"Approaching coordinates. Drop alpha in three minutes."
"All right, people. Gear up."
With that, Van stood and started putting on the rest of her cold weather gear. Her heart was pounding and she felt the sting of adrenaline rush through her veins. Having Commander Bosk along on the team didn't sit well with her, especially going into an unknown situation. She would much rather have an exec she knew and trusted even if she understood Meryan's reasoning. Integrating crews and building trust were important goals, but Van wasn't sure a recon mission with so many unknowns was the best time for such an adjustment. Then again, perhaps the admiral just wanted someone to keep an eye on her. At least Van would have the rest of her crew on her team.
"How are you, Captain?"
Van started. Meryan was standing inches from her right shoulder. To the casual observer, the positioning might seem almost intimate.
"Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you."
Somehow, Van didn't believe her. "I'm fine, Admiral. Why do you ask?"
A hint of a smile touched the corner of Meryan's mouth and she reached up to fix the mismatched straps Van had just fastened on the para-thruster pack. Having Cade so near and performing such an intimate act made it difficult for Van to breathe. She finally told herself to relax. Meryan's touch didn't mean anything.
"I'm not sending Bosk along to spy on you. He's familiar with the way I think in a conflict and if anything should happen, say we lose contact, he'll be able to advise you what my response is likely to be. Commander Byra will be able to do the same for me."
"That's all? You're not worried I'll go rogue on you?"
"No." The laughter in her voice made it clear she hadn't considered such a thing. The grin faded and she pinned Van with an intent look. "I haven't said anything to the others, but I have a feeling this is the real thing, Swann. I need you to stay sharp."
"Why wouldn't you tell the rest of the team if you felt that way? They could be walking into a trap or worse." Anger made the question much sharper than intended and the admiral's expression froze.
"Because it's just a feeling. I trust my instincts, but it's hard to convince a crew to follow a gut feeling."
"And where, exactly, does this gut feeling tell you we're going to walk into trouble?"
Cade frowned a second before she shrugged. "I don't know. I just know that something is off."
Okay, at least she was being up front. Van nodded. "Suggestions?"
"It should take a few hours for beta team to reach the mountain range. Once you're there, we'll go to radio silence unless one of us gets into trouble. Scout the outer perimeter and look for signs of a way into any hidden tunnels or entrances. We'll meet back at the original jump coordinates at nightfall and compare notes."
"And if we do run into trouble?" Memories of her previous trip slid through Van's mind. They'd had a backup plan then, too. A good one. Unfortunately, it hadn't worked out so well.
"Call for reinforcements. Two units will be standing by on Gauntlet just in case. We should also be close enough to cover each other once we reach the mountain range."
"Sounds easy." Too easy. Even if they called for reinforcements, it would take time for them to reach the surface. The fighting would be over before they ever arrived. "You're the boss."
She looked like she wanted to be reassuring, but Van wasn't quite at the point of needing it. In fact, anger propelled her to say, "Look, Admiral, I realize you're a master tactician."
"But?"
"But you're not used to leading ground troops into hostile territory. I know, it's just recon," Van said holding up a hand. "My point is that anything can go wrong after the plans have been drawn up. Your people need to know everything, not just hard facts but the stuff that's not in the intelligence reports. They need to know what you think, how you feel, and any hunches you might have."
"I thank you for your opinion, Captain, but I think I can handle this end of things."
All the previous warmth was gone from her expression and Van felt strangely empty, like she'd just gotten a glimpse of something important but it was gone before she could bring it into focus.
"Your call," she said simply, and walked over to stand with her team.
Meryan held her gaze with narrowed eyes. Finally, she ordered, "Alpha team, take positions. And keep your eyes open down there. I suspect there's more to this story than we've been given."
It was as much as Van was going to get and it was enough. She hadn't expected that much. The team lined up at the hatch of the jump ship with para-thrusters in place. Parachutes would deploy as soon as the personnel cleared the ships. Once they were in the drop zone, small thrusters would be engaged on the power packs to guide each person to an optimal landing area. Unfortunately, the small booster packs were useless for ground operations, usually ditched upon landing.
