by Michael Cole
“I know…” Hawk muttered. She turned away, unable to look him in the eyes. “I’m sorry. Believe me, I’m sorry. We wanted to contain the situation, but not risk the scientific operation itself. We have the data on this drive, but there’s so much more. We wanted to preserve the site.” She turned again to face him. “But the situation is grave. If even one of those things gets off this island, we could be looking at the end of the human race!”
“That’s on YOU!” he said. “Besides, isn’t your airstrike supposed to take care of that?”
“Yes…but if they use your plane, they can escape before the Air Force gets here.”
“Charlie said he crashed,” Seymour interrupted her.
“Would that thing even know how to fly it?” Terrie asked.
“That thing has operated technology beyond our limits!” Hawk said. “It’s flown a ship over lightyears of space, across GALAXIES! Yes, I think it can figure out how a plane works.” Seymour stared at the ocean, saying nothing. Hawk watched him. It appeared as though he had given up. His expression blank, he started walking inland.
Hawk started walking after him. “We have to do something!”
“How?” Seymour yelled at her. “You saw what happened last night. God knows how many of those things there are. And there’s only three of us. On top of that, we don’t have much to fight with!”
Seymour continued to walk off. Hawk began to follow, only for Terrie to step in her way. Flashing back to yesterday’s brutal encounter, Hawk held out both hands in defense.
“Listen, I know you’re pissed at me. But there’s no time for…”
“Let me handle him,” Terrie interrupted. Hawk exhaled, relieved. “If Charlie crashed the plane, you think the Pilot can patch it up?”
“Assuming the damage is minor enough, it’s likely the Pilot is capable of repairing it,” she said. Terrie nodded, then turned to follow Seymour.
********
Brush crunched under his boots as Seymour marched through the jungle. There was no worry about anything ambushing him. At this point, he didn’t care. He approached the harbor, feeling the freshness of the breeze as he looked out into the ocean.
“I can hear you,” he called out.
“I wasn’t trying to hide,” Terrie said, stepping from the tree line. She walked up to him, glancing at the horizon. The ocean had calmed from the storm. The waves reduced to gentle ripples, and the clouds had scattered, exposing a blue sky. “You know, if not for the destruction…and all the dead people, I’d say this actually looked like paradise.”
Seymour said nothing, though Terrie did notice the small grin that briefly showed. “So, what?” she said. “You’re just giving up now?”
“We’ve lost the whole team,” he said. “I’m not gonna sacrifice you as well.”
“Today, tomorrow, maybe Thursday…who knows when,” Terrie said. “But if those things escape, I’ll be dead. Me, and everyone else on the planet. Besides, we’re probably gonna be detained for life by the C.I.A. anyway.” She laughed at her own joke, though Seymour didn’t. “Listen…you think you’re the only one who’s lost their way? The two of us, plus all the others…we’re all the same. At one time, we were all good soldiers, fighting for freedom, liberty, what have you. Whether we were manipulated by the government is irrelevant. We were good people with good intentions. Now look at us. We travel around the world, doing soldier-stuff, but we’re not soldiers. We just shoot bad guys, take the paycheck, and hope the guy paying us isn’t worse than who we just took down.”
“Is there a point to this monologue?” Seymour said.
“Though we’re the same, you’re different,” she said. “We got in this business because we had the skills, and figured we’d use it to make a shiny paycheck. You, though…you didn’t just up and leave the Navy. You got cancer. They thought you were a goner, and they let you go. But like everything else in your life, you beat it. And you wanted to keep fighting the good fight, and settled for this, figuring it was the closest thing.”
“I’m still waiting on the point…”
“You’re not one to lose,” Terrie said. “You’re certainly not one to give up. I mean…you’re a SEAL for heaven sake!”
“Was,” Seymour said.
