by Tripp Ellis
Walker tried to slowly push a finger through the beam, but it wasn’t giving. It didn’t look like anything was going to be able to pass the membrane, poorly designed force shield or not.
Walker watched as the Zarvox brought more and more sailors into the holding area, filling the various cells.
The Recon Marines were marched through the detention center. They looked like they were on their last legs. They had never been administered the antidote aboard the Revenant. With every breath, they were breathing the deadly virus into the air.
The Zarvox prison guards weren’t wearing protective masks. Fortunately, it didn’t take long for the Proxima flu to infect their system. The large beasts began to stagger.
Carson and his Marines summoned their last ounce of strength and fought off the disoriented creatures. The aliens tumbled to the ground, vomiting and bleeding from their mucous membranes as the Marines snatched their weapons and began releasing the prisoners.
Carson deactivated the force shield on Walker’s cell, and he and Emma dashed into the central hallway. Carson tossed Walker a rifle.
Walker gave Carson a nod of appreciation.
“What’s the plan?” Emma said.
“We get Slade back, and take down Valinok,” Walker said with a determined look in his eyes.
“If I can get to the CIC, we can use this warship against them,” Zoey said. “They won’t see us coming.”
“We’ve got to act fast,” Walker said. “As soon as Valinok senses something is up, he could jump away. Then we’ll never find Slade.”
“You’re not going to try to assault a Saarkturian warship all by yourself, are you?” Carson asked.
Walker eyed him. Carson looked like he could barely stand on two feet. “Are you volunteering?”
“Oorah,” Carson replied, mustering his strength.
Walker grinned. “All right then.”
“I’m going with you,” Emma said.
“And you’re going to need someone to fly one of those transports,” Chloe said.
“No,” Walker said sternly to Chloe. “You’re getting back to the Revenant.”
“I’m your only option if you want to get aboard the Saarkturian flagship. I’ve flown one of their fighters before. I understand the layout of their controls. I’m your best option.”
Walker’s face tensed. He knew she was right. He didn’t like putting her in harm’s way. Her father had been killed under Walker’s command and he couldn’t live with himself if something happened to Chloe.
“This is what I signed up for. I’m a big girl.”
Walker finally gave her a nod and Chloe flashed a brilliant smile.
Walker slung the massive energy weapon into the firing position and advanced toward the entrance of the detention center. Emma and the others followed close behind him.
Across the entire alien fleet, infected sailors were transmitting the virus to the Zarvox. It was spreading like wildfire.
Walker pushed into the hallway. The alien ship was in chaos. Bodies lay strewn in the hallways, face down in pools of green blood. Others were writhing in agony in the final throes of death.
Prisoners flowed into the hallway, following Walker as he made his way to the flight deck.
Orange energy bolts streaked through the air. They zipped inches past Walker’s face, taking out a sailor behind him. A shower of blood erupted as the blast exploded the man’s skull. His body flopped to the deck with a wet slap, like a side of beef.
Walker’s face felt like scalding water had been splashed on it. It was red and was almost to the point of blistering. He grimaced with pain. The energy bolt had passed too close to his skin. Walker threw his back against the bulkhead and took cover behind a buttress.
The Zarvox warriors at the end of the hall in full battle armor were still unaffected by the virus.
Walker angled the weapon around the buttress. The weapon was heavy and awkward, and it was hard to line up the sights properly. With the stock of the rifle against his shoulder, Walker could barely reach the trigger, and he was a big guy. His face was beginning to swell. There was no telling what kind of accuracy he was going to have with this weapon.
36
Walker
Walker squeezed the trigger. Energy bolts raced down the corridor, taking out one of the creatures. Its body exploded in a cloud of green mist. The impact burst the creature’s chest open and its arms exploded to the side. What was left of its carcass crashed to the deck. Its comrades fired back at Walker.
He ducked behind the buttress as several more energy bolts impacted the other side, leaving 12 inch craters in the metal. Smoke wafted from the pits.
