Chapter 10: Mysteries

The chamber was hidden deep under the Rocky Mountains, about three hundred miles south of NORAD. Saron sat in his chair and looked down at the warrior who was walking towards him. Fingering one of his many piercings, he waited for the warrior to come to attention. Reaching his blue-skinned fingers out to the bowl on the table beside him, he dipped his fingers into the warm liquid and speared a thin slice of bloody meat, which he lifted to his mouth and swallowed it. He enjoyed the warm meat as it slid down his throat, and looked at the warrior who now knelt before him.

"Well? Where is this human that the sensors have detected who has developed powers that could rival ours?"

"Your eminence, we failed to catch him. We shall catch him. It is just going to take time to do so. It seems he is able to generate more then one gate at a time. Something which we thought was impossible."

"Redouble your efforts. Now, what about our new recruit?"

"The new woman, Sammie is her name, is powerful. However, she is not as powerful as our weakest warrior. She will be very easy to control. She has created another like her, but her powers are even weaker. Our puppet has had to move her base of operations to the town called Bodega Bay. It seems a worker from one of the pharmaceutical companies was trying to steal the serum. Sammie killed him when he tried to mate with her. We will help her get more subjects for the testing. I would advise we take full control of her instead of just manipulating her mind into thinking she is creating the drug."

"No, wait a few more weeks and see what she generates for us."

"It shall be as you command. However, she will need more of the serum so she can make more of the drones we will need."

"Then deliver it, just make sure she is under your control when you do deliver it."

"Yes my Lord, as you command it shall be done," Balick said.

Turning, Balick walked out of the room and let out the mental breath he was holding. Walking through the passageways, he entered his office, and sat down at one of the desks. Placing the palm of his hand to the desktop, he activated the holographic keyboard and screen and started typing in commands.

The image changed to the planet and he quickly zeroed in on the United States and then California. Tapping the city of San Francisco, he brought up the larger map and looked at the thirty white dots and the three red ones that represented all the humans who have been infected with the serum. Pressing the red dot for Sammie, he read the powers she was displaying.

Sammie Elaine Johnstone

Age: 18

Height: 5'11"

Weights: 115

Hair: Blond

Eyes: Green

Powers:

Body Mutation
Levitation
Mind Blast
Invisibility
Pyrokinesis
Flying
Time bubble
Possible Telekinesis

Note: Sammie is emotionally unstable but very strong willed. Deal with a soft hand; guide her on what you want done with her. Power rating is very strong, but not as strong as some of our warriors. Possible candidate for leadership of the West Coast assault teams in the destruction of this civilization. Sammy carries a strong emotional tie to her parents. Possible revenge against the government if her parents were killed in police raid.

End report.

Balick leaned back in his chair and looked at the image of the girl. His eyes wandered back to the power list and thought of the young man who got away from them.

"Where the fuck is he? He has to be in the city, but where, and why are the sensors not detecting his powers when he uses them, they have to be serum induced. It's almost ... nah no one would dare."

"Dare what?" Tivan asked at his desk where he was watching over the psions in the European Sector.

"Someone is helping this new psion in San Francisco; somehow he is eluding all scans for him now."

"Could they be natural powers?"

"No ... or I don't think they are. He is showing signs of dimensional gating that are tenfold the level of our powers. I believe with his power level, he could get us home to our world, which as you know we have not been able to do since we came to this universe." With a sigh, he continued, "I just wish there were more of us here. We could control this world without having to make drones of these foul humans, and without having to slaughter them down to manageable numbers. They would make excellent warriors in the war. If we can capture this human, maybe we can force him to open a gate to the home world, and once we get him there, use our superior medical knowledge to find out how he is generating such powerful gating ability."

"I know, I hate this backward planet. They have no idea what art and music is like. They are so like Neanderthals in everything, they are killing their own world, and ninety percent of them do not even care."

"Yes, to be able to walk the red beaches of home would be nice, to wade through the red water at low tide and feel the energy of the planet reviving the soul. To feast on the raw flesh of the Blainef and feel the rich texture of the meat slide down our throats. I know their buffalo look like the Blainef, but it just doesn't taste the same."

"I have wondered on them since we awoke here, we should awaken some of the geneticists so they could run some tests to see if they are related and if so, how they got here," Tivan said as he worked at his computer station.

"It's possible, but the Commander has ordered they are to sleep until he deems they are necessary. He doesn't want to overtax our resources. Ever since we awoke when that quake hit this area five years ago and those two miners found us, we have been very careful not to be discovered. More geneticists would want samples of everything."

"True. Now this is interesting... " Tivan said as he started typing on his holographic board.

"What is?"

"Oh, three of my charges are sitting in the same cafe in Rome. I have to take care of this. See you later Balick" Tivan said as he got up and walked out of the security office.

"See you later." Balick said as he continued to scan the city trying to locate the human and then he brought up the police database, and entered the two teen's pictures into their primitive computer system and sat back and waited for a positive match.

Davy stood there and looked at Mike as he pulled out his blackberry and scrolled through his list of numbers until he stopped and pressed a button as he walked towards the front window.

Mike hit the dial on his phone and waited for it to be picked up on the other end. After the fifth ring, it was finally answered.

"Hello, Special Agent Hanson. How can I help you?"

"Jimmy, its Mike Jameson."

"Hey Mike, what's happening out there in California? How are the wife and my beautiful Godchild?"

