Firbin sensed a shock rush through him. At first, he thought he was imagining it, but then he realized it was coming from Marissa. He had never felt any emotions from other humans before. It wasn’t because she was a woman either. He’d been surrounded by women ever since their craft had crashed on Earth.
This was new.
Something different.
For several seconds he let the essence of Marissa surround him. It was gone the moment he tried to hold onto it. He shook his head. They were in a serious battle for not only their own lives, but that of this planet. He should not be allowing anything other than military strategy and survival to cloud him brain.
He could not allow his judgement to become impaired.
He might make a mistake that would cost the lives of not only him, but his team. He had to focus on their mission. Marissa was just a human who was in the wrong place. They needed to use whatever information she had access to and find out how the Ancient’s Staff had found its way to Earth.
Thero had a light shining up a darkened hole in the ceiling when they reached him. Firbin handed him his light and then jumped up to the first rung of the ladder. He reached back for his light and inspected the narrow cylindrical tunnel. He ran his hand around the edges and then up several rungs of the ladder.
“There does not appear to be any monitoring here.”
“No sensor?” Niail’s voice echoed up to him.
“No.” Firbin glanced down. “There may be something at the top. Do you want me to climb and then return?”
“Yes. Let me know when you reach the top.”
Firbin nodded and started the climb. There was barely enough room for him and his pack, but he needed his explosives with him. It took several minutes for him to reach the end. It was a small grate that was blocking the exit. He felt around the circumference and touched a tiny sensor alarm. He held the light in his mouth and very quickly disconnected the wires. They would have a small window of time to make their escape before a patrol was sent out.
His next concern was the lock. It was primitive and there were no explosives connected to it. He pulled out a small amount of the powder explosive he had formulated and poured it into the lock. A flash and a sizzle and the lock was broken. He pushed and the grate gave way.
Darkness met him.
He crouched low and scanned the area.
“The grate is blown. I disconnected the alarm, but it probably triggered a remote sensor. Time is important.” He communicated to Niail. “I’m going to secure the area. Wait until I give the all clear signal.”
The night air was cool and the stars in the clear sky provided the light he needed. He left his light hanging on the top rung of the ladder in the vent shaft before scrambling to the cover of a large boulder. Silence surrounded him. There was the faint sound of traffic in the far distance. He was encircled on all sides by the tall faces of mountains.
Several minutes later he heard the approach of faint footsteps.
“Someone is approaching.”
Firbin stretched his neck from side to side and steadied his breathing as he prepared for battle. He saw the approaching soldiers long before they were aware of his presence. They had rifles aimed toward the light in the shaft. There was no doubt they planned on shooting whoever made an appearance above ground. Firbin pulled a knife from his leg holder and readied himself.
He crept with quiet stealth.
He killed the first by twisting his neck.
The second heard the skirmish and turned just as Firbin cut his throat. The body made a quiet thud as it dropped to the ground. Firbin held his breath and waited. Usually there were two teams that investigated a disturbance. The second team would be expecting trouble. He scrambled behind another boulder and waited.
Five minutes later another two soldiers crept toward the shaft. They made their approach with more secrecy, keeping low to the ground and using caution as they moved forward. In the darkness they passed Firbin’s hiding spot. He waited until the second was a few feet away and then made his move. He pounced and slit his throat before his partner knew what had happened. The leader turned around and Firbin threw his knife, hitting him in the neck.
There was no time for a cry.
No warning going out to others at the base.
“It is clear.” Firbin sent his message through mind connect to Niail. “Come quick.”
They would have at least fifteen minutes to get away from the area before a bigger patrol checked in. Firbin retrieved his pack and dragged the dead bodies behind the boulders. If the area looked undisturbed, it might buy them a bit more time. When he had finished, he moved to the opening and waited.
Thero was the first to exit. Marissa was behind him and Firbin offered his hand to her. She hesitated a second and then grabbed him.
A shock of sensation traveled up his arm.
He held firm.
This woman was affecting him. It was too soon to know what that meant, but he had no intention of letting her out of his sight. He pulled her up out of the ventilation shaft and kept her close to him as he waited for Niail to exit. Then he shut the grate and reconnected the wires on the alarm.
“Is that necessary?” Marissa asked. “Don’t they already know we’ve escaped?”
“It may confuse them,” Niail answered. “We have to ensure that we can delay them. Anything that helps postpone our discovery is necessary.”
Firbin caught Marissa’s hand and moved away from the shaft. Thero had already started to walk in the opposite direction that the soldiers had come from. They didn’t need to find themselves facing another scouting mission.
They descended the foothills in silence.
The cool night air made the trek easier.
Marissa kept pace with them for several minutes, but as they reached the rockier edge of the mountains she started to stumble. Firbin didn’t hesitate. He clasped her close and lifted her into his arms. She was a tiny woman and light as a feather in his arms.
“You can’t carry me.” Her voice was a whispered recrimination.
“It is best.” Niail spoke from ahead. “Your footsteps were getting labored and loud.”
