The Vanguard

by Jeffrey Ellis

  “I want you to start preparing for the arrival of our scientists. I also want you to start relief efforts where you can. Many cities are in dire need of help. Your people can heal. You can help with delivering food and supplies to dangerous locations. You can help subdue the violent and shield the defenseless. Go. You agreed to join us so do so. Join the world and help. We have other allies,” Chelsea told him.

  “As you command,” Absillion replied.

  “Now to Greece,” Morgana said.

  “Now to Las Vegas. We have some friends to pick up,” he told her.

  #

  “Bo, I need the sisters, Lumpy and Mew. I need them now. Tell them to get ready for a fight because we are leaving immediately,” Sebastian said.

  “As you wish,” Bo replied.

  He went down to the lower levels and came back a few minutes later.

  “They will be here in a moment. We have others who can help you,” Bo said.

  “I appreciate the offer but the number we can teleport is limited,” Sebastian replied.

  A couple of minutes later, the naga, strigoi, and ogre joined them.

  “Next stop, Camelot,” Chelsea said.

  #

  The group teleported into Camelot.

  “Brother Crusader, you're back,” Bobby said.

  “Sorry Bobby, no time for pleasantries. We're in a hurry,” Sebastian told him as they went into the castle.

  “Wait here,” he told everyone while he and Chelsea headed downstairs. They went to the vault and retrieved the staff and scepter.

  Once they got back upstairs, he got Bobby on the comm. “Brother Stone, get a communique to General Morrison and President Yassim. Tell them dragons are going to show up soon and start helping with relief efforts. They are not hostile and following my orders. They are not to be harmed.”

  “Dragons? Okay,” Bobby replied.

  “Now to Greece,” Sebastian said, and the group teleported out.

  #

  Bruce and Xavier led the group down the hall. Their pistols had recharged so they were drawn and ready.

  The hall was made of metal. The metal was old, it had long ago lost its sheen. The environment was uncomfortable. It was hotter than it was outside, the humans breaking a sweat almost immediately. The hall sloped gradually downward and grew darker as they went. There were no light sources, so they switched to their night vision.

  After another minute of walking, doors appeared on either side of the hall. They went in one and panels started glowing as they entered. The room was huge, easily a hundred feet on a side and dozens of feet tall. The area was lined with shelves and was full of scrolls and books. They were all very old, the paper yellowed and brittle. It was a library.

  “I recognize this tome,” Alexander told them. “It's a treatise on the healing use plants found only in a Persian oasis. The oasis was destroyed long ago. This was in my library, so were many of these other books.”

  “So, they salvaged the works before they destroyed the library. It looks like our speculation was correct,” Xavier said to the group.

  “We can worry about the books later. Let's keep going,” Bruce ordered.

  They continued down the hall going through several more rooms as they did so. They found works from numerous time periods as well as other methods of data storage. There were old reel-to-reel tapes, discs of several varieties, scrolls, nearly every method of information storage was represented.

  Alexander was in awe. “The knowledge contained here...lost magical secrets, biographical information, stories of kingdoms long lost, ancient knowledge, religions, it's value is beyond measure. Some of these languages I have never even seen. They must be dead and likely have been for thousands of years. I have always believed that knowledge is power. I believe we may be seeing the source of some of Mordred's power. If I ever have the chance, I will read everything here.”

  “Why are we being given free access to it?” Xavier asked.

  “It makes no sense. One wave of rhakshasa they should have known would barely slow us down and nothing since, it's like they want us in here,” Trish replied.

  Bruce and the team proceeded further down the hallway. The slope leveled out just above sea level. The doors, though open, were blast doors. It looks like military construction.

  “This is not what I expected,” Anna said.

  “Nor I. They have been busy. To construct this without anyone knowing was a feat. The amount of time and labor involved is extraordinary. Why does this seem so familiar?” Alexander asked.

  They continued along the corridor until it branched.

  “Which way?” Xavier asked Bruce.

  “If I had a coin I would flip it,” Bruce replied.

