Thirst No. 3 (40 page)

The soldiers continue to approach, running fast. I count four hundred. Many are less than a mile away.

“What are we waiting for, damn it?” I snap.

Matt sets his laptop aside. “Start shooting. But remember, our goal is to back them up, slow them down, so they crowd together. That way the land mines will be more effective.”

“Roger that.”

We start shooting. The Telar immediately hit the ground and shoot back, using their lasers. This upsets Matt and for good reason. His mines are largely “Bouncing Bettys.” A Betty, when triggered, tosses a shrapnel-filled bomb three feet into the air. That’s the “Betty,” and it’s the main explosive component of the mine. Because it lifts off the ground, its shock wave and shrapnel spread in a large circle. But Bouncing Bettys don’t work so well if the enemy is already lying on the ground.

Hundreds of lasers scorch our side of the ridge. But I’m surprised at their lack of effect on the granite. It must be because the rock is dry. The bush and shrubs catch fire, but we don’t take any damage.

Matt pauses. “Sita, stop, I’ve changed my mind. We have to get them back up. Turn the Gatling gun on them and sweep
it back and forth.” He reaches for his laptop. “I’m going to call in help.”

“You have someone on our side?”

“It’s not a person. It’s a machine.”

“Great.” I set the Gatling gun on high-speed automatic fire. After I’m sure it’s swinging back and forth in a wide arc—over sixty degrees—I drop back in the hole and resume fire with my laser. I’m afraid to stay close to the Gatling. Already I see a hundred bolts of laser fire trying to take it out. The Telar are excellent shots, but the weapon is buried deep. Still, it’s only a matter of time before one of them gets lucky and the thing explodes.

Matt is focused on his laptop, which annoys me—I could use some help. Especially when a heavily armed assault helicopter swoops over the mountain behind us. I expect it to riddle us with rocket shells. Instead, it opens fire on the Telar, hitting them with mortars, machine-gun rounds, missiles. Now, at last, I know where he’s been getting his air shots from.

The Telar leap up and race toward us.

“Don’t tell me that’s our escape helicopter,” I say.

“I have a spare,” Matt replies. “Cover your ears.”

“I’m wearing earplugs.”

“Put your hands over them.”

I stop shooting and do what he says.

Matt detonates the Bouncing Bettys. All of them, thousands of them. For a minute I imagine the earth’s mantle for miles
around has shattered and the lava beneath has been released. For the advancing Telar it’s literally hell on earth, for they’re caught in waves of fire. And buried in this terrible tide, hidden as smoldering black specks, are countless pieces of shrapnel. They rip into the Telar, their body armor notwithstanding, tearing them to shreds, to bloody meat, and it’s perhaps the tragedy of my immortal life that I’ve lived so long that I’m forced to hear four hundred souls scream at once in agony.

I cannot bear it. I cannot look.

I feel Matt tugging at me, anxious. He has his gas mask on.

“We’ve got to go, Sita. We have to get inside the cave.”

I gesture weakly to our annihilated foe.

“But they’re all dead,” I mumble.

“We can’t be sure.” He’s pulling my mask over my face. “Put this on and let’s get out of here!”

I feel dazed. My voice comes out muffled by the mask.

“What’s wrong?” I ask.

He holds the back of my hand up to my face.

Blisters are forming on my skin. Some dark.

He rubs my skin and takes his hand away.

It’s covered in blood.

“They’ve released something in the air,” he says. “We have to get in the mine and seal it. The others will die if this reaches them.”

“What is it?” I moan as I follow him toward the cave.
Seconds ago I felt physically fine. Now it’s as if a thousand fireflies have landed on my skin and vomited gasoline into my pores. The burning sensation is matched only by an unbearable itch. I can’t stop scratching, and the more I scratch, the more I bleed. Matt’s next words sting as badly as our invisible ailment.

“It’s what Haru’s going to use to kill humanity.”

We are at the mine entrance when I hear them. My ears might be the one part of my body that’s stronger than Matt’s. I have to stop him. He’s preparing to arm Telar grenades and bring the walls down behind us, sealing us inside with the others.

“There are three Telar above us, on the other side of this hill,” I say.

“I don’t hear them.”

“They’re there.”

“I don’t care. Whatever’s out there has to stay out there. We have to block the entrance.”

I grab Matt’s grenade to stop him. “What if it’s not gas but a virus of some kind? We could already be infected. We could carry it straight to the others.”