“Excuse me.” Marissa growled into Firbin’s ear. “Next time I plan on being hunted and kidnapped, I’ll bring better shoes.”
“There is no need.” Firbin smiled. “We are here to help.”
“You can’t expect to carry me all the way down this mountain?”
“Why not?”
“I’m too heavy.” Marissa turned her head so that she was closer to Firbin. “Besides, women like to fend for themselves.”
“That is why Hunters were created.” Firbin frowned. “It is no effort to carry you.”
“You guys don’t give up.”
“A Hunter never surrenders.”
Firbin sensed that she wanted to argue, but instead she sighed and leaned against his shoulder. It was comforting to have her close. It also allowed them to quicken their pace. Discovery was not an option. His breathing steadied as he continued the trek down the mountainside. When they had gone a couple of miles, the landscape changed. The solid rock gave way to a gravelly terrain with sparsely scattered mesquite trees and low-growing thicket plants.
They slowed.
Niail ordered a stop.
Ahead there was a small grouping of larger rocks that would provide shelter. Firbin put Marissa down when he reached the boulders. She straightened her skirt and took a step toward the rock. Firbin reached out and stopped her. She started to speak when he tapped her mouth.
There was a loud noise of machinery in the distance.
“We need to investigate.” Niail nodded at Thero. “Firbin stay and protect Marissa.”
Chapter 7
MARISSA WAS FIERCELY independent. Having four brothers meant that she’d had to fight to have her opinions heard. She loved her brothers, but they had always thought they knew what was best for her. Perhaps that’s why she hadn’t followed in their footsteps and instead, gon
e her own way. Up until today, she’d always considered herself successful and on course with her career. Now she wasn’t so certain.
Her oldest brother, Charles, was a naval pilot, stationed at Naval Air Station Fallon. He was an instructor at the Naval Fighters Weapon School. William was thirty-three and a physician. He lived near her parents in San Francisco. Next was Jack, a decorated Navy Seal. He was also station at NAS Fallon and working there as an instructor. Her youngest brother Sam had just passed the bar and was working with a big law firm in Los Angeles.
She was thirty years old and had a MBA from Harvard. She’d been thrilled when she’d landed the job at KT Oil. It was a position that would give her access to the best connections and companies in the energy industry. Her brothers had thought she was wasting her talent in business, but she’d refused to listen. She had her independence and her feet were planted firmly on the corporate ladder.
It irked that she had to rely on Firbin for help.
She prided herself on being in control and prepared at all times.
Her shoes were ridiculous in this setting, but that was no reason to give up. She’d rather have walked in her bare feet than have to turn to someone else for help. Still, they were trying to escape and she would never have been able to keep up with their speed. Relying on her own devices wouldn’t have gotten her out of the situation at Nellis either. Maybe it was time to accept help graciously. She owed Firbin her life.
“Who are you guys?” Marissa sat on the ground and pulled off one of her ruined shoes. “You hardly broke a sweat carrying me.”
“I was bred to be strong.”
“You make it sound as if you’re a machine.”
“All Hunters have been altered to be the best warriors in the universe.” Firbin’s voice held pride. “I have expertise in explosives and weapons.”
“And that was bred into you?” Marissa didn’t hide her skepticism. “What did your parents say about that? Surely they had a part in your abilities?”
“Hunters do not have parents.” Firbin sat beside her. “We have been genetically altered and manipulated for eons. We are created in birthing chambers.”
“That sounds like something out of a Science Fiction novel.” Marissa rubbed her temples. “I don’t know what they gave me, but I seem to be losing a grip on reality. You keep making references that suggest you’re not from Earth.”
“Hunters are human in genetics, but we come from Cygnus.”
Marissa’s breathing stilled.
It sounded as if he’d said he was an alien.
“That’s impossible. Aliens do not exist.”
“They do.” Firbin’s voice was quiet. “That is what we were fighting back at the Air Force Base.”
“Those creatures?”
“The Albireons.” Firbin nodded. “They have to be defeated so that your planet can be freed.”
“And somehow I’ve landed in the middle of this?” Marissa sighed. “This is quite the dream. Just when I think I’m waking up, I’m back at the beginning.”
“It is no dream.” Firbin’s voice was serious. “Someone kidnapped you and gave you to the Albireons. They did not venture out of their lair to take you.”
“And you also want that weapon.”
“Definitely.”
Marissa leaned back against the rock. At least it was real. Damp and solid against her body. She needed a few seconds to get her thoughts together. She refused to believe that he was from outer space. He looked and acted human. He wasn’t completely crazy though. Some of what he was saying made sense. She was a smart woman and she understood where they were leading with this conversation. Someone she knew had betrayed her. Worse, they were probably working with aliens and strange technology, if Firbin was to be believed.
“You think my boss arranged to kidnap me.”
“Probably.” Firbin sounded apologetic. “Barton’s information has proven to be correct in the past. If he feels your employer is one of the Shadow Government working with the Albireons, then it is true.”
