Iron Rain Pt. 15

We are getting down to the end. There are still a few installments left for this story line. I have ideas about a new series that follows what happens after Project Aries if you are interested. Covers both sides of the conflict Nick and Nephilim.

As always please vote and comment. Tell me what you think about how things are shaping up and suggestions are always welcome. I have stuck with a timeline with dates to keep continuity. Enjoy.

Iron Rain: Part 15

A Wake:
October 3, 2012

The word passed at the speed of light around the entire globe, Nick was mourning his lost mother at last. Friends, family, acquaintances and everybody in-between were coming to say their farewells. Everyone that knew him was aware of his brooding since her unfortunate passing by an assassin's bullet. When they heard he was throwing a wake even after the long months since she had been buried they wanted to be there for him and show their support. Helicopters in the droves landed and departed the two helipads the Numenor sported and many arrived to drink his alcohol and shake his hand for the first time while others were there to see a much improved young man who was drinking toast after toast to his mother. It was in the wee hours of the first day of the wake that Nick's father arrived and he was not alone. He was sporting three bodyguards and they all were brazenly brandishing their rings, the rings that marked them as members of the Hermetic Order of the Silver Twilight. It was unlikely that most onboard recognized or even knew about the Order but the minority that did were coalescing into a group. This was not missed by Nick who was grateful his own ring was securely stowed in the safe in his office. He rose from the hot tub and crossed the distance to his father and greeted him warmly.

"Dad, great I'm glad you could make it," Nick said all smiles.

"I am happy you are at last dealing with her passing," he said coolly. "I'm not sure this is what she would have wanted."

"It's a wake; we are celebrating her life and mourning her death. I have been walking in the shadows for long enough it is time to put away the pain and go on with life. I think that is what she would have wanted."

"I suppose you are right," he said looking around. "I have received some very troubling news Nick and I think we need to talk... in private."

"Of course," Nick said sensing the temperature drop in his father's voice. "Follow me and we can talk in the dining room it isn't being used right now."

Nick gestured and made eye contact with Akira who was already ahead of him seeing who Nick was speaking with. But when they arrived at the dining room it wasn't just Nick and his father but every member of the Order that was on board the ship as well. Akira and several of the Sisterhood had already entered and were preparing snacks and drinks.

"You have a very talented staff Nick," his father said watching the orderly way that the room was prepped for their impromptu meeting in under five minutes and didn't miss the fact that each and every one of the women possessed stunning good looks. "...very talented indeed."

"I am glad you approve. So what's up," Nick asked sensing the tension in the air and ready to evade a bullet or attack from any direction.

"Nick... son I have been putting this off for far too long," his father said looking at the other members of the Order. "It has been agreed to and sanctioned from the Grandmaster himself that you be admitted into the Silver Twilight Lodge."

The men all smiled and clapped and drinks were brought by the ladies and toasts were made as Nick slowed his racing heart.

"This is your unofficial entrance into the group of course," the Senator from Nebraska said smoothly. "Due to your standing in the corporate world and your father's rank well it was decided to bring you in at the title of a full Master."

"I don't know what to say," Nick stammered as he was expected to.

"Say yes son this is a great day for our family," his father cheered.

"Of course I'll say yes," Nick said looking at Akira who smiled and nodded.

"Good," the Governor from Texas said smoothly. "You are now officially under the protection of the Order."

'Ding' the bell went off in Nick's head and now the other shoe falls he thought.

"We know what you did Nick," the Senator said turning on him.

"Did you really think no one would find out," the Governor glared at him.

"Really Nick you could have warned some of us what you were planning," his father said upset and more than a little hurt.

"I have a lot of things going on so I need a point of reference," Nick said mentally parrying the barrage of accusations.

"The leak Nick, the plans to the portable power plants... power cells... did you really think we wouldn't track it back to you." A voice in the back said.

"Oh... I don't see the harm. That particular project was mine and it is time I gave something back to the public who desperately need a cheap energy source." Nick said defending his decision to leak the plans for a cheap power plant and power cell that could be used to run a car, a lawn mower or even a house in an emergency.

