Solar Weapon

by David Capps

  The blast of searing heat flooded over him like a giant blowtorch for two to three seconds. As soon as the heat lessened, Ken rolled again toward his MP5, grabbing it and swinging the extended stock to his shoulder. He fired a burst at each rear tire and then focused on the jet engine pods. Two hundred yard effective range. He thought as the jet raced down the runway away from him. Got to aim higher! He fired the last of his 9mm rounds high over the engines.

  * * *

  Honi and Stafford were still strapped in their seat harnesses. As the Black Hawk came to rest on the side of the runway, Stafford yanked the right side door open, released his seat harness and followed Honi out and down to the ground. The two front doors of the limo opened and the occupants emerged, firing from between the open doors and the windshield support column. Stafford shot at the driver, who ducked behind the bulletproof door window. Honi saw Stafford raked by a burst from the passenger-side shooter. She aimed her MP5 and pulled the trigger. The shooter fell in a cloud of pink spray as the passenger side rear door opened and another shooter emerged. The man and Honi exchanged direct gunfire at each other. Her shots hit the man in the head, but she was also hit in the chest. The force of the impact knocked her over backwards and onto the ground. As she looked up she saw a fourth man scoot out of the open rear door and take aim at her on the ground.

  * * *

  Jake scrambled across the floor of the helicopter in time to see Honi go down. “No!” he shouted. He swung his gaze back to the open passenger doors on the limo in time to see the next shooter rush around the door and take aim at Honi. Jake dove forward, aiming his M-16 at the shooter and pulling the trigger, while he was still in the air. His burst of bullets hit the shooter, knocking him sideways toward the ground. Jake hit the floor of the helicopter with the bulk of his body outside the compartment. He tumbled forward and down, landing on the back of his shoulders and rolling forward to a crouched position.

  * * *

  Ken grimaced in pain as he pulled a clip from his vest and snapped it into place in the MP5. He turned to his left and saw Jake fall out of the helicopter. The driver of the limo ran around the door and was taking aim at Jake. Ken released the bolt on the MP5 and swung it across toward the driver, pulling the trigger.

  * * *

  Jake rotated toward the front of the limo in time to see the driver go down from Ken’s shots. He quickly surveyed the battle scene. Ken was lying in the runway holding his MP5. Stafford was lying on the ground, moving, trying to get up. Bright red blood ran down from his left shoulder. Honi was getting up with her left hand held tight against her chest. He didn’t see any blood and breathed a sigh of relief. He ran to check on Stafford. Two bullets were embedded in torn places of his vest. He rolled Stafford up into a sitting position and checked the back of his shoulder. The bullet had passed through about an inch in from the edge of his arm and exited the back side. He would recover.

  Honi stood, pain etched in her face. Jake ran over to her.

  “You okay?”

  “I’m good.”

  The pilot and copilot of the Black Hawk jumped from their open doors. The copilot carried a first aid kit over to Stafford and started work on him. Jake ran out into the runway and checked on Ken.

  “You hit?” Jake asked.

  Ken shook his head. “I’m afraid my knee has gone caddiwompus on me.” Ken pointed down the runway. “The jet.”

  Jake looked, shading his eyes with his hand. Steinmetz’ jet was at the other end of the runway, a mile away. Jake could see black smoke and flames.

  “I’m okay, how’s Stafford and Honi?” Ken asked.

  “Stafford’s hit, not serious. Honi’s okay.”

  Ken nodded. “Go get that sonovabitch!”

  Jake looked around at what was available. The Black Hawk was a wreck. The armored limo was beaten up and the front end was crumpled. He rushed over and slid into the driver’s seat and closed the door. The engine wasn’t running. He turned the key off and back on again to see if the engine would start. It did. He put the car in reverse and gave it some gas. The limo slid away from the helicopter.

  Honi slammed the back passenger door and climbed in, closing the door behind her.

  “Go!” she shouted.

  Jake backed up enough to clear Ken, whipped the wheel and roared down the runway toward Steinmetz.

  * * *

  Peter Steinmetz picked himself up off the floor of the cabin of his jet plane. He hadn’t put the seatbelt on for takeoff. He stumbled back in the aisle to a drawer on the left side, pulled it open and snatched a .45 automatic pistol from its holder. He wracked the slide back and released it, loading a round into the chamber. Smoke was quickly filling the cabin, burning his eyes. He ducked down to avoid the layer of black fumes as it spread across the ceiling. He released the cabin door and pushed. It didn’t move. He stepped back and kicked the door. It opened about an inch. He shouldered the door open the rest of the way and flipped the stairs down into position. As he moved slowly down the steps he saw his limo pull to a stop in front of him.

  “Good,” he said. “They’ve come to rescue me.”

  * * *

  Jake and Honi stepped out of the limo and pointed their weapons at Steinmetz.

  “Drop the gun,” Jake shouted.