  “There's a panel,” Trish said as she pointed to a square indentation on the wall.

  “Let's see if it's active,” Xavier replied.

  Bruce walked over to it and pressed it. The panel slid back. A small screen illuminated with the name “UDB Salutis.”

  “What the hell does that mean?” Anna asked.

  “It's Latin. It means Salvation. I don't know what the initials are though,” William replied.

  “They stand for unified dreadnought battleship. It was one of my dreadnoughts in the Unification War. It was lost over the Atlantic to a fleet of Seditionist cybernetic saucers they had salvaged from the remains of Ricci's armada. I was told by Unified Command it was lost with all hands,” Alexander told them.

  “How did it's input panel end up here?” Bruce asked.

  “It's not just the panel. These corridors. This construction. This is the Salutis. I designed those ships. I know every inch of their construction but how it ended up here I cannot say. The rooms with the books are storage rooms for food and munitions. It's a massive ship and must cover a good portion of the island. If they've got this thing in working condition...GloCom cannot handle a dreadnought. They lost too much of their strength during the cataclysm,” Alexander told them.

  “What is a dreadnought?” asked Boudicca.

  “A flying battleship. They were used in World War Four and the Unification War to take out cities. They're heavily armed and armored. We cannot let this be used,” Alexander told them.

  “You built this?” Boudicca asked Alexander.

  “Not by myself but I did design it, with the help of the elf and others. It was a desperate solution to a desperate problem. We built ten of them and almost all were lost, or so we thought. The remainder were decommissioned after the Unification War,” he replied.

  “A dreadnought changes things. We have a new objective. Mordred can wait. We eliminate the threat of this ship. How do we do that, Alexander?” Bruce asked.

  “The easiest way would be to take out its engines. That's not going to be easy. We designed them to be a fortress from the inside and out in case of boarding,” Alexander told them as he keyed in commands.

  “We're lucky. They changed the command codes, but my backdoors are still open. I can get us to the command center and from there we can initiate an overload sequence. According to the reports, the entire ship is intact, repaired and fully operational. It's hidden underground but the engines are easily powerful enough to lift off. That same power can be overloaded and used to destroy the ship,” Alexander told them.

  “For lack of a better plan, let’s do it. Lead the way, Alexander,” Bruce ordered.

  Alexander led them through a series of corridors in the direction of the command center.

  “There is an observation room before the command center. The Salutis was a flagship. We added the observation room for politicians to visit. It's large, with a mostly open design for the dignitaries to use as a small forum. We moved the interim Senate here during the final stages of the war to protect them from attack. When the Salutis was attacked, the Senate managed to eject in the pods before it went down. The rest of us took fighters and escaped. The last I saw of it was the ship sinking beneath the waves in the middle of the Atlantic,” Alexander told them.r />
  “A large open area would be a great place to spring their trap,” Bruce told them.

  “Agreed. Unfortunately, this is the only access to the command center. To house the observation area, significant changes were made to the corridors. For the record, I was against this, but I was overruled. I wanted to move the Senate to a secure underground location, but they felt the greater mobility and defensive capabilities of a dreadnought offered superior protection,” Alexander replied.

  “Trap? What trap?” asked Trish.

  “Don't be naive, Trish. We had a small attack outside and then nothing. They're luring us in. They gave us access. They knew we would find that panel and they knew I would know how to destroy the ship's mobility. They decided our path and we walk it willingly,” Xavier told her.

  “Then we go another way. We cannot walk into a trap. The best way to avoid a trap is to know it exists,” she replied.

  “Yes, that is true, but we don't have another option. You don't realize the destructive power of this battleship. GloCom lost more in the Cataclysm than they publicly admit. In my meetings with Yassim, we talked about rebuilding their forces and their losses were extensive. They are at a fraction of their power, mostly fighters and a few capital ships. They don't have the resources to fight a dreadnought. We're the only thing that stands between this ship and the world,” Alexander told them.

