“Running scanner… A Large group is located in the south of the cliff.”
“Get me there; we need to take out their tanks.”
“Prepare for launch.”
Without warning, the Iron Knight's suit propulsion engine on the back of its shoulder kicked on, firing the suit off into the sky. Lake was surprised by such force as he'd never experienced a take off like that before.
“Tell me when you are going to do that next time!” Lake said, as the suit now stood hovering above the opened hangar. “I could have died!”
“I told you to prepare for launch, Lake Strider,” Beta answered. “It isn't my fault you are not properly trained to use an Iron Knight suit and therefore shouldn’t be doing so.”
“Forget it! Let's go!”
Lake moved the arms and legs of the suit, trying to get a feel for them when the sounds of the cannon firing from the tanks overshadowed everything else.
At a quick speed, Beta piloted the suit to the source of the cannon fire. Lake could see eight more hovertanks closing in on the mouth of the cave while over a hundred pirates fell behind them.
“What's the status of the weapons system?” Lake asked.
“The weapons systems are damaged,” she alerted. “You only have the use of the suits duel iron blades, Lake Strider.”
“The weapons system is damaged—why didn't you tell me that before?” Lake panicked.
“I tried to tell you with my diagnostics check, but you told me that you didn't have time for that.” Beta answered plainly.
Lake bit his lip and grunted. “Fine, engage the iron blades!”
Nothing happened.
“I said to engage the iron blades, Beta!”
“I have no control over the iron blades. You must release them yourself, Lake Strider.”
“Why—never mind!”
Lake used the controls to remove both the iron blades from the back of the suit. One was broken in half and the other was severely damaged. As bad as he wanted to complain, he knew it would be a waste of breath and more importantly a waste of time.
Moving his body down, the suit bolted toward the tanks below, and within seconds landed hard on the ground, knocking over trees and attracting the attention of the pirates.
Lake attacked the tanks as they turned their cannons toward the suit and fired at him. With one swoop of the damaged blade, Lake destroyed three of the cannons, cutting through them like a hot knife through butter.
On the ground, the men took their attention from the cave and fired their blasters upon the suit, slowly causing damage and make Lake hold its arms up with the defensive zaranium plates to withstand their attack. Realizing he couldn’t keep his defensive position for too long with the hovertanks still firing, Lake dashed forward and with a single vertical slash of the longer blade, he took out over a dozen of them but was stopped in his tracks when the other tanks fired and hit the suit, causing him to stumbled backward. The damage was severe, but was still functional as he gained his balance.
“The suit cannot take much more, Lake Strider. It is already damaged from Saviar's previous battle and I can only avoid so many of the blasts.”
“I can tell from the large pieces of metal falling off it right now!”
Acting quickly, Lake tossed the broken sword into one of the hovertanks, destroying it, while using the other blade to get rid of the remaining tanks in his path.
The pirates fled. There was no sign of Blackvoid, but Lake didn't care. His goal was to stop as many of them as he could. Delta, Nadal-Ti, and Taran exited the cave while attacking the pirates. They were alive and still fought as Lake gave chase, picking off stragglers as he went. A majority of the men crossed the river, heading toward Blackvoid's ship.
As the remaining pirates crossed, they were met by a herd of wild jarogs who finished the rest of the pirates for Lake as he watched from across the river. Lake stopped and winced as he witnessed the slaughter of the remaining pirates by the beasts. He eventually looked away, closing his eyes as the sight became too much to bear. The sound engines firing off caused Lake to look up to see the Sinker—Blackvoid’s ship blasting off into the atmosphere and then into the darkness of space. He grunted in disappointment before slamming his hand on the terminal of his the Iron Knight suit. Blackvoid had escaped and Lake wanted nothing more than to finish him off for good.
Slowly, his frustration and anger relented after he realized that it wasn’t about killing Blackvoid, but saving his crew, and the abuchillas. The battle was won that night, and the abuchillas were saved. Although their village was destroyed in the process, they were alive and the pirates were defeated.
