“This is what the other projects created.” I shine my light on the first casket. Dad takes hold of the light to get a closer look at the hybrid reptilian-man.
“What is this?” he asks in horror.
“He was once a man, probably taken against his will to be just one of many test subjects for one of Level 6’s sick experiments.”
At that moment, a clicking sound echoes in the large room, and the lights flicker back on. One by one, the rows of yellow florescent lights come to life. The backup generator must have finally been activated.
Dad hands me the flashlight and stares at the hundreds of glass caskets filling up the large chamber. He goes from one casket to the next, looking at the various mutilated beings preserved in yellow goo. “They experimented on children?”
“Oh, hell yeah. They created the Black-Eyed Kids and then some.”
Dad had no knowledge of all of this. “Ignorance is truly bliss.”
He’s about to ask me what the Black-Eyed Kids are when the roar of chopper blades storm overhead. The agents are back.
“Time to go,” I say. “Sorry to break down your walls of compartmentalization.”
He’s thinking of how his position of authority can be used to stop these gruesome experiments. “And your mother?”
“I can explain, but first we need to get out of here.”
Dad is unable to move. “My bosses—”
“I know about the Majestic 12. And I know you think you have some influence there, but you don’t. They will kill you, and not think twice about it. I’ve got a scientist-buddy who was kicked out of Project Hero. He’s the one who told me everything, and he’s helping me.”
“I never was much of a drinker, but I think I could use one right now.”
I force myself to chuckle at his attempt at humor. “Do you trust me, Dad?”
“I do. I trust you, Maverick.” Dad is in awe of me right now, realizing I’m no longer the child he raised.
The door to the bunker slams open upstairs.
I grab him by the shoulder and pull him out of the Freak Show chamber. “Yep, time to go. They are coming for us.”
20
ASTID
THE AIR FEELS thick with tension. Detective Jennings, Lisa, and Beck sit huddled together closer to the rushing water. Kren and Garn pace near the tree line, telepathically discussing strategies to kill Balor. Marcus attempts to throw rocks across the water, but he gets irritated when none of them skip atop it.
Lisa and Detective Jennings struggle with their heavy feelings of dread being so close to Kren and Garn. Kren and Garn do not even attempt to shield their presence, preferring the humans remain fearful of them.
Detective Jennings whispers to me, “I don’t like hanging around too close to those two.”
“We need their help in taking out Balor,” Dr. B explains.
“My brother and the others have much at stake, too,” I add. “That said, I am also uneasy about our alliance.”
Lisa tightens the makeshift tourniquet on her leg. “If you’re uneasy, then I’m uneasy.”
“Balor is your doing, Dr. Beckett,” Detective Jennings remarks. “Why don’t you explain why my .38 didn’t drop it?”
“I didn’t create him,” Dr. B clarifies. “But a .38 caliber bullet did do some damage. He just doesn’t feel pain. He also heals very quickly.”
“I’m still uneasy,” Lisa says with a nervous chuckle.
Dr. B continues, “Balor prefers the energy Dark Angels, or BEKs, exude versus regular humans. My efforts to control him weren’t completely in vain. I did manage to find a semi-successful neural implant that did help keep him under control. Coupled with the proper pharmacological agents, I did make some inroads. However, I failed to achieve total control over Balor.”
Lisa says, “That much is obvious. Whatever you did seems to have worn off.”
“There is one bright side.” Dr. B pauses when Lisa sighs sarcastically. “Balor must sleep for a minimum of ten hours and forty-two minutes every twenty-four hours. Without the mind drugs, he has to sleep. If he’s expending energy, he must sleep even longer. That makes him vulnerable.”
“Vulnerable?” Detective Jennings puts his balled hands on his waist. “It could be anywhere. How many thousands of acres of forest are out here? All it’s got to do is find a nice safe place to crash, and when it wakes up, it’s ready to go on a killing spree.”
Dr. B says, “I also installed an ocular implant in his right eye. Unless he ripped out his own eyeball, it should still be functioning. I believe this is how Level 6 has been able to keep him contained to this area. Otherwise, he’d be slaughtering people all over the place. But containment has been costly. He’s killed many agents in the last several days, I’ve lost count.”