"Jim, I need your help," Mike said with fear in his voice.

"Mike if I can I will, what's wrong?"

"I rather not discuses it on the phone, could you fly out?" Mike said as he looked out the front window.

"Of course, when and where?" Jim asked.

"Can you meet us in Reno?"

"Reno? Yeah I can. I can be there in uhh. 7 hours," Jim said.

Holding his thumb up so June can see it, he replied, "Ok, we will pick you up; give me a call back on your ETA."

"Ok, give a kiss to June and Cindy."

"I will, see you then ... and Jim?"

"Yeah!" Jim said.

"Thanks," Mike replied.

"No problem Mike."

Mike closed the phone and turned back to his family.

"Is Uncle Jimmy coming?" Cindy asked.

"Yes, we will pick him up when we get there. Now both of you pack what you want to take with us, while I will get the Escalade out. We leave in thirty minutes." Turning to June, he kissed her then said, "Honey, go to my safe and get my pistol for me."

"It's right here Mike," June said as she pulled the pistol out from her purse and handed it to Mike, "I got it out when I found the living room like this."

Taking the .45 caliber Detonics Special, Mike leaned down and kissed her.

"Thank you honey, now go pack some clothes for us," Mike ordered as he jacked a round in the chamber and put the safety on.

June turned and walked up the stairs and went into their bedroom. Pulling the suitcases out of the closet, she started packing them with clothes for both of them. Ten minutes later, she had all four suitcases packed and downstairs.

Cindy was in her bedroom sitting on her bed. Her fingers were gently touching the picture of her friends, Tammy, and Charlene Montana, and her, which had been taken on their sailing sloop last summer. Turning the picture over, she pulled the backing off and pulled the picture out. Setting it on her bed, she grabbed her eleventh grade yearbook and placed the picture inside it. She quickly stripped all the pictures from their frames and placed them in the yearbook. The last was a picture of Davy and her that had been taken at her sixteenth birthday.

Taking the yearbook, she put it in her backpack along with her laptop, her picture book, her CD case of music and some other small things she wanted to keep. Looking at the three suitcases of things she wanted to keep, she sighed that all the rest couldn't be taken, too. Standing up, she grabbed her teddy bear off the bed, stuffed it in her pack along with her jewelry box, and zipped it shut.

Davy was in his bedroom, his computer tower was open and his hard drives were wrapped up and inside his suitcase along with his clothes. Looking at what he couldn't take, he just shrugged his shoulders. He picked up his single suitcase and his old dell Inspiration laptop. His backpack was stuffed, and had his computer disks in it. He walked out of the room and glancing to his right, he saw Cindy step out of her room with her pack on her back, her laptop on her shoulder, a suitcase in each hand, and yet a third suitcase standing by the door. He saw she was struggling with the three suitcases. Walking over Davy picked up her extra luggage and kissed her.

"Thank you Davy."

"You're welcome, Cin. Come on your dad is waiting," Davy said as he let her lead the way down the stairs.

The two teens walked into the kitchen just as Mike was loading a cooler with bottled water, and some food from the fridge.

"You two all ready?" he asked as he closed the lid of the cooler.

Cindy nodded her head at her father. Her lips were trembling and she was afraid to speak or she would burst into tears. She looked back at Davy and gave a small smile and then back to her dad and a single tear slowly ran down her face as she realized she could never come back home once they left.

"Yes sir. We're ready," Davy said for both of them.

Davy looked over to Cindy and saw the tear running down her face. Setting the suitcases down, he reached for her.

Shaking her head Cindy stepped away from Davy, and said, "No, don't touch me right now or I will cry."

Davy lowered his hand as he looked into her eyes as he responded, "Ok Cin, I won't touch you. Never forget, that I love you and respect you. Let me take the suitcases out to the Escalade and load them."

"Thank you Davy, I want to walk around the house for a few minutes. Is that ok with you daddy?"

"Yes it is, I'll help Davy load the Caddy. Take your time," Mike said as June came in leading Buster, their two-year-old blue roan cocker spaniel.

"What's... " June started to ask as Cindy walked into the den.

"She's just realized she will never be able to come home if this works out. She wants to walk the house and gather memories," Mike said as he walked to his wife and kissed her.

"Oh ... I was hoping one day they could come home to us," June said as she started to cry and then clutched him to her.

Mike wrapped his arms around his wife and kissed her forehead as he whispered to her, "She will be better off with Davy than fearing everyday if she will be kidnapped again. That is if Jim can help us keep her safe in witness protection."

"He will, I know he will. He loves Cindy as if she were his own daughter," June said as she reached for a napkin and blew her nose.

Terry Hawkins groaned and slowly opened his eyes and quickly shut them due to the bright light that hurt his head.

"Who is the boy?" said a male voice.

"Who? What boy? Oh my head, what hit me?" Terry said as he clutched his head in pain.

"Tell us who the boy is?" asked a female voice.

Opening his eyes, Terry squinted trying to make out who was talking to him. Climbing to his feet he shouted, "I don't know who you mean."

"Liar! We saw him in your warehouse. He killed four of your men. NOW TELL ME WHO HE IS?" said a third voice.

"Who are you? I want a lawyer," Terry shouted and then noticed he was naked, and continued, "give me my clothes."

"You don't tell us what you want. You tell us what we want to know. If you cooperate, we will give you a great gift. If you don't then you die."