Trial by Ice (A Star Too Far)

by Calouette, Casey

  The streets emptied quickly until they were the only ones padding through. The stillness of the air was broken by a mechanical hiss coming from the refineries. Whatever was inside never slept.

  They came upon the boundary road that encircled the complex. Heaps of slag sat just away from a three meter fence. The road was a thing of dust and ruts. Every load of stamped ore followed that path to the main gate.

  William poked his head over the slag rise and took in the sight. Sebastien lay next to him mumbling numbers to himself. Jebediah slinked away to scout the return route.

  The perimeter of the building was wreathed in orange sodium lights while the upper reaches were dark. The building was an industrial featureless gray. William knew the razor pods were above in the darkness and feared to see them released again. The guilt rose inside of him.

  The main gate led to a receiving area. This was flanked on either side by storage yards, heaped with containers of overburden. Beyond was the entry doors, unfortunately closed. No patrol was seen in that orange glare.

  William crunched back down the slag rise. "What do you think?"

  Sebastien shrugged. "It's a prefab, it'll be mostly hollow inside. The problem will be keeping them from turtling up and just launching the drones."

  "Suggestions?"

  "Fire always works," Sebastien replied with a smile.

  "But what would burn?" William asked as he pictured a steel building filled with refined ore.

  "Grenades," Sebastien replied seriously.

  "Grenades?"

  Sebastien nodded with a wide smile. "Grenades."

  "We get the civilians to rush the fence and move in using those containers for cover. Once they can clear that gate we can move in on the flank."

  "They get some grenades?" William asked. He pictured a rabid mob being mowed down at the gates.

  "And we give them a few of our weapons too."

  William turned to the Marine with a curious look. "Why some of ours?"

  "We’ve got a few weapons that are almost out of ammo and also to confuse the enemy. They'll have no idea where they got them from. They know someone is here, but not who."

  William nodded. He understood the logic but didn't relish the bloodshed that would befall the civilians.

  Footsteps crept in through the dark along the slag heap. William and Sebastien laid low in the shadows. It was a 30 meter sprint to reach more cover. Jebediah had gone a different direction.

  "Shh, just wait," Sebastien whispered.

  William slowed his breathing and turned his head slightly till it rested on the cool slag. It tickled his bearded cheek as he waited for the walker. His eyes adjusted to the orange glow and a man stepped into view.

  A single orange pinprick flared for a second before dimming again. The hint of tobacco smoke wafted over William. As the person approached, William saw a stubby assault rifle was slung over his shoulder.

  The cigarette flared once more. Footsteps came closer at a leisurely pace. The man had his eyes raised to the sky. He stared at the brightest pinpricks of light that pierced the foggy veil.

  William could feel himself begin to sweat. As long as the man kept his eyes skyward he'd not see them. But if he looked down there would be no doubt that he and Sebastien would be seen. He reached into his jacket and slid out the polymer blade as quietly as he could manage.

  The blade rested in his fingers with the tip bedded in the slag. The man came closer. The rifle slung on his side was tempting, but in this case would drag him into trouble, not out of it.

  Sebastien laid next to him in silence. William could feel his breath against his neck. Whatever happened William would be the first one to act, though the augment would back him up, he was sure of it.

  The walker was so close now he could hear the cigarette crackle as he inhaled. William closed his eyes to the barest slit and watched. The man was at the end of the cigarette. He stopped, turned, and arced the spent ember over the slag pile. Over William and Sebastien.

  There was a moment of recognition where the man was admiring the arc of the embers. His eyes slid down that rustled bank and over an unknown form. William sensed it. He could feel that recognition as the man stopped. It gnawed in his stomach and he sprang up.

  The man reached behind and stepped backwards in a smooth motion. The rifle was momentarily out of reach. The polymer blade came in as the man panicked to reach the rifle.

  William pushed it in just below his sternum and held the blade rigidly in his hands. The initial softness gave way to a stiff springiness. The scent of tobacco smoke and a hint of musky cologne hit his nose. The man gasped and dropped to the ground.

