Star Crusader: Hero of the Alliance

by Michael G. Thomas

  He nodded to himself.

  "If we can get to them, they will help us."

  Rex sighed. "Nate. Nate, you fool."

  Rex stepped away, still shaking his head. Jack tried to persuade the others to follow him in the same direction they'd already been walking. Nate stopped to think. Rex went to grab him, but he twisted away from his grasp.

  "If there’s fighting on this station, you can guarantee they will be the first to go." said Rex.

  Billy pushed up between them. He was of a similar height to Nate, and his rough, ginger hair looked almost like a mop. Even in this low light he looked something of a mess.

  "It doesn't matter," said Billy, "Either we hide, or we run."

  Rex held up his Secpad and showed them the connection lockout notices.

  "They've cut off our access to the Cortex. So how do we find our way out?"

  Cassandra checked hers and shook it, trying to get the thing to connect.

  "I sent out our distress code when we got inside. I don't know if it got out, though."

  She sighed and rubbed her head, desperately trying to come up with a plan. The door they had so recently entered through made a clunking sound. Billy groaned nervously, and Cassandra put her hand over his mouth. She then looked to Nate. As she opened her mouth to speak, a series of high-pitched cracks silenced the entire group. More rang out, and then a small serious of thuds.

  "Explosions," said Nate.

  He looked to Cassandra again.

  "It's not just us. This is an attack or a revolt or something. We have to get to our people before they find us."

  Cassandra kept her eyes looking firmly at Nate's, even as they stepped around the hexagonal space, examining the four options before them. The only possibility each was avoiding was the chance of turning back the way they'd come.

  "I've seen you exploring the station, Nate. Can you get us to the marines? Do you even know where they are?"

  He gulped in air as he ran over the shape of the station. It was vast, and he'd only explored the small numbers of areas the cadets had access to. Even so, he knew where the marines were staying.

  "Yeah, I can do that. They have their quarters in the trade sector. It's on the lower ring near the customs centre. We need to warn them."

  He held up his device and showed them a bright blue schematic of the place. Cassandra pulled the unit from him and ran her eyes over the plans.

  "I don't understand. How is yours working?"

  He grinned, not that any of them could see in the low light.

  "I cut the link the minute trouble started in the class. I've still got the mapping information in memory."

  Cassandra grabbed him and held him firmly. He could tell it was relief and nothing more. But even inside this dark passageway, perhaps seconds from danger, he felt happy.

  "Okay, gadget boy," said Rex, "What now?"

  Nate licked his lower lip.

  "Follow me. I know the route."

  He moved to the front, with Cassandra and Billy right beside him. Rex watched the rear of the group, constantly looking for signs of their pursuers. To all of their surprise, Nate began climbing the ladder. Billy followed without saying a word. He was almost at the top before the others started to climb.

  "Nate, you'd better not be wrong about this," grumbled Rex.

  He reached the top and hit the release button. This time it was a mechanical unit, and the hatch opened, releasing cool air into the chamber, as well as casting a pale blue light back down onto their faces.

  "Yeah, Rex, right now I'm worried about what you'll do to me."

  He reached up and pulled himself off the ladder and into another hexagonal space. It took only a few seconds to check it was empty before he looked back and helped the others up. They all climbed through until Rex made it and landed down alongside Nate. He looked almost thankful to be there, but at seeing Nate and Cassandra side by side he scowled.

  "Okay, hero, now what?"

  Cassandra moved between the two of them.

  "Let him work, Rex. He's got us this far."

  Rex stepped back and began checking the metal racking fitted to the walls. There were all kinds of plastic storage cases, and he took whatever he thought might be useful.

  "What are you doing?" Billy asked.

  Rex opened another and took out a roll of metallic tape.

  "I'm taking everything that might be of use. Why? What about you?"

  Billy moved back to Nate and Cassandra.

  "That guy is such an ass."

