How could the boy survive such a leap and then swim like that? Holly scanned the horizon, trying to determine their destination. Not far away a large Navy vessel was churning along, heading out to open sea. She knew the San Diego Naval base was nearby and that the ship was probably headed out for some military exercise.
Not good.
Holly squinted to get a better look at the ship and recognized that it was an amphibious assault ship with the designation LHD-2 painted on its side. The flat deck of the vessel was covered in an array of aircraft, from jet fighters to helicopters.
“Oh no,” Holly whispered.
Lady jumped off the deck and into the water after the two escapees.
Someone grabbed Holly’s arm from behind. She turned and found Jeff Madison standing in front of her. Jeff Madison.
“What are you . . . ?” Holly paused, guessing that Jeff had probably followed the same signal that led her to Mathew.
“Holly, that boy is not a boy. I think he may be infected with the same nanovirus that the Patrick Chen from our time period had. And you remember all too well what he was capable of.”
Holly didn’t want to think back to that time. She’d lost her arm to the nanobot swarm, and her friend and colleague, a man she’d known for years, had been turned into a crazed killing machine with superstrength and self-healing abilities. If this boy had the same affliction, there’d be no stopping him.
“What do you know about that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle?” Holly asked.
“This is the first time I’ve seen it. I was tracking the signal and it led me here. And that toy dog?”
“An information retrieval unit from the future, designated Lady. It won’t tell me much more than that, other than it was sent here to stop an infected teddy bear, which apparently now inhabits the body of the Mutant Turtle. As for the boy, Lady identified him as Mathew David Tedrow, who supposedly died ten years ago in Waco, Texas.”
The whole thing sounded beyond crazy as it came out of Holly’s mouth. Why the hell would someone from the future make toy robots like this? If they were supposed to be like terminators, then shouldn’t they be big and muscular and talk with a stilted Austrian accent?
Other passengers, who still thought they were watching a show, looked over the railing, pointing and smiling as the boy swam away.
“Sir, look,” said the man standing beside Jeff. He looked like ex-military and like Jeff, he was dirty and disheveled.
All three of them stared out at the assault ship bristling with advanced weaponry.
“I believe that’s the USS Essex,” the man—Jeff’s bodyguard?—said. “What happens when they get to it?”
“Holly, this is Chase Arrington. Chase, Holly Scarborough.” Jeff introduced them without turning away from the naval ship. “That destroyer is packing a huge arsenal. Whatever the boy and turtle have planned, it can’t be good.”
“It seemed like they were just trying to get away, stay hidden,” Arrington said.
“That just means they’re planning something in the future,” Holly replied. “What, I have no idea.”
“We need to catch them now,” Jeff said firmly.
The ship continued out of the harbor, but Holly could tell that it was slowly tracking away from the Essex.
“We need to get this ship moving in the same direction as that destroyer if we plan on catching them,” she said.
“We need to get to the bridge,” Jeff said urgently to Arrington. “Chase, we may need to use force. Are you okay with that?"
"If it means we can avert another terrorist threat, then yes. I'm ready."
"Good. Come on, Holly.”
The three bolted from the railing as Mathew, Raphael, and Lady continued swimming toward the destroyer.
They weaved through smiling passengers in a frantic search for the bridge. Holly spotted a crewman giving a tour to a small group and asked him where it was.
“I’m going there right now, ma’am,” he said cheerfully. “If you’d like, you can join the tour.”
Holly and the two men fell in behind the passengers—an elderly man and woman moving in slow motion, a young couple holding hands, and an extremely overweight family with two young boys who kept punching each other in the arms.
Moments later the entire group was inside the bridge. A couple of crew members hovered over glowing electronic panels. The tour guide began explaining how the various control panels guided the ship. It all looked like of rows of knobs and buttons to Holly.
Jeff looked at Arrington and nodded. The bodyguard pulled out his gun and pointed it at the officer sitting in the captain’s chair.
