Wrathe had actually told me that privately at one point, when he’d told me that he convinced her to join the Phelb to put their army in place. And that he was very smitten with her.
It must have been weird, having a woman who could kick his ass and was a foot taller than him.
I matched her stare, and if looks could be electrified, we would have set the ship ablaze. We stayed like that for a very long, very tense moment. “You didn’t turn coat because you were being sent for court martial?” I asked.
“No.” She replied firmly. “I’d really hoped that Wrathe’s shuttle was going to blow me up, so I didn’t have to live with my mistake.”
I sighed and broke the stare. I picked up a different stylus from my desk and tapped it thoughtfully, pondering my own recent mistake. “The good thing about living with mistakes,” I said, more softly and meeting her gaze once more. “Is the living part, Duchessa.” I think that was the first time I’d used her first name since we were children. “I’m not a man of god. I can’t absolve you of your guilt.” I exhaled. “But you have lived under the shadow of guilt long enough. You are forgiven for your mistake. We are, although we are smarter, stronger, and faster, we are most certainly still human, and still capable of making the wrong choices.” I shrugged one shoulder. “Hopefully you’re over this feeling business.”
“As much as one can be.” She replied. “I did not marry Wrathe as a way to get over you,” She snapped, and it dawned on me for a brief moment that I’d said entirely the wrong thing. It had never occurred to me that a woman may need to ‘get over’ me. “I married him after I spent enough time with him to love him.”
I’m really, really bad at girls.
Not that I ever had issues getting female attention. Mallory and her ethereal beauty were evidence of that, and I loved her, but I loved her completely and I married her because I couldn’t envision eternity with anyone else. But sometimes I said really stupid shit.
“Yeah, I didn’t mean it like that.” I said. “But whatever. I am grateful that you commanded the Marauders the way you have, I’m grateful that you found someone to love in the middle of this fucked up…” I waved a hand vaguely at space. “Shitty, awful mess.”
Her icy glare shattered into the softer green eyes I remembered. “It is fairly awful.” She agreed. “Colonel, I would renounce my rank just for the chance to fight next to you, sir.”
“Venlent, ask Wrathe. I can’t demote you, but if the Council and Wrathe and Mallory,” I pointed at her. “Mallory in particular, approve, then I will welcome you back to my command.”
She nodded. “I will ask Admiral Valentine first.” She agreed. “Is it true that she is expecting?”
I grinned. “Yeah, a little girl.” I checked my watch. “A couple months more now. Hopefully we can get this war handled before then.”
She opened her mouth to respond when Antillon’s voice came over the comm. “Colonel, we’re live with the Shockwave.”
“We’ll be right up.” I said, rising out of my chair and picking up my rank insignia. I looked at Venlent. “General?” I said, indicating that she proceed me.
She shook her head. “No, Colonel.” Venlent said with a grin, and I noticed that she had left her rank on my desk. “I would prefer to just be a Lieutenant again, to work under you, sir. The Marauders have integrated fully and I’m less needed in the administrative role than I was a year ago.”
I shrugged. “Again, that choice is not mine. Until then, let’s go find out what the Shockwave found out there at the galactic boundary.”
We headed down the short corridor to where Antillon and the other Night Stalkers had set up a basic broadcast room. A dozen hastily rigged monitors hung from the overhead and were linked into a holographic display that would be patched into the same display from Shockwave, giving us a real time topographic map of the area where MacKenzie and his people were operating.
“Colonel?” A voice came over my earpiece. I was lost for a moment then I answered, “Kelis?”
“Yes, sir. Just testing our connection. Major MacKenzie suggested we check signal integrity before we begin.”
“Am I hearing you on a private channel?” I asked, sounding stupid for not the first time in my life.
“Yes sir,” Kelis chuckled. “We’ve landed on the surface of the planet, which we’ve designated as Atom, and we are advancing on a large structure that DV988 has informed us appears to be of Cetoplin in origin.”
“Copy that, Lieutenant.” I replied, accepting a different earpiece from Mallory so I could hear all of the team’s communication on the command channel. “Valentine to MacKenzie.” I said.
“Go ahead, sir.” Major Mac replied smartly.
“You have a green light to investigate the structure. Did our holographic friend give us any more information about the planet?”
“No, sir, only that we should investigate. He thinks they may have landed here when the corridor was first opened.”
“Copy. We’re watching your feeds, on your order, Major.” I said, standing with my back against the wall so I could get the best view of the monitors strung overhead. The ship activity would be Mallory’s domain, but I wanted to see each body camera on each of my soldiers as they investigated the structure.
“Captain Jones,” I head Mallory saying over the comm channel. “Confirm overwatch position.”
“Confirmed, Admiral.” Jones replied. “We’ve got the big guns aimed at the structure and we have aft cannons on the corridor. Unless there is something hiding out there, we can’t be ambushed.”
“Indeed,” Our Undulon companion said over the system. “You are quite well oriented for safety. However, we do not detect any cloaked ships.”
“Begin operation.” MacKenzie broke in. His body camera showed the dropship ramp lowering onto a sandy pathway framed by green foliage and a bright blue sky. It didn’t look unlike Earth at that moment, and I felt a little home sick for Vandor.
