Requiem of a Nightmare

by Jeremy Spires

  “We need to use the weapon.” First Class said to Shipmaster, looking at him in an imploring tone.

  “No.” Shipmaster said firmly, putting his hands on the edge of the holographic display. “We must not.”

  “What weapon?” Dawes demanded. She was pale and her lips were drawn into a tight line, her arms crossed tight across her chest. “Is it something that can give us an advantage?”

  Shipmaster looked up at me. “You would call it a weapon of last resort.” He said softly. I wasn’t sure why he was addressing me, but the old Cetoplin looked miserable. “We created it…in case it would be needed.”

  “I’d say we’re pretty deep into the realm of “needed”.” I said firmly.

  He shook his head. “It will draw Andromeda into the Milky Way.”

  That got my attention.

  “What kind of weapon has the power to move a galaxy?” Ivata asked.

  “We long ago solved gravity.” The Shipmaster said. “We used it to create the corridor. We used it to make our first subspace drive. We have used gravity for many things. However…we did develop a weapon during our war with the Meyges.”

  I smacked my forehead. Shipmaster nodded. “Colonel Valentine understands.”

  “Yes,” I replied. “I do. And you’re all idiots.”

  The Cetoplin looked shocked. “How are we idiots?”

  “You created a weapon, the Gilbaglians figured it out, and now the Meyges are back and probably know how to use it, too.” I shook my head. “If you’re going to use a WMD, you need to use it so nobody else ever gets the chance.”

  I headed for the door. “Where are you going, Colonel?” Dawes called.

  “Somewhere else.” I snapped. “I’m sick of solving other people’s problems.”

  I walked out of the briefing room and pushed my earpiece into my ear. I was about to speak with Mallory spoke softly into my ear. “I know.” She said softly.

  “How is our relocation going?”

  “You know, I thought about that.” Mallory replied. “If the Gilbaglians could destroy Vandor, what is to stop them from doing it here, or Falsun, or anywhere else?”

  I stopped in the corridor. “You’re kidding me.”

  “There has to be a reason they’re not using it more often…”

  “I can’t believe you’re on board with this shit.” I groaned, and banged my head into the bulkhead, hard. “Are you kidding me?”

  “Who else can I trust to get it done?”

  “Do you even know where it is?”

  “Yes.” Mallory hesitated, drawing out the word.

  “Are you going to tell me?”

  “I think you should probably go get something to eat.” She announced. “And then I can explain in the briefing…”

  “Wife.” I said with a snarl in m voice.

  “Gilbaglia.” She replied immediately. “It’s on Gilbaglia.”

  The groan escaped before I could stop it. “And let me guess, this weapon has to have some kind of power charge that takes days, weeks, or months to recharge after each use?”

  “The Gilbaglians don’t know how to extract power from the vacuum like we do.” She replied.

  “So, it uses, what, solar energy? Batteries?”

  She chuckled. “No, they use reactive nuclear energy.”

  “Of course, they do.” I rolled my eyes. “Because poisoning their planet isn’t enough for them, they have to try and kill themselves in the process too, right?”

  She didn’t answer immediately, and I sighed. “Destota,” She said softly. “You know I don’t want to order you into this…”

  “How many do we need to destroy it?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, nuke from orbit, sneak in and cross a few wires?” I started walking back to my quarters as I went.

  “It is under an energy shield.” She said softly. “So…”

  “So, we’d need to infiltrate and hit the shield and then a ship can hit the gravity weapon?”

  “…No.”

  “Infiltrate, knock the shield out and destroy the gravity weapon?”

  “Destota.”

  “I’m really not going to like this, am I?”

  “I like it far less, because I know what you’re going to do.”

  The doors to my quarters opened and I stepped through, making sure they sealed, and the privacy field was activated before I asked. “What is it?”

  “Someone is going to have to stay and detonate the reactors manually.”

  I froze and stared out at space. Mallory was totally silent. “Yeah.” I said finally.

