Balance of Power: The Blackened Prophecy Book 2
Page 15
“Separating the bow section would remove our capacity to execute system jumps, Admiral Conway.”
“We have talked about this, Mr. Ga’an. Long before our next jump, we will be bug food.” Rebecca rubbed her eyes with her right hand, sighing. “Officer Jong.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Lieutenant Commander Jong was near her in an instant, puffing.
“Search all nearby systems and destinations we can reach with the emergency thrusters. I want options.”
Lieutenant Commander Jong saluted and rushed to his station, signaling one of the navigators to assist him.
“Mr. Ga’an, go down there and make sure none of those monsters pass through the mid-section of this ship. We cannot allow them to be on our side when the separation is complete.”
Ga’an growled. It sounded like an affirmative response to Rebecca’s ears, and she cut the communication. Rebecca sighed and moved her attention to the cross-section display of the ship. The bugs infesting from the stern were a relief if there ever was one in this case. Superdreadnoughts were designed in a modular way to repurpose them according to mission parameters. When she was first assigned to Deviator, it was a supercarrier with huge hangars and small to medium craft manufacturing capability. The massive war machine took her current form only after the Consortium and Virm Industries' friction escalated, the company turning her into a flagship. Rebecca wondered if those Consortium three-piece suit guys were even alive today. She had no idea what was happening back on Earth or in other human colonies. If the Consortium was gone, she was officially an ex-admiral. It didn’t matter. Those were questions to be addressed at a later time.
“Ma’am,” Lieutenant Commander Jong’s voice interrupted her thoughts.
“What is it, Lt?”
“I cannot be sure what it is, but we are several days away from some form of debris field if we push the thrusters at sublight.”
“Debris field? In the middle of nowhere?” Rebecca looked at Lieutenant Commander Jong. “How does that help us, Mr. Jong?”
“The debris field shows the formation of metals scattered in correlation to different focus spots.”
“And?”
“It is either a junkyard or the remnant of a ship husk. Or an old battlefield, I cannot tell for sure. But it is artificial.”
Rebecca tipped her lips with her finger, pursing them. “All right,” she nodded finally. “Get the cartographer to plot a course with the emergency thrusters. We may find something useful there. Or hide, at least.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Now, it is up to you, Mr. Ga’an.
***
“You’re a bug. Act like a bug. Go, bugger some tree!” Lieutenant Darrell shrieked as he burst his assault rifle’s last magazine on one of the bull creatures. Most of his rounds ricocheted from the hard carapace, but the ones that hit its face hurt the thing. So far, that was the only weak spot the marines had found. When the creature hid its face, it was nothing short of an armored assault tank, completely ignoring the rifle fire. “That’s it, I’m dry. Will we use that thing you brought or not?” Darrell spat. “It is damn near impossible to aim at their faces. These things move like cornered rats!”
“XO Ga’an, I can’t hold this position forever. We must seal this place now. If someone else makes it before then, good and good, but I can’t risk keeping this line open for much longer.”
“Understood, Major Victor. Give them two more minutes, then blow your charges and seal the emergency hatches. The ones we leave behind will be remembered and honored.” Ga’an turned to the lieutenant. “We will only use it if we are overwhelmed.”
“Yeah, much good it’ll do them,” Sergeant Johns said, firing with his sidearm at some spider-like creatures jumping from wall to wall. “These things are new, and they’re getting on my nerves.”
Ga’an fired his own rifle at the spiders, killing one midair as it reached for him. “Do not let them bite you.”
“You kiddin’? I don’t even want them in the same galaxy with me.” Lieutenant Darrell said wincing. He looked down at a dead soldier with a nasty bite on his face. “Those little things are still pouring from his eyes.”
Ga’an took a step forward and stepped on a bunch of little spiders hatched from Private Gus’s eyes. “It is disrespectful. Mutilating your enemy like this.”
