Earthfall: Retribution

by Mark Walden

  Talon gave a simple mental command and two black-shelled Hunters rose from the pit on either side of the control pedestal. They fired bright blue bolts of light, slamming into Sam’s shoulder armour and blowing it to pieces. He staggered backwards and Rachel stomped forward, grabbing the closest of the two Hunters, her massive hand crushing the Hunter with a sickening cracking squelch, its black and silver blood oozing between the Grendel’s claws. The other Hunter fired again, the bolt sizzling through the air and striking Sam’s Grendel in the chest. Inside Sam felt real pain, a burning sensation in the side of his chest where the bolt had penetrated his armour.

  Rachel flung the remains of the crushed Hunter in her Grendel’s claw at the other Drone, sending it spinning into the wall with a crunch and sliding to the floor, its tentacles twitching. Sam gritted his teeth as Talon walked calmly towards him, dragging the tip of his blade along the floor, leaving a trail of blue sparks in his wake.

  ‘This was Suran’s plan?’ Talon said, his voice dripping with contempt. ‘To send children to stop me? I wonder if he knew he was sending you to your deaths.’

  Rachel stepped in front of Sam, raising her Grendel’s claws in front of her.

  ‘You think you can defeat me?’ Talon said as Rachel’s Grendel took a step towards him.

  ‘No,’ Rachel replied, ‘but I can distract you.’

  Talon spun round, a split second too slow to react. The fist of Mag’s Grendel hit him square in the chest and he flew across the room, slamming into the wall with a crunch. Mag tried to go after him, but her movement was painfully slow, her Grendel dragging its crippled leg behind it as she moved. Rachel stomped towards Talon as he dragged himself into a sitting position, coughing and spitting out a mouthful of pale blue blood. She stood over the fallen alien, one of the last of his kind, and looked down at him as he raised one hand, as if asking her to wait before delivering the killing blow.

  ‘This is for Jay,’ Rachel said, raising her clawed fist. Talon vanished in the blink of an eye, replaced by a swirling cloud of dust that rushed between the legs of Rachel’s Grendel and coalesced back into the form of the Illuminate warrior, weapon raised. Talon drove his sword through the back of Rachel’s Grendel and it emerged from the giant armoured creature’s chest, dripping red. Rachel gasped once, looking down at the protruding blade, and then with a final strangled gurgle her Grendel fell forward, slamming to the ground and lying still.

  Sam ran at Talon as he pulled his sword from the fallen Grendel, screaming in rage, ignoring the searing pain in his side. Talon sidestepped the charging Grendel like a bull fighter, bringing his blade round in a sweeping arc that severed the machine’s leg at the hip. Sam tumbled forward and slid into Rachel’s immobile Grendel, slimy black liquid spraying from the severed stump of its leg.

  Mag limped towards the Illuminate warrior as he turned to face the advancing bio-machine.

  ‘Take one more step and he dies,’ Talon said, placing the tip of his sword in the middle of Sam’s Grendel’s back.

  Mag froze. She knew that Talon was not bluffing.

  ‘Kneel,’ Talon said.

  Mag’s crippled Grendel dropped to its knees as Talon walked towards her. He said nothing, just swept his sword round in an arc that sliced the Grendel’s bestial head clean off its shoulders. The Grendel’s chest immediately popped open and Mag slid out, falling to the ground, retching and coughing, covered in the slimy residue of the protective gel that she had been floating in just seconds before.

  ‘The hybrid,’ Talon said, ‘not quite one thing or the other. It will be a kindness putting you out of your misery.’

  Mag staggered to her feet, Talon towering over her. She looked up at the featureless white glass of his helmet and snarled. Behind Talon the chest of Sam’s Grendel hissed open.

  ‘Someone once told me that I’d know a monster when I saw one,’ Mag said, ‘and she was right.’

  Talon’s helmet slid back as he looked down at Mag with a vicious smile.

  ‘After today there will be no more monsters,’ he said, raising his sword.

  Sam pressed his hand against the side of Talon’s head.

  ‘Now,’ Sam whispered.