  “Yeah.” She replied, her voice soft. “I really, really did not want to tell you.”

  “I know.” I replied, sitting down and holding my head. “How did you find it?”

  “It creates an intense gravimetric distortion in space.” She said. “And we tracked them moving it through space and found it on Gilbaglia.”

  I sighed. “I don’t suppose we can just bombard the planet?”

  “We couldn’t get a fleet big enough. The auxiliary that we sent through space only barely limped back close enough to a relay before they destroyed it. Most of their combat power is centered around their capital world.”

  “Okay. So how do we even get on the surface?”

  She exhaled deeply, and I braced myself. This was not going to be good.

  “We’re going to launch an attack.” She said softly. “And we’re going to launch such a fierce attack that we’re going to draw every ship in the sector, and hopefully, all the Meyges ships, to us as well. While the fleet is fighting, you’re going to go destroy that weapon.”

  I closed my eyes. “Mallory…”

  “I know.” She said with a sigh. “Destota, I’ve been sitting on this for eight days. We’ve been trying to figure out how to do this without sending anyone in.”

  “I’ll select a team.” I said softly. “I’ll go take care of it, Prime Minister.”

  She was silent for far too long. “Destota, I do not want…”

  “I really don’t either.” I replied, standing up and walking to my closet. “When is MacKenzie supposed to get here?”

  “They should be there within a day or so.” She replied softly.

  “All right.” I said. “I need to get some sleep, and I need to get a check over for radiation poisoning.”

  “I’ll be here.” She said.

  I signed off without saying anything else, and then turned and sank down onto my bed, cradling my head, trying to wrap my brain around the significance of what had just passed between us.

  My wife had just ordered me to my death.

  ---

  Backlash arrived the next morning. I hadn’t called Mallory back because I didn’t want her to interrupt the planning stage of this mission. Not this time.

  MacKenzie, Kelis, Noku, and Severson joined me in my office with cups of hot coffee and a plate of delicious bacon in front of us.

  “You know that things are bad,” MacKenzie said to Ivata. “When the Colonel has goodies in his office for us.”

  I didn’t smile. “We’re going to Gilbaglia.”

  Ivata raised his eyebrow. “The fleet?”

  “MacKenzie and I.” I said, my tone softer than I should have allowed.

  MacKenzie tilted his head. “Sir?”

  “Derek,” I said, looking him in the eyes. “I will not order you on this mission. But you are my first choice.” I glanced at Ivata, who frowned at me.

  “Sir.” MacKenzie said, straightening a little. “You do not need to order me to go, if it is that important, I will go.”

  “It’s a one-way trip, Mac.” I said.

  “I don’t care.” He replied. “My ultimate goal was to bring peace to humanity. While we may face threats out here, our peoples are united. My goal is complete. If I can further that peace, then I will.”

  I nodded. “Very well.” I turned to Ivata and tossed him the box that Wingell had given me when he was last abo
ard the ship. “You’re out of uniform, Major.”

  Ivata opened the box, frowned at the insignia and then his eyebrows shot up. “Destota, what the…?”

  “As of now,” I said. “You are officially in command of Human forces.” I saluted. “Congratulations, General.”

  Ivata sputtered then demanded, “What are you doing?”

  “We’ve been detached for this special mission. As I said, it is one way. We have to go and destroy the Gilbaglian gravity weapon that they stole from the Meyges. We believe that without this powerful piece of weaponry, the Gilbaglians will not continue to attack human forces, and that the Meyges will have no reason to remain in our galaxy. This weapon…” I tapped the desk. “Has the destructive power to pull Andromeda galaxy into a collision with our own. We can’t allow that kind of power to exist in this galaxy, or any other, and we must destroy it.”

  I looked around. “Rosita will be our combat pilot. MacKenzie and I will infiltrate Gilbaglia and we will sneak in and cause a detonation in the nuclear reactors. We won’t be able to escape, so only Rosita will return to Earth with news of our success, or failure.”

