The synthetic watched them disappear.
It watched an old building. The pillars looked out of place compared to the high rises around it. A column of armored cars pulled up to the front. Soldiers emerged from the building and stood in the rain.
The synthetic tensed and engaged magnification. People stepped out of the cars and looked blurry through the magnified rain. There was a heavy military escort, a dozen soldiers in body armor with standard issue weapons. Then a group of old men and an old woman stepped out.
The synthetic analyzed a hundred possibilities. Should it strike now? It weighed the response, the troop count, the tendency for violence and compared it all against the odds for success. No, it thought. Not yet.
It was a patient thing and it could stand to wait.
#
Chapter Twenty-Five
Vasilov Prime - Pulaski Hotel
Kelly Dell insisted on the body armor. She wouldn't have it any other way. "Listen, Boss," she said, a far change from being called Captain, "invasion could be imminent, we've already been shot at once, and most of our boys are playing drill Sergeant."
Umi shrugged his shoulders and the armor settled onto his chest. He plucked his shirt off the hotel bed and did his best to smooth out the lines from the armor.
"We really should have weapons," Kelly said. "Remember last time?" Her voice was bordering on angry.
"We're going into the Vasilov parliament, not a Boben bunker," Umi replied. He tapped his thigh and remembered that he hadn't worn a service pistol in quite some time.
There was a knock on the door and two of Umi's men entered. Both were built like lumberjacks. One carried an attaché case with the Sigg diplomatic seal scratched out and the other a case that looked like something a guitar would come in. They both wore pseudo-professional suits that had more in common with a military dress uniform than a business suit.
"Morning gentlemen, are we ready?"
Herman grunted and set the heavy case on the bed. Max turned and stood in the center of the entryway and let his bulk block out the light. "Da, we're ready."
"You put them up to this, didn't you?" Umi said to Kelly.
"A few precautions is all," Kelly said as she patted the case.
"Max, Herman, Kelly, this isn't a Boben assault. Remember, we're consultants now. Let's act like consultants."
Max turned his head and grunted.
"Now let's go."
"What's wrong with these people? Why'd they put the stargate in the middle of the Capital?" Kelly asked.
The streets slid by and the discarded debris of a society sat on the curbs. Troops huddled beneath awnings and massive piles of supplies and ammunition were everywhere. Massive armored vehicles, more like mobile bunkers, were parked throughout the area.
"This place is old, Kelly," Umi said. He craned his neck to gawk at a tank the size of a small building. "Big fucker."
"And?"
"It grew organically, the biggest concern was making a colony, not strategic defense. Later it was too much effort, and really, they didn't have much reason."
The van stopped. A troop of infantry marched across the street. They wore heavy gray and brown coats and looked like they marched right out of the history books. The four Sigg watched, mildly amused.
They arrived at the parliament building a few minutes later and were escorted through security and into the bowels of the building.
Umi felt relieved that the soldiers manning the door didn't ask to look in the case. He didn't know what was in it, but had a hunch it was a Sigg AT-34. The AT-34 was an ultra high velocity anti-armor rifle. He hoped he wouldn't have a chance to find out.
Two men in dull green jackets stood guard at Lady Atli's door. They admitted the group into a room with a time worn red carpet and wooden walls that were orange with age. Boxes were stacked everywhere and the air smelled of dust.
"Captain Umi Matsuo?" a secretary asked behind a steel desk.
"Just Umi."
"Your, uh," the man looked at Max, Herman and Kelly, "escorts can wait here. Lady Atli is expecting you."
Umi opened the door and stepped into what he assumed was a temporary office.
Lady Atli stood. She wore a heavy sweater that made her thin frame look bulky. Her face looked tired, her eyes ringed, and her hair was tussled. But still she looked dignified.
Umi went to close the door behind him.
"One moment, Captain, we're expecting one more."
"Yes, ma'am. And just Umi, please, I'm not a Captain anymore."
"Indeed. Do you have the pendant with you?"
Umi had placed it on a titanium necklace and wore it around his neck. He pulled it off and handed it to Lady Atli.
