Blood and Stone (11 page)

CHAPTER
TWENTY

Colonel Arturo Lopez Espinoza surveyed the remains of the town of Piste’ with disgust. He stood half in, half out of the roof hatch of his command Humvee. He leaned on the large .50 caliber machine gun on its roof ring mount as he looked around the devastated town.

The Colonel spat and muttered a curse as he viewed the damage. This surely had to be the work of a cartel. The destruction was far too much for an angry mob as the police had reported. Nor did he believe the reports of a flying creature.

And where were all the corpses?

Arturo slapped the roof of the Humvee and barked an order for the troops to dismount. His radio man in the front passenger seat immediately passed on the order.

Lined up in a neat column behind the Colonel’s truck, ten Army transports immediately disgorged over a hundred soldiers. Wearing camouflage and berets, the crack soldiers fanned out with precision borne of extensive training and experience, covering the area with their rifles.

The Colonel reached for the hand mike of the radio he wore on his belt. Before he could speak into the microphone himself, someone began screaming to his left.

The Colonel turned, one eyebrow cocked in surprise. The scream was growing louder and louder. A long continuous scream. It was coming from a citizen running down an alley, straight toward the column of trucks.

The man had short black hair and was dressed in tattered, bloody clothes. His face was wild with fury, like an animal. He was screaming in rage, like a rabid dog.

The man got within twenty feet of the column when three soldiers opened fire. Precise shots, three from each man, drilled into the screaming, rabid man’s chest. He lost his footing and slipped, falling to the ground.

Then he leapt back to his feet. Oblivious to the holes in his chest, the man screamed in rage again and started to take a step forward. In the light of dawn, the Colonel could see the fangs in the man’s mouth. Animal-like fangs, far longer than any person should have.

The Colonel swung his mounted machine gun around as his soldiers stood still, confused. Before the vampire had taken two more steps, the Colonel had the big gun aimed, and opened fire.

The massive .50 caliber bullets disgorged by the Browning machine gun had originally been designed for stopping vehicles in World War II. They could penetrate thin armor and reach targets over a mile away. The machinegun could spit these massive bullets out at an incredible rate—over one thousand rounds per minute.

And the Browning was accurate. Very accurate. That was just one of many reasons the weapon was still in use, a century later, in Mexico, the United States and countries around the world.

Despite its supernatural strength and resistance to physical injury, the vampire was no match for the machine gun. It was ripped to shreds by a short burst.

Colonel Lopez Espinoza released his grip on the weapon, ignoring the wisps of smoke rising from the barrel, and the stain of flesh and blood in the alley that had been the vampire. Now that he had stopped firing, he could hear something. More screaming.

Instead of one man screaming, now there was the sound of many. And coming from all around the column of trucks.

Colonel Arturo Lopez-Espinoza swallowed nervously and swung his machinegun around to the front, covering the runners charging from that direction. Behind him he could hear his soldiers firing their weapons now.

The approaching horde numbered well over a hundred. They were former citizens, men and women, old and young, tall and short, white, black and hispanic. They wore regular clothing, albeit torn and stained with blood.

As he began to fire his machine gun again, the Colonel idly wondered how vampires could be out in the bright morning sun.

***

Jimmy Kane was very nervous. He clung to the side of the Blackhawk helicopter with as much force as he dared to use without damaging it. Only thirty feet below the helicopter, ocean water streaked by rapidly. They were flying very low and very fast.

Jimmy swallowed nervously, his stone throat mimicking the movement his brain remembered. Beside him, Chadwick Phillips was similarly seated, legs hanging out the right hand side of the Blackhawk, wearing full combat gear and cradling a large M-60 machine gun.

Behind Jimmy, on the other side of the helicopter, Captain Smith, Atlas, and Victor were similarly seated, cradling weapons as the helicopter took them toward their goal.

The tactical targeting visor Jimmy wore showed they were nearing their target on the head-up display.

“PREPARE FOR JUMP!” Atlas yelled over the intercom. The sound came from a small earbud in Jimmy’s stone ear, connected to the TTV by a thin wire.

The helicopter slowed, then banked to the right.

Phillips, or ZEUS as the TTV identified him, leapt out of the helicopter, toward the water below. Jimmy followed him, clutching his rifle tightly. Seconds later, Atlas and Victor followed.

The four stone soldiers struck the water with big splashes, careening along with their forward momentum for many feet before slowing. They settled quickly in the water, finally touching down on the soft sand twenty feet below the surface.

