“Just do it.” Rollins gritted his teeth.
Adam came to Rollins’s left.
“When I pull on the panel, get his leg out of there.” I gave Adam a look that I hoped he interpreted as we have to do this fast because moving Rollins will hurt. “Are you guys ready?”
“Yes.” Rollins’s response was almost a growl.
“Ready.”
“On three then. One. Two. Three.” I pulled the panel. It didn’t budge. I needed leverage. I shifted so my foot was braced against the pod sidewall and pulled again, calling on all my extra strength. This time it moved.
“Hold it.” Grabbing him under his arms, Adam pulled Rollins from the seat.
Rollins screamed.
I let the panel go and helped Adam get Rollins to the seats we had sat in.
Megan shoved the armrest up so we could get his leg on the two seats.
Rollins was sweating, and his complexion was pale. Megan rifled through a small cabinet above the door. She pulled out an emergency kit.
“There isn’t much to help. But there are painkillers.” She shook a bottle of pills, then opened it on her palm. She kept three and put the others back in the bottle. “Here.” She handed the pills and a water bottle to Rollins.
He swallowed the pills down. “Get me my weapon, and I’ll stay here on guard.”
I didn’t like the idea of leaving him here with his fallen brethren, but we got him set up with his gun, water, and the pills. Megan unfolded a silver emergency blanket from the kit and draped it over Rollins.
“I’ve got this. You guys go. End this so I can get my leg fixed. And take Carter with you.” Rollins wiped sweat from his upper lip.
I nodded and squeezed his shoulder. Moving to the front of the pod, I tucked my hand into my sleeve and swept the remaining glass shards from the window. I stopped next to Kalis. The joystick-like steering mechanism poked out from his chest, and blood dripped down his face from a long cut across his forehead. I took a second and double-checked he wasn’t breathing. I removed his pistol from his holster and slipped it in my right pocket.
“Be careful,” Adam called from behind me.
I climbed out onto the small nose of the pod.
We’d crashed in a very wooded area without any sign of humans. No houses, no buildings, no paved roads.
“Come on,” I called to the others.
“Taylor, help me get him up there.” Adam tugged on Carter.
“We’ll have to carry him.” Taylor got behind Carter while Adam lifted his base.
They got him to the window. I slid off the pod and landed on the ground, pain shooting through my ankles. Adam climbed out. Megan helped Taylor lift Carter to Adam.
“Got him. Val, are you ready?” Adam grabbed Carter under his arms.
“Yeah. Lower him down.” I hoped he wasn’t too heavy. I grabbed him around his robotic middle and set him on the ground.
Adam waved for Megan and Taylor to get out. He helped them both down, then jumped.
“What is that?” Megan cried, pointing to the right.
We all turned and spotted what she was referring to.
A man impaled onto a tree.
30
The man wore camouflage pants and jacket. He had on heavy boots and a fur-lined hat. Green paint or makeup covered the top half of his face, and a long beard covered the lower. He looked absolutely normal for a hunter except for that fact he was impaled to the tree with a long spear. The spear had entered his body from my left and pointed to the right.
“Is he a Rasper?” Taylor stepped forward.
I held out my arm. “Hold on. I’ll check him out. Can you reboot Carter?”
Taylor nodded and opened Carter’s shirt and revealed a section of wires and switches.
“Adam, cover me.” I clicked off the safety of my gun and took a few steps closer.
I aimed the Glock at the trees surrounding the one with the man. I did a quick sweep behind the pod.
“Hey, can you hear me.” I kept the gun aimed at the man’s forehead even though he was obviously dead. But the lack of blood was disturbing. I checked the man’s neck for a pulse, then shook my head. “He’s dead.”
Adam joined me. “Do you see any yellow coloring?”
The man’s hands were filthy, so I pushed his sleeve up. His skin was pale and not yellow at all. He was cold and still in rigor.
“He’s not a Rasper. He died not too long ago. I’m not sure Raspers killed him.” I inspected the spear. It seemed to be made from wood and was about four feet long.
“We probably shouldn’t hang out too long then.” Taylor bobbed his head up and down.
I focused on Megan. The yellow hand-like mark on her forehead made her look older.
She glanced around. “We need to go this way.” She pointed past the dead man to a path on the right between the trees.
Another path led to the left. I hoped she was correct.
A loud beep came from Carter. He opened his eyes and tilted his head to the side. Something similar to a look of fright flashed across his face when he spotted the guy speared to the tree. “How barbaric.”
Barbaric indeed. Spearing someone wasn’t a usual manner of death. Even in this new Bug and Rasper world. If we were forced to land here because of the weather, the man’s death had to hold some significance, but I had no idea what.
“So, are we ready to do this?” Taylor bounced from one foot to the other, and I wondered if he had ever hiked or even been out in the woods for any period of time.
“We’ll be back soon, Rollins.”
He didn’t answer, and I hoped he was asleep from the pills and not from the pain.
“Lead the way,” I told Megan.
She nodded, knowing full well I wouldn’t actually let her go first. I took two steps ahead of her and our parade began. Taylor followed behind Megan, then Carter hovered over the uneven terrain while Adam covered our backs.
