Hybrid - Forced Vengeance (41 page)

From space the disturbance would likely look like the largest electrical storm ever on the planet, only this storm was pure unfettered energy amplified like a gigantic energy coil. The massive amount of harnessed energy lit up the atmosphere with its aqua glow.

Erik isolated the precise location of the orbiting alien armada. He focused his will upon the energy he had gathered and, with a gesture that resembled a massive punch toward the sky, willed all of the energy to launch toward the carrier vessel in one massive bolt of power.

A lightning bolt raced up toward the craft, grazing the vessel’s metallic skin. Even the slight contact engulfed the large carrier ship in several jagged arcs of power. Then the powerful bolt raced back toward the surface of the Earth where the atmosphere had been ionized to a positive polarity. The massive plume of energy dispersed back into the atmosphere restoring the affected area to normal – leaving no evidence that the powerful storm ever occurred.

* * * *

The alien carrier hung dead, in space, the victim of massive power overloads. Only auxiliary systems on the ship now functioned.

In the spacecraft, those in charge knew that the near miss was intentional – a deliberate warning. They also realized that the amount of power brought to bear against their ship could have obliterated them had they taken the hit directly.

From afar, they studied the lone silver entity that had accomplished what the human military couldn’t. What disturbed them even more than the hit was the fact that the silver warrior was looking up at them.

The warrior wasn’t human. The ship’s massive computer banks examined the collected images and searched through the system archives. The complex integrator finally found a match. They stared at the data in disbelief. The species should have been extinct centuries ago.

What was an Esper warrior doing on this backward, primitive planet? The accrued data pertaining to this particular breed involved fables and legends. The legends, however, did not do justice to the creature that had wiped out their forces and crippled their mother ship, only moments before.

* * * *

Erik could detect only minor energy emissions from space. The massive carrier had been crippled – but not destroyed. He hoped he’d made his point to the aliens and that they would cease their invasion.

It was now time to make his point in the same way, to Colonel Ross and his cronies.

Erik walked into what was left of the Groom Lake facility, unopposed. The storm had served as an effective fire extinguisher, dousing the raging inferno that engulfed the research facility.

Erik sensed electromagnetic emissions coming from beneath the surface. He scanned the area methodically and noticed half a dozen camera pods protruding from the sand and gravel. The twisters had literally blown away their protective cover.

He crouched and laid a hand against the desert floor then sent out a telepathic pulse. The first echo he received back was transmitted to his brain. It displayed an elaborate catacomb of passages and chambers dug into the depths of the rock strata. Psychic echoes of several hundred men and women who had taken shelter in the safety of the underground placement, came later.

He raised both fists over his head and slammed them into the desert floor with the force of a hundred pile drivers. The ground vibrated under the force of his titanic blows and the sonic concussion reverberated throughout the desert. The ground shifted, splitting apart the thin layer of slate and granite in front of him, revealing a metallic elevator tube that burrowed deeper into the earth. Erik sent a strong telepathic pulse for all those minds to hear.

COLONEL ROSS, I KNOW YOU HAVE MY WIFE IN THERE. I WANT HER BACK. NOW!

My son is held there as well, I would like him returned,
another voice echoed in his mind and in the mind of every man and woman at Groom Lake.

Erik spun around rapidly, staff in hand, looking for the source of the telepathic transmission.

We request permission to land and recover our child. You have our assurances that there will be no hostilities.

Come claim your son, Observer. I look forward to greeting you on behalf of this world.
Erik replied telepathically.

Ross, you son of a bitch
,
Erik thought to himself, what the hell were you up to in there?

Erik witnessed the arrival of the Observer craft. It was a saucer-shaped disc about fifty feet in diameter. It landed effortlessly two hundred meters from his position. He tensed momentarily and sent a pulse of energy through his staff. The tip of the weapon burned with aqua fire and the weapon moaned and buzzed in anticipation of further combat. He cautiously approached the craft.

