by Aer-ki Jyr
The group held on to their wall nook and each other as the firestorm continued without the quakes, for their bit of ship had been blown apart from the rest. Taylor lost track of time mentally as she strained to maintain the bioshield link along with the rest of the others…with one of the padawans breaking first. That reduced the battlemeld to 18, making it a touch easier, and the rest of them were able to maintain the Cerden up until Varn called back.
“Looks like you guys are still in one piece. We’ve got some road plowing to do to get to you, but the dropship is on its way and should get to you within 15 minutes at max.”
“Thank you,” Taylor said as they released their battlemeld links but not their physical grips on one another and the room that now had a nasty gash across the ceiling that was showing a mix of debris and stars beyond as they continued to spin at a rate of about 4 rotations per minute.
Taylor double checked the oxygen levels of her team, seeing that they all had at least 40 minutes remaining thanks to the backup tanks they’d been carrying for the boarding phase, and the envirosuit had also been so equipped. So long as there wasn’t a long delay, they were going to make it out.
“Status of the Viks on the ship?”
“There’s no ship left, Taylor,” he told her, with the Archon belatedly adjusting her battlemap so she could pick up the sensor feeds from the ships outside and saw that the Na’shor was gratifyingly now in tiny pieces. He must have had all the nearby drones firing on it rather than the surgical strike she’d had in mind.
“Good. Those guys deserved to die.”
“Any injuries?”
“No, we’re all good…and our friend is hanging on for now. Hurry it up though.”
“There he is,” Kaalo said to the Zen’zat fighting beside him as a trio of Archons came running into the fight leading many others. “That’s their Rio.”
“We take him together,” Garso said. “We need to peel him off. Tako, Nave.”
“Understood,” the Oso’lon Zen’zat said as they pulled back from their positions sniping enemy troops behind the melee lines and came running up to join the two elite Zen’zat.
“Take him right,” Garso said, then the four of them were running towards the approaching Archons with a dozen or so Zen’zat ahead of them already beginning to exchange weaponsfire. Garso put a shot into a set of black/gold armor that was lying on the ground and trying to get back up, as did Kaalo, but the pair didn’t stick around to finish him off. They had a bigger target to take down.
The Zen’zat ahead of them got blown apart by a Jumat blast, but that only helped to clear the path for the sprinting pair as they shot through the gap and went directly for Rio…with Garso sending his own Jumat blast into the Archon beside their target. Both of the Zen’zat got hit by a Fornax field, but expecting it they were able to work their way through and up to Rio with both of them pulling at him with their Lachka.
He broke free of it as the Fornax field continued to persist, but Garso got within grappling range only to be knocked aside by the Archon with the doublebladed stick. Kaalo, however, was able to follow up and grab Rio by the wrist…then drag him to the right into a gap in the emitter equipment where he spun in place and threw the Archon down the side corridor.
Tako and Nave dove in and tackled other Archons as Garso followed Kaalo after Rio, with the stronger Zen’zat telepathically telling Kaalo to duck, over which he threw another Jumat blast that knocked Rio even further down the corridor and away from the others.
Rio saw what was happening and decided to draw the pair off, running for a few steps then started to fly down the hallway so they would chase him, but a mixed assault of Lachka and Fornax slowed him enough that Garso was able to catch up to him…just as Rio threw a Jumat blast back into his face.
The Zen’zat had been expecting that and let it happen, using himself as a pivot point as he grabbed Kaalo with his Lachka and threw the other Zen’zat forward into Rio.
Kaalo grabbed hold of him and dragged the Archon to the ground, then it took several Jumat blasts to knock him off, at which time Garso had caught up and began punching into Rio’s bioshield so fast it made Kaalo’s speed look slow.
An attempt at a Lachka wall pull was blocked by Rio’s Rentar, then the Archon fired his bulky arm weapon at close range, hitting Garso as the Zen’zat merely returned fire with both of his weapons. They traded energy blasts for a couple of seconds, then Rio pulled back again, flying down the hall as the two Zen’zat sprinted after him.
