Alyona turned to her, “How is he?” She asked quietly, the question sounding stupid and hollow the second she said them. Still, she needed to know, and did not know where else to begin.
Dr. Hesken surprised her by laughing. “Are you kidding? He’s stronger than any of us. We transplanted the last of his major organs over two months ago. With all of the stem cell treatments your team brought from Earth, the medicines, and the equipment, we coaxed his body through the integration process way ahead of schedule with no complications at all. Honestly, I’ve never seen such a perfect transplant, let alone heard the number we performed, having any such astounding results. It’s almost like he’s not human. He’ll probably always wear a shirt from all the scars, but even those are far less visible then they would normally be, thanks to some of the new medical equipment. The radiation treatments are making just as much progress. His cancer cell counts are almost as low as a healthy adult his age. He gets more exercise then any of us. Vera comes in every day and oversees his physical therapy. She and a team of nearly twenty other volunteers come in twice a day, morning and night, for hours at a time. They hook him up to those medieval looking contraptions and cause him to perform the exercises, all while he lays here and sleeps the day away. Everyone’s dream, eh? ”
The information stunned Alyona, her mind reeling as she tried to reconcile what she had just learned with what she believed. There was one nagging question that she just could not push aside. “The reports we received about Mikkhael. They all said he was weak, having difficulty walking…” She asked, her voice trailing off as she looked askingly at Dr. Hesken.
With a sigh, Dr. Hesken answered the question she dreaded more than any other. “It’s all mental. I tried showing him that, but at some point outside help becomes a crutch to people in this type of situation. He needs to push through those boundaries himself, there is no good way to force someone to do that, aside from putting them through another traumatic event during which they stand up on their own; thereby re-finding the source of their resolve, or they fail and become lost. He was well on his way to restoring his resolve when you and your friends appeared, disrupting that process. Now we are here, waiting for Starkindler to be rebuilt until we can wake him again.”
Alyona cringed guiltily at that last comment; she was supposed to be helping with Starkindler but her moment of selfishness had led her here. She turned to Dr. Hesken, earnestly meeting her eyes. “I swear to you, we will finish rebuilding Starkindler soon… and restore his hope.”
Dr. Hesken met her gaze, holding it for a moment, until she assured herself of Alyona’s honesty. “I’m going to hold you to that girl, don’t you ever forget that. And if you break that promise, I’ll make sure you regret it for what will be the rest of your very short life.”
Alyona continued to digest all of the new information about Mikkhael. She was stunned by how different reality was compared to the version she had imagined for herself. Internally she chided herself about worrying over nothing, as she looked over Mikkhael in disbelief, noticing the healthy pallor of his skin and then something else. He had always been of slim stature, and she had fully expected him to look pale and wan from being sick for so long, and undergoing an incredible number of surgeries, and then being confined to a bed like he was. If anything, he looked more muscular than he ever had when back on the SkySail while they practiced their basic combat training in the simulator every day. The low gravity on Mars should have made him frail, and being so sick for long should have killed him; instead, he somehow managed to appear healthier and stronger than ever.
Although, one thing was immediately clear-Mikkhael did indeed appear to be very pale from lack of sunlight. Alyona briefly found herself wondering if he could get sunburnt from how bright the overhead lights were, and then began to laugh at the randomness of the strange thought. Her attempts to muffle the laugh only made it worse, and then suddenly she was laughing near hysterically, crying as she did so.
A glance over at Dr. Hesken only made it worse. The stern Dr. was clearly evaluating whether or not she suddenly needed to admit Alyona into the psych ward for evaluation, a question Alyona was currently pondering as well. The concerned expression on Dr. Hesken’s face only made her laugh harder. Huge belly laughs shook her as she grabbed her sides, her ribs aching from laughing so hard as she tried to regain control, all the while a steady stream of tears fell, unchecked, down her cheeks.
Minutes must have passed before Alyona regained enough composure to stutter, “I’m sorry,” continuing to laugh softly as she did so. Finally she stopped, looking out over Mikkhael, a sense of wonder clearly present in her expression. “That clever bastard!” She muttered softly.
