Nyx twirled her chair around to see the rest of the crew. “Communications are out and Swift is crippled. Try to straighten her out for a smooth crash landing.”
Smooth? Thought Eden, thinking how strange the word sounded when combined with crash.
On the vid screen, Eden watched Lumus spiraling closer, although they weren't spiraling inside of the starship at all. However this ship was built, it was definitely occupant friendly, especially during the worst of times. Does the bridge rotate separately from the rest of the ship? wondered Eden.
The crew moved Swift at an angle for landing. I have engines operational now, said Swift, although we won't be able to fly for much longer. I will turn thrusters downward to make a soft landing. Communications are still down. I cannot contact Aurora for help. I apologize. I'll find a safe spot away from cannon fire.
Nyx gave a nod. “No problem. Thank you, Swift.” She placed her palm to her chest. “Prepare for battle. They'll be upon us as soon as we land.”
The thrusters kicked on no more than five hundred yards from the ground, taking the once fast falling ship to an almost instant stop while causing the slightest jostle. It then started it's descent slowly behind a large hill, protecting them from the cannons.
“Why aren't they firing at us?” asked Eden.
Nyx gave her a look. “They are. We're being hit in back by starfighters, but they don't have the power of the cannons so we aren't feeling it, and—” a pound and a slight movement interrupted Nyx. She shrugged, “Well, most times we're not feeling it.”
A moment later, Swift touched down. Nyx immediately released her restraints and jumped up with a silver sword in her hand, shining a blue sheen. She held a high tech laser impulse pistol in her other hand.
Before Eden could ask where the weapons suddenly appeared from, Nyx pressed a button on Eden's restraints, releasing her from the chair.
“Follow us!” ordered Nyx.
The crew gathered near the nose of the bridge, a dozen in all—Fae, Sirians, and Eden, but no Thomas. They all held swords in one hand, shining like Nyx's, with pistols in the other. The tall blue furred Sirian tossed a pistol at Eden. She caught it and heard his voice in her mind. Stay behind me. I'll keep you safe.
Many questions again raced through Eden's mind, but one in particular jumped out. Stay behind him? Are we waiting for the bad guys to come inside the bridge?
Abruptly, their portion of the bridge moved downward, like an elevator, until it stopped—they were now on Lumus' soil.
Looking around, Eden could see that Swift's landing gears were down and the crew, including herself, were all using Swift as cover from potential cannon blasts and incoming starfighters.
“Eden, you come with me and Jantu,” said Nyx, with the blue furred Sirian standing tall and confident by her side. His yellow eyes beamed to her that everything was going to be fine. Nyx looked at the rest of the twelve. “Everyone, fan out in threes. Stay under cover and wait. They'll be on us soon and pray they don't aim their cannons this way.”
Eden followed Nyx and Jantu as they headed for Swift's tail. Blasts from above hailed down like rain, some hitting Swift and some missing wide and slamming into the ground, shooting up rock and dust and leaving pock marks on the land all around them.
“Where's Thomas?” asked Eden, jogging next to Nyx and Jantu.
“Knowing Thomas, he's probably out in his Oberum having fun while the rest of us are under Swift,” responded Nyx. “If we had more Oberums, I'd put you in one.”
“When did he leave?” asked Eden.
“When we landed. He's good with the dramatics. He'll hold them off, giving us more protection than we probably need.”
“Where's everyone else?”
Nyx stopped jogging, prompting Eden to stop as well. She noticed that Jantu did the same, but stood in front of her to block her from any immediate harm.
Nyx lowered her sword and pistol to her side. “What do you mean?”
“This ship holds thousands of people, so where is everyone else?”
“Oh, yes.” She touched her pointy ear and exhaled. “About that. We're the only ones on the ship.”
“What?!” Eden wanted to pull out her hair. How were they going to get out of this predicament alive?
Nyx laughed. “We weren't expecting a fight. We were going to take you on a joy ride to show you the ropes to get you used to Swift, and by the looks of things...,” she looked up at a damaged portion on Swift's belly, “you aren't used to each other yet.” She turned and started off again, moving faster toward the tail of the ship. Eden and Jantu followed. When they got there, Jantu and Nyx stood in defensive positions and were sheathing their swords under their robes. They pointed their pistols outward and Eden pointed hers, copying them.
