Free Anaz-Voohri by Vijaya Schartz Page A

off.
     
    *****
     
    The bump of the landing gear hitting the ground woke him up. How long had they been flying? It felt like he’d slept for hours. No way to know without a watch, though.
    The cargo gate at the back of the plane opened. The sun was still high in the sky, so Zack assumed they’d traveled west. As soon as he stepped outside, the intense heat almost choked him, as if he’d entered an oven by mistake. Around him, only desert, a few dry bushes, dust devils, tumbleweeds.
    It looked like the southwest, but where? Arizona, Nevada, Texas, New Mexico? They’d landed in the middle of nowhere. The landing strip wasn’t black tarmac, but concrete, painted like camouflage imitating the desert floor. Several hangars with desert netting on top dotted the end of the landing strip. No other buildings in sight.
    An arched ledge rose from the side of a hill, like the entrance to an underground facility. A secret base? As he followed the small group toward the entrance, Zack noticed various training areas, barely distinguishable from the desert itself.
    On top of the hill, a man-made dome blended with outcrops of desert brush. An observatory? So many questions, and so far no answers. Here and there slight promontories probably sheltered ventilation shafts. Zack wondered how long the military would keep them in the dark about their location.
    Instead of heading for the tunnel entrance, the officer led them off to a side trail and up the hill. Glad for his Nikes, Zack found the short climb taxing in the torrid heat. As soon as they crested the hill, Zack gasped at the sight of a cluster of large square tents under camouflage netting, all in the light colors that would make them unnoticeable from the sky. Did they really expect him to live outside in this heat? This military training camp might prove a little rougher than he’d expected.
    Struggling to suppress any negative thoughts, Zack dared to hope they had air conditioning inside the tents. No such luck in the first tent they entered. It was the commissary, where they lined up to receive camouflage uniforms, combat boots, cotton socks, and underwear. The very thought of wearing all that clothing in this heat made Zack sweat. “Do we really need to wear high boots here?" Even his light shoes felt warm.
    “You can go barefoot or bare-ass for all I care, soldier." The snide remark came from a hot Latina wearing full desert gear, including a bullet-proof vest and a mean weapon at her belt. “But for your sake, you better not slow the march. I wager you have the skin of an armadillo and you don’t mind rattlers."
    Snakes? Zack hated snakes. He also didn’t like being made fun of in front of the others, mainly by a tall gorgeous woman. The insignia on her beret represented Earth seen from the North Pole, with the initials OES. Zack wondered what it stood for.
    “Recruits!" Her voice carried through the tent and everyone quieted. “Welcome to Camp Hell. My name is Lieutenant Tia Vargas and you can call me Ma’am. You are wondering where you are, but believe me, it’s not on any map, so give it up. The less you know the better.”
    Zack secretly vowed he’d find out anyway. He liked a challenge, and he wasn’t going to let a girl get the better of him.
    “That way, if you don’t make the cut, we don’t have to eliminate you since you won’t have any secrets to report." Her gaze slowly assessed the dozen young recruits. “We call this unit OES, Operation Earth Shield, or as I call it, Obliterate Evil Scum."
    Zack decided he hated her guts. The hot Latina had fire for sure, but he hadn’t graduated with a Masters at nineteen to be ordered around by a girl barely older than him with an obvious authority complex...even if she was a lieutenant and a total knock-out.
    “By now, you probably regret volunteering for this special unit, but it’s too late. You signed your life away and your ass is mine. As of this minute, I own you body and soul. You don’t breathe,