“Is it me, or are you discussing war etiquette with an insect?” Major Victor shook his head, aiming for the nearby steam pipe. “Just move, XO.” A few rifle rounds followed his warning, rupturing the nearby steam pipe. Major Victor whistled, watching the newborn insects burning in hot steam. They were bony and felt surprisingly resistant to damage when stepped on with a boot, but the creatures were vulnerable to heat and fire. “And that there is proper bug-cleansing etiquette.”
Ga’an’s chest communicator beeped. “Commander Ga’an, this is Major Kasper. Come in, Commander.”
“Major Kasper, what is your status? We are about to seal the doors.”
The major’s words became inaudible over someone’s shouting and gunfire. Lots of gunfire. “We are two levels above you,” he burst out, panting. “That crazy woman! Vengeance or Erika, whatever she called herself. She is coming right at you.”
“Then run for your lives, Major Kasper.”
“No.” The major stopped for a breath. “You got it wrong. We are not running from her; we are trying to catch up with her, but her minions slow our pace. She is near you!”
Ga’an didn’t listen to the rest, focusing on the figure at the far end of the corridor. He could not make out her face or appearance from behind the steam filling the emergency-light-illuminated hallway, but it didn’t take any guessing to figure out who she was. The red glow of her eyes ripped through the steam fog, brighter than the emergency lights.
Major Victor pumped his combat shotgun. “I’m guessing that’s our crazy lady.”
“Yes.”
“I say that counts as an overwhelming force.”
“Yes, Major Victor.”
Major Victor clicked his fingers, pointing at Lieutenant Darrell. “All right, time to reveal the birthday cake. Johns, remove the cover. Darrell, punch it, punch it, punch it!”
Johns rushed behind the barricade and disappeared into the intersecting corridor for a second. “Clamps cleared.”
Darrell nodded and reached for the remote control pad attached to his belt. A few touches on the thing and the sound of a powerful engine ignition filled their ears like sweet music. The woman stood for a moment at the end of the corridor, then walked purposefully toward them.
“I suggest you move aside,” Ga’an said in his booming voice, leaning against the corridor wall, soldiers mimicking him.
A second later, the combat mech they were keeping on hand appeared behind Ga’an’s barricade, arming its Gatling cannons. A mechanized, deep voice announced the beginning of fireworks, “Acquiring target.”
Ga’an thought he would go deaf. And blind. Flashes as bright as the sun popped right above his head, each one accompanied by a threatening boom. He covered his ears and crouched, looking for where this Vengeance stood. It was impossible to see anything. The mech’s salvo jangled for a good minute before stopping. “Target lost,” it announced.
“Lost as in shred to pieces?” Darrell laughed. “How’s that for a beating, girl?” he yelled at the corridor.
Major Victor narrowed his eyes, clicking his tongue. “I can see the mess hall two rooms past the barracks. What the hell’s this thing firing? Rockets?”
“Heavy explosive shells with heated tungsten coating,” Ga’an replied, his jaw clenched.
“You loaded the thing with ground siege armament? Are you completely nuts?” Major Victor looked at Ga’an. “We could’ve punched a hole through the plating or blow half the midsection if those shells met with a gun power line!”
“We will not be using this part of the ship. The damage is irrelevant.”
“Buddy,” Major Victor took a step toward the Nucteel, raising his
head to meet with Ga’an’s eyes. “We’re still on this part of the ship.”
“Noted, Major Victor.”
“Um… Sirs?”
“What, Johns?” Major Victor asked, his eyes still locked on Ga’an’s.
Johns scratched his head, “Isn’t this thing supposed to say ‘target down’ or something rather than ‘lost’?
Major Victor and Ga’an slowly turned to Johns.
“Just sayin’, you know.”
“Target reacquired,” the mech announced as if to make a statement and rearmed its guns.
“Damn it, Johns, get down,” Major Victor barked.
It was too late. The mech readied its cannons and resumed firing into the fog of steam and gunpowder. The first round took Sergeant Johns’ body, the explosion scattering his pieces like raindrops. Ga’an and Major Victor were thrown away with the blast force, and Ga’an saw Darrell’s arm flying off his body.