But when the Garso tried another Lachka wall Rio reversed direction and flew right into the Zen’zat’s chest, catching him momentarily off guard, but Kaalo turned and punched Rio into the sidewall, keeping him from slipping past them as the two Zen’zat spun and began firing down on him.
Rio dropped his Ubven field and essentially froze them in place, though the energy blasts continued to rain down until he scooted out from under them, running back the way they’d come as Sara and Ethan sprinted towards him.
“We have to take these quick,” Ethan said as he and Sara reached out with a battlemeld prompt. “There are too many strong Zen’zat back there.”
“This is our old friend and his stronger brother,” Rio cautioned.
“We can take them,” Sara said as the Zen’zat sprinted towards them. “As a trio.”
“The new one has Jumat.”
“Don’t care,” Sara said icily. “They’re going down.”
“Let’s do it,” Ethan agreed, with all three trailblazers linking together and throwing a Jumatran blast into the two Zen’zat and knocking them back more than a dozen meters with the smaller Humans sprinting after them and Sara pulling out her last death stick as the other two fired their weapons…Rio his mauler gauntlet and Ethan a heavy pistol.
Then Rio ran up an invisible stairway of Lachka steps using their battlemeld Qwe’kal until he was overtop the Zen’zat heads as a distraction, with the stronger one using his Jumat to blast Rio into the ceiling as Ethan threw Sara forward and she jammed her death stick into the Zen’zat’s chest.
9
“Steady!” the medtech yelled as the ranger woke violently, jerking upright and flailing on the bed in the medbay. “Steady! You’re safe, you’re safe!”
The ranger, breathing heavily, looked around frantically as he balled his fists…then he looked down at his arms and legs as a horrific expression crossed his already pained face.
“We regenerated your lost limbs,” the medtech said as a few others stood nearby. “You’re safe now.”
The ranger slid his legs over the edge of the table and stood up as he constantly clenched and unclenched his fists. He walked two steps then collapsed to the floor, but not out of weakness. He let himself fall to his knees as he continued to look at his hands and one of the medtechs came up and gently grabbed his shoulders.
“It’s over. You’re safe.”
“They…” he said, his voice breaking horribly as so many emotions swirled through him. “They ripped us apart. We couldn’t…we couldn’t stop them.”
“You’re safe now. A rescue team pulled you off their damaged ship.”
“Damaged?”
“There was a fight over Earth. We won.”
“What about the other prisoners?”
The medtech shook his head, but the ranger couldn’t see it from where he stood halfway beside and behind the man.
“You’re the only survivor they brought back.”
The medtech regretted saying that immediately as the ranger let out a scream of pain and anger that sent chills through everyone in the room, then he stood up, turned, and punched down into the medical bed so hard that everyone could hear the snap of the bone in his hand…in addition to the huge dent he put in the frame.
The ranger didn’t stop there though, for he punched with both arms several times, pummeling the bed until it broke in half and he continued to drive it down into the floor until his energy surge finally snapped and fell back to his knees with two bloody fi
sts unclenching at his sides.
He didn’t say anything else and the medtechs gave him his space for several minutes before he finally sat back on the floor, pulled his knees up to his chest, and began to cry a river of silent tears.
The medtechs exchanged glances, not sure if they should try and heal his hands or just wait out this backlash. Meanwhile both tears and blood dripped onto the carpet while the Archon sat there trying to work through the horrors he’d just lived through.
Sara was knocked back against the wall, but before her feet could fall down to hit the floor Garso moved in and punched her in the chest, cracking an armor plate with an audible snap before she knocked him back half a foot with a hasty Jumat blast from her left hand. When her feet did hit the floor a knee from the Zen’zat knocked her back up into the air again…then a heavy punch from above drilled her down into the ground like a yoyo.
She threw up a Fornax field and tried to crawl away, but Garso got a foot on her arm as he staggered and pinned her in place, firing four shots into the Archon with another 3 missing before Sara jumped up and into the Zen’zat’s knees, knocking him off his feet and dumping him to the ground as she wrapped her arms around his legs.