  Mag sprang upwards, her claws swiping through the air, slashing at Talon’s neck. Talon staggered backwards, his hand flying to the vicious wound. He looked confused for a moment and then, for the first time, Sam saw fear in his eyes.

  ‘What did you do to me?’ Talon gasped, staggering backwards.

  ‘My father called it form-lock,’ Sam said. ‘How does it feel to be mortal?’

  ‘You filthy little ape,’ Talon spat, the blood now running down over the chest plate of his armour. ‘Do you really think this will make any difference? Do you think you’ve won?’

  ‘I don’t really care,’ Sam said, ‘as long as I get to watch you die.’

  Mag let out a low growl and swiped again at Talon. He turned and ran towards the shattered windows on the other side of the room before leaping into the void. A moment later a drop-ship rose up above the window with Talon clinging to its upper surface. Mag sprinted towards the window, but the ship banked away too quickly, leaving a gap between her and her fleeing prey that was too wide for even her to jump. She watched helplessly as the aircraft flew away, heading for the city below.

  ‘Help me!’ Sam yelled, trying desperately to pull the chest of Rachel’s Grendel open. Mag ran over and joined him, using her enhanced strength to wrench the black armoured plates apart. Rachel’s still body slid out of the cavity within. There was a horrible-looking wound in her abdomen and Sam could already see that there was far too much blood mixed in with the protective gel. Rachel coughed once, the gel dribbling out of the corner of her mouth as her eyes flickered open.

  ‘Did we stop him?’ Rachel asked, her voice small and weak.

  ‘Yes,’ Sam said, ‘we stopped him.’

  ‘You always were a crappy liar, Riley,’ Rachel said, her voice growing fainter.

  ‘We’ll get you out of here – you’re going to be OK,’ Mag said.

  ‘And you’re not much better,’ Rachel said, looking at Mag with a pained smile that turned into a wince. She looked back at Sam. ‘You stop him, Sam. For me, for Jay, you . . . stop . . .’

  Her eyes suddenly looked as if she were focusing on something far beyond Sam, and then the light went out of them. Sam hugged his friend’s body to his chest, feeling hot tears running down his cheeks. He did not know how much more pain he could endure.

  ‘We have to go after him,’ Mag said, putting her hand on Sam’s shoulder.

  ‘I know,’ Sam replied. ‘Nobody kills him but me.’

  Suddenly, they both felt the Mothership lurch beneath their feet as it changed course and began to accelerate. Sam looked out through the shattered windows and saw the Tokyo Mothership glide into view. There were huge black gashes in its upper surface from which billowing clouds of glowing smoke were pouring. The barrage of fire from Talon’s Mothership had ceased and now it was accelerating towards the other giant vessel, the distance between them closing at an ever-increasing rate.

  ‘He’s going to ram the other Mothership,’ Sam said. ‘We have to warn my dad.’

  ‘How?’ Mag asked.

  ‘I don’t know,’ Sam said, looking frantically around the room. He gently laid Rachel’s body down on the floor and walked over to his own fallen Grendel. The damage to the bio-mechanical machine was catastrophic, but he knew it should still have some residual power reserves. He reached down and placed his hand on the Grendel’s smooth black armoured skin and mentally activated his implant. He felt himself connecting to the Mothership’s command and control net, and then with a small mental nudge he reached out for his father.

  He’s going to ram your Mothership, Sam said, the message forming in his mind.

  Yes, I feared that was his intention, Suran replied.

  I have no way of stopping him, Sam said. He escaped – he’s heading for the city.

  His control of the
Mothership will weaken at increased range, Suran said. That may offer us an opportunity. You have to try to wrest control of the vessel from him.

  How? Sam asked. I’ve always needed something or someone else to act as an interface. I can’t do it alone.

  I’m sorry, Sam, Suran replied in his head. I don’t know. You must act quickly; my vessel has sustained too much damage. It was as I feared – I was no match for Talon in battle. I cannot hope to outrun you.