“This is an emergency,” Arrington said calmly as he held the gun at the crewman’s head. “We need to divert the ship.”
Everyone in the room gasped, and the obese mother screamed.
“Stay calm,” Holly said, trying to allay their fears. “You’re all going to be okay.”
“That way,” Jeff said sternly to the shaking crewman manning the controls. He pointed in the direction of the destroyer. “And faster.”
The crewman pushed the throttle forward and the engine hummed with more power, but Holly could barely tell that the ship changed speed.
“Why aren’t we turning?” Jeff asked.
“Sir, this is a cruise ship, not a speedboat,” the nervous crewman responded. “Our maximum speed is twenty-four knots.”
Holly and the others waited as the giant ship slowly turned and minutes later set in on a collision course with the Essex.
Holly was scared; they'd actually taken hostages! They had no authority to do any of this since they weren’t police or military. She wished there was some way to get in touch with Paulson—he’d be able to handle this situation better than they could. What the hell were they going to do when they caught up to a battleship?
As the Golden Princess slowly inched closer to the Essex, horns began to blare from the assault vessel and an alert came in over the radio.
“Golden Princess, you seem to be diverting from your set cruising line. Everything okay over there, or is the crew just catching the early buffet?”
The sailor on the other end chuckled. Obviously they didn’t think the cruise ship was any danger to them.
Jeff grabbed the microphone.
“USS Essex, this is the Golden Princess. We believe there is an imminent threat to your ship. We’ve come to warn you.”
There was a pause on the other end.
“Who is this? What type of threat are you talking about?”
Holly and Jeff shared a long look before he said, “This is Jeffrey Madison, CEO of Madison Defense, one of the top government weapons contractors. There is a prototype weapon that is malfunctioning and we believe it’s boarded your ship.”
Holly relaxed a bit. That was smart thinking on Jeff’s part. Even though he didn’t have a military rank, he still had the ear of many of the top brass and that should carry some weight. However, Jeff had done little over the last few years that would earn any respect from the military.
“One moment, Mr. Madison,” said the unnamed sailor.
Seconds later an older man’s voice came over the speaker. “This is Captain Ronald Evans, commander of the USS Essex. Mr. Madison, if that is really you, this better not be a joke. What type of weapon are you talking about here?”
“Sir, I assure you it’s no joke. The weapon is . . . nontraditional. It’s . . . ” Jeff paused, looking to Holly for inspiration. She held up her hands and shrugged. “It’s a robotic infiltration unit, disguised as a child’s toy, a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, to be exact.”
A lot of laughing came across the radio.
“Mr. Madison, you’re shittin’ me. You’re telling me that the most advanced battleship in the world is under threat from a toy turtle? And you’re pursuing it on a cruise ship?”
The laughter rang out even louder.
“Mr. Madison, I suggest you put the captain on the line and let us straighten this out. I’m sure
you can find a martini and a big-breasted blonde down by the pool to keep you occupied.”
Raucous laughter erupted from the command center of the Essex. Jeff turned red and looked furious, his jaw tightening. Holly felt sorry for him. Of course he had brought it on himself with his womanizing and carrying on. Both were reasons they broke up all those years ago.
“What the hell is that?” Captain Evans said, talking to someone on his bridge. “Who the hell is this kid? Get him off the bridge—”
Shots were fired, and men yelled in confusion. Then the radio went silent.
“We need to get on that ship,” Jeff said firmly, trying to shake off his embarrassment.
“What are we going to do?” Holly asked. “We have no weapons that can hurt that thing and if what you say about the boy is true, then there’s no way we can stop him either, not without an EM pulse device.”
The cruise ship had barely moved any closer to the Essex, which was still probably a half mile away. Holly grabbed a pair of binoculars hanging from a wall at the back of the bridge. The Golden Princess was taller and longer than the Essex so with the help of the binoculars, Holly could see men racing around the deck. Flashes of light pulsed from inside the command center.