The Marines returned fire.
Walker edged around the buttress again, peering through the smoke. He fired at the two Zarvox warriors at the end of the hall. Bolts streaked back and forth as they exchanged fire.
One of Walker’s blasts took an alien’s head off. He readjusted his aim toward the remaining warrior. He moved with speed and precision—years of training and instinct proving their worth. Walker squeezed the trigger and watched the energy bolt rocket down the corridor. It impacted the Zarvox’s weapon, sending lethal splinters of metal into the alien’s face. Its hands were incinerated during the blast. The creature crumpled to its knees and pawed at its face with its bloody stubs. It squealed the most hideous screech imaginable.
Walker fired another blast to take it out of its misery.
“You’re pretty handy with that thing,” Emma said.
“I try,” Walker said modestly. He advanced through the corridor, and they made their way to the flight deck, stepping over the massive bodies of aliens as they went along. Some were dead, some were dying. Some writhed in agony. Green blood oozed everywhere. It pooled around bodies and collected in the grid-like depressions in the deck. It was impossible to move without stepping in it. This hideous fate would befall anyone who was exposed to the virus, sooner or later. Walker knew he’d have to acquire an antidote at some point, but he hoped he had at least a few days before showing symptoms. He also knew that there wasn’t going to be enough antidote to accommodate the entire fleet. Lots of people were going to die either way.
The Marines scavenged more weapons as they made their way through the corridors. Soon, they were well armed and they dispatched any remaining opposition with ease.
Zoey gave Walker a final glance as she was about to split off and head toward the CIC. “Good luck.”
“I’m counting on you to take out their quantum drive and engineering compartments.”
Zoey grinned. “I won’t let you down.”
She crept away in one direction and Walker and the Marines went in another. They weaved their way through the maze of passageways, trying to retrace their steps back to the flight deck.
When they arrived, several empty transports were perched on the flight deck, as well as a few gunships. Walker crouched low behind a bulkhead and scanned the area for lingering Zarvox warriors. He didn’t see any movement—the flight deck was just a field of carcasses.
Walker lurched around the corner and ran to one of the gunships. Emma, Chloe, and the Marines followed.
There was an alien still squirming on the deck. The beast was nauseous and disoriented, but he hadn’t started bleeding from the eyes yet. The creature saw Walker streak across the deck. The thing mustered all of its remaining strength and lifted its rifle. He took aim and fired several rounds at Walker before losing the strength to hold the weapon in the air. The barrel of the rifle clattered back against the deck.
Energy bolts barreled through the air, streaking toward Walker. He dropped to his knees for cover as a bolt blazed in front of his face. The heat stung his already inflamed skin. He swung his rifle around in the direction of the enemy, but the alien had already bled out.
Walker continued to the gunship and scaled the back ramp. The Marines loaded into the cargo hold. Walker climbed into the cockpit and Chloe slipped into the pilot seat. She felt like a littl
e kid sitting in an oversized chair.
The layout of the control panel wasn’t all that different from the fighter she had flown. Chloe flipped a switch and powered up the craft. The engines rumbled to life. The system appeared to go through a series of preflight checks, but Chloe couldn’t determine whether all systems were go, or not.
One of the Marines standing by the back hatch pressed a button on the bulkhead and the ramp began to raise. Hydraulics whirred as the lethargic ramp clanked shut and sealed.
Walker strapped into the copilot seat, andEmma strapped into a jumpseat.
Chloe engaged the thrusters and the gunship lifted from the deck. It pitched and rolled as Chloe tried to gain control. The craft seemed unwieldy. It drifted sideways and slammed into the bulkhead. The Marines in the cargo area slammed against the hull.
“Whoops,” Chloe said.
“I thought you said you knew how to fly their vehicles?” Walker said.
Chloe smiled. “It’s just going to take a second for me to get the hang of this.”
