Alien Storm

by A. G. Taylor

  “Take a left here,” he ordered and Nestor spun the wheel.

  “How much further?” Sarah said. She was starting to feel nervous. Dawn was approaching now and the arranged meeting with Bright at the ANZAC shrine. If Alex’s story about being able to find the hideout was a lie, they wouldn’t even have time to make that meeting. And she didn’t want to think about what that would mean for Robert and Wei.

  “We’re here,” Alex replied. “Stop the truck in this parking lot. We don’t want to get too close.”

  Nestor manoeuvred the truck into the empty lot and killed the engine. Alex pointed across the road.

  “That’s the warehouse where Bright’s holding your friends,” he told them. “They’re in a workshop area to the back. I’ll go in that way.” He turned to Sarah. “You go in the front and keep Bright distracted long enough for me to get them out.”

  Nestor sucked air through his teeth. “I don’t like this plan. Why don’t we all just go in the back way?”

  “Haven’t you ever heard of a stealth mission?” Alex replied.

  “He’s right,” Sarah agreed, turning to Nestor. “You stay here with the truck. If we’re not out in fifteen minutes, get to Tullamarine airport.” She removed the envelope containing the passports and the tickets from under her seat and placed it on the dashboard. “You have all you need there. Get Louise and Octavio as far away from Bright as possible.”

  Hey! Louise protested, sticking her head through the window to the back. We’re not going anywhere without you!

  Sarah smiled at her. You don’t have a choice in this one, I’m afraid.

  With that, she gave Alex a nod and he opened the door. Grabbing the box of blood samples, she jumped out after him. The plan was to keep Bright distracted while Alex went in the back to rescue Robert and Wei. For that, she’d need the blood.

  “Good luck!” Nestor said as she slammed the door.

  Okay, let’s go, she told Alex and they ran across the street, side by side. As they ran, he began to fade out and by the time they reached the pavement opposite he was completely invisible.

  You’d better be right about this, she told the night where she thought he was standing.

  Trust me, Alex replied out of thin air. His footsteps sounded on the pavement as he ran off.

  That’s the problem, Sarah thought to herself. I don’t.

  Alex skirted along the side of the warehouse. Although he was invisible now, he still had to be quiet as he squeezed through a gap in a chain-link fence and moved towards the workshops at the back.

  “That’s it, Alex,” Makarov encouraged through the iPod earphone. “You’ve earned their trust. Now you must bring them to me.”

  Alex crouched by the side of the building and paused a moment. I don’t think they trust me a bit, he thought. As for bringing them to you, that’s not going to happen. They’ve already got their own escape plan.

  Makarov laughed. “Flying out of the country on a commercial airliner using forged passports? Even without the intervention of Major Bright, they would never make it.”

  You’ve got a better plan, I take it.

  “There’s a small airport just a few kilometres from your present location,” Makarov said. “My private jet is en route to it as we speak. When you get out of the warehouse, direct the others to the airport and I’ll fly you out of harm’s way.”

  They’ll never go for it, Alex replied with a shake of his head.

  “They will,” Makarov insisted. “Circumstances will demand it. Now – go and rescue the kidnapped boys.”

  The iPod went dead. Alex placed it in his pocket and looked round the edge of the building. The door to the workshops was just a couple of metres away and he moved fast. Trying the handle, he found it locked, but the window beside it wasn’t. Sliding up the old wooden frame, he eased himself through. Thankfully, the room was deserted – from what he’d heard the others saying about Major Bright in the short time he’d known them, the man wasn’t someone he was eager to meet.

  Alex moved through the workshop and into a corridor with four doors. He went to the nearest one – Makarov had told him that was where Robert and Wei were being held – and looked through the small viewing window. Sure enough, he made out the shape of two boys bound to chairs in the half-light. This door was unlocked and he pushed it open gently to minimize the noise as it scraped against the concrete.

  The head of the Chinese kid, Wei, snapped up at the sound. “Who’s there?” he asked fearfully, straining to see.

  Alex moved swiftly to his side. “It’s okay. I’m here to help.”