  Sam glanced out of the window. The other Mothership was already noticeably closer as they both drifted out over the waters of Tokyo Bay. He ran to the control pedestal and reached down, touching the floor and probing mentally with his implant for any weakness within the control systems. It was no good: the vessel was silent to him. His father may have been right about Talon’s control diminishing, but there was still a solid wall between Sam and the vessel.

  He turned round and surveyed the scene of devastation in the control room, looking at the three fallen Grendels and Mag kneeling down next to the body of one of his closest friends, brushing a stray strand of hair off her pale forehead. He looked past them at the Mothership looming ever closer through the windows beyond and he felt a moment of despair. Then, seeing his own footprints in the dirty yellow dust that covered the floor in front of the control pedestal, his heart suddenly leapt. He touched the fine powder, feeling a tiny flicker of something at the edge of his mind. He closed his eyes and reached out for the barely noticeable trace of energy that still lingered.

  Mag watched Sam drop to his knees and place both hands on the ground in front of him, his eyes closed. A second or two later the yellow dust began to rise into the air, swirling around him in an ever-thickening cloud. She felt a shudder of impact run through the massive vessel’s superstructure as the leading edge of Talon’s Mothership grated over the upper surface of Suran’s ship, their hulls shredding each other as they ground together in a hideous slow-motion collision.

  An instant later the cloud of dust surrounding Sam flared with a bright yellow light and a figure began to form. Mag struggled to stand, the floor beneath bucking as the two Motherships drove into each other, flaming debris tumbling away beneath them and slamming into the streets below like high-explosive bombs.

  The golden figure finally coalesced in front of Sam, her eyes glowing with yellow light, and he reached out and placed his hand on the side of her head.

  ‘I have control,’ the Servant said calmly. The massive anti-gravity engines that powered the Mothership changed the direction of their impulses and slowly but surely the two Motherships began to separate with the terrible screeching sound of disintegrating superstructure. A minute later, they both hung over the bay, smoke pouring from the tangled wreckage that had been left behind by their collision . . . but still airborne.

  ‘It’s good to see you again,’ Sam said. ‘Where is Talon?’

  ‘I am working to subvert his control of the Mothership’s ancillary units,’ the Servant said. ‘He has full command of this vessel’s land and air units.’

  ‘Can you break his control?’ Sam said.

  ‘No,’ the Servant replied, ‘Talon must relinquish his hold on the Mothership’s systems.’

  ‘Or die,’ Mag said, walking towards them.

  ‘Indeed,’ the Servant replied, ‘his termination would also achieve the same result.’

  ‘Good,’ Sam said, his expression grim. ‘Can you connect me to the Illuminate called Suran who is in control of the other Mothership?’

  ‘Yes, one moment,’ the Servant replied. ‘Connection established.’

  ‘Well done, Sam,’ Suran said, his voice coming from the air around them. ‘A few more seconds and I do not believe we would have been able to remain in the air. I assume you have control of Talon’s vessel?’

  ‘Only partial control,’ Sam replied. ‘He’s still in command of the drop-ships and his ground forces.’

  ‘What can I do to help?’ Suran asked.

  ‘We need you to send a drop-ship,’ Sam said. ‘Now.’

  12

  Talon stepped on to the street. The battle was raging at the far end. Grendels lit in blue and yellow tore into each other, slamming into shopfronts and office buildings, fighting with the savagery of wild beasts. Above them Hunters were swooping between the lamp posts and electrical cables, their energy cannons blazing. The trail of destruction that led to the ongoing battle was clear evidence of the progress that Talon’s forces had made against Suran’s defenders. He could still feel his connection to the network that was allowing him to control his troops, and the longer he spent in command of them the more they began to feel like an extension of his own will. Suran was no warrior and Talon had fought more battles than he cared to remember. It would not be long until the Voidborn control node fell to them.

  He reached into one of the pouches that hung round the waist of his armour and pulled out a small transparent bag filled with blue gel. Tearing open the bag, he daubed the gel over the vicious neck wound that the Vore hybrid had given him. The gel hardened almost instantly, sealing the wound, but he had already lost a considerable amount of blood. The only way to heal himself properly was to reverse the form-lock under which the boy had placed him – until then he was trapped in his current form, and vulnerable. The reversal could only happen if another member of the Illuminate was to remove the lock, not something that either the boy or Suran would ever willingly do.

