The Complete Void Wraith Saga

by Chris Fox

  It harnessed entropy itself, one of the sole constants in the universe. The beam would unmake anything, breaking it down through the ravages of time. But the Eye was beyond ancient. What did time matter to a creature like that? They’d never used the temporal cannon on the Eye, but their projections suggested it couldn’t do enough damage to the Eye’s outer membrane.

  “Four seconds,” Elvu said, the strain in her voice evident.

  Those final moments were a blur. Manda watched as the iris continued to contract, drawing closer and closer to covering the entire eye. The entire vessel thrummed as the cannon came online, then a tremendous white light burst from the Forge. It poured forth in a continuous stream, lightning crackling around the surface of the Eye for miles around the blast.

  Then the cannon ceased. Manda watched the enhanced footage of the area their shot had hit. Her shoulders sagged.

  “We failed,” Elvu said, her body wracked by a sob.

  Manda willed her chair closer to the hologram, studying the area they’d hit. The blast had created an immense crater in the iris, but she didn’t know how deep it ran.

  “Elvu,” Manda said, firmly but not without empathy. She waited until the girl looked up. “Find out how much damage we did. Is there a hole in the iris? Even a small one might be enough.”

  “One moment,” Elvu said, sniffling. She bent to her lap console, tapping furiously. “Scanning now. It looks like there is no hole, but the crater penetrates nearly twelve miles. When the iris was retracting we scanned it, and estimate the density somewhere around thirteen. We’re probably very close to penetrating. Another shot—”

  “We don’t have time for another shot,” Manda said, sighing heavily.

  Something slammed into the side of the vessel, the room rocking from the impact. Then something else. Many somethings. The Void Wraith were ramming them by the dozen, detonating their drives at the moment of impact. They were becoming improvised—but highly effective—missiles.

  “Damage report,” she demanded.

  “Not good,” Elvu replied. She scanned another screen of data. “We’ve lost almost half our cannons, and the left engine has taken damage. They’ve also begun assaulting the temporal cannon. There’s no way it will survive long enough for another shot.”

  A console flared and died, then the main hologram flickered. The damage must be severe, to be affecting power. They had dozens of redundant systems. There was no way they could take much more of this.

  “Open a channel to the the commanders of the Tigris, and the humans,” Manda ordered. She floated down next to Elvu, putting a comforting hand on the girl’s shoulder.

  69

  Weakness

  “Captain Nolan, this is Elvu of the Primo,” a crisp, almost British voice spoke into the comm. Only a few people could reach him directly, but Manda was one of them; this message was coming from her ship.

  “What do you need, Elvu?” he asked, moving closer to Edwards’s lumbering form. The Alpha had turned on a floodlight on one shoulder, which provided most of the light they were using. They could probably have stuck to their goggles, but the bugs seemed to dislike the light.

  “Stand by for Primo Manda.” Elvu’s answer was businesslike.

  “Captain Nolan, we have a dilemma,” Manda began.

  “Kind of busy down here,” Nolan said, his voice raising half an octave as he gunned down a bug that had crept from cover. It had been gathering itself to jump, and he didn’t want to find out just how painful getting stabbed was—not after seeing what had happened to Annie.

  “This is critical. Our temporal cannon failed to penetrate the iris,” Manda said.

  Nolan cursed under his breath, following Hannan as she guided them deeper into the tunnel. It sloped down, the mist swirling in little eddies that made some areas denser than others. It was in those clouds that the bugs seemed to be hiding, maybe to avoid the light. The tunnel was a good twenty to thirty feet wide, though, leaving a lot of shadows along the rocky ceiling.

  “Keep eyes above us,” Nolan called.

  “Excuse me?” Manda asked, over the comm.

  “I’m sorry, Manda, I’m multitasking. We’re in a combat situation.” Nolan continued up the corridor, careful not to fall behind the others. He had a feeling these things would take advantage of anyone who got separated from the main group.

