"No! I don't want to jump any more! can't we just land please!?" screamed the researcher.
The Chinook helicopter had reached the jump point above the landing zone, some 10 clicks from the Mayan city.
Krum shook his head and jumped out of the rear of the aircraft, followed by Nathan performing acrobatics as he did so.
Shaun rolled his eyes and stepped off the ramp with Sophie close behind.
The 'brains' they had brought with them consisting of two scientists and the researcher were being troublesome. They had all volunteered for this mission to seek further knowledge on the portal device supposedly hidden there.
The two scientists, clad in camouflage gear and struggling with their heavy backpacks stood precariously on the edge of the loading ramp, white with fear but unlike their comrade were keeping totally silent.
William had had enough. He grabbed the researcher by the straps of his backpack and threw him hard toward the rear door. The man flew past the other two, throwing them off balance and causing them to fall.
William peered over the edge to watch them dwindle into small specs as they fell before they all deployed their chutes.
William then banged on the fuselage twice to signal the pilot that he was the last one out then dived out himself. He angled himself to gain some extra speed and hopefully catch up to the others.
Several hours later, after untangling one of the scientists from a tree he had landed in, they were approaching the city.
"There it is" whispered Shaun. "The portal thingie you came out of William."
"Yeah but finding that was the easy bit, I've got at least thirty baddies in sight" commented Nathan, sighting down his rifle scope.
"Surely that force would be an easy wipe away for you?" Asked one of the scientists, looking up at the android.
"We have a saying where I come from; The easier something looks, the harder it is." replied William.
Krum chucked softly, "Sounds a lot like Murphies law to me."
"They seem to have some kind of power source hooked up to the ring" mentioned Sophie. "But we'll need to get closer for anyone else to see it."
"How many can you hit without raising the alarm?" Krum asked Nathan.
"Ten" He replied confidently, screwing a suppressor to the rifle barrel. "Any rough idea on the range?"
"1,640 feet to the centre of dirt circle on the ground, wind speed 5 knots at target" Answered William.
"You are handy to have around arn't you?" said Nathan then settled down for the shots.
"Can you get any stragglers Shaun with your pistol?" Asked Nathan.
"Not a chance, last time was different" answered Shaun honestly.
"I might be able to offer some assistance with that too" offered William.
Shaun got up and handed William the pistol he had been issued with. William accepted it and looked it over, analyzing it as he went. Data streamed across his mind's eye displaying specifications, use instructions and notable features. It was also marked in his database as 'Vintage'. Due to this information, when he mentioned the weapons age Krum protested and explained that it was brand new and only designed in 1980. He cocked the breach open and looked inside the barrel, his on-board computer taking on data on angles and other trigonometry.
Shaun then handed William the silencer after fishing it out of his backpack with Krum's help. William installed it and raised the weapon, his targeting system automatically activated, displaying cross hairs and range data across his view point negating the need for the iron sights.
"Are you ready?" asked Nathan, calmly.
"15 armed targets in sight, the left most ones"
"Good, fire when ready."
The air was filled with a strange pressure sensation as each shot was fired, the noise was almost eerie.
The only other noise that could be heard was birds chirping, leaves rustling and the steady click-clack of Nathan's bolt as he cycled quickly between each shot.
Within eight seconds, fifteen bullets had found their targets while the remaining four seconds were spent as Nathan picked off two remaining guards.
With only five people left on site all of a sudden they panicked, running around and shooting wildly, two of them getting caught up in the friendly fire while the other three fled to the nearest jeep and sped off.
"Lets move" whispered Krum loudly, grabbing his bag and moving off into the dense scrub.
Nathan packed up his gear and tipped his hat at William, "Nice shots" he complimented then followed Krum and the others down the rough trail.
William shepherded the three scientists in front of him.
Forging through the thick forest took longer than expected as it took over thirty minutes to traverse the distance and arrive in the centre of the clearing.
Sophie and Shaun performed a quick run around the area before returning with the all clear signal. The trio of 'white coats' made a bee line for the device that appeared to be connected to the old Mayan structure made from rock and metal.
Three triangular prongs lined a stone circle with various glyphs around the outer rim.
