Obliteration By Barry K. Nelson

Title: Obliteration (McKenzie Files Book 3)

Author: Barry K. Nelson

Genre: Science-Fiction

The three reprogrammed Brelac Reploids forming the special team Silencers still faithfully serve the United Protectorate under the watchful monitoring of the Central Intelligence Division. Stationed on Maseklos Prime, Colin McKenzie, Diane Christy, and Kelly Lytton are called to a hostage scene and end up with clues that lead to the elusive Dr. Arthur Trevors. Although initially a traitor who worked undercover with the Brelac, Trevors was in large part responsible for the capture and reprogramming of Colin, Diane, and Kelly so they could serve their current function as weapons for the Protectorate. The war with the Brelac is not going well, and the Silencers are given an advanced warp-drive ship and sent beyond their home quadrant, Poseidon, to the last known coordinates of a missing ship. Their mission is to locate the missing ship, part of an original task force of five ships sent out to find other human colonies and enlist their help with the war against the Brelac. As soon as Colin and his team leave the quadrant, they run into trouble, and things go downhill from there. They find themselves in the midst of a war between local factions on a planet far from home and feel obliged to aid the human faction against a clearly superior force that seems to have help from a monster who leaves a wake of death and destruction wherever it goes. The more they find out, the weirder things get, and they end up stranded with no way home, much less any hope of completing their original mission to find the lost task force ship. This new enemy they face seems invincible, and they wonder if they’ll survive as everything and everyone around them is destroyed. Maybe this time not even their Reploid powers will save them. But what other hope does humanity have?

 Chapter Sample

Colin had that usual nervous feeling stinging in the middle of

his stomach while he was riding in the front seat of the new car

that the CID had given him, Diane, and Kelly. Finally we get a vehicle

of our own. No more having to depend on shuttles, taxis, or the

subway to get around, he mused. The only drawback to this was

having Diane as a driver. Impulsive and bad tempered, she’d just

received her driver’s license two weeks ago. Even with the tight

safety belt strapped across his torso, Colin was still not feeling

secure as he watched Diane jerk the steering wheel to the left and

right in order to weave in and out of the four lanes of traffic on the

streets of Navarone to reach their destination. Colin imagined that

Kelly, riding in the back seat, was feeling the same way – and

maybe car sick too. He looked a little green in the face, not a good

color for his blond hair he’d recently had cut in a shorter style. Over

the sound of their car’s wailing siren, Colin heard Kelly yip as they

came up close and fast to another vehicle. Diane swerved at the last

moment to avoid a collision.

            I should have gotten my license before Diane, Colin scolded

himself. He looked over at her wearing a black tee‐shirt and jeans,

with a broad smile on her face. The white sneaker on her right foot

shifted frequently from the brake to the accelerator pedal. With the

air from the open window blowing through her long black hair, she

looked like she was on a joy ride, except for the large laser pistol

holstered at her right hip.

            “Do you mind slowing down?” Colin asked. “We want to at

least get there alive.”

            “Slow down?” Diane teased with a laugh. “We have to get

there before those Reploid jackasses kill the hostages. You heard

the report. Their hour deadline is almost up!”

            “I know,” Colin replied sourly. What a way to start the

morning!

            Twenty minutes ago, he was sleeping in his quarters back at

the military base when he was awakened by a phone call from CID

Captain Melony Carter, informing him that Vendetta terrorists had

taken several civilians hostage in an office building and were

threatening to kill them, then detonate a nuclear bomb that was

hidden somewhere in Navarone, unless the government agreed to

release Vendetta operatives from the penal moon Taraxis in the

Tacoma System. Carter also reported that one of the terrorists was

observed using paranormal abilities – Reploid abilities. And that

was why he and Diane and Kelly had been called. Their team, the

Silencers, was the only defense against Reploids, because they were

Reploids too, reconditioned and turned against Vendetta to serve

the Protectorate.