The hatch opened and a burst of icy air shot through the cabin. Alpha team along with their security personnel began to leap from the small shuttle without hesitation. Meryan went last and when those dark eyes briefly met Van's, she felt her heart thud against the wall of her chest. For some reason, she had a very bad feeling about this. Then Meryan was gone and Van's team was up next. When the site for beta squad came up, her people exited as efficiently as the previous team. As she leapt into the frozen night, she wondered if they'd all lost their minds.
CADE GLANCED BACK and met Van Swann's verdant gaze. She didn't know why she felt compelled. The woman was irreverent, insubordinate, and infuriating. From all accounts, she was also fiercely brave and loyal. Nevertheless, there was more to it than Cade could put her finger on. Resolutely, she pushed anything remotely personal away and leapt into the frigid atmosphere of Tokar. The updraft caught her squarely in the chest and threw her several yards backward. When the resistance gave way, Cade automatically launched the chute and began directing herself toward the ground some nine hundred feet away. The rest of the team was already in place before she hit the snow.
"You all right, Admiral?"
"Fine, Commander Byra. Let's get organized and head out. Daylight should break in the next hour and I'd like to be well underway by then."
"Aye, ma'am."
Cade gave an internal shudder. Already, her feet seemed like frozen lumps of ice and her nose felt numb. She pulled her muffler into place over the respirator and set off toward the head of the formation hoping they would find nothing and be back on the Gauntlet in a few days. The earlier conversation with her cousin drifted through her thoughts.
"Be careful, Cade. Don't take any unnecessary risks."
Saral was always so protective. Cade grinned behind her respirator. Military service was a tradition with the High Queen's family, but Saral was no soldier. For that reason, she became the Commander of Military Communications and Logistics within the Coalition. She was more diplomat than military, but it suited her.
"I always am." Cade had tried to assure her without sounding condescending, watching her reaction from the personal viewer in her quarters.
Saral rolled her eyes. "You are still half Alaran," she pointed out. "I don't know why you insisted on leading this so-called mission yourself, and you know what the cold does to your metabolism. You could be in real danger here."
"As you just pointed out, Cousin, I'm half Alaran. I'm also half Human and I'll be fine. A little slower, maybe, but fine. Oh, by the way, I forgot to tell you we got some unexpected company for this little trip."
"Oh, who? Is it some big dreamy military type with bulging muscles?"
Cade laughed at the excited look in the dark eyes that mirrored her own. "You wish. Her name is Captain Vanessa Swann. Heard of her?"
"Swann, Swann...I don't think...Wait. Isn't that the one that survived on Tokar all those years ago? The rest of her unit murdered?"
"That's her. I'm impressed you know so much about it."
Saral shrugged. "To be honest, that's about all I know. What do you think of her?"
"She's a huge pain in the ass." Saral laughed and Cade w
ent on. "Seriously, there's something about her I can't put my finger on."
"You don't trust her?"
"No, quite the opposite. I've just met her and I think I'd trust her with my life."
"Ah," Saral said in a knowing voice. "You have a crush."
"Do not." Cade protested as she remembered Swann offering her a drink the night before in her quarters. On the heels of that, Van had innocently asked her if she was going to bed and Cade took the question in an entirely inappropriate way. "I don't, but she is something else. She's gorgeous, but if I tried anything, I'd probably pulverize her. She's tiny, all of five feet."
"Again, sounds like you have a crush," Saral insisted.
"Maybe a little one, but it's probably just the result of having heard so much about her. She's young, but she was a hero during the Border Wars. Anyway, it doesn't matter. Tomorrow we're going to find out if there is anything to these rumors and then it'll be back to Alara. I'll probably never see her again."
"Just keep your eyes open, Cade, and let this Captain Swann prove what a great soldier she is. Let her keep you out of trouble."
