by Adair Hart
Evaran gestured at V. “Our friend.”
“Oh,” said Skar. “So he was the one tracking Billozein.”
“Analysis. Stun beam had no noticeable effect.”
Evaran rubbed his chin. “V’s stun beam is reduced relative to Dr. Snowden’s or Emily’s PSD, and to mine. Then again, it could be that it only affects Billozein in a transformed state.”
Dr. Snowden glanced at V. “How’d you like using your new stun beam?”
V flew over to Dr. Snowden. “It is serviceable.”
Dr. Snowden half grinned.
Evaran scanned the doors with his ring. “This door is mechanical and looks like it requires two keys.”
“Both should be in town. Give me a minute, and I’ll have someone bring them up.” Skar walked off to the side.
Emily narrowed her eyes. “Billozein is going to have some distance on us.”
“Probably,” said Jane. She glanced at Evaran. “Did your layouts show any exit other than this one?”
“I did not see one, but that does not mean there is not one. Billozein has shown himself to be quite elusive. I do not suspect he would hole up without an escape plan.”
“That’s what I’m thinking too. What do we do then if we see him?”
“Stun him so we can capture him alive. Although V’s stun beam may not have had an effect, I think multiple beams would. At this point, I do not know if he is time traveling as an organism or if it is his ship.”
Jane nodded.
Skar walked back to the group. “I have someone from town coming out, should be about ten minutes or so.”
“Very well,” said Evaran.
Dr. Snowden sat against the right edge of the entrance.
Emily sat to his left and Jane to his right. Evaran and Skar walked over and stood in front of them while V hovered over Evaran’s shoulder.
Jane bumped Dr. Snowden’s arm. “Popular guy.”
Dr. Snowden smirked. “I wanted to soak in what we saw in Billozein’s office.” He looked up at Skar. “How long has Billozein been there?”
Skar looked down. “Only a few months.”
“Hmm … have there been any disappearances recently?”
“Actually … yeah, been quite a few. That’s not uncommon given the ongoing war, though.” Skar cocked his head. “Why do you ask?”
“Well … We’ve run into him before, and when we did, he had converted humans into some … type of servant. It grows in the body and then controls it,” said Dr. Snowden.
“Are you being serious?”
Dr. Snowden nodded. “I was thinking that maybe he’s begun that process here, although I would think it would be harder out here in the open.”
“Maybe those disappearances were related to that, and he,” said Skar, pointing at the mining facility door, “used this place as his hideout.”
“That’s kinda what I was thinking.”
Skar uttered a low growl. “Billozein has much to answer for. How’d you find him the first time?”
Jane looked up at Skar. “We were tracking illegal augment creation and distribution.”
“We’ve had some issues with that. Come to think of it … it seemed to intensify around the formation of Advanced Dynamics. I assume you all have fought him before?”
Emily smirked. “He tried to gas me and Evaran. Then he tried to put Uncle Albert, Jane, and V into an environment filled with mutants and killer robots.”
“And you’re still here,” said Skar. “Impressive. No wonder he bolted so quickly.”
After a few more minutes of light discussion, a vehicle pulled up with two heavily armed Kalesh. Once the vehicle stopped, the two Kalesh headed toward the mining door entrance.
Dr. Snowden stood along with the others and joined Skar at the entrance.
Skar gestured at the door. “Get it open.”
“Yes, sir,” said one of the Kalesh. The Kalesh inserted large, oddly shaped metallic keys into the slots at each end of the door, and then turned them. A clanking sound rang out.
Skar motioned for everyone to push along the right side.
After several attempts, the door slid open enough for them to enter.
“Excellent,” said Evaran. He peered in. “It appears we will need illumination.” He tossed out two orbs that flew into the mining facility and illuminated the surrounding area.
Skar followed the illumination orbs’ path. “I like those.” He faced the two Kalesh. “Guard this entrance. If anything comes out other than us, shoot to kill.”
