Sam listened as Will rustled through his bag and extracted the light. Shaking it briefly, he turned it on, illuminating them all in its soft glow. Turning, Sam pulled the lever on her door and pushed it open, noting her siblings and Tammy doing the same. Climbing out of the car she could hear the rhythmic thuds of footfalls growing louder with every second.
“C’mon, Fairy Pickle!” Will shouted as if calling a dog.
“Shh. If anything is out there it’ll hear you,” Sam whispered.
“If anything’s out there, it already saw the car, my light, and will hear him coming anyway,” Will replied.
He was right and she knew it. Even so, she felt uneasy. Moving slowly, both Sam and Jack walked beside their younger brother with Tammy trailing a step behind. Out in the open, Will’s small emergency light seemed to produce hardly enough light to see by, but carefully and slowly they walked towards what was once the town as they all listened to the giant ape’s rapid approach.
Within moments they were amongst the ruined remains of what were once homes and businesses. Unlike most places they had been in the past, where the charred skeletal remains of the houses remained and plumbing and wiring clung to the ruins, here was nothing. Beyond old, greasy ash, everything had been stripped away from the ruins minus the concrete of the basements themselves. Peering down into what must have been the tenth basement, Sam knew they weren’t going to find anything better. Each had looked the same as the previous.
Wondering how they would manage to get down inside one of the basements, Sam noticed a large shadow extracting itself from the dark emptiness around them, and watched cautiously as the giant ape loped over to join them.
“Hey, Fairy Pickle,” Will greeted. “C’mere, boy.”
Without another word the giant ape approached with a peculiar expression that bordered on wonder and insanity. Sam didn’t dare to guess which. As the large ape grew nearer, its giant feet and fists struck the ground with such force that she could feel it through her boots as if the ground trembled.
Oddly, though it could snap them like twigs, it sauntered up to Will and bent down low as if to look him in the eyes.
“Good boy,” Will praised. “You have been very good. Now listen, me and the others are going to go hide down in this hole. You stay up here and don’t let anyone hurt us or take our stuff. Understand?”
The ape grinned, banging its large fists on its chest as if to show how strong it was. Sam had seen the same at the zoo and on TV but it was different with an animal this large and this close. Even if it was under her brother’s control, it was intimidating.
Falling back onto all fours, the beast seemed to hop up and down a couple times as if it were excited, before lumbering off across the town, leaping the very basements they had inspected just moments before. Sighing loudly, Sam was glad the thing was gone. Controlled by her brother’s telepathy or not, the beast was a wild animal, and wild animals couldn’t be trusted.
Turning back to her companions, Tammy thought to ask how they planned to descend when suddenly she was jerked from her feet and into the air. Screaming at the surprise, she quickly covered her mouth with both hands and watched as she floated up and over the basement’s opening only to lower slowly through the night time air until her toes reached the concrete below. Spinning, now that her feet were on solid ground again, she watched as Tammy, Will, and then Jack himself touched down as well.
Sam couldn’t help but shake her head. Once again she had forgotten about her own ability. She could have blinked down here instantaneously. She doubted she would ever get used to it, though knew that in the day or days to come she had better remember her new power. There might come a time when she would need it.
It took only minutes to realize there was nothing to do, see, or lay upon in the concrete hole and as such all four gathered in one corner of the structure and, using their packs as makeshift pillows, laid down beside one another. Sam listened for a long time but no sounds came. Without trees or buildings or cars, the town was silent as death. Not even Fairy Pickle grunted or hooted. No matter how hard she tried to stay awake and listen, it wasn’t long after both Will and Jack started snoring that Sam drifted off as well.
* * * * *
Will awoke with a start, and looking around he couldn’t see anything out of place in the predawn hour of the morning. Not knowing what had startled him awake, he sat up and looked about to no avail. Straining his ears he heard a grunt right before a loud growl erupted from somewhere above and behind him. Fairy Pickle!
