His breathing labored, the wrenching sensation surged. He could feel Jask’s essence. Hellish energies exploded from his body, like licks of flame off a star. His fists shook and his body phased through the rock of the asteroid base. He streaked out into space and screamed, “JASK! I’M COMING FOR YOU!”
CHAPTER 29
Filicide
Zuri looked down at the forest speeding by below. How she loved patrolling the skies, her long red hair dancing in the breeze. Luon was indeed a truly beautiful world. Today she and Jitsu were taking a totally new path, heading over the Orlan Greenway, toward the Trident Mountains, then looping back over the Ender’s Bog. Even after years of doing this, there were still endless paths to explore.
The thought of Rhysus Mencari came to her. Odd. It had been a while since he and his crew came looking for the ancient D’mar.
Her gut suddenly ached. No matter; in no time they’d be flying back through the opening atop the rock shell concealing their town. Despite the growing sensation, she focused on the nuances of greens in the forest below. That, and the various creatures they were speeding past.
She was about to comment to Jitsu, who was equally enthralled in their new patrol path, when the sensation worsened. Usually she didn’t let things get to her, but this literally felt like she’d been punched in the gut, a sensation she had little familiarity with. As she slowed, she noticed Jitsu look back, concerned.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Maybe something I ate, I …” She stopped.
No, that wasn’t it. In fact, the sensation had changed. Her entire body tingled now. A ringing noise drew her gaze out into space.
“Do you hear that—tone?” she asked.
“Hear …”
He did. She could see it in his eyes. Whatever it was, it was growing, and with it a horrible sensation. It was smothering, and … angry. The ringing became a jumble of sounds, then suddenly, clear, booming words that rampaged into her mind.
JASK! I’M COMING FOR YOU!
She grabbed her head as the words echoed like thunder, over and over. A great vertigo overcame her. Only Jitsu’s hand steadied her.
“Rhysus—that was Rhysus’s voice!” Jitsu said, also pained. “He sounded furious!”
“Is he close?” she eked out. She shook her head, trying to disrupt the madness in her mind.
“I don’t know, but something’s got to be very wrong.”
She felt, for just a moment, that Mencari was right there with them. Then, as sudden as it came upon her, it disappeared. A sigh of relief escaped her as the pain faded. “Let’s head back and get the others,” she said. “If that was Rhysus, the trouble will be with him.”
* * * * * *
Nikko stared into the red nebula outside her tiny port window. Her new room in New Eden was okay. Actually, it felt more like a cell. The isolation and loneliness was the worst part. She missed the bunkroom with the other women back at the asteroid base. Despite the lack of space for their personal effects, there was something nice about having the others there.
Who would have imagined a floating rock in space would feel like home? Though, it was who also lived there that made it that way. But for now, this was where she needed to be. Narrik and Tal didn’t trust Mencari. And not having all the experiences she had with Mencari, she understood why they felt the way they did. She still trusted Mencari, and would follow him. That was, if he still wanted her on the team. Either way, she owed him so much for changing her life. Without the rescue from her homeworld she might never have discovered what she really wanted.
Tension gripped her heart. She clutched her chest and wondered if it was a latent longing for Cogeni. Ending it with Cogeni was the right thing to do, and yet the guilt never left her. Things should have gone so different than they did. Would she ever stop feeling this way?
But that wasn’t it. Something else was wrong. Her heart began to pound; her lungs burned. With each passing moment she grew more uncomfortable. The sensation felt ominous, evil. She shifted in her chair but just couldn’t shake the feeling.
The air seemed to grow thin. She panicked, wondering why she couldn’t breathe. It felt just like when she was younger, with asthma, trying to make do in the thick fumes within the Smog Sea that engulfed her town.
A heaviness came to her limbs, a pressure on her body she’d felt only one other time. A sudden realization came to her. Seigie! The last time she felt this way was when she was taking care of Osuto, back on the asteroid base, when Seigie telepathically said goodbye before dying.
