The Athena Operation

by Dalton Cortner

  Just as Diam knelt to grab the fallen soldiers’ guns, a loud sniper shot rang through the hangar.

  Diam collapsed to the ground and the guns skid across the floor. Blood pooled beneath a hole in Diam’s head.

  The crew turned back and stared wide-eyed at Diam’s corpse. Ret moved forward toward the body, but Sadhis pulled him back. There were more gunshots in the distance. Sadhis hurried the crew back into the heart of the ship. The doors closed behind them and Sadhis ran to the control panel and launched the ship before they could meet more gunfire. The ship dissolved into space, leaving the Baryon behind.

  The destruction of the Goliath Drives meant that within minutes, the Baryon would be obliterated.

  **

  A few seythra ships took off after the group as the Baryon ignited.

  Drever tried to steady the ship through the gunfire, but after a few hours of attacks, the ship was wrecked. It was going down, and fast. Drever directed the ship to land on Jhalin, the only planet nearby. It was the last place Drever wanted to end up.

  There was a loud bang and Drever winced as the ship began to shake. The sensors began beeping frantically and the monitors were blinking red.

  Drever did his best to control the ship, but it was diving fast toward the surface of Jhalin.

  “Fuck!” Drever pulled up on the controls, causing the ship to do a near-180.

  The ship slammed into the ground and skid along until it crashed into a tree.

  Everything went black.

  The swampy grounds of Jhalin were the first thing to greet Drever as he kicked open the damaged door of the ship. His wounds hurt, hell, all of him hurt, but he was the only one awake at the moment, so he’d have to pull it together. He brought up his assault rifle and swept the area before concluding that it was safe.

  The area was lightly illuminated by the neon-colored fungi and foliage that lined the river nearby. The plants were dense and the air was humid and thick with fog.

  Drever made his way around the ship, gun at the ready. He was too familiar with this planet and its dangers. Suddenly he heard what sounded like a loud roar behind him. He spun and dropped to one knee. He waited, trigger finger poised, but if there was anything there, it was hidden by the fog.

  Drever cautiously turned back around and continued around the ship. Each step agitated his aching body, but he pressed on. His mind was hazy; his reactions felt slow, his perception muddled.

  Drever stumbled and struggled to keep his balance. He started to realize that something was wrong. He couldn’t pinpoint an area of extreme pain or a wound he may have missed, but something was off.

  He fell to his knees. The rifle fell from his hands and he felt himself fading away.

  **

  The small team of seythra had managed to stay on the tail of the ship that the intruders had stolen. The seythra's ship was also nearly destroyed, but three of the crew were alive. The three stepped out of the ship and spotted the enemy only a few hundred feet away. A quick pursuit would be easy if the seythra had surprise on their side.

  Among their limited supplies were a few poison gas grenades. Before advancing, the seythra threw the grenades toward the enemy ship and waited until the gas had created a thick fog. The seythra, with their advanced eyesight, moved easily through the haze. The neurotoxin in the gas had no effect on the soldiers. Thanks to seythra ingenuity, it had been manufactured with the unique seythra immune system in mind.

  Endro, Xian, and Krep tiptoed closer to the enemy's ship. Endro looked down the end of his scope and spotted Drever at the ship’s rear. Endro had to resist the urge to pull the trigger. He knew it would be best to wait until the gas had gotten this one. The quieter the attack, the better.

  Suddenly, there was a loud roar and all three of the seythra raised their weapons, ready to combat Jhalin’s unpredictable wildlife. Drever raised his gun toward the sound, and the four of them stood waiting for an attack.

  When nothing appeared, Drever and the seythra lowered their weapons and Drever resumed his perimeter check. He was staggering slightly, still in control of himself, but after another minute, he fell to his knees as the poison kicked in.

  It was time.

  The seythra nodded to each other and emerged from the brush they had been hiding in. They moved in unison, each knowing the other’s next movement to a T. They got to Drever quickly, and without hesitation, Xian slammed the end of his assault rifle into the back of Drever’s head.

  Endro unsheathed his combat knife from his belt and descended on the dazed Drever.

