Realms of Time (Scrapyard Ship)

by Mark Wayne McGinnis

  “Yes, sir. I’ll get on it right away.”

  “Wait. Before you go, I want to ask you something.”

  “Yes, Admiral?”

  “Undoubtedly, the plan would be dangerous. My thoughts are this: acquire that cloaked vessel, make her space-worthy, and equip her for wormhole travel. If all that is possible, I want a small team to take her to the Craing worlds. Since Her Majesty will be cloaked, she’ll go undetected.”

  “I understand, Admiral,” Ricket replied.

  “That’s not the difficult part, Ricket. Once you get back from the mission on Earth, I want you and Gaddy on that team. You’ll infiltrate whatever meetings, discussions, taking place. As Craing yourselves, you shouldn't stand out. I need intel and I need it fast.”

  “I am somewhat recognizable, Admiral.”

  The admiral chuckled. “The way you are remembered by the Craing populace is someone who has undergone the transformation of eternity. You look twenty years younger now, and you also have a head full of hair, which you’ll have to shave off. I think your true identity is relatively safe.”

  Ricket looked unsure. The admiral knew he’d loaded a lot onto his longtime friend. But Ricket needed to become more than solely a science officer; he needed to become a leader.

  “Look, you’ll have support. I’m going to talk to Brian. He’s actually a fine officer, when he puts his mind to it. He can captain that ship, if you can lead the team.”

  Ricket nodded, his mind obviously spinning.

  “That’s all, Ricket. Get down to the planet, bring Bristol up to speed, and let’s make all this happen.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Chapter 32

  Jason and his team phase-shifted to the middle of the beach. SEALs and rhinos moved into a defensive formation keeping Dira and Bristol in the middle of the pack. Undefined things were moving, scurrying about, up ahead deeper into the trees. A chorus of strange animal sounds filled the air. Jason felt as if a thousand eyes were watching their every movement.

  Bristol, without looking up, held out an outstretched arm, with his index finger pointed toward the trees. “Drones in that direction. There’s also another shuttle close by.”

  “Here? What do you mean—”

  Jason cut his question short. His HUD now registered what Bristol’s equipment had already detected. It was the sister shuttle to the Magnum, the Perilous. It did an overhead pass and landed a little farther down the beach.

  Jason arrived as the rear gangway extended and settled onto the sand. Ricket and Traveler moved quickly down the ramp and hurried over to meet him. Standing at the top of the gangway, Lieutenant Wilson, the commander of The Lilly’s Top Gun pilots, gave a quick wave.

  “Good to have you back with us, Traveler,” Jason said. “Ricket? What the hell are you doing here?”

  “Yes, sorry, sir. Apparently even NanoTexting is hit or miss. I tried to contact you repeatedly and failed to receive a response.”

  “So how are we going to deploy the two remaining drone pairs with you down here?”

  Ricket pointed to the Perilous. “The two drones … They’re locked down in the rear of the shuttle, Captain. Even if there need to be modifications to their code, I should be able to manage things from here.”

  “We’ll want to move that shuttle out to the lake, next to the Magnum. Nothing’s safe on the beach.”

  “Yes, Captain. Also, there have been other developments we were unable to communicate to you.” Ricket looked over to Bristol, who had wandered over to the gangway and was peering into the stern of the shuttle. “We’ve discovered the vessel Her Majesty abandoned and adrift in space.”

  “Stalls’ ship?”

  “Yes. She’s cloaked … nearly impossible to detect. The admiral wants to board her and make use of her for a mission to the Craing worlds.”

  Ricket proceeded to update Jason with everything that had happened over the last twenty-four hours, including the arrival of Gaddy from HAB 12, and The Lilly being contacted by Granger, and his threats of bringing the might of the Craing Empire to Earth if the Minian was not returned to him within twenty-four hours.

  Jason, musing over Ricket’s information, felt his temper rise. He knew Granger was two-faced—he shouldn’t have trusted him. Now, it seemed pretty obvious he’d been working some kind of self-serving angle all along.

  “I agree with the admiral’s logic,” Jason said. “It’s time we take the battle to the Craing, break the Alliance’s constant cycle of playing defense and start playing offense. Okay, so we send Bristol back to The Lilly. Wilson can shuttle him back there in the Magnum; we’ll use the Perilous to complete our mission.”

