“How many?” I asked, peering into the darkness, trying to get a count. There were too many to get anything but a rough estimate. There were dozens.
“More than the Galactic Government or any of the Corporations on your planet would be able to handle alone,” Alerna said. “You must lead them as one.”
“I don’t know how much you know about me, but I’m more of a soldier, a mercenary, a warrior,” I told her. “I’m not a leader or someone that’s going to be able to unite various factions.”
“You must be,” Alerna told me. “Or else you and your kind are already dead.”
I was going to open my mouth to argue more when the pulsating sack closest to us shivered. The heavy breathing from the tube came faster and deeper. The light pulsating from the sack strobed quicker and stronger.
Shouts from the cavern in the Voy tongue bounced off the walls.
“They are born,” Alerna said softly. “We must go.”
I wasn’t going to argue with her. The creatures from the nightmare were wiggling in their sacks. A slime-encased limb ripped free from the sack directly in front of me. A scream more monstrous than anything I had heard before ripped from the alien womb.
Eight
I woke with a start. It took me more than a few seconds to reorient myself and remember where I was. I had slept the day away. It was already dark outside.
“Are you okay?” X asked. “Probably a dumb question. How are you holding up?”
I sat up, running a dry tongue around my mouth. My stomach growled.
“How am I going to unite anyone, X?” I asked. “I fight. I’m good at fighting not at talking. Preacher or Wesley should be the ones leading.”
“Preacher doesn’t seem to be in a condition to help anyone,” X answered. “I’m sure Wesley will do what he can, but he’s not like you. He can’t fight or heal the way you can.”
I nodded, kicking myself mentally for sleeping so long. There was so much to do in so little time. The Voy would come in five days whether we were united or not. And they would bring those creatures of nightmare with them.
“X, are you able to communicate with Bapz?” I asked, heading for the restroom to shower. I still had a layer of Martian sand on me from my impromptu camouflage excursion, courtesy of the GG.
“I am,” X answered.
“Can you get him to gather everyone in a meeting room?” I asked. “I need to tell them what I saw.”
“Certainly,” X said. “I’ll request some food for you as well.”
“You’re the best,” I told her.
“I know,” X teased.
The next few minutes in the hot shower were heavenly. Sand was washed away from every crack, and I mean every crack. I found a soap in there that smelled like lavender. Not my first choice, but who was I to be picky? I had practically been given a castle.
Did Rose know we would need a place like this? I wondered. She couldn’t have. Enoch would say it all happened for a reason and just like it should.
I rinsed the soap out of my hair and off my body before toweling dry. The cloth the towel was made from felt like a cloud.
There was a knock on the room door.
I secured the towel around my waist and went to answer it.
Sister Monroe stood outside with a tray loaded with food. Under her right arm were clean clothes.
When I answered the door wearing nothing but a towel, her mouth dropped. Her eyes ran over my bare chest and the many tattoos that covered my body. She went redder than the Martian sand.
“Oh—I—I,” she stammered.
“It’s good to see you too,” I said, motioning her inside and hungrily eyeing the tray of food she held. “I’m just getting dressed. Come in.”
“Oh—okay.” Sister Monroe followed me inside. She placed the tray of food on the dresser. “It’s great to see you again, Daniel. When we left the settlement, I wasn’t sure if the Lord of the Way would have us meet again. I also brought you some clothes.”
“Thanks,” I said, tearing into a sandwich. “It’s good to see you too.”
Sister Monroe blushed deeper then turned her back to me as I began to dress. The clothing was far from the combat fatigues I was used to wearing, but it did the job. Comfortable white pants and a loose-fitting white shirt that billowed when I moved and rested on my shoulders. Sister Monroe and her people were simple and that came through in their dress as well.
I took the entire tray in my hands, ready to leave the room, when I noticed Sister Monroe still had her back to me.
“You can turn around now, Sister,” I told her. “Coast is clear.”
“Oh right,” she answered.
“Bapz is having everyone gather in a meeting room on this level,” X informed both of us. “I’ll plot a course for us. Daniel, I got a hold of a map of the grounds Bapz provided. This place is gigantic and weird.”
“Weird?” I repeated. A path marked by a broken line appeared in my vision showing the way X wanted me to go. I motioned for Sister Monroe to follow. “Have you been able to check this place out?”
“Not all of it, the grounds are massive,” Sister Monroe said, walking beside me. “The attic is extensive and the underground section of the Hold is like a maze.”
“Rich people and their money,” I said, thinking of Rose. “It’s almost like she knew we would need this place.”
“Bapz has given me a list of assets the grounds possess as well,” X said out loud. “Weaponry, technology, and transportation are all very impressive. I don’t even know what some of the items on the list are: Dragon, Cerberus, Leviathan.”
“Code names for something?” I asked around yet another mouthful of food.
Sister Monroe had come with a plate loaded with sandwiches, pickled vegetables, and some kind of sugary juice in a closed container. I loved it all.
“Perhaps,” X allowed, answering my question. “You should eat slower or you’re going to give yourself gas.”
