by E J Gilmour
Michael quickly ascended the stairwell, holding his rifle ready as he progressed. At the top of the stairs they came to a metal door. Ajax, Ethan and Ivan pointed their rifles at the door as Michael heaved it open. Directly ahead of them was a large enclosed room containing a variety of factory machines. The power was out and the only light was the reddish glow which issued down from glass portholes in the roof. The main door was directly across the far side of the room.
‘Let’s go,’ whispered Michael. ‘Keep your eyes open.’
Michael was the first to enter. He made his way across the room to the door. They followed closely behind him. There was a small glass viewing panel which was only a few inches across and mostly covered in red dust. He peered through the glass; four aliens were standing in the open. They were all about five feet in height. Their heads looked too big for their bodies and their skinny legs bent forward at the knees. They were wearing silicone based synthetic alien war armour, which was a living suit that covered their bodies like an outer layer of skin; the suits were a few inches in width and dark grey in colour with a surface that looked like exposed flesh. The battle suits strengthened the aliens, increased their running speed, and could repel indirect plasma, particle beams or conventional projectiles. Each alien was carrying a standard alien plasma gun, which were highly advanced weapons with automatic targeting capability.
Across from the aliens was the entrance to the life support building. Michael knew they would have to fight if they opened the door.
‘Aliens,’ he whispered, looking back at the others. ‘We have to fight our way to the vault.’
‘Ready when you are, Cap,’ said Ajax as he pointed his rifle and armed the attached grenade launcher. The team lifted their weapons in readiness. Michael signalled and then pulled the door open.
‘Hello everyone!’ growled Ajax as he opened fire. A moment later all their rifles were blazing.
The scene lit up as the aliens attempted to take cover. Three of them were instantly killed, and the last leapt behind a pile of rocks. Within a second the alien started firing back. Streams of plasma whistled by. They took cover behind the edge of the door. Ajax returned fire, but the alien was safe behind the rocks. Dog-Two growled and charged forward, leaping over the rock. The alien screamed as Dog-Two’s massive jaw clamped around its neck, ending its life in an instant.
‘Come on,’ yelled Michael. He ran out into the open. Ajax and Cynthia followed, and the others were not far behind. Instantly they were surrounded by crossfire as more aliens were converging on their position. Ajax launched grenades in all directions as his rifle unleashed. Cynthia fired her rocket launcher.
Michael raced for the life support building door. Within a moment he had grabbed the handle, ripping it open. He turned to survey the scene. Dozens of aliens were advancing. Several blasts smashed into the wall beside him. The team, one by one, dashed into the life support building as Michael and Ajax fired back at the aliens.
‘Ajax, get inside,’ shouted Michael.
‘You first, Cap,’ said Ajax with a half-smile as he unloaded grenade after grenade.
Michael backed away into the building, and Ajax slammed the door as he followed. They were standing in a large room with a concrete floor. A stairwell led directly down to the underground levels. There were only a few metal boxes in the room.
‘Damn it! The door doesn’t have a lock,’ said Ajax. ‘We only have a few seconds.’
Michael turned to Aradel. ‘Hurry! Get to the vault.’
‘We have to go down the stairs to the lowest level. It will take me a couple minutes to open the vault once we arrive,’ said Aradel.
‘You could have told us that before,’ said Ajax as he loaded another magazine into his rifle.
‘I’m sorry,’ said Aradel.
‘We have to hold the aliens back until she opens the vault.’
‘I’ll hold them as long as I can,’ said Ajax. ‘Cap, we can’t return this way.’
‘Is there another way out of the building?’ asked Michael.
‘There is a service shaft with a ladder that leads up from the lower level and opens at the back of the building,’ said Aradel.
An explosion rang out and the door blasted off its hinges. Ajax fired into the opening. ‘Get out of here!’ he shouted and streams of plasma lit up the room.
Aradel dashed down the stairs and the others followed. Ajax took cover behind a large metal box and continued to fire out through the door. His rifle was blazing and every few seconds he shot a grenade through the open doorway.
