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As Seattle gazed through the crack between the lid and the coffin, she was appalled by the sight before her. Jason had warned her in his message to be prepared for a gruesome spectacle, but she had no idea it would be quite so bad. It troubled her that her children would have to see such a menacing sight, as mantis-like beings pulled body after body from the line of coffins and systematically hung them by their ankles while further down the line another team gutted them.
Would her troops be able to move when it was their time to do so or would they be frozen by the brutal display before them? She would find out in just a few minutes. The coffins with her troops were approaching the line of aliens who were busily prying the tops of the coffins open. She lowered the lid and felt Tinker shaking beside her.
"Are you okay?" she whispered.
After a momentary pause, Tinker answered, "Okay." Then, after another pause, "Everyone will be okay. We won't let you down. "Once again, Tinker's perceptiveness amazed Seattle. She prayed he would be right one more time.
She slowly counted to twenty in her head before cracking the lid again. They were less than fifteen yards from the first alien, who was busy with his job.
"Get ready," Seattle whispered, and felt Tinker's head against her shoulder as he nodded.
Seattle waited until the final second as the alien began to force his pry bar under the lid. She flung the lid up with all her might, catching the alien by surprise. The lid smacked against his head, sending him reeling back. Before the alien could catch his balance, Tinker's stun-beam sent him to the floor.
The next several minutes were utter pandemonium. The lids of the other coffins flew open, as though controlled by the same lever. The kids stayed in the coffins, using them as protection against the weapons of the alien guards. As Jason had instructed in his message, Seattle's troops concentrated their attack on the guards. Their efforts were aided by the workers who ran around bumping into each other and adding to the confusion of the guards. It took only a few minutes for the small force of guards to be dispatched leaving the workers to flee to other parts of the compound.
"Quickly, everyone in that shuttle over there," Seattle shouted. "We've got to get to the Central Area before they have a chance to prepare for us."
All fourteen climbed into the shuttle with Seattle pulling up the rear. No one had been injured. The entire team was still intact. As Seattle repeated to herself, we can do this, we can do this, she actually started believing it for the first time.
––––––––
THE DOOR TO THE COMM room opened slowly and Carmiel entered the room. Jason sat on the other side of the room in the shadows and watched as Carmiel, silhouetted by the light behind him, came closer.
As Carmiel reached for the light switch, Jason spoke.
"Keep the light off, close the door and don't make a sound. I would be only too happy to demonstrate the effectiveness of this stun-beam. I can tell you from personal experience that being stunned is something you would not enjoy."
"Well, hello, son," Carmiel said, without any note of surprise in his voice. "Is that any way to speak to your father?" His hand wavered a few inches from the light switch.
"Shut up and do as you're told," Jason replied. "I would enjoy finding an excuse to use this on you."
Carmiel did as he was told and closed the door. Jason turned the light on next to him and shined it in his father's face. "Sit down." He motioned to a chair and watched as Carmiel took a seat.
"What are you planning to do with me?" Carmiel asked after a moment.
"Not a thing, at least not yet," Jason answered.
"Do you and your little band of misfits really think you have a chance?" Carmiel asked.
"Yes, as a matter of fact, we do," Jason replied.
"Have you bothered to stop and think about the disaster that will follow?" Carmiel shaded his eyes from the bright light. "Would you mind pointing that light in another direction?"
Jason ignored the request.
"This planet is in a very tenuous balance, Jason. You have no idea how tenuous. If it weren't for the Musmacs stepping in several hundred years ago, humankind would be extinct by now. We weren't doing a very good job with our affairs. We were destroying the planet. Our population was growing completely out of control. We were killing ourselves by mismanaging the environment. Is that what you want to return us to?"
"How would you know what it was like?" Jason asked. "No one knows for sure. And even if what you say is true, it's better than what we have now. We're being slaughtered for food and your precious Church is condoning it. All in the name of what's best for humanity. Well, I don't buy it. It's not the Universal Life Church. It's the Universal Death Church."
"I understand, son. Really, I do." Carmiel smiled and shook his head. "There was a time, many years ago, when I thought like you. I thought if only we could somehow get rid of them, then maybe, just maybe we could find a way to survive."
"Is that when you decided to turn Jessie in? Is that when you sold your soul and the rest of humanity to those oversized bugs?"
Carmiel paused, as though considering what Jason had said. "I didn't turn your mother in, son. You must believe me. I had nothing to do with it. It was the Archangel. He found out what we were doing and..."
"What we were doing? Are you trying to tell me you and Jessie were working on the same thing?"
