Maxen shrugged. “Hunting. Scouting. Making sure no seythra are sneaking up on us while we sleep. Kyla’s doing a piss-poor fucking job at perimeter watch. She went over the same area about ten times. Why the fuck did you let her go? You’re in better shape than her.”
“I tried, she said she’d rather do it,” Ret said.
Maxen chuckled, shaking his head. “Well, there’s a good way to get killed. I’d go get her if I was you. I did a sweep about an hour ago, but things can change.”
Ret nodded. He felt embarrassed that Kyla was doing a job that should be his. He patted Maxen on the back. “Hey, thanks for hunting.”
Maxen looked up and nodded back. “Someone had to do it.”
**
Ret slipped away into the jungle that evening, after taking the perimeter watch over from Kyla.
He was holding a radio that had been taped back together after being damaged in the attack.
It came alive with a low hum and a light. He flipped the frequency to the military standard M-676. No broadcast. He pressed the ‘broadcast’ button.
“Lylo . . . Tameron . . . if you’re there, it’s Ret. The attack on the Baryon was a . . . success.” Ret paused, closing his eyes. “Diam’s dead. Seraph is really fucked up. Drever's out cold. Things are bad. If you guys are out there, this one may be up to you. I’m doing all I can here. Sadhis, me and him, we’re trying to push through, we really are. We’re out in Jhalin, barely surviving. The ship’s fucked up and we haven’t even been able to start fixing it. But the Baryon went down. Ret out.”
Ret took a deep breath and headed back to camp.
**
“Hey.”
Ret hadn’t even heard Kyla come up on him. She faked a smile as she sat down next to him, glancing out across the swampy river and into the jungle. Wildlife dotted the scene sporadically, humidity draining even them of their will.
Ret sighed. “Things are a fuckin’ mess. We’re worse off than I ever thought we’d be.” The situation had been weighing on Ret's mind, tearing away at his optimism.
“Ret, listen,” Kyla exhaled. “I think we might need to consider cutting our losses. We can't continue.”
Despite Ret's mindset, the words still came as a shock to him. “No, we can't,” Ret said firmly. “You didn't see Vidron, Kyla. The pain, the suffering. For all we know we're the only ones fighting back. They need us.”
“Your bravery's admirable, kid.” Kyla met his eyes with her own. “But we're just going to get killed. We need to consider our own survival. What good are we to anyone dead?”
Ret went to combat Kyla’s stance, but a loud groan from behind stole their attention. They were equally shocked when they saw a severely injured Seraph stumbling towards them.
Ret couldn’t believe it.
“Thank God! I thought you were dead!” Ret shouted. He smiled. He ran to Seraph, embracing him in a hug. Seraph managed to reciprocate.
Kyla watched with a small grin on her face.
“Kyla, can you help me set him down?”
Kyla obliged, moving Seraph down into an upright position. He was clearly dehydrated and starving, but alive. Ret fetched some of the remaining rations and water, and Seraph managed to eat and drink.
Sadhis came into camp holding a dead pair of wildlife, and his eyes widened when he saw Seraph. A smile crept over his face, and he nodded to his comrade.
Maxen followed, though showing no surprise on his face. He grunted at Seraph, and continued through the camp.
“Glad to see you pulling through.” Sadhis nodded.
“He’s a tough son of a bitch,” Ret added.
Though Seraph could only dazedly glance at his fellow soldiers and grunt a bit, he felt reassured by their presence.
Seraph noticed Drever’s body next to him. He could only wonder what had happened to the othal.
“Didn’t I tell you all that he was alive? I told you! I told them, Seraph, you wouldn’t give up that easily.” Ret laughed a bit.
**
Kyla left Ret alone with Seraph. She was genuinely surprised at how quick of a turnaround Ret had after seeing Seraph alive. But it was refreshing and motivating.
She headed back down to the river, through the dense foliage. She brushed leaves and branches out of her face with her good arm, and soon caught view of Maxen. He was knelt down, holding a letter with a picture attached to it.
As she moved up on him, he heard her and spun around.
Once he saw who it was, he scowled.
“Good way to get yourself killed, sneaking up on me.”
“Sorry, didn't know you were out here.” Kyla noticed the picture attached to the letter, it was of a fesar woman and a child. “Who are they?”
