“The countdown won’t stop. The Laronian wanted a big bang, one way or the other.” Now her tone had changed to complete defeat.
“Okay…” Roland was thinking. “How long?”
“Five minutes.” Li’ara sighed down the comm.
“Hang on, I’m coming for you.” Roland headed straight between the servers, intending to get back to the Translift.
Four blood-soaked arms shot out from behind a server and picked Roland up, charging him down the empty row. Kubrackk faltered under his damaged leg and brought them both down in a tumbling mess. Roland’s goals had changed now; he no longer cared about killing the Novaarian. He had to save Li’ara. With each hand, Roland removed a small knife from the side of his boots and jammed them in-between the knuckles of Kubrackk’s upper hands. The Novaarian howled in pain, holding his impaled hands before his face. Combined with his already broken lower hands, Kubrackk was becoming more crippled with every encounter.
“Hang on, Li’ara!” Roland scrambled on his back and activated the repulsors in the soles of his boots. The opposing force launched them in separate directions, sending Kubrackk back down the corridor.
Ignoring the increasing pain that shot through his joints and his spine, Roland staggered through the rows of damaged servers, heading for the light of the bay windows.
“I’m coming,” he gasped. “Just hold on.”
“Get out, Roland,” Li’ara ordered. “This bomb has to go off and you know it. By the time you get back up here, there won’t be enough time to get me out and escape the blast. Besides, Sal-dev is the only one who could open the door again and I killed him.”
“No!” Roland didn’t do the math; he just had to get her out. “I’m coming to get you!”
“No you’re not,” Li’ara replied calmly. “You’re going to get as far away from here as possible. I need you to give Kalian a message for me.”
“Tell him yourself!” Roland was just breaking through the last rows of black servers, the light of Clave Tower coming into view. He was careful not to trip over the mutilated bodies of the Shay guards.
Kubrackk roared behind him, “I’m going to kill you, Roland North!” The Novaarian burst from between the servers, struggling to wield his Quad-roller.
The first shot took a chunk bigger than Roland’s head out of the adjacent server. The second created a concussive force powerful enough to knock Roland off his feet. He slid across the polished floor, face down and trailing blood from his cuts and wounds.
Kubrackk appeared manic as he exited the field of servers. All four of his mangled hands worked to keep the gun held up. “I will avenge Torvrackk!”
Roland stood up, judging the distance between him and the Translift. He had to save her. Looking back at the Novaarian, he was filled with confidence that he would easily finish the pathetic bounty hunter and save Li’ara. After all, he had gotten out of worse situations than this. Empty holsters greeted his desperate hands and it hit him. Not only would Li’ara die, but he would die also. His cock-sure attitude had finally seen the end of him, but also another. She would die because of him, because he couldn’t save her. If it wasn’t for his past, Kubrackk wouldn’t be here and Roland could have been in the chamber with Li’ara, and he knew he would have found a way to save them.
The wide barrel of the Quad-roller burned orange. Roland preferred to stare into its glow rather than die looking at Kubrackk’s smirking grin.
The bay windows exploded as a team of Conclave security rappelled in from above. Roland ducked and covered his head, thinking this was the end. Intrinium fire erupted from both sides as the team unleashed their weapons on Kubrackk at once. Roland looked up to see the Novaarian flailing with every bolt of super-hot energy tearing through his body. The Quad-roller was flung aside, its casing melted while its owner fell to his knees, a cold dead look in his golden eyes. The weapons fire ceased when the Novaarian’s body lay motionless on the floor.
“Roland North.” An Atari in red armour picked him up by his arm. “You need to come with us. We’ve been instructed to get you to safety.”
“Roland, are you there?” Li’ara’s voice had become a whisper.
Roland shrugged the Atari commander off. “We need to get back up to the chamber. We have to save...”
“Roland,” Li’ara commanded his attention. “Tell Kalian I...”
The whole building shook as the shockwave from the bomb blew out every window on its way down. The team crouched around Roland, who for the first time since the beginning of his career, felt dazed by his surroundings. The ceiling began to crack above them and the Atari commander took control.
