“Stuck? I didn’t receive a report of any
malfunctions? They always come across my panel. Damn equipment. How’d you get
out?”
“I got out. That’s all that’s important.
What’s the military’s response? Have you heard from General Adair? Are we still
functional?”
“Yes, the United States is still functional.
We’re at Defcon 2 right now, as far as I know. His section and several others
were hit by debris. His staff didn’t make it, Jaeda.”
“Is he—”
Kirk raised his hand. “He’s all right.”
She gulped and nodded, holding in her
emotions.
“He’s here in the facility and
coordinating.”
“I need to see him. And get me some
specific damage and casualty numbers. What’s the news reporting? Are you
monitoring?”
“Mass chaos. Panic in the streets. The
interstates are becoming jammed as people are trying to get out of the cities.
Emergency rooms are overflowing. Not much looting of supplies yet, but that’s
just a matter of time.”
A man rushed over and whispered something
in Kirk’s ear.
He nodded. “Martial law has just been
declared.” He lowered his voice. “Outside video feeds are being shut down to
contain panic in the facility. Only the control room, the weapon’s section and
security will still be receiving. We’re supposed to report the blackout to any
others as a malfunction.”
Jaeda nodded. They needed to maintain order
and calm here, as much as possible. Seeing the devastation would only make the
staff want to leave or bring their families here for protection. She couldn’t
blame them. But they couldn’t accommodate everyone and they couldn’t run this
facility without the staff.
Fucking alien bastards.
* * * * *
Deep Space
Daegal roared as he plunged his cock into
the female bent over in front of him. He didn’t care if he was being too rough.
He needed to work off his frustration. Plus sex always dulled his ever-present
pain.
The d-orbs he’d sent to Earth were supposed
to take out the planet’s leaders so his Slave Masters could simply materialize
down and take over the planet in the midst of all the turmoil. That plan had
failed.
He still didn’t know who had destroyed the d-orbs.
His people were working on it. They’d identified an old-time Xylon fighter ship
in the area right before they cloaked but that was of no concern to him. It had
probably been left in the area, prior to his attack on their planet, to support
the Xylon Warriors still on Earth. They’d picked up a partial message from the
ship but static had drowned out most of the words. One ship posed no threat. If
one of his fleet commanders wanted to destroy it if it popped up on their
tracking again, that was fine, but not a priority.
With a groan, he pulled his cock out of the
female. “Turn around.” He pushed her to her knees. “Suck me off.” Her pussy
wasn’t tight enough to make him climax. He plunged his fingers into her hair as
she slid her lips over his shaft.
One of his high-level assassins entered his
quarters. A former Xylon Warrior re-initiated and turned to his side. The man
hesitated until Daegal motioned him forward. “You have a report?”
“The sting fighters have surrounded the
planet.”
“Any new information on who destroyed our
d-orbs?”
“Not yet.” His gaze momentarily dipped to
the woman who was licking and sucking as if she were in a race for her life.
“The only other ships in the area besides that lone Xylon fighter are a convoy
of supply vessels. They haven’t responded to our comm attempts. They may be under
robotic control.”
He wouldn’t make that assumption. “Someone
with a hell of a lot of fire power is out there. Find them!”
The man nodded and backed out of the room.
Daegal’s fingers tightened in the female’s
hair and he shouted as he came down her throat. As he pulled out, he kept
coming and shot his seed over her face and tits. “Wear it, you stupid bitch.”
After he was fully spent, he pushed her away. “Leave me. You’re useless.”
The woman scrambled away like a frightened
slave.
He cleaned himself up as he thought of his
strategy. Earth’s military wouldn’t be able to hold them back for long. He
would begin to contact the planet leaders and demand their surrender. If they
refused, he’d destroy Earth one region at a time, while he gathered up as many
humans as possible for harvesting. He needed their spinal fluid and he would
have it—one way or another.
State of Colorado. U.S.A., Planet Earth
The Xylon crew stood in an open
area—exposed and vulnerable. Torque and Brianna immediately drew their weapons
and scanned their surroundings. After a moment, Brianna visibly relaxed. “It’s
clear.”
