by SD Tanner
“Tank, head towards Cardiff.”
“No can do, Ark. Path is not clear.”
Still firing at the enemy ships advancing on theirs, he heard Samson shout, “Abandon ship!”
Now he had two crews floating through space. Gritting his teeth, he realized they were two down and two to go. He’d managed to take out nine of the twenty enemy ships chasing him, but the fragments left by his missiles were transforming into small spiders that now clung to his hull. If he hadn’t had Bombardier vision, he wouldn’t have been able to see anything through the mass of sharp spiked mouths now gnawing at the clear screen above his head. If they broke through, he too would have to abandon ship.
“Abandon ship!” Lace shouted.
Three attack ships down and only his to go. There was no way to win against this many enemy vessels. “Mex, get the hell out of here!”
“No can do, sir.”
He was running out of missiles, relying on the lasers that were not as effective against the enemy ships. “Why not?”
“It’s not the way I roll.”
The clear screen above his head was breaking, crushed by the sharp points relentlessly chewing their way inside. “Tank, we’re going to have to abandon ship.”
“Wait, they’re almost here.”
“Who are?”
If Tank answered, he didn’t hear his reply. On his long-range screens, at least fifty silver colored ships of a type he’d never seen before were headed towards their position. “Friend or foe?”
Tank’s deep chuckle caught him by surprise. “Better than friends. Brothers.”
The incoming fleet was faster than theirs, firing with stunning accuracy at the enemy ships. The critters that had been chewing on his viewing screen suddenly launched themselves into space, heading towards the fleet. From then on, he and his crew were only bystanders watching a war between two sides, neither of which he knew.
“You owe me an explanation, Tank.”
Although their attack ship was injured, they made their way towards the bodies floating in space so they could grab onto their hull. Six Bombardiers clung to its sides while it slowly made its way back to the battleship. He’d been trained to hang onto an attack ship while it hauled him around, so he knew it wasn’t a comfortable or secure way to travel. Usually this type of rescue came with a lot of bad language, but today his squad were silent, totally caught up watching the war happening in the distance.
Small explosions of light flashed in the darkness while the battle raged on. The silver ships were fast, zipping around one another to pounce on their targets. Bursts of brightness from repeated weapons fire lit an area, only to quickly fade again. Several enemy ships attempted to break off the engagement, tearing away from the main body of the battle, only to be pursued by the silver ships. Whoever was fighting on their behalf took no prisoners and running away was clearly not an option. One-by-one the enemy ships were being torn apart, reducing in numbers until only a handful were left. With the battle won, a small fleet of six silver ships pulled away and headed in their direction.
While he stood on the edge of the docking bay, the silver ships each took a point around the battleship. Seeming content to wait for them to move, it became obvious that they were going to escort them somewhere.
“Who are they?” Cardiff asked.
“I don’t know,” he replied. Turning to question Tank, he watched while he disappeared through the slit leading into the main body of the ship.
“They’re not enemy,” Samson remarked.
Leaving his squad to puzzle over the silver ships, he headed to the Battle Command Pod to interrogate Tank. Finding him sitting in the command chair, he asked, “Where are we going, Tank?”
“Home.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN: Silver bullet (Ark Three)
Their battleship was almost as badly damaged as the attack ships. Injured and barely alive, it slowly moved towards a planet shining brightly in the distance. The fleet that had come to their rescue surrounded them on all sides, escorting them to wherever it was they were going.
Not for the first time since they’d safely made it back to the battleship, he hassled Tank. “Who are these guys? Are they allies? Do you know them?”
Refusing to answer him, Tank yawned and folded his arms over his chest, appearing to doze off. Punching his bicep, he said, “I know you’re not sleeping. Why won’t you tell me what’s going on?”
“Will you give it a rest?”
“No, I want to know who or what is piloting those ships.”
He wanted to fly out and take a look for himself, but none of the attack ships was flightworthy and might never be again. His advanced vision wasn’t helping him either. All he could see were large bodies sitting at various consoles on the other ships. Similar in size to himself, they were obviously piloting the vessels, leading them towards the planet.
Frustrated, he studied the silver ball looming ahead of them. Tank had said they were going home, but this wasn’t anywhere he’d ever been before. The planet glowed silver with dips and crevices along its surface that were only another shade of the same color. Its skies were cloudless and he couldn’t see anything that looked like water. The ships on either side of him were the same silver color, shining oddly against the darkness of space. Shaped like bullets, they had no viewing windows, but each had a span of thrusters at the back. Their own ships were far from sleek and these made theirs look even more clunky and dirty.
Still annoyed with Tank, he punched his bicep again. “Why aren’t you telling me anything? Don’t you work for me?”
With a nonchalant wave of his hand, Tank replied, “Not yet I don’t.”
“You’re really pissing me off.”
“Right back atcha,” Tank muttered.
Giving up on talking to him, he continued to watch the screens. Now they’d broken through the atmosphere, cities loomed out of the land, as sleek and silver as the ships. Whoever this species were, they were well advanced. The city wasn’t made of many buildings, but was a huge connected complex with tubes and pipes running between the blocks. Smaller ships flitted across the surface, weaving gracefully around the higher sections protruding from the main body.
