by DJ Morand
He stepped into the massive hangar and looked around for the typical fire suppression bots. When none came to call, he huffed and started limping towards the main decontamination chamber. Space is full of radiation from various stars and Quintar Prime was no different. Mercury suspected that the radiation was stronger due to the larger star at the system’s center. He stepped into the decontamination chamber and pressed the button. A sickly looking green gas filled the chamber. Mercury panicked and tried to exit the way he had come, but the way was shut. Moments later he screamed.
“MASTER!!! NO!” Mercury Frinz cried out as he began to relive the worst moment of his life. The illusion formed in his mind as he saw Talia. She was beautiful and healthy. Slowly the vision changed and the nanites plunged out of her arms, crawling across her limbs and distorting who she had been. “TALIA!” Mercury cried out.
The Prime watched as Mercury relived the moment over and over again. The man had survived the assault on the Kodiak and had fled back to the Infinity in the wake of the radiation. To the Prime this was beyond failure, not only had Mercury failed to capture the gunship, but he had lost twelve other ships in the process. The Prime cared nothing for the lost EXOs, eventually he would make more, but the ships …… those were a different matter. The EXO Prime walked away from the outside of the decontamination chamber, his thoughts on catching up to, and capturing, Abel Cain and the Kodiak.
After the Kodiak left orbit he sent a signal back to New Exodus. The people of the planet had to believe they had escaped the Prime and his army, but that ruse had outlived its usefulness. Once the signal was sent he waited patiently for the reply. A few moments later an image of several nuclear devices detonating on Quintar VII appeared on his view screen.
This time he didn’t smile. The day had already been spoiled. He enjoyed this no more than an exterminator did killing cockroaches. He listened for a few more moments to the screams of Mercury Frinz before ordering his execution. He would die in the same manner the Prime had killed Talia those years ago. He again took no pleasure in wiping out talent, but Mercury had become a liability.
Three times I sent him after Abel, and all three times Abel had bested him, he thought. Mercury Frinz had outlived his usefulness. Perhaps the augmented Breaker Jones would better serve him.
“Navigator. Direct us to Quintar IV. Steady. The last warp to Quintar VII was troubling.” He didn’t mean to mention the last, it was not like these aboard the ship did much besides obey his whim. Sometimes, Alek Vale wished to converse with someone or something.
The Prime had no need for conversation. No sooner than he finished his words, the ship’s lighting dimmed and a brilliant hole opened up before the ship. The main reactor made a droning sound as the ship moved slowly forward breaching the warp tunnel meters at a time. Impatience sparked in the part of the Prime’s thoughts that was still Alek Vale. Violently and without mercy the Prime crushed the thoughts, forcing Alek Vale into the recess of the EXO Prime’s mind. With Vale went emotion and impatience alike. The Prime stood as the ship slowly entered the tunnel. He needed Abel Cain, the Kodiak, and their technology.
* * *
Outside the Quintar Prime System - Kodiak: Command
2972 ESD - Wednesday, November 12th 08:29 hours
The Kodiak tore through the warp tunnel created, and maintained, by the gunship’s Warp T-drive. They continued to accelerate as Abel pushed as much as he could out of the damaged ship. Vibrations began to overpower the inertia dampeners and alarms blared all over the ship. Abel watched as shield power began to fail. He pushed the ship harder aiming for the exit at the other end of the vortex. Echo had managed to stumble her way to Abel’s side.
“Too fast!” Echo yelled as the Kodiak’s alarms continued to blare. Abel barely heard her, but he cut power to the nacelles and the ship lurched again. Steam was hissing from several locations and the warp tunnel collapsed. The crew of the URSA GS-I gunship stared at the green-blue planet in the distance. They had made it through the Warp Tunnel in record time, but the Kodiak took the brunt of the strain.
“Get me status readings Zee.” Abel said grimacing in pain and grasping his upper leg. They all knew he would need medical attention. Fresh blood was seeping through the bandage as the nanites repaired the damage trying to heal and regenerate what they could. ““Flak it! Now, Zee!” Abel yelled through the pain.