“Move out!” he ordered. “We’re getting you back to your ship!”
Roland was manhandled out of the server room and into the Translift. He didn’t fight them or struggle to get free. He had failed. Li’ara was dead.
The building continued to quake under the stress of the explosion. The hangar remained unaffected for the time being. The forked ship was ready for Roland’s arrival. The engines were running hot and steam was venting from various ports in the undercarriage. The Atari commander ushered him onto the ship and left with his team without saying another word. Why had they helped him?
Roland made his way to the bridge, still in a daze. Li’ara was dead. The pilot’s chair took his weight as he slumped into it, not even acknowledging Ch’len.
“Where’s Li’ara?” Ch’len asked.
Li’ara’s dead.
He couldn’t say the words out loud yet. His hands danced across the controls as a plan began to take shape in his mind. They were going to get out of this, and he was going to kill every Protocorps son-of-a-bitch he could get his hands on.
“We’re leaving.” Roland directed the ship towards the hangar’s exit. “Strap yourself in.”
Ch’len complied immediately with fear evident in his expression.
A Conclave security ship came to hover in front of the hangar, its weapons popping out of their compartments. The ship was unable to fire a single Intrinium bolt when a massive piece of debris slammed into the cockpit, crushing the occupants and blowing out the engines. As the ship started to freefall with the rest of the debris, Roland pushed their own ship out of the hangar and cut the engines at once.
Ch’len wailed when the ship dropped and his straps fastened him into the chair. “What are you doing?”
Roland braced himself while the ship tumbled through the air, falling past the security net that surrounded Protocorps. With the engines off and the ship powered down, it would appear on their scanners as just another piece of debris. The hull clanged with the multitude of wreckage that crashed into and bounced off it. Roland strained against the G’s to flip the switches and start the ship back up. Maximum yield was applied to the thrusters, which battled against the inertia.
The forked ship came to a stop mere metres above a central platform that housed a massive park and forest. Other detritus landed around the ship, indenting the field of grass and snapping several trees. Through the viewport, Roland could see people running across the park, desperate to escape the carnage.
“Find the nearest exit,” Roland ordered.
It wasn’t long before the ship was leaving the capital’s orbit. All the security ships were heading towards the planet, paying no attention to the millions evacuating. Eventually, the starry field of space filled the viewport once more and Roland slumped, turning his chair away from Ch’len. A rogue tear streaked down his face, cutting a line through the ash and blood.
Li’ara was dead.
17
The creature calling himself Malekk continued to pace the walkway that intersected the pit of terminals and monitors. Black eyes, devoid of life, remained fixed on Kalian and Esabelle on the command podium.
Spread out.
Esabelle’s words echoed in Kalian’s mind. It still felt intrusive to him, but he was more than happy to have a form of communication with her that Malekk couldn’t detect. The two of them
slowly stepped away from each other, creating harder targets. Kalian commanded his heart to increase and pump blood to all of his muscles, ready for the inevitable. Adrenaline began to course through his veins, preparing his body for instant exertion and sharpening his reflexes and senses.
Malekk laughed, “I’m not sure that’s going to be enough, Mr. Gaines.”
It caught Kalian off guard. This new creation of the cube was Terran, and with that came all the perks, including the ability to tap into the universe and read your surroundings. Malekk could feel the physiological changes inside Kalian’s body.
Kalian decided to do the same.
Malekk’s body was intertwined on a molecular level with the nanocelium. Every muscle fibre was enhanced by the metallic strands that ran through them. The individual nanites screamed with artificial intelligence, each loyal to the next, bundled in the central nervous system where the cube’s consciousness now resided. Malekk’s organs were dead. His lungs were deflated while his heart remained as still as a stone. Kalian was looking at a robotic parasite.
“I know your name.” Esabelle continued to walk around the left side of the pit, distracting Malekk. “It was on the manifest of the Tempest. The ship’s log stated you were a traitor to the Empire, a heretic. It also stated that you died during a fight of your own making, and were given back to the stars.”
