Last Man Out (Poor Man's Fight Book 5)

by Elliott Kay

  Alicia watched the Nyuyinaro land on its feet in front of the admirals. The pit in her stomach grew deeper.

  * * *

  The alien lowered its wings but kept them spread. Its shoulders—or what passed for such—rose higher than the tallest person. Four dark eyes looked down at the reception party, the lower pair shaped almost like a human’s. The larger pair of lenses spread wide over its forehead. Its thin mouth didn’t move, having lost most of its utility after countless evolutionary changes. That same process had left its feet too narrowly set for anything more than a shuffling step, but that was apparently no loss. Not for a species that lived unprotected among the stars.

  The swirl of colors throughout its skin abated to a steady yellowish hue. It waited.

  Young set the wrist holocom on the deck between them. He spread his arms wide and low in a mirror of the Nyuyinaro’s stance.

  “Do you speak for the humans?” asked the default artificial voice of the holocom.

  “Yes. I speak for the Union,” said the ambassador. “I am Sean Young. This is Admiral Khatri, the commander of all you see here. Who are you? As an individual?”

  The Nyuyinaro’s head twitched downward. Nothing came from the holocom. Then: “Magenta.” As if to illustrate for clarity, magenta swirls welled up within the yellow lights beneath the alien’s skin, only to recede again.

  The ambassador nodded. “We are grateful to meet you, Magenta. Why are you here?”

  “Fear. For our kind and for yours. An ancient enemy brings violence to humans. Now.”

  “Where? Who is this enemy?”

  “Magenta is not strong with words. Human understanding. Magenta is not best to speak for Nyuyinaro, but Magenta’s pod was closest. Magenta wants good emotion. Peace.”

  “I understand. Your words are enough. We want the same. All humans want peace.”

  “Not all. Many are violence.”

  “Then we will fix that. We will stop that violence. That is why we have the Union. That is why the Nyuyinaro wanted the Union.”

  “Magenta wants a human of trust. Good feeling.”

  “I am a diplomat,” Young offered patiently. “I am trusted to speak for humans.”

  “Human with Nyuyinaro trust.”

  “Ah,” said Young. “How can I…?”

  A large screen winked into existence in the air between them, generated by the holocom on the floor. A battered and bleeding young woman appeared in the screen, barely standing in a torn and burned civilian blazer and slacks. Faint wisps of smoke drifted up around her face.

  “Is this human here?” asked the voice of the holocom.

  “Holy shit,” breathed the ship’s captain behind him.

  Young’s lips pressed together. “Where is she?”

  “First Platoon.”

  * * *

  Ambassador Young turned her way in a single smooth motion. He reached out to point directly at Alicia, then turned his hand to beckon her over with that same accusing finger like a school principal.

  “Aw, hell,” muttered Alicia.

  Torres looked to her in shock. “Is that you?” he asked. “Did that thing ask for you?”

  “Sorry, LT. I gotta go.” She walked forward, dreading the possibilities ahead. Though Alicia forced herself into a steady pace, it still required an act of will to drop out of formation and walk across the hangar bay.

  Before she’d made it halfway, she heard footsteps beside her. Alicia tilted her head to look. “Nobody said you had to go alone,” came the cold reassurance of Janeka’s voice.

  “You here to back me up, or to keep me from running away?” the younger woman asked.

  “I’ve never seen you run from anything without a direct order.”

  “Only because it’s never been practical,” Alicia scoffed.

  “Still isn’t.”

  “Oh, sure. Throw that in my face.”

  Young reeled her in with his firm gaze. He stepped aside and gestured to the deck right in front of the Nyuyinaro, with only the screen and the holocom on the floor between them. The image could have been taken from a state-of-the-art camera, except there had been no such cameras nearby when it happened. She remembered it all too well.

  “Stand here,” said Young. At least his voice didn’t convey any anger. “Hold your arms out like this when you talk so the Nyuyinaro knows you’re the one speaking. This one goes by Magenta.”

  “Magenta? He’s named for a color?”

