The Human Chronicles Saga : Boxset #2 (The Human Chronicles Saga Boxsets)

by T. R. Harris

  “Just be glad they do. We’re working under a deadline here.”

  Dravis looked around the huge landing bay and at the abundance of silver-skinned aliens busy with their chores. “So these are Klin?” he said with obvious disgust. “Weak beings who only thrive because of their technology.”

  “Relax, they’re on our side now. And thanks again for agreeing to do this. You know it will be dangerous.”

  “Four of my teammates died during our last match, and that was just a game. We welcome the opportunity to fight for a cause that is real.”

  The pair walked off, followed by Dravis’s entire forty-five member Que’l Drunage team. “You know, as much as I respect your strength and toughness, this fight will involve the use of flash weapons, as well,” Adam said.

  “I understand. All Que’l—male and female—are required to serve a term in our military. Many choose to maintain their proficiency ratings even after our terms, especially Drunage players. The tactics taught by our military are very similar to the tactics we employ on the field.”

  “That’s a relief, but I already got a sense of that back on Unisid.”

  As they entered the wide corridors on the way to the CW section, scores of startled Klin made way for the massive eight-footers, all of which glared at the Klin with undisguised contempt.

  “Am I correct in my understanding that we are to travel into another dimension? I apologize for my lack of technical knowledge, but what exactly does that mean?”

  Adam smiled. “I felt the same way until it was explained to me. I noticed back on Unisid that the Que’l still use a lot of paper. Well, image a stack of paper on a table and each individual sheet is a complete and separate universe, like the one we exist in. Just like an infinitely tall stack of paper, there are an infinite number of universes, all packed closer together than even the thinnest sheet imaginable. Turns out, there’s a way to open a door between the pages, allowing us to walk from one universe to another. The Sol-Kor—you know who they are now—come from the universe we’re going to.”

  “And that is where Master Tarazi will be found?”

  “That’s the hope.”

  “Another example of technology making life more complicated,” Dravis said under his breath.

  Adam shrugged. In this case, the huge athlete was right.

  213

  The Union fleet had backed away from the gathering Sol-Kor forces, waiting for the Que’l to arrive. Sherri, in the meantime, returned to the Abraham Lincoln with her small tracking squadron and tried to wrap her mind around the task to come.

  The doorway into the universe where Riyad was being held was sitting not more than a light-year away, and all she had to do to access it was run the gauntlet of a thousand enemy starships. Fortunately, she believed in the plan Andy Tobias had devised. It would certainly disrupt and confuse the Sol-Kor, hopefully enough for her to make it to the portal.

  The issue that was causing her the most concern, however, was the fact that Tobias was planning on vaporizing the planet-side array that was creating the doorway. There was a good chance she could get through; the problem would be getting back.

  The only solution she could see—or hope for—was something that did not forebode well for the Milky Way. That was the possibility that even more trans-dimensional portals were being constructed within her universe and hidden from the detection. If that were the case, then after she had Riyad, the two of them could hide out in a vast new universe until given the opportunity to pass through one of these new portals.

  What that would mean is that the war with the Sol-Kor would continue.

  The other alternative would be for her and Riyad to remain on the other side and wage a clandestine resistance movement against the Sol-Kor, knocking out new and existing portal arrays if they could. She knew that was a pretty far-fetched proposition, seeing that it would only be the two of them and with the resources of a single Human starship.

  A better choice—if they couldn’t find their way back—would be to find a quiet corner of the Sol-Kor universe and live out the rest of their lives as best they could. The realization of what she just thought confused her to no end. Was she choosing Riyad over Adam—again? Maybe. After all, she pretty much knew where things stood with Adam; they had a certain connection, but it wasn’t enough to overcome their many personality clashes. She could continue with him, yet remain single for the rest of days—if that made any sense?

  She decided that the root of her currently confusion was the guilt over the sacrifice Riyad had made for her and Adam. She felt an obligation now to do all she could to save Riyad. In reality, there probably wasn’t much she could do; a thousand deadly Sol-Kor starships between her and the portal gave her a pretty good excuse not to worry about it too much. But that wasn’t Sherri Valentine. That wasn’t how she rolled.

  She would give it an effort, the best she could muster. Hopefully it would enough. If not, then at least she tried.

  A day later the Que’l arrived at the fleet and were disbursed among all the ships, all except the small jump ship Sherri had commandeered for herself. She stocked it with weapons, food and other supplies—as much as the tiny ship could hold—in anticipation of her plan succeeding. And then she launched and sat off a short distance from the main fleet, waiting for the game to begin.

  The Sol-Kor forces had grown to over twelve-hundred ships by the time the Union fleet made its move toward the portal. The enemy ships no longer remained on station, electing instead to engage the Humans while leaving a buffer zone between them and the portal.

  When Sherri saw this happen, she took off, angling high above the plane of the battlefield, hoping to make it to the other side before Andy’s plan could succeed. The rear approach to the array planet and the portal were lightly guarded, and it was imperative that she reach the portal before the Union ships could reach the planet and destroy the array. She was praying for a Union victory—just not one too soon for her purposes.

