The Raid

  Tomorrow’s Past:

  The Raid

  By Everette Morgan

  Copyright 2013

  All rights reserved

  All characters appearing in this work are fictitious and figments of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead is purely coincidental.

  Proofread and edited by Janice Morgan

  Cover photo & photo editing by Savannah Morgan

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  About the Author

  Tomorrow’s Past: The Raid

  Chapter 1

  Marcus and Kim both lingered, looking at the photo of David which Jocelyn had displayed for them. It had only been a few weeks and David was already looking malnourished. They must barely be giving them enough food to sustain them. They could also see several bruises on his face and arms.

  “Jocelyn, where is this picture being taken?” asked Marcus.

  “It was taken just outside of the Broken Arrow Air Force Base near Tulsa, Oklahoma,” she said.

  “You don’t have video footage of this?” he asked.

  “No. Currently, the cameras working in this area are set to time lapse only. The picture will refresh every thirty seconds,” she said.

  As soon as Jocelyn finished answering him, Kim said, “Let’s go get him. Going back home would only slow us down. We have plenty of ammo and we already have a good head start in that direction.”

  “Hold on Kim. We don’t know anything about where he is being held. We don’t need to rush this and get us all killed,” said Marcus thoughtfully. “Jocelyn, how far away is his location?”

  “If you travel by highway, it will be between six hundred and seven hundred miles. I am plotting a course as we speak,” she said.

  “You want to go back home before we head that way?!” said Kim raising her voice.

  “Calm down. I didn’t say that. You are right. That would just waste time but we need to have a strategy and plan ahead so we don’t walk into a trap. Let’s see what Jocelyn comes up with and go from there,” he said.

  It took a couple of minutes but finally Jocelyn had plotted a course for getting there and it wasn’t pretty. With the detours and obstacles along the way, it was over eight hundred miles and it could take up to five days travelling to get there. Jocelyn pointed out that in some places the fastest you could drive was around ten miles per hour.

  Before they made a decision, Marcus had Jocelyn analyze the base. She was able to display the entire layout of the whole area along with all the security measures that were in place. A majority of the base was covered with a Force Canopy. Further out was one of the invisible perimeter fences that Marcus had dealt with before. They had vegetable gardens set up between the canopy and perimeter fence. The gardens were being worked by approximately ten to twelve prisoners at different times. Six prisoners alternated every three days to work the gardens. It looked like maybe they were working on a winter crop. Running scans of the entire base, Jocelyn was able to determine that there were approximately a total of twenty-two to twenty-five prisoners. They were being held by a total of forty-one captors.

  After some discussion, Kim and Marcus came to the conclusion that the best way to break David out would be to get him when it was his day to work the gardens. Although, in Marcus’ opinion, it looked like the hardest part would be to actually make it there. Marcus and Kim kept debating on how they should proceed for the next thirty minutes.

  “It’s just so far away that it might pay us to go back home, set up a plan, and head back to Oklahoma. I know it might take us an extra week but we wouldn’t be going in blind,” said Marcus.

  “I know. You are right. It’s just so frustrating now that we know where he is located. I just wish there was a way for us to travel faster. If we had a pilot it would be great. We could track down a plane or helicopter and get there quick,” she said.

  “Yeah, you are right. I just…,”

  “Marcus,” Jocelyn interrupted. “With the new access I have to several of the military bases, I can bring a fully operational Black Falcon helicopter to your location. There are several in the database that are fully automated and fully armed. Would you like me to fly one in?”

  Marcus and Kim looked at one another and they both said in unison, “YES!”

  “How long will it take you to bring one in?” asked Marcus.

  “I have several charging as we speak. I can have one here in three or four hours,” said Jocelyn.

  “We still need to plan, so how about flying two of them to the house? Make sure they are fully armed and pass all of your diagnostics. Now that I think of it… wait until dark to fly them in. We don’t need to draw any unwanted attention to our location. Does that sound okay to you Kim?” he asked.

  “Sounds great to me,” said Kim.

  “Jocelyn, the largest place we have to land under the canopy is the pasture. Land them there and we will get headed back,” he said. “Tell Wynd that we are on our way home.”

  Chapter 2

  After Jocelyn finished telling Wynd that Marcus and Kim were on the way home, Wynd remembered some of the things that Marcus had talked about before they left. He told her that he wanted to make sure that she took every precaution necessary to protect their home.

  “Jocelyn, can you send out a drone on a fifty mile radius and make sure there aren’t any problems?” asked Wynd. “I know you have been scanning the area everyday but let’s double check and make sure it’s still clear.”

  “The new large drone Marcus found in Redstone is here but Marcus wanted me to run it through a battery of diagnostics. Rom modified his drone to have the same capabilities as Marcus’ so we should be able to use it,” said Jocelyn.

  “Is Rom using it?” she asked.

  “He is, but I can take it over and he will think that it just malfunctioned” said Jocelyn.

  “What?” asked Wynd laughingly. She wondered if Jocelyn was developing an attitude.

  “Easy, peasy, lemon, squeezy,” said Jocelyn.

  Wynd knew exactly what was going on then.

  “Has Marcus done this before?” she asked.

