Chapter 48
Instant blistering heat consumed Esmie’s body the moment she dove through the portal, yet it didn’t register as she ran toward her friends.
They lay on the ground in heaps a couple feet away from each other.
She ran up to Mindy and pulled her back to where Tessa lay crying.
Then she looped her arms under one of theirs, across their backs and lifted both up, dragging them back to the glass barrier.
When they reached the glass dome Esmie set each friend carefully on the ground.
She pounded on the glass, screaming for someone to open it.
No one answered. She placed her hand over her eyes, trying to peer inside, but the dome was frosted over with a white tint.
Spinning away, she searched the ground for anything she could use to break the glass.
There was an outcrop of boulders twenty feet away.
She lifted them and flung them at the dome but to no avail.
The rocks bounced off, not even making a dent.
There had to be some type of electronic system, she could access.
Esmie closed her eyes, feeling with her new senses for any type of technology close by.
While she could feel the dome’s secured technology, it was muted and distant.
No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t access it properly to bend it to her will.
Esmie grabbed her head and screamed to the heavens, “Elohim, why give me these powers if I can’t even save my friends?” Helplessness flowed over her. She fisted her eyes, wishing she could drown out her friends’ sobs.
“It hurts so much. I feel like my skin is cooking.” Tessa cried then threw up. Mindy merely whimpered where she was, writhing in pain, already within her own sick.
Scooting close to her friends, she placed their heads in her lap as she whimpered soft prayers to Elohim begging for mercy on them.
The heat from the sun flushed their cheeks, including Esmie’s.
Whoever runs the dome must be able to set the temperature inside, as out here the sun baked her skin, sending beads of sweat breaking out all over her face and neck.
The uncomfortable heat was nothing in comparison to her heart breaking at listening to her friends’ anguished cries and watching blisters form on their skin.
A hiss sounded behind her and she felt power shifting.
Esmie twisted around to see a portal opening between her, between her and the rock formation, but this one didn’t have the same blurred edges as the one the mayor opened.
It was more crisp. Would it lead back inside the dome?
Why wasn’t it within the dome wall like the mayor’s portal had been?
Esmie jumped up, looping her arms under her friends again to pull them up and walk with them over to the portal, but it was as if their legs had given up.
Neither girl could move and only wailed in pain, their skin sloughing off at her grip, and leaving a trail of hair behind them.
Tears stained Esmie’s cheeks as she begged and pleaded with them to try and walk with her.
Samson leapt through the portal, running toward her. Her eyes widened as he approached. He reached for Tessa and picked her up in his arms, cradling her like a baby. He pointed his lips at Mindy.
“Grab her so we can get out of here faster. We don’t have much time,” he commanded, urgency in his voice.
“Time for what?” The words had just left Esmie’s mouth when a loud female voice rattled the ground.
“Unauthorized portal detected. Defense missiles in place to release in five…four…three…”
“Missiles? What?” Esmie tried to pick up Mindy who went limp, unconscious. Her dead weight made it difficult to grasp her, so Esmie lifted her like Samson did, then jogged after him.
“Two…one…” The dissonant female voice continued. “Fire.”
Crackling sounded all around her, the smell of something burning filled her nostrils.
Then a whoosh and a sonic boom followed, causing Esmie to stumble.
She turned to see two missiles come from the top of the dome and arc into the air then descend right toward her.
Esmie tried to put her hands forward to stop them, but holding Mindy complicated the action.
A small whimper escaped her lips as the missiles sailed directly for them.
A blur raced in front of her vision. Samson stood before her facing the missiles.
Her heart dropped. She was going to die with Mindy and Samson.
The blast would take them all out. Samson put his hands up and an iridescent blue dome appeared over them.
The missiles slammed into the dome, exploding upon impact, but didn’t touch any of them inside.
Esmie’s mouth dropped open. Samson had created a force field. Or energy field. Or whatever.
Samson had powers.
“No time to explain,” he stated swiveling around, and taking Mindy in his arms. Did she say that out loud? “Run as fast as you can toward the portal. Try to keep up.” Then Samson raced off like a blur of light.
Esmie froze for a moment still in shock, until the female voice announced, “Target missed. Preparing second missile strike.” She didn’t need to hear anything else and ran as fast as she could after Samson.
