Inside the building was chaos. Insect bodies were everywhere, some places in mounds. A number of strange creatures—porcupines with huge claws—also lay among the dead. The wounds on their bodies and missing limbs immediately conjured thoughts of Mizuki and her katana. Looking to the far end of the hall he caught site of the object of his search. Then he noticed that not all the aliens were dead—in fact, several turned and attacked him.
Inside the Palace
In shock and disbelief, the Commander and Princess Reishi watched Mizuki's butterflies electrocute the commando who threatened her. It was the Princess's turn to question reality.
“What in the name of the old gods are those things?”
“Damned if I know Princess, but they seem to be on your sister's side.”
“Timushi's daemon has summoned an evil spirit from the nether regions!”
At that point the east end of the nave exploded.
Through the smoke and debris dark shapes moved, coming on at a run. Large, larger, and larger still, they charged through the melee of warriors and commandos. Leading the charge, the smallest of the new monsters wielded some form of weapon that struck down any who got in its way.
The Commander sent more commandos into the fray. This is going from bad to worse!
* * * * *
Bobby cut down several of the armed ants before coming upon a live spine covered alien. It stood erect, opening its upper arms to reveal a second pair of arms holding a weapon. It opened fire.
Responding reflexively, Bobby sent a six flechette burst into the creature's chest, just above its firearm. Tumbling on impact, the flechettes blew fist sized holes exiting the creature's back, spraying blood, tissue, and quills on the ants behind it.
Not breaking stride, Bobby knocked the slumping alien out of his path. In full combat mode his helmet was opaque, his suit's cameras providing a view in all directions overlain with tactical information. Glancing at the view behind him, he saw the two human Marines charging through the hostiles.
“To the platform at the end of the hall!” he shouted. While he was watching the twins, the holographic display inside his helmet alerted him to movement overhead. One of the spiny aliens arced through the air, its trajectory reaching apex ten meters above his head. The source of the airborne alien was quickly identified—Umky had both sets of mechanical claws extended and was cutting a wide swath through the hostiles. With every swing of his claws, heads, arms, and less identifiable body parts flew into the air. The heavier spiny aliens he impaled and threw toward the front of the nave.
Now he decides to use brute force, Bobby thought in exasperation. Seeing more porcupine things heading toward Mizuki's position Bobby sped up.
* * * * *
Mizuki stood, katana held at port arms, as the dark shape pounded up to her position. The armored figure's bubble helmet changed from translucent gray to fully transparent, revealing the human within. Her heart skipped a beat as her hopes were realized. “Bobby!”
Bobby grinned and moved closer to her. She came forward to embrace him but stopped. Pointing with her sword she screamed, “look out, behind you!”
Bobby turned sideways while moving to shelter Mizuki from whatever threat she was trying to warn him about. Multiple bullets ricocheted from his armor. Off-handed, Bobby fired a single 20mm round from the lower barrel of his weapon, high explosive set to contact detonation. The projectile struck the alien standing seven meters away. It penetrated the gunner's chest ten centimeters before exploding.
The exploding shell caused what might euphemistically called “energetic disassociation” of the alien hostile. Gobs of tissue and body fluids flew in all directions, leaving behind a fine pink mist and two short stubby legs where the alien had stood. Some of its quills were propelled with such force they impaled the ant warriors standing nearby.
Bobby turned back to Mizuki, who rushed forward and draped her left arm across his armored chest, as close as she could come to hugging him in his bulky armor. “You came for me.”
“Always, Mizuki-chan,” he replied, carefully embracing her slight form with his left arm. After a few brief seconds of mutual relief, they disengaged. “Stay under cover while I see to the rest of the hostiles.”
* * * * *
“Kill her! Kill her! Kill her!” Reishi screamed over and over, pointing in the direction of her sister. Victory that had seemed so close at hand was snatched away by the arrival of these horrific new daemons.
The Commander swore silently. What a cluster fuck! Still, if we kill the other princess we may yet complete the mission. “Sergeant, fire on the enemy Princess with the breaching rocket! Ignore the large alien. Kill the Princess.”