  “It’s an approximation. That’s what they told us. For all we know Magenta is a nickname or maybe it’s trying to humor the primitive humans. Hold your arms out and say you’re the one they asked for. And don’t say anything else without checking with me first. This is literally the first time they’ve ever shown they care about knowing one human from another. So don’t fuck this up,” the diplomat added under his breath.

  “Okay.” Alicia stepped into place, held her arms out, and looked up at the towering alien with the death ray eyes. “I’m the one on the screen. You asked for me.”

  The screen vanished. Magenta leaned in, studying her with the smaller, harmless pair of eyes. “Yes,” said the holocom’s default voice. “We know you.”

  Alicia looked to Young. He gestured for her to continue. It wasn’t exactly the detailed instruction she’d hoped for. “Have you and I met?” she asked.

  “No. Not Magenta. You met another.”

  “How is… he? She? That one?”

  “That one is Scar. Scar is with new family. Healed. Grateful.”

  “Wow.”

  “Magenta knows your song. We all know your song.” The voice paused. “What is your… name?”

  Beside her, Young sucked in a surprised, excited breath. She glanced to him again, but he only nodded.

  “Alicia. I am Alicia Wong.”

  “I will add your name to your song.”

  “Wow.”

  “Your kind are in violence with our enemy. Not far from here. Many die.”

  “Where and what enemy?” asked Young.

  “Where?” Alicia echoed. “What enemy?”

  “The closest human world. The one we asked you not take. We call it Dust.”

  “Minos?” asked Khatri behind her. “Is it Minos?”

  With agreement from Young, Alicia repeated the question. Though Magenta barely moved, she thought she saw the slightest twitch in those eyes. Another holo screen appeared.

  Dust clouds swirled across a landscape of grey sand dunes. In the distance stood a city with explosions over the skyline. Red lasers flashed in combat with yellow beams of light.

  “Yeah, that’s Minos,” said Young.

  “Who is the enemy?” asked Alicia.

  “The People of Dust. They were like humans. Much like humans. We fought before we met humans. They always wanted more. They wanted more worlds. More stars. They wanted us. All of us. We had to fight.”

  “Guess I have to ask even if it’s obvious,” muttered Young. He asked, through Alicia: “Who is ‘all of us?’ What did they want?”

  “All. The Nyuyinaro. Krokinthians. Others they met. The People of Dust wanted all to work for them. To fight for them. To give them more. They wanted everything.

  “We burned them. We burned them from worlds. We burned them from stars. Back to their home. It was war. We lost much. Many Nyuyinaro. Many Krokinthians. We are still not as many as we were before the war. We never knew if we would survive until it ended. We burned them until we saw no more. It was not always Dust. That is what we call it after the war. We burned. Then we left.

  “The Nyuyinaro and Krokinthians feared humans would be the same. We fought. But you are different. They only took. You take and give. They all obeyed one leader. You are erratic. Diverse. Erratic and diverse are difficult, but different. You are learning. We may fight again. We may not. We hope not.

  “Humans understand this is ours, this is yours. Some humans still take, but others correct it. Like your Union. Like Alicia,” Magenta finished.

  �
��Wait. You burned their planet to dust?” asked Young. “You tried to kill them all?” He waited, then nudged Alicia out of her awe. “C’mon, now.”

  “Sorry,” she said. “Magenta, you tried to kill all of the People of Dust?”

  “Yes. It is what they did to the Runners when they would not serve. It is what they wanted for us. For the Krokinthians. Others. We tried other ways. They did not change. We had no choice.”

  Alicia’s jaw dropped. “No choice besides geno—?”

  “Not helpful,” interrupted Young. “Not what I asked you to say. Diplomacy. Remember?”

  “We don’t have time anyway,” said Khatri, stepping up beside them. “Crisis now, history later. When did this happen?” she asked, pointing to the holo image.

  “Magenta, these images,” said Alicia. “When did this happen? You say humans are being attacked now?”

  “This image is…minutes. This image is ten minutes ago. It is still happening. This is only the first. They will destroy all humans. It is their way.

