Return

by Corrie Brundage

  Time was short. I had to start running. I grabbed Lulu up in a hug that lifted her off the ground.

  “Don’t go.” She wrapped her arms around my neck, clinging to me. “Make Daddy stay behind, too. Why can’t you just do that?” I shook my head soundlessly, wanting to un-hear her plaintive questions. I had to focus on what lay ahead.

  “I’m going now, Owl. Remember, obey Betsy. I love you.” I set her down and looked around at my group once more. Mack had been watching quietly, continuing to fiddle with his vest.

  “I think the vests and the weapons are decent, from what I know of the science behind them, eh. And I think the people in the camps will hold their own. But, an advanced race would have planned for all this. And I can’t offer you any false hope because of that, eh. Go, and do your best. We’ll have your back, eh. I’ll try to get out there and contribute, although I know I’m not especially built for war, eh.” He gave me a lopsided grin, and limped his way back to a formation. It was his version of good-bye. Betsy urged Lulu to her side, and I memorized the image. It was what I would hold on to in the coming minutes and hours.

  “Good-bye and good luck, everyone. ’Bye, Lulu.” It was all the farewell I could muster, and then I launched into a run, kicking dust up behind me. Several people stopped to watch as I picked up speed, and I let myself sink into the work of my muscles. My body, that was something I could rely on. My legs lengthened in stride as my arms began to match the rhythm of my run. Past the shelters, the scent of fresh-cut wood still hanging in the air, past the mess hall, through crowds of people who parted in surprise at the approach of my racing figure. I knew I must be a striking image, a tall woman who had a speed no Original could match. I still had my vest on, left over from when I’d given my speech. I had no other weapon with me, and I briefly wondered if I shouldn’t stop to grab one. But it probably wouldn’t matter, and the half-morphs had only their amazingly resilient bodies and rapier teeth and claws as weapons. I flew over the ground, my breath coming in even bursts. I’d reach the edge of the camp soon, and I hoped there were enough trees and foliage to cover the sight of the clones. Jack would be there, and I no longer cared if he frightened anyone. He was leading a band of allies, and the Originals would soon realize that for themselves. Several Obedience Officers remained around the perimeter, holding the lightweight metal alloy guns the Originals were trained to use. They didn’t seem surprised at my approach and stood down. I didn’t slow as one of them called out to me, “Councilman Gallach has instructed us to let you beyond the perimeter. We’re aware of the situation. You may proceed.” There at the edge of the forest, where the razed earth met fecund jungle, I saw with my sharp eyes several half-morphs, pacing impatiently. I brushed a low-hanging vine aside, and saw Jack among them. Running through the underbrush without a trail to follow would be very difficult, and it was then I grasped that I would most likely be left behind. I couldn’t imagine being able to keep up.

  Jack moved in my direction, and the other half-morphs fell in step behind him. There were eight others. I reached my mind out to link up with Jack’s, and with no effort we connected.

  “Where are the others?” I asked, and he turned his head to look over his haunches in the direction they had gone.

  “We’re nearly a hundred strong. The rest have gone ahead to the clearing. The Travelers will likely be expecting us, so the element of surprise won’t be on our side. How’s Lulu?”

  “Scared. But brave. You’d be so proud. I left her with Betsy. She’ll look after her if anything happens to us.”

  “Are you ready, kid? We need to go. They’ll be landing any minute, then the game is on.”

