Читать книгу Adventures of Space Cadets 101: Invasions - Darryl Wright - Страница 7

Technically the song was only four minutes long, but the cadets stretched it out for eleven minutes. They were singing the chorus over and over with Austen saying, “OK just the guys,” and, “OK, now just the ladies.”

One of the cadets had a voice like Austen, and JR made him zip it until he went over to stand with the ladies. It went on and on, and then JR made them all fade out for two minutes. It had been awhile since there was that much fun on a ship.

JR had worked with the band many years ago. He was the bodyguard and in charge of the road crew setting up everything for the band. He was paid well, and he also enjoyed those years for a lot of reasons.

When they were done singing, Derek came out of the longest kiss he had ever had. He was shaking and she was trembling. They both said, “WOW,” and then kissed again. She read his mind and it was saying how much he loved her.

Derek was looking in her eyes and said, “I wrote that song for you, ya know?”

She said, “I didn’t think you wrote it for your sister,” and smiled teasing him. Then she said, “I know, Honey. I still have the original track at my mother’s house." He had given it to her the night she turned him down and she still had it.

He said, “Man, that’s probably worth a lot of money. We could run away.”

She said, “We have run away; we couldn’t be further from Earth than we are right now. Anyway, that day you asked me out on a date, you handed me that music track, and you told me what it was and who you wrote it for. I listened to it all night that night and so many nights since. I still can’t believe that you took ‘No’ for an answer from me.”

Derek said, “Well I was worn out and worn down from making that song. I had a feeling that it was going to be the last song I wrote for the band, it being a masterpiece and all. I knew you were going to say no, because you were out of my league.”

She said, “Liar, you liar! You loved me - correction - you still love me even though I said no.”

He said, “Love you - I wanted to marry you, but we never went out on a real date before. I thought that bridge should be crossed and maybe ease into marriage, but you little arsonist, you burnt the hell out of that bridge and turned me down for a date.”

She knew they were just joking with each other, but she wanted him to know that she was serious so she said, “I always have and always will love you, Mr. Houston. Now shut up and kiss me.”

He said, “Yeah, before someone comes in here and catches us making out on the bridge,” and they embraced again.

She felt like she was young again and even like a newlywed - seventeen and following Derek around like she had all her adult life, like an underage puppy again. He felt like he had just overdosed on some new synthetic drug. Then he started to feel like he was going to pass out and that it was so hot that he couldn’t breathe. How could he be hot? They were in space. He pulled out of the kiss with Deana and it scared her. He tilted and turned white.

He said in a whisper, “I’m sorry, Babe. I’ve … I’ve got to sit down." His heartbeat was irregular and beating a mile a minute. He was soaked, and he missed the chair completely. She knelt down checking his pulse. He whispered to her, “I’ve waited my whole life…” It was getting hard to breathe and he started seeing black spots filling his vision. He felt his chest constrict, and his pulse hammered in his ears and reverted through his skull. The thunder of a dark wave closing commenced forward, unstoppable and consuming all he was and everything he could’ve been. This was his end brought on by something outside and unknown.

She closed her eyes and contacted Austen in his mind, Get here quick!

Derek gasped, “Marry … me." A compression wave swept over her and yielded to the darkness that called out to her love.

His heart had stopped. She had heard the last few slow heartbeats in her mind. She screamed, “Get in here now! I need some help, please!” All the women on the lower bridge just froze as Austen heard Deana screaming in his mind. Deana’s breath caught in her throat as a primal dread resided in the darkness of her mind that used to be her bond with Derek. Then nothing.

JR and Austen came in and saw their brother, whose eyes were still looking at Deana, but there was nothing behind those eyes. They both ran over, and JR pushed Deana away as Austen picked up his little brother and everybody ran to the infirmary. JR instantly got Derek’s heart going by shoving Adrenaline and Epinephrine straight into his heart while Austen was still giving him C.P.R.

The two brothers looked at each other now that they had a second, and Austen grabbed Deana’s left wrist like a cobra and held it for JR. JR took a needle, shot some of whatever was in it out and reached over towards Deana. She was hysterical, but the Houstons didn’t care. Once could’ve been a coincidence, but this was the second time he had died while with Deana.