Lake tried to move the command stick, but it wouldn't budge. “What's wrong with this thing?”
“I'm afraid the control functions of the suit have overloaded and the suit won't move now. The suit is now completely inoperable thanks to your inexperience using it, Lake Strider.”
Lake exhaled softly. “Beta… shut up.”
Chapter Eight
A New Path
It was morning by the time the crew of the Iron Saber was preparing to Abuula. The sound of the Iron Knight suit crashing on the forest floor scared the abuchillas as they approached Lake and Delta. Nadal-Ti left that morning to retrieve the Iron Saber and bring it to the suit where they loaded it into the ship. Lake, Delta, and Taran assisted in hooking the Iron Saber's tow cables to the shoulders of the suit, while Blurb still lay motionless on one of the hoverspeeders.
Chinsapa walked through the gathering crowd of his people and came before Lake, bowing before speaking.
“He says he is grateful for you saving his people and hopes that the suit will continue to help you save others as we have done for them.”
“Tell him, thank you and that he and his people did just as much, if not more, to help us. And I'm just as grateful for them.”
Lake bowed in return before the elder abuchilla turned and led his people back into the forest. Meanwhile, Nadal-Ti and Taran finished loading the suit into the cargo bay. Delta spoke one final time to the abuchillas in their native language and then they disappeared into the forest.
“What did you tell them, Delta?”
“I told them that Savior will always be watching over them.”
Lake smiled as he looked at Delta's kind expression. He realized that had it not been for Delta, things wouldn't have ended the way they did and that they might not be alive right now. With as much praise as he's received from everyone for saving the day, in his mind the real hero was her. All he did was kill a few pirates and fly a suit. Had it not been for her communicating with the abuchillas, figuring out how to unlock the Iron Knight suit and saving his life during the battle, things would have ended a lot differently.
“Delta?” Lake asked.
“Yes, Captain?” said Delta.
“Thank you, for saving us.”
“But I—”
“I know you like to think you didn't do much, but you did a lot and I want to say thank you, I don't know how we wouldn’t have survived this ordeal without you.”
“I don't know what to say, I'm not used to this type of congratulatory dialogue. I suppose, ‘you’re welcome’ is the appropriate response, Captain?”
Lake grinned and chuckled softly. “I suppose it is.”
“Are you two going to just stand there all day? The suit's loaded up,” Nadal-Ti shouted from the steel ramp of the Iron Saber before going inside it.
“Let's not keep her waiting,” Lake said jokingly.
Delta and Lake walked to the hoverspeeder where Blurb lay. She stood on the pilot's terminal and navigated the hoverspeeder inside the Iron Saber as Lake walked beside it, taking in the sights of Abuula one final time, before he noticed Taran, standing with his head down near the ramp of the ship.
“Head in, Delta, we'll be inside in a second,” said Lake. He stopped a few feet in front of Taran.
Delta nodded and entered
the cargo hold of the ship on the hoverspeeder. After a moment, the doors shut. Lake waited for them to close before speaking with Taran Lo. The tall man brushed off his uniform and cleared his throat.
“I was wondering—if you wouldn't mind if I took that escape pod off your hands?”
“For what? It has no fuel—wait, that was a lie wasn't it?” Lake asked, remembering the story Taran told him when he was still Blackvoid’s slave.
“No, it's true, it doesn't. We were dropped off hours before you found us. Having no fuel in the pod just made our story more… believable.”
“I see. There's no fuel here either, so do you plan to live the rest of your days in an escape pod?”
“I can't go with you.”
“And why not?”
“I almost got you and your people killed,” Taran said. “Listen, I appreciate you allowing me to live and getting some measure of redemption by killing as many of those pirates as I could, but—”
“But what? Listen, I will make this easy for you. We had a deal. I pick you up and take you back with me when we finished our mission, and that's what I intend to do,” Lake said. “I'm a smuggler, but I do have a code and my word is part of that code I don't intend to break. You're coming with us.”
