by Tara Ellis
“This is Seth, he’s helping us. He showed up at the vortex on a motorcycle, and we left ahead of the others after the ship showed up. They’re not far behind us. We had to ditch the bike.” I’ve closed the distance while talking and I can see them visibly relax now that they’re sure it’s just me. I hope Seth can keep his mouth shut and not irritate them.
Openly looking Seth over and concentrating for a moment on the pistol at his belt, the other guard eventually turns to me. “That pulse wiped out everything electronic that was still working. We got the propane going, but the water pump to the well stopped. We were just pumping it by hand to get a few gallons stored. The rest of the guys have already left to try and make it to their homes. Jim is still in the radio room though. He thinks his HAM radio should function, even after a massive EMP.”
“He’s right,” Seth agrees. “Although a normal EMP wouldn’t have taken out the bike’s engine like that. Most of the movies get it wrong. Only the electronics in the newer cars would be sensitive, so I don’t know if we can really know what to expect after whatever that was.”
Nodding, the older man regards Seth with more respect. “Exactly what I was thinking. I’m hoping maybe it’s because we were right under it. The air force base should have most of its stuff shielded, so they are likely still functional.”
“We need to try to reach the senator there. You guys mind if we go into the radio room?” I ask, not wanting to make any assumptions.
Swinging his AR onto his back, he seems to have decided Seth is okay. “Go ahead. We’ve got a ton of work to do out here just keeping the livestock fed.”
“Aren’t you going to try and get back home too?” I ask, knowing how hard it is to be cut off from your family.
“Our homes are on the other side of the country,” he explains solemnly. “It was already nearly impossible to get there with the gas shortage, but now that driving isn’t even an option, we’re better off staying here.” Without another word, both men turn back to the fields and walk away.
Not wanting to think too much about the helpless position we’re all in, I quickly lead the way inside and to the radio room. It’s a small space not much larger than a closet, in the middle of the house.
“Alex!” Jim exclaims when we crowd inside. “I’ve just managed to reach the senator. It’s garbled, but I’ve confirmed it’s him.” Ignoring Seth, he slides out of his chair and ushers me in. “Here. Push this red button to talk. Try to keep the transmission brief.”
Not sure what to do, I lean in toward the old-style microphone and push down on the red key at its base. “Uh, Senator Zane? This is Alex …. out,” I add lamely, remembering the radio talk lingo.
… base - Alex? Zane here, your Mom … others … are here. Static.
“My mom and the others are there at the base with you?” I repeat, trying to make sense of the broken words. I didn’t even think about the plane they were on when the EMP stuck. They could have crashed!
… yes. They ... here … must come … spreading … shiners ... Static. I wait as it draws out, hoping for more. Mudameere … organizing shiners … base … we are … anti-virus … safe ... make your way … Alex. Static.
“Senator?” I repeat, noticing how the static sounds different now. Hollow, like its echoing or something. “Senator? We’ll come there. Somehow, we’ll get there. Senator?” A hand on my shoulder stops my attempts.
“It’s fried,” Jim explains, removing his hand and playing with more buttons that make no sense to me. “Yup. Fried. I’m amazed I got it to work that much. Sorry, Alex.”
“No, it’s okay, Jim. Thank you for what you did. At least I know our families are safe and that he wants us to come there. Obviously, the plane won’t be coming back,” I say, turning to Seth.
He’s leaning casually against the frame of the door, hands in his pockets. “Where’s this base at? And who’s this senator guy, anyway?
“Senator Zane Adel,” I explain, stepping past him and into the kitchen. “He’s the senator of Montana, owner of this ranch, and a higher-up of the Khufu Bast. He and the professor …” I trail off, realizing who I’m talking to. I have the door to the fridge open and quickly grab a sports drink out of the dark interior. Turning back to Seth, I study him for a moment.
