Tempest: Book Two of the Terran Cycle

by Philip C. Quaintrell

  They both moved like a coordinated team, kicking their way into the opposing offices and shooting through the translucent glass walls that hadn’t already been blown out. Their surprise attack earned them a few extra seconds to fire first and take out a couple of the remaining guards.

  Protocorps didn’t hire amateurs to watch over their greatest asset.

  After the first couple went down under Li’ara’s fire, the rest immediately adapted and took cover, while simultaneously throwing grenades into the offices. Li’ara skidded, almost falling over trying to dive behind the thick pillar, before the explosions ripped through the offices. Chunks of the protecting pillar flew off in every direction with bits of desk and office stationery, and glass between it all. She gripped her rifle tighter while the high-pitched hum in her ears drowned out all other sound.

  On the opposite side of the corridor, Roland had taken cover behind an upturned desk, and was firing pot-shots blindly over the top. Li’ara could see him shouting to her but the sound of his voice was washed away with everything else. That’s when Roland aimed his Tri-roller at her and fired before she could realise what was happening. The Intrinium bolt flew inches above her head and struck the Shay behind her in the mid-riff. The blast of super-hot energy caught the guard under his armour and threw him into the wall of the office.

  Pull it together, Li’ara thought. She pushed herself up the column with her rifle close to her chest. A quick glance confirmed the advancement of the attacking troops, ducking in and out of the pillars and using the debris for cover. The grenades on her belt were weighing heavy on her, begging to be thrown into the fray.

  “Cover your eyes!” Li’ara had no idea how loud she shouted. The flash-bang grenade rolled out of her hands and bowled over the debris and into the midst of the guards.

  The concussive force told her the flash had gone off. Along with Roland, Li’ara launched from her cover and levelled her rifle at the dazed soldiers. The Protocorps guards continued to fire in their direction however, pushing the humans back into cover. Li’ara fell after putting her weight onto her right leg and landed awkwardly onto the side of a chair. A piece of shrapnel was protruding from her calf with blood dripping down her leg.

  There was no time to examine it as a Laronian came bounding past the nearest pillar with his gun raised in Li’ara’s direction. Her instincts kicked in with the desperate need to survive that accompanied the adrenaline. As fast as her muscles allowed, Li’ara rolled over the broken chair and flung it at the Laronian with all her strength. His shot went wild as Li’ara landed on her back, rifle aimed at his exposed neck. The Intrinium melted the soft tissue around his scaly neck until it seared through the muscle and bone, leaving a decapitated Laronian.

  Another explosion rocked the offices and two Shay flew through the air like ragdolls. Roland was holding the grenade launcher again.

  “Come on!” The bounty hunter’s mad call for blood was the first thing she heard again.

  Intrinium bolts whizzed over and around her body as she picked herself up. Li’ara’s limp turned into a mad hop while she fired back, trying to make it to the nearest pillar. Heavy boots crunching over glass grew louder on the other side of the column. Her muscle memory reacted to the years of hand-to-hand combat, drawing her knife and swivelling as best she could on her damaged leg. The blade plunged into the face of the unsuspecting Shay, shattering his visor and coming to a halt inside his cybernetic mind. Li’ara didn’t stop there; she was getting angry with the pain in her leg. With one hand holding the knife and the Shay up, she charged at the guards using the dead body as a shield while firing her rifle through the gap in his arm.

  Li’ara felt the impacts against her shield, but none made it through the armour and into her. Another Shay dropped in the distance as her rifle fire caught him in the head. Eventually her body shield began to lose limbs and larger chunks of his body, compromising her own body. All she could see was red. Li’ara’s finger never left the trigger, spraying the enemy with vengeful Intrinium. As the body was almost shot to cinders, Roland appeared from nowhere and roughly yanked her behind the nearest pillar. The dead body fell to the floor with her knife still buried in its face.

  “So this is going well!” Roland shouted over the weapons fire.

  Li’ara couldn’t help but wince under the pain in her calf. Roland looked down where it was impossible to miss the jagged metal sticking out of her leg.