Malekk took the bait and followed Esabelle. “Terran lie just like the Gomar or the humans, or every species in the Conclave for that matter. The only truth in the universe is coming for you, and it is absolute.”
“You’re very passionate for a machine,” Kalian observed, drawing Malekk’s attention the other way.
“We’re all machines, Mr. Gaines.” At the same time, Malekk smiled, his face transformed. The nanocelium and dark veins faded behind the skin and filled with colour and life. His eyelids blinked and presented two ordinary, human blue eyes. “Your type of machine just cares more for the aesthetic.”
Esabelle had left the podium and walked round to the head of the walkway. “I’d say there’s a little bit of Malekk still inside there if your chosen image is anything to go by.”
Malekk raised an eyebrow at the comment.
“The nanocelium could have altered his structure into anything, yet you chose to leave the face and frame the same.”
Before Esabelle had finished her last word, Malekk’s face returned to its twisted former self. “I assure you, this body is a shell, and its former owner is as extinct as the Terran Empire. Though I will admit, it’s certainly the most uncomfortable organic I’ve ever encountered.” Malekk examined the back of his hand as if it was a foreign object.
“You really have a problem with the Terran, don’t you?” Kalian remarked.
Malekk’s head whipped back. “Your species is...” His jaw stopped moving before another word could be uttered. The expression on his face became uncomfortable, his eyes confused at the stubbornness of his own jaw.
Kalian and Esabelle looked to one another but had no answer for Malekk’s strange behaviour. Kalian now stood at the head of the opposite end of the walkway, Malekk between them.
What’s happening to him?
Kalian projected his question into Esabelle’s mind, enjoying the ease with which they could communicate.
I don’t know. Maybe he was about to say something he shouldn’t.
Malekk’s jaw snapped back. “Destroying your race took less than point four of a percent of our intelligence. The Terran lineage is not a problem, Mr. Gaines; it is simply a blemish that requires removing.”
“Why do you want to wipe out the species that created you?” Kalian pressed. This being had the answers they had all sought after for months.
Malekk laughed again. “You know so little. It’s truly astounding that you’ve survived this long. Still, I suppose you’re not to blame. That primitive little machine you call a brain can only comprehend so much, not to mention your source of information.” Malekk looked at Kalian’s suit, “ALF... how quaint.” To Kalian’s surprise, ALF made no appearance at the sound of his name. “He will be wiped out along with the rest of your unnatural kind.”
“You’re saying you weren’t made by the Terran?” Kalian’s concentration began to waver as he focused on Malekk’s answers.
Malekk smiled with condescension. “Even the great Terran Empire was a speck in the lifespan of the universe.” His smile turned malicious. “We are not a speck...” Malekk’s posture was completely relaxed, an image of confidence. “We have thrived for so long because you do not see us coming, Mr. Gaines. We have no weakness, no fear and there is nothing you can do to stop the inevitable.”
“So something terrible is coming. Got it.” Kalian was getting tired of Malekk’s posturing. “Then why are you so hell-bent on wiping out the Terran? You’ve spent a long time hunting down a less evolved version of them, which sounds a lot like fear to me.”
Esabelle replied instead of Malekk. “They’re taking us off the board.”
Malekk slowly turned to face Esabelle, irritation in his expression.
“Something terrible is coming, isn’t it? You just don’t want the Terran to stand in the way. You’re afraid we’ll stop you.”
Kalian was beginning to understand. “So what are you, some kind of scout come to check out the opposition? What’s this terrible thing going to do when it gets here?”
“A scout?” Malekk laughed to himself. “You could think of us as the vanguard, I suppose. But believe me when I tell you; having your lives end by my hands will be far swifter than dying at the hands of my maker. Your continued survival has angered him greatly.”
The threat got under Kalian’s skin. “Well, you can tell this terrible thing that they can shove their anger up-”
“You think my maker is the terrible thing?” Malekk laughed. “My maker is the vanguard. We are the vanguard.” Malekk held his arms out. “You should only hope that your entire race is ash by the time they arrive.”