  The rifle clattered from his grip as the sling came loose. His knees wobbled for a slight second and then he stiffened. William had never seen a man die to a knife wound before.

  Had he known better he would have stripped the blade out and pushed it in once more. But he didn't and the man turned and lurched away. The polymer blade pierced into his breast. The man was dead, but his body didn't know it yet.

  A low moan built into an intense scream as the stabbed man gained momentum. William sprinted after and tackled him onto the ground. The mass of the man squirmed and moaned in agony.

  Why isn't he dead? What the hell is he doing? William couldn't fathom why the man wasn't dying. To him a knife wound seemed basic, something you succumb to. Little did he know that it was the most agonizing way to die. His blade had missed all critical organs, the man was simply bleeding to death like a stuck animal.

  The thrashing came next as the animal inside woke and tried to escape the piercing wound. William grasped the shoulders and shook the man, slamming his chest into the ground. A piece of slag glittered nearby. He scooped it up and drove the raw glassy edges against the mans head. Once. Twice. Three times.

  The final blow caved the skull in and the man was silent and still.

  William caught his breath. His heart was humming like a tuned engine. His arms were sore and his joints felt metallic. He turned hurriedly and saw Sebastien watching him, still laying on the ground where he left him.

  "Why didn't you help?" William said through the darkness.

  Sebastien stood slowly and walked over. He grasped the leg of the dead man and drug him the thirty meters into the truly dark divide between the buildings. "Sometimes you gotta know a mans got it in him." He dropped the leg with a thud. "There's a trust now, we get into a fight and I know."

  William was without words as he stood in the shadows.

  Sebastien kneeled down and stripped the body of anything useful. He yanked the knife free and tossed it to William. The stubby assault rifle was unlike the other weapons. "Hun," Sebastien mumbled as he slung it onto his shoulder.

  The adrenaline seeped out and the sickness came back. He wasn’t retching, but the metallic taste was deep in his throat. All he wanted to do was go and sleep. He felt tarnished, dull, but not remorseful. He walked away wondering if that should bother him.

  The night grew damp as the dim moon poked out from between the rolling pews of fog. William couldn’t help but feel that it held an air of mystery. This feeling soon ebbed as he realized he was still hungry. The thought of a proper meal was ever on the edge of his mind.

  He wondered what he had become. An hour before he stabbed a man to death, now he was wondering if Leduc could steal something other than porridge. He followed behind Sebastien and the local guide Jebediah. He was fairly sure Jebediah was drunk, but drunk like someone who operates in a permanent haze of ethanol.

  They turned into the hovels that bordered the abandoned stamp mill and loud voices carried through the air. William patted the pistol as he ran low behind Sebastien. He peeked around a corner and saw a group of men arguing with Crow and David.

  William stepped out and walked towards the group. “What is this?” he said angrily. “Keep your damn voices down. Sergeant, what’s going on here?”

  The civilians were grouped behind David. The group stood on heels with ar
ms crossed and eyes glittering in the orange. None of them looked excited to see the liberators.

  “Bit of a disagreement Sir,” Crow said softly. His weapon, while not pointed at them wasn’t pointing in a friendly way.

  “We want you out, you’re going to get us killed,” yelled a man in dirty orange coveralls. He shook his fist and stamped as he spoke.

  The group of men around him nodded with stiff chins.

  The man was emboldened by his cohorts. “What gives you the right?” he asked with eyes hazed by alcohol. “To come here and decide our fate?” He stomped to the side and pointed to the glow in the sky. “What if we like it? What do you bring? My grandchildren aren’t sick, no one starves!” The man spat and glared at William.

  William stood and stared at the group of men. He knew what they were thinking, he debated it himself. He wanted to look to Sebastien, or find Vito, but he knew that it stopped here. They wanted answers, from him, now. “Had I had a choice we’d have come in and done this the proper way. Unfortunately that didn’t happen and we’re forced to do this the hard way.”