            After the call from Carter, Colin had less than ten minutes

before Diane and Kelly would pick him up, which gave him very

little time to throw on some blue jeans, black shirt, and white

sneakers, and rush to the base’s main gate. By the time he got there,

Diane and Kelly were waiting for him in the black car that now

sped along the highway, careening and swerving through heavy

traffic.

            “If we’re going into a dangerous situation, I think I’d rather

get killed by the bad guys than by a member of my own team,” Kelly

said. He thrust out his hand between Diane and Colin, pointing at

the windshield and shouting, “Car, car, car!”

            “I see it!” Diane shouted back.

            Colin held his breath as he watched their car make a rapid

approach to the rear end of a blue car up ahead. Diane jerked the

steering wheel to the right, and the car swerved into the right lane

to avoid it. Colin was hoping that during the excitement, Diane

would not forget her Reploid strength and accidentally rip the

steering wheel away from the column.

            Colin exhaled, but not out of a sense of relief. “Diane! Truck up

ahead!”

            “I’m on it.” She steered the car to the left to avoid crashing

into the rear end of a red pickup truck. She mashed her foot down

on the accelerator pedal, and the car sped up ahead of the truck,

fishtailed in front of it, then skidded toward an intersection. With

tires squealing, they made a sharp right turn and headed down the

road towards a large crowd. People scattered as their car came to a

screeching halt a few feet away, the momentum jerking Colin’s

body forward.

            “We’re here,” Diane announced.

            “We’re alive,” Colin jabbed. He was amazed that they had

survived being passengers in a vehicle with Diane behind the

wheel. His heart was still pounding when he looked over at her, but

not from a romantic feeling. And they want to train her to be a pilot?

            Diane punched a small touchpad at the right side of the

steering wheel, and the blaring siren quieted. “Okay, let’s do this,”

she said, lunging out of the car.

            Colin and Kelly exited the car. Colin took a second glance at

Kelly. His blue cut‐off denim shorts, green tank top, and black

sneakers without socks made him look ready for a day at the beach

rather than a hostage situation.

            They moved through the crowd of onlookers and came upon a

police roadblock. A five‐foot‐high blue barrier of glowing energy

stretched across the road between two black metal poles. On the

other side of the barrier, three uniformed police officers stood near

their patrol cars with red bar lights flashing. As Colin, Diane, and

Kelly approached the barrier, an officer on the other side walked

over and held up his hand. “Sorry. The road is blocked off. Police

emergency,” he told them in a stern tone.

            In unison, Colin, Diane, and Kelly reached into their pockets

and brought out the black billfolds that held their badges and

identification. “We’re with the CID. Silencers,” Colin explained.

            “Lieutenant Copeland is expecting us.”

            “Silencers?” the officer inquired. He pressed the keypad on the

small remote attached to his belt and spoke into the microphone

attached to his earbuds. “Lieutenant, there are three people here

claiming to be from CID. They call themselves Silencers.” After a

brief moment, the officer said, “Understood,” then reached into his

pocket and brought out a small black remote. He pressed a key on

the remote and a section of the barrier faded away to allow Colin,

Diane, and Kelly to pass.

            They proceeded until they came upon a cluster of vehicles

with flashing red lights parked in the middle of the street – several

police cars in front of and behind two large black armored vans

with ‘SWAT’ emblazoned on the sides. Several uniformed and

plain‐clothes officers crouched down behind the vehicles with their

laser guns aimed at a building several feet away. The SWAT

officers, clad in their heavy black body armor, aimed their laser

rifles at the building. Several robotic assault units, black five‐foot

cylinder‐shaped bodies supported by four thick spider‐like legs,

targeted the building with twin heavy laser guns mounted on their

sides, ready to quash any threat that might emerge from the

building.

            Several feet in front of the police barricade, a chaotic mess of

bloody dismembered bodies – civilians and police – lay scattered

among demolished vehicles.

            “Maybe it would be a good idea to keep our heads down,”

Kelly suggested.

