by T. R. Harris
“I’m sorry, but I cannot let you do this,” the mutant said.
Adam was furious. “But this can end it all, right here, with the death of this one rather hideous looking thing.”
“That’s not entirely true, Adam. If she dies, a genetic marker is triggered in one of her existing embryos and another queen begins to form.”
“But that’ll take time for her to mature and for the Sol-Kor to regain their direction,” Riyad said.
“Still, I cannot let you kill her. You must realize, the Queen is the closest thing I have to a mother. We have shared five thousand years together. That is something you cannot comprehend. In this very chamber we have often had year-long discussions about all the mysteries of the universe, of multiple universes. Without her, I would lose the only creature in existence who can relate to me.”
“So you are picking sides,” Adam said. “I thought that was something you wouldn’t do.”
Panur smiled. “I’m just keeping the sides equal, Mr. Cain. There’s not much fun in the game if one side has an overwhelming advantage. Now you must go. I set the portal to destroy itself in three minutes. You will barely have the time to make it out.”
Adam was livid, but he also didn’t have time to dwell on it. “C’mon, Riyad. Let’s get you home.”
With one last defiant glare at Panur, Adam lead the team of Humans and Que’l out of the Queen’s chambers. More defenders were flooding the corridors between there and the portal room, but the Que’l—what was left of them—managed to form an effective blocking screen, running at full speed through—and over—anything that got in their way.
They reached the portal room and Adam was relieved to see that no Sol-Kor were waiting on the other side of the shimmering doorway. Three mind-addled Klin stood zombie-like to one side of the CW room, under the influence of the residual effects of the suppressor beam filtering through the portal.
“Dravis, get your people through first, we’ll cover you.” And then after a quick count he said. “I’m sorry. I count only seventeen survivors.”
Riyad blanched. “That was too much to sacrifice for me, my friend.”
Dravis smiled. “The Que’l do not sacrifice, they contribute. The fallen did so engaged in a noble effort that was real and not a game. Even in death, they are grateful for the opportunity. Do not grieve for them, Mr. Tarazi. Grief is not necessary.”
And then he was through the portal.
“You next, buddy. And welcome home…to your home universe anyway.”
Riyad passed through…just as a barrage of flash bolts lit up the entire room, some even streaking through the portal and into the universe beyond.
“Shit!” Adam yelled as he dove for the deck. He was still twenty feet away from the portal, and with no cover between there and where he lay. Then a lull came in the rain of flash bolts. He ran for the portal and leapt, taking flight in the light gravity and diving through the gate.
When no bolts followed, he stood and turned toward the portal. Panur was there, several dead Sol-Kor at his feet.
“Are you coming?” Adam called out to him.
“Not at this time.”
Adam shook his head. “She’s going to be pissed.”
“That she will be, but I’m pretty sure I’ll live.” He laughed out loud at this little joke.
“Goodbye, Panur.”
The smiled stretched out incredibly wide on the mutant’s pale face. “Hasta la vista, baby.”
Then the CW equipment bank behind him exploded, hitting Adam from behind with an incredible rush of heat and expanding concussion. He was flung through the air—and straight for the still-open trans-dimensional portal. Focusing on Panur’s shocked look, Adam knew this was the end. He was heading back into the Sol-Kor universe…this time for good.
Then the portal evaporated in a wisp of blue haze.
Adam was nonetheless still airborne, and flying toward a solid metal bulkhead, where he hit face-first against the wall before rebounding backwards. Stunned, he staggered back and fell to the metal deck, landing on his butt, disoriented…yet still in his own universe.
Riyad ran to him and knelt down. “Are you okay?”
“I think so.” He felt his bloody upper lip. “Damn, I think I knocked out a tooth.”
Riyad flashed him his trademarked smile. “It adds character to you, my friend—my very good friend. That’s twice now you’ve saved me from certain death.”
“Damn right!” Adam said as Riyad helped him to his feet. “What say we not have a third time, okay? I’m getting too old for this.”
Chapter 39
From her vantage point above the battlefield, Sherri saw the stark and sudden impact of Andy’s plan brought to stunning fruition. It didn’t leave her much time, however. She wasn’t all the way to the rear side of the Sol-Kor forces, and now dozens of the retreating units were filtering back to the space around the portal, even as more Sol-Kor came through from the other side.
She decided to go for it.
Pressing the control lever forward, she dove for Sol-Kor space, zipping past unsuspecting starships which fired pulsating blue light at her as she passed. She felt the telltale effects of the beams, but quickly shrugged them off and continued toward the portal.
