by Trevor Scott
“I will give my people your head, Outsider!”
“I am unarmed. I doubt your people would respect such an easy kill.”
The Kurazon on the bridge grew restless. It was clear that the longer the conversation went on, the less they thought of their leader. Liam could see that Crius appeared weak to them. A man half his size was speaking down to him. Crius’ rule was hanging by a thread.
Crius grunted and spat, “Single combat then. Your death will be swift, but honorable. Of that, I promise.”
“A duel?” Liam asked. “What are your terms?”
“Terms? We fight for honor.”
“No,” Liam said, provoking snarls of outrage from the Kurazon. He continued, “If I best you, I require safe passage for myself and my crew as well as the Quantum Trigger.”
Crius considered the offer. The Kurazon watched on in silence, the tension in the room mounting. The Kurazon leader had countless scars across his body from innumerable fights. Liam couldn’t imagine Crius would see him as much of a challenge. Crius put his hand across his chest and said, “By the gods I swear it. However, when I kill you, your companions will feed the Throng, starting with your puny Dinari friend. Their kind are a delicacy.”
Nix’s eyes widened. He was quivering under his thick cloak, having trouble holding onto his weapon. Liam got the impression that eating their foes was a form of disrespect more than anything else. Still, Liam had a plan and it was their only way off the ship. Alive, that is. He nodded and said, “Then we are in agreement.”
“Choose your weapon, whelp.”
A half-dozen Kurazon approached them and laid out several weapons, from blades to spears, all far too crude for their level of technological prowess. Each was meant for a Kurazon hand, far too large for Liam to wield, save for one. It would have been a dagger to the Kurazon, but to Liam it might as well have been a sword. It had a smooth curve to it like a scimitar, but with strange lines in the metal that made Liam question how and from what it was forged.
Liam bent down and picked up the blade, which was surprisingly light in his hand. Crius nodded and chose a large jagged blade, apparently made from a broken part of the ship, but sharpened into a devastating weapon. Liam knew if he were hit by that, even once, Tetanus would be the least of his worries.
Crius made a motion with his hand and the Kurazon scooped up the remaining weapons and backed up, giving them a wide berth. Several of the Kurazon took back to the rafters or climbed on top of the suspended workstations to leave room for the duel. They were restless now, clamoring over each other to get the best view.
Saturn’s weapon was raised at Crius and she said, “Liam, you don’t have to do this. There’s got to be another way.”
Liam turned to her and smiled confidently.
“Trust me.”
33
Crius made the first move. He lifted the heavy piece of metal over his head with both hands and swung down with brutal force. Liam rolled forward and to the right dragging his sword across the side of Crius’ left kneecap as he did. It was a glancing blow, but it quieted the Kurazon onlookers momentarily and led to several gasps. His purple blood trickled slowly from the wound. Crius looked at his bleeding knee but didn’t let a sound escape his lips. He only turned and readied his next blow.
With the Kurazon onlookers out of their way, there was a good ten square meters with few obstructions to mar the fight. Liam planned to use every inch. Crius’ sheer size meant that he could only take a few steps before running into his brethren. Liam would have to use every ounce of his cunning to get out of this fight alive.
Crius swung across his body. Liam hopped backward, the blade missing his face by mere centimeters. The Kurazon warlord fumed, blood rushing to his face. He bared his two rows of pointed teeth and growled from his belly, a horrible sound that resonated inside Liam’s eardrums. Crius’ yellow eyes reflected the holographic image of Surya as they squinted down at him. The Kurazon took another swing and hit only air as his jagged blade flew through the image of the planet, disrupting the projection briefly.
Liam tried to roll around the Kurazon warlord again but was kicked by his massive leg. Liam tumbled onto his face, his sword sliding a meter away from his fingertips. His ribs felt crushed from the force of the blow, but Liam clenched his teeth and hardened his muscles in anticipation. Crius didn’t waste any time and swung down with both hands on his gruesome blade. Liam rolled to his right, grabbed his blade, and barely got it up in time to meet the Kurazon blade. Liam struggled against Crius’ serrated blade using his spare hand on the back of his sword as leverage.
