“But the place was cleaned out by the Ifierin four years ago.” Iana piped up. “There’s little else besides a few rudimentary systems and empty space left for us.”
“Not to mention the fact that if I were to access those systems to open the hanger doors, the ensuing rockslide of the granite that hides the entrance would attract attention to our arrival. And then there is the drag of the ship as it enters the atmosphere to think of before we even get to open those doors, the ship will light up in a fireball from friction as it descends to the surface.” Caretaker scolded. “I do not think you thought this out well Aen.”
“All those would be genuine concerns, if that was the way we were going to get there. There is another way to get by the cannons, the sensors, the atmospheric friction, revealing the hangar doors and even being seen; the reason I have not shared it with you both is that for you, it will be most uncomfortable.”
—
Sol System; Lyarran Vessel Dark Light,
Neptune Orbit Range
It was a shock to the system to see the coded transmission flash on her station; so much so she had to read it over three times before it registered as real in her mind. But it wasn’t a fake, she was being called to action by those who had guided her throughout her entire life. They were the ones who had ensured her position on the Ops Con of the Dark Light; as she was sure there were many more of their ‘agents’ in various positions everywhere in the Fleet and the Empire itself. The Guild had been plotting for a lifetime to retake the throne it gave up for Iana, and with her death she knew it wouldn’t be long until they called.
Lies had been her cover; from her credentials to her very identity were nothing more than well written falsehoods. She was a true sleeper of the highest degree; a job she had nearly forgotten about in the last few years. So good were the lies, she had begun to believe them; want to believe them as the life now was much greater than the one reality had given her. Here she had friends, a home, and a duty to perform. But she owed everything to the Guild; they had dragged her out of hell and tempered her into something special and deadly. So despite wanting to remain hidden amongst the unknown, it was time for her to remember what it was like to be one of the Forgotten once more.
With a slight movement of her head to use her peripheral vision to see if anyone might be watching, she determined that she was in the clear and punched in the response the message was waiting for. Once inputted, the code disappeared and self-erased; the need for secrecy was still paramount until she was called further upon. Until then, she would be more mindful as the Guild searched for that which threatened them the most. The most hunted being in the Empire had become the target of the Forgotten; find the mystery soldier and kill him was now the battle cry of her brethren.
She sighed, there was little more to do physically then wait; and in that time she needed to get her head on straight. It was time to separate the lies from the truth and prepare herself to do what was needed when the time came. The Council of the Dark Light was loyal to the old regime to a fault, and would undoubtedly oppose the transition to Myril as the incumbent Empress. This being well known, it would not suit the new Empress to have the flagship of the Fleet stand against her, hence the reason for her appointment here. When the time came, she would do what she was trained for, then wait for her appointment to the helm of this great vessel.
Change was coming to the Empire in all facets; from the throne to the Council there would be new faces everywhere. There was a storm on the horizon, and the only way to survive it was to have the strongest people in the important places as her masters have decreed. The Forgotten would rise above the arrogant Ifierin and take their place as the elite warriors of legend. Now was their time to be great; now was her time to be great.
—
Sol System; Lunar Orbit
The signal had reached all the way out to the far reaches of the Empire and to those beyond its borders. It was targeted to specific beings; ones who had been planted in all parts of the Empire. One by one, the messages were answered as the Masters who had been silent for so long, now called to those it had placed where they would be most useful. None were involved in politics or places of true power, but all were in the perfect position to affect the outcome of events as they would follow. Hidden in plain sight, they were positioned for the revolution planned for ages that was on the cusp of being complete. All were in the perfect place to best serve their cause.
The call to arms was answered by those it was intended for, as if the senders knew where its minions of darkness would be at that exact moment. It was an insurgence that spread deep within its host of the Empire, and one if enacted perfectly, would never be discovered fully. It was best to hide from the enemy and pretend to be one of them, even when it was time to rule them.
But the message was not received by all; there were two stations at the far reaches of Imperial space that remained unanswered. These were the two that those who sent it doubted would come into play, but yet could hold some sway in the grand scheme of things. These two were planted over two thousand years ago and had not been contacted in more than a thousand. Lost, disillusioned, and without guidance they had abandoned their posts long ago. It was a gamble to put one planted on the expedition to Terra Sol, but two of them would ensure the weapon of the Harbinger would be secured for the Guild’s usage and not the Empress. He was the key to the throne; at least that is what the prophecies said. But then both went silent; both had done the unthinkable and walked away.
So the fact, the messages sent to the still active consoles went unanswered was not a surprise, but did give hope that there were still players in the game where none others could be placed. It was the one loose end they could never wrap up, even after sending a few lone recons to the planet the two lost Forgotten were simply that; gone and forgotten. They now held on to the hope that one or both would see the message and remember their oath to act.
Only the message stayed unanswered and the code simply repeated itself in its encrypted form over and over. There was no need for them to worry about it being discovered as it went on since there was no one else out that way with the capability of discovering and deciphering the files; or so they thought. Repeating code is the equivalent of a gigantic neon sign flashing in the night to an advanced AI, and it wasn’t long until one noticed it.
