“Good work,” Curtis said, “but take a look at the transport.”
“Is it deploying more fighters?” Fiona asked.
“Doesn’t look like it.”
As they watched, the transport slowed down, and the belly opened like a bomber, disgorging thousands of pods looking like so many footballs. The pods went into a free fall toward the ground, slowed down abruptly right before hitting the ground, and touched down gently. Within seconds, each pod split open and transformed into a mechanized armored suit about eight feet tall. The suits organized into large formations several ranks deep and hundreds across, and began marching in the same direction.
“Where are they headed?” Curtis asked.
“We’re only a few miles from the city,” Fiona said, “They’re probably headed that way.”
“They are headed that way. That was their plan,” Franklin said over comms.
“I thought you were shot down,” Curtis said.
“Yeah, the ship ejected me in an escape pod. The pod still has comms.”
“That’s good. So you’re okay?”
“Good as can be, under the circumstances. If those things are headed for the city, that can’t be good. We need to stop them.”
Soon reports came in from the other pilots that the same thing was happening at several sites around the world and that a larger form of fighter was deploying from the transports and hovering over the mechanized units to act as close air support. Nobody had managed to do any damage to these fighters.
“Yeah, we’re seeing the same thing here,” Fiona said, “These aren’t like the smaller fighters, more like some sort of gunship.
“Let me see what I can do,” Walter said.
He flew to one and tried to hit it, but only bounced off the shields, before one opened fire with an energy weapon that knocked him back half a mile.
“You okay, dude?” Curtis said.
“Yeah, but I can’t touch those things, and whatever it hit me with had some punch. You sure there isn’t something bigger in that hangar?”
“I hear you,” Kendra said, “but the only other ships in there are smaller transports. You guys have all the fighters.”
“Except we’re down one,” Franklin said.
“There’s still the ship we brought back from the moon,” Kendra said, “I think I could probably fly it. I was paying attention.
“I’m not sure you’d be much help out there. That thing doesn’t have the shields and weapons these have,” Franklin said.
“Maybe not, but it can hold a few people. I have to go.”
“Go where?”
“Home. My parents live near town. If we can’t stop those things, I need to bring them here. It might be the only safe place.”
“Moses, honey, you think you can give me a hand and bring the laundry from the dryer? I think I heard it go off,” Shawna Williams said.
“It’s about a minute until halftime,” Moses said, “I’ll get it then.”
“You and those games. You know how long that minute can take.”
“The score’s tied and they have the ball.”
“Okay, but not a minute later. You know we have that event tonight and my outfit’s in there.”
“Gotcha, only forty seconds now. Come on guys, just thirty more yards and...what the...Shawna honey, look at this.”
“You know I don’t give a darn about the game.”
“It’s not the game. They just cut away.”
“We got this footage from our helicopter before we lost it,” a reporter was saying from the television. The footage showed the mechanized soldiers marching in formation with the occasional fighter jet getting too close and getting shot down. The reporter continued to speculate about what was on the footage, but was unable to say what everyone was thinking.
“What the hell?” Shawna said.
“That’s what I’m thinking. No army on earth has stuff like that. Where are those things headed?”
“That’s the local channel, right? They have to be close.”
Just then the news anchor showed footage that was coming in from around the world, showing the same thing, massive formations of mechanized soldiers and alien gunships marching toward cities, unable to be stopped.
“Honey, you thinking what I’m thinking?” Shawna asked.
“If you’re thinking what I’m thinking you’re thinking.”
“Aliens?”
“You got any other ideas?”
“Not right now...hey...what’s that sound outside?”
Moses looked outside and had no reply. A flying craft unlike anything he had ever seen was descending toward the back yard. Landing gear came out of the belly of the craft and it settled onto the yard.
“Well, if it isn’t aliens, I don’t know what else would be landing something like that in our back yard,” Moses said, “You figure we ought to hit the basement?”
“You think aliens would look like our daughter?” Shawna asked.
“Come again?”
“Take a look.”
He looked out the window to see the ramp lowered from the craft and Kendra walking down it.
“Mom, Dad...come on. We don’t have much time.”
Shawna started toward the back door and her husband grabbed her arm.
“How can you be sure it’s not some sort of trick?”
“It’s not a trick,” Kendra said, “You’ll just have to trust me. You’re not safe here. You need to come with me now.”
“We’re out safe here? What do you know about what’s going on?” Moses asked.
“Not much, but more than you do. I have to get you out of here right now while there’s still time. Just come to the ship and we can get going.”
“Where did you get that thing?”
“We can talk later. Just get on board. They’re headed right for you. They’ll be here any minute.”
Moses and Shawna went out the back door and met Kendra at the ramp.
“Okay, girl, you’d better have one good explanation,” Moses said as he started up the ramp.
“Take a seat and strap in,” Kendra said when they were on board and the ramp was raised, “We might have to dodge them on the way. I was almost spotted on the way here.”
When they were strapped in, she lifted off, retracted the landing gear, and climbed upward at a stomach churning rate.
“Good Lord, when did you learn how to fly this thing?” Moses asked.
“Never mind that, just hold on. We have