  “Then we walk into what is likely a trap and probably die. Excuse me for being blunt but that's pretty fucking stupid. We find another way. I will not commit suicide. We have Serendipity. We can blast them from the laser base,” she told them.

  “Serendipity is out of play. Another thing I'm privilege to by being the head of MM is that the damage to the capacitors on Serendipity was not an accident. It was sabotage. The saboteurs were apprehended but Elam had a lot of people on the moon and the damage they did will take a lot of time to repair. They told me when they offered the contract to build the new capacitors. It will take more time than it will take this battleship to destroy what is left of GloCom and UniGov. We're it. We're the only chance this world has right now,” Alexander told them.

  “I can verify that. As acting Lord Marshall, I have received similar briefs. The Cataclysm and Elam's betrayal were bad. It hurt the military and government far more than they are admitting to the public,” Bruce added.

  “So, we walk into a trap and die? That still sounds fucking ignorant. We retreat. We gather the Vanguard and come back in force or if it's in the air, we teleport on it with our full strength and we attack,” Trish told them.

  “That sounds like a good alternative if this fails. Trish, I'm ordering you to put that plan in motion. Alexander, take her back to Camelot. Trish, coordinate the strike. Pull every resource you can. If Xavier and I die here, along with Anna and William, you're next in line. You'll be in command. Coordinate everything you can from GloCom. If they can dig up a nuke have them use it. The Vanguard is the shield against the dark and you'll be the one to wield it. Do your duty. Do I make myself clear?” Bruce asked her.

  “With all due respect, acting Lord Marshall, fuck you. I will not leave my friends to die in a suicide mission. If you're right and Mordred and the drebs are preparing an ambush, I will be there. Again, with all due respect, I'm stronger than you and so is Xavier. If anyone should leave, it's you. You have not just your duty as Lord Marshall, but you have a son who needs a father so if you tell me to leave again, I'll knock your ass out and make sure you need medical care, so you'll have to return and we both know I'm more than capable of doing it. Now, do I make myself clear?” she asked Bruce.

  Bruce looked at her and the rest of the group.

  “She's right, Bruce. You have a son and a wife. None of us have families,” Xavier told him.

  Bruce stared at Trish and Xavier then sighed. “I'll return. You're right. Xavier, you're in charge. Stop this bird from flying,” Bruce told him.

  “Alexander, if you don't mind?” Bruce asked.

  Alexander teleported Bruce out and a couple of minutes later returned.

  “We need a plan. I'm open to ideas. I believe they'll wait for us, but I don't think they'll wait forever so we need to move soon,” Xavier told them.

  “Illusions. We open the door and I can project several illusions of myself into the room as I did at Tokyo. Hopefully, it will get their attention and give us a moment of surprise,” Nefertiti offered.

  “Alexander, you called this an observation room. What does it observe?” Boudicca asked.

  “The sky. It's more of a meeting room. It's round with rows of chairs on several ascending balconies to hold sessions of the makeshift government during the Unification War. It has a large, domed ceiling covered in transparent panels. The panels will likely have their metal shutters closed since we're underground. They are strong but enough earth pushing down might crack or shatter them,” Alexander replied.

  “Alexander, you said the ship had full power. Does this ship have internal weaponry?” Xavier asked.

  “It does but not in the observation room. It was determined to be too risky to the interim government,” Alexander replied.

  “Can you open the metal shielding? If this is an ambush and Nefertiti's ghost forms or whatever they're called reveals it, could we open the shields and bring the mountain down on them?” Xavier asked him.

  “It could be done. It takes several minutes to retract. They were built to close fast, not open. If we do collapse them, it could block our only access to the bridge. There's another point as well. The panels are strong. They might not give way,” he replied.

  “I can handle that. I brought some motivation for breaking things,” Michael said indicating his pack.

  “That ceiling is over a hundred feet high,” Alexander replied.

  “I can get it there. Bruce has taught me well,” Michael told them.

  “I can get us through the earth. That won't pose a hindrance,” Boudicca told them.

  “Anyone have a better idea? If not, we go with it,” Bruce told them waited a moment.

