“There’s a lot we don’t understand, which is why we hope to study the creature and find out. If its war they want, we are a peaceful nation, but we will defend ourselves,” Ritter said.
“Study.” Lucas shook his head. “Unbelievable. Well, I have an answer for you now.”
“What?” Ritter asked.
“There won’t be a peaceful solution, not now,” Lucas stabbed the weapon barrel toward Ritter.
“Whoa. This is useless. You kill me and you’ll be killed, blah, blah, so on and so forth. It’s us against these creatures and the Russians. Come on, no need for us to fight each other. Try and harness some of that patriotism you used to possess. Remember the SEAL who would do anything for the mission, for the nation? Where’s that guy?” Ritter threw up his hands. “Put down the gun or all your people will be executed! Don’t put them at risk over your ego!”
Lucas glanced at his men. Even if he wanted to fight, they were stripped of their weapons. He slumped his head and dropped the rifle. A soldier kicked him in the back of the leg and slammed him into the pavement, binding his hands and feet with Zip-Ties as he continued bleeding.
“I think you even you would have to give us credit. We’ve done our own bit of reverse engineering,” Ritter said. “You see that oversized glove on the engineer’s hand, Lucas? It’s made from remains of the slavemasters that created the device. Their DNA is apparently a code, and when combined with specific hand motions, that turns it on. Genius, actually. I’m shocked your associate, Keith Sanders, kept this from you. Apparently, he didn’t agree with your view either. Or maybe you knew and you were afraid?”
“You’ve made a historic mistake, Ritter. I want you to know that. There’s Adam from the Garden of Eden, then you, right below him.”
“Lucas, you’re a man with a troubled past. That’s how you’ll go down, but they’ll call me a hero long after we’re gone. There are people born to head up an operation like this. The reality is, I’m not here to make friends. I was sworn in to save American lives.”
“You’re delusional, Ritter.”
Garza glanced up as whizzing sound got louder by the moment. “The Viper drone! The device disabled it!” She dove to the ground as the drone spiraled downward, exploding next to the truck that housed the artifact, flipping the truck over into a mass of fiery debris.
“No!” Ritter shielded his face from the debris. The glass bubble that held the artifact rolled across the concrete before coming to a complete stop as a fire crew rushed to the scene. The man inside appeared to be unconscious, with the artifact leaning on top of him. “Get him up!” Ritter yelled. “He has to keep it engaged!”
“Wake up that engineer! Captain Stewart, call in the F-67s immediately,” Ritter ordered. A dozen soldiers surrounded the glass pod and rolled it over slowly.
“Sir! The protective pod has a hole in it. The engineer’s hand has been partially blown off,” Captain Stewart informed.
Ritter stormed toward the artifact. “Blown off?”
“Yes, sir, along with his shoulder and chest cavity. He’s gone.”
“Where’s the glove?”
“It’s in the pod.”
“Plug it back in. Can’t you figure out a way, Stewart?”
“We can try. We have a backup, but he was also injured in the drone crash,” Stewart replied.
“Get him over there! Now!” Ritter ordered, glancing back at the Omega.
“How’s it going, Ritter. Everything going according to plan?” Lucas asked.
The Omega’s tentacles jolted as soldiers huddled around the pod. Garza glanced toward Lucas. “Stay down,” he mouthed. The Omega’s metallic crown grinded across the concrete as it slowly lifted its head.
“Sir, it’s moving!” someone yelled. A firearm discharged that echoed throughout the landscape.
“Whoa, hold your fire! Load up the artifact! Now! In the truck, hurry!” Ritter yelled, rushing to his Humvee.
“What about the engineer, sir, he’s still breathing—”
“Leave him!” Ritter shut the door, watching as the Omega’s tentacles slithered about the ground. The tentacles wrapped around the Omega completely, cocooning it as red electricity pulsed throughout the shell. The cocoon throbbed as electricity skipped around it. Four soldiers cradled the artifact, glancing over at the Omega before hoisting the artifact into the truck.
