by N. W. Harris
Dr. Blain put her hand on his knee, dipping her head to capture his gaze.
“I know your training is hard, and Captain Jones can be a—well, let’s just say—a lot to take in. If you ever need anyone to talk to, I’m here.” Her face exuded kindness and concern.
“Thanks,” he replied.
She was so human.
Or humans were so Anunnaki…
He suddenly couldn’t wait to get out of the room.
“The governments failed you kids,” she lamented. He sat upright on the exam table, searching for an opportunity to leave without seeming rude. “Society failed you, Shane.”
Doctor Blain paused, her expression growing firm.
“We won’t fail you,” she said with conviction. “When this is all over, the Earth will be a better place.”
It sounded too much like she was saying your parents failed you. He was uncomfortable with her sudden familiarity and insulted at the same time. She gazed distantly in his direction a moment longer, then she focused on him again, and her smile returned.
“How are you feeling? Better?”
“Yes—much,” he said, slipping into the fresh shirt sitting at the foot of the table.
He stood and moved toward the door.
“Good. Drink plenty of fluids, and you’ll do fine.”
“Thanks.” He grinned, walked into the waiting room, and then out of the building with Steve and Maurice on his heels.
“That was weird,” he whispered once they were outside.
“What?” Steve asked, glaring at the late afternoon sun like he was sick of seeing it for the day.
“I had a little chat with the doctor, and they seem to have high hopes for making the world a better place after we defeat the Anunnaki.”
“What do you mean?” Maurice asked.
“I don’t know, but it sounded like they intend to fill in for the adults. To take control.”
Maurice tugged his chin. “Well, better them than us,” he said. “I wouldn’t want the responsibility of trying to take care of the billion kids left on the planet.”
“Maybe the world will be a better place,” Steve mused. “I mean, starting over without all the greed and corruption.”
Shane wasn’t sure. And as far as he was concerned, Earth belonged to humans, not these aliens. If humans were corrupt, who was to say they didn’t inherit the trait from the Anunnaki? Rebels or not, they might be much worse. He didn’t mind that they were here and needed a home, and he was grateful for their help. But, he wasn’t gung-ho about them taking charge.
Everyone else had already had dinner, so the three friends rushed to the cafeteria and ate just before the food was put away. Their bellies full, they found the rest of the teens gathered outside. The sun was starting to set, and though the shadows grew long, it still cast plenty of light across the base.
“Join us,” Captain Jones shouted from the middle of the tarmac.
“I ain’t running no more laps today,” Steve grumbled, heading toward the circle of kids.
“Hang in there, big guy.” Shane slapped his back. He wasn’t keen on any more exercise either, especially since he’d just stuffed his gut.
“It’s been a long day,” Jones growled as they joined the others. “But I want to take a little more of your precious time and have some of the martial artists in the group share their knowledge.”
Jones looked around, his sweeping gaze connecting with everyone’s eyes.
“Our Chinese friends have extensive martial arts training,” Jones continued. “Today, they’ll share.”
The seven Asians stepped forward and bowed to Jones. Then they politely organized the group into rows, their Mandarin speech translated by Shane’s earbud.
He expected to learn some hardcore kung fu. Despite being totally exhausted, he was excited by the prospect. Instead, a Chinese boy named Ling led them through a meditative exercise, teaching them to breathe from the stomach, filling the lowest part of their lungs first. The technique was rejuvenating, though he would rather have learned a tornado kick or something cooler.
“Breathe like this when you are tired and need energy. Breathe like this when you are scared and need courage. Learn to breathe like this all the time and you will be master of your mind and body,” Ling said, sounding much older and wiser than he looked. He bowed at the group and bowed at Jones, showing the lesson was complete.
“You are dismissed,” Jones announced. “We start again tomorrow at zero four hundred hours.”
“I don’t think falling asleep will be a problem for anyone,” Jules grumbled. Her shoulders rolled forward, and she seemed to shrink.
