Ryan’s reaction was quiet and uneventful. “So I was meant to be here.”
“And my life was as it is was meant to be!” Katie planted her lips on his and embracing him with all her strength.
Ryan at first did not immediately return her affection. When her lips parted from his, a broad smile was left on his face and he picked her up off the ground and spun her in a circle. Katie released a loud squeal as Ryan shouted. “YES!!”
**********
The majestic Manta slowly orbited the lush planet of Alpha 3, in the constellation Alpha Centauri. The smooth black surface made it difficult to discern its Manta Ray shaped superstructure. Its vast size appeared more like a misshapen moon than a vessel. It was two hundred kilometres across and one hundred kilometres long, and housed four cruisers and thousands of small fighters. It was a battle fleet all in one. Although the Warrian Battle Fleet that was unleashed upon Intersect six years ago was greater, the Manta provided an advantage that sheer numbers could not match; it was a smart weapon!
Since the return to the thirty first century, The Emperor did not rest until a new army was forged. Recruitment started immediately with the training of Warrian youth for war. With the battle fleet all but destroyed, reconstruction of the fleet had to commence but with a difference. The Emperor could never reproduce a force a mighty as the one he last commanded without giving it a distinct advantage. So he employed the only surviving scientist of the human race and his prize captive, Dr James Chen. What would have taken decades only took a few years. The need for experienced pilots was solved by the invention of the computer pilot. Unlike an auto pilot the computer contained the skills of a live pilot that could resolve and respond to any type of situation. The Emperor now had a fleet of robot fighters at his disposal.
After six years of waiting, the Emperor also had a new battle fleet that was mightier than any he could have envisaged, and with that he re-entered the black hole that was the gateway to the past and to the Rings of Karn.
Aboard the bridge of the Manta, Zardon sat at the captain’s helm staring out into space. His thoughts were focused on the objects of his desire a thousand light years away. His massive frame was cloaked in the traditional black royal robe that shimmered lightly in the moderate lighting of the bridge. The high pointed collar of the robe nearly reached the height of his pointed ears, but his unusually large stature ensured no traditional robe would equal him.
The Tick Station was now in place and the Warrian Forces poised for battle. He was waiting for the data to download onto the squadrons of Warrian Warbirds before launch. Without this vital data, the artificial pilot programs that commanded them would have no mission objective.
The Bridge of the Manta was twenty meters across and semi-circular in shape. The Bridge was segregated into three tiers that were the height of a human above the other. The three tiers faced one massive window that arced across the full length of the Bridge. In the middle of the top tier was the raised helm that gave its occupant full view of the bridge and accentuated the status.
Zardon’s train of thought was interrupted by a tingling sensation on the skin that was under the Rings of Venal. Sensed something disturbing the ether a few metres before him in a manner of a cloaking field. He stood up and reached out with his right hand and clutched at the air in front of him. At that moment the throat of a metallic creature formed in his grasp. As soon as the creature was fully formed, the Emperor cast it to the rear wall of the bridge. The metallic figure slammed against the wall and fell in a heap on the floor. In an instant the Emperor’s keen blade was at the metallic creature’s face. Two guards arrived shortly after with their guns trained at the same strange creature on the floor.
It shook its silver head as it came to terms with the sudden and unexpected assault. “Wait, wait, don’t shoot! I have a proposition for you.” It said with an artificially generated male voice.
Zardon articulated the same human language that it used, but many of the vowels were difficult for his inexperienced tongue. “Tell me you how you got here wizhout detection?”
“A little invention of mine that I wish to remain as a mine and mine alone. Let’s consider it a life insurance policy.”
“What iz thiz propozition that you talk of?”
It slowly got up doing its best to keep its metal hands in the air while Zardon’s blade and the guard’s weapons remain trained on their target. “I can get you what you want. I can get you Williams.”
“And why would you do thiz? Are you not human?”
“That I was, before Williams did this to me. You see, we have a mutual enemy, and with my brains and your resources, we can be rid of him. But...but it will come at a price.....” It paused for a reaction but got none. “Earth must be left untouched.”
“You zink you can deliver Willaimz to me?”
“Well, maybe not Williams, but something he holds very dear. When I deliver his concubine to you, Williams will certainly follow.”
Zardon withdrew his sword as his lips pulled back to show more sharp teeth. “Hiz concubine!” He exclaimed as his clenched right fist was thrust into the air. “To torture and kill hiz concubine before hiz own eyez az hiz foul race had done to me would perfect my revenge. Yes, that will do very nizely.” He turned back to the metal creature on the floor. “What do I call you?”
It returned Zardon’s wicked smile with its own silvery version. “Doctor Bane, at your service.”
“You have a deal Doczor Bane.” He said as he returned to the helm and continued his distant gaze into space. The metallic figure of Bane faded out until it was gone.
LIBERATION
The hanger doors on end of the starboard wing of the Endeavour slowly opened to reveal the bow of a Battle Cruiser. Its smooth arrow head shaped bow gracefully moved out from the protective chamber. Soon the four wings of the Cruiser were exposed to the sun’s brilliant rays revealing their X formation. Each wing housed an engine that was expelling a fraction of the megatons of thrust they can unleash upon the ether of space. At docking speed, it took about a minute to fully breach the hanger and show its complete twenty kilometre long hull.
