by Unknown
He knew the weapon very well. It was the blade of his father the King. He crouched down near Orin’s body, which lay on his side bleeding profusely from the uncauterized wound. “This is Father’s blade, Orin,� he whispered in his ear. “Where did that person get it?� And then insight seemed to light upon his mind and it was seen in his expression.
He knelt close to Orin’s ear, who was now gasping for his breath as his life poured out. “Is that my brother, Orin?� But he did not wait for an answer from the dying man.
The Horva were still reigning down a heavy volley of fire upon the platform; threatening to destroy his stolen ship and Orin’s companions were closing in as well. He decided he could not afford another confrontation right now and ignited his father’s blade long enough to drive it into the pavement next to Orin.
There it remained; imbedded halfway up the blade length as he extinguished it. He took another stolen stare at Tiet as he approached; then turned to run for his ship before it was destroyed by the approaching war machines.
Kale managed to reach his ship as another not far away on the platform was struck by a powerful blast from the Horva. He got to the cockpit and retracted the ramp as the engines powered up for lift off. He could see his brother reaching Orin’s body and he wondered if the boy even knew that he had an older brother. The thought that his own younger brother might have no knowledge of him, bolstered the resentment and fury he had carried so long against Orin and his father.
The child had been so very young when the old incident had occurred, but Kale remembered him. He had supposed that all of the family, including little Tiet, had perished in the great battle that had reportedly completely wiped out the Barudii as a people. It was obvious that the report had been premature.
Kale had seen his father’s body upon the battlefield after the battle was over and remembered his crown, but the King’s blade had been missing. Now he knew why. He pushed the memories back in his mind and brought the engines to power. The old Barudii strider lifted off the platform and tore upward through the sky toward open space.
ORIN was very close to death when Tiet came upon him. He knelt in his mentor’s blood to try to help him, but it was nearly over. Orin tried to speak as he coughed up more blood. “Who was that person? Who did this? Tell me so that I can avenge you!� said Tiet frantically.
Orin’s voice was weak. He could only manage one word before his life ceased. “K...a...l...e…�
He was gone. And the pain of losing him on top of the loss of Dorian was only delayed momentarily by the bewildering last word he had given in answer to Tiet’s question.
Wynn was beside him as Orin died. His own reaction to the name was one of realization rather than bewilderment. But there wasn’t time now for any hesitation. The Horva were on the move toward their position.
“Tiet, we must go!� urged Wynn.
Tiet seemed not to even hear him. Wynn pulled him to his feet against his will and urged him away from their fallen comrade. He went along, knowing he must, and paused only a moment to ignite his father’s blade and free it from the ground.
Wynn urged him on as they ran toward the cloning facility. He wanted to be sure that the equipment Grod wanted was destroyed. As they approached the building it became clear that the facility was in total ruin. Many fires were still blazing within and there was no way to get inside to investigate further. It certainly appeared that the bomb had done the job adequately.
The Horva continued to lay down heavy firepower as they approached the cloning facility. Tiet and Wynn ran back toward the magnetic rail and took cover behind the safety wall as the Horva strafed the area with pulse laser fire. They were now within four hundred yards of the rail and many of the ground forces split away toward the cloning facility to attempt to rescue any of their forces who might have survived the devastating explosion.
The safety wall was crumbling around them. There seemed to be nowhere to go. Tiet ran to the nearest of the giant magnetic rings and used his blade to make multiple cuts to the support as it rose above the safety wall.
Wynn discerned his intent and sliced away at the support for the same ring on the opposite side of the rail. As the supports gave way, they both combined their mental power to support the ring and then quickly sent it up into the air in a great arc toward the forces approaching their position.
Seeing the approaching section of the ring, most of the ground forces stopped firing as they attempted to scatter. The huge section of metal came crashing down into their frontline and smashed many of the warriors as it tumbled through their ranks. Some of the war machines caught in the path of the ring were crushed and burst into flame.
RANUL continued the scans of the planet surface, trying to close in on the disturbance the computer had picked up. The sensors concentrated on one city in particular. The database identified the city as Baeth Periege There was a very intense battle being waged from within and without the city perimeter.
“Helmsman, get us to that city immediately,� he ordered.
Estall signaled for two of the other cruisers to follow them to the surface while the rest remained in orbit. The large Vorn warships began their descent through the atmosphere with shields at maximum for reentry. The sheering forces of the atmosphere beat upon the vessels but did not harm them.
As the three large battle cruisers came closer to Baeth Periege, Ranul was able to pull up a more detailed visual: several Vorn ships were leaving the city and heading away for open space as the battle raged on.
Ranul tried to locate the beacon from the Saberhawk, but was unable to locate it anywhere in the vicinity. He did however notice an old Barudii ship climbing through the atmosphere, but it was of the smaller strider class of vessel. They needed to get to the city soon; hopefully his friends could be found safe.
