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  Kevin sighed, “We’re fresh out of Roundup, and I don’t know how much longer we’ve got on this drill.” He patted the side of the man-sized machine, which stood next to the professor with its power off and its laser pointed downward. “It has just about all the gas we’ve got left.”

  Collier stood and brushed his palms off on his pants. “I’m afraid you may be right.” He shook his head, “I was so certain...”

  “It’s not the worst thing in the world to be wrong,” Kevin said softly. He was seeing a small chance of salvation with the professor. The man was tired, disappointed and discouraged about his discovery. There wouldn’t be a better time for him to press the professor on when they might be able to return home.

  “I’m not wrong,” the professor told the young student. “The methods I used are backed by years of research. The satellite scans are unmistakable. There IS a city here, under all this rock and jungle.”

  He leaned against a tree and stretched his back. “Where did I go wrong?” he moaned, staring at the huge boulder in front of him.

  Difficult as the professor was, Kevin felt sorry for him. The man hated the jungle just as much as he did, but it was also his last chance to make a career out of his passion. Kevin still had years ahead of him to get it right.

  “If I didn’t believe in what you were doing, I wouldn’t be out here, Professor,” Kevin said softly. “And I’m getting a lot out of this whether we find anything or not. I guarantee your work will help those who come after you.”

  The professor looked crestfallen at Kevin’s words. Kevin suddenly felt even worse than before.

  “I didn’t mean it like…”

  The professor shook his head and sighed, “I know what you meant, Kevin, and it’s okay. I might have said the same thing if I were your age and stuck in the middle of this hellhole.”

  “I can keep the dig going if you like,” Kevin said, hoping to remove the foot from his mouth. “It’s not like I’ve got anything else to do.”

  The professor clasped Kevin on the shoulders and chuckled. “If you like. Far be it from me to come between a fool and his errand.”

  “I have a feeling that faithful Rocinante will finally deliver the goods today, Professor,” Kevin said grinning.

  “Rocinante?” The professor furrowed his eyebrows.

  Kevin blushed. “It’s…umm…Don Quixote’s horse. It’s what I call the drill when you’re not around.”

  Collier laughed, the lines around his eyes crinkling, “That’s not bad. I suppose we are tilting at windmills out here, aren’t we?”

  “No more than any other scientist with a dream,” Kevin replied.

  The professor nodded at this and turned back towards the camp, “Drill sample cores in this area again. Put ‘em together and mark ‘em ‘Lot 144.’”

  Kevin began to busy himself over the laser drill, preparing it to take cores out of the area’s volcanic rock. There wasn’t much else left out here that they hadn’t surveyed. Collier’s theory was that the lost city of Paititi was lost in a volcano, covered in the same way Pompeii had been. There wasn’t a whole lot of evidence beyond whatever magic Collier did with the satellite scans, but at least Kevin got to play with some cool stuff.

  The professor put his fedora back on, tugging it snugly against his head. He looked down the trail to the camp, only a few hundred feet away, and sighed.

  “I’m going to go over our supply situation and see how long we have left out here.”

  “Roger that, Professor,” Kevin said. The graduate student turned to the laser drill and turned it on, aiming it for the rock face that the professor had been clearing away for their nightly dig.

  The professor headed down the trail. As Kevin watched him go, he inputted the samples’ coordinates into the drill and waited for the program to execute. As he waited, he opened up his laptop and continued recording his video blog.

  He cleared his throat and looked into the camera as the drill went through its automated program, the bright red laser flashing as it pierced the black rock.

  “As I was saying… I don’t think the professor wants to admit it, but I’m pretty sure our time out here is coming to a close,” Kevin said sadly into his video diary. “So with that in mind, I’m going to start giving you a better idea of how we do things out here at Camp Paititi.”

  Kevin began to illustrate how the laser drill worked for his viewers at home. And hey, you never knew. If he was good enough, someone at National Geographic might see his video blog and offer him a hosting gig.

