by J. A. Scorch
A silence ripped across the line as he glanced at every single face staring back at him. Each cadet struggled to hold their heads up to attention, some holding back tears.
"Once the techs and mechanics clear these birds, you're all back in the air. No one will come to comfort you when the Zeal kills your best friend. No one will tell you everything will be okay. You have to maintain focus and keep flying, no matter what."
A few nods came from some of the tougher cadets but most didn't want to hear the life lesson being shoved down their throats.
"Take fifteen minutes to catch your breaths. The birds will be clear for takeoff in less than five."
Porter turned away from the line and headed back to the control room. The corporals had stayed with him the entire time, most likely to see the carnage first hand.
"Ready to take me, assholes?"
The two men gave each other a look. After a short thought, one said, "Yes, sir." They grabbed Porter's arms instead of worrying about the cuffs and escorted him back to the control room. After the guards had completed their delivery, Porter ordered a full analysis on the overheating Stalker, wanting a breakdown of the ship's systems before the problem occurred. When the report came in, all he got was a typical wear-and-tear document saying the issue was unforeseen.
For the next seven hours, Porter drilled the cadets non-stop, pushing them beyond their abilities. When the group let him know about the time elapsed on their mission clocks, he added another hour to the day. Training didn't stop until he was ordered by Garcia to recall the fighters. The two corporals had to pry him from his chair in the control room to lead him back to the brig.
Sleep found him after a few minutes. His mind didn't want to rest, but his body overpowered his thoughts. A dark void clouded his dreams with images of the coming battle. Visions of death and destruction rained down on the fleet from all angles as the Zeal finally showed their true strength. Mars soon fell to the interstellar invaders, burning down to nothing, reverting the planet back to a barren wasteland. Humanity was no more.
His nightmare raged on until morning.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Mish stood with her mouth open. Moreno and Harris didn't know what else to do or say at the sight of X and his Zeal mutations.
"How did you make it up here?" Teve asked as he walked toward him.
"Oh, you know, Tevey. A Little bit of this. A Little bit of that."
"Doesn't matter. I'm glad you found me. I want you to meet some people." Teve proceeded to introduce X to the three stunned soldiers, in particular, Mish.
"What the hell happened to him?" she asked.
"The Zeal is what happened," Teve said as he walked X over. The rest of the fire team took a few steps back. "They are capturing soldiers and civilians to build up an army capable of leaving the proximity of the Zeal base. For whatever reason, the aliens can't go beyond the city. He can prove that to Miller."
"Then what?"
"Then we exploit the weaknesses and destroy them."
Mish stared into his eyes for a long time without blinking. There was something else she wanted to say but couldn't. "We better get going. We'll have to walk back to Phoenix. Should only take—"
"No bases," X screamed.
"Hey," Teve said, spinning around. "This is a different base: a human one."
"Don't care," he said, backing up. "They're all the same. Poke, prod, stab, take. I'm not going back there. You all want a piece of me."
With outstretched arms, Teve slowly walked up to X and gently placed an arm on his shoulder. "We're here to help you. We're on your side."
X's eyes lit up to Teve's words. "Side? There are no sides."
"Yes, there are. You know that in your heart. Our people can fix you. Turn you back to the man you once were."
X's eyes darted from one soldier to the next until they landed on Teve's eyes. "That man is dead."
"No, he isn't. He's in there somewhere and needs to be guided back out again." Teve saw his face start to relax as his shoulders dropped. The tension in his eyes eased off. "He's gone forever."
Before anyone answered X, he pulled something from his pocket and tossed it on the ground.
"Grenade," Harris shouted before jumping away.
The rest of the fire team attempted to flee but took the full force of the flashbang grenade's blast. The flash seared through Teve's eyes as the noise deafened him instantly. He clutched his head, convinced someone had bashed his skull with a lead pipe. By the time he came to, X was gone.
Mish wandered around shouting something to the group as a ringing echoed through Teve's ears. He was the closest to the blast. After a few minutes, Mish's words started to make sense.
"He went that way," she said, pointing down the slope. "We need to follow him."
Teve nodded, granting her the authority to command the fire team. Harris and Moreno scooped up their sergeant and the group's belongings as they pursued X.
Once they cleared the canyon's edge and reached the hill, Teve located the running man charging downhill, utilizing the natural slope of the land into Glendale. The human-Zeal hybrid could outrun any of them with ease. Without the Humvee, the fire team was forced to give chase on foot as X led them back into Zeal territory.
The ringing raged in Teve's ears, but he could still make out Mish's orders.
"Moreno. Let go of the sergeant and drop your pack. Sprint after that guy as fast as you can."
Without a word, Moreno released his grip on Teve and dropped his gear while charging off down the hill at X. He didn't slow for anything but struggled to keep up. X pulled away and melded back into the city, eventually falling out of sight.
"Dammit," Mish yelled as they came to a stop by a half-fallen wall. "We need to find him." She glanced at Teve for a moment. "Guess you were right about this guy, huh?"
"I did try to tell you. You see now how important this is."