Jimmy’s foot caught in the sand and he tripped, going down on one knee. He was glad that the impact of his landing had thrown up a cloud of silt, so the others wouldn’t see his clumsiness. He was still the least graceful of the petrified soldiers.

>>>FAN OUT AND SECURE THE BEACH<<< a command read out from the TTV. ATLAS had sent it—typing rapidly on a keypad like they all wore on their left forearms. being made of stone, they couldn’t use the cybernetic pickups the TTVs had. They were forced to rely on the slower, clumsier keypads.

Even though they all wore full gear with Bowie knives suspended from their harnesses, large pistols on their right thighs, ammo carriers on their left and even small backpacks full of ammo, the stone soldiers moved effortlessly through the water.

The sandy ocean floor slowly tilted up and the soldiers emerged from the water, walking up, onto a beach. Dense jungle extended inland, past the beach.

Spread out thirty feet apart, the men formed a line, checking left and right for any sign of opposition. Miles overhead, a dedicated satellite scanned the juggle for heat signatures that would be displayed on their TTVs.

“Clear,” Jimmy said. Water poured from his mouth as he spoke, as he had forgotten not to inhale any while he was in the water. Being made of living stone, his only need to breath was to communicate with others.

“Let’s hit it!” Atlas said, and bounded forward. His stone legs propelled him in long bounds, his super human strength enabling him to send his massive stone body flying with ease. In two bounds he was into the jungle, swallowed by the dense growth.

Jimmy and the others followed, carefully watching where they ran. Made of living stone, with super human strength, they could easily knock down a tree or at least make its upper branches sway. And that could alert the enemy to their approach.

After twenty minutes of loud running, the team slowed at Atlas’ command. It was time to move stealthily now.

“HADES, spread left,” Atlas directed Jimmy. The teen wasn’t sure he liked the name that had been picked for him—a joke at his expense, in reference to his multiple deaths over the summer. Still, it was better than Victor’s name—JANUS, the Greek god who could look into the future and the past.

The team crept forward through the jungle for at least an hour before Atlas signaled for the team halt. They had reached their target.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Not all of Colonel Arturo Lopez Espinoza’s men had been killed by the vampire horde in Piste’. Many had been rounded up and taken as prisoners before Tezcahtlip.

Maria Alonso was one such soldier. One of only a handful of women serving under Lopez Espinoza, she had clawed her way up through the ranks, working hard and proving herself as a soldier to her male counterparts. And now she was a prisoner—turned over by the vampires to humans serving Kukulcan.

And the human worshipers of Kukulcan hadn’t been kind to Maria. They had kicked her, spit on her, and pushed her around after her capture. Then they had loaded her onto a truck and driven her to Chichen Itza. There she was herded into a long line outside the pyramid, her hands tied behind her back, and turned over to more vampires.

As she stood in line, Maria watched as the nearly two dozen other surviving soldiers in her unit were pushed forward, toward the vampires guarding Kukulcan’s pyramid. Often trying to fight and break free, the soldiers were beaten, some to unconsciousness. Their shirts were stripped off, then they were carried or dragged up the pyramid’s stairs and taken into the temple atop it. Within minutes, screams could be heard, then the prisoners’ bodies were hurled out, tumbling down the stairs before landing in a broken heap before the pyramid.

The vampires of Kukulcan had not just rounded up soldiers for sacrifice to their master. They had brought civilians to Chichen Itza as well. Dozens and dozens, whose bodies were strewn on the ground in the plaza in front of El Castillo. The vampires were feasting on the corpses, draining blood from the bodies—some of which had their chests torn open, their hearts removed.

All around the complex, human worshipers, some civilians, some soldiers from other units, worked. They erected tents, stacked supplies, and dragged the drained bodies the vampires discarded to large trucks for disposal.

Maria was the last in the line of prisoners. She watched, helpless, as twenty of her comrades in arms were taken before Kukulcan, one by one, and sacrificed. Then it was her turn.

First two vampires tore the ropes holding Maria’s hands off. They did this with no apparent effort, but with such force they nearly broke her wrists. Free, Maria tried to fight. But the vampires were too strong.

Once again restrained, by the vampires’ hands, Maria then had to suffer the indignity of having her uniform shirt and bra torn off. Her beret concealed her hair—held up by pins. Until it was pulled off, letting her shoulder-length hair spill out. The vampires then consulted quietly, grinning and whispering to themselves as they stared at her bare chest.

Their conference over, the vampires then undressed Maria completely. They pulled off her boots, her pants, even her panties. All the while, Maria kicked and spit and did her best to resist. But the undead were far too strong.

