Story of fiction and fantasy and science fiction

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LostNFound
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Re: Story of fiction and fantasy and science fiction

Post by LostNFound »

49 THE END OF DULCE

ISonda ran from the colonists into the tunnel and out into the main cavern. His mind was scrambled with hate and murder. He was always going to kill the old S’mon Issona who was the master of the colony and become the master. He would have to stomp down on the ones that would be against him but he thought he had enough of the peoples to be able to control the others. When he was released by the humans he wanted to kill at that moment but he was surrounded by the whole colony and the witch ISHoda attacked his brain with her mind control techniques and it made him scream and hiss as he ran around her. He hurried across the open cavern and entered the tunnel that led to blue water lake. He was going to kill the old S’mon and feed his body to the long toothed creatures of the lake. After that he would go back and take control of the colony. He had wondered why they were all gathered in the cavern where the locker cave was but it was a fleeting thought because his mind was filled with the murder and the power he would finally achieve.

Sironna had come back from the upper levels of the Kireals and went directly to the Locker cavern and levitated the bodies of the wise one and the other one that had shot him. She took them to the blue water lake and laid them on the shore close to where Issona always meditated when he was here. She knew the creatures that inhabited the water would only come if she made the waters move. She was not ready for that and sat in the place of the wise one and meditated. She knew that ISonda would come sooner or later. He could not stay away from this place. There was always something that brought Issona here and it drew her and the others that still had the old ways of mind control. ISonda was compelled to come because he was being taught by the wise one and she knew that he fought mightily between the peace and hatred. The Kireals had corrupted his mind and Issona had fought against that also to perhaps save ISonda. It all seemed to no avail and when ISonda finally took the 7 others and joined with the Grouth leaders to attack the Kireals she and Issona both knew that he was lost. As she sat on the rock of meditation, as it was called, she could hear someone walking in the tunnel. She reached out her mind and caught the fiery thoughts of hatred from ISonda. She waited for him now. The moment of truth was slowly moving toward the light.

The four team members moved across the expanse of the main cavern and Daniel said “should we wait for Ian and Isaac?” Michael looked around the cavern and said as he kept walking, “You heard what Ian said; we are to get out and take those folks at the station to the rangers down in Texas. He said he and Isaac would meet us there.” As he spoke those words they all heard the deep rumbling. The sound was rather ominous in the open caverns. They all looked around at that and saw some rocks and dirt falling from the ceiling of the cavern. Susanna turned and began to walk faster toward the tunnel that led to the blue lake. “I think we had better hurry. I do not relish the idea of being buried down here.” Theresa took off walking faster and said “we have to save those misfits as Isaac called them or they will be buried here for sure. They all began to move quicker toward the tunnel. As they entered the tunnel, out in the middle of the large cavern a big chunk of the floor caved in and fell away into a deep hole.

On the lowest level or the Grouth main cavern, Isaac and Ian had exited the tunnel and moved toward the tunnel that led upward to the S’iruss levels. Ian stopped halfway across and took Isaac’s hand. We must go to the S’iruss level now and with that they found themselves standing just outside the tunnel that led to the locker cavern. The ceiling was starting to drop more dirt and rocks and Ian said “We must hurry to that tunnel over there.” They both took off running.

On the surface where the military station was, George was the first to feel the earth move and the low rumbling sounds. One of the high towers with communication equipment shook and twisted sideways. George began to gather everybody and told them to gather what ever belongings they wanted to keep and head to the storage shed. The Humvee had been repaired and was in operating order. They would all have to pile in and get the hell out of here. He knew what was coming. He was hoping that the team that went below was getting out. It took a little time but they all finally managed to get their gear into the trailer that was hitched to the Humvee and started driving off the Mesa. The road would lead them down and into Dulce. From there they could head south toward Albuquerque. George had been told by Jimmy of the Rangers and where they were located and Cathy, who was Jeremiah’s sister, had a good Idea of their location. The ground was shaking as they drove off the mesa.

Sironna sat very quietly as ISonda tried to creep up on her. She could hear him breathe and every move he made sounded like loud booms. He was around 10 feet from her when she spoke. “ISonda, I see you have come to exact your revenge on Issona. Unfortunately ISssstona who you pressed into service to guard us has accomplished that for you.” ISonda froze as soon as the witch spoke. He was confused that this female knew he was there. He was sure that he was quiet. “How did you know it was me Sironna, you couldn’t have known that I came back from the fight with the Kireals victorious. What is this you say about ISssstona killing Issona? I gave no order for him to do such a thing.” Sironna refused to stand or turn around to this murderer. “No ISonda you would not give that order because you meant to do it all along so you could claim the mastership for yourself. However you ordered ISssstona and the other two in the Main living cavern to kill us if we tried to stop what you were up to and that is the same as murder. The ones that pretended to guard the colony did murder a number of the family and they paid for their treachery. They were killed by the human.” ISonda heard these words and his hatred boiled over. “I am going to kill you and feed you to these creatures that live in the blue water.” “Yes ISonda, you want to kill me because I am considered the new master/teacher but you are too late. Your life is forfeit by your own actions.” She stopped for a moment and the rumbling sound roared through the tunnel. “You see this place is going to cease to exist and you will be wiped from any memories of life, such is your action.”

The rumbling sound seemed to be louder by the minute and the water was beginning to be turbulent. The stalactites were shaking and the water could be seen to look as if it was boiling in places. Sironna knew the creatures that lived in the lake were swimming around in their frenzy type ways. She knew the exact moment that ISonda began his attach and levitated him in his movement out over the waters. She looked at him as he was panicking and said one last thing to him. “Except your destiny ISonda, you were born to feed the beings that live in the blue waters of life.” ISonda screamed at her just as one of the bigger Piranha like creatures jumped from the surface and chomped on him. Sironna let him go at the same moment and he was devoured by the feeding frenzy. She levitated the body of Issona and move it out over the waters and the same thing happened and then she did it to the body of ISssstona, The creatures were feeding well today she thought as Theresa and Susanna both came up and helped her up. “We must leave this place Sironna you are coming with us to the haven. Sironna had planned on feeding the creatures her own body but when the two human women came and picked her up she did not resist their wishes.

Michael, Daniel, Susanna and Theresa reached the blue water cave just as Sironna levitated ISonda over her head and held him above the water. They heard her tell him to except his destiny and then the big all teeth creature snatched him and then they saw Sironna levitate the two dead bodies over the water and the creatures fed on them. Theresa knew what was coming next and took Susanna and they both ran and picked up Sironna before she could hurl herself into the blue water. They all ran to the little stone bridge and began to cross. Ian and Isaac came into the blue water lake area just as Daniel was climbing into the little opening. The rumbling and crashing of stalactites into the waters was becoming more pronounced now and the tunnel caved in. Isaac was first across the bridge with Ian right behind him. A pack of the creatures jumped from the water at the two humans. Ian froze them in mid air and the two of them climbed into the passageway. They all had scooted quickly through the narrow passage and came out into the cave where they could stand and walk. Dirt and rock was falling from the ceiling as they all moved to the opening that was becoming smaller by the moment. Theresa stopped at the entrance to where Nadie’s little den was and the fox was standing on the ledge looking at the humans. Theresa held out her arms and the fox jumped into them. Theresa wrapped her arms around the fox and moved to the opening. Michael was the first out followed by Sironna and Susanna and then Daniel. Theresa was having trouble with the incline just inside the opening and was sliding back when Isaac grabbed her and pushed forward. They all came out and Nadie was shaking. Theresa held her tight and told her not to worry they were going to a safer place. Isaac turned around to help Ian but he was not there. He turned quickly and said “has anyone seen Ian?” Ian was floating above them and said “hurry we must leave this canyon.” They all looked up at him and laughed as they all disappeared just as the canyon wall crumbled.

The ring structure that was a gate buckled and fell into a hole that suddenly appeared in front of it. The ceiling of the cavern fell in with a giant rumbling and buried any resemblance of the object. The tunnel that led to the cavern above caved in and became solid earth. The Opaque stones would be lost for ever. The large cavern with all of its small caves and tunnels fell in with billions of tons of earth. On the very upper levels of caverns that were said to be the underground base of Dulce. The mesa above folded in on itself. The little station that was once a military base was lost in all the rock and dirt that fell in on the caverns below. The people in the chopper were hovering above the melee about 200 feet and it looked as it the entire Appalachia mesa dropped straight down into a very large hole. Michael had to take the chopper up higher as the dust cloud roiled upward. It was as if a volcano had blown but downward in its explosion. The 9 people in the Humvee had made it through the town of Dulce and were driving south on the old highway that led to Santa Fe. They could see the dust cloud as they looked out the rear and the mesa that once was very prominent could not be seen any longer. They planned to drive to Albuquerque and take the I-40 east until they could skirt the border fort and get into Texas and get help from Cathy’s brother.
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Re: Story of fiction and fantasy and science fiction

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50 MISFITS AND RENEGADES

Michael flew the chopper directly to the canyon where the Rangers camp was located and landed. They had witnessed the birth of a new canyon in northern New Mexico. It was so big that it would be a small Grand Canyon sister to the Arizona Grand Canyon. The Dulce base no longer existed and it was sure that the Emperors minions would be combing over the disaster trying to figure what had happened. Michael and Susanna decided to drop everybody off while they went to find the misfits and rescue them. Michael had a pretty good Idea of where they would have headed if they escaped the disaster. Theresa and Daniel took Sironna and Nadie into the canyon with Isaac and Ian. The rangers would know what to do. Theresa was going to introduce Sironna and let Nadie decide if she would like to live in the canyon or go to the Haven. Michael took the chopper up and flew north toward the border. They reached the crossover of the I-40 and found a small hill to land the cloaked bird on so they could watch the traffic on the way to the border crossing.

Hank had taken over the driving when they left Albuquerque and it was only a few hours to the Texas border. They planned to find a road around the border fort and enter Texas across open land somewhere and head into Amarillo. They still had their uniforms on and had thought to change into civilian cloths but the uniforms would lend some credence to a small military unit trying to infiltrate the country of Texas if they were caught by the Emperor’s soldiers and to their desertion from the Emperor if the Texas Authorities caught them. Cathy had planned to call Jeremiah as soon as they could from inside the border. She wasn’t sure if he would answer but she had to give it a try. She knew if she could get him on the phone she could bring up Isaac’s name and perhaps the others as well. She only knew of Jimmy and George at the moment. They all still had their weapons and figured they would fight if they had to They were not willing to give them up until they could be brought into the sovereign nation of Texas.

The border was at least another few miles from the hill the chopper sat on and the road curved around a couple of other small hills so it was out of sight. Susanna spotted the Humvee with the trailer first and asked “could that be them. It is an army vehicle and it looks like a good number of soldiers in it.” Michael was looking through his binoculars and recognized George who was sitting in the passenger side of the Humvee. “That is them and we need to stop them before they get to the border.” He rose the chopper up and moved in a dip down motion toward the front of the Humvee. There was very little traffic at the moment on the highway so Michael took a chance and decloaked the bird as he hovered down at a distance in front of the Humvee. Hank saw the chopper appear up the road and thought they were going to be caught before they could get into Texas. This was not going to turn out good for them after all they had been through. He knew the military and the police had 30 mil mini guns on board their death machines and they could blow the Humvee to bits with one of those. He was thinking of turning the Humvee off the road and telling everyone to get out and stay down. “We got a bogey in front of us folks, I don’t know where it came from but it is hovering in the middle of the road and we will run smack dab into it. I am going to turn off on the side road coming up and we all need to get out of this truck and take cover. Everybody still have your weapons? We can make our stand by those boulders over there” and he pointed at the place he was going to drive to.

