Lens of Time: Book 06 - Star Rover-Running Out of Time

by Saxon Andrew

  “You don’t think they’ll send another?”

  “Would you? You’ve caused the Grillen to go to war with us and now hostilities have opened. Why endanger another ship or reveal anything about yourself? I’d probably send some probes but I would sit back to take on whoever wins.”

  “So, what’s the plan?”

  “We have some time before the Madators complete their missions. First we have to handle the Grillen; then we’ll worry about that other civilization. You were right though.”

  “About what?”

  “The Jukeboxes are going to be the difference maker in this.”

  Gibbs smiled, “I knew that, Sir.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Mumbles looked out across the giant production hangar. The machines were making an enormous racket but he heard Hardhead’s call. The frequency was above the ambient noise. “Yes.”

  “I think I’ve taken care of all the ships they’re building.”

  “How so?”

  “I’ve managed to get into the explosives chamber and place a dot on every self-destruct package.”

  Mumbles smiled, “That is outstanding, Hardhead. I’ve got the facility covered. I believe it’s time to start working on the military personnel.”

  “We need to get out of here. There has been a huge increase in the number of scan teams going through the building. I suspect they might already know that we are here.”

  “I’ve noticed the same thing. I’ll go out the way we entered. Are you going to use your original exit?”

  “No, I’m moving across the facility to yours. I’ve smelled Grillen Warriors outside the place I entered for the last ten days. Have you checked your exit?”

  “Give me a moment. I haven’t checked it for a while.” Mumbles went to the crack in the lower floor and extended his nose toward it. He shook his head, “There’s Grillen outside my exit as well.”

  “It looks like one of us was discovered on one of the planets. Do you have any ideas on how to make an exit?”

  Mumbles thought a moment, “I’m moving over to the thruster check station. I’m going to use my energy sword to cut a small hole in the wall behind the blast barrier.”

  “Do you think you’ll be detected?”

  “Not while the thrusters are being fired.”

  “You could be incinerated!”

  “Not before I get a hole cut in the wall. You should be able to escape and complete our mission.”

  “Mumbles, I don’t like that idea.”

  “Hardhead, you allowed me to take the lead and I know you really struggled with giving me your trust to do it. I owe you this. I’ll do all I can to do it and get undercover; however, I’m reasonably certain they’re looking for us. We’re nowhere close to removing the prey waiting outside the walls for us.”

  “So, how do we do this?”

  “The thrusters are tested at night to keep the heat down in the facility. I’ll be waiting for the thrusters to fire and I’ll cut the hole as soon as they start. You stay outside the blast zone and move in after the test is over. If I survive, I’ll have gone through the hole and be waiting for you outside the wall.”

  “I owe you, Mumbles.”

  “Collect it from the Grillen Warriors.”

  “You can count on it.”

  “I’m leaving my dots where you can pick them up.”

  Hardhead wanted to protest against it but knew Mumbles was right. He took in a breath and said, “I’ll make good use of them.”

  “I know you will.”

  • • •

  The Grillen King stared at the Servant Envoy that had been stranded on his planet. Two weeks had passed and another ship had not arrived. The Servant looked up, “Why did you summon me?”

  “I have some questions.”

  “What are they?”

  “While you’ve been here, I had your body scanned and analyzed by my scientists.”

  The King saw the Servant’s eyes flash blue, “Why would you invade my privacy with such an act!?!”

  “I’m wondering why another ship has not been sent for you. It appears that you are done with assisting us and are now waiting to see how our war with the Union turns out. I’ve been trying, since our first moment of contact, to understand why your civilization chose to assist me. Your representatives have not been forthcoming with any answers as to why you would do that.”

  “Can you not see how dangerous your enemy is?”

  “I can; however, there’s more to it than that. I just couldn’t work out what was in it for you.”

  “That’s simple; both of us are safer with the enemy removed.”

  “That’s too simplistic an answer. I think I know why now.” The Servant simply stared at the King in silence. The King leaned back on his throne and activated a force field around it. The Servant saw the field appear and everyone in the room saw it suddenly tense up. “You have about thirty larvae, eggs, or whatever you choose to call them inside your body. Your tail has a hollow stinger that is just big enough for one of those…eggs…to move through it.”

  “That’s how we reproduce.”

  “I might believe that answer ordinarily, but the stinger is barbed for penetration. It is not designed to reproduce with a member of your species. That means you inject those eggs into another host. Would you mind telling me what host your species uses to reproduce?”

  “We use animals on our planets.”

  “If that were the case, you would not be able to communicate with me.”

  “Any why is that?”

  “We did a molecular examination of one of your eggs and it appears that the cells that form the brain are stem cells wrapped inside the outer coating. My geneticists tell me that those cells use the host’s brain to develop its intelligence. My scientists are of the opinion that you require an intelligent species to reproduce an intelligent off offspring. Would you know anything about that?”

  “That is patently false.”

  “Unfortunately, I’m not one that believes all he hears; I look at the facts. I’m of the opinion that you want my Empire to do your dirty work knowing that my current enemy would never allow you to procreate using that process. It also leads me to believe that you would also use my Empire for that as well.”

