HALLOWED_GROUND Read online

  Jay offered his hand. “I know, Jonathan. I’ve gotten old while you’ve been sleeping.â€�

  Jonathan bypassed the handshake, grabbing Jay up in a bear hug. Jay noticed how strong he still was after all this time. “Whoa, Jonathan, gentle, gentle…don’t forget about your strength,â€� Jay said.

  “Oh yeah, sorry, Jay.â€� Jonathan set his feet back on the ground and let him go. “I had forgotten.â€�

  “How do you feel?â€�

  Jonathan rubbed the back of his neck. “Considering how long I’ve been down, I’d say, great. Dr. Mathers told me I’ve been asleep for almost thirty years.â€�

  “That’s right.â€�

  “Does that mean you’ve found a cure for the mutagen?â€� Jonathan asked.

  Jay looked downcast. “I’m sorry, Jonathan, but I’ve been trying ever since I completed medical school. I’ve had the best minds working on it, but we’ve not been able to reverse the effects.â€�

  “Oh, well, I guess I just figured…â€�

  “Actually, there’s another problem, Jonathan,â€� Jay said. “It’s kind of complicated to explain.â€�

  Thunder rumbled throughout the building. The lights flickered off, then back on. Jay looked up, surprised. “No.â€�

  “What is it, Jay?â€� Jonathan asked.

  Dr. Mathers joined Jay and Jonathan. “Do you think it could be him?â€�

  Thunder vibrated the building again, and the lights flickered. Jay looked at Mathers and Jonathan. “I’m afraid so.â€�

  •

  Samuel stood in the street before the Halo Tech building rising into the evening sky. “Come out, come out, wherever you are, Dr. Young!â€� He squeezed his eyes shut, and a shockwave smashed into the face of the building. Hundreds of panes of shatterproof glass fractured and fell from their frames. Glass showered the pavement before him.

  Cars had stopped. Pedestrians stood watching the incredible display from a safe distance. Police sirens closed on the area. The sky lanes hummed overhead, shunting evening traffic.

  Police vehicles departed the sky lanes, descending on the square before Halo Tech. Samuel waited for them to land. Glass continued to rain down from the front façade.

  Police, in SWAT uniforms, filed out of carriers, flooding the plaza around Samuel. He stood his ground watching the building. “Did you call the police to save you, Dr. Young?â€� He hit the building with another shockwave. More glass cascaded onto the pavement as the superstructure shuddered.

  Weapons leveled on Samuel. “Freeze, Stokes! You’re surrounded!â€�

  Samuel turned to look at the one who had spoken to him. Over fifty armed police officers stood with their weapons trained on him. Five police carriers sat behind them in a semicircle spread over the plaza. “Give yourself up peacefully, Stokes. We don’t want to be forced to hurt you, kid.â€�

  Samuel noticed that the weapons were unusual. He had seen them before—tranquilizers. He laughed to himself, closed his eyes, and raised his hands in the air. When he did, all five police carriers exploded, launching plumes of fire into the air.

  The SWAT officers dropped to the pavement, caught unaware. Flaming fragments of their vehicles cascaded down around them. The officers tried to regroup as pedestrians screamed and sought cover.

  Three decorative fountains sprayed water into the air within the plaza. Samuel took control. The molecules aligned to his will. The water from all three fountains converged into living streams, flowing out toward the policemen. When the police stood up again, a watery serpent smashed them back to the ground.

  Samuel focused his attention on the building again as the water flowed through the air among the policemen, keeping them at bay. “You’re going to have to come out here and face me, Dr. Young. Don’t make me come after you!â€� Samuel threatened.

  Another shockwave smashed into the building. The police remained helpless. Some had already run from the firing line. Others lay unconscious on the pavement. In the distance, Samuel heard the approach of more sirens on their way to the scene.

  •

  A warning resounded throughout the Halo Technology Building. The power faded again within the cryo vault. Jonathan watched as even the emergency lighting blinked off before coming slowly back online. “What’s causing that, Jay? Trenton hasn’t escaped has he?â€� Jonathan asked.

