The Founder's Strain (The Age of Man Book 2)

by David Brush

  “How the hell would I drive us in a straight line?” replied Sergeant Daniel Tennyson, jerking the steering wheel again to avoid another steep rise in the dunes. “We’re driving across the most uneven fucking terrain on Sphandaria. I couldn’t keep us in a straight line if our lives depended on it.”

  “Well good thing they don’t,” said Evans, rolling down his window. “Let’s see if I can hit more of these bastards with a coil rifle than Spyrion can with his chain gun.”

  He stuck the weapon through the window frame and fired a shot off into the air, missing.

  “Nice shot,” said Spyrion, rotating his turret platform to the left, swinging the barrel up as he did. He fired again, bringing another sphinx out of the sky. The remaining sphinxes cawed through their long, nozzle-beaked masks, firing back towards the gunner. He ducked behind the armored shield on the front of the gun.

  “You need to get us into cover, Tennyson,” he called, pushing back up. “We’re not going to make it much farther if you don’t.”

  “Working on it,” replied the driver, spinning the steering wheel left again in a violent motion that sent Evans jolting back into the cabin. Off in the distance, he could see the towering skyscrapers of Astaria, the planet’s capital, rising up out of the barren desert. “How’s the doctor doing?”

  “I’m fine,” said Dr. Juron, raising his head up just a touch. “Are we nearly back to the city?”

  “We are,” said Traygar, pushing the doctor’s head back down. “Now stay down and stay quiet if you want to live to see it again.”

  “Shit,” said Tennyson, swerving to the right. “Got tangos in front of us, Spyrion. Three of the bastards, closing fast.”

  The gunner swiveled the rotary base back around towards the front, firing into the trio. The sphinxes pulled up and fired back towards the rocking jeep. A burst of gunfire punched into the reinforced windshield, sending cracks rippling across the surface.

  “Dammit,” said Tennyson, tapping the heads-up display on his helmet. “We’re blind. I’m switching over to the forward mounted relay.”

  The display in his helmet transitioned into a panoramic view of the landscape in front of him. Though he could no longer see it, he heard two more shots slam into the already battered windshield. Another salvo rang out from the rotary platform behind him.

  “Got two of them,” yelled Spyrion. “One more.”

  The gunner angled his turret over towards the last sphinx, but he couldn’t get a clean shot as the creature descended down, landing roughly on the hood of the jeep.

  “Heads up, Tennyson. We’ve got a lander.”

  The driver tapped off his relay feed to find the sphinx holding onto the hood with one hand and fidgeting with an EMP charge in the other. Tennyson quickly twisted the dial resting just above his right gauntlet with his free hand, activating his suit’s repulsor. Angling his hand up to the damaged glass, he fired the energy discharge, blasting the entire sheet out into the sphinx, sending both flying off to the side of the jeep.

  “Oh, great idea, Dan,” said Evans from the backseat. “Let’s lose the armored windshield.”

  “Well I couldn’t see through it anyway. Besides, it’s risk being shot while we’re moving or definitely get shot when that fucker knocks our power out. You choose.”

  “How about option three: Spyrion stops firing like this is a goddamn merit badge session at scout camp, and you stop driving like you’re on a leisure trip down Fuckville Boulevard.”

  “Hey,” said Spyrion, ducking down again behind the turret’s shield as another barrage went crashing into it. “Fuck you, Evans.”

  “I second that,” said Tennyson. “Just hold on, we’re almost there.”

