Valkeryn 2: The Dark Lands (24 page)

‘Time… it’s that strategic element you need the most, and
always when it’s in shortest supply.’ Langstrom spun. ‘Let’s get to work. Harper… get the facility ready to send the new men through when they arrive – I’m putting you back in charge. Bannock, at least humor me by getting a hot meal and then laying down somewhere to get some rest. New guys won’t be here for at least an hour.’ Langstrom’s chin jutted. ‘That’s an order.’

He gathered his notes into a briefcase. ‘And now, I’ve got to tell the President we could have an inbound enemy force. And if that doesn’t make his day, then I tell him that the planet is about to be turned inside out. Christ, what a mess.’

*

‘Simple question, General; would a two-fifty kiloton nuclear detonation completely cauterize the gravity anomaly?’

General Langstrom considered the question from Frank Everson, the Secretary of Defense. Everson, along with half a dozen others of President Harker’s most trusted inner circle were gathered in the Oval Office to hear the General’s assessment of the situation in Illinois.

The President, despite hearing the harrowing news, still looked like he had stepped down from a poster for the election campaign – tanned, not a hair out of place, and Hollywood handsome. He sat forward, not even waiting for Langstrom’s answer. His voice was deep and untroubled.

‘Frank, I’m not keen on detonating nukes in my own back garden. What else we got?’

Frank Everson didn’t blink, but turned to the General. ‘General Langstrom, what’s your best guess on how much time we have before we reach a tipping point? That might allow us to properly assess our options.’

Langstrom knew everything was hypothetical at this point, but after speaking to Harper, and what he had witnessed, he saw no reason to sugarcoat the information. ‘Days, maybe weeks, but definitely not months. Projections based on computer simulations tell us that the most likely scenario is that Earth’s surface will be scoured clean.’ He paused for a few seconds to let this sink in. ‘The primary mass of the planet will continue to maintain integrity, but just about anything above ground will be … gone.’

‘Gone? Gone where?’ Everson’s jaws clenched.

The General remained calm. ‘The future, space, another dimension… who knows. Does it matter?’

Harker raised his voice, just slightly. ‘He’s right, it doesn’t matter. We won’t be here to worry about it.’

‘I’m assuming that wasn’t the only scenario, General Langstrom?’ The question this time was from Harry Vanner, Head of the Office of Science and Technology, and Harker’s go-to guy for all things technological.

Langstrom breathed in deeply. ‘That’s right, sir. Best case, the gateway simply closes by itself – simulation probability seven per cent.’

Vanner grunted. ‘Won’t be backing those odds.’

Langstrom went on. ‘Worst case, the entire planet is compromised. Over a period of several months the gravity anomaly continues to grow and devours the entire planet. Simulation probability thirty-two per cent.’

‘Jesus Christ.’ Harker rubbed his brow with a knuckle.

‘And that brings us back to our highest probability scenario – surface slide, probability sixty-one per cent.’ Langstrom sat back watching each of their faces. Each man looked lost in thought, their complexions pale and faces slack. Each one of them was probably thinking of a future that might not exist for them or their loved ones.

Frank Everson turned to Bill Weaver. ‘Come on, Bill, back me up here… we might not have a choice of detonation in a day or two. The gravity waves are making it tough to fly over the site now. In another day, we won’t be able to get within a
hundred miles of the laboratory… or what’s left of it. A single two-fifty kiloton nuke will turn everything in that lab and for fifty miles to slag.’

Bill Weaver, Director of Public Policy lifted his head, and then nodded slowly. His eyes were red rimmed. ‘He’s right, sir. We lose Illinois, or we lose the entire world. Might be a small price to pay.’

President Harker sat back and closed his eyes. ‘Small price; thirteen million people.’ He shook his head. ‘To save eight billion.’

‘Not even two percent.’ Everson folded his arms.

‘Not today, gentlemen.’ Harker rubbed his face. ‘Before I even get to that, I want an emergency evacuation plan in place, and…’

‘Evacuation? Begging your pardon, sir, but to where… Mars? And if the surface really is rendered sterile or nothing but a clean sheet, what will any survivors live on?’ Everson’s face was flushed as his voice took on a higher pitch.

Harker got slowly to his feet. He was a big man, and the Hollywood bonhomie was gone. ‘Calm down… right now.’ He waited for the man to compress his lips and nod.

‘I want to secure the weapons stockpiles, and I want the deep storage tunnels opened to get as many people inside and below the surface as we can – maybe a few can ride this out.’ He kept his eyes on Frank Everson. ‘What do we live on? Hope, luck, grit. We have advanced hydroponics, and animal breeding programs we can utilize.’ He brought a fist down onto the table. ‘People, there might be no alternative. The tunnels can support hundreds of thousands for years. We survive, we adapt, and we evolve.’

