The Harvest (Book 1) (43 page)

“So they’re machines?” Austin asked, not breathing hard at all.

“Yeah kinda. I mean they’re both machine and flesh. And I think their skin is made of this rare metal found on Venus.”

“Venus?”

Zack nodded. He no longer had the lung capacity to run and talk. Thankfully they reached their destination and Austin slowed to a walk. Zack followed him inside the launch room.

“Oh hell no.” Zack stopped, eyes popping from his sockets the pain in his chest forgotten.

“Come on. Luke and Chase left a few minutes ago.” Austin removed his k-bar and jumped into the pod. “Zack!”

“Huh. Oh yeah right.” Zack jumped in behind Austin and the canopy lowered down enclosing them inside.

“You ready?” He asked reaching for the green button on the control panel.

“Can’t say if I am, but hell lets go.” Zack replied.

Austin hit the button. The light show commenced and the pod shot down the tracks disappearing into the dark center of the portal.

39 BLISS

The rail came to an end in the middle of a narrow plane flanked by dense jungle on one side and an expanse of ocean that kissed the horizon on the other. From inside the pod they could see the planet was a verdant oasis, a palatial stage of magnificent jungles, lush green floors and vibrant emerald green oceans. Bird like creatures swooped high above the trees carried on the breeze by long colorful plumage.

It was paradise by any measure or definition of the word and Zack, upon laying eyes on the wonders of Bliss, thought maybe this was Heaven. Then he reconsidered, knowing he would never be allowed into Heaven, not even with Austin there to vouch for him.

While Zack marveled at the planet’s lushness, Austin was already out of the pod and walking over to the pod Luke and Chase had arrived in. He peered inside and found Luke slumped over, blood dripping down the side of his face.

“Shit. Zack help me out.”

Zack and Austin pulled Luke from the pod, who groaned when they lay him down on the grass.

“You ok kid?” Austin moved Luke’s hair off of his forehead and unzipped his jacket.

Luke opened bleary eyes. “Sorry captain. Bastard got me good.”

“Yeah he did.” Austin half smiled, hiding his anger so Luke wouldn’t think it directed at him.

Zack ripped a strip of material from his shirt, wetting it with bottled water. “Can I take a look?”

Austin nodded and backed away. He knew plenty about dressing wounds on the fly, but he was no doctor. He had confidence in Zack, even without the piece of paper qualifying him to practice. Given his degree of intelligence, Austin surmised that Zack knew more about medicine than most college educated doctors.

After wiping the blood from Luke’s forehead the injury appeared less ominous. “It’s not bad. Ugly, but not bad. Your head’s gonna hurt like a mother for a few days though, but you’ll live.” Zack said. “If your vision gets wonky or you wanna yack, you have a concussion. You know what that’s like from football right?”

“Never got hit that hard before.”

“Go figure. Blurred vision, nausea, puking etcetera, etcetera. You just let me know.” Zack helped Luke into a sitting position.

“Thanks Zack.” Luke replied. He glanced at Austin, embarrassment coloring his cheeks. “You don’t have to tell Maddie do you?”

Austin laughed out loud. “I’m not tellin’ her. Are you tellin her?” He nudged Zack.

“Hell no. What happens on Bliss stays on Bliss.”

They all laughed.

A screech from the direction of the jungle doused the conversation, reminding them of where they were. Austin pulled his rifle from around his back, flipping the safety switch as he settled into a defensive position. He held his hand up for silence while he peered into the dense overgrowth at the edge of the trees.

A flock of the colorful bird like creatures rose up above the tree tops squawking in protest at an unseen disturbance. Austin motioned for Zack to help Luke take cover underneath the mono rail. They lay down facing the jungle, watching for signs of movement.

The thunderous noise hit their ears before their eyes were privy to the source. Out of the jungle came a herd of two legged, hairless creatures whose appearance would have been considered primordial had they been on Earth. The beast’s massive bodies swung from side to side defying the laws of motion as they sped across the plane.