  He winced as the chemicals within the gel accelerated his healing process. It had been a long time since anything or anyone had actually hurt him. It hardly mattered now, he thought to himself as he looked up at the giant tower looming over them. Soon his forces would have control of the primary node and his mortality would be irrelevant. He flinched slightly as a drop-ship shot past overhead, its energy cannons laying down a devastating field of fire that scattered the last few units defending the entrance to the Skytree.

  Talon reached into another pouch at his waist and pulled out a small disc, only ten centimetres in diameter, that glowed with a soft blue light. He smiled to himself. This seemingly innocuous object was the key to his final victory. An instant later there was the sound of a drop-ship from somewhere behind him and Talon ducked involuntarily as it screamed past just a few metres overhead, its hull dancing with yellow light. The drop-ship opened fire on the other aircraft, its energy cannons flaring and sending crackling bolts tearing through its black, crystalline hull.

  Talon’s aircraft spun out of control, slamming into the ground and sliding into the advancing Grendels, knocking them flying before it pin-wheeled into an office building. It exploded with a bright blue flare of energy, scattering the tower’s attackers and forcing Talon to duck for cover. With a low rumble, the twenty-storey building collapsed in on itself, sending chunks of concrete scattering across the road and filling the air with billowing clouds of dust.

  After a few seconds Talon climbed back to his feet and strained to see through the grey cloud that now filled the street ahead of him. He brought the forces around him closer, a pair of Grendels flanking him as he picked his way through the rubble that lay across the road, heading for the entrance to the tower. As the dust slowly cleared, he saw the drop-ship that had just attacked his forces sitting on the road in front of the entrance to the Skytree. Standing beside it were Suran, the boy and the Vore hybrid.

  ‘You’re not going any further,’ Sam said when Talon walked towards them, his glowing sword in his hand.

  ‘You are proving harder to kill than I had imagined,’ Talon said as Grendels took up positions on either side of him. He reached for the Mothership with his mind and immediately realised that for whatever reason he could no longer access the vessel’s control systems. ‘What have you done? Why can I no longer access the Voidborn vessel?’

  ‘It is not too late. Lay down your weapons and accept the consequences of your actions,’ Suran said, stepping towards Talon.

  ‘You always were an idealistic fool,’ Talon replied, sneering at Sura
n. He looked up at the Grendel standing to his left. ‘Kill them all.’

  The Grendel took a step towards them and roared. Suran stretched out his arm and it extended, slowly forming into a sword identical to the one Talon was holding.

  ‘You are no warrior, Suran,’ Talon said. ‘You cannot win.’

  ‘Maybe,’ Suran replied, ‘but I shall die fighting.’

  The Grendel charged at Suran, and he ducked its wildly swinging claws, slashing at the creature’s shoulder, his blade leaving a long glowing scar in its armour. The Grendel turned, its jaws snapping at empty air as Suran dodged beneath its attack, ducking under its arm and driving his sword into the creature’s elbow joint. Black blood gushed on to the dusty road below. Suran spun round, his sword arcing towards the Grendel’s back. At the precise instant his sword buried itself into the Grendel’s spine, the monstrous creature’s tail flashed through the air, its daggerlike tip burying itself in Suran’s chest. It hoisted him off the ground before flinging him away across the street like a rag doll.

  Sam ran over to his fallen father as the Grendel dropped to its knees, all control of its legs now lost. It tried to drag itself across the road for a few metres before it finally collapsed to the ground and lay still.

  Sam crouched down next to Suran. His father looked up at him with a pained expression. Tiny wisps of dust writhed around the gaping hole in the front of his armour, proof of his body’s doomed attempts to repair itself, despite the Voidborn nanites that were now swarming within the wound.

  ‘He cannot be allowed to destroy the tower,’ Suran said, his voice strained.

  ‘How do I stop him?’ Sam asked, glancing over at Talon, who was watching them with a vicious smile on his face.