“Now what?” Eddie asked.
“Now we take that base,” Mark replied.
“Good,” Red interrupted. “There’s twenty men up there in camouflaged heavy suits awaiting your word, Captain,” he added with the faintest of grins.
“Okay, these bastards are all disarmed?” Mark inquired.
“Yes all of them,” Red replied.
“Communication devices too?”
“Yes absolutely.”
“Good. Leave twenty men to guard them, including her.” Mark pointed at Chakix. “The rest of us are going to take that base.”
***
Twenty minutes later, the entire camouflaged phalanx stood fifty yards outside the mouth of the Agalum base.
‘We’re ready, Mark.’ Red announced through the telepathic link supplied by Ariel.
‘Okay people, as they used to say, it’s go time.’
The heavy suited troops moved off silently toward the side of the false volcano, while the stealth suited contingent waited at the edge of the forest.
Telepathically Mark apprised everyone gathered with him of the their next move. ‘Red will move the heavy suited troops to the hangar exit we discovered in subsequent scans of this base the camouflaged probe did. When they begin the attack we hope at least that all of their attention will be drawn over there, allowing us to enter through this hangar deck entrance. We should be able to slip in unnoticed. These stealth suits are silent in every way, as well as undetectable, at least through every method I know of. They are faster than the heavy assault suits and as I said already, silent.’
‘When do we move in?’ Eddie asked.
‘We’ll know as soon as we see the signal.’
‘I kinda wish Red was with us and not leading that other assault,’ Eddie commented.
Dan chuckled, ‘What’s the matter, squirt? Afraid? Don’t worry about it, I’ll protect ya.’
‘Get outta here, you freak,’ Eddie snapped back. ‘I just don’t like us going into a battle without everyone here. It doesn’t feel right for us to be split up.’
‘That’s the way it’s got to be for now, Eddie.’ Mark replied. ‘Just relax, we should be going-’
‘Mark, look at the entrance,’ Dan interrupted.
The entire crew stared where Dan indicated, and saw the Agalum guards running toward the back of the hangar and the exit at the opposite end.
‘Time to go, move it,’ Mark ordered.
Mark, Dan, Ariel, Eddie, and Dr. Troiano along with the two security people, Dorn and Crosby, moved silently and invisibly toward the hangar doors. Surreptitiously they all entered the base. There were only a handful of Agalum troops left guarding the entrance and the group of seven slipped past undetected.
‘This is so not in my job description,’ Dr. Troiano telepathically muttered.
‘Sorry, Ann. For today it is,’ Mark replied.
‘Stay near me, Ann, I’ll watch out for ya,’ Dan offered.
She smiled within her stealth suit, ‘Thanks, Danny, you’re a gentleman.’
‘Yeah but don’t let it get around,’ he replied with a smirk.
They continued to move deeper into the dark complex. It was lit with low level lighting throughout.
‘Look at the engineerin’ in this place,’ Dan mentally exclaimed.
‘I agree, Dan. This is something amazing. Once we get it under our control we can explore it at our leisure. Right now is not the time.’
‘You got it, Boss,’ Dan replied tersely.
‘Mark,’ Ariel called. ‘I’m sensing something else headed our way. It looks like a large group of troops are coming right toward us from where we entered. There must have been a passageway we missed. They’re going to run right over us if we don’t get out of this hangar area. They’re heading toward the back and the rest of the crew outside.’
‘Can you contact Red?’
‘I’ll try, but I’m going to have to shut down with the rest of you to do it, to concentrate my accuracy and mental strength.’
‘Just do it. Let me know what happened afterward.’
Ariel nodded and closed her eyes. In the dim yellow glow of the goggles they all wore her hazy image seemed to waver while she concentrated her efforts. Mark stopped a moment and watched her intently even though he knew the squad of Agalum were closing from the rear on them all.
He saw something he had never seen before. Somehow the goggles that allowed them to see one another when camouflaged also allowed him to see her telepathic ability. Her head glowed a brighter yellow, followed by a spike of energy reaching out toward the back of the hangar area, where Red and his men were.