            Colin nodded. A wise idea. He crouched down, along with

Diane and Kelly, and approached two officers who were kneeling

behind a police car. “We’re Silencers, with the CID,” Colin said,

displaying his badge. “Lieutenant Copeland is expecting us.”

            The officer pointed to the left. “He’s over there. I’ll call him.”

The officer pressed a key on the remote attached to his belt, then

spoke into his microphone. A few seconds later, Colin looked to his

left and saw the familiar sight of Lieutenant Copeland, in his

thirties with bushy black hair, carrying a laser gun as he

approached in a crouched position. His black suit, grey shirt, and

black necktie appeared a bit rumpled – understandable, given the

situation.

            “Silencers from the CID. I haven’t seen you three since the

Mertz case,” said Copeland. There was a wide‐eyed expression of

surprise on his face. “The CID sent you to handle this situation?”

            “We’re the best qualified,” replied Colin. “What’s going on?”

            “A group of eleven male suspects walked into the lobby of the

Universal Industries building and killed the three security guards

at the reception station. They then proceeded up to the building’s

twenty‐fifth floor, where they took a number of hostages. Four

officers responded to the alarm that the security guards set off, but

they never made it out alive. We’ve evacuated the building to avoid

any further civilian casualties. So far, the terrorists have the entire

twenty‐fifth floor under their control.”

            “I see that SWAT is here,” said Colin, pointing to the black

vans. “Did they try to storm the building and retake the floor?”

            “Yeah, but their first attempt was a disaster. One of the

terrorists has some kind of energy weapon that we’ve never seen

before. Its effect is pretty damn gruesome. I’m sure that you’ve

seen the aftermath up ahead.”

            Colin raised his head to take another look at the wreckage and

bodies. What kind of weapon could have caused all this damage? He

eyed the wrecked cars. Sections of some vehicles were left intact,

while other sections appeared to be crumpled like tin foil. “The cars

look like they were crushed somehow.”

            “More like imploded,” Copeland corrected. “It’s a hell of a way

to die. We lost six officers. As far as we can tell, they’re using some

sort of implosion beam weapon. All forms of personal protection

we have are useless against it. And we have several witnesses that

have stated that they didn’t actually see the terrorist using a

weapon, but he was actually using his bare hands. Maybe in all the

excitement, they didn’t get a good look at what was happening. You

guys think you can go up against something like that?”

            Colin was starting to wonder the same thing himself, but no

use alarming others by admitting it. “This falls within our area of

expertise. Have the terrorists made any other demands besides the

one‐hour deadline to release Vendetta agents from the prison

moon, Taraxis?”

            “No. But if we don’t meet their demand, they’ll kill all the

hostages and detonate a nuclear device that they have hidden

someplace in the city. We’re up against a rock and a hard place

here. If you have any solutions, I’m all ears.”

            Colin could offer Copeland little in the way of a solution. “This

doesn’t make sense. It seems to me that they’re in just as tight a

spot as you are. Don’t they realize that their chances of pulling this

off are slim?”

            “It’s possible that they do. But it’s my theory that they

probably care very little about getting the prisoners set free. This is

more about striking fear. The slim chance of getting their people

back would probably be a bonus.”

            “How much time do we have before their deadline expires?”

Colin asked.

            Copeland glanced at his wristwatch. “Twenty‐six minutes.”

            “That doesn’t give us much time. Have you tried to negotiate

with them?”

            “We’ve tried. But so far, we’ve gotten nowhere. Our hostage

negotiator was speaking to their leader, a smart‐ass by the name of

Brubaker. He’s not bending on his demands.”

            “Then we’ll just have to make him bend until he breaks,” Colin

told Copeland. He looked back at Diane and Kelly. He was feeling

that all too familiar knot in the pit of his stomach beginning to

tighten. It always came with the knowledge that the three of them

might be walking straight to their deaths. “Ready?”

            Kelly looked back at Colin. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”

            Diane drew her laser pistol from her holster. “Lead the way.”

            Copeland looked over at Kelly, then back to Colin. “Wait a

second. You two are going in there unarmed?”

