CHAPTER 57: The Entrance
“Do you have a space for the challenge?” the Colonel asked after recovered from the scene. As a lifetime military man, Davian was used to men accustomed to leading. Some were quiet, some were forceful, but all had a strong presence when it was time. They commanded and people followed. Some were better at it than others, but all needed to learn it. They needed to deal with people of all types to truly learn to lead. The Colonel knew he was one of those men, and it had taken him decades to reach this point.
Upon seeing this small kid coming out of the warehouse barely clothed, he had immediately dismissed him. Goofy kid, even if his muscles and scars told a gruesome story. Yet when Adam had turned his serious eyes on Davian, he had frozen. He felt like a fresh recruit hoping to get in his officer’s good graces.
Whether Adam was a good leader or not almost didn’t matter. Davian knew…he knew in his soul…not to cross this boy. All the plans his superiors had given him, all the goals, they were out the window. Adam said honesty, and the shudder Davian felt when Adam glared at him told him that he would be honest. Anything he got from this group would be thanks to Adam’s generosity.
All the people flocking to him, all the activity surrounding the warehouse wasn’t just because of monetary transactions. The people here moved like it was important, like they believed in what they were doing. He had seen soldiers behave like that many times, usually when they were preparing for the enemy’s attack. General Gervin thought there was something else at work here; schemes, people behind the scenes, but Davian now knew there wasn’t.
“Of course. We’ll go in the warehouse.”
“In the warehouse?” said the other uniformed man. He was the Captain of the Company of troops. “Is there enough space in there to really fight?”
“Yes, there should be enough. We have an area designated for training.” Adam led them to the entrance to the warehouse. The doors were open, but it looked like shadows had eaten the light about a few steps inside the doors. All the people loading and unloading stopped to watch him and the line of soldiers.
“It’s very dark in there. How do people know where to go once inside?” asked the Colonel.
“It’s easier to see once inside. Let me just turn off the security system so you and your troops can enter.” Then Adam shouted, causing Davian to jump, “Jordan! Let them in after me!”
Adam stood there for a minute until he saw a flicker in the color of the darkness. Then he turned back to the Colonel. “Alright, follow me.” He walked right into the Rift barrier. Ron sighed and then stepped into the darkness behind Adam.
The Colonel saw Adam disappear into the darkness and then turned to the soldiers closest to him. “Thoughts? Are we in danger?”
“That kid, there is something not right about him,” said Captain Krysti. “I don’t know his real ability but that was scary, and he wasn’t even looking at me. Are we sure he isn’t an invader?”
The soldier who had antagonized him nodded emphatically. “Yeah, I thought my heart would give out just from looking at him. He was definitely angry during the provocation.”
“Yes, but he kept it under control. He didn’t even really seem to care and was even playing along. The anger seemed due to something else. Charles?” The Colonel turned to one of the more unassuming soldiers. It was really an Intelligence Analyst that they had brought. His job was to try to identify and understand any alien technology they found. Hiding as one of the common soldiers seemed the best way to make it look non-threatening, although the Colonel wasn’t sure what threat would matter to that kid. He had stayed calm the whole time, never seeming overwhelmed or embarrassed. There was even a sense that he was ready to spring forward at any moment, like a snake just awaiting its moment to burst from the bushes.
“In our experiments, skills always have a flash of red when they activate. Whatever The General did, there was no skill activation. He also has no tag, and we have no idea what that means. Maybe he is too high level for us to see, or maybe he has a skill to hide it. We can’t know. I recommend taking a gentle approach until we see his ability though.”
“Good advice. What about this black warehouse? Is it legit or a trap?”
“Seems unlikely to be a trap since civilians keep going in and out. It looks like a bigger version of the nest we received pictures of in Afghanistan. Honestly, we'll have no idea until we’re through,” answered the Analyst. While they were conversing, all the civilians outside just watched them, patiently waiting for the entrance to clear. None seemed concerned or threatened by the armed company waiting at the door.
The Colonel sighed and shook his head. This seemed a bit too tricky. Unknowns everywhere.
“Attention! We are entering this warehouse. Keep alert and ready but show no hostility. I will lead the way,” ordered the Colonel. The Captain frowned at him, thinking that the head shouldn’t be first into danger, but the Colonel ignored him and strode towards the door.