Can I actually trust this guy? I’ve always had a good instinct about people and my gut is telling me he’s being honest about his role in the Mudameere. I knew there was something different about him, even when we were kicking the crap out of each other. When I saw him in one of my genetic ‘visions,’ the circle was closed. As much as I don’t like to admit that we’re both Nephume, I guess it does make sense. But I just can’t get rid of the feeling that his eyes stir in me, and the cocky grin he always has doesn’t help any.
“And?” he asks, prompting me to finish my story.
“How old are you?” I ask. He seems surprised by the change in subject, but his grin spreads wider as he misinterprets my interest in him.
“Nineteen,” he replies, running his fingers through his blonde hair. “Only a few years older than you, Alex.”
Rolling my eyes, I take a sip of my drink and realize how thirsty I am. I’m sure his wicked good looks have gotten him plenty of attention from the girls in his life, but his charms fall flat on me.
“Zane and the professor were the key figures involved in developing the new anti-virus,” I say, picking the story back up and ignoring his attempts at flirting with me. “I got the formula to Zane, and it’s already at another lab, being manufactured.”
“Well, that’s good news because they’re going to need it.” Helping himself to a drink also, Seth then walks through the kitchen and dining room and into the large family room that’s visible beyond in the open floor plan. If he noticed my snub, he’s ignoring it. Or maybe it’s all just a part of his cat-and-mouse game. I think he enjoys that.
“Do you know what happened to the professor and his wife, Sarah?” I ask hesitantly. I’ve wanted to ask this question since the first time I saw Seth at the vortex, but I’m afraid of the answer.
Plopping down on one of the over-stuffed couches, he looks up at me and pats the cushion next to him. I sit instead in a chair across from it. Chuckling, he leans back and crosses his arms. The smile quickly leaves his face though, and he seems to be thinking about how he’s going to answer me.
“Alex, I wish I could tell you something good because he seemed like an interesting guy. Crazy, but funny. I didn’t see him for long since they transferred him in less than a day to the main headquarters. He was very important.”
My stomach clenches at his words and I want to tell him to stop. I don’t want to hear it. But I owe it to the professor. If there’s anything I can do to help him and Sarah, I have to do it.
“They infected Sarah right away,” Seth says quietly. Closing my eyes, I take a breath and steel myself for the rest of the story. “But the guy wouldn’t budge. He was stubborn. I’ll give him that. Last I heard, they were planning on just infecting him too and getting what they wanted that way. I don’t know why they didn’t just do that in the first place. Maybe they didn’t want to take the chance of him dying, because it has such a high death rate. Oh! That reminds me…”
I’m still trying to accept what I’ve heard about Professor Hassan, so I don’t immediately recognize what Seth is pulling out of his back pocket. It’s growing dim in the room in the gathering dusk, so I lean forward to see it better.
Gasping, I reach out to take the wooden medallion he’s dangling in front of me. It’s my family seal, an ancient piece of ancestry that’s been handed down through the generations. On it is a carved pyramid with a crystal skull in the center of it. Light radiates out from the skull’s eyes and beyond the pyramid to the edge of the round crest. I found this shortly after the Holocene outbreak began, hidden by my father, and it was a key part of getting inside the pyramid to activate the anti-virus. Seth took it after the Mudameere imprisoned and infected me. I thought I would never see it again.
> My eyes well with tears that refuse to spill, I clutch it to my chest and remember the promises I made to my dad and family over the past couple of months. No matter how desperate things become, I can never give up. Dad wouldn’t have. We’ll figure out a way to get to the base and our families. Together, we can overcome anything.
I look up sharply at the sound of several horses trampling through the gravel just outside the house. Before I can even get off the couch to go greet my friends, Chris is yelling my name urgently as he runs in through the back door, a few feet away. Seth’s face registers surprise as he finds himself looking down the barrel of the rifle Chris points his way.
THREE
“Chris!” I yell, alarmed at the rage on his face.
Startled, he finally notices me, having only seen Seth in his tunnel vision. Clearly confused, he hesitates, the rifle already lowering as it becomes evident I’m safe. Looking back and forth between Seth and me, he takes the whole scene in and then holds his hand out to stop the others that are crowding into the room behind him.