  The Servant remained silent. After a long moment, it spoke, “We have promised we will not wage war against you. You are an ally.”

  “If you will lie about your reproductive needs, you will also lie about that as well.”

  The Servant knew the plan to deceive the Grillen had failed. The robes worn by all the Envoys were scanner proof to prevent their bodies from being seen. He had made a mistake and taken his off inside the quarters he had been assigned to. It was just too uncomfortable to keep on. Now he had failed the Supreme Lord and his life was forfeit. He looked at the King and sneered, “You dare not harm me. You’ve seen one of our warships and there are more that you could ever count that will be used to destroy you if you violate my person.”

  “Actually, your civilization will never know. I had your shuttle towed and dropped into the star at the center of this system. There is no evidence that you ever landed on this planet and we’ll tell whoever comes after you that your ship was destroyed by the Union before you communicated with me.”

  The Servant saw no escape. It moved one of its black limbs out from the robe and pressed the glowing communicator on its chest. A force field appeared around it and it leaped at the King faster than any of the guards imagined possible. The King’s son lifted a blaster and began firing at the large creature along with ten other guards. The King was terrified as he saw the Servants force field burning through the field surrounding his chair. He pushed back against the throne trying to put distance between himself and the Servant but didn’t have enough room. The Servant’s triangular head came through the protective force field and it shoved forward and bit the King on his neck decapitating him. The Son felt his rage explode and increased the power of his blaster to maximum. The blas
ter broke through the Servant’s force field and disintegrated it, along with the body of his father. He slammed the blaster to the floor and fell to his knees in shock and sorrow. The guards and servants of the King were shocked as well and they looked at each other wondering what to do. The Commander of the guards moved forward and assisted the King’s son to his feet, “Your Majesty, what would you have me do?”

  The new King looked at the throne and felt immense fear; he wasn’t ready to rule; however, no one ever was. He forced out a breath and said, “Take the remains of this creature and drop them into the sun. Contact my Fleet Admiral and have him report to me immediately.”

  The Commander looked at his guards and nodded. The Empire was in a bad place and now there was an inexperienced King ruling it.

  • • •

  “Lord, the ship that went to our ally has been destroyed.”

  “What!?! How?”

  “We don’t know. We received the signal from its distress unit indicating that it had been destroyed.”

  The Supreme Lord looked at his Senior Advisor, “What do you think happened?”

  “You know that war was about to break out between the Spiral Galaxy and our ally. I suspect that idiot jumped into the middle of a major space battle and was overwhelmed.”

  “Are they able to destroy our ships?”

  “That’s why we enlisted the ally to attack the Spiral. We are vulnerable if we are heavily outnumbered; I suspect that’s what happened.”

  “What should I do?”

  “Let nature run its course. We wait and see who wins.”

  “I want to confirm the war has started.”

  “I’ll send a scout to the planets where our ally was building the Grey Ships. That is where the war would begin.”

  “Give it a few weeks. I don’t want them to see us.”

  “Yes, Lord.”

  • • •

  Blacky looked at the Grillen barracks and waited until night had fallen. He whistled to his team and heard their answer. Good; everyone was in place. The warriors would be removed first to prevent them taking the local population hostage and then the Union Fleets would arrive. He moved into the soil and started toward the huge building.

  • • •

  On all the planets the Grillen had invaded in the Red Sector of M87, Madators moved on the Grillen ground forces. Some of the attacks would take place during daylight, but all of them would start at the same moment.

  • • •

  Hardhead watched from the side of the huge thruster that was warming up. He saw Mumbles had made it to the wall under the blast shield and had his energy sword drawn. There was no way he was going to survive the full blast of the thruster. He bobbed once and forced himself to focus. He knew all the Grillen in the huge structure were nowhere near the thruster chamber. They even shut down the sensors during thruster trials to prevent them being damaged. The red lights in the room started flashing and Hardhead saw the scanners and motion detectors withdraw into their protective shells. He saw Mumbles raise the energy sword and point it at the bottom of the wall. The thruster came on suddenly with no warning and Hardhead jerked with the surprise of the blast. A moment later he saw Mumbles’ energy sword come sliding along the floor toward him. He reached out and pulled it to him. He felt anguish as he saw that Mumbles’ arm was still attached to it. He closed his eyes and felt anguish at the loss of his friend. After a minute the thruster stopped as quickly as it started.

  Hardhead watched the ceiling for the scanners to start redeploying. After thirty minutes he saw the ones furthest from the blast shield start rotating. He rushed forward along the floor and found the cut in the wall that Mumbles had made. It had cooled enough for him to touch it and he flowed through it instantly. He arrived outside the building and lowered his head to his chest.

  “I could use a little help here.” Hardhead whipped around and saw Mumbles spread out on the ground. He rushed over and saw the raw wound from Mumbles missing arm. “I threw it to you as I went through the hole. It was burned off as I threw it at you.”