“Here,” Nyx threw her pistol at Eden, who gracefully caught it with her free hand. “You may need two of them. Can you handle two pistols at the same time?”
Eden puffed out her lower lip, looking at the pistol she just caught. “I don't know.” She looked up at Nyx. “What exactly are we waiting for?”
Nyx, staring straight ahead, pointed. “Them.”
Moving her eyes to where Nyx had indicated, she saw two gigantic Mechs, the likes of which she had never seen before, walking toward their position. Each Mech had two large lasers mounted on each side of its shoulders. They were still hundreds of yards away, and jogging next to the bulky Mechs were twenty or so giants suited in gray and green with masked faces. They each carried a spear that glowed red at the tip.
Eden suddenly covered her mouth, blurting out, “The gravity! I have to get back inside of the ship!” She twisted around, about to race back to the elevator.
A hand grabbed her arm. “Gravity?” Nyx wore a bewildered expression. “Didn't Thomas tell you?” She shook her head, thinking how obvious it was that Thomas had omitted that bit of information. “You've been taught a lie your entire life, Eden. Lumus' gravity is completely safe. It can't harm you.” Nyx nodded toward the others. “Do you see any of us having a care about the gravity here?”
Eden struggled against Nyx's hand, trying to escape.
A soft whisper, gentle like the breeze, came from Nyx's lips to Eden's ears. “Faelowei, Somyahei.”
Instantly, Eden felt at peace, as if everything was right with the universe. A confidence surged through her. She turned, facing Nyx and stared into her eyes. “Whatever you did or said, thank you.”
With Nyx's words, a strange but safe trust was established—a trust for these Knights Templar. She bowed her head and smiled, which faded the moment she looked around. Instead of just the two Mechs and giants coming at them, she could see more Mechs and giants coming from all directions far off in the distance to surround them. The other Fae and Sirians held their positions on the east, west, and north sides under the ship. Jantu, Nyx, and Eden held the southern section.
I don't know how we can take these guys, thought Eden.
Nyx stood straight and tall, turning her back to Eden. She raised her arms and extended them as she said, “Help me with my robe.”
“Huh?” Eden blinked a couple of times. “Why?”
“It gets in the way.”
Eden did as she was asked, expecting to see a half naked Fae and thinking that's how she fights. But instead, Nyx was fully clothed by some sort of silvery armor-like cloth. She was exceptionally fit and toned. Eden wanted to say wow, but bit her tongue, especially when she saw a bow and arrow, both thin and flexible, but metallic in appearance. The arrows were secured to her back by a thin, silver rope strung around her torso and waist. They were tipped with some type of aerodynamically designed exploding heads.
Eden's second thought sprang out of her mouth. “How could you sit in the chair wearing all of that?”
Without looking, Nyx replied, “The chairs automatically mold to what they're supporting.” Then rapidly, Nyx grabbed the bow with one hand, pulled an arrow with the other, brought them in front of her, aimed and shot. Two seconds late
r, one of the Mechs rocked back from an explosion, its arm and mounted laser breaking into mechanical pieces on the ground. Another explosion followed, this time on the Mech's other arm, it too falling to the ground in a metallic mess.
Eden looked around to see who had shot the second arrow. When she saw Jantu watching the oncoming enemy from another direction as Nyx loosed another arrow into the air, Eden suddenly realized how incredibly fast Nyx truly was, with Nyx's third arrow shattering the viewing window of the Mech's face. It was followed by a bigger burst erupting in the location, a fourth arrow unleashed by Nyx. This time, the Mech fell backwards, landing hard on the ground. A thick stream of black smoke rose from a gaping hole where the Mech's shoulders, head, and lasers once were.
“I have only four arrows left,” said Nyx. She closed her eyes, whispering something inaudible, then announced, “Thomas is coming.”
Eden frantically nodded, but didn't look at Nyx. Her eyes were glued to the immediate remaining Mech and giants still coming, undaunted by the sight of their fallen friend. Then she saw the giants raise their spears and shoot fiery laser impulses at them.