            “I wouldn’t exactly say that,” Colin told him.

            Colin took in a deep breath, preparing himself for anything,

and was the first to rise. Diane and Kelly rose up and followed him

as he walked past the police barricade of cars toward the building.

They walked past the wrecked cars and the gruesome sight of the

dismembered bodies lying on the ground and reached the

building’s wide glass doors. The doors automatically slid open,

admitting them to a wide lobby with grey stone tiled floor

splattered with blood from the twisted bodies of four police

officers. Colin remained tense as he and Diane and Kelly

approached the black circular reception station. Colin peered down

over the station to find the bodies of three security guards. They

were so mangled and bloody, he couldn’t tell if they were male or

female. “This isn’t good,” he said in a quiet understatement.

Black elevator doors flanked the reception station. A short

corridor led past each set of elevator doors, ending at a door

marked ‘STAIRS.’

                        “Are we going to ride up or walk?” Kelly asked.

“I’m not walking up twenty‐five floors,” Colin answered.

            “Then again, if we take the elevator, they’ll probably be waiting for

us.”

            Diane raised her laser gun and smirked. “Then let’s not keep

them waiting too long. We don’t want anybody up there to get

pissed at us.”

            They approached the elevators. Colin took in another deep

breath and pressed the call button. They waited several tense

seconds for the elevator to come down to the first floor, not

knowing what to expect when the door opened. Luckily the

elevator was empty, and they stepped inside. Colin pressed the

button for the twenty‐fifth floor, and the door slid shut. Colin could

feel the momentum of the elevator as it began to rise, his heart

rate with it. He watched the small black display above the door,

indicating the floor numbers as the elevator ascended. “I wish we

had more time to prepare for this,” he mumbled.

            A sly grin appeared on Diane’s face. “Time to prepare? I’m

always prepared to kick somebody’s ass if they’re asking for it. And

right now these clowns up there want it pretty bad.”

            “Don’t get cocky,” Colin warned. “Remember, we also have to

save the hostages too. Their safety is our priority.”

            “And us coming out of this alive,” Kelly added.

            “Coming out of this alive would be good. You can take the

lead,” Colin told Kelly. Kelly nodded.

            Colin took another look up at the display and saw the number

‘25’ had now appeared. The elevator door slid open.

            Two gunmen stood in front of the elevator, taking aim with

their laser pistols. Kelly raised his hands and created his red shield

of deflecting energy. The gunmen both opened fire. Their laser fire

was deflected back to them upon contact with Kelly’s shield. Struck

by their own shots, both men fell to the floor.

            That was easy enough, Colin thought.

            Kelly dropped his shield, and they exited the elevator. Colin

looked past the two dead gunmen lying on the blue tile floor and

scoped the layout. The twenty‐fifth floor was a huge open area with

three long rows of grey plastic office cubicles. Glass doors lined the

far left and right walls, enclosing offices. Up above, the mirrored

ceiling reflected light from long rows of glowing tubular fixtures

positioned over the cubicles. Two more gunmen came charging

from the cubicles. Kelly took action against them by raising his

hand and pointing two fingers. A fiery stream of energy surged

from his fingers and struck the two men. Upon contact, their bodies

burst into flame and dropped to the floor, reduced to charred

skeletal remains.

            A noise to the left caught Colin’s attention in time for him to

see a gunman rushing out of an office. Diane reacted quickly by

firing rapid shots at the man with her laser pistol. The gunman

dropped his weapon and fell back into the office.

            The three of them began advancing toward the office cubicles.

Two gunmen emerged from the cubicle at the right. With a swift

motion, Colin raised his right hand and sent two bolts of electrical

energy streaking through the air, knocking the two men back

several feet. Both men lay unmoving on the floor while black smoke

rose from their bodies.

            So far so good, Colin thought. We’re still alive, and seven

gunmen dead. But still no sign of the hostages.