The Nucteel’s ears rang, and the fight continued in slow motion. He looked down at his body and saw he was intact, but his uniform was soaked in blue and red with both his and Major Victor’s blood. He turned to check on Major Victor. The man was alive but unconscious. His back had been seriously burned, probably while covering Ga’an. The mech kept firing, repositioning its cannons with each shot as if to catch a jumping fly.
Then she appeared from the smoke. The woman had scratches on her face, but they were not bleeding, and Ga’an saw tiny things crawling on her skin to patch the wounds. Her eyes glowed crimson. She jumped to a nearby wall, then to the next with inhuman speed, finally landing on top of the mech. She ignored the protesting war machine’s “Target lost” announcements and crushed the thing’s power core with a devastating punch. In less than ten seconds, the hulking machine of destruction lay dead, occasional sparks and beeping crowning its defeat.
Vengeance jumped off the mech and came to stand in front of Ga’an, catching him by his throat. She was much shorter than Ga’an, but her grip was like thousand tons of concrete. Ga’an struggled in vain.
“Where is the bridge?”
“Go to… hell, monster!”
“Where is the bridge?” she asked again, not the slightest hint of change in her tone.
Ga’an reached for a grenade attached to his belt, but it proved difficult to move his arms while his throat was squeezed like an orange. He was losing his breath and consciousness. But not his will. “I will… not yield to the forces of darkness. I… I will not betray my kind,” he said between short breaths.
“You are not their kind.”
“Neither are you,” Ga’an said slowly, “but look at you.”
Vengeance tilted her face. Then her eyes narrowed with sudden rage, and she turned her face to her right.
“Fire,” Major Kasper’s voice rang inside the corridor. “Do not stop firing!”
Ga’an saw his chance as Vengeance loosened her grip. He kicked free and rolled. “Behind the door, quick,” he yelled, grabbing the unconscious Major Victor by his collar, pulling him toward the marine squad. Two Marines—Derek and Anders rushed to help him while another one, Mark, stood near them, firing nonstop at Vengeance.
Vengeance looked down at Ga’an. Perhaps because she didn’t perceive him as the immediate threat, she focused on Major Kasper’s team. She walked to Sergeant Mark and pulled his rifle from his hands, breaking the thing in two. Then she lifted him into the air by his throat and sneered. Two bony legs like an arachnid came out of her back, and like spears, they went right into his eye sockets and ripped Sergeant Mark’s skull apart. By the time the legs retracted to the woman’s body, the marine was no longer recognizable.
“Pull back,” Ga’an bellowed, hauling Major Victor behind the emergency hatch frame. Major Kasper and two of his men were still firing right outside the door. “Major.”
“Men, pull back,” Major Kasper ordered, yanking Anders by his belt. “Derek, back here, now. Wait,” he turned his focus on Ga’an, “No, wait!”
Ga’an jumped to the hatch controls and pressed the emergency shut-off button used in case of a hull breach.
“Derek is still out there,” Major Kasper reached for Ga’an in protest, but the door was already down by the time he touched Ga’an’s arm. “Derek was out there. He had but a few steps left!”
“So had the monster. I am sorry Major, but it was either Derek or the rest of the ship.” Ga’an got free of Major Kasper’s hold, touching his communicator. “The doors are sealed. Charges will detonate in one minute.”
“Understood, Mr. Ga’an, retreat to the command hangar.”
“Yes, Admiral Conway.” Ga’an turned to tend to Major Victor, but Major Kasper was there.
“You murderer. We leave no one behind!”
“Major, get hold of yourself.”
“You left him there to die in the hands of that monster.” Major Kasper took a step forward. “You monster.” He punched, but Ga’an caught his hand midair, forcefully bending Kasper’s arm.
“Marine Derek died so that his brothers and sisters in arms can live. More will die before we see the end of this, and you will send many young souls like Derek’s to their deaths.”
