The door opened with a sophisticated system of hydraulics that allowed it to travel up and down on a rail system set several inches inside of both sides of the door frame. In case of an emergency, thick steel rods would project out of the wall and enter five equidistant holes on both sides of the door, making it virtually impossible to open without a large amount of explosives, a large torch, and several minutes to use either one - or both.
Will saw, with his heightened vision powers, there were a total of five such doors in the corridor. Only one door could be opened at a time by the person in the control center. Will commented how secure the facility was to the lieutenant who was escorting Schechter and him and how impressed he was with the security measures that had been instituted. The lieutenant thanked the general for the compliment.
Hoffman’s men took Will through the remaining four doors. Finally, as they stepped through the last entrance, Will saw the doors behind which the Krelians were being held as prisoners. Each was a standard size steel reinforced door with a thick Plexiglas window about six inches square at eye level.
These doors had a strong magnetic lock as well as a key lock - both of which were required to open each door. Once whoever was opening the door with the key had completed this task, someone in the control center then disengaged the magnetic portion of the lock as a redundant security measure.
Will walked down the corridor, looking through the small Plexiglas window at each of the Krelians. They all looked tired and scared, but none of them appeared too severely injured. Will was aware that one of the reasons they had such a long life cycle was that if they were injured their bodies healed very rapidly.
As Will peered into each window he feigned revulsion at seeing the aliens.
“Mein Gott,” he exclaimed to the guards. “They are hideous creatures aren’t they, Lieutenant?”
“Jawohl, Herr General,” said the lieutenant in charge of the detail.
“Which one is their leader, Lieutenant?”
“He is in cell number six, sir.”
“It is my understanding that one of these creatures speaks German, ja?”
“Yes, sir. She is in cell number four.”
“Excellent. Bring her out and down to the leader’s cell. I wish to speak with him and let him know what is going to happen to him and his crew of…whatever the hell these things are.”
“At once, sir.”
The lieutenant snapped his fingers and one of his men went to cell number four and brought out Tah’soon. She was a beautiful Krelian female, but Will again feigned revulsion. Schechter was shocked at seeing a live alien in front of him, and Will and the lieutenant were amused at his startled reaction.
Tah’soon looked distant and resigned to her fate.
Will then spoke to her.
“I understand that you speak German. Is that correct?” asked Will gruffly in German.
Tah’soon simply nodded.
The lieutenant drew back his hand to strike her. “You will speak when spoken to, bitch!” Will intervened.
“No need to put any marks on her, Lieutenant. She’ll receive enough of them when we arrive in Berlin for interrogation,” Will said with a feigned evil grin.
“As you wish, Herr General.”
“What is your name?” asked Will.
She hesitated for a moment before answering, “Tah’soon.”
“Here is what is going to happen right now. We are going to talk to your leader, and you will translate everything I say to him word-for-word. Do you understand me?”
“Yes,” she answered, her head dipping even lower onto her chest.
“Lieutenant, open the door to their leader’s cell,” Will ordered. “You and your men may wait down at the end of the hallway. If I need you, I will bang on the door. I’m assuming that the prisoner is secured in his cell, correct?”
“Jawohl. He will give you no problems, Herr General.”
The lieutenant then opened the door of Tal’pun’s cell. Tal’pun was laying on his bunk, his feet shackled and his hands cuffed. Upon hearing the door open, he sat up as best as he could.
When Will saw him, he immediately noticed the resemblance between Tal’pun and his great-grandfather, Volnar, who was Will’s friend hundreds of years ago.
“Thank you, Lieutenant. We will only be a few minutes.”
The lieutenant nodded his head and then closed the door. As soon as the lieutenant shut the door and had walked to the end of the hallway, Will initiated the formal Krelian greeting with Tal’pun, in perfect Krelian, much to the shock of everyone in the small room.
“Greetings, Tal’pun, descendant of Noltran and Volnar. I am here to assist you and your fellow travelers with your journey home.”
Will then displayed the Krelian hand greeting, which consisted of the pinky of his right hand hooking the thumb of his left hand and then placing them in a vertical position in front of his chin, and then giving a slight bow of the head and brief closing of the eyes.
Chapter 71
25, 000 Feet Above and 250 Miles West of the Eyrie
The crew of the B-29 bomber was still in shock at discovering they were actually preparing to drop an atomic bomb on the enemy. Their briefing had been simple and to the point - they were to bomb the secret munitions factory where the Germans were mass-producing the strange blue-light weapon that had destroyed Allied ships, planes, and tanks.
They were still approximately 250 miles west of their location. So far, they had not encountered any enemy planes in the area. At their current speed, they should reach their target, a secret facility in the Bavarian mountains, in approximately one hour and fifteen minutes.
They had not been informed that Will and his crew were already inside of the facility trying to perform their mission.
East Side of the Eyrie
In the last hour each of Brunner’s team had taken out one more sentry/sniper as they made their way to the front entrance, for a total of six kills. A few minutes later Brunner came across a small anti-aircraft battery with three men manning the guns. The cannon was covered with a thick camouflage netting that made it impossible to see from the air.