  Because that was probably about all he was going get out of the experience.

  Chapter Two

  Alex and Emily ended their kiss as the sun rose over the desert, casting red rays over the burning mesa above them.

  “I can’t even…” Alex began, looking at her, pulling a stray lock of hair away from her face. She shied away from him.

  “It’s…” Emily hesitated and smiled, her breathing quick, “We have so much to talk about…”

  “Guys?” Emily’s friend Christina said questioningly, looking worriedly up at the flames on the mesa.

  “Yeah, guys,” Alex’s partner-in-crime Scott echoed, “I think we ought to…”

  Before she could even finish her sentence, the entire top of the mesa exploded. A shockwave roared across the few hundred feet of empty space between the mesa and the group, knocking all four of them to the ground. The sundered mountaintop spat tons of rock and dirt into the sky.

  “Get down!” Alex screamed as he grabbed the healing stone that hung around his neck. He placed his palm facing out towards Scott and Christina as he clutched Emily next to him tightly.

  Bleeding from his ears, Scott staggered to his feet.

  “What the hell was that?” he asked, looking at Alex. “Was that you?”

  “I hope not,” Alex murmured. He took out the second stone, the one Siobhan had left behind, and stared at it. It had only granted him the ability to shapeshift so far. Might it also have made him trigger the explosion? That scared him more than anything else he’d encountered in the last two days.

  “Maybe it was a natural gas pocket that wasn’t capped properly,” Christina said watching the top of the mesa burn with a critical eye. “During my escape from Kline’s bodyguard, I saw some of the equipment they were using. It was all the same sort of stuff they use to frack and cap off the natural gas wells they find.”

  “But that’s not what…” Alex began, but Christina stopped him.

  “Relax,” Christina said, looking at him with her almond eyes, “you didn’t do this. That was all Kline.”

  Alex stared at the burning mountain. The mesa he and his father had climbed countless times while he was growing up…one of the last remains of his father’s memory…and it was gone forever now.

  “Good God…” Scott said, breathing out in relief. “If you hadn’t gotten us outta there…”

  “Nothing good can come from ‘what if’s,’ my friend.” Alex said, interrupting him. That piece of advice had been all that had kept him from second-guessing himself every other time he’d narrowly escaped death’s grip.

  “I hate to rush you guys,” Christina said, “but I think we’re better off if we get the hell outta here before people with badges and guns come asking questions we don’t have the answers to.”

  “She’s right,” Alex said, snapping back to reality. “Let’s go.”

  Alex headed for the Hypertruck and waited for Scott to open the doors.

  “Come on, man, you don’t have anything to wrap your bare ass in?” Scott complained as Alex remembered he was naked.

  “Hey, you figure out how to make clothes that can shapeshift with me, I guarantee you I’ll wear ‘em, but until then…” Alex made a tapping motion on his wrist. Transforming into a dragon the size of a school bus had not been easy on the clothing he’d been wearing. When, in a moment of crisis, Siobhan had given him the stone, and the power to shift into any creature he could imagine, the last thing
on his mind had been what might happen to his size 33 jeans.

  Scott snorted, “If I figured out something like that, I’d be sipping margaritas on a beach rather than watching you ruin my billion-dollar baby’s upholstery.”

  “You guys want to be having this chat when the cops get here?” Emily implored. She was used to the two of them arguing over nothing, and had been very good at getting them both back on track when they used to hang out together in college.

  Scott tossed Alex his jacket. “This ought to work ‘til we can find something better.”

  “Thanks,” Alex said, tying the jacket around his waist.

  Scott unlocked the Hypertruck and they piled in closing the doors after them. He started the vehicle up, buckling his seatbelt as the engines roared to life. “All aboard,” he called, then tapped a few buttons on the high-tech dash. The Hypertruck fishtailed in the dust, then began accelerating down the dirt road.

  Straight ahead, dozens of emergency vehicles approached the mesa, their lights ablaze.

