Dalian Crystals

by Barbara Robertson

  The Space Cadre men ran inside behind her to back her up, but some began vomiting on the floor, seeing the gruesome sight of Kayla’s handiwork with her plasma sword. She heard movement, and saw a wounded Rebel raise his laser to fire at the Space Cadre crewmen. Kayla turned her plasma sword’s handle to extend it, and thrust it into the Rebel. A burned-out hole was left where his heart used to be. She checked out the other fallen Rebels, in case any moved to fight, but all were dead.

  Fallen bodies and severed, bloody extremities were everywhere. What remained of the Master Bedroom door was open partially, and she saw an Imperial Guard pulser spear sticking out from the opening in defense. She called out, “Is Emperor P’Lau all right? The room is clear. It’s Ranger Kayla. Are you safe, Emperor P’Lau?”

  The bedroom door opened slowly. A wounded Imperial Guard on his knees raised his spear to fire at her, then lowered it when Kayla raised her visor, and he recognized the Ranger. Then he collapsed onto the floor, and exhaled his last breath. The large master bedroom was covered with the bodies of dead Imperial Guardsmen. Emperor P’Lau was helped out of the bathroom by another Imperial Guard. Both were wounded and bleeding.

  “Medics! Medics for the Emperor NOW!” Kayla shouted into her comm link. She ran to assist the Emperor, and helped him onto the bed. She applied pressure to his abdominal wound to stop the bleeding. The medics arrived shortly, and tended to the wounded Emperor, and his wounded and dying Guards. Emperor P’Lau was pale and very weak from his abdominal wound, and the long flesh wound on his leg. Only one Imperial Guard showed any life signs, L’Roy, who helped the Emperor out of the bathroom.

  Devastation was all throughout the Royal Suite. The formerly posh Royal Suite looked like a hellscape in a bad nightmare. Everything was destroyed. The floor was littered with bodies of dead Rebels, Imperial Guardsmen, and unarmed members of the court who accompanied the Emperor on his yearly trip to M’Wati. The walls were completely blasted out, the bar was demolished, and the beautiful, alluring wall sculpture was destroyed completely. The wide viewing windows were cracked from all the laser blasts, and shots from the Guardsmen’s pulser spears. The ship’s emergency window shields had closed tight, to keep inside precious air and maintain constant pressure in the Royal Suite.

  L’Roy, the recovering Imperial Guard who survived, relayed the surprise assault details to Kayla while she waited on her Emperor’s wounds to be bound: “The Rebels hid in the hollow walls after the Royal Suite was scanned. There were so many people in here, Ranger. During the noise and excitement of the greetings, and the food and cocktails being served, the Rebels stacked themselves inside the hollow walls. They used some kind of rope ladders. We never heard anything but the cocktail party, and the welcome greetings to the Emperor.”

  Guard L’Roy took a long drink of water, and continued his story, “The Rebels blasted through the walls, killing the unarmed courtiers and several Guardsmen. So much screaming, Ranger. We covered the Emperor with our cloaks and shielded him with our bodies, and rushed him into the master bedroom. So many Rebels came out of the walls! They fired at anything and everyone who moved, and then set up the furniture and dead bodies as a barricade, to keep out the Space Cadre security officers. We put the Emperor into the spa tub to protect him, and emptied our pulser spears into the Rebels. But they used the dead bodies as shields,” he cried. “The cruel bastards even used the dead body of our High Priest!”

  He coughed several times, and then continued, “How’d they all get inside the walls silently like they did? Someone below this deck had to help them. The interior walls change configuration above this level, and there is little space for a man inside them. Each Rebel had at least two laser rifles, Ranger. If you hadn’t managed to break through their line, I hate to think what would’ve happened,” he ended, and laid back. Kayla saw the blood running down his head, and called the medics over to him, trying to save at least one of the brave Imperial Guards.

  Kayla stood and looked at the faces of the dead Imperial Guards, knowing what she would find. The men in their now blood-soaked purple uniforms and cloaks saved Emperor P’Lau’s life. Kayla stepped carefully over the dead Guardsmen, and found Nat’N, lying dead against the bathroom door, with his spear in firing position. His neck, chest armor, and uniform were drenched in his own blood. He gave his life protecting his Emperor. Kayla felt as if a huge hole opened inside her solar plexus, and a part of her suddenly was ripped away.