Carmiel nodded. "Oh, it was mostly Jessie's doing, I'll admit it. She wouldn't have it any other way. In my position, I was too visible to take on much of the risk. But I did what I could, fed her whatever I could find out for her to investigate further, but something happened. The Archangel got wind of it, at least part of it."
"I don't believe you," Jason blurted out, but even as he questioned what Carmiel was saying, he wondered. It would explain how Jessie could have found out so much if the two of them had been working together.
"I think you got scared. It was too much for you, so you turned her in. You sold out, and Jessie was only one of many to suffer for your cowardice."
Carmiel looked like a man who had been sucker-punched in the gut. His shoulders hunched over in defeat. "You don't understand, Jason. It's just too much to overcome. The Musmac race rules much of the galaxy, not just Earth. They've been here for hundreds of years. Our entire civilization rests on the foundation they built—the Domes. Where do you think the technology and materials for the Domes came from? We didn't have any means to save ourselves from the environment we poisoned. If it hadn't been for the Musmacs and their technology, we would have perished in our own waste."
"Perhaps," Jason conceded. "Perhaps not. We'll never know, will we, because the ULC sold out humankind. Maybe we were doomed to perish from our own mistakes, but better that than to have our sole purpose for existing be as a food source for another civilization."
Jason stood up and walked over to Carmiel. He stopped a foot from the old man and stared into blue eyes that reminded him of the ones he looked at each morning in the mirror. "Whatever has been done is in the past, though. This is now. We have the chance to change it all. Can't you understand, we cannot continue to submit. When you were younger, you saw something was possible with Jessie. Something that had you willing to risk your position with the Church, your very life. It got snuffed out when Jessie was killed. This is another opportunity. Can't you see that?"
The two men stared at each other. Neither of them spoke for over a minute. Finally, Carmiel broke his gaze. He opened his mouth, as though to say something. But before he could speak, he was interrupted by a voice behind him.
"If you so much as flinch, you are dead. Drop the weapon," came a computerized voice from one of the translators.
Jason and Carmiel turned at the same time to find Rengal and four other mantises standing just inside the doorway, each of them with a weapon pointed at Jason's chest.
Before Jason could move, Carmiel grabbed his arm and twisted the stunwand out of his hand, then turned to Rengal.
"I would like to introduce you to my son, Jason Joval. He's the one who was clever enough to breach our security. I'm afraid he's not been a shining star to his father for quite some time."
"Never mind that now," Rengal replied. "Bring him with us. We have a group of these vermin cornered in one of the cargo shuttles. He may come in handy."
Two of the mantis guards grabbed Jason, one on each side, pulled his arms behind his back and forced him toward the door.
"It's not too late, Carmiel," Jason shouted as he was shoved through the door. One of the guards slammed the butt of his weapon into Jason's side, knocking the wind out of him.
"You really must learn to speak only when spoken to, son. The Musmacs prefer it that way," Carmiel said as he followed the group out.
Then, turning to Rengal, he asked, "Where did you say the others were?"
"We have them cornered in a cargo shuttle. You had better get this insurrection under control soon, Carmiel. It isn't going to look good on your record."
"Duly noted. I appreciate your assistance," Carmiel replied. "It's always my intention to be your partner." The comment brought a look of disgust to Rengal's face.
––––––––
BEING TRAPPED IN A storage compartment of human cadavers made the short shuttle ride seem much longer. Seattle tried to keep her troop's attention off of their surroundings by quietly acknowledging them for their initial victory. Even so, it was difficult to keep spirits up and Seattle was thankful when the shuttle started to slow.
As the shuttle pulled to a stop, the automatic doors unlocked. Luckily, Seattle peered outside before letting anyone else out. Flashes of light from a half dozen different directions flung her back away from the door, narrowly escaping the high-energy beams.
"What's wrong?" Tinker asked as Seattle bumped into him, almost sending them both crashing to the deck.
"We've got company outside and they're not particularly glad to see us," Seattle said, as she regained her balance and crept back to the door to survey the situation.
In a minute she returned to consult with Tinker, Wompun, and Cinder. "There are at least a dozen armed aliens stationed around the perimeter. They must have been warned by the others."
"Any sign of Jason?" Tinker asked.
"No. He may be in hiding, waiting for us to make our move."
"What are we going to do?" Cinder asked, the strain of the previous fight and the trip showing on her face.
"Well, the longer we stay here, the worse it's likely to get. They probably have reinforcements on the way. I say we make a run for it and pray for some support from the wings."
The other leaders nodded.
"Get each of your teams together. We'll throw the door open and each group head in a different direction. Stay low and move fast with guns blazing. Don't worry about aiming. It's more important we just lay down a volley to keep them occupied."
