Battlelines (The Human Chronicles Saga Book 14)

by T. R. Harris

  “No…this is forty-nine,” said the second Sol-Kor officer. “You will continue to eighty. We took the transport carrier because they are often faster than the personnel carriers. Go back inside.”

  The two Humans obliged. But before the elevator door closed, the first officer made one last comment. “I would advise that you remove your shields and your offensive odor before presenting these creatures to the Queen. If not, her appetite may be affected.”

  “We will heed your superior advice,” Lila said as the door slid shut.

  “Excellent!” Adam exclaimed. “We’ve learned the tentative location of J’nae, as well as Panur. Lila, the liquid nitrogen canister next to Benefis is yours, so you make the call. The Queen first, or Panur?”

  “My equipment is primitive and not designed to subdue an aware target. Entering a major command center with the intention of freezing the Queen could be challenging. However, Panur is in a static location, and quite possibly alone. My choice would be free him first. That way we also gain a capable ally.”

  “He’s always been a loose cannon,” Riyad said. “He may follow his own agenda.”

  “Agreed, but he does have skills that could come in handy against J’nae.”

  “No argument there. All right, it looks like Panur first. I hope he doesn’t leave us hanging.”

  “He will not,” Lila said. “He seeks a resolution to this current crisis, one for which he accepts some of responsibility.”

  “Some?” Sherri said. “I’d say everything bad that’s happened for the past five thousand years can be traced back to him.”

  “That is unfair, Ms. Valentine. He is simply a living creature attempting to make the most significant contributions possible.”

  Sherri sucked in a chest full of air, preparing for the diatribe she was about to deliver. Fortunately, the elevator began to slow before she could get started.

  “Assume the position…please,” Adam said to her.

  After presenting Adam with a look that could kill, Sherri resumed her fetal position, spooning Arieel. Benefis pulled the tarp over him and Lila’s compact liquid nitrogen dispenser.

  “We’re on eighty, having to get to ninety-eight,” Adam summarized just as the door began to slide open. “Here we go.”

  ********

  The moment the carts could clear the opening, Riyad and Lila had their vehicles out the elevator. They turned right, for no other reason than that was the direction the other carts in the vast chamber were headed. They had emerged into a large parking and staging area, the last refuge for the larger vehicles that traveled throughout the huge structure. A little past the elevators, traffic divided, most continuing to loop around to the right, while some entered the central parking area.

  With a moment’s decisiveness, Riyad turned into the parking area. He had spotted a neat row of gurney-like carts clustered in two sections and pulled into a stall next to one of the rows.

  There were dozens of Sol-Kor in the area, each towering over the three armored intruders by nearly two feet. Adam felt like he had a K-Mart Blue-Light Special sign flashing on his head, knowing that every flesh-eating alien in the room knew the truth as to who they were. Granted, all three of them had built-in hand guns, as well as backup bolt launchers attached to their suits, but that only made Adam more nervous. In the event of an emergency, he might be tempted to use them. And that would not end well for him and his team.

  Adam and Riyad lifted first Sherri and then Arieel and placed them on a cart each, covering their bodies with tarps, including the extra one Adam had transferred from his powerless shuttle. Lila effortlessly lifted the much larger Juirean and placed him on a cart. Then she took the nitrogen dispenser and placed it on her back using the shoulder straps she’d attached to the canister.

  “Is that wise?” Adam asked.

  “With it in clear sight, no one will suspect it is a weapon. It could simply be an attachment to the suit.”

  “I’m sure if you’re questioned, you can talk your way out of it.”

  “Please let me lead. I can act as a shield should anything unforeseen occur.”

  Within his suit, Adam smiled. “That’s my girl. Thanks.”

  “We must proceed to another array of elevators. Security should be enhanced the further up we go.”

  Guiding three gurney-sized wheeled carts in front of them, the caravan set off for the nearest elevators. They had no problem finding them, or in securing a private car for themselves. It was a tight fit with three carts, yet even then two Sol-Kor attempted to crowd in. After just a moment next to the offensively armored juveniles, they held the door and departed.

  “Can you decipher the controls?” Riyad asked Lila.

  “One day I shall endeavor to teach you. These are operated by Sol-Kor; they are not complicated.” She punched the tabs again and the car began to move.

  When the door opened this time, they were met by six heavily-armed guards, looking serious and unamused by the intrusion.

  “You are not authorized at this level,” said a guard with the double white strips on his chest.

  “We have been instructed to deliver these prisoners to the containment chamber of the mutant,” Lila said.

  The guard stepped up to Lila, towering over Adam’s daughter in her shiny metal suit. “Who has instructed you…juveniles…to accomplish such a task? There is no authorized entry on this level except for the Queen herself.”

  “Councilmember Timous directed us.”

  “Timous? I know of no Councilmember by that name.”

  “Do you know all Councilmembers?”

  The guard stood up straighter. “That is an insulting comment. What is your name?”

  Adam stepped forward, crowding in front of Lila. “Allow me,” he said in English. “I’m Smith, and this here is Wesson…”

  What happened next was a blaze of flash fire from the arms of shiny suits. The rapid-fire capability of the armament made short work of the guards, and afterwards the two Humans rushed into the room beyond the elevator, sweeping it for any additional targets.

