by Richard Fox
The cacophony of gunfire coming from the streets below was interspersed with deep whoomps as the counter-grav tanks fired. MAC’s drones were tracking thirty separate tanks, all moving to converge on the Network Control building, along with several hundred resistance fighters following in each one of their paths.
The attack had been swift, and judging by the sheer size of it, this was the resistance’s last desperate stand against the Triumvirate. This was the last time MAC would ever have a chance to access the Control Center and possibly his last chance to reconnect with the Triumvirate’s spy. If he hadn’t been discovered already.
“Aero-fin test cycle, complete,” MAC said. “Calculate vectors, CID.”
Working. Several blue course trajectories appeared on MAC’s optical display, giving him multiple flight paths to adjust from. Your plan is…zzzzt…interesting.
“It’ll work.”
If you say-say so.
“Power levels?”
All-all systems are within acceptable levels.
In the street, two tanks lined up and fired simultaneously, sending two identical orange beams of energy into one of the guard towers surrounding the Control Building. As the tower exploded in a brilliant flash of orange and yellow, the blast wave ripped through several ranks of Netherguard that had been near the tower, sending mangled bodies flying.
A Netherguard fighter banked abruptly, angling down to engage the tanks. It let loose with a barrage of fire, stitching orange bolts of energy down the street and through the armored vehicles. The chassis erupted under the fire, sending shards of plating spinning away. The blast knocked several Ultari fighters to the ground and pinned one between two abandoned cars.
At the head of an advancing column, Gruldal and Alcorg lifted rifles above their heads and roared. They charged forward, hundreds of fighters at their backs. Gunfire mixed with halberd fire as the street became a battleground.
“Initiate launch sequence,” MAC said. He moved into position, several paces from the edge of the roof.
Initiating.
Six Ultari shuttles appeared overhead, angling down toward Central Control, their side hatches open. Single-barrel pulse lasers stuck out from the passenger compartments, each manned by two Ultari. They opened up on the Netherguard, chewing through the ranks as they banked around the smoke billowing up from the guard tower.
MAC ran forward, then kicked off the edge, launching himself into the air. The thrusters at the small of MAC’s back fired, propelling him forward as his aero fins twitched, adjusting his flight path to match one of CID’s projected trajectories. Additional widgets appeared on MAC’s optical display, giving him estimated flight time, speed, and altitude. A flashing red square appeared, indicating his target location.
Another Ultari shuttle weaved around several towers to MAC’s right, its image reflected in the mirrored glass as a flash of blue and red. Its engines screamed as it raced forward, keeping pace with MAC.
Warning.
“I see it,” MAC said. “Reroute additional power to the thrusters.”
Drone One enhanced the image, zooming in on the crew-served laser cannon pointing at him through the shuttle’s open hatch. The Ultari at the controls was pointing and shouting something MAC couldn’t hear.
The power readout flashed as the additional power pushed MAC forward, climbing higher. The Ultari fired, sending bolts of energy streaking through the air just behind MAC’s feet. He flared, rolling to the left, then diving abruptly. He spun, bringing up his arm, the pulse cannon already folding out of its housing.
“Lock Drones One and Two,” MAC said as the targeting icon flashed.
Locked on.
“Fire.”
Both drones fired simultaneously as MAC fired his pulse laser. All three blasts converged on the shuttle’s engine nacelle, cutting through the lightly armored housing and ripping through the components inside. The engine exploded, sending the shuttle rolling into the side of a building, smashing through steel and glass as flames and smoke poured into the air.
A second shuttle appeared through the cloud, banking sharply around the buildings, cannon already firing, illuminated tracer rounds zipping through the air. MAC rolled left as warning alarms sang, bringing his arm up to fire.
The shuttle exploded before MAC could lock on, becoming nothing more than a churning ball of fire dropping from the sky
That was not anti-anti-anti-aircraft fire, CID announced, flashing alert warnings on MAC’s optical display. Tracer lines drew themselves to a flight of two Triumvirate fighters, making a wide turn to the south, angling to come back for another pass. At our current…zzzzt…speed, the Triumvirate fighters-fighters will intercept us eight millicycles before we-we-we reach our-our-our landing area.
“Push the thrusters past redline.”
They are already operating-operating at one hundred twenty-five percent of normal.
The lead fighter leveled off and fired. Streaks of green energy shot past MAC’s shuttle, singeing the air around them. “Push them to one hundred thirty percent.”
MAC’s optical display flared with color as the power level increased. He considered twenty-seven different escape vectors before flaring his aero fins and veering right, then he twisted on his side and shot through the gap between two office towers, shattering glass in his wake.
Operational systems are-are in danger of overloading…zzzzt…
“Overload them, then.”
Drone One, high above him, watched as the fighters attempted the same maneuver and failed. The first one took the turn too wide and clipped the edge of the building, the impact sheering off its left side wing and sending it spinning to the right, crashing into its partner. Both fighters exploded, sending streamers of flame and debris into the surrounding buildings.
Recalculating, CID said, adjusting MAC’s new heading.
