Star Force 12 Demon Star

by B. V. Larson

  As a missile salvo closed in on the closest Demon squadron, the targets turned to run. Other enemy groups turned to support, and soon massed lasers began clawing Elladan weapons out of space.

  Friendly fighters raced to support, stinging the Demon ships with their small lasers and launching more, smaller missiles.

  Enemy ships began to fall, smashed by multi-missile strikes or slagged by long-range beam fire from the decelerating Elladans, but not as many as I’d hoped. Our allies didn’t seem to be concentrating their weaponry to destroy individual ships, but instead were spreading out the damage.

  This made little sense to me. The Elladans had shown themselves to be effective tacticians and strategists up until now, despite being caught out of position. Why would they suddenly do something so inefficient?

  “Ten minutes until insertion, boss,” Kwon said over the com-link.

  I grunted in reply, my mind still chewing on the situation before me. The Elladans should have been smashing each enemy with focused fire rather than merely damaging them all. The Demons on the other hand were not trying to defend themselves against missiles and fighters but were concentrating fire. Each Demon squadron fired together on a single Elladan ship until it was destroyed. Several Elladan ships already tumbled through space, their vulnerable drives incapacitated, creating a barrier of wreckage as both sides converged. I could see now the advantages of having an engine on each end like the Demon ships did.

  And then something weird happened. One damaged Demon cruiser abruptly turned and blasted a sister ship with a full salvo of beams at point-blank range. Immediately, its fellows fired full broadsides to hammer the attacker to death. They took a moment to recharge then destroyed the other ship—the one that had been targeted by the first rogue.

  Some kind of mutiny within the Demon ranks? I could hardly conceive of that. The bugs were hive beings, presumably bred to follow orders and die for their side. Why the hell would they turn on each other?

  As I watched, the mystery grew. Here and there among the Demon fleet, individual ships began to rebel, shooting at their fellows. In each case, loyal Demons quickly crushed the mutineers so fast that it seemed to me they must have been expecting something like this. It smacked of a standard protocol and showed me that I still didn’t understand what was going on here.

  This strange turn of events helped the Elladan cause tremendously, turning what looked to be a bloodbath for our allies into a more even fight, though I thought that the Demons were still winning.

  “What’s going on out there, Bradley?” I demanded. “Why are they shooting at their own ships?”

  “No idea, sir,” Bradley answered. He didn’t even sound interested.

  I stared at him as he tapped at his screen. “Are there any contacts in the region? Anything that might have affected those ships?”

  “I don’t see anything like that, sir.”

  Frowning, I walked to his station and tapped on his board. He just stood there.

  “Look at this,” I said. “Just a small adjustment,…there, unknown small contacts. They look like mines attaching themselves to the Demon ships.”

  Bradley stared, bewildered. “Didn’t see them, sir.”

  “Apparently you didn’t check. Carry on.”

  I left his side shaking my head. What was with these people today?

  “Five minutes to contact, boss,” I heard Kwon say, and I tore myself away from the gods-eye view of the battle. From now on, my HUD would have to do.

  “Is the pinnace ready, Bradley?” I asked.

  “Loaded and prepped,” he replied with a nod.

  “It had better be,” I told him. He made no reply. He didn’t even look guilty.

  One more minute, I could afford one more minute. Turning back to the holotank, I zoomed in on our own area of operations and watched as Stalker and Valiant hammered the half-dozen Demon ships nearest the Elladan fortress that was our target. They’d been hovering around it ever since gaining control of the planetary area, and I had to assume they had dropped ground forces, although we were too far to confirm it.

  Just then, a flight of two dozen Elladan missiles swept through the area, blowing three Demon ships to junk in a burst of radiation and EMP. I was happy to save our own missiles, and I held our drones back from the fight. Using our heavy guns, our two big ships kept pounding on the remaining Demon ships.

  One of those suddenly went rogue, blasting sideways and ramming into another. The two exploded with a spectacular flash leaving only one, which slid around the back of the fortress, out of sight.

