Written for Steemit: A love story occurs during a time anomaly. A woman from today somehow steps into an anomaly and meets a cowboy asleep on his ranch, in his bed, in the 1850's. ©Jeff Kubitz 2016 - 2017 All Rights Reserved.

Chapter 7 of High Spirits

Rephael and the group of soldiers he was with made it to where the bodies lay, just this side of the portal in about five minutes. The possessed, if that was the word, soldier was only a hundred miles away and Rephael knew that soldier came for him like the box was a great beacon magnet drawing him.

Taking a deep breath he put his hands on his knees, "Get the nets ready and don't anybody try to stop that guy by getting in between him and me. Just net him when he comes at me just like Asmodeus, got it!" Rephael stood up and faced the attacker.

"Got it sir. Now what we think will work better, is if you quickly move to there," Top said pointing at a spot, "Before he gets here because you will be surrounded by nets and when he steps on one, we will have him."

Rephael had maybe ten seconds and so he did not answer he just ran to the spot Top pointed to and waited.

"Everybody to position and ready," Top ordered. Rephael took the box out of his pocket and held it at the soldier who was now only 50 yards away and focused on Rephael and nothing else.

"Now!" Top ordered as the soldier stepped onto a net. The soldiers pulled and he was netted and bagged. Rephael had seen his eyes, looked him in the eyes. There was no life in them, none at all.

Inside the net, the soldier struggled and growled like some sort of animal. "Drag him in now!" Rephael ordered and ran to open the portal. Four soldiers ran in dragging the net and once they passed, Rephael stepped in and the portal closed.

"What's this?" Schrock asked.

"Ricks bit him and he became like Ricks while Ricks just fell to pieces and so we netted him and dragged him in here." Rephael said.

"Well, we are ready." Shrock said while Lennox and Forrest nodded.

The soldier in the netting continued to thrash but weakly, "Don't let that thing scratch or bite you while we drag it to the gate." Rephael said. "I saw his eyes and he is a walking corpse so don't think we are throwing whatever his name is in hell. That soldier is dead."

"Grab only the ropes not the net soldier!" Schrock ordered. The four soldiers grabbed the net tie ropes.

"None of you was scratched or bit?" Lennox asked.

They all answered, "No."

"We need more pieces if we are going to try to put him in and more men too! What about ammo?" Rephael asked.

"Let's just drag him over there." Shrock said, "Maybe there won't be any resistance waiting and we can just throw him in unlike last time."

"We have to have Eon in here to open the gate." Rephael said. "If we drag this thing over there until everything is ready. They might see us."

"Sir," one of the soldiers said, "The other three that were bit by him are changing too."

"I heard that, net them and drag them to the portal or let them run to me, I will step out so they come right to me."

"They were already netted, just in case." The soldier said. "Chopper is carrying them here and no one was bit or scratched by them, at least not yet."

"Good, we will get them inside before I go get Eon. Now when I step out to open the portal, I want all the pieces in here. I want more men and plenty of ammo in here. So tell them to get everything ready and how many men do you think we need Schrock?"

"We don't know what will happen so at least twenty."

"What we need is to launch a bunch of grenades through the portal as soon as it opens and throw in some short range hand grenades." Forrest said.

"We ought to set up a net around the opening of the portal so nothing invisible can get past us, like this time." Lennox said.

"Yes, all of that, ready it quickly, plus make them put a net over the portal so nothing can sneak out. Who knows, maybe there are more of those invisible whatever they are and every time the portal opens one or more slip through." Rephael said.

"You know Weeks you are becoming more soldierly with every second." Schrock said.

"Yeah, he is," Lennox and Forrest agreed.

"The chopper is here sir with the three that are netted." The soldier said.

"How are you talking?" Rephael asked.

"We found out you can communicate with a regular cell phone with the outside while in here." The soldier answered. "Which, I tried it and it worked."

"Really?" Shrock asked, "Satellite digital signals will cross the barriers to this place?"

"Yes sir." The soldier replied and then he said, "They are ready for you to open it sir." He said to Rephael.

"They have it netted and everything?" Rephael asked.

"Roger sir."

"What does that mean, Roger?"

"What? Oh it means yes, sir."

"Everyone in here ready," Rephael asked everyone? Schrock looked around and saw everyone was ready,

"Open it Weeks," Schrock told Rephael.

Rephael opened the portal and saw that they were very ready. A bigger than normal net, it was huge, was held by the replacements. Two soldiers each drug in a captured corpse, which was six of the reinforcements. The next set of soldiers brought in all the ammo and supplies that was ten. Four brought in what Rephael thought was another huge net, neatly wrapped for carrying.

That's it sir," Top said as he stepped in the last soldier through. Rephael let the portal close and stepped clear.

"Can we at least get everything closer," Schrock asked Rephael?

"Yes, I suppose so, I am going to get Eon ready, remember there was no advance warning so they could be doing anything and not be ready at all." Rephael said.

"So, we will not take it that close, we will prepare by readying everything for the final assault." Schrock said.

"Right, I will go find out about Eon." Rephael replied and then he turned and left.
Previous Chapters:
Chapter 1, Chapter 2, [Chapter 3] (https://steemit.com/story/@jeff-kubitz/high-spirits-chapter-3-song-of-angels-book-iv) Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6
Previous books in the series:
Song of Angels - Books I, II, III - Table of Contents

Follow me: @jeff-kubitz Book One - Meeting is available in Paperback here: https://www.amazon.com/Jeffery-Kubitz/e/B01MXY9YHR