The Terran Cycle Boxset

by Philip C. Quaintrell

  “You were there the whole time? That’s… no weirder than the rest of this, I suppose.” Jed looked up at the alien planet. “I'm sure you can imagine how many questions me and my people have, but as the captain of the Paladin, I have to know what the Conclave plans on doing with my ship.”

  Fey looked up again and saw the swollen vessel glide between the habitat and Arakesh.

  “It will remain close by for the time being,” Telarrek assured. “A more thorough inspection may be required, to ensure the renegade Shay has not left behind any surprises.”

  “Well, we can't stay here.” Jed waved his arm across the view of the park. “I’ve been told that camping supplies are being brought in.”

  “A temporary measure,” Fey cut in. “In the meantime, I should probably introduce you to the council.”

  Jed put his hand up. “Before I meet anyone else I need to go over the details with you one more time. I haven't been here all that long and everywhere I go I hear about this Kalian Gaines. I need details, Li. I need everything.”

  “Then perhaps it’s a good thing Ambassador Telarrek is here.” Fey cupped the Novaarian’s lower elbow. “He has been through everything with us and has a far better memory than I.”

  Naydaalan slowly circled the alien contraption that enthralled Kalian. He remained standing, his arms supported by rests and connected to the larger machine via tendrils of nanocelium that appeared to link directly with the suit. Naydaalan wondered if they went through the suit and actually pierced Kalian’s skin. The human’s head was completely hidden within the mask that hugged his face and under his jaw. Almost every inch was covered in tubes and wires that extended upwards and into the strange machine, which faded into the darkness above.

  With his rifle tucked closely to his chest, Naydaalan’s slender fingers remained close to the trigger at all times. If there was a hint of subterfuge he was prepared to open fire on the giant ALF, who stood as still as any inanimate object beside Kalian. Every now and then the Novaarian would hear the scurrying of metallic feet in the shadows, accompanied with hisses of steam and the clunking of machinery. Most of the ancient ship was hidden in darkness, but it certainly wasn't asleep anymore. Since the real ALF had shown himself, more and more of the surroundings came to life.

  Using his sharp, golden eyes, Naydaalan observed the beads of sweat that ran between the edge of Kalian’s mask and the top of his nanocelium collar. Whatever he was experiencing right now, it was exerting a particular amount of physical exertion on him. With no signs of distress, however, the Novaarian was content to keep watch, for now. His father, Telarrek, hadn't expressly told him to protect Kalian, but the human’s importance had been implied - as they always were in their conversations. Naydaalan knew his father couldn't bring himself to ask his son to sacrifice his own life for Kalian’s, but he was more than just an extension of the Conclave on this mission; the Highclave was expecting him to keep the human alive, though he suspected there was one or two on the Highclave who wouldn't mind seeing Kalian dead.

  Having seen some of what Kalian could do, Naydaalan realised that his mandate to protect the human wasn't entirely required. Since arriving in the hostile Terran Empire, it had been Kalian who had delivered them from certain death.

  Without warning, ALF’s body came to life with an alarmed expression, causing Naydaalan to raise his weapon and take aim.

  “Incoming!” ALF’s warning came only a second before the massive ship was shaken, raining dust from the darkness.

  Naydaalan corrected his footing and looked up at ALF. “What is it?”

  “Shifters!” ALF placed one of his hands on the ancient console, beside Kalian, and released a flurry of nanocelium strands into the hardware.

  “Shifters?” Naydaalan was forced to reach out and balance himself as the ship was shaken again.

  “You encountered them outside Albadar. Nanocelium left behind by Savrick to trap and destroy any wayfarers. They can become ships, monsters, anything required to eliminate the intruder.” ALF held out his free hand, palm-up, and projected a hologram from within. Naydaalan could see three sleek, black ships diving around the mountain and firing upon them. “I am bringing my defences online, but it will take some time while so much power is diverted to Kalian.”

  “Then wake him up. Bring him out of it.” Naydaalan took a step closer, as more weapons fire shook the ship.

  “I cannot. He’s at a crucial stage. If his mind can't comprehend the changes that need making now he might never advance.”