  “My Daughter Kayla, thank you,” Emperor P’Lau said weakly. He raised up on his elbow, saw her looking at the body of Nat’N again, and said, “Our sworn protector Commander Nat’N gave his life protecting us, my Daughter,” P’Lau said softly to Kayla, and held out his hand to her. “We are sorry, my Daughter. I am truly sorry, my Kayla. My poor Kayla.” He began to cry for her.

  Kayla kneeled at his side and bowed her head, and removed her helmet. P’Lau placed his hand on her head, and gently caressed her face. They both cried softly while the medics completed bandaging his wounded leg, and moved him onto an anti-gravity gurney for conveying the Emperor to the Hospital.

  Then abruptly, the ship’s “Red Alert” siren began screeching. Her comm link beeped the emergency signal, and she was ordered to her ES-519: “All pilots to their fighters. We are under attack. All pilots report to their warbirds immediately.” She put her helmet on again, and stood.

  “Go, my Kayla, my Protector. Make them pay for this, my Beloved Daughter. Show no mercy. Give no quarter, my Shi’Lon Ranger!” Emperor P’Lau ordered. He raised his fist and cried, “Make them pay!”

  Kayla saluted him, and ran into the corridor as if she was in a dream, knowing where she was going, but unable to focus on anything around her. She boarded the ES-519 and launched into the heart of the attack. She would make them pay dearly.

  XXVI

  The Rebel leaders in the old destroyer fired on the Imperial Command Battle Cruiser in an anemic attempt to damage the pride of the Space Cadre fleet. Eighty Rebel fighters swarmed around the big Cruiser, firing at strategic points for communications and defense, but could not penetrate the Cruiser’s shields. Their missiles and laser cannon blasts continually burst into brilliant fireworks against the main energy shields of the big Cruiser. But its shields could not hold forever.

  After the announcement of the attack, dozens of Space Cadre fighters from the Cruiser and its support vessels launched to engage the Rebels. The battle took on another dimension when the Space Cadre fighters spread out the attack. But they were still badly outnumbered. Too many Space Cadre fighters were out on patrol, and not available to fight.

  “ES-519, launching now,” Kayla reported, and shot out of the hangar bay at full throttle.

  “ES-519, this is Master Commander Steph’N. Welcome to the party. Engage stealth mode, and rendezvous at the following coordinates.” Kayla engaged the stealth mode and flew to the assigned coordinates, flying invisibly away from the main battle. The Space Cadre fighters were hopelessly outnumbered. She felt like she abandoned them.

  Steph’N ordered, “Let’s get the Rebel destroyer, Ranger Kayla. You take out their portside cannons. Ranger Dan’L, the starboard cannons are yours. I’ll get the forward plasma pulsers,” he instructed. “Arm and target missiles, and hold your position, until my signal.”

  Only when they were in optimal firing position did the three ES warbirds disengage stealth mode. By the time their warbirds were discovered, it was too late. They fired their missiles at the big cannons, and demolished them. Then the warbirds flew through the smoke, became stealthy again, and rendezvoused underneath the destroyer.

  A ship-to-ship hail came over their comm links: “All Imperial fighters, this is Colonel T’Lok of the Rebel destroyer. Your Emperor P’Lau is dead, and we claim his Battle Cruiser as salvage. Surrender and be spared, or die serving a dead Emperor!”

  Kayla did not ask permission to respond. Instead, she immediately replied with a powerful voice on the same ship-to-ship frequency: “This is Kayla, Shi’Lon R
anger. Our Emperor P’Lau is alive and well. I have seen him myself, less than twenty minutes ago. Your cowardly Rebels who hid in the walls like cockroaches have all been exterminated by loyal Imperial Guards and Space Cadre. Your attack has failed, and now you will pay the price, Colonel T’Lok!’ Cheers were heard loudly over the comm link.

  Steph’N called, “Good job, Ranger Kayla. Let’s finish the destroyer.”

  Kayla flew invisibly to the top of the Rebel destroyer, and saw several uniformed officers looking out the command bridge. She armed and targeted the massive “devil bomb” her warbird carried, disengaged her stealth mode, and fired the highly destructive devil bomb directly into the command bridge. “For my Nat’N!” She cried. The devil bomb blew out not only the command bridge, but also the entire top midsection of the Rebel destroyer.