            As they continued their cautious advance through the

cubicles, observing the nearly identical desks and computer work

stations, another gunman charged out from a cubicle at the left.

Before he had a chance to shoot, Diane aimed her weapon and fired

four laser bolts into his chest. She rushed toward him and grabbed

him by his neck, lifted him off of his feet, and hurled him to her

right. The gunman crashed through a cubicle and continued sailing

through the air until he crashed through the glass door of an office.

Still advancing with caution, Colin looked to the cubicles at his

left and right. “This is it? And still no sign of the hostages.”

            “They’ve got to be here,” Kelly insisted. “Maybe they’re in the

back.”

            They continued to advance past the cubicles until they

approached the rear wall with black stone tile. The mutilated

bodies of two men lay on the floor between the doorways to the

men and women’s restrooms on either side.

            “If anyone has to go, then now is the time,” Colin joked, trying

to ease his own apprehension. Diane snickered, and Kelly rolled his

eyes.

            Colin heard faint whimpering voices and put a finger to his

lips. “Then men’s room,” he whispered. “Sounds like that’s where

they’re keeping the hostages.”

            Diane looked to Colin. “So how are we going to do this? Do we

charge in there, or do we let them come to us?”

            Before Colin had the chance to think about it, a male voice

called out, “Hold your fire. I’m coming out. I just want to talk.”

            “You want to talk?” Colin answered, suspicious. “Okay, then.

Come out with your hands in the air. No weapons.”

            After a moment, a young black man dressed casually in blue

pants and shirt and black shoes, holding his hands over his head,

emerged from the men’s room and stopped in front of the doorway.

            “Where are the hostages?” Colin asked him.

            “They’re all inside,” the man replied. “They’re all safe.”

Colin breathed out with relief. “That’s good. I take it that

you’re surrendering?”

            “That depends on what my boss says. Brubaker. He’s the one

in charge.”

            “Brubaker,” said Colin. “I was wondering when we’d get

around to him. If he’s calling the shots, then let him come out and

talk to us.”

            The man nodded then backed away and returned to the men’s

room. Colin was still vague as to what kind of weapon these

terrorists used to mutilate their victims. But an ominous feeling

was telling him that he was about to find out. “Get ready,” he told

Diane and Kelly. “Something tells me that we’re not going to have a

fun time.”

            A six foot tall white man with a long ponytail down to his

waist grinned with sinister calm as he emerged from the men’s

restroom. Wearing a blue shirt and black pants tucked into black

knee‐high boots, he sported a thick black belt around his waist,

with two straps crisscrossing his torso. Several blue lights along

the belt and straps drew Colin’s eyes to the black disk‐shaped

device attached to the belt. Even though the man appeared to be

unarmed, Colin knew this gizmo indicated some kind of weaponry.

            Colin cleared his throat and said, “So, I take it you’re Brubaker, the

guy in charge of this bloodbath.”

            “The one and only.” Brubaker crossed his arms against his

chest. “And I take it you’re Colin McKenzie. The famous ‘Sarge.’

Then there’s Captain Diane Christy, the ace pilot who can barely fly

a kite. And the kid, Kelly Lytton. We finally meet.”

            “It’s nice to know that we have a fan base,” Colin comment

dryly, trying not to show his alarm over the fact that this man was

expecting them and apparently knew enough about them to

anticipate their abilities.

            Brubaker laughed. “I’ve been keeping tabs on you three

losers. And it took a hell of a lot of trouble to set this up. But I’m

glad to see that it paid off. Because now you’re here.”

            Colin scowled, ignoring the knot in his gut. “What the hell are

you talking about? You set up this whole hostage thing just to lure

us here?”

            Brubaker smiled and gave a nod. “Yeah. I admit that it’s a hell

of a bit more complicated than just calling on the phone or sending

an email. But it was also a hell of a lot more fun.”

            Colin looked over to Diane and Kelly, then back to Brubaker.

“So ... okay. Now we’re here. What happens next?”

            Diane raised her hand to cut in. “And what about the bomb

that you’re supposed to have hidden somewhere in the city?”

