Thirst No. 3: The Eternal Dawn

by Christopher Pike

  The noise of the weapon is deafening. For one of the first times in my life, I use earplugs. Of course that means I take off my gas mask, and I’m in too much of a hurry to put it back on. The plugs also crush my ear implants. I hope Matt and I will still be able to hear each other.

  The Telar above me scamper for cover. They stop shooting.

  The special grenades are dense. As big as a softball, they each weigh over twenty pounds. Stacking them in a row on a rocky ledge, so I can throw one after another without pause, I study the controls. There’s a tiny digital clock on the side of each one and an arming button. It seems pretty self-explanatory.

  The question is, how long will they be in the air before they explode? Do I want half to land in the ravine and the other half to explode above the Telar camp? I like the idea. The grenades that explode in the air will send out a larger shock wave, although it won’t be as concentrated as those that hit the ground.

  I set half the grenades for four seconds, the other half for three. As I pick each one up, I plan to automatically push the arm button. I’m just about to throw them when Matt signals me. I barely hear him with my earplugs.

  “Sita. You need to hit their trucks now.”

  “Roger. Have they turned on their disruptors?”

  “I have a few seconds left. No more.”

  “Roger that.”

  I throw the grenades, one after the other, an even dozen. My delivery is so fast and smooth, all twelve are aloft before the first one explodes. I’m treated to a glorious sight—glorious for those who are closet pyromaniacs, which I believe a high percent of the population is. The grenades detonate in blinding blue-green balls of light. Their fire and concussive force batter the vehicles and the Telar beneath them, and a much larger wave of fire erupts. It is as if the valley beside us is suddenly swamped with lava. Orange flames two hundred feet tall whip the air.

  I jump in the air, cheering. “Yeah!”

  Then our house explodes in a red mushroom cloud.

  “Matt! Matt!” I yell in my headpiece.

  There’s no answer. Of course there’s no answer. He was in the house, and the house is gone. Two shock waves strike me. The one from our home, which knocks me down, and the emotional one, which keeps me down. Despite the fury of the Gatling gun, the Telar above me have resumed fire. I don’t fire back. Tucking into a ball, I try to hide in the deepest part of my sniper hole.

  “He can’t be dead,” I whisper to myself.

  Matt leaps into the hole beside me and shakes his head.

  “Ye of so little faith,” he says. “Put on your gas mask.”

  I sit up and hug him. “How did you get out in time?”

  “I saw it coming.”

  “What was it?”

  “A disruptor blast.”

  “It looked like a nuclear bomb,” I say.

  “I’m not surprised. It works by splitting atoms.”

  “Then we’ll die if we stay here. We have to get in the mine.”

  “Hold on.” The weapon’s fire from the Telar above us irritates Matt. He stands and, aiming faster than I could on my best day, fires his laser rifle three quick times. The shots stop. Matt turns off the Gatling gun and sits back down beside me. “Where was I?” he asks.

  “We should get in the mine.”

  “We will. But this is only the first wave. The next will be worse.”

  In addition to his twin laser rifles, he has a laptop equipped with a joystick. He flips it open and scans the screen. I assume it’s linked to his cameras, but I’m confused when I see a rapidly changing shot of this part of the state—seen from an altitude of a thousand feet. He pushes a button, and the view shifts to a rear shot of a dozen cargo planes.

  “Damn,” he says.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “They’re close.”

  “The second wave?”

  “Yes.”

  “They’re going to drop in on us, so to speak?”

  “Oh, yeah. Hundreds of them.”

  I feel a wave of despair. “I should have joined the IIC.”

  Matt talks as he hooks his laser rifles into my battery source.

  “They’ll parachute in. Close enough to rush us on foot, but far enough away that we’ll have trouble shooting them out of the sky.”

  “What’s the range of our lasers?”

  “If they have on body armor, three miles.”

  “I didn’t know the beams dissipated that fast.”