  He felt the back end of the jeep suddenly push down from the weight of another sphinx diving out of the air and onto Spyrion’s gun platform. The beast swung for the black-clad soldier, who ducked low in his nest, grabbing onto the turret handle. Spyrion swung the platform, trying to hit the alien with the gun barrel, but the creature dove over it with a powerful flap of its wings, landing behind him. He turned, just in time to feel the sphinx’s fist make contact with his helmet. He tumbled out the back end of the jeep, catching the lip of the platform with his armored gauntlet. The vehicle slowed as the heavy armor ground along the sandy terrain behind it like an anchor. The sphinx grabbed onto the handle of the turret and swung it in towards the inner cabin of the jeep. As he moved to open fire on the occupants, Evans fired his rifle out through the opening, catching the beast in the head. With an involuntary jerk, the alien’s corpse went tumbling out the back, rolling over Spyrion as it did. Another member of the horde overhead swooped down for the dangling soldier, who managed to turn himself over and pull his sidearm out with his free hand as he continued to be dragged across the desert. He leveled the pistol as best he could and squeezed off a volley, hitting the creature clean in the chest. It cawed loudly as it joined the other bodies in the sweltering sand. Spyrion threw the handgun into the back of the jeep and then pulled himself in, causing the vehicle to lift just a touch.

  “Oh, hey, no one rush to help, I’m fine,” he yelled into the cabin.

  “Oh relax, we knew you had it under control,” said Evans, turning to look out the opening behind him. “It looks like they’re falling back anyway.”

  “That they are,” said Tennyson as he drove the group into the shadow of Astaria. “They know better than to fly out of the quarantine zone.”

  Admiral Claire Halsey walked into the office of Archduke Kor Danian with a sour look on her face. She tried her best to ignore the almost obnoxious lavishness of the suite as she walked over to the royal’s desk. All around her were golden tapestries and ancient art from Sphandaria’s long and proud history, many of which were emblazoned with the serpent-like creature the sphinxes had worshiped in their days of religion. She brushed a small wrinkle out of her white coat as she waited for the archduke to spin around with the same dramatic flair that he seemed to thrive on. After a moment, he finally turned his chair to face her.

  “Admiral Halsey,” he started with a small nod. “Do you know why you’ve been summoned?”

  “I’m sure I’m about to find out.”

  “Quite. Do you mind explaining to me why you’ve deployed ground forces on xarkulthian soil without authorizing the operation with us?”

  She raised her eyebrow. “What do you mean? I haven’t authorized any operations outside of the security details we agreed on when we got here.”

  “Then why are we receiving reports that one of your units, let me see here…,” he said, tapping the screen on his desk to scan one of the reports. “Ah yes, Dire Squad, shot up a Plague Bearer encampment, then crossed into the outer drive of Astaria and fought their way back into the city, leaving a literal trail of bodies behind them as they went?”

  Halsey frowned. “What were they after?”

  “Apparently they were attempting to rescue Dr. Novar Juron, who was abducted while traveling in between the Center for Plague Research here in Astaria and another facility a few cities over.”

  “And did they?”

  “Well, yes. But that isn’t the point. King Raydon is obviously very alarmed at the fact that your soldiers are so willing to kick off firefights here on Sphandaria. Our truce is fragile after all, and one incident could be diplomatically catastrophic going forward.”

  Halsey sighed, crossing her arms. “What I’m hearing is that my people saved one of the most important scientists on this planet from a group of extremists, and you’re concerned that we’re not showing enough restraint. Perhaps next time you’d like them to let the Plague Bearers flay Dr. Juron alive for all of Sphandaria to see? Would that be better for our diplomatic relations going forward?”

  “No! Well… I mean, the point is that we don’t want your species starting another war while you’re here! Just keep us in the loop next time.”

  She stared at the archduke for a moment. “As you wish. Is there anything else?”

&
nbsp; “Has there been any word on the situation over Dawn? We still haven’t been able to reestablish contact with our fleet. King Raydon is considering sending a party to investigate.”

  The admiral shifted. “There’s no need for that; you’ll just be spreading your forces even thinner than they already are. All of my reports have it that both fleets experienced technical difficulties due to a jammer malfunction on the planet’s surface. It’s nothing. The mission is going as planned, and we’re making good progress against the Plague from what I understand.”

  The archduke sat back in his seat, frowning for a moment. “Fine. That’s all then. You’re dismissed.”

  She gave a half bow, turned, and walked out of the chamber with an even sourer look than she’d entered with. As she made her way to the shuttle pad on the upper level of the palace, the translucent datacuff wrapped around her wrist chirped. The admiral tapped the display, opening the comm line.

  “What?”

