by John Walker
“No!” Sadila shouted. “No! No! No! No!” She appeared over Deilna. “Are you okay? Can you hear me? Look in my eyes if you can hear me!”
“I… can…” Deilna nodded. “Just… my arm.”
“Okay, I’ll look.”
“Wait.” Deilna stopped her with her good hand. “Order our people… shoot for the… the weapons.”
“The weapons?”
Deilna nodded. “Might damage them. Cause them to stop the fight…” She glanced back at the open field. She could barely see their adversaries through the bushes. Their attacks caused a fire on the opposite side of the path. As flames consumed the low trunks, the soldiers began to advance while attacking. “They’ll… you have to…”
“I’ve got this,” Sadila replied. “Weapons! Aim!” She hustled to cover, hesitating a moment as she lined up a shot. She pulled the trigger. Sparks flew in the air. Deilna winced as she watched one of the soldiers drop his rifle. He went for his sidearm. Someone got him in the hand.
That gave him pause. He danced away, holding the impact point. Another slapped him hard, gesturing for him to move forward. He didn’t obey, dropping to his knee instead as he went for the weapon he dropped.
I didn’t even see it fall out of the holster. Deilna had been too intent on watching him react to the pain. Serves him right. If only we would’ve gone for helmets in that first pass. She knew they needed to make a second one, especially with the soldiers having already lost at least two weapons.
More went down. Additional firearms ruined by the assault. Sadila appeared above her again. “Hold on. We’ll be back soon.” She rushed away before Deilna could respond, calling for the others to follow her.
Deilna watched their charge. This time, they let out a high-pitched scream, drawing the attention of the soldiers on both sides. Sadila herself tackled the one going for his sidearm. They rolled on the ground, but she came out on top, driving her blade into the man’s throat where the helmet and armor met.
Others slammed into other men, bringing them to the ground in pairs. As the ones on the opposite line directed their attention to bring down their attackers, Sadila rolled away half a second before a blast would’ve taken her. Instead, the shot tore away the knee of the man she’d been sitting on.
The women rose again, charging away. This time, they drew their firearms, harassing their opponents. Another of the priestesses went down… then another. Sadila made it to the opposite side alone. There are only three of us left.
Deilna took stock of their adversaries. Four left standing. The others had been taken down. I’m… very impressed. She drew her weapon with her good arm. The left went numb, to the point she could no longer feel her fingers or shoulder. Every part of her screamed to look but she refused.
I can’t see my arm missing right now. Deilna took aim, closing one eye to focus. She pulled the trigger, a clean miss. Shifting a little to the right, she fired again. This time, she got her opponent in the back of the arm just above the elbow. It fouled his shot, making him blast wide.
That opened him up for one of the others to take out his weapon.
We’ve… done enough, Deilna thought. There aren’t enough of them to keep going. Sure enough, the soldiers remaining fled, leaving their dead behind. Or at least, mostly dead. One continued to wallow. He’ll be done soon enough. Pain rushed back as if her arm waited for the combat to finish.
Sadila and Ghina appeared beside her. Both women crouched. They pressed their hot hands against her face, checking her pulse. One hissed though Deilna couldn’t tell which.
“I know,” Ghina said. “I—”
“Don’t,” Sadila interrupted. “Deilna…” She leaned over her, looking her in the eyes. “You’re bleeding again. Badly.”
“I… am cold…”
Sadila nodded. “That… that makes sense.” Her voice went tense, coming out too fast like she feared a tremble. “You… are going to be fine.”
Deilna chuckled. The effort rewarded her with a shock of agony. “You are not as good at that as you think.”
“You should’ve let me tell her,” Ghina whispered.
“Yes… you could’ve made that story seem true.”