  “The People of Dust looked like you before. Shaped like you, but different. Now they look much more like you. Closer, but still different. We do not understand how or why. We know only the song of the Nyuyinaro who watch Dust. We recognize them by their tools and by their ways. By their control over the ground and skies. It is them, and they kill humans. This began… twenty-three minutes have passed.

  “The Nyuyinaro are far. Spread out. We will fight the People of Dust again. We are too far to fight before your people are gone. The Krokinthians are too far. Only you are close. Magenta does not know what happens when we fight. You are closer. You can fight for your people.

  “The People of Dust will be ready for us. Our fight will come at great cost. Humans have different ways. Different tools. They need time to adapt to fight you. If you fight now, you can end the People of Dust forever.”

  “I wouldn’t go that far,” grumbled Branch.

  “Let’s focus on now,” counseled Young.

  “Put the task force on alert,” Khatri ordered, looking to one of her aides. “Get them ready to move immediately. Send out a General Response notice on my authority to get the local militia and any nearby reserves on standby. And check on the status of my flagship. Admiral Branch, I believe we’ll have to end this formation.”

  “Yep. XO, can you dismiss?”

  “I’m on it, sir,” said Santos, walking away with other officers in tow.

  Noting the rush of movement, Magenta asked, “Will you fight?”

  “Bet your ass,” grunted Alicia.

  “Miss Wong,” sighed Young.

  “Oh. Sorry.”

  “Never mind. Say yes,” he instructed.

  “Yes, we will fight. What can you tell us about them? About how they fight?” she asked Magenta. “You said we have different tools?”

  “The People of Dust use light to burn as you do, though different. It is similar. You have a similar strength. Their metal skins are much stronger than yours, but they can be overcome. They have vessels like yours and like the Krokinthians. The vessels can be hard to see. It is their metal skins. Dust and other worlds close to it have that quality in their stones.

  “Magenta is not wise in their ways. To Magenta, they fight like you. They also deceive.” Magenta paused. “Of all the people the Nyuyinaro have met, none have deceived as much as the People of Dust. None except humans.”

  “Ouch,” said Alicia.

  “Guess it’s good to know we’ve got our talents,” Branch muttered.

  “It isn’t always deception,” said Young, looking to Alicia. “Sometimes we don’t all agree.”

  She relayed his words to Magenta. For the first time, the Nyuyinaro shifted on its feet as if to convey something without translation. “Diverse is difficult,” Magenta replied.

  “Ask if they plan to come with us,” said Khatri. “We need to get moving.”

  “Will you come with us?” asked Alicia.

  “No. We cannot travel together. You must release Magenta before you leave.”

  After a nod from Young, Alicia said, “We’ll do that. We are about to leave very soon.”

  “I’ll need to leave right away, too,” said Khatri, turning to Branch to arrange it.

  “Ma’am, about that,” spoke up one of her aides. “DeRuyter was an hour into that FTL drive overhaul when this started. They’ll still need at least half that to button it up.”

  “Damn it. I was afraid of that,” fumed Khatri.

  “Admiral,” spoke up Branch. “Beowulf has a flag bridge and nobody else is using it right now. You’re welcome to run the show from here. We’ll get you set up.”

  “Thank you, Admiral Branch. I know you didn’t expect to host a foreign command today.”

  “If it cuts a catastrophe short by half an hour I’m not gonna fret about it.” He stepped away to get the arrangements moving. A more immediate concern made him pause first. “Deck officer! The Noonie here is leaving. Get the bay doors going.”

  “Okay. Time to say goodbye, Miss Wong,” said Young.

  “Magenta, you should go. Thank you. Can you tell Scar I’m happy to know he’s okay—er, that I’m happy he is with family?”

  “Yes. All will hear Magenta’s song. Alicia will be in the song. Again.”

  “Wow.”

  “Alicia says ‘wow’ often.” Magenta looked around the hangar bay. Crewmen and marines ran to and fro. Lights flashed. The warning buzz of the bay doors sounded off. “The Nyuyinaro bring warning to the humans, and the humans answer. Yes. Wow.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six:

  All Available Hands

  GENERAL RESPONSE ALERT

  TO ALL STARSHIPS IN THE SYSTEM: STAND BY FOR INSTRUCTIONS

  The Union Fleet has received warning of an alien attack on the planet Minos. The identity, power, and numbers of the attackers are unknown. A Union Fleet task force is en route to investigate and aid as necessary.

