by Kelvin Teo
"It is scarce in our world."
Michelle handed her the canteen in her hand and she drank it, but this time a little slower, as if she was finally getting her fill.
"When you say water is scarce in your world, what do you mean?" I asked. "Where is your world?"
She looked at me and I could see the distrust form on her face again. Michelle reached out and put a hand on my arm and looked at the demon.
"You can trust him. He is a good man and will not hurt you."
"I don’t know where our world is," she said in a quieter voice. "It is a dark, hot place. We got sent here by some force we know not."
"When you came here, did you come through a portal?" I asked.
"Portal?"
"Yes, like a doorway," I said, pointing toward the door. "One instant you are in your world and the next, you are here."
"Yes. I was with a group of my kind and someone like you came through a light and told us to follow him back through. When we did, we were in this world."
"A man? Like me, came and brought you to this world?"
"Yes."
Michelle looked at me.
"That makes no sense. Why would anyone bring them to this world?"
I just shook my head because I had no idea why that would happen.
"We were to be fighters. Warriors."
The two of us looked at her and our jaws dropped. If she were human, I would have thought her to be about the same age as Michelle and it was quite obvious she was not warrior material. Ignoring her rough, gravelly voice, she didn’t seem to have a mean bone in her body.
"Who were you supposed to be fighting?" asked Michelle.
"Everyone. We were to expand over the entire world and kill all that we found. Most of us didn’t want to do it, but we had some of our own leaders that wanted to do what the man had asked. They used the word apocalypse."
"What did we ever do to you, that would make you want to kill us all?" asked Michelle.
"The man told us that when we killed everyone in this world, it would become ours. Our world is dark, hot and dangerous. This world is everything ours is not. Most of us didn’t like the idea, but there were some that thought it was a good idea. Those of us that didn’t want to do it, were forced to come here. Now, we only fight to stay alive."
I stood up and started pacing back and forth. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I looked at this young demon and lost every bit of rage I felt for her or her kind. I was more interested now in finding out about this man that had brought them to this world.
"What can you tell us about this man?" I asked.
"Not much. Only that he called himself Jordan."
I looked at her and asked, "Miles Jordan?"
She looked back at me with a bit of a shrug that told me all she knew was Jordan.
"Who’s Miles Jordan?’ asked Michelle.
I sat back down and said, "He’s a quantum physicist who has this idea that he can open doorways between dimensions."
"Sounds like our man."
"Let’s hope not. Miles Jordan is a very dangerous man. His idea was to open the doorway and use it to bring about the apocalypse. He preached that man had abused the Earth to the point of not deserving it anymore."
"Well, on some level I have to agree with him," said Michelle.
"Sure, but his idea was to wipe man from the face of the Earth. Completely."
"Okay, well now I don’t agree with him."
"Last I heard he had been fired from his government research position, ostracized from the entire scientific community and disappeared from the public view."
"And … you think he may have found a way to do what he preached and is trying to bring about the end of the world?"
"It’s beginning to look that way."
I stood up and went to the door and knocked. One of the men opened the door and I motioned to Michelle that we were leaving.
"You’re keeping me here?"
The demon had jumped up from her chair and stepped around with a look of fear on her face.
"Believe me, it is as much for your safety as it is for ours. If you come out of this room right now, there are people here that would kill you just as easy as look at you."
Michelle reached out and put a hand on her shoulder.
"Are you hungry? I will go to the kitchen and get you something to eat and some more water."
"I am a little hungry."
"I’ll be right back with something you might like."
"I want one of the guards inside the room with you at all times," I said to Michelle.
Michelle looked at me and at the demon.
"I don’t think she’s wanting to hurt any of us. She just wants to go home."
"I just don’t want you to get hurt. Remember, your uncle will tie me into knots if you get hurt."
She smiled and turned to the demon.
"You can lay down on one of those beds and get some rest. I’ll be back soon with something to eat."
As we left and the door was locked behind us, I couldn’t get the thought of Miles Jordan out of my mind. If he really was the one behind this attack, our world was in for a beating it hadn’t seen the likes of for sixty-five million years — only that time, it wiped out the dinosaurs.
3
I went straight to the infirmary and found Mike talking with Ariel as she was still patching Dean’s shoulder. I leaned in and took a look at the wound. Then I just shook my head.
"Looks like nothing more than a scratch."
"Well, sir, it hurts a hell of a lot more than a scratch."
I patted him on the knee and looked at Ariel.
"Is he going to live?"
"Probably," she said, "but I don’t want to get anyone’s hopes up."
"What the hell are you …" he said as he looked back and forth at the two of us. His mouth was hanging open.
We started laughing and he said, "Oh yeah, making fun of the wounded soldier here."
"Soldier? If you were a real soldier you wouldn’t have gotten injured," I said. "Look at Mike, not a scratch on him."
I looked over my shoulder at Mike and noticed he wasn’t smiling or taking part in the kidding around.
"Did you get any useful information from the demon?"
I could feel the derision in his voice as he said this.