            “First off, there is no bomb. We could have had one, but that

idea would have been too much of a pain in the ass to try to pull off.

And second, now that the three of you are here, I get the chance to

kill you.”

            Here it comes, Colin thought. “Do you think that you can do the

job by yourself? Especially after we took out your crew?”

            Brubaker snorted. “Those other guys were just cheap laser

fodder. I can get the job done by myself. You three aren’t the only

ones that have an advantage when it comes to being a Reploid.”

            Brubaker raised his right hand. It took on a blue glow, then

discharged a beam of energy. Kelly was quick to react. With his

hands already raised, he took a step back and created a large

square panel of his blue energy shield to absorb the attack. When

the beam struck Kelly’s shield he, Colin, and Diane were stunned at

the unexpected sight of the shield collapsing from its square form

to a small, jagged circle.

            Uh‐oh! Colin took a step back and raised his hand to fire a bolt

of electricity at Brubaker. At the same time, Diane opened fire with

her laser gun. Both attacks struck Brubaker head on, forcing him to

stagger back as a blue aura appeared over his body.

            “He’s got a shield harness!” Colin shouted, finally realizing

that the glowing belt and straps Brubaker wore over his torso were

generating a protective shield that blocked Colin and Diane’s

attack.

            The shield’s glow faded as Brubaker raised his hand

towards Colin. Kelly allowed the imploded remnant of his shield to

fade away as he extended his hands and fired a crimson beam of

energy that struck Brubaker in his chest with enough force to

knock him back and through the wall with an explosion of broken

tiles, creating a large hole.

            It took seconds for Brubaker to recover from Kelly’s attack.

He leaped out from the hole in the wall and aimed his hand at Colin

to fire a beam of energy at him. Colin ducked into a cubicle at his

right. Diane and Kelly both ran into a cubicle at the left. Colin

ducked down behind a desk as the deadly energy beam that

Brubaker fired swept across a five‐foot section of the cubicle’s

plastic wall, causing it to collapse on itself with a loud cracking

sound.

            “You see that? Total implosion,” a gleeful Brubaker shouted.

“A very nasty way to die. Just ask one of these pathetic humans

lying on the floor. Oh, wait,” He said, laughing. “They can’t answer.

They’re dead.”

            Brubaker fired another energy bean to strafe the cubicles at

the left where Kelly and Diane were hiding. Large sections of

several cubicles imploded under its power.

            Still in a crouched position, Colin moved from behind the desk

and poked his head from around the cubicle. He saw Kelly moving

from the cover of his cubicle to fire a crimson bolt of energy at

Brubaker. Brubaker took a step back as the blue aura of his shield

appeared over his body under Kelly’s attack. He remained

unharmed. Taking a closer look at Brubaker, Colin saw he held a

small black object in his left hand and wondered how Brubaker’s

shield harness functioned. His shield is pretty strong, but can this

jerk attack while his shield is up?

            Colin decided to test that theory in a most dangerous way. He

stood up and stepped from the cubicle to face Brubaker. “Hey,

asshole!” he yelled.

            Brubaker turned to face Colin. Colin raised his right hand and

fired a stream of electrical energy that struck Brubaker in his chest

and forced him back against the wall. Colin continued to discharge

and hold the stream of electricity on Brubaker, keeping him pinned

to the wall.

            Kelly stepped out from the cubicle with his hands raised,

ready to attack.

            “Something tells me that you can’t attack while your shield is

up,” Colin told Brubaker. “What’s that in your hand? A remote to

your shield harness?”

            Brubaker did not answer.

            While holding a large metal desk up over her head, Diane

rushed out from the cubicle and darted past Kelly. Colin disengaged

his electrical attack on Brubaker just as Diane hurled the desk at

him. The desk came crashing down on top of Brubaker. Its weight

forcing him to the floor.

