Within an hour, they came to a small depression, like a fifty foot bowl in the soft lichen mats. Casey held up a hand.
“Rest. Thirty minutes, sleep if you can. Might be the last opportunity we get.”
“We should keep going,” Hagel said, continuing to walk.
“We could continue, but the group needs rest,” Casey said, turning away.
Hagel paused, his eyes going from Casey to each of the HAWCs, trying to gain support — he got nothing. Casey turned back to him.
“I’ll do first watch. Then seeing you’ve got so much energy, you can take over in thirty minutes. Happy now?”
Hagel smiled, but there was little humor in the lift of his lips. He turned and muttered all the way over to a pile of rocks where he sat down, back against it, and covered his eyes.
“Wake me in thirty, mommy.”
The group collapsed, the HAWCs lifting the belts and straps of packs and weapons off their shoulders and laying prone. Aimee lay down, and Soong lay close to her.
“This is not a good place,” Soong said.
“No.” Aimee had few words of comfort for her, so she just smiled, and reached out to squeeze her arm. “Rest now.”
Aimee turned away and shut her eyes. What seemed like seconds later, she was being shaken awake.
She sat up and saw Hagel talking rapidly to Casey and pointing off into the undergrowth. He stood over her, giving her grief, the man as usual not amused by something out in the jungle. Give it a rest, twerp, she thought and went to sit forward. She groaned, sore all over.
“Hey, who’s fucking around?” Rhino was on his feet, walking in a circle, kicking plants and debris out of his way. “Where the fuck is my cannon?”
Casey Franks turned away from Hagel to glare. “You better find that weapon, mister.”
Rhino looked at each of them, trying to detect someone stifling a laugh. He turned his attention to Hagel. “What the fuck happened to it?”
Hagel waved him away. “I was scouting and didn’t see nothin’. When did you last have it — the caves? Betting that’s where it still is.”
“No, asshole, I had it right here.” Rhino pointed at the ground.
Blake also spun one way and the next. “Holy shit, where’s mine?”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake.” Casey marched over, and looked from Blake to Rhino, and then to Hagel. “You were on watch, what the hell happened?”
“Like I said,” Hagel spoke slowly. “I saw nothin’.” He shrugged. “I just went to scout for a few minutes, is all. But there was no sound, no movement — nuuu-thing.”
Aimee pointed at the lichen matting behind Rhino. “Look.”
There was a small, flattened path in the plants. Its edges glistened like a snail trial, and Aimee bent closer and sniffed.
“Ammonia.” She straightened. “We had a visit.”
“What?” Casey’s eyes bulged. “Here? It came in here?”
“Bullshit,” said Blake. “Why didn’t it grab us all, when we were out cold?” He pointed with his thumb. “And all while this jackass was off the reservation.”
Aimee wrapped her arms around herself, thinking. “Because it didn’t want to.”
“Huh?” Blake’s lip curled in confusion.
“It didn’t want to.” She looked up. “It’s having too much fun. You asked me what I meant by us educating it. Well, it learned real quick that these things,” — she pointed at the HAWCs’ remaining guns — “cause it pain.”
“So, it’s taking them from us,” Ben Jackson said, running a hand through his hair.
She grimaced, looking around. “It’s here, somewhere, probably watching us right now.”
The silence stretched as they turned, looking over their shoulders. Soong instinctively edged in closer to the group.
“That’s bullshit,” Casey finally said, her face red and furious.
“Nah, it’s not.” Hagel had his gun now cradled in his arms. “It’s what I was trying to tell you, Franks. You better come take a look at this.” He turned and waved them on, heading into the jungle.
“Gear up, we’re out of here,” Casey said, following.
“Remember our young scout who did the high-dive?” Hagel looked slightly amused.
“You found Dawkins?” Casey’s brows shot up.
“Maybe.” Hagel shrugged, a touch of a sneer in his smile. “You be the judge.”
He came to a fallen bough and crouched behind it. Casey did the same beside him. Hagel looked to Casey, grinning. “Ten o’clock, five up.”
She turned to the small clearing ahead. In among the twisted branches and oversized vines, there was a tree stump as thick as her waist. Five feet up, its top was near flat, creating a small tabletop. On it there was a smaller object. From the distance, it gleamed wetly.
She put a scope to her eye. “Jesus Christ.” Her teeth came together, and her lips curled in a snarl.
It was a skull, wet, streaked red, and also white where bone showed through the last vestiges of flesh.
Casey quickly turned to speak over her shoulder. “Keep ’em back, Rhino.”
The big HAWC held out massive arms to push the remaining McMurdo soldiers, plus Soong and Aimee back a pace.
Casey turned towards the grisly trophy and grimaced. The skull had a chipped front tooth.
“Could be Dawkins; got that same boyish smile.” Hagel sniggered. “I’m not thinking the fall did that to him… what do you think?”
“That’s him.” Casey tried to keep her breathing calm, but a range of emotions washed over her. Anger gave way to frustration, and then settled in as confusion. Who or whatever it was, it was dogging them, one step ahead all the time. She had never felt more out of her depth. Fuck that Dempsey, she thought. Getting himself killed, he was supposed to be making the decisions. She licked dry lips. What would Alex or Sam do? she wondered.
“Hey, you still here?” Hagel whispered.
“Yeah,” she said, and knew exactly what Alex would say. He’d tell her to fight her adversary at a time and place of her choosing, not its. She pulled back. In the caves, Rhino had been right about one thing — someone or something sure was fucking with them.
“You think it’s the Chinese, or like the Doc says, it’s that fucking monster thing playing with us?” He leaned closer. “What do you think? Can’t fight what we can’t see.”
“What I think, is from now on, we need eyes in the back of our heads.” She got to her feet, staying low. “We detour around it, and keep permanent watch. You’re still on point.”
“Nice time to be losing weapons, huh, boss?” Hagel grinned as he pulled back.
CHAPTER 42
Sam Reid slowed as he topped the rise, gazing down onto the Ellsworth base. It was much like he expected — a few prefabricated igloos joined by some boxes. Not much shelter for the coming cold, but the occupants were here to do science, not enjoy a winter holiday, he guessed.
Just out to the side, there stood the mini-submersible’s launch silo, snow covered and empty now. Sam shook his head. Only Alex Hunter would try something so crazy, he thought.
He powered down the slope, heading for the main building. Just as he reached for the handle it was pulled inward by a small bearded man. He first looked straight ahead, directly into Sam’s armored chest, then his eyes moved slowly up, towards Sam’s head. Sam telescoped the facial shielding back into his collar and leaned forward.
“You ordered pizza? Hey…” The man’s eyes rolled and he fell back. Sam shot out an arm to grab him. “I gotcha.” He helped him upright again. “I’m Sam Reid, and I’m here to help.”