  “Ma’am, Dire Squad is waiting in your office to debrief you on their rescue of Dr. Novar Juron.”

  “Well tell them that they’re about ten minutes too late. I’ll meet with them later, when my headache from their latest shoot ‘em up has subsided.”

  “Sergeant Tennyson says it’s important, ma’am.”

  “Goddammit, fine. I’ll be there in a second.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” came the reply.

  She tapped the line shut as she boarded the small shuttle sitting off on one of the numerous landing pads lining the upper level of the palace. Her two guards boarded behind her, taking their seats across from the admiral as the ship’s engines whined to life. They sat in silence for the short trip back up to the dreadnought hanging in orbit over the planet. When the ship finally touched down again in the hangar of her flagship, the Spirit of Nitre, she stood up and walked out of the cabin without so much as a glance at anyone around her. Silently, her guards descended behind her, following her back to her office.

  “They’re in there now?” Halsey asked her secretary as she walked through the foyer leading into her suite.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Alright then, time to send this headache nuclear.”

  She pushed through the door and into her office, circling her desk without a word.

  “So who wants to explain to me why exactly you thought it would be a good idea to go shoot up a Plague Bearer camp without even letting anyone else know that you were going?”

  “Ma’am,” said Tennyson, stepping forward. “There was no time. If we had waited even fifteen minutes, the intel on Dr. Juron’s whereabouts would’ve been bad and we’d have lost him. We had to act.”

  “This is the third time I’ve been summoned into that pompous archduke’s office because you four can’t stop shooting shit down there. Each time I’ve defended your actions, but don’t mistake that for solidarity. I just like to fluster that opulent fucker. Your cowboy bullshit is nothing but one big headache to me. Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t have the four of you cleaning the head on the ship for the rest of our deployment here.”

  “This is why,” said Tennyson, setting a small metal case down on the admiral’s desk.

  She stared at it for a moment before looking up at him. “Are we going to play twenty questions or do you want to tell me what the hell that is?”

  “There’s a datapad in that case with a starmap on it. We recovered it while we were in their camp. Dr. Juron thinks that it shows where the Plague Bearers took Dr. Mudaw when they abducted him. He says they spoke of taking him there too, someplace known as Dusk. I already looked into it, and it’s not on any of our maps, or the sphinxes’ for that matter.”

  “That seems unlikely,” she replied, reaching across her desk for the case. She pushed the metal hooks in, opening the container. “You know how to work this thing?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” said Traygar. She stepped forward and grabbed the datapad. After a few swipes, she slid it back over to the admiral.

  “Thank you,” said Halsey, staring at the screen in front of her. “Hmm, it’s on the outskirts of their Aruxian Sector. Have you shared this information with the sphinxes?”

  “No, ma’am,” said Tennyson. “I’ve got Dr. Juron with us for the moment. I told him we wanted him to debrief you on his abduction before we let him loose again in Astaria. He’s pretty adamant that we head to those coordinates and look for Dr. Mudaw.”

  Halsey smiled. “Oh, he’s adamant? Well then by all means, let’s head out.”

  Tennyson shifted, pausing for a moment. “I hope I’m not stepping out of bounds, Admiral, but I think we should head there as well. If that is where they took Dr. Mudaw, it’s within the mandate of our deployment to rescue him. He’s their foremost authority on the Plague. The only way we’re doing any good here is if we’re exploring every avenue towards a cure, and that obviously includes keeping Mudaw working.”

  Halsey frowned. “See, this is the problem with you four. You interpret a mandate for a drop of water as a mandate for a lake. We’re here to resupply the sphinxes and act as glorified peacekeepers. This whole deployment is one big show. And even if I did want to rescue Dr. Mudaw, we’ve been getting summoned by High Command all morning. They’re trying to recall us back to Earth.”

  “We’re going home?”

  “Hell no we’re not going home. I thought the order was odd, so I had our techs trace the origin. Apparently the signal got relayed through one of Admiral Dorian’s ships. I think the old bastard is trying to consolidate the navy. I don’t know what the hell is going on back on Earth, but I got my marching orders from Dr. Nightrick. Until he’s either confirmed dead or he recalls us himself, I’m not taking us anywhere near the Solar System.”

