Eradication (The Void Wraith Trilogy Book 3)

by Chris Fox

  Hannan couldn't blame her. Kathryn knew they didn't trust her, and she knew they were right not to.

  Hannan was still trying to get a handle on the woman. On the one hand, there was the natural antagonism from the time when Kathryn had been an enemy. She'd screwed them more than once, and Nolan had usually gotten caught in the crossfire. Hannan was more than a little overprotective of the captain; she knew that. He was like the smart little brother she had to keep out of trouble now and again.

  On the other hand, Kathryn was clearly competent. Not just at the field agent crap OFI operatives were supposed to know, but she was the kind of canny fighter you wanted at your back when you were in the thick of things. She took orders well, but also had the initiative to make smart calls when it made sense to do so. In short, she was officer material. And they needed officers.

  "Any idea why?" Hannan asked Kathryn, more to show the woman she wasn't being ignored than because she wanted to know the answer.

  Kathryn looked up in surprise, licking her lips before she spoke. "I'm almost positive I don't want to know the real answer. The only reason for this thing to have atmosphere is for the Eye to support some sort of life."

  "I seriously doubt it's trying to support anything we want to meet," the captain said, resting the barrel of his rifle against his shoulder. "Be prepared for a firefight. If I were the Eye, I'd have all sorts of nasty little minions between us and Mendez."

  The harvester touched down lightly, and the airlock doors slid open. The energy curtain was still in place, giving the surrounding landscape a blueish tinge. It didn't look all that different than other worlds, except that the rocks were bleached white. Lena or Atrea could probably have told her why that was, but they'd been left behind at the Helios Gate.

  That part made sense, but leaving Izzy behind too had been a blow. Hannan would much rather have had Izzy with them. She was a canny fighter, and the only real replacement for Mills that the squad had ever had. She was a part of their crew, Tigris or not.

  The energy curtain flickered out, and Hannan's ears popped when the pressure equalized. She blinked away the pain, trotting down the rapidly extending ramp, and reached the bleached rock about the same time as the ramp, the others following.

  Hannan gestured for Annie to take point, then for Nolan and Kathryn to flank Edwards. The big bot was struggling under the bulky weight of the Primo medbed, but if Kathryn's plan was workable that effort would more than pay for itself. In the meantime they needed to protect Edwards, though, so Hannan took up the rear, completing the box around him.

  They trotted across the landscape, following a little black device the captain was carrying. He took regular readings, the Primo device chirping more loudly as they approached a small hill not far from the ship. It was flanked by far larger mountains, with nothing to distinguish it from surrounding hills. Smart. The first line of defense was obscurity, and the Void Wraith had clearly leveraged that here.

  The gravity was considerably lighter than Earth, and since they weren't burdened with bulky EVA suits they were flying across the terrain. Their little group--especially Edwards--sent up a large cloud of chalky dust. That made Hannan nervous, and she scanned the hillsides continuously for snipers. There were a lot of good spots to hide.

  They pressed on, getting closer and closer to the cave. On the ridge above her, something flashed. Hannan stopped dead, snapping her rifle up. She stared down the scope, a UFC model bolted onto the Primo chassis.

  "Sir, I've got movement on the ridge above. Little critters, I'd guess. About three feet tall. They're hopping through the rocks up on the ridge to the south east, about two clicks out." Hannan dropped the rifle, sprinting after the others.

  "Noted," the captain replied, the word punctuated by the sharp exhalation of a runner at full speed. "We'll have to chance them coming after us. I'd estimate half a click to the cave."

  "Looks like there's something organic inside, like a hive of some kind," Kathryn panted raggedly. Hannan glanced at the woman, but other than her breathing she was keeping pace just fine. Her stamina was probably off from being so long in the freezer.

  There was silence as they closed the last few hundred meters. Hannan could see the cave now, a dark impression that would be easy to miss if you weren't looking for it. Inside, she spotted the brown crap Kathryn had mentioned. It plastered the walls, the ceiling, and the floor, completely coating the tunnel and giving off a smell that made her want to retch.