“Yes, sir,” said the two Kalesh. They saluted Skar.
Evaran slid between the two doors and entered the mining facility.
Dr. Snowden activated his illumination orbs from his suit and entered behind Evaran. He noticed Emily’s suit had a light beacon on her stomach area that emanated lights. Jane clicked on some devices on her shoulder that shot lights forward. V mimicked the illumination orbs, presenting a halo of light where he flew.
Skar chuckled. “All I have is a light stick. Was going to have the others go get us some lights, but I think we’re covered.”
Evaran nodded at Skar and then scanned the floor. “V, follow the slime trail.”
“Acknowledged,” said V. He flew to the front of the group.
“I would also suggest everyone make sure their weapons are on standby.”
Dr. Snowden checked that his repulsion weapon was deployed. He saw Jane verifying her weapon was ready, and Emily investigating her PSD. Evaran had his utility handle out, and Skar held what looked like a medium-sized weapon that required two hands to hold and aim.
They followed V down a dirt path with rocky walls. In the middle of the path were rusted-out rail line tracks.
Dr. Snowden surveyed the tunnel they were in. The lights caused shadows to dance around in a haphazard manner. Although he could not smell, his mind imagined that the place did not have a good odor. The temperature was much cooler than he expected. There were several hallways that branched out. He had looked down them, and the pervading darkness seemed to lie in wait just beyond the illumination of the group. The thought crossed his mind that this seemed like a perfect place to set booby traps.
They reached a large cavern where the path turned into a ramp that descended about fifty feet or so to the floor.
Dr. Snowden watched the illumination orbs take off into the air. The cavern was massive. Various pieces of mining equipment sat out in the open. The large rectangular containers that sat off to the side caught his attention. They were stacked on top of each other and about twenty wide. He calculated with three levels, that was about sixty containers. Maybe they were used to store whatever was being mined, but he did not know of any mining operation that looked like this. Then again, he was not a mining expert.
The large building in the middle of the cavern stood defiantly among the rock-littered floor. It looked out of place to Dr. Snowden. As they descended down the path, he noticed that there were other stacks of containers along the other walls. His nanobots began to tingle.
Emily looked around. “It seems deserted.”
“Perhaps,” said Evaran. He scanned the walls and the ground along the path. He pointed at the ground. “However, it appears there was recent activity. V has tracked Billozein’s trail to a facility up ahead on the ground floor. We may find some answers there.”
They reached the cavern floor and headed toward the facility.
Emily tapped Dr. Snowden’s arm. “Are your nanobots tingling?”
“They are and started when we entered this section of the facility.”
Jane looked around. “I don’t have nanobots, but the hairs on my neck are raised.”
Skar growled. “This place makes me uneasy.”
“Intuition,” said Evaran, turning his head halfway to the side. “It has served both your species well.”
Skar’s eyes darted over to Evaran for a moment, then back forward.
They reached the building after another ten minutes.
> Dr. Snowden noted that the doorway was open, and a light illuminated the inside.
Evaran motioned forward. “V, scout mode.”
“Acknowledged. Scout mode engaged,” said V. He shimmered out of view and flew inside. After a few minutes, he came back out. “Analysis. No life-forms detected.”
Dr. Snowden relaxed a bit after realizing he had been tensing up. All his senses told him they were alone, but the dancing shadows and eerie quietness bothered him. Although he felt more relaxed, his pulsing nanobots were not. The usual slowdown of everything around him seemed to amplify their effects. It reminded him of when he was on the space habitat earlier. His breathing staggered.
Evaran entered the building. “Let us see what is inside.”
Jane noticed Dr. Snowden had been acting unusual ever since they came to the cavern floor. She could empathize; this place gave her the creeps. It was seemingly empty, but she could not help feeling like they were being watched. Probably Billozein observing them remotely.
