A New World: Storm
Page 32
“It’s okay, Bri. Truly. I love you.”
She’s unable to reply. I feel a hand come to rest lightly on my shoulder. Looking upward, I see Robert sitting in the nav seat. His face streaked with tears, he gives me a sad smile.
“I love you, Robert.”
“I love you, too, Dad.”
“You be quiet and relax now, Jack. We’ll be home soon,” Lynn says.
I am jostled awake again. I’m being carted off the aircraft and into the bunker. Lynn is walking ahead with Robert and Bri at my side. Looking up, I see Gonzalez carrying one pole of the stretcher. She gives me a smile.
“You hang in there, sir.”
Voices come from just up ahead. Although still weak, I feel more alert and am able to make out the words.
“You have it working?” Lynn asks, incredulous.
“Yes. I was able to gain access using its radar frequency. I maneuvered a killer satellite alongside and hacked into it using that. I won’t go into the details. The program is self-contained, but had links to the main programming,” I hear Harold excitedly say.
I look up to Gonzalez, whispering, “Let me talk to Harold.”
“First sergeant, he wants to talk to Harold,” Gonzalez informs Lynn.
Lynn appears. “Jack, you’re hurt, you need the doc to see to you and rest.”
“Harold,” I mutter.
Harold appears on the other side.
“Are you saying the system is operational?” I ask, hoarsely.
“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying,” Harold responds.
“Take me to the control room,” I say.
“Jack. We can do this after you recover,” Lynn states.
“Take me there.”
I watch the door pass overhead, and stare into the fluorescent lights as I’m brought to one of the control stations. Turning my head, I see a program on a monitor.
“Is that it?” I ask.
“Yes.”
“What…” I swallow, my throat dry. “What do we need to do to initiate it?”
“Just press the enter key, Jack.”
“Keyboard, please.”
Harold holds a keyboard near my hand. It takes all of my energy to raise my hand.
“I’ll either be remembered as a villain, or a hero, depending on who is telling the story,” I say, pressing the enter key.
* * * * * *
In pain, Michael struggles to get back to his lair before the bright light appears. He wasn’t able to finish the two-legged, but he knows that they defeated the others in the area. The pack leaders reported that they didn’t find any others, but the important thing is that they are gone.
Stumbling through the lair, leaving a trail of red, he lies down. The agony from his wounds is fierce, and deep down, he knows that he might not make it. Although fearful, he isn’t worried. They have won. The threat to the packs is over and he has given his kind a chance to survive.
The images from his pack are mixed. Some are fretful, while others feel more at ease, knowing the two-legged will trouble them no longer. Michael holds his hands against his wound, feeling blood leak out. He falls into a deep sleep.
Waking suddenly, with waves of pain surging through his body, he feels pack members by the thousands vanish from his mind. Through his pain, he raises his head. Many of those within sight, lying on the open floor, just suddenly stop breathing. Thousands upon thousands, both in the lair and from other packs, suddenly cease to be. He shrieks, ignoring the pain in his body. Grief enters, unlike the kind we know – a deep sadness. Not understanding how, he knows they didn’t win after all.
He closes his eyes, never to open them again.
* * * * * *
I am taken to a room and placed on a bed, stretcher and all. The doctor is pushing, probing, and generally doing what doctors do. I undergo his ministrations without really taking notice of them. I feel so exhausted, but happy to see Lynn, Robert, and Bri’s faces above me. I don’t know the results from the satellite, but time and surveillance video will tell us. For now, I have my loved ones close by and that’s all that matters.
The pain has mostly subsided. The only thing I physically feel is cold. I’m too tired to really care though. Feeling Robert and Bri’s hands in my own, I tell them that I love them. Looking into Lynn’s eyes, I tell her that I love her, and feeling contented, I close my eyes.
* * * * * *
I wake, surrounded by a deep fog, a light coming from some undetermined source. I realize that I’m standing, which confuses me. The last thing I remember was lying on a stretcher. Looking down, the swirling vapor is so dense that I can’t see my feet. Peering deeper into the mist, a dark shadow is moving. It’s such that I’m not sure if the movement is coming from the shape or from the eddying mist. The fog parts. There stands Nic, her eyes sparkling and smiling sweetly. My dear, sweet Nic.
“I told you I’d be waiting for you, Dad.”
# # #
Author’s Epilogue
And thus ends the saga of Jack Walker. He has at last found his peace and no longer has to struggle against the world, worrying about whether he is going to make the right decision or not. Whether he made the right choices or not are not important. What is important is that he tried, and in the end, he went with a clear conscience. He didn't save the world, but he made a difference. Robert, Bri, and Lynn still live. Gonzalez and the teams remain strong. The world isn't what it once was, but it is a place where the last vestiges of humanity have a chance. Life doesn’t go on as it did before, but it does go on.
I want to thank you for taking this journey with me, with Jack, with Lynn, with Gonzalez, and the kids. With Leonard and Krandle. With Drescoll, wherever he may be. I hope he found his peace. And for those that didn't make it: Delta Team, the soldiers on Colorado, the soldier in the BX parking lot, McCafferty, and Nic, may they rest in peace. Let’s just take a moment to remember them.
Some threads of the story remain open, but isn't that always the way it is with life.
And, if you happen to enjoy it, please head back and leave a review. I’d be forever grateful.
John O’Brien
About the Author
John O'Brien is a former Air Force fighter instructor pilot who transitioned to Special Operations for the latter part of his career gathering his campaign ribbon for Desert Storm. Immediately following his military service, John became a firefighter/EMT with a local department. Along with becoming a firefighter, he fell into the Information Technology industry in corporate management. Currently, John is writing full-time on the series, A New World.
As a former marathon runner, John lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest and can now be found kayaking out in the waters of Puget Sound, mountain biking in the Capital Forest, hiking in the Olympic Peninsula, or pedaling his road bike along the many scenic roads.
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