Dr. Hesken was startled by the last comment, finally showing a chink in her armor. “What?” She asked accusingly.
Alyona wiped her cheeks with the back of her wrists, her palms already soaked from performing the same gesture, attempting to regain a semblance of her dignity. “He’s always been miles ahead of us, and all we’ve ever done was poorly orchestrated attempts to catch up to him. Mikkhael’s the one that envisioned, and designed, the SkySail. He was the one that tracked the bastards who killed our families and then kept tabs on them. When we discovered the advanced SkySuit design, he was already figuring out how to weaponize it and go to Mars. Just like he has been lying here, waiting for us to finish Starkindler so that he doesn’t have to pilot Nemesis…” Her voice suddenly trailed off as she turned to address Dr. Hesken, recognition dawning as she realized the doctor had no idea what she was talking about.
Alyona whispered quietly, “He never told you?”
The silence stretched until Dr. Hesken suddenly blurted, “You’re the Alice Five?!” Alyona’s stunned countenance was all the answer she got, serving as confirmation enough that she had guess rightly that they were the five survivors of the horrible massacre that took place back on Alice Springs, Earth. “Why would you come to Mars and fight?” Dr. Hesken asked, for the first time setting aside her professional demeanor, urgency taking over to learn more about the StormCrow hero.
Abruptly sober, Alyona looked away, finding herself staring at Mikkhael’s face, amazed at the peace she found in his pleasant relaxed expression. “The bastards that killed our friends and family … they are here on Mars. They’re serving in the PDF Stryker division, the President of Mars Industries elite Mech armor force. Evidently, Mikkhael already got a crack at one of them in one of his first missions, but the one he killed wasn’t one of the ones we are after. Overthrowing the PDF will mean getting a chance to fight the Stryker division and to get our revenge. That’s our end goal, and has been from the very beginning.”
Unexpectedly, they could not look each other in the eyes anymore and both turned to stare at Mikkhael in wonder. Dr. Hesken broke the silence. “We pieced together a bit on our own, but then the AI, Aurora, shut down everything else. Mikkhael’s never mentioned what his motivation was for coming here, or fighting for us, but now it all makes sense.”
Alyona did not reply, continuing to watch Mikkhael sleep peacefully. This time, the silence that settled over the room fell like a gentle blanket, encompassing them with its warmth.
After an unknown amount of time, Alyona realized that Dr. Hesken must have left, trusting her and giving her space to be with Mikkhael. She offered a silent thank you for the small blessing as she stayed with Mikkhael, watching him breath softly, reveling in the peace that settled over her in that place of healing.
* * * * *
Kurtis waited nervously in Commander Ultor’s office for Alyona’s arrival. During the last combat operation, in which the Omnos squad scrambled in order to save Xilan and his team from a PDF onslaught, he had stayed behind working in the background. While monitoring the battle, Kurtis came across disturbing information, disturbing enough that a meeting of StormCrow officers had been called once he brought it to Commander Ultor’s attention.
Drogdyn, the lead technical expert who often worked with Kurtis, sat nex
t to him, having confirmed his findings. Across from them sat Colonel Mathias, accompanied by Captain Cartwright, and Chief Engineer Thorsten. The head of the StormCrow internal security division Jack Lu had a seat towards the back, silently watching and evaluating everyone. Even Dr. Hesken was present, having just recently arrived. Now they all waited for Alyona so the meeting could begin.
Kurtis alternated staring at his wrist bound communicator, which currently displayed the time instead of a response to his multiple queries asking Alyona of her whereabouts, and the door, which remained closed no matter how many times he glanced at it while hoping for a different result. The grumbling was growing in intensity as Alyona still failed to appear, building to a point where Kurtis was debating whether to begin without her. The door finally slid open. He watched in hapless frustration as she breezed through, entirely nonplussed at making the rebel Officers wait for her.