Caretaker was tapped into all information traffic going into and out of the human planet in order to catch and filter any signs their approach may be discovered. It didn’t take long for him to see the message waiting for response repeating itself and took even less time for him to capture a sample of it to run through its software. As it was in the midst of more than a few tasks, it took a little while to crack the impressive encryption. Forty-two seconds after capturing the signal, Caretaker had pieced together the message:
“The Master calls, and your slumber amongst the sheep has ended. It is time to rise and stand amongst the new power that waits to be crowned. We are waiting.”
Immediately it put a trace on both the receivers and the sender, so that when one of the two messages was answered it would send with it a tag, back through the system and not only identify the party that sent it but filter down to every message sent and identify all those who answered any others. Aen had said the enemy would make a mistake, and he was right. It made a note to discuss this incident with him once they arrived on the surface; for right now, the Harbinger was more than a bit busy.
—
Mount Kailash, Tibet; Lyarran Colonial Base
It was dark inside the hanger; even the eerie blue glow from his eyes wasn’t enough to break the hold the darkness had in here. Carefully and slowly he made his way about the cavernous room inside the mountain, being careful to watch out for any traps or alarm systems that might be left behind to be tripped by an intruder. But as he looked around and adjusted to the inky blackness, he could see that Iana was right; the Ifierin had left little to nothing behind.
He wasn’t here to find any scra
ps or useful trinkets left behind by the Lyarran inhabitants though, he was here to get a reference point on where to teleport the ship and all within it safely. They had arrived a few short minutes ago, and now they waited for the planet to turn to meet them in the perfect intersection point. Aen was confident it wouldn’t be a problem to do what he planned, but if he did it before the planet was in the proper position it would be that much more painful for the creature he had worked so hard to protect. So the shorter the distance to move the ship, the less stress he would put on his ward.
The fact that there was nothing left behind didn’t bother him at all; the ship he had taken held everything they needed to survive in the short term. Anything else could be acquired through trade with the villages at the base of the mountain or anywhere else on the planet they chose. Not only would the humans provide them safety without knowing it, but they would also provide anything else required to make their stay as comfortable as possible.
After a few minutes of wandering, Aen found what he thought to be the center of the room and squatted down and closed his eyes to concentrate. Without Caretaker here to leave a marker for reference, Aen would have to make one of his own so he didn’t lose focus and place half the ship in the granite wall of the mountain. So with a push of his heart, he felt a spark jump from his cusped hands and a wealth of energy pour forth to fuel the spark into something much more. Opening his eyes, he gazed with amusement at what he had created; floating in his hands was a miniature blue sun about six inches in diameter. There was no more darkness shrouding him; the light from the fiery globe attacked every recess of the enormous space with an aggressive blue hue.
But as he placed it at the center of the hangar, he felt it gasp for breath, so to speak. Yes he had created a miniature star, but had given it enough fuel to live for mere minutes only! It was a good thing too, because it would flame out just as they arrived to avoid being seen by Iana who may take it as an affront to all her spiritual beliefs and more. As well, the longer it lived the more chance there was of the sensors surrounding the planet detecting the minor fluctuations in the gravitational fields. For a short time, it would seem to be nothing more than a random anomaly, but any longer would attract unwanted attention.
Stepping backwards, he reached out for the ship hovering near overhead and found his lifeline left to find his way back to them. Once he felt the familiar confines of the operations control room, he dissolved his material form and thrust his atoms up towards it at the speed of light, leaving behind the dying starlet to mark his return. Aen felt himself pass through the miles of rock, break free of the mountain, and race through the atmosphere and into the cold confines of space. Past the orbiting cannon array and silently in through the thick hull of the black ship. The whole process took less than a few seconds, and in the blink of an eye Aen had reappeared on the main deck of the assassin ship.
“Find what you were looking for?” Iana grinned back at him.
“Indeed.” Aen mumbled back at her as he glanced over to the timer counting down to the intersection point. “There isn’t much time left,” he began. “You might want to sit down or something, because what comes next is going to be less than enjoyable.”
Reacting to his warning, she began to sit almost instinctively on the floor as he turned to reach out and grasp the bulkhead above the doorway into the Ops Con. Aen needed to anchor himself to the ship physically to ensure he brought all of it with him down to the planet. If he didn’t, there was a chance that he could leave critical parts behind along the possibility of leaving behind his companion as well.
He turned his attention back to the timer and watched the seconds tick down. Ten, nine, eight; he began to run copious amounts of ethereal energy throughout the ships atoms and all within it as he began to dissolve the very atoms that made up all the matter. Seven, six, five, four; he thrust his entire core being into work and dumped everything he had into the process. The ship blinked from existence, then returned for a moment as his heart beat once more before it all disappeared. In his head, he finished the countdown. Three, two, one; he pushed the entire grouping of atoms down the exact path he had just lain out and anchored it to the point provided by the now sputtering tiny ball of fusion energy in its death throes.
