The Great Talisman (Intersect Book 2)

by M C I Hinchliffe

  Ryan said to James and Kim Lee, “When I say now, go through the hole. We will cover you.”

  Ryan looked at Adam. “Are you ready?”

  “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

  They stood back to back as Ryan said, “Go.” They shot a stream of energy at an obtuse angle at the far wall and kept firing as they entered the corridor. As the angle of incidence decreased the beam swept across the width of the corridor until it no longer was being deflected of a wall. When able to view directly down the corridor, Ryan and Adam could see the effect of their tactics. Several of the Warrians had fallen to the sweeping beam though only those at the front were struck. Three times that number still remained and were all crouched down below the height of the lethal blast.

  For a brief moment the Warrians were in a defensive position and Ryan was not going to waste that moment. “Now!” He shouted.

  James and Kim Lee ran across the corridor and scurried through the hole in the wall. Ryan and Adam immediately fell in behind them leaving an empty corridor for the Warrians blast apart. The moment they were through the hole, the corridor was lit up by a barrage of fire. The room they entered housed a series of fusion generators and power distribution frames. Just beside the hole that Adam had made was one of the generators.

  “That was a little close for comfort.” Adam announced to the others as he examined the scorch mark on the generator panel.

  Kim Lee asked, “What is it.”

  “It’s a Nuclear Fusion Generator.” James answered. If he had hit the generator, everything within a five hundred metre radius would have reached the temperature of a sun.”

  Ryan took out two mines from his utility belt and threw them in either direction down the corridor, then retreated behind one of the generators with the others. Two thunderous blasts echoed down the corridor followed by small pieces of Warrian matter skating past the hole.

  Adam stuck his head out the hole for a moment to see the result of Ryan’s grenades only to have a barrage of fire attempt to sever his head. He retracted immediately from the hole and made his report, “There is more than before and now they are really pissed!”

  “Pass me a grenade, I’m all out.” Ryan said to Adam.

  “Why, I just said it was a waste of time.” Adam took one from his utility belt and tossed it to Ryan.

  Ryan adjusted the timer and slapped the small sphere to the blind side of the generator. The magnetic plate on its base allowed it to stick to the vertical panel. “Ten minutes should be enough. We need to get as far away from here as possible.”

  “Sounds good to me.” Adam replied as he aimed at the opposite wall to the hole he just blasted and shot another great pulse of energy. The wall erupted like the other as Ryan protected James and Kim Lee from the flying debris as they cowered behind the generator. Adam stepped through the hole and a moment later his hand popped back through with a thumbs up signal. Ryan covered the others as they stepped through the hole then backed through behind them.

  They emerged onto one of the circular walkways that bordered the central cavern. The Walkway was deserted, though some activity was visible on the far side. The Warrians would be upon them before the Mighty Mice could fly over to pick them up, and Ryan doubted they would reach them without being intercepted, so they needed to get closer. They charged along the walkway to the right with Adam and Kim Lee helping James to keep up. They traversed only a few hundred metres before energy fire from the pursuing Warrians impacted around them. The pace was reduced dramatically as they continued hunched over using the solid guard rail as cover.

  Then their flight came to an abrupt halt. Further around the walkway appeared a platoon of Warrian soldiers who added to the shower of fire. The four were cornered.

  Ryan shouted to Adam as he returned fire. “I won’t be long before they cover us from above.”

  “I’m open for options?” Adam replied.

  Suddenly Kim Lee clutched her head and screamed in pain, then collapsed to the walkway floor. Adam shouted to James as he returned cover fire, “Is she hit?”

  “No, it is the Emperor. He is doing it again.” He said as he cradled her in his arms.

  “Adam, I need a moment.” Ryan said as he lowered his gun and saw to Kim Lee.

  “Roger that.” Adam replied as he spun from side to side returning fire.

  Ryan turned Kim Lee’s agony stricken face towards him and said. “Kim Lee, Look at me.”

