Jim up the conning ladder. Jim had his hands on the hatch wheel, waiting for the water to get higher.
“Hurry, Lane, we can’t open the hatch until the sub fills with water. Get ready!” Kane yelled over to me.
“Be right there.” I wanted to know why the crew had fallen over. Pushing through the rising cold water, I found the nearest crewman’s body floating face down on the oily surface. A large, ugly bruise covered the entire back of his neck, and small beads of blood seeped through cracked skin around the bruise. I pushed at the bruise and it gave way. The neck and part of the spine were shattered. I could feel bone fragments floating in shredded flesh just below the skin.
“Something exploded under the skin over the neck,” I yelled. No one paid attention to me.
The water was up to chest level so I pushed off chairs and grabbed cables on the ceiling to pull me over to the others.
“Take deep breaths and oxygenate yourselves. We shouldn’t be too deep here, maybe ten or fifteen meters,” Kane yelled.
I prayed the hatch would open and we wouldn’t all just drown.
Shoot Kane now.
“What. Audam?”
Shoot Kane now, quickly, before he gets the hatch open or it’s too late.
My hand began to rise of its own volition. I panicked. It wouldn’t stop rising.
It’s okay, he’s one of them. He’s going to kill you.
“Kane wouldn’t, he’s been with us from the beginning. Right? I mean how could he be one of them?”
He is the reason the Octagon was attacked. He helped them get inside.
The voice sounded odd, strained.
“No.”
Panic clutched at my heart. I couldn’t breathe. The sea water splashed on my lips as it rose to cover my nose. I forced a quick breath as the last ceiling light winked out and plunged us into darkness.
I started thrashing around, my arms flailing. “Concentrate. Quiet your mind,” a distant voice said. Diedra?
The pressure released in my mind. Bodies scrambled up. The hatch was open. I kicked forward, last one out. As I got to the hatch, my limbs froze. I couldn’t move. The lung burn increased moment by moment as oxygen-deprived tissues screamed for air. The seconds ticked by. I was trapped, no way out.
SHIOMICKO
“Relax your mind, slow your heart, and ascend,” the whispers echoed in my mind.
I released my grip on the hatch and started to rise. With a start, I realized I’d been holding myself down. Light danced across the surface of the ocean not far above. I kicked hard and scissored my legs for propulsion. My head broke the surface. Dots swam before my eyes.
The muted burp sound of gunfire accompanied the zip of bullets around us. The burning pain in my lungs subsided while around me Wraith guards lined up on the quay, shouting in Japanese and pointing their guns towards us.
“Drop your weapons in the water,” Jim whispered. He raised a hand above his head while treading water towards the bank. Everyone else followed suit. I let the laser weapon slip from my grasp and raised one hand over my head. Damn. This was not how I had envisioned our assault on the base.
Defeated, our ragged team pulled itself from the water. Guards quickly lined us up and pushed us towards nearby buildings.
“Guys. If we’re simply going to get captured, I could have led us for that,” Mel said. She fell to her knees as a guard slammed the stock of his gun into the back of her head. Blood welled from her scalp and trickled down her neck.
We moved to help her and were pushed back by several troopers with guns pointed at our chests. The guard that had hit her pulled her to her feet with a jerk and pushed her forward. We glared at the trooper and he snarled back, eyes glinting and eager to strike again. Seeing it was pointless to antagonize him further, everyone turned away. The guards wore standard grey camo fatigues with black borders. A prominent patch on their breast pocket said “CIS.” The guards were young and looked more like security forces than the hardened Wraith assault troopers we had seen before.
We were ushered into a single-story building with a glasswork entryway. “Chiba Institute of Science” was displayed on a plaque near the doorway with wavy ocean lines around it.
The guards searched us and took sensors the team had brought along from the destroyed grav sled. Offices, busy labs, and conference rooms occupied the building. We came to a double-bolted iron door. The guards pushed us through it. Then slammed the door with a thud as we jostled inside. I glanced back at the closest guard just as the door slammed shut. Fear replaced pity on his face.
Jim, Kane and Melissa searched the walls for microphones, pin cameras, and anything else techno. All I could see were four walls, a metal door, floor, and ceiling painted white.
“This room is cleaner than your office, Sven,” Mel said. Everyone knew Sven was a clean freak. It amused us to watch the brawny man meticulously dusting during down time.