When the herd approached the mono rail, the trio ducked and covered sure they were about to be trampled. At the very last second, perhaps by instinct, the beasts shifted around the rail in synchronized motion like a large school of fish. The ground shook and the pods rattled overhead. The quake lasted mere seconds, but with an intensity that stayed with them long afterwards.

Austin was the first to get up and brush off. Down on the beach, the beasts jumped about in the ocean’s surf. Zack helped Luke stand up, propping him against the rail. They watched the strange creatures frolic in the water. One rose up with something in its mouth and a fight ensued. The victor dashed up the beach, away from the others, with its prize still wiggling to escape.

“This woulda went viral.” Zack commented.

The wonders of Bliss were hypnotic, almost making them forget for the moment what had brought them to this planet. Austin tore his gaze from the beach and his mind from his surroundings. Wherever Chase had gone they were giving him ample time to reek whatever havoc the little weasel could conjure up. Most likely, Austin thought, the sniveler was nearby watching, waiting for them to leave.

“Zack.”

Zack reluctantly turned away from the beach. “Yeah man.”

“I’m goin’ to look for the warehouses. Stay here with Luke and guard the pods. If Chase comes anywhere near, you shoot him. No hesitation. No questions. No answers. Just pull the trigger.”

“Got it captain.” Zack gave him a half salute.

“I don’t care if he’s crawlin’. You shoot him.” Austin added making sure Zack got it.

“Hey man. I got it. Chase is one human being I don’t mind ridding our world of, or this world either for that matter.”

Austin turned to Luke. “Did you see what direction he went?”

Luke shook his head. “It sounded like he was walking away behind me, but I didn’t see where. Sorry captain.”

Austin assured Luke he had nothing to be sorry for. He handed his winter gear over to Zack, and rechecked his weapons.

“Hey cap, before you go off all Rambo like, can I tell ya my theory on killing the Sundogs?”

Austin paused. “That might be of some use.”

“So I told you I thought their skin was similar to this metal found on Venus, right?” Austin nodded. “This metal was originally in liquid form, and the only way to bring samples back was to freeze it. Once frozen, it turned harder than Tungsten Carbide. Which is pretty damn hard. Anyway, the colder the temps, the harder this metal becomes. I found the alien’s skin contains high levels of a metal similar in molecular structure to the Venus metal. Don’t ask how I found this just take my word for it.”

“So I need a blow torch to kill em. And then only if they want to sit still for fifteen minutes or so?”

“Well kinda, but yeah sort of.”

“Get to the point man.”

“Right. Right. Their system is electrical in nature. All wires are connected to a chip at the base of their neck. If you hit em with the taser at that spot, they should be incapacitated and then you torch em. In theory anyway.”

“That’s it?” Austin asked after a couple of seconds.

“I didn’t have a lot of time or specimens to experiment with. A nuclear electromagnetic pulse would be ideal, but I was fresh out of nuclear devices. This is the best I can offer.” Zack shrugged. “Anyway, I brought another taser. It’s double the strength and shoots from twice the distance.” Zack pulled a taser from his back pack and handed it to Austin. “If you ain’t got a choice, shoot the head. The jolt might slow it down enough for you to escape.”

“Maybe you should keep it. In case they come this way.” Austin replied.

Zack gave him a look that said ‘really man’ and pulled two more from his pack. Somewhat relieved, Austin stuck the taser into the side pocket of his pants. Before leaving he gave them a list of do’s and don’ts. They were to go back to Earth if he hadn’t returned by dusk. Under no circumstances were they to leave the pods. If things got hairy before nighttime, they were to leave. He reiterated they were not to allow Chase anywhere near the pods, the portal or their person.

Austin walked off in the direction of the jungle confident Zack would handle the Chase situation if he crawled out from whatever rock he was hiding under. Replacing one concern with the next on his list, Austin focused on the jungle. From what he remembered in the pictures, the buildings had been in a clearing surrounded by trees. Logic dictated two things; there had to be a road in and the location couldn’t be far from the portal.

Walking along the edge of the trees, Austin kept one eye on the beach and the other looking for the way in. The further he got from the portal, the less confident he felt in his direction. About to turn back, he stopped and peered through the trees. Shading his face with his hands, he squinted and then blinked several times.

