Cascade box set 2, p.58
Cascade Box Set 2, page 58
“Easy there General,” said Joan applying a small amount of pressure on Zach’s shoulder to keep him on the ground.
Zach looked desperately at her, then Sam. “They’re injured! You need to get help!”
Sam went to reply, when Boe appeared from the back of the plane and ran a short distance to him. “Cap, looks like we got some casualties.”
*****
General Trow looked at the feeds on the large screens at the front of the main operations chamber and tried to calm her mind to the fury of noise around her. Since Zach had been gone, things had been going pretty well in the camp. The power station at the dam was running at full power, and most of the destruction caused by the Hell Fire gang had been cleared and reconstruction started. As she watched the beings from somewhere else, scything down her troops and tanks alike she wondered if she had had enough.
Should I call for evacuation? But to where? There are still—
“General, Captain Coleman of the justice force says they have made it to the crash site, and there are casualties,” said a soldier who looked barely older than her grandson.
Have to focus. We need to survive…
“How far are they from the nearest bunker?”
The young man scrambled to calculate the distance.
“Just a few streets,” said Elijah calmly standing nearby, while looking down at the screen with a map of the camp on it.
The word ‘casualties’ finally landed in Trow’s mind. “Who are the casualties?” she said stopping the soldier from disappearing back into the throng.
“Looks like the pilots, although some of the others are injured.”
“What about the general?” She strained to quell the anxiety in her voice.
“I…”
A young woman with a headset on a nearby desk looked up. “He’s concussed, but alive, ma’am.”
Trow let out a deep breath. “Can we get them anymore help?” She looked around to whoever could give an answer.
“The closest unit is the fifth, but they are under heavy fire,” said Daniel Bass leaning on a nearby desk.
Elijah stepped closer to the general. “We’re fighting a far superior enemy, that have caught us by surprise, we—”.
She nodded before replying. “I know.” She looked at Bass. “Tell all commanders that their mission now is to get all civilians to the bunkers—” He went to reply. “Yes, I know there’s not enough space for everyone, tell them to find whatever secure buildings there are for the rest, and we will take in as many here as we can.”
He nodded then started speaking into his headset.
Back in the park in the downtown area, Joan pushed her glasses back up her noise and looked down at the wrong orientation of Wyatt’s leg. “You got—”
“My names… Wyatt,” he said, grimacing.
“—Right, good to know. Well you won’t be walking on your right leg for a while, looks like a compound structure.” She looked behind her. “Going to need something to carry him on!”
Michael held his left arm across his body and uneasily got to his feet. “I’ll see what there is outside.”
Zach slung his rifle over his back, then slowly lifted Fiona’s head while trying to shake the dizziness from his own. “Fiona, can you hear me?”
She sluggishly opened her eyes. “We landed yet?”
Zach smiled but before he could reply a loud roar echoed around the buildings outside and the cabin shook, making everyone grab whatever they could to stop from falling. He looked back at the others, and then at the open hatch at the back of the plane. “What the hell was that?”
A high pitch sheering sound pierced the air, together with a flash of orange light.
Sam’s radio came to life with an urgent voice. “Cap! Troubles right on top of you!” He and Zach ran down the ramp and back into the trench where the grass used to be. Zach’s mouth fell open, for a lizard like creature with legs as thick as a Californian Redwood and standing just as high was rising even higher into the air with the clear intent to come crashing down on a Hulathen that was firing its particle beam at it.
“I think the dinosaur needs some help!” Said Zach running towards the alien.
Sam clicked on his radio. “Fisher, bring some heat down on that Hulathen, try and draw its fire. Over.”
The creature’s huge hoofs slammed down into the concrete of the road, instantly cratering it, and causing a mini-earth quake as all around rattled and shook. The Hulathen neatly avoided the impact by springing out of the way and raised the weapon built into its arm when a stream of shots slammed into the back of its helmet.
Sam and Zach kneeled behind a van that was turned over on its side. “They’re pretty agile for their size. But you can take them out if you wear down their armor!” said Zach. He went to continue when he spotted a young girl about thirty yards behind the scaly leviathan, clutching a teddy bear in her arms. “There’s a kid out there!” He immediately stood. “I’m going to—”
“That’s… Emily!” said Sam getting to his feet and straining to see the child standing in the middle of the street.
“Uh?”
“And that’s Mr. Teeth. A lots changed since you have been gone.” He went to move forward.
“You cover me, I’ll get her,” said Zach.
Sam nodded then looked back at the alien.
Zach sprang forward as more bullets bounced off the back of the Hulathen that whipped around, and fired an intense beam at one of the upper floors of the corner building. Masonry, dust, glass and parts of an apartment exploded into the air.
As Zach neared the girl he could see her muttering to herself, and then another roar rang out across the plaza and Mr. Teeth smashed its front-clawed hoof across the alien, pounding it into the ground and instantly killing it.
The girl with pigtails, looked up at Zach with a toothy grin, and then held her hand out. “My name’s Emily. Nice to meet you.”