“It’s okay,” he says with obvious relief as everyone starts talking at once.
Missy runs around the couch and throws herself at me, wrapping me up in a big hug. I was worried about them too, but they’re acting as if they thought I was in immediate danger for some reason. I look up from Missy’s blonde hair that’s trying to suffocate me and find Chris watching us closely.
“Okay, what gives?” I ask, pushing back from my best friend and turning to the four guys now lined up on the other side of the room. I can feel the tension radiating from Seth behind me.
“We found the bike dumped on the side of the road,” Chris explains. “Seth said there was plenty of gas in it to make it back here, so …” he trails off, eyes narrowing.
“So you figured this was all a set-up and I delivered Alex to my buddies?” Seth finishes for him, not bothering to hide his irritation at the accusation.
“That energy wave from the ship was an EMP,” I quickly intercede. “It wiped out everything electronic. That’s why we had to leave the bike. We don’t know how far-reaching it was.” They wouldn’t have noticed its effects since they were on horses.
“I’ve heard of those before,” Kyle says, jumping over the back of the couch to sit down next to Missy. “But I didn’t think they were real.”
“Oh they’re real,” Nate answers, his red hair standing out in the dim light of the room. It’s only late afternoon, but already the shadows are gathering inside. We’ll have to find some candles.
“We know they can be created by an atomic explosion high up in the atmosphere, or a large coronal mass ejection from the sun. But those wouldn’t burn out everything. Whatever that was, it’s more powerful than anything hypothesized.” It doesn’t surprise me that Nate would know a lot about it. He’s like a walking encyclopedia and while it’s sometimes irritating, he’s proven a great asset in our plight. He and Kyle are classmates of Chris, and they all played football together. They would have been graduating next month. The thought they should be planning prom and finalizing where they’d be going to college, saddens me. None of this is right.
“This technology is something RA has revived from our brothers of long ago,” Benuk states, his deep voice loud in the enclosed space. Looking at my Nephume cousin, I marvel at his size and presence. He has the typical blonde hair and blue eyes of the Nephilim, but at 6’5”, he’s much shorter than his father. He reminds me of drawings of the god, Thor. It’s too bad society has pretty much collapsed; he could have made a killing in Hollywood.
“What do you mean?” I ask him, trying to stay focused. I haven’t slept in over twenty-four hours and I’m starting to get delirious.
“Nator kept a collection of ancient texts depicting the history of the Nephilim, which I have read several times. Over ten thousand years ago, a weapon similar to this was one of many used in their civil war. Afterward, all records associated with the violent weaponry were destroyed. Since this particular technology was also used in other applications and was seen as a non-violent intervention, it was not outlawed.”
I recall a vivid genetic memory I had a couple of days ago that involved one of the other deadly weapons. It was a massive sound-cannon, for lack of a better comparison. Good to know it’s unlikely they still have it. “So you don’t necessarily see this as an outright attack by RA?” I ask.
“No,” Benuk states. “RA will know by now that the human population is neither conquered nor cured. He is likely in an awkward position with his followers as to what it all means. I imagine he sees this as a way to assist the Mudameere to further their take-over and prevent an uprising from those of us resisting.”
“Are you sure we should be discussing this in front of him?” Missy interrupts, nodding at Seth.
“She’s right,” Kyle quickly adds. “We can’t trust him.”
Seth heads for the chair in the farthest corner of the room and plops down in it, putting his feet up on the matching stool. “While I’m flattered you care so much about me, don’t you think our time would be better spent in figuring out what we should be doing now?” he says, directing the question to Chris.
“Oh, I completely agree.” Chris responds a little too quickly. “That’s why I think we’d be much better off if you just went your way and we went ours.” He probably doesn’t even realize he’s rubbing at the raw, colorful black eye still spreading out across his handsome face. Seth is responsible for it, as well as a rapidly healing stab wound in my own collarbone.