Once she was naked, Maria was grabbed, one vampire on each arm and dragged up the stairs, kicking and fighting the whole way. The human servants of Kukulcan watched her appreciatively as she was carried up the pyramid, then resumed setting up fortifications and equipment around Chichen Itza.

Atop the pyramid, the vampires carried Maria to the entrance to the restored temple of Kukulcan. They threw her roughly inside, where she stumbled and fell on her hands and knees.

Inside the temple atop the ancient structure, torches cast a flickering glow on the restored wall art of Maria’s Mayan ancestors and their brutality. Scenes of sacrifices, of combat, all horrifying and violent. An appropriate decoration for the monster seated in the temple.

Maria leapt to her feet, ready to fight. Then she saw Kukulcan.

Once more wearing the form of a giant human, the false god had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot. He sat naked upon a throne made of stacked bodies—his own replacement for the human-sized jade jaguar throne that had been in the pyramid for centuries. Blood covered the giant’s body—dribbled down from his mouth and the many humans he had devoured.

Suddenly, Alonso felt a great force squeeze on her from all directions. It was a great pressure, invisible and completely enveloping her. She felt herself lifted into the air, then she was swept forward, above the floor, toward the giant. Her arms and legs spread out, her body forming an X-shape as she approached the giant.

“A woman?” Kukulcan said in surprise. He looked Maria’s body over as she rotated in the air before him.

“What a strange world your kind has these days,” Kukulcan announced, leaning back on his throne of corpses. “Letting women fight their wars.”

Anger seethed within Maria. Anger for being regarded as just a woman.

“I will ask you the same question I asked your comrades,” Kukulcan said.

Alonso felt the force around her head relax, allowing her to speak. She spat in the direction of the giant. “I will tell you nothing!”

Kukulcan smiled, arrogantly, and gestured with his hand. Alonso drifted slowly forward, her body straightening, her arms held out away from her, her legs held against one another so that she now was held in T-shape. She came to a rest directly in front of the giant, with his bare knees brushing against her hips and his horrible breath blowing across her face and neck as he spoke.

“You think I want information from you?” Kukulcan asked. “I already know where your Army comes from, who sent you. You cannot hide those secrets from me.”

Maria spit again—this time hitting the giant in the face.

Kukulcan grinned and his tongue slithered out of his mouth, stretching out impossibly long. It wiped away the spit like a serpent, then retreated back into his mouth. So close to the monster, Maria could now see double rows of teeth in the wide mouth.

“Such bravado,” the giant said. He reached out and brushed the hair from Maria’s face.

Maria tried to spit again, but the unseen force holding her held her mouth shut.

“My question,” the giant said, running his bloody, wet hand softly down Maria’s cheek and neck, “Is very simple. Will you serve me?”

Maria was confused by the question. She stared blankly at the giant who now traced his fingers slowly down her sternum, brushing one breast lightly as he did so and leaving a trail of sticky blood wherever he touched her.

“Serve you?” Maria asked. Now she felt fear—fear at what the giant might have in mind.

“Yes,” Kukulcan said, tracing his fingers down her muscled stomach slowly. “I have need of warriors... and women.”

Maria would rather die than lay with the monster before her. She again struggled against the invisible force holding her.

Kukulcan’s eyes narrowed as he considered the struggling woman. “No? You don’t wish to become a bride of Kukulcan?”

“I only like men!” Maria sneered.

Kukulcan’s eyes narrowed and he suddenly grabbed Maria’s chin. His large, six fingered hand wrapped almost around her head.

“You have been prepared as a sacrifice for me. But I do not wish to eat a heart full of such insolence.”

The giant leaned in, squeezing the sides of Maria’s jaw. Her mouth opened, as did the giant’s, his snake-like tongue flicking in and out quickly.

Maria closed her eyes, refusing to watch as the giant kissed her. His tongue darted into her mouth and Maria tried to bite it. But the force holding her even held her jaw immobile. She tasted blood where the snakelike tongue rubbed against her own.

Then something happened that was very unexpected.

Maria’s eyes snapped open as a horrible sensation swept over her. In the dim torch light of the chamber she could see a flickering blue glow. It intensified as the giant broke off his kiss and leaned back. When he did so, electrical-like energy poured out of Maria’s mouth and into the giant’s.

Maria weakened quickly as her lifeforce was drawn from her body. Her muscles went limp from the complete, instantaneous fatigue that swept over her. She lost even the energy to feel anger or revulsion. All she felt was terror.

The giant ceased drawing the life from Maria and smiled. “Better. Much better.”