  “I’ll keep up. You always thought you could beat me at a race. Well, we’ll see if that’s the case.” I was attempting to remain lighthearted, because what else could I do in the face of a certain death? I felt Jack smile in my mind, and with a low rumble in his throat he signaled to his group to get moving. I cast one last look over my shoulder at the camp behind me, then stepped into the brush. The half-morphs leapt forward, and with a jolt of adrenaline, I realized I needed to start moving, too, if I didn’t want to be left in the dust. I gasped in a cleansing breath, and took off after them. They moved through the trees, the bush, and the roots and vines as if they were a part of the landscape. Their easy fluidity was truly beautiful to behold, and I soon found my own pace would have to be pushed to limits it had never met before if I wanted to keep up. Fixing my eyes alternately on my flying feet to avoid tripping and on the forest in front of me was a particular challenge, but I soon found myself mimicking the grace of the half-morphs. I flew through the foliage as if I were one of them, and I kept my mind linked to Jack’s. The burn began in my lungs, but it was a welcome pain. Sweat beaded on my forehead, but I didn’t stop to swipe it away. The cool, humid green was a welcome sight compared to the scorched earth of the camps, and I began to hear birdcalls once more. Jack sent a thought flying to my brain, and it was just one word, but I appreciated the warning. “Snake.” Sure enough, a green adder crossed my path. I leapt up and over it, sailing through the air with a coordination I had never experienced in either of my lives. Adrenaline was doing something to me, and my reflexes were sharp as knives and as sinuous as water. The deep emerald foliage flashed past me and I felt like I could go like this forever, listening to the deep breathing of the half-morphs ahead of me, their bodies glistening with perspiration. My stride didn’t falter when I heard a distant announcement come over the PA system far behind us in the camp we’d just left. I couldn’t make out what was said, but I knew it had to be the command to get into formation, because the Travelers would be arriving soon. I couldn’t stop to think about their panic, their very valid fear. And I had to trust that Betsy would keep Lulu safe. Jack must have been aware of these worries, because he sent me another one-word thought. “Focus.” I watched the lithe bodies ahead of me a moment before I cast my own thought toward Jack. “How far have we gone?” My breath was coming in fast bursts now, but I still had plenty of gas left in my engine.

  “Five miles, maybe more. We’re almost there. And they’re almost here.” My heart kicked up a notch at this information, and I desperately wanted to see through the trees to what lay ahead. I heard a crashing sound ahead, but it was just a herd of forest elephants startling at the presence of the half-morphs. We continued on for what seemed like hours, but was likely only minutes, and then I heard something that nearly struck me down. It sounded as if an entire city had been dropped onto the forest that sprawled before us, so massive was the sound that it reverberated in my ears and head like a blaring trumpet. I slowed down a little, frightened, hoping the half-morphs would follow suit. They didn’t flinch. It was as if they knew that crash was coming, and they took it in stride.

  “They’ve landed their ship. It’s big, but not too big. They’ve landed all over the world, in cities and forests all over the globe. But just focus on the one that’s here now.” This from Jack, who didn’t stop at the mass exodus of birds that flew from the destroyed trees ahead. We were approaching the area, and the damage was shocking. It looked like the forest had been leveled within a mile radius of the interstellar vehicle that had just landed. I couldn’t see it yet, just the beginning of the flattened, scorched trees. It was this destruction that made me slow my pace. The half-morphs went on ahead, their mission of attacking the Travelers singular in their minds. Jack slowed to look over his shoulder at me and sent me a reprimanding thought for being too emotionally soft. Half-morph Jack had turned out to be a pretty authoritative figure, and if we ever got out of this alive I was going to find out what had caused him to become such a leader. But right now, I was looking at a living biosphere that had been far more cruelly leveled than what the Origin Council and Facility had done to the areas that comprised the camps. The sky was open to my view once again, and I looked up at a sun that seemed a cruel and detached spectator in this drama that was now unfolding. I slowly picked my way through fallen branches and the bodi
es of birds that had gotten in the way of something that had blasted their fragile bodies with a heat I was now beginning to fear. The band of half-morphs had gone ahead, and they’d be reaching their destination soon. I kept my ears and eyes out for what might be coming, but I heard nothing. Jack glanced once more at me, then sprinted to join the others. I wondered if the camps of people were following behind us. We had such a head start and were so fast, it would be a while. And in that time, anything could happen. I said a silent prayer that they would hurry up, and longed for something to hold in my hands that could act as a weapon, even if it was flimsy or ineffective. Stepping over more flattened trees and brush, I noted it would be easy for the Original army to maneuver through, as it was almost completely level now. The silence filled my ears, my head, and my heart. I forced myself forward, up and over a hilly crest that had only moments before been full of life. Then I heard some calls that chilled me to the bone. The sound was a mournful yet ferocious coordinated cry. It was the half-morphs, all of them assembled ahead, communicating with one another. I reached my mind out to see if Jack’s was still there, but all I found was an empty space. He had broken our link to my dismay, and I had to hope he was alright. Because soon, down the side of the hill, I was beginning to see what had landed. I stopped in my tracks so I could better breathe. What I saw crushed all hope out of my chest. There was no way we could fight against what this ship had brought to our planet.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  I’d once seen the first Travelers’ spacecraft through Zeke’s telescope. That night seemed like a distant memory now. I’d been aboard it, but I’d been held in a room that had been a sterile, simple clinic setting. Nothing about it had seemed alien. But what I saw now was clearly extraterrestrial.