            Even though Brubaker was down, Colin suspected that the

fight was not over. It was likely that Brubaker’s shield was still

functioning when Diane hit him with the desk. Colin heard

footsteps coming from inside the men’s room. Then he heard the

frantic voice of the young black male calling out. “Hey out there.

Hold on. Take it easy. I’m coming out.”

            What’s this all about? Colin wondered. He turned to Kelly as

he pointed to Brubaker lying under the desk. “Keep him covered.

I’ve got this.”

            “I’m coming out. I’m unarmed,” the man cried out. Seconds

later, he emerged from the men’s room. There was a laser pistol in

his hand. He dropped it on the floor and kicked it towards Colin,

then raised his hands over his head. “Don’t shoot. Or whatever. I’m

giving up.”

            “Keep your hands where I can see then,” Colin warned.

            At that moment the desk began to crumple in on itself until it

shattered into small fragments. Brubaker jumped to his feet and

aimed his hand at the surrendering man, firing a lethal beam of

energy. The man screamed out in agony and folded over when the

beam struck him. His torso imploded into a mass of twisted flesh

while giving out a spray of blood.

            Colin raised his hand and discharged a bolt of energy at

Brubaker, but it was to no avail, as Brubaker’s shield again

protected him. Diane charged towards Brubaker while firing her

laser gun at him. Brubaker’s body jerked back at the impact of each

shot while the aura of his shield flashed, but the shots failed to

penetrate. She ceased firing at him and charged close enough to

him to deliver a punch to his chest. Brubaker’s shield aura flashed

under the impact of her blow, and he was hurled back into the wall.

She pressed her attack and sent another punch to Brubaker’s chest,

then delivered three rapid punches to his body. She reared her fist

back and let out a grunt as she sent another punch to Brubaker’s

body, but this time her fist penetrated his shield and thrust deep

into his chest. The aura of Brubaker’s shield flickered on and off

while his body was forced back against the wall. For a moment,

with wide unblinking eyes, he stared back at Diane. She pulled her

blood soaked hand out of Brubaker’s chest, and then he dropped to

the floor.

            Colin and Kelly moved in closer to Brubaker’s dead body. A

pool of his own blood was now expanding beneath him.

            Diane frowned at the sight of her bloodied hand. “What a

mess. I need a towel or something.”

            “I was hoping that we could have taken this idiot alive,” said

Colin. “There are a lot of questions that he needed to answer.”

            A male voice called out from inside the men’s room. “Hey.

Don’t shoot. I’m coming out.”

            “Another one?” said Colin.

            “I’m giving up. I don’t want any trouble.” A young blond man

emerged from the men’s room. He was holding a laser pistol. “I’m

dropping my weapon.” He placed the pistol on the floor.

            “Keep your hands where we can see them,” Colin instructed.

            The man kept his hands raised above his head and

approached Colin. “I give up,” he said in a quivering voice. “You’re

not going to kill me. Are you?”

            “Not unless you give us a reason,” Colin told him. “I think we

filled our quota for the day. Are there any other gunmen in there?”

            “No, sir. I’m the last one.” The man looked at Brubaker’s dead

body then looked at the bodies of his comrades. “I guess everybody

else is dead. You killed Brubaker.”

            “You catch on fast,” Colin told him. “So, what about you?

What’s your story? Who are you? Are you a Reploid?”

            “Reploid? You mean a freak like you guys?”

            Colin scowled.

            “Sorry. Bad choice of words,” the man replied. “I’m human.”

            Colin was relieved to know that he, Diane, and Kelly would

not have to deal with another Reploid with destructive powers.

            “Okay, then. Maybe you can tell me what this is all about. Brubaker

said there was no bomb.”

            The man nodded. “Yeah. That’s right. There’s no bomb.”

            “No bomb and no demands. What the hell did you guys hope

to gain?” asked Kelly.

            “This whole thing didn’t make much sense to me either. The

boss just said that he wanted us to go out and send you guys a

message. I just follow orders.”

            The boss, Colin thought. He got ominous feeling. “Just who is

this boss of yours?”