In a flash, he was within the portal already waving for her to hurry.
Esmie gritted her teeth, dug deep and ran as fast as she could force herself.
By the time the female voice started her countdown, Esmie entered the portal.
It snapped shut behind her. Wherever she was, it was dimly lit, completely opposite from the bright sun outside.
Spots danced in front of her eyes as they tried to adjust to the indoors.
When her eyes finally adjusted, a large concrete room surrounded her with sterile white sheets propped up everywhere.
Nurses and doctors rushed around, calling out orders and words Esmie couldn’t understand.
She twirled around, confused as she had expected to find herself back in Andloor.
Where was she? This didn’t look like the hospital in Andloor, or anywhere else there for that matter.
“Where are my friends? What did you do with them?” She shouted over the din. A nurse approached her.
“Miss, please come over here so we can check you.”
“I asked where my friends are.” Esmie yanked her arm away from the nurse. Her eyes roved over the chaotic scene.
A doctor with shoulder length, copper hair, kind emerald eyes, and a no-nonsense white jacket approached her.
“Esmie, I’m Dr. Anita Barnes. I understand this is a lot to take in.
Your friends were rushed to special incubators to treat them for the radiation poisoning they received. We need to check you as well.”
“I’ll be fine. I’ve already taken a radiation sickness cure. Plus, I already have it in my system anyway.” She pointed at the purple mark on her face.
“I understand, but I would still like to check you as it was a much larger dose than you have in your body. Please.” Esmie bit her lip, searching past the doctor.
The kind woman smiled, knowingly. “Samson went with your friends to inform the doctors how long they were exposed and to keep an eye on them for you.”
“You know Samson?” Esmie’s eyes snapped back to the doctor’s emerald ones.
“Yes, but let’s discuss that later. It would be best if Samson explained it himself,” Dr. Anita gestured for Esmie to follow her and Esmie complied.
They went to a quieter corner of the room, behind one of the white curtains.
Dr. Anita pointed at a medical bed, which Esmie hopped up on.
She waited for some tools or something to be used on her but once she settled down the doctor put on medical gloves then approached her hands up and eyes closed.
Esmie could feel the power shift in the room. She sucked in a breath as Dr. Anita’s hands glowed and a warmth spread all through Esmie’s body.
“You-you have powers. Just like Samson.” Esmie stuttered interrupting the doctor.
Dr. Anita smirked and shushed her. Not in a mean way but as nice as anyone can shush someone.
Esmie bit her lip. After several minutes Dr. Anita opened her eyes and pulled off her medical gloves, throwing them in a waste basket.
“Apologies, I need as much of a quiet environment as possible when I check for ailments in the body. And I have to say, Samson did a good job with those antibiotics and radiation cure. He almost perfected them. I still need to give you a shot of both to ward off any lingering effects, but you should be fine.” Dr. Anita turned around to the tray of medical tools and injected Esmie twice, much to Esmie’s chagrin. Darn needles.
“I’m so confused.” Esmie rubbed the spot where she was injected. Dr. Anita opened her mouth when the curtain flung open and Samson rushed inside. When he spotted Esmie, he strode over to her and wrapped her in his arms.
“Don’t worry, your brother and parents were hidden away before I left. They’re still inside Andloor, but in a place where the mayor can’t find them. For now.” Samson whispered in her ear. Pulling away, he faced Dr. Anita. “Doc, how is she? Is she okay?”
“Yes, the radiation didn’t affect her as much because of the cure and antibiotics you gave her, but I injected her with another dose to finish off from the exposure outside.
She’ll be fine.” Dr. Anita placed a hand on Samson’s bicep and squeezed.
Esmie swallowed the jealousy creeping up her throat.
“You have some explaining to do. I’ll let you two have a moment before I take you to your friends, Esmie. ”
Dr. Anita smiled warmly at both of them, then walked out the curtain, her coat swishing behind her. Samson faced Esmie again, but his eyes were downcast.
“Explain to me what? Where are we? Who are these people? And how do you and her both have powers?” The questions tumbled out of Esmie as the anxiety rose in her chest.
Samson grabbed both of Esmie’s hands in his large ones, his gaze found hers and they locked eyes. “Esmie, this is my home. The Base.”