  Naydaalan groaned, which coming from a Novaarian sounded more like a growl. He ran towards the thick double doors while replacing his helmet and activating his suit, ready for the harsh environment.

  “What are you doing?” ALF called out.

  “Retrieving the Advent. I will hold them off while you bring your weapons online.” Naydaalan heard the hiss inside his mask when the atmospheric stabilisers kicked in.

  “It’s suicide, Naydaalan. Those Shifters are made of nanocelium and your ship doesn't have the firepower to stop them.”

  Naydaalan checked the setting on his rifle. “Then you had better work fast.”

  The doors slid apart - a mechanism that could only be activated by ALF - demonstrating that despite his protests, the AI was happy for Naydaalan to play the part of the distraction. It wouldn't be the first time ALF had sacrificed the lives of others for those he considered more important.

  Having already alerted the Advent, the ship tore through the dark sky and flew low over the lava fields. Naydaalan’s Novaarian reflexes easily timed the distance and speed of the ship, allowing him to jump - aided by the built-in jets - and catch the edge of the extended ramp on the side of the ship. Four strong arms worked to get him inside as fast as possible until he reached the bridge.

  A direct hit to the port side dropped the Novaarian into the chair and almost dipped the Advent into a river of steaming lava. Naydaalan took immediate control, via the holographic domes, and took the ship into a vertical rise, avoiding the next two attacks by metres. The ship switched to attack mode and straps flew out of the chair and braced him in his seat, as maneuver after maneuver would have him flattened against the walls.

  Naydaalan wanted to give verbal commands to the ship, but the G’s exerted on his body prevented any words from escaping. While his upper arms worked the controls, his lower limbs redirected power throughout the ship. As ALF had said, the Advent possessed no weapon capable of destroying the Shifters, but it had some damn good thrusters. With the weapons taken offline, life support dropped to critical and artificial gravity disabled, all available power was pushed into the engine and the thrusters.

  The Advent zipped through the gaps in the Shifters’ pattern, with only inches between them at times, and continued to rise and dive in and out of the thick cloud bank. Another direct hit on the undercarriage had alarms blaring between his arms, flashing in red. The hull had been breached and a portion of the thrusters destroyed.

  Where was ALF’s support?

  As if on cue, the array was activated when ALF made contact with the ship. How the AI had broken through the Advent’s protocols without Naydaalan accepting the call, he didn't know.

  “I'm going to need more time to get my weapons online.” ALF sounded unreasonably calm.

  Naydaalan was forced to slow down the ship’s ascent in order to verbally respond. “I only have another two maneuvers, maybe three, before they can anticipate my pattern.” His voice was strained and his chest hurt with every breath.

  “It doesn't matter anymore,” ALF replied, cryptically. “You need to get back here, now.”

  Naydaalan, a soldier born, didn't question the command, but instead killed the throttle and let gravity pull the Advent back down until it was pointing towards the planet’s arid surface. Two of the Shifters were flying up towards him, while the third continued its attack on ALF’s ship. The Novaarian brought the ship’s thrust up to maximum yield and weaved between the weapons fire. It wasn't
enough to dodge the actual Shifters, however. The nanocelium ship cut through the port side of the Advent’s hull, shearing the metal away and damaging the ship beyond all repair.

  It took everything the Novaarian had to level out again. The Advent skimmed the jagged ground and lakes of lava, as it hurtled towards ALF’s ship at the base of the mountain. The consoles protested their continued use and erupted in sparks and blinked out of existence. One last alarm informed Naydaalan that the engine had lost power, as a good part of it had been cut away by the Shifter. In moments the Advent would lose its momentum and collide with the ground, turning the ship into a ball of scrap metal.

  Naydaalan felt the ship rise under his weight, the rocky ground slipping away. The Novaarian peered out of the viewport in wonder, as the volcanic surface dropped away from the Advent. Moments later the ship began to slow down, despite being no more than a collection of rooms with half of a broken engine attached to it. The hull creaked and groaned under the invisible strain of whatever was slowing it down. The massive doors to ALF’s ship were close enough to make out the details when the entire bridge peeled away in an explosion of sparks and wrought metal, exposing him to the outside world. The glass monitors cracked and shattered, along with the viewport, forcing Naydaalan to cover his visor.