  “I’ve got this,” Bradley said, and a moment later his drones spread out in a ring. As Valiant slowed toward the fortress with Stalker covering her, our fighters flew around to the back of the facility and smashed the final Demon ship with massed lasers and a couple more nuke missiles.

  “Not much Elladan support, except for the missiles,” I said aloud.

  “They’ll be here,” Hansen said, as if he was certain.

  “It may not matter. It looks like they’re fully engaged,” Bradley said, and he was right. The Demons and Elladans were now going toe to toe with each other. Fleet tactics had given way to individual and squadron duels.

  The handful of Elladan ships that had escaped beneath the ocean had also risen to join the fight, and a few of the fortresses here and there seemed to have gotten some lasers working, One battery on the moon, apparently hidden until now, opened up to support.

  “Boss, you need to get down here,” Kwon said in my helmet, and I mumbled epithets as I left Valiant in the capable hands of my officers.

  “Suit, space tactical on my HUD,” I said as I hurried to the assault airlock. This allowed me to follow the situation for another minute, but once I joined the troops, I had to get my head fully in the game. Eventually, I told my suit to replace the space view with one configured for the assault.

  Kwon had lined up the Raptors for a fast exit. He and I stood behind them. We were the only humans going along. I’d made the deliberate decision to leave our own marines aboard Valiant to defend her.

  “Landing now,” Hansen said in my ear. “Setting down right where we planned. No enemy in sight.”

  I felt a shock through my boots, and then the big airlock door of smart metal drew back rapidly. A puff of remaining atmosphere swirled dust and debris out into space, and we moved onto the blasted surface of the quarter-mile-diameter fortress. Behind us the portal shut, and Valiant swung away on repellers to rapidly dwindle into the black.

  A pinnace set itself down nearby, and its doors opened to the vacuum. Lazar would be controlling it remotely. It was filled with supplies and equipment of all sorts that we might need.

  Right now, though, we had to get off the surface.

  “Airlock,” I said, pointing at the metal installed in the rock of the shaped asteroid that formed the bones of the facility. I trotted over, using repellers in gravity mode to hold myself down.

  One of the Raptors slapped a hacking module onto the control box. Adrienne had prepared it using codes and specs from the Elladans, and a moment later the big round door swung back and the ten-foot-wide entrance yawned in front of us. The same module overrode the inner door, venting a long sigh of atmosphere into space.

  A squad of Raptors entered to secure the immediate area. “The rest of you, start unloading supplies.”

  While the troops emptied the pinnace, Kwon and I stood guard, scanning the horizon for any bugs trying to sneak up on us. I had to assume they were here somewhere, dropped or escaped from those six ships we’d destroyed. At least one had been an assault carrier, so there could be a lot of them. Once we’d emptied the boat, Lazar brought it back to Valiant under remote control. No point in leaving it on the surface as a target.

  “Kwon, plant a repeater.” Soon, he’d set up a com-link relay with a thin smart-metal antenna that extended out of the airlock and onto the surface.

  Within three minutes, everything was inside. We shut the door, leaving
only the antenna as a connection to the outside. I detailed one squad to guard the airlock and our line of retreat, and then we advanced into the fortress down the long, darkened tunnel. The entrance we had chosen was an undamaged auxiliary cargo access with at least a hundred yards of nothing opening into a large storage bay.

  When my lead troops reached the entrance, scattered fire ensued. “Get in there!” I roared. “Don’t let them bottle us up!”

  My Raptors pushed forward, and when Kwon and I reached the arena-sized room, we saw our warriors locked in combat with a dozen Demons.

  One Raptor squad had a handful of enemy infantry cornered behind a large bin to the left. Green lasers dueled with orange bolts of plasma, lighting the interior with strobes like a bunch of mad arc-welders. My troops worked their way around to the flanks, systematically cutting the enemy to pieces while taking light casualties of their own.

  To the center, another squad fought with several scorpions, some leaping to strike with their blade-armored tails while others sniped with their lasers. These Demons were tricky and fast though, dodging among our troops to get in close, making it hard to shoot them for fear of friendly fire.

