"Before you told me to stay away from them."
"That was before I had another Grey in my lab."
"Does this mean you believe and trust me now?"
"For the moment, like you said, I have no choice. You said we're a threat to them. In what way?"
"The virus in us is alien, the virus in them in human-alien. That's why Varloo isn't affected."
"I don't follow you."
"Batar is a normal Andronian, Varloo is not a normal Andronian."
"What did you just call them?" Carver was confused at how he knew this name, since the last time he heard it was thirty five years ago.
"Andronian."
"And these two Andronians, they're not the same?"
"No, Varloo is a descendant of a royal blood line, and I believe, a
hybrid."
"They look the same to me. Other than the fact the first had telekinetic abilities, and this one doesn't."
"I'm telling you, I think this Varloo is part human. I have discovered other reptilian races who are part human as well."
"Yes, the reptilians. I've heard of them, although I've never come across any. Only the Greys. What proof do you have?"
"Do you have any of Varloo's blood samples from thirty five years ago?"
"We didn't have time. He escaped before we could take his blood. And what was left, he injected me with it. We did find alien blood inside Dr. Avery, however. We used that to study the alien DNA. We also found two vials on the new Grey, a blue liquid and a green liquid. Do you know what they're for?"
"No," Jeff lied. He didn't want these Earthlings to have any knowledge of Triachilite, for fear they would use it for unscrupulous purposes ."But unless we can find a cure, your great grandson could die as well."
"My great grandson? How?"
"The virus is hereditary, and passes through the genes."
"How come Ms. Avery hasn't been infected?"
"She will be, in about a year."
"Dr. Reynolds stated the blood was the opposite. Could the cure be in other Grey? Or perhaps the liquids?"
"I don't know about that, but I do know the virus is a mixture of alien and human DNA. Ms. Avery found the cure in the future, but by that time it was too late to stop Varloo. But the liquids on the Grey are not the cure, I know that.""
"Then what is the cure?"
"A mixture of human, Tolarion, and alien blood."
"But there are none of these 'Tolarions' you spoke of yet? And we don't know of the whereabouts of the other Grey."
"You have chimpanzees and gorillas in your lab, and they're the next closest thing to the Tolarions. And Avery has alien blood within him. I would start there. Now, when can I get out of here?"
"Right now," he said. "I'll sign your release, and you'll be free to go."
"You know, your great grandson John was right about you," Jeff joked.
"Why's that?"
"You're not such a hard ass after all."
"You haven't got on my really bad side yet!"
Carver started to walk him up to the front, and signed him out. "Take the tram to Research and Development. It's about a ten minute ride."
"Thanks for believing in me," Jeff said.
"Just don't make me regret it," Carver said.
Jeff walked away, as a soldier walked by him, and up to the general.
"Sir, I'm afraid I have another development."
"Come on in the room on the right," the general said, and the two of them entered. He shut the door, and turned to the soldier. "What is it?"
"Someone apparently entered through the air ducts, and entered the infirmary. They stole three days supply of potassium iodide."
"Barkley!" Carver snapped.
"No, Sir," he said. "A woman. We got her on the video feed. She is a middle aged woman with dark brown hair."
"I assume she came with him. What is it with these people using air ducts? Do you know where she went?"
"We think she entered the old cavern system next to the base. We also found some kind of weapon in the air duct as well." He handed the laser pistol to the general.
"I've never seen anything like this before. I'll take it down to the lab. If she shows up again, apprehend her and bring her to me. Things are getting a bit complicated around here. All right, thank you, Private, that's all."
"Yes, Sir."
Carver walked out of the room, and toward the mag-lev tram terminal, and began to wonder who this new woman was, and if she was connected to Walker somehow. It was beginning to look like some kind of organized attempt to infiltrate his base; first Walker, then the Grey, and now a woman. It made him think maybe there was more to this Varloo than previously thought, and he was indeed a force not to be reckoned with.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
When Wilson awoke, Lori was still out, but began to move around in her sleep, which was a good sign. She broke open another glow stick, then walked over to the cavern wall, cupping some water, and began to drink it. Her throat was incredibly dry, and she still felt a little wheezy. She turned back to her friend, who just began to awake.
"Liz," she said, weakly, as she looked about the cave. "Where are we?"
"In a cave next to the base," she answered. "You've been out for at least three days."
"Jeff?"
"Still inside the base, as well as Batar, who was captured." She knelt down, and grabbed a hallowed out piece of bark on the cavern floor, as a small tarantula scurried off in the darkness. She wiped it out, used it to catch some water from the wall, and then gave it to Lori to drink. "Lori, there's something I have to tell you."
"Good news, I hope?" she asked.
"Not exactly," Wilson said. "I ran into Varloo."
"Varloo?" She began to sit up a little.
"Yes. He took me prisoner, but I escaped. I don't know where he is now."
"We have to save Jeff!" Lori said. "If Varloo finds out what we're doing-"
"He already knows," Wilson said. "There's something else. Batar destroyed most of the Triachilite and its antidote."
"Well, that's good news, right?"
