Chapter 7: Meet The Enemy

"My Mother said I must to tell you everything. Those three aren't going anywhere in a hurry so let's just sit out here and I'll begin as soon as Mrs. Larsen comes out." Vikki sat on one end of the porch swing and patted the empty place next to her, indicating she wanted Gage to sit next to her. Gage sat in silence; no smart remarks came from him. His mind was on overload.

Linda came out just then. "I heard what you said. What is it you are going to tell us 'everything' about?"

Steve placed an arm around his wife and said, "We keep hearing hints of some deep and dark secret. I think since my family has been placed in danger we have a right to know what's going on." They sat together on a lounge chair while Vikki stood back up.

"Okay, here goes. I guess you might say I'm not your average teenager." Steve snorted and nodded.

"They have no idea just how un-average you really are." Gage smiled proudly at her.

"Quiet, Shrimp, there is no such word as 'un-average. Just listen." Vikki cuffed him on the shoulder lightly and continued. "Sometime about three thousand years ago a group of travelers got stranded on this planet. They had no way to communicate home so all they could do was to settle in and survive."

"You mean like people from Mars?" Linda asked.

"Mom, if I am right, they come from another universe." Gage looked at his mother, silently urging her to not interrupt any more.

"The little dude is right. You know, Gage, you have a better imagination than I thought." Vikki smiled approvingly at him.

"Hold on there," Steve said, "What's this 'universe' stuff?"

Vikki sighed and stopped her narrative to explain, "There are planetary systems and Galaxies. And when you put them all together, you get a universe. You can travel anywhere you wish within a universe if you have the means to do so. And there are other universes out there separated by something more than mere space and time.

"To travel from one universe to another takes a very special type of mind. It also takes certain circumstances."

"Black holes." Gage interrupted. "I bet it's black holes and a variation of gravity, right?" He grinned as his parents looked at him like he was speaking a foreign language.

Vikki looked at him in alarm and asked, "Who has been teaching you? How do you know so much?" She seemed to be worried.

"I been listening to you and ex-trap-o-lating. Besides, I know Dog is centuries old and I get hints from him some times. Them people didn't come here in a space ship, did they?" He waited expectantly for an answer.

"Shrimp, some times you scare me with what you know. Then, when you mangle the language and I am reassured." She grinned at him and said, "You want to take over the telling?"

"Well, all I can figure out right now is some people got here and couldn't get back. The congruity changed and there was what is called a cal ... Calamitous Event. So they built settlements and started a civilization of their own. They came here looking for other people who were just like themselves. Then they found Earth where the people biologically were identical. There were racial differences, just as there were between the Earthers. But physically there was little difference. Well, except the earth people were very primitive." Gage smiled as if he was asking, "how am I doing?"

"You are very scary, you know? Yet you are so right. Before our people could get completely established warlike tribes of nomads overran them. They were overwhelmed and taken as slaves. As a result, there are very few of us who are what we call, 'of the pure blood.' This means we were able to marry exclusively with our own kind. You people are of the mixed blood. You have both earthers and the People as your ancestors. When you married, the blood of the People was somehow concentrated in Gage and he is a throwback to the original lineage. I'm guessing about what I believe this to be the case, Gage is one of us."

"Our friends are trying to escape their bonds." Dog's gruff mental voice called to Gage.

"We better check on those three," Gage told his parents, "Them guys are trying to get away."

Vikki hurried down the steps. "Okay, you three clowns, we are going to ask questions and you are going to answer." They glared at her and said nothing. "I'll start with a simple statement, you are all three members of the Raak, aren't you?"

"We don't know what you're talking about. We got lost and were trying to make it out to the road. Nothing else." The one who answered her had two swollen bruises on his forehead, proof of how hard Vikki could kick.

"Yeah," the other one chimed in. "We were attacked by your big dog and had to protect ourselves." Besides, we got friends who will come looking for us when we don't show up on time." He sneered and added, "You don't know what you just got into."

"Okay," Steve said and strode back into the house. He came back out with a cordless phone. He dialed 911 and frowned down at the duct-taped trio. "Your friends can try to bail you out of jail.

The operator answered and Steve said, "Three guys came on my property and shot our dog and tried to hurt my wife and kid and another young lady visiting us. You want to send someone out here to arrest them?" He gave his name and location and hung up.

A half hour later two deputies pulled up in the yard. Quickly Vikki and Gage recounted what happened. The deputies looked at the two teenagers skeptically. "You mean you two kids did all this damage to three grown men by yourselves?" one asked.

"No sir, Dog got the first one and got shot and dragged him up to the porch before he collapsed. The other one pointed a gun at me and I smacked him with a poker and Vikki stomped his head in. Then she kung fooed the last one. You don't want to mess with her, she's lethal," Gage told the lawmen proudly.

"Wait, you're the kid who beaned the bank robber, aren't you?" one deputy asked.

