by Ivan Kal
Over the course of the battle Adrian, Old Scar, and Araxi had gotten into a familiar kind of rhythm, with all of them operating as a well-oiled machine. At moments, they almost seemed to even anticipate one another’s moves. It was a truly incredible experience, and one that made Adrian want to fight from a great beast himself. He wondered what that would feel like, to be a part of a being so much larger than himself as they dominated the battlefield. The memories he had from Old Scar did not seem to do it justice.
He had felt something similar before, when he used the World-ship Enduring, when he had fought with it. But that had been different–he had almost been the ship then. It had been a cold experience. Araxi, on the other hand, felt far different.
The two of them broke through the shields of one of the Devastators and kinetic shots from both of them cracked the warship, breaking it apart.
Adrian’s officers let him know that they had taken another hit to their lower shield emitter and he ordered the ship to roll. They hadn’t passed through the battle unscathed–and the Herald was leaking atmosphere from several places. They had to close off three entire decks because one of Valanaru’s Devastators had managed to cut a hole almost five hundred meters into the ship. They had lost some crew, and others were still missing. The repair drones were already attempting to fill the holes with foam and close them.
Araxi had passed through with lighter damage, as Adrian had tended to use the Herald to shield it more. But it, too, had scars upon its hide, and in several places he had seen fluid leak out of it. Somehow, when thinking about it, Adrian hadn’t really thought that the beast would actually bleed. Thankfully it only did for a short while, as some response from its organs stemmed the bleed and closed the hole, the tough hide that covered it shifting slightly to partially cover the hole.
As the one of the Devastators exploded, they turned their attention to the other one which was attempting to run away. They hammered at its back side and disabled its drives, and then shields. After which they moved on, allowing Vorash’s fleet to finish the job.
Adrian could see the flow of battle, and he saw it changing drastically. The enemy fleets were acting disorganized, without purpose. It was almost as if they didn’t know what to do, and Vorash’s commanders were taking advantage of that.
Soon, the battle would be won.
* * *
Araxi’s innards rumbled with a sound that echoed throughout it, making Old Scar send out a few tenders to the injured section to see if they could help Araxi deal with the wound. But even among the pain that Araxi most certainly felt, it was happier than Old Scar had ever seen it.
This was its element, to fight in the void, to hunt its enemies. The fact that it was the only Krashinar beast in the system made it that much more enjoyable. It would have many stories to tell the other beasts of the Great Pack. Tales of a great hunt.
Seeing several of the Betrayers’ vessels speeding up toward them, Old Scar pointed them out to Araxi, and ordered it to fire its long-range weapons. They crossed the void in an instant, punching through the much smaller vessels’ shields and into their hulls, vaporizing their insides and killing the vessels.
Then Araxi felt something, and it moved in a burst of speed in front of the Herald. It flashed its skim-disruption field all around them, forcing the Betrayers’ missiles into normal space, allowing the Herald to deal with them before they became a threat.
Together, acting in concert, the Herald and Araxi were unstoppable, and Old Scar felt something of its old self peek through its scar. It had been a long time since it had been anything other than Old Scar; but ever since its encounter with Adrian, it had felt the call of learning, of seeking. For the first time since the death of the Seventh, Old Scar felt like it could become the Seeker once again.
* * *
The Herald and Araxi dropped out of skim on top of six Devastators that were surrounding and pummeling the Sovereign-class Heart of Courage, which was not moving. One of the Gatrey Devastators had been lucky and had managed to damage the Sovereign’s skim drives. Its surface was scarred, and its shields were down in several sections, but it still was unleashing hell onto the ships attempting to surround it. Super-battleships and battleships were dying by the dozens, yet they still came on.
Araxi accelerated into the formation of three Devastators, firing its weapons as the Herald followed, smiting the ships near it with plasma and putting particle beams into the Devastators.
Like some eldritch horror, Araxi descended on top of one of the Devastators, covering it with its own hull as appendages left its belly burrowing into the warship and coming out on the other side. Then they pulled, splitting the ship into two pieces. The Herald charged its main weapon, and as three of the Devastators aligned themselves in a line, it fired. The weapon burned one entirely, took the back part of the second, and vaporized a hole down the middle of the other.
The Heart of Courage commed their thanks, and the Herald and Araxi continued with their hunt.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Planetside
Ryaana and her group advanced on the command room carefully. Even with Lurker of the Depths saying that all of the troops were dead, they didn’t want to risk relaxing their defenses. On the way, they’d seen a lot more people dead. There was no sign of a struggle–they had just dropped to the ground, and as they neared the command room, they saw that it wasn’t only troops. Techs and the Pillar’s workers had died as well.
Eventually they reached the command room, finding the doors open wide. Inside were around twenty dead, slumped on the floor, looking as if one moment they had been alive, and in the next…just dead.
The more dead she saw, the more Ryaana worried about Lurker of the Depths. She had never seen or heard about such power. It was too much. They made their way to the holo that was still turned on, showing the battle in the system.
Ashah pointed his people to the terminals around the room and in front of the holo, while Ryaana had her people take positions on the doors in case there was someone alive on this level.
