The Ninth: Invasion

by Benjamin Schramm

  Without realizing it, the sergeant’s hand defensively rose to his lapel and started rubbing the pin. The other soldiers started to sweat, and he could hear a few swallowing nervously. The sergeant’s other hand hovered dangerously close to his side arm. Brent knew from his infiltration training on body language that the sergeant wouldn’t back down. As the sergeant’s hand drifted to his weapon, Brent grabbed the sergeant and tossed him at Owen. Owen flinched, and his innate defensives kicked in. In a flash, the sergeant was on the ground. Taken by surprise, the soldiers hesitated for an instant.

  It was more than enough. Ronald took down a kneeling soldier with a quick punch and continued forward, thrusting his elbow into a soldier standing in the second row. Hiroko leaped over the standing row and landed behind the formation. With a single graceful motion, she swept their footing out from under them. Mr. Springate moved with amazing speed and knocked one out with a single blow. Mahoney punched a kneeling soldier in the gut while slamming his head into another. Dante threw a mighty punch which landed squarely on a soldier’s chin. The poor guy crumpled silently to the ground. Cassandra lifted one off the ground and threw the helpless soldier at the few still standing. In the space of five seconds, the CI soldiers had gone from battle formation to lying on the ground, groaning in pain.

  “You should have listened to Brent,” Owen grumbled as he inspected the wounded.

  Dante and Ronald quickly disarmed the soldiers and passed the rifles and side arms to the troopers.

  “Did that really just happen?” Philip asked in shock.

  “Yes it did,” Brent said in his normal voice. ‘Now you get to the civilians and you keep them safe.”

  “But we want to help you.”

  “The best way you can do that is by keeping those civilians safe. You keep little Hiroyuki and his friends safe so I don’t have to worry about them. I’m leaving them in your care.”

  The Protectorates swelled with pride at their assignment and bowed to Brent like the tripod. As they rushed off, he wondered if they’d realized he had given them the exact same assignment they’d had since they joined the Protectorates. Watching the Protectorates rush off, he became aware they had drawn a great deal of attention. Every local within shouting distance was nervously eyeing him. Apparently, he’d just become very popular.

  “Where did that voice come from?” Doug asked him. “Scared me half to death!”

  “I think it worked one better on the soldiers,” Marie said with a grin.

  “I can’t believe they wouldn’t listen to me,” Cain said, more to himself than anyone in particular.

  “It’s okay, Cain,” Angela spoke in a surprisingly soothing voice. “We’re at war, and they were just doing their job.”

  “Guys . . .” Rhea spoke in a weak voice.

  “Brent might have been the one to act, but we all support what he did,” Humphrey mumbled. “We’re not letting anyone take you anywhere.”

  “Plus, you might want to save the thanks until we aren’t exposed targets,” Sanderson said, scanning the distance.

  “Your orders?” Ronald asked Tyra.

  “We can’t stay here,” she said quickly, “and we can’t take on every armed person on the planet. Cain, you dad is important around here, right?”

  Cain nodded while Angela kept a hand on his shoulder.

  “We’ll try to meet up with him, then. With his help, we should be able to clear this mess up before things get worse. Owen, how are they?”

  “Mostly just bumps and bruises. There are a few broken bones, but nothing life threatening. I’ve made them a bit more comfortable for now. We can leave them here without worry.”

  “Good to hear. How are we set for weapons?”

  “Twelve rifles, and side arms,” Ronald said. “We have enough for everyone to at least have a weapon. Although, I’d rather not attempt a battle under these conditions.”

  “Agreed. Cain, you lead the way.”

  “Guys?” Doug asked.

  “What is it?”

  “I ... accidentally pulled the trigger on my side arm.”

  “This is why we can’t have nice things,” Marie said in disgust. “Why’d you do that?”

  “Unless his gun is set to some kind of silent mode,” Mr. Springate said in alarm, “I didn’t hear anything.”

  “That’s what I’m trying to tell you.” Doug passed his side arm to Marie. “They don’t work.”

  “He’s right, they must be coded or something,” she said, examining the weapon.

