Devastator

by Jason Cordova

  “Stage One was a test run,” she began as she zoomed out on the tablet and looked at the screen. She looked at the others and sighed. “Hold up. Can we get a TV or display in here?”

  “I’ve got you, kid,” Vilim said and hurried out of the room. He returned a minute later with a large monitor in his arms. He set it down on the large table and plugged it in.

  Tori searched through the WiFi for a moment before she connected to the monitor with her device. She then set up a data transfer, so everyone could see what she was talking about.

  “Okay, so Stage One is a test run, right?” she confirmed as she zoomed in on the upper right corner of her notes. “The Rogues were working with Gargoyle, but they didn’t know his true goal. That’s why they all knew each other, except for him. They thought they’d scam WarpSoft out of millions of dollars and get away with it. They hadn’t counted on Gargoyle flipping on them. He was the one who changed the Chaos code. He made changes throughout to make sure certain things…happened. To be honest, his interference was the only reason we were able to make it as far as we did.

  “Stage Two was the first true run. He flipped the Nexus into becoming a battery for something else, and he set it up to be a cycle to run on an infinite scale until it devoured itself. Like the snake thing? Eats its tail to live but devours itself at the same time? That thing. That’s why we couldn’t shut the Nexus off from the outside. It’s no longer connected to anything on the outside. You have to be in The Warp to even see it. But there’s a catch…he created a path from the Nexus leading…out.”

  “Out?” Leo looked at her, puzzled. “Out where?”

  “That’s…where things get weird.” she paused as she collected her thoughts. She zoomed her notes to another section and everyone looked back at the display. “It’s just going…out into space. Sorta. It’s going into a quantum realm where everything and anything can be folded and manifested elsewhere. It’s…like a landline, but for a quantum connection.”

  “E.T. phone home?” Vilim asked, amused.

  “Who?” Tori was confused.

  “Kids…” Vilim muttered.

  “Anyway, it’s like a teleporter,” she continued to explain. “A path that allows someone who knows how to teleport through it almost instantly.”

  “How is that even possible?” Leo demanded, his brow furrowed as he stared at the screen. “The Nexus isn’t set up to handle this!”

  “Actually, it is,” Rodney muttered as he, too, looked at Tori’s notes. “At the most basic level of understanding, it’s a landing pad for gamers when they shift into and out of The Warp. Theoretically speaking, I mean, but yeah, I can see this.”

  “He changed it and made it something else,” she said. She turned to look at her father. “Daddy, I saw the universe while in this thing. I saw stars being born, living, and then dying within seconds. I could see everything.”

  “Sounds like something someone hopped up on drugs would say,” Vilim murmured.

  “Never taken one in my life,” she countered. “Except for fevers and stuff. Nothing illegal. And no, I’m not making this up.”

  “So basically, Laszlo’s quantum teleportation theory involving his quantum net is real,” Leo stated as he looked at Tori.

  “Who?” She asked.

  “You’ve been doing all the hard work on the inside,” Leo explained. “I haven’t been sitting by and twiddling my thumbs in the meantime.”

  “Can you shorten this? I have a meeting in ten minutes,” Vilim added as he looked at his phone. “Pardon. Nine.”

  “Fine. Basically, what I’m saying is Gargoyle is an alien,” Tori said.

  “What, like from Colombia or something?” Rodney asked, confused.

  “No, Dad. Like a real alien from outer space.”

  A few of the adults in the room chuckled nervously. Rodney gave his daughter a strange look while Chelsea seemed interested. The others, however, had a good laugh at her expense.

  “I think jetlag is getting to you,” Leo said in a condescending tone, though he did appear amused. “You should take a nap and finish up later.”

  “I’m serious,” she emphasized and zoomed in on a specific section of her notes. She drew a large circle around the triangle she’d made on the plane. “It’s right here. This is an alien and he’s scouting us.”