The device could be scaled up or down but the across the board use of the power plants would curb if not eliminate the necessity for fossil fuels like gasoline. If the general public learned it was him he would be hailed a hero one day and dead by the hands of the oil nations the next?

"Do you have any idea of the economic effect if people can go to the hardware store and build their own power source," asked the gentleman from Texas.

"The car industry, the oil industry and the power industry are all going to suffer from this," came the annoying nasally voice from the rear.

"Then I guess the power plants I started building to supply cheap power are going to be an issue as well?" Nick asked.

"I was told those plants were only to support the power grid..." the Senator glared.

"Those plants can put out a lot more power than you guess and cleaner and cheaper than those that are currently online." Nick glared back.

"What?" came from multiple lips.

"Imagine Los Angeles and most of California not having rolling blackouts ever," Nick was on a roll but Akira wasn't close enough to stop him without it being obvious. "Those desalinization plants were built over cost at a loss to my company so that we could provide water for those who desperately need it. The jobs created and will maintain will last. What have you done to improve the conditions of your states gentlemen?"

Nick's face was red and he knew he had crossed multiple lines but pulled it back before he roared, 'Wait until Project Aries hits the fan gentlemen then you'll know what a fucking crisis is like!' A short term crisis but a necessary one he reminded himself.

"How did you find out," Nick asked his voice and color back to normal.

"Your sister told me," his father said.

"Oh, well it isn't like she is going to be bragging to anyone else. She knows how dangerous it would be to let that slip to the general public."

"I hope you are right son, I hope you can trust her with your life," his father said and the chill returned to the room.

"Is it getting cold in here," Nick said heading for the door. "Do you really think Kat would betray me after all I have done for her and the family?"

"What did you think he meant Nick," the Senator asked as Nick turned to leave. "It is obvious to everyone here that you did something else. You were relieved we were asking you about the leak and not something else. What was it Nick?"

Nick stopped and squared his shoulders and turned to face the members of the Order. His face was livid and etched with pain and anger as he spoke.

"You want to know what I did. I found out who killed my mom. I discovered who pulled the trigger and more than that I discovered who bankrolled it. The fucking war hero who shot my mom in the head because I wasn't there AND the fucking asshole who thought he could put a bounty on my family's head and get away with it. I took care of business on that front and I don't feel one iota of guilt or remorse!"

"Nick... I never knew," his father said tears flowing.

"Who was responsible Nick," the Governor asked but Nick just shook his head.

"All I will say is this they will never harm another person ever. I am missing my mom's wake now be of good cheer and help me celebrate her life."

Nick turned and lifted his arms and Akira slid next to him on his left and Marie Dubois slid next to him on his right as he walked out and back out on deck.

"That boy is dangerous," the Senator said after Nick had gone.

"He is under our protection," the elder Shaw said.

"But will he follow our orders," the Governor asked.

"Of course he will he is my son after all."

"I hope you are right this is a risky gamble we are making," said the voice in the rear.

The Shaw family gathered near the hot tub to drink, to remember and to mourn. Kat sat on Nick's left and his father on his right.

"She was an amazing woman," the Elder Shaw said after more than a few drinks.

"She worked so damn hard getting that sword made for you," Kat added.

"Yeah, it holds a special place in my life it reminds of both of them." Nick said thinking about both his mothers and how lucky he had been to have them in his life. "I was blessed to have such amazing women in my life."

"We both were son," his father said new tears beginning to flow now.

There were so many memories that were recalled often beginning with 'do you remember when...' and ending with either a smile or a tear. After long hours and dawn approaching Nick staggered to his feet and waved Kat and his father to the rear of the ship. This was turning out to be a night for revelations. There was a large storage bay that was locked. Nick fumbled with the key but managed to unlock it and open the right door that slid on metal tracks allowing for the storage of jet skis and the like. After the trio had moved inside and the door slid closed did Nick turn on the lights. The exterior walls were littered with empty and half empty wooden crates. Packing material littered much of the floor but it was the mysterious blue tarp that drew his family's attention. Whatever it was measured around twenty feet long and perhaps eight feet wide and definitely had an aerodynamic profile to it because of how the material fell across it.