  “Coded?” Erin asked anxiously.

  “You know, coded. So they can’t be used in the wrong hands. DNA coded, fingerprint coded, and so on. There must be a dozen or so ways to go about it.” Marie carefully looked over the trigger.

  “Can you get them to work?” Brent asked.

  “You’re kidding, right?” Doug asked.

  “Shouldn’t we just drop them and go, sir?” Dante asked.

  “I tell you, no one appreciates a trooper trained in survival,” Marie said distractedly.

  “She may not look it, but Marie is a master at weapons repair and modification,” Liz said with pride. “If she can’t do it, no one can.”

  “I never would have guessed . . .” Kindra’s voice trailed off as she watched Marie work.

  “So Brent did have a reason for picking her,” Erin said with a chuckle. “And here I thought she was just eye candy.”

  “I hate to break up this riveting discussion,” Angela said anxiously, “but we’ve got company on the way. And they are not happy.”

  “How do you know . . . Right, Weaver, never mind,” Cain said, sounding a little groggy.

  “What’s wrong with him?” Tyra asked.

  “He’s not coping all that well.” Angela’s voice was strained. “I’m trying to help, but I can’t keep track of the approaching soldiers and keep him from falling into depression at the same time.”

  “Great, there goes our guide.” Hiroko worriedly watched the ramps leading to their level.

  Brent stepped behind Angela and whispered in her ear. She gave him a startled glance, looking him over carefully. He gestured to Cain. Angela took a step away from Cain and forcefully slapped him. A couple of troopers winced in pain at the sight. He rubbed his cheek while staring at Angela in complete surprise.

  “You mouth off to a Governor’s wife without blinking,” she started shouting at him, “you steal hard earned credits from anyone who’s willing to sit at a card table with you. You love to sexually harass a Weaver who could kill you in the blink of an eye. But some no account sergeant who dropped like a wet noodle is enough to totally destroy your self-confidence? You’re pathetic!”

  “Like you’re any better!” Cain shouted back. “A narcissistic ego manic with a stick wedged so far up her . . .”

  “Cain!” Cassandra shouted over him.

  Cain blinked for a moment, then looked at the others.

  “You with us?” Tyra asked.

  “Of course, why wouldn’t I be?”

  “Good, now take us to some place to hide out for a while.”

  “Didn’t you want to go see my dad?”

  “Once we have a weapon or two, yes. For now, let’s concentrate on not getting shot at.”

  Cain nodded and started running in a seemingly random direction. The troopers quickly kept pace behind him. The locals ducked inside buildings and homes as the troopers passed. The troopers moved quickly and silently, diving down alleyways and moving up and down levels. Cain finally came to a stop in front of a rundown looking bar. A group of children playing ducked out of sight as the troopers gathered in the street in front of the bar.

  Cain gestured for everyone to wait as he ran inside. A moment later, he emerged and led the others down a side alley and down a flight of stairs into the basement of the bar. A large, muscular man with a disturbingly pale complexion eyed the troopers as they entered. After the last one was clear, the man sealed a door that had no business in a rundown bar. The door look
ed like it was designed to ward off an entire army.

  “Man, I haven’t seen you in forever.” The man spoke in a slow and cool manner. “What kind of trouble you gotten yourself into now, Cain?”

  “The ‘I think they are going to shoot us’ kind of trouble,” he said as he took a seat.

  “You didn’t come here direct, I hope.”

  “Lost all faith in me? Don’t worry about it. They’ll get lost a dozen times over before they have any idea which way we really went.”

  “Friend of yours?” Tyra asked.

  “From way back when. Long before I darkened Administer Bloom’s doorstep, Romero and I were running scams that would make the bookies in the academy drool.”

  “You sure he won’t turn us in to the Protectorates?” Cassandra asked.

  “You want to say that to my face?” Romero got to his feet and approached her.

  “That’s not a good idea,” Brent said standing between the two.

  “Who’s the string bean?” Romero asked, pointing at Brent.

  “Romero, mind your manners,” Cain said with a chuckle. “You have guests.”