“We need to continue following them,” Jeff said, looking unsure of himself. “Communications will be back up soon and we can call for help.”
“Jeff, a high-altitude nuclear EMP blast has destroyed most of the electronics and communication over a large swath of the U.S. Communications are not going to be up for a very long time.”
Holly knew the devastation the blast had caused. There wouldn’t be a quick recovery, and they were not going to be calling in reinforcements.
Jeff gave her a stern look. “Give me some binoculars,” he barked at Arrington.
Arrington grabbed a pair hanging on a hook near the door. The tour group and the other bridge personnel were whispering among themselves, giving her and her fellow hijackers furtive glances.
Arrington apparently surmised that they might be plotting something because he said, “You folks, quiet down over there. We’ll be done here soon and you can return to your cabins unharmed.” As he spoke, he brandished his weapon to show them he was serious.
Holly held the binoculars up to her eyes again and looked out of the glass windows over to the Essex. Its bridge was smoking now. On the deck a squad of men ran toward the fire. They stopped suddenly, fell to the ground, and opened fire.
Holly could barely catch a blur bouncing from man to man, wrenching their weapons loose and throwing them off the ship. When the blur paused long enough for her senses to register what it was, she saw Mathew. He'd stopped in the middle of the deck and was looking behind, waiting for his pet or master, whatever it was.
The turtle bounced along behind him like some green rabbit. As the turtle moved across the deck, it jumped on top of the aircraft, pausing at each one. Holly instantly counted the number of planes and helicopters—twenty-seven in total.
Mathew continued to scan the deck for approaching seamen. When Raphael got to the last fighter, Mathew jumped into the jet with him.
“Where the hell is Lady?” Holly whispered. “Lady, can you hear me?” She moved her portable closer to her mouth and asked again.
“Yes, Holly. I’m in pursuit.” Lady’s British-accented voice came through clearly. “Recon Model R-3 is proving resourceful and has upgraded both offensive and defensive capabilities. It’s also been able to infect many of Essex’s systems with a control virus. I’m attempting to regain access.”
One of the guns on the Essex swerved inward, away from the sea, and pointed at the deck. Holly zoomed in with her binoculars and saw a small black dog sitting in the gun turret. How the hell Lady was operating the gun, she had no idea.
Heavy-caliber rounds pounded the Essex’s deck. Holly calculated a rate of at least seventy-five rounds per second slamming into the steel. Sparks flew along the flat surface, moving up the ship, narrowly missing the other sailors, until they eventually hit the jet Mathew and Raphael had just boarded, sending them diving out just before it exploded. Two other aircraft suddenly moved in sync, turning to the gun tower and firing their missiles. The turret exploded in flames.
Mathew and Raphael jumped to another plane and in seconds took off from the deck. All the other jets Raphael had touched also lined up and began taking off. Various models of attack helicopters rose into the sky as well. It looked like the whole ship was being deployed.
“Holly, Model R-3 and the infected subject, Mathew, have taken off in an AV-8B Harrier II,” Lady said from the portable.
Thank goodness Lady was still functioning.
“R-3 is in control of all the aircraft on this vessel. I have taken control of all onboard weaponry; however, I calculate that will not be enough firepower to stop the air assault. I’ve called in reinforcements. R-3 knows you and Jeff Madison are on board the Golden Princess. There’s a high probability you will be targeted. I suggest you take cover immediately.”
Holly stared at Jeff and Arrington, eyes wide.
“Run!” she screamed. “Everybody out!”
Everyone in the control room made a break for the door, but they were jammed up by the obese man and his wife, who managed to wedge themselves in the exit.
A Harrier buzzed overhead, and two Black Hawk helicopters flew into position at the front of the cruise ship. A missile shot out of the Harrier and hit the deck just below the control room. The explosion was deafening, and the ship lurched, as fire and heat rose up from the floor below them.