"As a matter of fact I did. Once Dean is patched up and sent to his room to get some rest, I want you and Ariel to join me next door in the dining room. See if you can get hold of Randy and have him meet us there."
I turned to walk away and saw Simon laying on a bed near the back of the infirmary. I walked back to him and saw he was handcuffed to the bed frame.
"You killed my Calvin," was all he said.
"Yes, we did. That tends to happen when you kidnap young women against their will and try to keep them as your own property."
The hate in his eyes could have burned holes right through my head and I decided I didn’t feel like talking to him. I turned and headed for the door and he yelled, "They are demons from hell and your reward will be waiting for you there!"
I didn’t turn back. I just ignored him and walked out the door. I walked into the dining hall just as Michelle was heading out, with a couple of wrapped sandwiches and a large jug of water and cups.
"You be careful in there," I said.
"Sir, I think she just needs a friend right now, more than anything."
"Just remember, it was a demon that killed your father."
"Yes, it was, but it wasn’t her and based on what she told us, most of her kind are only killing to stay alive. We need to find a way to stop the killing on both sides."
I nodded to her and she walked out of the room and headed back to the cell. I found the pot of coffee was hot and it was just what I needed. One of the cooks brought me a roast beef sandwich on a plate and I took it and the coffee and found a table near the far wall.
About ten minutes later, the others came in and gathered around the table with me. Ran
dy came in near the end and he was joined by Vicki Holcombe. I nodded to her and motioned for her to take a seat.
I started telling them I didn’t think the demon was dangerous. Then I told them about a man name Jordan, who had brought them to this world and I suspected it was Miles Jordan. When I said his name, Vicki gasped.
"That monster opened the door between our dimensions?"
"If it truly is him. I don’t know of any other Jordan that would be capable of doing what she said."
"And you believe her?" asked Randy.
"Randy, how would she even know about a man named Jordan if it wasn’t Miles?"
We were still talking about twenty minutes later when Michelle walked in and came over to sit with us.
"How is she?"
"She is sound asleep. She ate one of the sandwiches I took her like she hadn’t seen food in weeks. We talked for a few more minutes, but I could see she was tired and I told her to lay down. She was asleep before her head hit the pillow."
"Who would have thought?" said Steve. "A demon that eats sandwiches and sleeps on a bed."
Michelle looked at him and her laser eyes cut right through him.
"First of all, her name is Chessi and she is only about twelve years old. She is scared to death and thinks we will kill her when we tire of her."
"Chessi, huh?" I asked.
"Yes, sir. It took some coaxing, but I learned she does have a father and mother and as far as she knows, they are still in her world. She’s not sure of that, though."
Mike spoke up, "The way I see it, boss, we’re still very much in the dark. If it was this Miles Jordan, we don’t know what he did or where he did it."
"Well, we do know that this started in Illinois, if I remember Sergeant Causey correctly."
"Illinois is a mighty big place, Trev. We’re almost three hundred miles from the middle of that state and over four hundred from Chicago, itself."
"No chance of using the helicopters to get there?"
"Sure, the Hueys will get us most of the way there. But it would be a one-way trip. Their range isn’t nearly good enough to get there and back without refueling."
"I think I can help pinpoint his location," said Vicki. "Before this went down, my dad and his team had received word of the portal and was working on a plan to go in and destroy the lab. Before he had a chance to get the team moving on it, the attacks started."
"So, this was before the first demon attacks?" I asked.
"Yes, sir. I didn’t know it was Miles Jordan behind the lab, just that a secret lab had been set up and was going to cause big problems for our world."
"And I’m guessing you know where the lab is?"
"It’s in an old warehouse just south of Bloomington."
"That’s about three hundred miles from here," said Mike. "Still outside the range of a round trip in any helicopter we have."
"Well, that’s if you look at Carlson. But, Whiteman is only about fifty miles from here. I have to believe they would had even more aircraft over there."
"Whiteman was home to the B-2 Bomber. Not much use to us," I said. "Unless we’re planning on dropping a nuke on Bloomington."
"I was there a couple of years ago for some training," said Deb. "At that time they had a couple of V-22s sitting on the pad."
"V-22s?"
"Ospreys. Trev, and those would have the range to go to Illinois and back."
"I’m not checked out on Ospreys," said Mike.
"I am," said Vicki and Deb at the same time.
I looked at the two of them and then at Mike.
"Looks like our Air Force just tripled in size."
"Okay, it’s getting a bit dark right now," said Mike. "How about we take a hop over there in the morning and see what’s available?"
"Sounds good to me. Ariel, why don’t you go with Michelle and see if Chessi needs any attention?"
Michelle saw Ariel tense up when I said that and she reached out and patted her hand.
"She’s actually a real sweetie. Nothing to worry about."
About then people started coming into the dining hall for dinner and we broke up our little meeting. Ariel and Michelle left to go check on Chessi and Mike and I went to check on the gun crews at the gate.
