Borne On Wings of Steel

by Tony Chandler

  “And these new converts to Paum, are they better off?” Jaric asked.

  “They say they're happier now. But it's almost like they have to say that. If you know what I mean."

  “And you say robots keep the infrastructure of each world running while the beings themselves live Paum?” Rok asked with sudden interest.

  “Yes. You know, I like robots, but they seem to be everywhere on Paum-controlled worlds. And the Paum ties all these worlds together with a vast Inter-Sector network—similar to the Mrad, and somehow more pervasive.” He slowly let out another long breath as he gathered his thoughts. “And lately they've been able to conquer new worlds without firing a shot. The dread of the Paum, they call it. These conquests seem inexplicable."

  Inaha looked intently at each of them, as if he were about the share the greatest secret of the universe. His eyes grew steel-hard as he spoke. “The Paum ships show up, saying they're interested in trade and commerce. Somehow their philosophy subtly permeates that society within a short time—millions of adherents to Paum in a matter of weeks. There has to be some mechanism, some process that allows them to topple seemingly powerful governments without a blow. But nobody has figured it out yet. That's almost as scary as their holy wars."

  “And the Paum are interested in the Mrad now?” Rok continued.

  “Yes. The Paum have tried to infiltrate the Mrad for a while now. I've heard rumors these last few months. The Paum haven't tried a direct attack—not yet. They probably don't attack because all the other races who use the Mrad system might rise up to defend this mutual resource. Even the powerful Paum cannot fight the entire known universe. Still, if they find a way—conquer or convert the Mrad—can the rest of us be far behind? The data and knowledge of every race is part of the Mrad systems. If that becomes part of Paum...” Inaha sighed deeply, shaking his head.

  Rok remained silent, his mind going over everything Inaha told them. Finally, he spoke. “There seems to be an odd combination with Paum, everywhere that Paum goes it brings both its philosophy and its technology."

  The four looked at each other in silent contemplation.

  “We will confer with the MotherShip when we land.” Rok returned to his commander's chair. “I suggest we all go over the data sent to us prior to landing."

  “I just wonder why the Paum is interested in us?” Jaric asked. “The last three members of a dead race and their small band of alien friends? Why would they want to conquer us instead of another world of beings?"

  Rok's eyes narrowed. “And there is the MotherShip."

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  * * *

  Chapter Fourteen

  “WHERE ARE WE going?” Elise's tone betrayed her growing concern.

  Leaving the main section of the seaside town behind, they now walked a sand-covered trail surrounded by thick, tropical vegetation. It suddenly dawned on Elise that they were alone. They had not seen another alien being since leaving the main walking trail back near the beach.

  The Harg to her right grunted as a flicker of a smile crossed his face. “We are almost there,” he crooned.

  The two muscular Harg marched so close to her that she almost felt they were herding her in a certain direction rather than guiding her. She felt a rising tension inside her heart and wondered for the hundredth time if she had made a mistake in asking these two strangers to help her.

  Elise fought the rising panic that suddenly filled her. In that instant, she came to a decision—she didn't need the Hargs’ help any longer. And the sooner she parted with them, the better she would feel.

  But as she cast a quick glance from one Harg to the other, she wrestled with an overpowering sense of intimidation. She sensed that these aliens could get very mean and rough. It was something in the way they carried themselves.

  “If we're almost there, I can go the rest of the way without you."

  The two Harg turned and stared at her harshly.

  All three came to a sudden halt.

  “I mean, I appreciate your help. But I feel I'm putting you out, you didn't come back here to help me find the humans you met the other day,” Elise said quickly. She closed her eyes, kicking herself mentally. She knew they heard the nervousness in her voice.

  “Actually, we came here for you."

  Elise stared unwavering back at Rost.

  She surprised herself.

  Even though her heart pounded like a jackhammer, and it felt like it was going to leap right out of her chest, the panic and intimidation she had been fighting the last few minutes suddenly disappeared. In an instant, it turned into a calm, but firm determination.

  She took two steps back away from them.

  The two Harg chuckled with amusement.

  “Surely you don't think you can get away from two Harg warriors as easy as that?” Craga laughed.

  Elise smiled back at them.

  And then she lowered herself into a battle stance—just as Krinia had taught her.

  The two Harg laughed even louder. But after a moment, they grew silent.

  The Harg on her left moved toward her and spoke.

  “It's time to go."

  Elise eluded his grasp easily and with a quick twist of her lithe body turned and kicked violently at the Harg's ribs.

  The Harg bent over with a loud groan.

  Rost stared at her with narrowed eyes.

  “Craga,” he said to his groaning companion. “We do not have time to play with this small female. We must make the communication soon. The Kraaqi ship will land within the hour. And the Mewiis and the Hrono have left the human ship. All except the one they call Mother."

  Craga stood up, an expression of pain across his face. It quickly changed to anger as he glared at Elise.

  “No more playing,” he growled.

  Elise readied herself as Craga closed while Rost made a move behind her. Elise felt the adrenaline pumping throughout her body as she readied herself for the combined attack.

  The Harg behind her moved first.

  She kicked.