Fearing that her rogue ship was some kind of portal-destroying secret weapon, several of the Sol-Kor ships now shot off flash weapons. The scout ship had shields, but the onslaught was incredible. Within seconds of the first impacts, her shields were near redline.
She angled away slightly, which confused the beamship gunners who were concentrating on laying down bolts within her straight path to the portal. But she couldn’t stay off course for long.
“Sherri! What the hell are you doing?”
She tried to ignore the screaming voice of Admiral Tobias, yet he persisted.
“We’re going to blow the array even if you make it through. We can’t leave it open on the off chance you find Riyad and need to come back through.”
“I know that, Andy. I’ll figure something out on the other side.”
She was nearing the portal, and on extreme magnification she noticed something odd. Looking through the doorway into another universe, all she could see was a landscape made up of chaotically flashing lights. Then she realized…these were reflections off the hulls of thousands of spaceships. In fact, tens of thousands of spaceships.
The Sol-Kor had massed an incredible armada of warships just on the other side of the portal. Even if she made it through, how would she get past that?
“Sherri, pull up!” Tobias yelled over the comm. “Pull up!”
“I can’t, Andy. I have to do all I can to save Riyad.”
“You don’t have to…he’s already back!”
“Bullshit.”
“No, it’s true. Adam brought him back.”
“You’re just saying that to keep me from going through.”
“No, I just got word. I’m patching you through…”
The Sol-Kor universe was now only seconds away.
“Sherri, it’s me.”
She switched to visual on the screen. Sure enough, there was Riyad, sweaty, bloodied in spots, but alive. “How?” she asked.
“It’s a long story, now break off. You don’t need to—”
And then the transmission was lost as her small starship passed into another universe.
“Holy crap!” Sherri yelled into the empty cockpit. Now she was face to face with the largest fleet anyone from her universe had ever seen.
And it had just opened fire on her.
She twisted the control stick around, spinning the tiny vessel in a tighter radius than could have been achieved in a larger ship, heading back toward the portal. She glanced at the threat screen and saw something she’d never seen before—an overload of pure energy closing on her, the readings indicating it was equivalent to the power of a small star. In actuality, it was the bolts from a hundred or more of the leading Sol-Kor ships, all merged into one single, gig
antic bolt… and it was closing on her at about twice her current speed. It was only be a matter of seconds before it reached her, and she knew it would follow her all the way into her own universe.
She passed through the portal, but the star-bolt was still there. She couldn’t outrun it and the portal breadth was too wide for her to maneuver out of its path. So Sherri Valentine leaned back in the pilot’s seat, released the control stick and closed her eyes.
“Well, this sucks,” were her last words.
********
They were her last words before Captain Enrique Garcia and his strike force placed thirty nuclear warheads upon the massive Sol-Kor trans-dimensional tower array on the nearby planet. Maybe thirty nuclear bombs could be considered overkill, but Garcia wanted to make sure the job got done, and done right.
As it turned out, nearly a third of the small planet’s surface was set on fire, the brilliant flash blinding from even two hundred thousand miles out in space. Garcia looked at the huge, shimmering white rectangle hovering incongruously in the blackness of space…and then it was gone, breaking up and floating away in all directions as just wisps of evaporating white haze.
Garcia smiled.
********
After a moment, Sherri dared to open her eyes again. She appeared to be alive, but she wasn’t sure. After all, she had never died before. Well, except for that one time…
But this was different.
She looked at the threat screen again and found it to be clear, all except for a plethora of individual Sol-Kor mainships, all of which seemed to be ignoring her and bolting headlong out of the area at maximum star-drive.
Then she noticed that the portal was no longer there. She let out a deep sigh. They did it, and the timing couldn’t have been better. And then she recalled the brief conversation she’d had with Riyad, or was that just something she imagined?
She shook her head. No, it was real. Adam had gone in and got him.
Adam did it.
Adam Cain always did it.
Chapter 40
Adam was alone on the observation deck of the Abraham Lincoln and looking out at a scene he thought he’d never live to see. Within visual range of the huge carrier were two of the gigantic Klin colony ships, along with a Juirean Class-Seven, a Class-Five, and a smattering of Class-Four’s. The Union fleet was also represented.
As it turned out, the Klin had insisted on a whole array of legal documents to back up the promises Adam had made, and so far it had taken over a week just to iron out the basics. Nevertheless, they were making progress, and already the Klin were considering a dozen worlds—from within both the Union and the Expansion—as potential candidates for their new homeworld. With each new day, spirits brightened as the prospects for a lasting peace between the major players of the Milky Way Galaxy came closer to reality.
