Ariah screamed in frustration and fired one blast of organic plasma after another. Kalian had reprimanded them multiple times for allowing their emotional state to interfere. It was the opposite of what Savrick had encouraged. The light from the plasma was blinding, but Kalian didn’t need his eyes to keep track of the others. Vox was teaming up with the sisters, Nadreen and Nardel, while Larna, the fastest of the group, was sprinting towards him.
He had precious seconds before they all descended on him, leaving him little time to deal with Ariah and her super-heated plasma. Every ball of energy was easily deflected, allowing Kalian the time he needed to focus on her exosuit. Telekinetically, he detached a section of the nanocelium from her exosuit, separating sections from the Harness underneath and disrupting the suit gave her. Ariah panicked. Without the exosuit she was likely to bring the entire valley down on top of them, not that Kalian would ever allow that to happen, but the thought of it was distraction enough. By the time she had the nanocelium under control again, Kalian was planting his fist into her chest plate with enough power to knock her out of the fight.
Nadreen and Nardel attempted to block Kalian’s line of sight, preventing him from seeing Larna - she had picked up a dangerous amount of speed now. The sisters parted at the last second, giving Larna the space she needed to slam into Kalian and hopefully knock him down, scoring the group’s first win. Unfortunately for Larna, if her feet weren’t touching the ground, she couldn’t run anywhere fast. He had told her several times to ground herself in a telekinetic field, stopping him from lifting her off her feet. They were always just too eager to put him down.
Larna yelped when her legs flew out behind her, bringing her face to a stop within centimetres of Kalian’s. She floated there, stuck in his hold, for a humiliating moment before Kalian turned his palm down and flattened her to the ground, pinned. Nadreen and Nardel snarled, a mirror of each other.
“Ladies…” he baited.
The sisters pounced, their fists coming at him from every angle. Kalian pushed, pulled, and deflected every blow, frustrating the Gomar. Adding insult to injury, he took a moment, mid-fight, to turn to Li’ara and give her a cheeky wink. Nadreen growled and pushed out her palm, sending a telekinetic blast in Kalian’s direction. The wave collided with one of his own, creating an impact in the air strong enough to put Nardel on her back. Kalian twisted his hand and flicked her high into the air until he could kick the Gomar into Nadreen. Both sisters skidded across the desert in a tumble of limbs and curses.
“That’s it!” Vox screamed.
Showing little care for her imminent attack, Kalian casually turned to Felion, whose mind was still an open book, and commanded him to sleep. The Gomar dropped where he stood, oblivious to the world. This only served to enrage Vox even more, who was telekinetically ripping slabs of rock from the mountains and throwing them at Kalian. Every atom inside those slabs was just as alive in Kalian’s mind as Vox was herself. He could feel the vibration of the universe, the way everything was in constant motion, knocking into each other to form solid objects. He could also see how to make those atoms separate.
Every chunk of mountainside that came his way was reduced to harmless dust with the wave of a hand. Instead of changing her tactic, Vox listened to her rage and continued to launch slab after slab. Kalian strode towards her, his eyes locked on the Gomar instead of the giant rocks.
“Forget everything Savrick told you,” Kalian called. “Your anger isn’t going to serve you in this fight. The things that are coming to destroy us are legion. Your attacks will have to count if you’re to inflict maximum damage.”
Vox ceased her assault and fixed Kalian with a wicked glare. “How do you like this for maximum damage?” The Gomar scraped her hand across the vista of mountains and tore away the highest peaks.
Kalian whipped his head up to observe the approaching avalanche. “NO!” He looked back at Li’ara, who was jumping into the speeder’s driving seat. “Hold on!” he shouted.
The sheet of rock racing toward the valley promised death to them all, especially since many of the twelve were still lying in a heap. Kalian closed his eyes and raised both of his arms by his side, his awareness stretching out to make contact with Li’ara and the Gomar. As one, they all rose into the air, land speeder included. The avalanche passed under their feet by a few centimetres, filling up the valley floor with tons of rock and debris. Kalian flipped his palms up and the entire group rose higher into the air, where he directed them to the mountainside to the east, which had a flat top, offering kilometres of plateau.
When everyone was back safely on the ground, Kalian gave Sef the same disappointed look he always did at the end of their training sessions, only this time he displayed a little more frustration than usual.
I apologise for Vox’s actions, Sef communicated privately to Kalian. She put Li’ara in danger.
She put everyone in danger, Sef. This is the kind of bludgeoning attack that will get innocent people killed and make no difference to our enemy!
Kalian shook his head and took a breath. “None of you are connecting with the environment as you should be. You’re just tearing it apart and using it as a blunt weapon. Before now, you’ve fought against the Terran; a civilisation that hadn’t known war for millennia. The enemy we face now will not be so naive. They have been harvesting worlds for as long as there have been worlds to harvest. I need you all to think. There are places inside your mind where you can go and explore all of your options. You can build entire worlds inside there!” Kalian hammered the idea home by tapping his temple.
The communication array inside the land speeder disturbed his flow. Li’ara checked the display before standing up on her seat.