“Roger, Sir!” The Fakkaa Sergeant took the rocket powered grenade launcher from one of the commandos. Holding the launcher's tube with his right upper arm, he brought it to his shoulder. Grasping the firing handle with his secondary hands, he sighted on the cluster of ants surrounding Princess Timushi and fired.
* * * * *
Bobby looked to the north side of the throne platform and spotted one of the porcupine things with what looked like a rocket launcher. “RPG!” he shouted.
Closest to the platform was Mal, already in motion. Seeing the backblast from the launcher he threw himself into the air. The explosive projectile flew true toward its target but Mal's timing was perfect. Halfway between the two princesses, grenade and Marine collided.
The grenade detonated against Mal's abdomen, knocking the airborne Marine backward. Landing on his back the stricken Marine slid toward the clutch of warriors surrounding Princess Timushi. He came to rest several meters away, with wisps of smoke rising from a hole in his armor.
“Malachi!” his brother yelled, pulling up short. He rounded on Princess Reishi's party of Fakkaa and warriors, and with an inarticulate scream opened fire with both cannon and flechette guns.
From his right arm came a stream of 5mm flechettes, three thousand a minute, traveling at 4,000 fps. Every fourth round was a tracer, drawing a line of green fire from weapon to target. From his right came 15mm explosive rounds, twelve hundred a minute, filled with nano-engineered high explosive set to maximum bursting charge. Reishi, the Commander, and everything else on that side of the hall disappeared in a cascade of explosive fire.
Palace Grounds
Outside the palace, the rest of the Marines spread out into a skirmish line and advanced on the milling crowd of armed aliens on the north side of the palace grounds. Weapons at the ready, the Marines moved closer to their prospective enemy until one of the aliens in a monk's robe noticed them.
Something yelled and the ants charged. Green fire lanced out from the armored Earthlings, mowing the native warriors down like wheat in a hailstorm. Behind the ants, the monks shed their habits and opened fire.
“What's with the spiny Ewoks?” asked Stevie.
“What is Ewok?” asked Bosco, assuming a kneeling position.
The Fakkaa attacked the Marines with machine guns and grenade launchers.
“Ewoks from hell maybe!” yelled Kato, switching from flechette fire to 15mm cannon.
“Take 'em out,” the Gunny ordered. “Aimed and measured fire, you mutton heads. There's enough of them to go around.”
* * * * *
Back in the shuttle, the flight crew was watching the Marines engage the large alien force on the north side of the building. The recon drone loitering above the structure provided a bird's eye view of the developing battle. Observing the firefight, Tamara noticed a warning sign flashing on her display. Switching to the second drone, maintaining position a thousand meters above the ground, she immediately saw the reason for the warning.
“Frank, I have three contacts inbound about six hundred klicks out.”
“Crap! What type of craft are they?”
“Fast movers, fighter-bombers or attack jets, headed right for us, velocity 800 kph. They must be the interceptors that shot down the shuttle.”
“Let's go kill the ba
stards,” Jay snarled from the co-pilot's seat.
Frank nodded and called Cmdr. Danner. “Rescue Leader, Shuttle One. We have incoming aircraft. Request permission to intercept.”
Inside the Palace
“Cease fire!” Bobby commanded. It took several yelled repetitions before Zeke stopped pouring rounds into the north side of the hall, but finally sanity returned and he quit firing.
Umky had finished off the last of the hostiles in the eastern part of the hall and rambled forward to join the humans. He examined the results of Zeke's fusillade.
Most of the glazing had been blown from the windows, and the stone work in the gallery and the supporting columns were badly pitted by flechette fire. In several places holes had been blasted clear through the masonry. Of the enemy Princess and her alien henchman there was nothing left except stains on the walls and floor.
“Nice job, Zeke,” the bear said approvingly. A sizable chunk of a support column toppled and shattered on the floor.
“Those bastards killed my brother!”
Checking the medical telemetry from Mal's suit, Bobby could see that the wounded Marine was not dead, but he was in a bad way. “Your brother is alive, Zeke. I'm calling the Doc, you and Umky clear the north end of the hall. Now!”
