Defending the Galaxy: The Sentinels of the Galaxy

by Maria V. Snyder

  Standing shoulder to shoulder, we wedge into the space. I’ve my null wave emitter around my torso and my pulse gun in hand. One of Boyle’s security officers switched the intensity of my gun. Actually, of all our guns. It gives us a power boost to pierce the protection of the security jumpsuits that the looters are no doubt wearing as well. Now we don’t have to aim only for their heads.

  Inside the portal, I’m pressed between Morgan and Niall. Blackness encompasses us and my stomach flips. Niall clasps my arm and gives me a comforting squeeze. My heart is working double time and my thoughts whirl with what-ifs. One right after another. A complete list of everything that could go wrong. I hope Jarren didn’t lie. A lot is riding on his information. Lives are being risked. The desire to punch Jarren again sings in my veins. Four minutes is an eternity.

  Just when I’m convinced the portal failed to work, we’re expelled into brightness. The industrial white light is painful. I blink tears, squinting. The eight key Warriors surround us, but they’re very far apart. We’re in a massive port. Shuttles and other pieces of equipment are parked nearby. The place is busy, but the high ceiling is closed.

  “Lawrence, get down,” Morgan growls just as the workers inside the port realize that the people that have suddenly appeared in their midst are not their colleagues.

  Shouts erupt and those who are armed draw their weapons. A high-pitched klaxon pierces the air as someone sounds the alarm. Talk about painful.

  Show time. Niall and Elese go to the right so I dive to the left, joining Morgan and getting out of the way for our next wave. I aim at anyone who isn’t us. The workers are either clad in gray jumpsuits or black uniforms. They scatter, racing for cover. Good idea. I roll closer to a Warrior, crouching behind it to use the statue as a shield. Morgan rushes for a shuttle, using its leg to block any pulses coming her way. Plus she can fly a shuttle in case we’re desperate. The rest of the group spreads out to find defensive positions. We have three more minutes until backup arrives. That’s really not that long.

  We exchange pulses. The tightness around my chest eases a fraction. We guessed they wouldn’t use energy wave guns with the Warriors and equipment so close. However, there is still the possibility of kill zappers. That thought spurs me to shoot quicker. The looters’ grunts of surprise when our pulses hit with more force than they were expecting is rather satisfying. Almost as fun as sizzle-zapping HoLFs. The bodies pile on the floor.

  I’m feeling rather cocky until a wave of black-clad soldiers sprint through the doors. They keep coming, turning into a tsunami of reinforcements. Two minutes yawns into an eternity.

  I keep shooting. We knew there’d be a considerable amount of resistance. After all, this is the looters’ forest base on Planet Yulin. But we’d hoped the element of surprise would slow their response down somewhat. By the precision and speed of the defenders, it appears they might have drilled for a possible surprise attack.

  In fact, they’re calling out our positions and numbers, reminding me that the looters have recruited Protectorate soldiers. They sound organized, and I spot a few trying to get around behind us.

  The crackle of a kill zapper turns my blood to ice. I huddle frozen behind my Warrior. Come on, come on, come on, I chant under my breath, wishing time to move faster. Where’s the time dilation when you really need it?

  “Snap out of it, Lawrence,” Morgan roars.

  Her command jolts me from my freak out. I resume shooting, but I can’t help flinching every time the air crackles with purple fire. I frequently check on Niall and Elese, who are working as a team. And from Elese’s gleeful shouts and insults, they’re doing well. For now.

  Another tsunami of looters surges though the doors and these are carrying an assortment of weapons, some of which I’ve never seen before. Then a whoosh of air fans my sweaty face from the middle of the ring of Warriors. The second group has arrived. Too bad, it’s a mere dozen people and another four minutes before we get the next dozen.

  “Get down,” Morgan orders them.

  They dive, but two are caught by purple fire. We’re all going to die. I fumble at the pockets of my pants, searching for my portable. If I can send a message to Planet Nanxiong and stop the last group from portaling to Yulin, my parents won’t be killed.

