Chapter 4

“THERE IS NO honor in leaving a woman undefended and in danger.”

Firbin lifted Marissa into his arms. A sharp jolt of awareness went through his body. It was a strange experience. He had never felt this from touching another human. He had never held one in his arms before, though. There was something compelling about this woman that he couldn’t shake. No matter what the team said, he had every intention of bringing her with him.

“There is no time to argue.” Yagar pushed them through the stairwell door. “A woman is never left to defend herself. It is against the Sacred Code.”

They started to move up the stairs. Marissa struggled in Firbin’s arms. “Have a care. I will not drop you.”

“I can walk on my own.”

“There will be time for that later.” Firbin tightened his grip. “I will not let harm come to you.”

Marissa eased back against his shoulder.

“I thought your name was Hunter.” The woman’s soft voice tickled his ear. “I’m Marissa O’Brien by the way.”

“Hunters are warriors.” Firbin turned his attention back to the stairs. “We are here to defeat the Albireons.”

“Those are the creatures you killed?” Marissa asked. “What does the military guy have to do with them?”

“The Albireons are the scourge of the universe and we are trying to wipe them off Earth.” Firbin kept his voice low. Barton was only a few steps ahead of them. “He is leading the Human Resistance Force. Hunters have combined forces with them to defeat the Albireons.”

Firbin glanced behind him. So far no one was following them. That didn’t mean there wouldn’t be someone waiting on the fifth floor.

At the landing on the fifth floor, Yagar had halted the forces. This needed to be a combined effort if they were going to make a successful escape. Firbin put Marissa down beside Yagar. She barely reached his shoulder.

“I am set to clear the hallway.” Firbin reached out to Jehon. “Are you in position?”

“Yes. When you are ready, begin.”

Firbin reached into his pack and pulled out an anti-matter explosive. He wasn’t going to take any chances. There were probably soldiers waiting to ambush them. They had invaded a secure military zone and it was reasonable to expect a security force to be waiting to attack. The only thing in their favor was that the actual Air Force Base was not aware of the secret area they were in.

He crouched and opened the door wide enough to throw in the explosive. Again the white smoke was the only indication that it had detonated. He waited a few seconds and then opened the door wider. A barrage of gunfire met him. He may have killed the soldiers close to the door, but there was a huge number remaining.

They were outnumbered.

He returned fire and then slammed the door shut.

“Give me the weapon.”

“You can’t seriously mean to use that on humans.” Captain Barton’s voice was filled with outrage.

“Yes. A human used it first.” Firbin’s voice was quiet with authority. “This isn’t a game. I don’t care if they are human or not. They are firing at us and that makes them the enemy. We have men to get to safety and a mission to finish.”

Yagar handed him the weapon.

Barton swore and turned away.

The Ancients’ staff was effective. Within seconds of aiming and firing, all resistance had ceased. Firbin handed the weapon back to Yagar before easing out into the hall. It was empty. All evidence of the soldiers was gone.

It was a sad truth of battle.

Soldiers died.

Firbin kept his rifle ready and pointed as he walked to the area that led to the tunnels. It was eerily empty. The weapon the Albireon had acquired was frighteningly effective. He reached the stairwell without incident. The way was clear for them.

“Start moving.” Firbin gave the okay to Jehon and Yagar.

The sound of running footsteps echoed toward him. He kept alert for anything that might be out of the ordinary. It was as if the Albireons had surrendered this base. That was a good sign. If all it took was a surprise attack, then the battle for Earth would be quick.

Jehon reached his side. “I hear you picked up a survivor.”

Firbin grinned. “A woman. She was a prisoner of three Albireons.”

Jehon frowned. “We were told that this was strictly a base where they met and dispersed. No humans were to be held here.”

A tingle of sensation went up Firbin’s spine. He knew someone was watching him. Marissa was several feet away and he looked into her pale-blue eyes. There was still confusion and terror there, but also a glimmer of awareness. Whatever she had been drugged with must be wearing off.

“Barton wanted to leave her behind.”

“That doesn’t sound like the human.” Jehon raised an eyebrow. “This battle must have unnerved him more than we expected.”

“Gus was disintegrated.” Firbin kept his voice low. “One of the humans had an Ancient’s Staff. I thought the weapon was long destroyed and left for legends.”

Jehon was going to say something, but at that moment Barton joined them. “Did he tell you what he did?” His voice was filled with outrage.

“He cleared the hall.” Jehon’s voice was devoid of emotion. “It was a smart tactical move and saved many of this unit’s lives.”

Barton’s jaw clenched for a second and then he exhaled a loud breath. “You’re right. I’m too close to the men who guard these aliens. It wasn’t so long ago that I was one of them.”

“Lives will be lost.” Jehon pulled his weapon closer. “It is the nature of battle. I hear that we lost Gus. I am sorry.”

Barton nodded. “Let’s get out of this place.”

Firbin couldn’t agree more. He pulled his pack off and started to assemble a circuit of explosives for their escape. He used the same system that had been set to blow the stairs in an ambush attack. This time he would set it to blow outward and block anyone from following them.

