by N. W. Harris
“You good?” he asked.
“Yeah, still have all my memories,” she replied, her expression saying she wasn’t so good otherwise.
Nonetheless, it was a relief. He hoped Greenie was done messing with her and Jules’ minds. He needed everyone on his team to be able to fight if they were to survive.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
When there was enough distance between him and the camp to ensure the teenagers were out of the sunlight, Shane turned to see how they fared. The kids marched onto the bridge behind him, most of their heads held low. A few gazed back at the column of light that shone down on the camp. Petrov walked in the rear of the group, pushing a kid with his rifle. It had to be the thirteen-year-old who’d voiced his objections earlier. Shane felt like a sack of shit for forcing the kids to come along, but what else was he supposed to do?
With a violent clap of thunder, the column of sunlight, which had been so completely contained to the area of the camp, vanished and left only darkness. It felt like the sound punched Shane’s heart right out of his chest. The teenagers turned around to face the noise, gasping in astonishment.
“Go back,” Shane shouted, terrified they’d see the kids they’d left behind go up in a flash of green fire. “We have to get the children before those bastards hurt them.”
Running faster than most of them, Shane cut through the small army of teenagers and had almost caught up with Petrov by the time they made it to the camp. The younger kids were gone. Overcome with nausea, he searched the ground. When he didn’t see piles of ashes, he exhaled in relief. Confusion mixed in with his fear and concern.
“Where are they?” Kelly asked hysterically.
“There’s no sign of them,” Petrov stammered. “No remains. Nothing.”
The other teenagers spread out, searching the area surrounding the camp and the trees on the side of the freeway.
“Nat,” Shane called, cupping his hands around his mouth to amplify his voice. “Children.”
The teenagers stopped, and the moonlit highway grew silent. He sensed them straining their ears in a collective effort to hear a response. A bird solemnly chirped from one of the pine trees, seeming to lament over the missing children.
“Shit,” Steve cursed.
“I don’t think we can stay here,” Tracy added.
He followed their gazes up the road. From behind a hill to the north, a green glow rolled south like an eerie fog. It topped the hill, and he could see the glow came from a moving six-foot-high wall.
“Run,” Shane shouted, pointing toward Atlanta without taking his eyes off the green barrier.
Slowly moving toward them, it extended into the forest on either side of the road, and he could see the glow reached to the horizon going east and west. It curved to the south on either end, like it might actually be a giant ring that surrounded Atlanta and closed in on them.
Where the wall encountered things taller than it, it grew to match them. It devoured the abandoned cars and big rigs, and incinerated the forest on either side. It made crackling sounds when it encountered objects, burning them with its smokeless flames.
Beyond the wall was daylight, the sun shining down on the absolute destruction done by the green fire. There was nothing left, piles of smoldering ash and scorched dirt. Even the concrete of the highway was consumed.
The teenagers fled, and he watched the devastation approach, stunned.
“We gotta go, dude,” Steve said.
“I know,” he replied.
Shane took a last look at the approaching end of the world and ran after the rest of his people with Steve at his side. They caught up with the other kids when they were on the bridge. Tracy yelled at the teenagers, telling them to keep their heads and try to stay organized, but they pushed each other and some fell in their hurry to get away. They were a mile away from the green wall before the teenagers calmed down and settled into a sustainable jogging pace.
“What are we going to do?” Tracy asked, dropping back and running to his right.
She sounded scared, but the soldier she’d become took over and awaited his orders. At this point, he’d decided they didn’t have a chance. He expected they’d all die, no matter what they did. He gritted his teeth, pushing the defeatist idea out of his thoughts.
“We’re going to keep going until we have to stop,” Shane replied. “Until we can’t run anymore.” Speaking so Steve and the other kids nearby could hear, he added. “We need to form up and be ready for anything.”
The moon gave enough light for him to see everyone. He stayed in the back until his team and the Russians were in place.
“You keep one eye over your shoulder,” he said to Petrov. “Don’t let Greenie sneak up on us.”
“Yes, sir,” the big Russian replied.
It was clear he was scared too, but Shane knew he would never lose control. He clapped Petrov on the shoulder and ran through the teenagers, heading toward the front of his army.
“Discipline is our only hope for survival,” he shouted. “We must stay close to each other and keep our heads, no matter what happens.”
He feared what he was asking of them was impossible. He had no doubt his team and the Russians would hold it together, even up to the moment they breathed their last breath. The rest of the teenagers didn’t benefit from the training and experience. He could only pray they’d listen and wouldn’t scatter when the fighting started.
Some of the kids he passed huffed for air, and he didn’t expect they’d be able to run more than a couple of miles at a time. He made it to the front and settled into a jog next to Kelly, dodging around the increasing number of cars they encountered as they drew closer to the city.
Kelly’s face was wet with tears, though she wore a determined look. Her sadness wouldn’t hinder her ability to fight, but it he couldn’t stand to see her so tormented.