  “That string bean as you call him just stared down twelve heavily armed Protectorates,” Dante said.

  “Protectorates?” Romero asked, obviously confused. “Cain what are they talking about?”

  “They weren’t Protectorates,” Rhea stated. “Protectorates are a branch of the government. They protect planets of the Commonwealth. This world is managed and run by Core Industries, so the government leaves its protection up to the corporation. Those men we just beat up are part of CI’s private security force.”

  “The lady knows her stuff,” Romero said with a nod of approval.

  “Would you all just shut up for a minute?” Marie asked.

  “You did not just tell me to shut up in my own place!”

  As Romero turned to face Marie, a pulse of energy shot past his head, leaving a small charred spot on the wall.

  “Got it,” Marie said with a smile.

  “You . . . did she . . . did you just shoot at me?” Romero felt his face to make sure it was still there.

  “You bypassed the coding?” Ronald asked.

  “It was trickier than the ones we used in practice, but not impossible.”

  “Wait a second. Cain, are you telling me you brought a chick in here that can take a coded gun and make it usable?”

  “Yes, I did, no you can’t have her, no you can’t borrow her, and no I won’t change my mind,” Cain said with a grin.

  “I thought we were friends man.”

  “We are, but I’m not about to become an accessory to armed robbery.”

  “That’s low, man. You know I’d never do something like that.”

  “Then you don’t need her services, do you?”

  “You haven’t changed a bit.” Romero started laughing.

  “Everyone get ready to move out,” Tyra said, peeking out a window. “As soon as Marie finishes, we are out of here.”

  “Sorry Tyra, but you’ll have to wait a while.

  “But you just . . .” Doug scratched his head.

  “That was a side arm. Look at the wall. It barely made a scratch. These rifles could do some serious damage,” Marie said picking up a rifle.

  “So the coding is much more complex,” Mr. Springate said, understanding.

  “How long are we looking at?” Ronald asked.

  “For the side arms? It’ll take me a few hours, maybe more. If you want the rifles, you’re looking at days to unlock them all.”

  “Well, that won’t work; they’ll find us before then,” Tyra said with a sigh. “Get to work on the side arms. I’d rather have a water gun than nothing at all.”

  “How can you be so sure they’ll find us?” Kindra asked.

  “Cain has always been good at giving people the slip,” Romero spoke with obvious experience.

  “Those security forces had orders to ignore Cain,” Tyra said. “If their orders were that specific, whoever issued them must have anticipated him resisting.”

  “Which means they won’t bother tracing our steps,” Dante said, rubbing his chin. “They know Cain will take us to a hideout, so they’ll just start searching every place where he has friends.”

  “Exactly. Depending on how many friends Cain has, our time could be very limited,” Tyra said.

  “Man, these people are serious!” Romero said to Cain.

  “They are troopers of the Commonwealth, after all.” Cain shrugged.

  “Seriously?” Romero looked them over with renewed interest.

  “Didn’t he know?” Penny asked.

  “Eos is a closed world,” Rhea said, taking a seat. “The nebula keeps everyone without CI permission out. So, of course, he’s never seen a Protectorate or a trooper before.”

  “I’m impressed,” Romero said. “How do you know so much, little lady?”

  “She’s Cain’s rival,” Angela said with a smile.

  “Is that a fact? Why she bother you so much?” Romero asked Cain. “Doesn’t look all that threatening.”

  “It’s probably because she’s part of the ITU,” Doug said with a shrug.

  Romero instantly turned on Rhea.

  “Moron.” Mahoney slapped Doug upside the head.

  “You brought the Union here?” Romero said, closing in on Rhea.

  As Romero got close, he threw a punch. Before anyone could react, Humphrey pushed Rhea out of the way but failed to dodge the blow. Romero turned to face Rhea as Humphrey gasped for air on the floor. The blow had apparently hurt, a lot.

  “Angela, if you please,” Brent said.

  Romero collapsed to the floor, clutching his head and panting feverously.

  “Dougie, you idiot,” Marie shouted. “Can’t you keep that mouth of yours shut?”

  “How could I know he’d do that?” Doug asked defensively.