“Seriously,” Sister Monroe agreed by my side as we walked down the wide halls. “There’s more where that came from. You don’t have to worry. The food stocks here were full.”
“I’m not going to get gas by eating fast,” I argued, shaking my head and stuffing my mouth with another sandwich. “That’s a myth—”
No sooner had the words left my lips then a deep rumble of a burp came from the pit of my stomach.
“See,” X said.
Sister Monroe just gave me a knowing tilt of her head.
We made a few more turns down massive corridors and long halls before X’s directions stopped us at a pair of open doors.
“Huh,” Sister Monroe grunted. “I thought I explored this level at least, and I don’t remember there being a meeting room here.”
I didn’t have an answer for her. Voices I recognized led me inside.
The room was longer than it was wide. Some kind of hybrid library and meeting room. A long table with chairs ended at a mantel with a fireplace. Behind it, the floor rose a few steps and windows offered a view of the night sky.
Wesley was there with Angel and Jax. The three of them spoke with Enoch and Cryx. Bapz stood just inside the door, motioning us forward.
“Please, come in,” the silver robot man beckoned. “Sir, may I say you look well rested this night.”
“Thanks,” I said, handing him the nearly empty tray of food. “I feel like a million credits.”
“Certainly, sir.” Bapz accepted the tray readily and went to place it on a side table in the room.
Those in the meeting room quieted when they saw me. I wasn’t really sure how to start the meeting. I half expected Wesley to take the reins. He just looked at me.
“Alerna said you would have to lead,” X reminded me in my head. “They’re looking to you.”
“So did you call us here for a reason or what?” Angel asked with an arched eyebrow. She tilted a silver flask to her lips. “It’s late. I need my beauty sleep.”
“Right,” I said, diving i
nto the main reason why I had asked them here in the first place. I told them all I could about my dream. I hesitated only for the slightest bit when I had to tell them the part that Alerna had come to me once before. But they needed to know it all now.
If we were going to go to war together, they required all the facts. Even if by telling them I was contacted by an alien made them think I was crazy.
I finished by informing them of the monster-like creatures the Voy were growing. I had no idea what time it was, but when the clock struck midnight, we’d have four days left to prepare for the invasion. They needed to know everything.
When I finished, it actually felt good to get everything off my chest. Those in the room sat quiet.
“Alien, insect, flying, monster things,” Jax said from his seat. He rubbed at tired eyes. “Why not, right? I mean, why am I surprised?”
“This woman, Alerna,” Enoch asked, scratching the underside of his chin. “Do you trust her?”
“Yeah—yeah I do,” I said after thinking about it a moment. “She hasn’t asked me for anything in return. She’s just trying to help as far as I can tell.”
“And she looks human?” Angel questioned. “I mean, I know she can’t be since she’s an alien, but she chooses to look human when she talks to you?”
“That’s right,” I answered.
“There’s just so much going on, we need to focus on controlling what we can control,” Wesley said. “I’ve sent the call out to all the Corporations from the Order all the way down to the smallest corporation with a standing militia. We even called Phoenix.”
“What did they say?” I asked.
“Responses are still coming in,” Wesley said. “You can imagine trust isn’t something that comes easily in our line of work. Most of the Corporations steer clear of one another. We have a few allies but far too few. Whoever is coming will be here tomorrow morning for a meeting.”
“The Immortal Corp back channel?” I asked, looking at Jax. “Has anyone contacted us?”
“There’ve been a few.” Jax reclined in his high backed chair. “Not nearly enough but they’re on their way, Doctor Bishop among them.”
“The Founders?” I asked.
“No sign.” Jax shrugged. “There’s no telling as of yet if the Galactic Government knew where they were and got to them in the attack.”
The room fell quiet, each of us lost in his or her own thoughts.
Hunted by the Galactic Government with an alien invasion on the way and you still don’t have your answer about Amber and the Order, I thought to myself. Come on, Daniel, think, think.
“Tomorrow will take care of itself,” Enoch declared, rising from his seat. “Worrying will not help us.”
“I agree,” Wesley concurred. “We should focus on what we can do now.”
“Daniel,” X said in my head. “I’m getting an incoming transmission from the channel the woman from the Order gave you. Should I put her through?”
My heart skipped a beat. I had been trying to get through to the mysterious woman for days now.
“Excuse me, I’ll be right back,” I said to everyone.
I left the room, jogging down the hall to create some separation and privacy from the others.
“Yeah, X, put her through,” I answered.
“Daniel Hunt?” the woman’s hard voice asked over the line. “Do you hear me?”
“I hear you,” I said, trying not to sound as pissed off as I felt. “I’ve got a few questions for you that involve not returning my calls and grave robbing.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about when it comes to grave robbing,” the woman informed me. “As far as not returning your calls, I’ve been busy.”
That one really got to me. I had to rein in my temper.
“Oh, you’ve been busy?” I snorted calming myself. “I’ve been tortured by aliens, defended a settlement, had the GG try to take me out, and now I’m being hunted by them. I’ve been a little busy too.”