Zeke looked back at Bobby and his brother's still form, torn between concern for his twin and his orders. In the end duty won. He and Umky jogged off toward the north door.
“Peggy Sue, Rescue Leader. I have a Marine down.”
“Go, Rescue Leader. This is Dr. White.”
“Mal got hit by an RPG. There is a hole in his suit that looks like the charge burned through his armor. Over.”
“I've got his suit telemetry on the display now, Bobby. It looks pretty serious, significant internal injuries. I'm going to put him out and flood his system with antibiotics and nanites to stop the internal bleeding. You need to get him into a position where he can be carried and immobilize his suit. He needs to brought back to the ship inside of three hours, four at the outside.”
Bobby leaned over Mal's recumbent form. The stricken Marine spoke to him on suit-to-suit.
“I guess I fucked up, Sir.”
Bobby clasped Mal's armored shoulder. “Hell no, Marine. You saved the day. Now lay still while the Doc gets to work on you.”
“Aye, aye, Sir...” Mal's voice drifted off as his suit injected him with anesthetic. The hole in his suit was already growing shut as its self-repair nanites went to work. A different voice came over the comm. Now what?
“Rescue Leader, Shuttle One. We have incoming aircraft. Request permission to intercept.”
“Say again your last?”
“We have three incoming aircraft, tentatively identified as the alien interceptors that shot down our shuttle. Request permission to take Shuttle One and intercept them.”
“What's the hostiles' ETA?”
“Around 45 minutes, probably less than that to missile range.”
Shit! That's right, they have nukes. “Copy, Shuttle One. Deploy the battle bots to maintain an air defense umbrella, then go shoot them down, Mr. Hoenig.”
“Aye, aye, Commander. Shuttle One out.”
Bobby looked down at Mal's unmoving suit of armor. Sorry, son, but taking out those possible nukes takes precedence. If the porcupines slip one of those in we could all be in a world of hurt. He called the ship back.
“Peggy Sue, be advised that I have sent Shuttle One to intercept hostile aircraft headed our way.”
“Roger, Bobby.” It was Betty's voice. “I really need the wounded Marine in sick bay soonest.”
“Understood, but the hostiles may have nukes and I can't risk them getting much closer.”
There was a brief pause.
“We copy, Rescue Leader. We'll handle it from our end.”
CIC, Peggy Sue
A grim faced Billy Ray looked at his officers. “We haven't lost anyone in combat on this mission yet and this ain't the day to start. Number One, send the Chief in the pinnace to medevac the wounded.”
Beth nodded. “I'll go myself.”
The Captain acknowledged with a nod of his own. “Do you need to go with them, Doctor?”
“No, Captain. There's noting I can do for him until he's in Sick Bay. In fact, I should get to the lab and start growing him some new intestines and tissue stock so I can repair the damage when he gets here.”
“OK, make it happen people.”
The two women departed on their separate missions.
Damn these idiot aliens, they don't even know they are fighting on the wrong side. “Peggy Sue, find Shadi and Dorri and have them come to the CIC. I want to give the alien commander a call and explain the facts of life to him.”
“Certainly, Captain. They are on the way.”
Chapter 30
Inside the Palace
Bobby stood up and walked over to where Mizuki was huddled with the largest of the ants. Doc White's magic nanobots were busy doing God knows what inside Mal's busted gut, and there was nothing more he could do until transport arrived. As he approached he saw that Mizuki and the big ant were bent over another ant who had sunk to the floor. On either side they were holding the fallen ant's hands.
Bobby figured that it was some kind of warrior since it wore armor and a sword. It must have been hit during the firefight—a row of holes stitched a ragged line across its breastplate. He tapped into Mizuki's translator pendant to find out what they were talking about.
“Hold on, my Lord Castellan, the healers have been summoned,” the big ant said.
“Sorry, my Princess, but I have failed you...” the fallen ant wheezed. “If not for Lord Mizuki's friends we would have lost.”