“Jantu, shields!” directed Nyx.
Jantu raised his left arm. From a forearm band formed a silvery, blue bubble that expanded around them. Nyx drew Eden in close, pushing her behind the large and furry Sirian. The fiery laser shots were being absorbed by the shield and neutralized.
“Eden, have your guns ready. As soon as there's a lull, we'll return fire. Got that?” asked Nyx.
Eden nodded, waiting for the barrage of laser impulse fire to stop while feeling the nice sensation of the bubble around her. In here, it was quiet, even radiant. It protected them in a way that not only blocked laser impulses, but seemed to push away all fear, providing a much needed sense of safety in a very hostile environment. Eden wanted to look around, but she could barely see through the hazy bubble, half wondering how Nyx or Jantu could do it.
“Now!” yelled Nyx.
The laser impulse fire must have stopped, because when Nyx yelled, the bubble disappeared and Nyx laid into the oncoming Mech with her remaining arrows, one after another, toppling the beast over. This time, the giant troops scrambled, shooting wildly. Eden pointed her guns at them and fired, not really knowing if she was hitting anything or not.
Nyx's arm came across Eden's chest. “Stop!” Eden lowered her weapons to see why she was stopped.
Jantu was racing out in the open with his sword in hand, the blueish shimmer of the blade embellished with white highlights by the light of the sun. His white robe looked more like a cape, whipping behind him because of his high speed. Laser impulses fired at him, but he dodged, able to anticipate them.
Somersaulting in the air and landing a couple yards in front of a giant, he slashed its spear in half with his sword. The giant swiped at Jantu with its broken spear, but was far too slow. Jantu ducked and side swiped the giant's legs, causing it to fall on its side. Jantu quickly pulled out something from inside his robe, small and round with a pointy stem. He slammed it on the ground, turned and fled, laser impulses zipping passed him. He leaped forward, diving onto the ground while activating the shield orb. Five seconds later, the round object he'd planted burst into white light, bright as the sun. Eden covered her eyes and crouched, turning her head away.
For a while, Eden remained in a crouch, not knowing what to do. Everything was silent, but when she felt a gentle hand on her shoulder, she uncovered her eyes and gazed up at Jantu staring down at her. She heard his voice in her mind.
All is well.
Staring at the open field before her, she saw all of the troops lying motionless on the ground.
“What did you do?” asked Eden, her eyes straining to see any movement.
Nyx punched Jantu in the arm. “He showed off in front of you, that's what he did.”
Jantu rubbed his arm, then stared down, nodding. I tend to get carried away sometimes.
“Carried away?” Nyx shook her head. “You about gave me a heart attack!”
Eden, ignoring the tiny argument, asked again, pointing in the direction of the fallen soldiers. “What was that light thing?”
“Stun light,” replied Nyx. “I usually save that for the last arrow.” She pulled a small, wooden item shaped like a pencil from a pouch on her thigh and waived it in front of Eden. It then quadrupled in length, looking like the shaft of an arrow. Nyx tapped a silver tip into the top of the shaft and began to twist. “You screw one of those bad boys in here and shoot it high into the air. Drop it right in the middle of any crowd and...poof! Everyone within a five thousand foot radius feels a jolt and falls down in a state of paralysis. They'll sleep for an entire day.”
Eden placed her hands on her hips. “Why didn't you just do that in the beginning?”
“The Mechs aren't effected by it. The drivers are seated too high. Most of the troops behind the Mechs could have been shielded by the Mechs, as well.” She tapped Eden's elbow, then walked toward the middle of the ship. “We only have a few stun lights, so we tend to use them at opportune moments.” She grinned. “Let's go. Thomas is here.”
She surveyed the rest of her crew who were waiting in a circle just below the belly of the ship, some squatting, others leaning on a bent knee, and some standing. There didn't seem to be a scratch or a ruffle on any of them.
Strolling up to the group, Nyx placed her hand on Thomas' back, giving him a nod. “And, where were you during all of this?”