“You trust Barton?”
“He has proven to be honorable in the past.” Firbin shifted so that he was looking directly at her. “It was unusual for him to be so concerned with you coming with us. He must have great fear of this organization you work for.”
“I’m the CEO’s assistant and I’ve never heard of these Albireons or weapons.”
“What about Albirsion Corporation?”
“They own KT Oil.” Marissa inhaled a sharp breath. “You’re not suggesting that they have something to do with this? I’ve never met anyone from their group.”
“Albirsion Corporation is run by the Albireons and the humans who ally themselves with them.”
Marissa started to giggle. “Do you know how ridiculous that sounds? They’re one of the richest corporations on Earth.”
“Exactly.”
She took a few minutes of silence to process what Firbin was saying.
It wasn’t long before horror replaced her amusement.
If Firbin was right, then what he’d implied about Douglas Norcott, the man she worked for, might be true. He reported directly to the CEO of Albirsion Corporation. Did that mean Douglas had been responsible for her kidnapping? Her mind shied away from that thought. It didn’t seem possible.
“He was the last person you remember seeing.” Firbin’s voice was a gentle probe.
“I can’t believe he would have done such a thing.” Marissa clenched her hands together. “He always treats me with respect. Not like some of the other bosses I’ve worked with.”
“If he arranged for you to be taken by the Albireons, then there was no doubt that he knew what awaited you.”
Marissa’s eyes widened. Firbin’s voice was serious. Deep inside she sensed that even though she’d been drugged, it didn’t mask the terror she’d felt when she’d been stared at by those pale, mouthless beings. A shiver of revulsion raced through her.
“What were they going to do?” She had to know, no matter how horrible. It would eat at her the rest of her life if she didn’t face what had happened.
“They experiment on humans.” Firbin’s voice was low. “They steal genes and then modify them so that they can create new species. With humans there is an added difference.”
“I don’t like the sound of this.”
“Humans produce a hormone that can be modified into a drug.”
“A recreational drug or one that will save lives?”
“Addictive and mind-numbing.” Firbin cleared his throat. “There are many other worlds in the universe who would pay large sums of money for such a substance.”
“So they can keep their people docile?”
“No.” Firbin’s voice was adamant. “That is something I have only seen on Earth. The planets that I speak of would like to make this available to keep their people happy.”
Marissa sighed. “They might say they’re altruistic, but trust me, most people are only concerned about how it benefits them.”
“That is not honorable.”
“Survival demands some tough choices.”
“True, but if one remembers to act from truth and honor, the path is obvious.”
“Is that what you do?”
“Always.” Firbin sounded sincere. “All Hunters live by the Sacred Code and honor.”
“Was it honorable to attack the Albireons?”
“They do not live with honor.” Firbin leaned closer. “There is no choice with a species that intends to destroy all humans and decimate the planet.”
Marissa fought the sensation that she was not only hearing Firbin’s words, but sensing his outrage. He did not doubt that his actions were justified.
“I’m not certain about any fight being honorable, but I’m grateful you were there when I needed rescuing.”
“It was fated that we should meet.”
“I don’t believe in fate.” Marissa shook her head. “We make our own luck in this world.”
“Your own
luck?” Firbin sounded confused.
“Not literally.” Marissa smiled. “I work hard so that I can make things happen in my life that I want. I call that luck.”
“So working at KT Oils is what you wanted?”
“It’s a top company and my ticket to a top executive position.”
“Which is good?”
“It means money and respect.” Marissa had no intention of apologizing for wanting those things. They came with being the best and in order to prove herself in a world dominated by men, she had to be better.
“You have great ambition.” Firbin looked out over the dark landscape. “It is an honorable thing for a woman to have a position of importance and command.”
“Most men don’t think so.”
“Where I am from, that is not the case.” Firbin pulled his pack closer. “Women are the rulers and decision maker. Men obey.”
“You said that in the tunnel and I thought it was a strange thing to admit.”
“It is the truth.”
“Where are you from?”
“Cygnus.”
“I’ve never heard of that city.” Marissa frowned. “Is it in the United States?”
“I am not from Earth.”
Again he was insisting he wasn’t from Earth and it was getting harder to ignore his claim. Her mind was clear now and she couldn’t continue to ignore Firbin’s strange claim of being from outer space.
“You’re no different from the Albireons then.”
“My genetics are human, but I was not bred here.”
“There you go with that term again.” Marissa knew her voice had an edge, but she couldn’t stop it. “We don’t have that kind of technology.”
“Not on Earth.”
Firbin rummaged in his pack and pulled out a small cylinder. He already had a pistol resting on his legs and he aimed this into the darkness.
Fear tightened around her.
She’d thought the worse was behind her, but now she wasn’t so sure.
She struggled to find what had caught Firbin’s attention, but all she could see was the inky black of the night that surrounded them.
“Is there someone out there?” Marissa kept her voice low. “I don’t hear anything.”
aHunter4Fire (aHunter4Hire Book 7) Page 5
