Victernus - Chapter 5
It was only a couple of hours before
they reached Colorado and were on the road again. The "Sanctuary," as Namara's
friends had called it, was built far into the Rocky Mountains, away from most
cities and inaccessible unless the way in was known. It was built not only to
achieve his goal, but also so that his friends could live how they wanted and
conduct their own research without someone looking over their shoulders. From
the air, it seemed like there was nothing. It was the perfect hideout.
Hector stopped the truck at the end
of a dirt road, deep within a forest. They had driven at least forty miles away
from the airport in Denver and were now sitting in the middle of nowhere. He
looked to Namara, who nodded and then unfastened his seat belt. Taking his keys
out, he opened the truck and got out. He held the door open for Namara while
taking I the view. The noon sun barely came through the dense fir trees
surrounding them. Relative to them, the time had not yet changed because the
train was so fast.
Namara stepped out in front of him
and looked back to ensure that he would follow. Hector understood and shut the
door. He followed the wolf into the forest, listening to a few birds chirping
and the sound of twigs snapping under their feet.
After winding around many trees and
circling a few times, they stopped at a tall, fat hunk of a tree. Hector looked
down and saw his friend writing in the dirt again. It read, "Speak. Are you a
friend?"
Hector nodded, "Yes."
Namara shook his head and rubbed out
the words, replacing them with "Say it."
He thought for a moment and then
said, lacking some confidence, "I am a friend...?"
When he finished speaking, the tree
made an ominous cracking sound. More cracking emerged from the center. A split
appeared in the bark, and then a light came out from it, as if the tree was
scanning them. It descended from top to bottom. When it finished, the light
brightened and completely enveloped them.
The light disappeared. Hector, who
had shielded his face, lowered his arm and saw that they were in a different
place. They stood in the center of a dark courtyard. It was surrounded by thick
vegetation. Two sets of stairs stood on both sides of one end.
Namara trod across the ground and
made his way up the stairs. He went under a wide stone archway and found
himself back home. He breathed deeply and smiled.
Hector came up the stairs slowly,
still trying to comprehend what had just occurred to him. When he found the
archway, he saw a young brunette woman dressed in brown leather clothing
crouched down in front of Namara. She was barefoot. Judging by her facial
features, she was probably only twenty years old. Both of them were in the
center of a hallway that was about six feet wide.
He stopped at the beginning of the
hallway. When she saw him, she stood up and asked, "Who's this?"
Putting his hands in his pockets, he
replied nervously, "Hector Addison. That wolf there just appeared in my truck
yesterday... and if I'm not mistaken, he is Namara?"
She nodded, "Well, obviously. Theo
is working on a way for him to communicate with us telepathically, but I don't
know where he is with it right now. But, we can talk about that later. I'd like
to know more about you." She turned and walked up a set of glass steps at the
end of the hallway, Namara trailing behind.
Hector followed them, "Oh, I'm just
a farmer from western Connecticut. Namara asked me to bring him to this place.
I left my wife, Judy, to take care of things while I was gone."
She nodded, "Ah. I am Mahalia
Galvarros, Namara's mate. We've been living here for a few years, but he had to
go take advantage of some resources to get closer to his own goals."
They came into another clearing - a
glass, hexagonal platform surrounded by mahogany planks - where they could see
the whole sanctuary from above. It was raised, and similar rooms were spread
out in the forest below them, connected to each other by bridges and ladders.
Each one had a blue light glowing beneath it, providing ample visibility. There
were chairs and tables arranged neatly on each one. Silver railings were on the
edges, and blue, transparent screens floated in the air just outside of them. All
kinds of experimental equipment were lying around on the tables. But, most
importantly, the whole structure was covered by dense trees. Little sunlight
came through.
Hector was almost breathless. "Did
you build this all yourself? Or... do you have a contract with the government?"
Mahalia shook her head and laughed,
"Nobody knows about this place. The government would have a panic attack.
Namara designed it, but our friends are the ones who have been doing most of
the research."
"Oh. Why do you do it?"
She shrugged, "Because it's fun. We
like working on our own projects without anyone else interfering. It gives us a
different kind of freedom, you know?"
Hector approached the edge and
rested on the railing, looking down. "This must have cost a fortune..."
Mahalia sat on one of the couches
and beckoned for Namara to come. "Namara provided most of the money. He didn't
want to keep it all to himself, so he invited me and some of his friends to
join him. Now we're here."
One of the floating screens hovered in
front of Hector suddenly. It was showing a video feed being broadcasted from a
different location. Another man who was Mahalia's age and was dressed in a
smooth black cotton robe was staring into the camera on the other end. "Uh... who
are you?"
He struggled to find words,
bewildered. Mahalia got up and came to his side, "Oh, hey Chomp. This is
Hector. He brought Namara with him. What's going on?"
He pointed to something on the
screen he was working on, "Check the security system. There seems to be an error
in the code, but I can't find exactly where it is. It's screwing up the systems
over here, and Theo can't seem to get any work done because of it."
Mahalia stretched her hands over the
railing. Another screen appeared below them. "I'm checking. Do you know if he's
finished Namara's communication implant?"