"Yes," Wilson stated. "But-"
"But what?"
"Lori, he destroyed our ship."
She began to cry, now that she knew any hope of them returning home was gone. "What are we going to do?'
"Well," Wilson said. "The first thing we have to do is get you better. And I can't do it without more medicine, which is hard. I was almost caught last time. We also need food. I see no other choice than to go back into the base again."
"What if they catch you?" she cried.
"I have one weapon left, a Berretta M9 I stole from a soldier. And about three rounds of ammunition."
"That's not enough! What about your laser?"
"I seemed to have lost it somewhere in the ducts. Can I use yours?"
"I didn't bring one," Lori said, as she wiped the tears from her eyes.
"What? Are you insane? What in the hell were you thinking?"
"I thought maybe I could get in without them seeing me."
"Girl, you've got a lot to learn about survival training! Didn't they teach you that stuff in the academy?"
"Yes, but as you know, I was mostly on communications."
"Well, I guess the handgun will have to do. You rest, and I'll get us some food and more medicine."
"Be careful," Lori said, and grabbed her arm. "You're the closest thing to a sister I have."
"You just rest, Sister." Wilson replied, and smiled. "I'll be back in no time at all."
She left the cavern, and looked outside to see if anyone was present near their safe haven. When she saw it was clear, she climbed through the rusted grate again, and onto the catwalk.
She continued down to where the air duct was, and climbed in. She noticed a small red light just inside of it, and realized it was a camera,
which pointed towards the opposite direction. She carefully dismantled it, continued down the air duct, turned right, and headed back towards the med r
oom again.
She couldn't find her laser anywhere within her retraced path, and figured they must have found it. She knew this wouldn't be a good situation; because if they dismantled and found out how it worked, mankind would advance decades ahead, and may mean an unexpected warfare. But on the other hand, maybe they wouldn't understand the technology, and it would take them decades to figure it out anyway.
She eyed the med room, which was currently empty. She dismantled the camera in the duct facing it, quickly climbed down, and searched for the potassium iodide. When she found it, she could hear commotion of several people coming down the hall. She jumped back in the duct, as three guards entered the room, guns drawn.
"There," one yelled. "In the duct. We'll get her when she comes out at the other end. Tomkins, stay here. If she comes out, take her."
"Yes, Sir." she heard him say, as she scrambled to the left to where another room was. She looked out the vent, and down at the rec room, which was also empty. She noticed a snack machine, with various types of food in it. They didn't look all that nutritious, but right now, any food would be fine. She jumped down, and tried to open the machine, but it wouldn't open. She used the handle end to break the glass, and emptied all the snacks in the front, stuffing them into her pocket in haste.
Before she could jump back in the vent, another guard entered the room, his gun drawn. "Don't move!" he yelled. "Drop your weapon now!"
Wilson, who had her hand on the Berretta in her pocket, quickly drew, and shot the guard in the arm, which caused him to drop his gun to the floor. She backhanded him across the face with the handle, and then stole the other gun. She jumped back in the vent, and several guards burst in, and opened fire on her.
She scrambled down the vent, as the bullets bounced off the walls. She wiggled her way to the exit vent, where two guards waited for her. She drew both weapons, and fired repeatedly at them, until she was able to climb out and up the catwalk. As she exited the vent, one guard fired, and
hit her in the back of her right leg.
She fell out of the vent, and down the rocks, at a distance of about ten feet. She dragged her wounded body into the cave, as she could see the guards exit the complex, and point in her direction. They began to fire with both guns, until she shot two of the five guards. She found herself outgunned, and outnumbered, so she tried to find a way for her and Lori to escape.
She woke her up, and helped Lori to her feet. "Time to go, Sis," she said, as she staggered to walk. Wilson could only find one smaller tunnel to their right, so she headed in that direction.
The guards entered the cavern, as they disappeared in the darkness. "You can come out of there," he hollered. "That tunnel is a dead end! There's no where left for you to run."
There was silence, and one of the guards pulled out a flashlight. "You're sure it's a dead end?" one of the others asked.
"Positive," he stated. "I was up here last week."
The head soldier entered with the flashlight, and shined it towards Wilson and Lori, who were at the end. Wilson pointed both pistols at the guard.
"Don't come any closer," she said. "I don't want to kill you, but I will if I have to."
"Just drop you weapon, and we can talk about it," the guard said. "If you pull the trigger, you'll never get out of here alive."
"Just leave us alone," she answered. "And we'll go away. You can say we escaped."
"You know I can't do that. Drop your weapons, or I'll be forced to shoot."
She fired, and the guard fell to the floor. Three other guards immediately opened fire, and shot her in the stomach.
"Liz," Lori yelled, and grabbed her shoulder. Wilson fell, unconscious, and dropped her weapons to the floor. "Don't shoot! We surrender! She's been shot."
The guards came in, and Lori was now frozen in shock, as they grabbed the weapons from the ground. "Send a medic," one guard told the other. "Miss, you need to come with us."