Lake walked passed Taran, who couldn't muster up the words, but Lake suspected what he would say. The man must’ve felt an immeasurable responsibility for his crew and their deaths. He probably wanted nothing more than to be alone and wallow in his sorrow, but Lake couldn't allow that. He wouldn't allow it. Stopping halfway up the metal ramp leading to the ship, Lake turned to Taran.
“You may think right now you don't have a purpose and dying alone seems like your only option, but there's always hope, Taran. There's always something to believe in. You never know what you can find. You may just find yourself again. I honestly can't make you come with us, but we're about to leave. The choice is yours.”
Lake turned looking up the ramp and continued into the ship, passing Nadal-Ti who stood near the door, arms folded and eyes closed.
“I heard enough,” she said, interrupting Lake as he was about to speak. She opened her eyes and nodded. “Delta just finished the systems check and we're ready to go.”
Nadal-Ti walked to the bridge of the Iron Saber, leaving Lake stunned by her response. It wasn't too long ago that she was in Taran’s shoes and Lake had forgiven her as well. She didn't trust Taran, but she trusted Lake, not only as her captain, but as her friend. Lake smiled before following her into the control deck and sitting in his seat.
Sighing, Lake put on the headset that sat on top of his terminal. “Close the door, Delta,” he said. Looking to his left, he could see Blurb's seat still empty. “He's still not awake?”
“No, he's still passed out.” Delta made the affirmation over the communications system. She'd already entered her pod and linked herself to the ship.
“Of course he is,” said Lake, shaking his head. “Remind me—”
The sound of footsteps entering the bridge caused Lake and Nadal-Ti to swing their heads around. Taran walked somberly inside and took a seat in one of the passenger chairs behind the captain’s terminal. Nadal-Ti turned back to her terminal to prepare for the launch, while Lake gave Taran a nod which he returned before strapping himself into his chair.
“Delta, let's get off this rock.”
The engines of the Iron Saber revved and the landing gear retracted into the ship as it lifted off of the ground. The force of the powerful engines lifting the ship rocked the crew in their seats until Delta turned the engines backward and guided the ship into the air at great speed. They flew over what was left the abuchillas’ village until it was out of sight. The ship continued its ascension into the layers of the atmosphere of Abuula until finally it reached the darkness of space.
“That was a bit of sluggish takeoff, D.”
“We're carrying extra weight, Captain,” Delta said, reminding him of the Iron Knight in the cargo bay.
“Will that interfere with our journey?”
“No, we will have just enough fuel to make it.”
“Okay, that's what I like to hear. Just to be sure, run another full systems check. I don't want any more surprises.”
Lake turned to his left to see Nadal-Ti in the seat on the level below his as she punched keys and turned switches on her terminal. Her three square glass monitors flashed with the display of the ship, blue numbers and words appearing and disappearing as the screen images continued changing.
“Weapons systems are operational and deflector shields are at one-hundred percent,” she answered. “If things checkout with the life support systems and fuel, we should be good to go, Lake.”
“Thanks, Ti,” said Lake, before turning his chair to his right to see Blurb's empty station. “Should I wake him up now?”
“I don't see a good reason to,” Nadal-Ti answered with a smirk. “It's been rather pleasantly peaceful since he's been unconscious.”
Lake laughed. “As true as that may be Ti, it just doesn't feel right without him. I'll go get him.”
“Engaging evasive maneuvers!” Delta shouted as Lake reached for the locking mechanism of his seat belt.
“What the hell is going on?” Lake asked, confused at Delta’s sudden maneuver.
The ship's air pressure system engaged, pushing the ship sharply left then right. The image of an ion torpedo on their tail showed on the screens as Delta tried desperately to avoid the explosive weapon. Another image suddenly appeared next to the icon of the torpedo. The Sinker moved from the shadows of one of Abuula's moons.