I watched carefully, my eyes scanning between different camera feeds as the operators swung their rifles back and forth, monitoring their designated sector. All of my operators were highly trained and functioned almost telepathically in small units. MacKenzie had four teams of five on the surface, to minimize casualties and maximize survivability if they were ambushed. I watched as the rear guard of MacKenzie’s unit captured the image of the dropship lifting off and circling around to provide targeting and overwatch for the dreadnought if fire support was needed.
Several tense minutes went by as they approached the large structure, and then a collective flinch went around as the large door swung open with a hydraulic sigh.
Behind the great door lie a simple desk that could have been called a reception area. A single long piece of yellow sandstone, polished and flat, and stark against the polished white floor. MacKenzie froze, and I spotted the body laying over the desk, almost as if its occupant had fallen asleep while working.
But as MacKenzie and his team entered the building and approached the desk, the humans, Blutencer and Undulon received the shock of a lifetime.
The body behind the desk was a Cetoplin.
And as the human soldiers approached, the body raised its head and looked directly at them.
---
Chapter Sixteen
Vandorian Carrier Shadow of Eternity
On Station, Planet Cesspool
“Am I hallucinating?” Mallory asked, her eyes wide and her face pale.
“No.” I replied, staring. MacKenzie was obviously stunned also because he held his rifle at the floor of the chamber and hadn’t moved.
No one moved. No one breathed.
“Hail Human.” Said the Cetoplin. It rose from behind the desk and blinked large eyes that were reverse to human, the iris was white, and the sclera was black as black could be. Their skin wasn’t the pinkish hue that humans were used to; it was a ghostly white color. Although weather that was from age and fatigue or simply their coloring was beyond me. “We have waited here fo
r many eons for you to locate us.”
“How are you alive?” I asked.
The Cetoplin smiled, showing very human-like teeth. “We are a very long-lived species. Many of us have died on this world, but a few of us remain.”
“You’re not extinct.” I said with wonder. Then it dawned on me that the alien had answered me as though I was standing next to him.
MacKenzie was edging forward with one hand out as the Cetoplin came towards them with an arm extended. I held my breath, half expecting another hologram, but it shook the hand of my executive officer and grinned broadly. “Welcome.” It said, then moved on to the next human and shook hands with that soldier as well.
“What the hell,” Mallory breathed. “Is this war becoming?”
“I don’t know.” I replied, looking over at the Undulon, who was as stunned as the human crew.
“U…First Class?” He asked, staring at the display. “Are you the first class that served with Shipmaster?”
“I am.” He replied, looking into the body cam of a soldier. “There are only a handful of us left.”
“Get them off the planet.” Jones broke in. “Now. Evacuate.”
The room kicked back into motion as human and alien alike jumped into action to analyze the next crisis.
“How long to get your people evacuated?” MacKenzie asked the First Class, with the others fanning around the Cetoplin and raising their weapons outward to defend against whatever the threat might be. “How long?”
The Cetoplin spoke into a device on his wrist. “They will be here within four minutes. There are fifty-two of us.”
MacKenzie nodded. “Captain, recall the other teams, I have all of the Cetoplin here.”
“Solid copy, Major.” She replied. “The corridor is opening, we have signals from the other side!”
“Oh no.” Breathed the Undulon. “The Meyges…”
“All hands,” Jones barked. “Battle stations. Prepare for combat against unknown forces.”
Mallory and I exchanged looks, and her expression were of devastation. She couldn’t reinforce Jones. “Councilors,” I said into the comm. “Please report to the situation room.” I turned to Mallory. “Order the fleet to converge on Human space.”
“What about Cesspool?” She asked. “We spent lives to take this place…”
“Fuck it!” I snapped. I didn’t usually give my wife orders, but there were times when you needed a decisive and strong presence in combat, and I had a feeling this was going to get ugly before it got pretty. “Get us out of here. We need to reinforce and restructure our defenses at Earth before the Meyges come through and we end up with another situation like we faced with the Gilbaglians.”
She hesitated for a half second then nodded briskly. “You’re right.” She touched a control. “Human fleet, this is Admiral Valentine. Return to patrol stations as previously assigned immediately. We face an imminent threat from an enemy of unknown strength. Return immediately.”
The captains of the fleet didn’t even bother to acknowledge, they simply fired their engines, turned and shot into subspace with flashes of antimatter in the green light spectrum.
I felt the deck of Eternity tilt slightly as it turned on the axis and prepared to depart for Earth. “Hold position.” Mallory ordered, watching the Cetoplin flood into view at MacKenzie’s location.
I watched as the Major directed the Cetoplins, who appeared positively ancient, and were, to the dropship for evacuation. He was about to turn and join them when a Cetoplin that was a full head taller than the Major, and probably taller than even I was, stepped into view, using a gnarled cane to counter a slight limp.
“Sir?” MacKenzie asked.
“Humans.” The Cetoplin, far older, far larger and wearing a black cloak around the jumpsuit that the others also wore, said softly as he limped towards the dropship next to MacKenzie. “I am proud to meet one of you.”
