Burden of Sisyphus (Brink of Distinction book #1)

by Jon Messenger

The sun dipped behind some of the taller buildings, casting shadows that stretched nearly to the outpost. Outside, sitting side-by-side, Eza and Vance watched it set.

  “Sir,” Eza said.

  “I see it, too.” Vance watched the shadows grow longer as the day faded toward night. “It’s time to go.”

  They quickly climbed to their feet and hurried inside, the door having been opened for them by those who guarded the sturdy building. Without pause, they walked to the control room where Yen and Decker still searched through endless files.

  “We’re losing daylight fast,” Vance said, without formalities or friendly conversation. “Now would be a great time to tell me you have something.”

  Yen leaned toward the console, typing furiously. Without breaking his locked gaze on the screen, he muttered, “Almost there. Bypassing the last of the virus protocols right now.”

  “He’s been working nonstop,” Decker explained, “without sleep, breaks, or barely any food and water. He works like a man possessed, or like someone with something to prove.”

  “Got it!” Yen stretched his aching back and pressed a button, executing the program he created.

  Emergency lights came on, casting a red glow over everything in the building, turning their skin amber. In the red light, their worn expressions and tired eyes made them look like animated corpses. A loud siren sounded in conjunction with a distress beacon being projected from the computer system.

  “How long do you expect this to take?” Vance shouted over the siren.

  “Not long,” Yen replied, his voice nearly lost in the din. “If there’s a ship within range, even a patrol on the outskirts of this solar system, they’ll pick up the signal and reply within a couple minutes.”

  “And until then?” Eza asked, his head throbbing from the noise.

  “Until then, we wait.” Yen shrugged. “Any replies will come up on the display screen with a location and ETA.”

  “Is there any way to shut off the siren?” Decker asked.

  Other survivors gathered outside the door, most with hands over their ears.

  “Give me a second.” Yen typed again.

  Within moments the sound died, leaving silence throughout the outpost. Vance opened his mouth wide a few times, trying to shake free of the ringing that persisted even after the siren stopped.

  Though the suspense was overbearing, no one moved as they awaited a response. Vance sat farthest from the others, lost in thought. Throughout their ordeal on the planet his emotions had been a rollercoaster, rocketing between the extremes of hope and despair. More than once, he saw opportunities through which he bore hope of not only survival but escape, only to see them dashed by the cunning, dangerous Seques.

  Members of the team, who appeared virtually indestructible, were killed by the monsters stalking his group. It was easier, he found, to sink deeper into a dark depression than to hope for salvation.

  Once more he sat in a room, hoping a savior would appear to snatch them from death. It wasn’t the first time he sat in such a situation, awaiting rescue. In every other instance, however, Halo was there to save him and his team. Her rescues were unerring and Vance excelled in covert operations because of her help.

  Halo was gone. His team was scattered and mostly dead. He was forced to rely on the salvation of a stranger, someone he never met, and, to be honest, wasn’t even sure was in space with a rescue ship. He had to admit there was a good chance no savior would come. There was a distinct possibility that, after barely slipping through death’s fingers so many times before, that he might finally die.

  Vance couldn't argue with the luck he had during his career. Many of the awards pinned on his dress uniform came from surviving situations that seemed beyond hope. In all those cases he hadn’t survived because he feared death. He welcomed death’s embrace.

  This time was different. Dying meant sacrificing the lives of those who relied on him. In this city, he already let over one hundred soldiers die while serving under his command. He refused to believe there would be no salvation, that the men with him, who already survived so much, would die alone and forgotten.

  Vance wouldn’t allow that to happen. Somehow, some way, he would find a solution. Thus far, he realized he’d been playing the role of hero. Heroes didn’t die alone on a planet and let down those who depended on them. They found solutions. They were granted one last chance, a final option through which they could escape.

  He needed that option. He needed a ship to respond.

  “I’m getting something on the screen,” Yen said, breaking Vance from his reverie. “Sir, it’s a ship, but you won’t believe where!”

  “Out with it!” Vance ordered.

  “It’s here, in the city, not even four blocks from where we are.”

  “Captain,” the communications officer onboard the Goliath said, “we’re picking up a distress signal.”

  “From where?” Captain Young sat forward on his chair on the bridge.

  “From Purseus II, Sir.”

  “Give me a visual.” His display revealed flickering lines of text, which his eyes quickly followed. He smiled appreciatively and muttered, “What’s your game, Vance? What are you trying to do?”

