by Ric Dawson
“These supposed world powers have no idea, the fools.” He smirked. The consortium commanded resources on every continent that dwarfed the major powers’ capabilities. All that remained was to control populations and world domination would be a reality. World order would be restored.
They would have the planet.
He knew the dark sentients of the psionic void, the Kaa’zak. They communicated with a select groups of humans like himself.
He yearned to know more about the thought control technology they used. Patience. Once he mastered that, the stupid leadership of the Heritorac would bow to him for a change.
The implant in his neck warmed the skin. He rubbed the spot. The small device increased his physical and psionic abilities but included fail-safes should he be captured. The resulting detonation would destroy the medulla and top cervical vertebrae. Li loathed that he had a tendency to scratch his neck above where it was buried.
“Sir, intel reports only one missile made it to a target city.”
Colonel Li clenched his jaw. “Thank you, Major. Which city?”
“Colorado Springs, sir.”
It had to be that cursed AI at Cheyenne Mountain.
“How about military communications. Are we still seeing traffic on the mil-bands in North America?” Li asked.
“Western continental sources are sporadic. They have active military communications along the U.S. East Coast. It appears we knocked out comms for the western states. “
“Good.”
“Sun Dust should knock out what they have left.”
Li couldn’t suppress an smile. “Major, advise Command they need to destroy the AI in Cheyenne Mountain at all costs.”
“Yes sir,” the major replied.
Physical assault was only one tool the consortium had, only one.
Li laughed. “The fools will never see it coming. They think they are the masters of this planet. Soon they will discover that is not the case. Now to educate the other world powers.”
The stealth craft cruised silently through the night until it was out over the North Pacific Ocean.
“Sir. We are approaching the drop zone. Please prepare for drop in five minutes.”
Li hit the release on his safety belts. “Thank you, Major.” Li moved his kit over his head as he dropped the seat to a horizontal position. Pulling himself back towards the rear of the plane, he felt the smooth surface of the drop container. He slipped his arms into the drop harness and felt the chair cushion slide under him.
Li knew the drop canister would exit the plane head first and roll. The chute deployed after a few seconds. Once the raft inflated, a small beacon would alert the pickup sub of his location.
“Drop in five, four, three, two, one …”
With a rattle and swoosh of ejection, Li felt the canister drop in free fall. The chutes opened with a muffled flutter, jerking the canister upright. In a smooth descent, he glided to the dark waters below. The sides of the drop canister flew off on impact as the hiss of compressed air filled the raft. He heard the whine of a high-speed outboard and moments later hands reached in to pull him to safety. As he emerged, he saw the red running lights of a black Zodiac bobbing in the light ocean swells. Three men manned the Zodiac.
“Colonel Li?”
“Yes.”
“Commander Xin. We will have you on the sub in a minute.”
“Thank you, Commander.”
Several men in boonie hats pulled him into the craft, and the Zodiac accelerated towards the nearby sub. A brilliant flash illuminated the dark water as the raft burst into flame.
The medium-sized sub sat low in the swells. On approach, Li could see the distinctive nose cone of the sub. It looked like a giant bottle cap extended from the main hull. He would ask the commander what that was later.
Once inside the small sub, Commander Xin showed Colonel Li to his quarters.
“It’s going to be a little cramped, Colonel. However, we should be in Aogashima in eighteen hours.”
“Eighteen hours?” Concentrating for a moment, Colonel Li said, “That’s close to two hundred knots an hour!”
“Yes, this sub uses the new supercavitation drive. She’s a veritable water rocket.” Commander Xin proudly smiled.
“Impressive, Commander, very impressive. I’ll try to nap before we arrive.”
“Colonel, by the way, well done!” The commander closed the door to the small cramped compartment.