  When her eyes met his the Rings of Karn came to life. James saw a strange illumination that shone through Ryan’s A.A.E.E.V suit and wondered what connection there was between him and the Warrian Emperor.

  Ryan projected his mind through her eyes, down the optic nerve and into her brain. Amongst the menagerie of neuro links was the point that Zardon was slowly killing her. The Rings guided him through the millions of electrochemical connections like a guided missile to Zardon’s point of contact. To his mind’s eye, Ryan was passing through a maze of flesh coloured tunnels with a point in the distance that was the source of his quest. He abruptly came upon it, a black cancerous lump that was growing before his eyes.

  Ryan accosted the growth with his mind and watched it shrink away to nothing, then drew the stream of hate that poured down upon her to himself. For a moment, Ryan and Zardon were locked together in a mental battle for supremacy. The years of training paid off and Ryan pushed Zardon’s will away and back to its source. A sentence of words were projected into Ryan’s mind, “I’m coming for you little man.”

  Ryan replied to the message. “I’ll be waiting.” His consciousness returned to the physical world about him. Ryan was standing over the gawking faces of James and Kim Lee, and in front of him was Adam, equally as shocked. The fire fight had stopped.

  Adam broke the silence. “How the hell did you do that?”

  Ryan looked about and saw the carnage of bodies that once were the Warrian platoons that had them cornered. The great force he applied to push back Zardon’s will spilled over onto the fire fight. The shots fired by the Warrians were sent back to their point of origin with devastating consequences. The ramifications of the incident will need to be dealt with later, but right now his concerns were focused upon Kim Lee. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes, much better. What did you do?”

  “I’ll explain later. First we need to get out of here.” He called for the Mighty Mice before the next wave of Warrians arrived.

  **********

  The Warrians returned to their flawless battle form and continued to slaughter the Strike Force. From his advantage point, John fired into the fray in the hope to mortally wound some Warrians. Sometimes he hit his target but the Warrians used the reflective properties of their armour to deflect the blast away harmlessly. The battle moved closer and closer until it was almost upon him. His heart began to race faster as impending death loomed; he had to get more fire power. He stood up and grabbed Sarah’s gun that she left behind, removed his helmet then readied himself to meet the Warrians face to face.

  The Battle flowed up the hill until it swallowed him up. Around was a sensory nightmare, with friend and foe massed together in a Chaos of flashing light, blood and death.

  He said to himself as he looked at the blue sky above, “Yes, it is a good day to die.” With a cry that bellowed from the very depths of his body, he opened fire.

  Somewhere in the human mind was the ability to the do seemingly impossible. The part of the brain they enabled a man to drive a car at hundreds of kilometres an hour around a winding race circuit and stay alive. To be able to react in a split second without thinking, to perform hundreds of tasks per minute, minute after minute, hour after hour without error. One of the reasons why John was chosen was his highly developed ability to do just this.

  One of John’s passions was computer games, and spent countless hours in games simulators honing his special ability to the point where the games were no longer a challenge. He began to write his own computer games that would push him to the limit and beyon
d. Games that his friends couldn’t play as they would not survive more than a few seconds. John would play his games hour after hour making him stand out from the thousands of potential recruits that Katie had to choose from each day.

  John shouted, “AAAARRRHHHH!” Both hands were extended as he let loose the fiery death from the weapons he held. At this close range the Warrians could not dodge the beams of energy. One after another, the Warrians fell at the hand of John Cerrico. His skill was so lethal that in moments, no Warrian remained within his vicinity. He pushed forward into the fray to surround himself with the gruesome war. More and more Warrians fell to his hand until the Warrian Battle Force identified him as a real threat.

  From above dropped several Warrians right on top of him. His gift brought about the demise of half the Warrians that accosted him, but even his superhuman ability was not able to thwart so many, so near, and the Warrian blades came down upon him.

