Zara translated that, struggling to keep her voice crisp and clear and devoid of emotion.
Why had this worked when the missiles and lasers hadn’t? She couldn’t be sure, but there was the mass of the fighter, the remainder of the fuel, the laser going critical. Surely Cote had armed any missiles left on the rack before impact. Then there was the extended laser fire, concentrated at close range, a human pilot’s ability to react to the insect’s dodging swiftly and keep that laser precisely on target. With all of this at once, Cote had been able to break through the tough shell better than uncoordinated laser and missile fire. She’d packed a bigger punch.
Instantly Zara began thinking of how to design a remote-controlled drone that could do the same thing. Or maybe something that could latch on and drill through before delivering a payload. They’d have to scrutinize this footage minutely and figure out at which point Cote broke through, analyze all of the Swarm fragments they could find…
The maelstrom of the fight returned like a fist slamming down.
Only a minute later, the communications officer next to Zara stood. “I have another volunteer. Fighter CAB-22. First Lieutenant Davi Sousa.”
Davi Sousa’s last words were that he had a sister with three little girls in Brazil and he had to make sure they lived.
Blue lights lit up across the comm console.
No Earth continent went without sacrificing at least one of its own. Walsh allowed them to broadcast a final statement to the fleet. Most of the fighters who volunteered made statements about the survival of the species or mentioned specific loved ones by name whom they wanted to protect. They sacrificed themselves for the greater good. Zara had to wonder if she would have the courage to do the same in their place.
She sat there, whole. Able to go on. She could hardly process it.
In the end, they eliminated every Confluos threat. The majority of the kills went to mortevindahipt. Four of the fleet of twelve ships were lost in total. Two were completely disabled but holding air, and one was losing air slowly, but between fighters working as rescue ferries and repair crews, it looked like they’d soon have that situation under control. The Bouclier lost its jump drive.
The Aegis was badly damaged but was airtight and could jump. It took on the majority of the fighters from lost ships and as many other rescuees as possible.
Some people were celebrating, but Zara couldn’t join in. She sat dumbly at the comm station, watching the others speak to each other.
The last thing she’d heard was Compton murmuring, “What if that was only the tip of the spear?”
56
March 3, 2031
EVERY JUMP SET Jane’s teeth on edge, but the anomalous wormhole experience did not repeat itself. The ships themselves were unharmed. Her people were tense and moody, but otherwise fine.
She didn’t blame them. She felt the same.
She’d failed them.
Her body ached with guilt. It had been a mistake to get so close to the Swarm pod, to taunt them, to underestimate them.
She would never do that again.
They jumped into the Sol system between the orbits of Uranus and Neptune. No planets were in sight. Just vast empty space. Sol itself was too far away to be distinguished from other stars. Earth was, of course, invisible.
Jane wanted to give the powers that be on Earth plenty of time to notice their presence and recognize her ship, assuming they were even looking out that far. Their arrival was going to create some waves. Better to give them time to think before they could act.
“Qua’dux, long-range scans are picking up organic debris ahead in a planetary orbit. And industrial debris. It’s spread out over a vast distance. Something happened out there,” Murrrsi said.
Jane frowned. “Let’s investigate.”
“Course laid in, Jane,” Brai said.
“Let’s go. Forward cameras up on-screen.”
When the debris field came into view, Jane said, “Magnify.”
The lower-left corner of the screen blew up, and the image refocused. Jane stared at the corner of the screen, trying to make sense of what she was looking at.
“Those look like bug parts to me,” Alan said. “Big bug parts.”
He was right. Now she could identify a leg, a piece of shiny black carapace…
Her stomach flipped over. The sick feeling spread through her body.
They were too late.
The Swarm had already been here.
Jane darted a glance at Murrrsi. “You said you also detected industrial debris?”
“Ahead,” Murrrsi said.
Brai navigated through the orbiting bug graveyard until they reached the industrial debris.
Ships. Or what was left of them. There’d been a battle here. Several ships the size of the Speroancora had been lost. Jane was so shocked and dismayed that she could barely register any other emotion. She wasn’t sure she had any emotions left.
“They look sectilian, with modifications,” Alan said. “Earth built a fleet based on the plans we gave them.”
Feig leaned over Ouvaq’s console, pointing out a sector and enlarging the image. “Look here. See the evidence of catastrophic impact on the front of the ship? Did this pilot sacrifice themself to kill one of the Swarm?”
Jane leaned forward, squinting. “Send that image to the Oblignatus, please. Ron, what do you make of this?”
“That was definitely a suicide run,” Ron said. “And that’s not the only one. I’ve seen at least three others. These small ships look like they’re based on sectilian shuttlecraft.”
Jane swallowed hard. She’d thought it couldn’t get worse. It had. “It must have been bad if they resorted to those sorts of tactics.”