In the middle of the large complex was an opening and it was here that their ship finally landed. He supposed he owed whoever they were the courtesy of thanking them. Giving Tank a final glare, and now having gravity, he strode along the brown colored tubes to the docking bay. As the door slowly opened in front of him, he was almost blinded by the bright glare of the sun on silver. When he could see again, three Bombardiers were standing in a line on the ground outside of the battleship. Dressed in dark fitted suits that outlined their heavily muscular frames, none carried weapons, nor were they wearing helmets. In the typical pose of a Bombardier, their legs were straight with their feet apart, while their arms rested by their sides with clenched fists a slight distance from their hips. Everything about a Bombardier, from their posture to their attitudes, reflected their strength and confidence.
Jumping down, he walked across the silver ground until he was standing in front of them. Their granite looking faces were none he’d ever seen before. “Who are you?”
“Welcome home, Ark Three. We’ve been waiting for you.”
“Do I know you?”
The three men shared a look and then laughed. “No, but we know you. Tank has been your guardian while we waited for you to grow.”
He was getting used to his world flipping on him, but this was a step too far. “Grow? What the hell kind of game have you been playing?”
“Dunk threw the Bombardiers out so we have a new home. This is Tracha. Your grandfather found it before he died.”
At the mention of his grandfather, he felt a flicker of excitement. “Is my mother here? My grandmother?”
Stepping forward, one of the men rested his large hand on his shoulder. “No, they all died a long time ago.”
Bombardiers should live for hundreds of years and he glared a
t the man warily. “Of what?”
Tank appeared by his side, answering for the man. “Lexie died of the same poison that killed your grandfather. Your mother never made it into space. We think she was killed on earth by Dunk Two.”
None of what Tank said matched his understanding of his past. He’d been told that Ark and Lexie had disappeared in space, but Tank had always known they were dead. His mother was supposedly lost in space as well, but now he was saying she’d never left earth.
“Why? Why would Dunk kill my family?” Turning to face Tank, he squared up against the man who was one of only two people he’d ever trusted. “Why didn’t you tell me this before?”
Matching his posture and refusing to back down, Tank replied steadily, “Because you would have challenged Dunk Two and he would have killed you too. I promised Lexie that I would protect you and I have.”
Feeling as if he was losing the family he’d never known for a second time, his shoulders slumped. “Why would Dunk have killed them? What did they do that was so wrong?”
Although his face was almost expressionless, grief flickered across Tank’s hardened features. “They were like you. They wanted to change what Dunk was doing, but he wouldn’t be stopped, not by anyone.”
It made him wonder what would become of Dunk Three. Would he morph into a copy of Dunk and Dunk Two or could he become his own man? It didn’t matter, the price of Dunk’s supposed safety was too high. Mariana’s people had shown him that Dunk’s rules were stopping mankind from evolving into what they were meant to become. For a man who’d loved progress, Dunk and his clones were trapped in time, holding the human race prisoner with them.
“It has to end.”
“We know and your army has been waiting for you to grow.” Light was reflecting from the brilliant sun in the sky and Tank gestured towards the shining silver walls around them. “We found this planet by saving it. The aliens here are smart. We defend them from the critters and they give us anything we need.” Nodding with some satisfaction, he added, “It was the last thing your grandfather gave us before he died. An alliance and a place we can call home.” Placing his hand on his shoulder, he added fondly, “And now we have you, his very last gift.”
Tank had just given him the final piece to a puzzle, exposing the whole truth about his life. Without realizing it, these were the questions he’d been trying to answer ever since he’d witnessed the corruption inside of the Guild. The Bombardiers were never lost in space, but instead they were brought to Tracha, the planet they now called home. With his eyes widening with wonder, he asked, “How many Boms live here?”
“Thirty thousand plus eight thousand navs. The navs don’t live as long, so a lot of them are pretty much retired.”
“Will they fight for me?”
His answer was walking towards him in the form of thousands of men and women. They were making their way to the landing bay, some in armor, and other in the same fitted suits worn by the three men still standing in front of him. Amongst the Bombardiers were Navigators. They were the human army who’d been traveling with them when they’d disappeared in space. The sound of thousands of boots with heavy footsteps reached his ears as more men and women gathered around him.
Spinning slowly, taking in the sight of those who had been waiting for the grandson of Ark, he knew he had his army. Despite what Dunk Two had taught him, his real destiny was to finish the job his grandfather had started. He would rip earth from Dunk’s control.
While his mind caught up with his new reality, the crowd of men and women began rhythmically pumping their large fists at the sky, chanting the name that was now his.
“Ark! Ark! Ark!”
EPILOGUE
The blackened spider-like creature scuttled across the floor, collecting small particles of dirt, clearly intent on keeping the room clean. Studying it without interest, the tall and slender man used his elongated fingers to flick another speck of dirt from his fitted suit, only adding to its work.
“What now?”
He turned his purple colored eyes to look at the younger man next to him. “We wait.”
“This is not a good plan.”
Not caring what he thought, he began walking towards the door. “It is not your decision to make.”