  “No, his remains are still preserved in a high security cryogenic chamber near the entrance to this vault.â€� Jay crossed to one of the computer terminals. “What’s happening now may be just as bad or worse.â€�

  Dr. Mathers crossed the room to some of his monitors, checking readings on his experiments and the cryo vaults. “He’s not only disrupting the main power, but the emergency power grid as well. Jay we can’t have that…not with these cryo vaults depending on emergency power.â€�

  Jonathan walked up behind Jay, where he had an exterior camera feed displayed. On the screen, a young man stood in the middle of the Halo Tech Plaza. Policemen had him surrounded, or at least it appeared so at first. A living tube of water, coming from the decorative fountains, chased the policemen away who tried to approach the boy.

  Jay turned on the exterior microphone feed, and the boy’s voice spoke to them within the cryo vault. “—going to have to come out here and face me, Dr. Young. Don’t make me come after you!â€� The building shuddered again, and the lights went dark.

  Jonathan, Jay, and Dr. Mathers waited a moment for the emergency power to kick on. It never did. Mathers stumbled around his desk. “No…not the emergency power, too!â€�

  Jay turned to Jonathan in the dark. “We’re going to have to get out of here the hard way.â€� He opened a drawer and removed several flashlights. Jay lit one and handed Jonathan one. “Tim?â€�

  Dr. Mathers found them and took the last flashlight. Jay looked at Jonathan. “That boy out there is Samuel Stokes. He’s a telekinetic, the product of Dr. Andre Sarkov’s research.â€�

  “You mean he can move things with his mind?â€� Jonathan asked.

  Mathers interrupted. “He is destroying buildings with his mind, and now the emergency power grid is offline.â€� Mather’s eyes lit up. He ran down the vault in a frenzy.

  Jonathan and Jay walked after him. “What does Stokes want with you, Jay?â€�

  “I’m not quite sure. It’s complicated, but the FBI believed he might come after me, now that he’s destroyed the research facility where he was born.â€�

  “He literally destroyed the whole building?â€� Jonathan asked.

  “Samuel destroyed a skyscraper as big as the one we’re in and used it to flatten the Psy-Corp complex.â€� Jay made a motion with his arm like a tree falling over. “I had to wake you out of cryo because the FBI had me clear everyone out of Halo Tech. I couldn’t just leave you behind. It would have taken too long to find a place to safely move you while you were under.â€�

  Jonathan smiled, placing his hand on Jay’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. I’d rather be walking on my own two feet anyway. I can’t believe all that I’ve missed.â€� Jonathan started to ask a question, but stopped himself.

  “You’re wondering what happened to Joseph?â€� Jay guessed.

  Jonathan nodded.

  “He died about ten years ago.â€�

  Jonathan closed his eyes. Tears tried to come. He wiped them away. “How?â€�

  “Cancer. But he didn’t suffer. You know how Joseph was. He didn’t go to the doctor much, so when they found the tumor, it had already metastasized. He went to be with the Lord about a month later, very pea
cefully.�

  “Well, at least he’s with the Lord.â€� Jonathan sighed. “That gives me comfort. I just don’t understand why the Lord has left me here.â€�

  “Oh no!â€� Dr. Mathers stepped away from the special cryo vault. He looked up at the status light above the vault door. The light would remain green as long as the temperature parameters were maintained for cryo stasis. The light now blinked an angry red.

  Jay shined his light on Mathers as he backed away from the vault door. “What’s happening, Tim?â€� His light followed Dr. Mathers’ gaze up the wall to the blinking red light, then down again to the door.

  Dr. Mathers looked back at Jay. “The cryo chamber is failing.â€� He walked toward the door to the small square window positioned at head height. The lighting within had failed. The capacitor only held enough power to keep the warning light blinking.