  "Edwards, as soon as you reach that door, I want you to drop that medbed and light that corridor up," Hannan ordered, giving once last glance over her shoulder. It didn't look like the creatures had gotten any closer. "Double-time it, Marine."

  Edwards broke into a sprint, vaulting boulders the rest of them had to run around. He made incredible time, reaching the door a good fifteen seconds before the rest of the squad. He immediately activated his plasma sword, using the weapon like a cutting torch. It sank into the membrane, and he sliced downward. The material was evidently super tough, as he'd just barely finished the first cut when they arrived.

  Hannan pivoted, shifting to watch their rear and flanks while Edwards finished his work. She kept her rifle at the ready, scanning the horizon for any sign of the creatures.

  "Contact," the captain yelled, firing several shots at the rocks above. A sharp squeal of pain echoed down, then the sounds of several somethings skittering through the rocks.

  Hannan walked backwards away from the membrane, scanning the rocks above. She spotted one briefly, but it took cover behind a boulder before she could get a clean shot.

  "Okay, Sarge, we're good to go," Edwards called.

  Hannan glanced briefly in his direction, seeing the flap of skin-like material crumple to the ground. In its wake, it left a hole leading into a misty tunnel. It looked like a goddamned roach nest.

  Then a flood of chittering insect-like creatures came swarming out. They scuttled across the ground--a foot tall, with a multitude of legs, and large stingers attached to their tails. There had to be dozens of them.

  The moment the first one emerged, the creatures in the rocks above fled, scampering higher and making frightened yelps.

  Great, she thought. This just keeps getting better.

  "Focus your fire," Hannan barked over the comm, aiming a controlled burst at the first bug. It went down in a spray of green ichor, the bugs around it scattering with annoyed screeches.

  The captain took out another bug, then Kathryn added her fire. Annie took slow deliberate aim, then fired as well. Their combined fire wasn't enough. The bodies of the dead disappeared under the flood of bugs behind it, dozens becoming hundreds. Their awful scuttling echoed down into the tunnel.

  Then Edward stepped forward. He aimed his cannon at the bugs, and a burst of blue plasma exploded in their mist. The blast took out half a dozen, and the rock debris killed several more.

  "Keep firing, Edwards," Hannan gasped, heart pounding. She backpedaled. "Everyone else, slow walk backwards. Pick off any that get past Edwards."

  The others began backing slowly away, as Edwards fired another volley. More bugs went down, but the host had nearly reached their front line. Edwards fired again, scattering the ones around his feet. More replaced them, and began stabbing at his metal legs with their stingers. Hannan expected them to bounce off the tough metal, but to her horror the first stinger slid into Edward's right foot. Another hit the left, and one jumped up to his arm.

  "Help Edwards," Hannan called. Shifting her aim, she picked off the bug on his arm.

  The captain took another off the leg, and Kathryn got one that had reached Edwards's shoulder. Annie kept firing at the ones making it past Edwards, trying to keep them at bay. One of the bugs dodged Annie's shot, then bounded forward with incredible speed. It leapt at her, and Annie toppled to her back under its way. She gave a curse, trying to force the creature away.

  Hannan shifted the barrel of her rifle, but she wasn't fast enough. The stinger came down, piercing Annie
's thigh and pinning her leg to the ground. Annie gave a shriek of pain, planting her barrel against the thing's jaw. She pulled the trigger, spraying her armor with more green ichor. The body twitched and flopped atop her, finally going still.

  "Sarge, they're falling back," Edwards called, taking another potshot at the fleeing bugs. "Looks like they don't like plasma too much."

  "It's like they received a signal, probably from something bigger inside," Nolan said, frowning at the bugs. He moved to Annie's side, kneeling next to her. "Kathryn, can you take a look at this?"

  Kathryn moved to Annie's side, withdrawing a portable med kit. She set it on the rock next to her, then took a look at Annie's leg. "I can pull it out, but there's going to be a lot of bleeding. We'll need to cauterize the wound, on both sides of the leg. That's easy enough, but she won't be able to walk for a few days."

