Crystal Conquest

by Doug J. Cooper

  Lenny gazed into the distance, his eyes unfocused. He turned his head and looked at the drone next to him. “Are they tall enough for me to stand in?”

  “The cubicles? On the vessel I was on, they were tall enough for you to crouch in but not stand upright.”

  Sid bent an arm and held a fist near his waist. He held his other fist at arm’s length, level with his shoulders. Wiggling each fist in turn, he said, “If the dreadnaught takes control of our rides and parks me here and you there, we’ll have a big challenge finding each other in that maze.” He let his arms fall. “My thought is that I follow you into the ship, and then you follow me when the dreadnaught takes over and parks me.”

  Sid climbed up onto his drone and fitted his butt at the angle where the two flat plates joined to serve as a seat. “If we get separated, we’re screwed. If we can get down near each other, I’ll get us hidden while we figure out our next steps.”

  Lenny shook his head. “Our drones have different crystals from those in their fleet. We’ll be seen as intruders.”

  “I’ve been thinking about that. If Juice were here, she could jigger with the circuits so the crystals appeared damaged. I’m thinking the dreadnaught would recognize damage as a legitimate reason for different behavior.”

  “Damn, Sid,” said Lenny, his excitement showing. “You aren’t brain-dead after all.”

  He bent over, rummaged through the toolbox, and stood up holding a small hammer. Turning to his drone, he unlatched the top cover, thumbed a release, and stood back as a round lid opened with a hiss.

  Reaching in, he lifted the three-gen crystal out of its housing. Small enough to fit between thumb and forefinger, he held it up to view it in the light. Sid hadn’t seen an exposed crystal for years and was taken by its gleaming beauty.

  Lenny stepped over to a raised support strut with a hard flat surface. Perching the crystal on top, he squatted to see it at a different angle, flipped its orientation, and squatted again. After several iterations, he held the crystal tight with one hand and tapped it with the hammer.

  He rotated the crystal and tapped it a second time. Then flipped it and tapped it a third. He held it up to the light and studied it. “I can’t be sure, but if what they’ve been teaching us in school has anything to do with reality, I think I’ve scrambled its smarts enough for the Kardish controller to accept the idea of a damaged lattice.”

  Returning the crystal to the housing in his drone, he used his com to run some tests. Nodding as if satisfied, he repeated the procedure with the crystal in Sid’s drone.

  Lenny climbed into his seat. Like twins who had practiced a routine, he and Sid reached down, grabbed their packs, and hefted them onto their shoulders. They strapped themselves on their machines, giving each strap a second and third tug, and closed up their space hoods. Sid snapped a weapon on each wrist and rested his head back against the top of the seat.

  “Sixty seconds,” he heard Cheryl call from the scout’s bridge.

  The seconds passed slowly, and Sid used some of the time to connect with Cheryl. Eventually, a whirring sound signaled the bay doors’ opening. Lenny’s drone dropped out of sight. Sid felt his drone move forward, and he entered a spectacular new reality.

  Chapter 31

  Cruising in open space, Sid felt the need to see the scout, or more precisely, confirm he couldn’t see it because of its cloak. He looked over one shoulder and then the other, shifting his body to try and catch a glimpse. The cinch straps restricted his movement, and he wasn’t able to turn far enough to see behind the drone. He resigned himself to the fact after several futile attempts.

  Squaring up in his seat, he absorbed the view around him. He was in low Earth orbit, and the enthralling panorama of the world below gave him pause. The blues, whites, browns, and greens, so vivid in an abstract way, stirred him more than any art he’d ever seen. He tried to identify the specific location on Earth that moved by below. That’s Italy, he thought, recognizing the boot shape, which makes that the Mediterranean Sea.

  On his left he could see the curve of the planet and the darkness of space beyond. The side-on view of Earth’s periphery showed that the atmosphere responsible for protecting and nourishing all life below was, on a relative scale, a thin wisp of gas. Every time he saw it, he had the same thought—how could this meager film of atmosphere feel so thick and boundless when standing on Earth and looking up at the sky?