“Amazing,” he whispered.
The others turned and looked at him quizzically, then first Dan, followed by Eddie realized what he was looking at. Ann Troiano was the last to see what was happening.
Mark looked behind him and saw the squad of Agalum foot soldiers getting closer. Quickly he shook Ariel’s arm, breaking her concentration.
She looked up, saw what was happening, and quickly reconnected with them all. ‘I see them coming. Where can we go?’
Mark looked at his sleeve and an image formed on it. Not a stand-up holographic image like it would on his regular tech suit, but rather one on the sleeve itself, which remained invisible to those without the special goggles he had designed.
‘This way. Dorn, Crosby, take point,’ he telepathically said.
Everyone followed quietly, the two security personnel at the forefront.
‘Left turn in twenty feet,’ Mark ordered.
Dorn first, and then Crosby stepped around the corner. Crosby almost immediately stuck her head back around and beckoned everyone to follow her and Dorn.
The remaining five people stepped around and flattened against the back wall of the corridor.
Heavy boots began to thud along the hangar deck and an instant later a large contingent of Agalum appeared, passing right by the camouflaged and veritably invisible crew.
Everyone stood silently, not even bothering to breathe. Soon the large group of Agalum had passed them all by noisily.
‘What now? Dorn asked of Mark.
‘We head to the base commander’s office and take him prisoner. He tells his people to stand down, and we win.’
‘What if he won’t?’ Crosby asked.
‘Then we make him. I have no issue with that, do you, Crosby?’
‘None whatsoever, Sir,’ came her terse reply.
Mark nodded. ‘Good, let’s move out.’
Dorn and Crosby took point once again, followed by Dan and Eddie. They continued down the same corridor they had stepped into, when the sound of stomping feet came toward them from around the next bend in the corridor.
‘Uh-oh,’ Ariel mentally cried. ‘They’re coming right toward us.’
‘There’s nowhere to go,’ Eddie commented.
‘Tell me somethin’ I don’t know, short stuff,’ Dan grumbled. ‘Doc, stay behind me,’ he said as an afterthought, ‘Cause all hell’s about ta break loose.’
Troiano looked at Mark and thought, ‘You owe me a raise when all of this is over.’
‘If we survive this, it’s your,.’ Mark replied.
‘I’m holding you to that,’ Troiano nervously countered.
Chapter 36
Outside the base, Red’s heavy assault troops fired everything from blaster rifles to Red’s favorite weapon, the handheld energy cannon. They took their toll on their enemy’s forces, but what the Agalum missed in technical savvy they made up for in numbers.
“Red, we’re starting to get overrun,” Security officer Malcom Joiner shouted.
“No kidding Joiner. There’s fifty of us but there must five hundred of them.”
“What are we gonna do?” Joiner practically begged.
“Keep fightin’ till the last man drops, if we have to,” came Red’s guttural reply.
All about the embattled troopers the Agalum forces began to circle and close in upon them. Red fir
ed his cannon repeatedly, almost non-stop, but it seemed like for every five Agalum the Cagliostro troops would take down, ten more would take their place. The Agalum came down upon the small fifty man team in waves, firing concentrated energy blasts of their own upon them.
Joiner called Red once again. “These heavy suits are all that’re keepin’ us alive.”
“Why do you think we’re wearin’ them, Joiner? The boss knows what he’s doing,” Red shouted above the roar of battle. Then added almost silently, “I hope.”
The battle continued to rage. The small group of fifty began to spread out, slowly backing away from their enemies. There was a plan to all of this, but that plan was badly hampered now without the natives joining them.
But then Red Robinski grinned, something he never did. He had an idea…
***
Above the small green world, the two fleets were engaged in an epic battle. The five remaining Earth ships weathered devastating assaults from almost three times their number of Agalum ships.