The seven groups of seven kids made their way back to the barracks, most emulating Jules’ exhausted posture. In murmured discussion and without dispute, everyone agreed to let the girls use the communal bathroom first. Along with about half of the other boys, Shane grabbed a set of headphones and plopped down in a chair to study the Anunnaki films.
The rebel spy in the loop wore a video camera. The TV showed what he saw as he walked through a curved corridor with smooth walls painted flat gray. He passed a round porthole and glanced out. A few stars were visible in the distance, and a tan planet the size of a quarter hung in the infinite nothingness.
The rebel continued up the passageway and encountered three Anunnaki Shock Troops. They stopped and pressed against the curved wall to get out of the way, raising their right fists over their hearts in salute. Jones had said the Shock Troops, with the eagle-dragon symbol on their crimson breastplates, held the highest ranks. The soldier behind the camera must’ve been some kind of commander or general to garner such respect.
Lily had told them the rebel they saw executed in the battle that brought her to Earth made it fairly high in the Anunnaki ranks. He wondered if this was that poor schlup, destined to lose his head.
The spy paused at a hatch and tapped his fingers across a screen bearing strange symbols. The door sprang open, and he walked down a narrower tunnel with no portholes in it. He glanced over his shoulder to see the door close behind him. At the end of the dimly lit passage, which Shane presumed led toward the center of the ship, he came to another hatch. This one had a bright yellow symbol on it, three spheres connected by the corners of a triangle. The color and design conveyed “warning,” and he bet the foreign writing below the symbol did the same. The spy entered a passcode, and the four-foot-thick hatch slid into an even thicker wall.
He stepped into a cavernous, cylindrical room. A massive column of bright white light extended from the bottom, which was a hundred feet below the metal grates he stood on, up to the arched ceiling as high overhead.
“This is the primary reactor for an Anunnaki ship,” a female voice said. It sounded dubbed in the film after it was made. “Only engineers are typically allowed in this chamber.”
“How can I help you, sir?” an Anunnaki in a white jumpsuit asked. There was reverence in his voice, and he saluted the same way the Shock Troops did in the outer passageway. But it was also clear that this was his area, and he wasn’t going to have anyone loitering about who didn’t belong. He had a bald head, looking very different from Lily, Jones, and all of their clones. Shane wondered if it was the fashion for the engineers or if they were specifically cloned for this job.
“We need more soldiers,” the voice behind the camera growled. “Your department is being cut by ten percent.”
“What?” The engineer leaned closer, his eyes widening. “We were cut by ten percent last quarter. My people are already taking double watches to keep up with the added workload.” His tone was nervous, like he feared he might be crossing the line.
“Do you question the orders of the Fleet Admiral and the Prime General?” The spy’s voice grew deeper and louder, seeming to take advantage of the engineer’s weakness.
“Of course not, sir,” the engineer responded. “But we need to stop losing staff, or we won’t have enough people to keep the reactor functional.”
; “Worry not,” the spy replied dismissively. “We are approaching a new system. There are two planets whose populations are mature enough to harvest. We’ll get the reinforcements we need, and then you can have your people back.”
“The ones who survive,” the engineer grumbled.
“Don’t be absurd,” he scolded. “Your people will be used to support the command and logistics teams—they are not fit for combat.”
The engineer seemed insulted for an instant. “The enemy gets stronger each time we encounter them,” he retaliated.
“They will be stopped,” the spy snapped. “Have your volunteers report to the armory at first watch.”
The engineer dared a cold glance at the spy, but he brought his fist up over his chest at the same time, his firm salute an affirmation of his obedience.
After a sweeping gaze at the reactor chamber, the spy returned to the outer part of the ship via the narrow passageway. The screen changed to a debriefing of what just played. Snapshots of the reactor and control panel were shown and different ways to destroy the reactor discussed.