Detective Jennings asks, “So, Level 6 does have some kind of power over it?”
“After I left, I have reason to believe Level 6 programed Balor to hunt down any escaped Dark Angels. I can’t imagine they made much more progress after I left. My original plan was to remove the neural implant before letting Balor go, but I didn’t have the time to do it. I knew without the infusion of mind control drugs, he wouldn’t stay under their power for too long.”
“Looks like your plan pretty much backfired,” Detective Jennings says.
“Balor has been far more disciplined than I expected.” Dr. B takes a quick drink of bottled water. “I thought he would have made his way to Atlanta, out in the open for all the camera phones and news channels to see.”
Lisa points to her bandaged wound. “Disciplined?”
Dr. B’s guilt sinks to new depths. “He’s ferocious, that’s for sure, but I thought he’d act like a wild boar, just running free and rampaging. I knew it was a calculated risk, but I had no idea it would fail so miserably. He is aware when his body craves sleep, and he’s been disciplined about closing his right eye so Level 6 can’t figure out where he is. Then he finds a place to hide and hibernates for eleven to twelve hours.”
I turn my attention to Kren and Garn. They have put up a mental wall, and I’m careful to not alert them to my probing.
We’re wasting our time here, Garn says. We should return to the others to gather our strength.
Kren responds with, We would surely die. We need these humans’ help, particularly Dr. B’s knowledge on Balor. I’m tired of running and hiding like cowards.
“It’s been a couple hours,” Marcus says to me. “Maybe you shouldn’t have left Mav-Man on his own back at the Level 6 lair.”
He refused my help. I’m fairly sure Maverick received my warning that the agents were returning to the compound. However, I can’t be sure since his abilities have slowly been waning. “He felt he needed to confront his father on his own.”
“I know, I know…he’s stubborn,” Marcus says. “He locks onto one idea, and he can’t see any other way.”
At that moment, we simultaneously sense a familiar energy coming near us. Kren and Garn sense it, too. It’s still just a bit too far to read. It’s not Balor, at least.
“What is it?” Lisa asks.
It’s him, I telepathically tell the others. I say out loud to the humans, “Maverick’s coming.”
“Thank God.” Lisa springs to her feet. “Where is he?”
“He’ll be here in a little while.” I reach out again, and I’m aware of a second presence with him. “I believe he is with his father.”
Marcus throws yet another rock into the river in celebration. “We’ve practically got an army now.” He counts the number in our party one-by-one. “They’ll be nine of us, if we include Mr. Ashe. All we need are more machine guns, maybe a rocket launcher or two.”
“He did it,” Detective Jennings says. “You have to hand it to Maverick. He’s one stubborn boy on a mission, but he’s brave.”
The closer Maverick and his father get to us, the more fear they feel. Charles Ashe is filled with enough dread to try to convince Maverick to go in another direction. Maverick explains
the creepy feeling is natural when the Black-Eyed Kids are nearby.
Can you cool it with the vibe thing, Astid? Maverick asks telepathically.
Marcus and I glance at each other, and then at Kren and Garn. The dark vibe isn’t coming from us. It’s coming from my brother and Garn.
Mav-Man, it’s good to hear your voice in my head. Marcus grins. Now, before you go all ape-shiitake, I’ve got to let you know—
Marcus? Is that really you? Maverick projects all his questions at once, and then runs into the clearing next to the river north of us. Oh, man, we thought the worst. What the hell happened to you? He sees Marcus, but spots Kren and Garn standing by the trees. “What the hell?”
Charles Ashe comes out of the thicket, too. Maverick shields him with his own body. “What are they doing here?” He glares at Kren, ready to do battle. “Astid?”
I direct my thoughts to Kren and Garn. Pull back on your oppressive energy. Now!
They immediately shield their vibes from the others.
Marcus takes several steps towards Maverick and Mr. Ashe. “Dude, they came to help. They are being hunted by Balor, too.”
“Bullshit!” Maverick notices that Jennings, Dr. B, and especially Lisa are all safe. Despite this, his anger continues to boil over. He sends me a telepathic message. Suck his life force, Astid.