  Nate kept his eyes focused on his Secpad while the blue light in the small room gave him a cool, sinister hue of colour. He ran his finger along the screen and tracked their position. Finally, he stopped and looked to the others.

  "Okay. We're not too far away."

  He signalled for them to come closer, but only Rex showed any interest. The rest were too busy looking out for their pursuers. Jack bent down and looked down the hatch and into the area they'd just left. Cassandra squinted as she double-checked the Secpad.

  "Are you serious, Nate? That's where we need to get to?"

  Nate nodded.

  "It's not what I want, but this is the place. The customs level is where the marines are, and it leads to the docking clamps and the ships. It’s the only way we can get to our own troops."

  "Or get off the station," added Billy.

  Even Cassandra seemed unimpressed with the plan.

  "Wait a minute. You want to cross the plaza and move to the service deck. And then what, climb six levels to the customs level?"

  Rex looked at the device for just a second.

  "Or we run for it, get to the express elevators, and ride them all the way there?"

  Nate shook his head while Rex moved off to the nearest hatch. He accessed the panel and ever so carefully opened the door. It was small, just big enough for a single person, and sealed around the frame with a smooth round material, much like rubber. The door opened inwards, and he peered around the corner, making no sound of any kind. Jack concentrated on the Secpad, even though the other three seemed more interested in seeing what was outside.

  "No, we move along this route here."

  He touched the unit.

  "By using the service shafts and avoiding the public spaces. Until we know whom to trust, we have to be careful. We can climb the ladders up one level..."

  Cassandra tapped the Secpad on the image.

  "And then use the service elevators."

  "Exactly," said Nate, "It won't take much longer, and we can avoid any..."

  Rex was at the door and starting to move through it.

  "Rex get back," said Nate.

  Rex paused and then opened his mouth to complain. He must have seen something outside and immediately dropped down to his knees. Jack signalled for them all to be quiet. Nate stayed completely still, moving only one finger to disable the portable device in his hands. Though the gap was small, all of them could see the panicked groups of people rushing about. Most were Byotai, but there were also a number of the more slender-shaped Helions, and even a pair of Khreenk traders. All ran from the direction of the shouting.

  That's what I was afraid of, Nate thought.

  He moved closer to the door but made sure he stayed in the shadows of the poorly lit area. He moved alongside Rex, who was breathing quickly and speechless for a change. From here the panic inside the station was obvious, and Nate watched in stunned silence.

  Cassandra knelt down along him and whispered in his ear, "You were right, Nate."

  He felt a glimmer of pride, but more important, he was just glad they'd not rushed out into the path of what was clearly a dangerous situation. The six of them kept still while the sound of angry shouting increased. Nate felt the urge to run, to move in any direction, but with no idea what was happening, the safest thing for now seemed to be to keep still. Then came the screams of terror. Nate almost stumbled when he spotted a group of Byoti, all armed with firearms or brandishing improvised cudgels. They
ran into the open plaza and called out to the few Byotai still there. Two Navy crew ran past directly in front of the group. A fusillade of shots rang out, and both slumped to the floor dead.

  Cassandra lurched backwards and knocked a batch of metal pipes from the shelf. One struck the metallic floor with a clattering sound, but Nate and Billy caught the rest and held onto them, each terrified of making more noise.

  "Great, now we're done," complained Rex.

  When Nate looked back through the narrow crack in the door, he found the armed group had gone. He might have felt relief but was much more nervous not knowing where they were, and suspected they were coming for him. A shadow moved closer, and then a foot appeared near the doorway. Nate gripped the metal pipe and pleaded to himself for the individual to move on.

  Then came the sounds of shouting again, and the figure moved away. Rex leaned forward and reached for the door to move it shut, but slipped and ended up pushing it further open. The wider gap gave them a good view of the plaza. Out in the middle were two bodies, and next to them a single older Byotai. He was dressed in light coloured clothing, his head bare and chest encased in a half breastplate. He faced off against the rowdy group, with his hand resting on his flank, above where his pistol was fitted. Just behind him, and low on the ground, was a single Byotai. She moaned from at least one leg wound and tried to crawl away from the violence.

