The Gun Golems (Approaching Infinity Book 2)

by Chris Eisenlauer

  “Th-thank you, Minister,” Cranden said, out of breath. Abanastar helped steady him as he tottered.

  Scanlan had the Shades place six of the jump decks around Gran Kwes so that each would approximate the face of an imaginary cube. Kalkin held the ground position. Vays, who had no other means of getting airborne, had shoved his Titan Saber into the ground and caused the blade to extend some forty meters. He held the jump deck, forming one side of the cube, while gripping the sword hilt between his booted feet. Elza held one side in giant’s hands and another through the use of telekinesis. Hol held the fourth side while Barson held the top jump deck in place.

  At a greater distance than the rest, Jav and Ren held their jump decks facing each other with the “cube” between them. The decks were arranged so that they all faced each other in pairs with no one in the direct line of any of the four possible warp fields.

  Their time was running out, the power plants supplying the second Prisma Shield were about to fail, but it didn’t matter. The programming was set and the placement of the jump decks was complete. Scanlan ordered the six Shades making the “cube” to engage their decks on his mark, and they did. With this accomplished, Gran Kwes and its captives began to flicker in and out of existence.

  “Specialist Holson, Specialist Fauer: on my mark! Five! Four! Three! Two! One! Engage!”

  Streamers of light arced back and forth between the opposing jump decks, but caught by all the warp fields contending for the space in the middle, the light snagged there and looked like a frenzied tangle of neon wire; a bird’s nest of lightning fibers being built strand by strand.

  “Everyone, prepare to cut power! Five! Four! Three! Two! One! Cut!”

  Everyone’s timing was perfect. The spectacle of light floating over the courtyard was snuffed out in an instant, and silence—unfamiliar after the incessant drone of shooting and the added wail of the Prisma Shield generator—now reigned, thick and palpable. The Gun Golems, along with their jailor, Gran Kwes, were gone.

  13. HEROES’ MEMORIAL

  10,688.120.1200

  Two months passed. The major damage from the Cleansing Guns was nearly repaired and preparations for Root Palace departure were well underway. Several Prisma Shield generators had been produced as precautionary measures and were used in rotation to keep the Palace constantly protected. No one believed that the Gun Golems would return from Gilf Scanlan’s spatial prison, but nor was anyone naïve enough to believe that a similar threat might not present itself in the future.

  Outside the Palace, within a tenuous bubble of freshly pumped oxygen, the people of Viscain were gathered before a towering obelisk of polished black stone. At its apex the image of the Emperor addressed the onlookers.

  “The Prisma Shield has become another fact of life for all of us. Life indeed continues, and it is because of the Prisma Shield that it does; because of the Shade who developed the Shield; because of all the Shades who protected the Palace and made the banishment of the Gun Golems possible. Many lost their lives fighting. Many more lost their lives senselessly, indirect victims of the terrible forces brought to bear against the Empire.

  “In thirty days from tomorrow we will leave Planet 1398 and take the next step towards our ultimate goal. But, we will not forget those whose sacrifices kept us alive. Upon this memorial, their names are carved; a permanent record for all to see, so all who come here will know that Sana Bale, Aila Schosser, Isker Vays, Kimbal Furst, and Gast Froster enabled the Empire to survive, to continue on from this Planet. That Sanger Faiks, Beilan Sappertine, and Raiber Haas, unprotected by Artifacts and without a thought for their own safety, gave their lives to protect their fellows and defend the Empire. To you and all the others whose names adorn this considerable monument, we salute you. Though in truth immeasurable, let the weight of this stone represent the sum of our sorrow and our eternal debt to you.”

  The ceremony ended and nothing could stir the solemn air. The people returned to the Palace in silence through the gray that had come to dominate Planet 1398.

  • • •

  None of the Shades who fought with the Gun Golems had come out unscathed. Nonfatal injuries consisted of heavy bruising and hundreds of lacerations from face gun fire. Cov Merasec, now fitted with a prosthetic arm, was slowest to recover, though it was his pride and not his arm that was problematic. He was lucky. The force of the slug had yanked his arm off further up at the joint, not at the impact point so he was free of any infection from the metal. This was little comfort to him, however. He left the Root Palace immediately after the fitting for his arm had been completed, and had been gone now for the last ten days.

  In mourning for both Kimbal Furst and Gast Froster, Jav and Hol made a temporary truce, able to be in the same room together, and even speak civilly to each other, for the first time in more than six months. In his presence, she couldn’t help blushing at the slightest provocation, and when she did Jav found her attractive in spite of himself.

  Over the course of their meetings, Hol gradually began to realize her utter selfishness and the scope of what she had done. She couldn’t bring herself to hate Jav. She loved him, and she felt it sharpest of all when she was standing right next to him, conscious of her blood warming the closer she got, but she knew that she had destroyed the possibility of a future with him. After so many years of denying herself any kind of real connection to anyone, she had, in a resentful outburst, taken what she wanted, and when she was finally refused, she had killed in her outrage. Now, as the last of her anger slunk away and left nothing but bleak objectivity behind, she realized that all those years of loneliness, which she had come to resent so keenly, had been self-imposed, that only she was to blame. But knowing this wasn’t enough. Every time she saw Jav, she began to see what she had done to him—was reminded of what she had done to Mai Pardine—and though it brought real tears to her eyes those tears weren’t enough. Nothing would ever be enough. What was done could not be undone. At the ceremony’s conclusion, she returned to Planet 1287 where no one would be waiting to welcome her.