  Steinmetz raised his .45 and fired. Jake ducked as Honi fired back, striking Steinmetz in the right arm, the .45 falling to the grass. The General turned and ran.

  “Really?” Jake shouted. He put his sidearm back into its holster and took off after Steinmetz. The pursuit took them toward a stand of trees. Jake tackled Steinmetz just before he reached the end of the grass. Steinmetz yelled in pain as he plowed face first into the ground. Jake slapped the handcuffs on the General’s wrists and rolled him over to examine the wound.

  “You’ll live.”

  He helped Steinmetz up and slowly walked him back to the damaged limo. Honi emerged from the burning plane, with her gun pointed at the pilot and copilot while she carried the General’s briefcase and computer.

  “Look what I found.” She held up the computer. “Now we can find all of his friends in the Phoenix Organization.”

  * * *

  Jake and Honi wandered between Stafford and Ken in the emergency room of the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. Ken’s right knee cap had shattered and was now replaced with an artificial one. He was coming out of the anesthesia.

  They walked across the aisle to check on Stafford. A nurse was trying to give him some pain medication.

  “I don’t need that crap,” he said. “Get away from me.”

  “You just came out of surgery,” she said. “The local anesthesia they used is going to wear off in a few minutes. Trust me, you’re going to need this.” He looked away and grumbled.

  Jake got a call from General Davies. He listened, thanked him and disconnected. “All of the underground shelters have been secured by the army. Mercenaries were guarding the shelters. Some of them surrendered, and the rest were killed by the army.”

  “Now, two soldiers in civilian clothes are waving people into each of the shelters. Once inside, soldiers are taking them into custody.”

  Honi felt her phone buzz. She studied the text and smiled. “Secretary Halleran has been arrested at the underground shelter in West Virginia, along with the President’s Chief of Staff.”

  “What about General Teague and Secretary Cooper?” Jake asked.

  “Still nothing,” Honi replied.

  “They didn’t show up at any of the shelters?”

  “No. They didn’t.”

  Jake paced back and forth in the aisle. “What about Teague’s place across the state line into Oklahoma?”

  “We searched that days ago,” Stafford replied.

  “Which would fit in with the way Teague does things–go where we’ve been, not where we’re going.”

  Stafford grabbed his phone and dialed. “General Davies, it’s Major Stafford. I recommend you send a team to General Teague’s place i
n Oklahoma. See if anybody is hiding there.” He looked at Jake and nodded. “Thank you, sir.”

  At six-twenty-two Stafford’s phone rang. It was General Davies. Stafford listened and disconnected. “Teague and Cooper are in custody.”

  * * *

  Jake and Honi strolled outside into the warm moist air.

  “It’s a bit strange,” he said. “Here we are, teamed up with Stafford and Ken. Both talented professionals, just as you are. It just dawned on me. The partners I lost before? I felt like I had to protect them, because they couldn’t keep up, you know? They weren’t strongly aggressive like the four of us are. I worry less about you, or Stafford or Ken because I know each of you can hold your own, under any circumstances. We’re all focused on the task at hand. In a way, I regret having this investigation come to an end. It means the four of us will have to go back to doing all of the ordinary things we did before. I’m going to miss the four of us functioning as a team.”

  “I’m going to miss that too,” she said. “Being here…” She glanced back at the building where Stafford and Ken were recovering. “I don’t know, it’s all just kind of special, you know what I mean?”

  “Yeah. It is special.”

  * * *

  Jake, Honi, Stafford and Ken were picked up in General Davies limo and delivered to the White House at 10:00 that evening. A Secret Service agent escorted them to the Oval Office. Ken hobbled along with a stiff brace on his right leg and the assistance of a cane. Stafford had his left arm in a sling.

  The President stood as they entered and waved them to the couch and two chairs.

  “Worldwide, more than 4,700 people have been arrested for their connection to the Phoenix Organization and acts of treason and terrorism,” the President said. “I am very pleased with how so many countries came together and helped each other work out a solution to this crisis. We know a number of top Organization members escaped, but we have dealt a serious blow to their plans and the people who worked for them. We will track the rest of them down.

  “I am grateful for what the four of you have accomplished. Not only have you saved the world from an Extinction Level Event, you have delivered a piece of amazing technology to us, along with the academics involved in its design and materials development. Those people have agreed to full cooperation with us in making that level of technology the standard for our armed forces in the future. Your country’s thanks and gratitude are simply not enough.”

  “Please stand,” General Davies said firmly. The four of them stood. General Davies held four black presentation boxes in his hands.

  “FBI Special Agent Jake Hunter,” the President said. “I hereby award you with the Presidential Freedom Medal, this country’s highest award for bravery in the national interest of a proud country.” The President placed the ribbon around Jake’s neck, gently lowering the medal to his chest.

  The President moved in front of Honi, taking another presentation box from General Davies. “NSA Agent Honika Badger,” the President said, as he continued the presentation ritual. Major Stafford came next, followed by Secret Service Agent Ken Bartholomew.