  Wei looked around in confusion. Sensing the boy’s fear, Alex reluctantly allowed himself to become visible again. There was no point in freaking the kid out any more than necessary.

  “That’s a cool trick,” Wei whispered as Alex reappeared and began untying the rope around his wrists and ankles. “Who are you?”

  “I’m with Sarah and your friends,” Alex said. He finished with Wei’s bonds and moved on to where Robert was slumped in his chair. “What’s wrong with him?”

  “He’s been drugged.”

  Alex crouched before Robert and gave his shoulders a shake as Wei ran round to untie the ropes. Robert’s eyes flickered open and he mumbled something unintelligible. Wei released Robert’s bonds and he flopped forwards. Alex caught him and hoisted him onto his shoulders in a fireman’s lift.

  “This is going to make getting out of here tough,” Alex told Wei as they turned to the door.

  “And it just got even tougher,” Eco announced from the doorway.

  Alex and Wei froze. The skinny kid had a gun in his hand.

  14

  Sarah shivered in the cold, early morning air as she walked through the front door of the warehouse. The building was a wreck, with holes in the ceiling and rusting pieces of metal strewn here and there in the massive, empty area. It looked as if it hadn’t been used in many years. In the far corner stood a Range Rover with a dent in the front. There was something sad and lonely about the place. Sarah hated to think that Robert was being held somewhere within the building, but she kept her mind focused.

  “Sarah, you’re early,” the unmistakably deep voice of Major Bright echoed from the darkness at the back. “And at the wrong meeting place. But I forgive you.”

  She looked ahead and saw his hulking figure emerge out of the shadows. He was dressed in his HIDRA uniform still, but it was ragged in places, as if he’d been in a fight recently.

  “I sense you’ve brought what I requested,” he said, stopping beside one of the crumbling concrete pillars that held up the roof.

  Sarah raised the box of blood samples.

  “That’s good,” he said, producing an object from his pocket and tossing it on the ground between them – an empty syringe gun. “Because I’m all out of super-juice.”

  Sarah jumped back as Bright teleported from the column to within a metre or so without warning. Close up, she could see his red-tinged pupils and the sheen of sweat standing out on his closely cropped hair. It reminded her of the last time she had faced the major and how the serum had driven him into an insanely violent rage. Reaching out, he snatched the box from her hand and opened it eagerly.

  “Why are there only four samples?” he demanded.

  “Because there’s only four of us,” Sarah replied. “You kidnapped Robert and Wei, remember?”

  Major Bright laughed and banged the side of his skull with his palm. “Right. Right. I get confused. The serum can do that.”

  Sarah took another step away as he closed the box.

  “It won’t do you any good,” she said, trying to keep her voice calm and in control. She needed to keep Bright busy while Alex got to Robert. “The untreated blood won’t give you our powers again.”

  Bright grinned. “You underestimate me, Sarah. Colonel Moss left the research files from Project Superhuman in an online storage dump. Any fool with a basic knowledge of chemistry and a centrifuge machine can recreate the seru
m mix. All I need is a constant supply of blood and that’s where you come in. From now on you’re going to keep me stocked with samples from your friends if you want to see your brother again.”

  Listening to him made Sarah’s skin crawl. “That wasn’t the deal you promised. I want Robert and Wei back now.”

  Bright sneered at her. “Do I look like the kind of guy who keeps promises?” He cocked his head to one side. “No. Of course I don’t. That’s why you’re here and not the ANZAC shrine, right?”

  Sarah could sense his mind scanning hers and then searching beyond the walls of the warehouse.

  “Also, you didn’t come alone,” he added. “The other three are sitting across the road in a truck. You’re the one who’s broken the deal.”

  Sarah glanced in the direction of the entrance. “You’ve got what you wanted, Major,” she said. “Now let my brother and Wei go. You know you can’t take us all on.”

  Bright’s eyes blazed with anger and his thoughts invaded her mind.

  CAN’T I?

  His anger was like an invisible force, driving Sarah backwards onto the ground. She hit the concrete and crawled away as Bright advanced towards her.

  MY DEFEAT IN THE DESERT WAS A FLUKE. I’M MORE POWERFUL THAN THAT NOW.

