“Hello everyone.” She called out as she scanned all the sour faces in the room, “It is p... pretty cut and dry,” she cringed as she heard herself stutter. Her fear was getting the best of her, “I... if they are planning an invasion, they will undoubtedly begin to thin their forces as they spread out and begin t...to search the area. Of course, they are here for me and for that I... I am sorry. Attacking them h... head on would be s... suicide, we have to wait for them to f... find us. We should seal off all the exits but one, force them into a chokepoint. W... we could dispatch all our transport craft, remotely if possible. Make it look like a r... retreat. Compel them to attack; then we can m... mow through them. Our reinforcements can hit them from behind and as they get confused and panic, we advance in a pincer move, obliterating them.”
“And what if the reinforcements do not come?” An officer by the name of Lieutenant Haan shouted back, “What then?”
“Then we hold our fucking ground!” Captain Blaze shouted, “By any means necessary!”
“What of the civilians, the elderly and the children?” Another asked, “What do we do for them?”
“We prepare our transports.” Card was quick with an answer, “The children are the highest priority, and while it is unlikely that a transport would escape in the event that Base 21 falls, they at least need to have a chance.”
“Should we not relocate them while Govia is busy with their construction?” The officer responded, “Can we get them to Exgrane?”
“That is a possibility,” Card responded, “If we can…”
The door to the room burst open, and Emerald suddenly ran inside. Everyone stopped talking for a moment and turned to see the grim expression she wore on her face.
“Vice Commander, I cannot reach Captain Bran or Supreme Commander Xian,” She informed him, “The communicator… it is not connecting. I think that the Govians are jamming us somehow.”
“Brothers damn it all!” Card shouted as he pulled his communicator out of his pocket. He punched a few buttons and held it to his ear. After a few moments, he gently closed the communicator and shut his eyes. Suddenly, he slammed the device over and over against the desk below him until it shattered into many pieces. A rogue piece of hair fell into his face, and he snarled.
“Whoa!” Commander Crinnan shouted as he stepped up to Card, “Calm down!” Card snarled at Crinnan and sheathed his weapon. He brushed his hair away and cleared his throat.
“It would seem that Lady Emerald is correct,” He snapped, again placing his palms face down on the desk. He took a long, deep breath and looked up at the officers.
“Prepare the fortifications,” He ordered, “Seal all exits but the main gate. Line Main Street with sandbags outfit every window with a machine gun and pre-loaded rifles. I want three soldiers in every window, one to man the machine gun, one to cover him with a rifle and a third to provide ammunition as needed... Reinforce the gates and man the walls, set up charges at the main entrance. I need the admin tower impenetrable. I want snipers and gunners in every window and on every ledge. Ready the transports, we will cause a diversion and begin the evacuation of the children and elderly once all preparations are made.”
Rubaan felt unrest growing inside of him. He knew that he had to do something, that he could do something. He stood and raised his hand, and Card stopped rattling off his orders.
“What, Corporal?” He snapped, “This is not a school you do not need to raise your hand like a child.” Everyone turned toward Rubaan, and he suddenly felt nervous.
“I will go to Base 11,” he volunteered, “I can talk to Commander Milinka, I can get us the reinforcements we need. I can contact Century squad while I am out. I can do this Vice Commander.”
“You are not trying to abandon your post again are you, Lord Rubaan?” Card cocked his head and shot him a glare.
“No sir,” Rubaan insisted, “I just think… something has to be done is all, and I can do it.”
Card stared at Rubaan for a moment, not moving his head or gaze. Finally, he stood up straight and ran his hand over his black hair.
“Does anybody object to Lord Rubaan’s proposition?” He asked, “Does anybody have any concerns?”
“I think considering what few options we have,” Major Codrii Speeris, a battle proven and well respected Vampre officer replied, “We should give him our blessing.”
“I agree,” Emerald chimed in, “Since our communications are down, we need to get creative. Sending Rubaan, and perhaps a Centurion escort could be our best chance at getting reinforcements.”
