Hidden Potential: Nibiru Rising: Book 1 Page 16

  The cook’s reaction to his statement was like the clouds parting to let the sun shine down on him. A huge smile quickly grew on his face before he started backing away quickly, nodding excitedly before turning and heading back to the kitchen, pumping his fist slightly as he went. Rick looked back at Kaitlyn with a bewildered expression on his face, at a complete loss to explain anything that’d happened to him since he’d left his room. He felt a twinge of anger when he noticed she had a bemused expression on her face.

  “Okay, screw this. I didn’t agree to work with you, only to be treated like a leper or rabid dog. Even that cook’s bizarre reaction makes no sense. If someone doesn’t explain it, and fast, I’m out of here.”

  “Dude! You’re a friggin’ celebrity! Big dawg on campus!”

  He glanced behind him as Scattershot sauntered over, setting some fruit down in front of Kaitlyn before walking over and sitting down opposite Thunderclap. It was an answer that didn’t seem to make any sense to Rick.

  “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “Everyone saw the video of you in action yesterday… They saw you tearing shit up like it was nothing…”

  Rick glanced back at Kaitlyn in confusion.

  “Video?”

  She nodded, wiping some food off her lips with a napkin before responding.

  “Yes. Video,” she said, reaching up and poking her eye with a finger. Pulling it away, Rick noticed a contact lens stuck to the tip.

  “We all wear these. Besides having several functions, like low-light, thermo-graphic, and telescopic vision for those who don’t have it naturally, it also provides full stereoscopic recording capabilities. We realized a while back that, in the fog of battle, most people aren’t too good at memorizing visual details. In response, the tech gurus developed these so we’d have a video record of any missions we’re sent on so they could be analyzed later, either for intel, or more commonly, as a training tool. The resolution is high enough that we can read an address off an envelope from a mile away. On top of that, we normally deploy a few dozen micro-drones so we can get real time logistics of the battlefield when on missions.”

  “So my fight against Reaper…?”

  “Better than anything playing at the theater, mate. They’ve already done three replays of it in the command center last night alone. Would have been more but HellKat here had them shut it down so everyone would get some rest for the big day today.”

  He looked back at Kaitlyn, who gestured at his plate.

  “You may want to finish that before we take off. Otherwise, you might break the cook’s feelings.”

  Still uncomfortable with the situation, he nodded. He doubted he’d ever get used to so much attention after spending the better part of twenty years doing everything he could to avoid being noticed. Regardless, Kaitlyn was right about one thing. Who knew if he’d get the chance to eat something this good again in the foreseeable future.

  Chapter 25

  Rick stared out the window, examining the clouds. In spite of the roar of the engines, he couldn’t help but slowly allow the peaceful view to relax him. They had been flying for the better part of three hours, using cloaking technology and subsonic speeds, to look like a private jet rather than a military jumpjet. The hope was, by pretending to be a private aircraft, they’d be able to get close enough to do a quick visual search as they flew over the area. There was also the hope that his abilities might be able to sniff them out where their passive means might fail. The sudden crackling of his earpiece broke into his reverie.

  “We’ll be approaching the target area in T-Minus seven minutes. I repeat, seven minutes. Stay alert people. We’ll only get one pass at this, so let’s make it count.”

  Nodding, he started to drop into a meditative state. He’d never tried pushing his senses that far out, had never actually considered even trying it really, so he wanted to quiet his mind as much as possible so he could focus on detecting any minute differences.

  “Approaching the start of the target area in 3… 2… 1… mark!”

  Almost in a dream-like state, his awareness dropped downward, trying to notice anything indicative of where the base might be located. A tiny ripple of excitement echoed across his consciousness as he started to ‘feel’ the peaks and valleys below him, gliding across the surface like a cross-country skier might experience. Three minutes into the target area, he sensed something that felt out of place. Focusing his awareness on the anomaly, he vaguely felt four small pinpricks detach from the location and began rapidly approaching. With sudden alarm, he realized what they were, snapping him out of his meditative state.

