Lenders

by Johnson, John

  The sounds returned and he kissed them both. Snapping out of the terrible moment with more determination than ever, he unclipped his safety line and bolted toward the back. “Jon, log me in.” He had a reanimate sense of conviction, an aura of confidence, and everyone sensed it; they knew he had a plan. Jerry and Felix handled Rosita's body placing her across three empty seats. Felix strapped her down. They all looked to him, their leader; his look told them: we have a good chance, let’s do this! Just as Herald was about to hop into the lender case Ana touched his shoulder.

  “Herald,” she said. “We need you here.”

  “I’ll do it,” Jon exclaimed. Herald knew Jon couldn’t, but Jon didn't. And he didn’t have time to explain. He had grown a full heart, or procrastinated, one or the other, but never told Jon what the cleansing had done to him—to humanity.

  “It will only work for us Jon. I’m sorry.” He turned to Ana. “Ana, you know the feed won’t rise fast enough with your login.”

  “And it won’t with yours either. Not as fast as we need it.” He looked down. Amy was at his feet. He knew it. They had all logged in several times. Amy was the only one, ever, that could lift the feed instantly, sending it straight to full green status. He looked out the front window, then at the magnified section. Q and his group had seconds at most. The swarm was almost upon them and they were getting back into the hole, covering themselves with plywood. There was no time to think. Ana nodded, and Herald returned it with his eyes. He knew it.

  “Me daddy,” Amy said with her normal spunky flare and a smile, looking up at him genuinely. She wanted a part, and this was it. And he decided quickly—because he had to. It was the only way.

  “Okay, Aim. You get in there and send that feed right through the roof just like you did at home. Manny is already there, he will be with you.”

  “Piece of cake,” Amy said. “Cheese cake Daddy—or blueberry.” Herald smiled at her and squeezed her and kissed her forehead.

  “After this Rafael and I are gonna bake you a hundred cakes, any kind you want!”

  “It’s a deal daddy!”

  Herald picked her up. Jon started the log in procedure. Within seconds she was asleep, and just as they’d said, the feed went through the roof, 100%.

  “Launch Jon, launch!”

  “They’re booting up now!” Jon replied.

  There ship arrived to the group just as the swarm hit. It plunged onto them—hard. Herald went to the front. Because of its blocker the ship couldn’t be detected by the machines but he watched dreadfully as the ground below became tinted with red. They were hovering so closely that he could see their bloodied fingers trying to hold the sides of the disintegrating wooden sheets that covered the hole.

  Most of the drones weren’t armed, they were simple personal drones, or delivery drones. The majority were tiny, no bigger than a dinner plate, mostly used for personal photography. A few of them were larger, the size of a tractor tire, disc-shaped, painted in matte green or desert camo, clearly military drones—armed with lasers.

  The newer rotor-less drones silently swooped by then held point, floating above, most likely relaying footage to the rest of the attacking horde—possibly the collective mind of the machines—while the others relentlessly plowed onto it. The first wave was a suicide run, chopping the plywood sheets to bits with their sharp rotors quickly leaving the Q and his group wide open and vulnerable. Inadvertently many slammed into the mountain peak’s small metal solar tower which towered directly aside their pit. They made a range of high and low pitched dinging sounds. Dust clouded the air which hid the view, mostly, but red could be seen. It sprayed outward misting the air, painting the ground about the pit. And there were screams.

  A moment later the attackers ceased their violent barrage and bypassed the area. They sped by and rose into the air reforming their mass shape into a ring which began to orbit a band of four military drones. The big ones had been waiting patiently, as if they’d done this before, already well practiced on the citizens in the ravaged city below. They moved in to inspect the remains. Ana jerked her head to the side as the clearing revealed carnage. The backs of one had been sliced to ribbons. The other was blended apart from the front, like his belly had merged with a boat propeller. The lifeless carcasses were piled together in one blobbing mass, a red rib-salad. The whole area was a mess of blood spatter and wood splinters encircled by flipping, jerking, still buzzing, mostly broken drones. A few attempted to fly but rolled off the mountain.