Liam’s scimitar began to bend under the pressure, the jagged edges of Crius’ blade beginning to splinter his curved blade. Liam’s eyes widened when they shot to the tiny fissure. He shifted his weight and Crius’ blade quickly slid down Liam’s sword and into the grated floor to Liam’s left, where it became lodged in the crevice. As Crius struggled to break his sword free from the seam between the grates, Liam found his feet and glanced another blow off the Kurazon’s left knee, crossing his previous cut and inching toward the fleshy backing. Crius swung his elbow back at him, but Liam managed to back away to the corner of the open area, putting as much distance between him and the Kurazon leader as possible.
A steady stream of dark purple flowed down Crius’ calf. The Kurazon leader howled. Liam couldn’t say for sure whether it was a howl of pain or of anger, but he guessed his approach was working. If he was lucky, the warlord would begin to slow down. Then again, he had a lot more blood to lose than Liam.
Crius stomped his good leg over the grate and yanked his grisly sword from its clutches. He took two labored steps toward Liam, crossing much of the distance between them, and said, “You have lasted longer than I expected, Outsider, but your time has come to an end.”
He swung his massive blade with reach Liam couldn’t match. Liam squatted down to one knee. The Kurazon blade missed his skull but severed a few strands of his blond hair. Liam saw them floating down as he looked up at the titan before him. At the end of his swing Crius twirled the blade behind his head and came down with it, aiming to cut Liam in half. Despite his large frame and heavy weapon, Crius swung the blade fast. It took everything Liam had to get out of the way of the sword in time.
Somehow, he found himself between the Kurazon’s legs. He felt Crius looking around for him. Liam used the opportunity to lift up his blade and stab downward through the back of Crius’ bad kneecap. The Kurazon dagger became wedged between flesh and bone. Crius fell to his good knee, his arms swinging wildly behind him trying to grab Liam. The warlord’s arm finally caught him and flung Liam ten meters through the air into a group of Kurazon, who quickly muscled him back into the tiny arena.
Liam’s blade was still stuck in the Kurazon’s knee, irretrievable. Now he was unarmed and about all he’d accomplished was to piss off the Kurazon giant. Crius lifted himself onto his good leg and yanked the dagger from the back of his knee, tossing it into the crowd. A jet of purple spurted out from the wound, eliciting a wail of rage from the warlord. He tried putting pressure on his left leg and stumbled back to his knees. Liam may have hit an artery because the Kurazon’s blood was flowing freely now, coursing down into the grated floor.
The Kurazon onlookers became hushed, watching in silence as their leader suffered. Even on his knees Crius was a couple heads taller than Liam and frightening to behold. Liam skirted around the edge of their makeshift ring, searching around him for any kind of weapon. Crius lifted himself up again to one foot and gritted his teeth. He was determined now to remain upright. Crius’ jaw tightened as he forced himself to stand on both feet, crying out in pain as his bad leg straightened.
Crius began to limp toward Liam, slow at first, but with increasing speed. He dragged his sword along the ground creating a slew of sparks, raising it up as he neared his target. When Crius tried to swing, Liam leaped toward the titan’s wounded side. The Kurazon warlord tried to turn on his bad knee in pursuit but it
was too much for him. He plummeted to the ground.
Nix cried out to Liam, who turned to see the Dinari’s weapon flying toward him. He caught it and turned in time to see Crius readying his next strike from one knee. The two of them froze, a ball of energy readied at the tip of Liam’s weapon. Crius sneered, “You would break the ancient rules of combat?”
Liam lowered his weapon but didn’t release the energy pulsing at its tip. The grate under the Kurazon leader was coated with blood, dripping down into the floor so there was no way to tell how much had been spilt. Crius’ face had begun to lose its color. His eyes were having trouble staying focused. Liam made a snap decision and tossed aside his energy weapon. It clanked as it slid across the grates, energy quickly fading.
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Liam said, praying he would be right.
Crius steadied himself with one hand and let his sword fall to the floor. His yellow eyes found Liam’s and his gaze softened. “You are a worthy opponent Liam of House Kidd. Finish it, and let me die gloriously in battle.”
