The night was black, sombre clouds covered the stars as Baumann watched the dark mass creep toward him. He stood atop an ancient monument in Nevada grinning. Now, he thought, this is why I was born.
Manzi held his hand up and stopped the flow of dark below Baumann. “Here is what you asked for Master.
Baumann looked over the ranks. “You have done well Michael.”
Screams erupted as another mass of black approached, this time from the sky, and stood alongside the others.
Ritchie appeared and bowed.
“Now, we take the Earth for ourselves!” Baumann shouted amid cheers from the dark gathering.
Later US infantry walked alongside tanks as a military exercise played out in the countryside intensified. The aim was to take a camp occupied by rebel soldiers.
As the infantry neared the make-shift camp a darkness approached from the south and engulfed them. Soldiers yelled as their weapons were whipped out of their hands and they were knocked to the ground. Tanks came to a standstill as the dark oozed into the cabs. The 'enemy' soldiers were disarmed and rounded up then marched out into the scrubland to stand with the others.
A jeep bumped its way over the scrub to where the large group of soldiers stood surrounded by the Dark Army. Baumann, Ritchie and Manzi jumped out of the vehicle and walked to a vantage point over-looking the gathering.
“Gentlemen, my name is Thomas Baumann. You see around you the new army which will conquer the world. I would like you to join us.”
“What if we don't?” shouted a soldier.
“You are free to leave, but I will advise you that resistance is, as they say, useless.”
Some soldiers obeyed their officers and left the site. Most, however, stayed to swell the numbers of the Dark Army.
All over the country military bases suffered the same fate as the exercising regiment. After only a week the number of men and women in the Dark Army had risen to approximately a million and a half.
56
Chapter Thirty-Two Matthew looked in the rear-view mirror before pulling out as he and David sped along the freeway south out of the city. “So, it's the government that's holding Joshua?”
David pursed his lips and gazed at the sky. “No, it's the Black Ops group within the CIA.
“What exactly are they?”
“Although they exist within the CIA network, they are pretty much a law unto themselves.”
“We gonna have a word with Scrimgeour?”
“I don't think he would know anything about what happened to Joshua.”
“So where are we going?”
“Dale City Virginia, I want to visit someone.”
Grant Meddings stuck the key in the latch of his second-floor apartment and turned. He pushed the door open and held it with his right foot as he turned to pick up two well stuffed grocery bags.
Once inside he allowed the door to close as he moved into the lounge.
“Mr Meddings,” said a voice from the darkness.
Meddings dropped the groceries and pulled out his handgun as he ducked behind an armchair.
“Mr Meddings, my name is David de Longford I am a colleague of Joshua Collins.”
“I don't know you or the other name.”
“Really! Oh, you can put the gun away as you'll find it's not working.”
After a moment Meddings rose from behind the chair and flicked the lights on. “Okay, what is it you want?”
“I know you're involved with Black Ops, and it would save me time, and you pain, if you would just tell me where he is being held,” said David moving toward the man with eyes glowing red.
“Now... wait a minute! You've no idea who we're dealing with here!”
“Well, right now you've got me to deal with!”
57