“Very well then,” Card stood up straight and nodded at Rubaan, “Lord Rubaan will depart for Kamlot with the Centurions immediately. Whatever resources you may require to arrive at Base 11 by sunsrise are at your disposal.”
“Thank you, sir, I won’t let you down.” Card nodded at Rubaan and turned to address the rest of the officers.
“Get to work; I want Main Street fortified by sunsrise. You are all dismissed, Lord Rubaan, remain behind. I wish to speak to you before you depart.”
The officers all got up and walked toward the exit of the war room, a few stopped and wished Rubaan luck on their way, others rolled their eyes at him. Major Codrii stopped and placed his hand on Rubaan’s shoulder.
“May the brother’s light guide your path, Lord Jamiso,” He nodded at Rubaan and then moved onward. Eventually, only the Jamisos, Emerald and Card remained.
“We need you to depart as soon as possible,” Card ordered as he stepped up to Rubaan, “You are too young to be judged a fool so that I will commend you for your bravery instead… Rubaan, it is imperative that you survive and succeed. Understand too, that you must not try to communicate with Base 11 until you are one hundred miles or so away. If you call them and they try to establish a connection with us to verify your claims, Govia will undoubtedly intercept the transmission and not only become aware of our reinforcements but also may learn the location of Base 11.”
“What about Century Squad?” Rubaan asked, “When should I contact them?”
“The same guidelines apply. Once you are one hundred miles away from the base or so,” Card answered, “Make certain that you tell Captain Bran himself, and if possible, speak directly with Commander Xian.”
“What do I tell them?” Rubaan asked.
“Tell them that they need to take Empyr, that they need to bunker down and wait for Milinka’s reinforcements to arrive. Once they do, they are to join the battle.”
“Okay,” Rubaan nodded, “Take Empyr, bunker down, wait for reinforcements, join the battle. I got it.” Card gave Rubaan a nod of approval and patted his shoulder as he walked by.
“Make certain you are successful, young Lord Jamiso,” He called back as he exited the room, “Twenty thousand lives are counting on you.”
Chapter Seventeen
Crinnan XXII
23rd of Ramlia - 346AG
06:00 - Belhaasi Weald, Racon Tower
Cade and the five Centurions burst through the Ancient metal door and onto the roof of Racon Tower. When they were all clear Alec quickly spun, slammed the door shut behind them and rested his back against it. By that point, they had all become exhausted from scaling the number of stairs and ladders that they had. They were fearful of the Marauders that they could occasionally hear moving below them.
The water had puddled on the warped roof, and the rain fell on their heads as they waited. The top of the building was wide and open, its only fixtures were some collapsed ductwork, and an old caved in maintenance shed.
“It will be over soon,” Cade promised everyone. He rested against the door beside Alec and nodded his head, “Nida is on her way; she will be here any moment.”
“Thank the Brothers,” Alec whispered. Everyone seemed to relax as Cade reminded them of their pending escape. Alec paused for a moment to wipe the sweat from his brow and found himself gazing off into the distance. He wanted to sulk over his grandfather, but something had caught his attention.
“Guys I have news. I’m not sure if it is good or bad.”
“What is it?” Elia asked.
“My visor has detected an inbound transport. It is not far off. It has some kind of long-range cloaking device on it like Govian ships; otherwise, I would have detected it a long time ago; it should be coming into view at any moment.”
“Better be yours.” Matalo glared at Cade.
“Why would it not be?” Cade rolled his eyes and turned his gaze toward the sky. His foot tapped as he waited, he seemed just as eager to get out of there as everyone else.
“There!” Cade shouted, “There she is!”
A long gray and red AGRA transport came into view just over the canopy. It hovered in place over the trees for a moment and then inched forward. Cade smiled and waved wildly at it.
“I told you!” Cade laughed, as he turned and looked at the Centurions, “I told you I was going to get us out of here! We are about to go home!” Nearly everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Elia waved at the ship like Cade and Matalo let out an excited whoop. Alec was silent; however, he seemed focused on something else.
“No! Shit! Tell them to get the fuck out of here!” he suddenly and loudly shouted, “They need to go back!”