  In movies I’d seen in my original life, alien spacecraft were almost always a disc shape, with lights pulsing around the edges for some unknown reason. They always had the capability of sending out laser beams and destroying their enemies, turning them to dust. Yet here was an ornately constructed craft, and although not especially large, certainly imposing enough to cause me to stare in awe. If I had to compare it to something Earthly, I’d say it was reminiscent of a mansion where cruel billionaires lounged about expansive pools sipping on thousand-dollar champagne, ordering servants around without considering their humanity. But even though this craft had many floors and balustrades, it wasn’t made of anything I’d ever seen on this planet. That’s where it most closely resembled the alien ships of my childhood, the material constructing it an almost liquid-looking metal, with what looked to be a language scrawled into both tiny and big curlicues all over the surface. What it said, I didn’t know, but that it was an ancient alphabet telling an intergalactic story was my only impression. The half-morphs had met up with the rest of their pack, and were situating themselves around the craft, snarling and growling at one another in their own form of communication. I absentmindedly swatted an insect away, then the thought struck me that perhaps the creatures inhabiting this craft thought of us in the same way. Merely irritating bugs to be swept aside as an afterthought. The sun was glinting off the metal, but the reflection didn’t hurt my eyes. I could look directly at it without squinting. This detail unsettled me the most, because that meant the material constructing the ship was likely foreign to Earth. As I stood there, thoroughly intimidated, I felt Jack probe my mind. I allowed him in, and felt his fierce intent fill my head.

  “We don’t know what’s going on in this thing, but we can see what’s surrounding it. I don’t know what else to call it, but it’s a force field of some kind, kid. We can see all the lights that are creating it, and it looks tough. Don’t come any closer to it.” I nodded, in a dream-like state, but took several steps closer in spite of his warning. The blasted radius surrounding the craft had put enough space between it and me, and although I felt an energy radiating off it, as if it were an over-heated car engine, I didn’t sense an overt malice. Still though, it was better to be safe than sorry, and I fumbled around on my vest for the button that would turn it on. I was fuzzy on the details of how it worked, vaguely remembering the young Facility researcher who had shown my camp how to activate it. Finding the little button, I pressed it and instantly smelled ozone, but saw nor felt anything else. I’d have to hope it afforded me some safety.

  The hundred or so half-morphs had fanned out around the craft but stayed on all fours, their muscles bunched and tensed in anticipation. I looked over my shoulder one more time, wondering when the cavalry would be arriving. Nothing moved in the forest behind me, and it appeared that for now we were alone with the enemy. I turned back around to look at the ship, and in the few seconds I had looked away, a small figure had appeared in front of it. My eyes were sharper than any normal human being’s, and so the shape of the person that stood there, blowing a plume of smoke upward and into the air, filled me with an immediate dread. I’d only had limited contact with this person, but I’d know that ramrod-straight posture and severely pulled-back hair anywhere. It was the Director, and she was looking right at me.

