Annals of the Keepers - Rage

by Christiaan Hile

  “It’s my new best friend, boss,” Ramek replied.

  “Hey, I thought I was your new best friend?” Kercy chimed in.

  Kason smiled behind his visor plate. “Better watch it, Kercy. He doesn’t like his friends beating him on the toughest obstacle course…and metal doesn’t talk back and remind him of it.”

  Several Reavers laughed.

  “Anyone have a problem with my new friend?” Ramek shot back as he patted the side of the weapon he held.

  Kason walked up to the large Reaver. “We don’t have a problem with it, Ramek. If it brings back Jens, that’s all that counts.”

  The Reavers fell silent on Kason’s comment about Jens.

  Each looked on towards Ramek, for they all knew how close the two were. Kercy and Ramek had become close friends, but Jens was still his brother.

  Ramek himself broke the awkward silence. He lifted his enormous gatling gun to his side. “If rapacity has anything to say about it, then consider him brought back.”

  The Reaver regiment cheered with their weapons held high.

  Kason rallied the team. “Let’s get ready and take our positions.” Kason turned to his team leaders. “Keelen, you’re lead for Charlie. Maddox, you will take Bravo. I will lead Alpha. Ramek and Kercy, you’re with me.”

  “Are you getting a soft spot for Rapacity already, boss?” Ramek teased.

  “We’ll see after I see what she can do. Now get your weapon and get in line.”

  “Aye aye, boss.”

  The Reavers began to line up near the center bomb bay door.

  Rising out of the floor, near the center deck recesses, were waist-high yellow guard rails.

  The soldiers would line up in between, giving them even spacing as they dropped into the beam.

  The Reavers were thirty in number so they lined up in one row in front of the deck hatch.

  Nevlen’s Troopers lined up opposite the centerline drop hatch in four rows of twenty-five each.

  All were suited up in their armor and helmets. The Troopers could see through their sizeable clear visors, but couldn’t make out each Reaver’s face as the regiments R.A.S. helmets were sealed, showing piercing evil eye lenses.

  Their weapons were all slung on their backs or to their sides.

  The Reavers’ main weapons were the items strapped to their backs as most of their weapons were internal to their suits.

  Kason brought up comms for the entire group. “Drop will commence in two minutes. Reavers will secure the drop zone on initial touch down. The Troopers will follow and then hold the drop-zone while we assault the compound. We all know the parameters. Keep comms to a minimal. We’ll see you all back here. Get ready for drop.”

  Just as Kason finished, a klaxon sounded and yellow lights began to flash within the drop room.

  A loud metal grating noise came from above. A large shaft protruding from the ceiling over the centerline and began to descend about five meters, but still remained a few meters above even Ramek’s height.

  The bottom of the shaft began to hum and an intense white light formed underneath the descended shaft.

  All troops held onto the guardrail to their sides awaiting the order to begin the drop to the planet’s surface.

  ∞∞∞

  A grayish green planetoid orbited around its parent star.

  The fabric of space near the small orb of a world began to ripple with an odd distortion.

  A bright vertical slash appeared and grew against the black cloth of space, a myriad of colors exploding out from the expanding fissure.

  Emerging from this vertical seam were the Human warships, the Diligence and her battleship escorts, the Flashpoint and the Intimidator.

  The Diligence Trooper ship moved into a synchronized orbit with the planet, but not before activating its stealth camouflage and vanishing.

  Both battleships flew past and took up strategic positions near their primary protection points.

  The Mercador and several Storm-Tac fighters launched from the Diligence’s hangar, waiting at a point in orbit for their special escort assignment to come over their comms.

  The bottom center of the Trooper ship opened and a black two-hundred meter rectangle platform moved away from it, heading straight down towards the planet’s surface.

  The escort group followed its tragectory.

  All entered in constellation camouflage, vanishing within the upper atmosphere from all prying eyes that might be below.

  Once on the surface, the black object unfolded itself with two main ramps to either side. Its center was exposed with a wire-mesh grate that covered its full length.

  All the escort ships converged on the object that lay in the middle of a tall grass field with strewn rocks and continued their watchful guard as they flew their protection patterns around the area.

  The surface was full of small vegetation with gray rocks protruding out of the ground. There was a low fog that covered the ground the platform sat in.

  All units moved in quick harmony as the assault and rescue of the lost Reaver, Jens Dryden, had begun.

  ∞∞∞

  In the Diligence’s hold, the Reavers stood ready.

  Kason called out over comms, “Alpha Team, prepare for drop in ten seconds.”

  The shaft above began to glow and hum.

  The center hatch running between the two sets of soldiers on either side parted open to the vacuum of space.

  A flash of a containment field filled the empty open void between the vacuum of space and the pressure of the ship hold, keeping the atmosphere normal for the troops.

  The noise and brightness intensified.

  When it reached its utmost force, a two-hundred-meter-long by ten-meter-wide beam fired from the bottom of the descended shaft, moved through the force field, and down through the atmosphere of the planet.

