by Maxey, Phil
Brett walked along the balcony to have a better view.
Abbey tentatively walked with him as the large reptilian E.L.F stomped forward towards the dust and rubble where the Hulathen had crashed. Out of the corner of her eye she could still see vertical columns of light switching on and off across the landscape.
“I think it’s dea—”
Abbey felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up and without thinking dragged Brett and herself to the floor. The space around them lit with a light so bright they had to shield their eyes even though they were facing down. When it was gone, Brett scrambled back as he was teetering on the edge of a smoldering hole.
More shouts and screams came from outside.
Abbey got back to her feet helping Brett do the same. The Hulathen was climbing out of the wreckage of the building, while the semi-truck sized carcass of Erin’s E.L.F lay divided into two half's on the ground.
Even without the sounds of anger and rage, Abbey could sense the grief of the Cascaders around her.
The towering alien walked forward and kicked the E.L.F it had just killed, and made a sound which to Abbey sounded like laughing. It then did something far worse, it looked up at her.
Both her and Brett ducked down and started crawling back to the room.
Gunfire started up all around them, but after each burst there was an intense bright light and the gunfire stopped.
They both fell into the motel room and pushed the door closed behind.
“We have too—”
This time she just had enough time to push Brett away, while she fell backwards. The beam was so close it burned her face. When it was gone the clouds could be seen through a perfectly circular hole, which ran from the ceiling above to the floor between them.
She blinked trying to get the light echo from her vision and make out if Brett had been clear or not. “You there?”
The sound of broken furniture was replaced with Brett’s voice. “I’m here…”
As she lay on the carpet feeling the cool night wind on her face, she closed her eyes and tried to reach out into the universe around her. Elcher, or whatever your name is, we could do with some help…
The sound of people running and shouting mixed in with some gunfire outside, but she still laid on her back looking up at the clouds moving silently across the night sky. Then she saw it, a dark rectangular shape holding its place as the clouds moved over it. She knew what was coming as the hairs on her arms spiked once more. She closed her eyes and waited.
After ten seconds she opened them. The dark shape was gone and there was only silence from outside.
*****
About a hundred people laid and sat across molded seats and the hard wood floor of bowling lanes. Most were Cascaders.
In an employee’s common room at the back, Abbey, Erin, Dale and Clovis sat and stood. A few candles lit their faces, some of which were bloodied and burned.
“I reckon this is her doing!” said Dale at Abbey.
Erin looked at the floor, it was the most deflated Abbey had seen him. “We do not know why this is happening.”
“She comes with us and the same night! Weird alien stuff starts happening. That ain’t no coincidence in my book! That thing killed all our creatures!”
Abbey tried ignoring Clovis’s cold eyes that never left her.
Erin looked at her. “You told me some things before which I had a hard time believing, now maybe I’m thinking you were right.”
“What things?” growled Clovis.
Abbey refused to look in the tall mans direction, instead she addressed Erin. “They are aliens. They are call—”
Clovis snorted. “You always were a crazy bitch.”
A ripple of rage ran through her. She went to continue talking to Erin, but couldn’t. Instead she looked directly at Clovis. “How’s the leg? I saw you limping, hope that’s not permanent?”
Clovis stood up and walked towards her.
Before he was within striking distance, Erin looked at him. “Clovis…”
The large man went to take another step, then as if his face was itching, he squinted, stopped and looked at the man who was sitting on the desk.
“This is not the time for this. Please sit back down.”
Abbey watched Clovis seemingly wanting to take another step forward, but instead he grumbled something then turned and sat back in the place he just left. She had seen Clovis take orders from others before, but this was different, this was as if he couldn’t say no.
Erin turned from Clovis and looked back at Abbey. “Tell us what you know—” He leaned in closer. “It would be good for you, if you were completely honest with me.”
She recounted most of what she had been told, even telling her own role in events and Zach’s and Fiona’s little venture beyond the atmosphere. By the time she was done she thought she would regret what she had said, but instead she felt strangely relieved.
“I told you it was her fault!” Said Dale.
Abbey tried not to greet the attention of the men around her. “It’s not just the creatures that will change, it’s the plants as well. There will be nothing for… old-worlders to eat. The planet will become completely alien to them. And do you want to live somewhere, which looks like an alien planet? The buildings, infrastructure, any sign of your human past will be gone,” she said.
“Meh, I’m fine with it,” said Dale.
Erin took a long deep breath. “Dale does have a point Abbey. Why should we care about the ecosystem changing, I do care however about what happened tonight. Why the… Hulathen attacked us.”
Erin’s words had lost their energy and she suddenly realized this was her chance to try and change the path the man in charge was on.
“I know you don’t care about the old-worlders, but right now we need them. They have access to guns, planes and machinery we don’t. Even with our control of the E.L.F’s we won’t be able to stop the Hulathen from plucking each and everyone of us and taking us who knows where!”