  Through all the chaos and destruction, not one object touched the Novaarian. When Naydaalan opened his eyes again, the whole bridge had been torn away, including his chair. Before he could question the extraordinary event, the warrior’s floating body was pulled towards ALF’s ship, as if he were floating in a vacuum. The tall doors parted at the same moment his feet once again touched the ground. Behind him, the Advent dropped unceremoniously to the ground in a cloud of dust.

  The Shifters were closing in.

  Naydaalan hurried into the giant cuboid, hearing their buzzing engines speeding over the lava fields. With one last bewildered look at the ruined Advent, the Novaarian returned to Kalian’s side and the doors sealed them in.

  “What is happening?” Naydaalan asked through laboured breaths.

  “I believe Kalian has become aware of the situation.” ALF was striding around in the shadows, activating unseen machines. “Quickly now.” ALF signalled for Naydaalan to join him.

  The Novaarian was gripped by the AI’s strong hands and thrust against the wall, where multiple straps jumped out and fastened him in place. Naydaalan instinctively attempted to struggle, but the nanocelium binds wouldn't give an inch.

  “I’m afraid I don't know exactly how the next few moments are going to unfold,” ALF explained, “but I'm very good with probability.” The giant AI tore a small hole in Naydaalan’s suit, just above the elbow on his upper arm. “I’m going to attach an intravenous line that will connect you in part to my ship.”

  Upon hearing this, Naydaalan increased his struggling and roared. The prick hurt for a moment, but the black line that ran out of the wall and into his arm was alarming.

  “Don't worry, it isn't the same thing you witnessed with Professor Jones - I just need to make you appear as if you’re a part of the ship, or things could get very messy…” ALF returned to Kalian without an explanation.

  Naydaalan stopped his fighting when the noise from the machine, attached to Kalian’s head, increased in pitch. Kalian physically shuddered and his hands gripped the ends of his rests until the knuckles were white. The Novaarian could hear the human shouting from inside the metallic mask.

  “What’s happening to him?” Naydaalan shouted over the sound of the machine.

  ALF ignored him. The entire ship was rocked by more weapons fire from the Shifters. It looked to Naydaalan as if the floors and walls were slowly moving, like the waves in an ocean, but he soon realised it was nanocelium, attending the damaged sections of the ship.

  “What’s happening?” he shouted again.

  ALF answered with a single word. “Evolution.”

  The mountain imploded, as ALF’s ship slipped between the gap in reality. To Naydaalan, this felt as if his perspective on the world had been momentarily narrowed and he had been looking down an endless corridor before it snapped back with a gut-wrenching thud. The Novaarian vomited inside his helmet, spraying every inch of his visor. Thankfully the straps released him and he dropped to the floor in exhaustion, despite having exerted no energy. He immediately threw his visor away and tore the long line of nanocelium from his skin.

  Looking up, ALF was quickly attending to the machine encompassing Kalian’s head. The human appeared limp now, his hands hanging off the edge of the rests and his knees buckled. ALF used one arm to support Kalian when the mask spread apart and retreated back into the larger machine. Naydaalan fought off the dizziness and approached them, taking note of the blood pouring out of Kalian’s nose, mouth and ears.

  “Is he alive?” Naydaalan feared the worst.

  “He won't be if I don't operate immediately.” ALF had scooped Kalian up into both arms and waited patiently while a rectangular slab of nanocelium separated from the floor and rose up to lay him on. Dark tendrils snaked out of the darkness above, each ending with a different surgical instrument, not unlike the Conclave’s Medders.

  “Operate? What happened to him? Did he destroy the Shifters?” Naydaalan’s mind was struggling to focus on any one thing.

  “The Shifters are no longer a problem. Kalian’s organs being in the wrong place, however… that’s a problem.”

  “Wrong place?” Naydaalan echoed.

