The Adventures of Connor Jakes: Masks (The War for Terra Book 1)

by James Prosser

  “I’ll take him, Mister Holcombe,” he said in a nasally voice. “It has been a while. Do you have a restroom?”

  “Of course, please come this way,” the woman said, never dropping a smile. “Is it male, female or…”

  “Male,” Jakes said, trying to look embarrassed. “At least we’re pretty sure he is. He’d make an ugly woman if he wasn’t, huh?”

  The woman waved them to a large door marked with the galactic symbol for male. Jakes held the door open as Tuxor stepped through quickly. He nodded to Holcombe as he followed the amphibian into the bathroom and closed the door.

  “Good thinkin’,” Jakes said as Tuxor relaxed. “I was wondrin’ how we’d get this back to you.”

  Connor took the paperwork from his valise and handed it to Tuxor. The big man unzipped a small slot in the top of his backpack. Thin amber tendrils peeled away from the paper and slid back into the two tubes within. In a few seconds, the paper had returned to its original white coloring, and Tuxor zipped the tubes back up. Tuxor stood and looked at Jakes with some confusion.

  “Captain, I—”

  “Oh, go ahead, since we’re here,” Jakes replied.

  The Karisien stepped into a stall and closed the door. Connor stepped to the nearby sink and turned the tap. As the water ran, he tapped a small slip of skin on the back of his hand, under which the doctor had inserted a communications beacon. He called up the rest of the team. Parker and Rene had been tasked with keeping the freighter crew under wraps until they were needed.

  “Gator boys?” Jakes called quietly, trying to talk under the sound of running water.

  “Go for Bluebeard,” replied Parker. “What’s goin’ on, boss?”

  “What’s your location?”

  “We’re wandering around the spaceport,” Rene replied through the comm. “The crew wanted to stretch their legs so we took them for a walk. Do you know what they eat on this world?”

  “I don’t want to think about it,” Jakes replied. “Start scouting for fast transport. We’re proceeding on target. If things go bad upstairs, we might need to get outta here quick. I’ll let the twins go when we get there and get what we need. Wait for my signal and be prepared.”

  “Acknowledged. Gators out.”

  Jakes heard the sound of the toilet flush and Tuxor emerged from the stall. He spread his arms wide again and flexed the muscles. Jakes had always assumed the amphibian was good to have as a bodyguard, but he preferred simply playing the part rather than the actual fact. Karisiens were natural pacifists, although the big man had proven himself capable in a fight. They turned towards the door and stepped back into the hall to the waiting team.

  “Well, if we’re all here now,” the woman said, turning and stepping down the corridor to the waiting lift.

  It was a tight fit with Holcombe’s bulk taking up much of the space and Tuxor crouched in the low ceiling. Bric had stayed just behind his father throughout the whole tour and was pressed to the back of the lift now. The two girls stayed at the fat man’s side, so Jakes was forced to stand close to the saleswoman. She was warmer than he had expected, and her scent was subtle but sweet. As the lift moved higher up the building, the woman turned and held out a paper to Holcombe.

  “I’m sorry, Mister Holcombe,” she said. “I’ll need your DNA print on the indemnity form. I would have mentioned it before, but with your bodyguard and assistant stepping away I was a bit distracted. Just press your thumb here.”

  Holcombe began to sweat again. It beaded between the wisps of red hair on his head. His jowls started to quiver again as he moved his hands away from the women and toward the paper. Jakes gripped the valise tighter, preparing to swing it if necessary.

  “Of course,” Holcombe replied. “I would be glad to.”

  The man reached out with his left hand and pressed his thumb against the paper. A faint beep confirmed the DNA sample had been taken and accepted by the computer. The woman smile and withdrew the paper, hiding it back where it had come from.

  “Thank you, sir,” she said.

  As the lift came to a stop on the top floor, Jakes’ mind was racing. He needed to find a place to open the backpack and release the twins into the corporate computer. As they stepped out, Tuxor moved ahead and looked both ways. He was playing the part of bodyguard well, and made the others wait as he checked the area. When he nodded, Jakes moved past and looked around. There was a wide desk with only one attendant, a woman nearly identical to the one they had come with. If Jakes had to guess, he might have said they were twins, except for the expression on the attendant’s face. It was precise and exactly like the saleswoman’s. He realized the women were clones. He briefly wondered if all the women in the building were clones.

