by Frank Carey
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
The two cloaked warships--the League War Ship Razor and the League War Ship Meisner--waited behind Q'Tec's inner moon while the Space Marine contingent prepared a visit to the planet's surface. Aboard the Razor, approximately one hundred space marines were being briefed in the main shuttle bay by Major Williamson.
"At ease," the Major said as he surveyed his troops. "To recap, we are in orbit around Q'Tec, a hostile jungle world that is off-limits to all League citizens due to the dangerous flora and fauna that can be found there. Understand, even the Wombats aren't allowed down there.
"Drones have discovered a large outpost. There is no record of it in any League database, so we must assume it's illegal. Evidence gathered by Captain Grenor and her team shows that a large amount of material of League origin has been collected down there for reasons unknown by this person..." A giant hologram of Peter's face appeared above the stage. The Marines reacted badly.
"Major!" one Marine yelled.
"Yes, Corporal!"
"Are you telling us that Colonel Ventana is alive?"
"Yes, corporal, he is alive..." the image shifted to the feed from the transmission recorded at the Villa. The grumbling amongst the Marines increased in intensity.
"Listen up! Colonel Ventana is a Marine officer and will be accorded the respect due his rank until such time he is stripped of it. If encountered, he will be captured, ALIVE, and brought before a tribunal. No ropes, no yard arms, and no wombat pens! Am I understood?"
"Sir! Yes, sir!"
"Now, Captain Grenor, Sergeants Mersa and Trent, Privates Tor and Wen, and DCI Adon will recon the facility. Once they assess the situation, they will signal us to come in and secure the facility and its contents. We do not know what's down there. We are especially concerned with this," he said as a picture of Caleb's assailant appeared above the stage. "This is a genetically engineered life form the likes of which has not been seen before. The closest thing we have in the League is one of Typhon's chimeras, and by our estimate, those creatures pale in comparison to this one. If you are forced to engage one of these creatures, you are authorized to shoot to kill if they do not surrender. Remember, they are not members of the League, and they have occupied one of her planets. Any questions?"
Seeing there were none, Williamson dismissed the troops, then headed up to the bridge to discuss final plans with the captains of both ships.
Kalana was headed to the launch bay when she ran into a dozen of her fellow Boneheads. She stopped and looked around as more people filled the hallway. "People, we have a mission to prep for," she reminded them.
"This'll only take a second, ma'am," a human said as he handed her a small box, then stepped back into the crowd.
Curious, she opened it and found a Bonehead pendent, but this one was a stryker with her colors and glowing eyes. A note inside said simply, "Give them hell."
She gave them a quizzical look.
"First stryker Bonehead, ma'am. We all pitched in and had it made special for you."
She took it from the box and, after carefully pocketing the case, she clipped it on her chain, right next to the Bonehead skull she already had. "Thank you, all of you. I will cherish this for all the days to come."
"Boneheads! Attenshuh!" Kalana looked up and saw Captain Shenta standing at attention as were every Bonehead in the room, including Mersa and Trent, Wen, and Nana. "Salute!"
Over one hundred Boneheads saluted. Holding back tears, she returned the salute.
"Dismissed!" Shenta yelled. For a quiet, calm, Sokuhl, Shenta could bark orders with the best of them. "Back to work!"
The crowd dissipated, Leaving Kalana a little awestruck. "Damn, I only got a donut, and that was when I retired," Gabe said as he walked up the corridor carrying a white, cardboard box. "Congratulations, Captain." he opened the box to reveal a small, intricately iced cupcake. He handed it to her. "You earned it."
She hid her tears in his shirt while her team found other things to look at.
###
Kalana examined the holomap projected from her gauntleted hand. "We've got a fix on our chimera's tracker. Sixty-eight degrees, ten clicks. I've made some low-level scans of the area, but they came up dry," she told her team and the officers standing around her.
"The facility is probably shielded," Williamson said. He stared at the projection with a seasoned eye. "Stryker Team will head in and recon while Alpha, Beta, and Gamma platoons will surround the facility. Keep scanner use to a minimum until we know what we're facing."
"Fallback position, sir?" Shenta asked.
"Orbital bombardment by the Razor and Meisner. We will attempt to minimize collateral damage to the ecology. Any questions?"
There were none.
"Move out in 20. Good luck to all of us."
###
Nana and Marcus took point as the team headed deep into the forest. Around them, massive wildlife kept an eye on them. At the rear, Mersa and Trent kept a wary eye on the wildlife. To prevent detection by the people in the structure, the four strykers remained in human form until necessary.
"Ow," Gabe said loudly. He slapped his neck. "Something bit me."