Twenty or so yards in the sun’s rays bounced off of a large white object. Could this be one of the warehouses? Excitement began to churn in his stomach at the prospect of what he might find. For a year now he’d trudged through life, existing for a single purpose, to find his wife and son. All roads had led him to this place, to this point in time, where he would find the answer to the question he’d asked over and over. He knew this was the precipice of for better or worse. He dared not hope for better, and prepared his mind for worse.

Jogging now, Austin continued along the tree line, sure he would come up on the road soon. As he’d anticipated there was a wide opening leading into the jungle. The ground was well worn from vehicle and foot traffic. Despite his pounding heart urging him to run faster, Austin remained cautious as he proceeded down the road into the jungle.

Sticking to the right side of the road, Austin paused along the way to listen. It was quiet, too quiet. The jungle made not a sound. No insects buzzing or birds chirping, no movement on the ground or in the air. He felt like he was entering a dead zone and it didn’t bode well with him.

Thirty five yards in, the road dipped down and flattened out for a few feet before dipping again. At the crest of the second hill Austin spotted the roofline of a warehouse. He stopped. After a couple of minutes his lungs ached for relief and he realized he’d stopped breathing. He moved closer to the edge of the road, staying out of sight. At the point of exposure he dropped to the ground and slithered on his stomach until the clearing was in plain view. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

Sitting in the valley below were at least thirty five warehouses that Austin could see to count, each a football field long. They sat in five rows, with each row containing seven warehouses that were in line, one after another to appear like one continuous warehouse. The break in the roof line was the only indication they were separate structures. Austin stared, dumbfounded by the sight.

As the shock lessened Austin inched closer. The air around him was heavy and dead. Looking through the binoculars he scanned the area, but saw no movement, no sounds, no nothing. The knot in his stomach twisted tighter, his heart beat faster. Transitioning to a squatting position behind a tree, he continued to scan the valley.

“Zack, do you copy?” He tried the radio having no idea if it would work. A few seconds went by. “Zack, do you copy?”

“Copy captain. Over.” Zack came through clear.

“I found the warehouses, but they look empty. I’m going down for a closer look. Over.”

“Copy that. All’s quiet here. Over.”

“Keep your eyes open. I’ll contact you once I’m in. Over.” Austin put the radio on mute and made his way down into the valley. The valley of death he thought to himself.

At the peak, the warehouses stood thirty feet high. There were two massive sliding doors at the first end Austin approached. He walked around the side, but found no other way into the building. Returning to the doors, he stepped up to where they met. There was no crack to peek through, no sliver of the interior giving half truths, the doors were shut tight.

Using his knife, Austin stuck the tip into the seam and pounded on the end with the palm of his hand. His efforts proved futile. Frustrated, he decided to walk to the other end, hoping to find another way in.

The sound of his footsteps, flat in the heavy air, was the only thing he heard. He turned the corner expecting an open walkway between the buildings, but was surprised to find a connecting glass enclosure instead. The connection was half as wide and centered on the ends of the two buildings.

Lowering his gun, Austin walked up to the glass and looked inside. To the left and to the right he could see far into either warehouse. His eye moved back and forth. No matter the number of times he repeated this action, he could not convince himself the images were real.

Charlie had seen pictures of the tables, hundreds of them lined up, people lying on them, tubes going every which way. Now h was seeing the tables, the people, the tubes, all in plain view twenty feet from where he stood and doubt was no longer entertained. The validity of their existence wasn’t the issue. The things he could see were seldom the issue.

Without giving it a second thought Austin stepped back and opened fire on the glass enclosure, not releasing the trigger until the structure shattered to the ground. When the dust settled he jumped through the rubble and ran through the warehouses. Up one row and down another, his head whipped back and forth taking in the macabre sight, taking inventory. His pace slowed once when short blond hair caught his eye, but it wasn’t Roxi.

Exiting through the broken glass, Austin ran around to the next row of buildings, repeating what he’d done with the first to gain entrance. He did this until he’d searched all thirty five. Upon reaching the end of the very last building he stopped to catch his breath, to think, to feel. Violent feelings of relief and disgust battled to control his emotions.