Torque re-sheathed his disruptor as he
continued to study the area. No buildings or people stood nearby. The location
looked barren and devoid of life, as if nobody had ever stepped foot on the
land.
A light breeze ruffled his hair, which had
grown too long now to be regulation. He pushed the strands out of his face. The
temperature was warm but the air held a hint of coolness to it. A mountain
range stood in front of them. Beautiful in its majesty.
At the sound of sirens, he turned the other
way. Smoke rose high into the air as fires raged in the distance. The smell of
fuel assaulted his senses. When he looked up, he spotted Egesa sting-m orbiters
low in the atmosphere. Though he recognized they were unmanned monitoring ships
only, those vessels must be an intimidating sight to the humans.
“Are they going to fire on us?” Sam asked.
“No,” Brianna responded. “The low-hanging
vessels are just sending back data to Daegal and his fighter ships.”
Torque kicked at the dirt beneath his feet.
He planted his fists on his hips. “Well, hell. We’re in the middle of fucking
nowhere here. Now what? What’s wrong with Halah?”
“No. We’re good,” Sam said. “I know where
we are.” He pointed north, in the direction of the mountain range. “This way.”
The crunch of small rocks under their boots
and the low wail of far-off sirens were the only sounds that accompanied them
as they walked. After several paces, a new sound caused Torque to look up. A
formation of flyers passed overhead. Earth jets he assumed from the design.
They would prove of little help against the sting fighters and even the sting-m
monitoring ships, though they could take out Egesa foot soldiers if they
spotted them and had the ability to fire on ground targets.
Sam took the lead with Brianna close by his
side. Leila followed behind, carrying the medical case with the vials and an
AMD testing unit—a machine that quickly tests the effects of certain compounds
on DNA types and detects deadly flaws in serum and other compositions. Torque
trailed behind her. Out here, in this place that felt so deserted, the impact
of just how alone they were in this fight hit him hard. If they didn’t get
backup from their warriors soon… He again glanced at the sting-m ships
overhead.
“How much farther?” Leila asked.
“Around that hill,” Sam said. “We’ll come
to a gate and a check point. We’ll be able to get a Jeep—a ride—to the facility
from there.”
“Will they just let us in?” Brianna glanced
up and frowned. When several ships changed position right above them, she
settled her hand close to her weapon.
Torque did the same. Sting-m vessels had
never carried weapons, only strong shielding, but that didn’t mean the Egesa
hadn’t modified the crafts. Better to stay prepared and alert.
“I’ll have clearance. I’ll be able to get
us in.”
“And what if you can’t?” Torque spoke up
from behind. The facility was bound to be locked up tight, given the alien
threat. They could force themselves in if there weren’t too many guards at this
supposed gate. Their weapons would be more powerful than whatever the humans
had. But if they weren’t welcomed, being inside still wouldn’t do them much
good unless they could find their Earth contact quickly. Otherwise they’d end up
in a bloody and possibly deadly battle, which was not the objective.
“Let’s deal in positives, Torque,” Brianna
replied before Sam could answer.
Torque snorted. Yeah, why bother with a backup
plan when they could wing it? Well, he had his backup plan. He suspected
Brianna did too, according to Lair Regulation #120. Or was it #126? He never
had been any good at memorizing the rules. She was too good of a commander to
go into a situation unprepared. She was just trying to keep everyone calm.
They cleared the hill and up ahead he saw fencing.
A gravel road led to a large gate. There appeared to be a small structure on
the other side with at least one man inside. Another man stood outside with a
weapon that looked similar to a surge rifle, though Torque doubted it was that
powerful. The fencing stretched between one hill and what appeared to be the
side of another hill, with a larger mountain rising up behind that. He checked
the sides of the two hills and saw a camera on each end. Two vehicles sat just
beyond the security check area.
The man with the rifle spotted them and
said something to the other man who came out of the structure and squinted at
them. “Hold up. That’s close enough. This is a restricted facility.”