At her nonchalant entrance and casual dismissal of the tense situation, the grumbling threatened to spill over into outright defiance. Instead, Commander Ultor stood and called the meeting to a start. “I have been made aware of some disturbing findings that recently have come to light. They will heavily impact the lives of every StormCrow which is why, as the division Officers, you’ve been called here today to be briefed on those findings. Kurtis, go ahead.”
With all eyes suddenly on him, and all of them being extra hostile due to his relation to Alyona, Kurtis found himself turning red with embarrassment as he stood and walked to the far wall, which doubled as a screen. “As you all know, the size of the force that attacked Xilan and the pilots under his command was far larger than any reasonable explanation can account for, which is why I made it a priority to discover the explanation. The result of which is why you have been called here today.”
He ignored their glares as he turned to the wall, which now displayed a satellite-generated image. “We brought some of our own surveillance satellites with us from Earth, one of which I activated prior to the fighting two days ago.” The displayed image showed hundreds of large green tents, commonly used by the PDF for extended missions outside of their domes, hardened to handle the harsh environment, and therefore capable of serving as semi-permanent shelters. For several seconds, the image panned across an unknown plain, showing the sheer number of tents interspersed with all manner of mechanized vehicles and weapons littering the area. Next, the image zoomed out, showing three identifying markers. The first was the mountain Alba Patera, the second showed the location of the Lazarus faction base named Kerrak in the mountain, and the third identified the location of the green tents.
A gasp and some quick comments filled the room as everyone immediately noted that the PDF were located less than twenty miles from Kerrak, with an already sizeable force, and more importantly one that was rapidly growing. Before the room could mutiny into a discussion about what it meant, Kurtis maintained control by changing the image once again, displaying a photo time-stamped from only a few hours previously. A crystal-clear picture showed that several anti-grav trains, each hundreds of cars long, had arrived and begun unloading their cargo in the midst of and around the tents. “As you can see by this latest image, the PDF are deploying thousands of personnel to this region, and have begun unloading the materiel needed to set up a new forward operating base, as well as defend it against any counterattack we could mount. Mikkhael destroyed the FOB that their regional garrison forces previously operated out of, so there is little surprise that they would begin building a new one to house the Hellfire Brigade. That being said, there are already signs that this is indeed much more than the construction of a new regional garrison.”
Despite how the meeting had started, Kurtis now held everyone’s full attention, and respect, as they watched him without further interruption. Alyona met his eyes briefly, her focus returning to the needs of the moment, nodding encouragingly for him to continue. “After examining the data further, and using our Iris satellite to follow their patrol patterns, we’ve determined that the PDF are clearly targeting the Lazarus faction. Instead of rebuilding the old location, they have picked a spot on the far side of Alba Patera that will significantly lengthen the time it will take us to reinforce the Lazarus faction when Kerrak is attacked. The PDF patrols are all targeted directly towards Kerrak, and there is one more thing.” Kurtis said, pausing dramatically as he used the slate he was holding to pull up a new image, which automatically duplicated itself on the screen behind him. “The PDF, clearly, have at least partial access to their communication grid and satellites.”
Behind him, the screen showed an image from the battle two days ago. In it, dozens of drones were attacking Xilan’s defenders. During the fighting, the drones were used as fodder for the Mech armor advancing behind them. Kurtis pointed to the image, “I had each of the Omnos squad Mech armor that were sent out during that battle scan for radio signals during the fighting. There were none, and the drones are intentionally incapable of being controlled by line-of-sight laser. Radio signals were not being hidden, or disguised, they weren’t being used, period; leaving the only means for the PDF to control the drones as a satellite link. I am aware that you have been basing your entire strategy off the fact that the PDF are limited by the same problems we are with the satellite and communication networks, but evidently, they have found at least some way to work around, rendering them far more dangerous, while we remain crippled.”
Drogdyn joined him as the atmosphere in the room devolved, crucially lending his credence to the outsider. As he did so, Colonel Mathias turned to Drogdyn, pointedly ignoring Kurtis, “How long until that FOB becomes operational?”