The volcanic cone island of Aogashima appeared out of the darkness. The island had sheer cliffs on all sides. A tunnel had been dug through the cone wall of the ancient active volcano, providing access to the center of the volcano from a pier at the base of the cone. The original volcanic peak had collapsed into the volcano’s interior, creating a large circular caldera ringed by the remains of the cone wall. At least four submerged calderas lay under it. Aogashima was part of the archipelago of Izu and was the southernmost Japanese island in the Philippine sea.
Manicured crops grew in the rich soil on the extinct volcano. Fruit trees filled the elevated caldera. Along the cone, roads zigzagged up to the top of the crater.
Colonel Li watched through a viewport as the mini sub dived below the surface of the ocean. An underwater lava tube led to the hidden Wraith base. While Tokyo housed Wraith HQ, Colonel Li knew the real work went on at Aogashima.
The vessel slipped into a small dock carved from the dark basalt and tied up alongside a second supercavitation sub.
With a few pleasantries, Colonel Li exited the craft. Climbing up switchback stairs from the dock, he entered a large, well-lit cavern.
Snapping a salute, a young major waited at the entrance to the giant cavern. “Welcome to Aogashima, Colonel. My name is Major Grigano. I am to escort you to Brigadier General Suzaka.”
“Yes, thank you, Major.” Looking around, Li smiled. “This facility bears a remarkable resemblance to an old James Bond movie.”
“Yes, it does, though I think our technology and defense is far superior to that in the capitalist American movie.”
“Indeed. Well, let’s not keep the general waiting.”
Turning, the major proceeded at a brisk pace. Metal grids, beams, and walkways crisscrossed at the top of multiple caverns. They supported metal offices and work areas all along the chiseled walls. A large open space at the apex of the largest cavern was clear of grids. Li could just make out the outline of the large door at the top, now closed. They walked by a massive cylindrical platform in the middle of the cavern. The surface glowed a dull red.
Li could feel the heat from the cylinder and recalled this was the device that extracted geothermal energy from the volcano’s dormant core. An assortment of flying vehicles with sleek needle shapes lined one wall. An adjacent wall had row after row of robotic AI-controlled ground assault machines that looked like man-sized beach balls.
“What are those giant beach-ball-looking machines over there?”
“Those are the new electrolaser assault AIs from Armored Atomics. They call them eGRA-Rockers. They explode, generating a powerful EMP pulse if they are close to failure. They are for urban incursion missions. In addition to their weapons, they generate a lightning field that will pre-ignite RPGs, deflect bullets and some smaller artillery rounds.”
“AA has been busy.” Li was impressed.
“Wait till you see the LAI Marauder Plasma Tanks.” The major’s grin was ear to ear.
They entered a large tunnel with offices carved into the rock. They approached the administration buildings, while beyond loomed the entrance to another large cavern.
Li recalled from his early training days that there were six large caverns in all and three levels to the facility.
“How do you keep the villagers from discovering this facility?”
“We implant all villagers with the medulla chip. Memory of anything odd gets erased.”
“Excellent,” Li replied.
Approaching a double door along the tunnel, Major Grigano knocked tw
ice.
“Enter,” a voice said from inside the room.
Opening the door, Li noted a tall man seated at a long metal desk. He swung around.
Major Grigano saluted General Suzaka. “Colonel Li is here, sir.”
“Very good, Major, thank you. Dismissed.”
The major stepped aside, allowing Colonel Li to enter.
“It’s a great pleasure, Colonel Li. How was the trip?”
“Very good, General. I was amazed at the speed of the new submarine.”
Shaking hands with the colonel, the general waved to nearby plush leather chairs facing a small table. A ceremonial Cha-no-yu set perched on the table with waiting cups, a kama and furo, kettle and brazier, as well as other utensils. A woman dressed in a kimono stepped from the corner shadows and motioned to a waiting chair.
“Yes, remarkable, isn’t it. Please sit down.” General Suzaka ran a hand over his close-cropped hair.
Nodding, Colonel Li accepted the Cha-no-yu hospitality, allowing the woman to seat him. The general took his chair after Colonel Li was seated.