The hours passed slowly while they all brainstormed ideas about how the device worked. Then Nathan, taking a small break from perimeter duty noticed something odd behind some thick vines. Curiosity got the better of him and he went over and pulled the vines away. There were two posts, each about 3 feet high and 8 inches square with a hand print in each.
Nathan swung his rifle on its strap to his back and placed each hand on the hand-shaped depressions. Nothing happened for a few seconds then a huge bolt of energy coursed through his arms and threw him back toward the others.
Nathan yelled and shook off the tingling in his arms while the others crowded around him asking what had happened. "Agh that prick bites!" was his only reply.
William and the scientists went to investigate the two mysterious pillars. William analysed them and looked for any give away details of hidden circuitry or other clues as to the cause of the shock. He found nothing, however the scientists brushed aside some soiling to reveal yet more glyphs. These ones appeared to be glowing with a dull blue-green energy.
"The....one.....power.....mind" read out the researcher, "That's all I can make out, the rest is too damaged to properly read."
The others went back to the machinery that the gurella forces had been setting up and fiddled with some of the buttons.
A crack echoed through the valley and one of the scientists fell to the ground.
Everyone jumped to their feet. "RUN!" bellowed Krum.
They all bolted for a small outcropping of shrubs except for William, who activated his camouflage and melted into the shadows. Drawing Shaun's sidearm he scanned the hillside for where the shot had originated from. Cycling through his vision spectrum's revealed a massive shock. The sniper had been located and he had no issues dispatching that inconvenience but the problem lay within the hundreds of human heat signatures surrounding the clearing!
He ran toward the others, taking care not to rustle any of the trees on his way past to give away his position. When behind them he whispered; "They're everywhere, in the tree's!"
"Crap!" cursed Krum under his breath.
"I have an idea" said Sophie, turning to look at William, then back at Shaun with worry in her eyes. "But I need to get to that pannel, is the machine powered up?" she asked the remaining scientists.
"du du du y y y y yes" one of them stuttered out.
"William, can you shield me? I only need a few seconds to get to those pillars." she said pointing to the hand-printed pillars.
"Of course but even I'm not completely bullet proof" he responded.
"Good, lets go. Right now!" she said, giving Shaun one last look.
Krum and Nathan began to protest but instead provided cover fire, Nathan firing shots as fast as he could while Krum lobbed an assortment of explosive devices toward the advancing army.
The two advanced from shrub to cover as often as possible, William had disengaged his cloak to draw the fire while Sophie slunk along in his shadow.
There was a metallic 'plink' noise and Williams left arm went limp. "ARGH!!!" he yelled out as the damaged components replicated a simulation of 'pain'.
The two reached the pillars and William reached out with his remaining good arm and using all his remaining strength pulled the massive block of granite close to them, providing them with cover from the bullets.
Sophie stood up and placed her front paws on the two corresponding hand prints. 'I hope this works' she thought to herself and concentrated. She visualized what Williams would was like from the stories he had told over the previous days, how life would be like. She had no idea what she was doing but something felt right.
William noticed the pillars glowing bright green now and a low hum resonating in the air. Sophie strained and grunted lightly, trying to keep the image in her head. She was beginning to feel rather tired for some reason.
Clouds seemed to gather out of no where and quickly thickened to dark thunderheads, spewing lightening and starting small forest fires here and there.
The air in the big stone ring with the triangles blurred and mixed the light together, swirling into a mess of color before turning white. Static electricity charged the air and made their fur stand on end. The portal was now a blinding white light against the dark and stormy background.
"GO!" shouted Sophie over the roar of the storm. "GO NOW!"
William hesitated for a moment, concerned for the weakening fox but then logic kicked in. If he stayed any longer she may get worse so it would be unwise to dawdle in a situation such as this.
William quickly moved out from behind the rock and ran toward the portal. More bullets flew in every direction, another hit his back somewhere causing his camouflage to flicker on and off unexpectedly. He reached the white wall of energy and dove through without hesitating, all his senses were overloaded. An almost glorious feeling then everything went black. Silence.
well it feels rushed but it IS a short story challenge after all. Stay tuned as i have at least one more installment and wrap up for this mini series. also the artwork for the characters should arrive sometime either this week or next
paws.