The stairs took them down to the main sleeping quarters where they found another set of stairs that led into complete darkness. Ethan fired a flare into the lower level.
They made their way down and entered a large room with metal walls and a concrete floor. The room was full of boxes of supplies for the colony. Michael scanned the area; he could see the ladder against the right hand wall that led to the exit shaft. Aradel crossed the room to the wall at the far side. She placed her hand against the metal and nothing seemed to happen.
‘The lock is connected to a hidden sensor in the wall,’ she said. ‘I have to hold my hand on the wall for sixty seconds without breaking contact. It’s the only way to release the lock.’
They waited; the seconds dragged by.
Michael’s wrist-com beeped. ‘…Cap, they’ve taken out the entire wall. I can’t hold them much longer. This place is as hot as hell…’ said Ajax.
‘Fall back to the stairwell,’ said Michael.
‘…I’m trapped behind this damn metal box. They’ve got me hemmed in. I can’t break cover…Leave me…I’m not getting out of this one alive…’
Michael turned back toward the stairs and loaded a fresh magazine into his rifle. A surge of adrenaline rushed through his body.
‘I’m going back up there. Once you free the colonists get up the ladder and contact Sara to extract you. Don’t wait for me.’ He lifted his wrist-com. ‘Ajax, I’m coming to get you.’
‘…Cap, I’m hit. It’s really bad. I’m losing blood…’
‘Just hold on.’
CHAPTER SEVEN
Cynthia and Dog-Two followed him as he ascended the stairs. He glanced back over his shoulder.
‘Cynthia, leave this to me. Go with the others.’
‘I don’t want to leave anyone, not even Ajax. You’re going to need my help carrying him,’ she replied firmly.
Michael stared into her eyes for a moment. ‘All right, Cynthia, but don’t be afraid when the time comes.’
‘I’m not afraid,’ she replied.
‘All right then, follow me.’
They ascended the stairwell and reached the level above. Michael quickly climbed the second stairwell and held his rifle ready.
He reached the top of the stairs and could see Ajax crouched behind a large metal box. He was bleeding from a wound in his upper chest and another just above his right knee. He was still clutching his rifle and firing back at the aliens. The entire front wall had collapsed and several aliens were firing from outside the building as others were advancing on Ajax.
Dog-Two growled and bared his teeth as Michael dashed around the corner. He opened fire as Dog-Two charged across the room and brought down one of the aliens. A small rocket exploded beside Dog-Two, sending him flying back across the floor and crashing heavily into the far wall.
Cynthia sprinted toward Ajax and grabbed his arm.
‘Come on!’ she yelled as she lifted him up off the floor. He held on, his arm across her shoulders, as she heaved him back toward the stairs. Bright streams of plasma blasted past them. The gaping wound above his knee was preventing him from walking on his own. His face was pale; he had lost a lot of blood. His head was hanging and he was struggling to keep his eyes open. Michael headed back toward the stairs as Cynthia helped Ajax down the stairwell. Dog-Two followed. They reached the level below.
Michael lifted his wrist-com. ‘Ivan, are you still in the building?’
‘Damn it.’ Michael held his rifle ready and waited.
‘What are you waiting for?’ asked Cynthia.
‘We can’t climb the ladder. The aliens know about the shaft. The only way out is the way we came in.’
‘But there are too many aliens!’ she said. ‘We don’t have time. Ajax has lost too much blood! He’s losing consciousness!’
Michael could see the shadows of the aliens entering the stairwell. He closed his eyes and remembered back. Vivid memories of his home world flowed through his mind. Epheria Prime, home of the Epherian Emperor, the prize of the Epherian Empire, and the first world to be colonised in the Triangulum Galaxy. He was standing at the height of the imperial palace at the centre of a large circular terrace which was made entirely of white marble stone. The bright blue sky glowed above.