  He looked up from his console. “Helmsman, slow our exit from the system. Come to a complete stop and bring us into orbit around one of the nearby gas giants. I want to be available should those soldiers find a way off planet.”

  “Roger, Sir,” the navigator said. “Coming to full stop.”

  “All right, Michael,” the captain said softly. “Let’s see what you’re capable of.”

  “It’s a Cair ship, Sir,” Yen said, as schematics on the responding ship flooded over his screen. “It’s being stored in one of the warehouses on the compound, straight out the easternmost door. It looks like it was powered down but once it detected our distress call it started powering its main system.”

  “Is it space-worthy?” Vance wouldn’t leave the safety of the compound unless he was absolutely sure of his escape.

  “Readings say….” Yen studied the ship’s plans. “She’ll fly, Sir. She looks intact.”

  The men in the room cheered while Vance smiled. Only Eza remained somber.

  “Sir, need I remind you we’re talking about covering four city blocks while we’re exposed?” Eza asked. “We’re also losing daylight fast. If we don’t move soon, it won’t matter if we have a ship.”

  Nodding, Vance turned to Yen one last time. “What’s the designation of our savior ship?”

  “The Cair Ilmun.”

  “That’s the best name I’ve heard in a long time. Destroy all the computers before joining us at the side door. We leave nothing behind for others to find.” As he walked from the room, he called out orders. “Get your things together and get ready to move. We have a ship and are getting off this planet. If you drag ass, we’ll leave you behind.”

  Exuberance filled the outpost as the survivors scrambled to pull together basic necessities, checking their remaining ammunition and grabbing small amounts of food before hurrying to the side door.

  A pair of soldiers beat Vance to the door and fired up a blowtorch. Blue flame leaped from the end of the torch, cutting into the recently sealed door. Metal dripped to the floor like wax and sparks fell on the working men in sheets. They continued working, cutting through the multiple fused spots around the doorframe, while the others watched impatiently.

  Eza stood near a window staring across the darkening landscape. Vance joined him at a break in the window’s protective covering to admire the setting sun.

  “I hope this is the last sunset we see on this planet,” Vance said softly, watching fading light glisten off windowpanes on the skyscrapers.

  “We’re losing light too fast.” Eza was worried. “We were attacked at night the last time. There’s no reason they won’t hit us again once it’s dark enough.”

  The smile faded from Vance’s lips. “How dark is dark enough?”

  “I don�
�t know but I don’t like cutting it close when my life is on the line.”

  Decker and Yen walked up behind the pair. Decker cleared his throat politely to get their attention.

  “The consoles are destroyed,” Decker said. “I don’t know if Seques can read computer files but they won’t have the option.”

  “Good,” Vance said. “They’ve finished cutting through the door. I wish there was easy access from the front door since we left that one unblocked. Once we get through, I’ll need all of your support.”

  Eza pulled his ax free and tested its weight. After being cooped up for so long, he yearned for activity. “Just let us know what you need us to do.”

  “Decker and Yen,” Vance said, pointing at them. “You know where the building is. I want you two in the lead. Head straight for the warehouse and don’t deviate.”

  “Roger, Sir.”

  The glow from the red light mixed with the flashes of sparks, revealing stern looks of dedication on their faces.

  “Eza, you and I will take the rear to keep everyone moving.”

  “And…?”

  “And be ready in case we encounter trouble. I’m one of our best shots, and you were always our best fighter. I’m counting on you.”

  “I won’t let you down.” Eza extended his hand.

  Vance shook it firmly. Before he could release it, Yen laid his hand on theirs, followed by Decker. The four looked at each other, nodding solemnly.

  “Good luck, gentleman,” Vance said.

  The door behind them fell open with a crash. Smoke rose from the edges where the torch cut through.

  “Let’s move,” Vance said.

  The half a dozen soldiers ran through the doorway ahead of Yen, Decker, Vance, and Eza, their weapons aimed at the darkening grassy field beyond. No concrete had been poured for walkways through that area, leaving the grass unscathed save for where the Seques trampled a muddy ring around the building the previous night. Weak light glowed warmly over the field, illuminating a distant row of warehouses. Their nondescript exteriors betrayed nothing of the blessed ship stored within one of them.

  Yen and Decker moved to the front of the group as the infantry soldiers created a protective perimeter. Straining to see in the failing daylight, Yen counted three buildings over from the left and marked their destination before setting off across the field. They slogged hurriedly through tacky mud that pulled at their boots. Lifting their legs high to break free of the glutinous brown mud, they finally reached virgin grass and picked up their pace, almost running as they headed across the flat ground toward the warehouses.