“Nonsense, Lord Castellan, you could not be expected to defeat enemies from another world,” Mizuki protested. “If Reishi had not made a deal with those quilled devils things would have gone much differently. In any event we have won, and Timushi will be queen.”
“Thanks to your friends... those gray monsters are your friends, are they not?”
“Yes, my Lord, those are my friends.”
The Castellan coughed and emitted a wheezing sound. “And right proper daemons they are, too...”
“Don't try to speak, my old friend,” the Princess implored, “save your strength.”
“I'm sorry, but my strength is at its end... at least I will be able to say this once before I die... it has been an honor to serve you... Your Majesty.” With a final rattling breath the Castellan lowered her head and died.
The Princess, now all but officially the Queen, lowered her antennae and remained silent for what seemed to Mizuki a very long time. Finally Timushi raised her head and spoke.
“She protected me from the time I hatched, and tutored me when I was a pupa. I have never known a time when I could not call on her for advice. She was my oldest friend... my only friend.”
Mizuki gently left go of the Castellan's hand and looked up at the Queen. “I did not know her long, Your Majesty, but I also liked her a great deal.”
“I knew the day would come, Lord Mizuki, when she would pass away—queens are the longest lived of our kind—but my world will be a much poorer place without her.” Caressing the Castellan's head the new Queen addressed her deceased servant. “Rest easy my faithful sister, you served me better than all the others.”
After a respectful silence Mizuki addressed the Queen. “She was also your sister, Your Majesty?”
“What? Oh, of course. You are not our kind; you do not understand. All of these Formicidae are daughters of my departed Mother the Queen. They are all my sisters.” She made an all encompassing gesture with one arm. “In time, they will all pass away while I will live on. Eventually all the inhabitants of this land will be my daughters.”
Mizuki was stunned. “I didn't realize, Your Majesty.”
“That is why I will never leave this palace again. Once on my throne I will be fed and pampered for the rest of my life, first by my sisters and then by
my daughters. I will sit on the throne and give birth to millions, and never again see the empire I rule.”
Bobby shuffled a bit closer, clearing his voice over the suit's PA system. This attracted the attention of both Mizuki and Timushi.
“I'm sorry, Bobby, I didn't see you there.” She looked back at the dead warrior. “Princess Timushi just lost her dearest friend, the Lord Castellan. She was also my friend.”
“Who is this?” Timushi asked.
“Your Highness, I mean Your Majesty, this is my husband, Commander Bobby Danner. Bobby, this is my friend, Princess, now Queen Timushi.”
Bobby took the hint and executed a graceful if limited bow in the large ant's direction. “Honored to meet you, Queen Timushi. Sorry about the mess, and the casualties.”
“It is I who am honored by your presence Lord Bobby, and do not worry about the damage, it can be repaired given skilled hands and sufficient time.”
While Bobby tried to frame a diplomatic reply the Gunny called on the command circuit. “Commander, we've chased the spiny aliens off of the plaza and killed most of the ants. Funny thing is the ants have stopped fighting and are just sort of milling around. What do you want us to do next?”
“Your Majesty, there are a number of opposing soldiers wandering around outside, do you have your own warriors to take them in charge?”
“Why? Ah, I understand, like Lord Mizuki you do not fully comprehend the ways of the Formicidae. When your warriors eradicated my sister the release of her body chemicals would have spread to her warriors, telling them that she was no more. They now belong to me and will become integrated into the city guards.”
“We killed quite a few of them, ah, I'm sorry.”
The new Queen waved a dismissive hand. “There will be more warriors if they are needed. Do not trouble yourself over the matter, Lord Bobby.”
Inside his clear helmet Bobby nodded, and then called the Gunny. “Gunny, you can ignore the ants, they should give you no more trouble. What's happening with the other aliens?”
“The hostiles have pulled back from the surrounding area and are retreating to the north. They did try to drop some mortar fire on us but the battle bots took care of it—counter battery fire took out their tubes. Now they just seem to be hotfooting it outta Dodge, Sir.”
The Queen's Daemon (T'aafhal Legacy Book 2) Page 23