"Are you saying I can't do that myself?"
"I'm not saying a word," Saral teased in a singsong voice before she laughed. "Just get this over with and come home. You know I couldn't stand it if anything happened to you."
"Nothing's going to happen. I'll see you soon. Tell my mom I send my love."
The sun had just cleared the distant horizon when Cade called a short halt to rest. Clouds were thick overhead, promising heavy snows in the near future. With luck, the blizzard wouldn't hit until after they completed their assignment. Checking her wrist chronometer, she decided it was time to move on. Alpha team walked another hour before closing in on the eastern base of the Southern Mountains.
What an original name, Southern Mountains. Even Cade could have come up with something better. Of course, on this little ice ball it wasn't like it really mattered.
"Hold up in front, Sanders."
The lieutenant came to a skidding halt on a patch of ice and almost landed on his rear. Cade affected not to notice as she keyed her communicator. "Meryan to Swann."
"Swann here."
"We're at the pass leading to the base of the mountain range. What's your location?"
"Still about twenty minutes from our destination. We haven't had any problems or seen another living soul. It's pretty quiet."
"Same here. Even the weather is working in our favor." Tokar was infamous for its horrible winds, but today all was calm. Cade thought the landscape would make a great holo-pic. "Maintain radio silence from here unless you run into something you can't handle."
"Understood, Admiral."
Captain Swann sounded a little miffed, but Cade couldn't seem to refrain from reminding her to call for help if she needed it. The incident on the planet eight years ago had her screaming to know why a soldier, seasoned or not, wouldn't radio for backup. While waiting on her people to assess the area, she chewed on an unsettling thought. What if Swann panicked during the brutal assaults? That still didn't explain why she'd maintained a communications blackout. Cade realized the question wouldn't leave her alone until she discovered the answer, but Captain Swann didn't seem very forthcoming. Maybe Cade would have to have another talk with Van soon.
Lieutenant Argante had been scouting ahead while Cade spoke with the captain. He returned with a scowl on his dark features.
"Something wrong, Lieutenant?"
"Yes, Admiral. It looks like there's been a recent avalanche here. Part of the pass is blocked and what's still there is barely more than a suspended ice bridge."
"Define suspended." Heights didn't really scare her, but ice wasn't notorious for good footing.
"It's only about four meters above the valley floor, but it goes across at an incline. Also, there's a lot of snow piled up around the peaks and it wouldn't take much to set off another avalanche."
"Can we take the lower access across the valley? The snow might not be very pleasant, but it beats breaking a leg if someone falls from that height."
Argante shook his head. "No good, ma'am. The snow is really deep. Even with the snowshoes, it would be tough going. Too bad we didn't bring a glider."
Cade didn't respond to what the lieutenant intended as a witty remark. A glider would have made too much noise. If it didn't give their position away to hostiles, it would trigger another avalanche.
"Recommendations?"
"The bridge looks solid enough, but I wouldn't suggest more than two people at a time crossing, just in case."
Cade nodded. "See to it. I want each team member paired with a security guard. Ensign Jacobs and I will bring up the rear."
Argante acknowledged the order and moved away to implement the instructions. Cade held her breath as the first pair made it across. When they reached the other side without incident, she relaxed a little and watched the others navigate the bridge. Finally, it was her turn. Cade and Ensign Jacobs stepped out onto the ice platform. The slick soles of her boots slipped a little and she automatically tensed. When nothing happened, she started slowly across with the security guard by her side.
Halfway to her destination, Cade heard a creaking noise from under the bridge. It sounded like ice fracturing. She hesitated briefly but the structure held steady. Concern for the young security officer made her turn to look back at him. Jacobs was pale under his tan. He resembled a scared little boy, which wasn't far from the truth, she realized.
"Come on, let's get across this thing."
"No argument from me, ma'am."