  “It was his first jump and a damn big one at that. This was expected.” ALF raised his arms but never touched the tendrils, as they went to work on cutting Kalian out of his exo-suit.

  “This was expected? Wait! What jump? What happened?” Naydaalan’s lack of understanding was manifesting as anger.

  ALF continued to manipulate the surgical tendrils as if he were conducting an orchestra. “See for yourself.” The AI didn't turn away, but the double doors parted, allowing bright sunlight to flood the ship.

  Naydaalan winced, trying to adjust to the light. It wasn't the same reddish-light emitted by the volcanic atmosphere, but that of two suns. The Novaarian blinked until the horizon took shape in the form of mountains and fields of red grass with arching waves of curved, black rock, overgrown with weeds and colourful plant life. The sky was a pale white, overcast with clouds that only allowed one of the two suns to shine through with clarity.

  The warrior turned back to ALF, who had stripped Kalian of his armour and dived right in with the surgical blades and cutting lasers.

  “I don't understand. Where are we?”

  “According to my initial analysis of the soil, we’re on Hadrok.”

  18

  Despite the mounting alien environments, Li’ara continued to come across, she still marvelled at every one while they took her breath away. The Shay homeworld of Shandar was an incredible feat of truly advanced technology. The entire circumference of the planet was encased within a chaotic network of floating towers, each bridged to the next in every direction. The lowest levels, saved for the poorest of the Shay, descended into the exosphere of the dying planet and was enveloped within stormy clouds that never let up.

  Roland had visited the planet a few times in his self-exile from the human race, but for Li’ara it was a first. She stood right up against the viewport and enjoyed the peaceful experience of observing a planet from orbit. Sef’s broad everything was impossible to mistake, as the Gomar appeared by her side without a sound. How somebody so big and covered from head-to-toe in armour could be so quiet, she didn't know.

  “It’s beautiful, isn't it?”

  Sef looked from Li’ara to Shandar. The Terran would have fixed the planet, not left it to die and build around it.

  Li’ara didn't know what to say to that. Sef had seen more of the universe’s wonders than she had, especially during their journey across the galaxy in search of Earth. It was possible that the Gomar saw Shandar as a relatively primitive civilisation.

  Roland belched on his way
onto the bridge and tossed an empty can of beer to one side. It seemed the bounty hunter was back to his old ways. Roland was wearing his usual gear, coat and all, with his trusty Tri-rollers holstered on each thigh. He was readying for a fight if his alcohol consumption was anything to go by.

  “Don't bother with fake ID’s, Len.” Roland dropped into his chair and lifted his hands so the console could swing around. “Take us in all nice and quiet like.”

  “Activating stealthware now…” Ch’len sat across from Roland with his little legs dangling off the edge.

  Li’ara walked up the centre of the bridge. “We should do some recon and plan out our approach. Kel-var is bound to have defences.”

  “Or…” Roland hit a key on his console with dramatic flair. The Rackham’s speaker system immediately exploded with loud music.

  Li’ara rolled her eyes and hoped the heavy beats and club music wouldn't give her a headache. The bounty hunter was insufferable, but annoyingly good at what he did, though right now Li’ara was finding it hard to pinpoint exactly what that was.

  The Rackham shot between the floating towers and weaved between the lanes of traffic and patrolling security forces. Not only was the ship invisible to sensor arrays, but also to the naked eye. Only a keen observer in the lower levels would take note of the thick clouds that parted in its wake.

  The light inside the bridge was entirely artificial while they ploughed through the stormy atmosphere. Li’ara had to shield her eyes when the planet’s surface finally came into view in a panorama of stark white. Devoid of sunlight, the surface was barren and cold. They were greeted by mountains covered in snow for as far as the eye could see.

  “The coordinates from Gor-van’s ship are just there!” Ch’len shouted over the music and brought up a holographic overlay across the viewport.

  Roland cut the music and leaned forward in his seat. Li’ara followed his gaze to the pin-point, nestled between two mountains in the distance. From this height, there was no sign of any activity or artificial structures. That changed as they flew over the rise of the nearest mountain, which had been hiding three massive pillars, each pointed inwards toward the apex.