The two leaders returned to instruct their team members while Tinker and Seattle went back to guard the door. As the kids crowded around, preparing to make a break, Seattle held up her hand.
"Hold on. Something is up," she said, as she peeked through the crack in the door.
"It's Jason," Tinker said, as he joined her, peeking out from underneath her.
"And Carmiel. And I bet the bug in the purple is their head guy," Seattle added.
The two of them continued to watch as two of the aliens forced Jason out in the open, then pushed him to his knees and held their weapons against his head.
"Throw out your weapons and come out quietly," Carmiel shouted to them. "Do it now. The guards have very heavy fingers and not much fondness for humans."
"What do we do?" Tinker asked, not taking his eyes off of the scene before him.
Seattle didn't answer immediately but considered their situation. She knew what Jason would have them do. He wouldn't want them to give up just for him, but Seattle knew she couldn't just stand here and watch them kill the first man she had been able to love in so long.
It was her call and she would have to go with her gut instinct. The bugs would win this battle. But it wasn't all over yet. She would bide her time. There must be some way to take the advantage back.
"Do what they say," she finally said.
Tinker stared at her a moment, then nodded. He turned back to tell the others the change in plans.
"We're throwing our weapons out, Carmiel," Seattle called out. "Don't let them kill your son."
"I have little to say in the matter," Carmiel yelled back. "You better hurry."
In a matter of moments, Seattle started sliding their weapons out of the shuttle.
"What about the backpacks of explosives?" Tinker asked.
"Have everyone take them off and leave them here," Seattle said, as she took her own backpack off. As Seattle slid the last weapon out, she held her hands up, clasped them behind her head and strolled out, followed closely by Tinker and the others.
They were quickly surrounded by the mantis guards. Carmiel and the mantis in the purple robes walked up to Seattle. She thought she could detect a note of sadness behind Carmiel's smug smile but then thought, no, it must be my imagination.
Carmiel motioned a couple of the guards towards the shuttle. They stepped inside and, a couple minutes later, came back outside carrying the packs.
"What do we have here?" Carmiel asked, as he reached for one of the backpacks.
"They're ours," Tinker shouted, grabbing for the pack at the same moment. The two tugged at the pack for a second until Carmiel jerked it away from Tinker. As he did so, one of the snaps loosened and most of the contents fell to the floor.
There was a sudden dash, as Carmiel and several of the guards scrambled to pick up the scattered contents, while one of the guards wrestled with the other packs and shoved Tinker away.
"Well, well," Carmiel said as he straightened up.
The purple-clad alien said something, which Seattle could not make out.
"They're explosives," Carmiel replied. "Explosion packs and grenades." He turned to Seattle.
"You really were up to some mischief, weren't you?"
Seattle didn't say anything, but simply glared at the Archangel before walking over to Jason and helping him up from his kneeling position. As she did so, she leaned in close and kissed him on the cheek.
"You should have let them..." Jason started, but Seattle put her finger to his lips.
"Should have done a lot of things in my life, but I did what I did. I've no regrets," she whispered back to him. "Besides, it's not over yet."
"Well, if this isn't a touching family reunion," Carmiel said, with a sneer on his face. "I always have said the family who dies together, stays together."
He turned to the guards. "You three take these packs to the communication room for now. The rest of you, pick up their weapons and come with me."
He then turned to the alien in purple. "Rengal, I believe this matter is well in hand now. I thank you for your assistance."
The alien spoke in his native tongue, again, coming through the translator. "Take them to one of the prisoner holding pens for now until I can arrange a proper execution for them. I will notify you so you may attend if you'd like." The alien turned and walked off, escorted by a couple of the guards.
"Will you be there to watch your son's death?" Seattle asked.
"Oh, most assuredly," Carmiel said with a smile, then motioned to the guards.
––––––––
THE ALIEN GUARDS PUSHED Jason, Seattle and her troop of kids to a row of large elevators that dropped them deeper into the earth. As they exited the elevators, Jason and the rest of the family found themselves in a long corridor with barred doors spaced at regular intervals.
As Jason stepped out into the wide hallway, he looked around for any possible escape. There didn't seem to be much chance of making a break. The line of mantises was heavily armed, carrying both their own weapons and those that had been confiscated. Everything was looking more hopeless by the minute.
"I'm sorry our accommodations are a bit on the basic side down here, but then, you won't be here very long anyway," Carmiel said, as he strolled down the hall. "We'll put them in cell block thirty-four, at the end of the hallway," he said to the guards leading the way.
As they neared the end of the hall, Seattle came up beside Jason, took his arm and squeezed it gently. "I'm sorry I got you into all this," she whispered to him.