AUTHOR’S NOTE
I hope you’re enjoying the Bombardier series. Although it isn’t necessary, for those of you who would like to know how all of this came about, the Navigator series tells how Ark, Lexie, Tank, Dunk and many others saved the world from the first alien attack. Please click on the link to check out the Navigator Series
Originally, Navigator was intended to be a single series, but I couldn’t resist taking the tale one more step to see what would happen if Dunk really did rule the universe. He’s not the best by a long distance, and I look forward to seeing how Ark Three and his new army will sort him out. Of course, I do worry that they’re forgetting the bigger picture and the real enemy, but isn’t that always the way with leaders?
Also by SD Tanner
Books in HUNTER WARS Series
(Series One of The Hunter Wars)
Book One:
EVE OF THE HUNTER WARS (Purchase Now)
Book Two:
HEAVEN MEETS HELL (Purchase Now)
Book Three:
ARMY OF ANGELS (Purchase Now)
Book Four:
GIFT FROM GOD (Purchase Now)
Book Five:
RIGHT TO RULE (Purchase Now)
Book Six:
CALL TO WAR (Purchase Now)
Books in EDEN LOST Trilogy
(Series Two of The Hunter Wars)
Book One:
HIDDEN EVIL (Purchase Now)
Book Two
DEAD ALIVE (Purchase Now)
Book Three
DIVINE DEATH
(Release: 2016)
Books in NAVIGATOR Series
Book One:
ENEMY LINES (Purchase Now)
Book Two
BLIND SIGHTED (Purchase Now)
Book Three
KILLER EDGE (Purchase Now)
Book Four
BROKEN ARROW (Purchase Now)
Books in BOMBARDIER Trilogy
Book One:
TYRANNY (Purchase Now)
Book Two
TREASON
(Release: 2016)
Book Three
EMPIRE
(Release: 2016)
STANDALONE BOOKS
TIME TO DIE (Purchase Now)
Also by SD Tanner
Books in HUNTER WARS Series
(Series One of The Hunter Wars)
Book One:
EVE OF THE HUNTER WARS (Purchase Now)
Gears, Pax and TL are brothers and soldiers in the US Army when the world comes to an abrupt halt. Thrust into the apocalypse, they decide mankind deserves another chance. Their ruling puts them at the center of an epic battle between good and evil, and they uncover the hidden truth behind the Devil in the land of the undead. Along the way, they meet a woman they name Ip and their true role is revealed.
Forming the first of their bases, they call survivors to their side and unwittingly make enemies of the undead and the living. Determined to succeed, they take drastic steps to secure safe havens for those left alive.
Book Two:
HEAVEN MEETS HELL (Purchase Now)
New friends are found, but the face of evil makes its presence known in the safety of their bases. Pax makes a mistake and Ip pays the price, but Gears refuses to let his new enemy rule the day.
Book Three:
ARMY OF ANGELS (Purchase Now)
Determined to fight fire with fire, Gears offers the survivors the choice of infection. Mackenzie does the unthinkable creating a remarkable outcome that makes Gears question everything he knows about life.
Book Four:
GIFT FROM GOD (Purchase Now)
Desperate to find safe land where they can grow food, they take the drastic step of seeking safer shores. The Devil takes P
ax to a place he never knew existed and Ip learns who she really is. Captain Ted makes a mistake that Gears must undo or they'll lose everything they've gained.
Book Five:
RIGHT TO RULE (Purchase Now)
Fed up with the Devil’s play, Gears is determined to enforce his right to rule. The Devil disagrees and does something they didn't expect, setting them back again. Captain Ted is forced to make a terrible choice and they stand to lose more than they gain. The land is dying and hunger grips their world.
Book Six:
CALL TO WAR (Purchase Now)
Gears witnesses the impossible and they learn there's more that the Devil can do. Faced with disaster, he calls the game to an end and prepares for a final battle. Mankind must make their true intent known or all will be lost for a thousand years.
Books in EDEN LOST Trilogy
(Series Two of The Hunter Wars)
Book One:
HIDDEN EVIL (Purchase Now)
It's been five years since they put the Devil in his place, but all is not well in Eden and our Horsemen have dug their way out of their graves. It seems the Devil wasn't done and neither were they. Gears must uncover his new mission, and he believes he needs another army to defend his right to rule. America is at war with itself and he needs to know why.
Book Two
DEAD ALIVE (Purchase Now)
The hunters have returned, but they're not the same as they were. Gears, Pax and TL decide they need to look for the problem in Eden and uncover more than they ever expected. Ruler is playing them all for fools, and Gears finds a unique solution to save America.
Book Three
DIVINE DEATH
(Release: Scheduled 2016)
Books in NAVIGATOR Series
Book One:
ENEMY LINES (Purchase Now)
After nearly being executed in a war zone, Staff Sergeant Leon Shield finds himself urgently recalled from deployment, and lands back home to a defeated country. In a matter of days, and without a single shot being fired, a new species has taken over the world. Determined to survive Armageddon, the only chance to fight back is to find a man called Ark, and use an untested technology to become Navigators.