  Jay and Jonathan walked up the metal steps behind Dr. Mathers. “What’s in there, Jay?â€�

  Jay turned to him with his light. “Trenton.â€�

  Dr. Mathers fidgeted with a manual gauge situated below the blank digital readout. He looked inside the door window and shined his light within. The building shuddered again under the force of the angry eighteen-year-old outside. “I’m not getting a good reading from the internal thermometer.â€�

  Jay shined his light on Dr. Mathers and the window. “What’s it reading, Tim?â€�

  Black pitch smashed into the window glass where Dr. Mathers peeked through. He stumbled back, landing against the metal hand railing. Jay and Jonathan gasped when they saw the black liquid sliding along the cracked window. “He’s loose!â€�

  Dr. Mathers tried to stand. Jonathan leaped up to the landing to help him. “Come on, Doc, let’s get outta here!â€�

  Mathers stood and tried to run with Jonathan. His foot remained fixed. He shined his flashlight down to his ankle and found an oozing black tentacle fastened to him. “Help!â€� Jonathan reached for him, but the tentacle tore Mathers back.

  Mathers slammed into the cryo vault door. His flashlight spun off into the dark chamber. Jay shined his light on Mathers, as Jonathan ran to help him. “Be careful, Jonathan!â€�

  The black pitch against the window burst through and wrapped around Mathers’ face. The tentacle snapped sideways, breaking Dr. Mathers’ neck. His body went limp, and the tentacles released him. One of them reached for Jonathan. He skidded to a halt on the landing, ducking as the gelatinous, black appendage swiped at his head and missed. Jonathan fell back, scooting away as the other tentacle lunged for his leg.

  Jay grabbed Jonathan’s arm and pulled, trying to get him to safety. Jonathan stood, shining his light on the cryo vault door again. Thick liquid, like tar, crawled over the top of the door, and down toward the floor where more of the ooze seeped out from under the door. “We’ve got to get out of here, Jonathan!â€� Jay pulled him away from the horrible scene.

  They ran, swinging their flashlights, down the corridor toward the elevator. Jonathan’s bare feet slapped against the cold tile floor. “What level are we on?â€�

  “The lowest. We’re about one hundred feet below ground,â€� Jay said.

  They reached the elevator doors. “It’s no good. The power is off. Do you have some other way out?â€� Jonathan asked.

  “The ladder tube!â€� Jay ran back about twenty feet, searching the wall with his light until he found the door. He opened it as Jonathan caught up to him. “This ladder will take us all the way to the street level.â€�

  The building shuddered again. The lights flicked on for just a moment. Jonathan looked back toward the lab in time to see Dr. Mathers’ lifeless body flung past the corridor opening. A shiny black figure appeared just before the lights went out again. “Get moving, Jay! Here he comes!â€�

  HALLOWED_GROUND

  12 UNLEASHED

  Jonathan followed Jay, climbing the metal ladder toward the street. “Come on, we’ve got to move!â€�

  “You’ve been asleep for thirty years, and I’m not a kid anymore!â€� Jay said, breathlessly.

  “You won’t be anything, if you don’t move it. I saw Trenton reform back there.â€� Jonathan stayed right on Jay’s heels. Laughter ascended to them. Jonathan looked down to find Trenton standing at the bottom, now fifty feet below them.

  He appeared very much the same as he had before the great metamorphosis which had changed him, forever, into the monster, Nemesis. “How long has it been, and my little cousin is still alive and kicking? You see, Jonathan? I made you immortal after all.â€�

  Jonathan didn’t reply. The laughter grew louder, and he heard the slap of powerful appendages on metal. The ladder vibrated as the creature started climbing the rungs.

  Jonathan looked down. Trenton had returned to his Nemesis form. A seething body of black pitch launched multiple tentacles, grasping the ladder rungs, propelling itself upward. Nemesis ascended faster than Jonathan or Jay could keep pace with. “I’m coming for you, Jonathan,â€� Nemesis said.

  The building shook again. This time they felt the shockwave with more force. Jay lost his grip on the ladder and fell. Jonathan blocked his descent, then helped him get a hold again. Jay’s flashlight skittered past Jonathan and ricocheted from the ladder rungs to the wall, then stopped twenty feet below them. The beam moved to shine up the tunnel at them. “I see you.â€�

  Jonathan pushed Jay forward. “Keep moving!â€� Jay surged forward with renewed vigor, taking two and three rungs at a time. Jonathan followed, his flashlight banging the rungs as he climbed.