Arrington immediately ducked his head like a linebacker and plowed his shoulder into the blubbery sides of the stuck couple. With a loud grunt and a squeal, they popped out of the door and landed in a heap on the other side with their two boys crying and screaming.
Holly crawled over them, and they ran for the stairs. They didn’t make it very far before the fire raging on the deck below stopped them.
“We need to take the outside emergency walkway,” hollered one of the crew, pointing at a metal ladder leading down the side of the deck.
Everyone ran to the ladder and began crawling down, nearly on top of one another. Below them other passengers were running in a dazed panic as smoke billowed all around them. The helicopters were still hovering just in front of them, missiles positioned and taking aim.
Before they could fire, two missiles streaked out from the Essex, striking both Black Hawks and sending them falling into the sea in a cascade of flames and hot metal.
Holly continued her descent. Smoke was getting in her eyes and she was having a difficult time breathing.
“This way, Holly,” Jeff yelled out. “We need to get to the lifeboats.”
The crew tried to direct the passengers and keep some semblance of order, but chaos reigned as everyone panicked. An alarm blaring over the ship’s speakers added to the confusion.
The Harrier zoomed by again and a half second later a missile slammed into the bow of the Golden Princess. A fireball rose high into the air and the ship lurched, this time violently enough to knock everyone off their feet. Jeff grabbed Holly by the arm just before she hit the railing. Her heart pounded as she lay trembling, staring into the blue water. Without Jeff, she would have flipped over the rail and off the ship.
Anti-aircraft missiles zoomed overhead, trying to intercept the helicopters and jet fighters under Raphael’s control.
They were in the middle of a battle.
They continued running along the side of the ship, where the lifeboats were being deployed. People were already fighting to get on board, and many of the boats were going down into the water only half full. By now the crew were just as panicked as the passengers.
Four or five more Harriers buzzed by in perfect formation, the sound of their powerful engines reverberating off the ship’s deck. More missiles shot out of the Essex, hitting one of the Harriers and bringing it down in a ball of flames.
Another explosion rocked one of the
decks below them, shaking the great cruise ship once again. Holly, Jeff, and Arrington managed to climb onto one of the boats with the frantic and terrified passengers.
“Wait,” Holly yelled out, pointing.
A little girl was standing on the side of the deck crying, cradling a small doll. Holly tried to reach out for her, but she was too far away. She looked at Jeff, eyes wide, pleading.
“You have to help her,” she said.
Jeff grimaced and jumped out of the lifeboat just as it started ratcheting down to the water. Arrington tried to grab him, but Jeff pushed his arms away.
Another explosion hit, so close this time that Holly could feel the heat blast on her back. The Golden Princess rolled, and the lifeboat slammed into it. Arrington was thrust up against the side of the ship, hit his head, and fell instantly motionless, into the ocean. Holly hit her shoulder and felt stabbing pains pulse through her whole body.
The lifeboat stopped moving, and the automatic lowering device whirred and grated. Then they dropped several feet. Holly looked over the side. They were still about six stories up, a long way to free fall. Arrington floated in the water face down for a few seconds, then drifted under the waves.
"Nooo!"
She could barely hear Jeff screaming above her, but there was nothing they could do about Arrington. They were in a fight for their own lives.
“We’re going to die,” a young woman whispered, sobbing. “My husband, we’re on our Honeymoon. I . . . I . . . don’t know where he is.”
“We’re at war!” yelled out an old-timer sitting beside Holly. “I knew it when Bush came on the news. We’re at war again.” He was wearing a florescent life vest and a Navy Veteran baseball cap. “First the nuclear bomb and now this attack. It’s just like it was at Pearl Harbor all those years ago. Somebody give me a gun—I’m going to fight those bastards!”
The old man pumped his fists in the air as two Sea Cobra helicopters passed overhead.
“Jeff! Jeff!” Holly yelled out, looking up to see if he was still on the deck and had been able to get the little girl. Smoke continued to billow from many parts of the ship.
NanoSwarm: Extermination Day Book Two Page 10