  The roar of an explosion drowns out the sounds of fighting. The floor shudders and the walls shake. Pieces of the ceiling rain down after another blast. It takes the looters a few more seconds to realize what’s going on.

  “We’re being attacked from the outside!” One man gestures wildly and a bunch of looters rush from the port.

  I take a deep breath. It’s working! I grin as I refocus on my job, stunning looters from the inside while Radcliff and his team descend on the base from the outside. A double whammy.

  Another whoosh of air announces the third group. Our numbers increase by twelve as they join us. We’re able to expand our circle. Bodies cover the floor, making it difficult for me to sprint from cover to cover until I remember they’re murdering looters, then I just step on them.

  When the fourth group arrives, they give us a boost of energy and we’re able to secure the port. A cheer rises, but Morgan doesn’t let us celebrate for long. She assigns people to stay and guard the port and orders others to help us clear the rest of the base. I’ve a few seconds to hug my parents and ensure they’re okay before joining Morgan.

  Our team is the first one out of the port. I expect an ambush in the hallway, but it’s empty. Going left, we follow her, while another team heads right. We encounter a few stragglers and stun them. It soon becomes obvious that apart from the extra-large port, the looter base is exactly the same design as a research base. Good news for us. We’re all very familiar with the layout.

  Instead of labs, they have set up Warrior portals in the different rooms. The glyphs are all glowing green and wide black rectangles occupy the center of the circles. It takes us another hour to go through all the rooms. We stun anyone we find. Once the base is secured, we head for the exit to help Radcliff. Morgan puts a finger to her lips and we ease outside and fan out.

  There are clumps of looters who have sought cover under the shuttles parked outside. I suppress a shudder as I recognize the place—it’s where Jarren and I had our scuffle. The looters are aiming into the forest and not paying attention to the base. For now. There are two shuttles hovering above the building. The sun is still low in the sky, and the post-dawn air is chilly.

  Morgan signals us to wait. The shuttles suddenly dive toward the looters, shooting purple fire. I gape. I didn’t know they could do that! The looters return fire and two smaller groups are aiming long, thin, and deadly missiles at the shuttles.

  Elese grabs my arm, tugging me forward. Oh right. While the shuttles distract the looters, we slide in behind them. Once we’re in position, they don’t have a chance. Between us, Radcliff’s team in the woods, and the shuttles, they’re outgunned and outsmarted.

  The shuttles land and a handful of camouflaged people emerge from the forest. I recognize one instantly and rush over to give him a hug.

  Beau laughs, hugging me back. “Good to see you, too.” He releases me and steps back. “Your father will be happy to see you.”

  Huh? My dad? But Beau is looking behind me. I turn. Niall is standing there. Instead of celebrating like the rest of the teams, he’s scowling. He did say he’s the jealous type. Or is something else wrong?

  I’ve no time to question him as Radcliff hops from one of the shuttles and heads toward us. I wonder who piloted the other shuttle. Radcliff gestures for Morgan to join us and, after clapping Niall on the shoulder in what I’m assuming is his way of saying he’s glad to see his son, he returns to business.

  “Fatalities?” he asks Morgan.

  “At least six.”

  Six? I’d only seen two go down. Grief simmers in my heart, waiting for the proper time to boil—like when all this is over.

  Radcliff turns grim. “Did anyone escape through the portals?” />
  “We didn’t see anyone, but we didn’t have eyes on them the entire time. The portals are all open.”

  He turns to me. “Can you determine if anyone has used the portals recently?”

  “I can worm into their camera feeds.”

  “How long would it take?”

  “Depends on how much protection the looters have on them.”

  “What’s your best guess?”

  “A couple hours.”

  Radcliff considers. “How many portals are there in the base? Where do they go?”

  “At least ten or twelve rooms of them.” I guess. “I’ll have to check the glyphs on the Warriors to determine their destinations.”

  “Let’s go. We’ve no time to lose.” He orders everyone back into the base.

  I glance at Niall, but he’s staring at the rows of parked shuttles. His scowl has returned.

  “What’s wrong?” I ask him.