  Out of nowhere an energy blade severed three Warrians in two. John managed to block two of the blades with his guns but the headless third caught him on the thigh. Fortunately, the dead arm of the Warrian that wielded the blade had weakened the force behind the strike in reaction to having its head removed. Despite the fact the blow only cut part way through his leg, the piercing agony still sucked away his will to stand and John fell to the ground. He looked up to see who had delivered him from certain death, and he noticed the flowing blonde locks of Sarah reacting to her smooth sweeping strokes as she butchered the Warrians about her.

  The soldier that sat next to him on the CAT had told of her ferocious battle skills, but he could not believe that such sweet looking girl had it in her. He couldn’t be more wrong. Sarah fought with a strength, style, speed and grace that equalled the dark clad warlords about her. Only there was a passion that drove her that he could only imagine that a berserk mind could contain. That passion gave her an edge over her opponents and they fell quickly under her commanding blade.

  Fewer and fewer of the strike force remained to hold back the Warrian Battle Force, and soon the commotion caused by Sarah’s defiance drew them to her. Surrounding Sarah was a wall of Warrian death that slowly but surely constricted her motion. Under her feet was a hill of carnage that rivalled the battle fields of old and upon which she stood in triumph. She cut, parried and foiled everything that came near her as the mountain of death she stood upon grew and grew. Only the sheer volume of Warrian numbers were able to stop her berserk frenzy and eventually she was crushed under a black mass of Warrian Soldiers.

  The vision of Sarah being destroyed tore at his very soul. John could feel the adrenaline fuelled rage within him grow until it reach boiling point, then he snapped. The agony from his leg was drowned out by his extreme emotions enabling John to pull himself to his feet. As a great rush of blood seeped from the wound in his leg, he recommenced his barrage of gun fire. The Warrians that surrounded Sarah fell like dominoes as he swept his gun fire from side to side. In moments, thirty Warrians had met a brutal end leaving a blood splattered gory mass that heaped metres above the bare earth.

  John staggered over to where Sarah had fallen and picked off the remaining Warrians that still possessed some remanence of life. He dragged away several carcasses to find Sarah’s still frame and pulled her out. He body seemed intact apart from a number of breaches to her A.A.E.E.V. armour though she was drenched in Warrian and human blood. He cradled her lifeless body as tears poured from his eyes. “Why you? Why did they have to kill you? “We needed you to survive....I needed you.”

  What ounces of sanity remained had now gone, as madness ruled. He released Sarah and screamed as he opened fire again. His onslaught destroyed every black clad alien as far as the eye could see. When there was nothing left to kill, he raised his weapons and released his rage upon the sky above until both gun were drained of energy. Casting the weapons aside, he fell to his knees and sobbed over the body of Sarah.

  As he hugged her and stroked her soft blonde hair, a weak voice came from under him “Can you stop that,..... your making a clean spot.”

  John looked down to see Sarah’s eyes flicker open. “You’re alive! Are okay? I can’t tell what is your blood and what’s not.” He said as he wiped away the tears trickling down his face.

  “I don’t know,... I can’t feel a thing.... Am I still in one piece?” She asked as a trickle of blood flowed from the corner of her mouth.

  “As far as I can tell.”

  The blood that pooled up from her innards made it difficult to voice her thoughts. However, she persisted. “Hey mister dark horse,.... why didn’t you tell me you were..... so good with a gun?”

  “I didn’t know I had it in me.”

  “Next time..... be quicker about it.” As they stared into each other’s eyes Sarah said. “Kiss me.”

  “Sorry?” John replied in confusion.

  “I said, “She paused for a moment to clear her throat. “Kiss me.”

  John leaned closer and brought his lips to touch Sarah’s. Despite the ichor that smeared her face, John savoured the softness and warmth of her lips, and his heart thumped as hard as if he were in the full of battle.

  When he retracted she said softly, “You saved my life.... It may be the only way I can repay you.”

  “Hey, you saved me first. Besides, we will have plenty of time for paying dues.”

  “John, I’m all banged up. I can’t make it back to the CAT and you won’t make it carrying me.”