“We don’t know that she’s been harmed,” he said to her. “There were no remains. Maybe Greenie just moved them somewhere.”
“I know,” she replied, sounding terrified. “I can’t give up hope. I won’t.”
She looked at him with desperation. He crushed his own emotions, determined to be strong for her. He had to focus on his people, to lead them to the best of his ability. That was his best hope for keeping them alive, and for helping reunite Kelly with Nat if the little girl was still alive.
“How’s your memory?” he asked, glancing back at Jules.
“It’s fine,” she replied. “I think.”
It was promising that Greenie hadn’t taken her memory or made Jules crazy again. Could it be this strange and powerful alien didn’t want to kill them after all? He turned his attention to the road ahead. Scanning the shadows for any sign of a threat, he tried to stop thinking about the things he couldn’t change. If he boiled it down in his mind and didn’t dwell on the horror of it all, he could see that this was just another game. At this point, all they could do was play it to the best of their ability. Greenie was in charge, making all the rules. The other team was the aliens who’d killed his and everyone else’s families.
Did the Anunnaki know they were coming? Once the escaped soldier got back to his ship, they would. He wondered at their strategy, what would he do if he were on their end of the field? He’d set up ambushes in the city if he were them, so he figured they had that to look forward to.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
“Hold up,” a voice from the dark building demanded. “Drop it.”
Pelros froze and released the metal pipe he’d been carrying as a weapon. Assuming a gun was pointed at him, he didn’t want to appear threatening. He’d walked for a couple of hours and doubted the human who owned the voice was affiliated with the group who’d held him prisoner.
“Who’s there?” he asked, peering into the dark interior of the building. “I’m unarmed. Show yourself.”
The dull metal of a shotgun barrel eased out of the shadows, followed by the grimy face of a human girl. He heard other movement inside the building and k
new she wasn’t alone.
“You’re an alien,” she said. He couldn’t tell if it was a question or a statement.
“I am,” he replied, uncertain if the fact would help or hurt him.
“Where’re you coming from?” She kept her weapon trained on him.
“North of here,” he replied. “I was held captive by a group who is headed this way.”
She studied him a moment longer, stepping closer to examine his face. A signal from her brought two male humans out of the dark building. They also carried guns, confirming Pelros did the right thing by dropping his pipe.
“Take him down to the other aliens,” the girl ordered.
Her words reenergized him. He was saved. They led Pelros deeper into the city. On every block they passed, his human guards signaled to humans hiding in the shadows of the buildings. This was a well-organized front line, and he grew increasingly confident Jones and the humans he traveled with would never be able to cross it.
The initial excitement of being rescued faded, and his legs grew weak again. He focused on each step to keep from tripping as he followed them into a narrow alley between buildings. The dark egress opened into a plaza with several fires casting dancing orange light on the surrounding buildings. The two males led him to a fire with several Anunnaki sitting around it.
“Commander Pelros?” one of the officers said.
“In the flesh,” he replied cheerfully, watching the two humans turn away and leave him with the Anunnaki soldiers. When they were alone, he dropped into a chair and leaned his head back, letting out a long sigh of relief.
“How did you survive?” one of the officers asked, a look of astonishment on his face.
Pelros recognized the soldier, the captain of a company he fought against during training exercises on the voyage to Earth.
“The last we heard, you were far to the north when we lost power,” another one pointed out. “Did you walk all that way?”
“I did walk,” he replied, managing to grin at them. “Hence my exhaustion.”
Taking the hint, the first officer retrieved a flask of water and some food for Pelros. He drank and ate, and they stood impatiently by, awaiting his story. Because of his success in the campaign to recruit the humans into slavery before the green enemy had arrived, he had become well known among the soldiers and citizens on the Pegasus. It seemed disappearance and assumed death had increased that popularity. His return would make him famous.
When the food and water gave him a measure of energy, he relayed to them all that had happened. He mentioned the rebels who were helping the humans, leaving out they were led by his father.
“Have you seen General Athos?” Pelros asked, anxious to hear that his uncle was well.
“No, sir,” the officer replied, looking agitated by the question. “The general is being held in the capital city aboard the Pegasus.”
“What do you mean, being held?” Pelros straightened in his seat, narrowing his eyes at the officer.
“It’s only rumors that leak to us out here on the front, and since losing power, our communication system is crude,” the other officer said, seeming worried Pelros would kill the messengers. “The word is General Athos is being held in the council building. He’s allowed to meet with his senior staff under the supervision of a council member, but they aren’t letting him leave.”
“On what authority?” Pelros asked, anger making him sweat.
“They say the council’s,” the officer said, pointing his thumb over his shoulder at the darkness as a reminder that this report did not originate with him. “Martial law was instated just after we touched down. Perhaps the council members did not like having to answer to the general.”
“General Athos would never have abused his authority,” Pelros said, standing.
“Yes, sir,” the officer replied, his voice wavering.