The Humvee was traveling at around 60 mph and Hank slowed just enough to make the turn off the highway. The Humvee came off the interstate at around 45 mph and Hank had to twist and turn the vehicle to keep from rolling. They hit a dirt road and rushed toward the boulders. The Chopper had disappeared and when Mark looked for it he could not find it anywhere. He did see two other vehicles drive by on the interstate and they both slowed but then kept going. Hank pulled the Humvee in close to the boulders and they all jumped out. Mark, Gary. Joe and Calvin all had the M25’s and grabbed the extra cans of ammo as they moved to the boulders. Hank and George both had bailed out and were looking around for the bird. “Where did they go, I don’t see them anywhere?” George lowered his glass and said “Hank get over here in the rocks. If that damn thing comes at us it will blow the truck and the trailer to bits. Cathy and Hanna had found an overhang of one of the boulders and dove under it. Cathy was desperately trying to call Jeremiah. There was no signal under the rock so she was going to move to the south side and see if she could get some sort of signal. The boulders were strung in a big circle or so it seemed. The one the women had found was close to the outside ring on the southern most area. The dirt road seemed to run by the rocks and kept on going toward the south. Cathy checked the sky out and told Hanna to stay put. “I will be back; I have to see if there is a signal on the south side of this rock. She scrambled out from under the rock and crawled on her hands and knees around the rock.

Michael had dropped the chopper to just above the road surface and decloaked her. He was hoping to slow the Humvee and get the misfits to pull off so they could get them aboard before any unsuspecting or unwanted visitors could spot them. The road was clear for quite a distance but there was some traffic headed their way from the west. When he and Susanna saw the Humvee swerve off the road and drive along the dirt road toward a group of boulders, he immediately cloaked the bird and flew toward the boulders to the south. Susanna watched the truck come to a stop and all the people get out and run into the boulders for cover. She knew that all the misfits were armed and this could be a tricky moment for all of them. Michael set the bird down on the dirt road to the south and kept it cloaked. There were quite a few yucca trees and the boulders between them and the interstate. He did not want to decloak so he put the bird on standby and asked Susanna to hold position while he became invisible and jumped from the bird. He needed to find George because he was the only one that would recognize him. They needed to get these folks away from any prying eyes that might witness them from the interstate. He knew that his becoming visible without having George to identify him could get him shot by any one of the misfits. He really did not like calling them that but that had been a word that Isaac had used before.

The Sun was high in the sky so it was close to midday and the heat was causing all of them to perspire. The canteens were still in the Humvee so Hank signaled to Mark and Gary to move to positions that they could watch from the west and the east while Calvin and Joe could watch from the south and north. He looked at Tim and said “we need to get the water or we will be dead out here. I don’t know where that chopper got off to but it is a sure bet that they will be around and they probably already radioed for reinforcements. We need to get the water first and count our ammo this may be a fight to the death but by God I am not going down without taking some with me.” Tim understood and he thought all the rest would feel the same way. They all had been given a death sentence when they were sent to that Dulce station anyway so making a stand here or anywhere just seemed to make sense. Ever body got into positions and Hank and Tim sort of crab walked over to the Humvee. There was no shooting but a vehicle zoomed by on the interstate that was around 1000 yards from their position. Hank couldn’t figure out why the chopper didn’t blast them and there was no one around over at the interstate. He figured there would be sooner or later and it seemed like luck that they had made it here so far. He really wanted to move the Humvee from sight at this moment and his thinking caught him moving into the truck from the passenger’s side. Tim scooted up to him, holding the canteen belts with at least 7 canteens of water. “What are you doing Hank? I got the water and there is more and there is another can of ammo that we need to get.” Hank looked at him and saw the keys still in the ignition. He thanked God for that and said “Take the water back to the rocks, I am going to try to move the Humvee to the south of these rocks and maybe we will have a better chance, now get going. If that damn chopper comes at me you guys know what to do.”

Tim shook his head and began to scoot back to the rocks. The Humvee had come to a stop pointing toward the south and the road was clear in front of it. Hank slid in and had to climb around the gear shift to get into the drivers seat. If there was any snipers out there he would be dead shortly he was thinking. He positioned himself slowly and kept as low as he could. He started the truck and in a blurry of motion rose up and shifted the vehicle into gear. He peeled out and the dust broiled from the rear tires as he shot forward. He brought the Humvee around the rocks and pulled it to a stop where it could not be seen from the road. Cathy was standing against the big rock with wide eyes. Hank had almost run over her. She heard the noise and as he came around the rock she moved back so fast she bounced off the rock face. She stood there for a minute and watched Hank climb out of the Humvee. “Damn you Hank you could have killed me” was all she could say. “You’re welcome Corporal Johnson. Now you want to help get some of these supplies out?” Cathy was quiet for a moment and then moved to the trailer. “I suppose so since I can’t get any signals back here.” George had seen the action of the Humvee and moved around the rocks to see if he could help. He made sure that Calvin was okay and had his eye on the interstate. When he came around Cathy and Hank were unloading some extra supplies so he walked over to help. That is when Michael became visible. He had walked the road toward the rocks and had stopped when he heard the Humvee start up. He waited and then the truck came around the rocks and nosed into the yucca trees.
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Re: Story of fiction and fantasy and science fiction

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George was the first to see him and was startled at first then recognized him. “Is that your chopper,” he asked. Hank and Cathy both jerked around and saw Michael standing just a few yards toward the south. Hank started to pull his pistol but George caught him and said “he is one of the team that took out the underground up there in Dulce.” Hank relaxed somewhat and said “How did you get here and where is the other team members. We thought you all might have been killed in that fiasco of the mesa caving in. Wait; is that your chopper that we saw?” Michael was smiling to himself and walked closer. “Yes that is our chopper and you are safe at the moment. You all need to get back in this vehicle and take this road south. I think it will take you to a very safe place. We will make sure you are not followed for quite some time. The road is a bit rough but you can make it okay. After we make sure no one is coming after you we will meet up. I think there is a good place to camp about 25 miles to the south. It has a rather large pond and plenty of trees for shade so get everybody together and get moving. I did see one car come by that slowed way down and he or they may be reporting you. The Texas Border is only a few miles from here and there is a contingent of the Emperor’s soldiers on this side.” Hank was glad that this turned out in a positive way for them but he knew that if the Emperor’s minions set out they would not stop until they were sure there was nothing to be looking for. Cathy, go get every one and let’s get out of here. George can you put some extra gas in the truck. We got five 5 gallon jerry cans full and that’s it.

Michael turned and walked back to the chopper. He was thinking to erase any tracks of the Humvee and make it seem like no one had come here. He wasn’t sure if someone would say anything to the Military minions at the border or not but he didn’t want to take any chances. He figured that if these folks could reach the oasis he told them about then they might be safe. They could figure what to do from there. He climbed aboard the chopper and sat down in the pilot’s seat. Susanna was sitting quietly and thinking about Sironna. What was going to happen to her and how it was going to be for her being away from her colonists? Michael spun the rotor and they rose up. He asked her to give him a Sitrep of any activity below. He took the chopper over the interstate and flew east to the large fort of the Emperor’s guards at the border. This place was in contention constantly. The Emperor’s men were always trying to tantalize the Texas National Guard to try to start a skirmish. The border crossing was very tight and the papers that were required were atrocious for anyone coming or going. Most people had to take the older roads up into Oklahoma just to get around Texas. Michael brought the bird in low over the fort and they both saw the activity of a small convoy of three Humvee’s beginning to leave through the west gate. Susanna kept a track on them until they hit the I-40 and moved toward the west. Michael flew the bird back to the dirt road and lowered it enough to blow any signs of tracks away. He did this until he passed the rocks and kept going for another 2 miles and then circled back around to see what the convoy was doing.

Lieutenant Scrotameyer had been called to HQ less that one hour earlier. He had been interrogating a small group of people that had tried to cross into the country of Texas. They told him that they wanted to become Texans. They were plain enough and he was thinking about placing them in front of the firing squad. Prisons were becoming to full these days and the Emperor had put out memo’s stating that dissenters and traitors should be executed at the discretion of the command structure catching these peoples. It was not uncommon these days for the Emperor’s slaves to try and defect to Texas. The border on all sides of the Country had been closed down for awhile now. The people that tried to cross would go to any lengths to escape from the Emperor and he and his men had killed quite a few that tried daily to cross the border. He had to send constant patrols along the northern borders and it strained his man power. He seemed to be asking for reinforcements on a daily basis but the toad in Denver ignored his requests. He was getting ready to have the small group executed when he got the notice to report to HQ. He turned the duty over to his subordinate and told him to execute these people and standby. He had been told that a small military unit had been spotted about 5 miles west from the border and he needed to take a platoon and go see what was happening. This pissed him off and now he was in a bad mood.

His Staff Sergeant drove the lead Humvee while Private Yuoper manned the turret gun. They had driven around the little hills that blocked the straight highway and came to a stop. There was nothing in sight for as far as the eye could see. He had the Sergeant turn the Humvee around and drive slowly on the south side of the road. The dirt road came up and he said to stop. He climbed out of the truck and walked down the road that looked like it went directly south. There was no sign of any vehicle tracks but something seemed a bit odd to him. He walked a little further and stopped. He turned and waved the Sergeant to drive to him. Staff Sergeant Pomper knew this would probably be a false call. This seemed to happen more often these days. It was always about some military or militia scouts coming close and they would have to gather the troops to go and investigate. He drove onto the dirt road and eased up to the Lieutenant. Scrotameyer climbed into the Humvee and motioned for the Sergeant to proceed. “There is something odd about this road. It looks like it has been wind blown and recently. Have we had any high winds this past week? We are going to drive a few miles to investigate.” The Sergeant just said “yes sir” and continued to drive slowly while the Lieutenant looked out the front and the side with focused interest. They came to the concentrated boulder area and the Lieutenant told him to stop. “Have the men comb this area for any signs of people or vehicles.”

The men all climbed out and began to walk around looking for any signs. The heat index had risen about 5 degrees by this time and the men were already complaining under their breath. Corporal Slinger was the first one to find the foot prints. He had to study them closely because they looked like they could be days old due to the dust that had somehow filled them in. He bent down and brushed the print with his fingers delicately and recognized the boot print of the military design. It looked like it was a smaller foot size but that didn’t mean anything because women had been in the military for years and years now. This boot print could be from a civilian also because the boots were available to the public but his suspicion was peaked and it was not long when more of these boot prints were located and they were man size. The men told the Lieutenant what they found and the lieutenant made his decision to proceed down the dirt road. He had his suspicion that a small military group was indeed spotted and it was looking like they came this way. The road still did not show any vehicle tracks but he was not going to be swayed until he drove far enough to think that perhaps the unit was on foot and then he would have to backtrack and find where they might have struck out walking toward the border. He should have spent more time at the rocks to verify that but in his haste to join a live fire action he pushed forward with surety that some one drove down this road.

Michael and Susanna had swept the dirt road for a few miles and hovered over the rocks watching the convoy of Emperor Soldiers drive slowly by the dirt road and then stop. They looked at each other and could feel between them that this was not looking good. When they saw the man get out and walk the road for a short distance and the first Humvee drive onto the dirt road and watched as the convoy turned onto the road and the whole thing was moving toward the rock. Michael turned the chopper and flew south at a very low altitude until they came to the point where the vehicle tracks could be seen on the road. He continued to fly the chopper slowly and erase the tracks. He meant to go as far as possible hoping the convoy would not continue with no tracks and turn around. Susanna spoke and said “they are leaving the rocks and moving south now. We should warn the folks up ahead that they are being followed and maybe we should take them aboard and go back to the canyon.” “We can’t get them all aboard but if we have to we can send them to the canyon through the portals. It would be a shame to loose that vehicle as it is needed for the coming storm in Colorado.” Susanna understood and kept her eyes on the movement of the convoy. “They are not moving very fast so perhaps we can wipe the tracks out for many miles.” “Yes we are doing what we can but there is something strange about that man that first walked the road. Did you pick up anything?” “Yes there was something that didn’t quite fit with a normal human. Kind of gave me the creeps like those things we destroyed down in Georgia.” “Yeah like he may have some enhancements or something.” The Chopper moved toward the oasis where they were going to meet op with the crew of misfits, slowly wiping out the vehicle tracks.

