“That was just as true over the past week, while you were killing us. What changed your mind?”

  Erin looked back at Abbey, who walked forward. He continued. “When I attacked this facility I did not know a lot of things that I do now. This woman, has told me much, which changes things greatly.”

  Mitchell looked at Abbey. “You trust him?”

  “I do.”

  Her prompt response somewhat surprised Zach standing just behind her.

  The general frowned then leaned forward on the table. “While you and your people are down here, they will be under twenty-four seven guard. You got a problem with that?”

  Erin smiled. “I would do the same. Also we ourselves were attacked by the aliens last night.”

  A ripple of discomfort ran around the room.

  “Attacked? What happened?” said Mitchell.

  “One of them came for us…” he sighed. “They killed our creatures and their craft tried to take us, to wherever they take people.”

  Zach observed since he met him an hour earlier it was the first time the Cascaders leader looked something other than completely calm.

  “Why would they want to take Cascaders?” Said Mitchell to those in the room.

  “Maybe they’re a threat to them,” said Bower stepping forward.

  “Or they just want to erase their mistake?” Said Zach.

  “Raj… I mean Doctor Joshi was told that the Cascade that is still effecting the planet can be stopped, if enough Cascaders get together. If we combine our powers. Maybe the Hulathen want to stop that from happening?” Said Abbey.

  The door to the corridor outside opened.

  “Then why don’t they just nuke the whole lot of us?” Said Mitchell.

  “Ah, well they might just do that, once they have all the Cascaders for themselves,” said Raj stepping into the room. “Sorry I’m late—” He looked at Erin. “Your people really do have some remarkable E.L.F’s.”

  Erin bowed his head slightly. “Unfortunately they are not our friends of old, but newly acquired beasts.”

  “I see…” Said Raj standing next to the table with the others. “The Cascade evolved in a way the Hulathen did not anticipate on this planet. So they have started removing or destroying the evidence. The creatures and the humans that evolved are scientific curiosities to them and maybe something more, which is why they are not just killing them, but taking some as well. As for the rest of us, well…”

  “We are of no use,” said Bower.

  “Exactly.”

  The general looked back to Erin. “You got any objections to your people and creatures being put to use, to repair the damage you did?”

  Erin shook his head.

  “Good. Maybe you should get on that then.” She looked at the soldier next to her. “Captain Kelnor will show your people to their quarters.”

  The Captain walked forward showing Erin the way out.

  “And Erin, it might be a good idea that your people stay away from mine. We wouldn’t want any incidents.”

  Erin nodded again and he and the Captain moved through the doorway.

  “Maybe you should go with him,” said the general to Abbey, who hesitated then nodded.

  Zach hid his frustration.

  Once they had left and the door was closed, Mitchell, Zach and the others moved closer around the table.

  “I know she’s your woman Zach, but I don’t trust her. Something feel’s off.”

  Zach nodded, he felt the same.

  “So what’s the plan?” said Bower to those around him.

  Fiona looked around the faces lit by the table. “We got something they want.”

  “The Cascaders,” said Zach.

  “They might not be okay with being used as bait,” said Raj.

  “No one said anything about bait Raj but it does give us the tactical advantage, we can set traps for the Hulathen,” said Zach.

  “And then that?” said the general.

  “Then we finally get to give one of them a real nice greeting…” said Bower.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  Zach moved through arched corridors, some of which were being held up by steel supports and eventually found his way to the living quarters of bunker five. He said a few words to the two soldiers that were stationed at the entrance, and they typed in a passcode on a keypad and the doors opened revealing the noise of conversations which hushed when he walked forward.

  The space under the rows of florescent lights ran at least thirty yards in length, and half that in width. Every few yards a bunk bed sat, most of which were occupied with tired looking individuals whose eyes followed Zach as he walked between them.

  He spotted Abbey, she was with ‘him’. He walked to the end of the large room and stopped short of the common area, with tables, chairs and kitchen appliances which ran along the wall. Abbey, Erin and some others were sitting.

  “Abbey, can we talk…” He looked away instantly waiting for her to get to her feet, but when she didn’t he looked back just in time to see a subtle nod of the head from Erin.

  She got up and walked away with Zach who kept glancing over his shoulder to the smiling bearded man. Soon they were back outside in the corridor, but at the end far away from the guards.

  Zach instantly hugged Abbey, pulling her tight to him. “It seems we only ever get moments with each other.” He pulled away, looking into her eyes. “How are you? What’s going on with that guy?”

  She looked back at the double doors then pulled him further away, around the corner of a junction and then opening the first door she came too. It was a storage cupboard. She dragged him inside with her.

  “What? What is it?” said Zach.

  She looked at him with tears in her eyes. “There’s something you need to know about Erin…”

  Zach went to put his hands on her arm, but she turned away, pacing back and forth in the confined space.

  “It took me a while to figure it out, but I… I think I know what’s going on now, but—” She grabbed her temples with her hands.

  Zach held her shoulders. “Abbey! What is it?”