  “Listen up everyone!” Admiral Andy Tobias said to the fleet. “We should be in range of their suppressor beams in a couple of minutes. All the crews should be in their safety positions by now. Our Que’l allies—even though courageous and willing—have not been fully trained in starship operations. Their primary responsibility will be to allow the beamships to penetrate our lines as far as possible before lighting them up. As soon as the beams go off, standard crews are to take over and finish the job, including maneuvering and other offensive actions. The lead units—the ones closest to the array planet—should not bother engaging enemy units upon recovery, but instead bolt toward the planet with their nuclear armament. The priority of this action is to destroy the array and close the portal, it is not to spend too much taking out individual Sol-Kor units. All right everyone, any second now. See you on the other side of the nap.”

  If the Sol-Kor sensed any deception on the part of the Union fleet, they didn’t show it. Instead, they welcomed the fact that this time their blue beams seemed to be working on the crews of the enemy ships. Hundreds of them swept in and through the Human starships, taking up positions where their beams would have the most effect—and that was as close to the Union ships as possible.

  The Que’l pilots ended up having very little to do. Once the beams hit, and the regular crew now spread out on cushions on the deck fell into a stupor, all they did was shut down the engines and let the ships continue on momentum alone.

  The gunners had more to do. The weapons batteries of the fleet had already been thoroughly charged, so all they had to do was line up the multiple targeting dots with the Sol-Kor mainships sitting not more than a thousand miles away from their respective vessels. At this distance, even school kids could lock the dots on target.

  It had been decided that no ship-to-ship communications would be allowed to coordinate the attack, since these signals may be able to be detected. So the Que’l gunners had to go by intuition, surveying the locations of the mainships within the fleet until they believed all t
heir counterparts were ready.

  At one point, the first Que’l gunner made a decision and fired his weapons. This was the moment the rest of them had been waiting for, and there came such a brilliant flash from within the Union fleet that sensors were overloaded and eyesight temporarily blinded.

  But then it was over. Within three seconds, over eight hundred Sol-Kor mainships were now exploding derelicts, cluttering the space within the Union fleet. There were still over four hundred mainships left intact, mainly forming a cluster of vessels between the Union fleet and the portal. They now retreated, falling back to protect the array and the portal.

  The Human crews quickly recovered once the mainships were destroyed and the beams disappeared. Grateful for the assistance of the Que’l, they now took over piloting and weapons control, surging their vessel forward and after the retreating Sol-Kor ships.

  214

  Adam and the Que’l Drunage team reached the Continuous Wormhole Communications Center of the Klin space station and began to crowd in the confined space. All the Que’l had been issued Xan-fi flash rifles with extra battery packs while still aboard the speeder, and now they gripped them confidently in impossibly large hands, making the weapons appear small and insignificant. For his part, Adam wore a tac vest, and carried an M-91 carbine and a holstered .45 Smith and Wesson. He also had a thin breathing tube in his left nostril, fed by a small oxygen supply bottle in his vest. It only gave him an hour of supplemental air, but if they weren’t in and out in that time, then breathing probably would be an issue anymore.

  In the far corner of the now over packed room, the mutant Panur was busy at a console, assisted by three very nervous-looking Klin. Adam walked up to him.

  “We’re ready when you are.”

  “All is set. I provided a schematic to the Queen’s complex in your wrist monitor, with the most direct route to her chambers. The portal is about a hundred yards from where she spends most of her time.” He then paused and looked at Adam with concerned eyes. “Are you sure you want to pursue this course of action? Mr. Tarazi may be somewhere near, so you might be able find him on your own.”

  “We’re flying blind, Panur. Holding the Queen hostage until Riyad is released will get him to us no matter where he is, and without having to look for him, assuming he’s even in the complex.”

  “There’s a ninety-four point nine percent chance that he is.”

  “That’s good enough for me. Now, tell us when to go…and be sure to close the door behind us. I wouldn’t want to make it back here just to find some uninvited guests waiting.”

  Adam and the forty-five Que’l now looked awkward and out of place, all shuffling nervously in the small room, with apparently nowhere to go. For this to be the entry point to another universe seemed so unlikely as to be absurd….

  And then Panur flicked a switch somewhere, and a shimmering, seemingly holographic image appeared near the middle of the room. Everyone backed away from it. Although it could only be viewed from one direction, the portal did show another room beyond, with three Sol-Kor hunched over a console with their backs to the doorway.

  One turned toward the portal, a look of confusion on his face. But then his eyes grew wide and he turned back to the console in a panic.

  Adam ran forward, unleashing a spread from the M-91. The three Sol-Kor were riddled with slugs, sending blood splattering on the work console. But the damage was already done. An alarm was sounding.

  Adam turned back to the portal, only see the Que’l standing on the other side with looks of trepidation painted on their square faces. “C’mon!” Adam cried out.

  Dravis was the first of the Que’l through, which then started the parade. Soon the portal room in another universe was crawling with rabid-looking eight-footers, just looking for something to shoot or ram.