  “Mister Holcombe, sir?” the woman at the desk said, smiling and getting to her feet. “It’s good to see you, sir. You may go right in.”

  Holcombe smiled as he stepped forward, leaving the women behind. Bonnie and Melaina looked at Jakes for direction. Holcombe had suddenly seemed to change. His gait, usually a waddle that made him look buffoonish, had become confident and sure. Bric stepped past the others, following his father into the office beyond. Connor nodded to the others to continue, hoping the man was just improvising.

  As Jakes stepped into the palatial offices of the chairman, he was struck by the excess of it all. Two story tall curtains hung on automatic rods, blocking direct light but leaving beautiful views of the capitol city. A semi-circular desk dominated the floor. It was made from natural wood and had scrollwork telling a story from left to right of gods and man. Holcombe had walked all the way around the desk and was standing just behind the single ornate chair. With a wide smile he looked out at the city below. Jakes heard the door shut behind them. Holcombe waved a hand dismissively over the desk and a holographic display sprang to life.

  “Where is he?” Jakes asked, fearing he already knew the answer.

  “Right where he belongs, Captain Jakes,” Holcombe said, his voice now confident and strong. “Or should I say, Agent Sandoval?”

  Melaina turned to look at Connor. Jakes’ mind reeled. He had half anticipated this kind of betrayal, but not the revelation of his real name. He raised the valise and tugged at the handle. A small blaster popped from within the bag and moved free. Jakes held it up and pointed it at Holcombe.

  “Give it up, Albert. We can still get what we want and get out free.”

  “Oh, I doubt that, Mister Sandoval,” Holcombe replied. He stabbed the air with a finger, activating a glowing circle on the display. Two doors opened in the floor, revealing hidden staircases to rooms below. Two dozen guards swarmed from the openings, each carrying the same energy weapons Rene had described. The reptiloids quickly surrounded the team, herding Melaina and Bonnie closer to Jakes while separating Bric and Holcombe by a wall of armored bodies.

  “And now Mister Sandoval…” Holcombe said, a look of glee in his eyes. “Time to die.”

  8

  “I abhor violence. In my time with humans, though, I have come to accept the necessity of the act. Humans seem to thrive on violent acts and I enjoy helping people grow.”

  Tuxor

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  “Father no!” Bric shouted, stepping forward to his father’s side. “You cannot kill them!”

  “Step away, boy. I want to teach you a lesson about taking care of the competition.”

  The reptiloids had begun circling choosing their targets for the attack. Connor was bracing himself for the assault, trying to watch for twitches or sudden moves. He had sidled closer to Melaina, trying to keep her behind him but she moved out and away from his protection. She was also ready for action. It wasn’t the reptiloids, however, who moved first. It was Bric.

  “No!”

  Bric’s long fingered hands grasped Holcombe on both sides. The fat man screamed and tried to rip the hands away but Bric was stronger. The pained shout was the cue the guards needed to move. The attack came swiftly, sweeping over and separatin
g the combatants from each other. In some effort to distract the attackers, Connor threw the gun at the nearest reptiloid. It bounced off the armor and clattered to the floor to be crushed by clawed feet.

  Connor had flattened to the floor almost the same time he threw the gun. Bonnie grabbed Melaina in response and threw them both to the floor. Tuxor, being larger and slower to respond, took a blast of electrical energy in the chest. The big man cried out in his deep baritone as the energy crackled over his black suit. He reached up through the pain and grabbed the release for the backpack, opening the vent for the twins. The energy seemed to spasm as it ran up the suit and into the backpack’s receptacle. As the energy dissipated, Tuxor fell to his knees, grabbing the floor with his lower arms and keeping his upper arms free as the reptiloids began to swarm.

  Four guards moved swiftly towards the big amphibian, while two each attacked Bonnie, Jakes and Melaina. The remaining guard began to move in a circle, cutting off escape back to the doors. As the guards grabbed for Tuxor, he reared up on his knees, emitting a roar that shook the windows and made them halt their advance for moments. The pause was enough.