“Don’t be like that.” Sadila sighed. “We’re getting you back to the tunnel. And this time, you’re going to…”
“Be reasonable. Make sense. There are three of you left, correct?” Deilna squinted to see them. Her vision turned blurry. “You cannot be weighed down by me. Take the weapons that work and return to Haulda. Give them to him. His people… they will need… need them. I…”
“Deilna!” Sadila shouted. “Don’t you dare do this to me! We can get you back! We can do it right now!”
“We can’t,” Ghina replied. “Between that shot… and even if we did… look, it’s going to… to come off if we move her. She’s… I’m sorry, Sadila. But you…”
“Ah…” Deilna nodded. “You are in charge. Do right by us, my sister. Be the leader you were meant to be. Take us through the final act of faith.”
“But Deilna!” Sadila wiped at her cheeks with quick, angry gestures. “Ghina, leave us alone for a moment. Now!” Once they were alone, she leaned close. “I’m not ready! I don’t believe the way you do! I don’t!”
“I didn’t when I was your age either.”
“So what did you do? How did you…”
“I believed in my forebears. My sisters. I looked at their eyes when they…” Deilna winced, crying out. “Oh… wow… that…”
“Just stop.” Sadila touched her cheek. “It’s okay. I’ll… I’ll figure it out.”
“Take from your sisters what they believe, and you can do no wrong.” Deilna felt exhaustion wave over her, competing with the pain. “I… it must be close.”
“Yes.” Sadila kissed her forehead. “I love you, my friend.”
“Always… returned.” Deilna closed her eyes. “Go. You do not have time to mourn. Or wait for this to pass. I will be fine with my thoughts.”
“I’ll tell Haulda…”
“It will be nothing he doesn’t already know.” Deilna slumped. Her muscles quit working. Her breathing hurt. Every function wanted to stop. Only sheer will kept them in motion… something that would end momentarily. “Good… bye…” She drew a deep breath through her nose, letting it out with a shiver.
Her chest did not rise again.
Chapter 8
Ermil and four other men surrounded a doorway leading into one of the hangars. The pirates made it to their destination with at least two starships inside. Neither of them had started up yet. Their engines remained cold according to scans. The fact no one left them on standby made it likely they were not operational.
Probably in the middle of maintenance when we attacked. That drove off the repair crews, and now they’re sitting on two lumps of metal totally useless to their escape. Chances were good even if the engines started they wouldn’t be capable of plotting a warp course before the Kahl destroyed them.
“We’re in position,” Ermil said. “Commander Kivda, the criminals are contained in a lifeless hangar. They’re trapped here. My opinion is we should remain on guard until our reinforcements arrive. Wait them out. There’s no point in—”
“I want you to get at least one prisoner,” Kivda interrupted. “The rest you can kill. We need additional information about the data we’re here to find. Do your task. We are waiting for you to make your move.”
You have no idea what you’re asking. Ermil generally believed in Kivda’s instructions. Perhaps I should blame General Renz for this stupidity. He looked at the others around him, the final remnants of his unit on the station. Some of these men, if not all of them, are about to die. And it’s over something avoidable.
Ignoring an order meant the same thing as rushing in to die. The thought made bile jump to his throat. His sweat turned cold. After all the times he’d faced death on the battlefield, this one bothered him the most… brought him the most intense fear he’d encountered. An
d it all came down to how pointless it felt.
“You heard him,” Ermil said. “We’re taking this hangar. When the door opens, we’ll do a visual sweep. Scans are cluttered, meaning we have plenty of cover. Don’t take unnecessary chances. Always put something between you and them. Our numbers won’t matter when we start putting them down. Here we go.”
Ermil popped the door himself, pressing against the wall to get an angle on the entrance. No pirates milled about in the open nor were they near their current location. That gave them some breathing room to get inside. Piles of junk offered the best cover, though he would’ve preferred some cargo containers.
Unfortunately, those were scattered about from the attack. These idiots don’t lash anything down. It’s incredible this place remained aloft. Ermil led the way, hustling to the nearest pile some eight feet into the door. He panted, struggling to catch his breath as his heart raced in his chest.