Liam shook his head. “I’ve beaten you. Give me the Quantum Trigger and my crew and I will be on our way. Nobody needs to die today.”
Crius’ expression hardened. “Perhaps you’re not as worthy as I thought. You would dishonor me with mercy,” Crius said, spitting at Liam’s feet.
Liam shook off his boot and turned his back to the Kurazon leader, rejoining his crew. He approached Ju-Long, whose face contorted as he advanced. His hand was pointed past Liam. Crius was on his feet, sword in hand, coming down with his blade with one last ditch effort. Liam’s eyes widened. He didn’t have time to get out of the way.
Mere meters away, Crius stopped in his tracks, sword falling to the grated floors. He collapsed to his knees with a dazed look in his eyes. Finally, he fell onto his face and Liam’s suspicions were confirmed. Six metal spears were sticking out of his back. He was killed by his own people.
A rather large Kurazon advanced on Liam, his face adorned with blue face paint which covered countless scars. He might have been even taller than Crius. The Kurazon looked down at Liam and the crew and said, “Crius dishonored the Throng, he was unfit to lead. Your battle is honored Outsider. Take the Quantum Trigger and leave quickly. I want nothing to do with it.”
Another Kurazon stepped forward holding a small black box. It appeared dense like lead, but when he placed it in Liam’s hands it was far lighter than he had expected. It was hard to imagine such a small thing was responsible for their presence on Surya, for traveling across the galaxy.
The blue-faced warrior continued, “Without this ship, the Trigger is meaningless. It is but a small part of a much larger whole. This ship itself was designed to integrate with it.”
The Kurazon giant moved his eyes around the ship, examining the damage and the occasional spark. “I cannot imagine what you plan to do with it, but take it far from here. It has brought us nothing but trouble. The Ansarans will pay for what they’ve done this day.”
Several of the other Kurazon yelled out “Liars” and “Cowards” at the mention of the Ansarans. The blue-faced Kurazon had sad eyes. Liam imagined he was weary from far too many battles. The other Kurazon seemed to respect him as an elder, though he looked no older than Crius.
“Thank you,” Liam said. “Your integrity will not be forgotten.”
“Pray it is not, Outsider.”
Liam knew the Ansarans would not leave the crashed vessel unsearched for long. The new Kurazon leader must have known this too, because he picked up Crius’ sword and began barking orders to his warriors.
“What will you do now?” Liam asked.
The Kurazon titan looked down at Liam with a glint in his eye that was almost hopeful. “We will fight, as Kurazon do. Pray we do not cross paths again.”
34
Liam jumped off the opening of the Kurazon vessel to the sand a meter below. His brown boots quickly became yellowed with the fine grains of sand. The breeze picked up and several specs found their way into his eyes. He held the dense device in his left arm and he blocked the wind with his right.
Saturn was the next down from the ship and jogged to catch up to him. She undid her ponytail and her dark brown locks became tousled in the breeze. Liam glanced over casually, noting that the look suited her. She turned to him and said, “Back there, that was incredible.”
Liam’s ego inflated a little with pride and he let himself smile, his mouth curling up at the side and causing the scar on his cheek to tighten up.
“Incredibly stupid,” she added, punching his arm and throwing him off balance. “You could have gotten us all killed. What were you thinking?”
Liam’s smile faded and he defended, “Well I had to do something, didn’t I?”
Saturn looked away and said, “You had me worried there.”
When she turned back to him, she wore a small smile. “Remind me to never get in a fight with you,” she said before taking off toward The Garuda.
Liam knew Saturn wasn’t the best at displaying her emotions, making what she said even more uplifting. Ju-Long clapped a hand on his shoulder. Liam hadn’t even heard him approaching because he was in such a stupor.
“Maybe we should reserve you two a private room.”
Liam brushed his hand away and replied, “Ha, ha. Very funny. Hey, where’s Nix?”