He gently shook her hand, then realized that it had suddenly got very dark around him. Arching his head around, the dinosaur looking E.L.F was leering over both of them.
“Mr. Teeth likes you, but he is in pain.”
Zach noticed the dark streaks across the massive scales on the creature’s torso. He looked back at the girl. “If I go to pick you up, he’s not going to try to eat me, is he?”
She giggled. “You’re funny.”
Zach swept the girl up and ran with her back to the plaza.
Sam was already on the other side stepping over the large blocks of steel and glass that was what was left, of the front wall of the fifth floor.
Fisher stepped warily out from the lobby of the building, bloodied but alive. Sam walked to her and helped her across the street.
They all converged near the rear of the fuselage.
Fiona emerged from the dark of the plane, holding onto it with a bandage across her head. Then Michael appeared, himself with one arm in a sling, helping Boe carry Wyatt out who was strapped to a few planks that formerly belonged to a bench.
“Cool dinosaur,” said Wyatt to Emily who smiled in reply.
Sam clicked on his radio. “Jenkins and Flores, get your butts back over here, we’re heading to the bunker on eleventh.”
CHAPTER TWO
Abbey stood in the CIC her mind frozen in the moment. She had been standing there for an hour hearing the reports coming in from the Camp, each one worse than the previous. The hand on her shoulder broke her from the dream.
“There is nothing we can do for them,” said Erin.
Usually his words soothed her, but not this time. “Our Cascaders could help them,” she said without removing her eyes from the soldiers manning the comms.
“And how are we meant to get there? I doubt we will all fit in your friend’s spaceship, and I presume an overland attempt would take at least a week.”
Abbey went to reply when the door to the cramped space swung open and Mitchell appeared.
“You still here?” Said the General.
Abbey nodded.
“I think your time would be better spent with the alien, don’t you think?” Said Mitchell looking at the various pieces of paper strewn across the brightly lit table in the center of the room.
Erin leaned in closer. “She’s right Abbey.”
Since Zach had left she was finding it increasingly difficult to resist whenever the man next to her made a request. And her hatred for him was increasing proportionately. Maybe he wasn’t really controlling her before, and now her boyfriend was almost two thousand miles away, he was. Or maybe the bond she had with the man she loved was thinner because of their separation. She wasn’t sure, she just knew that she wanted to be out of this bunker, and going back to the camp near Austin seemed as good as a reason as any other.
But will it still be there tomorrow? Or the week after?
It was a question she refused to give a sensible answer too.
“You’re probably right,” she said to the general, ignoring the man next to her. She went to leave when Mitchell spoke up.
“How are things going with the alien, any progress on the toxin?”
Abbey shook her head. “None that I’m aware of.”
Mitchell frowned and looked back down to her paperwork.
Abbey turned and quickly left the busy room, with Erin trying to keep up with her.
“What’s the rush?” He said walking quickly with her.
“Stop!” The word came out with such force that Erin looked genuinely shocked. She immediately shook her head. “Look, I’m sorry, but I need some space. It’s just with what’s happening in Texas, and everything up here. I need some time alone.” She looked at him and smiled. “You understand right?”
He smiled back, but his eyes betrayed his thoughts. “Of course. We all need time alone to contemplate our place in the greater order of things.” He walked past her. “I’ll be in the Cascader quarters if you need me.”
Abbey watched him disappear around one of the tight corners of the corridor, and swore to herself. She had let anger get the better of her, it couldn’t happen again.
She made her way along the corridor, away from the direction Erin had just gone and towards the large storage bay that the alien she regarded as a friend, was staying in.
Her pace and heart rate quickened, hoping that perhaps Elcher could take her to the camp, when a hand grabbed her around the mouth and pulled her into the shadows.
The smell of the skin that was pushed up against her nose meant she knew instantly who it was. Clovis had her trapped against the wall of a small alcove. The light above made his withered features look even more deathly than usual.
She was too afraid to scream, instead she just looked into his large bloodshot eyes and wondered what fate was about to befall her.
“Don’t scream,” he growled.
She shook her head, fully intending to break that promise the first chance she got.
“I want to talk about that Hispanic fuck. You gonna scream?”
She shook her head again, this time she meant it.
He released his sweaty hand from her mouth, and backed away.
Now there was some space between them, strength returned to her legs and she looked definitely up at the man she still hated, but mostly had come to pity.
“What about him?”
“You know about him?”
“Know what?”
The large man frowned as if something was making him feel queasy. “He can make you do things.”
“Yeah I saw you had become his little bitch,” she said, fully expecting him to hit her, but instead after a flash of anger in his eyes, his demeanor returned to one of a desperate man.
“I know you gonna be leaving. I want to go with you.”
Laughter erupted from somewhere deep within her and burst out uncontrollably.
This time the anger in Clovis’s eyes was real, but instead of lashing out his face contorted and he went to walk away.
“Wait…” She composed herself.
One problem at a time Abbey.
He stopped then slowly turned to face her again.