She exhaled from her nose and entered the building behind Dr. Snowden. Her gaze focused on the cylindrical capsules along the back wall. They stood out in the large room packed with workstations. Several tables with equipment that she was unfamiliar with littered the floor. One thing she was sure of was the smell of blood. She waved her hand in front of her. “It smells great in here.”
Dr. Snowden tapped his helmet. “I’m glad I have this up.”
Jane tapped at her ARI, causing a transparent faceplate to cover her face. “Good idea.” She walked over to the capsules and ran her hand along the cool glass-like front piece. Inside the capsule was a Kalesh, but its back had been ripped open, and it was facing away from her. A white substance pulsed around the spine. She waved everyone over. “Is that … Billozein’s progeny?”
Evaran walked over to where Jane was and scanned the capsule with his ring. “That is correct. The mechanical device is slightly different. Interesting.”
Jane turned her head to the clinking noises near one of the work tables.
Skar was picking up various objects. “Augments.” He pulled his lips in and looked around. “So this is where he makes them.”
Evaran raised a finger. “Makes them, yes. However, I believe the ones in this building, specifically, were meant for testing.”
Skar walked over to Evaran while holding a thin cylindrical device with wires dangling off it. “How do you know that?”
Evaran pointed at the Kalesh in the capsule. “You can see the incision marks where they have been implanted. Billozein was not only creating and then enslaving these creatures, he was giving them augments. A superpowered army to do his bidding.”
Skar bared his teeth. “So … augmented mutant Kalesh. They did not deserve this.”
Jane could see Skar was visibly shaken. It was not every day you learned that your race is being experimented on to create mutant augmented versions. She glanced at Emily. “You saw this on the habitat?”
“Yeah, except they were human.”
“And this … is what was inside Chris,” said Jane with a sigh. “There were no augments, though, right?”
“Right. It was just these things in them.”
Dr. Snowden looked at some of the other capsules. “It seems these were in various states. Is the creature infectious?”
Emily shook her head. “Not that I know of, and you don’t want to know how Billozein puts whatever these things are inside.”
Dr. Snowden raised his eyebrows.
Evaran placed his UIC on one of the workstations. After a moment, he rubbed his chin. “Intriguing. The mechanical device is unique to each species. It allows Billozein to issue commands, and I have identified the control communication aspect of it. When we get back to the Torvatta, I will look into a way to disrupt that communication and maybe reset the programming of his progeny.”
Jane grimaced as her eye caught a blue cube sitting on one of the work tables. She pointed at it. “What’s that …”
Evaran walked over to the device and scanned it. “It is a communication device.”
“What does it communicate with?” asked Jane.
Evaran placed his UIC on it, and after a moment, the cube glowed. “We will find out.”
Everyone assembled around the cube. After a minute, a hologram of Billozein in Kalesh form appeared above the cube.
Jane noticed that it looked like Billozein was sitting in a ship.
“So … you found my research lab and figured out how to communicate with me. Impressive. I was content to observe you,” said Billozein.
“It is apparent to me you are creating an army at this point. Why are you doing this?” asked Evaran.
Billozein chuckled. “Like you don’t know. I will sweep across this galaxy and nothing, not even you, will stop me.”
“I do not think you understand how big the galaxy is, or what is out there, to make that claim. There are those who would crush you as an afterthought.”
Billozein growled. “Guess we’ll see, won’t we? What’s important right now is that you’re following me. I gave you an out, time traveler, and you didn’t take it. This time, you won’t have a choice. I now know your ship is temporally shielded. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be here. Your ship is a lot tougher than I would’ve thought to survive a habitat blowing up around it.”
“My ship is unique,” said Evaran. “Nonetheless, I cannot allow you to roam free. Your malicious intent is now verified. I will find you wherever you go.”
Billozein laughed. “I don’t think so. Let me ask you … how long does it take for a timeline to render an update from the moment it is created?”
“Twenty minutes, relatively.”
Billozein smirked. “Very good. You’re not as clueless as I thought. Since you’re away from your ship, a timeline change will … wash you away, like so much trash.”