“We have lost power in both aft nacelles, landing will be nearly impossible even with the forward nacelles. External shield emitters are at two percent. Forward and rear quantum plating is gone, expelled in combat. The anti-matter cannon is offline, likely permanently. Life support is holding, but there are several hull breaches. It is only affecting sections of the outer hull and weapons holds. Cargo bay has been sealed off due to a breach.”
“I get the point Zee, the ship is flakking exed. What do we have in the way of re-entry shielding and thrust?” Abel said through clenched teeth as the pain intensified.
“We have full thrust, re-entry shielding will hold for a short amount of time, but if Quintar IV is anything like Eden the ship will not hold together.” Zee stated.
“Captain Shade,” Abel began, “How thick is Quintar IV’s atmosphere?””
“It is normal, equivalent to Earth standard. However, there are several rings of debris surrounding the planet. Two of the moons collided millennia ago, creating an asteroid field around the planet. The third moon is still in orbit, although it sometimes intersects the field.”
“Well that’s just flakking wonderful! How flakking often does that happen?” Abel exclaimed.
“Once every three standard months.” Echo said a bit sheepishly. “Normally the EFNF scouts map the entry vectors, although without much of the needed navigation working on the Kodiak it will be perilous at best.” Echo described the situation. The more she spoke the more Abel’s heart sank.
“Oh do you think!?” Abel grumbled again. “Put us on a heading Zee. I need to get down to medical and see if I can patch this up more.””
“Would you like some help Captain?” Echo said.
“Call me Abel.” He said. “We’ve been through enough and yes, I would like some help. Thank you.” Abel said, more gently than usual.
Echo Shade looked at him with new eyes. Something had happened to him in New Exodus and his entire demeanor had been changed; for now it looked like it had changed for the better. She was not sure what to think of it, but the softer tone towards her and the sudden change in mood concerning the EFNF was enough to cause her to smile.
“Alright … Abel,” she tested. “Let’’s get you down to crew berthing and get this leg looked at.” Echo allowed Abel to lean on her shoulder and with her help he hobbled to the ladder down to crew berthing. It was a task to get him down the ladder, but luckily he still had a good deal of upper body strength.
“Echo, I’m sorry. I was so harsh with you and well … I’m sorry.”” Abel stumbled through an apology as Echo rewound the bandages around his leg. She met his eyes, her piercing green meeting with his hazel brown and green. Before Echo could say anything Abel pulled her close and kissed her. The feel of her lips against his caused him to pull her closer. He could feel her breast heaving against his chest and it ignited the passion in him. He gripped her closer and kissed her deeply.
Echo could feel her temperature rise and her heart rate increase. She kissed him back with a passion and fervor she didn’t realize she possessed. After a few moments they both pulled away, reluctantly, and stared wonderingly into each other’s eyes.
“I--” Echo began.
“Captains!” Zee called from the command deck. “We have a contact exiting from a warp tunnel. Heading is the same as our exit vector.”” Abel gave Echo a knowing look and she helped him back to the ladder. He climbed it swiftly using mostly his arms and good leg. He used parts of the ship to hobble back to his command chair.
“What do we know Zee?” Abel asked.
“It is the Infinity, Captain. She followed u
s.” Zee confirmed, viewing an image in his head of the massive carrier ship.
“Flak it. Make a break for Quintar IV, maybe we can outrun her.” Abel ordered. He knew there was no fight left in the Kodiak and they would be lucky if they could land her.
“Negative Captain, we only have enough thrust to put us into Quintar IV’s atmosphere, any sustained maneuver will leave us without a means to slow our descent.” Zee countered.
“We can’t flakking stay and fight Zee!” Echo yelled, surprising the both of them. Zee nodded, but Abel was leaning over his chair already.
“No, Captain Shade, he’s right. I don’t think we’ll need to stick around, but we can fight.” Abel said. “Zee, Echo, prep defenses and arm the pulse lasers. We might get exed here, but we’re not going down without a fight.”” Abel declared.