"What is it," Kat asked cocking her head to one side.

"It is a long term project of mine that is nearly done," Nick said grinning from ear to ear.

"Well are you going to show it to us or..." his dad began even as Nick grabbed the tarp and tugged it off the vehicle that lay beneath. "...whoa, what the hell is that?"

The sleek black exterior of the thing seemed to have some queer affect on the light that fell on it; which reminded Kat of the black pyramid that Jesse had built. The front of it was roughly diamond shaped like the head of a bow hunter's arrow. Behind that was where the driver sat and appeared plush and almost organic in the way it would hug the body. The rear end of the thing was tall and also diamond shaped but the reverse of the front end. It gave the impression of speed even though it was standing still. The most impossible aspect of the vehicle was the fact that it was simply hovering there without so much as a whisper of a motor.

"I call it a grav-bike," Nick said very pleased with himself.

"How the hell does it just hover there," the elder Shaw asked looking under the bike and seeing nothing but empty air.

"It's a little something I borrowed from Area 51 believe it or not," Nick slurred.

"Borrowed... why do I doubt they knew you were there," Kat said moving to sit behind the controls.

"You stole government secrets," his father's voice cracking at the end. "What makes you think they aren't after you?"

"I've had the information for almost a year and I am sure they'd have busted me after my visit to the Pentagon six months back."

"You've been to the Pentagon," his dad asked in complete shock.

"Yeah, they whole war in Iran thing," Nick tried to make it sound casual but failed miserably.

"Why did they want to meet with you Nicholas," the Elder Shaw asked still staring at the grav-bike in disbelief.

"A part of the corporation is in the manufacture of state of the art weapon systems now," Nick explained. "We provide both personal and heavy weapons for the military and police forces across the planet."

"I didn't know," his father said. "Why didn't I know?"

"You've been busy with your new job and your position with the lodge." Nick said.

"Yes I have," his dad admitted.

"So how fast does this thing go Nick," Kat asked grabbing the controls.

"I don't know yet, she hasn't had her maiden voyage yet," Nick said. "But I am thinking about Mach 12 or higher in atmosphere."

"Mach fucking 12 but how the hell is that even possible," Nick's dad asked looking the machine again.

"It's technical but trust me once she's done I am gonna push her to the limits." Nick said covering up the bike.

"Hey... I am still under here asshole," Kat said climbing out from underneath the tarp.

"We need to talk," his dad said leaning hard against Nick as he and Kat made their way back towards the hot tub.

"I knew that was coming," Nick said locking up behind them.

Her helicopter landed on the larger helipad of the Numenor and the door slid open and she glided out eager to see Nick once more. Her long black hair was coifed to perfection and the little black dress she chose cost her more than the gas for the trip here. She was actually feeling a touch of nervousness in her belly at the thought of being in his arms again after the quivering mass of woman flesh he had left her in. She wasn't hurt that he wasn't there to greet her after all this was a surprise. Yet even as one of the girls took her luggage and walked down the stairs to the main level of the ship there he was standing, waiting and smiling at her.

"Cyan," Nick said as he moved to take her into his embrace.

"OH Nick," she said kissing him fiercely. "I have missed you."

"I have missed you too," he moaned returning her kiss.

He guided her down the stairs and towards the hot tub where the core of the revelry appeared to be taking place. Nick scooped her up into his arms and walked towards the bubbling cauldron of water and held her over it threateningly.

"NICK, don't you dare," Cyan said with mock venom in her voice.

"I will replace the dress," Nick said as he dropped her.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO," she cried out even as the water rushed up to greet her and soak her to the bone.

"Kouryou, that was quite cruel of you," Akira whispered in his ear just before she shoved him into the water.

Before long the tub was bustling with naked and half naked bodies and the wine flowed and all was well with Nick Shaw's universe for now.