MAC turned back to his target, his optical display clear of further threats. The Triumvirate forces were now completely engaged as the Ultari resistance pressed the attack. Hundreds of fighters exchanged fire on the streets as counter-grav tanks continued to bombard the defense forces. There didn’t seem to be an end to the Netherguard’s reinforcements. The Triumvirate’s army had been streaming out of their staging areas for almost five microcycles now, with no sign of slowing.
As he neared the landing zone, MAC flipped over to touch down feet first. His thrusters fired just before impact, but their effect was negligible. He crashed through with a loud crack, filling the air with dust as he shot into the building. He landed on a knee, denting the floor, every aero fin extended, the red glow of his thrusters glowing off the dust and walls around him.
We are in, CID said.
MAC stood, retracting the fins and deactivating the thrusters. “Thank you,” he said, hoping the Triumvirate would think his impact was simply a destroyed aircraft crashing into the building. MAC stood and moved to a security door. As he pressed his palm against the panel, CID examined the device.
A double-key cypher-cypher, CID said. I am…zzzzt…bypassing the Network intrusion detection software and-and-and sealing the unit off from the rest of the system-system. I will have-have…zzzzt…the encryption managed in…
The lock clicked.
Inside, a metal staircase led down to a gangway that stretched across a maze of large clusters of cooling fans, pipes, and mechanical access panels. Four circular pools held crystal-blue water, flowing through insulated pipes down into the lower levels of the building. The room was lit by several hanging light panels and floating counter-grav illumination orbs.
CID accessed the system and said, The water-cooling system is-is-is feeding a cluster of mainframe-frame cores two…zzzzt…levels down.
“Release remaining drones.”
Six drones shot out from their cradles on his back, automatically spreading out through the vast chamber, mapping the structure’s interior.
Another door led them to another stairwell that brought them down to the server room two lev
els below the cooling room. Drones One and Two continued down the stairwell, searching for threats, as Drones Three and Four examined the security door and surrounding walls for countermeasures.
CID connected to the door’s security locks. Intrusion detection protocols on this-this-this section are significantly…zzzzt…more intricate than the previous one.
“Can you bypass?”
The lock clicked.
Can I-I-I bypass? This primitive system-system…zzzzt…is barely worth-worth my time.
MAC ignored him and slipped through the door. Central Command’s mainframes hummed incessantly inside as rows and rows of server towers stretched out through the entire space, all connected by large clusters of multicolored wires and thick cables. Thousands of lights flickered within the recesses of the towers. A wide, empty aisle stretched away from the room’s rear entrance, bisecting the space. An oval holo table situated in the center of the room displayed the flickering image of Ultar rotating slowly above.
No additional security protocols-protocols.
“And a distinct lack of operational personnel,” MAC said, moving toward the central holo table.
Perhaps they-they are concerned with other…zzzzt…more pressing matters at-at-at this particular time.
MAC stopped at the table, putting a hand on the edge. Protected interface routines sequenced with the terminal’s operating system, adjusting to the computer’s specific code and language. “Can you—”
Already working. Internal systems identical to-to-to the…zzzzt…Ultari Network we’ve infiltrated previously. I’m detecting-detecting new data code not previously…zzzzt…encountered. The new code appears to have been added recently.
“Focus on the new code. Isolate and copy.”
There appears to be-be-be a secondary Network connection embedded in the new code…zzzzt…An outside connection not available through-through normal network access-access. The…zzzzt…triple-key cypher is protected with rotating-rotating encrypted algorithms. It will take-take approximately one hundred sixty-seven microcycles to map out the…zzzzt…rotation and another ninety-eight microcycles to crack-crack the cypher.
“Do it.”
MAC watched the drone feeds as CID worked. Outside, the Netherguard were pushing forward, engaging the Ultari despite their own heavy losses. Triumvirate fighters and Ultari shuttles swept back and forth across the battlefield, raining down fire on the two armies. Rockets streaked through the air, buildings exploded, warriors died.
I have located-located several security feeds…zzzzt…of the orbital engagement.
Four additional visual displays opened on MAC’s optical display, showing him the battle above Ultar. Warships engaged in fire at point-blank range in a chaotic fight where it was difficult to determine friend or foe. A massive hauler exploded, the brief fireball illuminating several ships around it. The feed zoomed in as the hull spread apart, tracking several thousand frozen Netherguard corpses floating into the void.
The remote cores contain-contain huge amounts of…zzzzt…interesting data, CID said. I will not be able-able-able to process it all-all here.
“Dump it all. We’ll sort it out later.”
I have located several segregated files-files-files, protected with several layers-layers of…zzzzt…additional encryption.
“We don’t have a lot of time, CID.”
I have-have located data on a previously unknown species-species. One called…zzzzt…human.
“Origin?”
Unknown…Processing…The files-files-files indicate they appeared in-in the Segamos System.
Data on the system populated across MAC’s optical display. “An exclusionary system?”
Correct.
Another panel appeared, showing MAC several images. The metadata in these-these images…zzzzt….zzzzt…indicates they were-were taken on the barren world of Negev. A collage of images appeared and disappeared—male and female workers, dressed plainly, obviously relegated to forced labor under the supervision of the Netherguard.