The Colonel hesitated at the darkness and even tried to touch it. His hand passed through it like normal air. Shutting down any fear he had, he took a deep breath, prepared himself for anything and then walked into the darkness…
He was not prepared for this. The Colonel stopped walking and his jaw dropped. He looked at the wide plains, the distance buildings, and the sky above. His head snapped around when the Captain walked in to him from behind then gasped. Stepping to the side, the Colonel and Captain walked around the black hole in nothingness that they had entered through. Behind the doorway were more plains. The land bent around the door, like old space movies he had watched when younger.
“This is impossible,” mumbled the analyst, as he was forced to the side while the soldiers continued coming in. Each one gasped, looking around stunned, and then were shoved forward as more people entering displaced them.
While the Captain tried to line up all the soldiers entering to prevent them from running into each other, the Colonel found Adam and Ron standing on the other side of the gate watching a spot in the air right in front of them, similar to how people watch their [System] messages. Walking around the back of the door to prevent running into emerging soldiers, he approached the pair.
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“This is not what I expected,” said the Colonel. He felt both guarded and in awe. If Adam turned out to be an invader controlling things, then he had just delivered his troops to him. However, if he was the war bound teenager that the videos showed him to be, then everything he had here was beyond impressive. He had done what no other force on Earth had so far. “Is this one of the invader nests?”
“This was the goblin home base. We killed them and took it, then remodeled,” Adam answered while pointing to all the buildings.
“How did you manage to get inside. The only nests we’ve found have been inaccessible.”
“We killed a bunch of them outside it. Then they let us in, figuring we were easy meat. I doubt any human but me would have survived it,” said Adam directly.
“Quite confident, aren’t you. Are you really that strong?”
“No,” answered Ron for him. “He’s stronger.”
“What class do you have? How did you get that strong?” asked the Colonel directly in hushed tones. He didn’t really expect an answer.
“The [System] said I couldn’t get a class because my soul was full,” answered Adam half truthfully, surprising the Colonel, while keeping the corruption to himself. “I didn’t do anything to get this strong. I just am. And I have a compulsion to kill the invaders. It’s a bit hard to control at times. That’s why I got angry outside.”
“No skills then?”
“I have no listed skills or evidence of skill activation, as your analyst Charles said.”
Those words made the Colonel wince. Adam just revealed that the soldiers were being watched. “I do things that seem like skills though, and I force them to behave the way I want. It’s similar to skills but more unpleasant for me while being more versatile.”
“How watched are we?” asked the Colonel, on guard. Adam waved a hand and a screen appeared that the Colonel could see. It was focused on the Captain and analyst talking. Adam gestured theatrically, and the volume increased as the image slid along his soldiers, capturing what they were saying.
“This space is called a Dimensional Convergence Rift. We can see, hear, and control anything in it or in its immediate vicinity. It is constantly recording everything. We can even look at what happened in the past.” As Adam spoke the screen suddenly displayed the conversation outside. “Honesty really will be for the best while you’re here,” he added.
The Colonel sighed. “Are you willing to share what else this place can do?”
“Sure,” Adam said. “As long as you don’t cause us any trouble. We want this information given to the world. Don’t expect me to play politics or be greedy, because the countries of the world don’t have much time to get their act together, and I want humanity to survive.”
“You act like we haven’t much chance,” said the Colonel with a chuckle.
“We don’t,” Adam said, dead serious. Then he shrugged and his expression softened. “See that building over there? It looks like dead brambles. Have your troops head over, then you and analyst Charles come with me.”
The Colonel nodded and went along with it. Talking to Adam really was like talking to a superior officer. The pressure he put out when he was being serious did not belong to a kid like him. There was something to all this. While Adam put Davian on guard with his authority, there was also something reassuring and calming about Adam.
When he and Charles got back, Adam was having an argument with the air.
“Just get me a pair of sweatpants and a tank top from my drawers,” Adam demanded.
“That uses too much power to just teleport clothes around like that,” the air answered back, surprising the Analyst more than the Colonel. It sounded exasperated.