Cade took one more step and the landscape around her erupted. She caught a glimpse of white as something large and powerful burst through the ice. Pain exploded in her sides as claws punctured her cold weather gear all the way through to her skin. Then something lifted her into the air as the crushing weight of the grasp drove the oxygen from her lungs. A nightmare spray of red arced through the air and she saw Ensign Jacobs fall. With the disabling pain, she wasn't sure if the blood came from the security guard or herself. Distantly, she heard the shouts from her team come over the com.
"It's got the admiral!"
"What the hell is that thing?"
"Gauntlet, we need help!"
"Jacobs is down."
Then her world went white and she heard nothing more.
ARGANTE IGNORED THE shouts for assistance as creatures he'd never conceived of burst from the snow. He counted at least five, maybe more. White powder filled the air where they emerged from their concealment. Combined with the fog created from the energy weapons discharge, it was hard to tell. What he did know was that one of them held Admiral Meryan by the waist in a single massive paw. The creature leapt from snow-covered crag to outcrop without disturbing the heavy powder and without any indication of hindrance from the woman's weight. Argante could barely keep his eyes on Meryan as the beasts jumped around.
"Argante," Byra shouted. "They're trying to distract us. Focus on Meryan."
The lieutenant heard and obeyed, sighting in on a white blur. All he wanted was to hit the beast and force it to drop Meryan. Unexpectedly the creature stopped and looked directly at him. Argante froze at the terrible sight.
The thing was just a shade darker than the frozen tundra, huge and shaggy. Two yellowish tusks curved from the bottom of its jaw and rested on either side of a single red eye. Covered with thick, white fur, the creature wore nothing but some kind of collar around its throat. Argante barely registered a light blinking on the collar because his attention fixated on the admiral. He could see blood dotting Meryan's cold weather garments where ten-centimeter long claws dug into her. She dangled in its casual grasp, her boots a meter from the snow on which it stood. One snowshoe was missing.
"Shoot!"
The word startled Argante into moving but Byra wasn't waiting. A confined energy bolt from a pulse rifle struck the creature in the center of the hairy chest. Argante was certain he saw blood spread out over the wound but he
blinked and the creatures were gone. All of them seemed to vanish like a bad dream. They took Admiral Meryan with them.
Chapter Four
"CAPTAIN SWANN, YOU have to go back to Gauntlet."
"I don't have to do anything of the kind, Bosk. We're going after Meryan and that's the end of it."
Her heart pounded with anger and outrage. The jumbled cries of terror and shouts for help that she'd heard from Meryan's team an hour before still held her in their grip. Added to that what Byra and Argante told her about their attackers and it was more important than ever not to waste time. She was the only living person, that she was aware of, to see one of those creatures and survive. If they were what she thought they were, Cade was in serious trouble.
Her executive officer leaned down to speak privately. "Van, think about this." His voice was soft and reasonable, just the sort of tone he used to get her to do something she didn't want.
"Paul, she needs our help."
"Yes, she does. But this is a rescue operation now and we're not equipped for it. We need to go back to Gauntlet, get reinforcements, and advise HQ what's happening."
Van wanted to argue, but couldn't. Not only was it protocol, but it was good common sense. They needed trackers to scan for the homing signal in Admiral Meryan's wrist communicator, they needed the proper equipment for an extended search instead of a forty-eight hour recon, and she had to apprise Coalition Headquarters that the crown princess of Alara was missing.
She nodded at Bosk. "Call for the jump ship." To Paul she ordered, "Establish a base camp here. Set up a perimeter and make sure no one goes anywhere alone. All teams check in by radio every twenty minutes. Get Ensign Jacobs's body ready for transport. I'll have medical take him to the morgue when I get to Gauntlet."
"What about radio silence?"
"That was before all this, when we thought we might be sneaking up on someone. They know we're here now, so it doesn't matter."
"Captain, I hate to say it, but what if there is no one to worry about us being here? What if those things that grabbed Meryan were just a bunch of animals looking for a meal?"
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