He reached his hand down to help Lori to her feet. She was escorted out, as she looked back at her fallen friend, and hoped she was okay. Wilson was bleeding heavily, as one of the guards took out a couple of cloths, and placed them over her wounds until the medic arrived.
They escorted her down the rocky hill, and into the underground complex, through the open doors which led into the cargo bay. She watched as several medics passed her out the door and up to her friend. They got about halfway through the exiting hallway, when Lori herself collapsed as well. The guards grabbed her before she fell, and she slipped into unconsciousness.
When she awoke, she was in a blue colored hospital room with no windows. She lay in a bed next to her comrade, cuffed to the bed. Wilson was cuffed, as well, but on a life support machine of some kind. She also noticed there were two cameras in the room, as well, and a huge screen of some kind, what they referred to in the past as a "television." She was wearing a blue top and pants.
She stared over at her friend, and feared she wouldn't make it. She was shot just below her liver, and there was a risk of internal bleeding. She could see her leg had already been operated on, but there was still a chance for infection. They apparently still used simple laser surgery to cauterize the wound.
She wondered what happened to their friend Batar, and where Jeff was. She didn't know he was fairly close to her, about one floor up. Batar, if they found him, was most likely in their research lab or somewhere like that, under heavy guard. She lay there helpless as to what to do for any of her friends. She wished Jeff listened to her when she told him not to go on this whole mission, and stay on the tropical island. She missed her old life as well as her husband, and prayed she could at least be able to see his face one more time.
The doorknob turned, and a nurse with dark brown hair entered the room.
"Hello," she said. "My name is Sally. I'm going to be your day nurse. What's your name?"
"Lori. Lori Walk, I mean Anderson."
"Lori, that's a pretty name. The doctor says your okay, and the radiation exposure you received has been treated. Looks like your friend saved your life."
"Yea," she said. "Too bad I can't help her. Why am I chained up anyway?"
"I don't have anything to do with that," she said. "Security requested you both be cuffed until General Carver could talk to you."
"Ah yes," Lori muttered. "John's great grandfather."
"What?" she asked.
"Oh, nothing." she answered. "Just thinking aloud. So when do I meet him?"
"Shortly," she said. "After you have some lunch first."
"Oh good," she said. "I'm dying for a nice, big turkey sandwich."
"Turkey sandwich? What are you talking about?"
"You do have turkey here, don't you?"
"Of course not," she said. "We haven't had turkey for years. Ever since the war. Where have you been?"
"You have no idea!" Lori laughed. "Well, what do you have?"
"Broccoli, rice, bean, and cauliflower salad."
"Sounds yummy," Lori said, sarcastically. "All right. I'll take it. How about Liz? Is she gonna make it?"
"They don't know yet. They operated on her this morning. She had some internal damage to her liver, but they were able to save it. She lost a lot of blood, but they're giving her transfusions. Time will tell, but I think she'll be all right."
"She's all I got now," Lori sobbed.
"Don't cry, Honey," Sally said, as she wiped her tears away. "You're safe now, and everything's gonna be all right. I'll be right back with your lunch. Okay?"
"Okay," she cried, as the nurse left the room.
She came back shortly with her "salad," and sat down beside her to feed her.
"Is this really necessary?" Lori asked. "Can't I feed myself?"
"I'm afraid not," she said. "General's orders."
"You're treating me like I was dangerous!" she exclaimed. "I won't do anything to you. If you could just free one arm so I could eat?"
"I'm sorry, Honey, I can't. Now open you mouth, please."
She hand
fed the salad to her, and gave her a drink of water when she needed it.
"Where are you from, Lori?"
"Not from around here."
"I know that, Silly, where were you born?"
"I'd rather not say."
"Suit yourself, just trying to make conversation."
"Where is this place?"
"You are at the Colorado Strategic aeronautical base run by NASA."
"This General Carver. Do you know him?"
"I've met him once or twice. He usually doesn't come down to this area. Only when there are military prisoners such as yourselves. What did you do anyway?"
"Nothing," she said. "As you said, my friend stole the medicine to
save my life, and brought me back some food. I didn't do anything else. You do believe me, don't you?"
"I believe you," Sally said, and smiled. "Take a short nap, if you like. Or you can watch television, if you like."
"Television?"
"Don't tell me you've never seen a television?"
"I understand the concept, I've just been away a while."
"I understand." She turned on the television, and a comedy show was on. "This is television. Well, take care, if you need anything I'll be down the hall. Just hit your buzzer next to you. The general will be here in about an hour."
After a short nap, there was a knock at her door, and in walked a tall, older gentleman with light gray hair, who was balding on top. He removed his hat, and smiled at her. "Good afternoon, Ms. Anderson," he replied. "I'm General Albert Carver."
"Hello," she said.
"You took quite a lot of radiation, you're lucky to be alive."
"No thanks to your people," she said. "Why am I cuffed anyway?"
"For your own protection," he said. "Your friend is quite handy with a pistol. What's her name?"
"Liz Wilson," she said. "And that's all I'm going to tell you!"
Dimension Lapse III: Dimensional Breakdown (Dimension Lapse Series Book 3) Page 14