  “Gonna get us shot!” the orange suited man howled.

  “Do you enjoy being slaves?” William asked quietly as he turned his head to stare into the orange glow of the refinery.

  “We can leave whenever we want,” the orange suited man said smugly as he crossed his arms over his chest.

  “All of you? Or your children in ten years? Step back and look, everything you have is different, they can take what they want, do as they please, or simply burn you from orbit. You have nothing but the trifles they allow,” William spat as he spoke. He pointed up at the shadow of the stamp mill. “You’re nothing but a tool, to make a product, to be discarded and scrapped when finished, or repurposed into something unpleasant.”

  “We have what we need, just leave!”

  William snorted. “Has David told you about the Covenant? Told you the protection it holds?”

  “Lies from a snake, nothing but a politician he was.”

  William was afraid that David wasn’t everything he said to be. “Did he tell you that you can do as you please, trade freely, and get the protections to prevent this slavery?”

  “We’re not slaves!” the man slurred.

  “Bullshit, you know it, the look in your eyes spells it, and the hunch in your back proves it. You aren’t descended from fearful men, go find your roots, know that this isn’t how it was.”

  “But we’ll be shot!”

  “You’ll be shot anyways,” William snapped. He had turned the tide from fear of the unknown to fear of the obvious. “Fight with us and gain the freedom to choose your future. Stand on this day and your planet will remember it forever, bow down and you’ll be forgotten in weeks, whispered only as the men who would not stand.”

  The air hung with dampness in a dim orange glare. Even the drunk man in orange stared into the darkness at his feet. This was the future, their future, and they would decide it.

  “Make your choice, our time is running thin. We might die without your help, but all of us will wake tomorrow morn as truly free men,” William said as he walked slowly into the shadows.

  Quick footsteps crunched in the gravel behind him. William turned with Sebastien as Selim ran up with Leduc, Vito, and Avi behind him. Avi looked hyped and even the serene Leduc had a glimmer in his eye. Vito looked simply out of breath and tired.

  Selim took a single, slow, deep breath and a snap salute. “Mr. Grace,” he said eying the civilian crowd. “May we speak inside?”

  William nodded towards the inside of the stamp mill. “Of course Sergeant, after you.”

  Selim stepped out of earshot of the civilians. The group stood and argued with a reinvigorated David. “We saw Grue.”

  William took a breath. He hadn’t expected that news. “Are you sure?”

  “Absolutely, we were scouting the elevator and saw him come through on a troop truck. They started reinforcing the terminal.”

  “Wait a second, he was with the mercs?”

  Selim nodded excitedly. “He didn’t have a weapon, but he was definitely with them.”

  Now William understood the excitement. The enemy knew they were here, and more importantly who they were. But what about Berry?

  David walked into the conversation with his son by his side. The pair stood off to the side waiting for permission to come closer. David looked worn, tired, old.

  “What is it David?” William asked as he beckoned them forward.

  “They will stand with us, for now, but none of them are satisfied, they have much to lose if this doesn’t succeed.”

  “So how is it then, you were once in charge here, and now they are?”

  David nodded slowly. “Something like that.”

  “We’re not involved in your politics, we’ve got a mission and then we’re gone, use us as a crutch at your own peril,” William said as he pointed a finger at the old man. “Get your people ready, we strike at shift change. Sergeant, get everyone back and ready, time to get this done with.”

  The pair walked out slowly. Peter turned, framed in the orange light and spoke. “You’ll lose just your lives if this fails, we’ll lose our planet, our families, our future.”

  William looked Peter in the eyes with cold eyes and nodded. “I’m the only one here who truly understands what that means. We’ll do our part, you do yours.”

  Peter looked back in silence and then turned and walked away.

  The weapon was laid out in blocky segments. Each piece simple but precise. A polished plate, an oval pin, a serrated slot. Each one snapped into the next as Tik checked her weapon once more.

  “Tik. You’re with Hess,” Selim said as he looked down at the weapon.