Kurtis stepped back for a moment, letting the rebels confer with one another about the impending danger. He realized that the Officers in the room were far more comfortable asking Drogdyn about the technical details than they were with him. Without it hurting his feelings at all, he recognized that they simply had no idea what to do with him or how to interact with him. Alyona, Vera, and Kiryl produced measurable results by fighting and interacting, but he worked in the background, and until now had not produced any meaningful input for them to judge him on.
He listened as Drogdyn confidently fielded questions such as the one Colonel Mathias asked, replying with confidence even as he broke the bad news. “Our estimate is that the FOB will be completed in the month, and the PDF can begin performing operations from it in two.” Other questions were asked, such as how many personnel were currently at the base. When Drogdyn answered with what they believed were already over fifteen thousand, the gasping was audible.
Captain Cartwright was brought up to join them, and the various officers grilled him and Drogdyn about the possibility of attacking the FOB before it was finished. Together, they worked to dampen the wildfire that questions like that could explode into. Detailed images surrounding the likely perimeter of the FOB clearly showed hundreds of drones already in place, along with dozens of armored vehicles and defensive turrets. Armed infantry in their powered combat suits patrolled the area, and they had set up numerous sentry posts around the perimeter.
The questions were beginning to die off and arguments start when Drogdyn turned to the group of Officers, without prompting, saying, “We believe that the Chimeras making the drop that Xilan’s team discovered were not dropping a task force to engage Xilan and his force. Rather, they were intended as reinforcements for the FOB. A full squadron of Chimeras have been dropping off personnel and mechanized vehicles at this location, at least four times a day. The rate of build up for what would be considered a base this size is far too high. Considering that two weeks ago there was absolutely nothing at this location, the number of personnel and amount of materiel being diverted to such a strange new location, when the PDF are being pressed so hard on other fronts, suggests that there is more going on than the simple buildup of a regional garrison.”
Kurtis held his breath as he watched everyone digest that last point. A somber Colonel Mathias stood, “Does the Lazarus fact
ion know of this new FOB being constructed so near Kerrak?”
Drogdyn shook his head no, “We haven’t notified them yet. We don’t have hard intelligence yet, and we are using a satellite provided to us by the Omnos squad in order to derive our information. Kurtis and I spoke with Commander Ultor before this meeting and it was determined that we should formulate how we plan to respond before notifying them. Commander Ultor believes they will almost certainly ask for our support during the fighting to come.”
Without any hesitation, Colonel Mathias made eye contact with everyone in the room before calmly stating, “If it is our support they require, then they can rest assured that they will have it.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN - KURTIS
“Courage consists not in hazarding without fear; but being resolutely minded in a just cause.” – Plutarch
They were fighting again. It seemed like that they were always fighting.
The last three weeks had passed in a blur of frenetic activity for Alyona, Kiryl, and Vera. The passage of time marked by one battle after another, followed by frantic periods of maintenance in the few hours available between missions when they were not trying to sleep. As for sleep, that illusive and mythical hope, the ringing from the impact of enemy laser attacks against their units haunted their waking moments, while the screams of the dying, real and imagined, echoed in their dreams. They existed in a zombie state of exhaustion. The narrow escapes and hard fought victories blurred with the euphoric adrenaline highs of combat, making the minutia of being back in the safety of Mount Olympus to be frail lie, to be shattered at any moment.
Always present in the back of their minds was the knowledge that they were allowed to remain in the land of the living for one more day, helping them focus on what mattered most, and to follow through until those tasks were completed. Their actions were a testament to their resolve. Every step they took, every movement, and thought, all boiled down to how best protect Kerrak from the enemy, the encroaching PDF. All sense of other realities faded, along with their innocence, as the window of their world narrowed. Their vision was only able to encompass survival and the myriad of small details necessary in order to maintain that continued existence.
Nemesis (The MechaVerse Trilogy Book 2) Page 23