  The ring above, still stocked with thousands—millions so it looked—orbited eerily as the military drones commanded the center. They were preparing to fire, lasers perhaps! A charge of red light grew on their underbellies sparking to their outer round edges.

  The bodies moved. One clump fell to the side; only two were dead! Q had a team of five which included two strong men for protection. The men had who’d stayed on top of the others had sacrificed themselves. Herald’s eyes opened wide when he saw three still alive.

  “Where’s our—”

  They blasted out from the ship! His jaw dropped when he saw ten buzzers work together in a pattern that sliced the four military drones in half. One exploded so violently it damaged a buzzer in the process, sending it crashing down the slope. There were nine left but Herald knew the downed buzzer had a good chance of returning. All were equipped with Rafael’s new—yet untested—auto-repair capability. The swarm lost shape as the buzzers flew in. But reformed quickly, curling into the air, sinuating, snake-like.

  The red and black acrobatic jumpers quickly made it to the exposed group, providing them cover. They danced above Q and his group with such speed their motions were a blur forming a protective and translucent dome. Q pulled himself from under the large body that was mutilated above him and the other two helped him out of the hole. As they jostled one of the bodies to pull him from under it the innards fell out, sloshing down on top of the other poor fellow like a pile of yellowish-red and grey worms. Ana winced at the ghastly sight.

  The swarm returned, largely ignoring the buzzers, uncurling into a double stream that would hit from two sides. The remaining nine buzzers zipped with a speed the drones couldn’t emulate and split up plunging into the attacking sides. The popping was fireworks of all colors as batteries exploded by the hundred. But, the swarm was so capacious, containing thousands more, many made through. They collided with the jumpers’ protective dome; in vain, every single one crashed and fell. Q stood with arms straight at his side rotating his head, dumbfounded by what was happening around him. His once neat little mini-tuxedo was drenched in blood. He continued this way, curiously, with an irritated look, until he spotted the ship through the fast motion of the jumpers; it was close, hovering with a quiet whistle like that of a focused breeze.

  A young woman wearing a blood-soaked dress and another scientist Herald was expecting took a stand on each side of the short Mr. Q. They looked like family from the distance, and all three marveled at the dome of acrobats above them and the war taking place about them—then Q took a single short step. The jumpers, and the shield they maintained, moved as he did. And drones continued their bombardment, uselessly, flopping away as trash.

  “Jay, spin us around and set the open bay door on the edge of that mountaintop. Right, there.” Herald pointed to the spot. “Hover steady while we get ‘em in,”

  “Will do Herald.” Jay descended the ship while rotating it 180 degrees simultaneously. As they lowered disturbing the dust, albeit slightly, it alerted the swarm—an invisible presence. The drones, numbers reduced by half, couldn’t see it, but reacted just the same, and spread out creating flat horizontal plane. Each held an even distance from the other, and the plane, like a blanket, lowered. The wind had picked up significantly and the blanket was wave-like.

  The jumpers and the three survivors were quickly neglected. The layer of drones came down and many pinged the hull of the ship, stopping dead on it. Each drone coordinated a position of the hit, and as well as could b
e done, remained on the hull—highlighting the hover-jet. They’d been found out!

  Herald ran to the back and stood near Jerry as the ship swung into position. They had to squint to see. The odorous wind increased in velocity as if the world was being vacuumed eastward, and they held tight as the dry desert dust packed their eye sockets. Herald pulled a blocker from his pocket showing it to Jerry pointing to mode #2. Jerry pulled his and they both clicked the devices on.

  “Vlad, Hal, stay here and guard the door!” Herald yelled over the roar of the wind. “Don’t let anything come aboard.”

  “Except us,” Jerry said. Jon turned his head, always a joker, he thought with half a smirk, then continued assisting the buzzers with critical targets.