“What?” Cade asked, surprised at Alec’s response. Alec shook his head, and Cade cocked his own. An anxious feeling came over him, and he took a step closer to Alec, “What are you…”
“Two more ships are coming in fast!” He shouted, “You need to tell them to…” Before he could say any more, a rocket slammed into the tail of the AGRA craft. The ship violently rocked as the missile exploded and Cade let out a shout of pure horror.
“Fuck!” He screamed, “Nida! No!” He watched as Nida struggled and failed to maintain control of the transport. It lost control and spun in a fiery circle for a moment and finally slammed into the trees below it. “No!” Cade shouted again.
Two Govian ships flew overhead, one flew past the tower and into the distance, but the other slowed down and hovered in place above them. Slowly, the HAPT rotated until it was facing Crinnan and the others.
There was no time to act, the miniguns had already begun to spin, and there was nowhere to hide. Crinnan looked up at the Govian HAPT and tried to fire an electric NaNe blast at it but his electricity scattered and branched into the air in front of him. He felt like he was about to die like the bullets were about to tear through him and his friends.
“I am sorry…” He quickly whispered to Alec who stood next to him. He felt like it was all his fault, that he had led his friends to that untimely and pointless death. Elia reached out and grabbed Crinnan’s hand as he closed his eyes and waited for the guns to begin firing.
A loud explosion erupted. Crinnan’s eyes shot open, and he watched as the Govian HAPT burst into flames and crashed into the Marauder army below. Confused, he searched the sky, and a wave of emotion hit his heart when he saw a Black Knight ship descending to land on the roof.
“Fuck yeah!” Matalo screamed at the top of his lungs. Crinnan let out a relieved sigh, and he checked to make sure he hadn’t pissed himself. Elia let go of his hand and joined everyone else as they ran up to the ship; every one that is except for Cade who had vanished and Flox, who didn’t particularly care either way.
“Did someone order delivery?” A deep voice shouted as multiple fully armed Centurions exited the ship. Captain Bran Phils, the owner of the voice, stepped out wielding a huge minigun. He had a fat cigar in his mouth and wore thick heavy armor. He reached up, pulled the cigar out of his mouth and looked to Crinnan.
“Boy you’ve caused us a shit ton of trouble,” The Gaian Captain growled as he flicked his ashes. He stepped up to Crinnan and looked down at him with a sigh, “It’d been a Hells of a lot easier if you’d have just stayed dead.”
“Sorry sir,” Crinnan nodded his head. He was half-serious. At that point, he almost wished he had remained dead.
“You know, this is the second time in the past decade that I had to fly in and pluck your scrawny ass out of the woods. Are you going to cry like you did last time?”
“No sir,” Crinnan shook his head. Bran was right; he had been there when Crinnan and Milinka were rescued from the woods in Kamlot. Crinnan thought back to that event and couldn’t help but smile.
“Suit up kid,” Bran placed his massive hand on Crinnan’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze, “We gotta end this shit tonight before things get out of control.”
“Sir, things have been out of hand,” Crinnan informed him. Bran made a humming noise and nodded his head. Only two days before Bran had spoken at Crinnan’s funeral, now, there he was alive in the flesh before him. Crinnan was right, that was not a sign of things being under control.
“Get your shit equipped and join the others, Crinnan,” Bran pointed his thumb behind him at the transport, “Commander Xian wants this Eon person dead. Your new orders are to support him like the rest of Century Squad. Your little hero journey is over. Easy in, easy out, that’s what we want. Let’s be professionals about this; you can still do that, right?”
“Yes sir,” Crinnan walked past Bran, but Bran snapped his arm out and grabbed Crinnan’s wrist. Crinnan turned, and Bran looked around and leaned in closer.
“I’m not completely disappointed that you’re alive, by the way,” His voice was quiet, and he wore a hint of a smile. He didn’t want anyone hearing their Captain speaking kindly to the person who had caused so much trouble
“Yeah me either,” Crinnan nodded. Bran chuckled and let go of Crinnan’s wrist, and Crinnan hopped up into the HAPT.