  Clouds dispersed when the energy beam passed, making its way all the way down to the surface and to its black rectangular host below.

  Yellow flashing lights were replaced with green dashing ones around the edge of the open bomb bay hatch.

  Kason motioned down and all thirty Reavers dropped down through the open hatch entering the beam.

  ∞∞∞

  Kason and his men were locked into the beam and accelerated towards the surface of the planet.

  Kason was still amazed by the technology.

  He knew the basics on how it worked. Still, it had never been used in a combat situation like this and only once in practice, but war demanded change and fast.

  The idea came from the Gashnee drive technology when a scientist reverse-engineered a modular core, discovering the containment field could move objects within a beam of stabilized energy.

  They first used the idea to drop containers loaded with mining materials from ore ships that would hover above the ground and send them down the last few meters.

  The Scalar-Vectordelaron Beams, as they are known, soon made a radical conversion from cargo containers to dropping soldiers and supplies.

  The beams were fused with tens of billions of nanites that would adhere themselves around any object within the beams, holding it in place as the entity was accelerated at a rate of one hundred meters per second towards the ground.

  Kason could feel a fraction of the speed because of the nanites that surrounded his RAS suit. They also protected him against the heat of reentry into the atmosphere.

  They were halfway down the beam. He could make out the dense fog that covered the landscape surrounding the drop zone.

  One of the amazing things about the beam besides the protection and the acceleration was what happened at the other end of the receiver when they landed.

  The beam’s rectangular receiver on the drop zone would act as a reverse generator.

  The energy would enter the top grate of the platform and become inverted, being forced back up the beam, pushing on the incoming beam, giving it resistance for any object getting closer to it.

  Kason couldn’t comm
unicate with his team until they reached the bottom due to mass energy interference.

  His HUD marked the altitude, speed, and showed the next phase of the drop was approaching.

  [Phase Two] flashed in his visor. This meant the first of three decelerations points they would encounter was coming up. Phase one had been the initial acceleration.

  Kason felt the jolt of the first phase of slowing. Their speed was halved within about five seconds.

  Still pretty jarring, he thought.

  [Phase Three] flashed now.

  They dropped down to twenty-five meters per second.

  He could make out some terrain features among the gray mist that hung around close to the ground.

  The next and last phase came.

  [Phase Four].

  They decelerated to ten meters per second, then five, three, one, and the final hundred centimeters per second as they hit the black ramp.

  Without skipping a beat, the Reavers hit the platform running. Each ran off the ramp and into the tall grass behind nearby boulders.

  It was a graceful landing and synchronized walk-off on the platform for the team, as if they took a step off the loading catwalk and right into their Reaver pods.

  Kason brought comms back up. “Bravo Team, move to our eight o’clock position. Charlie, move to our four o’clock.”

  The two other teams moved to their triangle positions around the landing platform.

  Kason looked at Nevlen’s team descent readings. They would hit the platform in thirty seconds.

  He continued to scan his surroundings and get filtered intelligence from the Flashpoint in orbit.

  Kason brought up the Mercador comm link. “Major Dancehall, we are in position. What’s the sit rep, over?”

  “Copy, Reaver Lead. All clear. No sign of movement near the enemy facility,” came the major’s response.

  This was the best scenario for such a mission.

  It would be moments before Kason’s team was on the move to the abandoned Kryth compound to find Jens.

  Kason looked over to Ramek who was next to him. “You ready?”

  “I’m always ready, boss.”

  “I meant, are you ready to go get Jens?”

  There was a momentary pause from the large Reaver before he responded. “I was ready when we found out he was on that forsaken moon you found me at.”

  Kason nodded to him. “Then I will let you lead us out. The command is yours, Ramek.”

  “Thank you, boss.”

  DATA CELL 44

  A shivering and sobbing figure huddled in a dark corner of a small room with a dirt floor.

  There was a little light coming through from the metal seams around the door.

  Another figure, sitting in the opposite corner whispered, “Madilay, it’s going to be okay. The security forces from the camp should know where we are. They’ll come for us.”

  Madilay lifted her head to look at Shawna.

  Her tear-and-sweat-soaked hair stuck to her forehead and cheek.

  She wiped away the dangling strands. “What if they don’t? What if they don’t come for us?”

  Shawna tried to move toward her, but was held in check by a cable attacked to the wall. It prevented her hands from moving more than a few inches behind her back.

  “We need to remain calm and cooperate with them. They’re just pirates.”

  Madilay tensed up. “I think they’re coming.”

  The door to the room burst open.

  Two Kryth soldiers entered and went for the young girl.

  “Get away from her, kremth!” After the curse left the director’s lips, one of the Kryth went over and backhanded her, sending her to the ground in a flurry of dust.

  Madilay, upon seeing Shawna struck, turned her withdrawn emotions into anger.

  She lashed out at the two Kryth that approached.

  One grabbed and held the young girl while the other unlocked the cable on her wrist and began dragging her out the door by her cuffed hands.

  Madilay kicked and yelled, trying to stop their assault, but was no match for the towering Kryth Mahr pirates.

