Reckoning by Mark Tufo
Red lights blazed along the hallways and in each room occupying the Hill. A controlled pandemonium broke loose as the alarm rang three times and silenced itself, lest it be discovered from above. But the effect was instantaneous. Men and women ran to their posts in various stages of disarray. This was not a drill, that was understood. The alarm would only be sounded under the gravest of matters. Were they under attack? No one knew. They could only hope they had prepared well enough to thwart off whatever threat came their way.
The second explosion, although not close enough to do any physical damage, still had enough power to throw Paul to the ground.
Chapter 41 - Mike Journal Entry Ten
Paris
Many moments passed before I could shake the dread of the encounter with Deb. She had been here. But what did it mean? Roy had completely retreated down the hallway, crucifix in hand and Hail Mary’s flying. He didn’t approach me until a full five minutes had passed and he was somewhat assured that the vision wasn’t coming back. Thankfully, he didn’t say anything about the whole affair. I’m not sure I would have known what to say anyway.
He quietly escorted me to the colonel’s office, and I noticed that his grip on his crucifix was much tighter than that of his weapon. If I had any notion of escaping, this would have been the time.
My concern for Deb was, so far, outweighing all the events that were unfolding before me. What I saw left me with an ominous feeling. One which I hoped I would not carry for the rest of my days.
Colonel Brintley’s office wasn’t lit much better than the rest of the warehouse. Apparently, the aliens succeeded in severing one of the main power grids to the region. Battery-operated backup lights were the only source of energy in this place. How long would they last? Candle power next. The aliens were doing their very best to throw us full tilt back into the Stone Age. A few more days of this type of barrage and they would succeed.
Colonel Brintley was a big man somewhere in the neighborhood of six foot and two hundred pounds and he looked dangerous. The salt and pepper crew cut did little to temper that image. The colonel looked like he had fought his way to the top; scars lined his left cheek, as well as a wound that disappeared below his neck line and looked like it would have killed just about anyone else except this man. He stood to greet me, hand extended.
“Captain Talbot! It is so good to see you. I hope that my men were not too rough with you,” he said as he looked severely at Roy. The act was for my benefit. The colonel didn’t look like he gave a rat’s ass about my welfare or abuse at the hands of his men. Roy completely dismissed the glance.
“Not at all; we even stopped for croissants. Although, I have to admit, I like the ones at McDonalds better.” The colonel’s face tightened for a moment and then softened as he regained control. And then it came out.
“You can see, Captain, why we are not all that thrilled to be in your company at the moment.” I can’t say I was expecting that but at least he was honest; and for that I could respect him.
“How long until the next attack, Colonel?”
“They have given us another twenty-four hours to deliver you,” he stated flatly.
“Then could you please have Roy here direct me to my quarters. I have some things I’d like to take care of.” The Vice Sergeant looked pissed. I think he thought I didn’t give a care about the country, but the colonel understood. Well, now I knew he had brains to go with the brawn.
“Vice Sergeant, please take the captain to my quarters.” Roy was now more puzzled than ever. He knew some sort of information had been passed between us but he’d be damned if he knew what it was.
“Right away,” Roy said as he snapped to attention and saluted.
I made my decision almost immediately. I knew that ultimately, every one’s fate on Earth was predetermined. But I’d be damned if I was going to be labeled as the man who destroyed France. Who was I anyway, to decide their fate? I was not the judge and jury. My life, in comparison, was nothing. The good of the many far outweighed myself. Although when you are put in that spot, the rhetoric isn’t quite as easy to swallow. It’s a lot easier to hold up mighty ideals when you’re not the crux of the morality.
My encounter with Deb had been taking up the majority of my thoughts. I was now more convinced than ever that she had departed this earth. I could only hope she found a better place, as I found myself desperately wanting to join her. That made my decision that much better. I hoped Beth would understand.
I tried twice to catch some sleep before I was to leave, but no sooner did my eyes close, when a myriad of visions would reawaken me. The bulk of them were not pleasant by any stretch of the imagination. For the better part of the past two months, I had been trying to forget what the aliens looked like. Now I was going to them, almost willingly.
The colonel sent me a meal fit for a king. “So this is what last supper’s look like,” I quipped to the delivery man.
“Pardonez-moi, monsieur?” the private asked.
“Nothing, nothing. Thank you. Gracias.” I just said “thank you” to the man in two languages he didn’t understand. He merely handed me the tray and left. I wanted to savor my last few moments of life, or at least freedom, but I was afraid that the aliens might have itchy trigger fingers, so to speak. I didn’t want any more innocent lives pinned on me.
At four hours to the deadline, I contacted the colonel and told him I would be ready to go in another fifteen minutes. I was not one for prayers, even having been raised a strict Roman Catholic, but this seemed as good a time as any. I knelt at the edge of the colonel’s bed and did the “Our Father” like I had done so many times with my father, oh, so many years ago.