She held it in her parchment skin hands and rubbed it between two fingers. She sighed, closed her eyes, and gripped it tight. "Do you know what this is, Umi?"
"No, ma'am. A charm of some sort?"
"Yes, I guess you could say that. It's a unit crest of sorts, and, more importantly, a data storage device."
Umi opened his mouth to ask a question when a buzzer sounded.
A moment later Colonel Clarke marched in. He was in full uniform, heavy coat, armored vest and a sidearm strapped to his hip. An assault rifle was slung from his shoulder and rested against his back.
"Now Captain, you may close the door." Lady Atli sat slowly and looked even smaller.
Umi closed the door and sat beside Colonel Clarke. The chairs creaked.
Lady Atli held the pendant before her and gently set it on the desk. "This is given to members of the Order of Terra. They realized long ago that once man reached for the stars that no one organization could control it all. It was too big, the interests too varied, and the opportunity to corrupt the organization too great. So they granted sectors to people like Stefan Vasilov and partitioned space as the colonies expanded. Each zone would rule itself, but existential threats appeared."
Umi sat and listened. It sounded like a conspiracy theory. A bunch of bunk, but he couldn't discount the fact that she, whoever she was, had laid down her life for him.
"The Order of Terra looks at the big picture. They are not interested in the day to day affairs of planets, or even sectors, but instead focus on threats to our species. This agent, whoever she was, thought her own life worth less than the knowledge that was in this pendant. Colonel, as I told the Captain here, this is a data storage device. And he will, with any luck, access it."
Umi wanted to correct her about rank again but bit his lip. He didn't like the fact that he was already being ordered to do this task. He clenched and unclenched his hands. What was this all about?
"How do you know all this?" Colonel Clarke asked.
Lady Atli slid her hair away from her neck and pulled out a slender gold chain. A pendant, almost identical to the one on the desk, swayed. "Because I took the oath long ago."
Umi blinked and glanced over at Colonel Clarke.
"Colonel, we'll do what we can to decode this pendant. As soon as we have more information, you'll know. Until then," she locked eyes with Colonel Clarke, "do your duty. Now go, I know you are pressed on time."
Colonel Clarke stood and saluted Lady Atli. "I'll do my duty, I never planned to do anything else."
"I know, Colonel, I know."
Colonel Clarke gave Umi a nod and stuck out his hand. "Stay out of trouble."
Umi returned the handshake and tried to break a smile. It felt fake, and he didn't like parting with a friend. "Same to you."
Colonel Clarke marched out and closed the door behind him.
Umi turned back to Lady Atli and thought on the pendants. He'd been without a real purpose since the end of the Boben war. There was a pit inside of him, a pit he didn't like, but it was an empty place and nothing seemed to fill it. Working as a consultant, mercenary, whatever, had seemed like a good idea. But it didn't fill the void. Her words came back to him: "do your duty." Was that what I'm missing, he wondered. Duty?
A dull rumble echoed thro
ugh the walls like a giant beast rolled overhead. Lady Atli looked up at the ceiling and nodded slightly.
"The gate is priming," Lady Atli said.
Umi felt the shudder in his bones and a bit of adrenaline seeped in. He tasted dust in his mouth.
Lady Atli set the pendant onto a flat plate and keyed up her tablet. The tablet chirped once, then twice, then a third time. She tapped at it with a bony finger and dropped the tablet onto the table.
Umi looked down and saw a large red X.
"I tried to access it," Lady Atli said as she scooped up the pendant. "But it's damaged. We'll need to find someone to open it."
"Pardon me, but I don't have to do anything."
"You're a mercenary. You, like those with you, are seeking things you can't find back home. This," she said, tapping the pendant, "will make a difference. Maybe more than you could possibly imagine."
Umi stared down at the swaying metal pendant. Earth. It was a powerful symbol. What did he want? He wasn't sure, but he knew he hadn't found it yet. "Payment?" he asked, knowing that a whole bunch of Sigg were depending on him for a paycheck. Big, possibly angry, Sigg.