  The half-morphs crouched low, preparing to lunge at her, although she did nothing but continue to smoke one of her ubiquitous cigarettes. She was about five hundred feet from me and didn’t make any movements toward any of us. My mouth dry, I opened it to speak, to say something to her. To perhaps try to reason with her as I had once before five years ago onboard the Travelers’ craft. But she spoke before I could, and that tobacco-roughened voice was all too familiar.

  “Please communicate to your friends here that if they harm me, they’ll be obliterated. It will really be that simple, Dr. Brice.” She sucked in another drag of smoke, held it for a moment, then released it. I stood as still as a statue for another second before following her instructions. I knew she meant business; she always did.

  “Jack, you heard her. Tell your pack to stay where they are. Let me do the talking.” Even the voice in my head shook with fear, but I felt him acquiesce. He shifted his body and the other half-morphs took several steps back, but their hackles were still lifted and their teeth bared.

  “I did what you asked. They won’t attack you. Yet,” I called out to the Director, and her only response was to drop her cigarette butt and crush it out beneath her foot. She was wearing a gray suit that I doubted anyone had seen except in pictures from eras long past. Her shoes were stilettos and couldn’t have been comfortable. And even though she was diminutive in stature, her presence gave the impression of someone much taller. I moved a little closer, my curiosity overtaking my terror. In the five years since I’d last seen her, she hadn’t aged. I doubted she’d ever been a blushing, youthful girl, and when as a new clone I’d first met her in the Facility, she’d been in her sixties. The fact that she remained unchanged didn’t surprise me. Space travel probably allowed for that kind of thing. Bending spacetime meant aging didn’t apply in the same ways as it did when a person sat still on a planet and passed the time orbiting a nearby star.

  “Well, Dr. Brice. I’d say we should stop meeting in these ways, but that would be trite. Something an old-fashioned movie villain would say. And although I’m a big fan of those movies, as I am of all things ancient, I certainly don’t want to offend your intellect. As much as I dislike you personally, I do respect you professionally. I had hoped you’d be here to talk to.” She had somehow found another cigarette and had lit it with a very ordinary-looking lighter. I began to feel my old anger toward her, and the Travelers, rising up in my throat like bile, and I spit my next words to her.

  “I’m not interested in your personal preferences, or if you hold me in some kind of esteem. I want to know what exactly your intentions are here. And I can’t guarantee that the half-morphs will continue to listen to me if they sense you’re enough of a threat.”

  I was closer to her now, and I saw a familiar, taut smile crease her lined face. It was always a grin of condescension, and it infuriated me.

  “You know, this new development with the Eaters is q
uite fascinating to us.” She gestured to the craft behind her, and I heard some half-morphs growl at her movement.

  “We thought our close proximity would set them off again, and they’d begin to turn into the fantastic apex predators we had intended them to be. I’m sure you recall it all very clearly.” She took another long drag of her cigarette, taking moments to relish her inhale. My hands bunched into fists, and longed to pummel that smug look off her face.

  The smoke surrounded her head on her exhale, and she continued, “Anyway, they apparently began to morph, but only half way. Truly fascinating, and unforeseen, because we’re not omnipotent after all. Yet it’s unfortunate. Because had they begun to morph fully, they’d have been able to start our job for us. Make a significant dent in the workload, at least.” She hacked out a little laugh at this, and that she found the situation amusing stoked my rage further. The half-morphs were also responding to her careless threats and growled low in their throats. She didn’t seem to mind this, however, and fixed her steely eyes on my face. I wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction of my anger and fear, so I kept my expression stony.

  “I see they’re fully aware of what I’m saying. So I’ll assume they’re more human than they are Eater. You’re very lucky for that happy development. It bought you some time. But we’re here now, and you’re all out of that luxury now. You’ve probably figured out what we’re here to do, and no amount of advances in your own technology will be able to stop that.”