Miles counted down with his fingers when everyone was in place with their weapons ready. When he hit zero the Marine stormed out first, acting like a human tank, drawing the bullets of the four unwanted personnel. His shields flashed and flickered blue, and his assault rifle, thirsting for blood, went seeking it.
Foster, Chang, and Williams leaped out when the body count increased, taking cover behind various cargo crates. When it was over, three bodies of Radiance origin flew backward over cargo crates, the fourth was vaporized by Foster’s tachyon beam.
A similar act repeated near sickbay, liberating it, and giving Kostelecky the chance to bring the rest of the injured crew inside for better treatment. And others that might fall if things went bad. It was time for their next move.
“Williams,” Foster said to him. “You and Miles take back the bridge. Chang, you’re with me, we’s gonna get EVE back online.”
The team of four broke up, forming into two teams of two, sprinting in opposite directions. Foster heard a fury of gunshots bang from behind when engineering’s doors came into sight. Williams and Miles met the SOM personnel cutting into the bridge. She hoped they were safe.
Taking back engineering turned out to be easier than she expected. Most of the hostile targets were busy staring at holo screens or working on computer terminals. She almost felt guilty for shooting them all. Chang reminded her that these could have been the same group that murdered hundreds of innocents at the spaceport. Foster’s guilt vanished slightly when she processed that thought.
EVE’s deactivated body was found lying in the corner. Foster and Chang had to find the instruction manual on how to get her operational again, and then later her second intelligence onboard the Kepler. By the time EVE was up and running, Foster noticed one of the vortex keys they had was missing. She checked the remaining vortex key and noted the burn marks on it. Of course, Jainuzei would steal the working one, and leave them with the fried one.
“We got engineering back and EVE,” Foster said, speaking into her wrist terminal. “Dom, what’s your status?”
His stressed voice yelled back after ten seconds. “Just finished here, we’re good.”
Foster’s mind relaxed. It was over.
Quick multiple sweeps of all three of the Kepler’s decks were made, verifying that no other hostiles were aboard. During that time, Chang took the helm, disengaged the docking clamps that held the Kepler to whatever ship its airlock was linked with, breaking them free. Their timing was impeccable, as another team from the ship was preparing to override the locks and storm the Kepler.
Penelope stood with opened arms when Foster returned to the bridge. Foster was surprised to see the British hacker girl that locked herself on the bridge was a Hashmedai woman with long, shiny, silver hair and flawless glittering jewelry. And if what she read about Penelope was true, the jewelry was nothing more than secret computer mods and data crystals to enhance her hacking power.
“Aw, Captain, good morning and welcome back,” Penelope said to her. “I suppose you’re wondering what the devil is going on?”
“Naw,” Foster said, sitting on her captain’s chair. “I was wondering what the fuck is going on.”
The Kepler’s shields flashed blue from its aft and starboard sides. Plasma missiles launched from the ship they pulled away from were fired. By the time the alarms roared and screamed, a second salvo was launched.
“They’re firing at us, Captain,” Chang said.
“I’ve noticed,” Foster said drily. “Who are they?”
Pierce checked his terminal. His face looked shocked. “It’s the Gerard Kuiper.”
Suddenly it became clear to Foster why Jainuzei was gung ho about finding the Gerard Kuiper, and probably how he conveniently gave an order to Chang that led to the discovery of its beacon. He knew it was beyond the nebula’s barrier. It was one of many things he was searching for.
Foster grimaced. “Was wondering what the hell became of that ship.”
“Long story,” Penelope said then waved her hand, creating a holo screen with a list of coordinates and pushed it to Chang. “Take us to the planet’s surface and get us closer to the ruins. It’s on the other side of the planet, it will take them time to come about and retarget us, and there are people down there that will need our help.”
The Gerard Kuiper had come about at that point facing the Kepler. Behind the Kepler was the planet they orbited, making an FTL jump was going to take a few as Chang maneuvered to get clear. Fleeing to the planet’s surface was faster and safer considering the Kepler lacked overshields without Tolukei or Nereid.