  MacKenzie nodded firmly. “We will not fail, sir.”

  I glanced at him. “Glad you think so, Major.” Rising from the desk, I held my hand out to Ivata. “This office is yours now, sir.” He shook my hand numbly and before anyone else had anything to say, I stepped out the door and headed for the armory. Dawes was in the process of automating a Frigate to be flown by one person and the AI for our mission, because a frigate could easily slip by the Gilbaglian sensors in stealth mode.

  We named the ship Ruiz, in honor of my wife. She wasn’t going to object, because who was to argue?

  “Valentine to Valentine.” Came her voice over my ear piece.

  “Go ahead.” I said, still walking towards the armory.

  “Destota, are you…getting ready?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” I replied. I wasn’t angry at her. But bursting into tears and being emotional with her was not going to solve anything. There would be time for that right before we lit the fuse. “We are making a frigate ready as we speak. When Eternity fires on the Meyges in a few hours we will slip away.”

  “Destota?”

  “We’re combat loading right now. I don’t know what we’ll face on the ground, so we’re making sure that we have enough ammo and weapons to slug it out for a day or two if we have to. We’re also seeing what kind of upgrades we can make to our armor, after the last engagement we found some flaws with the power supplies.”

  “Colonel.” She snapped. I stopped talking. “Are you listening to me?”

  “Yes.” I replied.

  “Destota, I don’t want you to go on this mission.”

  “I already handed command off to Ivata.” I said.

  “You what?”

  “Wingell gave me authority to either become or promote a General.” I said. “I chose to promote Ivata to lead. He’s better at it that I am.”

  “You…you really are going? Who is going with you?”

  “Daniels is going to fly.” I said. “And MacKenzie is going along for the ride. I’ll make sure I kick him back to the ship before I light the fuse.”

  “No!” She shouted, loud enough to make me wince.

  “Volume.” I sighed.

  “I don’t care. You’re not going anywhere. You’re needed…”

  “So is Ivata. And Daniels, and Severson, and Dawes, and everyone else that serves. We’re all needed. This is what I am best at,” I said, blinking rapidly. “It’ll be okay. You’ll have plenty of help with Alyssa.” She sobbed once and the channel went dead.

  I tried not to think about it.

  I walked into the armory and immediately set to working on the armor suits that MacKenzie and I would wear on what would be my final mission. We’d upgraded and swapped out the power cells and added a handful of additional servo motors of larger size to make the armor more mechanized.

  I also scrapped the magnetic-fed rifles with the heavy oversize drums and went back to a standard carbine rifle with a standard magazine. I fixed magazine holders to the armor in handy places and loaded them with heavy armor-piercing rounds, and two with special explosive tipped rounds. I’d lost my sniper rifle on Atom, and now…

  I checked my pistol and grabbed the twin to it, which I’d never used, and fixed the magnetic mounts to both legs. The pistol had always stood between me and darkness, and now I’d have one last chance to show how good I could be.

  I left the armory and headed for my quarters. I managed to get a full six hours of sleep and woke feeling refreshed and more centered. I called my wife.

  “Hello Destota.” She said.

  “How did your checkup go?” I asked, referring to the checkups, that were now weekly, counting down to Alyssa’s birth.

  “She’s in perfect condition.” She replied. “She’s taken to her gene upgrades perfectly, and she’s about twenty days away from being here.”

  I smiled at that. My little girl would be born after I’d gone, but it was just as well. All Vandorians knew that every day could be their last, and now it was just that time.

  “We’re departing in six hours,” I said. “When is the fleet hitting the target?”

  “Twelve hours. I’ve ordered Eternity to pull out after the salvo and rejoin the fleet. It’ll take them about two days to join us.”

  “Understood.” I hesitated. “You know I love you, right?”

  “I do.” She said. “And you know that if there were any other choice…”

  “I’d still do it.” I said. “It has to be done. I have the best chance of getting it done.”