  “Let’s get ‘em!” Herald yelled and jumped with Jerry out of the ship. It was still a few feet above the ground so they tucked and rolled. Jay was having trouble holding position as the wind was now gusting at 50 mph plus, and steadily increasing. They ran for Q and the others, forearms raised to shield their eyes and then he saw it. Jerry noticed what was coming down onto them.

  “Herald look!” he said. Another group of eight military drones were fighting the wind, heading their way from the east.

  “We’re gonna make it, just get ‘em!” Herald replied yelling at the top of his lungs. He was flat-out determined.

  They made it to the group. The jumpers changed their pattern temporarily making an entrance to the portal which closed just as soon as they entered. The dome expanded to cover the five of them. Tall Jerry kept his head low because he saw the sharp knives that had ejected from the now porcupine-like acrobatic wonders. After a courteous nod to the bloody damsel in distress he picked her up and cradled her. She looked small in his arms and was crying uncontrollably. Her tears washed the blood from her face in streaks; the blowing dust made the streaks muddy-brown.

  The tall lanky scientist was trying to hear Herald but being outside had become akin to standing next to a jet engine at peak throttle. He nodded rapidly, knowing what he was told: run! And it became horribly obvious that he was injured. A large flap dangled from the back of his head revealing his white skull. Smaller shreds of skin fluttered violently like ribbons in the now 60 mph wind. The incessant barrage of drones had chopped a mess into the entire back of his head but he hadn’t even noticed; the adrenaline surge wouldn’t allow it, survival mode had kicked in. His scalp was blowing east with the wind like a shredded black and red sail; the blood was dry and the sand coated the skull and flaps making sandpaper. An experienced hunter who’d skinned his fair share of kills, even Jerry turned away at the sight of it. But they couldn’t tell him, not yet.

  Like steel balls of hail, the drones continued to ping the top of the ship, cleverly pinpointing it. The swarm outlined the its shape and reformed much of its arsenal into a new snake, heading straight for the aft, and its open ramp door. The buzzers made their own snake of flight, having had learned from the drones themselves. They took into the oncoming nuisance, managing to obliterate many. But now, both sides were having trouble fighting the wind.

  Felix unclipped from his seat and went to the back with the bots. He connected to a safety line, ready to offer any assistance he could. Vlad was fumbling, mostly, missing every other one he swiped at. He was too large, it wasn’t his forte. Nimble and agile Hal swatted most. Even Felix had managed to bat a few with an aluminum rod. Like flies, there was almost no way to destroy them all but the now violent winds were helping, blowing them away.

  And the drone that had fallen was back! Its spinning blades hadn’t been able to auto-repair but it afforded Jon a new vantage point in the sky. He was able to use the view to suggest alternate maneuvers and tactics. He was working with the buzzers as if he himself was one and suggested a funnel-like pattern to catch the incomers and focus them toward demise. The success of the clever tactic obliterated much of the swarm and the remaining drones bounced off the hover-jet in a final barrage of dings. The wind was sucking the rest away and even the inbound military drones couldn’t overcome it.

  The team on the ground was having trouble getting a step against the wind, but almost there. They were ten feet from the open bay of the ship when the ground started to shake. Caught in the surprise Jerry’s knees buckled, the scientist tripped, both stumbling as it unbalanced them. Herald and Q pushed on and made it safely inside.

  The earth was shaking so violently Jay had to lift the ship’s bay door off the ground because it was reverberating into the ship. He tried to hold it about a foot above but swayed as the wind became even stronger. 75 mph. Setting the ship on the west end of the peak was a stroke of luck—it blocked the wind to a degree. But any luck they had was dwindling fast, being vacuumed away preternaturally. Jerry managed to get back onto a knee then thrust himself up with the girl still cradled and clinging to him. He lowered an arm toward the scientist and they managed a solid lock. They forced two steps, but getting another would take all they had. Hal leapt out like a cheetah and took the girl. His strength and agility enabled him to leap back into the ship with her tightly in his arms. Lastly Jerry and the scientist fell onto the ramp, crawling together, no man left behind—just to get an inch closer; Felix reached for the scientist and Vlad reached to Jerry. Everyone worked together. They made it! Herald slapped the button to close the door. Sounds were once again quiet inside but it would be awhile before their adrenaline surges abated. They all dropped to the floor and slumped against the walls looking at one another.

