Weapon of Atlantis (13 page)

Javi shook his head in disgust.

“Perfect,” he blurted sarcastically. “It seems lately we can’t go anywhere without drawing trouble.”

“It does
seem that way, doesn’t it,” Jack concurred, now reflecting the previous year’s struggles.

“I suppose we’re going to have to hire another security force,” Javi complained. “I just hope the Danish government can afford the extra expense. They’re already spread pretty thin as it is.”

“And if they can’t?”

“Guess who’ll be camped outside the spacecraft from now on?” Javi asked, now growing increasingly upset.

Jack nodded in understanding. He then felt his stomach churn.

“You hungry?” he asked.

“Starved,” Javi responded.

“Why don’t we discuss this over breakfast?”

“Beats freezing our butts off out here,” Javi responded.

The two headed back up the shallow incline, walking up the twenty
feet of elevation in less than five minutes. As they reached the flat plateau, they stop a moment to survey their surroundings. They looked back down to the site where the helicopter had landed, then scanned the regions beyond.

Jack moved his eyes to the right and picked up movement. He locked his focus on the moving target nearly a mile away.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” he blurted in shock.

Javi turned his focus to Jack’s direction of sight. Fear instantly rushed through his body.

“Is that a polar bear?” he shouted, now holding his hand over his eyes to sharpen his perception.

“It sure is and he ain’t coming to greet us with a bottle of coke either,” he shot back.

Jack lifted his jacket and pulled his handgun. He nodded to Javi to do the same.

“We’ve got two miles to go. Polar bears can sprint
short distances twenty-five miles an hour and can maintain twelve over longer stretches. At those rates, he’ll overtake us before we reach the camp,” Jack said in fearful tone.

Javi stared at Jack. His face was overcome with worry.

“Jack, I haven’t ran in years. I don’t even think I can run a mile without collapsing.”

“This is going to suck. This is
really
going to suck bad,” Jack blurted anxiously. “I really don’t want to shoot the damn thing but I don’t think we’re going to have much of a choice. How’s your aim?”

“I haven’t shot this thing since they trained us, six months ago,” Javi responded.

Jack glanced at the bear, now a half mile away.

“We better get going. When it gets close, we’ll fire a warning shot. Maybe it’ll be enough to scare it off,” he said in hopeful tone.

The two sprinted toward the distant camp, two miles away. Within five minutes, Javi’s breathing had already become labored. He jogged another thirty seconds and stopped in his tracks. Hunched over, he placed his hands on his knees and panted loudly.

“Sorry Jack, I’m not a spring chicken anymore,” he apologized through deep breaths.

Jack watched the edge of the flat plateau. He could just make out the head of the bear as it rushed up the incline. Greater worry spread through him.

“It’s ok, Javi. Even if you
were
in shape, I’m pretty sure we’d still be in trouble,” he said, keeping an eye on the ever approaching danger. Looking back toward Javi, he asked, “Can you walk? We need to at least keep walking.”

Javi only nodded. Still breathing heavy, he trailed behind Jack as they both continued along at a frantic pace. Three hundred feet away, they heard the first sounds of
the bear. With his prey nearly within his grasp, instinct drove the bear harder. They could hear the bear’s heavy breathing and occasional grunts as he dug his claws deeper into the snow and ice, maximizing his efficiency over the frozen plain.

“Jac
k, I can’t go on,” Javi shouted through gasps of air.

He stopped and bent over once more, gripping his knees while he anxiously watched the large beast rapidly approach.

Jack wheeled around and quickly assessed the increasingly desperate situation. He sprinted to Javi’s side, now twenty feet behind. Pulling his weapon, he nervously stared at the uncomfortable mass of steel in his hand. A feeling of dread overcame him at the thought of firing it to save their lives.

“Here it comes,” Jack shouted, his tone growing frantic by the second.

Javi stood erect and fumbled with his jacket. Breathing heavily, sweat poured from his forehead as he grappled with his holstered weapon. Less than a hundred feet away, the large white animal charged.

“I’m firing a warning shot,” Jack shouted.

He stared down the metal sights and slowly squeezed the trigger. Instantly, a loud roar sounded across the barren plain. The bear stopped, glanced around him, then continued his advance.

“Dammit, it’s still coming!” Jack blurted in frustration.

“It’s probably never heard a gunshot before,” Javi suggested through labored breaths.

Jack pointed his handgun once more and pulled the trigger. The weapon recoiled in his hand and bellowed out its deadly intention. Still, the bear continued closer.

“We may have to shoot it,” Javi said regrettably.

“I really don’t want to do that,” Jack responded, conflicted by the prospect. “It’s not like it deserves it. It’s only responding to its natural instinct to survive.”

Now pointing his own weapon, Javi replied, “I know. I feel the same way, but it’s not leaving us much choice.”

Javi squeezed his trigger. Fifty feet away, the polar bear stopped in its tracks. Both men watched nervously as the excited animal pawed at the ground and snorted in agitation.

“
GET OUT OF HERE!
” Jack roared angrily.

“Go… get out of here!
” Javi joined in.

The great beast roared loudly, then charged again. Both men fired simultaneously, halting the bear’s advance. Thirty feet away, it now lurched forward, pounding it
s massive paws into the snow, demonstrating its dominance over its prey.