WYNN and Tiet stayed pinned down in the trench of the magnetic rail. The Horva had regrouped and were laying down more pulse fire against their position. Large blasts from the war machines were closing in on them. They looked at one another, trying to figure out what to do next. “The tunnel!� shouted Wynn over the explosions going off around them.
Tiet got up and followed the elder man toward the magnetic rail tunnel they had emerged from earlier. The explosions continued all around them as the Horva persistently moved in on their position.
The tunnel was nearly eight hundred yards away from them and the enemy was tearing into the rail trench with everything they had. Pulse laser fire was shredding the safety wall all around them as they ran. They shielded themselves mentally at different intervals as large chunks of concrete and metal flew at them.
Suddenly, large beams of energy shot overhead from another direction, but the shots weren’t aimed at them. They stopped a moment as the firepower coming down on them halted. As they surveyed the scene, they could see several large Vorn battle cruisers coming in over the city from the southeast. The cruisers were firing upon the Horva army.
The Horva tried to return fire but it was useless against the shields on the cruisers. After several heavy volleys of laser fire, the Horva began to retreat away from the approaching warships. Many of the Horva began to scatter into the wasteland beyond the city perimeter, while the greater majority either retreated into the tunnel of the magnetic rail or stood their ground and died.
Wynn and Tiet watched as their own escape route was being used by those trying to kill them only minutes before. They were still hunkered down in the rail trench below a section of the crumbling safety wall approximately four hundred yards from the escaping Horva going into the tunnel. They didn’t dare run from their position for fear the Vorn cruisers might pick them off with large pulse cannons.
From the shuttle bay of the lead ship, they noticed a large troop carrier coming down very near their position. They remained where they were as it landed, not having anywhere else to g
o. To their surprise, when the back of the transport lowered and the people inside came out it wasn’t Vorn military but Castillians.
The warriors filed out of the transport and took up a defensive stance around the ship. Behind them came Ranul. Tiet jumped out of the trench when he recognized them. Wynn followed behind him. The warriors took aim on him until Ranul called his name and came out of the formation to meet them.
“Tiet! Where are the others?� asked Ranul over the sound of the cruiser’s cannons, still firing on the retreating Horva.
Tiet’s face gave away the news before his voice did. “Dead!�
Ranul was shocked by the news, but he hesitated only a moment; a battle was still raging around them. They entered the transport and took seats near the cockpit. The Aolene warriors filed back into the transport and took their positions inside. The ramp lifted as the pilot brought the ship off the landing platform and headed back to the Vorn cruiser.
Tiet could hear Wynn and Ranul speaking with each other, but he wasn’t really paying attention to them. He felt safe again as they climbed skyward toward the waiting cruiser still blasting away at the Horva.
The tension of the fight began to be relieved somewhat, but with it came a flood of suppressed emotions. He began to weep bitterly as he pressed his head against the bulkhead. Ranul and Wynn left off their conversation with one another, but did not engage Tiet.
The Vorn cruiser received the transport and continued to clear the city of Horva combatants. They fled into the rail tunnel in droves while others continued into the wasteland on foot or in damaged war machines. They were pursued no further than the limits of the city.
A lone and injured figure watched as the Horva army retreated under heavy fire from the battle cruisers. He wondered where they had come from. All of those large ships were thought to have been destroyed by the Barudii sphere. The battle at Baeth Periege had taken a turn unexpected.
He wasn’t sure how the cloning facility had been destroyed. The last thing Grod remembered was going to sleep in the cloning pod. He awoke to utter devastation, and all of his men in the cloning pods with him, were dead. Malec and the scientist Varen were also dead.
Grod could see his army was on the run without him. This battle was lost. But at least he was alive.
He spotted a personal transport vehicle near a section of debris and confiscated it. Firing up the engine, Grod climbed onto it and bolted away from the smoldering wreckage of the cloning facility toward the open wasteland beyond.
ONCE he was clear of the atmosphere, Kale scanned the space of sector 773. He quickly found the signal he was looking for. He plotted the course into the navigation computer and activated the auto pilot. The strider took off for the preset coordinates at three quarters of its maximum speed. His thoughts were returning to the surface and his fight with Orin.
He had thought the man dead for so many years now; the man who had come between him and his own father. Now he was sure that Orin was dead. But it was not at all satisfying to him. He even felt some regret.
He had not had such feelings since he saw the body of his father lying dead on the battle field near Mt. Vaseer. The betrayal of his own people, though they had rejected him, had not been as satisfying as predicted either.
He had wept over his father and mother and brother on more than one occasion, secretly. His years among the Vorn military had not been able to erase the memories he had of better times before the incident that changed everything for him.
Regret once again tried to settle upon his mind and once again he fought to push it away. After all, what was done was done. He had chosen his path and things could never be what they were again. As for Orin, he had initiated the attack on the landing platform. Kale had only been defending himself. There was nothing he could do about that. At any rate, it had been clear that nothing had changed in Orin’s mind either.