  “Gotcha!â€� A black tendril snagged Jonathan by the ankle and pulled. Jonathan held tight to the rung he was on. Nemesis grabbed the other leg at the knee. Another tentacle wrapped around his right bicep and pulled his hand away from the ladder. Jonathan’s flashlight fell away and dropped down the tunnel, banging off the wall several times before smashing at the bottom. The tunnel went completely black.

  Jay stopped climbing. “Jonathan, are you okay?â€�

  “Keep climbing!â€�

  Another shockwave hit the building. The lights in the ladder tube came on. Jonathan saw the living tar creeping over him. “Hello, Johnny, did you miss me?â€� Nemesis gurgled.

  Jay screamed above him. “Jonathan!â€�

  “Keep going! Don’t worry about me!â€� Jonathan tried to smash Nemesis into the wall with his back, but it had no affect on the creature. With the lights still on, Jonathan spotted the power conduit running up the wall behind the ladder. He grabbed the metal pipe and yanked it out of its housing on the wall. The joint nearest him broke apart, leaving insulated wiring hanging loose.

  Nemesis wrapped around his arm, fighting him. Jonathan let go of the ladder and grabbed the cables in both hands. He tore them apart with his great strength, sending a shower of sparks bouncing around the ladder tube. Jonathan jammed the bare cable straight into Nemesis’ gooey body.

  Electricity surged through Nemesis and Jonathan. He screamed as pain ignited every nerve in his body. Nemesis recoiled from his grip on Jonathan. The smoking tar body fell away, tumbling down the shaft toward the cryo vault below.

  Jonathan barely perceived his freedom from the creature. The voltage coursing through him had stopped, but the tetanus on his muscles remained. He tried to open his eyes again. Consciousness seemed to fade.

  “Wake up!â€�

  Jonathan responded. He opened his eyes, looking toward the voice. Jay stood on the ladder next to him, trying to get a grip on his clothing. Jonathan looked up. His hand still held a death grip on the dead end of the power cable coming out of the ruined conduit pipe.

  Jonathan smiled weakly. “I thought I told you to keep mo
ving.�

  “Haven’t you figured it out yet? I’m older than you now, so respect your elders and get over here on this ladder. We’ve still got to get to the surface before Trenton comes back.â€�

  Jonathan grabbed Jay’s hand and got back onto the ladder rungs with him. “Are you all right?â€�

  “Yeah, I’ll be fine after my head clears.â€�

  “Well, clear it on the way. Let’s move.â€� Jay scrambled up the ladder again. Jonathan followed, glancing down as he went. Nemesis had not started back up…yet.

  •

  Jonathan and Jay reached the top of the ladder tube. Jonathan kicked the exit door so hard it tore completely off its hinges, falling into the lobby. They ran toward the front of the building through a sea of broken glass. Many of the windows had shattered along with the glass doors.

  Jay skidded to a halt when he remembered where they were running. “Wait, Stokes is out there.â€� He grabbed Jonathan’s arm to stop him. They both looked back toward the ladder tube as the metallic pitter-patter of climbing echoed out to them.

  Jonathan looked at Jay. “We had better figure out the lesser of two evils, really fast.â€�

  Nemesis shot out of the tube like a torpedo, rebounded off the ceiling, and hit the floor reforming into a man. He rose, assuming Trenton’s shape again. “Nowhere to run, Jonathan?â€�

  Thirty yards stood between them and Nemesis. Jonathan looked out toward the plaza. “We don’t exactly know what the kid wants, but we definitely know what that thing wants. I vote we run out there.â€�

  “Are you kidding? You have no idea what Stokes can do.â€�

  Jonathan looked back to Nemesis. The creature broke into a run for them. “No, but I know what he can do.â€� He turned and started for the door. Jay reluctantly followed. “I hope you know what you’re doing.â€