As he fell Rio came in and fired his mauler down into the shieldless armor on the Zenza’s wide chest, melting an already damaged spot enough that a bit got through to his skin, the pain of which resulted in Rio being blasted back by a Jumat orb that nearly knocked Sara off his legs, though a quick kick finished the job, allowing Garso to get back on his feet. Rio shot him again with the mauler, but a weak bioshield caught most of it, leaving the rest to get through and hit a raised arm.
Ethan came flying into view, but not under his own power. Following him, Kaalo redirected towards Sara as Garso did the same. She balled up with her own bioshield as both Zen’zat shot her, then tried to knock them back with a Jumat blast. She succeeded with Kaalo but barely managed to move Garso. That Zen’zat got up on her with a couple more steps even as he threw a Lachka wall back at Rio, who was taking the opportunity to land a couple more mauler hits into the Zen’zat’s back.
Garso chose to take them in exchange for focusing on the most damaged of the Archons. He attacked her with a Fornax blast, Lachka field, and even a small Jumat blast to allow him to get into grapple range, then he nearly ripped her right arm off as he pulled it back and tore the pistol out of her hand. Meanwhile Kaalo dove back in and hammered her exposed chest as the other Zen’zat held her in place.
Ethan and Rio reacted instantly, and after only a moment of damage dealing the Zen’zat had to turn their attention to them…but when they released Sara she dropped to the ground in a heap, unmoving and with a small hole in her chest armor where the punches and Dre’mo’don blasts had finally got through.
The two trailblazers felt the damage to Sara then her part of the battlemeld link dropped out, leaving only the two of them against the Zen’zat…but the more skilled of the duo was hurt himself, with multiple holes in both his chest and back armor. Ethan and Rio made the split second decision to go after him, but not together. Ethan moved towards the other Zen’zat and pushed him back with a series of psionics that led up to a tackle/shove that got both of them away from Rio and Garso.
The Archon’s shields took three more Dre’mo’don blasts, with the third dropping them again and doing a bit of damage, but Rio threw up a bioshield that caught the fourth…then he was in close range to the larger Zen’zat, punching him in the gut then pulling back both hands slightly as Garso tried to wrap him up in a grapple hold, but the Jumat energy pooling in Rio’s palms was released at just the right moment and it blew the larger man back out of arms reach.
Rio followed it with two more mauler shots that the Zen’zat took as he sprinted towards the Archon, who backpedaled a step only to be knocked askew by the Zen’zat’s own Jumat blast…weak as it was now from fatigue. It did succeed in off balancing Rio enough that Garso got to him and grabbed his wrist that held the mauler. Rio fired it into his chest, scoring another damaging hit as a bit of the energy hit a hole, but the Zen’zat held on and twisted it to the side underneath his armpit where the next shot missed.
Garso held hit there, pinned, as he brought his other arm around and, instead of shooting Rio in the head or torso, shot the weapon multiple times as Rio tried to kick and pry himself loose…but the Zen’zat was too strong. Flailing around trying to get a breakaway and throwing every psionic at him that he could, Rio finally was able to slip his arm free and get clear, leaving the Zen’zat staggering a bit and not chasing after him.
Rio raised his arm up to fire the mauler again, but half the discharge that resulted only finished the destruction of the weapon with an internal explosion that popped out debris amidst a blue flame. The Zen’zat looked at him and took his time walking forward, knowing that the Archon’s primary damage threat to him was now gone.
Rio disconnected the mauler, dropping the junk to the ground and lightening up his arm considerably. He pulled Sara’s pistol over to him from where it had been knocked to the ground, but a Rentar blast from Garso dropped it halfway there. Rio ran for it and the Zen’zat responded in kind, but at the last moment Rio abandoned his pursuit of it and dove headfirst into Garso, hitting him in the pelvis and driving him back as he hammered his knees from behind trying to crumple his legs.