  “So, you’re telling me an alien species initiated first contact through a video game?” Leo scoffed. He looked at Rodney. “Really, can you believe this tripe?”

  “Tori…” her father’s voice trailed off as she felt her face flush red from anger and frustration.

  “You don’t understand just how silly that sounds to me,” Leo continued, oblivious to her telltale signs of anger. “That’s, well, absurd!”

  “No, you don’t understand!” Tori screamed at the wealthiest man in the world. Everyone else in the room suddenly became very quiet and motionless. She jabbed a finger at the screen and glared at Leo. “This is an invasion!”

  “Tori…” her father warned in a low voice. She ignored him.

  “You don’t get it! None of you do! This…creature has taken the Nexus and used our own game against us!” Tori continued to shout. She was so angry now she was almost panting. “He infiltrated our world the first time as a test run! Crisis was nothing more than a scouting mission! I don’t know how he did it, but he kidnapped Dylan! He stole him!”

  “That’s absurd!” Friend or not, Leo wasn’t going to let a teenaged girl yell at him. He’d done too much to help her, and others, for him to be treated like this. He pointed a finger at her accusingly. “You’re trying to suggest to me that someone is trying to invade through a video game? And then somehow this person kidnapped your boyfriend through teleportation? Absolute nonsense!”

  “Dad, please,” Tori begged her father, tears in her eyes. “Listen to me.”

  “I…” Rodney looked at his boss for a moment before he shook his head. “Leo…Mr. Champion, maybe we should consider this…”

  “Rodney, you’re the most reasonable man I’ve ever met in my life,” Leo said turning his attention away from Tori. “You’re going to tell me you believe her about some alien invasion through a game? Through my game?”

  “Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth,” Rodney intoned. “Tori doesn’t lie. Not to me she doesn’t.”

  “Did you just quote Sherlock Holmes at me?”

  “Boys, let’s calm down a bit,” Chelsea raised both hands, palms outward as she tried to quell the argument. “Tori isn’t prone to exaggeration. We must remember what we asked her to do, as well as the others who went in. Young men and women died during the Crisis incident, Leo. Tori did as you asked, and now you’re questioning her statement. Something obviously happened to Dylan. The staff assisting her down in Orlando said as much. To question her now after forcing her to relive something terrifying? That’s simply unfair.”

  “Gargoyle is an alien, he kidnapped my boyfriend, and he’s leading an invasion of Earth!” Tori screamed at the top of her lungs. “This isn’t some PTSD flashback thing! Why won’t you listen to me?!”

  “Guys,” Vilim interrupted, his voice shaky as he interrupted. His normally dark face was pale, and he had the look of someone who had seen a ghost. He held up his phone, stopped, and then transferred the livestream from the app to the monitor Tori had been using minutes earlier. All eyes followed the screen as something weird appeared.

  “New reports are in. This is not a Higgs-Boson particle experiment from Oak Ridge that has gone wrong, as initial reports suggested,” the attractive news personality said as she looked into the camera. “We don’t want to speculate what it is at this time, but our initial examination makes it appear to be some sort of worm hole or portal high in the sky above East Ridge, Tennessee, a small suburb outside the city of Chattanooga. We don’t have official confirmation at this time, so we’re not certain precisely what it is, Qasim.”

  “No word from the military yet
, Mariah?” a male voice, presumably Qasim’s, asked from off-camera.

  “The National Guard hasn’t issued a statement, nor has the Pentagon or the White House at this time,” the female reporter answered immediately. “Mayor Poole has advised all residents to remain indoors until a more definitive answer can be given. Back to you in the studio, Qasim.”

  “Thank you, Mariah,” the screen flashed back to a middle-aged man seated at a news desk. His dark features were impeccably calm and unperturbed as the image of the sky above East Ridge remained on screen behind him. “As we mentioned earlier, we’re currently following these breaking developments out of…I’m sorry, we have just received word from the Pentagon. It is a portal of some kind, and it isn’t terrestrial. I say again, it is not terrestrial. It’s…oh my God.”