* * * *

A section of the alien craft parted and a thin ramp descended to the desert floor. A being, scarcely over five feet tall, stepped off the craft followed by two others. Their hands were open in a display of passiveness.

We are not armed, Esper
. The leader projected assurances as its black eyes studied the burning power contained within the staff.

Erik relaxed and freed the energy into the sand. He willed the staff to shrink and placed the deactivated weapon into its satchel. He was surprised that the Observer knew the species of his warrior self but chose not to comment on that fact, or show any surprise.

My name is Erik Knight. Whom do I have the honor of addressing?
He did his best to sound nonthreatening.

Our names are not translatable into human tongue. You may address me as Diplomat since that is the function I serve for this meeting.
The being gestured toward his two companions.
This is my bond mate
,
and my eldest offspring.

We already have something in common. We’re both here to reclaim lost family members. My wife is captive as well and I’ve come to free her.

The Observers looked at him puzzled. Erik stared back at them with equal confusion.

It had been our understanding that warriors of your species were genetically engineered, not naturally bred. I assume your function is the defense of this installation.

Having already determined that the Observers were true to their word and were no longer a threat, Erik focused his will and transformed himself back to his human form. The three aliens gasped as the transformation occurred.

“This is how I appear most often. I am human, but I am also an Esper warrior. It’s too long a tale to get into. Might I suggest that we both get our loved ones and have our discussions after our families have been reunited?”

“Your words are wise, Erik Knight. But how do we go about retrieving them without further damage and loss of life?”

Erik raised an eyebrow. The leader of the Observers had answered him in perfect English. Erik pointed toward the exposed elevator shaft. “I’ve already taken care of that part. It’s safe to assume that the humans underground have been watching everything that has occurred here. I expect we will be greeted before we can make it to the elevator,” he replied.

“Will they attack us?” Diplomat was clearly concerned for the safety of his family.

“I think those responsible have learned by now how unwise such an action would be. I’m confident there will be no more hostilities.”

Erik covered his torso with the tattered remains of his flight suit – still clinging to his body – as they walked forward.

The desert sun had reclaimed its dominance in the sky and beat down upon the sand with a fierce heat. The Observers appeared uncomfortable in the heat and bright desert sunlight.

Erik stopped and stared up at the sky. The moisture from the hail had evaporated but was still present in the nearby atmosphere. He focused his will on the scattered vapor and condensed the evaporated water molecules into a cloudy mist, thus creating a small cloud just big enough to minimize the effects of the sun’s oppressive heat over their position and the ground they needed to cover to reach the elevator shaft.

“Is that better?” he asked gently.

Diplomat nodded his head. “Yes, thank you. I did not think it possible, but you can actually manipulate the elements by force of will. That kind of power is staggering,” Diplomat said as they covered the final span of sand, to the access point.

* * * *

Deep in the control room, everyone heard Erik’s message in their heads as well as the alien’s request that his child be returned. They all turned to Colonel Ross and stared.

“It looks like checkmate, Bill. The game is over.” Ross watched the three aliens and the human hybrid approach the exposed elevator shaft above ground.

“We should be thankful for that, Art. We’re still alive and the planet won’t be embroiled in an intergalactic war.”

“And we’ll get twenty-five to life in Leavenworth making small rocks from big ones – if we live to see prison,” Ross replied bitterly. “Take command, Bill; your hands aren’t as filthy as mine. Get the representatives from Washington and the Pentagon up there to give them some sort of diplomatic reception.” Walking out of the command center, Ross’s words shot over his shoulder, “I’ll be in my quarters.”

Bill looked around the room at the remaining staff. “Get our people topside and form some sort of escort,” Anderson ordered. “Somebody contact the White House and NORAD. Tell them the hostilities are over, thanks to Agent Knight.”