I finished up and headed towards the door. The sight I encountered when I opened it almost sent me back into the room. Men and women, all military, were lined on both sides of the hallway. When they saw me step out, they all stepped up to attention; and as I walked down the long corridor to where the colonel was, they each snapped off a salute as I passed. I was both honored and embarrassed by the display. Little did they know that to me, mine was more an act of cowardice than courage. I didn’t want to be blamed for anymore mass murders and, more importantly, I wanted to be reunited with Deb. I guess I could call it “suicide by alien.”
“I hope you enjoyed the meal,” the colonel said as he led me to the waiting Jeep.
“Yeah, everything was great,” I lied. The only thing I didn’t sniff at and put back on the plate was the cheesecake. The colonel said little else throughout the journey except an occasional direction to the driver. There really wasn’t much to say, not much sense in talking about the weather.
“Where are we heading, Colonel?” I asked not so much because I cared, but because the silence was driving me nuts. There were about a half dozen times I wanted to jump out and take my chances with the locals.
“Ground Zero.”
“Ground Zero?”
“Where the Eiffel Tower once stood. There’s a huge crater there, and that’s where they want you.”
“I always wanted to see the Eiffel Tower,” I said.
“Well, then today’s not your lucky day.”
“Not at all,” I added.
And that was it. Not another word was uttered as we approached the complete destruction of Paris. Buildings that once stood mighty and proud now barely reached the height of an average man’s knee. It looked like the work of a spoiled giant child who had taken his hand and completely leveled his Lego structures. That was, of course, until the crater began to loom.
It was vast. It looked like the fist of a great god had slammed down into the soft ground. It was a mile across, if it were a foot. Earth had surged up out of the expanse and dripped down the sides. Where the rest of the landscape was flat, the lip of the crater had risen to almost a hundred feet. I was about to ask the colonel how he planned to navigate it when I noticed a makeshift tunnel that had been drilled through the ledge.
The Jeep plunged into the darkness; it was n
But there was something, dead center in the middle of the crater. It glinted in the sun as we approached, and by the way my nerves were reacting, I could tell it wasn’t of human origin.
“Here we go again,” I said to no one in particular. The colonel took note of my words but said nothing. The men in the Jeep tensed; they didn’t want to be any closer to this than I. As we approached, the ship began to take form. It was of the fighter class that had been described to me not so long ago. The hull appeared to be scorched in places, whether from the bomb that was detonated inside the mother ship, or from fighting on this planet was not clear.
The Jeep abruptly stopped about five hundred yards from the vessel. I knew that this was as far as my ride was going. The colonel stepped out. First, he surveyed the ship in the distance and then turned to salute me as I also stepped out. Military protocol was the furthest thing from my mind at the moment but I returned the salute, half-heartedly before I headed towards the ship.
I had no sooner gone five or six steps when I heard the Jeep roar into life and begin its ascent back up the alien-created mount. I had never felt quite so alone in my entire life. Every step was an effort, my breathing, laborious. My legs felt like tree trunks. After what seemed like an hour and five miles crossed, a voice emanated from the hull.
“Halt! State your business.” The language was English, but the speaker was not. From the rasp of the voice, I knew it to be of alien origin. The hammering in my chest made it difficult to breathe, much less speak. From this distance, I would have to yell to be heard, lest they vaporize me on the spot. Who knows? Maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad idea.
“My name is Mike Talbot!” I yelled.
Immediately, the fighter’s outer door hummed and opened. Two Genogerian guards, armed to the teeth, and I guessed their teeth were also a weapon, I thought sardonically, ran out. They approached me with their weapons at the ready. It didn’t much matter though. They could have come with fly swatters and beaten me, I was already defeated. My head was bowed, my spirit was shot. The guard who arrived first wanted to make sure, unnecessarily, I might add, that I was no threat.
He thrust the butt of his rifle squarely into my solar plexus region. What little breath I still possessed was expelled from me in a loud and resounding “Ummph.” I toppled over, not even having the presence of mind to break my fall. I was astounded at how bad French soil tasted. I was then unceremoniously hoisted to my knees and dragged towards the ship.
I was wholly unprepared for what happened next. Standing at the top of the ramp way was Durgan and he looked more pissed off than either of the two guards. At this point, the thought of fighting and taking my chances seemed the better of the options presented to me. I tried to find the strength to get one of my legs back into a position that would allow me to stand on my own accord, when I felt, what can only be described as a huge horsefly, biting the back of my neck.
Before the world completely blacked out on me, I noticed Durgan with his hands on his hips, laughing that maniacal laugh I had heard so many times before on the ship. “This isn’t good,” was the only verbiage I could muster before the pinhole of my vision completely disappeared. Sweet black nothingness. I slept the sleep of the dead. If only I had been so lucky.
Chapter 42
The ride back to the Massachusetts border was a quiet one. Both Beth and the sergeant weren’t sure on what grounds they stood. The sergeant was solemn. He had crossed a line from which there was no return.