Scrotameyer could see the faint tire tracks in the road under the dust. The other men did not know that he had been a prototype down at the Georgia robotic Labs. He had suffered a tragic accident where he lost both his arms and legs. When they put him on the table in the underground labs he was just a slab of meat with one working eye and half a brain. He maintained all of his original organs but they replaced his liver with a mechanical battery of some kind and his brain was implanted with a prototype computer module. His arms and legs were full android typical units. When he finally came around he was in a secret hospital under the Denver International Airport. He spent a full year learning how to be natural and use his enhanced machinery as he called it. His left eye was a full sensor optic and could almost see through solid objects. He was finally released and sent back to active duty and found himself at the I-40 base located at the Texas and New Mexico border. He knew with certainty that a vehicle had recently driven this road but something had swept the tracks clean. He really wanted to know what had caused that more than finding the people that drove the vehicle. He would kill them of course but not before he extracted as much information as he could. The Sergeant spoke up to him and said “Lieutenant, I don’t think there are any people out here, we do not have any sign and it is very hot. I think we should go back to those rocks where we found the boot prints and see if we can find where they went from there.”
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Re: Story of fiction and fantasy and science fiction

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Lieutenant Scrotameyer turned and looked at the Sergeant for a full 10 seconds before he lashed out with his left arm and knocked the Sergeant out of the Humvee. The vehicle being driverless turned sideways and ran off the road and stopped on a large rock. Scrotameyer reached over and turned the motor off. The private that was manning the Turret had been thrown out and landed on the hood of the vehicle. He rolled off the hood and said “WHAT THE HELL” as he turned around and starred at the Lieutenant. The other two vehicles rolled up and stopped. Two men jumped out and ran up to the stalled Humvee. The others got out and stood beside the Sergeant who was lying beside the road. It was clear he was dead. The side of his head had been caved in. The two that ran up to the Lieutenants Humvee just starred at him. Scrotameyer was still and not moving. It was as if he had been turned off or something. The two could see the man’s left arm and the blood that had spattered over the hand. They backed up and moved away. The Private in the front of the vehicle could see the blank stare of the lieutenant and it gave him the creeps. He also moved away and hurried back to where the others were standing around the Sergeant.

Staff Sergeant Wellim turned and asked the two soldiers that had ran up to the Humvee, “What the hell is the matter with the Lieutenant? What is he doing just sitting there?” Corporal Bunns looked like he had seen a ghost or something. “I don’t know Sergeant it looks like the lieutenant is dead also, you don’t think there could be a sniper around here somewhere?” The other 5 men all looked around wildly and moved to the cover of the two other Humvee’s. Sergeant Wellim told Corporal Slinger and Corporal Bunns to go and see if the lieutenant had a bullet hole in him. Both of them were reluctant but ducked and ran to the stalled Humvee. They split up and crept up each side to peer into the driver compartment. Corporal Bunns was on the passenger side while Corporal Slinger was on the driver side. They both had seen the condition the lieutenant was in when they first ran up and they both knew that the lieutenant had blood on his left hand. Randy Slinger peered into the front compartment first. He was crouched down and had to peer around the door edge. He could see the Lieutenants hand from this side and it was completely covered with blood. He knew without a doubt that the lieutenant had smashed Sergeant Pomper’s head in and it was a gruesome site to see when all the men first saw the Sergeant lying on the side of the road. It was a wonder how such a bad wound could happen. Looking at the hand of the lieutenant, Randy could see metal and it spooked him. As he tried to examine the Lieutenant closer he could see Corporal Bunns head pop up from the floor board. The Corporal had gotten on his hands and knees and crawled to the open door and started to get up on his knees. Randy tried to catch his attention without making a noise.

Pete Bunns had crawled along side the Humvee until he was just under the open door area. He could look up and see the opening but he could not get a clear sight of the lieutenant. He grabbed the running board edge and pulled himself up to his knees. The right side of the lieutenant was all he could see and he wanted to find out if the man had been shot in the head. It was funny that there was no blood that he could see and that made him real suspicious. He started to rise to a crouch so he could get a better picture when the right hand of the lieutenant grabbed his neck. He saw Corporal Slinger on the other side of the Humvee as the lieutenant pulled him up by his neck. He could not breath and the strength of the lieutenant was like a vice grip. He was struggling and had both of his hands around the arm of the lieutenant trying to break the grip. The next thing that happened was eerie and unbelievable. The Lieutenant held him up by his neck and turned sideways. He watched in horror and with a darkness creeping around his vision as the Lieutenant climbed from the Humvee and stood up. He was being held out by the man and his breathing was cut off. He dropped his arms and tried to unholster his pistol. He could feel the strength leaving his body as the sound of a pistol shot cracked in his ears. He found himself falling to the ground and looking up at the Lieutenant who was turning around toward the Humvee. Another shot rang out and the lieutenant fell backwards. Bunns rolled to the side to keep from being stepped on and was still trying to breath. Two more shots cracked loudly and the Lieutenant fell backwards onto the ground. Corporal Slinger ran around the front of the Humvee and shouted to Bunns who was still choking “YOU ALRIGHT, GET AWAY FROM THE TRUCK.” Bunns heard the pistol fire 3 more times before everything went silent.

The 6 men that were hiding behind open doors and the vehicles, watched as the two men ran in a crouch to the lead Humvee that was now lodged on a rock. They could see the passenger side and the open door. Slinger had taken the far side while Bunns took the passenger side they all saw the attack by the lieutenant and the struggle of Bunns at the end of the Lieutenants hand. They heard the shots and began to react. They watched the lieutenant drop Bunns and fall backwards. The man stumbled backward and Slinger came around the Humvee and pumped more rounds into the man. The Lieutenant finally fell to the ground and stopped moving. Sergeant Wellim took off running and the others followed. They all stood around the dead body of the Lieutenant while Wellim held up the metal arm that had become bare after he had ripped the clothing away and cut the close resemblance of skin away. The blood was real where Slinger had shot the robotic or android. They figured the thing was half man and half android. It was all very spooky. Sergeant Wellim was trying to figure how this thing came about and where it came from. “I don’t know about you boy’s but this thing is not right. I do believe it malfunctioned and now we got a dead Sergeant and this machine that could be very valuable to the Emperor. I am going to say one thing and you can make up your own minds. I do not intend to return to that hell hole at the border, In fact I am going to try and get across the border further south of here and seek asylum in Texas. I will not be a minion for the Emperor any longer. I am taking this Humvee and whoever wants to join me is surely welcome.”

Jake Wellim stood looking at the men. He did not know if one or some of them would try to tackle him. He had unlatched his pistol and it was at the ready just in case. He could draw fairly fast and defend himself if need be. He might wind up like Sergeant Pomper but he sure wouldn’t be alone. The eight soldiers stood looking at the dead Sergeant and the half man half machine. Corporal Slinger was the fist to move to Jake’s side and make it known he was with the sergeant. Bunns was next. He had almost died from the machine and he did not want to ever be subject to something like that again. Private Evan Yuoper was next followed by PrivateUri Gorshman and Corporal Bob Davis. The two men left looked at each other and Private Greg hunter walked over and stood with the others. Buck sergeant Van Boxer stood all alone and said in an angry voice, “You can’t do this, you are all committing treason and the Commander will have you all shot.” They all looked at the lone Emperor’s man and Jake spoke. “Well Sergeant Boxer I guess we all know where you stand now. How do you want to handle this?”

Boxer stood his ground and looked at the traitors. He wanted to draw his weapon and shoot them all right now and he would tell the commander that they killed the Lieutenant, even if he was a machine and the Sergeant and then tried to kill him. He would look like a hero. His fantasies always seemed to be on the surface. He knew in reality that he would not stand a chance to do anything to these men. He could only hope they would not kill him. He swore that if he was let to live he would hunt them down and kill each one slowly. “Do you intend to kill me too?” “No Sergeant, we are not murderers like the Lieutenant was. We will leave you some water and tie you up in that Humvee. It is disabled so you can’t drive it out of here. I am sure you will be able to get loose sooner or later and you can walk back to the fort. It is only around 8 miles to the interstate and another 5 or 6 to the fort. Oh and we will have to confiscate your weapon, you understand, can’t have you committing suicide out here.” “You can’t do this, you are traitors, deserters and you all will be executed.” The men moved to him and held him while he was relieved of his weapon. Uri retrieved some rope from one of the Humvee’s and semi drug him to the wrecked Humvee. The men went through it and found the additional weapons and ammo and left two canteens of water and some K-rations. They tied Boxer up pretty good but left enough slack that he could get loose eventually. They also tied him to the seat frame where he would have to look at the blood on the seat. “Remember Sergeant Pomper when you see that and know that it was the machine that killed him. It could have been you.” They had to gag the man because he was swearing and screaming. They finally buried the Sergeant away from the road and took the machine thing and buried it in front of the Humvee. After doing all of this they drove on the dirt road toward the south. Jake figured they could get as far as possible and maybe drive across the border somewhere and go directly to the nearest town or city and turn themselves in to the Texas Authorities.
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Re: Story of fiction and fantasy and science fiction

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Susanna told Michael that the convoy had stopped. Michael had flown the chopper around 15 miles blowing the tracks away of the Misfits. They had hoped the convoy would turn around and go back to the fort. Michael swung the bird up in an ark and flew back toward where the convoy had stopped moving. Michael moved the bird over the scene and stayed high enough that the wind from the rotors could not be felt by the ground force. They could see the Humvee that had run off the road and they saw the other two stopped about 20 yards behind. A group of men stood around the side of the road while three others were close to the Humvee that was off the road. They watched the three run back to the group of men and could see their arms waving. It looked as if something had happened to the lead Humvee and these men seemed to be upset about whatever it was. Michael took the bird and landed off to the west far enough that they could get out and walk close enough to listen to what these men were saying. They got within 50 feet and heard the conversation about the dead Sergeant and a Lieutenant that may have been killed also. Both of them were invisible and decided to levitate so they could be closer. They witnessed the shooting of the Lieutenant that seemed to be not quite human. He almost killed another soldier in the process. They watched and heard the entire happening and when the men decided to desert from the Emperors army Michael and Susanna both smiled. The tying up of the one Emperor’s man and leaving for the south gave them hope and they returned to the chopper and began to follow the two Humvee’s as they drove south on the road. Michael banked the chopper and revisited the crash site and began to blow the dust over the tracks again so the two vehicles would leave no signs on the road. They did this and stayed behind the Humvee’s as they approached the oasis.

Boxer woke up and grabbed his head immediately. The treasonous bastards had knocked him out and the duck tape over his mouth had shut him up. The sun was low in the west and he knew it was going to get cold in the desert as it always did. They had left him some water and tied him up. The moon would be bright this night and he would be able to see the road. He did not know exactly how long he had been out but he could feel the rope was not as tight as it was when they first tied him up. With a little effort he got it loose enough that he could get one hand out of the bind and soon enough he was free with his hands. His head hurt like hell and he was going to make sure the bastards suffered. His feet were still tied together and lashed to the seat frame. He could still see somewhat and wondered if they had at least left the glove box torch. He was sitting in the passenger seat and reached over and opened the glove box. Sure enough the torch was still there. Nothing else was in the box so he retrieved the light and shined it on the rope around his feet. There was no knot that he could undue so he figured they had tied it under the seat. He had to scoot off the seat and twist himself so he could get at the knot. He shined the light under the seat and reached in twisting his shoulder badly to reach the knot.