Brunner radioed his other teammates of its location. Wakefield was within seventy-five yards of the location and said he would make his way there to help Brunner out.
Several minutes later, Wakefield was in position and Brunner gave the order to fire. They quickly and silently eliminated all three of the gunners simultaneously. Wakefield then approached the cannon, disabled it by removing the firing pin and burying it in the woods.
They continued pushing forward.
Chapter 72
The Eyrie
Schechter was in shock at hearing the Colonel speak to the alien commander in his own language. And from the look on the alien’s faces, they were just as shocked as he was. Before Schechter could say anything, the alien commander spoke to Will in his language.
“Wh-who are you, and how do you speak our language?”
“I don’t have time for a lengthy explanation, but I am the Guardian assigned to your star sector known as the Shadow Warrior. My men and I are here to help you and your crew get out of here and back to Krelios.”
“Are they Guardians as well, disguised as a human like you?” asked Tal’pun. The relief on his face and in his voice was obvious.
“No. They are Terrans. They are not aware of who or what I am.”
Tal’pun noticed the look of shock on Schechter’s face.
“I think he may have just figured out that you’re not a Terran either.”
“Actually, I am a Terran, I was friends with your great-grandfather, Volnar; he knew me as Kaltran.”
“But, how?” asked Tal’pun.
“There is no time for explanations now. We need to get you and your crew out of here as quickly as possible.”
“I heard my great-grandfather speak of you several times.”
At this point, Schechter chimed in, “Colonel, what the hell is going on here? How i
n the hell are you able to talk to that…alien?”
“Lieutenant, do you remember what I told you at the beginning of this mission about seeing things you may find unbelievable, but to not ask any questions?”
“Yes, sir. But...”
“This is another one of those times. We have a mission to complete, Lieutenant. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. Because things are going to get more interesting here in a few minutes.”
Will then told Tal’pun to turn his head and hold his handcuffs out in front of him. As soon as he complied, Will used his laser vision to melt the inner mechanism of the handcuffs and ankle cuffs. He then told him to put them back on so it looked like he was still shackled, just in case the Nazis came back before it was time to make their move.
Will explained his plan to Tal’pun, and he asked Tah’soon as soon as she could to advise the others of the escape plan.
“What about our ship and weapons?” Tal’pun asked.
Will explained that the Nazis had been using the weapons to attack the Allied forces. He then asked if there was a way to locate the weapons remotely, to which Tal’pun replied affirmatively.
“What about our ship?” inquired Tal’pun.
“How badly was it damaged in the crash?” asked Will.
“Bad enough that it can’t fly without major repairs. There was a rupture of the ionic propulsion tubules and the mother board that controls them, which caused the crash in the first place. I’m sure the hyper drive and power core were damaged as well prior to impact, and there was smoke coming from the engine before the crash. There are some spare parts on board but not enough to repair everything that needs to be repaired, and even if we had what was needed to complete the repairs, it would take several days to complete them. I‘m afraid the only alternative is to destroy the ship.”
“Leave the ship to me. Here’s what we are going to do,” said Will.
Will then spent a few minutes outlining his plan to Tal’pun, to which Tal’pun agreed. Afterwards, Will knocked on the cell door to be let out by the guards.
When the lieutenant in charge of the detail arrived at the cell door and let Will and Schechter out, Will said, “Lieutenant, take me back to where my men are stationed. Have your men prepare the aliens for transfer to my men on the transport truck.”
“Jawohl, Herr General.”
25, 000 Feet Above and 200 Miles West of the Eyrie
The pilot of the B-29 advised his men over the intercom that they were approximately one hour from the target. The pilot would have them arm the bomb when they were a half-hour from the target.
East Side of the Eyrie
By this time, Brunner and his crew had crested the top of the mountain, and were well on their way to the west side towards the front entrance. Becker had taken out one more sniper as they made their descent into the heavy foliage.
Just as Brunner was about to call Wakefield for a status check, he heard someone cough softly about twenty feet straight ahead of his position. He looked through his thermal vision imager, but he saw nothing - at first. He slowly started low crawling towards the sound, and when he was within ten feet of where he had heard it, he heard another soft cough from the same place. This time, he saw the sniper looking through his sights, and it looked as if he had found something.
Brunner looked in the direction the sniper had his weapon aimed and saw Becker coming into his line of sight. There was no time to warn Becker via the radio as he was close enough that the German sniper might hear his transmission. Brunner continued low crawling closer, and he pulled out his pistol as he was too close to use the rifle. As he edged to within ten feet of the sniper’s position, he softly asked the sniper something in German. The sniper whipped his head around to see who had asked for a cigarette and a turkey sandwich.
That was his last mistake as a bullet from Brunner’s silenced .45 entered his brain from between his eyes. Brunner called and reported this to Becker, who promised him a beer when they were done.