“Take us to that location, Chang,” Foster said.
“Aye-aye, Cap.”
Chang worked quickly, making the Kepler flip and face the surface of the planet. The sight of the Gerard Kuiper firing its weapons was pushed off the view screen as the planet came into view and grew larger as their atmospheric entry continued. The Gerard Kuiper looked like a newer model of the Carl Sagan, and so was too large for atmospheric flight.
“So, about that long story, Penelope?” Foster asked her.
The Hashmedai hacker conjured various holo screens with her abilities handing them off to Foster. They showed security camera footage she had taken from the Kepler.
“The Kepler unexpectedly arrived in the sector and linked with the Gerard Kuiper,” she explained. “Turns out your friend Jainuzei started moving a lot of freight off it with help he had aboard, I take it they weren’t part of your crew.”
“No, we had our cryo pods replaced recently,” Foster said. “Someone slipped us a bunch of stowaways in ‘em.”
“Didn’t think so,” Penelope continued. “Jainuzei said he was working under orders of you, Captain. But I knew better, a lot better. SOM uses poor spoofing tools to mask their HNI’s IDs. I realized quickly something was afoot and went to investigate.”
Penelope rambled on for a bit, long enough for the view screen to show the horizon of the planet, the nebula in the skies, and the ruins of an ancient fortress below getting larger as the Kepler positioned itself to land. The story Penelope explained consisted of her meeting Rivera and escaping to the Javnis homeworld, the ruins found, and the discovery of the Kuiper. It warmed Foster to know Rivera was still alive; it pained her to know she was still aboard the Gerard Kuiper.
“Damn,” Foster said. “Does Rivera know any of this?”
“I dropped a hint,” Penelope said. “But again, Jainuzei wanted her to assist him and I didn’t want her getting shot at. Did you know that girl won’t pick up a gun to save herself? It’s absolute bollocks.”
“What did he take off the Kepler?” Williams asked.
“What I can tell from the cameras,” Penelope said, viewing the holo screen she made. “He snatched the vortex key, some other stuff I can’t make heads or tails of, and then stuffed Lisette and Nereid into crates to hide their presence from us I guess.”
“Weren’t the SOM interested in the vortex key?” Williams said.
“Yeah, they were,” Foster said, having realized Jainuzei brought it aboard another ship. One they control. “They wanted a quick and easy access to the nebula.”
“Well, looks like they got it,” Williams said. “Jainuzei was a mole working for the group.”
“Still don’t make any sense,” Foster said. “If he’s workin’ with the group, why in the hell is he offing their members?”
It was a question nobody had a reply for. And one that would have to wait as the Kepler touched down on the planet’s surface. In the distance was a small battle being fought. SOM, versus unarmed researchers and Radiance Union rangers.
52 Karklosea
Transport
En route to Interstellar Space, Inadrai System
July 22, 2119, 23:10 SST (Sol Standard Time)
Karklosea recovered faster than she predicted. That meant a doctor tended to her wounds, a psionic one at that used their powers to keep the blood inside Karklosea’s head, release any pressure and readjust
her HNI and psionic brain chip implant, which might have been dislodged during the attack.
By the time she opened her eyes and looked around, she realized she was brought aboard a transport of human design, chained to the wall, and had a slave collar on. Her armor had been removed, leaving her wearing not much else other than a blanket. Being a prisoner to humans didn’t make sense, nor did the medical professional that approached. She was Hashmedai, dressed as an Imperial servant with the red blouse and skirt and purple hair cut short, with a small braid of it dangling over her left eye.
After the Hashmedai servant doctor finished scanning her with her tools, she went for the door and allowed a familiar face from the cockpit to enter and join the two, Chevallier.
Chevallier and the Hashmedai spoke, human words at that, and then stood next to Karklosea. The two began to unchain her arms from the wall, handing her a jumpsuit to wear.