Maxen folded the letter and shook his head. “Doesn't matter. You should find somewhere else to go, Kyla.”
“I used to profile aliens. Get into their heads. It was my job. I'm not bad with humans, either. I know what you were doing on the Baryon. You were trying to kill as many seythra as possible, go to the heart of the ship, find some of their higher-ranking officers.” Kyla moved closer to Maxen.
Maxen raised a hand. “I don't give a shit what you used to do. You don't know me. Don't pretend like you fucking do.”
“I'm not trying to upset you, Maxen.” Kyla shook her head. “Some of the others don't trust you. After what you did on the Baryon, it's hard for me to trust you with my life. I'm just trying to put the pieces together. You want to kill the seythra more than any of us here. Why? Were they your family?” Kyla motioned towards the photo on the letter.
“I'm warning you-”
“Listen,” Kyla cut Maxen off. “You're one hell of a soldier. You've saved my ass and all of the crew's too. But you're erratic. Dangerous. Your family wouldn't want you throwing your life away, Maxen. They-”
“You didn't know them! You've got no idea what fucking happened to them!” Maxen screamed.
“You're right. Tell me. Tell me what happened, Maxen. You shouldn't have to endure this burden yourself.”
Maxen scoffed, rubbing the bullet wound on his leg. “Why the fuck do you care? Why do you want to know?”
Kyla came face-to-face with Maxen. “We've been through hell together, and no matter what we do as a group, we have to trust one another. Tell me, so I can give your irrational behavior some context to the others.”
“I don't give a fuck about the group.” Maxen spat onto the ground.
“You wouldn't be hunting if that was the case. You wouldn't be using our medical supplies if the group heard you say that. Let's cut the bullshit, Maxen.” Kyla's stared into Maxen's eyes.
Maxen exhaled and ran a hand over his face. “Yeah, they were my family. The seythra hit us, they destroyed my home, killed my wife, and my . . . son.” Maxen closed his eyes. “I watched it from the ground. They shot me over and over, but I survived. I couldn't save them. I tried. I just couldn't save them.” Maxen's eyes opened, and he shook his head. “I gave up everything for my family. They were my life. The seythra ripped them from me. I am going straight to Trini 5010, and I'm going to blow the fucking thing straight to hell.”
Kyla could feel the emotion pour from Maxen. “I'm sorry about your family, Maxen. But every one of us wants to see Trini burn. You need us, and we need you. We're going to be smart about it from here on out. We're going to destroy them.”
Maxen looked up to Kyla. “I won't stop until they're all dead.”
CHAPTER 23: SNARE
Seraph was slowing gaining back his strength, but he was nowhere near his old self. Ret could tell that his exhaustion was more than physical; he seemed to have lost his resolve.
The crew, however, still saw Seraph as commander. Ret half-hoped that his presence would bring the team back to life. He knew it was time to consult Seraph about their next step.
“Sadhis and I have been talking,” Ret said. “If we’re going to hit Trini, we need to do it soon. We have to get the ship up and running. And we have to pull this team
back together.”
Seraph nodded absently. He didn’t answer.
Kyla stood up from her spot in the corner and glared at Ret.
“We need to destroy Trini 5010. But it's too soon. We need to rebuild, we need to gain our strength, and we need to calculate this attack. This camp can hold out for a few more weeks while we plan.”
Ret glared back. “We just took out the Baryon. That’s one hell of a feat.”
“Our entire crew fell apart because of that! You want to hit Trini 5010? Talk about a fucking suicide run! Their guns will take you out before you can dock!”
“I stand with the kid,” Maxen said. “We attack.” He turned to Kyla. “Last night you told me that you stand to defeat the seythra, you want to kill them. Own your words. Let's fucking go.”
Ret and Kyla argued back and forth. Sadhis interjected to defend Ret. Maxen criticized Kyla. The chatter filled Seraph's head until he couldn’t think. He felt suffocated.
“Enough!” Everyone turned to look at him. “We may have destroyed the Baryon, but we can’t push forward. Look at us, there isn’t one of us who isn’t seriously fucked up. There’s no way we can launch an assault on Trini 5010; they’d mow us down. We’re fodder at this point. We’re no good to fight.”