He was only ten years old. Standing not far away from him was a tall and strong man wearing a long black cloak. His head was entirely bald, his face angular, and his skin was dark brown. His strong and dark eyes were staring down at Michael.
‘You must always seek the silent place in your mind,’ said Gereon. ‘A time will come when an endless calamity will descend on the galaxy. I will teach you to return to the silence. In the silence you will find the answers.’
‘Gereon, why must I learn such things?’ he heard his young voice ask. ‘We don’t need the Lore of the Ancients. It has been more than twelve thousand years since humanity arrived in the Triangulum Galaxy. Surely the End Machine would have found us by now. The machine will never come. These lessons are a waste of time.’
‘A waste of time you say,’ said Gereon, looking sternly down at the young boy.
‘Yes, nothing but a waste of time,’ repeated Michael, proud of his own certainty.
Gereon turned his back and took several steps away. ‘The End Machine has not forgotten us. One day it will come and when it does everything will change. It took little more than a year for the machine to destroy every human world in our former galaxy. Humanity had no answer. One day someone will have to stand against the machine; the Council of Ancients knew this. You, Michael, must accept your place in the cosmos; you must learn the Lore of the Ancients as it was taught to your ancestors. If you refuse the day of destruction will come and all you know and love will be taken from you.’
‘But why can’t I use the power now? You teach me these skills, yet you tell me to keep the power to myself.’
‘Your powers are very dangerous. Your power, if misused, would one day corrupt you. The Lore of the Ancients requires you to keep your powers hidden until the day the machine arrives in our galaxy, and if the machine does not arrive in your time then you, and the next teacher, must pass the Lore of the Ancients to your descendent. The Lore of the Ancients was developed for one reason: to defeat the End Machine. You can only use your powers to save yourself if there is no other way.’
Michael suddenly opened his eyes and returned his attention to the stairwell. The aliens were approaching. He lowered his rifle.
‘We can’t give up!’ said Cynthia.
‘I’m not giving up,’ he said as he focused.
Three aliens came into view. Michael stared into their dark eyes as they made their way down the steps. They stopped in their tracks and pointed their weapons directly at him, but they didn’t fire. For a moment they watched him. The walls began to tremble and shake as the dim light in the room flickered.
Cynthia watched Michael as she held Ajax who had already lost consciousness. She thought her mind was playing a trick. Michael appeared to be transparent. The light in the room was passing directly through his body. The floor was vibrating and the concrete walls were shaking. The aliens stood frozen in place and were transfixed by Michael as he stepped toward them. They stepped back and fired their weapons. Michael disappeared from sight and reappeared directly behind the aliens. He grabbed one of them by the neck and the creature screamed in horror as its life force drained from its body. He cast aside the dead alien and turned to face the two others. They dropped their weapons and ran for their lives.
One of the aliens let out a shrill scream. Michael raised his hand and the hideous creature reached up and grasped its head in pain. It fell and tumbled down the stairs. The other alien suffered the same fate a second later.
Michael disappeared again and reappeared where he was originally standing at the bottom of the steps. The light returned to normal and the walls stopped trembling.
‘We have to go,’ he said as he helped Cynthia lift Ajax off the floor.
‘What did you do? I saw you disappear. The aliens, they’re dead!’
‘They’re not all dead; only those inside the building. Cynthia, don’t speak of this to anyone,’ he said as they ascended the steps with Dog-Two following closely.
‘But what happened?’ she asked. ‘That was impossible.’
‘I can’t explain,’ he answered as they reached the top room. Michael lifted his wrist-com. ‘Sara, we need an extraction.’
‘…I’m just taking off at the south side of the settlement. I’ve taken some heavy hits from the alien mobile artillery gun, Captain. The electronic shield is less than fifteen percent. I have to stay back; otherwise they will destroy the ship. I’m sorry, Captain, you have to get clear of the settlement before I can extract you…’
‘We will have to fight our way out. Do you have a preferred landing site?’ he asked stoically.
‘…On the south side of the rocky hill. Near where I dropped you off…’
‘I’ll contact you when we get there.’