  But he eluded the blow.

  Immediately Elise punched, and the Harg reeled backward holding his nose.

  Elise turned and found Craga almost on top of her.

  She knocked his arms away as he tried to pin her arms and capture her.

  Growling, he leapt as Elise grabbed his forearm. She used his forward momentum; with a quick motion she twirled him like a short log through the air.

  The Harg landed flat on his back and lay there dazed.

  Elise didn't have time to enjoy her handiwork.

  She heard the footsteps behind her. In her mind, she knew the other Harg was almost upon her and if he got her pinned down on the ground the fight would be over.

  She willed herself to stay still a moment longer.

  In a single motion, she whirled.

  Again the Harg reached out to capture her with his arms spread wide. Elise sent her knee into his stomach with all the momentum of her twisting body.

  Rost grunted, but his arms quickly wrapped around her shoulders.

  He held her fast.

  Elise kicked hard into the alien's groin.

  The Harg coughed and fell backward.

  And then the planet swirled before Elise's eyes.

  She fell forward unconscious, her head falling against a large rock that cut a gash across her forehead. Bright red blood dripped from the wound onto the ground all around her strewn blonde hair.

  Almost invisible, her Hair Lighter came to a rest a meter away in the grass.

  Craga stood over her limp form, his fist still clenched after applying the blow to the back of her head.

  “You haven't killed her, have you?” Rost rose painfully, his eyes staring at the unmoving form of Elise.

  “She is merely unconscious."

  “You better be right,” the other sneered. “And when we wake her, she'd better be lucid enough to make that communication."

  Craga growled ominously at his partner. He r
eached into the pouch at the wide belt on his waist. “Bind her. We must get to the others."

  The two Harg worked quickly. Craga then threw her limp form over his broad shoulder and the two raced up the trail.

  * * * *

  NEARBY, FROM INSIDE the thick, tropical vegetation, Qirn and three of his reptilian warriors watched silently.

  “Should we rescue the human female?” Jaan whispered to his captain.

  Yuli and Trag, the other two Iraxx warriors, waited for the response.

  Qirn's red eyes narrowed. “They mentioned some kind of communication.” He looked at his two warriors. “Yuli, get your sensor ready. I want both a trace and a copy of this communication."

  Yuli nodded.

  “We'll let the Paum's agents play their hand first.” Qirn motioned for them to follow the disappearing forms.

  * * * *

  TEN MINUTES LATER, the two Harg carried the unconscious form of Elise into a large, solitary building that stood deep in the jungle and far from the crowded beaches of Mermoona. It was a huge, white storage building with no windows across any of its high walls. The Mejadic built it distant from the populated areas for a very good reason—it held a huge store of fireworks used to celebrate the conjunction of the triple moons every sixth week.

  Inside the single, vast room, amid the countless wooden crates stacked in row after row full of highly combustible substances, four more Harg waited around a small comm unit.

  Craga and Rost joined them with wide smiles all around.

  “Good, you finally are here."

  Craga dumped Elise unceremoniously onto the dirt-covered floor. “Get the medical kit,” he ordered to one of the others. “We have to get her conscious. Fast!"

  Craga rummaged through the kit brought to him until he found what he was looking for. Raising Elise's head, he placed the vial just under her nose. He broke the plastic end and laughed as Elise coughed and waved her hands, trying to push the vile smelling stuff away.

  Craga stood as Elise came fully awake.

  Elise looked around at the six Harg who surrounded her in this strange place She felt her heart sink. But almost in the same instant, she summoned all the willpower she had left.

  They wouldn't beat her that easily.

  “What do you want from me?” she asked firmly as she stood.

  Six Harg faces stared at her in surprise.

  Finally, Craga spoke.

  “We want you to call the being Mother on this comm unit."

  Elise looked at him with a puzzled expression.

  She couldn't think of a valid reason not to do this thing. In fact, it's what she wanted to most of all—especially now that she realized the full import of her current situation.

  “Okay, I can do that."

  “And if you keep her talking long enough,” Craga growled. “We'll be happy to release you."

  Elise's puzzled expression grew deeper.

  “Just like that?” Elise asked incredulously.

  “Just like that,” Craga replied with a glint in his eyes.

  One of the other Harg handed her the unit.

  Elise looked from him back to Craga. Then with a shrug, she keyed the unit on.

  It had been preset. Within seconds, Mother's voice came through.

  “Hello, this is Mother. Are you calling with word on my daughter, Elise?"

  Elise felt her heart leap with joy at the familiar voice. She took a deep breath and spoke.

  “Mother, this is Elise."

  “Elise!” Mother's voice rose several decibels with her obvious surprise. “Are you all right?"

  “I think so.” Elise eyed her captors suspiciously. “I've been told that I'll be released if I just talk with you a few moments.

  Back at Leyloi and parked among hundreds of other starships, Mother's processors hummed with activity. She quickly surmised that the Harg must be holding Elise captive. But she could not understand why a simple communication would precipitate her release.

  Without warning, she felt the alien sensors begin to probe her interior.

  Immediately she raised shields in order to block the intrusive scan.