“Get Lucas and that bitch. Load them up! Hurry!” Ritter ordered.
The Omega’s tentacles slowly pushed its torso off the ground as it lifted its head. Beneath the ash-colored face, Lucas noticed red lights glowing under the skin as he was lifted into the truck. Lucas and Garza slowly scooted away from the Omega as it raised upright, its tentacles stiffening, acting as walking stilts as it moved slowly across the ground.
“We gotta go! Come on!” Captain Stewart yelled. The Omega’s humanoid like legs and arms dangled lifelessly. Even the neck muscles seemed fatigued, nearly unable to keep the head lifted as it scurried forward like a spider, giving chase to the convoy.
The driver stepped on the gas, and Lucas and Garza were tossed against the bed, tumbling around the back.
“Open fire!” Captain Stewart yelled. Lucas scowled at the soldier training his M-4 rifle on the approaching Omega.
“Don’t do it! Put your weapon down and give up that artifact. You fire at thing and none of us will survive,” Lucas said.
“Shut up!” the soldier struck Lucas in the face with the butt of his rifle, knocking him dizzy.
“You’ve made a grave mistake.” The Omega’s voice echoed through the landscape.
“Faster!” a soldier yelled to the driver.
“Sergeant!” Garza yelled. He snapped around at her.
“You got kids?” she asked, narrowing her eyes at him. He hesitated, glancing into the distance.
“You do. Hear me out, if you don’t dump that artifact, you’ll never see them again, I can promise you that. It’s the only way,” she said.
“Stop! I have my orders,” he yelled as the Omega whipped a tentacle toward the vehicle, spinning it, tossing them all out of the truck. Garza and Lucas tumbled for several feet as the artifact bounced down a small rocky ravine.
“Ahhh-hh, my leg,” Lucas moaned attempting to suppress the pain. He panned around frantically for the artifact.
“There,” Garza whispered as the Omega rocketed past them toward Ritter’s Humvee.
“Stay low. The Omega’s distracted. We’ll wait here, my men won’t be fair behind.” Lucas said.
Chapter Seven
“Mike, wake up,” Vala whispered from the passenger seat, leaning on his shoulder. Michael was reclined in the driver’s seat with his hoodie on.
“I wasn’t asleep.” He opened one eye. She grinned. They were parked around back at an abandoned gas station. Iris was in the back, sleeping peacefully.
“What time is it?” Michael asked.
“Time for us to make a decision,” she said, glancing back at Iris. Michael nodded, then opened the door quietly and stepped out. Vala followed him, shutting the door behind her quietly. The cool, night breeze kissed her skin as she came around and stood close to him.
They gazed into each other’s eyes as the sound of vehicle tires roared across the overpass above them.
Michael put his hands around her waist. “There’s a hotel less than a mile from here, but you don’t want to leave her there, do you?” he asked.
She scanned out into the distance, she squinted as her small facial features seemed to pull in tighter as she thought about it. “Of course, I don’t, but—” she stopped.
“Maybe we should try and find somewhere else for her? Maybe someone she could stay with.”
“Like who? We can’t even go anywhere without putting people at risk, and that aunt she talked about seems weird. I wouldn’t feel right about leaving her there either,” she replied.
“Maybe we can ask her if there is anyone else. Even though that Cilan hinted otherwise, the problem with us is
always that lurking possibly we’ll end up in gunfight with a teenage tagalong.” Michael said.
“I hate this, Mike. My parents are gone, but your mom lives alone and thinks you’re dead. Who knows how many years she has left. Hell, either one of us for that matter,” she said. Michael backed away from her a half-step.
“That’s different. I’d rather it stays that way with my mom. Let her enjoy what she has left. After what my father put her through with his tech addition, I don’t want to give her another worry. Besides, if she takes one look at me—”
“What?”
“She wouldn’t even recognize me.”
“She’d love you just the same. You’d bring joy to her heart the same way you do mine. Going from thinking you’re dead to alive, that’s enough for people that really love you. They’ll take what they can get. Despite all this shit we put up with, it’s worth it, Mike,” she said.