The woman sat on her heels and began the tea preparation, mixing the green powdered matcha. Then she poured the hot water from the kama over it. She completed the ceremony by offering the small ceramic cups of tea to Li and Suzaka. In silence, each man sipped the tea. Then rested the empty cups on small saucers on the table.
As the guest, Colonel Li spoke first.
“We have kicked the sleeping world powers. Are we ready for the next phase?” Colonel Li looked calmly into the general’s eyes.
“Oh yes, my friend. Operation Sun Dust is ready. We will go dark in six hours. It will take three days for the beam to reach the sun. Then another three days once the reaction is triggered.”
“Our systems are hardened? I heard the scientists were having difficulty deploying the shield for the satellites.” Li frowned.
General Suzaka continued, “We believe it was your troublesome AI in Colorado. Orion Labs has retasked two of their new quantum computers to remote view mode and initialized a series of attack nodes to activate strikes over the enemy network. We have a Wraith Psi team in Colorado for the cyber psi intrusion against the AI as well. Major Retski leads that one. You might remember him.”
“Yes, he was brilliant on the Ukraine mission. He is a competent officer.”
“There are rumors the Kaa’zak have unleashed the Grays as well. Have you heard anything about that?”
“I have not. That is a dangerous precedent. They will mutate and multiply if not kept in check.” Li frowned.
“With the AI watchdog loose, we have postponed the other nuclear sabotage efforts. Obviously we must neutralize this Daedalus AI first. Our submarine sleepers are all in position along with the mobile launcher saboteurs.”
“Will Sun Dust compromise the Daedalus AI?” Li questioned.
“It is unlikely given the protection the mountain provides. However, it will restrict network capabilities since all power generation and distribution in North America will be knocked out.”
“Daedalus has an internal generator to supply power in the Octagon. He can remain powered on, but will be unable to communicate. However, yes, we can resume cyber psi intrusions once the AI is isolated,” Li replied thoughtfully.
“And what of the enemy psi-walker?”
“We believe he is trapped and neutralized,” Li said.
After the meeting, Colonel Li spent the next hours touring the base, reviewing new systems, and checking on Wraith team status around the globe.
At sunrise, Colonel Li sat in a control room overlooking the main cavern. Bright light grew in the cavern as the huge overhead doors slid back on massive rollers. The house-sized cylinder that sat over the molten volcanic core began a low-frequency pulse. On top of the cylinder crouched a platform with a dome the size of an observatory. The dome retracted, revealing a large rotating tube like a giant reflector telescope.
The air above the platform glowed a faint auroral green bleached by the yellow glow of the rising sun. Pulsed toroids of green plasma rushed along the cylinder over the platform into the tube. A brilliant green beam shot forth into the sky.
“Seventy hours before contact,” a Wraith technician intoned.
# # #
Lane
The oscillations wobbled like a spinning top that slowed down. I coalesced in the time sea. Refractions and diffractions returned and rebuilt the source. With a powerful jerk and gasp, I woke.
The air tasted molten and ashy. Lights flashed on panels around me. Rumbles shook the room, and broken glass littered the floor. The furniture and machines were different. The table I was on as well. The metal was molded to my form. Before, the table had been flat. The straps were gone.
Climbing off the table, I headed to the door. I needed to find some clothes. My mind was a jumble of thoughts, but first, clothes. I grabbed a linen thobe that swayed on a hook. The white Arab-style garment hung to my feet and cooled the skin.
I emerged from the room into a corridor.
“Where is everyone?”
Unknown.
The floor rolled under my feet in slow undulations. Seismic. The air was thick with smoke. Volcanic, acrid, dry.
I staggered from the building into heavy volcanic embers that thickened the air. Ash blankets covered the once beautiful gardens of the city. The blue ocean that lapped against coastal plains near the city glowed a dull red out beyond the city shield.
A vast orange and black-crusted ocean of molten rock vented noxious gas into the dead sky. Smoking ridges spewed towers of molten lava from deep within the earth. The molten ridges spanned the horizon in all directions.