  "That's no big deal," Annie said, teeth gritted in pain. She reached into her uniform, withdrawing the flask Hannan wasn't supposed to know about, but did. She took a mouthful, grimacing as she swallowed. "Just pull it out. Just because I can't walk don't mean I can't fight. You prop me up against those rocks over there, and I'll keep those critters at bay while you're in that damned nest. I'm happier than you know not goin' inside."

  Kathryn yanked the stinger free. Hannan winced at Annie's hoarse scream.

  Chapter 68- Temporal Cannon

  "Temporal cannon ready to fire in twelve seconds," Elvu said, eyes fixed on her lap comm.

  "Lanur, open fire the instant the cannon is ready," Manda ordered, hands still balled into fists. Her claws dug into her palms, the pain somehow grounding her.

  It would come down to a single second. Lanur had found a way to pull more power from the rest of the ship, but he couldn't promise a full two seconds. He could only promise one, and theorize that two was possible.

  The Forge's cannons continued to fire as their vessel sailed closer to the Eye. The Void Wraith were still thick in the system, most between them and the Eye. Destroying them didn't matter, as long as they were kept at bay long enough for the main cannon to fire. It was their greatest weapon, conceived and improved within the Birthplace. They'd spent centuries making the weapon as lethal as possible.

  It harnessed entropy itself, one of the sole constants in the universe. The beam would unmake anything, breaking it down through the ravages of time. But the Eye was beyond ancient. What did time matter to a creature like that? They'd never used the temporal cannon on the Eye, but their projections suggested it couldn't do enough damage to the Eye's outer membrane.

  "Four seconds," Elvu said, the strain in her voice evident.

  Those final moments were a blur. Manda watched as the iris continued to contract, drawing closer and closer to covering the entire eye. The entire vessel thrummed as the cannon came online, then a tremendous white light burst from the Forge. It poured forth in a continuous stream, lightning crackling around the surface of the Eye for miles around the blast.

  Then the cannon ceased. Manda watched the enhanced footage of the area their shot had hit. Her shoulders sagged.

  "We failed," Elvu said, her body wracked by a sob.

  Manda willed her chair closer to the hologram, studying the area they'd hit. The blast had created an immense crater in the iris, but she didn't know how deep it ran.

  "Elvu," Manda said, firmly but not without empathy. She waited until the girl looked up. "Find out how much damage we did. Is there a hole in the iris? Even a small one might be enough."

  "One moment," Elvu said, sniffling. She bent to her lap console, tapping furiously. "Scanning now. It looks like there is no hole, but the crater penetrates nearly twelve miles. When the iris was retracting we scanned it, and estimate the density somewhere around thirteen. We're probably very close to penetrating. Another shot--"

  "We don't have time for another shot," Manda said, sighing heavily.

  Something slammed into the side of the vessel, the room rocking from the impact. Then something else. Many somethings. The Void Wraith were ramming them by the dozen, detonating their drives at the moment of impact. They were becoming improvised--but highly effective--missiles.

  "Damage report," she demanded.

  "Not good," Elvu replied. She scanned another screen of data. "We've lost almost half our cannons, and the left engine has taken damage. They've also begun assaulting the temporal cannon. There's no way it will survive long enough for another shot."

  A console flared and died, then the main hologram flickered. The damage must be severe, to be affecting power. They had dozens of redundant systems. There was no way they could take much more of this.

  "Open a channel to the the commanders of the Tigris, and the humans," Manda ordered. She floated down next to Elvu, putting a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder.

  Chapter 69- Weakness

  "Captain Nolan, this is Elvu of the Primo," a crisp, almost British voice spoke into the comm. Only a few people could reach him directly, but Manda was one of them; this message was coming from her ship.

  "What do you need, Elvu?" he asked, moving closer to Edwards's lumbering form. The Alpha had turned on a floodlight on one shoulder, which provided most of the light they were using. They could probably have stuck to their goggles, but the bugs seemed to dislike the light.

  "Stand by for Primo Manda." Elvu's answer was businesslike.

  "Captain Nolan, we have a dilemma," Manda began.