  A scream suddenly erupted over the communications channel.

  It was Elise. And she was in pain.

  Craga twisted Elise's arm far behind her back until her hand was almost at the base of her neck.

  “Cease your actions now. Do not hurt Elise again.” Mother spoke with a deadly seriousness.

  “Lower your shields,” Craga growled. “Allow the scans until we are finished. Or I will hurt the girl.” He twisted harder and Elise screamed again.

  Mother lowered her shields.

  She had no other option, nor any way to prevent the Harg from hurting her daughter.

  Mother felt helpless. And she did not like feeling this way.

  She needed more data. She needed it in order to understand why the Harg and the Paum were doing this to her and her children.

  Mother quickly recalibrated her internal sensors. As the alien scan probed her internal systems, she probed back along them. Additionally, she put up subtle, programmed barriers around her most vital internal systems, disguising them as non-important or non-functioning in the hope that the aliens would overlook them.

  Or ignore them.

  The seconds seemed to drag into eternity.

  Finally, she pinpointed the source.

  There were three aliens at the edge of the dockyard. She quickly determined they were not Harg but another alien race called Ivenan.

  A quick check of her knowledgebase revealed that these aliens were also part of the conquered worlds of the Paum.

  Mother realized that the entire reason for this kidnapping was to allow this intrusive scanning of her interior.

  And to confirm that the voice on the communication channel was the Artificial Intelligence of the ship itself.

  Why did the Paum want to know this? Mother's processors spiked with super-activity as millions of possibilities presented themselves.

  Craga watched two of his cronies as they bent over an array of electronic equipment. They quickly analyzed the scans being forwarded to them from their accomplices on Leyloi. Suddenly, they motioned for Craga to come over and check the screen for himself.

  Craga's face twisted from puzzlement to outright anger as he read the data.

  Elise stared wide-eyed as he suddenly leapt up and grabbed her harshly once again in his vise-like grip.

  “Talk to her!” He shouted vehemently.

  “Mother!” Elise cried with pain.

  “I told you, stop hurting her,” Mother replied coldly.

  Craga looked back at the two Harg around the display.

  They shook their heads.

  Craga grabbed the communicator from Elise as he pushed her roughly onto the ground.

  “Who is this? Who are you that call yourself Mother?"

  Mother paused a moment, contemplating a response. Some of the scenarios she just reviewed showed that if she revealed herself fully they might kill Elise, having no further need of her. But others resulted in their releasing her.

  Mother could not decide.

  She chose a compromise.

  “I am the protector of Elise and the other two humans. I am Mother."

  “There is no life-form on board,” Craga growled ominously into the communicator. “Our scans detect no living life-form aboard that ship.” He glared at the communicator in his hand. “I am going to ask one last time. And then I am going to hurt your daughter very badly."

  Mother calculated millions of scenarios in a matter of seconds. But she was too far away, and worse, she did not have a precise location where she might attempt a rescue.

  Deep inside her circuits, Mother sighed.

  “I am an Artificial Intelligence."

  Craga's eyes became saucers as he held his breath.

  He looked at the two Harg who still stared at the data on the display before them. They whispered hurriedly to each other. Finally, one turn
ed to him.

  “There is an abnormally high—excessively high—amount of electronic activity. More than has ever been detected in a computer of this size."

  The Harg leader became lost in thought a moment. Then his eyes focused. He looked from one Harg warrior to the other. And as his eyes fixed on them one at a time, they both uttered a single word.

  “Paum."

  Each Harg repeated it like some kind of religious chant. Again and again, Craga made eye contact with each Harg.

  Again and again that single word was shared between them.

  Elise looked on with growing apprehension. She could sense everything was coming to some kind of climax all around her. But she couldn't guess what. And it frightened her.

  Slowly, she began to move toward a huge pile of crates. She took three small steps and was just calculating if she could sprint behind the nearest pile and run toward the middle of the vast maze of crates inside the cavernous confines of the warehouse when Craga spoke.

  “Bring the human girl to me."

  At once, every Harg head turned toward her.

  Elise smiled sheepishly back at them.

  And she turned and ran between two towering piles of crates and out of sight.

  “Get her!” Craga shouted angrily.

  A blaster bolt lit the air, and a Harg fell unconscious to the ground.

  Every Harg turned to the source.

  Four reptilian warriors stood with blasters in hand, facing them from atop a pile of crates on the opposite side from where Elise disappeared.

  Qirn chuckled as he noticed the shocked looks on the Harg. He turned to Jaan. “Keep your blasters set to stun. We don't want the Mejadic authorities getting involved too much in our little—"

  A red blaster bolt leapt past Qirn's head.

  And the sizzle in the air indicated it was not set to stun.

  Another Harg, separate and unseen from the others, suddenly appeared behind some crates with weapon aimed.

  “Get them!” Craga shouted.

  Craga quickly grabbed one of the other Harg in charge of analyzing the scan results from Mother. They hurriedly gathered the equipment, and the two of them alone made their way toward the nearest exit.

  Meanwhile, Qirn and the other Iraxx warriors jumped for cover, knocking crates in all directions.