  “Police,” Alex warned.

  “I got ‘em,” Scott muttered. He began typing on the console again. Alex watched as the truck’s carbon nanofiber shell shimmered. The shell rippled and became translucent as it bent the incoming light, effectively making the truck invisible.

  “Impressed?” Scott asked wiggling his eyebrows.

  Alex nodded and watched as a series of police and fire vehicles speed past them with their sirens screaming. Flashing blue, white and red light illuminated the Hypertruck’s interior. Each vehicle passed them without a second glance. Alex breathed a sigh of relief. They were safe…for now.

  “I think we’re good.” Scott said, tapping the display on the dashboard. Alex glanced back as the convoy continued speeding toward the mesa.

  “How long will the camo last?” Alex asked, thinking of the last time Scott had assured him about technology he’d invented.

  “Hey, have some faith in the kid,” Scott said, knocking playfully on the wheel. “This baby is the culmination of millions of dollars and thousands of hours of research and engineering, much of which was done by yours truly.”

  “That’s what worries me,” Alex quipped. Christina giggled and stole another appreciative look at Alex’s naked body.

  “Thanks,” Scott said sarcastically. “Besides, it ain’t exactly like your bare ass is keeping the resale value up.”

  “It’s not as if I have any choice,” Alex retorted.

  “I mean, do you even realize how much it cost to build this damn thing?” Scott demanded. “And the leather trim wasn’t exactly standard, you know.”

  “Hey if you want to give up your shirt, I’m more than happy to take it off your hands if it keeps your precious Hypertruck pristine.”

  “You think cars lose value when you drive ‘em off the lot? Imagine what the DoD’s reaction will be when I tell them that you rubbed your grapes all over the inside,” Scott said.

  Alex’s face scrunched up as he chuckled. “I think I have a way to settle this.” He took out Siobhan’s stone and examined it in his hands. A flash of green light surrounded him. He closed his eyes, and a moment later, he was suddenly dressed in a fashionable tight leather jacket, jeans and a plain back t-shirt that stretched against his muscles.

  “You couldn’t think of that before you ruined my jacket?” Scott asked.

  “You wanted me to keep my bits and pieces to myself. I found a way. Are you gonna complain about everything?”

  “I’ll complain if I want to,” Scott replied crossly. “Besides, it occurs to me that if you’re shifting into clothing, that matter had to come from somewhere.”

  “Meaning?”

  “Meaning it’s still your bare ass on the seats, but dressed up nicer. I don’t think Siobhan had that in mind when she gave you her stone.”

  Alex shot him a look, “She didn’t just give me her stone Scott; she gave up her life for us. That’s not something to joke about. She lived for four hundred-plus years, all to die saving us. Show some respect.”

  “I’m sorry… are you coming after me right now?” Scott shot back angrily. “Let’s get something clear, I’m happy that we managed to get away clean, but Kline still has that goddamn magic stone of his, plus whatever horror show he’s coming up with to get his revenge on us. Not to mention whatever plans he has to take your stones back. If he’s any kind of decent super villain, my family’s in danger, Emily’s family is in danger, hell, even…” he motioned to Christina, “what’s her face and her family are in danger.”

  “It’s Christina, thanks,” she said, sounding mildly peeved.

  Scott ignored her and continued berating Alex. “And all because you decided it was a good idea to insert yourself back into our lives without so much as a ‘how do ya do’ over the last six years. Meanwhile, you haven’t told us shit about where you’ve been, why you’re not dead and why you needed to keep all that from us. I’ve been doing my level damn best to keep from interrogating you about all that, but enough is enough!”

  Alex withstood the verbal assault from his best friend, but felt himself starting to lose his temper. Scott might be right, he thought, but Alex had had his own troubles over the last few years. If they only knew what he’d needed to do, what he’d been forced to do, just to stay alive, they’d understand. But he’d never tell them. Not if he could help it.