"Well, me and Dog stopped him and Dad grabbed up the gun. We make a good team." Gage grinned proudly.

"You're only thirteen?" the other deputy asked.

"How old you got to be to stop a bank robber?" Gage asked indignantly. "Is there an age requirement?"

Before anyone could answer a small pickup truck came racing into the yard and skidded to a stop. Two men carrying sawed off shotguns jumped out and pointed their weapons in the direction of the deputies and the Larsens. "Cut them loose and let them go." one of the newcomers yelled hoarsely. Without thinking, Gage grabbed the poker up off the porch deck and threw it at one of the new intruders. The poker handle hit the shotgun he was holding.

The other armed intruder pointed his weapon toward Gage. Before he could do anything else, Vikki exploded into a blur of action and covered the twenty feet between them faster than he could react. The shotgun left his grasp as Vikki snagged it from his hands. He was kicked in the knee and fell hard to the ground.

Linda stood over the three already taped, daring them to move while Steve had grabbed up the pistol off the back porch and had it pointed between the first shotgun wielder's eyes. The deputies stood open mouthed and wide eyed as they saw the melee go on around them. Gage brought the duct-tape up and began to tape the newest two intruders' hands together.

"Now do you understand what we have been through?" Steve asked the two lawmen.

"Mister, ah, Larsen, I don't understand anything right now except you are the most lethal people I have ever seen," one deputy said in awe. The other nodded his agreement. "I'm calling for backup."

He went to the cruiser and removed the microphone off the dash. "He could have used the microphone attached to his collar. He wants to be mysterious, I guess," Vikki said.

"There's another one in the woods behind the house sneaking this way," Dog told Gage.

Gage nodded to Vikki and slowly walked to the back door. She followed. "We got one more bad guy sneaking around the house. He's on the north side. I figure you would like to kung fu him through a window, maybe."

"You bet," she exclaimed and quietly hurried toward Gage's room. She slipped out the window, slipped up behind the intruder armed with an automatic pistol and said "Boo."

He jumped and turned around right into a wristlock. As the gun left his hand Vikki planted herself and threw him over her shoulder. He landed on the ground flat on his back, the breath knocked out of him.

Gage had followed Vikki out the window and scooped up the last intruder's gun. "You know, Vikki, you were pretty sloppy there. Maybe I ought to show you a better way."

"Little man, the only way you can show me is how to get out of my way," she told him indignantly. The fallen man grabbed her by the ankle. Before he could do any more Gage rushed in and slammed him on top of the head with the gun.

"When I hit's 'em they stays hit," Gage said in his own bad imitation of Popeye.

Vikki snorted and said, "Help me drag this one around with the others."

I got a better idea," Gage told her. "Hey Dad," he yelled, "Can you and a deputy come here and get this last one?"

Both deputies came running around the corner of the house. Without a word they each grabbed an ankle and unceremoniously dragged their latest prisoner to where the others were. "Just to be different let's use cuffs on this one. We don't want to waste any more of your valuable duct tape when we have cuffs."

Minutes later a large police van entered the yard. Two husky looking deputies stepped out and talked to the two already there. One of the newcomers sauntered over and asked, "Now can anyone here tell me what this is all about? So far what I am getting is a wild story about a dog getting shot and five people with an assortment of weapons getting beat up by unarmed civilians."

"He throws a deadly poker," said Vikki, pointing to Gage.

"She whupped up on the bad guys," said Gage pointing to Vikki.

"Me? I just picked up all the weapons the kids took away from those creeps." Steve grinned and pointed to the pile of weapons on the back porch.

"I just sewed up the dog after one of those two shot him. He dragged that jerk here from the woods then he collapsed. You can tell which one Dog dragged by the teeth marks on his wrist. He wasn't very gentle."

"We'll have to call animal control out on the biting incident," the big deputy stated.

"You want World War Three on your hands you just try gettin' a dog catcher out here. He saved our son's life and he helped save Mangling Milton." Steve stood straight and dared the deputy to do anything.

"You the family who stopped the bank robbery?" Suddenly he didn't sound so sure of himself all at once.

"Yah," Steve answered, "We look out for each other." No more mention was made about animal control.

"Well, we do need you all to come in and make a statement. Tomorrow will be okay. Just call first.

Linda nodded and Steve said they would. The six prisoners were loaded into the police van and taken away. The two deputies in the cruiser followed and all was quiet. "Now," Linda said in a strained voice, "If someone please doesn't tell me what is going on, I am going to have a nervous breakdown. Somebody, anybody start talking. It's after midnight and I want to go to bed.

They all settled back down on the porch and Vikki began to take up the story one more time. "Well anyway, like I was saying before we were so rudely and crudely interrupted, our ancestors came from another universe. They became slaves and a few escaped slavery one way or another and went into hiding. They used the bits and remnants of their home science they could remember and put to use.