But his younger brother was alive on this Castai. It did not matter. To change course now would be a death sentence for him. He had betrayed his people to the Vorn and now the Vorn to the Baruk.
In the distance, scanners picked up the large vessel he had fixed the navigation system upon. The strider automatically slowed its pace as the docking bay of the Baruk vessel locked onto it and guided the ship inside. Kale prepared himself to give report of the battle. He pushed lingering thoughts of home and family as far away from him as he could and proceeded down the ramp to the waiting Baruk.
INSIDE Tiet’s cabin, Ranul and Wynn discussed the events leading up to this battle at Baeth Periege. The Vorn cruiser under Estall’s command was still in position guarding the city, but the Horva had fled hours ago.
Still, the western portion of the city was in ruins from the battle. The space port and surrounding buildings, including the main cloning compound, were devastated almost completely.
Tiet stood in the shower stall of the washroom, letting the hot water pour over him. He wished the steamy water could cleanse away the recent memories in his mind; even that he himself could be dissolved in it and washed away never to be thought of again.
When the heating cell in his quarters ran low on stored hot water the temperature began to change and so did his desire to stay there in it. He turned off the faucet and stepped out to dry himself. He noticed in the wall mounted mirror that his body was covered in cuts, scrapes and bruises.
These last few days had been the most exhausting and punishing experience of his young life. He stared into his own face reflected before him. Why had he lived while others had died? And did he really want to go on living without them?
He clothed himself in a simple garment and came into the other portion of the cabin where Ranul and Wynn were still talking. Tiet caught Orin’s name mentioned before he entered the room.
“Who killed Orin?� asked Tiet abruptly.
Both men gave him uneasy stares, as though the answer was known but they weren’t sure of whether to give it.
“Wynn, I saw your face when Orin said the name. He said Kale killed him. Kale was my father. But he could not have meant my father. You seemed to know who he meant by your expression.�
Ranul looked at Wynn also.
“Ranul, do you know who this person is? I think the time for secrets is over.�
“You’re right. You need to know the truth. The person Orin named is not your father, but your brother.�
“What!?� Tiet could hardly stand at the statement. “Wynn, I don’t have a brother!�
“Actually Tiet, you do,� confirmed Ranul. “He’s your older brother.�
“Why have I never been told these things? Why didn’t Orin tell me this?!�
“Three years after you were born there was an incident,� said Ranul. “While under Orin’s command, your brother was to guard a certain village of three thousand people with a squadron under his command. He had always been a brash young man and given to conflict with his superiors.
“Kale decided that there was no real threat to the village and took the majority of his fighter squadron onto the battle front, while leaving only a few to guard the people. The Horva attacked during that time and almost two thousand men, women and children were killed as a result of his irresponsibility.
“Orin was furious with him and petitioned your father to remove his rank as a warrior. Your father was ashamed of him and did so and Kale was dishonored before the people. Shortly after those events, he disappeared; he was nearly eighteen years of age at the time.�
“I still don’t understand why he killed Orin,� said Tiet.
“About five years later Kale was found to have conspired with the Vorn military. He gave them the information on the effects of the Transdimensional Rift upon your people and how they were greatly weakened by its random collapsing. It was all they needed to know to mount an appropria
te and devastating campaign at the Barudii’s weakest time.�
Tiet dropped his head into his hands as he sat down upon his bed. “Does any of this get any better?! My father and mother and my people massacred by the Vorn conspiring with my own brother! And now Dorian and Orin are dead because of all these things!! I do not think I can bear to know anymore of it!� shouted Tiet.
They got up to leave. “I cannot say I know how you feel young master,� said Wynn as he put his hand firmly upon Tiet’s shoulder, “but I’m here for you. You must go on despite what has happened. Your father the king is dead…but you, the heir to the king…you live on and our people live on with you. I hope you will not let their legacy die now after all that has happened.�
He followed Ranul out the door, leaving Tiet on his bed to ponder all that had happened. It was so horrible. Everything was worse in reality than he could have ever imagined in his worst nightmares. Yet he was still alive. Now what am I supposed to do?
He thought of Orin. Back when they lived in the cave far in the wasteland, when he had taught him to be a man and a warrior, he had told him that to resolve a difficult problem or situation, resting the weary mind was the best way to clear one’s thoughts and be able to approach the situation with new vigor.
He thought upon those lessons for some time. Orin had always been very wise. He wondered if his own father had perhaps imparted his wisdom in some way to Orin. Now both men were gone, but their wisdom was still living in his memory.
He got up from his bed and walked to the portal window of the chamber. He could see over the city of Baeth Periege below. Much of it lay in ruins from the battle with Grod and his army.
Wynn had said that these people, the civilians, had longed for peace, and had hoped for it even through years and years of oppression under their own military government. That government was gone; defeated by Grod’s Horva. Grod appeared to be dead, the Horva were defeated and fleeing from Baeth Periege. Maybe, just maybe, he thought, there was something left that was good after all.