“That’s the look the Soldiers of Marduk were expecting Lisette to have I bet,” Chevallier said to her as she got dressed.
“What do you mean? Who is Lisette?”
“Lisette is the Nephilim the Soldiers of Marduk are going nuts looking for,” Chevallier said. “Back on Earth, there were legends of Nephilim, fallen angels.” She pointed at Karklosea’s exposed back and the network of old cybernetic parts before it was covered with the jumpsuit. “Your back looks like it once had angel wings, like a fallen angel.”
“I had cybernetics there that folded out to enhance my powers,” Karklosea said.
“Yeah, I’ve seen fully upgraded psionics from Radiance,” Chevallier said. “They have similar attachments to their backs. When active, they look like wings with weird-looking wires and shit like that.”
She understood the reference Chevallier made. Lisette should have wings that looked like they had been clipped.
“What’s the story behind it?” Chevallier asked her.
“Behind what?”
“You not having the implants.”
“There was a time when my planet wasn’t part of the Union.” Karklosea finished dressing and faced the two, not that the Hashmedai woman would understand them. “I was born and raised during that era, became a fighter when the Hashmedai sought to invade our homeworld and others we controlled.”
Chevallier listened, arms folded. Her interest in the story expanded, judging by the intrigued look on her face. “I found an old Linl exploration ship in Sirius during my time there. That shit was almost older than written language on Earth. You must have seen a lot of history.”
“Read,” Karklosea corrected her. “I’m here today because of constant cryostasis; it allowed me to live long enough for gene therapy.”
“So, go on, this story is getting good.”
“Do I amuse you now?” Karklosea moved away from the two, standing ahead of a small window watching the stars of the black vacuum slip past in their FTL flight. “I got tired of fighting, tired of using my newfound gifts from the Gods to slay our enemies. I became a shipboard psionic for a ship of exploration, only to find myself fighting a war again.”
“So after, whatever that war was, you had your parts ripped out and became a Templar,” Chevallier said. “You wanted to escape from a life that was forced on you and felt that nobody would be able to pull you back if you did that.”
She didn’t reply, though Chevallier was right.
A large gathering of ships came into view, as the transport made a turn to approach them. There were two types of ships, one group she didn’t recognize though it did have a slick design that suggested they were built by Radiance. The presence of the other type of ships in the small approaching fleet confused her more than the fact they were on a human transport. Though, the presence of the Hashmedai servant doctor now made sense.
“Chevallier,” Karklosea said to her. “Why are we traveling to Imperial warships?”
“That’s the thing . . .” Chevallier said. “Those Hashmedai ships, and the command ship, are operated by a separate Hashmedai faction that allied with the Terran Legion.”
Karklosea moved away from the window, looking back at Chevallier and the silent Hashmedai woman. “The Legion is here? In Radiance space?”
“I’m as surprised as you are,” Chevallier said. “Turns out they know me. An EISS spook named Moriston had put in a good word for me before I knew he was with the Legion. They had members at the embassy, and they reached out to me once they realized who I was and wanted to know if I was interested in joining them.”
“Please tell me you didn’t!”
“I did, well not truthfully,” Chevallier continued to explain. “That’s why you’re free to go for the time being. Avearan here.” Chevallier gestured to the Hashmedai woman. “She was the one that made the connection and told them where Wenadei was operating since he worked on her in the past.”
Karklosea snorted, resisting the urge to rage. “So, we have her to thank for our capture?!”
“Easy there,” Chevallier said to Karklosea, putting her hands up to her. “She did it because she needs our help, and we need hers. The Rezeki’s Rage is one of the ships in the fleet, its captain and crew are in the brig since they refused to cooperate with the Terran’s alliance. She can’t get them out alone, she needs our help. We do that, and we got new allies and a ship to back us up.”
She gave Avearan a long stare, still puzzled as to why an Imperial servant had psionic powers, implants to aid her in healing, and wanted their help. This begs the question. “Why does she want our help? Is she not allied with the Terran allied Imperials?”