He turned and smiled. "Don't be. I wouldn't have had it any other way. Besides, it's not over 'til it's over."
The guards stopped at one of the doors and punched in a code on a keypad next to it. The door clicked and opened a few inches. A guard swung the door open and motioned them inside.
Jason stood at the entrance for a moment and looked around. The cell was an empty room without any other doors or windows. The only fixtures were the recessed lighting and a heavily grilled ventilation shaft. There would be no escaping from such a cell.
"Welcome to your temporary home," Carmiel said as he entered behind Jason. He turned to the two guards that had also entered the cell behind him. "I'd like a moment to say goodbye to my son. It will only take a minute."
"I've got nothing to say to you," Jason said. Carmiel only smiled and nodded to the guards to leave. As they exited the room, Carmiel turned back to Jason. The two of them stood staring at each other for several seconds. Jason waited. He had nothing to say to the old man. He had said it all back at the communication room, and it had fallen on deaf ears. Let the old man say what he wanted to so he would leave him alone.
Carmiel took a step forward and placed his hand on Jason's shoulder. "We haven't much time," he said in a hushed voice. "You must act quickly." As he spoke, he reached into his robe and took out a grenade.
"What the..." Jason started, but Carmiel motioned him to be quiet.
"You must take us all. Do not hesitate. It will be your last chance. Toss it out the door as I leave."
Carmiel handed Jason the explosive. "And God be with you, my son."
As Jason took the grenade from his father, he realized what Carmiel wanted him to do. In the same instant, he understood that it was the only chance they had to escape, and it would mean Carmiel's certain death as well. So am I to add patricide to my list of sins? Jason wondered.
But he had no time to wait for an answer. Carmiel was already turning to walk out the door.
"Father, wait," Jason said, but Carmiel kept walking, turning only for a moment to give his son a brief smile. "Now, son." He turned back to the door.
Jason did not have time to think. It was react or be trapped. He reached out with his right hand to grab the hood of his father's robe and jerked it with all his strength. Carmiel was thrown off his feet just short of the doorway. With a second quick motion, Jason pushed his father to one side as he flipped the clip off the grenade and tossed it out the door, then slammed it shut. "Get down!" he shouted, and leapt to the side away from the door.
He started to count to himself, but before he reached three there was a loud explosion. The door, which had clicked shut but hadn't yet been locked, flew open, partially shielding them from the blast.
As the smoke and dust settled, Jason sat up and looked around at a mass of shocked faces, including Carmiel, who lay on the floor on the other side of the doorway rubbing the back of his head. Several of the children closest to the door were covered in debris, but no one appeared seriously injured. The same could not be said for those in the hallway. Alien bodies lay strewn around the floor amongst a mass of debris and rubble.
"Why?"
The one word question drew Jason's attention back to his father, who continued to sit on the other side of the doorway.
Jason shrugged. "If we're going to win this war over the aliens, we need every advantage we can get," he explained. Though, in truth, he wasn't sure what had prompted his action. As he listened to his own explanation, it made sense. "However, I need you to stay in the position of Archangel, at least for now."
Carmiel nodded. "Just tell me what you want me to do."
"For starters, I need you to go out there and roll around a bit. Get yourself as dirty as possible. We need for it to look like you were one of the victims of the attack."
Carmiel stood up and began to dust himself off, then stopped. "Guess every little bit of dirt will help the cause," he said as he walked out to the blast site and started to roll around in the dirt and debris. As he did so, Jason joined him, stooping down to pick up an appropriately sized chunk of one of the walls and hiding it behind his back.
"Okay, that's good. Now rub some of that alien blood on you, then stand over there away from the doorway. It needs to look like you were far enough away from the blast to survive."
Carmiel followed Jason's instructions. "Now what?"
"Look over there and focus on that mark on the far wall," Jason said as he joined his father. "Oh, and do you know any good prayers for protection?"
"Sure, the ULC has a prayer for just about every situation. Why?"
"Just start reciting it to yourself as you focus on that mark. Remember, your primary job right now is to remain in power as the Archangel." As Carmiel turned to stare at the far wall, Jason pulled the rock from behind his back and struck his father in the back of the head. Jason watched Carmiel collapse to the floor, feeling a mixture of pleasure and pain from his action. He hoped he hadn't hit the old man too hard. He bent over to confirm Carmiel was still breathing, then dragged the body of one of the dead aliens to lay it over the Archangel. He stepped back to study his handiwork. Yeah, that should be convincing enough.
In a moment, he realized Seattle stood beside him.
"What on earth happened?" she asked after a moment of silence.
"I'll explain later. For now, let's just say it was an act of God," Jason replied. "Get everyone together and let's get out of here. We've work to do."