Briggs raised his hand. “I’m Lieutenant
Colonel Samuel Briggs, United States Air Force. We’re here to see Jaeda Spargo.
We’re expected.”
The soldier eyed Briggs suspiciously.
Torque understood why. Though he wore a flight suit, it was Xylon and didn’t
display his Earth rank.
“This facility has been locked down. No one
in or out.”
“This is a matter of international
security.”
The young soldier hesitated and appeared
unsure about what he wanted to do. “Step forward, Colonel. The rest of you stay
back.” He looked down at an electronic handheld device. “You’re not on any of
my security listings.”
“Call it in. We have important information
about the invasion.”
The soldier’s eyes narrowed as he punched
in a number and waited. He glanced up at the ships in the sky, then his wary
gaze returned to the group and he studied each one. “What’s in that case?”
“Medical supplies,” Leila answered. “I’m a
he—a doctor.”
“We’ll need to inspect that. Whether you’re
permitted inside or not, we’ll have to scan all of you for weapons before you
leave this area. We’ll be confiscating any arms found.”
“Like hell,” Torque muttered. He discreetly
slid the disruptor from his belt into his jacket. The jacket’s shield would
prevent a scanner from picking up the weapon. As long as they weren’t
physically searched, he’d be able to hold onto it.
Brianna casually walked back toward him. He
stepped forward to block the soldiers’ view of her as she did the same,
securing her weapon. He also knew that Leila carried a pain inducer. Class 3
Xylon Warriors weren’t officially issued weapons but most who were
mission-cleared kept something hidden on them for emergencies.
“Stop moving around!” the guard with the
rifle warned.
Brianna turned and raised her hands
submissively. “Sorry.” She leaned close and lowered her voice. “Stay sharp.”
Torque nodded.
“I’m going to need a retina scan, Colonel,”
the first guard said.
A
wop-wop-wop
sound overhead caught
their attention. A helicopter, Torque thought that’s what the humans called
them.
When two more guards rushed around a wall
of rocks and headed toward them with their weapons drawn, Torque stiffened. He felt
Brianna do the same and Leila backed up a couple of feet.
Sam raised his hand. “It’s all right.
Everyone stay calm.”
The guard’s handheld device beeped. “Yes,”
he answered above the din of the chopper. “There are three others with him.
Yes, ma’am.” He hooked the device to his jacket. “Open the gate,” he said to
one of the other guards. “They’re cleared.”
The helicopter rose and disappeared toward
the back of the mountain.
Torque relaxed a bit but remained on alert.
Apparently Sam did have some clout with someone on the inside. The guards took
their pictures and retina scans and ran another scanning device over their
clothing. Torque recognized the relieved looks on everyone’s faces, including
the guards, when the device didn’t detect any weapons.
“I still need to search that medical case,
ma’am.”
Leila handed it over. “Please be careful.
Don’t break any of the vials.”
“Vials?” The guard hesitated. “Contagion?”
“Serum.”
He nodded, but Torque could see his
discomfort as the young man looked inside. He couldn’t have been a soldier for
long. He looked too baby-faced. He should be out chasing ass instead of
involved in this shit.
After a few moments, the soldier seemed
satisfied and two guards escorted them down a dirt road toward two vehicles.
They split up and rode for several minutes, until Torque saw another entry
built into the side of the mountain. That must be the actual facility.
They stopped and were escorted through a
large steel door where a new set of guards took over, scanned them again for
weapons and logged them into their computer system. Nobody said anything more
than they had to. They all were just taking in everything that was happening.
Torque studied the entrances, exits, number
of guards, computer system access and video surveillance. He saw Brianna doing
the same. The only person who seemed at ease was Sam, but even he remained
quiet for the most part and Torque wondered if the man was more on edge than he
looked.