She yelled, “Wait,” but she never got the chance to explain anything. She wanted them to know that it wasn’t her but some outside force that was attacking Derek. The instant JR gave her the shot she blacked out.

Austen swept her up in his arms and as he laid her in one of the extra beds, JR said, “We can’t keep screwing around like this, Bubba! How many times does our brother have to die? How many times has it been?”

Austen said, “Twelve. He is in the record book with his eighth. The doctor said he doesn’t need a new heart. Besides Deana said he was attacked.” He couldn’t reconcile the idea of Derek’s condition being her fault. She loved him.

JR was fuming, “And you believe her?” He couldn’t believe that.

Austen said, “You can’t believe she would hurt the man she loves?”

JR said, "Like a black widow!" His face was turning red and he said, “Something has to be done, and if you aren’t man enough, I’ll do it." JR hoped he wouldn’t have to fight his brother, but he would if he had to.

Austen said, “You can’t stop love, JR. No powers in the universe can stop this kind of love." Then he looked at Deana and said, “Except maybe a sacrifice.” There was a stern reproving silence after his exuberant claim.

JR broke the silence and said, “Now you’re talking; I’ll get the scalpel!”

Kirk and Noah entered the infirmary as JR walked their way. Will and Qworn entered next. Kirk asked what was wrong with his dad and Aunt Deana. Austen went to hug him, but Kirk pushed him aside. JR stood with him and they both glared at Austen.

Kirk was starting to experience anger. “I don’t care if she loves him anymore. It stops here and now!” He turned to glare at Deana and said, “I know you can hear me. Please just leave my dad alone.”

Austen fought for her, “Look, you two, I don’t think she did anything this time. Besides, she can control her abilities. This was something else, and I count on her council.” He didn’t blame Kirk for blaming Deana, but he knew better.

JR said, “Do you even hear what you’re saying?”

Kirk said, “Maybe she’s lying to you, Uncle.”

JR agreed, “She hoodooed him again.”

Austen ordered Noah to have Dale lock down the ship then and go to General Quarters, and to get Cadet Clark in there quick as he could. Noah took off, and Will grabbed Qworn to go hide in Derek’s room for a while. Will grabbed Kirk’s lap-top before they left.

Cadet Clark entered and handed Austen his lap-top and turned to leave, but Austen grabbed her arm and ordered, “As you are, Cadet." Austen set the screen up to his lap-top and they all stood around one empty bed watching what had happened earlier. Austen needed Clark there in case he needed help to restrain JR. He knew from experience he couldn’t take JR on by himself.

Austen hit "play" and turned the volume up. It showed a four way split screen to view the upper-bridge from every angle. It started with Derek entering the upper bridge and ended with "Marry … me," and Deana screaming for help.

Austen looked at JR and said, “See no ‘voodoo’. Nothing but love. She didn’t do anything wrong, and she didn’t lie.”

They argued for a while, and Clark closed the lap-top after unhooking it from the medical screen. She was trying to sneak out during the argument, but Austen caught her. Austen approached her face after grabbing her arm. She had her back to everyone else. He was going to ask her what her problem was, but her eyes were closed tight and her lips were trembling. She was standing at attention so rigid that a feather would have shattered her. She finally opened her eyes, but she avoided her captain’s eyes. Austen could tell she was about to lose it. He took a deep breath and let it out, and she jumped a little. He said, “Dismissed, Cadet,” and she ran out in haste and silence. Austen knew she had a crush on Derek and was taking this hard.

Dale was the only one on the lower bridge due to lock-down, and he saw her running from the upper bridge to the lower bridge. She fell, not catching the last step just right. She lost it getting up, and Dale thought she might have hurt herself. She made sure the lap-top didn’t go down and get damaged, but she was crying a river and slow to get up.

Dale was beside her asking her if she was all right. He could plainly see that she wasn’t. He wondered what the hell was going on with the lock-down, with the captains, and then with one of the toughest cadets he ever saw, crying.

She pulled out of his help and ran to the corner to put Austen’s lap-top away. She was shaking so badly that she was having trouble putting the lap-top back into the lockbox. She even almost dropped it once.

Dale said, “Here, let me help.”

She pushed him so hard that he landed on his backside. She finally got it in and grabbed the key around her neck, but she couldn’t see or hit the keyhole. She ended up ripping the chain from around her neck pulling some of her hair with it. She was shaking so hard she just couldn’t put the key in, so she started banging her head against the console.