Chloe straightened the craft out, and slowly throttled up. The heavy ship lumbered out of the hangar and into space. The Marines in the cargo bay floated from the deck in the weightlessness environment, no longer affected by the warship’s artificial gravity.
Chloe angled the vehicle around and glided toward the Saarkturian Flagship.
37
Walker
“Sir, we’re not receiving any communication from the Zarvox,” a tactical officer said to Valinok.
His brow furrowed, perplexed. “Are the humans somehow jamming their communications?”
“I don’t know, your Excellence,” the officer stammered. He clearly feared Valinok’s wrath.
“There is a Zarvoxian ship approaching now. Perhaps they are coming to relay a message?”
“I want to speak with Admiral Suvroc immediately. And let me know as soon as this ship lands.”
“Yes, my Lord.” The officer scampered to his station and began frantically trying to contact the Zarvoxian Flagship.”
The approach to Valinok’s flagship was nerve-wracking. The massive cannons could blast the tiny gunship out of the star field at the slightest provocation.
“What are we going to do? Just land on the flight deck and storm the corridors?” Emma asked
“You have a better idea?” Walker replied.
Emma shrugged.
Walker listened to a Saarkturian voice crackle over the comm system as they approached. Walker was fluent in Saarkturese, and knew they were trying to establish communication.
“What are they saying?” Chloe asked.
“They want us to flash our running lights twice if we’re having trouble transmitting.”
Chloe grinned. “I can do that.” She found the switch and flickered the lights.
“Once we clear the bay, you know what to do,” Walker said.
“Yes, sir,” Chloe replied.
The Saarkturian ship was massive and seemed to swallow the tiny gunship whole as it drew closer. It was the same type of ship that Walker blew up during the previous Saarkturian invasion attempt. He had a cursory knowledge of the layout and critical areas.
Chloe piloted the gunship into the bay, hovering over the flight deck. There were rows of fighters, gunships, and transports perched on the deck. Flight crews scurried about. Chloe activated the targeting system and the gunship’s energy cannons swung into action. She unleashed a furious torrent of destruction. Energy bolts blasted the vehicles to bits. Shards of metal and debris scattered everywhere. It was a relentless onslaught, catching the Saarkturians completely off guard.
Piles of wreckage lay on the deck. Brilliant amber flames raged. Black smoke billowed into the air, filling the bay with a thick haze. A squad of Saarkturian warriors flooded into the bay and returned fire, but Chloe incinerated them with a few blasts.
Once the area was cleared, she landed the gunship on the deck.
“Stay here and destroy anything that enters the flight deck,” Walker said. “Get out of here at the first sign of trouble. You understand me?”
“Yes, sir,” she said hesitantly.
Walker could see in her eyes she wasn’t ever going to leave them behind, no matter how bad it got.
Carson opened the back hatch, and the ramp lowered. The Marines flooded onto the flight deck with tactical precision. Walker and Emma were right behind them.
Chloe flicked the switch and closed the back ramp. She engaged the vertical thrusters and lifted from the deck and hovered in the bay, waiting to decimate any Saarkturians that appeared.
Walker advanced to the quarterdeck. The billowing smoke made it hard to breathe, and some of the Marines were coughing and hacking, already suffering from respiratory distress.
What was left of the hatch to the hallway was still smoldering from Chloe’s barrage of energy bolts. Frayed and twisted panels of metal were still glowing with heat.
Walker peered around the corner, he could hear troops approaching down the hallway. Klaxons blared as alarms sounded throughout the ship, echoing through the corridors.
The Saarkturian carrier was like a living breathing organism. It was made of composite smart materials that were more advanced than anything mankind had created. With a high degree of automation, the ship didn’t require the same size crew as a comparable UPDF carrier. And with the Zarvox doing the heavy lifting, as far as the invasion was concerned, Walker hoped there wouldn’t be an inordinate amount of troops on board the Saarkturian flagship.