We need to strike, now!
Kalian ignored Esabelle. “What do they want?” He stepped forward, onto the walkway.
“To feed...” Malekk’s reply sent a chill down Kalian’s spine.
A bloody and mangled hand shot out from under the bridge and gripped Kalian by the ankle like a vice. Garrett had been hiding under the walkway. Kalian was instantly pulled to the floor and dragged into the pit of terminals and empty chairs. Garrett dropped down and landed with his legs either side of Kalian’s prone body, his torn face void of emotion. Esabelle leapt the distance between Malekk and herself, sending them both spiralling across the walkway.
Looking at the broken body of Professor Jones, it was clear to see that there was nothing left of the man. He appeared worse than the last time Kalian had seen him, aboard the Nova. Garrett’s skin was peeling all over in large chunks, revealing more of the nanocelium skeleton that controlled his actions. His usually unkempt hair was completely gone, leaving only scabs and fresh cuts behind.
With one hand, Garret pinned Kalian to the floor and held his other fist high, ready to beat him to death. His hand faltered for a second, the fist unclenched as his eyelids twitched. That second was all Kalian needed.
A telekinetic blast launched Garrett through the walkway above, twisting and breaking the metal, driving him into the ceiling of the tier above them. Garrett’s endurable body dented the framework before he dropped to the ground floor, landing face-down. Kalian wasted no time in leaping out of the pit, using his abilities to enhance the strength in his legs. Garrett remained on the floor, immobile.
The fight between Esabelle and Malekk escalated far quicker than his own. The two of them had already blown through the top tiers of the decking, putting jagged holes in the ceilings and floors. Their telekinetic barrages shredded each level of its infrastructure, knocking through the supporting pillars and splitting the machinery into splinters and sparks. Kalian looked on in awe, unsure of how he would fare in such a battle.
Malekk was
forced to one knee while Esabelle rapidly beat him across the face. She might as well have tapped him with her little finger for the all the effect it had. Malekk shot up, head-butting Esabelle, before he stood, arms outstretched as a maelstrom of energy exploded around them both. Electricity consumed the tier, firing off random bolts of lightning in every direction, while balls of fire erupted in each of his hands. The fire slowly took shape, as the heat increased to create molten balls of white-hot plasma that Kalian was forced to shield his eyes from. Telekinetic energy whipped around them as if they were caught in a tornado.
Esabelle recovered quickly and pushed against the onslaught of energy that contained the two of them. Kalian altered the structure of his retinas to compensate for the light of the plasma and lightning. Every step Esabelle took was slow as she fought against Malekk’s new-found powers. Before she could reach out and grab him, Malekk unleashed the organic plasma balls into her chest plate. Esabelle was hurled through the railing and sent flying across the expansive bridge like an Intrinium bolt fired from a gun. Kalian whipped his head to track her flight, intending to catch her with telekinesis but was brought down himself by Garrett. He only heard Esabelle as she crashed into the same upper tier, above him.
Garrett was on top of him once again, snarling with drool. Kalian intercepted his hammer-like fist before it could make contact with his face. The professor’s weight pinned him to the floor with his knee on Kalian’s chest. Malekk was standing at the edge of the platform above, where the railing had been bent outwards by Esabelle. The maelstrom of energy died down around him while he examined his hands again, this time with a hint of glee in his expression.
“You need to pay attention.” ALF’s voice rang as clear in Kalian’s mind, as Esabelle’s did when they communicated telepathically. Kalian’s awareness soon found the strand of nanocelium that had grown from the collar of his exo-suit and attached itself to the translator disc behind his ear.
Garrett swiftly moved Kalian’s arm aside and repeatedly drove his hand into the chest plate as if his fist were a piston. The armour held up to the Professor’s blows, but still knocked the wind from Kalian’s lungs. With telekinetic force, Kalian rolled over, taking Garret with him into a tumble across the floor. The Professor’s head hung over the lip of the pitted terminal bay as Kalian came to rest on top of him.
The Terran Cycle Boxset Page 88