Winds of War

by Dennis Morrow

  Two of Zolog’s priests escorted her, one on each side. They wore deep purple robes with hoods up over their heads. Inside the hoods was only blackness. No faces could be seen.

  They walked down a great hall with statues of demons and devils on either side. Every now and then, there would be a grouping of statues depicting a horrendous battle scene. Torron smiled pleasantly at the debauchery.

  The hallway eventually ended at a set of golden doors. As they approached, the doors groaned their way open. Inside was Zolog’s throne room, filled with several hundred priests, each wearing the same deep purple robes. The way was clear from the golden doors to Zolog’s throne. The priests stood in lines on either side. Their empty hoods turned and followed Torron as she walked alone to the foot of the empty throne. Large enough for two people to sit side by side on the seat, the ornate throne was made of pure gold and decorated with large diamonds and rubies.

  This doesn’t look good, Torron thought as she stopped short of the three steps leading to the throne. If he wanted to replace me, I wouldn’t have made it through the barrier. If he wanted an update on progress, he would have simply sent one of his priests to get the information he needed. I’ve done everything he has commanded. Torron went down on one knee, spread her arms out to the side with palms up, and bowed her head. “I come as your humble servant. I rule as your humble servant. I live as your humble servant. I obey your every command as your humble servant.”

  She stayed on one knee and bowed for several minutes. While she continued bowing, the throne became completely engulfed with blue, yellow, and red electric arcs, accompanied by the sound of a deep, rolling thunder. Then Zolog slowly materialized. A giant man, he stood fifteen feet tall. He wore a black cape with a red liner and a high collar. The crown on his head consisted of golden snakes woven together with a large diamond in the front surrounded by small red rubies.

  The arcs subsided and Zolog sat down. “Rise,” he said in a gruff but reverberating voice. “Tell me your plan.”

  Torron rose. “Everything is on schedule. It’s 1955 on Earth. We’re currently testing our aircraft in their atmosphere.”

  “Have they been detected?” Zolog asked.

  “Only a few times,” Torron answered. “They call them UFOs—unidentified flying objects. Even though they’ve been spotted, there has been no real evidence of their existence. A few pictures have surfaced, but no one believes that there are invaders from another planet. We’re safe.”

  “What about the technology advancements you promised?”

  “My son, Drake, continues to lure the best and brightest from the world’s most prestigious universities and companies. They seem to come willingly when we tell them of our unlimited resources and that we’re from an advanced civilization. Once they’re on Gandoral, we limit their movement to the Broward Region. It’s approximately three hundred thousand square miles, the size of Texas on Earth. It has all of the same recreational activities available as those on Earth. I’ve put a giant dome over the Broward Region. The purpose of the dome is to create a narrative that the atmosphere on Gandoral is deadly to the earthlings. The story is, they could survive the atmosphere for a couple of hours, but eventually they would suffocate. We’ve also created the same narrative for the Gandorians. They will suffocate if they’re inside the Broward Region for more than a couple of hours. This keeps the two populations separated. There is no reason for the earthlings to venture outside of the Broward Region. Any dissidents are told they can return to Earth if they wish, but they’re taken to the Valley of Darkness and executed. The technology advancement is on schedule. We’ll be fully prepared the next time we enter Earth.”

  “What about your army? Will it be sufficient this time?”

  “Yes, all of the Gandoral species will have multiplied sufficiently to bring over two and a half million to Earth. We’ll take a half million on the first attack. Once the West Coast is locked down, we’ll expand the attack and roll out the rest of the army across North America. Five years before the initial attack, Drake will start recruiting local criminals and gangs to supplement our army. Our estimate is that we’ll get more than ten thousand from the West Coast cities. The earthling numbers will grow exponentially as our success spreads. They’re a weak species.”

  “Your next encounter on Earth will take place in the early twenty-first century. Are you sure you’ll be ready by then?”

  “Yes,” Torron said. “You already know all of this. Why are you reconfirming the plan? Has there been a change?”

  “No!” Zolog said. The giant king of the Underworld stood up and pointed a crooked, pockmarked finger at Torron. The fingernail was long, curled, and black. “You’ve been at the mercy of the Alliance for almost twelve hundred years. It’s time to finish them. This new Alliance has been able to find more Symbols of Power. If this continues, they’ll be the most powerful Alliance in history. This will be your last chance. If they defeat you and are able to put the four Symbols on the Gates of Horgon, I will have lost the most precious realm in the universe, Earth. It will be your fault. You . . . will . . . fall.”

  “I know this new Alliance,” Torron said nervously. “I will be ready. They have no chance.”

  “I saw how easily the Alliance was able to push you back to Gandoral when you attempted to take over the world from Africa,” Zolog said. “They’re children with little real experience, and yet you and your army didn’t last through the first day. You must not underestimate them again.”

  “I have a great plan,” Torron said. “The earthlings will fold once they see my power. I’ve succeeded in taking control of Gandoral, and I will succeed at taking Earth.”

  “Don’t fail. If you do, I won’t send you straight to Skornes-Tarude. That would be too easy. Your death will be slow and painful. You will suffer for a millennium, then I will send you to Skornes-Tarude. Do not fail me.”