Walker pushed into the hallway, along with the Marines, and prepared for a vicious exchange. He had been up against Saarkturian warriors before, and he knew they were ruthless and had superior battle armor. But the Zarvoxian energy weapons proved to be far more effective than traditional weapons. As much as he loved the RK 909, Walker had to admit this oversized energy rifle was growing on him.
A burst of kinetic energy rounds rocketed through the corridor. The incoming fire streaked through the air as Walker and the Marines took cover behind narrow buttresses.
Walker hefted his massive gun around the support structure and fired back at the Saarkturian platoon. They wore sleek black body armor that fitted their form perfectly. It looked organic, like an exoskeleton. It provided fluid movement and a full range of motion. As advanced as their battle armor was, it offered little protection against the Zarvoxian energy bolts.
The two platoons engaged in a frenetic exchange of weapons fire. The hallway was filling with smoke from the exchange of gunfire, and from the haze wafting in from the flight deck. It wasn’t long before another platoon of Saarkturian warriors advanced on Walker and his team from behind. Now they were fighting on two fronts. But the Saarkturians had to take care not to catch each other in the crossfire.
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Walker
“Sir, we’ve been attacked by the Zarvox. The gunship landed on our flight deck and opened fire. And now their flagship is taking an aggressive stance,” the tactical officer said. “I think their ship has been compromised.”
Valinok clenched his jaw. His pale face flushed with rage. Before he could respond, the ship rumbled from a devastating explosion. The impact tossed him to the deck. Sparks showered from control terminals. Smoke filled the CIC. Another bone rattling impact slammed the ship. Followed by another, and another. The pummeling was incessant. Zoey had maneuvered to the rear of Valinok’s flagship and unleashed an onslaught of cannon fire.
Panic washed over Valinok’s face. He staggered to his feet. “Return fire!”
“Your Excellence, they’ve taken out our aft cannons. Main thrusters are completely disabled.”
“Plot jump coordinates. Get us out of here immediately.”
The tactical officer had a troubled look on his face. “Sir, the quantum drive is not functional. We’re completely immobile.”
Terror filled Valinok’s eyes. Without another word, he sprinted out of the CIC, heading for his escape pod.
A few moments later, the C
IC erupted in a brilliant explosion. The compartment was instantly vaporized. Fire engulfed the area for a moment, then was extinguished as oxygen was sucked out into space through the gaping hole in the hull.
Zoey had circled the Zarvoxian warship around and targeted the Saarkturian command center.
The battle raged in the corridor near the flight deck. The air was thick with smoke and the acrid smell of energy bolts. Projectiles flew in all directions. The Marines were holding their own and had taken out half of the attacking warriors.
The ship continued to rumble with secondary explosions in the engineering compartments and nearby cooling units. The carrier creaked and groaned and shook. Once the thermal heat exchangers and the cooling units were destroyed, it would only be a matter of time before the reactors exploded, destroying the ship.
Walker knew they couldn’t afford to stay pinned down in the hallway for much longer. He continued blasting at the Saarkturians. Energy bolts sliced through their body armor as if it were plastic. Bodies exploded and splattered to a gooey slop on the deck.
A grenade tumbled down the corridor and came to a rest in the middle of the platoon. The fragmentation grenade was going to spray thousands of bits of metal which would tear the Marines in two.
Walker’s eyes went wide. Before he could react, one of the Marines leapt on the grenade. An instant later, the device exploded. It shredded the Marine, scattering blood and body parts, painting the bulkheads and the rest of the platoon in a crimson bath of goo.
An errant piece of shrapnel tore through Walker’s thigh. The searing hot metal scorched his quad. It felt like someone had jabbed a hot poker into his thigh.
Smoke wafted from the wound. He knew better than to try to take the piece of metal out in the field. He had to grit and bear it. The pain was excruciating. He crumpled to the deck and tried to flatten himself against the bulkhead as projectiles whizzed through the air.