Even though I was thinking the same way only a short time ago, the weight of the medallion resting once more against my chest reminds me of something. “No,” I say to everyone. “While I like it less than anyone else here; we need him. He can give us information nobody else can and if this really does come down to a war, then that’ll be even more important. You have to understand though,” I add, turning to Seth’s shadowy form in the corner, “that it’s going to take a lot to earn our trust.”
“I get that and all,” he says quietly. “However, as much as I’d love to make new friends, I care a whole hell of a lot more about preventing the genocide of this planet. But in a show of good faith, why don’t I start by telling you what the Mudameere are doing right now, while we sit here debating whether you want to induct me into your club?”
My face burning hot from his insults, I force myself not to come back at him with my own. He’s a complete hypocrite, but my pointing that out will get us nowhere. He is right about one thing. We need to plan our next move. Grabbing onto Chris’s arm, I pull him down next to me on the other couch across from Missy and Kyle. Best to keep him near me.
“Go ahead, Seth,” I say through clenched teeth. “Please enlighten us.”
Benuk and Nate follow my lead, finding a place to sit while Seth begins his explanation. “The only reason I was able to leave when I did, without drawing any suspicion, was because the place was in total chaos,” he says, placing his feet back on the floor and leaning toward us. “They had just discovered RA was ahead of schedule. That, combined with your surprise visit last night, prompted them to move up the next phase of the Nephi2 infection.”
“The Shiners that were seen in town earlier today?” Nate asks, remembering the information Jim reported this morning, while we were having breakfast.
“Well, yeah. Those Shiners, plus several hundred others planned in strategic locations. You’re lucky though,” Seth continues, standing now and going to look out the window facing the open pastures. “The Mudameere had much bigger plans originally. There were supposed to be thousands of Shiners in place all over the country by the end of this next week. As it is, it’ll take much longer for this to spread now. But it will spread,” he adds, turning back to face us. “There isn’t any way to stop it. Not unless this senator guy makes good on his promises of developing the anti-virus.
“The key figures involved in the Mudameere will already be underground by now. That’s what they were doing this mo
rning; bugging out. Like last time, with the Holocene virus, they’ll stay there until the threat of infection has passed. Then they’ll re-emerge to claim their prize from RA.”
“And what happens if we’re able to dispense enough of the anti-virus to fight back?” Chris asks.
“Well, I know the Mudameere will have no problem using the Shiners to wipe those of us left off the face of the earth, by any means possible. I really don’t know about RA though. Benuk?” Seth asks, turning to him.
“I don’t expect RA to communicate with those of us not associated with the Mudameere,” he answers. “He will view us humans and Nephume as a lower life form who’s not worthy of his attention. It would be like asking your president to hold counsel with an ant. It simply won’t happen. No, I imagine he will wait for the virus to become effective enough to achieve whatever his plans are. If there is a need for violent measures, he will leave it up to the Mudameere to carry them out. The Nephilim are very old, and therefore patient. Waiting in your orbit for a hundred years would not be beyond them.”
“Well, I sure hope this doesn’t take a hundred years to work out,” Kyle says with concern. “It’d be great if we can have a chance at a normal life again sometime during our generation.”
Barking at the back door interrupts our conversation, and I’m relieved to see my golden retriever, Baxter, standing there with his tongue lolling. I knew he would be lagging behind the horses, but I was starting to get worried about him. He’s not your normal dog.
I rush to let him in and kneel down to rub behind his ears. He quickly covers my face in dog slobber, and I laugh as he knocks me back off my heels and onto my bottom. “Come on buddy,” I say, getting to my feet and heading into the kitchen. “Let’s find you some water.” Barking once, he follows me and then helps nose through the fridge for some bottled water, since the tap water isn’t working.
Professor Hassan gave Baxter to us as a gift after my father’s death two years ago. I recently found out he was part of something called the Genesis Project, and that his introduction to our family was part of a bigger plan. What it all means, I still haven’t figured out, other than the fact he’s incredibly smart for a dog and an important part of our lives. He was especially critical in helping my younger brother Jake pull out of his depression after Dad died. This thought causes a pang of extra anxiety at being separated from my mom and brother and makes me re-focus on the task at hand.