“I guess we’ll find out,” Terrie said. “You above anyone else knows it’s not the stripes that make you a SEAL. It’s the attitude…the PERSEVERANCE!” She paused and took a breath, looking out at the ocean once more. “Listen, our guys dying, it was not your fault. We were dealt a shitty deal. But you know as well as I do, that Pilot is gonna get off this island. And when it does, all this…” she pointed to the beautiful horizon, “…will be gone. It’ll be black, from those friggin nests. And we’re the only ones able to stop it. A SEAL wouldn’t stand by and let it happen. Not even out of concern for his teammate. A SEAL would trust his teammate to back him up.”
Seymour inhaled a deep, soulful breath, taking in every word as he gazed out at the Pacific. He finally looked over at Terrie.
“We’re probably not gonna survive this,” he said. Terrie nodded. “But if we do…I might just have to take you salsa dancing.”
Terrie smiled. “If we make it out of here, I’ll take you up on that.”
Seymour removed his revolver from its holster and checked the cylinder. All eight slots were loaded. He holstered it back and looked at Terrie.
“Never thought I’d actually use this cliché for real, but…let’s go save the world.”
CHAPTER
36
Seymour opened the spare munitions compartment in the Zodiac and shoved a fresh magazine into his H&K. He tossed a fresh MP5 to Hawk, who promptly caught it and loaded it. Terrie rushed a cleaning of her rifle barrel, brushing some dirt from the inside. She collected some fresh magazines for the sniper rifle and her machine-pistol, while also collecting one of the spare MP5s. All three of them were boarded in the Zodiac, readying for their upcoming assault.
“Do you have a plan in mind?” Hawk asked.
“We’ll have to take the boat up along the north side of the island. Like yesterday, we’ll have to climb up, although it won’t be as steep. Then we’ll hike our way to the plain, and analyze the situation from there.”
“There’ll be an army of those things waiting for us,” Terrie said. “We won’t last long in a firefight. I say we focus on sabotaging the plane, then get the hell out of dodge with the Zodiac. I’m sure the Agency will find us.”
“How will we sabotage the ShinMaywa?” Hawk asked. “Shoot the hell out of it?”
“That’s one way,” Terrie said.
“That’ll be hard to do if we’re fighting off a horde of those things,” Seymour pointed out.
“And we don’t have enough ammo to do that for very long,” Terrie said. “Unfortunately, it’s not as simple as blowing them all up.”
She noticed Seymour perking up, as though an idea came to mind.
“Maybe it is,” he said. He started the Zodiac’s engine and drove the vessel out of the cove. Terrie and Hawk both waited as he steered the boat toward the harbor. He passed the sunken ship and pulled up to one of the vacant docks. Terrie stepped out first and secured the line to a cleat.
“What’s your idea?” she asked. Seymour climbed onto the dock, then knelt to help Hawk up.
“The soldier boys left behind some toys,” he said. He led them up to the outpost. They entered the building and passed through the observation room. Seymour opened a back door, leading into a large storage room.
“Hot damn,” Terrie said as she looked at all the leftover munitions. Even Hawk was surprised by the amount of firepower.
“They really were geared up for retaliation,” she said.
“Load up!” Seymour said. Seymour moved to the back of the room, where the North Koreans had stored their C-4.
Terrie quickly opened a case, revealing an RPG. “Now we’re talking.”
She grabbed two empty duffle bags and brought them to Seymour, who started
loading them up with C-4 blocks.
“How much are we bringing?”
“All of it,” he answered.
“You have an idea in mind?” Terrie asked.
“Sort of,” he said. “Hopefully we can set these explosives and somehow lure those aliens into a trap. I’m still working on the luring part.” He lifted the duffle bag over his shoulder. “Let’s go!”
The group loaded the munitions and supplies and boarded the zodiac. Seymour put the engine in reverse, backing the boat out from the dock. He pointed the bow to the north, and placed the boat in full throttle. It took off like a rocket, spraying water from the stern.
********
Traveling at fifty knots, it took eleven minutes to reach the north side of the island. Seymour reduced speed as he curved the boat to follow the shore. Terrie took advantage of the travel, eyeing the now-peaceful ocean and sky. It brought her a much-needed relaxation, which would soon dissipate. The wind and sun helped to dry them off, lessening the damp heaviness in their gear. The shoreline had mostly been an abundance of green, with hardly any space for docking. As they moved along the northside, they came upon a large rocky hillside.