  Every man, woman, and teenager in the room stared at the television in shocked silence as the scene shifted back to Tennessee. The portal had opened in the sky. The news reporter continued to frantically babble incoherently as the glass-like circle hovered at an oblique angle. All of the clouds which brushed against it immediately disappeared. Tori knew it was a portal because the television showed there was something on the other side. Something dark and sinister, something most decidedly…

  …alien.

  “I told you so,” Tori sniffled through her tears as everyone in the room began yelling at once.

  End Book 2

  About the Author

  A 2015 John W. Campbell Award finalist, Jason Cordova has traveled extensively throughout the U.S. and the world. He has multiple novels and short stories currently in print. He also coaches high school varsity basketball and loves the outdoors.

  He currently resides in Virginia.

  Catch up with Jason at https://jasoncordova.com/.

  Titles by Jason Cordova

  Corruptor

  Wraithkin

  Kraken Mare

  Murder World: Kaiju Dawn

  * * * * *

  The following is an

  Excerpt from Book Three of The Warp:

  Obliterator

  ___________________

  Jason Cordova

  Available Soon from Anticipation Press

  eBook, Paperback, and Audio

  Excerpt from “Obliterator:”

  Prologue

  “Come forth and be recognized, Faithful.”

  Gargoyle took a deep breath to calm his nerves before he strode forward, his body glistening as he secreted liquid in his nervous state. His breath came ragged, and he could feel both his hearts hammering. His blood rushed through both at such a fast pace he knew everyone in the chamber could see his skin turning bluer by the moment.

  He tried to regain control of his composure but failed. He had never before been called into the presence of the Arbiter, though his visit was not entirely unexpected. Gargoyle had been a Vanguard for many years and had scouted countless worlds in the name of the Path. Many times those he had found were not even at the early stages of knowing the Path, and he had never been given the opportunity to introduce a species to the Faithful. Not until he had stumbled upon humanity had he been able to submit a full report about their ability to not only see the Path but actually begin the journey without the Faithful’s help. Gargoyle had known it would only be a matter of time before he would be ordered to report his findings to the Arbiter in person after that.

  He stopped and dipped his body low. He remained prostrated before her for long minutes, not daring to move. He barely breathed. He kept his eyes locked on the slick floor and refused to even blink. He could not afford any mistakes now, not with so much at stake. His entire species’ way of life was about to change, and his life would end if he was not careful with his next few words.

  He wondered if he would be rewarded or punished for his actions. He had done three very thorough scouting runs on the planet, with all of them being considered a success to varying degrees. Indeed, he had even managed to bring back a live specimen, a real human male, for the scientists and theologians to bicker and argue about. In his most humble opinion, his deeds should be lauded and his place in the Hall of Names secure.

  Finally, the Arbiter spoke. “Vanguard, have you a report?”

  Gargoyle swallowed nervously. There would be no Hall of Names for him. She had not called him by his True Name, only by his rank. His heart sank low. Nor had she mentioned anything about his house or family. She had not offered him food or drink, nor a respite from his journey. All combined were a bad omen.

  “I do, O Arbiter,” he answered, his head still bowed. “May I offer you my opinions of the world I have taken to calling Earth?”

  “Proceed, Vanguard,” she said. “And rise. Your groveling annoys me and does nothing to further the Path.”

  “I obey, O Arbiter,” Gargoyle began as he shifted back upright. He continued to gaze downward, however. He dared not meet the eyes of his ruler. “The planet is inhabited by a very inquisitive species who are called ‘humans.’ They are technologically inferior to the Faithful at this time, but their pace of growth is absurd and almost unheard of in all my years as a Vanguard. Their minds work quickly, as fast as ours, dare I suggest.”

  “You dare too much, Vanguard,” she hissed. “Remember your place. It is but one amongst the Faithful, and the Path offers little sympathy for blasphemers.”