October 5, 2012

The Numenor had returned to some semblance of normalcy as most of the guests had departed the ship either for shore to continue the party or home to return back to their regular lives. Nick was sleeping deeply in his bed dreaming of dark vistas beneath the waves as the gift of the Dreamer in the Depths fully manifested. Nick had been unable to reach a dream state since drinking the water that James Bell had given him nearly a year ago now. But after visiting Professor Griffin's lab and having his 'daydream' with the octopi and that terrible cold voice in his head Nick had finally been able to do what others took for granted. Oh but what nightmares he was caught up in as he lay in his bed. The blasted dreamscape he trod was the stuff of insanity where the very fabric of reality was bent and warped into blasphemous angles that never belonged in the waking world. The 'wrongness' became worse the further into the cyclopean city he walked seeing monuments to dead gods that were not deceased but only slept. They lay dreaming in places like this that had been shaped and wrought long before a true clean sentience arose upon the world. They had come from the dark places in the universe which man knows not. Where black suns burn in abyssal firmaments and the wailing of lost souls is the music of their spheres. It is under one such sun that Nick walks drawn ever deeper into this hellish citadel of the damned until he spies what it is that is summoning him. The great black stone with the alien glyphs is his ultimate goal. But unlike its sister stones it is short and squat and possesses six sides one each for the six obelisks that fell to the earth. It is the key stone that holds them together and allows the uninitiated to divine the language that is writ upon the black stones. Nick realized in despair that even should he possess all six stones still he will fall short until he finds and secures in his possession the key stone. Still his feet move ever forward towards the hexagonal block of ebony and suddenly as it happens in dreams things change. Lying on the key stone is a figure in white. It is like new fallen snow so pure and clean its color. As Nick draws closer it stirs and moves its ivory hood and cloak lifting to look at him. The figure is now kneeling upon the stone beckoning with a slender white gloved hand. She is calling him to her and forgotten is the stone there is only her. By the time he reaches the block of black stone she is on her hands and knees the hood covering her head hiding her face. Nick grabs it by either side and pulls it back revealing her alien beauty to his hungry gaze. White, oh her skin is as pale as the stone is dark. Incredibly long tresses of snowy hair tumble from the hood and fall on either side of her delicately sculpted features. She smiles up at him revealing her perfect teeth and full kissable lips the color of bone. But it is her eyes that snare him, orbs the color of flame slit like a cat's and so deep he must drown in them or die. Nick leans closer and their lips touch and she casts off her robe revealing the sensuous form beneath. She presses her breasts against his chest as the kiss deepens and Nick can feel her hard nipples trace circles over his own naked flesh. His hands roam over the nude form memorizing each and every curve from her shoulders down to her well rounded bottom. When he squeezes her ass cheeks she moans in his mouth and when he rakes her back with his nails from bottom to top she growls in pleasure. It is she who breaks the kiss and lowers her mouth to his raging hardness and begins to lick and tease it. Nick looks down seeing her ruby gazed fixed upon him even as her mouth slides over his cock. He grabs either side of her head and using her hair for leverage begins to slowly thrust in and out of her throat. He could feel her tongue and lips pleasure him as he moved his hips ever so slowly savoring every nuance she had to offer him. With a pop his cock came free and he was suddenly staring up at that nightmare sky but then he felt her lips upon him again and the pleasure drove away the madness.

"Tell me what you want Nick," came her silvery voice. "Tell me and I will gladly give it to you."

He wanted to say her body and all the pleasure it promised but there was the other side of his brain that wanted the answer. Nick needed that elusive answer of what the obelisks and the key stone represented and their function. Despite his hunger for her he voiced his deepest need to her.

"I want the secret of the Obelisks and the Key Stone," his voice was weak and unsure but loud enough to be heard.

"Are you sure Nick that is what you truly desire," she asked him as she jacked him off.

"YESSS," Nick's voice actually broke but he had said it.

"Good," she said as he felt her body climb over his.

He could feel her wet heat as it rubbed against the head of his cock just before he slipped deep inside of her.