“Then hire more support staff. A communications officer and some runners would be a good idea,” responded Adam.
“No! This is my stuff. I don’t want to give it up!” The voice whined. Detective Baker had his hand on his face again.
“You can’t do it all. We'll need more people very soon. You barely sleep.”
“Yeah, but it’s so much fun!”
“Anyway, get me the clothes.”
“Aw, but the power cost is …”
“AHEM!”
“Fine. I just hate going through your drawers. Happy now?” The voice in the air was petulant. Then sweatpants and a tank top came through a ripple in the air in front of Adam. He caught them and put them on over his current shorts.
“H-how d-did you do that?” asked the analyst in shock.
Adam turned to the Colonel. “This is why we’ll lose,” he said while pointing to the Intelligence Analyst.
***
“Hi, Grammy!” Adam said cheerfully as he approached an older woman. Row after row of outdoor stoves were lining the area and dozens of women, and a few men, of different ages were moving around canning fruits and vegetables. Young boys and girls were acting as runners, getting anything that those cooking asked for. 4-wheelers were pulling in trailers of fresh ingredients from the entrance, while others were driving the finished jars to the warehouses.
“What’s happening here?” asked the Colonel.
Ron answered, “One of Adam’s team suggested we get older ladies to help prepare preserved food. It has been successful so far. We set up all these stations and volunteers can feel like they are contributing without needing to fight like The General. It has also pulled in a lot of local businesses who see the community participation and are donating time and materials to get their names known and associated with the Sentinels. It ended up being a great idea and is generating a lot of help as well as good will.”
“That sounds interesting, but does it matter?” asked analyst Charles.
“According to Adam we'll need all the food we can get. We are also working on ways to set up fields closer to this base, or even within it. Seeds are being gathers for as much as we can get, and we’re also trying to download all written knowledge that humans have gathered. Even if only we survive, Adam wants to preserve our history.”
“That’s great and all, but why are you listening so much to Adam? He’s just a kid and it sounds like he’s guessing as much as us.”
“So far his guesses have been more right than anyone else. The surprise you showed earlier indicates you aren’t anywhere near his knowledge. Look around you at what he has accomplished in so little time. Do you guys have a Dimensional Convergence Rift yet?”
“Well, no,” admitted Charles. “As far as I’m aware, no one even knew what was inside a nest.”
“Adam has taken three of them,” Ron said proudly.
“THREE?!” gasp Charles.
“I don’t suppose he would be willing to provide one to us?” asked the Colonel.
“That’s doubtful. They form a network and make it easier to get materials for building inside of them. Besides, I doubt there is anything worthwhile you could offer Adam. Once the invaders stop supply and communication lines, then money will be useless, and all he cares about is how to ensure we survive. Also killing invaders,” said Ron.
“Hmm…hopefully he can provide us with the information he has about them,” said the Colonel.
“He already asked me to,” said a voice in the air. “Here are USB drives with the useful information on them. We left out the information that won’t matter until you have a Rift of your own. If you get one then we’ll give you more. Besides, there is so much in the Rift Menu that we still don’t understand. We're only at about 15% usage.”
The air rippled above the Colonel and analyst’s hands. Out popped a USB drive that they caught.
“How does he DO that?” asked the analyst, followed by a chuckle in the air.
“Who is that voice?” asked the Colonel.
Ron gladly answered, “That is the police tech, Jordan Lane. He worked with team members of Adam’s to learn what the Rift can do. He is a bit more enthusiastic about working on the Rift Menu than his police role. Right now he does most of the management and construction in the Rift.”
“How does he do the construction?” asked Charles.
“Like this,” said Jordan’s voice from nowhere. In the distance, a bit away from other buildings, the air began to shake. There was no noise, and even from this distance the shimmer and shaking was visible. As it shook, the air began to solidify. It was mostly gray and brown, with green tinted windows. After about three minutes, instead of shaking air there was a large building.
“Adam asked me to build your troops a barrack. It currently has two hundred cots in it, and a nicer room for you, Colonel. We don’t have enough mattresses for everyone, which is why I used cots, though you will be supplied one.”
“Uh, thanks, Mr. Lane,” said the Colonel, dumbfounded. “This is not at all how I expected this day to go.”