by Trey Deibel
“I sense a but coming.”
“--but… you aren’t invincible… despite what your thick head may believe. So much as a few shots to a major organ or just one through your heart or head, and even you won’t get up from that.”
“Captain, you don’t have to send your worries my way. I can handle myself. After what I’ve seen you do in battle, I know you understand the feeling.”
“This isn’t about me. Look… I’m just asking you to be careful. After Bremco, I don’t want to lose another soldier.”
“You won’t.”
Landis and I had something unique between us. Despite my tendencies to take matters into my own hands, Landis still seemed to be lenient towards my actions, like she wanted me to think for myself at the expense of the chain of command. It didn't have anything to do with some sort of sub-textual, romantic cliché, since I only had the utmost respect for her; yet, it truly was out of character for the by-the-books captain she was.
“We've entered the outskirts of the city,” the pilot reported.
Intrigued, I looked through the dropship’s front window. Shaking violently, the ship plowed its way over the Yuntery Walls surrounding the legendary trade city of Tegun. Plasma blasts screeched their way by the hull. Inside our ship, the air was weighted down with tension and anticipation for the “all clear” order to be given by Commander Sizar. Minutes drifted by as each occasional order or call out was given. Multitudes of pilots’ voices trafficked the intercom while leading the operation to rid the city of the dytirc invaders. We perked up when the words we were waiting for finally came: “1070 Legionnaires, skyzone is sound, you’re a go.”
“Six minutes out,” reported the pilot.
“Listen up!” Captain Landis yelled over the noise outside our dropship. “The dytircs have set up shop, with most of their resources placed near the center of the city. That's where we're headed. It seems the dytircs have managed to construct anti-air plasma cannons in key defensive positions manned and protected by dozens of them. We're just one unit taking part in destroying these anti-air cannons. Once we land on the Rickstell Skyscrapers’ landing pad, we’ll head down the back skyscraper to the fourth floor connected to the boardwalk. Once there, we'll blow our two assigned anti-air cannons to hell, aiding in Commander Sizar’s assault on the invading dytircs. Everyone clear on the mission?” Everyone nodded, showing Captain Landis we understood. “And I’d expect at least one dytirc minor, too. Be cautious.” Dytirc minors, in Wersillian Legion, are similar to ARW unit captains. They're in charge of the platoon of soldiers assigned to them for a particular mission. Minors get orders from majors, who get orders from ultras. The higher the rank, the more soldiers they instruct, and the stronger their armor.
Once she finished, Shadow-Walker tossed me one of his magazines. “James, check it out. I brought my new custom scout rifle with me, complete with my new ricocheting rounds. I call my creation the Silent Dagger. You like?”
His magazine was loaded with stasis rounds, a dor’o standard; however, unlike most dor’o ammunition, his stasis rounds could ricochet off surfaces two or three times. As my squad’s weapon specialist, I had an eye for these sorts of details.
“Fits you like a glove, Shadow.” I tossed him back the mag.
He smiled and turned to Uslar Kip. “Hey rookie, you… hah… you look like you’ve about to cry a river. Would you like a hug?” he teased.
“What? No! Of course not. My home planet is being attacked! I mean… how can you even joke right now?”
Shadow-Walker slapped his palm to his chest and held it there. “Hey, hey… hey. You should know by now, I’m the funny guy here. Just ask me, and I’ll set you straight.”
“We’ll see about that when the legion hits your planet next.”
“Someone’s gotta lighten the mood,” I added.
“Narrisa, look, our new medic is riled up,” said Valiic Bessile to his cohinla. Narrisa replied with a smirk and nod. Turning back to Uslar, Valiic said, “Just remember not to jump the gun when we arrive. We wouldn’t want you to make mistakes on your first mission.”
Uslar nodded and looked at Narrisa, confused. “Why is she so quiet?”
“You’ll soon come to understand, rookie, she tends to say something only when there's something important to say,” Valiic answered him.
“Valiic, pal, your romantic life must be frackin’ fantastic,” Shadow-Walker quipped, slapping his hand on his knee in good fun.