"No good deed goes unpunished."
Umi leaned forward and smiled. He reached a hand out for the pendant.
Lady Atli snapped it up and smiled a thin little smile. "If you take it, you must protect it with your life."
The moment hit Umi and he paused, just for a second. With his life, for what? Then he nodded and grabbed the pendant. I hope you're worth the trouble, he thought.
There was another rumble then a cracking sound like dry wood snapping.
Umi leapt to his feet. Gunfire. His heart beat quicker, the adrenaline seeped back in, and he once again regretted not having a pistol.
Kelly burst through the door with a Sigg VV-6.5 submachine gun in one hand and a commset in the other. Behind her, Max was loading another VV and Herman was snapping the AT-34 anti-tank rifle together. The secretary stood against the backwall with a white face. Her desk was slammed against the door.
"Something took out the guards in the hall. Comms are scrambled," Kelly said as she tossed the VV to Umi.
Umi snapped up the weapon and seated the action. "Ma'am, you got a back door?"
Lady Atli had already moved to the side of the room and was struggling to push back a wooden wardrobe.
Umi rushed over and pushed, the cabinet crunched on the floor and exposed a rust speckled metal door.
"This will take us into the kitchens."
"Max! Herman!" Umi yelled.
Max ran in and tucked himself next to the door. Herman walked backwards with the barrel of his AT-34 trained on the door. There was a crunching sound from outside.
"Cap?" Herman said without taking his gaze off the door.
"Hold, not until—"
The door splintered open and for a brief moment a black form was visible in the opening. The roar of the AT-34 blasted through the room. Max opened fire with the VV and the stubby SMG blared fire like a blow torch. Bullet holes stippled the door.
Alarms sounded in the hallway and more gunfire sounded out followed by a shriek and a scream. The alarms continued but the gunfire from the hall stopped.
"Move!" Umi yelled. "Kelly, help her!"
Kelly opened the door and helped Lady Atli into the dank hallway. A long line of floor lighting flickered.
"Pull back, barricade this one!" Umi ran over to LAdy Atli's desk and pushed it ahead. Herman took position at the door and Max pushed the desk closer.
"Clear!" Herman yelled and opened fire once more. The AT-34 barked once, cycled a round, then barked a second time. The heavy composite casings tumbled to the floor.
The intruder forced its way through the shattered doorframe and tossed out a slender blade. Its black body leaped ahead.
Umi raised his weapon and pulsed the trigger. A gout of flame blasted out toward the attacker. He knew the attacker was the same as before, the body was identical.
It was simple, neutral looking, vaguely humanoid, and blazing fast. One gloved hand was empty, the other held a crude looking black blade.
Umi's round impacted first on the left thigh then rippled up. The next one disappearing into the stomach and the following one puncturing right into the black material that covered its face. Max fired at the same moment and his rounds connected with the center mass.
The black assailant fell to the floor and his blade clattered from his hand.
"Finish him!" Umi yelled.
Herman collapsed. The action of his AT-34 was sliced open and the hilt of a blade protruded from his ribs.
"Get the door!" Umi said as he drug Herman back.
Max slammed the door shut. He leaped over the desk and pushed it up against the heavy paneled wood door.
Umi looked down at his old Command Sergeant and slid his body to the floor. They'd survived so much together against the Boben that it pained Umi to see his friend fall like this.
They raced out of the office and sprinted through the tight confines of the passage. The sounds of wood splintering echoed behind them. The passage turned twice and then they were into a wider passage lined with pipes and electrical conduit. Kelly was just ahead with Lady Atli against her arm. A steel door blocked their way.
"Move aside!" Umi yelled as he ran up to it. He punched a single round into the lock and the door creaked open.
All four pushed through. Umi gave one last glance and then followed the rest. He caught a flash of black and didn't wait to confirm who it was. He knew.
The kitchens were quiet and cold. They ran as fast as Lady Atli could go. Finally she stopped and steadied herself on the edge of a table. Her eyes wavered. "I can't, I can't go on."