“Hey,” Kivda said, “your vitals are off the charts right now. You need to calm down. Take a deep breath or whatever you have to do.”
Thanks for the talk. Ermil didn’t bother to reply. He turned to the door, waving his hand for the others to join him. They hesitated. At least I’m not the only one with misgivings. He gestured again, emphatically this time. It brought two of them out… then the others close behind.
The first two of them made it quickly enough. The next kicked something, a metal part of some kind. It made a metallic clang from his boot then floated off toward the bay doors. Both were currently closed, though in normal operation, a forcefield would’ve been in place for ships to come in and out.
Another problem the pirates have to overcome, Ermil thought, right after they deal with the noise announcing our presence.
Blue flashes started the fight. A beam caught their last man, one in the side with another taking him in the chest as he jerked to the side. Ermil popped out of his cover, taking quick aim at the source of the flickers. He pulled the trigger with the intention to lay down some cover fire for the others.
The scene erupted into a full-on battlefield. Metal turned molten in their cover, and the walls glowed red. Of the two ships, the enemy seemed to congregate around the one in the middle of the room. Ermil understood why. Debris from the floor above crashed down on the other, crushing the engines.
They must not have known how bad it was down here, Ermil thought. Or they wouldn’t have bothered. In fact, I’m surprised they haven’t fled this room too. Even with superior numbers, a fight wasn’t worth it to them. They didn’t have body armor. Any shot might be fatal. As if to prove the point, the HUD showed two blips went dark.
Two of the dots went for the door. Ermil rose, leading the nearest target. He got him in the shoulder. While the blow made the target stumble, he didn’t stop. The magnetics in his boots did more damage, twisting his legs when he started to fall. One of the two bent the wrong way.
His companion kept going without even looking back. He made it to the door before one of Ermil’s put one in his back.
There are still eight more in there! And we need a prisoner. Additional enemy blips appeared on the HUD coming from the hallways they fought in before. He counted five more, moving at a moderate pace. We don’t have much time before this gets utterly absurd. “We’re about to be flanked!”
“I see that,” Kivda said, “hold your position. Reinforcements are nearly there.”
“They aren’t on scans!” Ermil shouted while tossing a couple blasts at the ship. He nearly took another hit to the gut. It came so close he swore his armor must’ve been singed. He dropped down into a crouch, edging away toward the edge of the junk for a different vantage.
“You’re doing a great job,” Kivda replied. “It’s only a final push and you’ll have them. Stay firm, Ermil. That’s an order.”
As if I thought you were making a suggestion! Ermil fumed, leaning to the right to open fire again. Another of his went down, bent unnaturally by the way their boots held their feet firm. It looked like their back snapped, their head touching the floor.
“We are being torn apart!” Ermil shouted. Oh, there’s no point in standing here. He disengaged the boots, lunging toward the next bit of debris for cover. Blasts chased him; a couple led too far in front. He returned fire, taking at least one down with some lucky aim.
His head and shoulder slammed into a chunk of metal which stopped his momentum. If he would’ve missed it, he would’ve continued on to the doors. Wait! That gives me an idea! His boots pulled him to the deck. He made sure he wasn’t easily visible before turning to his computer, tapping quickly.
Power in the room had been restored. The pirates got that far at least. Ermil tapped into the admin control then ordered it to open the bay doors. A red light flashed overhead as the deck trembled from the massive chamber opening up. He winced from the light of the star, not nearly as distant as he thought, casting light into the hangar.
Having the door open presented an escape opportunity. If the fight became overwhelming, if the five enemy soldiers hit Ermil’s flank, he and whoever survived might throw themselves into space. At least then they’d have a chance at rescue. Staying to fight the overwhelming odds would be suicide.
“We’re seeing the hangar doors open,” Kivda said, “are they escaping?”