“You’ll meet many more, sir, we’re going back to Earth.” MacKenzie turned and looked around again, scanning for enemies. “Your name, sir?” He asked.
“I am Shipmaster.”
This made me take a literal step back, where I bumped into Advirdia, the councilor. She put a hand on my shoulder to steady me. This was the literal creator of Humanity. He had overseen the efforts to seed Earth with the biological compound that would, eventually become humans.
I looked at Wrathe, who stared open mouthed. This was, for all intents and purposes, God.
“Shipmaster, my name is MacKenzie, and I will personally be escorting you to meet our leadership on Earth. We have a long history it would appear, sir.”
DV988 broke in over the comm. “Shipmaster, this is your construct, DV988. Do you require medical attention, your eminence? The human ship has extensive medical facilities that will be able to aid you.”
“I am well.” The Shipmaster said.
Wrathe spoke suddenly into the comm. “Shipmaster…may I ask you a question?”
The bodycam of MacKenzie suddenly changed direction and angle as he took it off his combat vest and handed it to the Cetoplin. “Yes, human, we will have many questions and answers for each other, I expect.” The bony ridge on his brow furrowed and gave him a jovial appearance, he looked absolutely thrilled, the way my Grandfather often looked at my siblings and I, when I was younger.
“Sir…how old are you?” Wrathe asked. “If you are the one who really oversaw the…the creation…”
He laughed. “Cetoplins live long, child. But we will speak of this and other matters after we have made our escape from this world.”
Jones broke in once more. “Can anyone tell me how we can close this corridor?” She asked.
“It cannot be closed by your vessels,” The Undulon said. “You do not possess subspace tricobalt devices.”
“What the fuck is a tricobalt device?” Jones demanded. “And where can I find one? Whatever is coming through that damn corridor would be a lot easier to deal with if there weren’t any of them!”
She had a point but swearing at an alien emissary hardly seemed like a good idea.
“They are, the fuck, a detonation device that can alter the fabric of space-time in a localized area and create intense gravimetric waves.”
He lost me by explaining that they were, the fuck. Because I burst out laughing, hearing the alien try to use our slang was unintentionally hilarious.
I stopped laughing abruptly when Mallory and the other crew looked at me and I noticed how pale they were. Obviously, they weren’t as excited as I was at the prospect of meeting a new alien race to kill.
I swear I’m not crazy. My mother really did have me tested when I was younger.
But when you’re at the top of the game and killing your current enemies doesn’t pose much of a challenge, its easy for your skills to get rusty, and I was starting to worry that my skills were going to suffer.
“Ship coming through!” Jones cried suddenly. The Shockwave moved ever so slightly so they her bulk shielded the oncoming dropships, and the massive cannons rotated to aim at the corridor. Red-hot lines began to show on the hull of the ship as the particle cannons built up a powerful charge, and rocket pods opened all over the ship.
The corridor area flashed briefly and an object no larger than a basketball came through.
Jones sighed audibly. “Probe only.” She reported. “Get the dropships onboard, NOW.”
MacKenzie was boarding with the Shipmaster, I saw, and I turned to check with the Undulon. “Probe first, and then how long until the Meyges send a ship through?”
“Weeks, possibly months.” He replied with his species equivalent of a grin. “We have intercepted the probe telemetry and informed the Meyges that the probe was destroyed at the midpoint. It will take some time for them to realize there was interference.”
“They’ll know we were there.” Mallory said.
“We have also deleted the sensor data.” He said. “But you are right, they will find the engine wakes.”
�
�Jones, get to Earth, double time.” Mallory said.
“Aye, Admiral.”
I watched as the last of the dropships docked, and I turned to my wife. “I need to speak with the heads of Vandorian arms.” I said. “We’re going to need better weapons if we’re going to fight the Meyges.”
She nodded, and I turned to leave the room. “Councilors,” Venlent said. “Admiral?”
I paused.
“Yes?” Mallory asked.
“I would like to respectfully request to be reassigned to Colonel Valentine’s Night Stalkers and restored to my original rank of Lieutenant.”
Wrathe raised his eyebrows and looked at me. “Colonel?”
I shrugged. “I told her it was up to Admiral Valentine.” I replied, then turned and walked out of the room.
---
Mallory caught up to me with some effort as I sprinted down the long spine of the ship a few hours later. I was barely breathing hard, but as running was never Mallory’s strong suit, so I slowed to allow her to catch up, then came to a gradual stop. I stared at her. “You still run reasonably well for a pregnant woman.” I said with a smile.
“You’re supposed to exercise up to, and immediately after baby is born,” She said, breathing hard. “But this is bullshit.”
“I can’t imagine.” I replied with a raised eyebrow. She looked at me and I shrugged. “Hey, you can’t imagine being shot.”
“You’ve only been shot once.” She replied.
“Well, yeah, but it was really bad.” I waved my left arm at her. “And this, remember?”
“Yeah, I’ve been meaning to ask you about that, how did you lose to a birdbrain in a freaking sword fight?” Mallory smirked at me.
“You ever engage in a sword fight before?”
“I haven’t had the occasion.” She replied.
Requiem of a Nightmare Page 18