  Just as Endro was lowering the knife, Drever kicked him in the chest full-force and sent him flying backward. Drever doubled over, coughing violently. Krep and Xian held him to the ground and Xian covered his mouth to stifle his screams. Drever writhed under them, arms and legs flailing. The toxin was working its way through him, but he meant to fight until his final breath.

  Endro was quick to get back on his feet. He charged forward, knife at the ready, determined to end Drever this time.

  A deafening gunshot stopped Endro in his tracks and he collapsed to the ground in one fluid motion. The knife fell from his hands

  A few feet from the scene, Vinnor stood aiming his pistol. He wore a rugged lab coat, stained red from blood both fresh and old. Xian and Krep charged forward before Vinnor could redirect the gun.

  Vinnor managed to fire, but Xian had tackled him just in time and the shot went awry. Xian and Vinnor hit the ground hard, and Xian began pounding his fists into Vinnor’s face.

  Krep watched with satisfaction. He didn’t sense Drever coming up behind him. Drever raised a hand and swiftly slid Endro’s knife into the base of Krep’s neck. Krep went rigid and slumped to the ground in a matter of seconds. Drever didn’t stop to make sure the seythra was dead. He knew the wound was fatal.

  Xian was still pummeling the doctor when he felt a large hand grab his shoulder. His eyes grew wide for a moment just before Drever pushed the knife into his back. His arms went numb and a sharp pain entered his midsection. He gagged and collapsed beside Vinnor.

  Drever stood over Xian’s corpse. He staggered for a moment before collapsing into the side of the ship, sliding against the metal until he hit the ground. The knife fell from his hand and his eyelids drooped against his will.

  He knew he had to stay awake, he had to fight, he had to protect the ship.

  But he couldn’t keep his body from shutting down.

  CHAPTER 21: VEXATION

  Drever woke to a somewhat reassuring scene. Not only had everyone survived impact, but Dr. Vinnor was alive, albeit with a broken nose. He had taken to fixing people up as he wandered around the ship, babbling incoherently.

  Ret, now outfitted with bandages on his leg, was standing guard. He did his best to walk the perimeter, but he found himself in constant agony. Vinnor put it to him bluntly: he was the one in the best shape, meaning guard was his duty.

  Seraph was still in the worst condition out of the crew. The wound on his neck refused to close, and his mutilated hand was risking infection.

  Vinnor had set Kyla’s arm against her wishes. She still didn’t trust the bastard. Hell, she was still entertaining the idea of shooting him. But she couldn’t ignore the fact that he was the only one who could keep Seraph alive.

  Sadhis had been the last one to wake. His gunshot wounds had been minor, and fesar were the fastest-healing species. After Vinnor cleared him, he set off into the field behind where the ship crashed and set to gathering special plants for a weak anesthetic.

  Sadhis contemplated the mission as he worked. He knew they needed to press on, but a full-on frontal assault was going to get them all killed. If they were lucky enough to lay low for a while until they could figure out a plan, they may be able to pull off a stealth approach into Trini 5010. Even then, and even with Vinnor’s aid, they would probably die. But going in guns blazing was suicide. They might as well turn their guns on themselves right now to spare themselves the false hope.

&nb
sp; Of course, Drever would likely suggest the alternative once again: run, and survive. Sadhis didn’t want to entertain this idea, but he had to consider the fact that he may have no functional crew left. There was no order, no plan. He didn’t know if he could scrape together the morale the crew needed.

  Maxen, for one, was even more amped for a raid of Trini 5010. His injuries drove him further, and his hatred had never burned brighter. He was ready to exact his vengeance and burn Trini 5010 to ashes.

  Vinnor would be fine if he never saw another seythra in his life. The thought of giving up didn’t faze him. But now he was caught up in the action, and the decision was not his to make. Following the crew was his only chance for protection now.

  Originally, he’d planned on killing the entire crew one by one. That bitch Kyla was certainly going to be first. Hell, he could’ve set her arm wrong and killed her slowly, painfully. But he refrained. This group, even the sorry bunch that they are, would eventually come to appreciate him. He’d see to it himself.