He was sweating profusely when he finally got the rope undone and with great pain in his shoulder he unraveled the rope and scooted himself back up into the seat. He had to use his right hand to pull himself up and he felt the sticky wetness on the driver’s seat. This made him jerk his hand away and it hit the gear shift and broke open the skin on the back of the hand. He yelped and brought his hand to his side. Shining the light on it showed that he was bleeding. He cursed out loud and continued to pull himself up into the seat. His shoulder burned with pain but he could still use his arm. He felt a tingling as if a nerve had been pinched. His head was throbbing and his hand began to throb by the time he righted himself in the seat. His next move was to climb out and open the hood on the Humvee. He thought he could get it started and maybe back it off the rock. It took everything he had to push the hood up and that caused him to be nauseous. He moved back to the interior and retrieved one of the canteens of water and swigged it. That felt better he thought and waited for some minutes. He found a cloth and wrapped his hand with it after swishing the bashed skin with some of the water. He finally felt a little better except his shoulder was aching badly and his hand was numb. He made it to the front of the Humvee once again and by this time the sun had set in the west. He shined the torch into the compartment and heard the rattle of the snake just before it bit him on the left arm where his bicep was located. He whirled away from the sudden sting of the bite and fell to his knees. His thoughts were scrambled but he knew there was a first aid kit in the back of the Humvee. He slowly climbed to his feet and wobbled along the side of the vehicle until he was at the rear. The back doors were open and that made him feel better. He was getting woozy and shaky when he flashed the torch to where the first aid kit was located. His mind was floating in poison and he could feel his heart palpitating as he realized there was no first aid kit in the harness. He spun around a little to fast and fell on his face. He was very weak at this stage but managed to roll over and look at the stars before his spirit left the corporeal body. It was 2:30am when the pack of coyotes came across the wreck and found the dead body lying in the sand. They drug it off from the scene and fed on it through the night. Two days later a reconnaissance chopper from the border fort found the wreck and with a team found the buried bodies and the remains of one that was a few hundred yards from the wreck.*

The team of Misfits made it to the oasis and pulled the Humvee under a canopy of deciduous trees. The small lake or pond that was lined with trees was cool so Cathy and Hanna had a dip to wash the dust from their bodies. The men did the same but Hank had set guards on the bank that surrounded the oasis. He wanted them to watch the road that came from the north. It was a few hours later that Mark and Gary both spotted the dust cloud to the north. They gave the signal to everyone that someone was coming. They all geared up and found hiding places. Everyone knew that this could be a fire fight with the Emperor’s minions and they were prepared to die fighting for their freedom. Cathy really wanted to see her brother at least one last time and she had grown feelings for Isaac. She did not know if he made it out of the alien caverns below before they caved in. The man in the chopper was part of the team but he didn’t say much before they took off to come here. She was really looking forward to hearing about the whole thing but now they might not get the chance. She wished she could contact Jeremiah and was continually trying but this desolate area had no reception. Well at least she would die clean, she was thinking when the two Humvee’s rolled over the bank and slowly moved down into the oasis

Jake brought the vehicle to a stop next to the large pond; he was thinking the water looked cool and refreshing. Randy and Peter were in the vehicle with him Corporal Davis was driving the second vehicle and the other three had ridden with him. He pulled his vehicle close to Jake’s and they all got out. Jake looked around and said “I think we need to hide these vehicles at least under the canopies of the trees. We don’t know if those flyboys at the fort will be out looking for us yet and I hope not until we get across the border. Bob and Uri got behind the wheel and moved the Humvee’s further into the trees so they would be under the canopies. Bob and Uri both spotted the trailer and the rear end of the Humvee. They both pulled their pistols and quietly climbed out of the vehicles. They moved stealthily toward the vehicle that was parked in the brush. Bob motioned to Uri to move around the far side and they split up and walked as quiet as they could. Bob was the first to reach the driver side of the Humvee. He crept up to the window and jabbed his weapon into the window. He felt the barrel of a pistol against his neck and froze. On the other side of the Humvee Uri had done the same but he did not make it to the window before a barrel was pressed into his back.

Bob heard the whisper tell him to drop the weapon and back away from the vehicle. He let his pistol fall into the seat and slowly backed up. Uri heard the whisper tell him to drop his weapon and put his hands on his head. He dropped the pistol in the sand and raised his hands slowly and clasped them behind his head. Bob wasn’t sure who was holding the pistol against his neck and he was thinking about slamming his elbow into the person and over taking him. The barrel was removed from his neck and the voice told him to move toward the pond. He started to turn around so he could see who had bested him but the voice said “I said move, not turn around. The next thing you will feel is the bullet from this weapon if you don’t do as I say. Bob had caught a glimpse of the army boots and the camouflage pants before he began to walk forward. He spoke quietly “you from the fort?” The person told him to shut up. Uri was experiencing the same thing on the other side of the vehicle and was pushed from behind to walk toward the pond. He also tried to turn so he could see who was holding the pistol on him. Another kick on his butt made him move forward. When he came out of the brush he saw the woman dressed in a full military uniform standing around 5 feet behind Bob. Bob was walking slowly toward the pond with his hands wrapped on the back of his head also. Uri was surprised at the woman but he said nothing as he came up along side of Bob. He spoke from the side of his mouth. “Seems we been caught by the army. How the hell did they get here before we did?” “Shut up I said” and the boot on his butt pushed him again. He moved forward and they all walked around the two Humvee’s and toward the pond.

Jake and the other four men had moved to the pond and while Jake was looking around they all tested the water. It was at the peak of heat in the afternoon and the temp was bouncing off the 110 degree mark. This was still a cool day according to some. The men wanted to get in the water to cool off but Jake told them that they needed to be on guard and they should stay that way until they crossed the border. He knew that when Boxer got loose he would hot foot it back to the fort and all hell would be unleashed to find him and the men. There would be no mercy from the commander who was an Emperor toady to the core. The loss of that machine would mean an instant death penalty and he wanted to get across the border hopefully before Boxer could get back to report their desertion. He figured they had at least until the morning to get across the border. He turned to go up the road to the top of the ridge and the man standing just 20 feet away was holding a pistol on him and there was another one with an M25 automatic rifle. He stopped and told his men to stand still. The Man with the pistol told them all to drop their weapons. Jake could see the emperor’s uniforms on the two men and his hope of getting away fell to the bottom of his stomach. He was trying to piece together how these men had shown up so quick when the man with the pistol asked him where he was from.
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Re: Story of fiction and fantasy and science fiction

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Hank and Tim had been hiding behind some boulders on the slope of the rise when the two Humvee’s drove in. they watched as all the men climbed out then two of them got back in and drove the vehicles into the cover of the trees. He was wondering why they did that but knew that Cathy and Hanna were staked out by their own Humvee. Mark Joe and Calvin along with George and Gary had spread themselves out in the trees that surrounded the pond. George had his bow and Hank knew he was deadly with it and Gary was their best sniper and he knew he was probably somewhere where he had a good sight on these men, so his worries were few when he decided to confront the soldiers. There were only 7 of them as he counted and he was concerned that there could be more on the way so he made his move. He was thinking these men were from that border fort and they had somehow tracked the team here. He told them to drop their weapons and then asked where they were from.

Jake studied the man that asked the question and for some reason thought he might have known this man from somewhere in the past. That thought was bouncing around in his head when he answered the man. “We are originally from the border fort. Where are you from?” The response was returned with “we are from up north around Dulce.” Jake was surprised at that. “How the hell did you get away from that death sentence? We all thought that anyone that got sentenced to that place never made it back alive.” Hank had semi recognized this man but he couldn’t quite place him either. “Yeah well we had some help and that place does not exist anymore. Now suppose you tell me what you are doing out here in the middle of nowhere?” The men behind Jake had dropped there weapons but stood ready to rush these two men when all of a sudden Bob and Uri come walking from the trees with two more soldiers behind them. They had their hands around their heads and the two soldiers were definitely women. The women soldiers pushed them up and moved over to the two men. The taller brunette spoke first and said “there ain’t no more and I think Joe and Calvin our disabling the Humvee’s as we speak, who are these men?” Hank smiled and said “this one just told me they are from that border fort. It’s gonna be a long walk back and we can make it across the border before they even get half way back.”

Hanna was being quiet but spoke up. “You men need to move away from your weapons and do it quickly or I will make it so you can’t walk out of here without being carried.” The Renegades all looked at the little spitfire with her black hair and the sound of her violent nature and moved away from the weapons that were lying in the sand. She moved forward and told them to move further until they were around 10 feet or more from their weapons. She began to pick up the pistols and toss them into the pond. Jake started to say something but the spitfire looked at him with wild eyes and he kept silent. She finally finished and backed up to the other 3. Two more men came walking from the tree line where the Humvee’s were parked and moved to the group. Jake finally made a connection with these folk. They all seemed to have some sort of tattoo on there arms or neck as he could see. Ah he thought the ones that were called the misfits by the army. Any one caught with a tattoo was usually sent to the farthest reaches of outposts or places like Dulce and forgot about. He began to piece together why these soldiers were here and the comment about running for the border. This relaxed him somewhat because that is exactly what he and his men intended to do.

George and Gary had climbed into the trees and were drawing a bead on the men. George was not sure but there was something odd about these men and it seemed like they were not the average Emperor’s men. He watched closely as the meeting happened at the ponds edge. If any one of these men made a wrong move they would not see the light of another day. The leader of the men spoke up and said “we are heading for the border also; we are considered deserters and renegades now that our lieutenant and a sergeant has been killed. We have left one other who is definitely an emperor man. We tied him up and figured we could make the border before he got loose and here you are telling us that you are doing the same thing. You would keep us from getting away?”

Hanna being the suspicious one always and the most cautious just had to speak. “How the hell are we supposed to know you are speaking the truth?” Hank did not reprimand Hanna this time but he did speak and asked are you Jake Wellim?” The silence that ensued was palpable. Jake looked at Hank directly and said “Yes Hank I am Jake the one you bunked with in that god forsaken boot camp. It took me awhile but I finally recognized you. How did you get sent to that death station?” Hank had to smile now. He pulled up his sleeve and showed Jake the tattoo that ran the full length of his arm. “I guess you could call me a Misfit and these others are part of that unit also. We just happened to get sent to the same place because we are so rebellious.” Jake had to smile at this. “Well it would seem that we all are heading toward the same place. You don’t suppose we could join forces and get to the same place. I and these men have decided to get the hell away from the Emperor and his minions and I am hearing that you and these other misfits are doing the same.” Hank decided to take the first step in making this uneasy joining and holstered his pistol as he walked over and reached out his hand to Jake. Everybody was very uneasy but as the two men shook each others hand the mood did seem to relax.

Hank turned to Hanna and said “since you threw these men’s side arms into the pond perhaps you should go in and retrieve them. You were always asking for replacements and reinforcements, well here they are, so get someone to help and get those weapons out, Oh and I am sure there are cleaning kits in the Humvee’s.” Hanna was angry now but she knew she was going to do this and was not expecting what happened next. The Renegades all dropped to their butts and began to take their boots off. One of them approached her and said “you remember me Hanna; I was in that unit with you up in Nebraska before they shipped you out to that Dulce place.” He rolled up his sleeve and showed her his tattoo. It was the same one she had on her arm. A snake in a curl and the words said “Don’t Tread on Me” She looked at the tattoo and her eyes rose up to his. The tears rolled from them profusely. She grabbed him and wrapped her arms around him tightly as she wept. “Oh Uri, I thought you were dead.” He held her while she wept and said “I thought the same of you and here you are; now we can be together once again.” The other men waded into the water and began to find their weapons and they were finally getting to cool off so they just tossed the pistols onto the beach and fell into the water.