JASK! I’M COMING FOR YOU!
The words rocked her mind. A gasp, which sounded more like a yelp, escaped her. Questions filled her mind.
Rhysus—that was Rhysus! What’s happening? Who’s Jask?
Her door chimed, then opened. Dane stood in the doorframe, eyes beaded, face more pale than usual. “Did you hear that?”
Nikko nodded.
* * * * * *
Niya looked out over the battered platform of Demassen. Workers were hurriedly repairing the damage from Naijen’s attack, replacing the section that was sheared clean off. She wondered how Cogeni was doing, and when he’d return. There was so much left to do on their world, and he was the key to everything.
He had proven himself to be exactly the man she hoped he’d be, as kindhearted as he was rugged and handsome. He’d make a great leader. Maybe his humor was a bit off. But she found his quirkiness endearing. A bit.
A telepathic vibration rippled all around her. She gripped her staff as the hostile waves approached. The sensation seemed to be radiating from space itself. She raced outside, and looked to the skies. No armadas or beings hovered. What could cause such an odd but powerful disturbance?
Words crashed down upon her like a column of hot air. A familiar voice boomed in her mind.
JASK! I’M COMING FOR YOU!
She screamed, grabbing her head. That was Mencari. Wasn’t Cogeni with him? What was going on? Whatever it was, she needed to find them fast.
* * * * * *
“Why?” Osuto choked out, glaring at D’abar. “Why did you do that?”
“He had a right to know.…”
Finding his voice, Osuto growled, “Don’t play that game with me!” before falling into a coughing fit.
D’abar hesitated, then jeered. “He’s dangerous—just like his boy. He’s certainly not the D’mok Warrior I once thought he was.”
“And your solution was to set him off like that? I thought I told you—”
“He’s too far gone to bring him back. How better to take down a rabid animal, than with another one?”
The words ripped through his old body. How? How could D’abar do that? Mencari had been through so much, had done so much for everyone, he didn’t deserve to be treated like this!
“Osuto!” Minea’s voice rang through the communicator.
He heard it, but was instantly called back to thoughts of D’abar’s treachery.
Minea spoke with greater urgency. “Osuto, we have calls coming in from New Eden, Luon, and Argosy.”
“Now what?” Osuto said.
“They’re saying they heard Rhysus.…”
“What?” Osuto cried in disbelief.
Heard Rhysus? What did that mean? They heard his cry, but how far did his telepathic shriek broadcast? If that were true—what power was Mencari commanding? What had D’abar unleashed? His eyes drawn to the floor, he saw the sear marks where Mencari had just stood.
“I see him!” Allia yelled, looking out the window.
Forcing himself from the gurney, he hobbled over and followed her gaze. Mencari streaked like a red comet into space.
“Those who are able—follow me,” Osuto commanded, surprised by the conviction and absolute expectation his voice conveyed. “We have to help him.”
* * * * * *
“I can feel you!” Mencari shrilled, his eyes gazing deep into space. It was as if he could sense how far away Jask was, and how quickly he was
moving. Clearly the beast warrior commander wasn’t traversing normal space. Instinct told him two could play that game.
Osuto telepathically reached out to him, but he ignored it. Instead, he gripped his hands, summoning crimson gauntlets of energy. With a powerful swipe, space before him tore open. A purple-colored wormhole appeared. It seemed so easy to manipulate the fabric of the universe. He should have embraced his powers sooner. Nothing felt beyond him now.
Adrenaline surged through his veins as his red aura burst with power. He blasted forward, feeling the tingle of acceleration, entering his own personal wormhole. The dotted canvas of space swirled into a tunnel of blue and white-laced energy.
Had he known it was so easy, he’d have discarded the outmoded ships for this method long ago. There were no planets, no aliens, no anomalies to work around. It was a direct line to wherever he wanted to go. How perfect. He’d have to thank Jask for the idea—before killing him.