“How long until we have control of the network?” Ryaana asked.
“A few minutes. We need to break their encryption and then do a hard reset,” Ashah answered. Ryaana glanced at his people, who were already on the job, and left them to it.
Ryaana walked over to Vas, who was studying the holo map.
“So much death and destruction…” Vas said over their private comm.
“I know, but it is necessary. She would’ve never allowed for peace between us,” Ryaana said.
“Is it necessary? Why are you even fighting? The galaxy is vast enough for all.”
Ryaana tilted her head. She had had the same thoughts before; it seemed foolish to fight. As Vas said, there was enough room for everyone. Yet some people could not be ignored. Some always wanted more, and to see someone else have as much or more was a threat to them.
“There are people who need to be fought. Who cannot be made to see. We don’t fight to conquer. We fight to protect,” Ryaana said.
Vas turned his helmet toward her, but she couldn’t see his face.
“So you think that some things have to be fought? That if something is endangering everything around it by its very existence, it should be destroyed?” Vas asked, his tone somehow…strange.
Ryaana took a moment to think on the question. “Yes,” she answered after a beat. “All other options should be considered, but if there is no other choice, sometimes we have to do horrible things in order to protect those under our care.”
Vas nodded to himself, and fell quiet. Together, they watched the holo. A few minutes later, Ashah approached.
He spoke over their comms, “We have it, we just need to–”
But then a blanket of fire fell over Ryaana’s mind, forcing her to the ground. She writhed in pain as her mind was assaulted. She put her hands over her head, but it didn’t help. She struggled to bring her defenses back over her mind, but it was useless to attempt. With the co
rner of her eye she saw the rest of their group on the floor, twitching in pain. Beside her, Vas was down on one knee, his hand clutching the holo table strongly enough to dent it.
Then she saw no more. Her sight turned to black as the pain threatened to overwhelm her completely.
* * *
Lurker of the Depths looked at Valanaru. Her power radiated outward, and she was far removed from his memories of her. She was skinnier, her skin haggard, her eyes bloodshot. Her robes hung loosely over her slim form, and every once in a while her hand would twitch uncontrollably. She was a shadow of the person he had faced before.
But that did not mean that her shadow was not a dangerous one. Animals were at their most dangerous when they were wounded. She held more power now than she had long ago.
“Did Heart of the Mountain sent you?” Valanaru asked with burning hate.
“I sent myself,” Lurker of the Depths responded calmly.
“So eager to meet your death, Lurker of the Depths?” Valanaru asked.
“It is not I who will die this day,” Lurker of the Depths told her, radiating calm.
He could see that his statement had infuriated her. She attempted to calm herself and project the same air of control as he. She failed, and then frowned, and Lurker of the Depths felt her confusion, almost as if she couldn’t remember what she was attempting to do. She stayed confused for a few more moments, and then her eyes again focused on Lurker of the Depths as if seeing him for the first time.
“I will have my revenge, Lurker of the Depths. You cannot be allowed to live, not after defying my mind.” The words were spilling out of her.
Lurker of the Depths didn’t respond. He kept himself calm and collected. He saw her eyes darken when she didn’t get a response, and angrily she extended a hand, one finger extended at him.
“Then you’ll die in silence, and all will know that none may stand against me.” She gathered her mind and in one impressive feat of strength threw it at Lurker of the Depths. The energy of her mind shook the air between them as it was transferred from her to him through the Sha.
Her will smashed against his shields, and he didn’t bother stopping her. In a move his former student had once used against the Weaver, he let her inside of his mind, then grabbed her and guided her through the farthest reaches of his mind, pulling her inside of his mind construct.
Suddenly, they were no longer inside a small room, on a single world among the stars. Instead, they found themselves on the Sowir homeworld, in a cavern deep beneath its ocean.
Valanaru’s eyes bulged as she realized she was underwater, and he saw her struggle to breathe. And then she realized that they were inside a construct and that she had no need to breathe, not if she did not allow the illusion of the water to touch her. With a struggle, she managed enough control to regain her composure, at least somewhat.
Their avatars stared at each other for a few moments, until Valanaru narrowed her eyes at him.
“You’ve made a mistake, Lurker of the Depths,” Valanaru taunted, with hate coating her words. “You shouldn’t have let me inside of your mind.”
“You should know better, Weaver of the Erasi. A telepath is only as strong as their mind. And yours is crumbling,” Lurker of the Depths said sadly as he unleashed tendrils of his mind into her defenses, probing her will. She recoiled and swiped a hand toward him, manifesting rocks that flew toward his avatar.
Lurker of the Depths third arm turned to the side and a wave of water enveloped the rocks, sending them flying past him and then back toward the Weaver.
She put her hands up and a beam of light exploded out of her fingers, vaporizing the rocks and the water, only to come near Lurker of the Depths and splinter around him.
“I am disappointed, Weaver,” Lurker of the Depths told her. She was too unstable to break through his defenses; her will no match for his.
“No, no, no, no, no, no, no…” she chanted as her arms raised to cover her head.