Within an instant Will noted his siblings and Tammy scrambling to their feet to join him. Knowing he couldn’t get out of the hole on his own, he turned to Jack just as Sam vanished from sight as if she had been nothing more than smoke.
“Get me outta here,” Will said, not sure if he was commanding or requesting.
In either case, he, Jack, and Tammy lifted up and off the concrete floor and into the air to be deposited upon the edge of the basement’s remains. Spinning towards the growling and snarling, Will couldn’t believe his eyes.
Opposite what remained of the small town stood Fairy Pickle, locked in battle with another of his kind over their car. Like an epic game of tug of war, the two beasts gripped the car from either side and heaved it first one way and then the other. With each pull one of the beasts grunted in exertion as the once smooth panels on the car crumpled like tin cans beneath their mighty grasps. Will appraised the battle and knew that Fairy Pickle couldn’t win. The other beast was larger. Much larger. But still his befriended ape didn’t relent to the larger foe.
Back and forth the two behemoths fought and Will wondered if he should command the larger beast to stop. Too late. With a growl of anger and rage, the larger ape ripped the small car free from Fairy Pickle’s grasp and using the vehicle as a weapon it lashed out, smashing Fairy Pickle in the shoulder, neck, and face. Fairy Pickle cried out as he toppled over backwards, slamming into the ground with his arms and legs flailing.
Again the behemoth lifted the car, this time above its head as if to smash Fairy Pickle with it and end the battle. Will knew he had to intervene. Taking a deep breath so that he could yell loud enough for the creature to hear him, Will witnessed as a pair of cinder blocks hurled through the air, smashing the behemoth in the leg and side. Jack had joined the fight as well.
“Freeze right there, you big ole meanie!” Will screamed as the giant creature blinked in confusion and turned to look in their direction.
Will knew the creature was under his control but turned his attention to the injured Fairy Pickle. Watching as his befriended beast slowly dragged itself away from the attacker, favoring its injured shoulder, Will knew that Fairy Pickle was hurt.
Angered by the behemoth’s injury of his pet, Will turned his glare back to the larger beast.
“You wanna hit things with cars?” he screamed. “Then hit yourself!”
Without hesitation, the behemoth heaved the car upwards over its head as high as it could reach before releasing it altogether. Down the car came, smashing the giant ape atop the head as it roared in pain. Falling to all fours, the large beast got its bearings as the car smashed to the ground, somehow landing on its wheels. With pain in its wet eyes, the large ape roared in anger and rage before it looked to Will, awaiting his next command.
Will didn’t have the heart to hurt the creature anymore. He hadn’t really meant to hurt it in the first place. He had simply been angry. But seeing the beast now, he felt sorry for it. Even if it had hurt Fairy Pickle, it probably didn’t know any better. Like a dog, it could only do what it was taught, or act on instinct.
With a sigh, Will’s shoulders sagged and he met the monstrous beast’s gaze.
“You will never get anywhere by fighting or taking what isn’t yours. Go away and leave us alone. Go find yourself a new home and don’t come back.”
Both scared and upset, Will watched as the beast lowered his head. With its shoulders sagging, the gargantuan beast turned and sauntered off b
eneath the overpass and out of sight. Will didn’t delay. As soon as he realized the creature was going, and the danger had passed, he rushed off between the foundational remains of the small town, towards his injured pet.
* * * * *
Tammy ran alongside her companions towards the injured beast that still moaned in agony upon the ground. Nearing the creature, she kept her distance, afraid of being struck by the creature’s thrashing. Though it still kicked and flailed, it held one arm up to its head, covering what she presumed was a wound. Rounding the remains of the last basement between her and Fairy Pickle, she slowed to a stop with her companions as they neared the giant beast. Seemingly noticing their approach, the giant ape ceased its thrashing. Trembling and moaning in pain, its eyes locked on the smallest of them, and it whimpered as if asking for help. Will did not hesitate. Running to the creature’s side, he climbed atop its chest taking its face in his hands, and began cooing to the beast as if it were a child.