Michael turned to Cynthia. Ajax was unconscious on the floor. He knew that they wouldn’t be able to carry him out of the settlement and simultaneously fight the aliens, and he could see that Ajax would not survive long enough to reach the outskirts.
‘We have to leave Ajax behind,’ he said. The words were painful to say, but he knew that there was no other way.
‘But he’s not dead yet, Captain, and there is no way I’m leaving anyone behind! I would rather stay here and die with him!’
‘We have to go.’
‘Can’t you use your magic? I saw what you did to those aliens. You can save us.’
Michael lowered his eyes. ‘I already took a great risk doing what I did, a much greater risk than you can possibly understand.’
‘What risk? You saved us once. Save us again! Captain, please!’
Michael closed his eyes and silenced his mind. He looked into time and space and could feel the darkness was drawing nearer. He could sense the End Machine was searching for him. It was reaching out across the galaxy. Using his powers had sent a signal through the stars. Using them again would be like shining a light beacon in the night and would surely reveal his location. The machine would descend on the entire region and hunt him down. He wasn’t ready for such a fight; he had never finished his training. His mind was weak compared to the incredible power of the End Machine. The End Machine had been searching for him ever since the day he was exiled from the Epherian Empire. Hiding his powers was the only way he could hide himself.
‘Cynthia, close your eyes. Don’t open them until I say. You will feel intense pain, but it won’t last.’
‘What are you going to do?’ she asked in a low voice.
‘I will save us,’ he replied sternly. He lifted his wrist-com. ‘Sara, take the Out Drifter as far as you can away from the settlement.’
‘…Captain, I’m still planning to collect the three of you…’
‘Go, Sara. That’s an order. Go now or the ship will be destroyed.’
‘...But, Captain!...’
‘Sara, you have to!’
‘…Yes, Captain…’
Michael lifted his right hand and the tips of his fingers began to glow. Beams of bright light blasted o
ut in every direction. He concentrated and could sense the entire environment surrounding the building. His mind expanded further and he could see the aliens were preparing to attack with heavy rocket launchers.
He strained with all his might as he began converting matter into energy. He closed his eyes as a shockwave of raw energy was unleashed throughout the settlement. Cynthia screamed and felt the pain as he drew her, Ajax and Dog-Two into another spacial dimension. The entire settlement became an inferno. A flash of blinding white light ripped apart the life support building and all the surrounding buildings. The nuclear inferno instantly incinerated the aliens and their weapons. Everything was on fire, and a massive shockwave spread outward from the settlement. For at least a minute they were surrounded by intense heat and flames; but the flames, radiation and raw energy passed directly through their bodies without causing them any harm. They were like ghosts in a horrific scene of fire and smoke.
Michael held them back for as long as he could. He strained to the limits of his strength. He then had to release them as he couldn’t hold them back any longer. They transitioned back into normal three-dimensional space and waited among the ruins as the residual radiation and heat scorched them. Cynthia opened her eyes and looked around at the scene of destruction. Plumes of smoke rose up from the ruined settlement. Everything around them was on fire. It was a scene of utter devastation.
‘Sara,’ he spoke as his vision was fading.
‘…Captain, there has been an explosion. Are you all right?...’
‘The aliens are gone. You can safely land the ship. Come and get us.’
CHAPTER EIGHT
‘What happened down there? Were you carrying nuclear weapons?’ asked Ethan.
‘I wasn’t,’ replied Michael as he sat up.
Ivan had been treating their injuries in the cargo bay since they had been collected from the blast zone. He was using the handheld skin refabricator to treat their burns. Ajax had been placed in deep sleep as the available medical equipment was not able to treat his severe injuries and could only prevent him from dying. They intended to take him to the nearest advanced medical unit as soon as possible. Ethan had an injured left arm which was covered by an advanced wound dressing. The wound dressing released painkillers whilst nano-bots worked on subduing the bleeding and healing the damaged tissue.