“Listen to what they have to say,” I tell him. “Many things have changed. I showed them how they can take the energy from other sources. They are willing to stop taking human lives.”
Lisa rushes to Maverick and embraces him. She notices his shoulder in no longer injured. Maverick feels comforted by her touch, and his anger evaporates.
“Lisa? What are you doing here?” Mr. Ashe asks her. He turns his attention to the others and gasps. “Marcus?”
Marcus drops his rocks. “What’s up, Mr. Ashe?”
Mr. Ashe immediately notices Marcus’s black eyes. He examines Lisa’s face again, relieved her eyes are normal. “Maverick, I’m ready to hear more about…well, everything now.” Maverick’s father doesn’t recognize the rest of us until he sees Detective Jennings. “Detective?”
Detective Jennings shakes hands with Mr. Ashe. “Drake Jennings. It’s good to see you safe, Dr. Ashe.”
“I must have left you a hundred messages about Maverick.”
“Fifty-two, but who’s counting?” Detective Jennings clears his throat. “I want to apologize for lying to you about your son. We had quite an ordeal back home. After all of that, we decided to keep you and everybody in town in the dark about what really happened. Otherwise, even more crazy would have come down on everyone. We had no clue you were involved in this until early this morning.”
Mr. Ashe is more than disturbed. “I can’t believe you allowed these kids to get involved in something like this.”
“He didn’t have a choice,” Maverick says. “We were already in it deep before Jennings figured everything out.”
“What about Tarick and Cadence?” Mr. Ashe asks Maverick. “Are they OK, too?”
Maverick’s lower lip quivers. “The Black-Eyed Kids killed Tarick first.” He glares at Kren, and the urge to attack my brother consumes him. “Level 6 tried to cover all of it up, but I wouldn’t let it go. They captured Marcus and Cadence, turned them into BEKs too, but things went sideways.”
“You can say that again,” Marcus adds.
Mr. Ashe can’t take his eyes off Marcus. “I’m so sorry.”
Dr. B steps forward. “I’m Dr. Michael Beckett.”
The two shake hands. “You were with Project Hero?” Mr. Ashe asks him. “You’re responsible for all of this?”
“Directly and indirectly…yes.” Dr. B’s shoulders slump. “I’m here to atone for what I’ve done.”
Mr. Ashe understands him completely.
“Mr. Ashe,” Marcus begins, “are you a bad guy? Or were you totally in the dark about all the messed-up stuff Level 6 has been doing.”
“Level 6 was very effective at keeping each Project separated from each other,” Mr. Ashe replies. “Hell, my office could be next door to another initiative, and I wouldn’t know what they were doing. Maverick showed me the specimens in Bunker One.”
With my mind touching Mr. Ashe’s, he is definitely telling the truth.
“I oversaw Project Aurora,” he continues. “Nine percent of funding I received was diverted to Deep Black Projects. What did with their money and resources was out of my scope by design. I’d heard rumors here and there, of course. But nothing was ever substantiated. It’s hard to distinguish the fantastic from the realistic.”
Dr. B nods. “That’s for sure.”
“I don’t like these kids being involved with this,” Mr. Ashe tells Dr. B and Detective Jennings. “We need to get them out of the area as quickly as possible.”
Maverick shakes his head. “Oh Dad, we are way past that. The three of you don’t stand a chance against Level 6 alone.” He points his thumb at me. “We’ve got firepower of our own, and we’re going to use it.”
Mr. Ashe allows himself to be led towards the turbulent river, taking a seat underneath a large pine tree. Kren and Garn maintain their distance, while the rest of us gather under the shade. Maverick fills his Dad in on everything, going all the way to the beginning to when Kren and the others first took Tarick’s life. When he talks about his mother’s death, he does his best to keep his composure. Mr. Ashe is likewise devastated, and his pain runs deep. Their raw emotions overwhelm me too. Maverick tells his father he was at his mother’s funeral too, but at a distance. That’s when he vowed to do whatever it took to destroy Level 6. After explaining Dr. B’s information, Mr. Ashe finally understands everything. We stay silent and let it all sink in for several minutes.