  “This isn’t the job of a Colonel, you know.”

  “This is exactly the job of a Colonel.” I replied. “I would never order my people into a mission like this.”

  She sighed explosively. “We spent all night brainstorming and there are still no other options that we can see.”

  “No worries, babe, I’ll handle it.”

  She was silent for a moment. I guess I didn’t blame her, when was the last time I’d called her babe, anyways?

  “I just…” She choked on her words. “I don’t want you to go…”

  “I know. I said I would, though, and I will. It’ll be okay.” I looked at the clock. “Hey, listen, I have to finish getting my gear together…”

  “Of course.” She said, I could hear the strain in her voice. “We’ll talk soon.”

  ---

  The frigate launched six hours later, exactly on schedule, with only three aboard. Myself, MacKenzie and our pilot, Lieutenant Rosita Daniels.

  I confess that I spent much of the twenty-day flight to the Gilbaglia system locked in my cabin, either talking to my wife or relaxing as much as possible. MacKenzie tried numerous times to engage men, but I had no desire to eat, sleep or do much of anything.

  When the day came that we were to land the Frigate, tiny compared to our massive carriers and Dreadnoughts, I finally emerged onto the bridge, freshly shaved and showered and ready to launch into certain death.

  “Fleet status?” I asked.

  “They’re taking a beating but giving one too.” Rosita said. “The Meyges ships aren’t much stronger than Gilbaglian ships. I guess a handful of Blutencer ships joined the fight, and two Undulon ships are fighting out there too.”

  I nodded, grateful that Mallory was safe on Earth.

  “Mission status?” I asked.

  “We’re on schedule, sir.” MacKenzie said. “We haven’t been detected, and I doubt we will be.”

  I nodded again. “Alright. Set us down, Daniels. MacKenzie, let’s go get our dresses on.”

  We walked back to the armory, which had been placed in a repurposed gear locker, since the true armory was near the middle of the vessel. It was far too large for just three people.

  Daniels came over the intercom: “Entering the atmosphere now. We’ll be on the ground in six minutes.”

  I didn’t say an
ything, just pulled the bodysuit on over myself, and then began assembling the armor plates. An automated robot assisted me with pulling on the torso armor and affixed my power pack to my suit. I strapped my pistols, my carbine, and then filled every magazine pouch with every spare magazine we had on the ship. MacKenzie followed my actions, and then when we were both fully suited, he turned and looked at me.

  “Destota, you should let me handle this one.”

  I scoffed. “No, Major. This is my mission. It will be hard enough for you to get back to the ship and blast away before that gravity unit explodes.”

  “Sir, this mission already seems like a foolish exercise. How did we manage to slip past their defenses so easily?”

  I shrugged. “Because most of their fleet is engaged a couple of light years away with the Vandorian fleet. And most of their sensor stations are focused on that sector, which is the reason for the diversionary attack. The Meyges are also standing off not far from here with their entire fleet, probably waiting on the outcome of the battle.”

  MacKenzie nodded several times to himself. “Okay, that makes sense, but why don’t you let me carry those?” He pointed at the two massive disruptor grenades that would destroy the nuclear reactor. “You have a wife, and a child.”

  I raised a brow. “You have a wife and two children, and one on the way.”

  He sighed. “Colonel, damn it…”

  “Shut up, Major, or I will leave you here.” I snapped. “That is a direct order.”

  He stopped speaking and donned his helmet.

  There was a mighty shudder through the ship as it settled onto the ground, and then Daniels hit an alarm. “We’re down. You’ve got forty-six minutes. Best of luck, boys.”

  I pulled the charging handle on my rifle and stepped through the hatchway, and then walked the short distance down the gangway to the open hatch to exit the ship. It was a about four feet to the ground, and we hopped out onto the low-gravity world easily.

  The air was cloudy and full of pollution. My HUD automatically detected the dangerous pollution and sealed my suit off, along with MacKenzie.