  As the day went on, the crew grew more and more hopeless. The thick humidity only intensified as time dragged on. On Jhalin, days lasted a full forty hours. The harsh blue aura the twin suns cast onto the planet was going to last a while.

  Drever couldn’t shake the feeling that he was being watched. He knew they were out there. The Numinous. The only othal insane enough to stay behind on this hellhole of a planet.

  “You look worried,” Ret said.

  “You know anything about The Numinous?” Drever asked.

  “Just from school. They’re religious, I know-”

  “They’re fucking sick. They believe that anyone in their little group is special, that they can contact the ‘spirits’ from the other side. It’s all bullshit.”

  Ret looked confused. “What does it matter, anyway?”

  Drever stared at him. “They’re here. And they’re fucking close. I . . . I used to be one. A long fuckin’ time ago. They’re not far from what I remember. Small planet. I used to run hunting trips through here, lot of native Flukan and some fish in that river.” Drever nodded at the stream a few feet behind him. “Anyway, we should be on high fucking alert. Between them, the wildlife, the seythra, we couldn’t have landed in a worse spot.”

  “Why are the Numinous a threat?” Ret asked. “From what I’ve heard, they’re hermits.”

  Drever shook his head. “I ain’t getting into it. Just trust me, kid. They’re sick, vile, they will rob you of everything you have, even when you have fucking nothing. Men, children, aliens, don’t fuckin’ matter. You’re with ‘em, or against ‘em.”

  “Did you-”

  “I’m not going to talk about it,” Drever said sharply.

  Drever closed his eyes. He felt groggy. He refused to let Vinnor examine him, but he could more or less self-diagnose a concussion. His entire body stung from gunshot wounds and his exhaustion was crippling. He didn’t know why he even bothered to go forward. He still believed the mission was futile. But something was pushing him to go on, and he was too tired to question it.

  Drever turned back to Ret. “This group is going to fall apart, you know. Half of them aren’t going to be willing to step back up after what they’ve been through. Your fucking commander is inches from death. They’re not going to back you or the fesar and just march the fuck into Trini 5010.”

  “What, then?” Ret yelled. “We stay here? Run? Hide on another planet? How the hell can we do that? Are you that willing to throw your guns down and walk away? After seeing Vidron? How can you see entire planets destroyed and say you want to fucking run?”

  Drever stood and moved right up to Ret’s face. His hands balled into fists. “How the fuck can you say I still want to run? I put my goddamn life on the line for you, for them, for every-fucking-one back there over and over! I’m not running! This isn’t a game of honor. Stop playing soldier! I’m trying to keep everyone alive! You would all be fucking dead without me, and if you don’t listen to me now, you are all going to fucking die!”

  Drever turned and began walking away from Ret. He took a few steps before exhaustion overcame him. He stumbled and crashed to the ground, his eyes rolling into the back of his head.

  CHAPTER 22: SILLAGE

  Aven stared out into the void. The silence that filled the room was overwhelming. It seemed like everywhere he went, he couldn’t remain. Uncertainty nipped at his mind.

  Being alone, inside his head, was making things worse.

  Every little fact, every variable, every second was crushing him. Was there enough time? Would phase one succeed? Would his people step up?

  “Aven.”

  Aven’s eyes flickered over to his partner. “Zane. What is it?”

  “The Baryon was attacked and . . . destroyed.” Zane’s voice shook. “We managed to kill one of the attackers, but the rest escaped. The Baryon’s in flames.”

  “What?!” Aven whipped around to face Zane. “What the fuck are you talking about?!”

  Zane tried to clear his throat. “The Baryon.”

  Aven grunted and shoved Zane aside. He headed for the door, his footsteps echoing into the chamber.

  “Aven!” Zane shouted. “Don’t do something stupid! We’re still in control!”

  Aven paid no attention. He walked down the hallway toward the ship’s control panel.

  **

  With both Seraph and Drever down for the count, the group’s resolve crumbled. Maxen refused to do anything to aid anyone. Kyla, while willing, was too injured to do much of anything. Vinnor cared even less than he had before, and had abandoned the camp.