“When you know Narrisa like I do, everything my cohinla and I say is important.” Valiic grinned and joined our laughter before gazing into his cohinla’s approving face.
“Cohinla… the maelkii word for lifetime partner, unbreakable in your society. Why you maelkii have no such option for separation is beyond me,” Uslar committed.
“It’s beyond everyone,” Shadow-Walker added.
“Thirty seconds. Prepare for drop zone hot!” reported the pilot. “Hang On!”
The dropship began to decelerate as it descended to the landing pad, shots pelting the ship’s shields. “Give us cover fire!” Landis yelled to the pilot. She turned to Valiic and Narrisa. “You’re out first, keep them distracted.”
The hatch busted open, and all hell broke loose. From behind Valiic, I rushed out the door, using his massive body to cover me. As we moved up, I fired my sidearm into the crowd of dytircs holding position in front of the far skyscraper. With a quick glance, I spotted at least twenty enemies. In front of me stood a long line of large carved-cobblestone tree containers. I immediately threw myself behind the closest one. Valiic and Narrisa pounded their body-sized shields into the ground at my side, taking the enemy fire head on, while delivering some plasma bursts themselves. Each shot that happened to connect with an unlucky dytirc sent its lifeless body back a few meters. I popped on my stasis shield and used it as cover as I began firing at the small mass of dytircs along the right stairs leading up to the far skyscraper. Hitting one in the chest, I knew he was dead as he dropped to the ground.
War is chaos. In training, I was taught to narrow that chaos into boxes and know when to open each box during the heat of battle. At key moments in battle, I'm forced to push certain things to the back of my mind: Citizens’ screams far into the streets; the heavy explosions and weapon fire sending ripples of sound through the air; aircraft jetting fast enough to shake the surrounding skyscrapers. Instead, I hone my mind on the battle in front of me, and my comrades around me.
“AWW!” Uslar let out a blood-curling yell as he stumbled onto the landing pad in pain. Blood surrounded his scorched abdomen.
“I’ll get him!” Shadow-Walker shouted just before he dragged Uslar behind the tree container to my left. Uslar quivered as he instructed Shadow-Walker on what to do to stop the bleeding.
“I told you not to jump the gun!” Valiic barked over his shoulder, taking multiple shots to his shield and armor.
Peeking around the corner, I spotted a few ungie beasts running toward us, shark-teeth bared and all six legs striding with power. “Ungies, eleven o-clock!” I shouted and fired at the dog-like beasts.
On my left, Landis used Narrisa as cover as she aided me in ridding the planet of those foul monsters. Seconds later, Landis moved to my cover. “James, flank right and take out the dytirc minor. Valiic and Narrisa, focus fire on their mounted plasma turret.”
Instantly, they both turned their cannons toward the dytirc unloading plasma from his mounted plasma turret. With only a few shots, the turret was destroyed and the dytirc was sent spinning backward.
This was my moment, and I took it! Dashing as fast as my legs would allow, I popped on a stasis shield attached to my left arm, deflecting plasma shots back at their senders. I was at the right side stairs, ready to kill the dytirc minor at the top. With momentum behind me and covering fire, I leapt half the flight of stairs, only to suffer from my rashness. As I landed, a sharp pain shot up my left leg as a plasma shot burned my skin.
“Ergh… damn!”
I managed to pull my pistol off the mag lock on my right leg and blasted the grin off the hiding dytirc’s grey face; his black-ringed yellow eyes retreated back into his head, which looked too large for his body.
My skin sizzled at the spot where I got shot, and I was suddenly vulnerable. It seemed someone noticed; I gazed back up right before the dytirc minor jabbed me in the jaw, knocking me backward.
“Human trash,” he growled and pinned me to the ground with his exoskeletal, boney knee.
With me in a bad position, the minor pulled out a blade with one hand and hammered away at me with his three other powerful arms, jabbing me in the head and thrusting his blade at my throat. In agonizing pain, I managed to catch his arm and stop the blade from ripping into my neck.
“Strong for a human,” he snarled, not ceasing his rampage of blows.
“You don’t know the half of it,” I gasped, coughing up a few drops of blood. Mustering just enough will and strength, I managed to sneak a punch into his side.