Michael paused, staring at her. “Really? This brings joy to you heart, on the run, killing slews of people, picking up orphan tech freaks? This is what you want out of life?”
“Our fight is different. Everyone has a battle they’re pushing through.”
He turned his back on her. “I know that but, sometimes, I think maybe I should just go.”
“Go, where?” She put her arms out to the side and paused as a car drove past them slowly. Michael turned away, obscuring his face with his hoodie.
“Mike, is this the same shit you brought up a couple years ago. You should leave because—”
“You can fit in, Vala. I can’t. You could start a new life anywhere. Your abilities are perfect for it. I’m who they want. If I walked away, they wouldn’t come after you, not like this—”
She pushed Mike hard in the chest, knocking his hood off. “How the hell do I prove this to you? Huh? I chose this life with you. I gave it all up already. What makes you think I’d go back on that now, huh?” she yelled. Her eyes turned fiery red as her voice echoed off the overpass bridges. Iris began to toss and turn in the backseat.
“Look, that, was out of line.” He showed his palms.
“You’re damn right, Michael. Let that be the last time this is brought up, got it?” She stabbed her index finger at him, pacing back and forth.
“I’m sorry. Uh, I guess, sometimes, that pops in my head. I feel like I’m holding you back. I can’t do anything with you in public,” he said.
“Mike, stop it, please,” she said.
He nodded. “I’m out of line, and I know it.” They didn’t say a word for several seconds.
“Uh, alright, please, let’s get back to the subject at hand. What about Iris?” She put her hands over her face.
“She’s an accident waiting to happen, a ticking time bomb,” Michael replied.
Vala crossed her arms and placed her hand underneath her chin. “So, we just pass the problem off on someone else?”
“Not what I said, and we have our own problems.”
“What about Keith? He told me a year ago that Mia was barren, what if—”
“No. Don’t you think he’s had his fill of projects? I know he might seem like a good fit, but that would be an absolute nightmare. The girl needs extreme therapy to even have a chance of normalcy in her life, not to mention that puts him at risk with her telekinetic headdress. They’ll be sending people after her.”
“Unless we take it from her.” She glanced back at the SUV.
“What? And do what with it?”
“I don’t know. You think anyone can use it? Like if I put it on?” Vala asked.
“I’d say so. I don’t see any reason why she’s the only one who can use it.”
“Well, my point is, we take that headdress away and she’s one step closer to a normal life. We’re already on the run anyway, so why not? If we had it, who knows, maybe we could use it to our advantage?” she said.
“That headband could have a lot of potential, I get it, but we don’t know the side effects either. You notice her eyes?”
“Distant,” she replied.
“Yeah, like nobody’s home.”
“I mean, she’s been through a ton of trauma at a young age,” she added.
“Which is likely why her eyes look that way, but we don’t know what that thing is doing to her brain,” Michael said.
Vala stared at him. “Either way, it’s a risk, and I can’t just drop her out here in the middle of nowhere. My conscious won’t allow it.”
“Fine, then we take off the headdress,” he said.
“What? I didn’t say that,” she replied.
“I know, but it just got me thinking. If she’s riding around with us, it becomes more of a risk. Let’s take it off her now. She has no use for it anyway,” Michael said.
“So, she comes with us, wherever we’re going?”
“For now. Until we figure something out.”
Vala signed and spun around. “I’m fast, but you’re faster. I’ll open the door, then you snatch it.” She crept toward the SUV with Michael in tow. “You ready?” she whispered.
“Uh, sure.”
Vala reached for the door handle as it flung open on its own, smacking her arm away. Vala jumped back. “Ahh-hh!”
The girl rose , stepping out of the vehicle. She floated toward them as they backed up. “Oh, you want this?” She pointed to her head.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Michael said, showing her his palms.