  "Kind of busy down here," Nolan said, his voice raising half an octave as he gunned down a bug that had crept from cover. It had been gathering itself to jump, and he didn't want to find out just how painful getting stabbed was--not after seeing what had happened to Annie.

  "This is critical. Our temporal cannon failed to penetrate the iris," Manda said.

  Nolan cursed under his breath, following Hannan as she guided them deeper into the tunnel. It sloped down, the mist swirling in little eddies that made some areas denser than others. It was in those clouds that the bugs seemed to be hiding, maybe to avoid the light. The tunnel was a good twenty to thirty feet wide, though, leaving a lot of shadows along the rocky ceiling.

  "Keep eyes above us," Nolan called.

  "Excuse me?" Manda asked, over the comm.

  "I'm sorry, Manda, I'm multitasking. We're in a combat situation." Nolan continued up the corridor, careful not to fall behind the others. He had a feeling these things would take advantage of anyone who got separated from the main group.

  "Then I'll keep this brief. We need a plan, or the Forge is going to be destroyed. We need another two minutes to charge the cannon, and it's not going to last two minutes." Manda's tone was annoyed, but didn't convey the gravity of the situation. If this didn't panic her, Nolan didn't want to know what would.

  Nolan thumbed a button on his comm, adding three more people to the conversation. "Fizgig, Izzy, Khar, are you all with us?"

  "Yes, Mighty Nolan," Khar rumbled.

  "I can hear you," Fizgig said, more than a tad crossly.

  "What do you need, Captain?" Izzy asked.

  Nolan gave it to them as quickly as he could. "We're on the line with Manda, the Primo leader. They're not going to be able to get through the iris, and unless we can come up with something pretty much right now, we're about to get wiped out. Manda, how much damage did you inflict? Is there anything we can exploit?"

  "There is a cataract near the center of the iris. We penetrated almost all the way through, but the remaining iris is nearly a mile thick. Even nuclear weapons will do little damage," Manda said, still with a note of mild irritation. "I could have the drones do strafing runs, but I doubt the defenders would let us get close. The Void Wraith are focusing their defense directly over the iris."

  "They wouldn't do enough damage," Fizgig said. She sounded incredibly weary.

  "I have an idea, one I can promise you they will not much like," Khar said, giving a booming laugh. "We have taken their weapons, why not also take their tactics? The Void Wraith are destroying the Forge by
hurling vessels into it. You can see the damage each explosion causes."

  "The amount of force released by a drive going critical is higher than most warheads," Nolan said. He stumbled over a rock, catching himself against Kathryn. She steadied him, and he kept moving down the corridor. There was fire from ahead, as Hannan picked off another bug. "Khar's right. If we hurl harvesters into that cataract, we can probably break through."

  "Do you realize what you're asking?" Fizgig asked. Her voice had gone soft.

  "Yes." Nolan didn't try to explain further. They both knew.

  "I will lead the charge," Khar said, laughing again. "What does it matter if we die today, or in a decade? If we wish our kits to survive, then some of us must purchase that victory with our lives. I will call to all remaining harvesters among our forces. Fizgig, will you escort us in for our attack run?"

  "What will we do once the hole is open?" Izzy asked, her voice quiet but no longer timid. "It is unlikely the Forge will be able to fire its main cannon again."

  "Manda, would it be possible to have the Helios Sphere overload somehow?" Nolan asked. He dropped to his knee, sighting down his scope into a mist cloud where he'd seen movement. He waited till he saw it again, then cored the bug with a shot from his rifle.

  "I believe so," Manda replied. There was an explosion in the background as she spoke. "I think I see where you're going with this. If we can get the Helios Ship inside the Eye, it can generate a massive wave of radiation. I don't know for certain that it will kill the Eye, but at the very least I doubt the Eye will like it much."

  "Khar, will you do this for your people?" Fizgig asked, her voice deadly quiet.

  "With great relish, Mighty Fizgig. This day will be sung of until our people are dust among the stars, and I will have its most pivotal role. Every mother will name her next son after me, Khar of Pride Leonis," Khar said. "I shall taunt that weakling Carnifex into joining me in glorious death. We'll clear a path, and create the opening Izzy needs."