"So now you know where the legends of Atlantis, Mu and some of the other Paradise-like civilizations originated. Some of the descendants of those who were thrown into slavery by the barbarians finally worked free and banded together. They decided they were the rightful rulers of this world and made war on those of the pure blood. For over three thousand years we have been fighting for our very existence. Tonight was another skirmish in the war."

"You mean you and your folks brought your war to us," Linda said in a serious voice. Her stare was very cold.

"No, they were already here when my folks and I arrived. I believe they were following the same trail we followed, the chess match and the two coins you sold in Las Vegas." Vikki shook her head and added, "Believe me, we would never knowingly place an innocent at risk. We can't."

"Sounds right to me," Steve said. Linda came over to her husband and placed an arm around his waist.

"I'm going to bed," Gage announced. "I got my room back and Vikki has the guest room." He walked through the door and into his room. He fell asleep while he was taking his shoes off.

Linda showed Vikki to the guest room and she and Steve quickly went into their room and were sound asleep in minutes, wrapped in each other's arms. Vikki lay awake for a while before falling into a troubled sleep. Outside on the back porch Dog sniffed the air and listened for alien noises. He was worried there might be a back up team coming.

The next morning Gage awoke and padded into the living room as the phone started to sound its chirruping summons. "'Lo?" he sleepily answered the phone.

"This is Vikki's mother, may I speak to her?"

Gage recognized her voice and nodded yes and placed the phone on the table. He opened the door to the guest room and said, "Your mother wants to talk to you."

Vikki jumped up and ran to the phone stand. Suddenly she realized she was in her underwear. "Wait Mother, I'm not dressed." She turned to Gage and ordered him, "Stop staring." Then she realized he had settled down in the recliner and gone back to sleep. She took the phone with her into the bedroom and said, "Mother?"

"Yes, dear, I'm here. Was everything quiet after we left?"

"We got attacked by a team of Raak. We came out ahead and they got arrested. There were at six of them. These are how many we captured. The police didn't believe us at first. The Larsens wouldn't back down an inch, not at all. Mister Larsen threatened them with World War Three if they didn't back off. We compromised and have to go into town and give our statements."

"We can't find where the police have taken the twins. Right now they are trying to deny the boys were ever arrested." Ellen Storm's voice sounded worried.

"Mother, I know where they were being held last night. Give me a few seconds on the shrimp's computer and I'll find out if they have been moved." She quickly donned her clothes from the previous day and hurried into Gage's room. Two minutes later she had the information she sought.

"The twins are back in the city jail under phony names. They haven't even been booked. I guess you can just get a court order and take them home."

"Our house was burned to the ground while we were with the Larsens. I contacted the insurance company. I have to go now dear, be careful." She hung up.

Gage came in and grabbed up some clean clothes. "You better shower, you look smelly."

He went into his small half bath and took a quick shower. When he came back out Vikki told him, "I don't have any clean clothes. I'll have to ask your mother to lend me something."

"Nah, it won't work, she's wider and shorter than you. Take a pair of my gym shorts and a tee shirt. And use my shower. I want to see how Dog is.

Instantly Dog's raspy thought came to him. "Bring me water and three pounds of raw meat."

Gage hurried to the freezer and removed a small venison roast and placed it in the microwave to defrost. Next he filled a bowl with water and quickly brought it to his friend. Dog had already regained enough of his strength to sit up on his haunches by himself. He still looked weak and unsteady. Gage set the bowl down and dog dipped his muzzle into the water and drank deep until the water was gone. He sighed and lay back down.

Gage hurried back inside and removed the roast from the microwave and began cutting it in large chunks dog could handle. "Gage, what are you doing with that meat?" His mother's voice echoed loudly in the kitchen.

"Dog's hungry and wanted meat and water." Gage didn't look up.

"Please put the knife down before you cut your arm off. I'll take care of things. I don't like amateurs in my kitchen."

"Sorry Mom, I didn't want to bother you." He put the knife down and washed the blood off his hands in the sink.

"'Sall right," she answered and quickly finished the cutting. She carried the heaping plate of meat to Dog and watched him quickly devour his meal.

"Well, nothing wrong with your appetite. A little thing like a gunshot didn't do much to interfere with the way you eat. Let's see your bandage." She knelt beside Dog and closely examined the wound.

"Mom, Dog says the bandage is no longer necessary. He would like you to remove it." Gage told his mother.

"What's the world coming to?" She marveled as she went in the house. "I get my medical instructions from a big, ugly dog who reads my son's mind." She shook her head in mock exasperation. She knelt down beside the sitting dog and cut through the tightly tied bandages.

"Oh, oh." she exclaimed as she examined the wound.

"What's the matter, Mom, Is something wrong?" Gage came over to stare at the wound.

"No, nothing is wrong at all except the Wonder Pooch here is almost half healed all ready. This is amazing." She gathered up the used bandage and took it into the house and put it in the trash.