  I saw one Raptor caught by a scorpion claw while being battered to death by those twin tails, which struck repeatedly at the same spot until his armor gave out. The bird screamed with a harsh cry over the short-range com-link as he died from a massive injection of poisonous acid.

  To our right, the remaining Raptor squad swarmed over a beetle. The big bug had caught one trooper in its mandibles and was slowly crushing him, but the bug was being chopped up by leaping, axe-wielding Raptors at the same time. The beetles were fearsome for their strength and size, but they weren’t as dangerous as they seemed…unless one got ahold of you.

  I charged the beetle, trusting Kwon to back me up while I fired a long burst with my laser. I let up on the trigger when my faceplate darkened so much I had trouble seeing, and snapped the weapon back into its holder. Then I hefted my axe and, as I reached the bug, brought it around in a heavy blow aimed at one of the blade-like mandibles holding the Raptor.

  The sharp edge bit through the chitin of the mouth-part and sliced the heavy tusk off at the root. The Raptor dropped onto the deck and lay there—unconscious or dead—I had no idea. The beetle thrashed in pain, and its horn slammed into my torso, stunning me and tossing me into a slide across the deck.

  By the time my vision cleared, Kwon was helping me to my feet. “Come on,” I panted, lifting my laser and firing at the nearest scorpion. We two humans advanced, shooting, letting the Raptors bear the brunt of the close combat. I was very glad I’d had Marvin nanotize them. They’d become pretty much the equal of our marines, one for one, with their armor and their agility.

  They still died faster, though as it was in their nature to want to close in and use those tails. I wondered if that was instinctual or if the tendency could be trained out of them. Maybe if their suits didn’t allow their tail spikes to be used, they would stick to fighting with coordinated weapon fire instead of trying to hack their enemies to death.

  By the time we finished off the scorpions, my Raptors had secured the big room. Though many of the bins and crates had been damaged in the fighting, others looked as if they had been broken open by the Demons and the contents half eaten. Pools of oily substance, maybe cooking fat or machine lubricant, seeped here and there, not burning only because of the low air pressure in the area. A row of pressurized cylinders, like those that held acetylene for welding, stood with their valves struck off.

  “Well done, Pigs,” I said, “but we have two dead and several injured because you’re too eager to go hand to hand.” I pointed at several dropped antitank launchers. “Nobody even used one of these rockets on the beetle.”

  The Raptors drooped a bit with my reprimand. One of the squad leaders picked up his tail in both hands, a stance I recognized as preceding ritual suicide in order to expiate shame.

  “Stop that!” I barked. “No one has permission to eat his tail, at least not until we’re done here. So listen up! From now on, beetles will be engaged with rockets first and then lasers. Then you can finish them off with axes and tails if you must. Use lasers on the scorpions because they’re too quick to target with rockets. Understand?”

  “We hear and obey,” came the collective response.

  “Excellent,” I said. I looked from side to side and then pointed to my right. “The people we’re supposed to rescue should be through there, down one more passageway, close to the operations center. First and second squads will assault there, while third squad attacks the other direction to cause a diversion.” I indicated a door to my left. “As soon as we’ve rescued the Elladans, we’ll beat a fighting retreat back to the airlock.”

  My three squads now became two as they advanced through the right-side door, sobered now that they had seen what they faced and had lost a couple of their number. They cleared each room to make sure no Demons were hidden. We didn’t need any surprises on our retreat path.

  When we reached the edge of the command complex, I told my suit to broadcast on the Elladan frequency.

  “Doctor Galen,” I said, using the name Argos had given me. “This is Captain Riggs. Your father sent me to rescue you.”

  A scarred blast door slid back.

  “Welcome, Captain,” came a haughty voice on my com-link. “I’ve been expecting you.”

  Then, I got the shock of my short life. As one, the Raptors surrounding me turned to point their laser rifles at Kwon and me.