Seymour looked up at the landscape. The hill grew larger further west, though the abundance seemed less as the hill rose.
“The landing site’s over there,” he said. “That’s where the horde will probably be.”
“You sure on that?” Hawk said.
“Judging by the militaristic tactfulness your alien has displayed, he’ll likely be setting up a defense while he gets the plane ready. He’s been stalking us since we’ve eliminated the Koreans, which is probably how he learned of the ShinMaywa. The objective of that attack last night wasn’t just to capture us and use us as hosts. The main goal was to get our radio in order to contact Charlie and manipulate him to bring the ShinMaywa. Its objective is to get off this island, so I guarantee he’ll have his little soldiers guarding the perimeter. Probably the reason why we haven’t seen any all night. He didn’t want his forces scattered all over the island.”
“So, what’s our next move?” Hawk asked.
“We’ll climb up here, and then work our way over by foot,” Seymour answered.
He steered the boat into the shallow waters, careful not to crash the rigid hull against any of the rocks. Pulling up to the foot of the hill, he killed the engine. Terrie stepped out and secured the spring line between a couple of rocks. Seymour stepped off the boat and looked up at the hill. While it wasn’t as steep, it would still require climbing gear to scale.
He broke out the harnesses, then snapped his fingers at Hawk. She walked up to him, carefully watching her step as the ocean splashed the rocks. Seymour extended a harness over to her.
“You get to climb this time,” he said. “You up to it?”
Hawk nodded and accepted the harness. Seymour tossed one to Terrie, and then grabbed one for himself. He fastened it around his shoulders and waist, then strapped the duffle bag over his back. Normally he’d attach a line to it and haul it up separately, but time was short.
Seymour initiated his climb. He felt the hill with his hands, finding his first hold. The rocky edges of the hill made for easier climbing compared to the cliff. He ascended twenty feet before commencing the first drilling. After inserting the bolt, he continued upward, drilling every twenty feet.
After a hundred and twenty feet, he came up at the ledge. After climbing his way over, he instantly kneeled to a firing position and scanned the immediate area. Seeing no creatures, he looked down at Terrie and Hawk and signaled for them to initiate their climb.
Terrie went first, clipping her harness to the cable. She found a hold, and lifted herself against the rocks. As she ascended several yards, Hawk began her climb. Using the cable as support, they were able to climb at an accelerated rate. Seymour provided cover as they climbed. The jungle was not as thick on this side of the island, allowing for greater visibility.
Terrie and Hawk both emerged over the ledge. They removed their harnesses and checked their weapons.
“All set,” Terrie said.
“Alright, keep low and stay quiet. Follow my lead, and be ready to move fast,” Seymour said. “Be ready for anything.”
With their weapons raised, they entered the jungle, pushing west toward the plains. As they started their patrol, Terrie took one final glance at the horizon. It was majestic: so peaceful.
A beautiful calm before the horror she knew awaited them.
CHAPTER
37
The humanoid clicked its mandibles as it moved through the nest. It walked by two other humanoid spawns as it approached one of the large pods. It was full, soon to give birth. Streams of black secretion ran down its sides, spilling from pores. Its host had been almost completely decomposed, leaving nothing other than a lump of soggy residue.
The humanoid leaned its head against the pod. Its mandibles curled outward, making way as the proboscis protruded from its throat. The soft, fleshy appendage acted like a hose, sucking the black stream into the creature’s body. It ingested a gallon of the secretion before retracting the proboscis. Its mandibles uncurled into their normal position, and the creature resumed its patrol.
It stuck close to the perimeter to enact its purpose in guarding the nest. Its two humanoid comrades moved about separately. One slowly roamed the nest’s interior, while the other stood firm at the tree line. A forth companion, an arachnid spawn, had moved toward a tree in the center of the nest. Clawed digits protruded from tiny apertures in its pointed forelegs and dug into the trunk of the tree. Like a spider, it slowly climbed.