In that moment, Lurker of the Depths felt sad for the pitiful creature she had become. Once she had been proud, terrible, and strong. Now she was insane, broken, and weak.
Her eyes raised and met his with only insanity in her gaze. “You will not win. You will not defeat ME!” Valanaru screamed, and he felt her gather all of her will, all of her emotions, and a whirlpool of power churned around her–and then he felt a sliver of her being, just a tiny piece of it, touch the song of the Universe. Her power swelled and through the small connection to the song of the Universe, her hate echoed across the Sha all around them with intensity enough to burn minds to cinder.
Lurker of the Depths’ defenses faltered, and he looked at her in surprise.
“DIE!” Valanaru screamed, and she sent the burning whirlpool at him.
Keeping himself calm, Lurker of the Depths touched the song of the Universe, and his being dropped into the ocean that was the Sha. He felt himself touch all that it touched all around them.
Her attack smashed against him and was met with a might of a calm ocean. It broke as Lurker of the Depths allowed his calm to spread through the Sha, calming her burning hate. And then, looking the disbelieving Valanaru in the eyes, he threw the weight of his mind against her.
The weight of an ocean crashed down on her mind and ground it to nothingness.
Out in the real world, Valanaru’s body fell to the ground and was still.
* * *
Aranis felt the burning hatred spreading through the Sha, its attack not focused on him, yet still affecting all around it with its intensity. He fell down to his knee holding himself up with his arm on the table. Around him, the rest of the group fell to the ground, writhing in pain.
Even he struggled for a moment to push the pain away–and then the hate was washed away as a new presence dropped into the Sha, its mind vast and calm. It swept the burning rage away and crashed down on it, crushing it under its weight.
And, just like that, it was finished.
Ryaana turned, struggling to get to her feet. Aranis did not trust himself to stand–not because he was hurt, but because he did not believe what he had felt. None but the Enlightened were supposed to be able to do that, and yet Lurker of the Depths had. The force of his mind matched even that of Loranis, the strongest telepath among them.
“What was that?” someone asked over the comms.
“I’m thinking Valanaru and Lurker of the Depths,” Ryaana said, her voice shaking.
The people started helping each other up, and Ryaana walked over to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. “Vas, are you all right?”
Aranis didn’t respond; instead, he simply nodded his head. He needed to act more affected than he truly was. Ryaana looked like she wanted to ask more, but she stopped herself.
“Did he win?” one of the Erasi asked.
“Seeing as we are not dead, I think that he has,” Ryaana said, before turning to one of the Sha commandos in the room. “Go and check,” she ordered and then turned to Ashah.
“Do we have the control of the Pillar?” Ryaana asked.
“Yes,” Ashah responded.
“Then send a message to O’fa Vorash that the mission was successful.”
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Space
Vorash almost didn’t believe it when they got the message that they had control over the network again–and then, just a few moments later, they were informed that Valanaru was dead. Cheering exploded inside the room, and Vorash allowed himself a smile. Then he turned to Hammu.
“Send a message to the Gatrey fleet–inform them that we have control of the Pillar and that Valanaru is dead. If they surrender, I promise leniency for their crimes,” Vorash said. He did not intend on letting anyone go unpunished, but giving a lighter sentence to end this bloodbath was something he was willing to do.
“Right away, O’fa,” Hammu said.
Vorash looked at the holo, seeing that his forces had nearly won. There was nothing left for the rebels to fight for. Their leader was dead,
and with the Pillar back in Vorash’s possession, they had the link to the Erasi. He only hoped that the rebels would not decide to fight to the death.
Vorash turned his eyes to the new prompts that were jumping out. With the network again being free of Valanaru’s influence, the star systems could communicate freely between themselves, and his prompts started filling up with comm requests and messages. The rest of the Erasi was in chaos: confusion and misinformation had hampered many systems.
And now it was Vorash’s job to sort it all out.
“O’fa,” Hammu said as he approached. “Some of the Gatrey are surrendering, although not all. A few fleets are attempting to flee. Should we let them go?”
Vorash grimaced. He didn’t want any more blood spilled, but he also couldn’t let so many fleets leave to be a problem later. With a heavy heart, he looked at Hammu. “Hunt them down. Keep offering surrender, but if they refuse…destroy them all.”
Hammu gave him a grave look. “As you will, O’fa.”
Allowing those fleets to escape would be bad. He did not have the time nor the resources to put down all the fires that they could start.
Vorash looked at the chaos in the system. It was going to take him a long time to sort everything out, but the Erasi were his. Now, he could start on a path to changing things; now, he was going to be able to truly forge the Erasi into what they always should’ve been. Fulfill a promise he had given long ago.
* * *
Old Scar felt Araxi’s disappointment that the Hunt had come to an end, and offered its understanding. Adrian had informed him of the death of the Betrayer of the Oaths, and it did not know how to feel about that. It was a thing Old Scar had always knew would happen, yet it had never expected it to in this manner. The Long Hunt was over, and the Krashinar had had their desire satisfied. It was not the revenge that they had wanted, but justice had been served for the one who had tricked them and betrayed them.