“Carlson, bring the Revenant around to mark zero two zero one five,” Captain Nagata ordered. His own ship, the Coronado, rocked violently under multiple attacks.
“Shield status?” Nagata barked.
“Forty five percent and holding, but barely,” his security officer advised.
“It’ll have to do. Helmsman, bring us about to mark seven zero nine four five.”
Again the Coronado shuddered savagely from multiple attacks.
“Hold together, girl. Hold together,” Nagata muttered.
“Captain, that G’Kor is releasing small fliers, dozens of them,” the security man informed Nagata.
“My God, here they come,” Nagata whispered.
Akin to bees from a hive, a steady stream of the ships those aboard the Cagliostro had battled and called ‘Predators’ were issuing forth in streams from the remaining G’Kor planet crusher.
“Concentrate all heavy weapons fire on the larger ships. Smaller guns can be brought to bear on the ‘Predators’,” Nagata commanded his fleet.
“Come through for us, Johnson. A lot of lives are depending on you,” Nagata muttered.
***
Deep within the mountain base Mark Johnson and crew slowly made their way down winding passages.
‘How much further?’ Dan asked.
‘According to the intel we received from the probe, we’ll be at the communications center as soon as we clear this corner up ahead,’ Mark replied.
Still camouflaged and invisible, the crew surreptitiously moved through the darkened hallways, avoiding groups of Agalum workers and officers when they had to.
‘I still can’t believe how empty this base is,’ Ariel commented.
‘They’re all outside battling Red’s troops,’ Mark replied.
‘I know. Still, it’s very empty, Mark, don’t you think?’ Ariel mentioned.
‘She’s right, Mark.’ Dan agreed, ‘This is too empty.’
‘What do you all think? A trap?’ Mark queried.
‘It’s possible, and it’s definitely not out of the probable,’ Dan offered.
The two security personnel had stealthily padded ahead and stopped by an open section of the wall.
Dorn’s deep, basso telepathic voice intruded, ‘Sir, this room appears to be exactly what you had surmised. It is their communications hub.”
Mark and the others moved forward invisibly, until they were standing near the edge of the huge opening in the wall, which looked upon the communications hub. Inside the room was filled with Agalum techs with only a few officers near the front of the room, surrounded by several guards.
‘How do you want to play this?’ Dan asked.
‘As planned. We’re the invaders and we’re outmanned here. We bomb this room.’ Everyone nodded their silent agreement.
Dorn and Crosby removed several grenades from their packs, and after Mark nodded his approval, they rolled the grenades into the room, then quickly back peddled out into the hallway.
An instant later the floor rumbled like an Earthquake. Flames shot from the opening to the hallway as screams filled the corridor.
The crew backed up and silently ran back toward the main corridor.
‘Where to now?’ Eddie asked.
‘Now we go to the base commander’s office. He either walks out on his own or he gets carried out. It’s going to be his choice.’
The group moved quickly through the poorly lit corridors, then turned directly into a group of Agalum soldiers, who were thundering down the corridor toward the devastated communications facility.
There was nowhere for them to go. The troops were heading where they had just come from.
‘To hell with it!’ Mark telepathically roared. ‘Open fire!’
Dorn, Crosby, and Eddie fired immediately and invisibly, Eddie being the first one on the trigger by a hair.
The Agalum soldiers were taken totally by surprise. Blasts seemingly from nowhere tore through them. They scrambled backward under the withering attack of the Cagliostro’s crew.
‘Fire and move, don’t stay in one spot. Move, move, move,’ Mark implored.
The crew split about the hallway, separating and leaving large gaps between themselves. Agalum laser bolts splashed against the walls and floor, but hit no one.
“Find them, kill them!” Shouted an Agalum officer, his purple skin turning a deeper shade driven by his anger.
“I don’t think so,” Mark replied and dropped the Agalum with one blast of his pistol.
Now panic was careening through the Agalum. They fired where the voice came from en masse. But Mark was no longer there. He and the rest of the crew were running backward the way they had come. Mark looked at his suit’s display being played out upon his wrist. ‘Back two corridors then left. There’s a maintenance passage we can cut through.’