This was the Battle Cruiser Valiant. It was reconstructed after receiving extensive damage during the last conflict with the Warrians. The Reliant, the Cruiser that once graced the port wing hanger was totally destroyed during the conflict. In its place the Intrepid sat quietly, soon to fight with the same courage and honour as did its predecessor. The reconstruction gave the engineers a chance to upgrade and refine the old vessel. With two more engines, more battlements and missile silos, she was far more deadly than ever before. The most significant improvement was the installation of a Dimensional Displacement Energy Modulator, or D.D.E.M. This enabled the Valiant to jump to any place in the universe - instantly. Prior to its installation, the only vessel utilising a D.D.E.M. was the Endeavour, but now both cruisers possessed the impressive technology.
As she glided through space away from the Endeavour, a beam of energy was shot from the Valiant’s bow at the ether before her. The ether folded in on itself producing a black mass that was darker and more lifeless than anything in the universe. It was a black hole, the portal that the D.D.E.M. used to transport the Valiant to its destination. The vessel entered the black hole and a moment later, the hole was gone leaving no trace of the Valiant.
In the dark and bitterly cold silence that existed on the far side of Alpha 3, a bright light ignited out of the nothingness. From that light emerged the Valiant as the light closed in on itself returning the darkness to its former gloom. From the side of the Valiant’s hull, twenty small vessels shot out as if they were fired by a cannon. As soon as they were clear, the Valiant re-opened the black hole and disappeared into it. The spherical ships plummeted into the atmosphere below leaving a three kilometre long fire trail in their wake.
The man made meteors were fifty meters across and carried a crew of two, and could transport up to three hundred troops in its hold. The Chameleon Assault Tra
nsport, or C.A.T. was a marvel of thirty first century engineering. It could be shot into any atmosphere and land in less than a minute, then adapt to the surroundings of the landing sight to minimise detection. It could then move through the landscape avoiding enemy sensors and unload its cargo almost on top of the enemy forces.
On board CAT 1, the pilot and co-pilot stared out of the window at the red hot flames as they shot by at twenty times the speed of sound. The shock waves from the re-entry throttled its occupants violently causing them to hang onto their seats for dear life. Both were garbed in the protective armour of an A.A.E.E.V. suit, but the visors were pulled back to reveal the concern on their faces. The co-pilot shouted to the pilot as he fought to speak without biting off his own tongue. “Hey Ryan,...... not that I don’t trust.....our engineers,.....but did we ever.....get a chance to.....test these things out.... before.....the mission?” Adam asked in hope of a positive answer.
Ryan looked over at Adam and shouted back, “No. .....To be honest,....I didn’t think.....we would ever use them!”
The two returned to watching the flames shoot past as the descent rate increased. The violent shaking intensified causing Ryan and Adam to cry out as they continued the extreme rollercoaster ride to the surface below. “Aaaaarrrrhhhh!” With only five kilometres to go to impact, the planet’s atmosphere reduced their decent rate to Mach two. The shaking eased to leave only the sensation of falling - very fast. At a five hundred metres, a loud buffeting echoed through the CAT as its retro thrusters fired. The gee force went from zero to fifteen almost instantly. The only thing stopping their bodies from being crushed was the A.A.E.E.V. suit’s gee force dampening capabilities. The rate of descent decreased rapidly until the CAT was falling only a few kilometres per hour.
At ten meters above the ground, the retro thrusters cut off and the CAT’s undercarriage deployed. Six long legs extended to meet the thick scrub that covered the ground and with great precision, avoid crushing any undergrowth. The CAT’s spherical hull began to transform into a flat disk until it was eighty meters across and twenty meters high. The spider like legs carried the CAT to the cover of the tall forest before it. As it rested in amongst the forest, the metallic grey surface changed colour to blend in with the surroundings.
Ryan announced the status of the CAT, “Chameleon program activated, scanner distortion field primed and ready. What is the assault team status?”
“All CAT’s down and ready for stealth trek.” Adam replied.
“What is the sensor status?”
“None in the vicinity. Recommend to precede at stealth pace four.”
“Roger, stealth pace four engaged. Time to phase three deployment?”
“At current rate, five hours and thirty four minutes. Team is proceeding as scheduled.”
**********
The young Warrian Warlord approached the Emperor seated at the helm and bowed. Since Yara’s promotion to Warlord Master, her former admiration for the Emperor had faded and was replaced with fear. Never had she experienced the emotion until now, and it often disrupted her usual unfailing concentration. The Emperor displayed skills that were unnatural, magical, and that was sacrilege to her Warrian beliefs. But he was the Emperor and the greatest warrior ever to grace the throne. His strength and skills were far beyond that of any rival. Until a superior warrior could challenge him Zardon would remain as Emperor, and for that she must respect and obey.
“My Lord, our sensors detected an unidentified vessel orbiting the far side of the planet, but it disappeared before we could intercept it. The vessel deployed a number of small pods that landed outside of our sensor net.” She kept her head bowed during the report out of respect for her ruler, and out of fear of his reaction.