Detective Jennings eventually stands up. “We need to figure out our next move.”
“Balor is still out here, somewhere,” I remind the group. “He is no longer under Level 6’s control.”
Mr. Ashe turns to Maverick. “You can really read minds?”
Maverick nods. “Beck thinks some kind of energy transference happened when Kren’s sucking my soul was abruptly halted by Astid.” He shoots a mental bullet made of pure anger right at my brother. “I think it’s slowly wearing off, though.”
Kren’s fists ball up, but Garn holds him back.
Dr. B wants to further question Maverick about his abilities, but he decides not to. “The mind control pharmaceuticals were kept in Bunker One, but they moved them. Maybe the field agents have it. If we can somehow get our hands on it, we could maybe use Balor against them.”
Kren and Garn stand at attention, and a cold shiver touches the back of my neck. Marcus feels it too.
“Frankentoots is coming!” Marcus screams.
Kren reaches outwards with his mind. He’s coming fast.
Everyone gets to their feet at the precise moment Balor jumps down from the top of the waterfall, crashing into the shallow river. Water splashes all of us, and chaos erupts. Lisa screams just as Maverick grabs her and pulls her away.
Balor focuses his attention on Kren. Found you!
I send Maverick an urgent command: Take the others and run. Balor prefers to take our life forces first.
Balor invades the center of our circle, forcing everyone to scatter into different directions. He’s purposely trying to separate us. Maverick can’t corral everyone. He and Lisa go in one direction, while the three adults follow each other in the opposite way down the river. Before fleeing, Detective Jennings fires a flurry of shots, penetrating Balor in the shoulder. Balor jerks backwards, but it doesn’t faze him.
Balor shifts his focus on the rest of us. He pounces on Kren, who ducks out of the way and moves out of the monster’s grasp. Garn slips behind Balor and kicks the beast’s back leg, causing Balor’s knee to collapse onto the ground. It’s a temporary victory, and Balor quickly gets both feet underneath him. Balor swivels around and shoves Garn hard enough to send him flailing into the air and landing clear across the rive
r.
I keep my distance from the beast. Marcus, distract him and I’ll try to drain his power.
Marcus moves past Kren and sticks his tongue out at Balor. “Dude, you is the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen, yo.” He pulls the trigger of his rifle, but the force of the weapon discharging throws him backwards.
Balor roars. “You are a half-breed, but killing you will bring me almost as much pleasure as taking Kren’s life force.” He points at my brother. “Your essence is quite strong.”
With my psychic wall up to block my intentions, I sneak up close to the monster from behind and attempt to draw his strength away from him. He immediately feels the pull and turns to face me. He pushes a burst of energy outwards, throwing me into the air and against a tree.
Kren, Garn, and Marcus are frozen with fear.
You need get out of here, I tell them. I reach out with my mind, and I can sense Maverick, Lisa, and Jennings are safe in the forest. Stupid Dr. B is nearby, hiding behind a rock. I don’t have time to continue my mental search as Balor moves towards me.
“Your essence is ten times that of your brother.” Balor licks his dark, chapped lips. “You will most certainly make me stronger.”
Marcus attempts to fire his weapon again, but it doesn’t work. He flees towards the woods, but Kren and Garn have regrouped and remain to help me fight.
Balor swivels around to intercept them, but Kren and Garn swirl around him. Garn gets too close, and the monster sends him hurling backwards with a powerful backhand swipe. Garn lands on a huge boulder near the water.
Dr. B pulls his concealed body into a ball. Balor jumps through the air and lands next to the rock. Garn recovers and steps away, but the creature has his sights set on Dr. B now. Kren pulls Garn away from the river.
Take him and go! I tell my brother.
We will not leave you.
I steady myself. Go now!
It takes all of Kren’s power to lead Garn away into the forest.
Balor grabs Dr. B by the shoulders and lifts him up. “Dr. Beckett. We meet again. All the shock treatments, brain surgeries, and psychotic drugs you gave me didn’t work. I haven’t forgotten about all of that. You didn’t cut away enough of my brain to make me forget, no sir.”
Black-Eyed Kids: The Complete Series Page 39