“I’d feel more comfortable if it was filthy. Odin’s balls, this clean is just fan kuslig. Even the floor is dust free!” He pointed to the glossy white floor with a grunt.
I sat down and settled my back against a wall.
“Any ideas, Jim?” Mel asked.
Jim shook his head and touched a finger to his lips.
It had been a very long day and night. I was disheartened, but we had been in tougher spots. At least no one was shooting at us.
My mind itched and I wanted to scratch the top of my brain. I looked around the room, certain I had seen the Asian. Then my consciousness drifted free of my surroundings like the hallucinations I’d had as a child. It confused me.
No. I’m done with the nightmares. I’m in control.
A black fungus grew on the periphery of my mind. They were inside my head. I could feel them. Spores floated behind a mucous fog. I lusted. A bug-eyed creature of horn and claw stepped forth.
Let me kill.
I waved it away like smoke, but it was me.
The black fungus moved farther into darkness. Audam had said something about the Id.
The premonitions started slowly at first. Gruesome images flickered like an old movie reel. They grew in intensity. Horrible. Evil. Murderous. My mind swam in a foul sludge of repugnance. Clearer images began to take shape in my mind’s eye. I couldn’t stop them. Each picture depicted some revolting horror. I heard music. Light notes of chill-out lounge mix floated like sparks above a fire.
Mel appeared dismembered. Oily slugs fed on her writhing animated limbs and torso. Kane’s eyeless skull perched on his flayed body, and strips of skin flapped everywhere. His bony eye sockets burned with fire.
Each meme overflowed with emotional content. They were filled with horror gel like tiny terror bombs that exploded on my psyche. I could feel them eroding my sense of right and wrong. The music relaxed me. I swayed to the easy beat.
Why did I resist? This was the real me. Primal. Vengeful.
Shake it off. Collect your thoughts. Fight back.
Who said that? I couldn’t move. My muscles refused to acknowledge “get up.” I couldn’t scream for help. I could only sit there. Mesmerized. Then my eyes cleared.
Kane choked Jim from behind in a classic forearm chokehold. His forearm pulled Jim’s chin impossibly back. Jim’s eyes bulged. He frantically tried to push his chin down to break the choke while clawing bloody gashes in Kane’s forearm. Mel jumped on Kane’s back. She tried to force his head back while punching him in the neck.
Sven lay crump
led in the corner with hands over his ears. His eyes were shut. He moaned and rocked as thick drool ran from his pasty lips.
A stabbing pain in my eye caused the scene to vanish. I drifted in a twilit room. Near psi. Dark, bulbous spheres, oily and slick, crawled over my body like fat leeches. Their tendrils penetrated my skin and dived into my astral flesh like plant roots. I grabbed one to pull it from my body. Strong cilia stretched from the creature to my astral body and refused to let go.
My chest pulsed a sullen red. Heart of the Dragon, the pulse said.
Shield On.
The shield sputtered and flickered but didn’t flare on. The sensation of wrongness grew.
My gut clenched.
I tried to quiet my mind, but it throbbed with searing pain. Invisible knives sliced across the surface of my skull. Grey fog filled the astral. I felt the slugs but could not see them. The ground squished, and I stumbled forward, deep among twisted, mossy trees. Wispy strands of Spanish moss hung from crooked branches.
I stretched my awareness to call to the compassion egregor. Nothing! Thought echoes faded and were lost in the ominous forest of writhing trees and shifted shapes.
Where did the forest come from? The thought appeared then flashed away into the gloom.
Alien thoughts of satisfaction and enjoyment seethed below my consciousness. “The Girl from Ipanema” played in my head.
My eyes opened again. Wait – what?
Kane wasn’t choking Jim, he was helping him clear his throat. He was performing a Heimlich maneuver, Jim must be choking on something. Melissa wasn’t on his back, she was trying to steady Kane while he worked on Jim. Sven rested in the corner humming elevator music.
Sweat beaded on my forehead. Everything was fine! I looked around the room in relief. It wasn’t a cell. We were in a hospital. I breathed a mental sigh.
There was a buzzing near my right ear. I swatted at it and tried to squash the annoying insect. Blood dripped from my fingers and pooled on the floor. The side of my neck felt wet.
Tall and tan and young and lovely
The girl from Ipanema goes walking.
Why was there blood on the floor. My hands. My neck? My mind puzzled over it.