Zardon’s distant stare was unfazed by her report as he barked his orders. “Send in a low level scanning patrol over the landing site, and prepare the Tick Station for imminent attack.”
“Yes my Lord.” Yara replied. She spun on her heals and quickly retreated from the Emperor.
Zardon pressed a button on the helm console to his right and a three dimensional image formed before him. The image was of Doctor Chen who quickly reacted to the sudden intrusion by bowing. “Yes my Lord?”
“Williamz has some sort of cloaking device that iz impozzible to detect. Why do I not have it in my pozzezzion? Have been holding out on me?!” Zardon raised his right hand and slowly closed his grip while saying, “Or may be your daughter’z zcreamz will make you more co-operative!”
Chen fell to his knees and begged. “Please STOP! I will tell you everything I know.”
“Go on.” Zardon commanded.
“It is not a cloaking device. I believe it to be a Dimensional Displacement Energy Modulator.” Chen replied without raising his head, but he turned his head slightly so he could get a glimpse of the Emperor. “Professor Williams spent his entire career studying dimensional displacement theory. For me to reproduce his work would take the rest of my life! It is impossible for me to create a Dimensional Displacement Energy Modulator without a detailed thesis, and only his son has that data.” He paused for a moment. “Besides my Lord, what do you need of a D.D.E.M. when you have the Manta?”
Zardon Stared at the cowering human before him as he deliberated. “I will let your daughter live, for now.” A great weight seemed to lift from James’s shoulders. “When will my squadrons be ready?”
“Three hours and ten minutes my Lord.”
“Get back to work!” Zardon barked as he switched off the imager.
**********
Katie looked out of the Endeavour’s bridge trying to project her mind as she did before with the aid of the Rings of Karn, but now she was as impotent as any other human. “What do think is happening?”
Charlie joined her in the futile attempt to see across the vastness of space. “According to the mission plan they should started the stealth trek, but until their cover is breached..... we can only wait.”
Katie screamed as a pair of cold metal hands grabbed her shoulders and dragged her away from Charlie. She desperately fought to break their strong hold but to no avail. The mechanical hands had super human strength and their grip could not be broken.
Charlie gasped only one word, “BANE!!”, as the slivery figure disappeared in a flash of brilliant white light with its captive.
**********
On the control panel before Adam, a sensor panel came to life and a warning beep sounded. “Sensors detect short range high density scanner emanations dead ahead.” He announced.
“Yes, I’m picking up six low flying ships. No doubt they are trying to locate us.”
Ryan replied. “Go to stealth pace two.”
“Roger, stealth pace two engaged.” There was a pause, then he continued. “All CATs at stealth pace two.”
Ryan looked out the window to the right to see another CAT moving between the tall trees at the same slow pace as theirs. Moments later, the roar from the passing Warrian ships echoed through the CAT. The combination of the dense forest and the stealth capabilities of the CATs made them invisible to the searching crafts overhead.
Several times they had to reduce their speed, and each time they were undetected. Two more hours passed and the assault team was only five kilometres from the Tick Station. Phase three was about to begin.
**********
Sarah paced up and down the CAT’s hold examining some of the soldiers under her command. Her job was specific - to divert the attention away from the small unit that will attempt to penetrate the Tick Station. She had the command of five thousand troops, and with them attack the Tick stronghold containing up to fifty thousand Warrian soldiers. It was an impossible assault with no chance of success, but success was never the mission. All she had to do was occupy the Warrian forces for one hour and achieve minimal losses. Sarah was confident of the first mission objective but not of the second, and the stress showed through the sternness of her expression.
If the mission went according to pl
an, the CATs would surround the station too close for the Warrians to hit the team with long range weapons, leaving the option of a precise air assault. But the CATs had an excellent air defence grid that would make an air assault very difficult, so the only remaining option was a ground assault. Land battles and hand to hand combat was Sarah’s speciality, and the reason why she got the job.
The A.A.E.E.V suit she wore differed from the suits of Ryan and Adam’s. The surface layer was the same as the CAT’s and would change colour to match the surrounding environment. The helmet was shaped closer to that of the human head, and the Visor was larger providing a greater field of view. As she paced through the CAT, her suit changed colour making it appear as if only her face existed. The soldiers on her CAT sat quietly as none dared look at her. They knew that such an act would be disrespectful and result in immediate punishment. Their faces showed her the strength and determination she required from them to go into battle. It gave her reassurance that if she dealt a command, it would be executed quickly and precisely, thus increasing the change of success and reducing the death toll. Sarah knew all too well that this mission was going to be tough and soldiers will certainly die.
Sarah walked towards the back of the CAT where a strange figure sat. About the large gold coloured being were the dwarfed figures of the human soldiers that occasionally glanced at the stranger. She stood before it and said loudly, “Soldier, attention!” The great gold coloured metal figure stood to dwarf its commander. Its bright blue orbs stared out at nothing as she examined it. It was almost three metres tall and had two great horns that extended up to even greater heights. As far as Sarah could see it had no weapons, although the horns upon its head looked more than decoration. “What are you?”
The Great Talisman (Intersect Book 2) Page 10