The trio readied the gunship as the much larger carrier exited the warp tunnel. The ship looming before them was massive and easily could absorb the smaller gunship in one of its hangar bays. Abel refused to go down without a fight and then he remembered his brief encounter and subsequent flight from Mercury Frinz.
“Turn us around, full tactical fire on the carrier. Zee get me a full burn towards Quintar IV!”
“Captain the statistical likelihood that we would survive is astronomical.” Zee said, clearly concerned.
“Just do it Zee, they don’t want to destroy the Kodiak they want to take it!” Abel yelled. Zee took in a deep breath understanding what Abel wanted to do. They had no hope of surviving a one on one encounter with the Infinity, but that isn’t what the EXOs planned. They planned to take the Kodiak and the crew, which meant they would be more cautious in approaching and would wait for the gunship to get in range and then trap it. The point would be moot then. Abel saw that they were dead, or captured, either way and so he decided that if he could not have his ship, no one could. Echo seemed to grasp the same idea and began firing all lasers at the larger ship. She targeted shield arrays and the hangar bays. Echo was thinking if she could even damage their capability they might have a better chance.
The Infinity continued its steady advance towards the gunship and Abel could almost hear the raspy breath of Alek Vale, the man that had tried to kill him. Abel realized he had come full circle. Vale and Abel were once again forced to battle. Alek Vale vying for universal domination and Abel Cain for mere survival.
Once, Abel would have hated running from a foe, but in this case he was committing his last act of denial against the greater foe. Alek Vale and the EXOs could chase him into the storm he was about to start or they could get the flak out of his universe.
The Kodiak barreled through space towards the asteroid belt around Quintar IV. There were large gaps in the belt, nearly devoid areas free of debris where the moon intersected the belt and cleared the way. Abel realized that they may have to expend a bit more fuel to make the gap, but if they could the Infinity would not have time to slow down and avoid the belt.
Abel grinned wickedly and adjusted their position, flipping the ship horizontally until it was lined up with the trajectory he needed. He lined up his shot and pushed the ship to full throttle. It happened so fast the inertial dampeners barely had time to compensate and the trio was thrown back against their seats. The Kodiak blazed through into the asteroid belt. Abel had miscalculated though and the gap was not entirely free of debris.
“Shade, focus fire on all incoming debris! We can’t take more than a single hit.” Abel ordered and Echo nodded her assent. The pulse lasers swiveled forward and starting clearing the path before them. Echo was determined to keep all projectiles away from the Kodiak. Asteroid pieces exploded as the gunship blazed through the thickest part of the gap. Echo tried to track all incoming targets, but she couldn’t stop them all. The first rock collided with the forward canopy.
“We have lost shields on the forward emitters. Port, Starboard, and Aft are holding at seventeen percent.” Zee informed the crew.
“Zee, can you reroute from the aft emitters to the forward?”
“Negative Captain. That impact destroyed the forward emitters.” Zee said. Abel grimaced and continued his navigation. He didn’t need to tell Echo they couldn’’t take another hit. An impact jarred them on the port side causing Abel to compensate and another impact jarred from the starboard side.
“We can’t take much more of this!” Echo yelled. Abel understood, but he didn’t know what to say. He and Zee had been in dire situations before, but never on this magnitude.
“Echo, launch the full array of anti-matter missiles. Target the largest asteroids in our vicinity. We’re going to ride the shockwave in.” Abel ordered and Echo nodded. A moment later the telltale sound of the missiles firing echoed in the Kodiak.
Twenty missiles streaked out from either side of the well-equipped gunship and launched towards the larger asteroids beside and behind them. The impact flashed brilliantly and the wave of force burst out from each of the impacts. Small chunks of debris began to pelt the back of the Kodiak and the ship lurched forward with renewed speed. Abel was doing all he could just to hold the ship steady. Alerts and alarms blared throughout the ship as the URSA GS-I was carried towards the orbit of Quintar IV.