It didn’t work as well as intended, and the Zen’zat brought down a double fisted overhead blow onto Rio’s back that smashed the Archon flat to the ground…then he was kicked into the wall with the Zen’zat following a split second later ready to deliver another heavy punch. Rather than trying to dodge it Rio let him come, putting up as much of a bioshield as he could and diminishing the impact almost entirely, but the Dre’mo’don blast that came in next hit his armor and nearly melted through in an already damaged spot that he knew the Zen’zat was aiming for.
Rio did something stupid next, and rather than trying to peel the Zen’zat off him went in even closer, getting inside his firing range but allowing Garso to wrap him up in another grapple that was to the Zen’zat’s advantage given the strength and size difference between the two. And what was even more stupid was the fact that Rio held onto him, locking their torsos against one another and leaving the Archon looking at Garso’s chin through his faceplate.
“That was unwise,” the Zen’zat said as he started squeezing Rio so hard his damaged armor plates began to flex under the strain.
“Was it?” Rio asked as his right hand was also being crushed in between both men’s torsos…but it was palm out and not accidentally covering the largest hole in the Zen’zat’s armor. Rio had walked into the crushing trap in order to deliver the killing blow as the armor over his right palm struggled to retract under the pressure, then the skin of his palm was bloodied against the ragged edge of the hole as the orifice in his hand split apart slightly.
Holding onto the Zen’zat’s back so he couldn’t escape, Rio locked onto him with as much strength as he could muster along with a partial Ubven drop, then used his Choratrik to send a stream of plasma through the hole in Garso’s armor and straight into the Zen’zat’s chest.
The Zen’zat released his hold on Rio instantly, but the Archon held tight as the Ubven field kept the larger opponent from flipping him around or bucking him off in any other wild flails as the plasma stream continued to flow, burning through his ribs, lung, and eventually all the way through to the backside armor.
Rio released the attack a moment later as the Ubven quickly dissipated, then he kicked the Zen’zat over as if he was felling a tree as he turned and ran towards where Ethan was getting his ass kicked by Kaalo as he stalled for time.
Sara’s pistol flew into Rio’s now fully armored hand and he fired a pair of shots into the Zen’zat as the trailblazer yanked Ethan back his way via a Bataf conduit, seeing his peer’s armor broken and melted in multiple spots, but without any major holes in it.
He’s mine, Rio said telepathically while instructing Ethan to play limited
support from now on via numerous tactics that they communicated back and forth to each other through the battlemeld. It was also clear that Ethan was wearing out and couldn’t stand toe to toe with this Zen’zat anymore, but he didn’t have to. He’d taken the hits so Rio could finish off the other one. Now it was time to double team and finish this guy, though Rio was going to have to carry the bulk of the fight…and that suited him just fine.
With a bit of a push from Ethan, Rio flew forward and impacted with Kaalo as the Zen’zat threw several Dre’mo’don blasts their way, deciding to make like a turret and just blanket the two enemies with weaponsfire. That was a fair tactic considering Rio’s primary weapon was toast and most of their auxiliaries were empty or destroyed, but pulling on what little strength Ethan had, the pair put up a bioshield ahead of Rio that let him get close enough to go hand to hand without taking a lot of damage up to that point.
Kaalo responded in kind, punching and kicking in a flurry of exchanges that Rio couldn’t match. He had to fight defensively and keep giving up a step here or there, but that was the plan as he brought him back closer and closer to Ethan.
When the Zen’zat got within the predetermined range Ethan sprinted forward, running past their opponent as he pulled Sara’s pistol off the ground where Rio had dropped it and towards his hand. As expected the Zen’zat blocked the weapon grab with his Rentar…but that was just a feint on the part of the Archons, for when Ethan ran past he dragged a Trielo orb into the Zen’zat.
The psionic was invisible, and unlike the Lew energy ribbon that stretched between two individuals, the Trielo was a single orb that floated on another such ribbon…meaning that they had to aim the collision precisely in addition to charging it thoroughly beforehand. But when Ethan ran past and dragged that ribbon through the Zen’zat at precisely the right location a knot of stun energy was delivered into his body, almost entirely bypassing his armor, and making Kaalo punch drunk rather than dropping him unconscious.