  Connor pushed himself up fast, coming up under the jaw of the nearest guard with both fists, slamming the guard’s helmet off and knocking the reptile back. He brought up a knee, trying to get back to his feet, just as the other guard charged. He reached down, grabbing the first guard behind the thin knees, and pulled. The guard fell, collapsing into Jakes. Connor shoved hard, pushing the guard to the side and into the path of his companion. Both reptiloids collided with a crash of leather armor and scales.

  He took to his feet now, fully ready to attack. As the two guards tried to untangle themselves, he swung the padded helmet at the one on top. The helmet, mostly padded leather with formed plates to provide edged weapon protection, connected with the side of one guard’s head. Thick red blood pulsed from a new wound in the guard’s cranium, covering the other as the injured reptile screeched. Jakes advanced, until an energy bolt fired from behind caught him along the right side and he staggered to the floor again, slamming one hand down onto the transmitter embedded in the back of his hand, which then began to emit a red glow.

  Bonnie had her hands full defending herself and Melaina from the guards. Both women had hiked up their skirts and kicked their heels away. Melaina, being the weakest fighter, had moved back to back with the larger woman. Bonnie was kicking wildly at the reptiloids. One of the guards raised a weapon at Bonnie and Melaina leapt out at it. The creature tried to adjust its aim, but the woman was on him too fast. Despite her small size and lower body mass, Melaina had desperation on her side. She rained blows on the creature, making it falls back into a burning section of drapery. The creature screeched in primal fear even as its armor began to smolder. Melaina stepped back and spun an arm around to strike the creature’s chest. It staggered back, becoming entangled in the burning fabric and beginning to howl.

  Tuxor had two of the smaller creatures held high above the floor in his upper hands. His lower hands were swatting away attacks by the other two. Reptiloids were flying from the amphibian as soon as they came near. Tuxor stepped forward, throwing the creature in his right hand across the room, knocking away a guard readying to fire at Bonnie. With the other creature, he swung around, crashing tail and scale into another attacking guard. Again, Tuxor took another step, inching closer to Holcombe’s desk. As guards shot their energy weapons at him, the suit and backpack continued to absorb voltage, making him look like living fire crossing the floor. Holcombe was backing away from the big man, trying to push back through the circling guards. As the amphibian took the final step towards the desk, two guards blasted their weapons at him. Tuxor staggered, falling against the desk. He doubled over, leaning far over the wooden table. A third blast caused the yellow fluid in his backpack to burst, spreading across the holographic display and the controls.

  Connor kicked out from the floor, catching the reptiloid advancing at him with his shoe, and it doubled over. Jakes pushed away, spun around, and flung up his other foot. The hand-made shoe crunched into the reptiloid’s face, dropping the creature immediately.

  “We need to go!” Jakes cried.

  “Where?” Bonnie said, grabbing one of the guards by the shoulder and dragging its head into her knee.

  “Back the way we came!” Jakes ordered. “Now!”

  Melaina had been grabbed by two of the reptiloids, who seemed to be fighting over which would kill her. Connor settled the fight when he picked up a fallen weapon and fired. The guard holding her left arm screeched, falling away from the woman in an arc of static. Melaina cried out as some of the energy crackled over her wrist. The other reptiloid pulled the woman close, trying to use her as a shield, but it wasn’t looking where it was going and collapsed as soon as Bonnie kicked it in the head.

  Holcombe had managed to break away from his son. The boy had staggered away from his father, staring at his hands and struggling to keep his feet. Holcombe looked pale and weak but kept his bulk standing amidst the chaos.

  “It’s no good, Sandoval,” the man said. “One way or the other, you’re going down. I can still save you. I can still put you back where you belong.”

  “Go to hell,” Jakes shouted in reply.

  “Fine. Have it your way. Guards, kill them all. I don’t need your signature on the transfer of ownership, Agent. Just your DNA. I can get that from a corpse.”

  Bric looked back to Bonnie. The woman’s dress was torn and she was bleeding from several places along her abdomen and thigh. Bric’s wide face seemed to crease with emotion. He looked back to his father. Holcombe stood beside him, watching as the reptiloids regrouped and began to push the team back. Tuxor’s body was being dragged, unconscious, towards the group as several of the guards raised their weapons.

