by G. P. Hudson
“Who knows what this shit is the Diakans feed us,” said Michael. “I’m pretty sure there’s no such thing as a Diakan chef, I can tell you that much.”
“It’s better than going hungry. Don’t forget that,” said his father.
Jason and Michael both frowned at his father’s seriousness, but didn’t bother arguing.
“You thinking about tomorrow?” asked his father.
“Not really.”
“Well it’s going to be a big day. Might even decide it once and for all.”
“If I can kill a few Chaanisar, I’ll be happy.”
His father frowned. “You can’t kill them all, son. Don’t forget that.”
No, he wouldn’t forget. He wouldn’t forget what they did to his mother, or to the planet. He watched another armored Diakan walk by and spit. What had humans done to deserve this fate? To become helpless pawns in galactic wars. His father was right. The Diakans didn’t care about Earth or its people. He would never forget that either.
***
“Jon, wake up,” said his father.
Jon jumped and grabbed his weapon. Ready. “What is it? Where are they?”
“Relax. We’re not under attack.”
Jon rubbed his eyes. “What’s going on? What time is it?”
“Look,” said his father, pointing to the sky. “It’s happening. They’re fighting for orbital control”
Jon followed his father’s and his cousin’s gaze towards the sky. The night was alive with movement. Dots of light, many in clusters, were zipping to and fro. Chasing. Evading. He was amazed at how many of them were up there. One of the dots flashed brightly then disappeared. Jon heard several gasps and exclamations. It seemed like the whole camp watched the show.
“Did you see that?” said Michael. “What do you think it was? Juttari, or Diakan?”
“No way of knowing,” said his father. “But I’m pretty sure the Diakans have the upper hand.”
“Why?” asked Jon, wondering how his father could make any sense out of the dancing dots of light.
“Think about it. The Diakans need to come into the system through the jump gate. They’ve already won control of the jump gate. By controlling the jump gate the Diakans are free to bring in reinforcements and supplies at will, while the Juttari are cut off. The fact that the Diakans have made it this close to Earth tells me that they have continued to win. With that much momentum they’ll be pretty hard to stop.”
Another dot flashed and disappeared to more chatter from the audience. Jon found it all very surreal. This battle in space would decide the fate of Earth, yet it felt like a celestial sporting event.
“Doesn’t matter much to us,” said Jason. “We still fight tomorrow, no matter what happens up there.”
“Sure it matters,” said Jon’s father. “The battle will keep the Juttari occupied and hopefully unable to bomb us from orbit. If we’re lucky and the Diakans win, we might even get some orbital support.”
“Why don’t they just quit?” Jon mumbled.
“What did you say?”
“The Juttari. They’re going to lose. Why wouldn’t they just surrender?”
“Who knows how these damn aliens think,” said Jason.
“They’re fanatics,” said his father. “That’s why they don’t quit. They’re religious zealots.”
“Fine by me,” said Jon. “I hope they’re all wiped out.”
Chapter 36
Jon cursed himself for staying up and watching the battle. His eyes burned and his stomach ached. He wondered if his abdominal pain was the result of lack of sleep, or that crap the Diakans fed him. He threw cold water on his face and grabbed a cup of the coffee. It didn’t do his stomach any good, but the caffeine helped pierce the fog in his head. Today was the big day. They were hitting a Juttari stronghold.
He sipped his coffee, and watched the Diakans assemble their military hardware. Jon was still baffled at how the Diakans managed to get all this equipment and personnel down here. Smuggling energy weapons for the resistance was one thing, but here they had assembled an entire army. How did they ever get all this past the Juttari? His father speculated that the Diakans had superior covert capabilities, allowing individual ships to sneak down unnoticed. He knew about the technology that helped keep the resistance hidden from the Juttari. They must use similar tech to hide the military buildup as well.
He watched an array of Diakan heavy weapons prepare for the assault. Giant mechs and tanks formed up in battle position. The plan called for the heavy weapons to punch a hole in the Juttari defenses allowing for the remaining ground forces to enter. The Diakans, wearing their armored suits, would spearhead the advance, followed closely by the resistance. He wasn’t crazy about the plan, but it was more than they’d dreamed of accomplishing just a few years ago.
Jon strapped on his body armor, wondering whether it provided any protection at all. It was clearly inferior to the Diakan suits, but it had to be better than bare skin. He checked the cartridge on his energy weapon. Full charge. Inspected his sidearm. Loaded and ready. Last, he felt for his blades. They wouldn’t do him much good in this battle, but he felt naked without them.
His father and cousins were geared up and the four of them waited for the battle to start. They were sullen. Even his cousins had no jokes this morning. With increasing Diakan involvement, things had changed for the resistance. Where they once acted independently, they now took direction from the Diakans. He supposed it was logical. They wouldn’t have gotten this far without their help. Nonetheless, it was difficult to put your life in someone else’s hands. Especially when that someone was an alien. In the resistance they trusted each other with their lives. Could they trust the Diakans?
The tanks moved first. For something so large they were surprisingly quiet. The fact that they didn’t actually touch the ground might have had something to do with it. The mechs followed. The ground tremored as they advanced with deafening mechanical wines. Jon knew there had been more, unseen activity prior to this. Stealth units and drones would have been deployed to soften up the target and eliminate any surprises.