"Max, get her." Umi took Max's weapon and the bulky trooper scooped up Lady Atli like a child.
They ran through the stainless and copper kitchen.
Umi raced behind and kept an eye behind them. He halted at the exit of the kitchen and pointed the SMG at service door. His heart slammed in his chest and he tasted metal in his mouth. Adrenaline like he hadn't felt in months came back to him. But most of all he had a purpose.
The service door creaked open a sliver.
Umi fired off the entire clip. The door rippled and paint fell off in chips. He didn't wait to see any results.
He caught up with them in a long hall with marble statues lining the way. They all seemed to watch down on them. The entire place felt more like a mausoleum than a place of government.
"Where is everyone?" Kelly said.
"Evacuating," Lady Atli said as she bounced in Max's arms.
A clatter sounded behind them. Umi spun with his weapon raised. The synthetic leaped impossibly high and latched onto the shoulder of one of the statues. It swung across the hall and propelled itself forward. It was like a small monkey swaying through trees of marble.
Umi stopped. He followed it with his SMG and held his fire. It didn't seem right to shoot and damage the statues, that and he knew it wouldn't do a damn bit of good.
"Cap!" Kelly yelled.
Umi growled and ran. He ran like he'd only ran when an artillery barrage was coming in. That animal run of fear and survival. When whatever was coming was worse than something you could handle. He ran because he knew that he couldn't stop this thing. Not yet.
They approached a wide door. Kelly grunted and opened it up. Daylight blasted inside of the somber hall. Max raced out with Kelly just behind. She held the door from the outside.
Umi stopped in the doorframe and raised the weapon once more. The SMG was cool against his cheek. He heard shouts behind him, yelling, but ignored it all. He focused his aim on the approaching black shape.
The synthetic dropped down and immediately broke into a full sprint. One hand was empty and the other held a blade.
Umi exhaled and squeezed the trigger.
The muzzle flared and the casings tumbled to the floor. The rounds stitched into the synthetics face but it did nothing more than toss its head.
Shit, Umi thought. Then he saw it, the blade. He released the trigger, lowered the muzzle just a touch, then squeezed.
The first round struck the hand, the second the wrist, but the third clanged right into the hilt and the blade tumbled to the floor. The synthetic turned its head and watched the weapon fall but didn't stop.
Umi stepped back, tripped on the threshold of the door, and tumbled head over heels down a set of wet marble steps. He stopped in a puddle and kept the muzzle locked onto the door. Then he became aware of everyone else.
A company of Vasilov infantry was arrayed around him. Lady Atli stood behind the ranks. A Captain in a sweeping trench coat stood beside her. Max and Kelly stood behind the wall of soldiers. All of the infantry had their weapons at ready and pointed at the doors.
"Get ready!" the Captain called.
Lady Atli glared at the door and no longer looked like an old lady, but like a challenged warrior. Her eyes burned with rage.
The door creaked for a moment and then there was silence. The Captain ordered his company toward the door. Sirens blared in the distance and grew closer. The first soldiers broke through and the word was passed. Nothing.
Umi stood and safed the weapon. The adrenaline seeped away and his back felt sore. The wetness on his pants chilled him and he started to shiver.
Lady Atli marched up. "Well, Captain?"
"Who can decode it?"
"Do you know a Lokeen named Sevel?"
Umi smiled back and nodded.
"He'll take us."
"Where?"
"To see the Ken-Tec Captain."
Umi was speechless. The Lokeen didn't carry passengers. The Ken-Tec didn't see humans. Ever. What the hell could drive the most aloof aliens to suddenly help a half-backwards group of humans?
Emflife, Umi thought. The Emflife. The boogie-man, the creatures from the past, the thing the other races feared and the thing men had never faced.
"The Emflife are real, aren't they?" Umi asked Lady Atli.
"Yes," she whispered. Her thin lips barely moved. "And god help us all if they're coming."
#
Chapter Twenty-Six
Steel Breach Page 15