  All starships with Fleet Reserve or System Reserve status are hereby on General Response Alert Standby. All other FTL-capable vessels are to remain in system at Qin Kai and contact Union Fleet authority for further instructions.

  --Union Fleet Communications

  August 2280

  “Everything in your post was perfectly clear about the potential danger, Mr. Liu,” said Lynette. “We’re no strangers to that.”

  “Of course,” grunted the client in the French-collared suit, seated across from her at the table. “My apologies. I’ll… well, at the risk of being too honest, I think I expected someone a little rougher. I don’t mean that as a complaint.”

  Lynette held back her smirk, though she couldn’t resist a glance at Elise. Her companion still had eyes only for her menu, unfortunately. The moment sailed past her head, though the fact that Elise took the time to curl her jet black hair and put on something nice supported Liu’s point, if only a little. The captain had made at least a little effort to put herself together, too, but it wasn’t like either of them had worn evening gowns. Their suits weren’t much different from his.

  “Given the location, we thought vac suits and body armor would be a bit out of place,” said Lynette. She tilted her head to her left. Across from their seats, beyond more tables filled by patrons, the restaurant offered a broad balcony setting complete with a live string quartet. “The setting wasn’t what we expected, but we’re grateful for the invitation.”

  “Ah. Yes. Well, my firm doesn’t typically engage in this sort of contract,” Liu admitted. “It’s why I wanted to discuss the risk factor up front. The cargo is legitimate. We ship to Minos on regular haulers all the time. This job is only a matter of irregular timing. But if I can be candid, the local authorities in Minos aren’t always the most honest. And I’m sure you’re aware they’ve had more than their share of problems with piracy.”

  “I understand. We’re happy to hear all you can tell us about the local authorities, but we’re sure we can handle it regardless. As for the rest,” Lynette smiled, �
�it would take one hell of a pirate outfit to capture our ship. They’ll want an easier mark than us.”

  “The specifications on your ship are impressive. So your entire crew was recruited out of the Archangel military?”

  “That’s correct,” she said. “We’re not in business as mercenaries, but if the job turns rough, we can handle it. We’ve all been through rough before.”

  “Ah!” Elise gasped. “Moelleux au Chocolat!” She looked to Lynette with wide, happy eyes and a giddy smile. “Save room for dessert.”

  “Hard-bitten combat veterans,” said Lynette. “Every one of us.”

  “I see. Then about the cargo—I didn’t think it would fit the dimensions of your hold?”

  “You said it’s crated up and organized on pallets. As long as we can separate—” the fierce buzz of the holocom mounted on her ring cut her off. Elise received the same interruption. Lynette tapped the fake jewel to open up a screen. The terse, urgent explanation lacked in detail and yet explained all too much.

  “Is something going on?” asked Liu. He noticed the Union Fleet emblem on her screen. No one else in the room seemed to have a similar message. “Is there some emergency?”

  “Oh for fuck’s sake, Tanner,” Lynette fumed.

  “I’m sorry?” said Liu.

  “It’s a Fleet call-up for reserves,” Elise explained. She set aside her menu and the napkin on her lap. “Nothing to worry about locally. Trouble outside the system.”

  “You don’t seem like it’s nothing to worry about,” said Liu.

  Lynette wasn’t listening. She already had a channel to the ship. “Talk to me,” she said.

  “Engines are hot,” came Veronica’s voice, which shook with the impact of her footsteps as she jogged through the ship. “Salgado finished up a test cycle fifteen minutes ago. Everyone but you and Elise is on board.”

  “And the call-up?”

  “Checking,” said Veronica. “Damn. It’s not only the Fleet patrol. They’re taking everybody but the system militia and—holy shit, there’s a Noonie pod near Beowulf. In plain view. Drifting away like it just came in to say hi. What the hell is going on?”