Jon looked up and saw nothing but a vast morning sky. He wondered which side had the upper hand in the space battle. The timing of the ground attack had to coincide with the celestial contest, but the Diakans told them very little. The resistance only knew the Juttari stronghold was some kind of operations center. Yet again, they would have to trust the Diakans. In the distance he saw flashes of light followed by consecutive concussions that sounded like to rolling thunder. It had begun.
They spent much of the morning waiting and listening to the unrelenting sounds of battle. They had no way of knowing which side was winning, either in space, or on the ground. Jon’s nerves were stretched thin.
“Those big bastards went in hours ago. You’d think they would’ve broken through by now,” said Jason.
“What are you worrying about,” said Michael. “The longer they pound the Juttari the better for us.”
“I didn’t come here to sit around and wait while the Diakans fight my battles,” Jason said, irritated.
“Neither did I,” said Jon.
“Don’t worry, you’re all going to get your chance soon enough,” said his father.
As if on cue a loud klaxon rang throughout the camp.
Jason said, “See Jon, even the Diakans listen to your father.”
The men took their positions alongside the other resistance fighters. The Diakans lined up in front of them. A horn sounded and the Diakans began to move out. First at a walk, then a run, their suits gleaming in the morning sunlight.
Minutes later another horn sounded and the ranks of the resistance followed.
“Here we go,” said Jason, as they began marching.
Jon’s father said, “No matter what happens, the four of us stick together.”
“You won’t get any arguments from me,” said Michael.
“Me neither,” said Jason.
His father lo
oked at Jon and said, “How about you?”
“Where you go I go,” Jon said.
His father patted him on the back. “Good,” he said.
They walked some distance without seeing anything, but the sounds of battle grew louder. The pungent smell of burning circuits wafted through the air. The odor stronger and they passed their first casualty. The charred remains of one of the giant mechs lay on its back. Its Diakan pilot hung from the cockpit, its face buried in the mud. It had tried to escape to safety but had been too riddled with shrapnel to make it. Jon inspected the body with grim satisfaction. The Diakans died just like humans. For all their technology they couldn’t escape the reaper. No one stopped to see if the Diakan still lived. They knew the Diakans would do the same were it one of them lying in the mud. A very strange alliance, thought Jon.
The shelling became deafening and Jon could now see two mechs towering up ahead. Long tails of smoke streaked forth as they launched missile after missile at the stronghold. Behind the mechs stood an armored Diakan waving them forward.
They approached the Diakan who said, “Keep moving. We’ve punched a hole in the stronghold’s defenses. You will advance straight into the stronghold.”
“Let’s go,” said Jon’s father.
“He’s the one with the armor,” said Jason. “Why is he hanging back here?”
“He’s waiting for us to soften the Juttari up for him,” said Michael.
Jason said, “Goddamn Diakans. All talk.”
Just ahead of the mechs they passed some of the big Diakan tanks. The two mammoth beasts hovered there, firing their giant guns. As they passed, Jon covered his ears. His helmet supposedly had built in ear protection, but the sound of those big guns was still deafening. They continued toward the stronghold, moving in a crouch now. They saw more Diakan casualties and Jon became less envious of the Diakan armor. The suits hadn’t done shit for them.
Up ahead the Juttari structure filled the landscape. It appeared to have taken quite a pounding. It was pockmarked and charred but its structural integrity remained intact.
Heavy bolts of blue shot out from the roof toward the ground. An energy cannon. Jon turned to see a swathe of resistance fighters fall. The fire shifted toward them.
“Get down,” Jon yelled. They hit the mud just as the energy bolts swept past their position. The sound of splattering mud drowning out the electric hum of the energy fire passing them. It continued moving away, raking the human line. Jon saw dozens more fall as the cannon found its marks. It moved steadily down the resistance line and more fell. This was what killed the Diakans they came across. Why the heavy guns hadn’t taken it out yet? There must have been multiple defenses in place. The Diakan guns couldn’t destroy them all.
“Run!” said his father when the fire was far enough away.
Jon surged to his feet running as fast as he could, each step a struggle against the mud’s grip. His cousins were right beside him. Nobody argued. If they stayed where they were they’d surely die when the cannon fire returned.
They neared the building when Jon spotted the breach the Diakan had mentioned. A wide gash ran along the side of the building.
“There,” said his father, pointing to a group of Diakans along the opening. They ran to take position behind them. He glanced back to see that another group of humans had followed. The Diakans fired sporadically into the building, but Jon didn’t notice anyone firing back. A Diakan turned and signaled to enter the building.
“What do we do?” said Jason, as the Diakans disappeared inside.
“We follow,” said his father. “Stay behind the Diakans.”
They entered the building, the other humans staying close behind. Inside was mostly dark, except for a sinister green glow. It must be some sort of backup lighting.
“What the hell is this?” said Jason, looking at one of the walls. Alien symbols were sprawled across its length. The green glow morphing their shapes to seem threatening.
“Juttari religious symbols,” said his father.