He felt Jask’s essence draw near. Perhaps the beast wasn’t as invincible as it thought it was. Catching up seemed all too easy. Reaching forward, he tore a hole back into normal space. As he passed through, he found yet another asteroid field.
Jask’s voice rang in his mind. Catch!
A mountain of an asteroid careened at him. Instinctively, his red radiance flared. Driving forward, he plowed right through it. He enjoyed the surprised look on Jask’s face as he broke through the other side—unfazed.
In a flash, the coward turned tail and flew, dodging between asteroids.
“Shall we play a game?” he said. With a cruel grin he waited, giving Jask a small lead. Looking through his pulsing aura, the universe appeared to radiate a crimson light. When this was done, when Jask was dead, where would he go? Certainly not back to the D’mok Warriors. He knew how they felt now—their fear of him. Perhaps he’d go somewhere far away. Gazing into the distance, his vision somehow telescoped, allowing him to see into the far reaches of space. Somewhere out there.
That should be enough time.
His body exploded with power as he streaked forward. Unlike Jask, he didn’t need to dodge around asteroids. He plowed straight through each one, shattering the rocks as he hit, sending others flinging off in his wake.
I still feel you.
With every passing second the gap closed between them. Being the predator almost felt fun. The thrill of the hunt—indeed.
So this is what it’s like to be your ultimate form. To fear nothing— Ah, there he is.
The animal looked back, summoning its golden glow, punching asteroids as it went. To his bemusement, some flung his way. The rest crashed into other asteroids, creating a fog of rocky shrapnel.
His mind telegraphed a message. You better have another trick up your sleeve, beast!
He even slowed a bit to give Jask time to do something new. In moments the beast reached open space. A new rift formed. Despite warping away, some new cosmic sense allowed him to continue tracking the beast. An evil smirk crossed his face. There really was nowhere Jask could run, nowhere it would be safe.
He’d never enjoyed cat and mouse until now. Though, he’d never played the part of cat before. The longer it took, the more his hatred for Jask grew. The link between his rage and these new, seething powers was clear. By now Jask knew he was in trouble. Hopefully the beast’s imagination conjured all kinds of images of what would be done to him when caught. Whatever it was thinking, it would be worse.
He cleared the asteroid field. With a mere thought, a tear opened in space. The chase continued.
* * * * * *
Persistent, Jask thought, annoyed by Mencari’s pursuit. There had to be a way to lose him. How was he even able to catch up in the first place?
A bolt of concentrated energy buzzed past his head, passing so closely the static charge raised the hairs on his neck. Impossible, he thought while trying to dodge within the narrow passage through hyperspace. No one could possibly generate an attack while traveling bodily in hyperspace! His panic subsided as he remembered their earlier battles.
Wait, he can’t even hurt me!
Looking back, he purposefully moved into the line of fire. The blasts broke about him into fountains of light. He laughed with each strike.
“That tickles, old man!” he taunted.
His smile faded when Mencari boosted suddenly forward. Moments after powerful hands gripped his throat, he felt like a marionette hurled to the side. His body shuddered, as if smashed into a brick wall. The next thing he knew he was tumbling through normal space. A sudden realization rattled him.
He threw me out of hyperspace!
At least he knew he could survive such a thing. But still, Rhysus Mencari was more dangerous than he thought. Of course, maybe he was just angry because the asteroid base and all his buddies just about blew up. A few more seconds and it would have happened too.
He snickered, before feeling his jaw buckling and the universe reeling about him once more.
“I can still tear you apart!” Mencari bellowed in glee, landing a punch to his stomach.
The old man wasn’t kidding. His blasts tickled, but his fists—they hurt.
He had to focus. Mencari was physically bigger. He needed to put some distance between them. Maybe he needed to get help too? Yezen and Ishara, they’d help him. He just needed to get back to their camp.
Recovering, he punched a new rift open in space. Before he could dive through, a viselike grip grabbed his ankle. There was a loud snap, followed by his body hurling uncontrollably backward. A white light enveloped him moments before he smashed into something hard.