Ret wrinkled his brow. “What? So that’s it?” He stepped up to Seraph. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “On Vidron we said we were going to fight this fuckin’ thing! No matter what! Under your command! Now you of all people want to quit?!”
Seraph thrust his mangled hand into Ret’s face.
“Does it look like I can fuckin’ fight?” Seraph shouted. “I’m a fucking cripple! Drever’s a mess! Maxen’s hurt! Vinnor quit! Kyla’s fucking arm is broken! Are you and Sadhis gonna do this thing alone? You’ve got three good legs between the pair of you!”
“Seraph, I-” Sadhis started.
Seraph shook his head. “No, he doesn’t realize how-”
“I do!” Ret shoved Seraph into the ship. “I know you’re fucked up. I was the only one dressing your fucking wounds! I watched after you because you’re the only one who can lead us through this! Now you fucking quit? Now?!”
“Give it up, Ret,” Seraph said. “It’s not possible. If we go to Trini 5010, we’re going to get massacred. What aren’t you understanding? We barely got off the Baryon alive.”
“You’re forgetting we blew the fucking thing up!” Ret felt like he was the only one who understood the severity of what they did. “We did that! You, me, and the crew! We took it out!”
“The kid’s got a point.”
Nobody expected Drever to be up, and through the arguing, nobody had noticed him stumble into the camp.
“Drever, you’re up,” Sadhis said. “Are you okay?”
Drever scoffed. “Do I look fucking okay? I haven’t heard most of this fucking bickering, but are we really fuckin’ considering giving this shit up?”
Seraph turned to Drever. “Have you seen us? We can’t fight, we can barely stay alive!”
Drever grabbed Seraph by the collar
“I’ve stuck with you this long, despite every damn conviction in my bones, because you’re doing something about what’s happening, and for once in my life, I can put all I’ve ever known toward something good. I didn’t buy into it. Not a single fuckin’ line of it. Not on Vidron or Danae. But when we took out the Baryon, you showed me we have a real fucking shot at ending this. I’ve been in and out of it the last few days. All I’ve thought about was getting back in the fight. Making this worth something. Now you’re telling me that I was right all along? We should run and hide? I was fucking wrong!” Drever tightened his grip on Seraph’s shirt, exhaling deeply. “Don’t you fucking dare give up on this. You can’t. You started something by blowing up that ship, something you can’t back out of.”
“Drever,” Seraph stared at him, hard. “It’s over. You were right. I’m sorry, but there’s no way we can win this. There just isn’t.”
Drever shook his head and released Seraph. He turned to face the rest of the group.
“So that’s it, then.” Drever shrugged. “No, fuck that. You guys want to quit, fine. But I’m finishing this fucking thing, and if that means I die trying, so be it. We are the single biggest threat to the seythra right now. Maybe the only one.” He glanced at Ret and Sadhis. “Sadhis, kid, you with me?”
Ret nodded. “I am.”
Sadhis cast another glance at Seraph, but Seraph’s expression hadn’t changed. Sadhis cast his eyes down and nodded. “Yes. Yes, I’m with you.”
“Then it’s settled,” Drever said. “Give me some time to figure this out. We need to fix the ship up, and then we need to get the fuck out of here. And soon.”
Over the next several hours, Drever focused on organizing the mission while Seraph and Kyla tried to plan for their stay on Jhalin. Not even Drever knew the precise layout of the planet, but he guessed the closest major city was about fourteen miles south.
The climate was becoming more and more of an issue. The humidity spiked and made them all dehydrated and exhausted.
Seraph and Kyla opted to move farther down the river, closer to the fresh water.
“I’m sure you’ll still be seeing a lot of us,” Sadhis said. “We’re not leaving for a few days. You’ve got time to change your mind.”
Seraph stared at Sadhis. “I’ve made up my mind. Really. But I appreciate the gesture.”
Sadhis grabbed a pistol from the pile Kyla had sorted and handed it to Seraph. “We’re a little low on ammo and supplies, but we can spare a pistol and an extra magazine. But it’s your call.”
Seraph nodded. “Thank you.”
Sadhis nodded back. “I’ll be down before the sun sets. I’ll bring whatever supplies we can afford to spare.”