Major Kasper’s shoulders dropped, his voice trembling. “I served for four years with him. He… he was just married, expecting a baby.”
Ga’an let go of the man’s fist, holding his shoulders firmly. “There are soldiers who still need your guidance, Major Kasper.”
Major Kasper babbled a few inaudible words and nodded slowly, rubbing his nose to his arm and letting his military training take over. “Form up people, we are moving.”
Ga’an looked down at Major Victor. He was dead. Such is the burden of command.
DECONSTRUCTION
Ray opened his eyes slowly, wiping away the crust around them and suppressing a yawn. He straightened, pushing aside the silk bed sheets.
“So, you’re awake.” Sarah was tying back her hair in front of a seventeenth-century rococo mirror attached to a dark, wooden dresser.
“How long was I asleep?”
“Not much. Two hours, three, maybe.”
Ray stood up from the bed, going for the pitcher sitting on the nearby nightstand. “This place looks like a history museum.” He poured some wine and took a sip from the silver chalice.
“It’s definitely not what I would expect from a terrorist headquarters,” Sarah spoke to Ray’s reflection in the mirror. “They’re terrorists, right?”
“They killed all those people, bombed all those places. No question there,” Ray finished his wine, going for another fill. “The question is, what’s their motive? Their leader is Baeal.”
“Yeah,” Sarah said, “there’s that. Is he really Sim’Ra’s brother?”
“So it seems. They have some history, apparently.”
Sarah stood and put on her jacket. “It’s strange. We have a Baeal with us who tried to take over Earth. His brother is the leader of known space’s biggest, evilest terrorist group, and we know doodly-squat about their race.”
Ray frowned. “Well, they’re not these monsters coming out of nightmares. They have their society, customs, history. Or had,” Ray turned away, looking for the pitcher one more time. “Who cares?” He took the pitcher instead of filling his cup this time.
“Boy, you’re thirsty, eh? Slow down, perhaps? We have lots of things to do ahead of us.”
Ray shrugged. “Where’s Elaine?”
“She’s with the old man at the library. She’s making friends.”
Ray pouted.
“Some guy working at the library.”
“A terrorist guy.”
Sarah looked apologetic.
“I left her in your care, and she’s befriending terrorists?” he gulped what’s left of the wine and stormed from the room, not hearing Sarah’s protests.
***
“You may like this one as well, Elaine,” Eras reached for a dusty, dark gray book.
“It looks heavy and big. What’s that?”
“Never heard of it.”
“Not surprising. People are not into literature nowadays, let alone old classics. Dostoyevsky is the author. You should read it. It is about four brothers and their different journeys through their lives, circling a particular event. A rather insightful book about human behavior and contradiction. It is not an easy read, but a beautiful one.”
Elaine reached for the book, “Thank you, Eras.”
“Elaine,” her father’s voice halted the rather pleasant exchange. “Elaine!”
“Dad? Something wrong?”
“Lohil,” Eras bowed in sincere admiration.
“What are you doing with my daughter?” Ray demanded, a threatening edge in his voice.
Eras’s face paled. “Did… Did I offend you, Lohil?”
Ray’s eyes shone bright with red light, the power of Serhmana surrounding his hands. “Stay away from my daughter,” and Eras began choking from an invisible force, holding his throat helplessly.
“Dad?” Elaine rushed near Eras, holding the young scribe. “Stop this. Dad!” Elaine looked up at her father. He bared his teeth, his neck tensing. “You’re killing him!” Elaine threw the book she was holding at Ray.
As the heavy copy of Brothers Karamazov hit her father in the chest, Ray let go of the now unconscious Eras, the red light of Serhmana fading away. “I… I’m sorry, Elaine,” he said between his short, quick breaths. “I…”
“You monster!”
“I’m sorry. I was just trying to protect you.”
“I don’t want anything from you.” Elaine’s eyes flared. “Leave me be.” She cared for the young boy, who was regaining consciousness. His face was pale, and his lips had lost their color.