The twigs and leaves cracked under our feet, but otherwise it was quiet. Too quiet. Like Mother Nature was holding her breath to not alert the lurking predator.
The further we walked, the thicker the trees grew, and the underbrush seemed to reach out trying to snag our feet.
I spotted something up ahead and stopped. I pointed to it and then put my finger to my lips.
We crept forward until I could make out what I had spotted. I gestured for everyone to stop.
I aimed my gun at another man impaled to a tree. He wore a similar camouflage outfit as the first guy and had also been speared. Again, there was no blood and the body was in rigor.
“What’s the purpose of killing these guys?” Taylor asked, trying to sound like he wasn’t freaked out about seeing the bodies.
“They’re path markers,” Megan announced.
“What?” Adam glanced from the dead guy to Megan.
“Look, the spear is aimed to the left, and again there’s two paths to take. Someone, or something, is marking the way to go.” Megan twisted her hands together. “And there is a sensation pulling me in that direction. I’m guessing they weren’t sure I’d be alive to guide you.”
“Who’s killing them then?” This time Taylor didn’t try to hide the shake in his voice.
“Raspers. But I think the bigger question is where did these guys come from and why isn’t there any blood?” I wiggled the spear. “And why use a spear?”
Carter glided over to the man. He scanned his arm. “He’s not in the system. Judging by his clothing, I would say he was part of a group that survived by being prepared for the worst.”
“But if they survived for this long, how did the Raspers get them?” Megan tilted her head, and her long blonde hair cascaded over the mark on her face.
“All excellent questions. Maybe when you find the queen she can inform you of her reasons.” Carter said it matter-of-factly so that we all fell silent and took the left path.
The path seemed thinner than the previous one. The trees leaned into each other to create a tun
nel. We reached another fork in the path and another poor soul speared to a tree indicating the right path.
A strange smell permeated the air. I stopped and glanced back at Adam and made a small sniffing gesture. He nodded and aimed his gun at the woods. I tried to place the scent but couldn’t. The closest I could come to it was that it smelled like a combination of mold, old houses, and wet dogs.
I was about to start walking again when I caught the sound of something moving toward us from the woods. I pointed at my eyes then to the woods, telling everyone to be ready. The noise morphed into what sounded like huge animals charging toward us. A ball of worry formed in my throat. I double-gripped the Glock.
Blackness burst from the trees and covered Adam. Before I could react, he was snatched back into the trees.
“Adam!” Megan yelled.
More blackness shot out, snared Carter, and yanked him away.
I swore the blackness looked like a net made from delicate lace. I aimed at the trees where Adam had disappeared. “I can’t see them. I can’t shoot blindly.”
“What’s happening?” Taylor was shaking.
“Get together,” I yelled.
Megan and I were almost back-to-back. I held my breath and kept the gun aimed at the dense trees. Taylor took a step, then without warning another black net flew out, grabbed him, and yanked him into the forest.
31
“Who are you? Where are you taking them?” I screamed into the trees. “Give them back.”
No one answered.
“Who took them? They were all pulled in from different places.” Megan glanced all around like she hoped they would suddenly reappear.
I didn’t have an answer for her. My stomach had soured, and I couldn’t stand still. It was like I needed to run or hit something.
“Show yourself. Face me,” I yelled.
Megan and I held onto each other’s hand and kept circling, waiting for the next net, but nothing else happened.
Megan stopped and let go. “What do you think we should do?”
“I’m not sure, we need to find them, but we don’t know who took them or where they were taken.” Defeat climbed up my throat and left a ball of emotions about to choke me. Once again, I excelled at failing others.
The cracking of wood made us spin around. A huge tree from the left side crashed to the ground. And then another from the right landed on top of the first, blocking us from going back.
“What the hell? That can’t be natural.” Megan sounded scared.
If I was honest, I was too. “I guess we keep going forward. I don’t know if we have any other choice.”
The pain of failing to keep the others safe burned in my chest. I had lost Megan once before, and right after getting her back, I’d lost Adam and Taylor. They should have never trusted me. I was a sinking ship of sorrow and self-loathing.
I checked my ammo, then took a deep breath. I could do this. Had to do this. “Ready? Sure you don’t want a gun?”
Megan shook her head. “I don’t trust myself, but I believe you’ll shoot whoever is responsible.”
We walked for about thirty minutes without any more dead guys, toppled trees, or snatching nets. A strange buzzing noise broke the forest’s silence.
“Do you hear that?” I asked Megan.
“Yeah. It sounds like—”
“At the monastery. Where the black ooze was.”
“Do you think we’re close to the queen?” she whispered.
“I would think so since we’ve been separated and directed which way to go.”
Megan rubbed her head where the handprint marred her face. “Are you ready?”
No. I wasn’t. I wanted to run and hide. I wanted the world to be like it used to be. I wanted to be normal. “Yeah. Let’s do this.”
We walked forward, alert and ready for an attack. The forest thrummed with a buzz that sounded almost excited, anticipatory, and it shot through my body making my heart match the rhythm.
“I’m getting a bad feeling about this.” Megan’s whole body shivered.