The lecture complete, Shane took the headphones off. Clearly, the point of the video was for him to gain an understanding of how to destroy an Anunnaki ship, but the interaction between the spy and the engineer intrigued him almost as much. He wondered about the enemy they spoke of. It must be one or more species like the humans, who were resisting Anunnaki rule, but who also had the technology to fight back with some degree of success.
“The girls are all done.” Kelly’s soft voice brought him out of his reflection.
“Oh, great.” He smiled at her. “Thanks.”
Shane collected his towel and bag of issued toiletries, heading to the bathroom. His legs didn’t want to move; he was so beat from the day. How many hours before it all started again? He glanced up at the high windows and could see it was dark. If he hurried, he might get six or seven hours of sleep before Captain Jones came in, yelling at them to get on the line.
When he walked by the Koreans’ quad, they stopped talking and watched him pass. The same happened at the Finnish and Chinese quads.
“You guys won the day, mate,” Liam said, holding the bathroom door open for him. “The Americans are now the ones to beat.”
“I’m not sure that’s such a great thing since the prize is most likely a suicide mission,” Shane mumbled.
“Don’t worry, mate,” Liam replied with a weary version of his earlier humor. “We’ll take the burden from you tomorrow.”
Returning his smile, he entered the bathroom. It was filled with steam, the five showers occupied. Shane brushed his teeth, his mind adrift with what he’d done today. It felt like a week had passed since they awoke to push-ups. A shower opened. He stuffed his toothbrush in his bag and rushed to take it before anyone else could.
“Hey look,” the tall, blond Russian said as Shane stepped out of the shower. As usual, his two goons shadowed him. Shane had learned his name was Petrov earlier in the day when Anfisa yelled it. “It’s the lucky American.”
“Yeah.” Shane chuckled, throwing his towel over his shoulder and quickly slipping on fresh underwear and shorts. Steve might be cool with fighting these assholes naked, but Shane wasn’t. “Keep telling yourself luck had everything to do with it,” he said, straightening up and glaring at them.
“Oh, you don’t think so?” Petrov made a condescending expression. “Well, we will see. The luck of beginners, I assure you.”
“Because you guys did so well when we fought today too,” Shane replied, regretting he hadn’t kept his mouth shut. Underneath his overconfident, grinning, tough-guy act, Petrov looked pissed. And he was too darn tired to fight right now.
“Be careful, lucky American. We don’t want our hero to slip and bump his face like his friend. Eh?”
The three boys broke into their hyena cackling. Shane stared at them until they entered shower stalls. He encountered Maurice and Steve as he headed out of the bathroom.
“Watch your backs,” Shane warned, pointing at the showers. “Numbnuts and his losers are in here.”
“Maybe I should get an icepack for the little one’s giggle-berries,” Maurice said with feigned sincerity. “Though I think Kelly kicked him so hard that they may be in the back of his throat.”
They laughed, and Shane headed to the quad. He was dog-tired, but not looking forward to sleeping in a room with forty-eight other people.
He rolled into his rack and stared at the bottom of Steve’s bunk above him until it grew blurry.
“Everybody, on the line!” Jones’ voice jarred him awake.
The lights were on, blinding him. Had he just fallen asleep? Or was it morning?
Shane rolled out of the rack, every muscle in his body sore. He fell into his shoes and stumbled to the line. Kelly stood blinking groggily on the girls’ side directly across the aisle. Her honey-blond hair was damp from her shower. Thank goodness, it was still night. He’d only slept for a few minutes.
On his left stood Steve and Maurice, Shane being the first one in the row. He could see Captain Jones in the periphery of his vision and could see someone stood next to him, but he kept his head straight, eyes on Kelly. The right side of her lips turned up slightly—a simple gesture, but it warmed him through.
Jones gave a recap of the day, and Shane barely heard half of it. He hadn’t had a chance to stop and just be alone with Kelly since the night before, and the sudden intimacy of being four feet apart, staring into each other’s eyes, was invigorating. He forgot about his exhaustion, forgot his sore muscles, suddenly wanting to pull her close and feel her lips on his once again.