  Without warning, he hugs me, squeezing me tight for a couple heartbeats before letting go. “We need to catch up.” Niall jogs toward the port.

  I match his pace. “Not that I’m complaining, but what was that about?”

  He’s quiet for a moment. “If Jarren had landed inside the port instead of out here when he had you, we would have lost you, Mouse.”

  Oh. That is worth scowling over.

  “I was just taking a second to appreciate my good luck.”

  And mine as well.

  When we’re back in the base, Radcliff barks orders, getting everyone organized. He sends me, Niall, Beau and Elese to visit each lab and determine the destination planet for each portal. While the three of them stand guard, I consult the alien symbols file Q put together for me. Then I write the planet’s name and the pit number we would arrive in on the floor near the circle of Warriors with black spray paint. For example, in what would be the microbiology lab is the portal to Planet Chaohu. Its incoming pit is number three. The reason Radcliff wants the designations painted on the floor is to avoid confusion. I just hope everyone can read my printing. It’s been years since I’ve had to write anything.

  It’s not a surprise that most of the portals go to the closed Warrior planets. It makes sense for Jarren to use them as his bases. Also not a shocker to see portals to Planets Suzhou, Xinji, Pingliang, Ulanqab, and the other now-silent planets. And the super bright industrial lights shining in every room from every angle must be to keep the shadow-blobs from breaking through.

  Radcliff doesn’t want us to turn the portals off. We might need to access those other planets, and, with only eight Warriors for each one, it would take one hundred and twenty-eight hours to reestablish the portals. Good thing the portals only go one way.

  There’s also strange equipment in each room. I suspect it might be the communication system the looters are using to avoid sending messages through the Q-net. Bertie is among Radcliff’s team. She and a few techs are going to stay behind and cause havoc—her words not mine—by disabling weapons and communications.

  We’re heading for the second-to-last lab—botany, I think, almost the furthest point from the port that you can get inside the base. My adrenaline has ebbed and fatigue is threatening. I wonder if the looters have any coffee in their dining room. I’m going to need something to get through the next phase of Operation Strike Back—attacking the looters’ headquarters, which we figured is on Planet Suzhou, before the looters know what’s going on.

  That thought propels me to hurry. We enter the botany lab and stop. There’s no big black portal in the middle of the Warrior circle. Odd.

  “Is this one off?” Elese asks.

  I move closer to the Warriors, checking if the glyphs are glowing—hard to tell in the harsh white light. “Yes, it’s off.” The combination of the eight symbols is not familiar. I consult my portable.

  Twice.

  And then another time just to be sure. It’s not listed. At all. There’s no planet with that combination. Not even the undiscovered ones. Adrenaline surges back into my bloodstream. The last time I encountered this, shadow-blobs exploded from it, nearly killing us all.

  “What’s wrong, Mouse?” Niall asks.

  I explain.

  “This one is off,” Niall says. “We can have one of the Warriors removed from the circle so no one can turn it on.”

  True. The looters have the heavy equipment to do just that. I panicked for nothing. We finish in the final lab and the others leave. On the way back past, I pause by the botany lab. Perhaps I should record this new combination in case we see it again. I duck in and add the sequence of glyphs to the file of planet designations with a question mark next to it.

  When I’m half way to the door, a gust of air hits me from behind as a pop sounds. I stop in surprise and turn around.

  There are at least a dozen people standing in the middle of the ring of now glowing Warriors. And they are all staring at me.

  My brain screams run just as a male voice orders, “Shoot her.”

  I dive out the lab’s door, cursing my rotten, terrible, awful luck. “Looters!” I yell when I hit the floor. Only I would be right near another incoming portal. The pulse sizzle sounds way too close. Thank the universe it wasn’t a kill zapper.

  Far down the corridor, Niall, Beau, and Elese whip around, bringing their weapons up.

  I scramble to my feet. The looters are pouring from the lab and I’m between them and my team—a light year away! Sizzles crackle in the air around me. One pulse slams into my back. Needles of pain spread out from my spine in a wave. I stumble.