Hank and Cathy both watched the meeting between Hanna and Uri. Hank talked quietly to Cathy and said “I think our little spitfire will not be such a hell cat anymore. You see what may have been her pain for so long stands in front of her. She was hurt for the loss of love me thinks.” Cathy had tears in her eyes also and said “yes I think you are right Hank” and she turned and walked away. Jake watched as the woman walked away and though she was pining for someone herself. Joe had taken Bob and went to fix the Humvee’s. George climbed down from the tree and waited for Gary to do the same and the other two joined them as they all walked around the pond to meet the others. Michael and Susanna had landed the chopper just a few yards from the edge of the bank and walked down into the oasis. They both knew that the two groups had met and joined forces. The Texas border was only 5 miles from this oasis and the travel would be over some low mountainous areas from here until they reached a ranch road that was 10 miles from the border on the Texas side. They could take that south and reach other roads that would take them to Friona where the Rangers could make contact. Michael was thinking that the Rangers would gain another 16 troops. Meanwhile a campfire was made and the rations were turned into a fine evening meal where every body got to know one another so the Misfits and Renegades became one team on this night that the pack of coyotes got to feed on one dead emperor minion.
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Re: Story of fiction and fantasy and science fiction

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51 RANGERS, THE ALIEN and REINFORCEMENTS

Ian jumped from the chopper and helped Sironna get down. He then offered a hand to Theresa. She was most appreciative and took him up on the offer. He was stronger than he looked she thought as he almost lifted her out and sat her down softly and she giggled with delight. Daniel was next and jumped to the ground as did Isaac. Sironna seemed to be in shock at the bright sunlight and the surrounding foliage. She had never been on the surface of the earth and it was pure beauty to her. The trail to the camp was not well worn as the rangers made sure it wasn’t. There were some hikers that wandered this canyon at times but they never found the rangers camp. The canyon was wild to most folks that did try to hike but for the most part very few ever ventured into it. The UNITED STATES OF THE EMPEROR border was only a few hundred yards from the west rim in certain places and it was dangerous to be to close to the border anywhere in the country of Texas. The old wall that had been built in the early 20’s on the entire border of Mexico still stood in its rusted state but the skirmishes with the Mexican army had caused blasted holes in it. Both sides tried to keep it standing for security reasons and the Emperor liked it.

Isaac started walking down the path. He was anxious to see the team. He told everyone he would see them at the camp. Ian hurried up and walked with him. Michael and Susanna had said they were going to help the misfits get across the border and raised the chopper out of the canyon and disappeared. Theresa was standing and soaking up the sunshine. She took Sironna by the hand and began to walk toward the camp. Daniel was on their heels and thinking about a good pan cooked meal. Sironna was moving slowly and Theresa wasn’t going to make her move any faster. She knew that this world was a brand new experience for the little alien. Sironna began to examine the plant life and Theresa had let go of her hand so she could move where she wanted to. Daniel seemed to be in a hurry so Theresa told him to go ahead and she would bring Sironna at her pace. This was going to be a new experience for all of them when she brought Sironna into the camp so she was thinking how this was going to play out. Sironna elevated herself and seemed like a pixie moving from flower to bush to any sort of different foliage. Theresa was thrilled to see the alien investigating everything. She remembered when she was that way and everything was new. That was a very short lived time in her life at the beginning and now it seemed she was given a brand new life. She wanted to have a baby and the war be damned now that the Underground Dulce base was destroyed.

Jeremiah and Andrew were sitting at the fire pit talking about the recent activity at the fort. They had seen more convoys drive in this past week and it looked like the troops were being reinforced. “You know Andrew, watching those extra troops showing up could mean the Emperor is preparing to invade us in the near future. I received word from Major Harley on the eastern border the other day that the big fort at Shreveport was showing a buildup and now look they have actually gotten bold enough to come across the border in force. Colonel West up in Wichita Falls said he sent some scouts up to Okalahoma City and the big base up there is also showing signs of a major buildup. You don’t suspect the Emperor is planning on invading Texas now do you?” Andrew took a pull on his pipe and let the smoke out slowly. “Well Jeremiah, I would have to say that is what seems to be happening around us. We all know the Emperor is loosing the skirmishes over in China and down in Mexico. Hell he is loosing the United States to more regular people these days. It seems like his ARMY is deserting more each day. That is the scuttlebutt I hear anyway.” Jeremiah shook his head and stuck another small piece of wood on the fire. His thoughts were growing with the idea of a coming invasion when Isaac came through the secret opening with the young boy Ian. Both men were startled and jumped up. “Damn Isaac you are getting sneakier” and Jeremiah walked to him and gave him a bear hug. “Where is the rest of the team?” Isaac smiled and said “three of them are walking the trail and should be here soon and I thing you best get some food cooking. Michael and Susanna flew off to help some folks that are coming from the Dulce base to join us I think.”

Sironna floated to a new clump of brush that had little yellow flowers growing all over. She reached out and touched one and two chickens ran out from under the brush. Sironna was startled and flew backwards and up. Theresa laughed and floated up herself to Sironna. “Do not be alarmed, those are birds and we call them chickens. They produce food for us. You will meet many other animals that are friends with us humans.” Sironna did not know the word chicken or bird or animal. She questioned Theresa “You call them bird and then chicken, are they two separate species in one then?” That made Theresa smile and she said “No bird is the species they are related to and chicken is a type of the species.” Sironna still did not understand but she nodded and asked her second question. “What is an animal?” Theresa was lost for words for a minute or two. She searched for a way to explain. “Well animals are other life forms, like the chickens that are of the bird species. We have many, many other life forms that live on this world and there is a variety of species. There are those that live in the oceans and those that live in air and those that live on the land.” Sironna watched the chickens peck at the ground while they moved around. She finally said “Yes I see, we have the water dwellers on our world and they are like these chickens, they provide us food. There are no air dwellers but there are us and some others that are land dwellers. We have small dwellers of the land and water and they feed each other in a chain of life.” Theresa could see that having Sironna here was going to be one big learning experience for both of them and it made her feel young and full of wonder. There was so much to explore in this big universe she thought as she took Sironna’s hand once again and continued to walk toward the camp. Daniel had already disappeared down the path and she knew he would be at the camp.

Jake and Hank looked through their binoculars at the small patrol of men as they walked along a dirt road that looked like it was made with some sort of off road vehicle. There were lots of boulders and cactus and brush. The men walking looked tired and the Humvee that drove slowly behind them looked worse for the wear. Jake spoke quietly and said “the emperor doesn’t spare any expense for these boys does he?” Hank kept watching and said “so is that are crossing place? Looks kind of sparse out there, I can see some fields or something about 10 miles. Maybe we can make it to them and disappear before any of these border patrols get wind of us.” Jake casually said “yeah that is where we get across. Michael and Susanna told us last night that they would erase any signs that we were at the oasis and they would be sure that no patrols would see us cross. Michael said something about alerting the rangers south of here so we could meet them at Friona or some such place.”

The Misfits and the Renegades had gotten to know each other the night before as they built the campfire and shared what rations they had. Michael and Susanna had told them to drive directly east from the oasis and cross the low range of hills. The road would be rough but nothing the Humvee’s couldn’t handle. They would have to look out for the border patrols that moved back and forth from the I-40 fort to the Texico/Farwell blockade that had a small substation of border patrols. Hank kept looking at the mangy looking soldiers as they slowly stumbled along. He started to say something to Jake about the condition of these soldiers when they all stopped and sat down as the Humvee drove up. “Looks like lunch time or something?” Jake looked at the small platoon and then glanced toward the north and back toward the south. As he looked south he could see a ridge of hill spreading across the border. “You see that ridge running east across the border, we could get on the other side of it and cross without these bozos ever seeing us. They do look like they are heading north; I would say they are headed for the I-40 fort to be relieved by a new group that will make the run south. If they make it to the fort before this afternoon the other group will leave and that could hold us up. I don’t want to take a chance with these guys. They may look scruffy but I have been on some of those border runs and those men always seem to be on edge.” “Well that means we will have to backtrack till we find another goat trail south of that ridge. We should send Tim, Joe, Mark and Evan ahead to scout and we need to get moving.” “Wait what about that Indian fellow George; isn’t he supposed to be a good tracker or something?” Hank thought about that for a moment. “Yeah he could very well be. I haven’t known him all that long but he did talk about hunting the mountains around Dulce. Okay, I’ll ask him to go and we keep Mark with us. Those boys look like they want to take a nap or something.” Jake looked at the patrol again and said “yeah could be but one never knows, let’s go.”

The Humvee had come to a sheer rock cliff. The men could see the ridge that ran into the east and Texas to their left. George climbed out and walked to the cliff edge. He looked both ways as it ran north and south. He could see no place visible where they could get to the lower slopes with the vehicles. He turned and motioned to the man named Evan to come. Evan walked to the edge and George said “You go south and see what you can find. If we can get down to that lower slope it looks like we may be able to drive along the south side of that ridge into Texas. I will search the North from here. Let’s meet back here in 45 minutes.” He turned and walked to the Humvee. “Tim, you and Joe stay with vehicle and move it back into the tree line so it won’t reflect any thing. The border is only a few miles to our east if I calculated it right. Evan is going south to see if there is a way to the lower slope and I will go north to do the same. We will meet back here in 45 minutes” Tim and Joe both set their chronometers to buzz at 45 minutes and Tim backed the Humvee up into a tree line that was around 50 feet from the edge of the cliff. A mile behind them the other two Humvee’s had stopped and were waiting to hear back from the scouts. Unbeknownst to them, two of the border patrol soldiers had began to walk back toward the ridge that ran across the border just after Jake and Hank had left their lookout spot. It had taken a couple of hours to reach the small open meadow where they would wait for the scouts.

Sergeant Frederick Himmler had seen the glint of something shinny after he had sat down with the rest of the platoon of border guards. He did not say anything to the others who were so selfishly involved in feeding themselves they would never see anything that would kill them in a flash. He was disgusted with these men and most of them that staffed the fort and even the sub stations. They called themselves soldiers but he knew they were no more than children playing a game. He was the only sniper on this team and his partner who was the spotter was just a bit more aware than the others. He did what he could to train the man but it was like throwing sacks of sand against a brick wall sometimes. The man did have a good sense about target range and all the intricacies on how to set the scope for wind and distance and any other anomalies. He had migrated from Germany 10 years earlier and joined the Army. The Emperor was not long in power at the time the country was perfect with all its surveillances and police power along with the Military forces. He had earned his title and position by being the best shot. He was placed on the Texas border and had served on all borders of the sovereign country in many skirmishes. He had killed many runaways trying to desert the US and been tasked with tracking down many more that dissented against the Emperor. He finished eating his snack and approached the Lieutenant. “I and my spotter have elected to stay on the border while you take these men to the fort and get fresh troops. You can pick us up on your way back to the Texico station.” So He took some extra rations for his pack and the spotter and set out southward toward the ridge. There was a narrow passage across the top but he was interested in climbing to the higher ridge this day. He knew the glint came from someone’s binoculars and he meant to kill them before they could cross the border.

George had walked about a half of a mile before he came to a spot that would allow the vehicles to traverse to the lower slope and easy driving along the ridge. He could see that they would have to drive almost at the top of the ridge but if they could get across in the dark of the night it would not matter. The bank was steep but he knew the Humvee’s could get down and the trail from where Tim and Joe were waiting turned out to be very easy to travel. It came close to the cliff edge but they could be careful. He wanted to get down to the level area before night set in because that could be dangerous driving along that edge in the dark. He thought there might be a bright moon out this night but that could bad or good depending on who might be out along the border. Where he was standing he could see a depression in the ridge and when he looked to the south he could see a very rough carved out road. That would be the border he thought and turned to go back and inform everyone. Someone would have to go and get the others and it could take a few hours for them to get down to the level ridge. He looked at the sun and figured they had about 4 hours of good daylight still so he started to hurry back on the path when a glint of sunlight caught him in the eye. He stopped and dropped to a boulder and looked to the area and saw the man standing close to some trees. There was another man standing beside him who had a set of binoculars and they were looking toward the area where Tim and Joe were waiting. It was an upslope climb back to that point and he could see Evan standing close to the edge of the cliff.

George turned around and saw the one man beginning to lie on the ground. He could see the man setting up a rifle and knew immediately that this was a sniper team. He unslung his bow from his back and pulled an arrow from the sheath. His first shot had to hit the sniper on the ground or Evan could be killed. He was uphill from the two men and it was around 100yards to their position. He wondered why they had not seen him first but that would be mute any second. He nocked the arrow and pulled it back to full length. His bow was one of the older compound types with a 75 pound pull ratio. He could see the sniper pull his bolt back and load the bullet into the breach. He watched the man close the bolt just before he let the arrow loose and quickly loaded another arrow.