“There are more armed soldiers on the rail platform. Clear it.” Jehon motioned to Niail and Weise.

The two ran to the bottom of the stairs and rounded the wall firing. There were a few rounds of return shooting. His fellow Hunters were quick and competent. The skirmish was finished within minutes. They gave the all clear signal with their arms and the rest of their team made their way down to the platform.

Firbin would be the last to leave.

It was his responsibility to ensure that he destroyed the stairs and any access to the rail system from the base. When he was finished, it would take a long time to clear the debris. Every stone and step was to be demolished to rubble that would clog the entranceway. That would buy them enough time to reach safety.

He was connecting two of the ignition switches when someone sat on the stair beside him. “Aren’t you going with the others?”

Shock and then a shiver of pleasure went through Firbin at the sound of Marissa’s voice. “I must set the charges. You need to leave.”

Marissa took off one of her shoes. “I’m staying with you.”

“It is not safe.”

“You’re here.” She grabbed the heel of the shoe and slammed it against one of the stairs until it broke it off. “There. Now I’m even.”

Firbin looked up with a frown. “I do not understand. How can a person be crooked?”

“My shoes.” Marissa held up a navy pump in one hand and its heel in the other. “Somehow in the scuffle that brought me to this place, the heel of one of my shoes was broken. Now I can walk on my own.”

“You did not like me carrying you?”

Marissa shrugged. “Maybe I liked it too much.”

Firbin grinned. She was an unusual person. Most people in her situation would have rushed away to be with the others where it was safer. Instead, she thought it was safe with him. The only explanation was that she did not understand his work.

“I am the explosives expert.” Firbin placed more of the thermite along the railing. “You need to get a safe distance from me.”

“Are you good?”

“I am a Hunter. We do what is honorable and right.”

Marissa giggled. “I meant are you good at explosives?”

“I am the best.”

“Then there is no need for me to run.”

“It is as you wish.”

Firbin shrugged and continued setting the charges. Time was important and if Marissa wanted to stay beside him, so be it. It was comforting in a strange way. He wasn’t going to force her to do as he asked. She was a woman. Women were to be obeyed.

“How long is this going to take?”

“A few more minutes.” Firbin moved to the opposite railing. “I need to ensure we are not followed.”

“That would destroy all of your plans.” Marissa sighed. “I still don’t understand how I came to be here. Where are we by the way?”

“Nellis Air Force Base.” Firbin set the last charge. “We are in the secret area though. Most of the military personnel are unaware that this place exists.”

“They probably don’t know those creatures exist either.”

Firbin reached out for her hand. “It is time to leave.”

Marissa pushed herself upright and ran down the stairs. Firbin gathered his tools, threw them into his bag and made one last inspection before he followed her. When he reached the platform, he guided Marissa to the last remaining truck. He helped her up into the seat and then jumped in himself.

Jehon was driving.

The rest of the Hunter team were in the back seat.

“This is Marissa O’Brien.” Firbin introduced Marissa to the unit in general and then he pointed to each of the men. “You’ve already met Yagar. Jehon is the leader of our team. And of course there is Niail, Weise, Demil, and Thero.

Marissa nodded at each of the men. “I’m glad to meet you. Thank you for letting me come with you.”

“It is as it should be.” Jehon put the truck in gear. “The others are safely away.”

“I’ve set a timer.” Firbin held the mechanism up. “We have thirty seconds. Go.”

He flicked the switch.

The seconds seemed more like hours. They had passed the first blast door by the time the percussion of the explosion reached them. The truck rocked violently for several seconds. Marissa grabbed his hand and held tight. Firbin sensed that she hadn’t expected such a serious explosion.

“I used the explosives that were already set by the Albireons,” Firbin explained in a quiet voice. “They had no intention of any of us surviving.”

“Your talent has once again saved us.” Jehon nodded. “I have informed Ardal of the weapon.”

“It is concerning.” Niail spoke from the rear. “The Ancients made use of such a staff, but they destroyed it eons ago.”

“It is very effective.” A shiver went through Marissa. “One minute Gus was there and the next he was gone. Why would someone invent such a thing?”

“It was for control,” Yagar said.

“The Ancients of the past had many civilizations that they used as slaves,” Firbin explained. “They had not mastered genetic manipulation so they used force to keep control.”

“That would do it,” Marissa said in a low voice.

Jehon stopped the truck. They had reached the others. Barton’s team was standing outside their vehicles. The tunnel beyond the second blast door was undisturbed. The rail tracks were still intact and the train they’d taken to reach this base was waiting.

“Where are we?” Marissa leaned forward and stared out the window. “This looks like a subway station.”

“It is an underground train.” Jehon turned the ignition off. “Your world is crisscrossed with such tunnels.”

“Nobody knows this.” Marissa’s voice shook. “Why are they hidden?”

“It is part of the Shadow Government that the Albireons have been using to control this planet.”

“You mean Earth.” Marissa shook her head. “Those conspiracy theories have been making the rounds for years. There is no proof.”

Firbin opened the door and helped Marissa out of the vehicle. “This is your evidence.”