  “Several times. He says that it drives Rom crazy and then he laughs,” said Jocelyn.

  As serious as Marcus was at certain times, he had a great sense of humor and really liked to aggravate.

  “Okay, Jocelyn but we are going to do it my way. I’ll go talk to Rom and ask if he minds me borrowing the drone,” she said as she got up and went upstairs to Rom’s room. Rom was using the big screen in his room to fly the drone. It looked like somewhere in the valley near Trenton. Trenton was a little town at the foot of the mountain. He was flying the drone over a small herd of stegosaurs in one of the larger clearings. He turned and looked at her when she knocked on his door.

  “Dinosaurs are so cool. I wish I had one for a pet,” said Rom.

  “I don’t think so,” said Wynd smiling. “We have enough problems without asking for trouble. Anyway, I want Jocelyn to run a fifty mile security sweep and I would like to use your drone. Do you mind?”

  “Sure, I don’t mind. Just realize though, that sometimes it gets a mind of its own and will fly off. I’ve got it back every time but it usually takes about thirty or forty minutes to get it back online. I need to have Jocelyn run some diagnostics to see if sh
e can find the problem,” he said.

  “Okay, thanks. I’ll let you know when I’m finished with it. I just want to double check the area,” she said smiling. She turned and headed back downstairs.

  “Okay, it’s a go Jocelyn. Take control and run a fifty mile scan. Also, can you put it on full screen so I can watch?” she asked as she walked back down into the living room.

  The huge screen in the living room immediately switched on and Wynd was flying above the forests of the mountain. Jocelyn flew the drone back up the mountain, across their little stronghold and then headed it toward the Chattanooga area. It was neat getting to see where they were living from the air. She could see the twins playing outside as it flew over. The drone continued over the wooded areas of the mountain. It was a beautiful sight even though most of the leaves had fallen. Wynd was really getting into it. As the drone sailed over the edge of the mountain, it almost took her breath away. She was going to have to do this more often.

  There were still several herds of dinosaurs in the valley. Most were herbivores, but she did see an occasional carnivore. She continued sailing through the valley and then they were over the Tennessee River flying around Moccasin Bend. Chattanooga was coming into view. It still amazed her to think that most cities like Chattanooga were basically empty. As the drone flew over the city, labels and titles would pop up on the screen. Jocelyn had added markers and titles to the different areas so that you could understand where you were and pinpoint your location. While Wynd was taking in the sights, Danielle came in and sat down beside her.

  “What are you watching?” asked Danielle.

  “Jocelyn is running Rom’s drone on a fifty mile sweep to make sure there is not anything we should be concerned about. She’s flying over Chattanooga first, because that’s the most likely place for trouble to come from,” said Wynd.

  “Wow, the river is beautiful. Is that the Tennessee River?” she asked.

  “Yes, we just went around a section of the river called Moccasin Bend. They say it’s shaped like a moccasin. Maybe Jocelyn will fly higher next time so that we can see it,” said Wynd.

  The drone sailed through the lower downtown area and made several passes over it just to be sure they weren’t missing anything. Finally satisfied, Jocelyn flew the drone up and over a place called Missionary Ridge. The city spread out for miles. Jocelyn flew the drone up and down the major roads in the area searching for anything that might be a problem.

  “I think the sign was on! I think the sign was on! Hurry, turn around and fly back!” screamed Danielle. Wynd almost fell off of the couch.

  Scared out of her wits at Danielle’s screams, Wynd took a second to get her composure. She then turned to Danielle and said, “What are you screaming about?”

  “Go back, go back… please,” pleaded Danielle.

  Wynd instructed Jocelyn to turn the drone around and go back the way it had come. Jocelyn flew back down the road they were following. The road’s name was Brainerd Road.

  “Stop! Stop!” yelled Danielle. “Awww… it wasn’t on.”

  Wynd finally figured out what was going on and gazed with wonderment at Danielle.

  “You started screaming and going into fits because you thought the Krispy Kreme Donut store’s ‘HOT NOW’ donuts sign was on? Are you totally out of your mind?” she asked smiling.

  “Those hot donuts were the best. I could eat a dozen of them myself. I really miss those. Sorry I guess I was hallucinating,” Danielle said as she started laughing. Wynd started laughing with her.

  “Okay, Jocelyn. You can continue on. Danielle and I are going to find Virginia and see if she can make some doughnuts. Let me know if you find anything,” she said smiling.

  They got up and began to search for Virginia. Jocelyn continued her detailed grid search of the area.

  Chapter 3

  Marcus and Kim left Redstone Arsenal. It was already mid morning before they finally started on the trip back home to Haven. They had just turned and headed home when Jocelyn reported a problem.

  “Marcus, the drone has picked up a disturbance at the U.S Space and Rocket Center. A pack of raptors have trapped two boys at the ‘Saturn V’ rocket. They are outside on the catwalk that encircles the top of the rocket. I’m not sure how much longer they can keep them from coming through the door,” she said.