            The man hesitated before he answered. “The boss. The thing.

Succubus.”

            “Succubus! I knew it!” Colin shouted, thrusting up his hands.

Dr. Howard Fenlow is dead, but his insane creation is still alive and

kicking – hard.

            “Succubus,” Kelly moaned. “You’re telling me that psychotic

computer set this up just to put a scare into us?”

            The man turned to Kelly. “Yeah. The boss was also hoping that

we could get lucky and kill at least one of you. I guess that was a

little too much to ask.”

            “We should have completely destroyed it during the battle of

Maseklos Prime,” Colin snarled. “Now that evil piece crap is going

to keep dogging us until we put an end to it once and for all!” Colin

turned to the man. “Where is Succubus?”

            “It’s on a Vendetta starbase. I don’t know its exact location.

Brubaker was the only one who knew where it is. He was actually

there. The regular guys like me were contacted and deployed from

a safe house here in Navarone.”

            “So ... what? Succubus is running Vendetta now?” asked Diane.

            “I don’t know, lady. I’m just a grunt.”

            “Where is this safe house?” Colin inquired.

            “It’s on the south side, 6380 Park Avenue,” the man answered.

Colin looked to Diane and Kelly. “I think we should pay this

place a visit.”

            “I agree,” said Diane. “But it could be a trap.”

            “Then we should feel right at home,” Colin told her. He turned

to Kelly. “Escort our friend here outside. Burn a hole in his face if he

tries anything. Diane, go in and see to the hostages. And wash that

blood off your hand.”

            The nervous lone terrorist kept his hands raised over his head

as he walked with Kelly to the elevator. Diane went into the men’s

room to wash the blood off her hand and inform the hostages that

the situation was now under control, and that they were now safe.

Seconds later, several terrified men and women came running out

of the men’s room and headed for the elevators. A few of the

women recoiled at the sight of the dead bodies on the floor,

including Brubaker’s. Colin knelt down by Brubaker and took his

time searching through his pockets, but found nothing. Diane, her

hand now washed clean of Brubaker’s blood, came out of the men’s

room to join him.

            “This guy is clean. No ID. Nothing,” Colin said.

            “So, what now?” Diane asked.

            Colin stood up. “I think we should get to this south side

address and see what we can find there.”

            “What about our prisoner?”

            “I don’t think we’ll learn much more from him. The police can

handle him now.”

            Colin and Diane headed for the elevator, and Colin pressed the

call button. The hostages and Kelly with the prisoner had already

gone down to the first floor, so they rode down alone. When the

elevator reached the first floor, Colin and Diane walked out into the

lobby in time to see the last of the hostages exiting the building

with haste and running for the police barricade. Colin and Diane

walked out of the building and headed for the barricade. Kelly

stood in front of a police car with Lieutenant Copeland and two

uniformed officers. Copeland and the officers had their guns

trained on the surviving terrorist prisoner lying face down on the

pavement.

            “The building is secure,” Colin informed Copeland.

Copeland lowered his weapon toward the ground. “I don’t

know how the hell you guys pulled this off. Especially without

weapons. But good work.”

            “Their leader, Brubaker is dead,” Colin explained. “But he told

us that the threat to detonate a bomb in the city was a hoax.”

            “A hoax? Then what the hell was this all about?” Copeland

asked, holstering his weapon. “What did they want?”

            “To get acquainted,” said Colin.

            “To get acquainted?”

            “Long story.”

Author Bio

A Pennsylvania native, Barry K. Nelson has attended college and has worked at a variety of jobs, including retail and the corporate environment. Barry enjoys reading and gardening and is a fan of science fiction and horror movies, Marvel comic collecting, and the X-box 360.

Barry has written short stories, and his first book in the science fiction series, The McKenzie Files, is soon to be followed by a sequel, Assassination Anxiety.

Barry is a member of Ning and Goodreads, can be found on Facebook, and can also be reached through Penumbra Publishing.

Links

https://www.createspace.com/5250542