Dale came back to her, risking life and limb. He grabbed her in a bear-hug and threw her back on the deck. She broke loose, and in an instant she was ready to pounce, but when he released her, he had locked the box without her seeing him do it. He was holding the key out in front of him for her to grab, “Here look! It’s locked up now. Look. You can check it out for yourself." He pointed to the lockbox.

She saw her hair dangling from the key chain and growled at Dale. Then she yanked it out of his hand and held it to her heart. She fell to her knees and started crying again. Her head had a gash on it, and the blood was running down into her tears. She looked a little scary, though Dale knew that this cadet was as tough as nails. What the hell could have caused a lock-down and made a rock cry? If she cracked, it was serious. He thought that there was never a dull moment around the ship.

He slowly put his arms around her and stood her back up with his help. All the while she was growling. At the end of the closest hallway was Faith and Tammy’s room. That was his destination. He would’ve taken her to the infirmary, but that was where her bloody breakdown had come from. She was fighting him the whole way, but he held her with one arm and knocked on the hatch with the other.

Clark finally collapsed as Tammy opened the hatch. She gasped, “What the heck happened?”

Dale said, “Can’t say. I don’t even know if she is allowed to say, but she is hurt."

He laid her down in a bunk and Tammy said, “Oh my, blood and tears. This is definitely about a man.”

As he was leaving the two naked women he said, “By the way, this is a lock-down; you shouldn’t have opened the door. And whatever you do, don’t touch the necklace around her neck. She will go off on you if you do.” The two nurses winked at him and blew him a kiss as he closed their door. He stood there for a second thinking, Space madness; sooner or later everybody catches it.

JR felt electricity in the air like major static. He told everybody to shut up. He quickly pulled a drawer open and pulled a mirror out. On it laid a razor, a needle, powder, a pipe, and a straw. As he started injecting himself, Austen screamed, “In front of the kids for crying out loud.”

JR said, “Bubba, if you ever trusted me in your life make it now. Take a line or smoke a bowl. I don’t care, but do it now or Kirk will get kidnapped by Skinnies. Deana was right, this is an attack, and it has happened before.”

Austen said, “You are out of your mind!”

JR said, “Kids, get my weapons out.” He was holding his arm as the kids ran to JR’s stash of weapons, but they never made it. They fell to the floor unconscious.

Austen said, “What the hell?” and he looked at JR with a questioning look.

JR said, “That’ll be you next if you don’t do a line off my mirror now!” Austen went to the mirror as JR went to his stash of weapons. He pulled two rifles out of their hiding place. He would rather use guns, but he didn’t know how many bullets he would need. Only he knew it was the second time this had happened, and he hoped the uglies didn’t have weapons like the first time.

Austen was blitzed with JR’s mixture of powder. He was high-ball-in’ on a low trip. His heart was beating out of his chest, and at the same time he was mellow with euphoria. He was definitely stoned. He said, “Bubba, what’s going on?” as he looked at the two boys lying on the infirmary deck.

JR handed him a loaded rifle and an extra magazine and said, “Last time the hair on the back of my neck stood on end, a bunch of little E.T.s opened up a portal in our ship and tried to take Kirk, even though we were hauling ass in space.”

He was loading a pump shotgun with as many shells as it would hold. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and said, “One minute everyone is talking, next minute I’m the only one walking around the old ship. I wasn’t affected due to just coming out of the false panel with a good fix. Don’t ask me why. I ain’t a doctor dammit. Anyways, these bug-ugly Skinnies never entered the ship. They just had Kirkie float up and towards them. I don’t mind telling you, I was screwed up and scared. I stayed on the bridge behind the door and picked up the android's remote to save Kirk via the android. Those sons of bitches jumped in our ship to grab Kirk from the android, but when they saw me they freaked and turned tail back into the portal.”

He grabbed another rifle and mag, and then he did another line off the mirror, coughed, and continued, “Austen, I never told you or Kirk’s dad because - well let’s face it - nobody would have believed me. You’d have thought I lost my mind, but I have a witness now, so lock and load, and lets rock and roll, because here they come!”

JR laid his shotgun on Derek’s chest as he aimed his semi-automatic rifle at the portal opening up on the front wall of the ship.