Within seconds, Tammy watched as Jack removed the first aid kit from his bag. Working together Tammy joined Jack and helped pry the large creature’s hand away from the wound on his head. Beneath its massive fingers a gash nearly a foot long split the monster’s hide in two where blood slowly oozed from a wound that was too large to ignore. Without the ability to stitch the wound closed, Jack selected several packages of gauze and began to wrap the beast’s head, leaving space for its eyes, mouth and nose.
Within moments Fairy Pickle was bandaged. Though he looked peculiar, almost like a gorilla with a mummy’s head, the task was done and the beast stopped thrashing. Looking about, it was evident to Tammy that they were already prepared to leave. Even with her chaotic awakening this morning, they had all grabbed their bags by instinct and now stood gathered around Fairy Pickle. Though the car was destroyed, Tammy presumed it could still roll, and thus still be used to return to the alien city if needed. Looking to each of her companions, she locked eyes with Jack before she began to speak.
“So now what do we do?” Tammy asked.
“I guess there’s no time like the present,” Jack shrugged.
And that was all that was said. Tammy watched as Jack gathered up the remains of the first aid kit and stuffed it in his bag. There was an odd feeling in the air this morning, something between anxiety and fear. Even so, Tammy couldn’t help but feel that this was what they were supposed to do.
It didn’t take long and they gathered all their supplies and prepared to leave what remained of the small town.
Chapter 2
Jack looked to his younger sister, brother, and then to Tammy. Today was the day and all of them knew it. He wished, at least, that they had had a plan. But they didn’t. Everything they would do today they would have to make up as they went. He didn’t like walking into the unknown. They needed something to give them an edge, an element of surprise, anything. Turning all about, he looked for something that would give him an idea of what they should do. But there was nothing left.
Jack was prepared to give up and just begin walking when he realized that there might actually be something else at their disposal. Looking first to their now dilapidated car, he then looked to his younger brother’s new puppy. He doubted very much that they could just walk to the alien city and go unnoticed. There had to be security measures in place. If the aliens were so technologically advanced, they had to be watching. They had to expect resistance. No way would they be able to just walk in. Unless they had a distraction.
Smiling mischievously, Jack looked to his younger brother first.
“Do you think I can borrow your pet for a while?” Jack asked.
“You’re not going to hurt him, are you?”
“No, of course not,” Jack replied.
“Okay.”
“I need to conserve my energy. And we’re going to need a distraction. Can you have Fairy Pickle push the car back to the alien city for me?” Jack asked.
“Yeah.”
And that was it. It was done. Jack’s plan was barely a plan at all but they had nothing else to work with. Within moments Jack related details of his plan to his siblings and Tammy, and watched as Will gave orders to Fairy Pickle and the beast rose once again and began pushing the car away from the small town. Letting the great ape get some distance ahead of them, Jack and his siblings also began walking just as Fairy Pickle began to fade into the distance.
Mile after mile they walked, staying at least half a mile behind Fairy Pickle and watching all about them for any sign of the enemy. Jack wished that there was something for cover, but there was nothing in any direction for miles. No charred trees. No skeletal buildings. Nothing. All about them was desolation and destruction. All evidence of man had been erased. The only proof that this world had even been inhabited was a growing pinnacle of an alien race’s creation upon the horizon. With every step it grew and gained more definition. It was a hideous thing, and Jack knew that they had to enter it.