  “Yes, O Arbiter,” Gargoyle bowed his head in subservience as he felt the stirrings of irritation from the deepest recesses of his heart. He should have known his place, and surprisingly, it was this slight flash of anger which helped him subdue his previous nervousness. He felt more confident now about his report. He tamped down on his anger, however. The Arbiter had removed the heads of his betters for lesser crimes. “It is at this time that I would like to recommend a hold upon the invasion plans until further investigations can determine the true cost of allowing the humans upon the Path.”

  “That is impossible, Vanguard,” the Arbiter all but snarled at him. “Everything is in positon. Your last report indicated that the planet was a perfect home for the Path. If they can follow the Path, then they will join it. Or die. The Faithful have spent much time preparing for this invasion, Vanguard. Many years have gone into this.”

  “It was, O Arbiter. Circumstances have changed your humble Vanguard’s opinion.”

  “Explain yourself.”

  “As countless Vanguard have before me, I gifted the future followers of the Path with the stones to pave the way,” Gargoyle stated as he thought back to when he had showed the humans quantum networking in Seoul many months before. He had ensured that Leo Champion had taken the bait and implemented it throughout his company. As expected, every major software company had followed suit. No less than thirty companies now designed their software and hardware to be compatible with the quantum network. A few were already on their way to quantum teleportation, though even they did not know how truly close they were just yet. Gargoyle did, though. He knew because he had been the one to set them on the Path. “Their connection to the Path is strong, though they are but neophytes in the ways of technology. A breadth of time is all that they have lived within, yet in that barest of moments they have leapt onto the Path with reckless abandon and unforeseen skill. It is for this same reason, O Arbiter, that I suggest caution when dealing with this species. They are not weak in their understanding of the Path, unlike those of old who joined us upon it.”

  “Vanguard, once again you presume too much,” the Arbiter said, her voice cold and steely. “We are the Faithful who protect the Path, and your humans follow the Path, neophytes or not. We will annex them and show them the Path, and we shall lead them to the Light. Thus it has always been, and thus it shall always remain.”

  “Yes, O Arbiter.”

  “Now, have you identified proper areas for the Path to be built upon?” the Arbiter asked as she leaned back onto her hindquarters. Gargoyle nodded.

  “Two locations, O Arbiter,” Gargoyle stated. “The first would be easier for humans to fi
nd the Path but harder to connect it globally. Their footsteps would be many before they can join the Path. It is in Seoul, South Korea.”

  “These names mean nothing to me, only the Path,” the Arbiter said dismissively. “What is the other?”

  “The second is a very powerful transmitter of the Path, and near a central hub for the entire modern populace of the planet,” Gargoyle stated. “It is not as easy to form the Path here as the first, but a shorter journey for the followers.”

  “Very well, Vanguard,” the Arbiter said. She stood and looked down on him from her dais. She stomped one foot as she made her decision, and tossed her head about in annoyance as he shifted nervously at her response. She looked at the Architects gathered behind Gargoyle, their large bodies hidden in the shadows. “We shall commence with Phase Three. Call for the Pathwalkers.”

  Others began to move from the room and yet Gargoyle remained still. He had yet to be dismissed from the presence of the Arbiter, and even after many years out in the wilderness he knew the protocols must be followed at all times. So he waited, silent, alone with his thoughts.

  He had not meant to allow the human girl to learn of the Path so early. In the heat of the moment he had inadvertently let slip why he was there. She had not seemed to notice at the time, only to put all the pieces together for a complete picture once she had wounded him within The Warp. In his arrogance, he had allowed her to access the Path unfettered, receiving a view of the future and of the past. She had not succumbed to what she saw, instead continuing to fight even as he bombarded her from every angle he could manage.

  It had not been enough. His avatar within The Warp had been eliminated and, without anything else left to accomplish in the short amount of time he had left, he had filed his final report and escaped back onto the Path.