He folded his hands in front, looking at Nyx, then Eden. He bowed his head. “I'm sorry I left, but I knew you were in good hands.” He then eyed each and every one of his crew. “I shot down many starfighters, but they were novice pilots so it wasn't difficult. I wasn't in any real danger. But, many of them fled, so I followed them and to my surprise, I came upon a starship sitting at the base of a ridge. It had Sirona written on it—”
Eden's mouth opened, but no sound came out. The shocking news had struck her like a hard punch. She was finally able to utter, “Are they okay?”
“They don't look like they've taken critical damage, but as I flew further, I saw a massive war machine with an equally massive cannon mounted on it. It was approaching Sirona, moving slowly across the plateau. If it maintains that pace, Sirona has two days' time. I'm guessing its another experimental weapon that the Nankuani like to create, because they could have destroyed Sirona at any time with their army.”
“We have to stop it!” Eden blurted out.
“That's what we intend to do.” He rubbed the back of his head. “However, there are two dozen or so of the big Mechs. I can take out most of them with my Oberum, but if they have more starfighters that aren't piloted by rookies, then we may be biting off more than we can chew.”
∞
“I don't think you know what you're saying, Admiral,” asserted Captain Louise Stripe. The admiral was staring at her sternly across his desk, searching for the truth while annoying Louise to no end.
He finally looked away and scratched his cheek, then glanced at her thumbs and heaved a heavy sigh. Louise looked down, realizing that she was twiddling her thumbs, something she did as a kid when she was nervous.
Admiral Byrd said, “I'm a keen observer when it comes to truth. I learned it well from my mentor, with whom you're familiar, Admiral Sune. He trained me to observe a person's body language, to look for changes in a person's pupils, to watch the muscle movements around their eyes and to hear inflections within the tones of their voice. When I asked you the other day if you had heard of the Ki-En Alliance, you did more than just hesitate.”
Louise slammed her fist on his desk and stood. “I've been your captain for how many years?!” She went to count on her fingers, but stopped. “And now you're calling me a liar!” She placed her hands on her hips. “Is that why you suddenly started sleeping in Chase and Devon's room?” She shook her head. “Are you expecting me to creep into your room to slit your throat?”
She spun around, ready to exit the office without perm
ission. When she realized her mistake, she turned, dourly standing at attention. “Permission to leave, Sir.”
The admiral gave a nod. “Granted.”
A sudden knock from behind was ruining her exit. She turned uneasily to glare at the man standing in the doorway, but relaxed when she saw that it was Chase.
“Chase,” greeted Admiral Byrd. “What can I help you with?”
Chase looked from his uncle to Louise, sensing a disagreement hanging in the air. “I can come back, but...” he pointed a thumb over his shoulder, “you have to see this. Both of you.”
“Can it wait?” replied Admiral Byrd, clearly stressed and wanting to be alone.
Chase shook his head, being as polite as possible. “Zim is on all of the holovid channels, confessing your innocence, and—”
The admiral immediately stood. “What?!” He stepped around the desk. “Show me.” He walked out of the room, ignoring Louise as he breezed by. Louise straightened her uniform, having resisted the urge to slap the sense back into her fleet admiral as he passed. Straight faced, she followed them down the hall to a large lobby where hundreds of soldiers were staring at a holovid screen propped on a wall. Manning was in the back of the crowd, leaning against the wall. Devon was next to him, standing on his tippy-toes as he watched everything.
Admiral Byrd gave a sideways glance to Louise. “Aren't all of these people on duty?”
Louise gave a nod. She was about to round everyone up when she saw who it was on the vid. It was Zim wearing a strange golden helmet inlaid with specks of sparkling clear rock of some type. It was his voice booming throughout the room.
“Yes, I will say it again,” said Zim. “Lien-L and I set up Admiral Byrd. Admiral Jenkyns was in on it as well. Admiral Byrd is innocent of all charges.”
Admiral Byrd gripped his nephew's forearm as he grasped the meaning of what he had just heard. Innocent of all charges? And who is Lien-L? His face lifted into a smile as the heavy weight he'd been carrying since it all began lifted. “Did I just hear what I thought I heard?”
The Veil Rising Page 33