I was still worried about hearing that Miles Jordan might be behind the attacks on our world and wondered what his end game would be. I knew he was a religious fanatic and had preached that the Earth would be better off if we were to just disappear from here.
I didn’t feel much like eating so I went back to my room and hit the sack. I wanted to get a good night’s sleep and be ready for just about anything tomorrow.
4
The next morning, after getting myself weaponed up, Deb and Vicki followed me through the gates and headed for the helicopter. Mike had already made his way out and got the engine running and the sound of the blades beating the air was deafening.
We climbed in and got situated. Randy, Dean and Steve were already in the chopper and I made my way to the co-pilot’s seat and got sat down.
"Can you believe that shit?" yelled Mike through the earphones of my helmet.
"What are you pissed about now?"
"That!" he said, pointing at the windshield in front of him.
There was a nice, round hole in the plexi right even with his face.
"What the hell is that?"
"I’m guessing when we blew the Claymores yesterday, the windshield took a round."
"Well, hold on then," I said as I unstrapped.
"What are you doing?"
"Mike, that round had to go somewhere. I’m just seeing if it hit anything vital."
"Good plan, boss."
I moved into the back of the chopper and told everyone what I was looking for. It took about thirty seconds for Steve to find it. He pulled a steel ball bearing out of the padding at the back of the compartment. It looked like it hadn’t done any damage other than a hole in the padding. He handed it to me and I turned and went back to the cockpit.
"We’re good," I said as I handed the bearing to Mike.
He looked it over and then stuck it in his shirt pocket. After I got strapped back in, he wasted no time in getting us off the ground and headed to the east. The guards who had walked us to the chopper headed back inside.
Whiteman was only about fifty miles away and we’d cover that in about twenty minutes. From our vantage point about two hundred feet off the ground, I watched the land pass below us. This part of Missouri had a lot of forest area and quite a few lakes.
I didn’t see any movement on the ground, but we had come to realize the demons didn’t really care for the daylight hours. They’d go out if they had to, but they preferred the night time hours. Chessi said the bright sun hurt their eyes, but they were getting used to it.
As we came in over the hills just west of Whiteman, we could see the air base stretch out in front of us. There were various aircraft sitting on the pads. The one that surprised me was the B-2 bomber sitting near the end of the runway. It looked like they had been preparing to take off and didn't.
I pointed it out to Mike and he nodded. Banking to the left he took us straight to the bomber and set down about fifty yards away.
As I unstrapped and headed to the back, Deb looked out the window and said, "I'm not checked out on that thing, sir. I'm doubting we could even get inside it."
"Won't hurt to take a look," I said, smiling at her.
We jumped down from the chopper and I told Mike to lift off and keep a wary eye out. I didn't want any surprises sneaking up on us. As he lifted off to hover at one hundred feet, we ran to the bomber and ducked underneath. Deb's concerns that we wouldn't be able to get in were quickly laid to rest when we found the hatch open. The ladder had been let down, but only about halfway. It was dark up inside the plane and I couldn't see anything.
Reaching up, I tried to grasp the bottom of the ladder to pull it down, but it was just out of reach.
"Allow me, Trev," said Randy as he reac
hed up and easily grabbed the ladder and pulled it down.
"Show off."
Deb stepped forward with her pistol at the ready and went to climb the stairs.
"Where do you think you're going?" I asked.
"Sir, you are not going up this ladder first. We have no idea what's up there."
Dean spoke up, "Well, I don't think you should be going up first, either."
Vicki said, "This is the 21st century, boys, let the trained soldier do her job."
Before she was finished talking, Deb was halfway up the ladder and she let out a yelp of surprise when she reached the top.
"What's up? You okay?"
"Yes, sir. I just found out why the bomber is sitting here."
She finished climbing up and I followed her, only to be confronted with the head of one of the pilots. It was laying on the deck of the plane, without much left, but its skull. It still wore the helmet of a B-2 bomber pilot and looked like it knew it was one of the baddest pilots on the planet.
I called back down, "Vicki, you and the others stay down there."
"Sir, I outrank you and I've never seen the inside of a B-2 before."
She started climbing and I realized I couldn't stop her if I wanted to. When she reached the top of the ladder and came face-to-face with our pilot, her face dropped.
"I think I should have stayed down there."
I yelled back down, "Randy, you and the brothers keep an eye out for anything coming toward us."
"You got it, Trev."
I started moving forward, following Deb toward the cockpit and we found the rest of the pilot. He was lying near the back bulkhead of the cockpit. He didn't even get two steps out before being taken down.
Deb went to step through the open door of the cockpit and I reached out and pulled her back.
"I'll go first this time."
She stood aside so I could pass and when I entered the cockpit, it was as bad a scene as any horror movie could show. The command pilot was still strapped into his seat. Well, what was left of him. He had been hacked to pieces and the walls were coated with the dried, black blood of his body.
Deb stepped in and looked around. After getting over the sight of the pilot, she bent over the control panel in front of him. Nothing was lit up and I didn't hold out any hope there was any power in the batteries.