People were rushing everywhere and tension
could be felt in the air. The Egesa would continue to escalate their attacks
until the planet surrendered. They would destroy all military and tracking
facilities and seats of government to plunge the planet into chaos. They’d
deploy their foot soldiers to kill any militia-type groups, including any
pockets of Xylon Warriors they found. Then they’d terrorize and enslave the
remaining population. Torque saw the concerned look on Brianna’s face. She was
thinking it as well. They might already be too late.
A guard took them to a holding area with
seats and a few tables. Some machines that looked to contain edibles stood in
the back. “Wait here.” He closed the door.
Torque heard a lock click. Another delay.
“How long are they going to hold us here, Briggs?”
“I have no idea.”
“Wonderful.” Torque kicked the leg of a
chair. He wandered around the room. No other exits existed. Not a window, not
even a vent large enough to fit through.
“We’re being observed,” Leila said, looking
up at a dome above their heads. She set the medical case on one of the tables.
Sam looked up. “I imagine they’re listening
too so don’t say more than you want anyone to hear.”
Torque snorted. The humans didn’t actually
think their hidden surveillance system was fooling anyone, did they? He could
take that out in a heartbeat if he wanted to. And if the humans kept them
waiting too long, he might actually do it. That would get somebody in here.
* * * * *
Underground, Planet Xylon
Tara savored the small amount of food Pitch
shared with her. They couldn’t survive down here much longer without more
supplies. “Pitch and I should be the ones to scout around, find supplies and a
way out or a safer location. Alexa, you and Josella should stay here with the
babies.”
“What happens to us if you two don’t make
it back?” Alexa asked, a worried look on her face. “I think we should all stay
together.”
“Normally I’d agree.” Pitch took a sip of
water from his supply bottle. “But it would be too difficult with the
triplets.”
“Pitch and I could go,” Josella said. “That
way Tara would be here with Alexa if anything happened, like the Def’mal
showing up.”
Tara shook her head. “You’ll slow Pitch
down. We don’t need further delays.”
Josella visibly stiffened.
“I’m just being practical.”
Josella raised her chin a notch. “I
survived on the Sand Moon by myself. Not many women can say that. Just because
I’m quiet and like to stay in the background, it doesn’t mean that I’m not
capable or knowledgeable.”
Pitch patted her hand. “Josella and I will
go. We’re a good team and she knows how to get out of tight situations. It’s
decided.”
“Just like that?” Tara asked, taking a sip
from a bottle that Alexa had given her.
“I’m ranking officer. It’s done.”
Tara hesitated then nodded. She still
hadn’t gotten used to being busted down in rank. She used to give orders to
Pitch. Now it was the other way around. But she’d abide with his wishes. It
actually wasn’t such a bad idea. Braden would want her to protect his mate and
children. “Do you have an extra weapon to leave with me?”
Pitch smiled. “Of course.” He reached down
into his boot and pulled out an electro-zapper. “Not as good as a disruptor but
it’ll get the job done.”
Tara took the weapon. Barely better than a
pain inducer, but it didn’t need direct skin contact to work. She and Torque
used to kill dung-rats with them on Xylon, so at least she knew how to get the
best out of it. “Thanks.”
She told Pitch everything she’d learned
while down here, which wasn’t much, and then she watched him and Josella go on
their way. She moved closer to Alexa. “I guess it’s been the babies that I was
hearing before we found each other.”
Alexa’s eyes widened. “You heard them? I’ve
been trying to keep them quiet.”
“I couldn’t really identify the sound. It
must have traveled through those vents.” She pointed upward.
“Do you think the Def’mal heard them?”
“Probably. We need to stay alert. It’s a
danger staying in one place like this. But moving around with the babies is
problematic too. I don’t understand why Laszlo would send you here instead of
the repair station unless he didn’t care about your safety.”
“Laszlo wouldn’t put us in danger. Not
purposely.”
“Given what’s happened, I’m not so sure
about that.”
“Um, there’s something that you need to know…”
Alexa shifted and seemed to be searching for her words.
Tara wondered what was up now. And she did
wonder about Laszlo’s motives, no matter what Alexa believed. The man was much
too secretive for her liking and always had been. “What?”