“It feels like an external agent.”

“That’s because it’s driving us crazy. Listen to me. I never noticed these Telar before until we got this close. They must have been either hiding underground or they’re wearing something that blocks their heartbeats and breathing.”

“Your point?”

“I think they’ve been here awhile. They might have been given orders to observe the battle, and if it started to go against them, they might have had instructions to release this toxin or virus or whatever it is.”

“More the reason to seal this door now.”

“No. Think this through, Matt. We have to know if we’re infected or not. I don’t see anyone alive on the battlefield. I’m pretty sure these three just released this thing. That means they’ll know what it is. They might even have a way to treat it.” I turn. “I have to go after them.”

He stops me. “If you’re wrong, you’re leaving Teri and the others open to a greater chance of contamination.”

“Seal the entrance if I’m gone more than three minutes.”

“I can’t leave you out here.” He wipes at my bleeding face, and I feel the pain of a dozen popping blisters. “You’re sicker than me. I’ll go after them.”

“You know the Telar better than anyone, and you’re stronger than me. I’m more expendable. It’s a fact. We’re talking about the safety of the world here. Let’s stop arguing and let me go.”

“Three minutes, no more.”

“Agreed,” I say.

Carrying a single laser rifle, I rush away from the mine entrance and scurry around the side of the peak. Now that I know the Telar are there, it’s not hard for me to get a fix on them. I surprise them in a ravine not half a mile from the mine. The two females react instantly, firing lasers at me—continuous beams. I have to twist and turn to dodge them, but I finally manage to get off two shots that hit them square in the chests. Their hearts explode, and they go down. I’m on the third one, a guy who looks twenty, before he can shoot. He freezes when I appear—he appears to be the weak link in the group. He wears thick glasses and has a facial twitch. He is not exactly a poster boy for immortals. I don’t care, I don’t have a lot of time to talk. I point my laser at his head.

“Do you know who I am?” I ask.

He’s scared. He seems younger than the rest. “Yes.”

“You released an agent in the air a few minutes ago. What is it? A virus or a toxin?”

He stutters. “I . . . I can’t talk about it.”

I drop the rifle and grab him by the throat.

“You say you know me. You must know I’m a vampire. You must know I can make other vampires by putting my blood in people. I’m going to do that to you right now. Then you’ll live in a constant tormenting thirst. You’ll spend eternity craving blood. You’ll walk the earth feeding from thousands, and it will never be enough.”

I go to bite his neck. He screams.

“Stop! Please stop! I don’t want to be a vampire!”

I relax my grip. “Then tell me what I want to know.”

“If I do, will you let me go?”

“I might.”

“That’s no answer.”

I squeeze him tighter. “Damn you! You will be a vampire!”

He bursts out crying. “I shouldn’t be here! I’m a scientist!”

“Did you help develop this thing that’s causing these blisters?”

“Yes. No! I just helped test it. I never thought it would be used.”

“Tell me what it is. I’m running out of patience.”

“You asked if it’s a virus or toxin. It’s both.”

“How can it be both?”

“I can explain, but I need time. Look, it’s extremely contagious. One part in a billion can cause your skin to blister. But when you inhale it, and it enters your blood, it begins to multiply.”

I feel I’ll go mad from the itching. I interrupt.

“Are you the one who released it?”

“No.” He points to one of the women I killed. “She did.”

“When?”

“A few minutes ago. Our commander ordered her to—”

“Shut up. You’re not infected. Why? Do you have a vaccine? A cure?”

“This pathogen is unlike anything the world has ever seen before.”

I feel my desperation rising. The illness affects my mental state, and I have to fight not to scream. “Damn it. Do you have a vaccine on you or not?”

“Yes.” He points to the same dead women. “She has a vial of it in her pack.”

I release him and search her backpack. She has a vial with a clear fluid with the label X6X6 on it. “Is this the vaccine?” I ask.

“That’s the pathogen. Look in the other pocket.”

The other pocket has a vial of blue liquid with the label T-11 on it. There’s also a packet of syringes. I rip one free. “How much vaccine do I need to stop it?” I ask.

“Ten milligrams works on most humans.”

“I’m not human. I’ll try ten anyway.” Stabbing the vial with the needle, I withdraw the milky fluid and prepare to inject it in my arm. “Is it better taken intravenously?”