  “Then I’ll keep this brief. We need a plan, or the Forge is going to be destroyed. We need another two minutes to charge the cannon, and it’s not going to last two minutes.” Manda’s tone was annoyed, but didn’t convey the gravity of the situation. If this didn’t panic her, Nolan didn’t want to know what would.

  Nolan thumbed a button on his comm, adding three more people to the conversation. “Fizgig, Izzy, Khar, are you all with us?”

  “Yes, Mighty Nolan,” Khar rumbled.

  “I can hear you,” Fizgig said, more than a tad crossly.

  “What do you need, Captain?” Izzy asked.

  Nolan gave it to them as quickly as he could. “We’re on the line with Manda, the Primo leader. They’re not going to be able to get through the iris, and unless we can come up with something pretty much right now, we’re about to get wiped out. Manda, how much damage did you inflict? Is there anything we can exploit?”

  “There is a cataract near the center of the iris. We penetrated almost all the way through, but the remaining iris is nearly a mile thick. Even nuclear weapons will do little damage,” Manda said, still with a note of mild irritation. “I could have the drones do strafing runs, but I doubt the defenders would let us get close. The Void Wraith are focusing their defense directly over the iris.”

  “They wouldn’t do enough damage,” Fizgig said. She sounded incredibly weary.

  “I have an idea, one I can promise you they will not much like,” Khar said, giving a booming laugh. “We have taken their weapons, why not also take their tactics? The Void Wraith are destroying the Forge by hurling vessels into it. You can see the damage each explosion causes.”

  “The amount of force released by a drive going critical is higher than most warheads,” Nolan said. He stumbled over a rock, catching himself against Kathryn. She steadied him, and he kept moving down the corridor. There was fire from ahead, as Hannan picked off another bug. “Khar’s right. If we hurl harvesters into that cataract, we can probably break through.”

  “Do you realize what you’re asking?” Fizgig asked. Her voice had gone soft.

  “Yes.” Nolan didn’t try to explain further. They both knew.

  “I will lead the charge,” Khar said, laughing again. “What does it matter if we die today, or in a decade? If we wish our kits to survive, then some of us must purchase that victory with our lives. I will call to all remaining harvesters among our forces. Fizgig, will you escort us in for our attack run?”

  “What will we do once the hole is open?” Izzy asked, her voice quiet but no longer timid. “It is unlikely the Forge will be able to fire its main cannon again.”

  “Manda, would it be possible to have the Helios Sphere overload somehow?” Nolan asked. He dropped to his knee, sighting down his scope into a mist cloud where he’d seen movement. He waited till he saw it again, then cored the bug with a shot from his rifle.

  “I believe so,” Manda replied. There was an explosion in the background as she spoke. “I think I see where you’re going with this. If we can get the Helios Ship inside the Eye, it can generate a massive wave of radiation. I don’t know for certain that it will kill the Eye, but at the very least I doubt the Eye will like it much.”

  “Khar, will you do this for your people?” Fizgig asked, her voice deadly quiet.

  “With great relish, Mighty Fizgig. This day will be sung of until our people are dust among the stars, and I will have its most pivotal role. Every mother will name her next son after me, Khar of Pride Leonis,” Khar said. “I shall taunt that weakling Carnifex into joining me in glorious death. We’ll clear a path, and create the opening Izzy needs.”
>
  Nolan snapped his rifle up, gunning down a bug that had been trying to get the drop on him. Its stinger passed inches from his face as the body plummeted past him to the rocky floor. Nolan took a deep breath. “Good luck, everyone.”

  70

  Attack Run

  Khar was elated. He lounged in his captain’s chair, a special one made to accommodate an Alpha. He would die this day, but his sacrifice would buy a future for his people. There was no better way for a Tigris to end his life. No higher honor. He was fortunate indeed.