“… and we have decided which of you is to be replaced,” Jones said.
Jones’ words snatched Shane’s attention.
“We can’t afford to keep anyone here who doesn’t perform as expected. We must have the best people possible for these missions if we are to survive.”
He held his breath. What if they took Kelly? Shane wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for her. He wouldn’t have been motivated to fight—to stay alive.
“Ivan Anitov,” Jones announced, “please come with me.”
Shane exhaled. It was one of the Russians, thank goodness. He’d rather have seen Petrov, who he considered downright evil, leave, but with one of his cronies taken away, maybe Petrov would mellow out.
Anfisa stepped into the aisle, anger seething in her voice. “Why would you take him? We are the best trained and most qualified people here.”
“We will not explain our motives,” Jones replied calmly. “You must trust that we know the enemy better than you, and the final teams will be composed of those people who we feel have the greatest chance of success. Return to the line.”
Although he didn’t move his head to look at her, in the periphery of his vision, Shane saw the hotheaded Russian girl stand her ground for a moment. But Jones’ gaze must have been enough to end the argument—without another word, she stepped back in line.
“This is Vlad Poisek,” Jones growled. “He is the replacement.”
Anitov walked down the aisle toward the exit, his head low, his shoulders slumped with defeat. He was the smaller of Petrov’s two thugs, the one who Tracy had tripped earlier in the day and then Kelly had kicked in the balls during sparring. He’d also cheated during the flag-capturing game.
Vlad walked by, heading in the other direction. He was tall and blond like Petrov, though he looked to be carrying at least forty more pounds of muscle.
“The rest of you, get some sleep,” Jones ordered, turning out the lights as he followed Anitov out of the barracks.
When the door shut, the kids broke into hushed conversation.
“Where do you think they’re taking him?” Maurice asked, clearly concerned about the possibility of being eliminated.
“Probably putting him with the regular troops,” Tracy replied casually. “They said they’re preparing small armies of teens to back us up.”
“He’s better off
than we are,” Laura said. “I get the feeling they’re training us to die.”
“You don’t know that,” Jules scolded, frowning at her. “And even if it’s true, have you watched any of the loop?” She pointed toward the TV on the other side of the quad. “The Anunnaki will put us on the front lines in a war against their enemies. I’ll take the suicide mission over fighting for them any day. Anyone who doesn’t agree is a coward.”
“What did you just call me?” Laura stepped around Tracy and looked up at Jules. The dim light coming from the bathroom revealed the concern in her eyes transforming into anger. Shane took a step closer, ready to jump between them.
“Nothing,” Jules replied, a slight smile on her face. “But your willingness to kick my ass is probably the reason you’re here. You’ve got more fight in you than I think even you realize.”
Laura blinked, the comprehension that Jules had just paid her a compliment taking a moment to sink in.
“She’s right,” Shane said, hoping to get the attention off Laura. “We are all here for a reason. The rebels have a lot of experience in dealing with the Anunnaki, so I think we just have to trust their judgment and do what we’re told for now.” He wasn’t convinced of what he was saying, but he couldn’t afford to have his team lose their focus.
They nodded and made sounds of agreement. Shane’s eyes found Kelly’s again. When Jones was announcing who was to be replaced, he feared it might be her. And now, he felt a surge of guilt for wanting to see her go. If she was replaced, she might live. But if he did anything to get her eliminated, she’d hate him forever.
Down the aisle, Anfisa’s voice grew shrill. She was scolding the members of her team, angry over losing Anitov.
“Wow,” Steve said, his eyes wide. “Glad I’m not one of them.”
“Yeah,” Maurice added. “Not a very warm welcome for poor Vlad.”
Chuckling, Shane and the rest of his team crawled into their racks. Soon the barracks grew quiet, the sound of heavy breathing and snores building into an annoying symphony, a constant reminder that he wasn’t asleep.
