#FRIDAY FLASH - FORCES OF MIST (PART 4)

FORCES OF MIST

(Part 4)

By Carolyn Brown

(Approx 750 word sci-fi)

The scream of the alien weapons as they passed over her head was nerve wracking and intense and the blasts as they bit through the buildings surrounding her was frightening.  Chunks of cement and metal flew in several directions before clouds of dust filled the air, chocking and blinding her.

Sandy was bunkered down alone about half a kilometer from where the attacks were, but the experience was one she never wanted to live through again.  That was if she lived through this one.

She had been attempting a reconnaissance mission, which central control had ordered for her to specifically conduct. The mission required her to make contact with another faction and collect important information.  She had never got there.

When she had closed in on the location, she had found the area under attack, so she had hidden her vehicle under a bridge and was prepared to hide there until the attack was over, she thought it would be safe.

Unfortunately, she had been mistaken as the structure she had used to seek refuge from the onslaught had broken apart and had fallen on her vehicle, rendering it entirely useless.  She had been forced to abandon it and seek shelter in a nearby building, which was also now starting to be dismantled from the seemingly never ending attack.

Sandy’s attention was suddenly focused on one loud scream as an area closer to her position was targeted. She felt the shuddering of the building she was taking shelter in, as the air surrounding her filled with broken cement, wood and metal.

She knew she had to get out, before she became trapped.  Climbing over what remained of a huge pylon, she ran to where she believed the door to be, her heart beating fast as she dived and ducked the pieces of what was once a dominant feature of the landscape, came crashing down. Just as she reached the exit, she heard a loud boom and the building started to shake.  It was as if the ground itself was opening up and sucking it down into a dark abyss.

Running for her life, covered in the soot and ash surrounding her, she blindly made her way to what remained of the city street and then realized that she had run smack bang into an alien patrol.

Sandy stopped in mid stride, she waited for the occupants of the vehicle blocking her path to emerge, there was nowhere she could go to escape her capture, so she made the decision to stand and fight.

Waiting for what seemed an eternity, she watched for the door of the vehicle to open and when her eyes rested upon Jackson beckoning her to enter, she floundered.  What was he doing here?  Was he here to help her?  How had he known she would be here? She was completely baffled.

She tried to brush some of the dust covering her body and hair before she pulled herself into the vehicle.  As she reached out to lift herself up into the seat next to him, she saw her hands trembling.  She did not know whether this was from excitement or fear and made a conscious effort to hide them by tucking them under her coat, away from his view. She could not decide if they trembled with the fear of the terror she had just undergone or if it was the unknown fear of this entity she had just been rescued by.

They sat in silence as Jackson started the vehicle and moved them from the immediate danger of the collapsing buildings surrounding them.

As they left the vicinity and headed into the open countryside, Sandy looked back to see the devastation they had left behind.  If it had not been for Jackson’s timely retrieval, she was sure she would no longer exist.

“Thanks.”

“Um?”

“Thanks, for rescuing me from the attack.”

“Did I say, I was rescuing you?”  Jackson asked with a smirk upon his chiseled features. The mist surrounding his form was light, as if he was trying to contain it, but Sandy could tell that it was still there.

The hovercraft turned suddenly started moving towards a large complex, one she had never seen before or even knew existed.  It must be protected and hidden by some type of force field.

“Hey, are you capturing me and taking me back to you base?”

“You will see.”  Came the reply.

She had no idea what was going on, but did not have any choice in changing her circumstances. She returned to view and marvel at this incredible structure before them as they headed nearer.

(To be continued)