  Jay turned right and hovered north, HOME!

  And then they saw it, something far worse than a million drones.

  73. The Storm

  To the east flame and smoke was being sucked from El Paso. The inferno was spread like a thin incandescent paste across the desert until finally being extinguished by the ground scathing wind that fed the base of the oncoming wall. City buses rolled like logs down a hill; some flipped end over end; some shot straight like bullets. Houses and buildings were reduced to toothpicks. A military water tower bounced a couple of times then hugged the earth like a bowling ball. A miles-high tsunami of black earth headed their way fast. The sheer sight of it almost made them forget the smell. That pit. The rescuees were drenched with the raw insides of their security team, covered by their mutilated innards. Gobs of flesh were hard, stuck to their faces and clothing, in their hair; blood soaked them, hot, warm, and metallic smelling, and a layer of desert sand encrusted the outfit. But, they were saved and safely inside the ship—for now. Their relief was tortuously short lived at the sight of this new problem: a world-wiping storm. Everybody frenzied to get situated because things were about to get rough.

  While heading to the front Herald got her a med-kit from an upper bin. She was the only human with medical training, although she’d dropped out of medical school after finding her passion: coding. Jodi tended to Ted’s gruesome injury. He had reached around to touch the back of his head shortly after stumbling aboard. Upon feeling the sandpapered rock that was his skull he passed out. Hal assisted by holding his head steady. Easier this way, she had much would-be painful cleaning to do. After washing away the desert sand with water she puzzled together the loose flaps of skin, although some were missing. Turbulence jolted the ship and a four-inch flap fell down so Jodi asked the Asian girl who had boarded for a finger. She cringed at the sight but did lend the finger—slowly, and blindly, with her head turned away. She convulsed a few times at the feel, followed up with some coughing. From top to bottom, around the forehead and neck, Jodi finished wrapping him up with a good deal of gauze.

  He came to again shortly after Jodi had finished and Ana gave him the same pill that Valerie had taken. He had been through quite an ordeal and rest was well deserved. She also gave him a wet towel so he could wipe himself.

  Ted acted quite mellow; he put his hand on Jodi’s and patted a few times with a smile, nodding a genuine thank you. His gentle manner and calm voice had an effect on her—and the Asian girl who introduced herself as Lia—settl
ing their nerves a bit. He was a lean and tall black man, mid 40’s, with a once white lab coat. A computer tech by trade, he was put in charge of various classified operations at the base—as well, he was Q’s boss and the head of the department. In such a calm manner, even with what he’d just been through, he talked a bit and introduced himself before falling asleep next to Valerie—who’d luckily slept soundly through the previous horrors.

  Jay descended the ship using the east face of the mountains for cover and headed north. The winds being pulled over the top from the west were fierce. The unpredictable gusts had the ship rocking which made moving near impossible but everyone finally managed to strap in. Jon maintained the rear control panel as the bots reconnected into their slots.

  Jay did his best to keep the ship steady, ready to initiate jet mode as soon as Herald, sitting at the front with him, gave the okay. He turned to face the group, pausing his gaze on Ana, who was looking to him—as were most everyone else. Her eyes were glossy as she eyed him, yearning for affirmations that things were going to be alright. He gave her a thumbs up and a smile worth a million words: thank you, I love you, and we are going to make it. He knew the ship could easily outrun the approaching storm. This put Ana and the others somewhat at ease. Home wasn’t far away.