* * *
Outside the Quintar Prime System - Infinity: Command
2972 ESD - Wednesday, November 12th 08:31 hours
The Prime watched as the prow of his vessel passed through the warp tunnel. It was an odd sensation, watching time and space bend around you. Staring into that abyss would drive some mad. The Prime was beyond madness. He was divine. Some part of him realized that this thought alone would designate him as one of the mad. He dismissed it.
The Prime was immortal. It was for this reason he named his carrier the Infinity. The rest of the carrier slid through the warp tunnel and it collapsed behind the EXO ship. He searched the active scans and reveled in the fact that the Kodiak had not made it far. He turned to the navigator, not that he needed to, but there was still a part of him that suggested it was necessary.
“Navigator, full ahead, power our shields.” He commanded and as before the ship began to move at a faster pace. “Do no fire on the Kodiak.”” He added absently.
The large carrier moved steadily closer as the small gunship fired back obstinately. The Prime merely smiled, like a cat toying with a mouse before killing it. He watched as the gunship moved closer firing lasers at the more formidable shields of the Infinity. His amusement waned as the gunship turned around and engaged its primary propulsion system.
The Prime understood. Abel Cain had discovered his tactic and what he wanted. Abel was fleeing into the asteroid belt. The Prime knew he could not follow with the Infinity. With her massive bulk the asteroid belt would tear the hull to shreds.
The Prime understood this meant certain death for Abel Cain and the URSA GS-I. Infuriated he reached out and grasped the throat of the nearest EXO and squeezed the life out of it. It did not even protest. Disgusted he flung it across the deck.
The Prime descended to his brig and saw Mercury Frinz still on his knees weeping uncontrollably. He had been this way for hours. The Prime stopped the repeating vision and Mercury looked up with bloodshot eyes and raw nose from crying and weeping. He looked like a shell of his former self, which wasn’t much to begin with.
“You are being given a final chance to redeem yourself Mercury. Go and collect the Nevermore, the primary emitters have already been repaired. Take a contingent of Vulture BAA-Cs, RETRIEVE the Kodiak and I will restore your precious Talia.” He was lying of course, the level of destruction he had caused in Talia would only allow him to give her a false life, but it would be enough to motivate the fool.
“Go now and do this, do not fail me or the torture you’ve experienced thus far will be tenfold upon your return.” The EXO Prime threatened. Mercury, to his credit, did not grovel or gush at the opportunity, but instead stepped up and wiped his face. He saluted the Prime and spoke clearly, although raspy.
“I shall do as yo
u bid Prime.” He bowed and then ran for the hangar.
Mercury Frinz was a broken man. His mind was filled with thoughts of murder and destruction and he would end the Kodiak. A few short moments later Mercury Frinz and six Vulture BAA-Cs left the hangar of the Infinity. They barreled towards the asteroid belt in pursuit of Abel Cain and his crew.
“Three kilometers … two … one.” Mercury said as they approached the belt around Quintar IV. He watched as the Kodiak entered the gap and he punched his own throttle leaving the EXO pilots behind. Diving through the belt he nearly caught up with Abel just before the missiles bled from the gunship. He stared in horror as twenty missiles streaked past him and around him. The explosions that followed tore through his meager shields and blasted away large chunks of his quantum plating. The last sound he made was a gut wrenching cry for Talia as his ship was torn in two.
* * *
Quintar IV Orbit - Kodiak: Command
2972 ESD - Wednesday, November 12th 08:42 hours
The Kodiak melded with the hard declining orbit towards Quintar IV. Abel would have described it as a Flakking Glitch of an Entry, and had described it so. The ship was gaining momentum and Abel knew he couldn’t fire the nacelles yet. He needed them to slow their descent. They had one last burst that and if he used it now they would surely die in the impact. The controls were barely responsive as the Kodiak began to heat up.
“Captain! The forward emitters are offline and the prow is heating too much, we’ll lose most of the outer shielding. If that happens we’ll be baked in here.”” Echo yelled over the blaring of the alarms. Abel looked back at her and then to Zee.