  His words screamed through Sarah’s brain. She raised a hand in a futile effort to shield herself from him. Reading his thoughts, she sensed only a tumbling stream of hate-filled images.

  Alex, she cried out with her mind, have you got Robert and Wei?

  A door at the back of the warehouse screeched open and Bright paused to look round as Alex and Wei emerged, supporting Robert between them. Sarah pushed herself up. Alex looked at her and shook his head.

  Sarah, I’m sorry.

  Eco appeared behind them and gave Alex a push into the warehouse with the end of the gun. The gangly boy circled his captives with the weapon raised, looking over at Major Bright as he did so.

  “I caught the intruders, sir,” he said.

  Bright nodded at him approvingly. “You’re a good soldier, Eco. Keep watch on them while I deal with this one.” He turned back to Sarah and removed two objects from his pocket: a tiny bottle of liquid and a syringe. “You’ll soon learn that cooperating with me is the only way forward, Sarah. Until then, I think it’s best if you sleep this one out with your brother.”

  Sarah rose into a crouch as Bright slid the syringe through the bottle lid and filled it. He advanced again, the needle pointed towards her like a weapon.

  “When you wake up, we’ll be one big, happy family,” he said just before he lunged at her. Sarah tried to sidestep, but he caught her arm, yanking her round.

  “Robert,” she yelled desperately, “get them out of here!”

  At the other end of the warehouse, her brother lifted his head fractionally and gripped Wei and Alex’s arms. A split second later the three of them disappeared. Eco gasped in shock and lowered the gun. Major Bright cursed and turned back to Sarah, eyes narrowed.

  “Very clever,” he hissed. “But you’re not going anywhere.”

  Sarah cried out as he jabbed the needle into her upper arm. However, before he could depress the plunger, the front door of the warehouse exploded, as the truck smashed through at high speed. Behind the wheel, Nestor drove headlong towards them. Bright looked round in surprise as the vehicle came at him. Sarah slipped from his grasp and ran. At the last minute, Bright teleported across the warehouse and reappeared at Eco’s side.

  The truck ploughed on, clipping one of the decaying concrete supports and toppling it. As Nestor sent the truck round in a tight turn, a massive section of the roof crashed down at the back of the warehouse, sending Bright and Eco running for cover. The vehicle’s wheels screeched as it headed back for Sarah. The passenger door flew open and Alex threw out his arm.

  “Sarah, grab on!” he cried as the truck approached.

  Moving fast, she ran for it and caught his hand. With all his strength, Alex pulled her into the cab as the truck sped out of the warehouse. It flew through the gap in the door and hit the road, not slowing for a second.

  YOU CAN RUN, Major Bright’s mind-scream echoed after them, BUT YOU CAN’T HIDE!

  Sarah collapsed on the seat as the passenger door swung shut beside her. Looking into the back of the truck, she saw Robert lying on one of the seats along the side beside Wei and Louise. Octavio looked round and nodded to show her brother was okay.

  “Hold still,” Alex said beside her. He grabbed the syringe that was still sticking in her arm and pulled it out smoothly. The liquid sedative inside had not been delivered. He grinned at her. “Do you always cut it that close?”

  “Usually,” Sarah replied, breathing heavily after the ordeal with Bright. Composing herself, she reached into her pocket and removed the mobile phone her father had given her months before. She’d only turned it on a couple of times since leaving HIDRA, having heard that phone signals could be easily traced – almost like carrying a homing beacon around with you. Whether that was true or not, she needed HIDRA now. Bright wouldn’t be far behind.

  “Turn left here,” Alex said to Nestor. “We’ll never make the main airport, but I have another way out of the country.”

  “Let me guess,” Sarah said. “Makarov.”

  Alex shrugged. “Do you have a better plan?”

  “He’s right, Sarah,” Nestor said. “We don’t have a choice.”

  Sarah nodded, but gave Alex a look. “This Makarov guy had better be everything you say he is.”

  Not waiting for Alex’s response, she turned on the phone and speed-dialled the emergency number Rachel Andersen had given her. It went through to an automated message and Sarah said the code-word – sleeper. The line connected. Rachel picked up after two rings.