Everson rubbed his face. ‘I’m sorry, sir, I’m just…’

‘Forget it, so am I.’ He leaned f
orward on his desk. ‘All options are on the table. So… load a nuke into a high altitude bomber, and have it on the runway, ready.’

General Langstrom gathered his notes and sat forward. ‘Sir, before we cauterize, we need to give the Delta team time to complete their mission. If they can secure the laser acceleration diamond, then we can potentially reverse this magnetic whirlpool that’s been created. Stop this thing in its tracks.’

‘Two thirds of your team are dead or MIA. So, what’s the probability on that scenario, General?’ Everson looked annoyed.

Thankfully the President held up a hand to silence him. ‘How much time do you need?’

‘Forty eight hours.’

Frank Everson started to object, but the President spoke over the top of him.

‘And that’s all you got.’ President Harker stood and stuck out his hand. ‘Good luck, General, and I pray to God you’re successful.’

Chapter 27

It is Our Time… to be Free

The sudden cacophony of howls, screams, and roars from the Fermilab Animal Facility sounded to Chuck Benson like a preview from hell. The din over the speakers filled the comms room, and he spun in his chair, to look briefly at the camera feeds.

‘What the hell is going on in there?’

‘Huh…. Oh that.’ Porter, his fellow surveillance camera watcher, half turned his head, but kept his eyes on the lightning strikes that jagged into the Fermilab grounds.

‘Probably the storm putting them all on edge.’ He clicked his tongue with annoyance. ‘How the hell are we supposed to get home? Like a freakin’ hurricane out there now.’

Benson snorted. ‘And you with all your metal fillings.’ He flicked a switch. ‘Hey, Loeman, something’s up with the animals – wanna check it out?’

An older voice came back at him immediately. ‘Okay Chuck, I’m on it.’

Benson spun in his chair back to Porter. ‘Give him something to do. Poor guy has been down in the dumps ever since those assholes stabbed his dog.’

‘Yeah, like to lock that dickhead Samson in the pens with big Fen for five minutes; that’d sort him out.’

Benson sat back. ‘Don’t worry, if there’s one thing I know in this life, it’s that what goes around comes around.’

‘Karma, huh? You old hippy.’

Benson smiled. ‘Something like that.’

*

Dan Loeman unlocked the facility and stepped inside. The large room’s blinding whiteness was almost painful to his eyes after the darkness of the storm. As soon as he closed the door, the sounds ceased as if he had just flipped a switch.

‘You all just wanted some company, huh?’

He smiled. He liked it in here and he liked interacting with the animals. The genetically modified breeds weren’t really animals anymore – you only had to look in their eyes to see that certain, something – intelligence? A soul? At least that’s what he thought.

Being in here made him miss Morgana even more. She had been his favorite. Killed by a real beast. Loeman sighed: at sixty, he was due for retirement but had been putting it off. Now, he felt there was nothing stopping him.

He walked down along the aisles, looking in each of the pens – more like rooms really. Each of the animals sat still as stone, unexpectedly not watching him pass by, but instead all facing in one direction, towards one cubicle, with one particular animal. 

Loeman didn’t need to see who it was. He stopped in front of the largest cubicle. Fen was waiting for him, standing on his back legs, a head taller than he was. The animal’s eyes, ice blue, bored into his own.

Loeman nodded a greeting. ‘What’s up Fen? Something spooking you and the pack?’

Loeman put his hand against the bars and Fen reached up to place his over the top of the old guard’s. It always gave Loeman a jolt to see how the animal’s paws had changed – not really paws anymore, more like hands. Even the dewclaws had dropped and lengthened to become opposable thumbs. Freaks, Samson had called them. Marvels, is what Loeman thought.

The deep growl began, and quickly formed into words. ‘We… miss… Morgana. And… you… do… too.’

Loeman nodded, his eyes filling. He felt the hollowness deep in his chest.

Fen squeezed his hand. ‘You… good… man. We not… forget.’

The huge animal looked up as a thunderous crack split the air. From behind the red quarantine door at the end of the corridor, they could hear howls that mixed fear and fury.

Fen’s gaze touched on the door momentarily, and then went back to stare up at the ceiling for a few more moments. ‘You… must… go. The time… is here for us.’ He looked back at the red door. ‘They… will be… free… and they know… no… kinship with man. Go…’

Loeman noticed behind Fen a leather satchel was packed, but still lay open. The spine of his favorite book was visible – Norse mythology. The big animal could read it himself now.