  Vance glanced nervously over his shoulder, taking in the ghostly, quiet city and the three-quarter sun, as it set over the horizon. Its bottom edge disappeared, stealing a sliver of sunlight and dropping the temperature. Vance shivered, not entirely from the cold, as the sun’s rapid descent continued.

  Yen led the group around minor obstacles like jutting rocks and unseen holes, choosing to remain on clear, even ground. The soldiers, laboring and tired but pushing forward, smiled as the warehouses neared.

  As they dodged a second outcropping of rock, the ground beside them exploded upward.

  A flimsy tarp, draped with dirt and sod to make it invisible, was thrown skyward, revealing the sloping mouth of a tunnel. A massive Seque hand emerged, closing around the leg of a nearby soldier and jerking him from his feet. He fired wildly, most of the rounds going upward as his hip gave way with a sickening pop.

  When the Seque pulled him toward the hole, the soldier rolled onto his stomach and clawed at the ground while screaming for help. The survivors fired repeatedly at the Seque but couldn’t stop it. With a final scream the soldier disappeared into the dark hole and his screams faded into silence.

  As the group tried to recover from its shock and continue toward the warehouse, a second Seque leaped from a pit on the opposite side. Its massive weight crashed heavily against an unsuspecting soldier, dragging him down as it raked him alternately with jagged claws and hungry fangs. He screamed and squirmed under its bulk, red blood spraying the air.

  Vance fired twice, catching the Seque in the throat both times. It lurched, stepping free of the soldier and staggering before collapsing to the ground. Unfortunately, it was too late for the soldier. The Uligart was eviscerated, spreading blood and organs across the ground.

  The ground rumbled and more false patches of grass shifted. Vance looked at the stunned group and shouted, “Run! Don’t stop, just run!”

  They sprinted away from the ambush as a group of Seque emerged from hidden passages under the field. Their bulky frames picked up speed as they ran after the men who were closing quickly on the warehouses. Gunfire filled the night air as Seques howled in rage and pain, some collapsing to the ground. As one fell, another emerged from a nearby put to pull its body away while more beasts joined the chase.

  A shadow passed over Vance. He dropped to one knee and saw the Seque pass over his head. Missing its target, it shifted in midair and fell atop a soldier running ahead of Vance and Eza. Before Vance could raise his rifle, a whirl of steel fell on the Seque. Emerald blood spewed from its body as Eza’s ax tore through its flesh and struck joints and other exposed areas. Soon the Seque collapsed to the ground. Drenched in viridian gore, Eza pulled Vance to his feet and continued running toward the ship.

  Having stopped for a moment, they fell farther behind Yen, Decker, and the three remaining soldiers. In the deepening night more red eyes emerged alongside the path. Behind them, they heard the squishing sound of heavy footsteps.

  Vance’s breath burned in his throat. The Seques closed the distance quickly, running awkwardly on short back legs and swinging their bodies forward with each gait, using their elongated arms. Though their legs pumped rapidly, the Alliance men didn’t have a chance of outrunning the monsters.

  “We’ll never make the warehouses in time,” Vance said, praying to the gods that at least Yen and his group would escape. “They’re too fast.”

  “Keep running.” Eza’s face strained from exertion.

  “We won’t get out of here alive.” The realization hung heavily on him as he felt like luck was running out.

  “No. You’re making it out of here.” Eza slid to a halt and spun toward the advancing Seques.

  “What are you doing?” Vance looked back when he realized the Wyndgaart wasn’t following.

  “Making sure you get out of here alive!” he shouted, not looking back. “Either you stand beside me and die here or you keep running and stop Captain Young. I’d rather you lived long enough to kill the traitorous son of a bitch, so go!”

  Vance started to turn, intending to run back to Eza’s side and pull him to the warehouse if he resisted. Sensing Vance’s hesitation, Eza ran at an approaching Seque and slid under its long claws, slamming his ax into its groin and dropping it to the ground. Steel flashed dizzyingly back and forth as he let the Voice saturate his body. Moving like a serpent, he struck the advancing Seque repeatedly, causing them to stop chasing the others to deal with the new threat.