  My own troops had mutinied. I should have ordered them all to eat their own damned tails.

  -17-

  “What the hell is going on?” I growled. “Pigs, aim those weapons at him!”

  I pointed my finger at the Elladan, but my Raptors didn’t budge.

  “Your lower orders will not follow you now, Captain,” a smooth voice said. The man who spoke wore a gorgeous, chrome-silver pressure suit. He stepped openly into view like some ancient lord. “And do not turn your weapons my direction, or they will burn you down. Now, place your rifles on the ground and step away.”

  I glanced at Kwon, who was at least not aiming at me. He seemed frozen to the deck. On a private channel, I said, “Kwon? Kwon? Can you hear me?”

  I got no reply.

  “Captain?” said the Elladan. “Can you hear me? Please disarm yourself.”

  Somehow, my troops had mutinied against me. Because I couldn’t see that happening spontaneously, I had to believe this was due to some kind of outside influence. I remembered how the Demons had turned on each other once their ships had been damaged, and I mentally reviewed the conversation with the prisoner about the slimy coating inside his ship.

  It didn’t all fall into place, but I was beginning to get an idea of what was going on—and it wasn’t good. Everything hinged on the asshole standing in front of me, I was pretty sure about that.

  Flatfooted and without warning, I leaped straight through the door. Lasers sizzled the air behind me, but I was ahead of their aim and shot forward, gauntlets outstretched, to close them around the neck of the smug man in the fancy suit. I whipped him in front of me as a human shield and backed into a corner. Five more Elladans occupied the room behind him, three women and two men. They all wore silver suits.

  “Stop!” Galen yelled as I squeezed his head enough to hurt. “You don’t know what you’re doing!”

  “I know I’m about to pop your skull if you don’t release control of my troops!” I snarled, holding him off the floor and shaking him like a terrier holding a rat with my suit-assisted strength. “Now!”

  The five Elladans advanced on me, but they were helpless against my strength. Suddenly a narrow green beam speared between the Raptors in the doorway to blow apart the unarmored head of one of the two remaining Elladan males. The other four Elladans cringed, raising their hands.

  At that point, confusion broke out among the Raptors, who started squawking at each other rapidly in their o
wn tongue. Without Valiant’s bigger brain to sort it out, my suit couldn’t keep up with the translation.

  Kwon bulled his way into the room, and he pushed a few Raptors out. He’d been the one who’d fired the laser bolt.

  “Everyone standby!” he barked. He slammed the door and turned to the prisoners, pointing his laser at them.

  “Kwon, good to see you in action,” I said, tossing Galen down roughly and knocking over his fellows in a heap.

  “Mercy, Captain,” Galen said, and the others echoed his words.

  “Why do you deserve mercy?” I asked. “We’re your allies, the only other humans you’ve ever met. We’ve been risking our lives to kill Demons, and you tried to stab us in the back. In my book, you should be strung up by your toes until you tell us everything about your mind-tricks, and then spaced. In fact, as I’m sure you can surmise, Kwon here would be happy to do the deed.”

  “Mind-tricks?” Galen seemed genuinely confused. “No, Captain. We only influence the lower orders. They serve us because it’s right that they do so.”

  “Lower orders?” Kwon roared. “I’m getting sick of this ‘lower orders’ crap. You tried to get me to turn against my boss. I could feel an urge to do so in my head. I’ll show you ‘lower orders,’ you dirt-bags.”

  Galen held up his hands, placating. “But you did not submit which demonstrates you’re not one of the lowest orders, so you should not be insulted. The bird-aliens, though…they seem particularly susceptible.”

  My blood ran cold. If they could influence Raptors in close proximity, maybe they could do it across space and take control of Kreel and Stalker. A sneak attack on Valiant could cripple her, putting everyone into the hands of these bastards.

  “Are you even Argos’ son?” I asked.

  “Of course I am,” Galen replied, drawing himself up. “My flesh was once part of his flesh. I’m of the highest-order stock.”

  “That’s great,” I said. “How do you define these higher and lower orders?”