“Erin follows me everywhere, he’ll want to come with me if I return to the camp.” It was a lie, she fully expected to leave the leader of the Cascaders behind, if she could.
Clovis’s eyes grew wide and for the first time the big man’s fear actually struck the same emotion into her. “He can’t be allowed to go back there!” He stepped in closer to keep his scratchy voice low and his tone became sarcastic. “You think he has not been controlling you? I bet he has got you doing shit you don’t even know you’re doing.”
Now it was her turn to feel queasy. “I’m not being controlled.” She was losing count how many lies had passed her lips within the last few moments.
“Whatever you think girly, but even if you’re right, you will start to do his bidding soon enough.” His face changed to a smirk which made her skin crawl. She wanted to walk away, leave this horror of a man to his fate as a slave, but a distant voice inside her mind shouted that would be a mistake.
He could be useful.
*****
Bower looked down at the newly dug hole with Harper’s body wrapped in a sheet in the bottom of it. The sun was on its downward path, and he and Hayes cast long shadows across the grave.
The younger man cleared his throat, then lent forward and threw in a number of food rations onto the dirt. “I owe you these…” He sighed. “And a lot more. I couldn’t have asked for a finer partner through all this shit.” He turned painfully, then limped back a few steps.
Bower picked up the shovel and started shoveling the dirt.
Hayes looked surprised. “No words?”
“She knew what I thought of her when she was alive,” he said continuing to pile the brown bits of mud into the hole. Hayes nodded then leaned back on the fence.
Bower had carried her remains back to the top of the hill a few miles from the bunker entrance, found a spot in the middle of the forest which overlooked the town, and dug the hole. Hayes followed.
After thirty or so minutes the hole was filled and Bower picked up a cross, which he had fashioned from two pieces of what remained from the house which used to stand nearby, and pushed it firmly into the dirt. In the gloom they both stood to attention and saluted.
They then both turned and looked down at the dark shapes of the buildings below them.
“If they come back, we’ll be digging more of these holes up here,” said Hayes.
“Not if I have anything to do with it.”
They both slowly walked away while switching on a flashlight and holding it facing down.
It wasn’t long before they were back in the tunnels and then back inside the relative safety of the bunker network.
Hayes returned to his quarters to rest, while Bower entered the laboratory which had been set up under Raj’s instructions.
A glass beaker smashed up against the quarantine window just as Bower entered. A young girl in a hazmat suit scrambled to clean it up, but Raj waved her off, doing the task himself.
Bower banged on the glass partition.
Raj saw the Captain and nodded, not doing a good job of hiding his shame. The second of the sealed doors then opened and Raj emerged in his hazmat suit. He took his helmet off and laid it on a nearby table.
“I came here hoping for good news, but I guess I already have the state of things,” said Bower.
Raj shook his head and went to speak when Bower held his hand up. “In English, not scientist talk, doctor.”
“We’re trying to re-engineer a flu virus with alien DNA, so the virus only targets the Hulathen. It won’t kill them, but it will definitely affect their ability to rage war on us, and—”
“And make them think twice about hanging around.”
“Exactly.”
The door that Bower had just entered from, opened again. Abbey stepped inside, her face slightly flushed.
“Everything alright?” Said Bower.
She walked further forward to allow the large figure of Clovis into the room.
Bower sneered. “What the fuck is he doing here? Shouldn’t he be running errands for your esteemed leader?”
Clovis’s eyes narrowed.
Abbey quickly closed the door behind him. “I need your help to get us out of the bunker. I need to return to the Camp and he needs to go wherever he needs too.”
“Yeah,” growled Clovis.
“Why would you help him?” said Raj.
“I have my reasons,” said Abbey.
Bower took a deep sigh and rubbed his chin. “And you don’t want Erin to know?”
“No,” said Clovis again.
“More than one syllable a challenge right?” said Bower to the taller man.
Clovis sneered.
“You can’t leave yet,” said Raj. “Not until we have perfected the toxin. If you’re leaving you might be our best chance yet to get it to Austin.”
“If you go, I’ll be going with you,” said Bower.
Clovis scowled. “She don’t need no pussy boy human to help her.”
Bower went to move forward when Abbey stepped in his way. “I hate to say this Cole, but I’m better off alone. The E.L.F’s are no threat to me and I’ll stay off of the alien’s radar.”
Bower went to reply when the single old-fashioned landline phone on the wall, started to ring.
Raj walked over and picked up the receiver. Listened for a few seconds then looked at the others in the room.
“What?” said Abbey.
“He’s gone,” said Raj.
Abbey went to reply but then a feeling washed over her and she knew who was missing.
CHAPTER THREE
Zach studied General Trow’s pixelated face. She had been relaying to him the loses, not just in people, but in machinery and defenses that the Hulathen had inflicted on them in a few short hours during the day, and he could tell she was a woman struggling.
He cut her short. “How is Anthony?”
She blinked as if waking from a dream. “Umm he’s okay, he’s in the second bunker not far from the one you’re in. Thank you for asking.” She went to continue, but her lip quivered.