“We’re protecting you, Iris. It’s not—”
“No! You don’t want it for yourself, huh? You just want to study it? Sell it?” she asked. Suddenly, the windows in the SUV began to roll up and down erratically, the horn beeped, and the side mirror flapped back and forth. “It’s mine! My father made it for me, and that’s the end of it, you try and take it and I’ll end you, both!” she yelled, gritting her teeth.
“Shh, shh, shh!” Michael panned around.
Iris dipped her head, then a blast of energy toppled them both to the ground. Michael rolled once, skidding across the asphalt into a kneeling position while Vala tumbled a couple times before springing into a cartwheel, landing on her feet.
Iris dropped to the ground, falling over, the horn silenced and the windows and mirrors stopped in place. “Ohh-hh, that hurt.” Iris held her forehead. Michael and Vala glanced toward one another, then at Iris.
“You okay, Iris?” Vala asked.
She panted heavily. “Don’t,” Iris said.
“We want to get you help,” Michael said.
“Help? I’ve heard that one before,” she replied.
“Look at us, Iris. We’re on the run. Those men who attacked us at your house, they want Michael’s body. He donated himself to a military program because I was sick and needed an operation, I needed a lot of money to afford it. Once I received my check, I came after him. I can alter my skin, hair, and eyes, but it’s not magic. I paid for it. Right, Mike?” Vala glared over at him.
“That’s right.”
“So, you’re still sick?” Iris mumbled with her head dropped.
“Kind of, yeah. I had an operation so I could find Mike. I’m a Cilan. It appears to be keeping me healthy, so far, but I’ve a higher risk of cancer later. It’s a double-edged sword.”
“That’s a nice story, but it doesn’t change the fact that you tried to take what wasn’t yours.” Iris smiled.
“Maybe that was wrong. I can’t go back and change it. All I can do tell you that it won’t happen again, and I was looking out for you.”
Suddenly, Vala’s phone rang in the vehicle. Iris looked over her shoulder, then back at Michael and Vala. “You want me to answer that or are you gonna do it?” she asked.
Michael hurried toward the SUV, opening the door. “Hello,” Michael said, picking up the phone. “It’s Keith,” Michael whispered.
“Hey. Listen, well, we’re kind of in a pinch right now. Just spill whatever it is. Yeah, I’ll relay whatever message. Okay, yeah. Uh-huh. Wait, what? You’re sure? Now? Hmm, well, let us talk it over and we�
��ll be in touch. That’s all I can do for now.” Michael hung up the phone, staring into the distance.
“What?” Vala demanded.
“You got that app on your wrist watch, the news thing we listened to a couple weeks ago?” Michael asked.
“Yeah.”
“Turn it on,” Michael said.
Vala flipped her watch her, sliding her finger across the holographic interface. “What’s going on?” she asked.
“Just boot up today’s evening news,” he replied.
“You’re scaring me with that tone.”
A life-sized image of a reporter projected between Michael and Vala. The image initially had a flickering blue tint that quickly shifted to a realistic portrayal of an attractive female wearing a black combat helmet and flak jacket. She appeared startled, glancing over her shoulder and holding the microphone. “Are we live?” she asked in a British accent.
“Good evening. As you can see behind me, about four kilometers, those smoke plumes, officials say a Russian attack drone attacked a chemical plant, igniting the installation into a fiery blaze.” She paused, tugging her helmet. The camera panned above her, following four fighter jets that zoomed overhead, followed by the sound of explosions in the distance.
“The Air Force says the situation is under control, and the people in and around ground zero in Phoenix, Arizona should stay in their homes and stay calm. If you have basement or shelter, please go there, but do not, I repeat, do not attempt to travel if you are within the city limits of Phoenix. As you can see, in addition to the Air Force, we have a large wall of tanks headed into the city for additional support as well as civilian vehicles providing additional personnel for strategy. Earlier, we contacted Russian officials, and they’re clueless as to why we suspect an attack from them. They claim all their units are present and accounted for,” the reporter said.
“Newflash, that isn’t the Russians,” Michael said.
Symphony of Descension: Echo Effect book 2 Page 9