Colonel Hoffman’s Office
The Eyrie
Lieutenant Reinhard had informed Colonel Hoffman a few minutes earlier of his contact with Berlin and that the orders regarding the transfer of the aliens was legitimate and were to be carried out immediately. Hoffman had ordered his men to prepare the prisoners for release to the general and his men.
Several minutes later, Reinhard received a call, and after hanging up with the caller, immediately went to advise Hoffman of the urgent information that had just been provided to him.
“Colonel, I just received a phone call from the Gestapo. Apparently they conducted a roundup of suspected Underground sympathizers and spies yesterday and captured several people.”
“That is fascinating I’m sure, Lieutenant, but what’s that got to do with me or this facility?”
“One of the Underground agents was a man named Schmidt from the town of Füssen. He was one of the people that regularly made deliveries of fresh milk and produce to our facility.”
“What?” Now Hoffman was interested.
“Apparently during the Gestapo’s interrogation Herr Schmidt gave up the name of a spy working for the Underground inside of this facility.”
“Scheisse! Who is it?”
Reinhard gave him her name.
“Have her brought to me immediately!”
“Jawohl! Herr Colonel.”
On a hunch, Hoffman picked up the phone and called Berlin again. However, this time Schultz was not available to intercept the phone call.
Chapter 73
Front Entrance of the Eyrie
The transport truck containing Will’s team had entered the Eyrie and the men were awaiting further instructions. Hoffman’s soldiers had started preparing the aliens for transfer with Tah’soon’s help as translator. Tah’soon did as Will had asked and told them to be prepared for anything.
Hauser and his remaining team of seven men were then escorted to a large waiting room on the sixth floor where the aliens would be brought to them as a group, and, after they were shackled, would then be brought back to the first level to be loaded on the transport truck. The seven aliens from the fifth floor had just been brought in. The looks on Hauser and his men’s faces were those of shock and awe.
When Serrano saw Tah’soon, he couldn’t believe how beautiful she was.
A few minutes later Will joined them on the sixth floor to oversee the transfer as well. Everything was going as planned - until Hoffman walked in to the room with six armed guards and Erika Wagner at gunpoint. Will recognized her at once as Condor. The guards leveled their guns at Will and his men.
“Hoffman! What is the meaning of this? I will have you shot for this outrage!”
“Save the speeches, ‘General,’ or whoever you are. I just got off the telephone with Berlin and spoke to Reichsführer Himmler himself. He has never heard of you, and neither he nor the Führer signed anything to release these prisoners into your custody.”
“I don’t know who you think you talked to Colonel, but I can assure you…”
“SILENCE!” Hoffman yelled, which caused Erika to wince as if she had been slapped. “I have also found a spy in our midst,” he said, pointing his .45 caliber Luger at Erika’s head. “It seems she has been feeding the enemy information about this place for months. Her death will be slow and painful.”
“Fuck you,” said Erika to the Colonel.
“I look forward to it, my dear,” Hoffman said with an evil sneer on his face, and then back handed her hard, knocking her to the ground. By this time, Will had had enough.
“Colonel, you seem to enjoy slapping defenseless women around. How are you when they come a little bigger?” said Will.
Hoffman laughed. “Really, ‘General,’ you’re in no position to help anyone.”
Hauser and Schechter looked at Will incredulously.
“Colonel, I know you’re a tough guy, but are you trying to get us killed sooner than they already pl
an to kill us?” said Hauser quietly in English.
“Captain, in a couple of seconds, things are going to go to shit. Be prepared for anything - and I mean anything.”
Will then stepped forward quickly and unexpectedly to help Erika to her feet, and then moved her behind him and out of the way.
“Stand back, ‘General,’ or my men will shoot you where you stand.”
“Well, Colonel, as the lady said a minute ago, ‘fuck you.’”
Hoffman smiled, “As you wish.” He then motioned with his head, and two of his men opened fire on Will with their machine guns at close range.
Chapter 74
The Eyrie, Sixth Level
Will fell to the ground, pretending to be shot. Hoffman and his men obviously didn’t notice the lack of blood, and stepped around his body.
“Pity,” said Hoffman to no one in particular, “I was so looking forward to personally overseeing his interrogation myself.”
Hauser and his men started to move forward, but Hoffman’s guards pointed their weapons towards Hauser’s group.
Just then, Will stood up, brushed himself off, and said, “You might want to get some different bullets for your weapons, Colonel. Those only tickled a little.”
Hoffman and his men wheeled around at hearing Will’s voice. Everyone in the room, except for the Krelians, was in total dismay. Will’s tunic had been shredded by the bullets, but there was not a mark on his extremely well-muscled chest or abdomen. Will then leapt into action. Faster than the eye could follow, Will disarmed Hoffman and his men and knocked each of them out with a light blow to the base of their neck.
Will’s men were just standing there looking at Will when he stopped moving at hyper-speed. Will picked up Hoffman and his men’s weapons and passed them out to his men.
Shadow Warrior: Destiny of a Mutant Page 29