  “I don’t know if he’s even hearing this.”

  “Who?”

  “Erin! He’s controlling the Cascaders!”

  “What? What do you mean?”

  She pulled away again. “It’s like how we control the E.L.F’s, he somehow imprints onto a Cascader, without them even realizing it… and then… you start…”

  Zach started to feel sick. “Did he touch you?!”

  “No, no… he’s not… at least not yet. He’s more interested in being king and we’re all his servants…”

  Rage started to build inside Zach which Abbey could see. It was her turn to grab him. “Zach, you must promise me you won’t do anything. We need him.”

  “But what if he makes you do something or he does something to you? I can tell he likes you. Will you even know?” Before she could answer he continued. “If he touches you, I’m going to kill him.”

  She shook him. “Zach, we need him to help fight the Hulathen. I think I’ll know if he makes me do anything I don’t want to. So far it has just been me being overly honest with him.” She then noticed Zach looking at her strangely. “No, he’s not controlling me now… at least I don’t think so. Why would he want me to tell you all this?”

  “So he can control any Cascader he wants?”

  “I think so.”

  “But not humans?”

  “No, just Cascaders and E.L.F’s.” She put her hand on Zach’s face. “This is just another battle. We’ll get through it.” She felt him relax a little then she stepped back. “When we left, did you discuss a plan?”

  Zach went to speak then stopped, then went to speak again but before he could Abbey had placed her finger across his lips.

  “I’m sure it’s a great plan and you’ll tell me when you need too.”

  He nodded with an anguished smile.

  “I better be getting back.” She walked to the door and briefly smiled before opening it and leaving.

  Zach stood trying to understand the implications of what she had just told him and resisting the urge to move along the corridor into the large room and shoot dead the bearded man.

  *****

  Diaz, Hayes, Harper and Michael traipsed up a small muddy path between barren trees. The sun was barely above the horizon and the forests were mostly shrouded in shadow.

  “Feels good to be back out patrolling again,” said Hayes slightly out of breath from carrying the large crate with Harper.

  “Tell me about it. I don’t know how they all did it, being down there for months,” she said.

  A loud creak in the forest made them all stop and most looked back at Diaz.

  She shook her head. “Don’t get your panties in a twist, it’s nothing, there’s no E.L.F’s in the town anymore.” She continued walking past them. “Let’s keep on keeping on.”

  “What’s eating you?” said Harper as Diaz walked past.

  “Nothing. Just want to find this place.”

  Soon they came out to a small clearing. A house could be seen poking through the trees nearby.

  “Top of a hill. Check. Looks out over town. Check. That looks like the place Abbey mentioned,” said Harper lowering her end of the green crate. She looked across to Diaz. “To the house?”

  Diaz looked out to the town below. “Yup, I want to be set up before it’s dark.”

  The path onwards narrowed and Hayes and Harper stumbled a few times but soon they were standing in the garden which surrounded one half of the house Raj and Abbey stayed in a few days before.

  “I wonder when all of this is over, they will just let us pick which house to live in? I might choose this one,” said Harper looking up at the towering three floors including an attic room.

  As they walked around to the driveway and front door, the missing back wall became apparent.

  “Okay so it needs some work doing on it,” continued Harper.

  “I always sucked at DIY,” said Michael. They were the first words that had left his mouth since they left the bunker entrance.

  Harper smiled. “I guess you should avoid the fixer-uppers then.”

  “Yeah, good luck with that,” said Hayes struggling to carry his end of the crate over the slabs of the driveway.

  “Let’s get all of this inside and set up, we’re running out of light,” said Diaz looking at the length of the shadows around them.

  They all walked inside closing the door behind them, and Harper and Hayes dropped the crate first chance they got, then started unbuckling the straps from it. Soon they flipped the lid revealing a treasure trove of machinery and devices.

  “Michael. Find a good place to set the antenna up. That attic looked a good choice.”

  He leaned into the crate and pulled out the five-foot long silver rod with folded tripod legs.

  Diaz then looked at Hayes and Harper. “Get the generator working and get the radio to one of the town facing bedrooms on the first door.” She then bent down and started pulling the cabling out. “I’ll run this upstairs.”

  Within the hour darkness had claimed the land around them, and all but Michael sat in the same bedroom Abbey had used some days before.

  Diaz looked at Hayes and Harper, both of which had their eyes closed, laying on top of one half of the large bed. “Rise and shine, it’s time for the first patrol.”

  Harper grumbled something but remained motionless while Hayes sat up.

  He cleared his throat. “How’s it looking out there?”

  Diaz stood up from her seat near the large radio box and walked to the wide windows. “Not seeing anything or feeling anything unusual.”

  “Do we have a plan if those Hulapeople decide to make an appearance,” said Harper sitting up.

  “Other than hide and report to the CIC what we see, nope,” said Diaz. “Do a one mile three-sixty sweep of the area, then get back here. You see any lights in the sky, let me know on the radio.”

  “And you’re sure there’s no E.L.F’s around?” said Hayes.