Erin was not looking at her, instead he continued to look down.
“And I know you don’t want to do it and you had all these grand plans to setup a Cascader town or whatever it is you wanted, but whatever these things are that are in our skies, we can’t fight them without help. We need to return to the bunkers, maybe we can survive down there with the others.”
Clovis growled something and got to his feet. “You gonna listen to this BS? I ain’t going back—”
Abbey continued. “Maybe once all this is over, they will let the Cascaders have their own territory? Anything’s possible. But I—”
Clovis sneered and put his hand on the door handle of the exit.
“Clovis, why do you insist on doing things the hard way—” The taller man’s hand trembled seemingly trying to pull the handle down. “—What can the old-worlders do to us really? We have the power. But Abbey is right, we could use them. Use their machines. Don’t you think that is right?”
From where Abbey was sitting she could see Clovis’s hand still shaking, but not putting any pressure on the handle. She also noticed his eyes. Wide and looking at the door. He then looked at her with an expression that shocked her. He looked scared.
“Whatever you want Erin,” he said.
“Good. You can leave now.”
Clovis’s shoulders relaxed as if a weight was suddenly taken from them, and he pushed the handle down and left.
Erin looked back at Abbey. “Tomorrow we find new creatures, then we head back to the bunkers.”
CHAPTER THIRTY
A single turreted Humvee drove at pace along the highway. The sun had been above the horizon for an hour, but early morning mist still lingered in valleys.
“When I look at the green that’s appearing on the trees and from the earth, I wonder which of it is alien,” said Diaz in the backseat looking at the forests passing by. To her left Michael stood manning the main gun.
“It’s not over until the fat lady does her thin
g,” said Fiona driving.
“If what Abbey says is right, then if enough Cascaders get together they have the power to stop anymore damage from happening to the ecosystem,” said Zach in the passenger’s seat.
“All the Cascaders I’ve come across tend to want to do their own thing…” said Diaz.
“If anyone can pull them together its Abbey,” said Fiona before Zach had a chance to say the same thing.
“And maybe this Erin guy can help,” said Zach.
Fiona briefly looked at him while steering around some abandoned cars. “You don’t really believe that? All we know of him so far is that he’s friends with Clovis and he killed a bunch of civilians trying to steal their shit. It’s another tin-pot dictator all over again.”
Zach frowned while looking out of the side window, glancing at the cloudless sky. “Maybe, but we got bigger fish to fry.”
Only another ten minutes had passed before Diaz sat up in her seat. “I’m sensing a massive build up of Cascaders and E.L.F’s ahead of—”
Michael banged on the roof of the Humvee causing Fiona to slow. “There’s something up ahead,” he shouted.
Fiona slowed the Humvee to a stop.
Zach pushed the door open and got out, taking his binoculars with him. “It’s a convoy, mixture of vehicles and—” A loud squawk made him look skywards while ducking slightly. A large shadow momentarily blocked the sun and then he felt an updraft and the sound of beating wings. Mo landed on the asphalt just a few yards in front of the Humvee, beating his wings and mildly squawking.
Zach smiled. “Hey buddy!”
Inside the vehicle Fiona watched the column of vehicles and creatures grow closer. “I guess that Erin has had a change of heart.”
Diaz had her hand on her rifle. “Or they have returned to finish what they started.”
Fiona pushed her door open. “We’ll soon find out.” She looked up at Michael. “Stay alert.” He nodded in reply.
A number of vehicles pulled up about twenty yards along the highway. An assortment of other E.L.F’s some four legged others two, walked forward then stopped parallel with the vehicles.
Car doors opened and a bearded man got out of one side, while a woman got out of the other. Even from this distance Zach recognized Abbey.
They both walked slowly forward until they stood just a few feet away from Zach and the Humvee. Erin pulled his leather gloves off and walked up to Zach. “It’s a beautiful morning, no?”
“Err… sure.” Zach looked at Abbey wanting to embrace her, but she stayed rooted to the spot behind the man.
Erin held out his hand. “I am Erin Santiago of Irish and Hispanic stock.”
Zach shook his hand. “I’m—”
“I know who you are. You are the man that I was told was dead, but as I can see is very much alive.”
“I don’t—”
Erin waved his hand. “It doesn’t matter, Abbey told me the truth last night.”
Abbey walked forward and embraced Zach. “Just go along with it,” she whispered into his ear.
Zach looked confused as Abbey pulled away.
Erin walked closer to both of them. “So, it would seem we can be of some use to each other?”
*****
Four sturdy looking soldiers stood on both sides of Erin, while he entered the CIC. Zach, Fiona, Abbey and Bower were behind him, while general Mitchell and others were already inside.
“And you would be the sonofabitch who killed fifty-two of my people?” Said the general not moving from her position behind the illuminated table in the center of the room.
A number of soldiers seated in front of screens briefly looked at each other, then back at their work.
