SPECTRE

CHAPTER XI

At this point I finally had the idea for what was going on. I knew who the main villain was and his evil plan. As I work on first draft my main focus was just getting my ideas out. On the second draft I focused on fleshing out AJ's backstory since he is the main character. Third draft I worked on fleshing out Shilah's and Sev's relationship. etc etc.

Their boots kicked up pale dust as they went through the mountains. AJ took lead, holding his unsheathed sword tightly. He’d glance back at Carter ever few moments or so. If their eyes met Carter would smile back at him. He didn’t trust Carter, felt he was trying to lure them away from the real problem. But what what could he do. This was his mission given to him by his commander.

Harlot stared down at the radioactive meter while they walked. She looked through her red visor as the arrow jittered in the left corner. The closer they got the more the arrow shook.

“Guys we’re getting closer to the radioactive zone.” she said.

Carter ran his hand against the jagged mountain side as they walked through the cramped pathway. The only way through the mountains that didn’t take them all around. The mountains around them rose high into the air and curved inward, casting the shadow down on them. Above them the clouds were grey that hid the even greyer skies above.

“You guys here that?” Carter asked.

“Here what?” AJ and Harlot replied.

“Exactly, I don’t hear any explosions,” Carter said.

“The reports said the explosions only happen in burst,” Harlot told them. “Maybe this is the time when the explosions are not happening.”

“If that’s the case then we should keep moving,” AJ said.

It took them an hour to pass through the mountains. At the end it opened up at the end to a cliff where they stood at the edge. They gazed out at the distance horizon. The desert was filled with craters, big to small, each had smoke still billowing from inside them. Ruins of what appeared to be a city lied flattened in the distance. Nothing stood taller than a story.

“What do you think happened here?” Carter asked.

Harlot took a black binoculars and used them to get a better view. There were remnants of the war scattered throughout the land. Aircrafts; bombers and fighter jets and sky fortresses were all destroyed. Their parts mangled and twisted and sprinkled across the desert. The ones that were still intact were riddled with bullet holes and left motionless to their decay  

“Commander was right, there must still be an airfield still operational,” she said.

“We should get closer so we can get a better idea of what’s going on,” AJ suggested.

“Wait!” Carter said, grabbing AJ by the shoulder. He pointed his finger into the distant horizon where a what were seven squadrons. Each squadron contained seven aircrafts. They casted their ominous shadow across the dead world below. Their engines buzzed like a swarm of bees and their metal frames clattered because they were not bolted down properly. Some aircrafts billowed out smoke from their torso.

They flew for a moment and then the show started. The hatches under the body swung open and bombs, metal spheres with spikes fell from them. They fell fast and hit hard. Fiery explosions lit the area in a bright orange and yellow light. The booms rocked the cliff they stood on and the shockwaves threatened to knock them over.

One after another, big and small, the bombs fell. What they were targeting, AJ wasn’t sure of. Neither Harlot or Carter were sure either. The land had be destroyed beyond redemption and this was just overkill.