“Delta, release the flare canister on my mark!” Lake said as he stared anxiously at the torpedo inching closer and closer to the Iron Saber. “Now!”
A rear compartment that lied underneath three engines of the Iron Saber opened up to release a canister which exploded instantly, causing a rain of red lights to explode in every direction. The torpedo switched targets and exploded on impact with one of the red lights while Delta maneuvered the ship around to face the Sinker.
“It's him,” said Taran Lo as he stared at the ship from his seat. “Blackvoid.”
“This guy doesn't know when to give up, does he?” Lake asked.
The ship’s main display monitor turned on and a familiar face appeared on the screen. Blackvoid sat in a captain's chair with other pirates behind him attending their stations. He'd changed clothes, now wearing blaster pistols on shoulder holsters and a tattered coat. All that remained the same was his ghostly grin and greedy eyes.
“Well, well, look who I ran into,” Blackvoid smirked. “That little stunt you pulled cost me a lot of men and resources.”
“Blackvoid,” said Lake with a hint of disgust in his tone. “I see you made it out alive.”
“Made it out alive? You think I was actually there?” he questioned. “I was safely aboard my ship getting my arm fixed because of the little shits you thought you were saving. Did you think I was just going to turn tail and let that shit fly, Lake?”
Lake took a moment to think before looking at Blackvoid. “Honestly? I kind of did. Figured you learned your lesson at that point and would rethink your life choices and maybe look for another field to work in.”
“I'm going to kill you last, Lake, just for that,” Blackvoid said with a smile. “You see first, I will to take your ship, strip it down, sell its parts for credits, and keep you as my personal slave as I did with Taran there.” He shifted his gaze to the man in question. “You seem to get around Taran, trading one crew for another.”
“Our options are limited. We can try to outrun him, but we may burn up too much fuel. Engaging with a ship of that size with the load we’re carrying, our percentage of survival would be… slim,” Delta explained to Lake in his headset.
The Iron Saber suddenly shifted hard, rocking the crew in their seats as it quickly and move toward the Sinker.
“What the hell is going on, Delta?” Lake asked
while both he and Nadal-Ti checked their terminals for an alert or systems hack.
“It's not me, he's pulling us toward him,” Delta said.
“How is he doing this?” Lake asked in a panic.
Delta activated all the ship’s pressure propulsion systems and turned the engines away from the Sinker to keep the Iron Saber from moving toward it, but nothing worked.
Blackvoid laughed as he watched the crew in a state of panic, trying so desperately to stop him.
“Do you get it now? There is no escaping your fate. You belong to me!”
“Cut the engines!” Lake said.
“It has to be some form of gravity or magnetic technology that that’s pull us in,” Delta said. “We can't escape it.”
Nadal-Ti turned to Lake looking for an answer, but there was none. Lake's head lowered as he gripped the controls of his terminal.
Blackvoid’s grin widened as he watched the crew, enjoying their despair as the crew realized they had no way out of their situation.
“Oh Captain? Paging Captain Lake Strider, are you there, Captain?” Blackvoid mocked with a crooked smile. “I see you finally realize how futile your efforts are and have accepted your fate. But too little too late though. I'm going to keep that Iron Knight suit and after I keep you as my slaves for a few months and show you your place, then kill every member of your crew right in front of you. It won't be quick. I'll especially take my time deconstructing that android—opening her up and playing with her insides to see what makes her tick. Then when all the people you care about are dead, we will take a little trip back to Abuula, where I will make you witness the massacre of those little shit creatures you are so fond of, do you understand me? When word gets out about what I, Captain Voldo Blackvoid, have done and that I have a genuine Iron Knight suit, I will be the most feared man in the system. Even Gruudo couldn't touch me. Do you understand?”
Lake held the control sticks on his terminal and slowly looked at Blackvoid. “Yeah, I understand—I understand that you are a monster. And this galaxy has enough of those already. Delta, turn the engines back on to full speed.”
Remnants of Hope: A Rogue Star Story Page 7