“We received a transmission from Immortal Corp about a meeting concerning this alien threat.” The woman ignored my outburst. “Is this legitimate?”
More than anything, I wanted to push the conversation in the direction of Amber’s empty grave and the Order mask I found within. Something told me that I needed to handle the call with a bit more tact than I had so far.
“Yes,” I told her. “The meeting is legitimate. “You didn’t hesitate at all when I mentioned aliens, did you?”
“We’ve been made aware of their existence by our assets in the field,” the woman disclosed. “We also know of the GG’s attack on Immortal Corp. Everything you’ve said has checked out. But answer me this. With Immortal Corp in such a weak state, why would we not simply take the opportunity to wipe you out? You’re giving us the coordinates where to meet you after all.”
“That’s an easy one,” I said without hesitation. “You need us just as much as we need you.”
“Explain,” the woman demanded.
“We’re the only ones who have fought the aliens. We know what they’re capable of,” I said, thinking back to my dream. “You’ll need us to defeat them just as much as we need you. Besides, the Immortal Corp you knew is already dead along with the Founders either taken out by the GG or so deep into hiding, they’ll never resurface.”
“And who leads Immortal Corp now?” the woman scoffed. “You?”
“Yeah—yeah, I guess for the time being, at least for the next four days until the invasion happens, it is me,” I confirmed, coming to that realization for the first time. “So are you coming tomorrow morning or what?”
The channel was quiet for a few moments.
I was about to ask if she was still there when the woman answered.
“We’ll be there,” she added in a warning for good measure. “If everything is not exactly as you say, understand we will kill you all.”
Nine
Four Days Until The Voy Invasion
I fell asleep that night surprisingly well, despite the Order’s threat. At least they were coming. I was a step closer to figuring out what had really happened to Amber.
I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to pass out as hard that night as I did with the nap earlier, but it seemed my body was still more tired than I realized. When sleep came this night, it was dream free.
X woke me in the morning.
“Daniel,” I heard X’s voice through the glorious blackness of deep sleep. “Daniel, it’s time to get up. The corporations that answered the call will be arriving soon.”
I sighed deeply, opening my eyes. I was in the same room where I had slept the day before. My room, I guessed I could call it. It was strange thinking of the room as my own. The last place I had to lay my head that I even remotely considered as mine was the tiny apartment I lived in on the Moon.
Even that place I really didn’t consider my home.
But this place, the place Rose had given us to stay felt like something more than walls and a roof. This place felt like a home.
“I’ve taken the liberty in having Bapz deliver a breakfast meal outside of your door along with a new change of clothes,” X informed me. “You should probably brush your teeth as well. I requested toiletries. We need you looking like a leader of a corporation when you meet the others.”
“Thanks.” I swung my legs out of bed and walked like a zombie over to the door. Just like X said, there were an assortment of hygiene products, food, and a garment bag waiting for me.
“I agree I need to brush my teeth, but I’m not sure I’m going to take on the mantle of the new leader of Immortal Corp.” I grimaced at the thought as I brought the items into my room.
I took the hygiene products to the bathroom and began brushing my teeth first. The paste tasted like peppermint.
“Immortal Corp can die,” I said around a mouthful of paste. “It needs to die.”
“Maybe,” X said. “But if it does, you’ll need to come up with a new name, a new sigil, a new everythi
ng.”
I spat out the paste, rinsing my mouth and going to work on my dark hair.
I couldn’t remember the last time I fixed my hair, much less put product in it. But I understood the need for acting a part. I had to get these corporations to trust me. Eventually, I needed them to follow me into battle.
After a few minutes of trying to wrestle my dark hair into place, I gave up. Next on the to do list was eat breakfast while I dressed. A strong cup of caf was just what the doctor ordered along with a bowl of some kind of porridge that tasted healthy and sweet.
The clothes brought for me were a suit with a tie. I grimaced as I dressed.
“Are you sure all of this is necessary?” I asked X. “I mean, to this extent? A tie?”
“It’s better to be overdressed than underdressed,” X answered like some kind of mother giving her child advice before a dance. “I doubt the owners of the other corporations will be coming in their shorts and sandals.”
“Good point,” I conceded, securing the tie and shrugging on my coat.
The suit was all black, including the shoes and tie. The only thing to break up the plain color scheme was the white dress shirt I wore underneath.
I left my room following the path X laid out for me to get me to the ground level.
“They’re already starting to arrive now,” X informed me. “Bapz constructed a meeting area on the left side of the main building. The idea being that maybe if they are outside in the open instead of a confined space, they will be more at ease. We also are not requiring them to leave their weapons behind.”
“Sounds like a party,” I said.
“If we allow them to keep their weapons, again, they will feel more at ease,” X told me.
“Oh, I get it,” I answered.
I walked outside into the bright morning sun. Like most mornings on Mars, the cold of night was still burning off.
I caught Angel’s eye as I walked to the left of the building. She did a double take.
“Wow, you clean up nice, Danny, I forgot. Under all that caf and dirt, is a real person,” Angel said with a smile.
Vendetta: A Near Future Thriller (Forsaken Mercenary Book 4) Page 6