  The President shook hands with each of them before continuing. “Please keep in mind the people of this great nation are not ready for the level of knowledge or the details of what happened. All of it must remain classified.

  “The four of you make an exceptional team and I would like to have you available for special projects in the future. You are free to return to your own agencies until you are needed. Thank you again for your service and your dedication.”

  No one spoke until they had climbed into the back of General Davies limo. Jake looked down at the medal hanging on his chest. “Wow.”

  “Yeah,” Honi said. “This was fun—at least we get to do it again at some point.”

  “It was exciting,” Stafford said.

  “And interesting,” Ken added.

  Honi smiled. “It sure beats sitting at a desk in the NSA building.” The rest of them nodded.

  “Your security clearances will remain in place,” General Davies said. “As will your ID cards and access. You will be on call at all times, so please check in with me if you have to leave the D.C. area.”

  * * *

  Jake woke the next morning on his boat and stretched. The sun was shining; the air was warm with a light and variable breeze, at least according to the news and weather report. He showered, dressed, ate breakfast and headed to Alexandria, Virginia.

  He met Honi in the lobby of the NSA building. They stood together, looking out of the windows at the beautiful weather, the light blue sky and the occasional puffy cloud that slowly drifted by.

  “Looks like it’s going to be a good day,” Honi said.

  Jake visually took in the people moving about; living their lives, doing their work, all blissfully unaware of how close they had come to not being alive at all.

  “Yeah,” he said. “It’s a good day.”

  Thank you for reading Solar Weapon.

  I currently have two other books available, TSUNAMI STORM and METEOR STORM.

  If you have not read them yet, I think you might enjoy them as well.

  METEOR STORM

  63,000 years ago, an ancient civilization existed far advanced over our own, but it was destroyed by a natural cataclysm. Now that same cataclysm is about to strike our modern world…

  When Carl stumbles upon an unknown robot’s head, he manages, with some effort, to get it working. From the robot, Carl learns that it was created by an ancient civilization 63,000 years ago in northern India. The robot reports though, that the culture was destroyed by a meteor storm that killed all, but a thousand people planet wide.

  When Carl learns that Earth is entering the same place in the galaxy where the meteor field exists, he warns people on TV, but finds himself ridiculed and ignored. To protect the world, Carl works to find out more about the ancient civilization and how to prevent a repeat of history.

  To do this, Carl travels to a secret cave where the ancient technology is stored and here Carl meets a fully functioning robot from the ancient civilization. Now Carl must do everything in his power to preserve as many lives and as much of the current civilization as possible to avoid full scale destruction…

  TSUNAMI STORM

  The US has launched secret weapons of mass destruction on other countries. And awaits what might be cataclysmic retaliation…

  China is devastated by an 8.0M earthquake that leaves 70,000 people dead with hundreds of thousands injured and untold property destroyed. The Chinese government soon learns that it was no natural disaster, but rather an orchestrated attack by the American government using their High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) weapon. China ceases foreign relations with America and creates their own version of the weapon in retaliation. They plan to attack the US by sending a submarine with mini nuke mines to create a massive rupture of the Cascadian Subduction Zone.

  But what neither China nor the US knows is that the attack on China was an unauthorized assault perpetrated by a US Navy Vice Admiral. Because of his arrogance and pride, more innocent people may have to pay with their lives.

  One of the many coastal towns in peril is Dolphin Beach, Oregon. The new mayor, Willa McBride, tries to protect her townspeople while her sister, the Senator Elizabeth Bechtel, tries to uncover who engineered the attack on China. What is unclear is whether the Senator’s goal is aimed toward the greater good or for her own political gain.

  To protect the US coast, the government sends out the submarine USS Massachusetts to locate and destroy the Chinese sub. Now it seems the only protection for the American coast is one US submarine and its heroic crew against a truly catastrophic event…

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  The author of a book isn’t the only person involved in its creation. The author simply stands in the center of a circle of people, all of whom contribute to the final result.

  My first thank you goes to my wife, Miriam G. Carroll, who dis
cusses each page of the story with me, reviews every word, and sits patiently for hundreds of hours as I slowly type away at the computer to create what you hold in your hand.

  My next thank you goes to Katie Reed for all of her help and valuable suggestions, and then to Rebecca Berus, my publicist. Without her help and guidance you would never have heard of me or my books. My thanks also to Natasha Brown for the amazing cover design.

  I also want to thank Joseph P Farrell for his research presented in his book, “Covert Wars and Breakaway Civilizations – The Secret Space Program, Celestial Psyops and Hidden Conflicts” published by Adventures Unlimited Press, ISBN 978-1-935487-83-8, © 2012, for the inspiration for this story, and finally, my grateful appreciation to you, for reading this book.

  Thank you, I hope you enjoy the story.

  D F Capps

  Thank you again,

  D F Capps