  “Then what’s the plan?”

  Halsey sighed, leaning back in her leather chair. “We need to keep our heads low and figure out who’s actually in command of the navy right now. If it is Dorian, then we can’t risk him sending the Sixth Fleet here to recall us. He might trigger a war that I’m sure he’d be all too happy to fight. I’ll have our techs send Command a message saying that we’ll head back to Earth as soon as we rescue Dr. Mudaw. That should buy us some time.”

  “Then it’s off to the lake, Admiral?” asked Tennyson with a small smile.

  She slid the datapad across her desk towards him with a scowl. “Just take this map down to the bridge and tell them to get ready to jump. We’re going to Dusk.”

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Commander Denova leaned back in her command throne on the deck of the Eternity. All around her, engineers, programmers, and various other technicians shot from console to console, working tirelessly under the Warden and Turing to get the ship back into stable condition. Outside, in the vacuum of space, the sphingian droid traversed the hull, making critical repairs with an almost otherworldly efficiency.

  “Any sign of the bastards?” asked the commander, pressing open the comm line on the arm of her throne.

  “No, ma’am,” came the reply. “No sphingian ships detected. We’re far enough away from the quarantine world at this point that we should be clear. If they happen upon us now, it’s nothing but dumb luck.”

  “Alright. Put me through to engineering. I want to speak with Lieutenant Commander Tang.”

  “Right away.”

  The line went dead for a minute, then reopened. “Yeah, this is Tang. What’s up?”

  “How close are we to being back online?”

  “An hour, if that. The Warden is incredible. It single-handedly repaired the reactor, and it’s been spot welding the hull for hours. It would’ve taken us weeks to do this amount of work under normal circumstances. Honestly, I don’t think we could’ve done this good of a job outside of a shipyard.”

  Denova frowned. “True, but now it’s logged the entire layout of the most advanced warship in human history. If the sphinxes ever get ahold of their droid again, it’s as good as capturing our schematics.”

  “Eh, give a little, gain
a little. It’s not like we had a lot of choices.”

  “Especially now,” said Denova, looking out the viewport in front of her. “If Dr. Mercer and Dr. Hall did send that distress call, we need to get back to Dawn as quickly as we can.”

  “I don’t suppose you’ve considered the possibility that it’s a trap? They did relay the message through Zarnok’s flagship after all.”

  “If it is, then the sphinxes will be in for a nasty little surprise. When we jumped, we had one foot in the grave. Thanks to their own technology, we’re going back almost as strong as we were in the first place. Their ships got hammered as badly as ours. If they attack, I’ll send every one of their vessels into oblivion.”

  The green visage of Turing projected up out of the AI terminal resting in front of the commander. “My apologies for the interruption, Commander Denova. All systems are back online.”

  “Excellent. Is the Warden back inside the ship yet?”

  “Just now,” replied the AI, flickering slightly. “The Warden is insistent that we head to Dawn immediately. It would like me to convey to you that its primary directive is Plague eradication, not ship repair.”

  Denova rolled her eyes. “Yes, Turing, I’m aware of that. Is there anything else?”

  “Just this, ma’am,” said the AI, pausing for a moment in an uncharacteristic fashion. “When we arrive on Dawn, you might find it prudent to keep the Warden out of our records and off world. There is no telling what it might find on the surface. As per Dr. Nightrick’s decree, we cannot risk allowing the sphinxes to discover the cure to the Plague.”

  The commander frowned. “Explain.”

  “Any access of human records by a sphingian intelligence is unacceptable.”

  “Desperate times call for desperate measures. I’ll let Dr. Mercer and Dr. Hall decide what’s acceptable when we get there. They’re running the show now, Turing.”

  The AI nodded. “As you say, Commander. I meant only to say that we should keep a careful eye on the Warden. It has already been granted an unprecedented amount of access to this ship’s network. It is learning, and its roots are spreading throughout the ship’s systems. I have kept it out of communications and vital records so far, but I can only stall it for so long. It should be isolated immediately.”