  The electric arcs with their thunderous sounds surrounded Zolog as he faded away.

  ~~~

  Torron snapped out of her trance. She looked at the shadows on the wall and realized it was midday. As she walked out of her bubble bath, the bubbles covering her body transformed to formal queen attire. The red silk dress flowed down her back and onto the floor. It was a perfect fit for her friendly queen persona. She was beautiful. When she entered the war room, everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at her.

  “Your Highness,” Smalik said. “Are you ready? I have the two Horkins you asked for.”

  “Yes, I’m ready,” Torron said. “Bring them to my throne room.”

  By the time Torron sat on her throne, Smalik entered with the two Horkins. They were in chains and had been beaten badly. Four Humongers held them under their arms until they reached the foot of the throne. They released them, and they fell to the floor.

  “Why do you bring them here when they can no longer speak?” Torron asked.

  “Oh, they will speak,” Smalik said as he pointed his magic wand at the two.

  Green smoke flowed from the wand and covered the two Horkins. They stood up, a little off-balance, shaking their heads and blinking their eyes. Then the realization that they were standing before the queen came to their consciousness, and they quickly went down on their knees.

  The queen stood and stepped down to stand in front of them. “What do you know of Hagred and Margot?” she asked.

  “We saw them in the dome at Miramar,” one of the Horkins said, his head bowed. “We don’t know how they got there, nor do we know why they were there.”

  “Do you believe their story?” Torron asked Smalik.

  “Yes, Your Highness,” Smalik said. “No one knows any more than this. All we know is that they were in the dome yesterday. They’re not there now, and we cannot find them.”

  The queen’s persona changed to one of rage. Her soft white skin became wrinkled gray skin. Her hair went from long, flowing brown hair to long, frazzled gray hair. Her green eyes bore holes into the two Horkins.

  Sm
alik had seen this rage before and backed up a few steps.

  Torron waved for the Humongers to take the Horkins away, then sat back down on her throne. “Find them!” she commanded with a gruff, raspy voice. “Before the war begins, bring them to me.” She stood up. “Smalik, you’re a great wizard, but if you fail to bring them to me . . .” She never finished the sentence.

  Chapter 9

  Alpha-6 Team

  General Small picked up a black letter opener off the desk and began turning it between his fingers as he waited for the Alliance to tell their story.

  Matt stood up and approached the general’s desk. He took a deep breath and sighed. “Okay . . . ah . . . this will be hard for you to believe. It’ll take longer than five minutes to tell the story. However, we know you have little time and a lot of things to do, so first, we’ll convince you to give us all the time we need.”

  “Like I said,” the general interrupted. “You have five minutes and now only four minutes left.”

  “Okay . . . we’re wizards,” Matt said with authority in his voice. “We have magic powers.”

  The general shook his head and began to get up.

  Matt turned the letter opener into water. It splashed down onto the general’s desk.

  General Small stopped moving and stared at Matt.

  Matt pointed at the water on Small’s desk. The water gathered itself up and stood tall in the shape of a shimmering water letter opener. Then Matt pointed again, and the water turned back to the solid black letter opener.

  Small grabbed the letter opener before it fell to the desk and inspected it.

  Matt motioned to Jesse. She stood up. Small had his eyes on her as she faded away, his mouth open in disbelief. Jesse moved up next to the general and reappeared.

  “Do we have your attention?” Matt asked.

  “I’m still not sure what I just saw, but I’ll listen to your story,” Small said as he sat back in his chair.

  “The entire story would take too long,” Jeremy said. “What is important is for you to know we have faced Torron and her army of monsters four times in the past. We have experienced her wrath and know how to defeat her.”

  “You know how to defeat her?” Small asked.

  “Well,” Jeremy answered, “I probably said that wrong. Each time we’ve faced her, we’ve had to figure out how to defeat her. Each time brings a whole new set of circumstances. So even though we’ve faced her in the past, we’ll need to see what she has up her sleeve and then create the right strategy to defeat her.”

  “This is not simple,” Steve said. “We never know what kind of new weapons or technology she’s developed in the two hundred years since we saw her last.”

  “Two hundred years?” Small was getting uncomfortable again.

  “The short answer is, we’re time travelers,” Jeremy said. “The last time we faced her, we were in Central Africa in 1865. She had developed the ultimate weapon. We were able to steal it from her, but she may have replaced it with something similar or maybe even worse.”

  ~~~

  Drake entered the command tent, followed by Panard, Torron’s high priest.

  “Where have you been, my son?” Torron asked.

  “I’ve been meeting with the Locals,” Drake said as he looked at the Mega-Crystal. “We’ve been completing their organization. As instructed, once the portals began to enter Earth’s atmosphere, their leaders all headed here for further orders. They’re arriving from all over the West Coast. The last ones to arrive should be here by nightfall.”

  “Do you have an estimate of the size of the Locals army?” Panard asked.