  Hardhead pulled a medical packet out of his hide and poured a clear red liquid on Mumble’s injured arm. He watched as the raw wound turned black and hardened. Mumbles moved the remaining three foot stump and winced, “It’s going to take some time to heal.”

  “I’m thankful you survived, my friend.” Mumbles smiled. “Are you ready to go and play?”

  Mumbles rolled his head up in agreement, “We’re going to eliminate most of their positions with our dots. Remember, we promised to use our tools until the numbers were even.”

  Hardhead nodded and handed Mumbles dots back to him, “Lead the way.”

  The two Madators went into the soil and moved rapidly toward the park where the Grillen Armor was kept.

  • • •

  A week later the two were waiting outside a major Grillen barracks. Mumbles checked the chronometer on his energy sword and smiled, “Thirty seconds.” Hardhead nodded and waited. The explosions that blew out of the Grillen production facilities were massive. The mushroom clouds shot into the sky as the two Madators watched as more blasts blew skyward. The tank farm went up with a series of multiple blasts. The Space Port went up on the horizon and they knew the Madator Team that had been assigned to it was successful. There were hundreds of blasts in all parts of the city when Grillen vehicles went up in flames. The blasts were smaller; the Madators didn’t want to cause too much loss of life in the local population. The blasts continued for an hour and at that point Hardhead smiled, “Are you ready?”

  Mumbles nodded, “You may lead the way.” The two Madators went into the dirt and moved toward the large barracks that had not been damaged. The screams started and the discharge of energy weapons could be heard outside the huge building.

  • • •

  Blacky waited outside the huge production facility for what he hoped would happen. He had deliberately delayed setting off the dots in the main military center. He knew the Grillen Commander was receiving reports from around the planet on the destruction of the Military’s facilities and he hoped he had guessed right about the Commander’s character. He stayed in the soil and knew he couldn’t delay much longer. Then he saw the green lights flashing on a vehicle rushing toward the checkpoint.

  Blacky had made sure any vehicle capable of flying in the center had a dot put on it. He suspected the Commander would attempt his escape on the ground and not risk flying out of the huge facility. The huge armored car came roaring to the checkpoint and the Grillen Warriors manning it quickly removed the barrier and watched the car roar out. Blacky reached up and pulled himself to the frame of the vehicle that was quickly adding speed.

  Blacky hooted at high frequency and his team sent the activation signal and the huge military base went up in a giant blast. Blacky felt the armored car rock with the blast and it continued running for another three miles before it stopped and the Grillen Commander emerged to look back at the giant flames licking the clouds. The explosions from Grillen armament touching off in the heat were continuous. Even from five miles away, the noise was deafening.

  The Commander stood outside the armored car and stared at the destruction of his base. He shook his head and looked up. The craft attacking the base should have been visible. He refused to believe that the destruction was caused by surface forces. The noise was still overwhelming and the Commander didn’t hear his two guards’ muffled screams. A long black chord had emerged from the soil and wrapped around the guards necks. Another chord had wrapped up their feet and they were killed instantly as the two arms on them pulled them apart. Blacky had already killed the driver and gunner manning the turret on top of the large vehicle. He rose out of the soil behind the Commander and shouted in Grillen, “This is unbelievable!”

  The Commander didn’t even turn around, “Yes it is; someone is going to pay for this!”

  Blacky put one of his black arms on the Commander’s shoulder and yelled, “Yes…I believe someone is.” />
  The Commander looked to his right and saw the thick, black tentacle resting on his shoulder. His eyes went wide and he reached for his blaster. The black arm instantly wrapped around his wrist as another wrapped around his other wrist. The Commander was lifted off the ground by his arms and was held dangling in front of a huge black creature. The creature used another arm to remove his blaster and rip his shirt off exposing another small blaster in a holster under his arm. The creature casually tossed them over it and rolled its head down its body and stared into the Commander’s eyes.

  “I heard you say that those that were conquered needed to be taught the proper respect for their masters. You said that after you executed one of your officers who showed mercy to a female and her child. I wouldn’t ordinarily take the time to teach you respect…but I wouldn’t want to make you feel slighted.”

  Blacky felt the communicator vibrate and he lifted it and listened. He shook his head. He was being ordered to stop the attack. He sent the order and tried to decide what to do about the scumbag he was holding. He remembered the young child screaming and writhing in pain from the numerous stunner hits. He would stop…but not before he taught this one the lesson it so richly deserved. The Commander’s screams started and didn’t stop for an hour.

  • • •

  Blacky walked away from what remained of the Commander and felt his unit beep, “Yes, Ringie.”

  “Why have we been ordered off our targets? We have only just started having fun.”

  “I have no idea, Ringie. However, if we hope to do this again, we must comply with our orders. You have to admit, seeing those Grillen facilities go off was entertaining.”

  “I guess…I just wanted to have some real fun.”

  “I suspect something is going on and we’ll get our chance. Notify all your teams to back off.”

  “Yes Sir.”

  “Sir?”

  “I like the way the humans use that word; it fits.”

  “Perhaps we should implement similar titles in our forces.”

  “Do it when we get back. Stopping the warriors is not going to be easy.”