“You’ve seen them before?” asked Jon.
“Yeah,” said his father in a tone that stopped Jon from asking where.
They followed the Diakans deeper into the building. Jon felt like he was walking toward the center of a spider’s web, the arachnid hungrily waiting for him to pass the point of no return.
“I don’t like this,” whispered Jon.
“Neither do I,” said his father.
“Where are they hiding?” said Jason.
“I don’t know,” said Jon’s father.
They continued down the maze of dimly lit catacombs. They could hear weapon fire now, but the sound seemed to come from all directions, making it difficult to pinpoint where the battle was being fought. Another group of Diakans had engaged the enemy. Jon tightened his grip on his weapon. It would be their turn soon enough.
They rounded a corner into a long corridor. The Diakans were just ahead, advancing slowly. Halfway down the length of the corridor they encountered the enemy. As a barrage of energy weapon fire flashed through the dark corridor, a brilliant blue light replaced the ominous green glow. Jon crouched, then lunged toward the wall, searching for cover. A prolonged firefight ensued. As Jon’s eyes adjusted, he was able to pick out the enemy at the far end of the corridor. A group of Chaanisar.
His fire joined the rest, shooting repeatedly at the Chaanisar positions. The resistance followed. The increased fire suppressed the Chaanisar response, giving the Diakans an opportunity to advance.
“Let’s go,” said his father.
Jon looked over his shoulder to see the rest of the humans holding their ground. Perhaps they thought it better to stay put and provide covering fire. Jon continued moving and firing. Several Diakans bolted forward and crashed into the Chaanisar. A blur of movement and energy fire erupted. It lasted for several seconds. When it stopped a Diakan emerged, giving the signal to advance.
“Signal all clear to the others,” said his father.
Jon turned. “Oh no.” The resistance fighters who stayed behind lay on the ground, slaughtered. Several had been disemboweled.
His father turned to look and said, “Juttari.”
An icy chill climbed up Jon’s spine as realization took hold. Those men were butchered by Juttari claws.
Chapter 37
Jon’s head snapped left, right, up, down, searching for the Juttari. He found nothing. But he knew it was out there. Hunting.
His father saw his distress and said, “Don’t worry, son. No bloody Juttari will be sneaking up on us today. But we need to keep moving. You see what can happen when you fall behind.”
Jon nodded, but found no solace. His cousins too stared at the butchered humans behind them. Their faces grim.
“A Juttari can do that?” said Michael.
“Yeah,” said Jon’s father. “They like to kill with their claws. Something to do with their damn religion.”
“One Juttari killed all these men with its claws?” said Michael.
“Probably. Maybe two. But they like to hunt alone.”
Jon wondered how his father knew so much about the Juttari. They had conquered Earth, but for centuries they had left most of the work on Earth to the Chaanisar. Nobody really knew much about the Juttari. Just a bunch of conflicting stories. How did his father came to know so much about the Juttari?
“Fuck this,” said Jason. “I’m not going to stand around and let some alien hunt me.” He turned and headed off after the Diakans. The rest followed.
“Another reason why we need those Diakan suits,” said Michael. “I bet the Juttari can’t get their claws through that armor.”
“They use weapons against armor,” said Jon’s father. “The Juttari are just as advanced as the Diakans. Like I said, all this hunting bullshit has to do with religion.”
“What does killing with claws have to do with religion?” said Jon.
“From what I understand their religion is extremely old. It goes way back to the
days when they actually hunted and fought with their claws. When they proved themselves worthy.”
“So they do this to show their worth to their god?”
“That’s right. Their religion tells them it’s their divine duty to conquer the universe. This shit is their way of proving themselves still worthy of that duty.”
“That’s really fucked up,” said Michael.
The Diakans weren’t hard to catch up to. They were nothing if not cautious. Diakans didn’t like to take risks. Of course, they didn’t mind risking human life, but humans were expendable. A lesser species. The Diakans were lucky they hadn’t been conquered, thought Jon, because their cautiousness would ensure they stayed slaves forever.
They steadily advanced down another long corridor. Jon stayed close to the wall, but couldn’t stop himself from looking behind him regularly. Sporadic gunfire could be heard all around them. How many Diakans and humans were in the building? Surely they were flooding in by now. The Juttari and Chaanisar hiding inside were finished. The only question was how long it would take. They must know it themselves, he thought. That made them more dangerous than ever. They had nothing to lose. If they were going to die they would be taking as many with them as possible.
The Diakans approached an intersection of corridors. They cautiously checked the adjacent hallway and were greeted by weapon fire from both ends. A crossfire. The Diakans fell back. As they dithered about what to do next, a Chaanisar threw a grenade like object at them. AS it hit the ground one of the Diakans threw himself on top of the object. The bomb exploded. Launching the Diakan through the air. The nearby Diakans were also tossed aside by the force of the blast, landing on their backs. The armor hadn’t protected the Diakan who fell on the bomb. Jon was sure he was dead. The other Diakans slowly began to rise. The Chaanisar surged forward.
Still disoriented by the grenade attack, the Diakans were slow to respond. The Chaanisar energy bolts plowed into them. A furious amount of fire drilled through the Diakan armor.