I blinked several times, clearing the ash from my eyes.
“Audam, what happened?”
Flood basalt lava flows. Those are definitely Late Permian.
“But how could this happen so fast?”
We’re not in Kansas anymore.
“Funny. Friggin’ metalloid.”
A group of adults and children hurried from nearby buildings, waving and shouting. They wore garments of linen that reflected light in rainbows, dulled by the sooty air.
“Thank God you’re back,” Molly shouted. She made it to me first, throwing her arms around me in a big hug. The hug lasted as TJ and Melissa joined in. The guys were all beaming. Jim and Sven wore trimmed beards that weren’t there before.
“Hi, Mr. Sudler!” Two excited teens and three small children echoed nearby. They jumped up and down.
“Hi,” I said.
After the girls finally let go, the guys thumped me on the back.
“Can’t tell you how glad we are to see you, Lane,” Jim said.
“‘Bout time you came back to get us out of here,” Kane smirked.
“Heck yeah, I think all my former god-like computer skills have completely evaporated,” Jeff remarked.
“Seems to me you were redirecting those skills admirably with Chirra,” Molly quipped.
Jeff blushed. “It was just an affair. I never could get used to, well, you know.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Seems a lot of catching up is needed.”
“No time now, Boss. Ogot said we should leave quickly once you came back. ‘Do not linger, leave quickly’ were his exact words,” Kane said.
“Kane’s right, folks. Grab your kits and luggage. Let’s get this rodeo movin’.” Jim smirked at Jeff.
Everyone sprinted towards the buildings.
“The portal is over there.” Kane slung his rucksack over an arm. The M4A1 looked different, but I couldn’t get a clear look with the rucksack over it. Kane always traveled light. He headed over to the large atrium building I remembered from before. Dead trees and shrubs marked the pathway.
Within fifteen minutes, people were heading back to the soot-covered golden pool. Jim and Sven each piloted a flying flatbed stacked high with large chests. Molly and Melissa hefted a smaller chest each. Jeff and TJ rolled a mortar-sized tripod device between them.
Everyone else carried multicolored sacks and bags. Jim noticed my stare as he and Sven pulled up with the chest-laden sleds.
“War chests,” he said, then waggled his eyebrows.
Jim and Sven landed the flatbeds in the pool first. They had measured the size as the flatbeds settled into the center of the circular pool. Once down, the kids scrambled up on the chests. Splashing into the pool with all the gear, everyone else took up spots around the pool to afford the greatest protection and crossfire. A combat defense position.
The adults and teens all had weapons unlike anything I’d seen before. They looked like four black melons skewered by a silver tube with handgrips, dials, and a shoulder stock.
A purple glow emanated from between the melons.
“Okay, Lane, let-er rip, cowboy!” Jim said.
My mouth hung open for a moment.
Kane whispered from nearby, “Lessons learned. We’ve had a lot of prep time.” I think he was chuckling under his breath.
“Audam. You know where we are going?”
I presume you want one of the two ancient portals still active on Earth. Southern Siberia or Southern Saudi Arabia. Which one?
“Let’s try the Southern Siberia portal. It’s closer to Wraith, while Southern Saudi Arabia is deep desert.”
Ready when you are.
“Okay guys, here …”
An enormous thunderclap rocked the building. Startled, I looked up in wonder and horror as a giant lava geyser exploded over the horizon and spewed skyward. It was a deep-throated, roaring cylinder, miles high and wide. Molten lava vaulted up from what had to be several volcanoes at once.
The final extinction event had arrived. Was it an asteroid strike? I hadn’t seen an asteroid and it was practically on top of us.
“Now. Lane. Now!” several people were yelling.
I concentrated on the location Audam had identified. It was almost effortless as I willed energies to me and directed them with a great rush of power. Light faded to blackness.
Loud splashes of water erupted from the new pool. It was difficult to breathe and the air tasted rock-stale and old.
