The Reclamation and the Lioness

by Robert D. Armstrong

  I chuckled, easing the ship out of the hangar. “I know you’re special, Xena. Just follow my lead,” I said. Truth be told, Xena wasn’t like the other Keltons. If the androids had superheroes, she’d be superwoman. She could pilot and fight in her battle armor at the same time in two different places. I’d seen her do unbelievable things. Imagery of her taking down an android destroyer almost singlehandedly flashed into my mind.

  “Xena, from now on, we refer to this vessel as Eagle One and the other freighter as Eagle Two for communication purposes. Got it?” I asked.

  “Understood,” she confirmed.

  “Hey, Leo,” I said over my shoulder.

  He peeked around. “Yeah?”

  “Do you feel comfortable riding in the other freighter? You know, just so we have Legion presence aboard both ships?” I asked.

  He raised an eyebrow. “No, not really. What the hell could I do anyway? I can’t fly it if things go wrong and there’s too many of them onboard to mount any defensive front alone,” he said, lowering his voice.

  “Right,” I said. It was a fair point, but I thought having him onboard would serve as a deterrent. I wasn’t sure why I was so cautious about these androids since they allowed themselves to be destroyed to preserve the nomads’ safety. How were we any different?

  I turned toward Xena. “We have a few android sentries at the Legion. Sylass left them to help us with security. Is there any way we can establish comms with them to find out what’s going on?” I asked.

  “Searching... Those androids are locked in sentry duty and obeying orders from Legion knights. I can relieve them of their duty and—”

  “No, no, that’s fine. Keep them working. Are they all still operational?” I asked.

  “Yes, Captain,” she replied. This was a good sign. I sighed loudly. Maybe it wasn’t as bad as I thought.

  As my freighter edged away from the ship, I immediately blasted upward. “Let’s maintain three thousand meters. It’s a short trip,” I said. I couldn’t get the thought out of my mind of what Luther was doing. It seemed like I spent most of my life wondering what he was doing.

  I glanced into the cargo bay and noticed the androids swaying back and forth while holding onto the ceiling-mounted handles.

  I turned toward Xena. “Think the androids are ready?”

  “For what?” Xena asked.

  “The Mave,” I replied.

  Xena paused. “As far as I know, there is very little combat data on android and Mave engagements. For what these androids lack in speed versus the Mave, they make up for in intelligence and weaponry. But we must also acknowledge the numerical advantage. We have no idea how many Mave are imbedded within the Legion. It could go either way, Captain,” she said, staring back at them.

  “Too bad we don’t have an army full of Xenas instead. Then we wouldn’t have any worries,” I said.

  She paused. “That is too bad. The more Xenas, the better,” she replied, staring out her side window.

  Nearly a minute went by without any of us saying a word. Then Xena straightened up in her seat and looked over at me. “We’re getting close to the Legion, aren’t we?” I asked.

  “Captain,” she said.

  “Yes?” I asked. She looked back out of her window.

  “I have a visual on the southern entrance to the Legion. By my calculations, there are over twelve hundred Mave, maybe more, surrounding the entrance,” she replied.

  Leo entered the cockpit. “There’s a lot of them down there, Victoria. We need to rain down hell on them! Now!” he said excitedly.

  “Hold on. Do you see any knights or civilians mixed in with the Mave? Are they engaged?” I asked Xena.

  “Negative,” she replied. This was our chance.

  “The Mave are just standing there. They’re not doing anything,” Leo said.

  I glanced at Leo before looking over at Xena. “Order our gunner to target the Mave closest to the entrance! Do it now! Eagle Two is trailing right behind us. Order them to man their onboard gun turret immediately. Get them in the fight!” I shouted as flashes of light strobed in the cargo bay from the laser turret.

  “They’re taking heavy fire and scattering!” Leo shouted.

  I engaged autopilot and maintained a hover. I stood up because I wanted to see it for myself.

  “Oh my god,” I mumbled. This was worse than I imagined. There were so many of them.