The control center staff stared at him one second too long. Anderson clapped his hands. “Let’s go people, move like we have a purpose. We’ve got fences that need mending. I want an unarmed military escort for our guests and for god sakes, somebody get Shanda Knight and Gray out of that cell.”

* * * *

The prisoners heard what sounded like a sonic boom that shook the entire complex.

Something had gone horribly wrong. Gray could no longer sense any surface activity. He had lost all communication with the droids and probes his father had sent to facilitate his rescue.

“Was that a nuke?” Phelps asked aloud as he watched the lights blink on and off for several seconds. “My God, are they nuking our facility?”

“I don’t know, Arthur. Everything has stopped. None of our machines are transmitting.”

The powerful mental command from Erik penetrated the limited telekinetic shielding and overwhelmed their senses. Before they could react, the equally powerful message from Gray’s father reached their minds.

Arthur Phelps turned to Shanda, who held her tiny child close while releasing tears of joy and relief.

She looked down at her infant and cooed, “Daddy’s coming, baby, just like I told you.”

Then Phelps turned to Gray who was actually smiling. “My father has come for me, Arthur. I’ll be going home now.”

“I’m truly happy for the both of you,” Phelps said, smiling with them.

* * * *

Erik and the Observers stood at the exposed shaft, and the doors parted. Five people exited the elevator.

“Our welcoming committee,” Erik mumbled to Diplomat.

“Agent Knight, the Pentagon and Washington send you their gratitude, and the president extends his compliments,” said a man in a wrinkled black suit. “May I be introduced to your colleagues?”

Erik closed the short distance between them, while the Observers stayed back. “I don’t know you, and to be real honest, I’m not in the mood for conversation right now. My new friends here would like their son returned to them, and I’d like to see my wife, right now.”

The suit hesitated momentarily. “This way, please.” He gestured toward the elevator.

Erik and the three Observers entered the large elevator and began their descent into the heart of Groom Lake. The delegation attempted to establish dialogue with the aliens – to no avail.

The alien diplomat addressed the man in the wrinkled suit. “Human, if not for this Esper we would have obliterated the rest of your facility for what you have done. We only wish to claim our family member and be gone.”

The suit nodded and reached for a telephone, then punched in a four-digit code. “We’re going to the detention center. Have Lt. Colonel Anderson meet us there.”

“Where’s Ross?” Erik asked, eager to get his hands on the man who had been the cause of so much misery.

“Colonel Ross is no longer in command of this installation, Agent Knight. Lt. Colonel Anderson is in control.”

The tension in the elevator was thick by the time it stopped its descent and began a horizontal motion.

“What is the power source?” one of the Observers asked in flawless English.

The soldier explained the reactor and its power capacities.

The Observer asked a technical question that led the soldier into another long explanation. Both alien and human had found common ground.

“We’re really not so different,” Erik remarked. “We are also a curious species always wanting to know more and know why things are the way they are.”

“Indeed.” The alien cocked his head in agreement.

The elevator stopped and the door opened. Erik sensed tension coming from the awaiting group of soldiers and the lone woman that stood in front of a massive circular door. Erik spotted Anderson and unconsciously clenched his fist.

“Esper,” Diplomat said gently, “our loved ones first.” Erik nodded.

The group approached the door and Anderson joined them.

“We’re having a technical problem,” he explained to the fathers. “The concussion from Agent Knight’s blow has warped one of the pressurized piston housings. The door is jammed, and we can’t open it. It’ll take about six hours for us to cut the hinges and get a lift big enough to force the door.”

“I’ve got a better idea.” Erik approached the massive door.

* * * *

Shanda, Gray and Arthur Phelps heard a commotion outside the door and listened intently for several minutes to the sounds of power tools. A silence ensued and then they heard a thunderclap impact with the door.

Their chamber filled with the sounds of tortured metal. Then the ten-ton door and its frame were ripped away from the reinforced wall with a massive concussion. The prisoners took a cautious step backward as the massive door was gently placed on the concrete flooring inside their chamber.