  Despite all that, Alex knew that no matter what his excuses or rationalizations were, Scott was right. He owed them all a better explanation of where he’d been. He looked at his best friend, who looked genuinely pissed at him for the first time since they’d played video games together. (The only thing to save their friendship at the time had been a rule they’d called “No Oddjob.”)

  “He’s right, Alex,” said Emily.

  The fact that she’d said that hurt enough in itself, but the small, defeated tone in her voice cut him more deeply. He looked at her and saw that her face, which had been twisted in determination all night, was now slumped in utter exhaustion and sadness. She was looking at him as if he were still dead.

  He hadn’t handled their breakup well; he knew that much. She hadn’t exactly reached out to him while he’d been in the army, but his rationalization had been that she’d wanted nothing to do with him. Some part of him had decided long ago that was easier than facing the truth.

  He didn’t want to admit that he’d lost her.

  He wasn’t going to see her originally; he only wanted to make it into Onyx and see his father to tell his story. From there, he’d planned to let his dad take care of Emily. To let his dad handle all the explanations while he himself disappeared back into the ether.

  He owed his friends the explanation that he hadn’t been able to give his father. They deserved as much, and more than that, they needed to know what they were signing up for if they decided to continue along with his misadventure. He hoped they would, but he couldn’t blame them if they took off to save their own skins instead.

  “You’re both right,” Alex finally said. “I’ve taken you both for granted, and it was stupid and selfish of me to stay out of contact for so many years. I can tell you I thought I was doing something important, but after I learned that wasn’t the case, I was stuck without a way to get out. I wasn’t fighting for good or evil; I was fighting for old men who wanted more money than they had the day before.”

  Emily and Scott looked at him expectantly. He’d piqued their interest, but he could see they needed more than a simple admission of culpability.

  He sighed and began, “I know I have a lot to apologize for, but I think I can show you what I’ve been up to better than I can tell you.”

  Emily glanced at Scott, who continued to stare at his best friend. The Hypertruck’s autopilot drove them on in silence.

  Scott paused for a long moment, then asked, “Where do you need to take us?” It was not the acknowledgment of the apology he had hoped for, but it was a start.

  “Ever been to San Diego?” Alex asked.
r />   “Sea World has penguins,” Christina piped up. “I love penguins.”

  Scott looked at Alex. “You promise you can explain everything there?”

  Alex nodded, “I won’t hold anything back. All questions are fair game, but all I ask is that you take us to San Diego first and let me show you something.”

  Scott glanced at Emily, who nodded.

  He turned and tapped on the console. The Hypertruck’s interior running lights went dark.

  “I’m programming San Diego as our destination and keeping the Hypertruck camouflaged. We can be down there in less than four hours.” He leaned back and turned his eyes to the road. “I just hope whatever you have to show us is worth the last day and a half.”

  Alex couldn’t help but grin, thinking of what he had in store for them. He wasn’t sure how Scott and Emily would take it, but he couldn’t wait to find out.

  Chapter Three

  The Old Man moved up the trail painfully, his stiff knees not doing him any favors as he climbed the steep grade. The surrounding mountains were still on fire, the thick smoke cloaking all the devastation. Kline and his madness had certainly left their mark.

  The Old Man smiled as he examined the desert floor around him. He loved the way the desert looked in the early morning. The only souls within a mile were the oncoming first responders in their flashing trucks. The Old Man looked down and enjoyed the site of their twinkling emergency lights against the dawn backdrop of the desert.

  He watched the Hypertruck race past them, and he smiled again, thinking of the occupants.

  But there wasn’t any time to reminisce, he thought with a sigh. Things were happening so quickly now that he could hardly believe it had been this long. He looked up at the trail, spotting his destination, where a large steel door was sealed tightly against the mountain rock.

  As quickly as his aging bones would allow, The Old Man walked up the trail. He glanced at the steel door’s lock and waved his hand. The lock fell apart, and he pulled it out of the door, opening up the abandoned mine to the cool morning air.