“Not by choice, she’s looking for her girlfriend that went missing from Taxah, take a guess who that is?”
“Foster?”
“No!” Chevallier blurted and took a minute to recover from her laugh. “Foster likes men and has a terrible choice in them at that. Trust me; I’ve seen pictures of her ex-boyfriend.”
“Then who?”
“Lisette Bennett . . .” Chevallier revealed. “Avearan came aboard the Rezeki’s Rage hoping the ship would point her to Lisette. The crew that hijacked it and the Terran overlords think I’m on their side since Avearan convinced them she could get us to aid them. That and my protect suit’s internal cameras recorded me giving Foster a good beating.”
“Why would you attack Foster?”
Chevallier scratched the back of her head, looking away when she gave her reply. “Long story . . . Look, just know that the Terrans and their friends now have evidence to think we’re on their side. We had convinced them to have you set free on the condition you cooperate with them.”
“I will not assist a group like that!” Karklosea yelled, quite possibly loud enough to make the crew in the cockpit hear. It forced Avearan to leave, probably checking up on them ensuring they would be able to continue their secret conversation.
“Don’t be stupid!” Chevallier retorted. “We’re going to be on one of their ships that the galaxy doesn’t know exists, and they aren’t trying to kill us. We need to take advantage of this edge and figure out what’s going on. So, you in or not?”
Karklosea agreed, swallowing her pride. It left a repulsive aftertaste. “What have you learned?”
“The obvious part, being Foster and the UNE didn’t capture everyone from the Legion,” Chevallier said. “The Rezeki’s Rage was hijacked by Hashmedai from Taxah and those Imperial ships? They all came from Taxah as well, being the planet the Terrans were trying to nuke.”
“That’s the part I don’t get. I was under the impression the Terrans were humans that hated nonhumans? Isn’t that why they were trying to destroy that world?”
“Their main plan was to overthrow the Imperial throne, wipe out the line of succession, leaving one person to take control as the Empire’s new ruler.”
“A puppet government,” Karklosea grunted.
“Which is exactly the same plan they have with Radiance,” Chevallier said. “The Terrans are funding the Soldiers of Marduk. They’re using them to take over the counc
il. This fleet we’re approaching? It’s all part of an alliance manned by the Terran Legion, Soldiers of Marduk, and Taxah Hashmedai.”
“Did the Terran commander you spoke to know anything of Jainuzei?”
Chevallier shook her head. “Not that I know, and the briefing they gave me was extensive.”
The two came to watch the fleet via the window after an hour. It gave her a better glance at the mysterious ships that looked Radiance in design but were of a class she never saw.
“Those ships,” Karklosea said, pointing at them. “They aren’t part of Radiance, then?”
“Nope,” Chevallier said. “These are the Terran ships I spoke of. They were built at a shipyard in the Inadrai system. A fusion of Radiance and human tech, they look like Radiance on the outside but human tech on the inside. It’s part of their plan to bring down the Union from the inside out.”
“You have a plan?”
“Yeah, figure where Lisette is. She’s important to the Soldiers of Marduk, so the Terran alliance is helping them locate her.”
“My Gods . . .”
“They were waiting for the rest of their forces to gather before leaving the system. Only reason they haven’t left was because Avearan dropped the dime that she knew where we were hiding out. Turns out you were right, the Soldiers of Marduk were looking for the two of us.”
“Even if we find her, then what? Where would we go?”
“This is that part where you help them. They know you’re a lord commander, they want your command codes.”
“They’ll have no such thing.”
“They need it for some op in the Avalon system,” Chevallier said. “The way I see it, we give it to them, we enter that system then we make our move and free the crew of the Rezeki’s Rage while they’re distracted with whatever operation they want to carry out.”
“The Avalon system . . .” Karklosea whispered to herself.
“Not sure what’s so important to them there,” Chevallier said, shrugging.
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