  She looked up and shook her head. “I’m with the fireteam Sergeant.”

  “Negative, I can see the limp. You’re in reserve,” Selim replied.

  “Sergeant, I can do more pull-ups than anyone here, I think-” she protested.

  “No.” Selim shook his head. “If you fall behind you hold the squad up.”

  Tik nodded knowing better than to argue. She seethed inside as the NCO walked away. She checked the action once more and slammed it home with a smack of her palm. She hadn’t come all this damn way to sit on the sidelines and watch the men handle the work.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Assault

  William blinked away the sleep and was greeted by a dull orange glow not of the rising sun but of the sodium lamps. He let out a slight sigh. This was it. The morning that would tell whether or not he would reach for the stars or was buried in a ditch.

  He fell in with the rest of the men and ate from the rough bag of rye porridge. The bitter taste lingered on his tongue, the slick tallow as the only flavoring besides salt. The hunger was kept at bay, but his body still demanded something more. Visions of thin crackling sausages teased him as the featureless paste went down.

  Eyes were on him as he ate in silence. Vito plopped down and scooped at the meal quietly. William looked around and caught glances on occasion. The adrenaline was rising through the room. The fight was itching to get started.

  Sergeant Selim sat down with his legs crossed near William. He tapped his leg and nodded to himself as he waited for William to eat.

  Sebastien came with Crow and both squatted, completing the circle. The time had arrived. He scraped the plastic bowl one last time and nodded. The civilians were waiting outside.

  “Go over it once more,” Sebastien said softly with his eyes closed.

  Crow began. “Mr Grace, Sebastien, Myself, Aleksandr, Avi, Xinhu, and Xan all hit the complex.”

  Selim went next. “I’ve got Vito, Tero, Leduc, Kerry, Eduardo, O’Toole, with Tik and Von Hess in backup.”

  Sebastien nodded and tapped the ground. “The plan?”

  William responded. “Keep it simple.”

  Selim finished the phrase, “Because it’s going to change.”

  “Right, we blow our way into the r
efinery once the civilians hit the front door. While the civilians jam the door and set some grenades off. We move in and make our way up,” Sebastien said with a sweep of his hand.

  “Elevator crew will hold the forces there down and wait until the refinery is secured. Once the main asset is down we siege,” Selim said.

  William felt like a fifth wheel bouncing along the back. He listened and nodded with each NCO.

  “Mr. Grace, stick with Avi, his job is to keep you out of trouble,” Sebastien said with a tilt of his head in Avi’s direction.

  “We’re going to need every man, I can work,” William said as he was cut off.

  “In case you didn’t notice you’re the only one here who knows how to command a spaceship,” Sebastien said in a simple tone. “You’re lucky I’m not making you sit it out, but we do need all our forces.”

  William knew he was right and nodded. He just hated the thought of being stuck in back while other men were shooting and being shot before him. He patted the pistol in his jacket just to make sure it was there.

  “Civilians armed?” Sebastien asked.

  “They’ve got a mix of rifles, except the Hun room buster, I’m taking that.” Crow said.

  “Crow and Aleksandr are the assault bunnies. That pattern armor is some pretty nice stuff,” Sebastien said as he patted Crow’s shoulder.

  “I wish we had a drone bunny,” Eduardo mumbled.

  The Soldiers and Marines nodded around the room.

  “Drone bunny?” Tero asked with a nervous smirk.

  Von Hess spoke up. “We prefer to have the Striders group around a point man and seek out trouble in, um, tight spots I think is the word.”

  “They take the risks in close quarters combat,” Eduardo said.

  “So why the term bunny?” Xan asked.

  “Dog racing,” Eduardo stated simply.

  “Oh,” Xan replied a bit confused.

  Sebastien looked annoyed at the questions. “Move fast and hit hard, we’ve got one shot at this. They know we’re here, so make it count. Stick behind the guys in armor.” He looked to the Naval crew. “Stick in cover otherwise.” He looked around the room and asked, “Questions?”