He nodded, "Yeah. In fact, I
uploaded it to the system just a few minutes ago. You can send him to the tech
room to get it constructed and implanted."
Mahalia glanced back at Namara and
motioned for him to go. Namara went to the bridge on the side of the platform
and headed out.
Chomp continued, "Once he's all set,
we can..." His face was filled with fright suddenly. He ran his hands through his
short black hair, "Oh crap! I have to cut the satellites! Someone's trying to
sniff us out. I'll call you back when-"
The video shorted out and the screen
faded. Mahalia pounded the railing with her fist, "Damn it!"
Hector turned and rested against the
railing. "You think they'll be alright?"
She shook her head and sighed,
"They'd better be. This hasn't happened before. Nobody should know about this
place..." She narrowed her eyes at Hector, "Did you bring a tracker?"
"A... tracker? I don't think so, but I
did have a run in with some FBI agents this morning. They gave me this," he
said as he pointed towards the bruise on his face.
"Darn." She pointed to one of the
platforms below them. "Go stand in the center of that one. If you do have a
tracker, it'll fix it. Just tell me when you're ready."
Hector nodded and then made his way
down the ladders and bridges. Standing in the middle of the platform, he looked
back up at Mahalia. "I'm ready."
She acknowledged him and typed a
command into her screen. An intense blue light shot down through Hector,
leaving him stunned. When he came back to his senses, he saw Mahalia talking to
Chomp again. He wiped his brow and came back up to the main platform. "I guess
that worked?"
They both nodded.
"Oh... I guess I was bugged then."
Chomp disconnected the video. As
they settled down, Namara came to the side entrance of the platform. Can you guys hear me?
Mahalia turned, a giant smile stretching
across on her face. "Yes! You're back!" She ran to him and then hugged his
neck. Hector just watched quietly, smiling.
I
am... And now, I can really try to find it. Hector... You might have to leave us
for a while.
Hector sighed. "Well... I know. But..."
Is
there something you wanted to ask me?
He stood up and stroked his chin.
"Yeah... Why?"
Both Namara and Mahalia asked,
"Why?"
"Yes... Why have you done all of this?
I know about your friends, but what about you? The only thing I know about you
is what the news stations are saying, and I know that isn't true."
Namara looked away. Well...
"Well?"
I'm searching for something. Something I had
once. Or at least, I think I did.
He paused and looked up at Hector while Mahalia left to get something. For much of my life, I've known exactly what
it is. I can see it clearly when I think about it. But... He glanced away
briefly. I can't seem to say what it is,
and I certainly don't know how to get it. Every time I try, it vanishes.
There's not much else that I care for, except for my friends sometimes... A
small twinge of sadness came through with his thought.
Hector watched him, unsure of how to
feel about it. "That stinks... You haven't found anyone else who wants the same
thing? And, since you are telepathic now, couldn't you just show me?"
It
is possible, but no... I have not found anyone. Not among the hordes of humans I
have met, or even among my friends. He paced around the room. I will try to show you. You will be the
first to ever see it, besides me. Are you alright with that?
Hector smiled, "I would be honored."
Namara stopped and sat down. Well, here goes nothing... He faced Hector
and tried to bring every aspect of the Koanthanatus into his mind. All kinds of
feelings and images coursed through him. He focused further, trying to hold it
all together and direct it towards his friend. But, as he began, a new kind of
tension built up within his mind. Streaks of red and orange light spread to his
eyes, flying at his head and slowly enveloping his vision. What... is this...?!
Hector grasped his forehead, "Whoa, don't yell."
Namara tried harder, but the intense
fire he was seeing only strengthened. He groaned. AAAAHHH!!!
Hector held his head with both hands, "Stop... trying!
It's not working!"
He was barely able to hear his
friend, but he managed to stop himself. However, the fire did not.
Hector shook his head to try to
clear it out. Opening his eyes, he saw Namara sitting stiffly in front of him
with his eyes wide open. "Namara? Are you alright?"
Namara tilted his head to the side a
little bit, as if looking behind Hector. His pupils had shrunk a great deal. His
voice came in, but it was clear he was still struggling. W...what?
He bent down and held his shoulders,
"Talk to me, kid. What's going on?"
A whisper entered his mind. I... see... fire... Where are you?
Mahalia came up to the platform and
saw the two on the floor, in front of each other. "Are you guys alright?"
Hector kept his eyes fixed on
Namara. "Um... Something happened... He tried showing me whatever he's been trying
to find, but by thinking it to me, and now..." He looked back, "He says he sees
fire, but that's it. I don't know what's going on."
When Mahalia approached them, tears
poured out of Namara's eyes. She picked up her pace, "Whoa!"
Hurts...
She bent down and stroked Namara's
face, wiping the tears away. She waved to Hector to move back. "I think he's
talked about this before, but I've never seen him like... this." She scooped him up and held him in her arms. "I'll see what
I can do. Don't worry... it's not your fault."
Hector nodded and stepped back. "I
hope he'll be alright."
She left through the side entrance.
"Oh, I'll make sure of it. You can follow me if you want, but don't touch
anything if you stay!"
He
sighed, looking around the empty room. As interested as he was before, this was
nothing like what he was expecting.