As the star began to decompose, it cast off less and less light, but still held enough to reflect off the hull of the ship as it appeared right where it was supposed to be; complete and intact. The only miss was the elevation as it fell from a foot or so above the floor with an echoing bang. It was a good thing the landing gear had been extended before the whole event, or it would have been much more disastrous.
As the tiny star exploded in an unimpressive puff of light and dust, the ship’s exterior lights took over and illuminated the room in every which way possible. In an instant, Aen had done the impossible and brought the city block sized ship from the heavens down to Earth in the blink of an eye. The hardest parts of the plan were now behind them; now they were safe by the mighty shield of the human race from any that wished to do them harm. Better yet, they had arrived and there wasn’t a soul that knew they were here; that was the truest feeling of safety that the entire plan had counted on. Now all that was left to do, was look for what he was missing; all Aen had to do was find his soul.
SEVEN
Sol System;
Lyarran Vessel Dark Light,
Neptune Orbital Range
The shuttle prepared to leave the Dark Light, its crew gazing over at the ice giant that dominated the view. The shuttle bay doors were open, but the atmospheric pressure was maintained by the pressure shield that would be deactivated when the bay was clear and the shuttle ready to depart. Axyn set co-ordinates for the red planet the humans called Mars. They would be there in a short time; the shuttles were much faster than the cruisers inside planetary systems. Not much time to prepare the team for such an important mission.
Glancing over at the Council, he realized how attractive the young Paxyn woman was. He felt an odd attraction to her; a feeling long dormant inside. He had never taken another mate when the Husk attacked the outpost he called home destroying everything that mattered to him. A long dead moon remained; wiped out by the enemy in another attempt to rid the universe of all other life. They were pure hatred; there was no other description fitting enough for the Husk. For the last three hundred years he had fought them, and the war was far from over.
Lyxia returned his lost gaze, smiling as she always did to him. Their friendship had been born when he was assigned to protect her years ago. Sexual urges hadn’t been a problem with their friendship; good friends were hard to come by lately. Besides, she looked up to him like a father.
He noted how her armor was custom made and fitted; someone had gone to a lot of trouble to make it. Her boots were extended to knee height, with a touch of tanned leather to hide the hinge at the joint. Her thigh armor was tighter than standard issue, hammered out to accentuate the length of her legs. A short skirt of chain mail hung at her hips, accented by the crossed sword emblem of the Grand Council for a buckle. Her breastplate was tight fitted as well, with the chest proportionate to what was naturally hers. With a glisten of copper, the Council stood apart from the other Ifierin in the low lights of the shuttle. Standard armor being of red in color, hers was a contrast made to distinguish her stature of command, and sex.
“Now Captain, must I take a picture of myself to satisfy your urges, or can we work together without awkwardness today?” Lyxia sniped with a wry smile.
“Just admiring the uniqueness of your….. ordinance, Council. I am able to fight no matter what is in front of me, or beside me.”
“Ordinance, is that what the boys are calling it now?” The other soldiers started to chuckle at the exchange now. ‘Good!’ she thought, ‘They need to loosen, considering all that has happened.’
Lyxia looked up at the giant planet. Reports said that the humans called it ‘Neptune’. Her gaze fixed on the blue tinted gasses swirled about the planet. There w
ere many of these icy planets around the empire, with storms such as this one that had their winds harvested for energy. But humanity had yet to begin to mine the giant itself as of yet, leaving many valuable resources still to be realized.
She looked at her entourage; they were dressed in the standard issue armor, they looked like legionnaires from hell; dark red armor with black mirrored lenses on the horned helmets. Ten Ifierin troopers were enough to topple a small army of humans. Probably overkill, but the captain wanted nothing left to chance. They were guarding a member of the Grand Council, the first time one had left her cruiser without it being destroyed.
To die in the service of battle, was to die a glorious death. They were loyal men, hand-picked and all trained personally by himself, but he still worried about Lyxia. This was highly dangerous; the death of a Council would be a slow, shameful death for all of them. But to fail a friend like her worried him more. These were troubling times, and Axyn knew he couldn’t join her as he had foolishly agreed to man her station in her absence. He would give anything to accompany her on this errand of political good will, as when the appointment was announced it was met with shock and some resentment.
“Jokes aside, are you sure you won’t reconsider and let me accompany you?” he asked hesitantly.
Lyxia sighed and stepped forward to embrace her old friend. “I need you here.” She whispered in his ear as they hugged each other so no one else would hear. “Something about all this doesn’t feel right and I need you here more than I need you with me.”
Slowly she stepped away and began up the loading ramp but kept her eyes locked on his to convey the seriousness of the situation. Lyxia had tried hard to show him that now was a time like any other, and that parts of the Empire would start to fracture under the immediate stress put upon it. Even out here, she had felt the forces pulling in either direction in her own ship. Something was about to happen, and when it did she needed Axyn at the helm to keep it all together before it tore their community to shreds. In her heart, she would rather not leave the Dark Light now, but she still had a madman to catch and the best clues were held on Terra Sol.
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