  Ret and Sadhis, while on the same page, had very different ideas on how to move forward. Over the next couple of days, they managed to gather food, find a water supply, and fortify the perimeter of the ship with makeshift traps.

  On the third day, Sadhis and Ret knew they had to have a discussion about moving forward. They’d avoided it far too long.

  As night fell, they sat down to forge a plan.

  “So. What are we going to do?” Ret tended the wound on his leg, avoiding eye contact with Sadhis.

  Sadhis sighed. “I wish I knew. This group is breaking. We’re all wounded, tired, and we couldn’t defend ourselves if the seythra hit us right now. It’s going to take time.”

  “We can’t afford to take a rest period,” Ret said. “We managed to hit them hard taking out the Baryon. We really need to capitalize on that. If we hit Trini 5010 right now, while we’ve already weakened them, it’s our best chance of ending this once and for all. You know that.”

  “I know. Believe me, I do. But look at these people. Even if we could convince them to attack right now, we’d be slaughtered alive. Even if Trini 5010 was hurting, we’d still be ripped apart. We’re tired, we’re hurt, and half of us are looking out for number one right now.”

  Ret was exhausted from the discussion already. He knew that Drever and Sadhis were looking at this from the most realistic point of view, but he felt like he was the only one with any faith left.

  “Do you really think that, when Seraph wakes up, he’s going to be ready to go?” Sadhis asked. “Do you think he’s even going to want to continue?”

  Ret shrugged. “You’ve known him longer than me. But he’s a hell of a soldier. He doesn’t give up. That shit on Danae Pilus, it was just getting to him. We all handle that differently, doesn’t matter to me. He’s shown me what kind of man he is, and I’d follow him into battle anywhere. He’s not going to give up.”

  Sadhis fell silent. He hesitated, then nodded. “You’re right. And I agree, he is a hell of a soldier. I’ve worked with him many times. But . . .” Sadhis paused again, looking for the best way to word his thoughts. “I’ve never seen him pushed this far. He’s severely wounded. If he wakes up, he’s going to be a different man.”

  “He’s going to wake up.”

  “I hope so. But he’s lost a lot of blood. Those wounds could be fatal”

  “You’ll see.” Ret propped himse
lf up. “I’m more worried about Maxen. He doesn’t seem all there anymore. I don’t think we can trust him.”

  “Maxen is a wild card. We can’t trust him, but he’s proven himself useful at least. Until he makes a move, we’re better letting him be.” Sadhis yawned.

  “And Drever?” Ret asked. “Do you trust him? I can’t get past the fact that he’s a mercenary. He’s not loyal. Hell, when we disagreed earlier, he looked like he could go off and kill me at any second. He’s a bigger wild card than Maxen if you ask me. He’s fucking crazy, and not in a good way. He’s always fighting group decisions. He’s just fucking nuts.”

  Sadhis shook his head. “I trust Drever. He may be volatile and dangerous, but he’s stuck with us, even against his own judgment. He’s too involved now to back out. You can’t fault him for being angry; it’s who he is and how he deals with everything. He’s extremely skilled, and he knows how to survive. He is one of our most valuable assets. He acts like he opposes our direction, but he hasn’t let us down yet.”

  “I don’t-”

  Ret was interrupted by the sound of scraping metal. He and Sadhis jumped up and raised their guns in the direction of the sound. Someone had tripped one of the traps. Sadhis turned his flashlight on and fell to a knee as he tried to locate the source.

  There were footsteps coming toward them. Both Sadhis and Ret were a moment from firing when they saw Maxen enter the area. He was holding two large carcasses.

  “Easy, guys. I got us some food.”

  Sadhis and Ret exchanged glances. Maybe they’d been wrong about him.

  Ret followed Maxen to the far side of the ship where Maxen laid out his prized killings.

  “Is that where you were this whole time?” Ret asked. “Hunting?”

  Ret felt something was off. Maxen’s wounds had re-opened and fresh blood had seeped through his shirt.