Erin smiled while walking forward. “I am Erin Santiago, of—”
“Yeah yeah. I don’t care. What do you want? And what’s stopping me from putting a bullet in your head?”
Erin stood at the opposite end of the five-foot long glowing table, which was covered in maps and charts. “All of us need to stand together to fight the menace which created the Cascade in the first place.”
“That was just as true over the past week, while you were killing us. What changed your mind?”
Erin looked back at Abbey, who walked forward. He continued. “When I attacked this facility I did not know a lot of things that I do now. This woman, has told me much, which changes things greatly.”
Mitchell looked at Abbey. “You trust him?”
“I do.”
Her prompt response somewhat surprised Zach standing just behind her.
The general frowned then leaned forward on the table. “While you and your people are down here, they will be under twenty-four seven guard. You got a problem with that?”
Erin smiled. “I would do the same. Also we ourselves were attacked by the aliens last night.”
A ripple of discomfort ran around the room.
“Attacked? What happened?” said Mitchell.
“One of them came for us…” he sighed. “They killed our creatures and their craft tried to take us, to wherever they take people.”
Zach observed since he met him an hour earlier it was the first time the Cascaders leader looked something other than completely calm.
“Why would they want to take Cascaders?” Said Mitchell to those in the room.
“Maybe they’re a threat to them,” said Bower stepping forward.
“Or they just want to erase their mistake?” Said Zach.
“Raj… I mean Doctor Joshi was told that the Cascade that is still effecting the planet can be stopped, if enough Cascaders get together. If we combine our powers. Maybe the Hulathen want to stop that from happening?” Said Abbey.
The door to the corridor outside opened.
“Then why don’t they just nuke the whole lot of us?” Said Mitchell.
“Ah, well they might just do that, once they have all the Cascaders for themselves,” said Raj stepping into the room. “Sorry I’m late—” He looked at Erin. “Your people really do have some remarkable E.L.F’s.”
Erin bowed his head slightly. “Unfortunately they are not our friends of old, but newly acquired beasts.”
“I see…” Said Raj standing next to the table with the others. “The Cascade evolved in a way the Hulathen did not anticipate on this planet. So they have started removing or destroying the evidence. The creatures and the humans that evolved are scientific curiosities to them and maybe something more, which is why they are not just killing them, but taking some as well. As for the rest of us, well…”
“We are of no use,” said Bower.
“Exactly.”
The general looked back to Erin. “You got any objections to your people and creatures being put to use, to repair the damage you did?”
Erin shook his head.
“Good. Maybe you should get on that then.” She looked at the soldier next to her. “Captain Kelnor will show your people to their quarters.”
The Captain walked forward showing Erin the way out.
“And Erin, it might be a good idea that your people stay away from mine. We wouldn’t want any incidents.”
Erin nodded again and he and the Captain moved through the doorway.
“Maybe you should go with him,” said the general to Abbey, who hesitated then nodded.
Zach hid his frustration.
Once they had left and the door was closed, Mitchell, Zach and the others moved closer around the table.
“I know she’s your woman Zach, but I don’t trust her. Something feel’s off.”
Zach nodded, he felt the same.
“So what’s the plan?” said Bower to those around him.
Fiona looked around the faces lit by the table. “We got something they want.”
“The Cascaders,” said Zach.
“They might not be okay with being used as bait,” said Raj.
“No one said anything about bait Raj but it does give us the tactical advantage, we can set traps for the Hulathen,” sai
d Zach.
“And then that?” said the general.
“Then we finally get to give one of them a real nice greeting…” said Bower.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Zach moved through arched corridors, some of which were being held up by steel supports and eventually found his way to the living quarters of bunker five. He said a few words to the two soldiers that were stationed at the entrance, and they typed in a passcode on a keypad and the doors opened revealing the noise of conversations which hushed when he walked forward.
The space under the rows of florescent lights ran at least thirty yards in length, and half that in width. Every few yards a bunk bed sat, most of which were occupied with tired looking individuals whose eyes followed Zach as he walked between them.
He spotted Abbey, she was with ‘him’. He walked to the end of the large room and stopped short of the common area, with tables, chairs and kitchen appliances which ran along the wall. Abbey, Erin and some others were sitting.
“Abbey, can we talk…” He looked away instantly waiting for her to get to her feet, but when she didn’t he looked back just in time to see a subtle nod of the head from Erin.
She got up and walked away with Zach who kept glancing over his shoulder to the smiling bearded man. Soon they were back outside in the corridor, but at the end far away from the guards.
Zach instantly hugged Abbey, pulling her tight to him. “It seems we only ever get moments with each other.” He pulled away, looking into her eyes. “How are you? What’s going on with that guy?”
She looked back at the double doors then pulled him further away, around the corner of a junction and then opening the first door she came too. It was a storage cupboard. She dragged him inside with her.
“What? What is it?” said Zach.
She looked at him with tears in her eyes. “There’s something you need to know about Erin…”