Sergeant Frederick Himmler and his spotter Corporal Roustski had come up the higher side of the ridge from the North. They had reached the top of the ridge and walked along the flat top through the trees. He stopped suddenly and put his hand on Roustski. The spotter stopped and looked to where Himmler was nodding toward. Roustski saw the man walking along the edge of the cliff at a higher elevation than they were. They both looked through the binoculars they had and could see the man was from the Army. Himmler whispered and said “he is a deserter, give me bearings, I am going to take the shot. He got down and set his rifle up. He had to elevate the duo pod so he could shoot up hill while Roustski gave the distant and other info for him to set the scope. The distance was close to 2 thirds of a mile but that was an easy shot for him even if it was uphill. Frederick wondered if their were more of the deserters as he set his scope and then pulled the bolt back and loaded the .348 magnum round into the chamber. He had a suppressor on the barrel of the rifle so there would be no sound. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly as his finger began to pull the trigger. The arrow entered his upper arm and buried itself deep into his chest area. The steel tip entered his heart and stopped. His instant reaction was to jerk and he pulled the trigger at the same time. The rifle discharged and fell from his grasp into the dirt sideways. The bullet sped away into the rocks on the lower slope below them. Roustski was surprised at first and dropped his binoculars as the second arrow pierced through his neck with such force his neck was broken as he fell to the ground close to Himmler.
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Re: Story of fiction and fantasy and science fiction

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Up on the cliff edge Evan heard the ricochet of the bullet as it bounced off a boulder. He instinctively looked downward and saw the man fall to the ground in the tree line. He moved back from the edge and hit the ground. It was quiet so he crawled away from the cliff edge and finally got up and hurried to the Humvee where Tim and Joe had jumped out and pulled there weapons. “What the hell is the matter Evan?” Evan stood for a moment and said I think there are a couple of those border patrol guys down on the low ridge and I just saw one of them fall down. There was a ricochet of a bullet down below so I am not sure what the hell is going on. They waited for a few minutes and then crept over to the cliff edge and ducked behind a few boulders. Tim looked around the edge of the boulder through his binoculars and spotted the two men lying on the ground. He could see the arrows poking out of them and let out a whistle. “Looks like those boys tangled with the Indians and lost.” George came walking up a path and stopped. He almost cracked up laughing at the sight of the three men crouched behind the boulders. “Evan, you think you can hot foot it down to the team and bring them up here. I found a way to get down to the lower ridge and it looks like easy driving along the top till we get into Texas. We gotta get off this ridge before dark so hurry and get em up here. Those two you might have seen lying peacefully down there almost killed you. I think they belong to that border patrol team that Hank and Jake saw earlier. I got to retrieve my arrows when we get down there so we’ll wait for the team to get here and get our butts into Texas.

Jeremiah, Andrew, Isaac and Ian were sitting around the campfire while Isaac cut up some potatoes and dropped them into a pan. Ian had gone over and talked with Cloud dancer and the other ponies that were in the coral. Ester was out in the canyon somewhere so Isaac decided to start getting the afternoon meal ready. Daniel showed up and sat down after getting himself a cup of the coffee. He told them that Theresa and Sironna were exploring the canyon on there way and Jeremiah had to ask who was Sironna. Daniel looked at Isaac and then started to speak. Isaac cut him off and said “Jeremiah, we have a few surprises for you all. Shall we wait for Theresa and Sironna to show up, they should be here shortly I suspect and then we can talk. We will have to tell Isaiah, Johnny and Riles also.” Jeremiah shook his head and said “well we got some disconcerting news. Those two replacements we got were called back two days ago. Seems there are a bunch of the Emperor’s soldiers trying to come in from the east and Sam has had to call the National Guard and as many rangers as he can without leaving the border to bear to fight them off. I think the Emperor is beginning to make his move to take back our country.” Isaac leaned back and said “well I guess we all knew this was coming sooner or later. What’s happening up at the fort, any activity there to date?” “Yes as a matter of fact they have been building up their troops recently and it is way beyond any thing we are going to be able to handle without reinforcements.”

Isaac smiled as did Daniel and Ian. “Well I think we may be getting some reinforcements Captain. They are on their way and Michael and Susanna are giving them a helping hand at the moment.” As he spoke Theresa and Sironna came through the opening in the brush. Jeremiah and Andrew both stood up and had wide eyes. Neither Jeremiah nor Andrew had ever seen an Extraterrestrial being before so the shock was palpable. Theresa stopped as did Sironna and they both felt the bewilderment from Jeremiah and Andrew. Isaac stood up and started to say something to both men when Sironna levitated to his side and spoke into their minds. My name is Sironna I am of the S’iruss species and your people have saved us from an underground prison. You are Jeremiah the captain of these men. You have one man that has become our brother and he saved ISHoda from death as you call it. He has gone to our planet to meet our wise ones so he will know us when he returns. He has taken a winged one, of the bird species with him and that one is part of him. I have seen your chickens that are of the bird species, they are wonderful. Jumarstyx will be welcomed on our world as one of us and a hero. He will bring our peoples to your world to meet in peace. She stopped talking in the mind and spoke in pure English as she floated to Jeremiah. She held out her hand and said “I am very glad to meet you Jeremiah you are a great man of the humans and we S’iruss look forward to meeting you and more like you.” Jeremiah gingerly reached out and took her hand. “I am much honored to meet you Sironna, please forgive me and Andrew; this is our first time to meet such a being as yourself.” “This is quite alright Jeremiah we all are meeting new life these days and I see your spirit shines brightly from inside. Issona told us that you would be like us in many ways.”

Theresa moved close to Daniel and found a coffee cup. She could smell the coffee as they entered the camp and it made her mouth water. There were two large pans on the grates slowly cooking and that made her very hungry suddenly. She poured herself some coffee and sat down while listening to Sironna talk with Jeremiah. Isaac had stood and moved between Jeremiah and Sironna but when she came along side of him and spoke in the minds he knew that things would be okay. The sun set in the west and the fire was warm whilst every one sat around and talked about the mission to Dulce. The food was something so new to Sironna she seemed to attack it with vigor and Ester finally showed up with a clutch of chickens weaving in and out under her as she made her way to the coral. Isaac had to get up and go to her. She stopped and rubbed her head against him and continued to her manger where the fresh hay had been placed. Sironna had to meet the cow and it was a wonder to see her and the cow together. The horses had been antsy when Sironna had first shown up so she had to meet all of the also. It was dark in the canyon when Johnny and Isaiah rode in and the meeting started all over. Jeremiah and Andrew had saddled up and went to relieve Riles who rode in a half hour later and fed and rubbed his horse down. Isaac had saddled his horse that was so glad to see him. He rode out shortly after Riles came in and it was in the middle evening that Theresa and Daniel took Sironna to the Haven.

Hava and Luun knew that Sironna was coming and when the three showed up in the garden it was another party Theresa and Daniel had a reunion with Samuel, Mary and Tamara their daughter and of course Kevin and Kristyl and their daughter Alisha. Carolyne and Bill welcomed all their children home. Christine and Jim along with Mark and Maria had gone up to Lionhawk’s home to be with him. Shadowself’s spirit had passed into the universe after an encounter with a gang of police that surprised her in a grocery store and before she could defend herself they killed her corporeal body. It was said that the entire gang came to a bad end but that is another story. Theresa also brought the little fox Nadia to the Haven and let her go in the orchards. It is to say that Nadia found a mate the very next day and in the spring of 2038 she gave birth to a small litter of pups. Greybark was her favorite tree and the foxes were always seen romping around his large trunk and pieces of fruit fell on them. Sironna stayed at the Haven to become more familiar with humans and Hava and Luun even took her to the home world however she wanted to come back to the earth. She was the first from S’iruss and would meet with her peoples when they came back with Jimmy to make peace and begin the space travels of the humans. The next morning after a wonderful breakfast Theresa and Daniel turned sideways and disappeared and reappeared at the campfire in the canyon. Jeremiah, Andrew and Isaac had come in from their watch and were sitting around the campfire cooking and talking about the coming storm.

The Three Humvee’s drove down the dirt road next to the big corn field. It was early in the morning around 3am and they were approaching a county road that would lead them to a main highway. They had stayed close to the border and driven on the back roads south. They came across a small community that had an old gas station with a recharge unit and refueled and recharged and had a good breakfast in an old fashioned café before driving south and connecting to the state route 60 where they drove into Bovina and found a older motel to rest up. The Humvee’s were clearly marked with the emperor’s army insignias and there uniforms screamed the Emperor’s minions to anyone paying attention. There were 16 of them and with the Emperor invading from the east it was not going to be good for them.

Michael and Susanna had flown along with them in the stealth mode with the dispance cloak on and watched their progress. They did what they could to keep unwanted views away but it was hard now that they pulled into Bovina and parked the vehicles around the motel in the back and got into the 3 small rooms. The manager of the motel gave Hank and Cathy dirty looks when they went in to get the rooms. They both knew that someone was going to call the authorities sooner or later and they would be confronted. They were preparing to surrender and had their story straight as to what they were doing in Texas and who they were. They were hoping the Texans would welcome them for leaving the Emperor’s country. It was the local Sheriff that showed up with his deputies and 10 pickup trucks full of the towns people all loaded for bear. They were not expecting this and Mark along with Gary wanted to defend themselves. Hank shot the idea down. “We are not here to fight these people, we are here to join them so let’s not get started out on the wrong foot.” Michael and Susanna appeared in the room that Hank and George were in with Cathy, Hanna and Uri. They told them to grab their gear and made them disappear to the chopper where they had landed it in the middle of a large corn field. They did the same with the others and the rooms were empty.

The Sheriff spoke into his bull horn and told them all to come out with their hands up. All the people and the deputies had their rifles and pistols pointed at the three rooms. There was no response so the Sheriff repeated his demand to the empty rooms. His last demand was that if they didn’t come out within the next few minutes they were going to start shooting. It was three minutes later that the three rooms exploded with bullets flying into them. Three rooms that were completely empty and the manager of the motel lost three rooms that were ripped to shreds with hundreds of bullets.

18 people stood around an invisible chopper that was sitting in the middle of a corn field. Each one had a duffle bag full of their gear, some where sitting on the bags while others were standing and looking up at the sky. The Corn stalks were around 7 feet in height and they could only see where the skids of the chopper were sitting. Michael and Susanna told them where they were going to send them. As for the Humvee’s they may be picked up later but for now they would have to leave them. Susanna told them to wait and she would come to take them to the camp of the Rangers. Cathy was exhilarated, she knew where they were going and she could hardly wait to see her brother and Isaac. In the bottom of a canyon on the border of New Mexico and Texas people began to appear on a patch of ground that had a small creek running beside it. They had duffle bags that they put down on the ground as they looked around the sunny area. The creek sounded soothing as it wound its way through the brush and trees that lined its sides. The shear rock faces on each side of the canyon seemed to climb around a hundred feet or more. There was a faint smell of huckleberry or something and the people noticed that the canyon walls were some 200 feet apart. The sky above was a deep blue and the sun was bright. Susanna appeared and told them all to follow her and she would lead them to a secret place where they could be comfortable for now.

In the Corn field outside of a small town called Bovina the stalks of corn that had been bent over by an invisible machine began to unfold themselves as the machine had risen off of them. Michael flipped the bird around and flew directly toward the south where the canyon was located. Uri and Hanna had asked to go with him rather than be transported by Susanna. Uri knew something about choppers and Hanna had been trained as a copilot before she was banned from the school and sent to the Dulce death station. Michael let her sit in the copilot’s seat and watched as she became familiar with the gear. It was as if she knew how to operate everything. Michael was amazed and happy and asked them to strap in as he rose from the corn field and flew south. The Canyon was only around 50 miles south and when they came in over the rim, they all could see the Emperor’s fort on the New Mexico side of the border. There was activity and Michael made note of a new convoy arriving. This did not look good to him and he meant to talk with Jeremiah about it. He dropped the chopper into the canyon and put everything on standby. The three climbed out and began to walk the path toward the camp.
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Re: Story of fiction and fantasy and science fiction

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Susanna led the Renegades and Misfits minus Hanna and Uri, down the canyon path toward the camp. She told them all about the Rangers and how they had been guarding the western border in this particular area. The Emperors fort that was just inside the New Mexico border was one of particular interest and they had managed to keep them from sending foray’s into Texas for quite some time. The Rangers were spread around the borders of Texas and were the first defenders from any kind of invasion. This particular group of ranger’s had been given some special gifts and were enlightened but she did not give a deeper definition of what that meant. She told them that these men were highly suspicious of any one new so it took some straight forward honesty before they would accept anyone. Cathy was hanging back as they moved closer to the camp. She was going to let the men enter first before she would expose herself to her older brother and Isaac. Isaac would know them as the misfits but he did not know the Renegades. Hank slowed up and fell to her side as they walked. “This is your brother’s camp and Isaac is here isn’t he?’ She sideways glanced at him and said “yes this is Jeremiah’s command and Isaac is one of his men. You and Jake should be the first to enter that camp with Susanna. Both of you will have to explain what you have done and we have all talked about joining these rangers if they will have us. We also know that the Emperor is building up his forces to invade. So it may be our lucky moment in time.” She looked at him full on while they walked and then told him to get back up there with Jake. “I am going to wait for the right moment to expose myself.”