  It was clear, and soon Sherri was standing between the two of them. “Subtle, but effective.”

  “Took a chance that with such restricted access there wouldn’t be a lot of extra people hanging around.”

  “This way,” Lila called out. She was already through a wide portal that opened into a much larger room.

  When the rest of the team reached her, she was at the thick plastic wall of Panur’s containment chamber. The demure mutant was dressed in a dark blue, one-piece tunic, seated at a table, a thin grin stretching his lips. He made a gesture as if to check a watch he wasn’t wearing.

  “Only slightly behind schedule, but acceptable,” he said, his voice being projected from speakers outside the chamber.

  “Bullshit,” Sherri said. “You couldn’t have known we’d come here to rescue you.”

  “Probability, Ms. Valentine. There was an overwhelming chance that you would try, but the odds of you actually appearing here were much lower. Now, my dear Lila, I must warn you about the security measures surrounding my prison.”

  “Even if you are exposed to the nitrogen, we will have you out of there soon enough that the effects would be quickly recoverable.”

  “No, I’m speaking of the ones outside the chamber. My creation is quite cunning. Although they are not apparent, I believe she has installed countermeasures to guard against just such a rescue attempt. She, too, can calculate the odds.”

  “Please heed his advice.” The Juirean’s voice trembled as he spoke. “A bath of freezing nitrogen liquid will kill us, while only inconveniencing the mutants among us.”

  “What happened to your hair?” Panur asked, his smile now more pronounced.

  “Is that really important at this moment?”

  “Perhaps not, but I must know.”

  “Later, Panur,” Adam said, taking command. “So what do we do? You’re saying this whole place could become a frozen food locker at
any time.”

  “Correct. You may even be under surveillance at this time. Your suits will protect you to a degree, but not so those uncovered.”

  “So…any ideas?”

  “I have an idea.” All eyes turned to Arieel.

  “You do?” Adam blurted out.

  The Formilian huffed. “Yes, I am capable of creative thought, just as you are.”

  “Of course. It’s just—”

  “Leave it alone, Adam,” Sherri advised. “So what’s your idea?”

  “Since Panur and Lila have concluded that the most effective means of defense against rescue is the freezing liquid, we can use that to our advantage.”

  “Now you’ve lost me,” Sherri said.

  “Our ultimate goal is to capture and neutralize the Queen, and that can be achieved with the liquid. Let us lure her in here and then trigger the secondary defense ourselves.”

  “Without killing us, right?”

  “Without killing us.”

  Sherri turned to Adam and Riyad. “Take off those silly helmets. You don’t need them anymore.”

  “Panur said—”

  “They will protect you against freezing for precisely seven seconds,” Panur offered.

  The two Human males removed their helmets, as did Lila.

  “Arieel has a great idea, all we have to do is figure out the details,” Sherri said.

  “I think I may have an idea….” Adam said, his face displaying a devious smile of his own.

  Chapter 11

  J’nae had reason to believe her prison could hold her creator, yet she also had to plan for the possibility she was wrong. Guards were required to check in every fifteen minutes by sending a simple confirming tone to her belt-communicator. That way, if Panur did manage to escape, he would never have more than a fifteen minute head start on her.

  When the signal was only half a second overdue, an alarm sounded on her communicator. It wasn’t loud or obtrusive, but it did have significance to her.

  She was in Combat Section Four on the ninetieth level, charting the advance of the splinter Hal’ic forces as they sacked world after world along the outer edges of the Colony’s settlements. She had been calculating how many units she could send against J’nae—the planet. With the loss of Kor and the consolidation of her forces at Silana, mounting an assault on the distant homeworld of the Hal’ic was much harder than it looked. She still had no idea as to the full strength of the enemy fleet.

  And now the missed deadline. She took the communicator off her belt and activated the video feed, displaying the chamber and the surrounding room. She snickered at what she saw.

  It was the other mutant—the offspring of Adam Cain and an alien named Arieel Bol. Her name was Lila, and she was the love interest of her creator, if the word love could even be used in its proper context with Panur. She was the vessel he’d chosen to bring forth a new race of super-mutants, believing it easier to create them in the traditional manner rather than how J’nae had been birthed.

  Somehow the female had made it to Silana and into the room with Panur’s containment chamber, and was currently surveying the perimeter for a way to free her partner.

  Then J’nae noticed something else on the floor of the outer chamber. Three silver Sol-Kor armor suits, two lying on their fronts, a third on its back. Each had individual flash weapons resting on the floor beside them, and there was a conspicuous hole in the chest of the one on its back.

  And there was more. Nearby were the bodies of four of her guards, bloodied with their torsos shredded by bolt-fire. The bodies lay close enough to the armor suits for J’nae to realize the size difference. The suits had a built-in sizing feature to match that of their wearer, and these were much shorter than the bodies of the dead Sol-Kor guards next to them.

  The suits were of Human size.