Austen was having trouble standing from JR’s concoction that he had sent up his nose. He heard Deana moan. Then in his mind he heard her say, I’ll help, but please don’t let JR accidently on purpose shoot me. He wants me dead. I can’t stop him in my present condition, and I will only know when he shoots me. Then it’ll be too late. He’s … voodoo proof.

Austen pointed his rifle at JR and threatened, “You kill anyone in this room that ain’t bug-ugly, and it’ll be the last thing you do.”

JR pushed the barrel out of his face, gritted his teeth and said, “Fine, but we ain’t done with this argument, Bubba.”

The portal across from Deana was getting bigger and bigger. JR said, “On the other ship I looked outside our ship where the portal looked like it was coming from, and there was nothing there - like they were coming from another dimension or something.”

Austen laughed, and JR said, “Great, you’re fried. I hope you shoot straight and remember the two kids at our feet.”

Dale had only made it halfway between the two bridges before he collapsed. There was a portal opening up on the bridge that no one was aware of right beside the infirmary. JR had never thought of getting caught in crossfire. The little green guys were coming into the bridge. One of them ran to the other side of the infirmary hatch and sneaked a peak at Kirk lying on the deck-plating.

This time Kirk didn’t levitate. He was being dragged on the deck by the alien’s mind. JR noticed Kirk’s body moving, spun around, and shot at the alien. The alien ducked back and JR missed. At least it lost its hold on Kirk.

Two more portals opened up in the infirmary, and an alien with a see-through shield entered. All the bullets seemed to be absorbed into the shield as the Houstons fired. JR saw one of the alien’s big heads and shot at it as it was leaving a portal - bull’s eye. Two more Skinnies jumped through with shields and Austen kept shooting. It was the only thing keeping them from advancing, even though the shields protected them. The infirmary was extremely loud in this war-zone.

Six more aliens entered the bridge dividing the Houston’s attention. The Skinnies in the infirmary were close enough that the Houstons were using their rifles as bats. Deana started to levitate off her bed, and she lay on the far wall in a crucified fashion. Her neck went back lifting her head up to show her glowing red eyes. Every time she focused on an alien, the head popped like it was shoved in a microwave.

One of the aliens saw what she was doing and jumped back into one of the portals, but not before Austen shot it. JR switched weapons as Austen reloaded. An alien jumped from one side of the bridge, but JR shot it midway in the hatch, and it splattered everywhere.

All this time, SSSaa’s bodyguard was trying to get into the humans' ship. He had noticed the saucers flying outside the ships and he wanted to attack, but SSSaa would only let him go to help the Earth ship. He finally opened the human’s hatch, which was not easy. As JR told Austen to stay with the kids, JR jumped onto the bridge, shotgun blazing. He shot an alien, and as he pumped the shotgun for another shot, the big lizard had four of the Skinnies in his arms. He pushed them all back into one of the portals, but as soon as he turned around, a dozen arms and hands came out and pulled him into the portal. He had a shocked look on his face.

JR screamed, “Don’t get too close to the portals!” He got up quickly and started shooting the aliens that were not quick enough to jump to safety. He thought about going in the portal after the lizard, but all of a sudden, all of the portals closed up.

There were aliens splattered all over the consoles on the bridge. JR hoped he hadn’t shot up the consoles. It all happened so fast. With all of the portals closed, Deana floated back to the bed she had come from. She said in Austen’s mind, They’re gone now, but their ships are still flying next to ours. She had to repeat what she had said because Austen was so messed up.

Austen sat down on the deck, and the kids came to. Noah asked as Austen pulled the boys into a hug, “What happened?” Austen just held them giving them no answers. His mouth was too dry, and his sight was off a bit.

JR walked back into the infirmary. He slipped on the alien’s blood and fell to the deck. Dale saw it and asked, “What the hell is going on?” They both got up at the same time.

JR said, “A bunch of uglies happened. We managed to kill a few, but we lost SSSaa’s bodyguard in the exchange. Guess they put everybody to sleep but me and Austen. I don’t think it was sleeping gas or it would have gotten both of us too.”

Dale shook his head like he understood, but he didn’t really. He looked at SSSaa’s ship hatch that was still open and felt really bad that he had lost a friend. He didn’t even know his name. He thought again, What the hell happened?