“Ow!” he wailed in pain as he rolled off me.
I pulled myself into a crouch and whipped my pistol off its mag lock. In agony from his shattered rib cage, the minor held his chest while I aimed my pistol at his face.
“D-don’t sh-shoot,” the ugly, four-armed dytirc spat out.
“All you bonies do is bring pain to this galaxy, and I can’t just let that fly.” I shot him near point blank.
I took a moment to rest while my squad finished off the last remaining dytircs. Soon, the action slowed to a halt as the last of the enemy fell, and we had a moment to gather our thoughts. By now, my wound had slowly started to heal; yeah, I know, right? Wounds don’t heal this fast. I just happen to be the exception to that fine print rule. A decade ago, beings of significant powers and abilities were discovered; more accurately, I was the origin of that discovery - the first known ace in the ARW. Aces, that's what beings with attributes above the norm are called - and for me, it came with a handful of gifts I wanted to return.
I forced myself up and limped back down the stairs. We regrouped at the base of the landing pad. Uslar, who was hit even worse than I was, squeezed out each word as he tried to explain to Shadow-Walker how to patch me up.
“You rest up, Uslar. I’ll help James.” Captain Landis brought over some peric fiber.
“Hold tight, Captain. Use the ice spray instead. I want to be as mobile as possible, and peric fiber will only make the road bumpier,” I said.
“Alright. I don’t need to remind you how painful the spray is.” Kneeling down at my side, she pulled out a bottle of ice spray from Uslar’s bag. After aligning it with the third degree burns on my leg, she pressed down a few times.
“Ergh!” I cringed. Almost instantly, my third degree burns become only second degree burns.
Our squad had gathered around. Shadow-Walker was at Uslar’s side, helping him attach peric fiber to his wound. Narrisa and Valiic watched for more dytircs a few meters away.
After Captain Landis finished spraying the ice spray onto my wound, she announced to the group, “Alright, 1070, we're short on time. Shadow-Walker, protect Uslar and--”
She was cut off by an unknown voice hailing in through Shadow-Walker’s cyberwatch. “This is Kalvin Keefe, Director of the Order of Aegis,” claimed the unknown voice. “Our laboratory is plagued by dytirc invaders. I require an immediate extraction. This is a priority code 199 Rederick.” A code simply meaning to drop everything and do the following, a code only allowed to be used by commander-ranked and above, along with a few special individuals.
“How does he know that code?” Captain Landis asked herself. “Where is the Aegis Laboratory from here, Shadow-Walker?”
“You should be able to see it out of the back window of the left skyscraper.” He pointed at a flashing dot on the hologram map of the area.
“New plan. James and Valiic. You two make your way to the laboratory and clear a way for Kalvin’s extraction. Shadow-Walker, protect Uslar on this landing pad until an extraction arrives. Narrisa, you and I will continue with the mission and destroy the anti-air artillery. Everyone good?” She looked at us for questions. After we all nodded, we went our separate ways.
“Send over the beacon to my cyberwatch,” I instructed Shadow-Walker.
“Righty.” He swiped the location over to my cyberwatch.
The pounding pain in my leg calmed to a steady thumping. My accelerated healing worked its magic even though it would still take a few days to heal fully. Still, I was ready. Valiic and I jogged to the left skyscraper connected to the landing pad.
“I got some scaling bolts and a crossbow.” I pointed back at my backpack. “After our pilgrimage through the left skyscraper, I’ll shoot out a bolt at the Aegis Laboratory. Then we take a joyride down the zip line.”
“James, when you mentioned you have scaling bolts, I knew what the plan was going to be.” Valiic and I have been friends for a while. When he gets a bit sassy, I know he has something else on his mind.
Curious as to what he wanted, I said, “I can see you’re itching to say something else.” We entered the top floor of the left skyscraper.
“I saw what you did to the dytirc minor. He was clearly down and could no longer hurt anyone. This isn’t the first time this has happened either. Every time I see that look in your eyes when you pull that trigger, it scares me a bit. You are going down a path darker than any soldier should.”
His words took me aback. Nobody had questioned my choice to take out a threat, not even me. Never had I given it a second thought, at least for as long as I could remember.