  J’nae made no excuse. She stood from her chair and left the room, entered the priority elevator, and punched the panels for the ninety-eighth floor.

  So Adam Cain and his friends had finally met their fate. She had to give him credit; he made it pretty far before succumbing. Panur’s friend Lila was immune to the attacks from her guards, so of course she had survived, and more than likely had dispatched the surviving guards after they had killed her friends. Now she was trying to figure a way to free Panur without triggering the defensive measures she knew had to be present.

  As the elevator came to stop and the door slid open, J’nae was conflicted in her thoughts and feelings. She admired the tenacity of Adam Cain and his friends, as well as their loyalty to Panur. How had he achieved such devotion from the Humans? He was so vastly superior to them that it had to have something to do with god-worship. It was the only explanation. On his own, Panur was not the most likable creature.

  Outside the elevator, the Queen found several other members of her guard contingent, evidence that the battle had begun the moment the elevator doors opened. She listened. There were no obvious sounds, either groaning from the wounded, traces of movement from survivors, or a continuation of the battle. Only Lila remained.

  That was a challenge. She was a mutant, much like herself, although mutants didn’t come with a uniform set of abilities—as far as she knew. Each would have differences, some subtle, some not so subtle. What surprises did Panur’s Lila have waiting for her?

  As the Queen passed through the portal leading to the containment chamber, she held her communicator firmly in her right palm, ready to trigger the release of liquid nitrogen into the room outside Panur’s prison. If worse came to worst, she would trigger the bath, freezing both her and the other mutant. Then Gorvus would be notified. He would place Lila in the chamber with Panur, while J’nae recovered naturally within a few minutes of exposure.

  That was probably how the scenario was going to play out. But first she wanted to learn from Lila…

  ********

  “Please do not probe much deeper. You could activate the security measures within the chamber.”

  Lila turned to the source of the words. Her face was calm, displaying no shock at J’nae’s presence. Yet the mutant did assume a defensive posture, preparing for hand-to-hand combat.

  “We will not be engaging in a physical confrontation, Lila,” the Queen said. “Such would be a futile waste of time.”

  “I only came for Panur. Let me take him and you can continue with your agenda. You will never see us again.”

  “How sweet. Just the two of you off procreating a whole race of super beings. Do you not see how they would eventually become a threat to me? Immortality makes even the most unlikely events a possibility—an eventuality. It is always better to plan ahead.”

  “I will take him,” Lila said defiantly.

  “I do not believe that will happen, and let me tell you why.” The two mutant females kept their distance, Lila skirting the clear plastic wall of the containment chamber as J’nae stayed back near the limits of the room.

  “Caution, Lila,” Panur said over the speakers. “She is quite devious.”

  “Something I learned from you, my creator.”

  “And why will I not be taking him?”

  “Because, if I am correct, you are but a child. You may possess the body of an adult, yet you lack a certain level of experience that comes with time.”

  “You are inexperienced as well. Panur has told me.”

  “That is true, in certain subjects. Yet I have been alive for six hundred years. Yes, I have only recently been exposed to the outside universe, but I have still absorbed vastly more knowledge than you have had time to do. You cannot think like I can, nor as creatively.”

  “She is trying to deceive you, Lila,” Panur said. “You are just as capable as she.”

  “Listen to the timbre of his voice, young one. You can tell he does not believe what he’s saying.”

  “I detect no such tone.”

  “Which only proves my point. You have little experience with lying.”

  Lila’s eyes darted around the room. J�
��nae could see she was desperate for a solution to her problem, and time was running out.

  “Let me offer a compromise,” J’nae said. “You wish to be with Panur, and he wishes to be with you. Since neither of you can die, why not join him in the chamber? I am forced to keep him under lock and key, well, forever. Why not the two of you together, forever, within this chamber, or some better quarters I will have built? The two of you may continue to think, to ponder, to even create within your minds. You will be together, and I will be safe from you and any of your future offspring.”

  “Don’t listen to her, Lila.”

  “Why not? Do you not wish me to join you?”

  “Of course I do, but not within a prison.”

  “Is not our very existence a prison?”

  “Perhaps she is more perceptive than I gave her credit for,” J’nae said. “That was a profound and true statement, young one.”

  “Stop calling me that!”

  “Lila…listen to me,” Panur yelled. Slowly, Lila turned to him.

  “What?”

  “You have a much more important task ahead of you than saving me.”

  “What could that be?”

  “The TD ship. You must not let it survive. With it J’nae will build an unstoppable fleet that will ravage countless worlds, galaxies and universes. With her longevity, she has the capability of destroying all life.”

  “All life except the Sol-Kor!” J’nae countered. “And not all life would be extinguished. We must sustain our food sources.”

  “Does she not know the secrets of the TD ship already?”

  “To a degree. Yet as I was building it, I planned for an eventuality where she would acquire the ship. I have installed many false leads which will take considerable time and effort to discover and amend.”

  J’nae snickered. “That would be so like you, Panur. And it explains much.”

  “Lila, you must destroy the ship.”

  “That will not happen,” J’nae said confidently.

  “Lila, she cannot hide it from you. You are too smart, your deductive powers too great.”