  “It’s fine.” Li’ara flicked out the magazine from her rifle and replaced it. “How many are left?”

  “Seven or eight I think.” Roland put a finger to the comm in his ear, “Len, can you see anything in here?”

  “No, the cameras are blown to shit,” Ch’len sounded stressed. “But I can see the small army below you. They’re coming.”

  “We need to move fast,” Li’ara braced herself.

  “Agreed.” Roland lodged the stock of the grenade launcher into his shoulder, ready to fire.

  “They’re too close now,” Li’ara warned. “You’re just as likely to kill us as them!”

  Roland groaned and slung the launcher over his back. “I need a second.” The bounty hunter removed a grav-grenade from his belt and chucked it over his shoulder and down the corridor with ease. The grenade stuck to another pillar and altered the effects of gravity within six metres, sucking in three of the guards. Roland had taken the extra time to assemble a new assault rifle out of three separate sections attached to his various belts. When the weapon had become one it emitted a sharp hum to signify deadly capabilities. The bounty hunter crouched and swung round the pillar in one swift move, unleashing the new rifle on the three guards, bunched together. All three were dead in seconds with smoking scorch marks pitting their bodies.

  Li’ara took advantage of the explosion as well, barrelling round the other side of the pillar and advancing. Two more guards fell to her surprise attack, each taking a hit in between the plates of their armour. Li’ara’s life was saved by the pain in her leg causing her to fall over and the Intrinium bolt flying over her instead. She continued to fire as she fell, making certain to remain a hard target. The Shay made a bee-line for her, the barrel of his rifle staring her in the face. Roland burst from behind the pillar and charged into the Shay, picking the alien up under his arms until they both slammed into the floor, a tangle of limbs. Li’ara didn’t hesitate. On one knee she took aim and ended the lives of the other two remaining soldiers, both caught off guard by the fight between Roland and their comrade.

  A feral roar erupted from Roland’s throat as he continued to beat the Shay to death. The fight ended the way most fights did with Roland; a knife to the throat and an Intrinium round to the chest for good measure. In the silence that followed, Li’ara could see the fresh cuts and singes to Roland’s skin and armour. He looked as battered as she felt.

  “Feel better?” she asked, looking at the mutilated alien under the bounty hunter.

  “I kinda’ do...” Roland stood up with obvious pain on his face. “You’re not a bad shot for a grunt.” A cheeky smile broke through the pain on his face.

  “And you’re as violent and crazy as I thought you’d be.” Li’ara reflected his cheeky grin, despite her own pain.

  There was a groan of pain in the distance, beyond the obliterated corridor and executive offices. With their guns raised, they walked over the sprawl of dead bodies and debris, following the moaning. Li’ara found the source of the tunnelled breeze in the office at the end of the corridor. There was a large hole in the glass wall of an expansive and luxurious office. The name beside the door, now hanging off its frame, read: Sav-del Tanek.

  Past the executive offices stood a large circular white door. The lights in the ceiling were flickering above the smoking remains of the turret gun and a prone Shay in what looked to be an expensive, yet torn suit. The Shay tried to crawl away from the door, his left leg lifelessly dragged behind him, and stopped when his fingers rested over Roland’s boot. Even Li’ara found his whimper pathet
ic.

  “Remember me?” a malevolent smile spread across Roland’s face.

  The Shay looked around desperately for a weapon, but found none. The bounty hunter picked the Shay up by his ripped jacket and slammed him into the wall before launching his fist like a piston into the alien’s gut. The air burst from the Shay’s lungs as he dropped to the floor like a stone.

  “This is Sav-del Tanek.” Roland lightly kicked the Shay in the leg.

  More whimpers escaped Sav-del’s mouth while he caught his breath.

  Li’ara rolled her eyes at the dark stain spreading out from the alien’s crotch.

  Roland laughed hysterically. “He’s pissing himself!” the bounty hunter dropped knee first, allowing his full weight to press against Sav-del’s broken leg.

  The Shay screamed.