* * * * * *
“That should do it!” Toriko said, activating a panel before her. Monitors across the command center lit up with new data. “It’s a patch job, but it’ll get us back online for the moment. Just don’t use Ujaku’s ship or you’ll pull the plug on my communication grid.”
Minea said, “I’m coordinating the Wise Men, Bob, and New Eden’s network usage. We’re scouring the entire intelligence network and every scanner we have access to. We’ll find them.”
A projection of Datochn appeared beside Minea’s. “I’m also trying to lock onto his communicator,” Datochn said, frustrated. “They’re both moving so fast. I nearly get a lock when they disappear again.”
A chart appeared, showing the locations the two appeared in.
“How are they doing that?” Toriko said. “I’ve never seen him punch a hole in space bef—”
Yelling from the conference room drew her attention. Were Osuto and D’abar really going at it that badly? She’d never heard yelling like that before, much less from Osuto. Sure, Naijen got a little crazy sometimes, but not the patriarchs. Whatever their issues, right now she had to focus.
“I’ve aligned the scanning grid and boosted the outermost emitters for maximum range,” Minea said.
“Good idea!”
A projection of Eyani appeared beside her. “Toriko! What’s happening? Bob reported a total communication failure with the asteroid base.”
“Jask got loose, destroyed the communication array, and nearly killed everyone. I cobbled together a link back to the New Eden network.”
“Killed? Who?”
“Both of our med-techs, and Katen. A number of us are hurt too: Maro, Jeyla, Raitr, Anaka, and Osuto. Though,” she glanced back at the conference room. “He’s holding his own for the moment.”
“I’m sorry about your sister. And Allia wasn’t hurt?”
A short laugh escaped Toriko. The joke really shouldn’t strike her as funny, but it did. “Right? She’s fine.”
“How bad is everyone?”
“There’s going to be some permanent scars, but they’ll recover.”
“And Jask?”
“He fled. Mencari’s after him.”
Toriko heard Minea’s voice coming through from Eyani’s side. “We’re tracking them now. See?”
A star chart burst open beside her with a glowing line streaking across it.
/> “We have him!” Minea yelled. “Our predictive models are working!”
The star chart imploded, and then exploded, revealing a new region of space. The display flashed, repeating the display change. In moments, it did it yet again. Eventually the view protracted into a pulled-back perspective, unable to visually keep up with the rapidly changing context.
“Eudora! Look at their speed!” Toriko gasped.
“How are they moving so fast? Ships?”
“No, they’re using their abilities to move through space.”
“When could Rhysus do this?”
“It’s all new. We’ve only seen the Nukari Beast Warriors do what Rhysus is right now. We don’t understand everything that’s going on.”
“I’m sending Una and additional medical staff to you. If you get a chance to lock in to his position, use the ship to get to him fast. I don’t like this at all. Given their history, he could be flying into a trap.”
The line abruptly stopped. As the seconds passed Toriko asked, “Did we lose them, or did they stop?”
“No, we’re still tracking,” Minea said.
Toriko gestured, zooming in on the region of space. New lines darted erratically about within the system.
“Why there?” Eyani said.
“Scanning the system,” Minea said.
“Alert: Nukari ion trails detected,” Bob said with a click and whir.
A holographic overlay projected on the system chart. Most of the pink lines seemed to lead to one planet.
In disbelief, Toriko said, “Eudora, I think we found where the Nukari retreated to.”
“I’m contacting Ghn’en and Varen now,” Eyani said. “We’ll mobilize the Be’Inaxi and Nomad forces. If the Coalition responds, maybe we can get Anrik’s forces to help too. Is Kiyanna okay?”
“Yes, why?”
“Have her lead your forces and coordinate with ours. Minea, Bob, keep Kiyanna and Toriko updated as things develop. You two can communicate with everyone faster than we could.”
D'mok Revival 4: New Eden Page 34