  The pressing timeline forced his thoughts back to the mission. He scanned ahead, moving his eyes in a methodical pattern as he tried to locate Lenny. He couldn’t see him, any of the drones, or even the dreadnaught. He’d been in space many times and knew it was hard to see objects with the unaided eye, so he wasn’t too concerned. Yet.

  The colorful presence of Earth, the raw intensity of the sun, and the dark emptiness of space backlit by a dazzling field of stars created an enormous expanse of contrasting shadows and light. On such a celestial scale, even the largest spacecraft would appear as a speck of trifling consequence. Finding Lenny in this setting was like trying to see a mosquito in a jungle from forty paces.

  To avoid detection by the Kardish, neither of them were transmitting signals of any sort, so he couldn’t employ instruments that would locate and track the drones, nor could he use his communicator to call out to Lenny. Unperturbed, he started a new visual scan, taking his time to discriminate between objects and shadows.

  Absorbed in the task, he was caught off guard when his drone accelerated. The aggressive movement tugged on him, causing the cinch straps to bite into his chest and thighs. Grabbing the seat on either side, he held on tight, looked in the direction he was moving, and sifted through the visual medley as he searched for something he recognized.

  A light reflection caught his attention. Moments later, his machine closed in behind Lenny’s, which was trailing behind a formation of drones. Lenny reached his hand out to the side and gave Sid a thumbs-up. What does that mean?

  When Lenny started looking at the scenery, Sid decided it meant that the dreadnaught had taken control of their machines and was leading them home. They’d become passengers on a ride. But where does this ride end?

  Though his public behavior reflected confidence, even Sid thought the idea of riding drones onto the Kardish vessel sat somewhere between stupid and crazy. But he needed a way on board and couldn’t come up with better alternatives. He thought Lenny’s decision to damage the drone crystals showed good instincts, though he also thought it possible the Kardish gatekeeper might decide their machines were too damaged for salvage, and an easy way to dispose of waste in space is to burn it up in a free fall to Earth.

  He stared ahead along their direction of travel to locate the dreadnaught. After several frustrating minutes of searching, he changed tactics. Instead of looking for the presence of the Kardish vessel, he hunted for a silhouette formed by the absence of stars—stars the dreadnaught blocked from view as it traveled ahead of them.

  He combed in a grid pattern along their trajectory and smiled when he identified a shadow near the horizon. The elusive shape was about as big as his thumb if he held his hand at arm’s length.

  The dreadnaught orbited Earth, and they chased it in a cosmic race. As time passed, the silhouette of stars blocked by the vessel grew to the size of his hand, and then both hands, and then he caught a glimpse of the ship itself.

  They drew close to the alien vessel. Its immense proportions made Sid wonder how he’d ever had trouble seeing it. He felt the same sense of awe during this approach as when he’d seen that other Kardish vessel two years earlier. Both had a shape reminiscent of a whale, with a larger head that tapered back to a finned tail.

  Approaching the dreadnaught from the rear, the pack of drones moved up along its length. The vessel was so big and its smooth exterior so devoid of landmark features that it was hard for Sid to measure progress. Time passed, and after a while, it felt like they’d spent as much time traveling alongside the ship as they had catching up to it.

>   And then he saw it. Light peeked through a slit on the side of the dreadnaught. The slit grew into a patch and then, as a hangar door continued to open, into a brightly lit entry. The drone pack turned like a school of fish and made for this gate into the alien world.

  Sid leaned forward and absorbed the sights, gathering information to guide their next actions. As he peered through the hangar opening, he felt a small twinge of guilt. He’d led Lenny to believe he had the framework of a plan worked out. In truth, he had no idea what might happen next.

  He knew his ability to disrupt and damage required that he be inside the dreadnaught, so until now, his focus had been on getting aboard the alien vessel. With that task nearing completion, he started brainstorming what actions to take.

  They needed to land without being discovered, find a place to hide, and search out opportunities to slow down the Kardish, or stop them altogether. And if Cheryl succeeded in returning with help, he had to figure out how to get them inside and linked together so they could coordinate their efforts.