“Zeis?”
I don’t believe-believe so.
A video clip appeared, this one of a well-dressed human stepping down from a small platform, motioning to a squad of Netherguard. The soldiers saluted after the human finished speaking, then turned and left the man alone.
“Why is that human ordering the Netherguard around?” MAC asked.
I have found…zzzzt…several references to-to-to Diasore in a separate data cluster-cluster, CID said. Extracting now.
On MAC’s optical display, armies of Netherguard marched through the streets of Diasore, moving to surround DIN Central. Archduke Cigyd led a group inside, ignoring the destroyed Regulos battle droids and servitor units strewn around them. The footage followed the Archduke through the facility, to the vault where the Node was secured.
If the Triumvirate has gained access to our-our-our Nodes…zzzzt…the entirety of our security-security protocols could be in-in jeopardy.
“I know.”
****
Jared landed in the midst of Ultari, slamming down against the pavement, sending a ring of dust out around him. As he straightened, everything seemed to come to a standstill for several moments as the resistance fighters regained their footing. Several roared, while some looked to their comrades next to them, obviously not wanting to be the first to attack.
You’re not wrong, Jared thought, scanning over the Ultari. There were well over a thousand Ultari resistance fighters in this wave, a small portion of the total force of five thousand pushing the attack against the palace. It was a hell of a last stand.
An energy blast slammed into Jared’s armored shoulder, knocking him back a step as his suit’s targeting system identified his attacker. He turned, raised his hand, and fired. The blast tore through five rebels. They were dead before their bodies hit the ground.
A tinge of regret leaked into Jared’s mind as the Ultari charged, rallied by the deaths of their companions, but he couldn’t afford to spare them today. He pushed off the ground as three Ultari lunged for him, spinning as several more lifted their rifles and fired. Twin energy beams shot from his palms, cutting through several more, drawing dark scars across the pavement.
A warning tone sounded, the targeting system in Jared’s suit identifying a new target entering the area. A red line drew itself around a counter-grav tank, floating out from behind a row of shops at the far end of the street, the turret already turning to engage.
“Shit.” Jared kicked off, igniting his thrusters and launching himself into the air.
The tank fired, sending a bolt of orange-red energy streaking through the air, barely missing Jared’s boots. He twisted around, bringing both hands up as his targeting systems locked on. He fired, sending two identical beams streaking through the air. They smashed into the tank, shredding the vehicle’s armor and ripping it in two. As the beams cut backwards along its frame, the engine exploded sending several resistance fighters flying.
Another alarm sounded, but this time, the alert didn’t have anything to do with Jared’s current fight. A display panel appeared in the corner of his visor, showing him security footage of something crashing through Network Control’s roof. The isolated feed switched to the interior cooling platforms, where a modified Regulos infiltrator stood scanning the room.
“Finally,” Jared said, sending power to his thrusters as several bursts of rifle fire bounced ineffectively off his armor from below.
He rocketed away from the battle, heading toward another.
I hope I’m right about this, Jared thought, speeding through the air. He wasn’t surprised the Regulos had infiltrators on Ultar. The Founders’ servers had multiple accounts of captured droids that had been discovered by the Prefect squads. It was obviously no friend of the Triumvirate; the only thing left to decide was whether or not they could work together to bring Kyrios to his knees.
He engaged several Ultari shuttles on the flight between the palace and Network Control, giving
the impression that he was simply engaging multiple fronts simultaneously. He could always make the argument that the Netherguard around the Network building needed additional backup. In the chaos, he doubted either Zviera or Cigyd would bother checking his story.
He hoped anyway.
Five minutes later, he touched down on the roof, scanning the crater the infiltrator had made. Network Control’s security protocols were all linked, and with the unlimited access he’d been granted to hunt down resistance fighters, Jared had been able to reroute most of the alert notifications to him. He deleted the security footage and cycled the current feed to hide the infiltrator and himself from any prying eyes.
His suit connected automatically to the building’s security systems, unlocking doors for him as he made his way to the server room. He’d cleared these floors of any personnel after Kyrios had taken the Network off-line.
The security door unlocked as he approached, and as he stepped through, his suit’s targeting system automatically identified the infiltrator standing at one of the access terminals.
Please, let me be right.
Jared activated his suit’s secure communications link as he spoke, hoping the droid would understand. “You’ve made a mistake.”
Chapter 19
Carson and her team were back in the shuttle, along with Benit and Jena and Obison, some of his aides, and a small security team. The shuttle’s passenger cabin, which had seemed expansive during their flight out of the jungle, was now as cramped as a combat Mule loaded with Strike Marines. They all sat facing each other, with some of the security team standing near the back.
Obison stood just outside the cockpit hatch, a hand pressed against the ceiling for balance. He rocked with the motion of the shuttle, frowning. “Jena, please. You don’t have to do this. Why not wait until your father returns? He will know how to make this all right. He has the ear of the Conclave. They will listen to him.”