  “We’re at war. A group of armed men tried to take her into custody. What more do you need? Should I make you a diagram? Perhaps I should paint a sign as big as the hole in your head.”

  “I’ll take care of it,” Cain said, jumping out of his chair. “Angela, would you release him after we’ve left the room?”

  Angela nodded as Cain helped his trembling friend to his feet. Together, the two hobbled over to a side room. After Cain shut the door, she visibly relaxed.

  “Well, this just gets better and better,” Dante said with a sigh.

  “Is he okay?” Rhea asked Owen desperately as he looked over Humphrey.

  “Had the wind knocked out of him is all. He’ll be back to his normal mumbling self as soon as he catches his breath,” Owen said, standing.

  “Your orders?” Ronald asked Tyra.

  “We’re stuck for now.” Tyra kicked the useless rifle on the ground. “Getting those side arms in working condition is top priority. We have no choice but to wait for Marie to finish.”

  “I’ll do my best,” Marie said, saluting.

  “What about the rest of us?” Sanderson asked.

  Tyra rounded the bar and started pouring herself a drink.

  “Nothing better to do but toss back a few and keep quiet.”

  “Now there’s a plan I can get behind,” Erin said, taking a seat at the bar.

  The troopers tried to relax as best they could while Marie worked. Owen checked everyone over after their afternoon brawl. They all made sure Doug didn’t have a single drink.

  “Brent, what exactly did you tell Angela?” Cassandra asked.

  “Yeah, how’d you know a slap would bring him to his senses?” Kindra asked.

  “I didn’t,” he said with a shrug.

  “That was a guess, sir?” Dante asked with a chuckle.

  “It was more than that,” Angela said, taking a sip. “He told me to go all out on Cain – physically and mentally.”

  “You told her to use her Weaver powers on him?” Mr. Springate asked. “Isn’t that dangerous?”

  “Not at all,” Brent said w
ith a smile. “Cain just needed a push. He’s a fighter above all else. He couldn’t let Angela have the last word any more than he could let Mrs. Lucchesi have her way that first night on Deriso. Plus, Angela would never really hurt him. She wouldn’t hurt any of us. She’s not that kind of person.”

  Angela looked at him in surprise. She blushed slightly under his praise.

  “Not that I want to argue, but you do remember that she tried to kill you, sir.” Dante poured himself another round.

  “Of course I do. How could I forget?” Brent said with a smile.

  “Now you’re not making sense on purpose,” Humphrey mumbled.

  “Think about it. Back in the academy, Angela and every other Weaver were trained day in and day out on the intricacies of hurting people, making them doubt themselves, even forcing them to suicide if need be. How would you see people after years of being taught they are nothing but puppets to be manipulated whenever it suits the mission?”

  “When you put it like that . . .” Penny eyed her glass solemnly.

  “Then, why is our cute little Weaver so friendly now?” Cain asked, returning from the side room.

  “Because of the Gauntlet,” Angela spoke in a weak voice. “For the first time, I helped people instead of tearing them down. It felt . . . wonderful.”

  “I told you she wouldn’t hurt me,” Cain said with a grin.

  “Don’t push your luck. How’s your friend?” Angela asked.

  “Fine now. He’s calmed down a bit.”

  “Does he really hate the ITU that much?” Doug asked.

  “He lost his older brother to pirates when he was young. Story goes there was an ITU ship in range that could have saved him. The ITU ignored the pleas for help, as it would have put them behind schedule to deviate from their jump route. Romero’s never forgiven them for it.”

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” Rhea said in a depressed voice.

  “Don’t worry about it. It’s not like you had anything to do with it, personally. Plus, just between you and me, he’s settled the score a dozen times over.”

  “How can you be so cheery?” Penny asked.

  “What else can I do? It’s old news to us anyway,” Cain said with a wide grin as he poured himself a drink. “Me getting all wet and weepy won’t bring his brother back. Blaming Rhea wouldn’t help either. A laugh here and a joke there helps keep me focused. I figure me being ready for the future is a lot more helpful than wallowing in the past.”