  “Nefertiti, get ready to do your thing. Michael, prep your charges,” he ordered and gave them a moment to prepare.

  “Alexander, open the doors and get ready to open the roof,” Bruce told him.

  Nefertiti cast her forms into the room and a moment later, blasts of guns and spells could be heard.

  “Now, Alexander,” Bruce ordered.

  “No good. The panels aren't responding. I'm trying,” he replied as he rapidly tapped commands on the panel near the door.

  Once Nefertiti's forms dissipated, the fire focused on the door. The group ducked back around the corner and Alexander moved to a different panel, one out of the line of sight. They returned fire back at the door but without a clear target, it was just to discourage their enemies from coming close to it.

  “I can't tell how many there are. I saw numerous drebs and rhakshasa. They also have more of the ogres as we saw at Tokyo and the hound creatures. I could not ascertain if there were any others,” Nefertiti told them.

  “Alexander, any progress?” Bruce yelled over the firefight.

  “None. The motors on the shielding are receiving commands but not functional. They're either disengaged or non-functional,” Alexander replied.

  “We do this the hard way then,” Bruce told them.

  A large blast went off near them as a concussion grenade landed near the group. They were momentarily stunned but it didn't last long enough, and they shot several krinn as they came through the door.

  “Michael let’s use your charges. I want everything you have through that door. We'll use it as a surprise and enter the room. Get behind any cover you can and kill anything that moves,” Xavier ordered.

  Michael started prepping the charges.

  “I don't think this is enough to damage the ship, but it will still be a hell of a blast. Stand clear,” Michael told them as he activated the detonator and telekinetically propelled it through the door.

  A few seconds
later a blast went off. The fire back drafted through the open door. The fire singed some hair and caused a bit of ringing in the ears but otherwise did not hurt the vanguard. The Vanguard charged in, ducking left and right as they did so and getting behind the low walls in front of the ring of seats on the sides. The firefight intensified, spells, lasers and plasma flying from both sides. The Vanguard realized how badly outnumbered they were.

  They exchanged fire for a few seconds. Nefertiti turned and pushed William with a telekinetic blast, a plasma rifle hitting the spot he was standing in just a second before. As she took her attention off the fight a moment to save William, Nefertiti was hit by a blast of fire. She slumped over and didn't move.

  Trish was nearest to her and managed to reach Nefertiti. The woman was burned badly, much of her face and chest burned away. Trish checked for a pulse and found none. She looked at Xavier and shook her head 'no.'

  The section of chairs Xavier was hiding behind blasted away, shards of wood and metal piercing Xavier through his leg and stomach. He screamed in pain and dropped but was still moving.

  Several others had minor wounds. Michael had taken a laser to his left arm and it hung limp. Boudicca was reeling from a lightning bolt. Anna's mechanical arm was gone, and she was bleeding from several cuts on her face.

  Mordred walked calmly to the center of the room and walked to the podium the speaker would have used during interim Senate sessions. The opposing fire stopped, and the Vanguard turned their attention on Mordred. They hit him with lasers, plasma and every spell they could muster but nothing penetrated his shielding. Eventually the Vanguard stopped firing and the room was quiet and still.

  “Vanguard, you are losing. You fight bravely but this fight is over. Surrender and you will be treated amicably as prisoners of war. Your attempt was noble but ill-conceived. I do not desire your deaths only your supplication. Surrender and you can treat your wounded and mourn your dead in safety,” Mordred boomed out.

  “This ends now,” Alexander said.

  Faster than the eye could follow, Alexander leaped at Mordred. He was on him in a second, sword out and swinging. Initially, he pushed the younger wizard back and managed to drive his sword through Mordred's abdomen and pull it out again before anyone could blink. He would have had a killing blow, but Mordred managed to block the blade at the last second, pushing it downward at the cost of several fingers. Alexander was hit by concentrated blasts from numerous dreb battle mages and launched into the wall behind him. Alexander was bleeding and unconscious. Xavier limped over to him. The Macedonian was badly hurt but alive.