“The Rackham has just dropped out of subspace,” she explained.
It had been several weeks since Roland and Ch’len had left New Genesis with Naydaalan and the Paladin’s Raiders. Kalian was eager to discover the results of their combined mission alongside Conclave Security. It had taken some persuading to convince High Charge Uthor that they would be an asset to the Conclave, especially with all the chaos Roland North had caused in his time. Thankfully for the bounty hunter, most of his actions had resulted in a win for the Conclave.
“Let’s call it a day there,” Kalian said. “Heal your wounds and make your way back to the city.”
“You don’t command us,” Vox commented.
Kalian looked her in the eyes. “No one commands you anymore. Not Savrick, not me, and not even Sef. You all have to find a new way of living now, something none of you will achieve while you’re still wearing that armour…”
Kalian jumped into the speeder besides Li’ara and left the Gomar to think on his words. They were the twelve most powerful weapons against the hungry darkness that was coming for them. Kalian thought on every one of their training sessions and rubbed his head anxiously.
They were doomed.
2
Captain Li Fey couldn’t believe the reflection that looked back at her. In the privacy of her office, on the top floor of the New Genesis council building, Li pulled and poked at the skin around her eyes, trying to catch every angle of the light. With just over a century of life behind her, the captain knew where to find the web of crow’s feet around her eyes and at the edges of her lips. Having just crested middle-age, Li was comfortable with her ageing features and greying hair. It was a natural part of life, she thought, and what a life she had led.
But the woman looking back at her in the mirror was not over a hundred years old…
The lines were gone, the grey replaced with healthy dark hair, and even the veins on her neck and hands were less prominent. The captain closed her fist and squeezed, feeling a strength she hadn’t known for at least a decade. There was no denying it any longer; she was getting younger.
Li sat back at her desk, a floating semi-circle of holographic displays. She ran her finger up the orange hologram and brought up the file she had been keeping on the others. Twenty-six other p
eople, a mixture of UDC personnel and civilians, had complained of similar symptoms over the last month, though complaining was the last thing they were doing. Getting younger was never a bad thing. It was the potential cause of such a mystery, however, that bugged the captain.
The door to her office chimed, ending any further investigation.
“Come in,” she called.
Captain Jedediah Holt entered the room, smartly dressed as always. Li couldn’t help but examine his dark features and complexion, wondering if the two of them now appeared similar in age.
“Captain,” he greeted her with a wide smile.
“Captain,” she replied, going along with their usual introductions.
Jed laughed. “I think our time as captains is quickly coming to an end.”
Li slowly nodded her head in resigned agreement. “So you’ve read the latest data file from High Charge Uthor…” She tapped another section of her desk and the left-hand side projected the missive from the Conclave’s most decorated general.
Jed took a seat on the other side of the desk. “We are to formally dissolve any and all United Defence Corps operations and retire all personnel.” The younger captain sighed. “I suppose it was inevitable.”
“That doesn’t mean we have to like it,” Li countered. “Almost every other species in the galaxy has its own armed forces besides Conclave Security. Why can’t we retain what precious few soldiers we have?”
Jed leant on his knees, examining the holographic display. “From Uthor’s report, I would surmise that the Highclave believe we already have an army.”
Li sat back in her armchair and thought about that statement. “Kalian and the Gomar are powerful, but we can’t expect them to defend us all the time. It’s a big galaxy, bigger than the one we used to know. When this war really starts, it won’t be long before the Highclave realise that Kalian and the others need to be elsewhere, protecting other Conclave assets. I assure you, all it will take is another Vanguard to show up and their grounded status will be lifted.”
Jed offered a hopeful smile. “You managed to convince Uthor to let my Raiders and your man join them, I can’t see why a few more words from you won’t convince them let us keep our own forces.”
“That was for one mission, and Roland North isn’t my man. In fact, there’s a very good chance he’s made a mess of this combined task-force and ruined the entire operation.”
“I thought he had a pretty good success rate…”
“Yes,” Li raised her eyebrow. “It’s the price of his success that worries me.”
Jed looked beyond Captain Fey, to the spaceport on the other side of New Genesis. “Haven't they just docked?”
“Indeed. In fact, we should join the rest of the council soon and await their report.”
Jed’s eyes wandered to the holographic display still hovering on the other side of Li’s desk. “Are you still looking into that?”
Captain Fey tapped the desk again and closed the file down. “Yes. Our medical staff have reported that more people are coming forward with similar symptoms.”
“Do they have any idea what’s causing it?” he asked.
“They have a few theories but nothing concrete. I’ve been meaning to speak with Kalian about it.” It was one of many things she had been meaning to get around to. Along with only a handful of others, it had been Li’s job to figure out exactly how this new society would work, not to mention how it would fit in with the Conclave. “I’ve just been a little distracted by this integration project Ambassador Telarrek set up,” she explained.
“That’s actually what I came to see you about,” Jed replied. “A briefing centre has been established inside the spaceport now. Any new visitors to the planet will go through the welcome program that the council and Ambassador Telarrek agreed upon. Apparently there are aliens all over the Conclave signing up to either visit Evalan or live here.”