She nodded as she tried to catch her breath. "I get it now. X might be the thing to destroy the Zeal."
Teve let the thought sink in as Moreno returned. "He's gone ... Couldn't reach him."
"Take a breather. I've got a few ideas where he might be."
The group all bunched up and squatted down by the wall. Mish raised her rifle and watched one side of the line while Harris scanned the other.
Speaking over her shoulder, she said, "Sure could use a miracle right about now."
Teve chuckled and lowered his head, wondering if they would ever see X again. "We ran out of those a long time ago. All we can do is crawl through the city until we find him."
Mish scoffed. "Sounds like a cake walk. Just have to find a crazy, Zeal-infested man inside the twisted remains of Los Angeles."
Teve nodded as he stared at the Zeal base in the distance. The towering purple mess blocked out a slice of the early sun. At that moment, he realized they couldn't move forward without risking everything. He faced Mish again and said, "Maybe we should head home. We're risking enough as it is by pursuing him any further. Plus, X isn't going anywhere."
"But what about getting the proof?"
Teve glanced out at the dead city. "What good is proof if we don't survive to see it delivered."
With a smile all over her face, Mish hugged Teve as hard as she could. He winced in pain but embraced her back. "Thank you," she said.
"For what?"
"For showing me you're still you."
Teve kissed her on the forehead and stood on shaky feet. "Let's go home."
Moreno and Harris didn't object as the fire team set off for Phoenix on foot.
Chapter Thirty-Four
When Porter's room opened after only a few hours, he never expected to find Commodore Garcia blocking the open doorway to address him.
"Lieutenant," she said, standing with her arms behind her back. "May I come in?"
Sitting on the edge of his bed, Porter rubbed his eyes as they adjusted to the light. "It's your brig, Commodore. You can do what you like."
Gar
cia let out a breath as she strolled in. Her two corporals were only a few feet away, ready to pounce on their prisoner at a moment's notice. She moved past him and stood in the far corner, placing Porter between herself and the guards.
"It has come to my attention you've been doing an excellent job training the new pilots despite your recent incarceration."
"One of my cadets died. You call that an excellent job?"
"Cadets die all the time outside of war. In fact, there have been six training deaths in the last two days alone. Hooper's accident was unavoidable. All the same, you are proving yourself a worthy asset to the cause."
Porter stood from his bed. "What do you really want? I know you didn't come all the way down here just to blow smoke up my ass."
The two corporals stepped into the room toward him only to be stopped by a single motion from Garcia. A smile crept over Garcia's face. "An opportunity has come up."
"What opportunity?"
"Before we attack the Cyclones, I would like to properly scope out one of the ships."
"You mean like a reconnaissance mission? How? The Zeal will see our approach a thousand klicks out and launch their fighters."
"Not necessarily. What if I told you we have a new ship at our disposal, and that it was sitting in a launch tube for this mission?"
"What kind of ship?"
Garcia leaned closer to him. "A one-of-a-kind MAF stealth ship."
Porter's eyes widened. "I thought those things were just a rumor."
"They are not. Our best and brightest have been working on all kinds of stealth tech to utilize against the Zeal. The only problem is the slow process involved in building such luxuries."
With crossed arms, Porter shook his head. "So, the MAF spends countless time and money on some ship they assume will work while Earth suffers. Real smart."
Garcia stepped toward him and huffed. "Don't fool yourself, Lieutenant. Tough decisions need to be made during a war, especially when our very species is at risk. I thought you would have figured that out by now."
Porter turned away from Garcia and paced the small room as best he could. "Why are you telling me about this? Let me guess: you want me to test this stealth ship."
She nodded.
"Well, you can forget it. I'd rather rot in here than run your little mission. Now if you don't mind, I've got cadets to teach." Porter went to leave, but the corporals stood in his way, blocking him with their combined bodies.
"Not so fast. You either take the mission, or you stay in this cell until I feel like letting you out."
A laugh found its way out of Porter's mouth. He shook his head and turned back to Garcia. "Figures. You only achieve what you want by being an asshole."
She stepped over to him and got up in his face. "You think this bullshit is what I want? Do you think I'm enjoying this? Tell you what, Lieutenant. I'll give you full flight status again if you do this for me. You can fly with your wingman during the assault and die for all I care."
Porter found himself shaking a little. More than anything, he wanted to tell her where to shove her stealth op. Briggs and his people would find a way to sneak him onto the main mission, but something about the mysterious ship intrigued him enough to know more. She already knew his answer before the words formed on his lips. "Fine. When do I start this so-called mission?"
Garcia pulled out her tablet and tapped a few commands on the screen. The Andromeda rumbled as the main engines fired away. The ship began to move from a relative stop.
"Right now. Follow me. We won't be needing cuffs for this."
Porter followed Garcia with the two corporals at his sides. They kept their hands on him and made sure he understood they still had control.
A brief walk brought them to a launch tube with only a single tech inside. Garcia was apparently trying to keep the mission as low key as possible. A flight suit with special gear waited for him by the door as a drone lifter automatically loaded up a black Stalker into the tunnel. The fighter was slightly larger than the average X90 with sleeker lines running down its body.