  “Andersen,” she snapped.

  “If you want Major Bright,” Sarah said urgently, “you’d better come get him now.”

  “Got company!” Nestor announced. In the side mirror the lights of a speeding Range Rover appeared.

  Bright was giving chase.

  15

  “Sarah, where is Major Bright?” Rachel demanded down the phone line, not wasting a second. In the background there was a commotion, as if people were springing into action all around.

  “Right now, he’s following us in a four-wheel drive,” Sarah said, checking the side mirror as the Range Rover sped towards the back of their truck. “Getting closer by the minute. We’re heading south—”

  “It’s okay,” Rachel interrupted. “Our satellite has already locked onto your mobile signal. We’re tracking you. Just keep that phone turned on.”

  Sarah was suddenly glad she’d been cautious with the mobile all those months.

  “A Special Forces team with be with you in five minutes,” Rachel continued as the Range Rover rammed the back of the truck. Nestor struggled to control the wheel, but managed to keep the truck on the road.

  “We might not have five minutes!” Sarah exclaimed. “Got to go.”

  She killed the line and placed the phone in her pocket.

  “We’re about a kilometre from the airport,” Alex said. “We’re going to make it!”

  “You sure about that?” Nestor said, nodding towards his window. Sarah and Alex looked over and saw that the Range Rover had drawn level with them. Major Bright looked across, red eyes blazing with fury. He twisted the wheel and slammed the Range Rover against the side of the truck. The truck juddered but was too large to be put off course by Bright’s smaller vehicle. The Range Rover pulled away again, its passenger side crumpled from the impact.

  “Just keep your foot on the accelerator,” Sarah ordered Nestor. “He’s doing more damage to his vehicle than ours.”

  “What’s he up to now?” Alex asked, craning his neck to see into their pursuer’s vehicle. Eco had reached across to take the wheel. In that instant, Major Bright disappeared and the teenager jumped into the driver’s seat, managing to keep control of the Range Rover somehow.

  �
�He teleported!” Nestor exclaimed. “Where did he go?”

  A thud from the top of the truck answered their question.

  “Something’s on the roof!” Louise cried from the back.

  Sarah looked round sharply at a sound of tearing metal. Through the open hatch in the back wall of the cab she could see into the rear of the truck. Louise and the others cowered as a metre square section of the roof rolled back like the lid of a sardine tin. Major Bright looked through the gap with an insane expression on his face.

  SURPRISE!

  “Wei!” Sarah yelled through to the back. “Light him up!”

  After his ordeal at the warehouse, the Chinese kid didn’t need telling twice. Raising both hands towards the roof, Wei let loose a stream of fire that engulfed Bright. With a howl of pain, the major reared backwards as his clothes caught alight. Then he threw himself off the side of the truck. Sarah stuck her head out the window and watched him rolling across the road to extinguish the flames. Finally he came to a smoky rest as the truck sped away. The Range Rover braked and came to a stop beside him.

  “Wei, you did it!” Louise cried, throwing her arms around her friend.

  Wei blew on his fingers. “Payback.”

  Alex pointed to the right. Beyond a chain-link fence on the side of the road were runways and hangars. “There’s the airport. Go through that gate. Don’t stop!”

  Nestor gunned the accelerator. The truck hit a set of double gates plastered with Danger: No Entry signs and sped through onto the tarmac. Although the airport was small, designed only for the light aircraft that were parked in the distance near the traffic control tower, the runway itself seemed a massive, empty area. Nestor scanned the space before them as the truck thundered on.

  “Where to now?” he asked. From the direction of the buildings a warning siren sounded. “We seem to have drawn attention to ourselves.”

  “Keep going,” Alex replied. “Our lift is here.”

  Sure enough, the roar of a jet engine became apparent as they hit the runway. Looking towards the breaking dawn, Sarah saw the shape of a plane approaching. It was sleek and black, with strangely angled wings that gave it the appearance of something between a small passenger jet and a stealth bomber. As it came lower, Alex pointed ahead.