“Live here?” Fey echoed. “I don’t remember us agreeing to that.”
Jed held up his hands. “I’ve not long spoken to Telarrek. Apparently, you can’t live in the Conclave and not open your world up to all of its citizens. This might be our planet, but it’s also a Conclave planet… his words.”
Li frowned. “That sounds a little harsh for Telarrek.”
Jed sat back and shrugged his broad shoulders. “I think he’s under lot of stress. Since we became somewhat more established, it sounds as if he’s been put on to this new Starforge project. I think he’s being spread a little thin.”
Li swivelled her seat around and peered out of her curved window. At the end of the main street, a team of Ch’karan engineers were working with both human and Novaarian technicians to erect the Starforge. Sparks cascaded into the air and heavy parts were mobilised by robotic drones that moved about on one giant wheel, situated under their body. Soon, the Forge would be complete and instantaneous travel between worlds would finally be a reality.
“A team of specialist Shay engineers are being sent,” Li explained. “Something to do with… I don’t know, something technical with the Forge.”
Jed came to stand beside her, sharing the view. “You would think giving them this kind of technology would at least give us a seat on the Highclave. A land-based Starforge? This tech was beyond any of their reach before we came along.”
Li disagreed. “Before ALF came along,” she corrected. “He gave them Starforges to ensure we got this world. As far as the Highclave is concerned, we’ve already benefited from our side of the deal. Besides,” she added, “who would want to be on the Highclave? Five representatives for twelve races? Does that sound fair to you?”
“Thirteen races now,” Jed said.
“There are just over a hundred thousand of us, Jed. I don’t think we really count in a society of trillions.”
“We few have survived more than most, Li. Our voice will be heard.”
“That’s exactly what keeps me up at night,” Li explained. “After everything we’ve gone through, how much more can we push our luck?”
Captain Fey didn’t take in any of Jed’s reassuring words, her focus replaced with fear. She looked out on their new world, considering, as she always did, what might become of it. Not everyone in the Conclave was happy about their membership, but there were worse things out there than angry protestors. Somewhere in the dark of space, a threat loomed over them all. How many more times could humanity cheat death?
3
Kalian watched with great amusement as Li’ara flitted around their apartment, straightening cushions, laying out snacks, and preparing drinks before their guests arrived.
“What are you grinning at?” she asked, blowing a copper ringlet from her face.
“This.” Kalian held out his hands. “You. Everything that’s happening right now, it’s just so… normal. We have an apartment together.” He gestured to the large open balcony behind her and the view of New Genesis. “We’re having guests around for a party. After everything that’s happened, I didn’t think…”
Li’ara cuddled up next to him and planted an affectionate kiss on his cheek before her smile dropped into a serious expression. “Well, it is happening. So, it would be great if you could put those abilities of yours to good use for once and help me get this place ready.”
Kalian laughed gently to himself. “Sorry, I’m slacking. You do realise that the majority of our guests are Raiders and Gomar, right? Oh, and Roland! This place is a palace compared to what they’re used to.”
Li’ara didn’t appear to hear his comment as she poured Laronian Chit-Wix into a bowl. “Oh, crap! I forgot about Ch’len.”
Kalian counted the amount of snack bowls and food on display. “We definitely don’t have enough food…”
The sun was setting and an orange hue had settled over the city by the time the apartment had filled up with guests. Of the Gomar, only Sef, Garrion, and Larna had shown up. Kalian knew he still had a long way to go before he won them all over. The three mostly kept to themselves, out
on the balcony, away from the other guests. There was something odd about watching three god-like beings eat finger-sized snacks out of a bowl.
Li’ara subtlety tapped his leg, bringing him back to the guests in from of them. Roland strode into the apartment with his usual swagger, as if he owned the place, with Ch’len, Naydaalan, and the Raiders in tow. Along with four crates of Raalakian ale. Their meeting with the council had gone well, though Captains Fey and Holt were yet to turn up. In their absence, Roland had decided to regale Kalian and Li'ara with details from their mission.
“So how many Protocorps facilities have Conclave Security found?” Li’ara asked.
Ch’len looked up with a mouthful of food. “Who knows?”
Roland lounged back on the sofa with his feet up on the table. “They wouldn’t give us anything,” he explained. “We hit some not-so-secret base on Sebala. Resistance was high. They’re like animals trapped in a corner. We rounded up a few Protocorps egg-heads and handed them over to C-Sec.”
“C-Sec?” Kalian asked.
“Oh, yeah!” Roland replied with mock excitement. “In light of recent events, à la Vanguard, Conclave Security is rebranding. Now they’re the cool, hip C-Sec!” The bounty hunter laughed and took a swig of his ale. “Apparently, they’ve had a swell of volunteers from across the Conclave. Everyone wants to join up and kick ass!”
Mocking aside, Kalian was happy to hear it. “At least they’re doing something. They need to be ready—”
The Terran Cycle Boxset Page 131