  “Evasive maneuvers! Now!” he yelled at the pilot.

  “Why? We don’t—”

  “Don’t argue! Do it!” Kaitlyn yelled, staring at Rick intently.

  Banking hard to the left, alarms started blaring loudly through the cabin.

  Staring out the window, Rick saw exhaust contrails appear without warning, almost like magic. Kaitlyn had either seen them as well, or had sensed the heat signature.

  “Cloaked missiles! Deploy countermeasures!”

  “Where are they?” the pilot yelled, “I don’t see them on radar at all!”

  Rick dropped back into his meditative state, stretching his awareness out behind them.

  There!

  Almost in a monotone, he started yelling out directions.

  “Four missiles, on your six! Approaching rapidly. Five seconds out!”

  He felt the aircraft vibrate and rock slightly as the pilot deployed flares and chaff. The sudden interference from the countermeasures fanning out caused him to be mentally blinded for a few seconds. He sensed three of the missiles impact the debris their aircraft had dropped, leaving one missile left. The projectile suddenly became significantly more visible to his senses just as he heard their pilot yelling.

  “The missile dropped it’s cloaking field. I can’t dodge it!”

  Without thinking, Rick extended his aura out, simultaneously deflecting the missile to the left while yanking the plane to the right. In the back of his mind, he felt everyone get yanked to the left as the missile narrowly missed their craft.

  He heard Kaitlyn’s voice crackle across the headset.

  “Good job!”

  “That wasn’t me ma’am! I don’t know how we dodged it! It was like a giant hand yanked us out of the way!”

  He sensed everyone turn their heads toward him, staring. He nodded slightly, keeping his eyes closed to maintain his concentration. Sweat started beading up on his forehead from intense effort he was exerting while trying the ignore the familiar pressure developing behind his eyes.

  “They’ve locked on to us! Multiple signals inbound! Taking evasive maneuvers!”

  Rick dropped his awareness back down while the pilot started violently jinking from side to side in an effort to throw off the target lock while deploying more chaff and flares.

  “I can’t shake ‘em, there’s too many. Brace for impact!”

  Reaching out, he tried to swat them away. He managed to cause a few to run into each other, but there were still too many left and not enough time to deal with them. Switching tactics, he tried absorbing the energy from multiple impacts, but was overwhelmed. He felt one wing fracture and fall away while managing to deflect several others away, causing them to detonate close enough to rattle the fuselage. The final one hit before he could shift his field, blasting a large hole through the tail of the jet. He managed to absorb the fireball before it had a chance to roll through the cabin, leaving him gasping for breath from the effort. The aircraft started cartwheeling through the air as the pilot’s voice crackled across the headset, the centrifugal force starting to pin everyone in their seats.

  “I’ve lost all attitude control. We’re going down!”

  Spiraling toward the ground, he heard Kaitlyn’s voice ring out.

  “Fliers, grab a passenger and bail out! Move!”

  He sensed several of his teammates struggling agains
t the slowly mounting G-forces, trying to get out of their seats. He also heard the start of panic in someone’s voice yelling out.

  “I can’t move! I need help.”

  Digging deep, he pushed himself beyond the throbbing spike of pain in his skull. Gradually, but with growing speed, Rick started nullifying the kinetic energy throughout the aircraft while momentarily stopping the death spiral of the jet, stabilizing it as it plummeted toward the surface.

  “Go!” he yelled through gritted teeth. “I can’t hold it for long!”

  “MOVE! Thunderclap! Take Glaizia. Jetlag, grab Scattershot! Blitz, can you stand up to my fire aura?”

  “No!”

  Everyone started yelling, trying to figure out what to do.

  “You can’t use your fire!” he yelled as the strain mounted. “They’ll know at least some of us survived.”

  He paused to suck in a deep breath.

  “Everyone! Move to the back of the jet. We only have one shot at this!”