Loeman motioned towards the satchel. ‘You going somewhere?’

The gaze never wavered. ‘It is… our time… to be… free.’

Loeman lifted his access key and opened the door. He backed up as the animal stepped out. Another crack of lightening, and then the animal facilities roof exploded in a fireball of electricity, debris and swirling winds. The building was immediately on fire.

Fen turned to Loeman and nodded to the exit. ‘Goodbye… friend of Wolfen.’

Wolfen? That’s what they called themselves?
A burning beam crashed down beside him, and he headed to the door. At the exit, he stopped and looked back. Fen was calmly walking along the corridor opening all the cubicles. The animals, the Wolfen, were all upright, and quickly gathered around him like a phalanx of guards.

Flames rose up around them, but together they walked calmly to the end door, the red door, the experimental area that housed the creatures that were considered too unstable to be released. Fen looked in through the small triangular window for a moment, and then unlocked it.

Loeman turned to run.

Chapter 28

What the Sons of Man-kind
are Truly Capable of

Teacher stood with one foot on the edge of the cliff and leaned out to stare down into the jungle below. Beside him, Don Brown worked up some spit, and let it drop over the edge. The dollop only dropped a dozen feet before being caught in an updraft and flung back up into Ben Simms and Alison Sharp’s faces. Brown snorted as Sharp winced, but stopped when she reached across to push him, making him teeter for a moment on the edge.

‘Knock it off.’ Teacher stepped back.

Alf Doonie continued to scout the jungle treetops with a small high-powered pair of field glasses. He spoke out of the side of his mouth. ‘They went down, you think?’

Teacher looked along the steep drop-off. ‘According to the map, that’s the Dark Lands, so… I’m thinking that’s a high probability.’

Charlie Weng jogged back to the group. ‘Got two parties, one small with two members. The other, large and cumbersome – both went over the edge.’ He pointed with a thumb. ‘That way.’

‘Good.’ Teacher quickly tightened straps, fastened Velcro and checked pockets and pouches. ‘If that’s where they went over, then so do we.’ He looked up frowning. It would be full night before they hit ground.

‘Got some good news and bad news. Bad news is, we’ll have to do the climb without lights. We’d stick out for miles lighting up this rock face.’ He grinned. ‘And the good news is… no one will see us… even if we fall.’

Sharp sipped water then secured the small bottle. ‘Sweet. Nice dark climb, just using our finger tips.’

Brown pulled a face. ‘And think what it will do to your nails.’

‘You mean like this one?’ Sharp turned to him holding up her middle finger.

Teacher smiled, enjoying the brief moment of humor in the face of the death-defying climb ahead. ‘Okay, Weng, show us where they went over.’

*

The bag was dragged off Samson’s head, and he immediately set to looking around the room. There were just three of them left alive – himself, Wilson, and Ramirez. They all had blood running from multiple wounds, but knew they could survive and fight as long as they each had a single eye and a few limbs left intact.

He looked over his shoulder; the big bastards were behind him, grumbling and jostling, their luminous green eyes filled with hate and hunger. In front, the little freaks were crowded in close to the disgusting grub-like queen. He could see that slightly behind her were the teenagers who had come through before them, and also Colonel Briggs. He glared at her, but if she recognized him, she didn’t show it.

He tested his bonds – rope, and he reckoned it’d only take him a few minutes to work his way out of them. Samson had no illusion about his fate. He’d seen what had happened to a few of the Deltas who were too wounded to be taken prisoner – torn to shreds and then eaten, by things with more than five times the muscle power he could muster. He knew as soon as they had what they needed from him he’d be cat chow.

He grinned. Before he went, he’d do his best to take a few more of them with him. The queen began to make a hissing noise, and immediately Balthazaar’s stone allowed him to understand the words in amongst the sibilance.

‘We don’t neeeed youuuu, warriorsss of theee Ancientsss.’ The old queen leaned forward and her robe parted. Hanging between leathery old breasts swung the red diamond. It seemed an incongruous object of beauty set amongst the horrors of the disgusting queen’s body.

Samson shrugged. ‘We’ll be on our way then.’

She grinned blackly. ‘On your waaay to a Lygon’sss ssstomach before theee morning comesss, sssoft little beingsss of the ancient tiiimesss.’ She laughed, the Panterran joining in until she raised one scaly claw. ‘You arrre beaten. We haaave overrun your warriorsss… the bessst you could briiing. Weee will overrun yooour world jussst as easssily.’