  “Eagle One is engaging. Eagle Two is approaching now. Both vessels are now engaging the hostiles, Captain. We’re inflicting heavy causalities on their forces,” Xena said. She wasn’t exaggerating. The Mave were doing everything in their power to flood inside the Legion.

  “Again, focus on the entrance! Do not let the Mave seek shelter inside. Tell the gunners to force the creatures into the open ground,” I directed.

  “Done,” she said. Eagle Two had eased in front of us slightly and was about eighty meters away. I saw the laser turret gunner opening fire as his weapon swiveled back and forth to acquire targets.

  Both guns were aimed down, scorching the Mave. Steam funneled into the air as cybernetic bodies sizzled and melted into the snow.

  The remnants of their human clothes would often wisp into the air as the breeze caught them. It was like watching children use two massive magnifying glasses to burn thousands of insects.

  “That’s it! Kill them all!” Leo shouted, looking over Xena’s shoulder and outside the glass.

  Tens of Mave were killed per second as they attempted to pile inside the Legion with one final push, but they were caught in a crossfire from our ships and, now, the Legion sentries.

  At the entrance, I noticed several Legion soldiers shooting at the Mave. There was an android sentry Sylass left at the Legion out of good faith. It was the military variant that Leo and I saw before we left. It reminded me of a talking tank with laser rifles attached to its forearms. It was moving back and forth, firing into the crowd as it cleaned up the Mave that escaped our ships’ guns.

  “They don’t have a chance,” Leo observed as the android mopped up a few stragglers. After almost two minutes of firing down on the Mave, the entrance was littered with corpses and clothing. Clouds of steam vapor funneled upward fifty meters high and obscured much of the battlefield.

  “Xena, what’s the status?” I asked.

  “Scanning... No signs of the Mave detected,” Xena said.

  “Outside maybe. We have no idea how many are inside,” Leo replied.

  “Only one way to find out,” I said, pointing to the ground. “We’re disembarking. Keep Eagle Two flying in a circular pattern to cover us,” I ordered.

  “Understood. But, Captain, there’s one odd thing I noticed before we attacked,” Xena said.

  “What?” I asked.

  “The Mave. They weren’t moving on the guards near the entrance. They were simply holding their position, as if they were called off or awaiting orders. It was only when we fired on them did they rush toward the Legion,” Xena said.

  “I mentioned that earlier,” Leo said.

  “I’ve never witnessed the Mave idling before. They’re always moving quickly, especially when humans are in close proximity,” I said.

  “That’s a new one for me,” Leo said, staring at the snowy ground as we approached.

  “Initiating landing,” I said.

  “Roger that, Captain. Eagle Two is maintaining a circle pattern above us,” she replied.

  Snow and ragged clothes twirled up into the air as we descended. On the ground beside me I noticed melted remnants of cybernetic corpses everywhere. Limbs, heads, and torsos blackened and singed all around.

  “Victoria, look at the bodies,” he said.

  I looked up at him. “I’ve seen enough,” I replied.

  He gritted his teeth, staring out the window. “No, look at them again,” he said angrily.

  “What?” I gazed at the corpses.

  “These people were recently infected. Those bodies are barely decomposed. Look at their clo
thing. Their hair hasn’t fell out completely. Notice the fur. Those are Legion garments,” he muttered. As I took a better look, it seemed he was right.

  “Those were our people,” Leo said. Then I noticed two Legion sentries peering at us. Another guard was peeking around the corner. “Victoria, lower the rear gate,” Leo said, storming through the cargo bay.

  I looked at Xena. “Order the androids to stay here until we sort this out. Seeing this many androids dressed in battle armor might alarm the people further,” I said. I turned and started walking away.

  “Roger that. Oh, Captain.”

  “Yes, Xena,” I said.

  “I just had a thought. This is a similar situation to the first time we landed on Earth, here at the Legion.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked. I wasn’t sure how this was relevant now.

  “Well, with the unknown and all, we have no idea what has transpired beyond the Legion walls,” she said.