  Everyone hesitated for a split-second before Kaitlyn’s voice rang out again.

  “You heard the man! Move! Move!”

  Rick squeezed his eyes shut, focusing on everyone’s movement. Slowly, he reached down, undoing his harness. He fought against his instincts to escape while his senses screaming at him about the rapidly approaching surface.

  “We’re all here!” he heard distantly.

  When he judged they were only a few thousand feet above the ground, he released his hold over the aircraft, blurring into motion as he pulsed to the back where everyone had gathered. Snatching everyone up as he blurred past, he mentally shoved the remains of the tail section, causing it to break off and tumble away behind them. Yanking everyone out, he pulled them into a tight cluster as the ground rushed up to greet them. He heard a far off scream just before impact, their momentum hurtling them through the canopy of trees directly behind the disintegrating aircraft.

  We’re not going to make it…

  He suddenly felt a surge of energy just before heat washed over his aura when they momentarily flew through the fireball of the exploding jet. Moving past, the sailing to safety nearly a quarter mile beyond the impact site. They bounced several times, rapidly slowing down as they smashed through trees and underbrush. Before they’d completely stopped, the weird surge of energy vanished, causing his field to fail. He hit the ground and tumbled several feet before coming to a stop. Forcing himself to rise on shaky legs, he staggered forward.

  “Is everyone oka—”

  Before he could finish his question, he suddenly heard roaring in his ears before blackness rushed up to greet him. Before it fully claimed him, a half-formed thought echoing through his fading consciousness.

  I’m getting… really tired of passing… ou—

  §§§§§§§§§§§§

  Kaitlyn rushed over as Rick collapsed.

  “Scattershot, help me! Thunderclap, Glaizia, set up a perimeter.”

  She watched the two giants stumble off, still slightly disoriented from their abrupt landing. Shifting her attention, she spotted Scattershot finish making the pilot comfortable before jogging over.

  “I’m having a hard time finding his pulse! What do your senses tell you?”

  Scattershot kneeled down before closing his eyes, laying his hand on Rick’s chest. After a couple minutes, he opened his eyes and looked at her.

  “As best I can tell, superdude here is just unconscious. Even though it’s faint and greatly slowed, his breathing and heart rate are both strong and even. I think he just blew his wad keeping us all from becoming a permanent grease-stain across the landscape.”

  “Do you think it’s safe to move him?” she asked.

  “It’s hard to tell, but I believe so. The better question is, do we really have much choice boss lady?”

  She nodded before looking around.

  “Is everyone else okay?”

  “Except for a bad scalp wound on the pilot, everyone else somehow only suffered minor scrapes and bruises.

  “Okay everybody, listen up. Grab what you can. We move out in five.”

  She waved Glaizia over.

  “Can you carry him until he comes to?”

  “Yes ma’am.”

  Kaitlyn watched her kneel down before gently scooping the unconscious man up in her arms like a child before standing back up.

  “If it’s not vital to the mission or survival, leave it behind. Newton did his best to hide our survival but I highly doubt they’ll skip sending out people to investigate the crash. So anything we leave behind, throw in the fire. Thunderclap, I want you on point, followed by Blitz. Glaizia, you stay in the center. I’ll follow up behind. Scattershot, you bring up the rear.”

  She watched as everyone nodded. Turning her gaze on Jetlag, she continued.

  “Jetlag, I want you flying reconnaissance. Do not, under any circumstance, go above the tree line. Hopefully, they don’t have sensors at ground level, but I wouldn’t count on it. Regardless, I want to head slightly south of where those missiles launched from, at least for a few miles before we make our approach. Maybe we get lucky and throw them off for a little. Or at least bypass any search teams that head straight here.”

  Looking around one last time, she swung her hand in a circle over her head.

  “Move out!”

  Chapter 26

  The slow rocking sensation gradually brought him back to consciousness. In a sudden panic, he lashed out, freezing everyone’s movement before opening his eyes. Struggling to make sense of his surroundings through his blinding headache, he finally realized he was being carried.