In the light of day the monstrous tower looked ever more frightening than it had the evening before. Though upon first glance it might appear that the mechanism had been constructed haphazardly, it was now evident that there was a pattern to the way the giant structure was pieced together. At regular intervals, there were portals through the outer skin of the forbidding structure. Here and there, where it appeared that metal beams and wires were simply twisted and left clinging to the side of the building, it now became apparent that these were actually stairways or passageways to climb from one level to the next. The arcing electricity and showering sparks were where creatures clung to the building welding and were still piecing it together. Here and there crews of alien beasts could be seen clinging to the outer skin and scampering this way or that. Jack couldn’t help but wonder how many creatures inhabited the thing. It was monstrous. Just the tower’s footprint had to be more than a mile in each direction. He had never seen a building so large and doubted that there had ever been one on Earth. How they would discover how they would destroy the giant building was beyond Jack. It was unlikely he would locate the leader of the enemy and defeat them in a building so immense. The only option he saw was to tear it down panel by panel and watch it collapse, hopefully destroying the aliens’ plan and killing those who it sought to destroy the human race. Looking to Tammy and his siblings it was apparent that they were having very much the same thoughts as he was. All of them doubted. All of them wondered. They were all afraid.
Nearer and nearer they grew to the alien city, until it was the only thing they could see. Ahead, Jack watched as Fairy Pickle began to pick up speed. Within seconds the great ape was at a dead run, shoving the compact car ahead of him. The beast was following plans perfectly. Now it was time for Jack and his companions to do their part.
“Let’s go,” Jack said, as he began to jog.
* * * * *
And they were running again. Samantha tried to breathe through her gritted teeth as they jogged along, hoping, yet doubting, that her brother’s plan would work. Ahead the giant ape, Fairy Pickle, was loping full tilt, shoving their compact sedan directly towards the alien structure. From here she could see large groups of various races of aliens within the charred field surrounding the giant structure. Though she could not tell what it was that they were doing, it appeared they were dragging something behind them. As Fairy Pickle roared up ahead, growing ever nearer to the alien city, some of those groups stopped and turned to watch his approach.
Nearer and nearer they ran, and Sam found herself beginning to panic. She knew what it was that she must do, but that did not make it any easier. Ahead, their compact sedan smashed wholly into the side of the structure as a metallic clang echoed across the open expanse of fields and reverberated through the metal of the alien city. Fairy Pickle roared in triumph and began banging his fists on the car before beginning to scale the side of the building hooting, hollering, and screaming as he pulled here and punched there, tearing bits of steel off of the structure. Sam sighed loudly, she knew it was now her turn.
>
Calming her nerves as best as she was able, Sam blinked ahead the hundreds of yards to the only visible entrance at ground level. Though it was little more than a hole in the wall, Sam was forced to get her bearings as she reappeared within what she believed was a viable entryway. From afar it had looked no larger than the size of your average door; however, now that she was within its opening, it had to be at least twenty feet tall and half that wide. Within the entrance, rows of lights blinked upon the floor and a buzzing sound echoed down the corridor that lay mostly in darkness ahead. Here and there, sparks showered down from the ceiling, and she could hear screams and footsteps from somewhere beyond her line of sight. Stepping outside the doorway, she hid herself behind a bent metallic panel that had been secured to the side of the doorway, waving her brothers and Tammy forward, letting them know the coast was clear. Though his theory was untried, Sam watched as Jack used his power to lift himself along with Will and Tammy and propel them forward towards her at an alarming rate. There was no going back now.
Glancing up, Sam watched as Fairy Pickle scaled higher and higher up the wall of the building. Here he tore free a cable and there he pounded his fists on a metal panel, doing whatever destruction he could. It seemed to be having the effect they had hoped for, as groups of aliens were now rushing from all directions to see what it was that the giant ape was up to. Thus far, there was no evidence as to who was in command. All the groups seem to act of their own accord.
Joined by her allies, Sam again re-entered the structure with her brothers to either side and Tammy right behind. Cautiously moving forward down the darkened walkway, she watched as the lights in the floor illuminated ahead and extinguished behind them. Whether it was made from human scraps or not, it was apparent that there had been a plan for the construction of this building. Moving slower than she could ever recall, Sam flinched again and again as new sounds erupted seemingly at random from every direction. Voices could be heard coming from everywhere and yet nowhere all at once. Footsteps echoed seemingly forever, causing them to hide time and again, fearing that they would be found. Yet it was some time before the first sign of life from within the building was discovered.
Children of the After: The Complete Series Page 37