  “Father…” Bric pleaded. “Please don’t kill them.”

  “I said shut up, boy!” Holcombe said, swinging a meaty arm around to strike the alien child. “I should have left you to die with the rest of them.”

  Holcombe’s arm was arrested by Bric’s hand. Again, the boy’s long fingers wrapped around the man’s wrist and pulled him close. The other hand pressed against the side of Holcombe’s head, causing the man to let out a strangled cry. Light traces of energy tracked from Holcombe’s head to Bric’s fingers. It lasted only a moment, but Holcombe’s face had turned deathly pale. In a sudden movement, Bric threw his father over the desk and towards the burning fabric. Holcombe screamed as he slammed into the wall.

  “Help me!” the man wailed.

  “Stand down!” Bric shouted in a near perfect imitation of his father’s voice. “Withdraw and return to quarters.”

  The guards, having paused in their attack, seemed confused by the transposition of their master’s voice. Four of the guards broke away and ran to aid the fallen Holcombe. The man was trying to pat out flame that had erupted on his robes. The other creatures were struck, not knowing who to follow.

  “Kill them,” Holcombe screamed at the guards. “Kill them all!”

  Bric moved first, leaping over the table and towards the team. Connor grabbed one of Tuxor’s arms and tried to drag the big man away. When he arrived, Bric grabbed the other arm and both men began to pull Tuxor towards the outer door. Bonnie had Melaina by the arm and the two women were backing away from the guards. Melaina had managed to grab one of the reptiloid weapons and held it high, threatening the creatures. Bric’s hand slapped the control pad near the door and it slid open, a silent parody of the chaos in the room.

  “Now!” Holcombe called to the guards.

  With a great heave, Jakes and Bric flung the amphibian into the outer reception area. Bonnie fired the weapon into the room, the blast leaping from one guard to the other, incapacitating enough to block the door for a moment. Bonnie pushed one door closed as an arc of electricity crackled around it. Connor managed to get behind the other door and push it shut, feeling the thump of energy weapons as the guards regained their senses
and began to fire. Bric sealed and locked the doors. Jakes turned to look at the secretary, turning to face the group.

  “I’m sorry, Mister Holcombe has asked that you remain in the lobby until his guards come to kill you,” the woman said in a placid tone.

  Melaina fired the weapon at the woman. Tendrils of energy flared from the secretary’s eyes. Melaina gasped as the woman’s hair stood on end and brilliant flares of sparks erupted from the twin ridges on her forehead. There was a pop, and smoke began to pour from her mouth. With a spasm of strange jerks, the secretary fell face-first into the floor.

  “She’s a robot?” Jakes asked to no one. “What the hell is going on?”

  “We don’t have time to figure it out, Captain,” Bonnie said, running to the lift and pressing the control. “We need to get out of this building now.”

  “Connor,” Melaina said as the man came to her side. “Who is Sandoval?”

  “Like the lady said, precious,” Jakes replied, stepping towards the lift. “We ain’t got time.”

  “The controls are locked,” Bonnie said. “Are there stairs?”

  “No. My father … Mister Holcombe liked to control who had access to the office,” Bric replied. “I think I can override it, though. I got his codes.”

  The alien boy stepped to the door and began to tap the panel. He looked at Bonnie, embarrassed. The woman gave him a confused glance as the panel lit green. Bric turned to her, face creased in emotion.

  “Rene really does think you are beautiful,” the boy said. “I guess I got some of that too. I’m sorry. I couldn’t let him kill you.”

  “You don’t have to apologize, Bric,” the woman replied. “It was the bravest thing I ever saw.”

  Bric’s eyes seemed to swell with the emotion. Before he could respond, though, the office doors exploded in a shower of metal and wood. Electric arcs fired wildly from the office, blasting the secretary’s desk and chair and sending splinters flying. Connor pushed Melaina closer to the lift door. Tuxor’s body was still laid out just inside the door, now covered in debris as the reptiloids swarmed from the hole. Melaina tried to raise her own weapon, but Connor took it from her.