"Well look who got hungry and rolled out of the grave!" Ryban Phils, Bran's younger Humaan brother, and the squad's quartermaster announced as Crinnan stepped inside the HAPT, "I guess the Hells couldn't handle you?" He was joking of course, and while Crinnan couldn't remember the complete details, he felt that Ryban's comment wasn't far from the truth
Ryban was among the last of his squad to be recruited based on meritorious works before they switched to the Future Centurions program. He was a large Humaan, by no means Gaian size, but still imposing. Standing well over six feet, he had thick bare biceps and broad shoulders. He wore heavy armor and had a long brown mullet with thick mutton chops that grew on each side of his jaw. A pair of sunsglasses rested on top of his head, and he was always in high spirits.
"You ain't happened to have heard from Jeph have you?" Ryban asked as he handed a duffel bag over. He wore a look of concern mixed with hope, Jeph had been a close friend of his.
Crinnan winced at the sound of Jeph's name, and the image of his bloated severed head hanging from the ceiling of the Toraani building flashed through his mind. Crinnan shook his head and made a grim expression. He unslung Jeph’s assault rifle and handed it over to Ryban.
"He did not make it," Crinnan soberly informed him. Ryban reached out and silently took hold of the weapon, "I am sorry."
Ryban flipped the rifle over in his hands and saw Jeph’s initials carved into the stock. With a disappointed sigh, Ryban nodded and gently set the weapon aside.
"I figured as much, I just hoped that since you were alive, he was too," He shook his head and looked at Crinnan, "Good to see you made it anyway, let's grab a drink when this is all over."
"Maybe," Crinnan replied as he unzipped the heavy duffel bag, "We have to survive first."
Crinnan found his armor inside. It was cleaned and polished. He pulled out his light chest and back plates and unstrapped the Govian rig he was wearing.
"Give me a hand Ryban," Crinnan ordered as he slid into the armor, "Tighten it."
Ryban stepped up and pulled the straps on the back of Crinnan's armor. Crinnan felt it slide into place and held up his hand when he thought it was snug enough. Ryban attached his pauldrons and made sure that they would not break free.
Next, Crinnan reached in and pulled out his own sword. He smiled as he held the weapon in his hand. It was light, and the blade was about three feet long. He strapped it to hi
s back and put his father's old sword; the one Sage had given him, into the duffel bag. He replenished the ammunition for his revolvers, so they were at full capacity, when he had finished, he looked up at Ryban and nodded his head.
"Good lookin’, Jamiso," Ryban gave Crinnan a thumbs up, and Crinnan rolled his eyes. It felt good to be back in his own armor, to have his own sword at the ready, "Let's get to it then."
Ryban and Crinnan stepped out of the HAPT and back into the dark rain. Crinnan, in the moment that he had to himself, walked to the edge of the roof and looked down.
“Everything is burning…” He said under his breath as he surveyed the Belhaasi Weald beneath him. Cade’s wrecked ship had lit the trees around him on fire, and despite the light rain it was spreading quickly. He thought to himself for a moment about everything that had happened because of him. He thought about all the people that had died that day, all that he had inadvertently destroyed. In the distance, beyond the fire that he knew was from Cade's ship, he could see a large light, another fire. He knew it was the village of Pado. He sighed and lit a cigarette.
“Eon is near,” A regal sounding voice declared from behind him, “I can feel him, it feels the same as it did a century ago. He is coming, and I fear he is hunting you.” Crinnan knew the voice but turned his head anyway to see Supreme Commander Xian Phoenix standing behind him.
Lord Xian was an Elf of average build. He stood taller than Crinnan and had a head of auburn hair that was pulled back into a ponytail. He wore a suit of polished, yet scratched Commander’s armor and had a sword at his hip. He did not carry guns, and before meeting Sage, he was one of the few people Crinnan had seen use NaNe.
People called him the son of Ancients, and he was perhaps the mightiest being in all of Black Knight. One hundred years prior he had defeated Eon and Crinnan was glad to see that he had accompanied Century Squad to do it again.
“Commander,” Crinnan acknowledged. “What does all this mean?”
The Black Knight Box Set Page 75