  I paused, staring at the floor. I was not in the mood to reminisce. “Xena, I’ll be right back, okay? Have the troopers and ships ready to deploy.”

  “Very well,” she said. I walked through the group of android soldiers. I felt nervous and queasy as I took the steps down the rear gate. I felt the chill wind hit me as my foot touched the crunchy snow.

  I stepped over dozens of Mave corpses as I made my way to the Legion entrance. I tried not to look at them, squinting my eyes so I could blur any of the details. I was afraid I would see someone I recognized.

  Leo had his back turned to me, talking to one of the guards about twenty paces away. The guard had a gas mask pulled up on his head. His thick brown hair was sweaty, and he had rings around his wide eyes. There were several other sentries standing at the ready as I approached. Most of them were looking at me.

  I stepped inside, peering down the dark tunnel. There were thousands of people standing in front of me. They appeared anxious and confused as they talked among themselves. I noticed dozens of people lying down on the ground. Many appeared to have various leg injuries, to knees and ankles mostly, that were wrapped in cloth. I imagined a mad scramble to escape the Mave.

  The guards continued staring at me as I stopped in front of them. A mid-thirties guard shot me a grim glare before he checked his rifle. “What happened?” I asked him.

  He chuckled, wiping some grime off his face. He had long red hair and a thick, bushy beard. I waited a few seconds for his response. “Hey, did you hear me?” I asked.

  “Look. We appreciate the air support, but don’t come strolling in here like you’re a fucking knight. We don’t have to address you because you carry that sword. You’re a recruit. We’ve been through hell protecting this gate and I don’t give a fuck what you did to get those androids to help us. You’re no hero. My heroes just charged into that tunnel against the Mave,” he said.

  I glanced down the tunnel before staring back at him. I started to give him a piece of my mind, but I realized it wasn’t worth it. He’d probably been awake for hours defending this gate and it was a waste of my time.

  I immediately turned my back on him and headed toward Leo and another guard. He slowly turned his head toward me as the guard in front of him stopped talking. “Does anyone want to tell me what’s going on?” I asked.

  Leo took in a deep breath and faced me. I wasn’t getting a warm feeling from his demeanor. “Leo?” I asked, looking around.

  “The Mave infiltrators found a way to let the Architect’s horde in. The Legion is overrun. Hundreds if not thousands are dead or infected, and they have Neona,” he said plainly.

  I felt my stomach knotting up as I bit my lip. “The Mave horde is inside the Legion. And the rest of the knights? Luther? Where are they?” I asked hesitantly, pulling off my helmet.

  Leo’s eyes glossed over. “The Architect forced the population here in a panic, including the knights. The Engineer was commanded to forfeit the population to spare their suffering. Instead, he and the remaining knights and soldiers took our passenger train back into the tunnel in a final act of defiance,” Leo explained.

  I gasped and closed my eyes for a moment. “And when was the last time anyone heard from Luther or any of his knights?” I pleaded, staring intensity at Leo.

  “Over thirty minutes ago,” he replied.

  “Dammit!” I shouted so loud my voice drowned out all the conversations in the vicinity. It echoed down the tunnel as a sea of faces stared at me. I panted heavily for a few moments.

  I put on my helmet. “Xena, can you hear me?” I asked.

  “Loud and clear,” she replied.

  “How far away is the larger group of androids marching here on foot?” I asked.

  She paused for a few moments. “ETA twenty-four minutes,” she answered.

  I sighed. “We can’t wait on them. Xena, I want you to order the androids from both freighters to link up with me in front of the Legion, now. Leave a gunner and a pilot in each ship and maintain circular patterns.”

  “Roger that. I’m routing sixty-seven combat troops to your location. What about me, Captain? Should I stay with the ships or come along?” she asked.

  “You think I would march into hell with a bunch of random androids and leave you behind?” I asked, staring at Eagle Two as it swung around in front of the entrance.

  “Not really. I just wanted to hear you say it,” she replied. Android troopers began to rappel downward two at a time on each side from an altitude of sixty meters.

  Leo blocked my view. “I found out why our communications have been down. The Mave infiltrators launched an attack against our connection hub first,” he said.