  Several of the Artifact Competition finalists had gotten together some time prior to the ceremony and suggested that they all gather on the memorial day to remember and honor those of them who had died fighting the Gun Golems. Almost everyone thought it was a good idea and plans were quickly made. Vays would have no part of it, though. Gengrel Waizen had already returned to Planet 1051. Having his psychic blade shattered by Ren had done some irreversible damage to his brain. Planet 1051 housed not only the Locsard Psychic Academy, but also the most advanced and fully equipped medical facility in the Empire. Rehabilitation facilities there could provide therapeutic care that was available nowhere else. Brin and Elza were invited, but only the latter showed. Strictly speaking she was not one of them, but with her abilities clearly proven in the crisis now past, Elza was welcomed and quickly accepted by the group.

  At Brin’s absence, Ren snorted, “Typical.”

  “Are you disappointed?” Jav asked.

  “No,” he said flatly.

  There were eleven of them and they booked a restaurant in Arcade for the evening. Jav was pleased and amused to see that Olander Karza had taken a leadership role in making the arrangements. He liked her. She was straightforward and honest, a little loud perhaps, but always well-meaning. After the ceremony, they spent the evening getting to know each other better and toasting their fallen comrades. Sanger Faiks had become something of a legend for his barehanded display, but the others were by no means dismissed. Jav was still in awe of Raiber Haas’s hypnotic technique and complained about the loss. And on it went.

  When Ren tried to compliment Lara Bester on her fabulous kicks, she turned bright red and could say nothing. She merely shook her head furiously to deny his words in profound embarrassment.

  But, seeing this for what it was, Karza slapped Lara on the back. “Say, Lara, you did give Ren a pretty good fight. You two should practice together sometime.”

  “That’s not a
bad idea,” Jav said.

  Karza looked at Jav with a calculating grin. “Yes, and I can have another chance to test the Eighteen Heavenly Claws.”

  “Alright,” Jav said.

  Karza stared in surprise. “Really?” For some reason, she thought she would have to try a lot harder for an opportunity to spar with Jav. Lara may have been interested in training, but more than that, Karza knew, she would be happy with any excuse to get close to Ren, having been smitten with him since they fought at the competition. As for Karza, she really did want to spar with Jav. He was nice—and cute, in a small, cuddly way maybe—but it was his fists she was really after, his Eighteen Heavenly Claws. He was the best fighter she had ever seen and she knew for a fact that she would improve noticeably and quickly if they practiced together on a regular basis. First step accomplished.

  “What do you say, Lara?” Ren said. “I really was impressed. Since our styles are so different, I think it would be really productive for both of us.”

  Face still flushed and with a small, sweet smile, Lara looked up. “Okay.”

  “Great!” Ren said. “I’m being transferred to the Imperial Police this week. When things are settled, we can make more definite plans.”

  She nodded.

  The talk continued. Many of them discussed their future plans to take positions on colony planets or to return to assist their teachers or to establish branch schools of their own. One supposed a fantastic scenario in which all of them who were not yet Shades received Artifacts and had to protect the Empire from its biggest threat ever. A threat even worse than the Gun Golems, but that was particularly vulnerable to the sight of one half-naked girl and the pair of deadly rings she commanded.

  Despite the nature of the competition that bound them, everyone got along surprisingly well and they made a decision as a group to try to maintain that camaraderie. Perhaps because of her storytelling skills, their half-naked savior was unanimously voted over Karza to be put in charge of organizing future gatherings and, though she protested at first, Nanda Oslet agreed, secretly pleased to be the center that would hold them together. She insisted, though, that Karza be her assistant. Karza grumbled about being demoted, but didn’t refuse.

  14. PREPARATIONS COMPLETE

  10,688.151.1500

  The day of departure had finally arrived. The Palace, though changed, was once again pristine and unblemished. Gran Kohm and Gran Zaim had been repaired, and a second incarnation of Gran Kwes had been built—the Grans would likely be necessary on planetfall. The journey would take one year to complete, but resources within the Palace during that time would be limited. In addition, at about the halfway point—since the target planet was so far away—communications with other locations along the Vine would become unreliable and transportation impossible. After planetfall, jump decks and relay stations could be installed along the new length of Vine, but until they were, the Root Palace would be cut off from the rest of the Empire. These circumstances were unusual, but not without precedent.

  The Root Palace was different. Girded by the encircling walls of the once-open courtyard now stood a fresh shoot of Vine, a thousand meters high, which would be home to all for the next year and become the new Root Palace on Planet 1401. For the last week everyone had been busy relocating into the shoot and the former Palace was now dark and home only to echoes.

  Beginning promptly at 0500, alarms began sounding as external exits, ports, and loading bays were sealed. Numerous public address feeds urged everyone to complete tasks and be prepared for launch at 1500. The countdown proceeded and, section-by-section, the shoot was made ready until finally the hour struck. All alarms and announcements ceased and, for the first time that day there was silence on Planet 1398.