  Racing down the hallway, I zigzag to make me a harder target to hit. Another pulse clips my ear, numbing it.

  The inevitable happens.

  A direct hit to the back of my head. I catch sight of Niall, Beau, and Elese returning fire before my world goes black.

  When I wake, my last memory combines with a harsh throb in my right cheek, forehead and nose. Ugh. I must have hit the floor face-first. Lying on my back, I stare at the ceiling. The walls around me are white and it’s a very bad sign that all four walls are in my peripheral vision. The room is narrow with one bunk and not much else. The door is closed. Until I test it, I’ll cling to the slim hope that the door might not be locked.

  Groaning, I push up to a sitting position and confirm my suspicions. Radcliff said I’d end up in detention. Well, here I am. Of course that was before I used my powers for good. Fat lot my worming skills are going to do me now.

  Q? You there? I try. Why not? Miracles have occurred before. Right?

  There’s no response. Guess I need to move on to Plan B. Is curling into a ball in a panic a plan? Perhaps that could be Plan D for defeated. At least I’m still wearing my black security jumpsuit. My tactical pants and weapons are gone. My boots are next to the door. And I’m not dead.

  However, I’ve no idea where I am. The thought that I could be anywhere in the Galaxy is quite terrifying. On the other hand, I also could still be on Yulin. The looter base is an exact copy of the research bases. And then it hits me. What happened at the base?

  Did the looters surprise Radcliff and my team and—nope, not going there. There were only about a dozen looters. No way they could take out my team even with the element of surprise. No. No way. I need to stay positive. I’m not dead. If they wanted to kill me, I’d be dead. See? That’s positive.

  But were there only a dozen looters? The Warriors in the botany lab were obviously the incoming side of a portable, but they weren’t marked with Yulin’s symbols. I groan as I suddenly remember that Q told me that, as long as there is another set of eight Warriors with a matching combination of symbols on another Warrior planet, a portal will form between them. I could blame my mental lapse on the fact that, right after the revelation, a thousand shadow-blobs attacked me. Regardless, it means the looters could have created dozens of incoming portals on Yulin or any of the Warrior planets. It makes sense so they could bring in more equipment. And more personnel. Plenty of people to take out my team.

 
I jerk my thoughts away from that terrible scenario. Instead, I consider my current predicament and my meager options. Pretending to still be stunned is out. The camera in the cell means they’re watching me so they already know I’m awake. My other options…I’ve none. Perhaps the looters tossed me into a cell while they attacked the others in the base and Radcliff and my team quickly defeated them and no one knows I’m here. Maybe the door isn’t locked due to them having no time.

  I pull on my boots. Strange that having them on gives me a tiny measure of comfort. Then I try the door because I’d feel really silly sitting here if the door is unlocked. It isn’t. Sigh.

  Nothing else for me to do but sit and wait and try not to let dire thoughts overwhelm me. It’s really hard to not envision the various horrible scenarios that might await me. Instead, I focus on Niall and hope he’s okay. I close my eyes and envision his drawings. Plan B—stay alive long enough to see him again.

  As time extends, my fear ebbs into boredom and a part of me wants something to happen just to end this nothingness. I really wish I could fly with Q right now. Detention sucks and I’ve only been in here…I’ve no idea. My stomach reminds me it needs food. Loudly.

  The panic that’s been simmering in my chest, boils over. Are they going to leave me here to die of thirst? I’d rather be kill zapped! Pacing doesn’t help. Hard to work out nervous energy in a two-meter by four-meter cell.

  Finally the sound of the lock tears through the quiet. I freeze. I’m alive, I’m alive, I’m alive, I mutter under my breath to calm my galloping heart. Then I remember what Niall did when I’d freed him from detention centuries ago, or so it seems. Thinking I was a looter, he burst out and tackled me. Good idea.

  I stand and face the door. It swings open and I rush out. There’s a young woman standing there surrounded by armed looters. I recognize her and skid to a stop in utter and complete surprise.

  “Lan?” I ask.

  Nineteen

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