PRESENT DAY. A GATHERING OF LAMBS.
PRESENT DAY. EARTH. THE FLORIDA EVERGLADES. A PASSENGER BUS ON A SUNNY DAY.
Luke Barns sat on the second-to-last row of the short, white bus, playing his tower defense game on his phone. They were traveling across South Florida through the Everglades toward Naples. All around him were other teenagers variously talking, singing, and attending to their own phones. This group was coming back from Miami after attending a college expo. Many of the excited conversations were about plans and hopes to attend certain schools.
Luke had sandy-blonde hair and a round face. He was dressed in his least-ratty jeans and a button down shirt his mom liked. At 5’ 10”, he had always been weighty, and since he’d quit his martial arts lessons and started staying inside more, he’d been trending towards fat rather than beefy. Luke really wasn’t very excited by anything but this game, and his other games. College was something he was supposed to do, he knew, but it just sounded weird and he wasn’t comfortable thinking about moving out. He didn’t like change.
Sara Glenn sat behind him, chatting with her friend Penelope, debating in- and out-of-state schools. She was pretty and dark skinned. Her arms and legs were toned, and she moved with great energy wherever she was. Her arms and face were animated when talking about the possibilities. Sara’s family lived in Alva, north of Naples. She and Luke, and the other teenagers on the bus, were part of a home-schooling group that shared resources and know-how. While Sara had to travel farther, Naples had a lot more opportunities for students. She was involved with gymnastics, dance, track and field, and various other sports throughout the year.
Luke was intimidated by Sara. He always wanted to talk to her, but could not think of a way to start. Anyway, it was better to remain silent than to make a fool of yourself. Especially in public. Luke settled back into his game and tried to ignore the noise around him.
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INFILTRATE.
EARTH. 25 MILES ABOVE THE EVERGLADES.
The tension in the starship control room was intense. The Captain had never seen his driver/pilot so rattled.
“Easy, Sergeant. Those systems are top-credit. Literally. This ship is solid.”
“Solid as a rock, sir.” Their ship, using non-system drives, sensors, life-support, and stealth, was floating in the sky. “Like a rock without wings”, he muttered.
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“It’ll hold, it’ll hold.” Sometimes an officer’s job was just to look confident and not soil themselves. The Captain embraced that duty now.
Narell ignored them and watched a row of solid screens showing various factors. “This is perfect. Bring us down to the Alpha site and keep the stealth on. It’s empty now.” Surveillance showed that this area was barely used, and this time of day had significantly less vehicle traffic.
A nerve wracking 10 minutes later, the team was gratefully on the ground and pulling machinery out of the quick-release pods on the ship.
“Why is it so clotting hot!?” The Lieutenant slapped her arm, and dropped the cylinder she carried.
“Carefully!” snapped Narell. All of them were on edge. Without the System supporting their bodies they were weaker, and nearing exhaustion just from working in the Florida weather. The heavy bodied Orc had more muscle mass, but this also meant using more energy just to move.
“Something bit me!”
Bodies that could survive bullets in System environments were now subject to unenhanced physics. And biting flies.
Non-system equipment was also made of heavy materials, solid wires, and lots of metal. It was heavy, and heating up in the sun. While the equipment was rated for this, it added worry to the mix, and no one had any nerve to spare.
The Captain shouted to the Lieutenant, “Status on the stealth field!”
She swore under her breath and put the dropped cylinder into a slot on the fence she’d quickly run up around their very visible ship.
“Activating!”
And the ship vanished, along with the aliens behind it.
“Back in the ship, and begin calibration. Sergeant, watch those sensors.”
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A REST STOP.
EVERGLADES, FLORIDA - PASSENGER BUS. DAYTIME.
“I need to pee!”
Luke kind of agreed, though he didn’t want to say anything. He was glad someone else brought it up.
Al, the bus driver, said “There’s nothing much along here, but I know a State Park that has some facilities. Kind of. 10 minutes.”
There was a groan among the students. Mr. Marks, the parent chaperone, smiled and turned around from the front seat. He had been trying with mixed success to get the kids' noses out of their phones since the previous day when they drove over.
“Okay we all need a distraction!” He picked up his guitar from its case and said “Sing-a-long!”
The students laughed and groaned. Mr. Marks was a professional musician and was excellent. Even though it was corny, most were willing to go along with it. He took requests, and never did any songs about bottles of beer. By the time the park signs came into view, everyone was singing. Even Luke, who wanted to look good in front of the others. Like Sara.