  "He's a Byotai officer. Look at the uniform," whispered Cassandra.

  "Yeah," Matilda agreed, "And how does that help us? All it tells me is that this little insurrection is against authority."

  The technical wizard of the group had been silent until now. Though quiet, she was the only one of the group with any real understanding of the Byotai languages and culture. She nodded as she watched the argument.

  "He's a junior captain. He's telling them to turn away. And they are telling him to drop his weapon, or..."

  Matilda paused, and Rex grabbed her shoulder.

  "Or what?"

  Matilda shrugged but didn't seem particularly fazed by Rex.

  "Or die like the others."

  Cassandra squirmed and moved away from the doorway.

  "No. No, it's not fair. We didn't do anything. We’re not..."

  Nate lifted his finger to his mouth, and Cassandra quickly quietened down. A noise far off to the left caught the ear of the mob, and the angriest of the group pointed off into the distance. Two left to investigate and quickly vanished, leaving the other four to face off against the officer, who'd now drawn his pistol and was aiming it at the face of the loudest killer.

  Billy whispered as quietly as he could, "This is going to go badly. We need..."

  Nate's attention was off to the right where two other Byotai were hiding. They looked about the same age as him, and one of them spotted him. Their eyes met, and Nate felt a shudder in his chest.

  Idiot, what if they say something?

  The officer lifted one hand and called out to the group. They then spread out with three taking aim with looted firearms, and the fourth brandishing cudgels. They were now in a semi-circle and still moving apart. Soon they would have both of them surrounded.

  "What's he doing? What do they want?" Jack asked.

  Rex looked to Nate, and then the others.

  "We need to do something. They're going to kill the two of them, and then we'll be next."

  Nate looked down at the narrow metal pipe that he'd caught. It was just over a metre long, and must have weight a minimum of two kilograms, perhaps more. When he looked back up, Rex was grinning.

  "Yeah, I like your thinking, Nate."

  He reached up, took one of the pipes from the shelf, and moved to the partially open doorway. Jack did the same, and Nate, fearing what would happen if only a few of them tried to help, did the same. He looked to the rest. Billy was already trying to come and help, but Nate blocked his path.

  "Stay together. If we screw up, somebody has to pass on what happened."

  By the time he stepped back, the other two were ready. Nate squeezed between them and looked out to the left and right, double-checking the other two were still away from the plaza. Apart from the bodies, the place was totally deserted. The four thugs had their right sides to the doorway and were angled slightly away, making being spotted unlikely.

  "Okay, let's do this," he said.

  The three inched out from cover and into the open. Nate felt immediately vulnerable and glanced off to his left, expecting more of the angry mob to arrive. The sound of shouting and gunfire had subsided, though, and now just the argument with the group continued. They moved past the bulkhead pillars, keeping them in the line of sight and making sure they were undetected. They made it halfway when Nate spotted the entrance to the service shaft. He pointed at it, but Rex was already moving along and getting ready to attack. They were now only ten metres away from the argument, and there was no more cover as each waited behind his pillar.

  A metal bar against guns...Are we idiots?

  "Surrender!"

  It was the sound inside Nate's translator. He spun around and found himself looking directly at the face of an older looking Byotai female. She wore some armour, and a metal plate ran from her forehead and down her elongated nose. The plating followed the bony contours of her skull, giving her an even angrier look than her body language suggested. At her sides were five more Byotai, and two carried rifles.

  "What now?" Rex asked.

  Nate licked his lip. His heart said to go for it, to start swinging the bars and fight, just like the stories he'd read about. But his brain told him that would be stupidity.

  "If we fight, we die."

  He then looked to Rex and Jack.

  "Drop the pipes."