  “This isn’t Star Trek. These aren’t phasers. But to kill us, they’ll have to get close. We have the higher ground, and we’re dug in. We can take out a lot of them before we retreat.”

  “Who’s taking the picture of the planes?”

  “It’s not a who, it’s a what. You’ll see in a few minutes.”

  While we wait for the “second wave,” Matt makes quick work of the remainder of the first wave. He fires without pause, like a robot. Apparently, his father taught him to shoot this way.

  He kills the last of the nearby Telar just as the cargo planes come into view. They’re at two thousand feet. They will have to pull their parachutes at six hundred feet or higher. Unfortunately, the planes are at least four miles away. They have anticipated us having laser rifles. A trail of dark figures pours out of a dozen planes. They’re dressed in special-ops black, and after a quick ten-second drop, they pull their cords. I’m not surprised to see their parachutes are also black. Your average human wouldn’t even see them in the night sky.

  When they hit the ground, the Telar quickly pack their chutes and head toward us. For the most part, they appear armed with laser rifles and normal sniper rifles. But a few could be carrying disruptors—it’s hard to tell from this distance.

  “Haru’s making more noise than I expected,” Matt says. “You must have really pissed him off.”

  “Me? You don’t see him calling me the Abomination.”

  “My mother pissed him off when she had me.”

  “I take it Haru wasn’t invited to Umara and Yaksha’s wedding?”

  “Who says they got married?”

  “You mean you’re a bastard? Can I call you that?”

  “Why not?” He splits his screen in four and studies each square. The air shot appears to be losing contact with the planes. Now he’s more focused on the terrain the Telar are crossing as they advance toward us.

  “How far out are the mines?” I ask.

  “They start two miles out.”

  “How many did you bury?”

  “Thousands.”

  “I’m surprised they’re not scanning the ground for them.”

  “That would take time. Haru sees these soldiers as cannon fodder. He’s willing to accept a high level of casualties to bring us in.”

  “The Gatling gun can hit them from this distance,” I say, as I swing the tip of the weapon toward the advancing army.

  “Its heavy rounds might trigger my land mines. Let me detonate them first, and then we’ll turn it on.”

  The soldiers continue to approach, running fast. I count four hundred. Many are less than a mile away.

  “What are we waiting for, damn it?” I snap.

  Matt sets his laptop aside. “Start shooting. But remember, our goal is to back them up, slow them down, so they crowd together. That way the land mines will be more effective.”

  “Roger that.”

  We start shooting. The Telar immediately hit the ground and shoot back, using their lasers. This upsets Matt and for good reason. His mines are largely “Bouncing Bettys.” A Betty, when triggered, tosses a shrapnel-filled bomb three feet into the air. That’s the “Betty,” and it’s the main explosive component of the mine. Because it lifts off the ground, its shock wave and shrapnel spread in a large circle. But Bouncing Bettys don’t work so well if the enemy is already lying on the ground.

  Hundreds of lasers scorch our side of the ridge. But I’m surprised at their lack of effect on the granite. It must be because the rock is dry. The bush and shr
ubs catch fire, but we don’t take any damage.

  Matt pauses. “Sita, stop, I’ve changed my mind. We have to get them back up. Turn the Gatling gun on them and sweep it back and forth.” He reaches for his laptop. “I’m going to call in help.”

  “You have someone on our side?”

  “It’s not a person. It’s a machine.”

  “Great.” I set the Gatling gun on high-speed automatic fire. After I’m sure it’s swinging back and forth in a wide arc—over sixty degrees—I drop back in the hole and resume fire with my laser. I’m afraid to stay close to the Gatling. Already I see a hundred bolts of laser fire trying to take it out. The Telar are excellent shots, but the weapon is buried deep. Still, it’s only a matter of time before one of them gets lucky and the thing explodes.

  Matt is focused on his laptop, which annoys me—I could use some help. Especially when a heavily armed assault helicopter swoops over the mountain behind us. I expect it to riddle us with rocket shells. Instead, it opens fire on the Telar, hitting them with mortars, machine-gun rounds, missiles. Now, at last, I know where he’s been getting his air shots from.