The giant grabbed Maria by the hips, sliding one hand around to the small of her back. The invisible force holding her vanished and she nearly collapsed to the ground. She was held limp, like a ragdoll by the giant.

Kukulcan ran his other hand up Maria’s stomach, and over her chest, then back down again. She wanted to scream, but her body was so tired, so worn out. It was all she could do to breathe.

Kukulcan suddenly thrust his hand into Maria’s stomach, rupturing her muscles and skin. He reached up inside her, as though she were a puppet and grabbed her beating heart. Blood poured from Maria’s mouth and her eyes were squeezed shut from the incredible pain.

The giant ripped the heart from the woman’s body and brought it to his mouth as Maria finally died. Tezcahtlip sank his teeth into the heart he held in one hand, and threw Maria’s lifeless body out of the temple with the other.

Her naked, bloody body bounced and tumbled down the steps of the pyramid for several long seconds. Finally, the body came to rest atop the other bodies outside. It was immediately set upon by three vampires that tore into the corpse, quickly draining what blood remained.

Inside his temple, Tezcahtlip swallowed the last of the woman’s heart, savoring her memories of the last seconds of her life. The giant then rose from his corpse throne and strode purposefully out of the pyramid, transforming when he was outside into the form of the feathered dragon. Spreading his wings, he leapt into the air.

It was time to deliver a message to the humans. In person.

***

The compound in the middle of the jungle consisted of only a few buildings, built of wood with tin roofs. Two guards in green, black and brown camouflage, the same pattern worn by U.S. forces until the 21
st
Century, patrolled outside.

The TTVs superimposed the glowing red outline of a single person in the center most building, seated in a chair, slumped over. The hostage.

“JANUS, HADES, move in,” Atlas directed. His command was picked up by a microphone in the rim of the his visor, which was connected by wire to a small pistol-magazine-sized unit in his assault vest. This unit then transmitted the message to the rest of the team in a micro-burst of energy not on any radio frequency, but by using telepathic energy produced from a tiny piece of living tissue in the telemitters each stone soldier carried.

Jimmy looked over at the thick jungle to his right. The TTV superimposed the outline of Victor with his call sign, JANUS, displayed over his head. He nodded an affirmative to Jimmy.

Both young men crept from the treeline, their M-60 machine guns slung across their backs. Each had a semiautomatic pistol in their hands, with silencers attached.

Jimmy fired at the guard on the left, aiming for the soldier’s back as he walked away on patrol. To Jimmy’s right, Victor did the same thing to the other guard, also walking away from the cluster of buildings. Both guards were struck by several rounds and went down quickly in the dirt.

Jimmy and Victor ran past the fallen guards, taking up positions on either side of the door to the main building. Jimmy glanced at the door and noticed it was made of heavy steel, with a digital keypad where a lock would have been. The TTV revealed the building was actually made of concrete, covered in wood to appear old and decrepit.

“We’ve got a lock!” Jimmy announced.

Colonel Phillips, call sign Zeus, charged out of the treeline, followed by Atlas—who kept looking around, aiming his machinegun wherever he looked. Phillips kept his right hand on his M-60's pistol grip but extended his left hand toward the lock mechanism.

“Got it!” Phillips said, firing a bolt of electricity from his left hand. The lightning-like flash of electricity arced into the door then traced a sizzling path around the lock mechanism. The device exploded.

Phillips charged forward and kicked the door, bending it in the middle and tearing it off its hinges. He ran in over the door, his eyes on the hostage, tied to a chair, a bag over her head, in the middle of the room.

A huge explosion erupted all around Phillips. The blast wave threw him backwards and he felt himself smashing into a tree. Within seconds, Phillips climbed to his feet and looked around. Despite the intense flare of the explosion, his stone eyes were unaffected and he quickly surveyed the damage.

The compound was gone—reduced to a crater in the ground. Fire was everywhere, thrown outward from the blast. Jimmy was staggering around in a circle, backwards, trying to put himself out, patting at the flames on his uniform. Atlas was climbing back to his feet from where he’d been thrown nearly a dozen meters away.

Machine gun fire erupted from behind Phillips. He turned and saw a figure in the jungle running toward him, firing an assault rifle. The cracked TTV he somehow still wore showed multiple other soldiers closing fast on the compound, ghostly red silhouettes on the head-up display.

Phillips extended his hands and began to unleash lightning-like blasts. The first caught the closest approaching gunman in the chest and sent him flying backwards. The second disappeared through the trees, hitting the outline of a soldier superimposed by the TTV.