  His scream doubled when Roland plunged one of his hidden blades into the Shay’s good leg.

  “Do I have your attention?” Roland twisted the knife, changing Sav-del’s scream into an animalistic groan. “I’m willing to bet you know how to open that shiny door.” Pure fear reflected in the Shay’s eyes. “I suggest you start talking before I put more holes in you.”

  Sav-del’s fear turned to defiance. “I’ll never tell you!” he spat. “You’ll be dead before you even make a dent!”

  Li’ara left Roland to do his work while she investigated the panel on the wall beside the large door. There was a keypad and multiple scanners built into the panel, each designed to identify a different part of someone’s body. She knocked her knuckles against the door and heard the flat thud that resounded. It was thick, too thick to blast through.

  Sav-del’s scream returned her attention to the increasingly bloody scene behind her. Roland was crouched over the Shay having pulled his knife free of his leg. Blood spurted from the wound in no small amount.

  “You’re right Sav-del,” Roland said casually. “Time is of the essence. Take your wound for example. I’m no expert on Shay physiology, but it looks like I nicked an artery there. I’d say you have maybe a minute before you bleed out.” From a pouch on his belt, Roland retrieved a small shiny cylinder. “Start talking and you live.”

  The Shay was panicking at the sight of his life gushing from his leg. His eyes darted about for some unseen solution to his predicament, but finally rested on his injured leg, finality setting in.

  Li’ara decided to play on the Shay’s fear, “Tick-tock, Sav-del. What’s it going to be?”

  Sav-del sputtered, “Fine! Fine! I’ll do it...” His eyes pleaded to Roland to be saved.

  A small needle ejected from the cylinder before Roland plunged it into the Shay’s wound. The bleeding stopped as blue jell filled the open gash and pain killers rushed through his veins. The instant relief was obvious in Sav-del’s gasp.

  “How close is the next team, Len?” Li’ara touched the comm in her ear.

  “Er, they’re not coming,” Ch’len sounded confused. “Kubrackk killed them all...”

  Roland and Li’ara looked at one another, calculating the fight that was coming.

  “He killed them all?” Roland didn’t sound convinced.

  “He’s got a Trillik with him, but to be honest he looks really pissed... Oh shit! They’re in the Translift!” Ch’len screamed down the comm.

  Roland stood up and paced the small corridor, considering their options. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked at Li’ara. “Use him to get in and blow it to hell. I’ll hold them off at the lift.”

  “It’s too risky.” Li’ara had already considered their options. “We won’t get another chance at this, Roland. If even one of them gets past you, they’ll delay me enough to allow more guards to show up. We had two objectives; maybe we can still achieve them both.” Li’ara marched to the end of the corridor and pointed at the smaller Translift outside Sav-del’s office. “Take the executive lift down to the back-up mainframe and make sure they follow you. Plant the back door and kill them both. I’ll meet you back at the hangar.”

  Roland looked away, mulling over her idea. Li’ara knew he would see sense and agree to her plan; it was the only way to achieve both goals and get out alive. Of course that was all dependent on him killing both bounty hunters and her blowing up the cube, before the cavalry arrives.

  “This all sounds a little suicidal.” Roland scratched the side of his head with the barrel of his Tri-roller.

  “When did it not?” Li’ara dropped her rifle on the floor and removed her sidearm from its holster. With one hand she half lifted, half dragged Sav-del to the panel on the wall.

  Roland sighed. “Just get in and set the charges. Make sure you give yourself enough time to get out.”

  “No shit.” Li’ara shoved the end of her gun into the Shay’s back as the soft chime of the Translift rang out.

  Roland gave her a final nod before leaving to face Kubrackk.

  The twisted and corrupted body of Garrett Jones stood motionless beside the equally corrupted Terran. The extraordinary pair conversed through the same unexplained connection as the Terran leaned with both hands onto the master console on the Starforge’s bridge. Garrett's parasite forced him to watch as strands of nanocelium wormed out of the Terran’s hands and began to bore into the console. Holographic screens and monitors flickered under the duress of the Terran’s wireless control.