  “Leonis, Jaguara, Fizgig,” Khar roared into the comm. “I speak to all. Any aboard a harvester willing to take up the call. The Eye now has a weakness, one we can exploit. We must cut a path to the coordinates I’m sending you. Once there, we will overcharge our fusion reactors. Our drives must be set to go critical as we impact with the Eye’s weakened iris. Our sacrifice will create a hole, and our people will strike. The Eye will die, and the Tigris will live on.”

  “Mighty Khar,” came back a chorus of roars, mostly from Leonis captains he recognized. Most of Pride Fizgig took up the call as well, though few of Jaguara.

  “To victory,” Khar bellowed, then deactivated his comm, moderating his tone. “Ship, I want you to plot an evasive course to the coordinates provided. Proceed cautiously, and make sure we do not get separated from the main body. We are stronger together.”

  “Of course, Mighty Khar,” the vessel responded in a pleasant male voice.

  The ship accelerated, bringing up the holodisplay of the battle without Khar needing to ask. Dozens of Tigris vessels, mostly harvesters, had gathered for the assault. Even a few Jaguara joined, though the bulk of that pride still hung back. Khar considered taunting Carnifex, but if his speech hadn’t roused the cat to action, nothing would.

  Khar focused on those vessels that had responded, tapping furiously on his console. Commanding this way wasn’t much different than handling gunnery for a single vessel. The harvesters themselves handled most of the math, so all he needed to do was move ships to an evenly distributed cone pattern.

  That pattern pierced the Void Wraith line like a spike; supporting fire from the Forge drove it deeper into enemy ranks. They began pushing toward the Eye, but the closer they came, the more furious the battle. Eventually things were so chaotic that Khar could only focus on his own vessel.

  The ship rolled around plasma fire, narrowing dodging another ball as a trio of enemy ships tried to end him. His ship returned fire, but the lead opponent dodged. Another Tigris harvester capitalized on the move, adding a plasma ball of its own. That knocked out their enemy’s shields, and Khar’s ship finished it off with another blast.

  Deeper and deeper they pushed, though the cost was staggeringly high. Khar tried not to focus too much on the red casualty list scrolling up the side of the holo. If they succeeded in creating a hole no sacrifice was too high.

  Their lines began to falter, and the Tigris fell back slightly. The Forge had lost most of its cannons, and the support fire was now anemic. The Void Wraith were turning the tide, and there wasn’t a damned thing Khar could do about it.

  “Mighty Khar,” Carnifex’s voice came over the comm. “I owe you the deepest of apologies. You are more than a fitting leader for the Leonis. You are an exemplary warrior, and I am pleased to fight at your side.”

  With that, dozens of Jaguara harvesters sailed into the fray, pushing back the Void Wraith once more. Khar gave an exultant whoop over the comm, his ship veering around an exploding harvester. He could see the scar below, the Eye growing larger as his ship approached it.

  The fire grew even thicker, and his harvester shuddered from multiple impacts. He heard screams in the distance as the left wing of the ship sheared away, spilling many of his troops into space. Khar grimly patted the arm of his chair. “Keep it together, ship.”

  They could no longer fire, but the ship itself was still a weapon. Khar smiled, rising from his chair. He spoke over the open comm. “Mighty Nolan, Mighty Fizgig, it has been an honor. Carnifex, I will clear the last of the ships in your way. Save our people.”

  Khar ordered the ship to impact with the closest enemy harvester, the enormous force of the blast tearing his ship apart.

  71

  Opening

  Izzy took a deep breath, calming herself. She’d never been in charge of anything this important, but if she faltered, everyone she cared about would die. Worse, Fizgig would be disappointed. She turned to her bridge crew, such as it was. Lena sat at the Helios Sphere’s comm station, a bright yellow wall set with gems, dials, and a screen.

  Atrea sat at another station, running numbers for the final explosion. Her goal, she’d said, was to find a way to kill the Eye without them dying in the process. Izzy didn’t see how that was possible. She accepted that they were likely to die today, win or lose.

  Izzy seized the piloting controls in a death grip when she heard Khar’s words. She’d always liked him, enough that she would have tried to catch his eye had he not turned himself into a robot. His death, if it came today, would bring her a great deal of pain. In his honor, she would endure it stoically.