  “They went for the jugular in an attempt to confuse and divide us,” I said.

  “Well, they succeeded, if you ask me. Now, what are you doing? You look like you know what needs to be done. Care to fill me in?” Leo asked.

  “We track down Luther and his knights first,” I answered.

  Leo arched an eyebrow. “Victoria, are you suggesting we send these android troops into the Legion to hunt Luther down when they could be protecting these innocents instead? What if there’s another attack?” he asked.

  I pointed at the ships. “Each of those freighters has a gunner and a pilot. The population will have air support. Not to mention, hundreds more androids are marching this way to back them up,” I explained.

  He narrowed his eyes at me. “I understand this is an emotionally charged situation, but going after one man is not—”

  “Not just one man. Luther has his knights with him and I shouldn’t have to explain to you the value of that one man, either,” I interrupted.

  He stepped close to me. “No, you don’t, but I shouldn’t have to explain to you the value of a knight to his or her people. The population is our responsibility, no matter what, and we swore to defend them. Remember your training,” he said, pointing his finger at my chest.

  I nodded slowly. “I’m not a knight, remember? Not yet. So until then, I’m doing what I’ve always done: I’m trusting my gut and instinct. If Luther falls, it’ll crush morale and the Legion will be in complete disarray. If there’s a chance he’s still alive, he’s worth it,” I said.

  “To you, especially,” he said. “It’s worth the risk to you. Not even the Engineer would want you to do this, and you know it,” he added, looking me up and down as Xena approached.

  I nodded. “Well, if it makes you feel better, stay here,” I said.

  “Hold on. What makes you think you have the authority to speak to me like that, Knight Recruit? You’re a pilot that’s training to be a knight, so technically, I’m in charge,” he declared.

  “Okay. Fine. Are you going to order me to stay here, Knight Leo?” I asked, lowering my voice as I stared into his eyes.

  Leo paused for a few moments, panning around the tunnel. He sighed loudly and shook his head slowly. “I want you to wait for the rest of your androids to arrive to protect the innocents. Then we go on a search and rescue mission.”

 
“There’s no time!” I shouted.

  Xena stepped beside me and Leo. “Knight Leo, I overheard some of your dispute. Let me be clear: I take orders from Captain Belic, and that means these android troopers are under her command. Whatever she says goes,” Xena said, locking eyes with Leo.

  Leo shook his head and shrugged. “Thanks for the clarification,” he said.

  “Any time,” she replied, standing tall with confidence.

  Leo raised his eyebrows and bit his lip. He held his stare at me. “Victoria, at least leave us with half of the android troopers on those ships so that we can ensure the people’s safety,” he said.

  I turned toward Xena and nodded. “In addition to air support, let’s station thirty-five troopers with Knight Leo to help defend the population in case there’s another attack.”

  “Roger that, Captain. The troopers are making the way into the tunnel now,” Xena informed me. It wasn’t that I didn’t care about the population; I was just confident that air support could handle any threat without the aid of the android soldiers stationed nearby.

  I glanced at Leo before looking at Xena. “Let’s fall out,” I said, turning away from Leo as I hurried into the tunnel.

  Xena and I led out in front, wading through the civilians on our way toward the pitch-black tunnel.

  “Hey,” Leo said, stopping me.

  “Yeah?” I turned around.

  Leo clenched his fist at his heart. “I hope you find the Engineer and my brothers alive and well, and I also hope you’re doing this for the reasons you say. If so, for the Legion,” he said. I returned the gesture and turned away from him. I didn’t think his strategy was way off base and I understood that was protocol, but I didn’t agree with standing around and waiting for Luther to sort things out. If the Architect was in the Legion, Luther was going after her and he needed all the help he could get.

  He was worth the risk and I felt confident about it.

  The crowd parted ways as I stepped through. Many seemed confused by the fact that thirty something androids were following behind me. “These machines are here to assist us in reclaiming the Legion. No need to worry,” I said, raising my voice. I repeated myself several times.