“The wreckage just goes on and on,” Ouvaq whispered.
Jane made eye contact with Alan. His expression was bleak.
She felt hollow and empty inside. She’d failed them. All the time and energy she’d put into finding a way to help Earth build a defense of some kind…
“Who do you think won?” Alan asked.
She was afraid to speculate.
“We have a contact,” Brai said.
“A ship just jumped in,” Celui said. “I don’t recognize any of the markings or identification beacons. It must be of terran origin.”
Celui pushed an image of the recently arrived ship onto the main viewscreen. It had clearly seen some action. Sections of the hull were black with damage. Emblazoned on one side in bold red letters was its name: Aegis.
Jane sat up straight. Someone had clearly survived. A small burst of hope bloomed inside her. “Open a channel in the terran range we discussed earlier. Be ready for anything.”
“Channel open, Qua’dux,” Celui said.
“Aegis, this is Quasador Dux Jane Holloway of the Speroancora.” She broke off then. She didn’t know what else to say.
A familiar voice echoed across the bridge. “You’re late.”
Jane would recognize that voice anywhere. She’d heard its gruff tones for more than ten months in that tiny capsule. “Walsh, is that you? Celui, on-screen.”
It was Mark Walsh. On a bridge very much like her own. He was safe.
A hint of a sad smile snuck into his expression. “You’re a sight for sore eyes, Holloway. You know, you missed all the fun just a few weeks ago.”
Her heart thudded out of rhythm. How could she have let this happen? “Weeks? Really? I’m so sorry, Mark. It may be hard to believe but I’ve been trying to get back here for nearly twenty years.”
“Well, you’re here now. Looks like you’ve rounded up a fleet and made a few friends along the way.” His eyes roved over his own viewscreen, and he frowned. “You’re missing a few faces.”
“Ron commands the Oblignatus. Ajaya is with him over there.”
“I’ll be damned. Ron’s got his own ship. You hear that, Tom?” Mark turned sideways so that Jane could see behind him. Tom Compton stood and approached the camera.
“Tom! It’s g
ood to see you.” Tears sprang to Jane’s eyes. It was so good to see her old friends.
One corner of his mouth crooked. “You too, Jane.”
Alan piped up, “So you were able to eliminate the threat?”
Walsh nodded. He looked down. “With heavy losses.”
The silence was deep and long. Jane’s throat ached, empty phrases of condolence and regret lodged there. Nothing she could say was good enough.
They’d done it. She was fiercely proud of them. But they’d suffered greatly. Not long before Feig had said that when the Swarm came, there was always great loss of life. Would it have made a difference if she’d gotten there sooner?
Walsh cleared his throat. “So you’ve come back home. Will you be staying awhile?”
She faltered. “Am I welcome?”
He looked incredulous. “Of course you are. You’re a goddamned hero. The entire planet knows your name. They’ll probably throw parades for you.”
Jane shook her head. She wasn’t a hero. She was just a linguist. “No parades, please. I think I will stay awhile. As long as you need me.”
Walsh huffed. “You damn well better. I’ll tell you straight—we do need you. We don’t know if another flock of these bugs is on its way.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
As a child growing up in rural Illinois, Jennifer Foehner Wells had the wild outdoors, a budding imagination, and books for company.
Her interest in science fiction was piqued early on when a family friend loaned her a collection of Ray Bradbury shorts. That was all it took to set her on a course toward a lifelong love of science and science fiction. She earned a degree in biology in 1995.
Jen’s first novel, Fluency, was a virally successful best seller. Her second novel, Remanence, was nominated for the Goodreads Choice Awards of 2016.
Jen currently lives in Pennsylvania with two boisterous boys, the geekiest literature professor on the planet, three semi-crazed cats, and a five-pound Pekingese/Chihuahua mix that steals hearts and takes names.
If you enjoyed this book, please consider leaving a review on your favorite online site and tell your friends about it, both in person and via social media. Help other readers find it! Support the authors from whom you crave more stories.
ALSO BY JENNIFER FOEHNER WELLS
Novels
Fluency (Confluence Book 1)
Remanence (Confluence Book 2)
Inheritance (Confluence Book 3)
(formerly titled The Druid Gene)
Short Fiction
The Grove
Symbiont Seeking Symbiont
Anthologies
The Future Chronicles—Special Edition
The Future Chronicles—Alien Chronicles
The Future Chronicles—Z Chronicles
The Future Chronicles—Galaxy Chronicles
Dark Beyond the Stars
At the Helm Vol. 1: A Sci-Fi Bridge Anthology
Table of Contents
Copyright
Dedication
Epigraph
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
About the Author
Also by Jennifer Foehner Wells
Explore Confluence
Valence (Confluence Book 4) Page 36