  From space a giant shiver sidled its way down the Vine with a bass thunder that was in its way also like silence. When the vibration had sunk from the Vine into the ground, it seemed for a moment that that was the end of it, but after a time it came back up, catching the shoot and spurring it to fast and furious growth, turning it into a spear that pierced the sky, entered the black of space, and streaked out of System 281.

  • • •

  For the initial launch, everyone and everything had been secured or locked down. The Vine traveled faster than light by folding and stitching together localized bunches of space. Plotting a course using the Stitch Drive required a great deal of preparation, but once that was accomplished and the journey was underway, life inside the Root Palace resumed some semblance of normalcy. Quarters were a little cramped, but not uncomfortably so, and there would be expansion on planetfall. The only other real differences were the constant hum of power urging them forward and the fact that no one could easily go outside the Palace proper.

  The duty schedule for Shades didn’t change. They were required to report for work four mornings out of every five and spend those days training as usual. Jav had started practicing with Karza for about two hours every day. Karza was finding, though, that while she may have been improving she could never seem to get the better of Jav. For her this was the source of constant frustration but also illimitable respect. She even went so far as to petition the Ministry of Affairs to be made Jav’s subordinate. When her position was approved he welcomed her, but was at a total loss at how to treat her. They were friends and sparring partners, and now he was her boss. Though the arrangement was sometimes cause for embarrassment to him, Karza was earnest, and Jav appreciated her dedication.

  Since Ren had been transferred to the Imperial Police, he and Jav saw each other mostly in their off hours which didn’t always overlap. Jav had suggested that Ren seek an appointment with the Police. Ren had the experience and an interest in the field so it was a natural, logical choice. Ren didn’t like the idea of running away or the appearance of it, but transferring was preferable to working with and seeing Brin every day. He wouldn’t have to see Vays regularly, either, which was a plus. So he was made Director of the Imperial Police, finding the environment familiar and comfortable. Many of the older personnel had known his father, and some had worked with Ren before during his periodic breaks from training. Not letting his various skills go to waste, he began teaching the martial arts program personally. His staff, though most were his senior, welcomed him in this and his leadership—Shade or not, F-Gene fighters were fairly rare, and their abilities commanded easy and genuine respect.

  Getting started and settling in kept Ren quite busy for over a month, but he had been serious about training with Lara Bester and had managed to meet with her at least once a week. She always made him laugh, being so quiet and demure in social situations and so fierce on the sparring block. Ren had never been good at understanding women. He was oblivious to her interest in him, but he had to be careful to watch his own feelings. Lara was attractive, and she was an excellent fighter. He couldn’t help being drawn to her, and to all appearances, she was a good person who shared his opinions on a number of things. It was too soon, though. All the pain and confusion Brin had heaped on him were still fresh, and he didn’t think he could handle another betrayal or even a simple rejection of his feelings.

  Though Ren was fitting in with his new co-workers, Jav was still his best friend and the only person with whom he felt comfortable discussing such things. His schedule was finally opening up, and he was looking forward to a chance to talk to someone about his growing feelings for Lara.

  15. SIDE TRIPS

  10,688.160.1300

  “We are sorry to call you in on your day off, Mr. Holson, but this was just completed,” Minister Witchlan said. He presented Jav with a rectangular case about two meters long and twenty centimeters wide. “It is as you requested. Salavar Grummel has been contacted and is awaiting your arrival on Planet 1105.”

  Jav swallowed hard. “Did he say anything?”

  Witchlan cocked his head. “You know of course that he must have said something or we wouldn’t have summoned you here.”

  Jav swallowed harder.

  “What i
s it that concerns you, Mr. Holson? Ah! Do you feel that you have perhaps embarrassed him and that he bears you some malice?”

  Jav nodded almost imperceptibly.

  “You need not worry. Since the competition, he has distanced himself from the Jaim family, vowing to never take one of their line as a student. I think your victory over Jaim was liberating for him, actually. He was able to turn the disgrace of loss into an acceptable excuse to cut ties. Who knows? He may even be grateful to you. In any case, you are a Shade of the Viscain Empire operating under Imperial decree. There is no room for personal grudges in these circumstances. The more comfortable you are with your authority, the better. You’ve had some practice lately with your new assistant, haven’t you?”

  “Yes, Minister Witchlan.”

  Witchlan paused for a moment, considering. “You haven’t changed your mind regarding the piece, have you?”

  “No, sir.”

  Witchlan nodded. “You remember the procedure?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Good. When you get back, we’ll complete the transfer together with Director Scanlan. This is a first, Mr. Holson. We’ve had summoners before, but what Scanlan has put together—if it’s successful—will change the way we make war.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “You have one week. It won’t take that long to fulfill the decree, but considering your previous request we have figured your leave into the allotment. You are free to do as you like. Don’t be late in returning. No unscheduled trips through wormholes, hmm?”

  “Yes, Minister.”

  “The Palace will still be accessible for some time to come, but trips will be strictly limited. Make the most of your time.”