  Jason didn’t want to lose either Billy or Orion, knowing what he and his crew might be going up against shortly. In the end, he selected Orion to head back with Bristol, and for her to later lead the mission onto Her Majesty. Bristol, all too happy to get away from planet Earth and the fluctuating time realms, handed over his equipment to Ricket. Orion gave Billy a quick hug and together she, Wilson, and Bristol phase-shifted over to the Magnum on the lake. Jason watched them appear on the shuttle’s roof and then separately crawl inside through its top hatch. Next, Grimes and Petty Officer Chris Myers climbed onto the roof and phase-shifted over to the beach. Less than a minute later, the Magnum was airborne and heading toward the horizon.

  Traveler joined the three rhino-warriors on the beach. They gathered together, excitedly relaying the events of the previous day. Jason headed out, taking up the lead, with Billy and Rizzo on either side. The other five SEALs took up perimeter positions, while Traveler and the other three rhinos moved into place, bringing up the rear. Ricket, several paces behind Jason, hurried to keep up as he balanced the awkward drone detection equipment that was strapped around his neck and hung down to his hips. Jason slowed and looked back over his shoulder, and caught Dira’s eye. She smiled back at him, but then became serious. Her eyes had left his and were focusing on something in the distance.

  Billy began yelling into his comms, “Multiple contacts approaching straight ahead!”

  The ground came alive with what looked like small rodent-sized lizards—thousands of them running toward the beach. Their sound, like screeching, was near deafening, and Jason found himself feeling small bodies scrunch beneath his boots as he stepped along.

  Trees whipped and jostled fifty yards up ahead, and according to what Jason’s HUD readings were telling him, there were seven large contacts approaching.

  “Take cover, we’ve got company!” Jason yelled over his comms.

  The rhinos quickly moved to the front of their formation, which was their standard practice, and held a line. Jason stayed low and watched Traveler race past him. With his heavy hammer tightly gripped in one hand, Traveler strode forward with amazing agility for a being his size. And something else: Jason had come to know Traveler’s expressions and, beyond a doubt, he was smiling. This is where the big rhino most loved to be, in battle alongside his compatriots, who now surged forward after him. It was then Jason noticed Billy and Rizzo wearing similar expressions. And so did he, probably, for that matter. Feeling his adrenalin kick in, Jason straightened up and raised his multi-gun. The ground began to shake and the first of the fearsome beasts came into view.

  “Holy shit,” Billy yelled. “What is that? That’s a T-Rex, isn’t it?”

  “Not even close,” Rizzo yelled back. “I think that’s a Nanuqsaurus. Distant cousin to the T-Rex. No, these guys are much smaller. Probably only a thousand pounds.”

  The three rhino warriors continued moving forward. None of them had drawn their plasma weapons, preferring to hold their ground with heavy hammers. Jason almost felt guilty anticipating which beast would best the other in battle. Especially since Traveler was a friend. There wouldn’t be long to wait. Two of the seven dinosaurs, both walking on thick back legs, their heads bobbing up and down, tentatively approached Traveler—seeming almost like two large birds. But the analogy stopped there. Similar to their bigg
er T-Rex cousin, their heads were large, with ridiculously oversized jaws. When Jason got a glimpse of their huge upper and lower canines, the seriousness of their situation came to roost.

  The two dinosaurs split up and approached Traveler from both sides. Traveler wasn’t going to play their game. He attacked. Spinning around backwards a full one hundred and eighty degrees, he let his heavy hammer build-up momentum—only extending his arm out straight at the last moment. The Nanuqsaurus to his right never had a chance. The business end of the heavy hammer blew through the creature’s upper and lower jaws shattering both bone and teeth along its unyielding trajectory. Surprisingly, the dinosaur didn’t die straight away. With much of its head torn away, it flailed its tiny upper arms, arms far too short to be of use for much of anything.

  The second Nanuqsaurus attacked, its jaws opened wide and mere inches from Traveler’s back when Jason aimed his multi-gun and took the shot. Not wanting to miss, or hit Traveler, two quick bursts of rail munitions tore into the dinosaur’s hindquarters. The dinosaur’s dead weight continued forward and plummeted into Traveler. Both fell to the ground—only one got back up.