Jack aimed carefully and squeezed the trigger. A block of ice shattered near the bear. The sound of the gun and the spray of debris startled the bear momentarily. It spun around and darted twenty feet away. Stopping abruptly, it turned back toward Jack and Javi and stood its ground once more.

“I think it’s getting the message. Let’s back up and see what happens,” Jack suggested.

Facing the bear, the two men shuffled backward several feet. Still pointing their weapons, the bear kept its distance.

“It’s working,” Jack shouted excitedly. “Let’s pick up the pace a bit. You turn around and walk forward and I’ll continue walking backward. With one of us facing it down, it might just keep its distance until we get near the camp.”

Javi nodded, turned and began walking. Jack easily kept up the pace, shuffling beside him. Although the bear followed carefully behind them, it kept its distance, just as Jack had anticipated.

“I think it’s working,” he shouted. “It’s still following, but not getting any closer.”

Minutes later, the bear tested its prey’s resolve. It burst from his slow walk, into a quick charge. Jack aimed and fired. Javi spun around and fired on impulse. The loud noise halted the advance, turning the bear around and sending it in retreat. Thirty feet later, it stopped and stood its ground once more. It roared loudly and stomped its paws in protest.

Jack and Javi continued their frightened retreat toward camp.

“We’re developing a pattern here. I wonder how long it’ll be before the bear catches on and charges in closer,” Javi asked.

“Or worse, charges in all the way and forces us to shoot it,” Jack responded.

“I have only five bullets left and we still have a mile and a half to go,” Javi reported nervously. “I don’t know if I want to wait until I get down to my last bullet.”

“I know. I’m hoping the guys at the camp hear our gunshots and come running,” Jack responded. “I sure wish I had brought my damn cell phone.”

“Me too. I didn’t think I’d need it while going for breakfast.”

Suddenly, the bear charged again. Even more aggressive than before, it burst from its position and ran with greater intensity. Jack fired at its paws, sending ice particles into the animals face. Once again, it stopped in its tracks, but this time, it held its ground.

“Get out of here!” Jack shouted angrily. “Dammit, don’t you know we’re going to kill you?” he spat in rage.

Javi fired another warning shot just in front of the raging beast. Although it paused momentarily from its aggression, it quickly returned to its threatening posture.

“I don’t get it. Why the hell isn’t it running away? We’ve fired a half dozen shots already,” Jack exclaimed.

Javi held his stare through his sights. His hands shook with fear as he divided his attention between the bear and Jack.

“I suspect it hasn’t had a lot of contact with man so it has very little fear of us. Furthermore, I’m sure it hasn’t had much or any exposure to firearms either. I’m afraid we have little choice, Jack. We’re going to have to shoot it,” he replied, resigning himself to their fate.

Jack held up his hand. He cocked his head to one side and listened.

“You hear that?” he asked, his face now turning hopeful.

Javi looked in the direction of the sound.

“It’s a helicopter,” he shouted
excitedly. His expression suddenly became puzzled. “What’s it doing out here? The next shipment of supplies isn’t due till next week.”

Jack shot him a confused stare. “Are you kidding me? Who cares why it’s here, just as long as it gets to us before we have to kill this damn thing.”

Suddenly, the bear lunged forward several feet. Both men fired above its head, shuffling backward instinctively in reflex. Jack’s head darted to the distant helicopter, then back to the bear.

“Keep backing up. It’ll buy us some time,” Jack shouted.

As the two stepped backward, the bear charged ahead several more feet. Now only twenty feet away, they could see the intensity in its eyes. Frantic to end the confrontation, they began to shout once more.

“Get out of here!” they yelled while stomping their feet.

The bear inched forward. The sound of rotor blades now echoed loudly from behind them. Jack’s head darted from aircraft to animal and back again. Holding his aim, the bear took more steps toward them. Desperation flooded both men’s minds. Jack began to squeeze the trigger.

----- ----- ----- -----

Inside the Sikorsky HH-60 Pave Hawk, Major Daniel Crane monitored the action between the men and the bear. Flying low and fast, he knew time was critical.

“Sir, targets are under attack. I see two weapons discharging,” he called out to CIA
Special Agent Byron Price.

Kneeling be
tween the pilot and copilot, Price watched the action through the front windscreen. He shook his head in disgust.

“Don’t tell me those two idiots are animal lovers,” he spat. “At
their distance to the bear, it could charge and kill both of them.”

“Yes, Sir. What do you want to do about it?” Maj. Crane asked.

“Come along broadside. Hold it steady. I’ll take out the bear with the fifty,” Price responded.

As the pilot maneuvered the helicop
ter sideways toward the men, Price rushed rearward in the cabin. Having heard his partner’s intention, CIA Special Agent Alex Hammond handed Price the Barrett M82 fifty caliber sniper’s grade rifle. As Hammond opened the side door, Price laid on the floor and positioned the rifle on its bipod legs. Staring through his scope, he lined up the crosshairs on his target and waited for his partner’s signal.

“Fire when ready,”
Hammond shouted over the helicopter’s engines as he studied the target through his binoculars.