  The Telar leap up and race toward us.

  “Don’t tell me that’s our escape helicopter,” I say.

  “I have a spare,” Matt replies. “Cover your ears.”

  “I’m wearing earplugs.”

  “Put your hands over them.”

  I stop shooting and do what he says.

  Matt detonates the Bouncing Bettys. All of them, thousands of them. For a minute I imagine the earth’s mantle for miles around has shattered and the lava beneath has been released. For the advancing Telar it’s literally hell on earth, for they’re caught in waves of fire. And buried in this terrible tide, hidden as smoldering black specks, are countless pieces of shrapnel. They rip into the Telar, their body armor notwithstanding, tearing them to shreds, to bloody meat, and it’s perhaps the tragedy of my immortal life that I’ve lived so long that I’m forced to hear four hundred souls scream at once in agony.

  I cannot bear it. I cannot look.

  I feel Matt tugging at me, anxious. He has his gas mask on.

  “We’ve got to go, Sita. We have to get inside the cave.”

  I gesture weakly to our annihilated foe.

  “But they’re all dead,” I mumble.

  “We can’t be sure.” He’s pulling my mask over my face. “Put this on and let’s get out of here!”

  I feel dazed. My voice comes out muffled by the mask.

  “What’s wrong?” I ask.

  He holds the back of my hand up to my face.

  Blisters are forming on my skin. Some dark.

  He rubs my skin and takes his hand away.

  It’s covered in blood.

  “They’ve released something in the air,” he says. “We have to get in the mine and seal it. The others will die if this reaches them.”

  “What is it?” I moan as I follow him toward the cave. Seconds ago I felt physically fine. Now it’s as if a thousand fireflies have landed on my skin and vomited gasoline into my pores. The burning sensation is matched only by an unbearable itch. I can’t stop scratching, and the more I scratch, the more I bleed. Matt’s next words sting as badly as our invisible ailment.

  “It’s what Haru’s going to use to kill humanity.”

  TWENTY-SIX

  We are at the mine entrance when I hear them. My ears might be the one part of my body that’s stronger than Matt’s. I have to stop him. He’s preparing to arm Telar grenades and bring the walls down behind us, sealing us inside with the others.

  “There are three Telar above us, on the other side of this hill,” I say.

  “I don’t hear them.”

  “They’re there.”

  “I don’t care. Whatever’s out there has to stay out there. We have to block the entrance.”

  I grab Matt’s grenade to stop him. “What if it’s not gas but a virus of some kind? We could already be infected. We could carry it straight to the others.”

  “It feels like an external agent.”

  “That’s because it’s driving us crazy. Listen to me. I never noticed these Telar before until we got this close. They must have been either hiding underground or they’re wearing something that blocks their heartbeats and breathing.”

  “Your point?”

  “I think they’ve been here awhile. They might have been given orders to observe the battle, and if it started to go against them, they might have had instructions to release this toxin or virus or whatever it is.”

  “More the reason to seal this door now.”

  “No. Think this through, Matt. We have to know if we’re infected or not. I don’t see anyone alive on the battlefield. I’m pretty sure these three just released this thing. That means they’ll know what it is. They might even have a way to treat it.” I turn. “I have to go after them.”

  He stops me. “If you’re wrong, you’re leaving Teri and the others open to a greater chance of contamination.”

  “Seal the entrance if I’m gone more than three minutes.”

  “I can’t leave you out here.” He wipes at my bleeding face, and I feel the pain of a dozen popping blisters. “You’re sicker than me. I’ll go after them.”

  “You know the Telar better than anyone, and you’re stronger than me. I’m more expendable. It’s a fact. We’re talking about the safety of the world here. Let’s stop arguing and let me go.”

  “Three minutes, no more.”

  “Agreed,” I say.