"Welcome to nature. I think your bots can candle any nasty bugs that get in your bloodstream."
"Let's hope so. I'm a wuss, you know."
Kalana rolled her eyes. "I heard about the first time you and your wife met. You singlehandedly killed a bus-sized predator, then nearly fainted when you saw she was a felinoid."
"I had a cat phobia, so kill me already. Anyway, I got over it."
"Uh huh..."
"Mistress, passive scans indicate two chimeras are heading this way from 045 degrees. Distance 500 yards," Murph announced over the earcomms. Kalana raised her hand and snapped her fingers three times before making a fist. Her five team mates stopped and watched her. She signaled everyone to get down and take cover. A moment later, the area was empty as two chimeras stepped into view. Before they could continue, a man-sized predator leapt at one of them. Hoping for a quick meal, the toothsome creature didn't know what hit it when its intended victim casually back-handed it into a tree, killing it instantly. Seeing no more creatures, the two chimeras continued their patrol.
Once the area was clear, Kalana and the other stood up and ran over to the predator's body. It had hit the tree hard enough to crack its massive trunk. "Yeah, shoot first," Trent noted. "Anyone bring a pulse-cannon?"
Kalana looked at the three strykers and wondered if she had brought enough firepower. "Let's move out. Murph, good job. Keep it up."
"Yes, ma'am."
The team returned to their journey while keeping a close watch on the jungle around them.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The team came to a stop just outside the clearing cut around the structure. Using binoculars, they surveyed the building and the area around it. Off to the right they could see an empty landing field. "That makes no sense," Gabe said. "The field is deserted."
"Sir," Nana added, "it's cold as well. Nothing has taken off or landed there in at least the last 12 hours."
"You're right, this makes no sense. She switched her binoculars to a setting which allowed her to detect electro-magnetic fields. Looking around, she found a huge signal running underground from the forest to the right-most building. "Something in the right building is drawing a lot of power from the reactor on the other side of those trees. What the hell is going on in there?”
A large group of heavily armed chimeras came into view. They walked over to a wall and waited while their leader did something to a panel on the left building. A large section of wall pulled inward, then retracted upward, revealing a large open area beyond. The creatures marched inside. Once the last one was inside, the door closed and sealed into the wall.
"Boot camp," Kalana said. "Those are boots being trained, only they didn't volunteer, they were purpose-grown. We must get inside. Murph, are you picking up anything on the passive scanners?"
"No, ma'am. No
signals coming from either building."
Gabe stared at the building through high-powered binoculars. "Marcus, take a gander at 10 o'clock, just to the left of that stump."
The male GELF brought up his glasses and zoomed in at the spot Gabe indicated. "Yeah, I see it. There's a keypad about three feet up. Looks like scratches around it" He looked down at the ground below the pad. "There's the cover, and it's pretty torn up. I think one of those carnivores was trying to get inside from the looks of it."
"Murph, how are you with lock picking?" Gabe asked.
"My nickname is Sherlock," the AI replied.
Gabe looked at Kalana. "Feel like some larceny, captain?"
"Why, yes, yes I do. All this green is getting on my nerves."
After checking to make sure the area was clear, they ran across the kill zone to the doorway. Kalana put her hand near the pad. "Working..." Murph said. Suddenly, the door opened onto an empty corridor. The six stepped inside with Nana and Marcus in the lead. Once inside, the four strykers formed armor and brought their scanners up to half-power. "Shit, we've got a thousand chimera life signs inside the other building," Mersa said.
"Trent, Murph, get inside the computer system find out what the hell is going on here."
"Aye, aye ma'am," Trent said as he dematerialized into a ball of light and entered the wall.
"On it, Captain," Murph said as he left her.
"Stay frosty, people. We've got a mission to complete. They ran down deserted corridors strewn with papers, boxes, and equipment as they headed to where the concentration of life signs was centered. Rounding a corner, they came upon a being about to enter a doorway. "Halt and raise your hands!"
Gabe and Mersa went left with Gabe placing himself between the being and a large door. Nana and Marcus went right, surrounding the two figures. Mersa raised her scanner and aimed it at the door. "Ma'am, the chimeras are in the room on the other side of the door. It's where all the power's going."
"Hands behind your head and on your knees!" Kalana yelled. The being just stood there for a moment, then they slowly dropped its hood.
"Peter?" She said quietly as she went elf.
"Kalana? What the hell happened to you. I..." he never finished. The door opened and a creature stepped out, grabbed Gabe and threw him inside the room while pulling a weapon and shooting Peter in the back. Satisfied, it gave Kalana a look of hatred intense enough to melt lead before stepping back into the room, slamming the door shut behind it.