  The other rhinos charged. In less than a minute, the other five Nanuqsaurus were plummeted by heavy hammers and lay still on the ground. A new wave of screeching started up as the tiny lizards returned. Like a school of hungry piranha they quickly engulfed the two dinosaurs Traveler had killed. Soon, all that remained of both carcasses were bones. Angered, the rhino-warriors were quick to lift their own quarries off the ground, kicking out at the small predators who snapped at their feet.

  In the end, only two Nanuqsaurus carcasses were saved. Jason wondered if eating dinosaur meat was such a good idea, but then remembered his internal nanites would protect him from any parasitic organisms. He also recalled that the feast served up by the rhinos after their battle with the Serapins was one of the best fireside meals he’d ever eaten.

  Jason checked on Dira and Ricket. Both were fine—by this point, almost immune to the sheer violence residing here. Long shadows stretched out along each tree trunk. Soon, evening would be upon them.

  Ricket looked up from his equipment. “There is a clearing fifty feet from here, Captain.”

  “Lead the way, Ricket,” Jason said, turning toward Billy.

  “I want perimeter fires set up all around camp tonight. Keep them stoked. Two rhinos and two men together, on rotating watches. The last thing we want is a surprise visit by a T-Rex in the middle of the night.”

  Rizzo chimed in: “Cap, the latest archeological and scientific findings reveal it’s the raptors that hunt at night—not T-Rexes. They’re the ones we need to keep an eye out for.”

  They reached the clearing. A pair of rhinos moved into the open space carrying a Nanuqsaurus carcass as if they were handling a sofa. They dropped it, waiting for the second carcass to be similarly unloaded, while staying close by to fend off the small lizards.

  Darkness was quickly setting in. Jason looked out at the surrounding forest.

  “We’ll need firewood. Lots and lots of firewood.”

  Chapter 33

  Separate fires didn’t work. The small lizards still entered. After some trial and error, the team simply encircled the camp with a continuous ring of burning fire. Although there was not an actual opening going in and out of the campsite, several areas had low enough burning fire barriers for them to easily jump over. In addition to their patrolling duties, sentry teams were constantly foraging close by for more wood.

  Jason hadn’t thought it possible, but the night sounds were louder than those of daytime. The campsite was filled with smoke, making it a necessity for them to keep their helmet visors closed. RCMs, Retractable Camp Modules, were clustered close together in the middle of the clearing. A central, larger campfire was now roaring and billowing smoke high into the air. Their seating consisted of a six-foot-long log, several boulders, and a large dinosaur skull. Ricket and Rizzo began talking animatedly between themselves, and Billy left to scout for more firewood.

  Jason, standing to the side, watched the rhinos as they handled the meat. Like a ritual, the preparation of the meal was as important to them as the kill itself. The four rhinos talked, probably telling old stories, or recounting today’s events. Although Jason couldn’t hear what they were saying, their deep voices, more like murmurs, carried nicely across the campsite. It was relaxing and gave Jason time to let his mind wonder. He missed Mollie more than ever before. He wondered what she was doing this very minute and then remembered she had just celebrated her ninth birthday. With a heavy heart and a feeling of some guilt, Jason vowed to himself he’d someday make his absence up to her. But clear sudden insight told him Mollie wouldn’t trade her life with anyone. The adventures she’d lived through the past year were one of a kind. Like her father, and her grandfather before him, she would probably find herself seeking out adrenalin-pumping situations the rest of her life.

  Jason got up—he needed to move around and their encircling campfire would need refueling throughout the night. He strode off in the opposite direction and leapt over the fire’s border into the darkness beyond. He reached down and picked up a thick branch, then gathered up two similar ones. Soon, both arms were filled. His stack rose to eye level.

  Making the jump back over the fire was trickier with his arms full. He doled out his fresh stack of wood every twenty feet or so around the perimeter of the camp.

  Jason returned to the same boulder he’d sat on before. Two rhinos were seated across from him, and two SEALs sat to his left. Platters of meat were handed out, and Jason accepted one from Traveler.