The group quickly disappeared down the maintenance hatch, shutting it silently behind them.
Back in the corridor they had just escaped from, laser blasts seared the air. The Agalum troops knew they obviously had enemies about, but had no idea where to aim.
“Stop firing, you idiots,” a salad headed Agalum ordered. The bald headed purple skins ceased immediately at his command. “They are obviously no longer here,” he continued. “Find them and bring me their skins.”
The Agalum troops spread out and began cautiously searching for the escaped and so far undetectable enemies who were running rampant within their compound.
***
‘Where the heck are we?’ Eddie asked.
Mark replied through their telepathic link, ‘Maintenance shaft that bridges levels, hence this ladder we’re climbing down. We get off at the next level and head across. We probably should have done this to begin with instead of meeting those salad heads straight on.’
‘Hindsight an’ all that,’ Danny rumbled. He turned toward Ann Troiano. ‘Are you okay, Ann?’
‘All I can tell you, Dan, is that this is the most excitement I’ve had in years, and I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not.’
Dan smirked. ‘Just stay near me like ya did back there, Ann. I’ll protect ya.’
She reached up and hugged his arm, ‘Thank you, Danny. If I could reach you I’d give you a kiss right now.’
Dan blushed beneath his goggles, but replied, ‘I’ll take a rain check on it fer now, okay?’
Dr. Troiano nodded and smiled.
They continued their climb down, leaving the ladder behind and now invisibly padding down the dimly lit, circular maintenance tunnel.
‘Not to look a gift horse in the mouth, but ain’t you guys surprised no one else is scourin’ these maintenance tubes yet? I mean they gotta think we ducked down here,’ Eddie mused.
‘Honestly I’m not that concerned. I’m more worried about exiting this tube into a barrage of Agalum laser fire,’ Mark replied while staring at his sleeve and reading the information displayed there. ‘We should exit here,’ he announced.
Dorn
and Crosby once more took point, cautiously opening the panel from within. They looked outside and stepped out.
‘Come out it’s clear,’ Crosby confirmed.
Within an instance they were all standing in the corridor. ‘This way,’ Mark ordered. They all followed, pausing at every corner to stare down long corridors either filled with running Agalum troops or surprisingly empty, with no in between.
Mark held up his hand and hissed mentally, ‘Hold up something’s happening here.’
Immediately Dorn and Crosby slid before him, protecting him from whatever he was viewing.
Everyone’s eyes widened at what they saw coming toward them.
‘Oh no…’ Ariel squirmed.
Walking toward them alone in the corridor was a creature out of a nightmare. A monstrous, foul smelling horror they had encountered twice before.
‘I see it.’ Mark hissed, ‘It’s a ‘Quel’. One of those anti-telepath ghouls we encountered a few years back when all of this began.’
‘Mark I have to get out of here, it’ll hear our thoughts.’
But it was too late. The horrible eight foot tall creature turned toward the spot Ari was standing, its gaunt physique spinning about seemingly in slow motion, like a creature out of a fantasy vid. It slowly reached forward, its horribly formed hand and multi jointed fingers flexing toward Ariel. She immediately dropped to the ground clutching her head painfully.
Mark did not hesitate. He pulled his blaster and fired. So did Eddie. Both men looked at one another and nodded. The Quel hit the ground even as its head exploded and splattered the ground about it with gore.
Dan helped Ariel to her feet slowly. She still held her head. Dr. Troiano moved to her side and began speaking to her in a whisper. “Are you all right, Ari? Can you talk?”
“This is a bad spot. We must move,” Dorn advised in a hiss.
Mark nodded and whispered, “Agreed, Dorn. Keep your head up, all of you. I may have to carry Ari. The last time we met one of these things Ari defeated it, but the time before that it almost killed her.”
The Cagliostro Chronicles II: Conflagration Page 21