The humanoid watched the nest, monitoring any signs of threat. Like the rest of its species, it did not experience emotion. It did not grow bored. It did not seek thrill. It only contained purpose: propagate and preserve the species. Its life only had value as a member of that species. Like its fellow spawn, it was a drone. It contained no regard for itself outside of sustaining its body in order to conduct its purpose.
Sensory nerves based along its neck and forearms detected faint signals from deep within the jungle. The creature stopped its motion, allowing its brain to analyze and determine the source. Since its birth, the creature had learned the various natural vibrations and sounds from the jungle. They each had a basic repetition to them, a slight symptom indicative of the environment.
These new vibrations were extremely faint, however without the common repetition of the natural vibrations from the wind and trees. The creature postured itself, preparing to signal the others with a high-pitched screech.
A new vibration lit its nerves. It was brief and precise. A single movement, zipping through the trees, generating a faint whistling sound. A new vibration appeared, like a tiny explosion. This one was much closer. Within the nest!
The drone turned toward the vibration, just in time to see the humanoid comrade fall backward. Its upper torso was ripped open just below the neck. Blood gushed into the ground, mixing in with the black secretion.
Another whistle zipped through the air. As the drone picked up on the vibration, the other humanoid fell to the ground. Its head was completely ravaged, with a gaping hole penetrating above the mandibles.
Blood suddenly rained from the tree. The arachnid spawn fell from its perched position. Several gaping impact craters lined its torso. They were smaller than the wounds from the other drones, though greater in number. It picked up new vibrations. Thuds against the forest floor, rapidly growing nearer.
The drone protruded its barbs, as the indigenous intruder leapt from the tree line. And as quickly as it appeared, the drone felt the multiple penetrating impacts, as the intruder unleashed its weapon. It attempted to screech, to alarm the horde, only for blood to bubble from its throat.
The silencer muffled the sound as Seymour fired several rounds from his H&K. Gunshot wounds exploded from the humanoid’s chest, the impact force knocking it down on its back. The creature twitched as bubbling orange fluid gushed from its wo
unds. It tried lifting its arm upward, determined to place its barb into the intruder and potential host.
Seymour kicked his boot down on the creature’s arm, pinning it to the ground. He pressed the silencer against the humanoid’s forehead and pulled the trigger. Exoskeleton, blood, mud, and black secretion splattered behind its head as the bullet passed through.
Seymour took a step back, feeling a small satisfaction from the execution. He checked the other bodies, confirming the kills. Terrie stepped out from the jungle, a silencer inserted into her rifle barrel.
“Whew,” Seymour said. “That was a little too close. Nice shooting.” Terrie silently thanked him with a nod, then looked back to the perimeter as Hawk stepped out from the jungle into the nest. She looked pale gazing at the numerous pods growing from the various hosts.
“Thank God Terrie has a good eye,” she muttered.
Nearly a quarter mile into the jungle, Terrie decided to scout ahead. First, she detected the foul odor. Following the smell for several hundred yards, she slowed her movements. With the use of stealth, and distance on her side with her sniper scope, she spotted a dark, swampy region. Immediately recognizing it as a nesting site, she double-backed to inform Seymour and Hawk.
“It’s not easy to sneak up on these things,” Hawk continued. “We’re gonna have to be extra careful when we approach the plain.”
“Well, we need to start moving,” Terrie said. She started moving west. She stopped as she looked back at Seymour. He was studying one of the bodies, from which a juvenile pod was growing. She recognized the host. “Oh, God,” she said, covering her mouth.
Seymour leaned over Ivan’s body, looking at his comrade’s shrunken appearance. All of the color had left his face, which was barely recognizable. The pod had grown to nearly two feet in height. Its veins took on a greenish color. Seymour ran his hand near Ivan’s neck, removing his U.S.M.C. dog tags which he always kept.