"Meet the X90S. It won't show up on any frequency known to Earth, Mars, or the Zeal. Only visual contact will identify the ship, so we installed a composite skin over the entire surface to project the ship's environment out to the viewer. You'll be seen as a hazy blur." She tapped a button on her tablet. The X90S Stalker disappeared in a flash. In its place stood a blurry shadow of the fighter.
"Holy crap," Porter said. "Why is this even necessary. I thought the Zeal were blind?"
"They are. The average Zeal foot soldier relies on every other sense except sight to function, but their ships have eyes. We believe the Cyclones are more organic in nature than machine. In addition to this, they see using heat signatures, radar waves, and other disruptive signals that we emit during operation. The X90S emits nothing."
Porter stared at the beast with both arms crossed. "How many of these things are in operation?"
"There are a few others around. The MAF hopes to pump them out in full swing in the coming year. Frankly, though, the production is too far away. Now suit up. I'll brief you in ten minutes."
With a million questions running through his mind, Porter changed into the specially made flight suit and left his helmet off to the side as he sat down for the mission briefing in the control room.
Garcia gave him the specs and objectives, sending the tech out of the area until they finished. He was to get in close to the Zeal ship and take as many photos as possible using the ship's camera array. The process would be automated. All he had to do was fly. Once the Cyclone was covered, the next objective would be to record their fighters launching. A small team of Stalkers would prompt the Zeal into a fight and withdraw as soon as possible.
"The Andromeda is traveling to the front as we speak. You'll launch the second we arrive. The X90S won't be able to communicate via radio or transmit the data during its flight. We're still trying to implement that ability and can't risk the Zeal spotting your signals."
Porter nodded for the millionth time and attempted to take in the mountain of information thrown at him. "So, let me get this straight: You want me to fly an experimental ship right up to the Zeal carrier and take photos while you poke at them with a stick. Oh, and I can't communicate or be seen by our people."
"Good to know you were listening."
"This is insane."
"Too late to back out now, Porter. We arrive at the front in a few hours. Don't make me find another pilot. There's enough of them lying around."
He smiled. "Not enough skilled ones, though, right? Tell me something, Garcia. Now that we are being honest with each other, do you think we can pull the assault off?"
She stood from the tech's chair and wiped the sleeve of her spotless jacket. "You have your orders, Lieutenant. Don't screw this up. Everybody you know or care about is depending on you." She left the room and ordered the tech back in along with her corporals. The three men moved around Porter and looked him up and down, each one getting a look at the man they would all be relying on to succeed.
Chapter Thirty-Five
After a long trek back to base, Teve and his fire team sneaked into Phoenix and fell in with the dinner crowd as they ate. They quietly resupplied, visited Medical, and settled in for the night. Setting out the next day, Teve felt rejuvenated and happy with the decision to let X go for now. It was a risky move, but the gash on his head said otherwise.
The lost Humvee wasn't as easy to explain away to Miller, but Teve managed to convince the general to give him one last go at the secret mission. With a relatively new set of wheels and supplies, the fire team drove out around lunchtime.
After a typical drive into the outskirts of the city. Teve stared through the scope of his rifle at another UEF fire team. Mish, Moreno, and Harris lay on their bellies beside him as he made sure the passing team didn't spot them.
"Looks like they might be on a missile run," he said, spotting the laser attachment on a few of the fire team's rifles.
"Got a second fire team to the west," Harris said. "They might have a patrol on their asses in a few minutes. Should we assist?"
"No. We stick to the plan and find X. He's too valuable to lose. Those fire teams will have to make do."
Harris grunted. "Copy that, Sarge." The specialist adjusted his scope and shifted focus back across the line to scan the city.
"How are we supposed to find this guy?" Mish asked as she shuffled next to Teve. "There's too much debris blocking our view."
"I might have a plan."
"Oh, this should be good," she muttered.
"About as good as we're going to get given the circumstances. X has got an advantage over the Zeal. They want him alive and won't use their weapons when he is near."
"How do you know that?"
Teve sighed as he remembered his last adventure with X. "Trust me; I've seen it up close. They will chase him all over the place without firing a single shot. I don't know if it's the Zeal in him or if they just want to finish the job, but none of the soldiers dared risk killing him."
Harris cleared his throat. "What about the drones?"
Teve thought for a moment. "They could bring him down, but he manages to evade them, somehow."
An explosion ripped away in the distance as the other fire team successfully guided a missile down to their target. The fireball prompted a lightning quick response from a few patrols nearby.
Teve brought up his scope. Through the eyepiece, the UEF soldiers engaged the Zeal, taking shots at the aliens whenever possible while the Stiltz made a slow walk toward them, weapons raised.
Harris piped up. "They've got problems. Another patrol is about to cut off their retreat. That fire team is toast if we don't intervene."
"What did I say, Harris? We can't afford to compromise our mission. Get off your ass and take the pathway to the next point of cover."
"But, Sarge. They—"
"But nothing. We need to use this opportunity to advance to the next sector unnoticed."
Harris gritted his teeth and shook his head.