  The lead drone passed inside the hangar doors. Moments later, Lenny entered and Sid followed in tight formation. They were inside the Kardish ship.

  * * *

  Exiting the pantry into the hall, Criss caught a glimpse of a leg just as it disappeared through the kitchen door. From the shape of the foot and the style of the shoe, he confirmed what he’d suspected from the waft of her scent moments earlier. Cheryl.

  Struck by the incongruity of her presence, his prediction analysis couldn’t explain how she’d traveled here from Lunar Base or why she was here at all. He hoped she had news to supplement his meager knowledge of the invasion.

  As he moved to follow her into the room, he heard a faint noise from below. Either Cheryl had brought backup—maybe Hop, Jefe, or Dent, maybe Sid and Lenny—or Kardish soldiers were here. While he hoped it was the former, he needed to ensure her silence if it was the latter.

  A complicating challenge was that, while she’d seen a brief vid of Crispin, she’d never met the synbod. I’ll be a stranger. And given that Earth is under attack, she won’t be complacent in her response. Yet if Kardish soldiers were downstairs, Criss needed to get the three of them out of the lodge and moving to safety in short order.

  He slipped up behind her and, to ensure her silence while he explained himself, put his hand over her mouth. Before he could speak, she began swinging her elbows into him in rapid sequence. She lifted her leg and snapped the heel of her foot down onto his insole.

  “Shh, Cheryl. It’s me, Criss.” She stopped fighting for two heartbeats. He was about to explain further when she reached over her head and clawed at his eyes.

  Looping a hand around her neck to gain control, Criss pulled her back to destabilize her and slow her attack. She brought her hands down to regain her balance, and he used the opportunity to pin her arms to her sides in a bear hug.

  “The Kardish are here, Cheryl. Juice is in the pantry.” He tilted his head toward the second exit out of the kitchen as he spoke. “We need to leave now.” With his arms still wrapped around her, he lifted her and carried her to the pantry door.

  “Put me down,” she said in a quiet tone that balanced command, annoyance, and ire. He lowered her in front of the pantry door off the kitchen. The door opened to reveal Juice in a half crouch with her ear held where the door used to be.

  She looked up, saw Cheryl, and yelped in excitement. Clasping each other in a tight embrace, words spilled out of both of them. They separated, keeping their hands on each other’s arms. Cheryl pointed a thumb over her shoulder. “So he’s with you?”

  Winking at Criss, Juice said, “I moved Criss into Crispin’s synbod. He’s my bodyguard now.”

  Cheryl turned to him. “Why have you gone silent? We need you now more than ever.”

  A clunk loud enough for all of them to hear rose from the floor below. “That noise is Kardish soldiers breaking in downstairs,” Criss whispered. “We need to leave here.” Walking through the pantry to its far door, he peeked into the hallway, then moved back to the kitchen.

  “Cheryl, I assume you came in the scout.” He couldn’t imagine any other means of transport that would make it past the Kardish intact. “Who else is with you, and where are they now?”

  “I came alone. Sid asked me to come get you. He and Lenny need your help up on the dreadnaught.”

  Criss grasped that “dreadnaught” referred to the Kardish vessel. But he couldn’t envision a likely sequence of events that would put Sid and Lenny on board the alien ship and have Cheryl here alone with the scout. Given that Kardish soldiers were on their doorstep, he didn’t have time to ask.

  “Where’s the scout?”

  “Heather Glen.” Cheryl pointed toward the rear of the lodge as she spoke.

  With her arm extended, Criss saw the weapon on her wrist. He looked at her other arm and confirmed she had two. “May I borrow one of those?”

  While she contemplated his request, he leapt noiselessly to the sink, scooped up the vials of concentrate, and distributed them among his pockets. He heard more sounds and listened carefully for clues as to the number, location, and progress of the invaders. At least two are coming up the stairs.

  He also heard a private exchange—Juice was encouraging Cheryl to trust him. As he hopped back to the pantry, she held out a weapon. “Thanks,” he said, snapping it to his wrist and priming it. “We may be under fire in a few seconds.” He tilted his head at her other weapon. “Prime yours as well.”