  Jocelyn brought up some history on the Space Center and displayed it for them. About fifty years ago the Rocket Center had renovated the Saturn V. They had it sealed and preserved against deterioration. The renovation also included adding a building that connected to the rocket and also installed stairs and a catwalk that went to the top for visitors to tour. It gave a fantastic view of Huntsville and the surrounding areas. The rocket was over three hundred and sixty feet tall.

  “How many raptors are attacking the boys?” asked Marcus.

  “The security grid was still active and I was able to access it. I have been able to locate a total of five different raptors. Two have followed them up the stairs to the top. Three more are roaming through the gift shop at the bottom of the rocket,” said Jocelyn.

  Marcus knew that at close quarters, the ZF7 sniper rifle was effectively useless. “How effective will my .44 magnum and M317 be against the raptors?” he asked.

  “Two .44s and M317s…,” said Kim.

  “As long as the shots are accurate, the pistols should have sufficient knock down power for these raptors,” said Jocelyn. “Although larger than most known raptors, these weigh only approximately two hundred and fifty pounds.”

  The MAV pulled into the parking directly across from the Saturn V rocket. Marcus could see the boys holding the door shut. They looked to be only about fifteen or sixteen years old. Marcus and Kim got out and went to the back of the MAV. They armed themselves with the pistols, M317s, and plenty of ammunition.

  About that time the door the boys were holding burst open ripping completely off the hinges. The raptors may not be very big but they were strong. The two boys fell backwards on the catwalk with the door on top of them. There was only room for one raptor on the catwalk. It was stepping on the door trying to get to the boys. The raptor bringing up the rear was barking out some kind of weird call. Quickly, Marcus grabbed the sniper rifle out of the rear of the MAV. He cocked it and slammed a round into the chamber. He paused just a second as he took aim at the raptor and fired. It was a perfect head shot. It dropped right where it stood. It was now lying on the door that was lying on top of the two boys.

  Seeing its pack mate go down, the other raptor tried to squeeze in to get at the boys. Marcus ejected the spent round and slammed another one into the chamber. He took aim again and fired. The raptor had slipped when he fired and Marcus only grazed it with the bullet. He quickly reloaded and fired again. This time it was a direct hit to the head. It knocked the dinosaur’s head sideways and the raptor fell over. With it being raised up higher on top of the other raptor, instead of just laying against the rail, the main part of its body went completely over the top rail and it slipped over and plunged to the ground below. It hit the ground with a sickening thud and didn’t move.

  “Nice. Bro,” said Kim grinning. “Too bad you didn’t let me shoot. I wouldn’t have wasted a round.”

  Marcus laughed, “Yeah, right. I was just trying to build the suspense. Anyway, you may have your chance. There are three more in the building below and they may try to get to the top after the boys. I think that call the second raptor made was a call to the pack. I’m going to go into the building and go after them. I want you to cover those boys with the sniper rifle until I can clear them out.”

  “You sure you can handle those by yourself?” she asked.

  “I guess we are fixing to find out,” he said with a wink.

  Holding the M317 in both of his hands, he ran across the parking lot and up to the door of the building. As he looked through the glass door, he could see two of them walking around sniffing some of the items on the shelves. He kept looking for the other one but no
luck. He wasn’t going in there blind not knowing where the other one was. It could be right beside the door. He paused for a minute and then an idea came to him. He opened the mic on his earpiece.

  “Jocelyn. Cover me,” he said.

  Kim was on the other side of the MAV holding the sniper rifle across the hood. She jumped a little as the big Korak swung around toward the rocket. On instinct, she quickly stuck her fingers in her ears. In meantime, Marcus rammed the butt of his rifle against the glass of the door and shattered it. Then he quickly backed off about ten feet to the left of the door. In a matter of seconds, the two raptors came through the door screaming. Immediately Marcus opened fire with the machine gun and at the same time the Korak came to life. The two raptors went down and didn’t move. The firing stopped and Marcus moved cautiously over to them. Both were riddled with bullets. He took the toe of his boot and nudged one of the raptor’s head. They were definitely dead.

  “Stand down. Thanks, Joce,” said Marcus.

  “Piece o’cake boss,” quipped Jocelyn.

  Marcus laughed and then there was a loud boom as the third raptor fell at his feet. It wasn’t the MAV that fired, it was his sister Kim. He didn’t see the raptor coming and it would have nailed him if Kim hadn’t been there. Kim laid the rifle on the front of the MAV and headed toward him. He was shaking his head when she got there.

  Trying to hide a grin, Kim said, “…always having to pull my brother’s tail out of the fire…”

  “What?!” he asked incredulously. “I believe I saved yours first. You are so old. Are you having memory lapses now?”

  “I let you save me. I just wanted to boost your ego,” she said laughing.

  Laughing, Marcus said, “Whatever. Let’s go see if they are ok.”

  Chapter 4

  They went into the gift shop cautiously. Jocelyn normally didn’t miss anything but there was always a chance. He was sure that Jocelyn would have gotten the third one if he hadn’t told her to stand down. Looking around he could tell that the raptors had pretty much tore up the place. The store was clear and they made their way to the steps going to the top. There was still no sign of the boys. Moving with caution, it took Marcus and Kim over twenty minutes to climb the thirty-seven flights of stairs.