Beth was almost inconsolable. She felt, in a word, dirty. Even worse, tarnished. She had no idea if she would ever see Mike again, and if she did, how could she ever face him? It was tearing her up inside, and yet she had given herself willingly. Who was she kidding? She threw herself at the sergeant. The companionship was something lacking in her life of late. She liked the feel of his powerful arms wrapped around her. It made her feel warm inside. She was rapidly developing feelings for this man and it scared her to the depths of her soul. Yet, she still had a strong urge to continue going to Massachusetts. To what end? Would she run into Mike’s arms and beg forgiveness? Would he accept? And what of the sergeant? Was she just using him as a means to an end? By sleeping with him had she solidified his help? At times like these, even she felt it difficult being a woman.
“We’re going to have to ditch this ride.”
“Huh?” Beth shook her head trying to orient herself back into the present.
“I said we are going to have to get rid of this truck before we go into Massachusetts.” He really wanted to ask her what she was thinking about, but he had a good idea what it was and he wasn’t so sure right now that he wanted to know.
“Do you mean that we should steal another before we get to the border or are you saying we should abandon the car thing completely?” She wanted to tell him what she was feeling right now, but she wasn’t sure if she was ready to hear what she had to say.
“Abandon it. Any road access is going to be completely covered. If I know the colonel, he’ll stretch his forces to the limit to make sure he finds us. We’ll ditch the truck in the woods and then hike for five or ten miles until we’ll find some alternate transportation.” The sergeant didn’t let Beth in on the fact that this was probably going to be the most difficult hike she had ever endured. Massachusetts’ forest is among the thickest in the country. Briar patches are more common than squirrels in that part of the world.
“We’re only going to be able to take a few things, so pack lightly. Just enough food to get us through the next day or two and the medical supplies.”
‘Why was he acting so distant?’ Beth was looking for some sort of signal that the events of the morning hadn’t been an anomaly or was she? Maybe she should just leave it alone. Maybe that was the best solution for the situation.
“Beth, I wanted to talk to you this morning,” the sergeant began. Or maybe it wasn’t, she reasoned.
“Go on,” she said hesitantly.
“Beth, I’m married.”
“Is that what that ring on your finger means?” she said jokingly to try to ease the tension that was building in the truck’s cab.
“No, I’m serious. I’m married and I love my wife. I’ve known her most of my life; we grew up on the same street. And this is the first time that I’ve ever been with anybody else.”
“Ever?” she asked incredulously.
He turned a shade or two of red but regained control. “There were a couple of times in high school when I made out with one or two different girls but, besides my wife, you are the only other person I have ever slept with.” Beth was caught a little off guard, this was not the turn of events she was expecting.
“What are you trying to say, Grady?” She hoped beyond hope that he wasn’t going to tell her that he loved her. She didn’t think she could take it right now. It would just open up too many doors she was not prepared to venture beyond, much less look into.
“I’m just saying…” he started hesitantly. “I don’t know what I’m saying, I just thought that you should know that. I’m not this stud that just goes around and sleeps with anybody. I mean I guess that it was special for me, and I think it was special for you too.”
“Stop. Just stop there. Don’t go any further.” She put her finger over his mouth as he turned to look at her, an injured expression spreading across his face. “It was special for me too, Grady, but I’m not ready for this, I’m not ready at all. The death of Debbie still has me all confused. I just don’t know what to think right now. And frankly, I don’t want to at the moment.” The sergeant turned his face forward. “Please don’t be hurt
“That’s fair enough,” the sergeant said through clenched jaws. Beth wanted to try to smooth things out, but she just didn’t have anything emotional left inside of her right then.
“How far ‘til we have to start walking?” she asked.
“About an hour,” he answered. Beth hunched down in her jacket and propped her knees up on the dashboard to try to get some much needed sleep.
Chapter 43
Indian Hill
“What do you mean, ‘the aliens have Mike?' I knew I couldn’t trust them. I’m going to send a battalion and wipe their asses off the planet once and for all! I’ll finish off what the Germans couldn’t.” Paul was pissed, to say the least. His office looked as if a cyclone had passed through it, and in a sense, one had. One truly pissed-off cyclone.
“Sir, they didn’t hand him over; he went voluntarily.” Corporal Jackson said, trying his best to calm the colonel down.
“There’s no goddamn way he went voluntarily. I saw his eyes. Those aliens scared him.”
“Well, sir, apparently, the thought of more innocent lives dying for him scared him more.”
Paul stopped to think about that one for a moment, but it did little to slow down his tirade.
“But there’s one thing you’re forgetting, Corporal Jackson. He knows about this place.” Corporal Jackson’s face literally paled. “Yeah, do you see the dilemma now, Corporal?”
“Well, wha…What do we do now, sir, evacuate? Do you really think he’d give them this location?”