Isaac had cut the potatoes up and added the herbs to make the hash browns. The eggs would be cooked on the moment when anyone was ready to eat. There was fresh fruit that had been picked from down the canyon by Daniel and Theresa who also brought some from the Haven. They all were sitting around the campfire watching the second pot of coffee perk. The first pot was staying hot on the secondary fire pit and everybody was talking about the recent buildup at the fort and the false try at invading from the east. Houston and Dallas were closest to that border and the Emperor’s army had pushed across the border recently to see what they could get away with. Sam Houston had pulled enough Texas National Guard and Rangers into a blockade and the fire fighting was sparse at the moment. The emperor’s army had drawn back when they were confronted. Andrew was the first to perk up. He spoke quietly and said “There are people coming down the canyon path.” He grabbed his rifle and scooted out toward the north along the canyon face to come in from the back of whoever it was coming from the north.

Theresa looked at Daniel and smiled. She caught Andrew before he could get to far away and told him that it was Susanna and the Soldiers she and Michael had went to retrieve. “These people have deserted from the Emperor and were part of the team up at Dulce.” She had spoken to Andrew and Jeremiah both. Isaac remained sitting and had a big smile on his face. He looked forward to seeing these people again. He had fallen for Cathy and his heart did pine for her. These folks would fit right in with the rangers he thought, being so misfit. He had found out that they were all passionately Patriotic to Freedom. They were also very closely tied with each other as to being a family where they would die to save each other. In other words they were a very tight team.

Susanna was the first one through the hidden opening. She smiled and waited a moment for two men to walk through. Isaac recognized Hank but the other man he had never seen before. He remained sitting and stirring the two pans of potatoes while Jeremiah stood and Andrew made his way back to the fire. Theresa hurried over to Susanna and hugged her. “Did you have any trouble getting these folks here?” “Well they did have a bit of run but they picked up some more folks that actually chased them at first. I brought 14 recruits with me and Michael has two more. He is bringing the chopper in with them aboard.” Daniel had walked over and hugged Susanna. She finally looked at Jeremiah and moved to the fire pit. “Jeremiah’ and with that He hugged her also. She stepped back and continued. “Jeremiah, will you give these people a listen. They are somewhat anxious to join the rangers if you will have them?”

Jeremiah looked at the two men as the others began to come through the opening. They all were dressed in the Emperor’s Army uniforms which gave him and Andrew an uneasy feeling. Isaac recognized all the misfits from the Dulce station but the new ones he had no idea about. He did not see Hanna or Cathy and wanted to ask about both of them. His attention stood on the men at the moment and he waited for Jeremiah to speak. Jeremiah did not know that his baby sister was stationed at that Dulce death camp. In fact he had last heard of her in some other place although he did know she had joined the Army. Isaac had talked very little of the men and women at that place but never mentioned Cathy. Jeremiah started to speak and froze when Cathy finally walked through the opening and stood to the side. She looked at him with a dead pan face and he just stared at her. It had been about 3 years since they had seen each other when their mother had died. She had received letters from him prior to being assigned to the Dulce station but other than that she had not been able to make contact with him to tell him where she was. Isaac was smiling as he sat on the log bench The scene was froze at the camp as a brother and his sister seemed to be stuck in limbo as they both just stared at each other.

Theresa spoke to Susanna in the mind. It would seem that these two have been away from each other far to long. You think we should give them a push? Susanna looked at the two people and at the others that seemed to stand in complete silence also. No I think they are just remembering a lot of the past things and they will be connecting any moment, let’s give it to them. Okay but look at Isaac, he is so antsy it is visible. I think he is gong to explode any second now. Jeremiah made the first move and hesitantly stepped toward his baby sister. She stood almost as tall as he did these days so baby only referred to age with any respect. Jeremiah’s face was full of questions but the smile began to build. Cathy watched him start to walk toward her and almost stumbled as she took her steps to meet him. Her smile was radiant and then they both fell into each others arms. The tears flowed freely as they hugged each other. The whispering of talk between the two was hurried but understood. The people standing in the frozen moment became animated once more and the laughing and joy began to wave through them all. It was a very rejoicing moment to see Cathy finally laughing for the others of her team and the laughing of Jeremiah was something that had not been seen for quite sometime now. Hank moved close to Isaac who couldn’t take his eyes off of Cathy and said quietly. “You know, it seems you and her made a good connection at the station and she couldn’t quit talking about you after you left.” Isaac looked up at him with a smile on his face and said. “Well I must say that I have had her on my mind since then also. Why don’t you get the boys to find a place to sit and we got some breakfast cooking. There is plenty of good hot coffee and I am sure we could find other beverages to drink. You can tell us all about how you come to gather these others on your way here.”

Hank turned and introduced Jake at that moment and told all of them to find a place. “We have been invited to eat some breakfast and don’t tell me you people ain’t hungry after almost being filled with lead. They all moved around to the log chairs and natural rocks that served the same while coffee mugs were being handed out. Andrew could see that more coffee was going to have to be made and asked Daniel to help him gather some more water at the creek. Jeremiah and Cathy had moved away from the campfire and were talking. Isaac was going to wait patiently for his turn so the food was being cooked and everyone was beginning to settle down to eat and talk about there last adventures. George was the odd man out or so it seemed and had moved to the corral to stand at the fence and look at the horses. He missed his little brother now that he had made new contact with him and how he up and went to an alien world. He had no idea when he would be back or if he would. He was lost in these thoughts when the horses crowded around and brushed his arm that he had hanging over the top of the fence. He turned and the horse’s face was so close it startled him. He looked into the eyes of a brown and white spotted pony. The horse looked as if it would speak to him. He reached out and touched the pony on the face and heard in his mind, you are Jimmy Whitefeather’s brother which makes you my brother. Jimmy is not here, he has been gone for awhile now and we all miss him. Will you ride me to the top of the canyon and watch the fort place like Jimmy and I used to do? I am spotted flyer as Brother Jimmy calls me.

George was lost for words. Here was a horse or pony that his brother Jimmy rode and the pony was talking to him in his head. He wasn’t sure what to do when Theresa touched his arm and he turned around. “Are you going to take spotted flyer on the patrol? He is a wonderful soldier and a loving brother you know. I know he has saved Jimmy’s life many times and Jimmy loves him.” George was even more confused now. Here was this woman asking him questions like the pony did and talking about Jimmy. She spoke as if she heard the pony speak to him. “I have to ask, do all these horses and you people talk in the mind to each other. Jimmy did talk to me in the mind once but I thought it was something that I imagined. Now here is a pony telling me about Jimmy and here you are doing the same thing. I do miss Jimmy and to see him again at that death camp by Dulce after so many years of being apart was a miracle to me. Now he is gone again and the Great Grandfather only knows where and how long.” Theresa could feel the loss and pain and the hurt in this man and she knew that spotted flyer was also pining for Jimmy. The pony had read Georges thoughts and desperately needed to console with him as well as he needed to give love to spotted flyer. The pony had been very distracted since Jimmy had left and was hard to keep focused on the job above. The replacement ranger that rode him had problems and finally told Jeremiah that the pony could be dangerous on the job due to lack of focus. Theresa told George that he should take Jimmy’s place with the rangers and help the pony at the same time. She then said “Jimmy will not be coming back any time soon so it is up to you.” George felt the sting of the tears as he knew she was right. He turned and looked into the eyes of the pony that moved closer and put his head over Georges shoulder. Theresa told him that she would help him to speak in the mind and said she would wait for him at the fire.

Daniel watched Theresa walk back and said “is he gonna be alright?” “Yes I think so, spotted flyer and he are bonding as we speak and I will help him open the door in his mind that will allow him to talk telepathically. I think you and I and Michael and Susanna are still on our mission and these new folks are going to need some teaching. Daniel, there is a war happening and this country is going to be invaded soon if not already. I know the families at the haven are preparing and soon we all will be embroiled in this final push toward the healing. The world is tipped enough and the human race is wakening globally. There are many more of those underground bases and others will be teamed together to stop them.’ “For now, we must help these men and women get ready, we must open their minds and give them all that we can. Michael is bringing Hanna and her soul mate Uri in the helicopter and I think we might have to go and retrieve the vehicles soon. Hank walked over and asked if George was alright and Theresa told him he would be fine but he needed to be with the pony for awhile. Jeremiah and Andrew were being introduced to the Misfits and Renegades by Susanna and Cathy. Isaac had walked off from the fire pit and Theresa saw Cathy looking at him and then excused herself to go walk with him. The Misfits all knew that Cathy had fallen for the man so Hank had went back to the group and was helping Susanna. Hank and Jake related there entire story of the meeting and escaping to Jeremiah and Andrew. Michael and the two others finally showed up and that started new conversation.

Isaac had listened to Cathy and Jeremiah talk to each other about their adventures since the last time they have seen each other. He then waited for the introductions of the Misfits and the newer bunch that called them selves the Renegades. He finally stood and walked toward the corral and the back caves in the rock cliffs. He was pining for Cathy in a bad way but knew that she had to get re acquainted with Jeremiah and help introduce the new group of men. He was beyond the corral when someone grabbed his arm and pulled him around. He didn’t know who might do that at first but when he spun around Cathy pulled him close and kissed him. She wrapped her arms around him and said “I missed you, I thought you might be dead, I didn’t know what I was going to do.” He kissed her back then placed a finger against her mouth and said, “I love you Cathy and we both knew that the mission was dangerous. Here we are now and you are going to be a ranger in your brother’s outfit. It looks to me that we have been given reinforcements without having to burden Sam Houston for them and just in time I might add. That fort up there is building up their troops and we need more men. If they try to come into Texas to the North or South of us we need to hold them back.” Cathy kissed him again and said enough talk for now dear man, is there a place where we can rest for awhile?” On the horizon to the west, the north and the east storm clouds were gathering. The darkness was growing and the world was holding in a surreal calm.
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Re: Story of fiction and fantasy and science fiction

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THE STORM BEGINS
52 TEXAS RANGERS

Jeremiah and Andrew had met all16 of the people that escaped from the Emperor’s Army. They had been leery at first but Cathy had dispelled Jeremiah’s concerns by asking him if he was going to arrest her along with the others and Isaac vouched for the ones he called the Misfits. The other ones that had chased the misfits and then opted to desert, told them about the robot or half man half machine that went berserk and killed one of them and tried to kill another before they took it out. Michael asked some questions about the machine and he and Daniel talked about the Georgia base that was making these creatures using live human beings. All of the misfits and Renegades disarmed themselves and asked to be given citizenship in the Nation of Texas. Jeremiah was torn between his concerns with the latest Intel of the Emperor’s army buildup surrounding the Nation of Texas and somehow getting these people to the capital to be accepted. Theresa and Susanna read his thoughts and stepped forward. “Jeremiah can you picture the closest room or office of where Sam Houston could be located?” Jeremiah was a bit confused with that question but he could speak telepathically also and the conversation that occurred in his mind and the two women gave him some comfort. Susanna was the one that suggested they go and bring Sam here to swear these men and women in and then they could take him back. They would also find uniforms for them and take them to be outfitted.