“We can get to my ship in twenty minutes.”
“You could but … ,” said Billozein, tapping at a console to his side,” you won’t be doing that. No … Your journey ends here. I have to waste another time jump for you, but that’s okay. Yet another time traveler I’ve had to teach a harsh lesson to. I’ll give you some credit, you survived a habitat destruction event when a Time Warden didn’t.”
“It does not need to end like this. Surrender, and we can clear all this up.”
Billozein smirked. “You’re nuts. You can’t leave it alone, can you? Trying till the very end. How noble. I am far and away more important than you. Smarter too, apparently. You know what, I think this time I’ll punish the Kalesh, in your memory. You can think of that during your last twenty minutes.”
The projection vanished.
Evaran extended a hand. He perused his UIC and then swiped his hands across it. After a moment, the cube stopped glowing. “We can speak freely now.”
Skar shook his head. “What is all this talk about time travel and timeline changes?”
“It is not important for now,” said Evaran. “First things first, let us get out of this facility.”
A series of loud clanging noises rang out from outside the building.
Jane gulped. “What was that?”
Evaran pulled off his utility handle and extended it into a staff. “I suspect it is what will try to prevent us from leaving. Prepare for battle.”
Jane’s heartbeat shot up. Looking around, Evaran, Dr. Snowden, and Emily seemed calm and determined. Skar looked like he was about to jump out of his skin. She did not blame him; she could feel something bad was about to occur.
“V, scouting mode,” said Evaran.
“Acknowledged. Scouting mode engaged,” said V as he shimmered out of view. He flew out of the building.
Evaran tossed an orb out. It shot a projection of the aerial view from V.
Jane swallowed hard as she saw hundreds of Kalesh with slick fur approaching the building. They were pouring out of the containers stacked along the wall. “Okay … It looks like Billozein’s army was further along t
han expected.”
Evaran nodded. “I suspect these were to be shipped all around Roeth. Billozein has decided to release his progeny on us instead. This will be a rough fight. Stay close together. We head to the ramp leading out of this floor, then to the exit. Skar, Emily, you have the right side. Dr. Snowden, Jane, you have the left. We move as one on my lead.”
“Why don’t we wait here for twenty minutes?” asked Dr. Snowden.
“A good question. However, there is the possibility that this mine does not exist in the new timeline.”
Dr. Snowden’s eyes widened. “Oh … yeah. Good point.”
“This timeline business again,” said Skar.
Jane glanced at Skar. “You ready for this?”
“Not really, but looks like we don’t have a choice. I’m not fully sure what’s going on here. I’ll figure it out once when we get topside,” said Skar with bared teeth.
“I will explain everything in detail once we are out,” said Evaran.
“Let’s get this over with,” said Skar, laying his ears back.
Jane knew that flattened ears and bared teeth was the sign of a nervous Kalesh. She had seen it many times before. She lightly squeezed Skar’s trembling arm. “We’ll get through this.”
Skar bobbed his head.
Evaran looked around at everyone, then moved forward. “Move!” He exited the building with Skar and Emily taking up the right side behind him. Dr. Snowden and Jane took the other side.
Jane’s breathing staggered at the sheer amount of Kalesh swarming. Their stuttered movement and odd wailing unnerved her. The lighting didn’t help. There was an area around them where they could see with good visibility. Outside that was a sea of eyes that approached them. Although her focus was on keeping the Kalesh at a distance, she admired Evaran’s ability to clear a path. He was a swirling tornado that tossed Kalesh left and right. The sound of Skar’s gun and Dr. Snowden’s and Emily’s repulsion blasts was deafening.
At the halfway mark, three Kalesh jumped Dr. Snowden and dragged him to the ground.
Jane rushed forward, shooting the one on Dr. Snowden’s right arm.
Dr. Snowden pointed his repulsing weapon at one and sent it flying.