Pelros turned away from the soldiers and separated himself from them by three steps. His back to them, he looked up at the dark sky and white moon. He noticed it appeared to have stopped moving since he escaped. It hung overhead, casting enough light to see in the open areas.
What idiocy had led to his uncle being detained? Aristocratic vanity and narcissism were to blame, no doubt. He put his fist on his hips, deciding what to do with the disturbing information just relayed to him.
Pelros excelled in his political studies, along with every other subject he’d taken in the academy. He knew the general was well within his rights in declaring martial law, and as much as Athos hated the aristocrats, he would never usurp their authority unless he felt it was necessary for him to do so to save the people.
He’d go to the Pegasus and see his uncle. And if need be, he’d have anyone responsible for restricting his movements arrested. There was a war coming to the surviving Anunnaki. Even if General Athos did lust for power, they needed the general’s leadership to stand as one, or this green entity would destroy them.
“I was met by a human, and saw lots more as I came to this camp,” Pelros said in a faint voice, not wanting anyone but the two officers to hear. “Are their genes still active?”
“No, sir,” the one tending the fire said. “That was all General Athos’ doing. Most of the sla—” he cleared his throat, “humans who were aboard the ship maintained their allegiance voluntarily. And the general recruited the humans from this city before the council took him.”
“So you’re saying every human in this city is allied with us?” Pelros asked with quiet astonishment.
“Indeed, Commander.”
“That may have been the bit of military genius that will save us all,” Pelros mused, proud of his uncle. “And they reward him with confinement? He should be able to come and go as he pleases.”
“Agreed, sir.”
“What are your orders?” Pelros asked.
“We’ve been told that as soon as we contact anyone coming south, to retreat back to the ship and take all humans with us,” the first officer replied. “Now that we’ve run into you, we won’t be here in an hour.”
“Guide me on the quickest route to the ship,” he ordered. “And tell your troops to watch their backs as they retreat. A well-armed group of humans is approaching.”
“How many?” the officer asked.
“A couple of hundred. It is not a large force, but they cannot be underestimated,” he replied. “They are led by the humans who destroyed the other ships. And they’re advised by rebel Anunnaki soldiers.”
It would’ve helped them to know that one of the rebels was his uncle’s brother, that he may be as brilliant and calculative a military mind as General Athos. However, that was a bit of information he wasn’t comfortable with making public just yet. Jones and the humans were greatly outnumbered. He expected the rebel would be killed before anyone could learn of his genetic relationship to Pelros.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
A movement up ahead caught his attention, and Shane raised his fist, signaling the kids behind him to stop and get down. They followed his order, moving quieter than they could when they had the little kids with them. He searched the shadows between the cars cluttering the freeway ahead. A dog came out from behind a truck, sniffing the side door as if it smelled something inside it could eat.
It stopped and looked Shane’s way. Apparently spotting him, it turned and trotted in the other direction like it had no interest in an encounter with people.
Shane glanced at Kelly. She returned his gaze, concern weighing heavy in her eyes.
“I can’t stop worrying about Nat,” she whispered. “Do you think she’s okay?”
“I do,” he replied, trying to sound certain. “Greenie would’ve burnt them in front of us if it intended to kill them. I think we just have to stay the course, and we’ll be reconnected with the little ones once Greenie is satisfied.”
He didn’t believe a word he was saying, but he had to say something to keep her focused. If she were distracted when they encountered the enemy, it could get her killed.
“How’s the memory?” he asked.
“Still got it all,” she dismally replied, putting her finger to her temple. “Though I wouldn’t mind forgetting most of it.”
“Don’t blame you,” he said, grabbing her hand and squeezing.
“Other parts,” she said softly, squeezing his hand back, “I don’t ever want to forget.”
He smiled at her, his heart growing warm at her comment.
Raising his hand, he signaled for the teenagers to continue. They weaved their way between the cars, heading down the freeway toward the beacon of light that shined onto the Anunnaki ship. The light had changed since they got closer. It appeared to be reflected to areas around the ship. He guessed the Anunnaki were trying to spread the light to the ground, perhaps so they could see to prepare their defense.
He glanced over his shoulder, ensuring everyone was still together. His army of teenagers seemed frightfully small. They held their guns ready, and they looked like they’d be effective in a fight, but he feared they would be greatly outnumbered. The buildings alongside the freeway got taller, and he worried they provided too many places where snipers could hide and pick off his people. They needed to take shelter along the concrete walls that lined the freeway.
Slinging his gun onto his shoulder, he put his hands together over his head and separated them, pointing toward the shadowy areas on either side of the road. The kids split. He went with his team off to the left, making sure to stay with Jules and Kelly. Anfisa took her team with the other half of the teenagers. Jones knew well enough to follow the Russians, keeping as much distance between himself and his clones and Jules as possible.
“If these kids were to suddenly become slaves again, we’d be in a world of hurt,” Tracy whispered once they were up against the concrete wall alongside the freeway, heading into the shadow under a bridge.
“Hadn’t thought of that,” Steve replied, casting a nervous glance at the kids following them.