Seraph and Kyla thanked Sadhis and headed off into the jungle.
Over the next several days, the crew began repairs on the ship. Sadhis, Ret, Maxen, and Drever worked tirelessly and managed to patch some of the holes with scrap metal. Even Vinnor, who was surprisingly mechanical, pitched in. Ret couldn’t help but feel like mechanics and medicine were the same to Vinnor, both grotesque fascinations. Even Vinnor’s reason for deciding to rejoin the crew was grotesque: he wanted to secure himself a seythra corpse to use as a cadaver.
After the third day of work, they settled down for the night, resting inside the ship. They shared a scarce meal. Ret looked around at the crew. “Hard to believe this is it, isn’t it? This is the end.”
Drever smirked. “Damn well better be. The seythra deserve to taste our fuckin’ bullets for a change.
Maxen agreed. “We’ve sat on our asses long enough.”
“You sure we’re going to be ready to go tomorrow?” Ret asked.
“No doubt.” Drever pointed at Vinnor. “All he said we have to do is re-secure the Knex Drive and make sure the engine isn’t fucked, and we should be good. She ain't gonna fly well, but she'll fly.”
A loud gunshot outside stole everyone’s attention. Drever pulled his pistol from its holster and put his back to the wall next to the door opening. A group of hooded figures appeared outside, but the heavy black rain distorted their view.
“Drever Khalis!” A loud voice bellowed.
Drever knew exactly who the voice belonged to and why the man was here.
“It’s the fucking Numinous,” Drever whispered. He cocked his gun. “Listen, I’m going out. Do not fucking come out. No matter what.”
Ret and Maxen went to stop him, but Drever slipped from the ship and didn’t look back. He trudged through the mud and came face to face with the hooded man.
Drever nodded. “Koval. It’s been a long time.”
The three hooded figures behind Koval locked their plasma rifles onto Drever.
Koval held up a hand. “Easy, boys. Drever here isn’t stupid enough to try and escape again. At least, I hope not.” Koval reached up and lowered his hood. Behind it was the face of an othal, decorated with white, tribal-like
face paint. Koval looked older, but Drever thought he looked as strong as ever.
“You know why we’re here, Drever. So you can come with us the easy way, or the hard way. It’s your choice.”
Drever chuckled and raised his pistol. Koval’s men raised their rifles in return.
“Don’t worry, I’ve got an equalizer.” A moment passed, and he tossed it at Koval’s feet. “There. You’ve got me.”
Koval smiled. “All right, Drever. Now go convince the rest of your little group to surrender, and we’ll spare them.”
“Bullshit, Koval.” Drever took a step forward. “This is between you and me. They have nothing to do with it.”
Koval scowled. “Call them out and make them surrender, or by the Creator, I will go in there and kill every last one of them. You know I will.”
Drever kept his eyes hard, defiant. But he knew he couldn’t win. He knew that Koval had no limits. He’d seen him murder children, rape the dead, burn people alive. Koval and the rest of the Numinous believed their directives were handed down from the Creator, and they committed every act in his name.
Drever’s resolve crumbled. His face softened and he dropped his eyes. He turned back to the ship. “Come out, lay down your weapons. It’s over.”
Ret shot the group a questioning glance. His gut told him it was the wrong move; they can’t surrender. But if they opened fire, Drever would most certainly be gunned down, and then they’d be outnumbered.
“We have to do it,” Sadhis said.
Maxen exhaled deeply. “This is one fight we won't win.”
Vinnor shook his head violently. “Not a chance in hell! I’ve been a prisoner before. Not again! Shut up, shut up, shut up!” He covered his ears and continued to shake his head.
Maxen grabbed Vinnor and threw him out of the doorway into the mud. Sadhis then nodded to Ret and Maxen, and slowly stepped off the ship, hands raised. He tossed his pistol into the grass and fell to his knees. Maxen followed suit. After a moment of hesitation, Ret did as well.
“Is that everyone?” Koval asked.
Drever grunted. “Yes.”
Koval pointed at Sadhis, Vinnor, Maxen, and Ret. “Tie them up. Quickly. It’s a long walk back to Avalon. We need to move. Now.”
The Athena Operation Page 13