  “Enjoy, my friend. The meat is tender and full of the rich taste of this wild place.”

  Jason accepted the platter of thickly sliced meat and placed it on his lap. Using his HUD controls, he raised his helmet’s visor and took in the meat’s rich aroma. No one used forks, or any other kind of utensil; for some reason, using one was an insult to the rhinos, who’d prepared the meal. Jason picked up one of the smaller cuts of meat, smelled its unique gaminess, and took a bite. Indeed, it was tender and had a strong woodsy flavor—which may have come from the smoke of the burning sequoias.

  “Hey, Cap,” Rizzo queried, taking the boulder to Jason’s right and pointing to his plate, “How’s the Nanuqsaurus?”

  “Um, I’m not sure. The word strong comes to mind. Like venison, it’s probably an acquired taste. So tell me, Rizzo: how on earth do you know so much about dinosaurs?”

  “I’ve always loved anything to do with history, archeology, dinosaurs. I wanted to be a paleontologist … you know, study dinosaur artifacts for a living. I come from a pretty poor family; I joined the Navy as soon as I turned eighteen. After my stint I went to college for four years.”

  “How old are you, Rizzo?”

  “Twenty-eight.”

  “And what brought you back into full service, in becoming a SEAL?”

  Rizzo held up a hand while he finished chewing a large bite. “You’re right, this meat tastes kinda funny. I actually went back in the Navy when my brother got killed in Afghanistan. I don’t know—guess I felt I needed to go one more round.”

  Billy sat down with a fresh cigar occupying a corner of his mouth. A platter of meat was placed on his lap by the rhino called Few Words. Billy nodded at the rhino and placed his cigar on a small rock next to his foot. After tearing off a chunk of meat with his teeth and chewing on it for several seconds, he spit the wad into the fire.

  “This shit tastes like ass. Dinosaur ass.”

  Several of the rhinos glanced over at Billy, but apparently used to his peculiar sense of humor, they ignored him. Jason and Rizzo, on the other hand, thought his comment funny and had a hard time stifling their laughter.

  Jason didn’t immediately notice Dira and Petty Officer Myers had taken seats on the other side of the fire. Both had their visors up and were talking normally.

  “Can you believe that sky, Cap?” Rizzo asked, looking up to the star-filled heav
ens.

  Jason, and those sitting around the fire—including the rhinos—looked up. The stars were as bright as he’d ever seen them. Spectacular.

  “Don’t move. Nobody make any quick movements.” The voice was Ricket’s, and it was coming from behind Jason.

  Taking his warning seriously, Jason lowered his visor. “What do you have, Ricket?”

  “They look like birds, Captain. Carnivorous birds,” Ricket replied.

  Slowly, Jason turned around and faced Ricket, and the smallish creatures behind him.

  “Acheroraptors,” Rizzo said quietly.

  “What the hell are they?” Billy asked, eyes wide and unblinking.

  “Yeah, definitely, no one move,” Rizzo said. “This species has only recently been discovered. Not Velociraptors; they died out long before this time period. These are Acheroraptors. Definitely not birds. They’re highly intelligent little killers that hunt in packs. Probably think strategically, too.”

  Dozens of three-foot-tall, feathered birdlike lizards were moving in around Ricket; their snouts were long and snapping jaws revealed sharp, pointed teeth. There was a growling clattering noise as they surrounded Ricket.

  “I don’t know … those things really give me the creeps,” Billy muttered.

  Jason saw movement out of the corner of his eye and moved his hand closer to the butt of his sidearm. It was Few Words. The big rhino held fists-full of meat in his hands. Fearlessly, he strode into the throng of small carnivores and began flinging pieces of meat onto the ground. The raptors quickly went into a feeding frenzy. As Few Words continued to walk to the edge of the campsite, the raptors followed.

  Few Words turned toward the stunned onlookers. “This would be a good time to stoke the smoldering fires.” With several pieces of meat left in his large hands, he continued walking out into the darkness.

  Jason was the first to his feet and running toward the dying fires. The others joined him and began throwing more wood on the fire that had been reduced to glowing embers. The ground shook as Few Words leapt back over the fire, landing into safety. Astonished, no one said anything for several beats.