  Adam looked through the portal and saw Panur standing on the other side, a universe away. The pale alien nodded and then the portal disappeared in a wisp of blue haze. Adam was shocked by the sudden feelings he had, not expecting this moment to affect him so. But it did. He was now in another universe…and cut off from his own.

  The press of Que’l brought him back to reality.

  He referenced his wrist monitor, and after getting his bearings, he turned to the anxious Que’l and said with heroic emphasis, “Follow me!”

  If he hadn’t been so distracted with his feelings of isolation, Adam would have noticed that the gravity on the planet Kor was even lighter than that found aboard the Klin ship. As it was, his leading step toward the exit doorway was much faster and stronger than he needed, and he found himself soaring into the air, with his head crashing hard against the upper door jamb. He fell backwards, blocking the passageway—just as the mass of Que’l began to pass through. Like a scene from an old Keystone Cops movie, bodies tumbled like dominoes, and alien curse words echoed throughout the room..

  Righting himself up, Adam noticed the angry looks on the faces of the Que’l. Damn, this is an awful way to start the mission!

  All animosity was soon forgotten, however, as now the angry horde rushed headlong down a wide corridor toward the Queen’s chambers. With the alarm having already been sounded, scores of Sol-Kor guards now responded. At first these hapless creatures came around corners to point their blue beams at the invaders, even though the entire complex was already saturated with the beam constantly. Unaffected, Adam and the Que’l unceremoniously cut them down the defenders where they stood. Yet to their credit, word quickly spread among the Sol-Kor that the beam was ineffective on the invaders, and soon the brilliant streaks from flash weapons began to fill the corridors.

  Several of the Que’l had now taken the lead, and it was an amazing sight to see them lower their heads and take the full brunt of the flash impacts on their boney top plates. Adam could see the burn marks and smell the sickening odor of charred flesh, yet the Que’l showed no reaction to the damage, apparently absent any nerve ending on the tops of their heads. So they continued unabated in their charge, until they crashed full speed into the Sol-Kor defenders. Bones snapped and lungs collapsed despite the fact that the Sol-Kor were only a few inches shorter than the Que’l. The huge boney heads and thick necks made all the difference in this clash of titans.

  Up ahead, at an intersection requiring the charging horde to turn left, a barricade had been hastily constructed out of furniture and electrical equipment. The Sol-Kor were shooting from behind it, often now with deadly accuracy. The Que’l were fine as long as the bolts hit the tops of their heads. If not, then they fell, just like any another creature would. Adam was saddened to see several Que’l fall to the floor of the hallway, with their comrades having no time to tend to their wounds or to the dead. They just kept barreling forward.

  And then Dravis—being the fastest among them—reached the barricade first. He lowered his head and plowed through the barrier, until his large anvil of a head caught a Sol-Kor defender and slammed him flat into the far wall. In one of the most bizarre scenes Adam had ever witnessed, the alien’s head literally popped off as a result of the crushing impact.

  With no time to savor the moment, Adam and his Que’l swept around the corner, where more deadly plasma bolts greeted them.

  Adam soon found himself in the middle of the pack, surrounded by towering gray creatures and unable to bring his weapon to bear on any target beyond the wall of Que’l. He looked at his monitor. They were almost there.

  “On the right, ten meters!” he called forward to Dravis, who glanced back quickly with an acknowledging nod. The Drunage team captain spotted the door ahead, and then without even slowing down to open it, he lowered his head and took aim….

  215

  Riyad hadn’t expected to be shown to the Queen’s quarters so soon after his arrival on Kor. But without so much as a bathroom break, he was fitted with a small breathing tube and brought into a huge, columned room where the Queen was to be found.

  The first thing he noticed as he entered was of the god-awful smell, lik
e a mixture of soiled underwear and dirty feet. And then there was the squishy sound coming from somewhere farther back in the room. But his greatest shock was saved for the moment the small entourage of guards—led by Vosmin Yon—guided him around a tall blind to the Queen herself.

  As would be expected from a unique member of a species tasked with producing all the others, the Queen was larger than the normal Sol-Kor, easily three times as large, with similar features as the males yet distinctly female, as well. What was the most disconcerting, however, was the fact that the Queen’s head was about the same size as a normal Sol-Kor, yet it appeared so out of place sitting above a bulbous, rippled blob of flesh barely covered in clothing that looked as if it hadn’t been changed in years. There was also a long, fleshy tube of some kind extending from between a pair of pale, fat legs, and where Riyad could see small, softball-size objects working their way down the tube to disappear behind another partition. Eggs? Riyad thought. Was that how she could produce so many offspring?

  Looking at the smelly mass of living tissue, it was obvious the Queen hadn’t moved in…who knew how long? And although there were probably attendants responsible for her personal hygiene, they obviously weren’t doing the job.

  But the worst part was the face. Granted, this was an alien, and who was Riyad to judge the beauty of the one-and-only Sol-Kor female? But damn! She was butt ugly was all Riyad could conclude; wrinkled, pock-marked, baggy-eyed and with a spider web-like mass of steel wool on her head that passed for hair. Her mouth was like that of the males, yet the lips were cracked and her few remaining teeth were a sickly mustard color.

  Being this close to the filthy mess nearly made him puke.