  Nate was already releasing the metal in his hand when there was a loud banging sound of metal on metal. At first he thought it was one of the pipes, but then more continued, and he immediately knew what it was. He'd been on the station long enough to be able to tell the difference.

  More boots. Now it's over.

  His throat turned dry, and he twisted his head around to look at the newcomers. There were four of them, and they were big. All were armoured from head to toe in protective plating, and in their hands oversized carbine weapons. The armour was faded grey, with black markings running horizontally like tiger stripes. Their heads were encased, and their collars hidden behind raised gorgets.

  "Fire!"

  CHAPTER TWO

  Starbase ‘Mognathus 7’, 3rd Quadrant, Byotai Empire

  Nate closed his eyes involuntarily and tensed his body, waiting for the pain to strike at any moment. He'd never been shot before, but he'd take his share of punches and kicks throughout school. Guns erupted all around him, and the gunfire was so intense he could actually feel the heat through his cadet tunic. The sound inside the starbase was louder than he could ever have expected, and his hearing became muffled after just a few shots. Logic dictated that the first projectiles would hit his torso, but to his surprise his shoulder was touched first, and he instantly winced.

  "Come with me."

  The voice was loud, artificially enhanced, and boomed almost as loudly as the gunfire. He opened his eyes, expecting to find that he was on the ground, bleeding out and facing the mob. Instead, he was being pulled to the side of the plaza by an armoured arm. The soldier was a heavily armoured marine, and his chest plating bore the insignia of the Alliance Marine Corps. Nate instantly recognised it as being PDS Alpha armour, the latest issue that had now been in continuous use for more than a decade.

  Marines?

  A shot flashed overhead, and a chunk of masonry ripped apart and crashed to the ground nearby. The marine pushed him away just as a pile of masonry came down, narrowly missing his head.

  "Rex!" Jack yelled.

  Nate looked around for his comrades, but the group was scattered at different parts of the plaza. He saw Jack huddled behind a pillar with two marines nearby. The Byotai mob had gone, but they'd left two of their dead behind
.

  Cassandra, Billy, where are they?

  The Byotai officer was leaning behind a bulkhead. Blood dripped from a graze to his head, but he was still upright and fighting. He took aim and fired twice before uttering an odd alien howl. One or two of the mob must have been hidden off into the distance because more guns fired.

  "Covering fire!" said one of the marines.

  His voice was muffled inside the suit, but with him shouting the sound was just about audible. The small group of elite warriors opened up with a crescendo of fire, far in excess of anything the mob could muster. Shapes rushed out in the open, and somebody fell. Nate couldn’t tell who, but he immediately recognised a cadet uniform. He took a step, but the marine lifted his hand.

  "Stay back, son. We've got this."

  This time the marine was speaking to those outside of his squad, and the external speakers fitted to his armour amplified his voice into something loud, clear, and menacing. The way he moved and spoke gave the impression he was some kind of metal monster or demon. Inside his armour the marine was substantially heavier than Nate, and as his feet crunched on the broken masonry, it made a heavy thudding sound. The marine was calm and aimed carefully before blasting away at the hidden position. Nate, ever interested in the weapons and equipment around him, found this close-up look at a real live firearm to be fascinating. He instantly recognised it as a standard issue carbine, one he'd seen before in their lessons on Alliance technology.

  L52 Mark II carbine, triple-barrelled coil-gun with hardened slug rounds. They're marines, all right.

  From his position safely hidden hind a bulkhead, he had a much better view. He looked to the open and saw Rex with another marine. There was blood on Rex's arm, but there was no obvious wound. Nate wanted to move, but as the marines continued shooting, he found he was rooted to the spot and incapable of going anywhere. He watched as the two pulled Jack who was crying out from an injury, and leaving a trail of dark red blood on the floor.

  "No...this can't be."

  The marine looked back and deactivated his frontal visor. The plating moved away, and he found himself looking into the eyes of a man in his early twenties. His face was heavily tanned, and there were black tattoos running down his cheeks.