  “Let me worry about that.....”

  John stopped as the sound of two Mighty Mice flew overhead towards a CAT nearby. “John, can you do me one favour?”

  “Sure, name it.”

  “Give the signal for evacuation.”

  “I think I can manage that.”

  **********

  After the evacuation order was given, most of the remaining few hundred troopers mad it back to the CATs, but many were cut down and left to bleed to death. With Sarah draped over his shoulder, John fought his way to within a hundred metres of a CAT, but was cut off by Warrians returning from a failed siege. Once the Troopers were on board, there was no way the Warrians could breach the tough hull of a CAT with only hand held weapons. Surrounded by the enemy, John watched in despair as the CAT lifted off the ground. The nearest CAT was now over a kilometre away with no hope of reaching it. John placed Sarah at his feet as he retrieved the guns of two fallen comrades. In preparation for a fight to the death he said, “Well if we are going to die, I’m going to take as many of these bastards as I can with us.”

  Sarah uttered under her weak breath, “Now that’s my kind of guy!”

  He waited until they were almost upon them, then he opened fire. Again his gift took the souls of many as he unleashed his anguish. When the CAT passed directly over him, the weapons in his hands ceased to fire from depleted energy levels. He shouted to the CAT above, “Make our lives count for something!”

  The Warrians swarmed in and as their blades raised to finish off their defeated foe, a bright light appeared about Sarah and John. The blades slashed at the two figures only to strike the ground beneath. The light had swallowed up Sarah and John, and they were gone.

  **********

  The engines of the Mighty Mice wound down while the canopies opened to let the passengers alight. Ryan got out from the X300 and extended his hand to assist James. He remained in the seat with his head bowed.

  “Uncle James you can’t stay here, I must get you to a launch seat in the hold.”

  “So many lives.” James said quietly. “And their blood is on my hands.”

  Ryan climbed back in. “If we never came to get you we could never had planted that grenade. In less than two minutes their super fighters and the Tick station will be destroyed.”

  James looked at him with a disdain that took Ryan by surprise. “You stupid boy, don’t you see? The Warrians are far too meticulous to overlook that grenade. They will find it and my only chance for retribution has been lost. I could have corrupted the pr
ogram download before we went to get Kim Lee. It would have taken but a few moments, but all I could think of was Kim Lee.”

  “Kim Lee is safe now, and if the grenade is discovered then somehow then we will find some other way. Now I need to get you to a seat.” After a few moments James surrendered to Ryan’s direction and left the Mighty Mouse.

  **********

  Tork marched down the walkway behind the rest of the twenty strong platoon that were on route to the last known location of the escaping humans. The last notice that was paged a few moments ago said the platoons that had the humans cornered were mysteriously wiped out. The thought of unnatural forces being responsible for their untimely demise sent a chill down his thick scaly spine. To squash the fear, he directed his thoughts to the prospect of a new type of hand held weapon being responsible. The humans seemed to have an inexhaustible supply of new and fantastic weapons to utilise at the last minute, and surly it was just another one. The captain of the platoon gave the order to halt, then spread out. The platoon did as ordered. His captain announced over the comlink, “Check in every corner, and under every speck of dust. We must confirm the humans are no longer in this sector.”

  Tork’s attention was directed towards the gaping hole in the wall. He cautiously approached the hole, then stormed in with his gun at the ready. He scanned the generator room for any signs of life and meticulously inspected every corner. Only the low hum developed by the generators was perceived by his bat like ears. It wasn’t until he was on the way back towards the newly created entrance when he saw it - a small sphere stuck on the wall of one of the generators. Tork closely examined the sphere and the alien figures that continually changed on its small display panel.

  He immediately recognised it as a grenade, and as to the figures that were displayed he assumed they were numbers counting down to detonation. How long before it exploded he was unable to determine, but he knew he must remove it from this room immediately. An exploding grenade in this room would destroy the entire Tick station.