  “It’s not clear yet,” Drake answered. “We have a hundred ninety-four leaders with an average of a hundred twenty-five soldiers per leader. The army of Locals should be around twenty-four thousand. Add that to the five hundred thousand we’re bringing, and we’ll have five hundred twenty-four thousand soldiers in our army within the next nine days if General Tyd gets everything shipped on time.”

  “You really believe you’ll have twenty-four thousand Locals ready in nine days?” Panard sounded quite skeptical.

  “Well, it’s taken the past five years to get them recruited and organized,” Drake said as he glanced over at his mother and then back to Panard. “I’ve made hundreds of trips between Gandoral and Earth recruiting the Locals. It was easier than I initially thought. The human mind is easily swayed. If they’re already unpatriotic or tend toward lawlessness, they’re easily recruited. The political divide in the country has created a gold mine of willing anarchists, and the gangs already operating in the cities were readily swayed.”

  “How will you get them to cooperate?” Panard asked. “It sounds like you’ve recruited an unmanageable collection of derelicts.”

  “There are two critical elements required to keep them in line and willing to fight to the death. First, money. I’ve promised them a thousand dollars per day, per man, and a bonus of property and wealth once the war is won. Second, life. If they waiver at all, they’ll be put to death. The strong and willing will survive, and they’ll rule once the war is won.” Drake turned to the Mega-Crystal. “Jenson, show the portal at Los Angeles International Airport.”

  Jenson’s fingers clicked the keyboard. The blue dome appeared, encompassing the airport and some of the surrounding neighborhoods. On the north and south sides of the dome, police and military could be seen gathering to protect the city. On the east, however, there was a steady stream of civilians entering the dome.

  “Show the inside of the dome where the Locals are being organized,” Drake directed.

  After the keyboard went silent, the Locals could be seen entering a building at one end wearing their street clothes and coming out the other end dressed in Torron army uniforms. The Torron army colors were light and dark blue camouflage. The Locals’ colors were light and dark green camouflage.

  “As you can see, they’re arriving as we speak and are being readied for the battle,” Drake assured Torron and Panard. “They’ve been training for the past year at special training camps and gun ranges. They’re ready. And by the way, more enter the Locals every day. Once we show our superiority, the recruitment process will grow by leaps and bounds. There will be no end to our resources.”

  “Drake, you’ve done a great job setting us up for success.” Torron gave her son a pleased look.

  ~~~

  “Central Command is at Travis Air Force Base, northeast of San Francisco,” General Small said as he left the office. “I’ll contact them and get you there as soon as possible.”

  “We can’t leave yet.” Jeremy was adamant. “We have to secure our mothers and fathers first.”

  “How?” Steve asked. “I doubt that there will ever be a safe place for them.”

  “Well, we have to try,” Matt said. “They’ll be a target for Torron. She’ll use them against us. You know that, right?” Matt was looking straight at Steve.

  “I know, I know, but where would we hide them?” Steve said.

  “Listen, I have a large cabin on the north side of Mount Rainier,” Strong

  said. “It’s totally secluded. We could easily put them there. The place is fully stocked and totally off the grid. My family used to go there, but now I’m the only one who goes. It’s large enough to fit several families. We call it Jade. It sits on the east shore of Jade Lake.”

  “We need to get them there as soon as possible,” Jesse said.

  “Wait here,” Strong said. “I’ll go talk to General Small.” She left the room.

  ~~~

  It was a long fifteen minutes before Strong came back. She entered with Sergeant O’Rinski right behind her.

  “We’ve been assigned to you as your escorts slash bodyguards,” Strong said. “The general has given us full authority for any support you need. Our current assignment is to get your families to Jade and then take you to Orion Operational Headquarters at the Travis Air Force Base just northeast of San Francisco.”

  �
��Orion?” Jesse asked.

  “Orion is the code name for the defense operation against the aliens,” Strong said.

  “How will we get them to Jade Lake?” Jeremy asked. “If it’s as secluded as you say it is, it’ll take time, valuable time, to get there.”

  “Don’t worry about that,” Strong said. “I’ve been given access to a V-22. That’ll get us there fast.”

  “What’s a V-22?” Jeremy asked.

  “The V-22 Osprey is a special kind of aircraft,” Strong explained. “It has the capability of vertical landings and takeoffs. It also flies like a plane. The wings tilt back ninety degrees for takeoffs and landings, but tilt forward for flight. It’s a great aircraft. We’ll be able to land on the lakefront at Jade Lake.”

  “Before we go, we need to give General Small some pointers or he’ll make some mistakes,” Matt said.

  “From now on we—the Alliance, Sergeant O’Rinski, and I—will be known as the Alfa-6 team to all military personnel,” Strong said. “The sergeant and I will change out of uniform and will meet you outside the command tent as soon as you’ve finished briefing the general.”

  ~~~

  Matt and Jeremy were talking to the general, while Jesse and Steve stood back and observed.

  Steve fidgeted. “He just doesn’t get it,” he whispered to Jesse. “We need to get his attention.”

  “He’s the general,” Jesse said. “He knows how to wage war. We should be listening to him.”

  “No, no, no!” Steve was so insistent his whispers could be heard by all in the room. Everyone turned and looked at him.

  “Do you have something to say?” the general asked Steve.