Deciding I was making the right decision, I responded, “It may not be how the maelkii operate, but that's your meat to chew. I chose to end that bonies’ life. He was a threat, and I simply handed him his tombstone. Dytircs don’t care… they're merciless. Those savages crave battle, always sticking it to anyone in the way of their desires. It’s their way of life. Had I not taken the shot, the minor would have recovered and killed more innocents.” As I finished my point, we finished our path through a long hallway. I broke through a door leading to a maze of offices.
“I don’t believe that is up for you to determine.” Instead of dicking around and trying to find the right path, Valiic took the initiative and broke through each glass barrier in our way. However, the last office deceivingly hung above a common room two floors high. Needless to say, Valiic took a fall to the floor below and, with all his grace, barrel-rolled through lines of furniture and cubicles.
Knowing that wouldn’t hurt him, I couldn’t help laughing as I leapt down. I landed with my feet under me, sliding to a halt. “Need help getting up?” I joked while he got back to his feet.
"When you weigh over three-fifty kilograms, we will see how great you land.” He laughed back at me. Becoming a bit more serious, he spoke, “James, you are the lieutenant. What you choose to do is up to you. Just remember this: wars never have ended with more unnecessary violence.”
“I appreciate the gift of concern you're giving me, but I look at it like this: It’s us versus them. Simple.” We started heading to the opposite end of the long common room, which ended at the window where we needed to be.
“Only you could believe a war to be so simple.” Valiic shot me a haunted expression that faded away as quickly as it appeared.
“What can I say? I’m a man who knows what life pissed on my plate.”
“You’re a warrior, and you would have made an honorable maelkii. A bit edgy, but a warrior nonetheless,” Valiic said with a smile.
“Your compliment is appreciated. A compliment Narrisa probably wouldn’t share.”
“I’d say my opinion is the one that matters at this moment, seeing as how she hardly shares her opinions with you anyway,” he said with a laugh.
We reached the window at the back of the skyscraper. Suddenly, a thunderous explosion rattled through the halls. Glass shattered, and we covered our faces, taking only minor cuts.
“On that holy thund
er, I’d say Landis and Narrisa finished their mission. Now we finish ours.”
I pulled out my crossbow and loaded it. I shot the scaling bolt at the Aegis Laboratory and it burrowed into a wall above a window. Then I attached my end to the ceiling. After checking the cable for stability, I signaled for Valiic to go first. He hooked his massive shield to his back and pulled out a handle from a pouch.
“Maybe they finished their mission a bit too much. They must’ve destroyed most of the windows in the near vicinity,” he said.
Valiic laid the handle on top of the zip line with his left hand. While keeping his right arm inside, he attached his arm-sized plasma cannon to the other side of the handle and jumped.
Searching for my handle, I stumbled upon it at the bottom of my left pouch. “Explosives have a funny way of tempting Landis to overdo things. She loves a good bang,” I commented to myself.
Showing off a bit, I leapt for a boast and laid my handle on top of the cable midair. Early-night air began to settle into the area, blowing at me as I slid. Many starships, allies, and enemies filled the atmosphere with explosions and gunfire. It was a fireworks show on steroids. And with most anti-air plasma cannon in pieces, including the ones our unit was assigned to destroy, this battle should surely wrap up within a few hours.
At around two hundred meters in the air, the city’s picture seemed to sit still in my mind for the moment. A city like a coral reef; the architecture was the coral, vibrant in color and textured as if water had smoothed their surfaces for generations, and the jagged land that city rested on was the reef. But this city has received its share of scars from the battle today; plasma burns staining away spots of color while war’s cuts sliced away some of the skyscrapers’ structure, leaving rubble and fire. Somewhere deep in the middle of the city, our destination, was the Aegis Laboratory.
“Aegis Laboratory. Where some of the most advanced killing technology is created. The center of many groundbreaking discoveries. And it’s all bullshivf,” I said, thinking out loud.
Rough and blocky, like most human built buildings, the Aegis Laboratory’s black and gray color stood out amongst the bright qwayk structures like a single drop of black ink on a blank canvas.