“It will work faster, yes.”

“You better not be lying.” I shoot it into my vein and wait. I know I have no time, but I let a minute go by. Then I notice the itching is less and the blisters are shrinking. “How many can I treat with this vial?” I ask, waving the T-11.

“Fifty people.”

I hold up the X6X6 bottle. “How many can I infect with this?”

He gulps. “A million people.”

“Good God. How could you develop such a thing?” He goes to answer, and I stop him. No time. I pick up the laser. “You deserve to die.”

He holds out his hands. “I’ve answered all your questions. Please don’t kill me. I . . . I . . . I cured you!”

“So you have. Come with me.”

“What? I can’t do that.”

“Come with me or die.”

He decides to accompany me. We rush back to the cave. Matt is relieved to see me, although he’s not happy I have brought company. His face oozes red fluid, and his grenade is covered in a film of blood from his blistered palm.

“I was just about to blow it,” he says.

“I know. Matt, this is . . . Who are you?”

“Charles Legart. My friends call me Charlie.”

“Charlie has a vaccine for us. It works. Let me give you a shot.” I take out a fresh syringe and stab the vial of T-11.

“Wait! How do you know you can trust this guy?”

“He’s a scientist. He doesn’t belong here. Stick out your arm.”

Matt does as he’s told. He has large, healthy veins. I inject him.

Charlie pales as he stares at Matt. “You’re the Abomination.”

Matt smiles through his pain. “Everything you’ve heard about me is true.”

“Are there any other secretly placed Telar in this area?” I ask Charlie.

“Not that I know of.”

I turn to Matt. “Give me the grenade—I’m feeling better already. I’ll set it.”

Matt doesn’t argue. He staggers as he herds Charlie deeper into the mine. I give them a head start, then set the timer for fifteen seconds and arm the grenade. Knowing the shock wave will be focused by the walls of the cave, I run after them as fast as I can. The blast is strong, deafening, I’m almost knocked off my feet. Charlie and Matt are flattened. I help them up.

“My blisters are beginning to go away,” Matt says.

“T-11 is the perfect antidote for X6X6,” Charlie boasts.

“Can you produce more T-11?” I ask.

Charlie looks nervous. “No. I mean, I never worked on the vaccine. That’s a whole other line of research.”

“You must have some idea of how it works,” Matt says.

Charlie shakes his head. “I’m afraid not.”

Matt turns to me. “Get rid of him.”

Charlie perks up. “But I’m a chemist, a biochemist, and a geneticist. I can break it down to its component parts.”

I look at Charlie and sigh. “We’ll keep him alive for now. But if you fail us, I’ll have you for supper.”

“Dessert,” Matt suggests. “Eat him alive.”

“That sounds wonderful,” I agree.

Poor Charlie is left speechless.

We reach our friends minutes later, and I give them each an injection of T-11. It’s fortunate I went back for Charlie, for their sakes. Each of them is showing signs of the infection. Shanti, in particular, is suffering with the skin on the reconstructed portions of her face. Seymour questions Charlie but is not happy with his answers.

“No virus can incubate this fast,” he says. “It’s impossible.”

“You’re right,” Charlie says. “But X6X6 has two components. It’s a toxin and a virus. The blisters are caused by the toxic aspects.”

“We’re over a mile underground,” Seymour argues. “How could it have infected us?”

Charlie frowns. “It’s highly contagious. But I must admit I’m surprised you three show symptoms.”

His answer is not reassuring.

Yet on the whole the gang is relieved. It shows in the way we casually chat as we hike toward the other end of the mine, where a carefully buried helicopter should be waiting for us just outside. We have withstood a brutal attack and emerged without casualties. It’s true it will take me time to recover from the death cry of the Telar army, but I blame Haru and not Matt’s thousands of land mines for those soldier’s deaths. It’s my hope we’ve given the Telar a black eye that will make them hesitate to go ahead with their genocide plan. If I was in Haru’s shoes, I’d be uneasy knowing we had obtained samples of X6X6 and T-11. And he will know, once his people examine the area.

The mine proves to be more of a maze than I anticipated, with many twists and turns and changes in altitude. For the first hour we climb, then we reach steep sections where the human members of our party have to use ropes to get down. Matt isn’t troubled by the dusty floor or the creaking walls and ceiling. He says the mine has lasted over a hundred years and it won’t collapse on us now.