  Dan’L and Steph’N took out the Rebel destroyer’s engines with their devil bombs, and the flash was blinding. The Rangers flew their ES warbirds away from the failing Rebel destroyer at top speed. The old destroyer began to list, and then deck after deck of explosions rippled through the wounded ship, and it died in a brilliant flash.

  The Ranger ES warbirds continued towards the main battle, engaging the Rebel fighters again. Several Rebel fighters broke off their attack and retreated towards the White Belt, looking to hide among asteroids. Ranger Kayla told Steph’N, “Master Commander, the Emperor ordered me to give no quarter to the Rebels, sir.”

  “Then what are you waiting for? Take them out now. Ranger Dan’L, let’s not let our Shi’Lon sister have all the glory,” he said with a chuckle. “Watch your fuel gauges, Rangers. When you’re at 30%, return to the Cruiser to refuel and reload.”

  The ES warbirds picked off the retreating Rebel fighters from behind, then carved their attack into three smaller sorties. The super-fast ES warbirds out-gunned and out-maneuvered the older, slower Rebel fighters, quickly reducing their numbers. Space Cadre fighters focused their attacks on the Rebels closest to the Battle Cruiser, forcing them farther away. The main hangar bay of the Battle Cruiser was constantly receiving fighters whose laser cannons needed recharging, and whose fuel cells needed replacement. The flight crews and their robots were operating at max efficiency, turning around empty fighters to fully-charged in minutes.

  With no command destroyer operating to direct and coordinate flight operations, the Rebel fighters were left on their own. The tide was turning. Many Rebel fighters began to pull away from the battle while they still had fuel remaining. Those retreating Rebels flew towards the White Belt, with the Space Cadre fighters in pursuit. The three ES warbirds returned to the Battle Cruiser to refuel, re-arm their missiles, and reload their laser cannons. They launched at top speed back into the fight.

  The final act came when the Space Cadre patrol squadron leader called: “Major Fel’T reporting. Space patrol fighters have returned. We’ll take it from here.” With fully charged lasers and pulser weaponry, and their missiles targeted, the remaining Rebel fighters were chased away from the Imperial Command Battle Cruiser Group by the fresh Space Cadre patrol fighters, and blown to bits in minutes.

  Ranger Kayla led the ES warbirds in pursuit of the retreating Rebel fighters. Asteroids be damned. The more-maneuverable ES warbirds flew around, above and beneath the space junk and tumbling asteroids, and chased the Rebel fighters into the heart of the White Belt. She hunted the fighters down, and the Rangers destroyed every Rebel fighter on their target screens.

  Steph’N ordered, “All ES warbirds return to the Cruiser. Dinner’s on me tonight!” They returned towards the Cruiser’s main hangar bay, and both Dan’L and Steph’N were jubilant.

  The triumphant Space Cadre pilots returned to the main hanger bay of the Battle Cruiser, and cheered and congratulated each other. When the three Rangers landed their ES warbirds, the pilots gave a rousing round of applause for them, and chanted, “All hail the Emperor’s Rangers!” But Kayla asked to be excused without saying why, and silently went to her suite.

  The celebrations by the pilots dampened when news of the devastating Royal Suite battle, and the great loss of all Imperial Guards but one, reached them. Many Space Cadre security crewmen were also killed or wounded, defending the Emperor in the Royal Suite. Vivid tales of the magnificent Shi’Lon Ranger warrior in her black armor welding her plasma sword were told by the witnessing Space Cadre security officers and crewmen.

  The Imperial Command Battle Cruiser itself sustained damage only in the Royal Suite and its surrounding deck areas. But the ship’s hospital was full of badly wounded Space Cadre defenders. And many Space Cadre pilots and their fighters were lost. One of the support tender vessels and its crew of 132 Space Cadre was destroyed. It was a costly victory for the Empire.

  After their dinner, the Borgund Rangers were ordered to return to Home World with Emperor P’Lau in one hour. They talked quietly of the death of Kayla’s partner-to-be. Her best friends were very sad for her. “I wish I could’ve met her Imperial Guard, Commander Nat’N. She looks so different now. It’s heartbreaking for her, I’m sure. Kayla will never forget this day, Dan’L,” Steph’N lamented.