  “Attention, all vessels currently sheltering within our sphere,” Izzy began, speaking to hundreds of captains, mostly human. “The Helios Ship is needed in the fight, and it will not be safe for you to be with us. As you can see, the Tigris defense platforms have exited your sun. Make for them as a group, covering the human defense platforms until you link up. You should be safe, as long as you stay near the platforms.”

  The comm erupted with chatter. Lena looked panicked for a moment, but Izzy walked over and flicked the comm off. She rested a hand on Lena’s shoulder. “We have important work to be about. We can’t deal with their protests. I need you to keep me updated on Khar’s progress while I pilot us into the hole they create.”

  “Of course, Mighty Izzy,” Lena said, giving her a warm smile. Izzy could only blink at the title, smiling back when she realized it was true. She was, however briefly, a real captain.

  Izzy caught herself, returning her focus to the battle. She relaxed her grip on the controls, guiding the Helios Ship toward the Eye. It accelerated rapidly, reducing the massive sphere to a tiny shield that just barely covered the ship. Oddly, that ship was quite small, no more than two or three times the size of a harvester. She’d expected it to be much larger, given how large the Gate was when inside the core of a star.

  It eased into the wake of Khar’s passing, and she watched as he and the Jaguara blew apart the opposition. Their casualties were hideous, and only a dozen or so ships looked like they’d reach the Eye. Two defending vessels remained, and Izzy’s heart nearly leapt from her body when she saw Khar’s vessel move to intercept. He was missing a wing, but he charged them anyway.

  The force of his accelerated ship caused a massive detonation when he collided with the first vessel, and debris was flung in all directions. Some of that debris, most notably Khar’s other wing, sailed into the second ship. It slammed into the wing, causing a second explosion. When the plasma fires had cleared, all three vessels were gone. Only a cloud of debris remained.

  Izzy’s tail dropped to the floor, but she forced herself to keep watching. Carnifex and his ships accelerated. Her sensors detected that they’d begun the process of overloading their drives. They streaked toward the valley at the center of the wound in the iris, the first vessel slamming into it with a white flash. A second vessel did the same, then ten more in rapid succession.

  When the light had cleared enough for Izzy’s sensors to relay data, she let out a joyous little laugh. “They did it! There’s a hole. It’s large enough for us to pass through. We can end this, right now.”

  72

  Redemption

  Nolan moved more swiftly, now that the distraction of talking to Manda and the others had been dealt with. He understood why the call had been necessary, but surviving in this place was proving challenging enough as it was. He ducked past Edwards, taking aim at a larg
er bug than he’d seen before. This one was the size of a cow, and seemed to have evolved from the earlier critters. It too had a stinger and claws, but unlike the others it had a glowing blue hole between its eyes.

  He drew a bead on it, firing just as light began to gather around the glowing hole. His shot caught it right in the face, and the entire creature exploded, bathing the walls—and the party—with gore.

  “Eww,” Edwards said, wiping off a giant handful. “This stuff is gross.”

  “Suck it up, Marine,” Hannan said, wiping some from her cheek. She turned to Nolan. “Captain, any idea how close we’re getting?”

  “The scanner says we’re almost right on top of it,” Nolan said, frowning suddenly. “I was expecting an army of these things, but for the most part it looks like they’re falling back. I don’t want to walk into another trap.”

  “I have a theory that might explain that,” Kathryn said, smearing goop from her hair. “While I was part of, I guess what you might call the collective, I could sense a lot of the memories through the larva. I remember complex beings, things far beyond any human ability to comprehend. I didn’t sense anything like this. The few other operatives I could feel were sentient races.”

  “What are you saying?” Nolan asked, intrigued. He nodded ahead of them, and Hannan made a motion for the squad to continue.

  Kathryn fell into stride with him as they proceeded down the tunnel, which sloped more sharply into the darkness. It seemed to be curving to the west, as well.