So far, of course, the Klin had yet to provide any real support for the effort against the on-going conflict with Sol-Kor, who it was learned still had a number of clandestine arrays under construction throughout the galaxy. In light of that fact, there would still be ample opportunity for the Klin to contribute in the coming years. Adam knew that all the events that had taken place recently were only a prelude to the real war that was coming. The Sol-Kor would not give up. They were in it for the long haul.
Even if the Klin ended up not contributing much to the war effort itself, they would still make a positive impact on the galaxy. Adam could foresee a partnership between the Klin and the Formilians, one that would usher in a new era of scientific advancement for the Milky Way which would be beneficial to everyone.
All the galaxy had to do before that was survive the war with the Sol-Kor…
Adam? a voice said in his head.
Arieel! Where are you?
I am aboard my ship. We depart momentarily for Formil, and I wanted to say goodbye.
Thank you again for all you did for us. Without you, none of this could have happened.
I am glad I was able to help.
Stay in touch, will you? And say hello to Lila for me sometime?
The odd thing about telepathic communications is that one can also feel the emotions of the speaker as well as hear their thoughts. Adam sensed the fear in Arieel’s mind, followed by the shock of revelation.
You know!
It was hard to hide your feelings when you spoke of her that first time.
Now panic was evident in her thoughts. Don’t worry, Adam conveyed to her. It will remain our secret.
Adam…I…
It’s all right. I understand why. And I also want to thank you for…for making me whole again. Just knowing she’s out there will be enough.
Adam could feel Arieel’s tears, even if he couldn’t see them. I am at a loss for words.
That’s okay. Again, thanks. You truly saved my life.
A favor I owed for an equal event.
Adam laughed.
We are leaving now, Adam. Contact will soon be broken.
That, Arieel, can never happen. Not now.
And then a feeling of utter emptiness enveloped his mind, as the essence of Arieel Bol vanished.
Feeling all sappy and emotional, Adam was relieved when the door to the observation deck slid open and Sherri and Riyad entered, lifting him from his melancholy.
Sherri stepped past him and up to the huge observation window. “Who would have imagined we’d ever see this?” She turned to Adam and grinned. “I guess you were right after all. We really were embarking on a great and heroic adventure when this whole thing began. And like always, the galaxy will never be the same afterwards.”
Adam wrapped his strong arms around the necks of both Sherri and Riyad and pulled them in close. “The Three Stooges are back together again,” he announced.
“Don’t you mean The Three Musketeers?” Sherri corrected.
“I like that a lot better,” Riyad said.
Adam squeezed them both even tighter. “I agree. And now—my best friends—what say we go home?”
Epilogue
The bartender eyed the customer and frowned. “Be sure to wear a lot of sunscreen outside, buddy. It can get really hot down here in the Keys.”
The customer grinned. “I thank you for your concern, but I’ll be all right. I have some very special skin.”
The bartender narrowed his eyes at the diminutive patron. “You’re not from around here, are you?”
“No, I come from very far away.”
The bartender snickered. “Don’t take this wrong, but you’re an alien, aren’t you?”
“That I am, and no offense taken.”
“We get quite a few aliens down here, you know. It seems Human music can be just as intoxicating as our alcohol. So what will you have?”
“This place is also known as Margaritaville, is it not? So I will have a margarita.”
The bartender laughed. “Actually Margaritaville is down the street, this is Sloppy Joe’s. But one Key West margarita coming right up.”
As he prepared the blender, the bartender looked around at the large open room and noticed that it was nearly empty. Most of the tourists were either out on fishing boats or sleeping off last night’s bender. He poured in a triple shot, before filling the wide, salt-rimmed glass with a third of the flask’s frozen concoction. The pale customer looked as though he’d be up for seconds, and maybe even thirds.
The patron smiled after sampling the drink. “So you are a professional bartender, in a resort city on the planet Earth. As a consequence, I would imagine you have many an entertaining story to tell?”
The laugh was hearty and sincere. “Stories! Hell, I’ve got a million of ‘em.”
“I would love to hear them all.”
“All of ‘em? That would take forever.”
“That’s all right, my friend. I have the time.”
The End
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Novels by T.R. Harris
The Human Chronicles Saga
Book 1 – The Fringe Worlds
Book 2 – Alien Assassin
Book 3 – The War of Pawns
Book 4 – The Tactics of Revenge
Book 5 – The Legend of Earth
Book 6 – Cain’s Crusaders
Book 7 – The Apex Predator
Book 8 – A Galaxy to Conquer
Book 9 – The Masters of War
Book 10 – Prelude to War
Jason King – Agent to the Stars Series
Book 1 – The Enclaves of Sylox
In collaboration with author George Wier
Captains Malicious – Book One of the Liberation Series