  Dan’L shared, “My Father once said, ‘Victory always comes at a terrible price.’ I wish Kayla didn’t have to be the one to pay. She has no living parents, and her brother Olm is serving on a ship halfway across the solar system. She has no one to talk to about this tragedy.”

  “Everyone who was killed was important to someone: their friends and relatives; their wives and husbands; and their children,” Steph’N wisely observed. “They all paid the price for this bloody Rebel attack, Dan’L, including our best friend Kayla,” he added bitterly.

  “I hope she finds a way to work through it,” Dan’L said. “I feel bad we have to leave so soon. I wish I could talk with her.” They stood and left the dining room, and walked to the hanger bay to ready their refueled and resupplied ES-warbirds.

  “Kayla is a Shi’Lon Ranger, and she will prevail. But I hope the loss does not change her too much. Her Imperial Guard’s death might even make her stronger. We shall see,” Steph’N said.

  Adrenalin leaves such a bitter, sour aftertaste in your mouth. Kayla slowly stood, feeling post-battle fatigue in the muscles of her hands, arms, shoulders, and back. She spent seven hours in the cockpit flying the ES-519 in her heavy battle armor, blowing up the Rebel destroyer, punishing the Rebel fighters attacking the Imperial Battle Cruiser, and chasing and killing the retreating Rebel fighters throughout the White Belt. Not to mention her explosive battle in the Royal Suite. She took a two-liter bottle of icy water from her little fridge and tried to drink it in little swallows, but gulped half of it down. Her esophagus was now cramping from the cold fluid. It was the first water she’d drunk since breakfast. Slow down, or up-chuck, she warned herself, and tipped the bottle once more for a small sip.

  “Lights on,” she said, and the darkness in her suite was instantly replaced by bright, artificial light. She removed her breastplate and backplate, and set the armor on its charging stand. She looked at her black battle armor, and realized if she didn’t clean it soon, it would take hours to clean later. It was splattered everywhere with Rebel blood. Her helmet was full of dents and scars from laser blasts, as was her battle armor. Kayla sighed heavily, took her cleaning kit, and methodically cleaned the black battle armor bottom to top, until it once again gleamed.

  When she cleaned her black helmet, she found blood inside. After touching behind her ear, she felt the small gash. Just a pressure wound, nothing to be concerned about. Then she placed the helmet inside its plex case with the black battle armor, and shut the case tightly, to initiate its recharging cycle. Kayla plopped down on the sofa and stared out the window.

  Hundreds of fragments of fighters and destroyed space vessels floated in the space surrounding the Imperial Battle Cruiser. Any pieces of new space junk coming too near the Cruiser exploded on its energy shields in bright, silent fireworks. Some pieces of the space junk floating by were organic; remnants of a h
uman fighter pilot, or a crewman from the Rebel destroyer; even possibly a Space Cadre crewman from the support tender destroyed in the battle. It was so sad to watch. It was surreal. Such an incredible waste of humanity. “May they all find peace in the Afterlife,” Kayla prayed.

  Space junk would float and tumble, until caught in the gravity field of a planet or moon, or the White Belt. Some junk would escape gravity’s pull, and travel endlessly through space. Kayla watched the floating and tumbling space junk, and let her consciousness drift with the fragments, far away from the Cruiser. She felt this deep anguish when her Mother and Father died. And now the pain was back again, crushing her heart, and ripping out her guts.

  Her strict upbringing kept Kayla from giving in to her love’s desire. Now Nat’N was in the Afterlife. She regretted not sleeping with him. What good did it do? They never made love and became as one. Her Nat’N was gone—forever. There was no going back. The only direction was forward.

  Many times, she had been told stories of the glorious victories of the Emperor’s Rangers. Kayla saw no glory in the scenes in front of her. There was no glory in the aftermath of the slaughter in the Royal Suite. Perhaps she would experience the “ecstasy of victory” some other day. But today, all she felt was emptiness and sorrow. Kayla lowered her head and placed her fingertips on her forehead. Here came the tears. There was no holding them back any longer. She managed to say, “Lights out,’ in between broken breaths. It would be a long, painful night.