“No, sir.” Ermil returned his attention to the fight. He looked up in time as one of the pirates drew near, far too close in fact. When he moved, they jumped. Both of them lifted their weapons, pulling the trigger.
Ermil felt a wave of agony rush through him from blow to the knee while his opponent took one in the gut. The man bent, letting his weapon slip from his grip. He knew he wouldn’t be walking with that attack. At least I can still escape… and the fact I’m still alive proves the seals remained intact.
But that wouldn’t last long. He slapped at the injury, putting out small flames circling the impact point. Every blow churned his stomach, making his head spin with nausea. Vertigo followed. He ducked back into place, leaning against the debris while taking slow, deep breaths.
I’m going into shock. The HUD confirmed it. I have to… fight through…
“Ermil!” Kivda shouted. “Report! What is happening over there?”
The other pirates came into the room. They opened fire, taking down the remaining people in Ermil’s unit. He disengaged the magnetics on his boots, shoving himself with his good foot toward the exit. As he floated out, the pirates didn’t even pay him any mind. They went back to work on the ship, and he drifted.
Scans showed additional Kahl forces coming down on the room, but they wouldn’t arrive before the pirates dug in again. It’ll all be for nothing. Much like what I just went through. Practically died just to make a pointless push. We should’ve had overwhelming numbers… what are they worried about?
He figured he’d never know. As he engaged his distress beacon, he closed his eyes and let himself drift from consciousness. Possibly for the last time.
***
Kivda slapped his console. “Damn!” He stood to pace, glaring at the floor. “We pushed too hard, Renz. I knew I should’ve waited!” All eyes fell on him. He never displayed so much emotion on the bridge, rarely revealed a temper in private with others. This situation frustrated him. “How are they so lucky? How are there so many?”
“Relax,” Renz said, “we’ll get them. They must have something good if they’re willing to fight to the death like this. Whatever they’re hiding, we’ll find it. Take it. And then it won’t matter what just happened.”
“Those men relied on me!” Kivda shouted. “And I kept at them, putting them in a situation…” He stopped himself. Some self-control returned as he remembered where he was. “My… my apologies everyone. I… I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” Vhel said, “we’re not happy about it either.”
“Those men did an excellent job,” Renz added. “Now, we’ll stand on their distraction to finish the threat.” He gestured to the viewscreen. “We have a number of
forces converging…” He paused. “What’s happening on the planet?”
Kivda checked the reports. “Locals continue to harass our people. We’ve killed hundreds of them, it seems, though I suspect the reports are fabricated somewhat. They seem to be massing at a ruin. That is probably where we’ll find our quarry though it’ll take our people some time to get there.”
“Can we not hit it from the sky?”
“No one’s there yet,” Inda replied, “I’m monitoring the situation right now.”
“Also,” Kivda added, “we want prisoners, remember?”
“Yes, yes.” Renz waved his hand. “I hate that we’re forced to become captors. It’s inconvenient to say the least. Muster our forces then so they can sweep in and finish off whatever threat they have in there. If they want a straight fight, I’m happy to give it to them. Make that work.”
I’m glad I have you to throw this sort of thing around. Kivda rolled his eyes. These natives are strange. With their projectile weapons and blades. They seem like savages, but I have a bad feeling about their efforts. He wondered about their backup; the support they were supposed to receive. It would be nice to have more soldiers.
“Uh…” Inda stood. “Commander Porth… I’m picking up a warp signature incoming.”
“Big?” Renz interrupted. “Our ships?”
“Negative,” Inda said, “energy readings are consistent with Prytin ships.”
“What?” Porth stepped in now. “How big? How many? What’s the configuration? What can you tell?”
“Not many,” Inda replied, “certainly less than five. Though they’re still some ways out.”
“I’m confirming,” Vhel added, “our ships will not arrive for some time yet. But they are drawing close. Just not enough for us to pick up on scans like that. Unless I’m mistaken, Inda?”
Inda shook her head. “No, sir. You’re correct.”