  “I see someone’s awake again,” he heard someone say from what sounded like clenched teeth. Looking up, he saw Glaizia looking down at him with her eyes, her head locked in place facing forward. Exhaling a sigh of relief, he relaxed his aura, allowing everyone to move again. After Glaizia gently set him down, he looked at everyone before responding.

  “Whoops… Uh, sorry about that ya’ll,” he said, wincing from the bright afternoon light shining through the trees. He turned back toward Glaizia, smiling up at her.

  “Thank you ma’am for carrying me. Hope I wasn’t too much of a burden.”

  She nodded at him, smiling hesitantly.

  “You were not a burden. Thank you for keeping us all alive.”

  Kaitlyn’s voice caught his attention.

  “Are you doing good enough to walk?”

  He ran his fingers through his shaggy hair, mentally giving himself the once-over. Other than the rapidly receding migraine, he felt fine.

  “Besides having another headache from overextending myself again, I’m okay. I swear, when we get back, I really need to work on staying conscious after pushing myself. It’s getting really annoying coming to in strange locations.”

  “Well, if it’s any consolation, nobody was seriously hurt in the landing, so you held off fainting until everyone was, for the most part, safe,” she said with a crooked smile on her face.

  “Gee, thanks. I just love being referred to as the guy who faints at a convenient time…” he said, giving a pained expression before cracking a slight smile.

  Kaitlyn started to reply when they heard a slight cracking noise coming from over the hill further up ahead.

  “Hide,” she hissed before diving into some ground cover. Rick reacted by jumping straight up, grabbing ahold of some upper branches of a nearby tree. He watched as Thunderclap and Glaizia frantically searched around them for suitable places to hide. Rick stretched out his awareness, sensing a small squad of people rapidly approaching. Dropping back down, he pulsed over to their location, grabbing both in his field and snatching them off the ground moments before he sensed the squad cresting the hill. All he could make out was shimmering outlines of people as they started getting closer. His headache was making it difficult to focus, causing him to struggle to maintain his position above the surface. Despite his best effort, his pain and exhaustion slowly caused them to start drifting downw
ard. Realizing their predicament, Glaizia created an ice platform between several trees, allowing them to come to a stop before they’d dropped more than a couple feet.

  “I don’t see why we’re way the hell over here looking for someone when the crash was almost two miles away in the opposite direction. If they’re trying to find us, why would they come this way?”

  “Dude, shut up. Who gives two shits why? Reaper’s paranoid that this Newton guy’s coming for him, so does it really have to make sense? He’s got us all over the side of this mountain looking for anything suspicious.”

  “I’m just sayin’…”

  “Hey, shut the fuck up you two! How the hell are we going to sneak up on anyone with you flapping your piehole!”

  After a few more mumbles, the first guy got quiet again, panning his weapon from side-to-side through what Rick assumed was his assigned sector of fire. Getting closer, Rick realized the squad was going to get dangerously close to where Kaitlyn lying prone in some knee-high clump of plants. He heard a click coming through his earpiece, followed in rapid succession by several other clicks.

  Damn, I’m pretty rusty on my Morse code.

  As the pattern of clicking continued, he noticed Thunderclap and Glaizia tense up.

  Okay, here we go…

  With the way the squad was spread out, it wasn’t until the third one was passing before he heard the guard let out a startled, “What the f—”

  Kaitlyn exploded upward, knocking him off balance when she yanked her arm out from under his boot. Preparing to drop down, the fight was suddenly over as Blitz careened through them in a blur, knocking them unconscious.

  Well that’s one way to do it.

  Gently carrying everyone back to the ground, he trotted over as Blitz and Kaitlyn quickly secured the squad.

  “That actually went better than expected.”

  “We got lucky. The question is, where the hell is Jetlag?”

  A few seconds later, Jetlag showed up, weaving through the trees from a slightly different direction.