  Carrying a single laser rifle, I rush away from the mine entrance and scurry around the side of the peak. Now that I know the Telar are there, it’s not hard for me to get a fix on them. I surprise them in a ravine not half a mile from the mine. The two females react instantly, firing lasers at me—continuous beams. I have to twist and turn to dodge them, but I finally manage to get off two shots that hit them square in the chests. Their hearts explode, and they go down. I’m on the third one, a guy who looks twenty, before he can shoot. He freezes when I appear—he appears to be the weak link in the group. He wears thick glasses and has a facial twitch. He is not exactly a poster boy for immortals. I don’t care, I don’t have a lot of time to talk. I point my laser at his head.

  “Do you know who I am?” I ask.

  He’s scared. He seems younger than the rest. “Yes.”

  “You released an agent in the air a few minutes ago. What is it? A virus or a toxin?”

  He stutters. “I . . . I can’t talk about it.”

  I drop the rifle and grab him by the throat.

  “You say you know me. You must know I’m a vampire. You must know I can make other vampires by putting my blood in people. I’m going to do that to you right now. Then you’ll live in a constant tormenting thirst. You’ll spend eternity craving blood. You’ll walk the earth feeding from thousands, and it will never be enough.”

  I go to bite his neck. He screams.

  “Stop! Please stop! I don’t want to be a vampire!”

  I relax my grip. “Then tell me what I want to know.”

  “If I do, will you let me go?”

  “I might.”

  “That’s no answer.”

  I squeeze him tighter. “Damn you! You will be a vampire!”

  He bursts out crying. “I shouldn’t be here! I’m a scientist!”

  “Did you help develop this thing that’s causing these blisters?”

  “Yes. No! I just helped test it. I never thought it would be used.”

  “Tell me what it is. I’m running out of patience.”

  “You asked if it’s a virus or toxin. It’s both.”

  “How can it be both?”

  “I can explain, but I need time. Look, it’s extremely contagious. One part in a billion can cause your skin to blister. But when you inhale it, and it enters your blood, it begins to multiply.”

  I feel I’ll go mad from the itching. I interrupt.

  “Are you the one who released it?”
/>   “No.” He points to one of the women I killed. “She did.”

  “When?”

  “A few minutes ago. Our commander ordered her to—”

  “Shut up. You’re not infected. Why? Do you have a vaccine? A cure?”

  “This pathogen is unlike anything the world has ever seen before.”

  I feel my desperation rising. The illness affects my mental state, and I have to fight not to scream. “Damn it. Do you have a vaccine on you or not?”

  “Yes.” He points to the same dead women. “She has a vial of it in her pack.”

  I release him and search her backpack. She has a vial with a clear fluid with the label X6X6 on it. “Is this the vaccine?” I ask.

  “That’s the pathogen. Look in the other pocket.”

  The other pocket has a vial of blue liquid with the label T-11 on it. There’s also a packet of syringes. I rip one free. “How much vaccine do I need to stop it?” I ask.

  “Ten milligrams works on most humans.”

  “I’m not human. I’ll try ten anyway.” Stabbing the vial with the needle, I withdraw the milky fluid and prepare to inject it in my arm. “Is it better taken intravenously?”

  “It will work faster, yes.”

  “You better not be lying.” I shoot it into my vein and wait. I know I have no time, but I let a minute go by. Then I notice the itching is less and the blisters are shrinking. “How many can I treat with this vial?” I ask, waving the T-11.

  “Fifty people.”

  I hold up the X6X6 bottle. “How many can I infect with this?”

  He gulps. “A million people.”

  “Good God. How could you develop such a thing?” He goes to answer, and I stop him. No time. I pick up the laser. “You deserve to die.”

  He holds out his hands. “I’ve answered all your questions. Please don’t kill me. I . . . I . . . I cured you!”

  “So you have. Come with me.”

  “What? I can’t do that.”

  “Come with me or die.”

  He decides to accompany me. We rush back to the cave. Matt is relieved to see me, although he’s not happy I have brought company. His face oozes red fluid, and his grenade is covered in a film of blood from his blistered palm.