  “I’m only sensing those belonging to the Cascaders in the town. There’s nothing for a good number of miles around us, so you should be safe.”

  Harper snorted while Hayes briefly raised his eyebrows.

  They both stood, put their jackets on, picked up their rifles and left.

  Diaz looked at her watch. It said 7 pm. She clicked on her radio telling the CIC everything is looking clear, picked up some food items they found in the kitchen then headed up the narrow staircase to the attic room. It was almost completely dark and Michael was only visible due to the dim glow coming from the single open window with the large antenna sticking out.

  A light breeze made the entire space feel cold and she rubbed her arms around herself as she stepped forward, trying to avoid colliding with the various pieces of furniture that lay strewn around. Reaching into her backpack she pulled out her flashlight and switched it on. “Here’s some of that stuff we found downstairs. You got a selection between five month out of date cookies or two month out of date jellies. Also got some water if you’re out.”

  Michael looked up at her as if he was in a dream.

  “You been sleeping?”

  “Nah, well I don’t think so. Just thinking about things.” He took the jellies and the water, taking a few mouthfuls before handing the bottle back.

  She sat on the dusty planks next to him which surprised him. He adjusted his seating position slightly.

  “I know you might not feel part of this team but I want you to know we got your back, and even though he comes across as an ass sometimes the Cap is good people.”

  Michael nodded. “It’s just been a wild few months. I lost a friend and gained a girlfriend and a kid. And the team I was with have kind of moved on, and—”

  Diaz smiled. “Now you’re stuck with us?”

  Michael laughed. “I’ll be glad when all this shit is finally done and we can try and figure out what a normal life looks like in the aftermath.”

  Diaz nodded. “Normal is just what you end up doing, day in, day out.”

  Michael nodded. “Yeah… I’m counting the days until I’m back at the camp.”

  She took a swig from the bottle.

  “What about you? You got anyone back there?” He said.

  “Nah. Not anymore.”

  Michael could tell it was a sore point for her and resisted pushing further.

  “Well, and don’t take this the wrong way because you know I’m spoken for, but you’re kinda hot—”

  She laughed.

  “You’ll do fine once all of this madness is in the past.”

  She smiled then her face returned to one of seriousness. “If it’s ever in the past… it’s like a nightmare you can’t wake up from…” She swallowed. “I don’t even know if I’m still human…”

  Michael put his hand on her shoulder. “Hey, of course—”

  Diaz’s radio crackled then Harpers voice burst from it. “Lights! Lights in the sky!”

  Diaz clicked on the talk button while getting to her feet and looking out the window. “Give me a vector!”

  A mile away to the north, in a street where expensive homes used to reside, but now just ruined structures sat, Harper and Hayes crouched behind the broken front wall of a house. Behind them shadows covered rotting pieces of furniture and all was open to the sky above.

  “North, northwest, Over.” shouted Harper into her radio.

  “Its…” said Hayes.

  “I see it!” said Harper as they both watched the tiny spark of light grow in size.

  “I think it’s moving in our direction! I told you we shouldn’t have ventured too far north! If one of those—”

  In a blink of an eye the speck of light had become a blinding globe, hovering a few hundred yards from them over a junction. They both squinted trying to see a structure of form within the light, but none could be seen.

  A silence fell upon the area.

  “What’s it doing?” whispered Hayes.

  Before Harper could reply the shimmering globe sped off, disappearing quicker then they could follow it with their eyes and in its place a winged figure descended then landed on the concrete.

  “It’s one of them…” whispered Hayes.

  “Shhh,” said Harper.

  The Hulathen standing almost as high as some of the remaining buildings flexed its wings, while looking around itself.

  Harper’s radio crackled and she immediately fumbled to turn the volume down. They both ducked down lower. “Fuck.”

  A pounding noise came from the junction making them both peer over the wall. The Hulathen was bounding towards them.

  Harper clicked on her radio. “Engaging the enemy! Over.” And rested her rifle on the wall and started firing as did Hayes.

  Neon streaks flew towards the alien causing sparks to jump from its armor. It covered its angular face then continued moving forwards.

  “We’re not stopping it!” shouted Hayes continuing to fire.

  Harper unclipped a grenade, stood slightly and went to throw when a bright light made Hayes cover his eyes. When he looked back Harper was looking at him, frozen in mid-throw, the unpinned grenade in her hand, and a perfect burning hole where her chest used to be. Her mouth was moving trying to voice a word. Hayes, realizing the word was ‘grenade’ threw himself backwards not knowing what was behind him or where he would land. The world turned white once again and the rest of the building around him collapsed.

  The Hulathen arrived at the smoldering ruins and scanned the wreckage, but on not seeing any signs of life, turned and headed back towards the town.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  “Harper?” Diaz shouted into her radio. “Harper! Come in Over.” She looked wide-eyed at Michael. They were both in the main bedroom which had a clear view across the town, and the numerous sparkles of light across the sky. Crackling white noise came back from her radio.

  “They were north of us right?” said Michael.