  Claws bit at his flesh as more of the creatures surrounded him. He struck alternately with ax and pistol, severing the fingers of any Seque that reached out aggressively or placing well aimed bullets in exposed knees, groins, or faces. He staggered as he leaped aside from a diving Seque but its sharp teeth slashed his leg. The tips of a clawed hand caught his chest. He moved backward quickly but it wasn’t far enough. Bleeding and in pain, he fought on.

  Stepping backward slowly, Vance stared in disbelief at the sacrifice made on his behalf. Blood seeped from multiple wounds on Eza’s body but he fought like a man possessed, cutting down more and more of the beasts and halting their advance on his leader.

  Knowing he couldn’t let his friend die in vain, Vance turned and sprinted toward the warehouse. He didn’t look back because he didn’t want to see Eza die at the hands of the monsters.

  Yen and Decker led their group toward the warehouse. Only one soldi
er followed. Two others were caught by pursuing Seques and dragged down. The warehouse loomed, its lettering and numbers emerging from the gloom of the dim night. The personnel door was set to one side of the massive bay doors and Yen angled his run toward it.

  As he neared the building a large shape broke from the shadows between two warehouses. Slathering jowls emerged from the darkness as a Seque charged them. Nearly fifteen feet tall it bore down on the trio as they slid to a halt on the wet ground.

  The air around Yen shimmered in the weak light. Splaying his fingers before him, he clamped down on the Seque’s nervous system as he did to the Terran soldier before. It stopped, a look of confusion replacing the rage it felt a moment before. Tilting its head to one side it snarled and planted one foot in the soft soil, taking an angry step forward though its momentum was slowed by Yen’s resistance.

  His eyes narrowed to slits and the aura of shimmering air around him expanded, whipping his hair wildly in an unseen breeze. The Seque slid backward, losing traction even though it dug its clawed feet deeper into the ground. With a howl it pushed forward again, fighting Yen’s control.

  Blood seeped from Yen’s nose and ran down over his lip to drip from his chin. “I can’t hold it!” he said in a weak, strained voice.

  Decker’s first shot caught the Seque’s knee. It staggered from Yen’s psychic energy and the shattered kneecap. Before it could fall, Decker fired two more rounds into the huge beast’s left temple.

  The Seque was driven backward by Yen’s force. Its eyes rolled back into their sockets and it pitched over backward, collapsing to the grass.

  Yen’s knees buckled as the energy around him abated. Decker quickly helped him to his feet and pulled him inside the open door of the warehouse. Letting the surviving infantryman take Yen, Decker turned and saw Vance dive through the open door.

  “Close it!” Vance shouted, landing on his back with his weapon trained on the doorway where dozens of Seques rushed toward them.

  Decker slammed the door and threw the locking bar moments before the angry Seques barreled against the building. Using the wall for support, Vance climbed to his feet and examined the four survivors. Yen wobbled on his feet, leaning heavily against the soldier.

  “Is he all right?” Vance asked.

  “I hope so,” Decker said. “He strained himself pretty bad stopping that Seque.” He looked around in surprise. “Where’s Eza?”

  Vance slowly shook his head, feeling a knot build in his throat as tears slid from his eyes. Eza sacrificed himself so Vance could have his revenge against Captain Young. He wouldn’t let such a sacrifice be in vain.

  Turning away from the others, he surveyed the busy warehouse. Piles of boxes filled the near half of the room, but a ship dominated the rear half. Its glossy silver exterior glowed in the darkness.

  Leading the way, he pushed past the cluttered collection of supplies until he reached the rear hatch of the Cair Ilmun. When he entered his ID code the door opened with a hiss and the interior lights came on, flooding the area around the ship in a halo of illumination. Though they still heard the banging of Seque outside the building, the four survivors boarded the ship reverently.

  Yen pushed past the soldier and walked toward the cockpit. Rubbing his temples as if suffering from a severe headache, he went past Vance and Decker to the front of the ship. He stumbled, nearly falling into a bench that lined the crew compartment.

  “Are you healthy enough to fly this?” Vance asked wearily.

  Since Yen was the only qualified pilot left alive, they had few options. “If it means getting off this planet, I’ll be fine. You might want to strap yourselves in.”

  They sat down and strapped in, their hearts racing as the engines roared during Yen’s preflight checks. Above them, they heard the rumble of automated machinery opening the ceiling to allow them to depart from the warehouse.

  As the Cair Ilmun lifted off, Vance closed his eyes and let a tear stream down his face for all those who died. Of the 127 soldiers who deployed to Purseus II, only four were onboard the ship as it broke atmosphere, leaving hundreds of howling Seque behind.