“And miss out a chance to see Dean Parker kick bad guy ass?”
“You do realize I could get killed here?”
“Not you. You’re invincible.”
“Kid, this isn’t a comic book. I’m just a man like you.”
He dusted his clothing off and looked me in the eyes with an admonished glance. “I’m nothing like you.”
Who was this guy, and why was I feeling bad for him? He very well could get me killed. Of all the people I wanted to have beside me on the dangerous world full of Bhlat, Leonard the comic book artist wasn’t one of them. I mentally chided myself for not searching the room better before hitting the icon.
“Regardless, how did you get here?” I asked, my patience beginning to wear thin.
“I was at the base. One of my buddies is a custodian there. We drink beer and shoot rocks in the hills sometimes.”
“This buddy wouldn’t be where you’re getting top secret information about us, would it?” I thought of the issues I’d seen that touched a little too close to the truth.
He turned red and averted his eyes from my gaze. “Maybe. Your stories are too awesome to keep away from the public. We all need to know what really went down. You’re heroes, and we all need to look up to you guys. You give us hope. You think it’s easy moving away from Earth after seeing your family die on those vessels? Some of us have nothing else.” His pitch was rising, and I had the urge to give the kid a hug, but I needed to play hardball.
“How did you get here?”
“Jeb gave me a suit and showed me how to use it.” He flipped a switch; when he spoke again, a series of Deltra words echoed his speech.
“Enough of that. He knew where the portal was?”
“Is that what you call it? Of course, it makes sense. Yeah, he overheard the general talking with Tucker.”
We would have to take precautions now that the location of it was out there. People traveling to other worlds would bring a lot of issues.
“You can’t stay here. I have to bring you home.” I started to use the console to find New Spero’s portal symbol. For the first time, I looked around the room. It was much the same as the rest of them, but years of disuse showed. The ground was covered in a thick dirt layer, cobwebs hanging in all nooks and crannies. I wondered how far underground we were, and how far from a city we would be. The four corners had the columns like the other rooms had.
“I won’t get in the way. Let me help,” Leonard said in a small desperate voice.
My communicator vibrated lightly, and I fished it out of my pocket. I knew what this call was about.
I pressed the accept icon. “Dean here.”
“Dean, I’m not going to get into it with you now, but don’t think this conversation is over. I hope you understand how angry I was to wake up with you gone and a note in the kitchen.” Mary’s voice was angry but low.
“I’m sorry. I had to go with my gut.”
“Make your gut go faster. We’re on Earth now, and it’s not good. Whatever they’re doing is messing with our atmosphere, and fast. If we don’t stop them, our people aren’t going to make it.” She sounded near-panicked.
“Dean, hurry the hell up. We’re going up as planned. This should be interesting.” Magnus had obviously grabbed the communicator. “Do what you have to do, Dean. Remember, this is about saving our people.”
I would do what I had to and patted my pocket where the small killing machine from the Deltra station sat, waiting to be used one more time. I couldn’t let this wide-eyed kid who looked up to me see what I was going to do with it, but I didn’t have time.
“Good luck. Mary, I love you, babe.”
“Holy crap. Was that…?” Leonard stared with his jaw dropped to his chest.
“Yes. Mary and Magnus. You really want to help? Promise me, whatever you see, that you won’t make a comic of what’s about to happen. If things go south, and they might, I have to do something I don’t want to.”
The kid nodded.
“Promise me!” I almost yelled the words.
“I…I promise,” he said hesitantly.
“Put this on,” I said, tossing him the backup cloaking outfit.
He put it over his EVA, breathing heavily as he did so. I caught him once to keep him from falling over as his boot got stuck in the pant leg. When it was done, he looked down and smiled at me. “What does it do?” he asked. Instead of answering him, I showed him, and clicked the hand control. To his eyes, most of me disappeared.
“Wow. That’s going to look great in the comics.”
“What did I just say?” I asked, regretting my decision to let him stay. “You stay here in the portal room, sit down, and stay cloaked. No one will know you’re here. I’ll be back for you.”
He suddenly looked terrified, as if being left alone here was far scarier than roaming a hostile alien planet. “Don’t make me stay. I’ve always been too afraid to do anything. I didn’t play sports because the other kids told me I was too slow or too fat. I’ve never asked a girl out, because I know they’ll just reject me. If there’s one thing the Event taught me, it’s that I need to live. Not just survive, but thrive. Let me help you. I need to help you. I want to help them.”
As I was about to tell him “no,” his words soaked into me. Standing there wasn’t a scared kid, but a man who was willing to risk his life to help people. “Fine, but don’t do anything stupid. Listen to anything I say and do it. And when things get tough, keep going. No matter what.” And don’t hold my actions against me, I added to myself.
He beamed for a second and then paled, finally realizing he got his way.
I pushed the pack at him and he grabbed it, slinging it over his shoulder with a grunt. The hover bike came with me, and we exited the doorless room, walking into a hall leading away from the portal. Already I could feel the heat of the planet, and my suit began to cool me. I saved the coordinates in my Relocator and kept moving.
After a half hour, we came to a dead end, where a pile of small rocks barred most of the way out. We set everything down and set to methodically moving them. After another half hour, we were breathing heavily and sweating in our suits, but we had an opening large enough to fit through with the hover scooter.
I crossed through first, my rifle ready to fire if needed. My cloaked head poked out, and I let a low whistle fly. We were on a mountain, water as far as the eye could see below, a dark red star casting a devilish glow over everything.
“Welcome to hell,” I said to myself.
TWENTY-THREE
“Maybe I should go back,” Leonard said as the view came into his sightlines.
“It’s too late for that. We have to get moving.” The range of mountains we were on rose up another hundred feet or so, and I made for the peak, careful of my footing on the rocky surface. For the time being, I left the scooter behind, knowing it would be more of a burden than a help. “Stay there,” I said back to Leonard, whose silence told me he was happy to do so.
The sun was still high in the sky, but the dim glow it cast was difficult for my eyes. I tripped on a few rocks on my way up, my path jagged as I made for the most acute inclines I could find. Still, I was near the top of the peak in only a few minutes. With a deep breath of my suit’s oxygen, I peered over the edge, praying I wouldn’t see more water. If we were on an island, my hopes of finishing my mission would be dashed.
Squinting to get a better look, I saw what I’d been wishing for: land. The mountain went down at a gradual decline toward a hard-looking surface below. Red topiary covered the distance: likely a forest on this strange world. Bright lights rose into the sky beyond, indicating a large city in the right direction.