  Stepping into the hall, he whispered, “Wait here until I call for you.” Moving silently toward the stairs, he saw blond heads rise into view as two Kardish soldiers advanced up the steps. Zwip. Zwip. He fired twice, and his quiet bolts of white energy landed true. Both aliens crumbled and fell backward down the steps, creating a series of thuds sure to attract more attention.

  Following them down several steps, he squatted for a broader view of the first floor. More Kardish rushed in his direction. The two in front lifted their hand weapons. Zwip. Zwip. They collapsed, and the others turned and scurried for cover.

  Bizt. A Kardish leaned around a corner and returned fire. A spot on the wall above Criss’s head glowed briefly, and a puff of smoke wafted upward from the impact site.

  Jumping back up into the hallway, he dashed past the pantry and paused at the kitchen door to call to Cheryl and Juice. “This way. Hurry.”

  He vaulted up a rear flight of stairs to the third floor. Lifting a window that led out over the left wing of the lodge, he looked down and gauged the drop to the shingled roof. A large red-brick chimney rose through the roof to his left, hugging the exterior wall of the taller central structure where he now stood.

  Anxious at their slow pace, he turned to look for Juice and Cheryl. When Juice rounded the top of the stairs, he motioned with his hand. “Come. Sit on the sill.” He helped her up onto the ledge with her feet dangling out. As he held her wrists in a firm grip, she slid out the window. He bent at the waist and set her onto the roof. “Climb up behind the chimney. Hide as best you can.”

  Helping Cheryl onto the sill, he asked, “Where in Heather Glen?”

  She looked at him with a blank expression.

  “The scout. How can I find it?”

  Climbing onto the sill, she said, “It’s on the near edge of the field. The western edge. It’s almost touching those twin birches.”

  Criss lifted her out the window, and Juice, holding on to the chimney, coaxed Cheryl up the tiled slope.

  “You two need to be ready. I’ll be back with the scout in ten minutes. I’ll hover out there.” He pointed at the roof crest halfway out the left wing. “You’ll need to run out there to get to the scout’s bottom hatch. Once you’re under its edge, you’ll be cloaked.”

  “Hurry, Criss,” Juice said as she and Cheryl scrambled for the marginal protection offered by hiding behind the chimney.

  Criss shut the window and moved fast. He leapt down to the second floor and almost flew as h
e took the longest strides the synbod could muster in the relatively cramped space of the hall.

  He approached the central stairway at the same time two Kardish soldiers topped the steps. He jumped, twisted sideways, pushed off the far wall with his hands, and slammed a foot into the chest of each alien. They toppled backward down the stairs.

  Tucking, he tumbled on the floor and was up and running without losing speed. He sprinted down the length of the right-wing hall and flung open the window when he reached the end. That should distract them. He backtracked several doors up the hall and ducked into a room at the back of the lodge. Footsteps pounded in his direction.

  Dashing through the bedroom, he entered the bathroom and shut the door behind him. Opening the bathroom window, he climbed out and dropped two floors to the ground. He rolled as he hit, rose to his feet, and in a few powerful leaps, reached the relative safety of the woods.

  Racing through the forest in giant strides, and once swinging from a branch mid-jump to complete a hurdle over a broad plot of thick underbrush, he made for the scout. On his way down the slope to Heather Glen, he angled toward the twin birches. Breaking from the cover of the trees, he exposed himself to open sky for a brief instant, and then he was under the shuttle.

  The hatch opened as he approached, and he jumped inside, triggering it to close before the stepladder started to deploy. Swipe. Tap. Swipe. He slid behind the ops bench as the engines fired.

  His hands moved faster than the scout’s subsystems could respond, and he forced himself to temper his speed as the scout lifted into the air. Activating the external image display in front of the ops bench, he saw a half-dozen drones flying down the south face of the mountain from the farm, moving into formation as they closed on the lodge.

  Criss lifted the scout over the rise between Heather Glen and the lodge just as three Kardish troop transports stationed up behind the farmhouse took to the air.