  Garrett couldn’t explain how he knew what was taking place in front of him. The longer he spent connected to his parasite the more he felt their thoughts and memories merging. He knew the Terran was taking steps to ensure they had complete dominance over the Starforge, another name Garrett instinctively knew, and so make the crew redundant. Images flashed across his vision of the Starforge travelling to Ch’ket, which was apparently where the humans had been placed. Garrett had never actually seen the rings of Ch’ket and yet he knew the planet that formed before his eyes.

  If he dwelled on the question of what the Starforge could actually do to destroy the human race, his captor would bore down on him with its suffocating presence. The same thing happened when he tried to find the real Terran, trapped inside his own body like Garrett. The image of him inside the cage of light was fresh in Garrett’s mind. The Terran had fought against his barriers to no avail, causing Garrett to wonder why he wasn’t in a similar cage. With that thought he had images of the broken cube sitting dormant in the Gommarian’s basement. Again, the parasite’s mind bled into his, giving him answers he shouldn’t have. He was weaker than the Terran because his parasite was broken, though it probably didn’t hurt that the new cube’s host was a powerful Terran.

  The same message began to appear on every screen and hologram throughout the giant station. The entire crew, guards and all, were being ordered to evacuate immediately. The Terran had full control.

  New messages came to life across the master console, informing them that the last Starrillium was almost fully recharged. Before the crew had been ordered to leave, the Shay engineers had finished their last adjustments to the station’s systems. The Starforge could now navigate sub-space and be ready to use on the other end without recharge time. This still confused Garrett who only knew that the station could be used to communicate across vast distances. The professor was sure their last transmission had been with something outside this galaxy, though he mentally shrugged off the thoughts of that particular being.

  The technological transfusion between the Terran and the master console came to an abrupt end. Pulling his hands away, the Terran stepped back and stared out of the polarised viewport of the bridge. The intense light of the baby sun, behind the station, was dimmed to protect the equipment as well as the previous crew. The Terran continued to stare into the ocean of stars beyond the bridge, his body the perfect imitation of a statue. Garrett could feel his parasite questioning the Terran, just as unsure as he was about the Terran’s immobility.

  “They are here.” The Terran spoke out loud.

  Garrett had sudden images of Kalian Gaines and Esabelle flash over his m
ind. The professor felt his hand clench at the thought. His fist tightened. The action rolled around his mind for a few seconds. Garrett had actually felt his hand clench under his own command. He had experienced similar muscle control on Trantax, but not to this extent. What did this mean? Angry alarm emanated from all around his consciousness as the parasite descended on him like a giant spider from an oily abyss.

  Fighting me is futile, insect.

  The words hissed out of the darkness. Garrett felt the pressure around his subconscious form increase, as if the space he occupied inside his mind was being invaded. The creature’s words were accompanied by more images that bled across the gap. The professor saw aliens that didn’t belong to the Conclave being attacked by tentacle-like strands of nanocelium, their bodies being corrupted as his was, but the parasite failed in its attempts to scare Garrett. He saw something else through the creature’s mind. There was fear mingled with the anger at the thought of taking over a human or Terran body. Why would they fear to control one of us?

  The genocide of your kind will be the last thing you see before your pathetic body is wasted. There will be no ascension for the human race!

  Garrett screamed inside his own mind as the parasite stimulated pain throughout his nervous system. There was no fighting it; the pain would be eternal and he knew that now. He had made a grave mistake that could never be undone, and he would be made to pay for it at the malevolent hands of this parasite.

  As quickly as it began, the pain stopped with the parasite’s attention being pulled away by the Terran. Again, this was a first for Garrett. The creature was usually able to continue his torment even while distracted by the outside world. The professor concentrated on clenching his fist again, willing it to ball up and crack his mutilated knuckles. If Garrett could, he would drop to his knees in defeat as only his index finger twitched, and even then he wasn’t sure if he did it or the parasite was messing with him.

  “The female is stronger.” The Terran rotated his shoulders in a very human manner. “I will take her. You must correct your failure and kill the other.”