  The door shut behind them, enclosing the room in darkness once again.

  Shawna lifted herself up.

  She wiped her bloodied mouth on her left shoulder while her eyes flashed up towards the door with a mother’s wrath.

  ∞∞∞

  Madilay was outside in the Kryth camp.

  Her captor brought her to the center of the enclosure.

  He threw her to her knees in the mud.

  Madilay squinted from the light of day for her eyes had not yet adjusted from the small dark quarters she was being held in.

  She looked around, trying to adjust to her surroundings.

  Above her, the sun’s rays twinkled between the overlapping cover the Kryth had draped above the enclosure.

  She could see the forest canopy outside through the small gaps in the material which concealed viewing from above and into the enclosure. It blended well with the encompassing vegetation, she thought.

  There was also a four-meter high camouflaged and sectioned fence that ran around the camp.

  She could make out several Kryth soldiers, each doing different tasks with equipment on tables.

  There were three small, cubed buildings and various containers around the site.

  This was a makeshift base and it hadn’t been here too long.

  As she looked behind her from the building she’d come from, a Kryth soldier slapped her back down into the dirt.

  Madilay kicked her leg backwards, hitting the soldier behind her square in his right knee.

  The soldier grunted in pain and stumbled backwards at the unexpected counterattack.

  She glared at the pirate, her eyes ablaze with fury.

  The Kryth’s scowl seemed to mirror her own as he raised his fist to strike the Human female from her brazen attack.

  “Stop!” A voice boomed throughout the camp, halting the assailing guard over Madilay.

  She looked up to the new Kryth as he approached.

  “Hello, little one,” the Kryth said as he walked forth. “Surprised I know your language? I would be too if I was in your position. You see, I believe in knowing my enemy as well as I know myself. One should learn the ways of one’s enemy, no? Don’t worry, I’m here to make things comfortable for you. We weren’t expecting any visitors, but are delighted you could join us.”

  “Who are you?” Madilay asked.

  “That is not of importance…yet. For the time being, you may address me as, Lieutenant Solix. You see,” he paced around her prone body, “I am not without patience or some measure of compassion. I’m here to help you help yourself.”

  Madilay looked up in disdain. “What do you want, Kryth?

  A broad smile creased his face. “That’s just the question, Human. I want to know how many are located at your base camp.”

  “Why should I tell you?”

  He laughed. “Another delightful demand. Shall I show you?” He waited for her response. “Please say ‘yes’.”

  “…Yes.”

  “Wonderful.”

  He turned to the compound gate. “Handler, please go out and bring our guest of honor.”

  A larger Kryth responded to the order and approached the gate door.

  Madilay noticed him take a key looking object off the wall next to the gate and place it against a pad. The door unlocked and the Kryth stepped outside.

  He returned in what could not have been more than a minute.

  Walking through the gate, on all four legs, was a creature Madilay had never seen before. The massive bristle-backed hairy beast lumbered in. Its devilish green eyes looked right through her.

  “Impressive, isn’t he?” her captor asked. “Have you ever seen an aythra before?”

  Her nervous head shook back and forth. “N-no.”

  “Even if you had, I’d expect the same response. Isn’t he magnificent? They’re majestic apex predators from o
ur homeworld. Not unlike some of the large carnivores on this planet.”

  The beast stopped in its tracks as the handler closed the gate and placed the key device next to the door.

  The lieutenant knelt next to Madilay. “This is how this is going to work. I ask you a question and you answer. Understand?”

  Madilay nodded in agreement.

  “Splendid. Let’s proceed,” he said. “Let’s make our guest comfortable. Unbind her, soldier.”

  The soldier uncuffed her wrist restraints and tossed the clamps next to her.

  “Let’s try this again. How many are at your base camp?”

  Madilay hesitated, unsure if she should answer.

  “I’m waiting.”

  “I don’t need to tell you anything,” she snapped at him, rubbing her wrists.

  Solix sighed. “Not the answer I wanted. Must I repeat the rules again?” he said, nodding to the soldier behind her.

  The soldier swung his fist, striking her in the side of the head.

  She crumpled to the ground.

  “Let that be a warning,” Solix said, his face expressing bored disappointment.

  Madilay lay there next to the cuffs, her hand touched the wrist clamp on the muddy ground.

  She glanced at the clamp, noticing the chip-lock hole on one side of the curved bar.

  As she lifted herself up, she scooped up some mud and rested her mud-filled hand on top of the clamp.

  She touched her bloodied cheek with her other hand to draw their attention away.

  “You see what you’ve done? All that because you didn’t answer a simple question. Let’s start again.”

  Solix walked over to the snarling and huffing aythra. “This time we will use Toxx here.” He patted the snarling creature on the head.

  While he was turned, Madilay began to pack the mud into the cuff hole on her wrist clamps.

  The lieutenant started turning back to his Human guest. “Are you ready?”

  As he started turning, Madilay got up and bolted away from the soldier behind her.

  She didn’t make it far.

  The solider was quick and grabbed her arm, flinging her back into his torso.