“I know. It feels like an ambush.” I continually scanned the trees and spotted something up ahead. “What’s that?” I aimed the gun toward a weird black shape hanging from a tree. A blue light winked on and off from inside the mass.
“I don’t know,” she whispered.
When we got close enough to determine what the object was, a chill flittered across my skin. Large black gauzy cocoon-like shapes hung from the trees. Inside each was a body.
“Are they alive?” Megan’s voice wavered.
I got as close as I dared. The cocoon material was like a lace web that was tightly spun but had enough gaps for me to see inside. The blue light pulsed in rhythm with the rise and fall of the man’s chest. He appeared to be connected somehow to the cocoon via a tube attached to the back of his neck.
“Yes, look at this.” I directed Megan’s attention to the tube.
“This is different than the ooze. Think he’s a Rasper?”
“Probably.” I circled around the other side of the cocoon and almost ran into another one hanging behind the first. I scanned the area. Cocoons hung from every tree, and if the tree was big enough, more than one cocoon dangled unmoving. The blinking lights made the trees look like they were decorated with Christmas lights.
I swallowed the anxiety creeping up my throat. “There has to be over a hundred.”
“It’s like a damn spider’s nest.” Megan paled and looked like she might get sick.
“I don’t think these people were caught as prey. It feels more like caterpillars waiting for transformation.”
“If they’re already Raspers, transformation into what?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know.”
We walked further along the path. Cocoons were everywhere and made my initial guess of a hundred woefully underestimated. The buzzing morphed into an almost soothing white noise like the forest was trying to lure us into relaxing.
“Look, there’s a white glow up ahead.” Megan’s words pulled me out of the tranquility that had wrapped itself around my common sense.
“Perfect.” I had to stay alert. “Stay here, I’ll go check it out.”
“No way. We don’t split up.”
I wanted to keep Megan safe, and going toward the eerie glow was anything but safe. However, she was right. We were stronger together. Against my internal voice screaming, run away, we went forward.
The trees thinned out to reveal a large dome-shaped formation that might have been made from rocks. It was surrounded by small neon-colored plants. There was no way they were native species. The white glow emanated from an opening about twenty feet above the structure’s base.
“Looks like we’re climbing.” Megan tilted her head side to side like she was trying to crack her neck.
We found a well-worn trail up what looked like rocks, but I wasn’t one hundred percent sure they were. I hated putting my gun in my pocket, but there was no other way up. I climbed onto the first hand and foot holds and kept going with Megan right behind. It took only minutes to reach the opening. I grabbed my gun and peered inside.
The white glow lit the inside, but I couldn’t figure out what was causing the light.
“Here goes nothing.” I stepped inside.
The entrance was more like a tunnel through the rocks. I glanced over my shoulder at Megan. She nodded, then we went deeper into the formation.
About thirty feet in, the tunnel opened up into a large rounded cave that had thousands of honeycomb holes along the walls. The white glow swirled like a fog.
“What the hell?” Megan whispered in my ear.
The glow swirled faster, and a faint sound like the tapping of a keyboard echoed around the cave. The glow cleared to reveal a horde of Bugs creeping out of the honeycombed walls. They swarmed over the ground, coming closer and closer. My stomach rolled. I didn’t know if Megan was immune or not.
“We have to get you out of here,” I told her. When she didn
’t answer, I glanced over my shoulder.
A well-built man about six-four held a gun to Megan’s head. The guy’s skin was a sickly yellow that didn’t match his frame.
How had he snuck up without me hearing him?
“Put your weapon on the ground,” the Rasper told me as he jabbed his gun’s barrel into Megan’s temple.
32
I hesitated. A million thoughts of how to solve the situation without getting Megan killed flew through my mind. I had another gun in my pocket, but in the time it took me set the gun down, he could shoot us both.
“What do you want?” I tried to stall for more time.
“I told you. Weapon on the ground. Now. Or I shoot her.” The Rasper had Megan against his chest. One hand holding the gun to her head. The other wrapped across her with the pointed nail at her neck.
I was out of time. “Okay. Relax. I’ll put the gun down, then you let her go.”
I couldn’t trust him. He was a Rasper. An armed Rasper.
Taking my time, I bent my knees and slowly lowered the gun toward the Bugs scuttling all around. But before I set it down, I shifted and fired at the Rasper’s head.
Black blood spattered from his head, and his grip on Megan melted away. The Rasper fell to the ground, and Megan grabbed the gun from him, aiming it at his chest. The Bug scuttled out of the body and raced toward the others.
“Thanks. I should have taken your other gun.” Megan shook her head, disappointment clouding her blood-spattered face. “He snuck up behind me, I didn’t hear him.” She pulled up the bottom of her shirt and tried to wipe away the black goo.
I spun back around to check on the Bugs. They scuttled across the ground but not really coming at us. “Let’s go.”
“I would advise against doing that.”
Megan and I both whirled around at the deep male voice.
A line of seven Rasper guys, who in size and looks reminded me of Kalis’s team of soldiers, blocked the cave. They each held a gun aimed right at us. Their skin held the telltale yellow tinge, but if I hadn’t been looking for it, I might not have noticed.
The Hive (Rasper Book 2) Page 20