Sam Houston was sitting in his war room at the capital building discussing strategies with his Generals. The people of Texas were being put on full alert and the military and all LEO’s were reporting in about the armament of the peoples. This was going to be a full on assault by the Emperor and the Nation of Texas was preparing. The one thing the Emperor did not understand was the entire nation of people of Texas had been trained with weapons and the art of war. Sam had made sure since the turn of 2030 that all of the free peoples of Texas were thoroughly armed and outfitted to fight in such a situation as was happening. He had vague Intel of the Emperor’s Army and how many might be coming to invade. He knew the buildup points and all of his forces were on standby. His Air force would strike and defend as needed. This was going to be a ground war mostly. Sam knew the Emperor had fighter jets and choppers. The ground armor was not as massive as the choppers and many of the peoples that lived in the United States were joined in the underground to fight against the puny little dictator but he did not nor did his Generals know the extent of those forces. The Emperors army was scattered around the world involved in skirmishes so that could reduce the amount of forces he could mass against Texas. Sam was counting on that particular fact and he had folks in many places to keep an eye on the US army troop movements in those countries. All the chess pieces were in movement he was thinking as he left the war room for a quick meal. He didn’t have to walk far when two women materialized in front of him. He recognized both of them and waited for them to approach him. Theresa was the first to speak and said “Sam Houston can we barrow you for a minute or so?” Sam’s tongue was tied for a moment before he said “Theresa and Susanna, you know we are on the verge of war with the Emperor and the War room is very busy at the moment. What can I do for you in 1 minute worth of time?”

The camp was busy with talk as everyone was getting familiar with Jeremiah and Andrew. Cathy and Isaac were missing and Hanna was asking where she might be. Michael told her that Cathy had taken a walk with Isaac and they should be back soon. Hanna just said “oh” and moved back to Uri whom she was sticking closely to now. Sam, Theresa and Susanna materialized between the corral and the fire and walked toward Jeremiah. Daniel was the first to see them and bumped Michael who was talking with Jake about going and retrieving the Humvee’s. Michael turned and smiled. Sam Houston was grumbling about being kidnapped or something although he was smiling. Jeremiah stood up and saluted the President, “Welcome Sam we have been waiting.” Sam looked at him with a questionable face and said “So you are responsible for these two kidnapping me then. What am I to do with you, and what am I here for? You know that we are being invaded on the eastern border and I must be in the war room.” “Yes sir, we will not take much or your time and I am assured that you will not be missed from the war room. We have acquired some new recruits and they need to be sworn in as Texas Citizens and Rangers. We need additional troops to hold the invasion from the west here.” Sam looked at the group of people that were dressed in the Emperor’s uniforms and turned back to Jeremiah. “We are getting quite a few folks from the Emperor’s army seemingly coming across the border and stating they are deserting and want to join Texas. Can you vouch for these men and women?” Daniel stood up and started to say that all of them had been vetted when Isaac spoke as he and Cathy walked up from the corral area. President Houston, I can vouch for these people or at least the ones from the Dulce base, which does not exist any longer. They helped us clean up that mess and send all the aliens back to their home worlds. I can’t say there aren’t others but that base is completely gone and these folk have all sworn allegiance to the Patriots and Texas. The others have told us how they escaped from that damn I-40 fort and have become detached from the Emperor’s army.”

Sam had listened to Isaac and Jeremiah speak for the extra men and women and then spoke with Theresa and Susanna who told him that they had looked into the minds and hearts of the group and found them to be true to what they professed to, escaping the Emperor’s Army. He knew he was going to send extra troops to this small group of Rangers which would be hard at the moment because of the invasion from the east but here they were and all he had to do was swear them in as Texas citizens and Rangers as they all wanted to join that force. He gathered all of them and spoke a memorized statement and swore them into Texas and the Rangers. He asked them what they were going to do about the uniforms they were all wearing and was told by Susanna that she would handle the uniform problem. Sam didn’t want to know about that and finally said after looking at his chronometer, “I have been gone for at least an hour and those Generals are probably searching like crazy for me.” Theresa took him by the arm and said “Sam I think we can get you back within a minute of when you first left are you ready?” Sam looked at her with a questionable face and said “how are you going to do that and turned around in the big corridor. “What the” he said and looked at his Chronometer. The time was only 1 minute since he left the war room. He smiled at Theresa and said “will you join me for a quick snack before you return?” She smiled at him and wrapped her arm around his as he continued to walk to a small lunch room.

Susanna searched Isaac’s mind and got a clear picture of a base commissary that had a big room where new uniforms lined racks and all the other clothing was stored also. She and Michael gathered 4 at a time and they disappeared and came back within seconds in full dress of the Texas Ranger uniforms. It was determined that they all would keep there present rank but the uniforms would be just standard issue until they could find the proper insignias and name tags. Jeremiah decided to name them the Misfit squads and dubbed them like a knight would have been during the dark ages. Michael had talked with Hank and Jake about retrieving the Humvee’s they left in the small town of Bovina. “Now that you all have the proper uniforms, we can go and have a word with the Sheriff. I think he will be a bit friendlier this time but know that he will be a bit touchy about those vehicles.” Andrew had listened closely and asked if he could be taken with them. “I know the sheriff and we can do this without any type of trouble. In fact He and the people need to be told about the impending invasion so they prepare properly. In fact we must begin to notify the western border towns and cities. I believe that is part of our job out here and Sam definitely knows we will do this. There are 4 main Emperor Forts on the western border of the Panhandle and at least 3 others spread across the southern border of New Mexico. Major Leroux has mentioned something about some of them closing or being abandoned down on the Mentone county border.”

The chopper came in low and landed on the roof top of an old abandoned Walmart that stood on the road leading toward the New Mexico border. The roof top was huge and Michael placed the chopper in the center so no one could see them as they climbed out. He wasn’t sure if the structure was still solid so he kept the chopper just above the roof top until Mark and Tim jumped down and hurriedly searched to see if the structure was still in tact. These old buildings were constructed with steel trusses attached to concrete block walls and called brick and mortar at the time. The Walmart’s sprang up in mass during the early 2000’s and flooded the world through the early 2020’s before becoming obsolete as big box stores. They became abandoned almost overnight it seemed and no one wanted to demolish them. Around the world they became large shelters for the homeless and even semi military operations during the purge of most freedoms. Mark and Tim disappeared through a roof hatch and soon returned. “The roof structure is intact and the building is empty as far as we could see. I can’t believe how big these things were and how in the hell they could fill them with so much stuff,” Mark reported. Michael dropped the chopper to a rest and shut down the rotors. He kept the machine on standby and the 7 man team jumped out and was invisible with the Dispance cloaks. They hurried to the roof edge and levitated to the ground. Andrew Knew where the sheriff’s building was located and they began to move toward it.

Sheriff Kirk Roberts had received an emergency message from the capitol the day before. All it said on the printout was “Alert, impending invasion. Prepare accordingly.” It was cryptic but he knew from his own Intel that the Emperor’s forces were building just across the border in many places. He had already alerted the town folks and the surrounding farms and ranches to stock up on ammunitions and food supplies. Most of the folks that lived in Texas usually kept an underground supply anyway and any invasion from outside would be surprised beyond an ability to succeed. The Army infiltrators that had come through just recently had left three Humvee’s and for the life of him and the town folks he could not figure where they had escaped to. Fred Kister had lost 3 rooms at his motel and was not real happy that no one was willing to pay for the damage. Hell, he was one of the many that unloaded into those rooms. Most folks knew to stand together when it came to defending their town. Fred was just peeved that none of those invaders were caught. Henry and Martha, his deputies were down at the diner for lunch when the front door opened. He thought they might be coming back and was busy looking at the inventory of weapons they had on hand.

Andrew was the first to enter the sheriff’s office. All 7 of the team were cloaked as they spread out in the office. Andrew, Hank and Jake turned off the cloaking device and stood quietly as the sheriff spoke without turning around. “Did you bring my lunch back with you?” The silence made him turn around and when he did he stood up so fast the chair he had been sitting in rolled backward and hit the desk hard enough to bounce sideways and tip over. Kirk looked at the three men that were dressed in the Texas Ranger uniforms and slowly moved to the counter that stood between him and the men. He looked at Andrew closely and finally said “Andrew, what the heck are you doing here, you looking for those Emperor Army invaders?” Andrew looked at Hank and Jake and smiled. Well Kirk, I did hear that you had a run in with someone just recently and managed to ruin 3 motel rooms and capture a few Humvee’s, is this true?” Kirk looked at the two other Rangers and back at Andrew. “News sure travels fast in these parts I guess, yes it seems a couple of squads showed up at Fred’s motel the other day and paid for three rooms. The funny thing about it was they were all still dressed in their uniforms and they really didn’t try to hide the Humvee’s or them selves. We did not know what to think but we weren’t taking any chances what with the Emperor building up his forces all around our country.’ “You here to tell us about the eminent possible invasion, I got the alert over the wire yesterday from the capitol.” Andrew knew that wire would have gone out so he just shook his head. “Yes we are starting to move around and notify folks as best we can, I am sure you have already notified as many as you can.” “Well the folks down at Farwell have already bunkered in and spread along the border as far as possible and I am sending more from here to help them. Seems there might be a couple of platoons of Emperor Soldiers gathering just outside Texico, could be more.’ “What can you tell me about further south? I know the boys from Amarillo will be gathering at that damn I-40 blockade and I hope to God that Sam is sending reinforcements. I know all the other places are most likely building the forces. God Andrew has it finally come to that little puke of a used car salesman actually attacking us?” Andrew looked sternly at Kirk and turned to his men. He waved his hand and the other 4 decloaked. Kirk was startled and Andrew quickly calmed him. “Where are Henry and Martha, we got to talk and time is not on our side at this point.”

Deputy Sergeant Henry Gregory was taking a bite of his Texas Steak burger when the two Texas Rangers walked in the door of the diner. He looked at them while he continued to bite the mouthful from the sandwich and watched both of them walk toward him and Martha. As they approached, Martha turned and looked at them also. The other folks in the diner had hushed up and were watching silently. Both Rangers stopped at the booth and the taller of the two spoke. “Are you Deputy Gregory?” Henry finished chewing his bite and took a drink of his soda. “Yes I am and who might you be?” Martha could feel the tension from Henry and knew he was always suspicious even with these two Rangers. She wanted to calm him but waited for the answer from the Ranger. “I am Corporal Mark Tanner and this is Private Greg Hunter of the Texas Rangers and Sheriff Roberts has sent us to retrieve you. We have notified you and will return to the office. There is a storm on the horizon and you might want to come as soon as possible.” With that being said Mark and Greg both turned and left. As soon as they exited the diner, the people began to chatter. Henry called Janet the waitress over and had her put the rest of his lunch in a carry out as did Martha and they both got up and left.

Henry had pulled his gun on the Rangers when they told him and the Sheriff about the Humvee’s and how they were going to need them at the canyon against the NM fort. He understood that some of these men were the ones that came through a few days earlier and left the vehicles. It was Martha who took him down in the end and talked some sense into him. They all needed to come together now. She left in a hurry to tell people to get out of the public buildings. Henry was really angry but calmed enough to go with her. Kirk showed the Rangers where the Humvee’s were located and when they opened the doors to the garage they all got a surprise. Kirk told them that he would miss the two twin .50’s that had been mounted on the turrets of two of the vehicles. There were two other Humvee’s in the large garage and they too had the old .50’s mounted on the top turrets. The third Humvee was still under construction so it appeared it would have to be left behind. “We filled the ammo cases and the belts are all ready so you owe me Andrew and I expect to see these back when you’re done with them.” They had a good laugh about that. Andrew said “Kirk, we will give that third vehicle to you and that should even us up somewhat.” Kirk was not real happy about that but decided that the duel twin .50’s was a fair trade for the Humvee. Jake and Hank took the driver seats while the others divided and joined. Andrew gave them directions to the canyon from Bovina and where they could leave the vehicles in a safe place until needed. They all bid the Sheriff farewell and Michael took Andrew back to the chopper and they flew back toward the canyon.
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