The Dinari was right behind them a moment before, but wasn’t anywhere in sight now. Liam and Ju-Long stopped and examined the wreckage with hands cupped around their eyes to block the rays of the sun. He’d managed to lose his goggles somewhere inside the ship. Several flashes of blue cut through the air, sparking off the metal debris. In the distance, Liam once again heard the howls of the Kurazon Throng, easily penetrating the broken hull of the ship. Nix appeared at the hole in the side of the ship, firing several shots backward before jumping off the edge to the sand below. He sprinted toward them, firing back shots as he went.
Ju-Long raised his weapon and fired randomly at the wreckage, surely hoping to hit something, anything. Bolts of blue filled the air, sending up plumes of sand as they hit all around the Dinari. Liam reached for the weapon at his side and remembered it had been destroyed by the Kurazon. Saturn had heard the commotion and began firing shots from the ship’s ramp. Nix was just ten meters away when Liam realized the source of the shots.
Dozens of Ansaran vessels rose over the Kurazon vessel and moved to surround them. Several fired warning shots into the sand, clouding Liam’s vision and forcing him to cover his eyes with his free hand. A voice came out over a loudspeaker. “Don’t move. Lower your weapons or we’ll open fire.”
Liam recognized the voice and grimaced. It was Toras, the new Caretaker of Akaru Colony and former head of security. Nix stopped a meter shy of Liam and Ju-Long, holding his knees to catch his breath. Ju-Long and Liam exchanged glances. Ju-Long grimaced and lowered his weapon to his side bitterly.
One of the Ansaran vessels landed and through the dust Liam could make out five figures disembarking. Toras approached quickly, his frayed brown cape fluttering violently in the wind, wrapping around his sandy armor. Liam noticed he wasn’t wearing his oblong helmet, letting his white scales take on the yellow hue of the sky. His entourage came up to them with weapons raised. One of them snatched Ju-Long’s weapon right out of his hand. Liam felt like he was watching the scene in slow motion, helpless. Out of the frying pan, he thought.
Liam chanced a look back at The Garuda and four more Ansarans were wresting Saturn’s weapon from her hands, one using the butt of his weapon to clock her on her cheekbone, sending Saturn to her knees. Liam cursed under his breath and approached Toras. His four lackeys attempted to restrain him but let go when Toras raised a hand. In the distance, more shots were fired and the Kurazon howls ceased. Toras looked off at the wreckage in the distance and smiled.
The new Caretaker then turned his attention to the box in Liam’s hands. “That device you hold is too powerful for you to wield. Give it to me and your lives will b
e spared.”
“Because you’ve proven yourself so trustworthy,” Liam said sarcastically.
“I intend to destroy it.”
Liam’s eyes widened. He wondered from whom Toras was taking his orders. Regardless, they couldn’t let him destroy it. He, Saturn and Ju-Long needed it to get back to their own solar system.
“You can’t. Who’s putting you up to this?”
“After Ragnar showed his true colors, the High Council deemed this device too dangerous to exist. It will be dealt with by our people. I will ask only once more. Give it to me.”
Toras’ entourage all raised their weapons at Liam. He looked down at the black cube, so unassuming, so light in his hands. He wondered how something so small could have caused all of this. Liam held the Quantum Trigger up to examine its matted black surface closer. A gust of wind blew sand over him and the device and when he opened his eyes, his heart stopped.
The surface of the cube was not entirely smooth as the Disciples had described. Etched ever so lightly on one of the sides were two words he never thought he’d see again. The sand hung there for a second before blowing away. Liam could feel adrenaline flow to his extremities and his heart rate quicken. In that moment, he began to question everything he ever knew.
In his daze, he hardly noticed one of the Ansaran soldiers take the device from his hands. Liam continued to stare at his empty outstretched palms for several seconds, until finally they balled up into fists, shaking with the pressure of a fury he’d never known before.
The soldier put the cube in Toras’ hands, who examined it briefly before tucking it safely under one arm. He smiled and said, “Your cooperation is appreciated. With respect to your efforts today, and assuming you don’t start any more trouble, you may come and go as you please.”
With that, Toras turned, his cape whipping around behind him, and took off toward his ship. The Ansaran soldiers had neglected to give Ju-Long and Nix their weapons back.