"No!" Kalana screamed. She leapt at the door, going stryker in mid-air. Landing hard, she grabbed the door and tore it from the wall, revealing a room filled by chimeras, equipment, and three creatures holding up Gabe in human form. Before she could say a word or fire a shot, the room flashed bright white, then it was empty except for the five members of her team.
Kalana ran back to where Peter lay, but he was already dead. Slowly, she activated her comm. "Bonehead actual, this is Stryker Team. We need help. Enemy force is gone. DCI Adon is MIA. Colonel Ventana is KIA. Waiting reinforcements. Captain Grenor standing by." Killing the connection, she returned to human form so she could weep over the body of the one person she truly loved.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Priscilla turned the corner and found herself in a crowd as League VIPs came streaming in from a conference room. Ambassador Irithyl made his way to where she stood with General McMurphy close behind. "Priscilla! I'm glad you're here," the lanky elf said while Marta gave her a hug. "How are you holding up?"
"I'm fine. It's not as if the fool were dead."
They stared at her. "How the hell could you know that? We just found out ourselves."
"I'm his wife and mother of his two children. Any Katalan can tell you if their spouse is alive. It's our thing. So, how did you find out?"
"Kalana will explain," Marta said. "She's still inside the room with her team. They're going over tactical plans."
"Pris, take it easy on her. She's had a really rough few days," Lucien said. "She just lost her fiancé for a second time and her best friend."
"More like misplaced her best friend. You know, these rumors about Katalan females and their berserker rages really must stop. I had two EMEF guards activate their weapons when I walked into the building."
"You mean you don't have rages?" Lucien asked all doe eyed. Priscilla rolled her eyes while Marta swatted his arm.
"In here?" she asked with arched brows while her tail made a question mark.
"Yes," Marta replied. She took her husband by the arm. "Come on, fool. You have work to do."
Pris shook her head while she watched them leave. Finally, alone in the corridor, she walked over to the open doors and stepped inside the room. At its center was a large holotable with a hologram of a planet floating above it. Around the table stood five beings--an elf, Gabe's two proteges she recognized from pictures he'd shown her, a Basili, and a Alue. Pris cocked an eyebrow, then walked over to join them.
"Ma'am, this is a classified meeting," the Alue said. "I have to ask you leave."
"I don't think so, Sergeant Trent. Give us the room, please. I need to talk to Captain Grenor. Alone."
"Who the hell..." Kalana was about to say, but stopped when she saw Pris' ID tag. "Oh, my gods, Commissioner Kitra-Adon. Forgive our rudeness. Take five people."
No one moved.
"Look, the berserker rage thing is bullshit. Anyway, Captain Grenor is a freakin weapon. Now get!" Pris reminded them
Her team looked at Kalana for guidance. "You heard the woman! Get!" the Captain ordered.
The four team members stepped outside. As she closed the door, Mersa gave the commissioner the "I'm keeping an eye on you," hand sign.
"That's so sweet," Priscilla said while turning her attention to the planet hanging above the table. "Funny we never met before considering how much Gabe talks about you. It’s like he found a kindred spirit in you."
"Commissioner..."
"Pris, please. And I'm going to call you Kalana, OK?"
"Sure, Pris. I'm sorry about Gabe. He's alive, you know."
"I knew before any of you did. It's a Katalan thing. How is it you all know?"
Kalana pointed to a flashing dot on the planet. Beside it were life sign readings. "Planet Degreb, fourth planet in a star system about 100-light years from the edge of League space. The entire planet is under control of the Degreb Hegemon. Two sapient species--the Quriss and the Lingle--live there. They have interstellar travel and have tried to join the League a few times."
"Why a few times? Hell, we took Earth and Ventos Prime the first time they formally applied."
"Too violent. They've been in the throes of a civil war for over 500 standard years. One or the other takes over and tries to bury their rival. The League has been sending psychologists there for years to study them."
"What does this have to do with Gabe."
"The whole Degreb thing is so top secret only a handful of people know about it. One of those people was Peter."
"Why the secrecy?"
"Until the Quriss and the Lingle can pull their shit together, the council doesn't want any of our arms merchants to get mixed up in the conflict."
"And Peter was an arms merchant?"
"Yep, and no one knew. Not me and certainly not his mother. He had cut a deal to supply the rebel forces with advanced genetically engineered life forms and weapons."
"And Gabe?"
"The rebels got hold of Zoe's notes. They tried to get Peter to supply the bots, but even he had his limits. You can imagine the rebel leader's delight when Gabe showed up at his doorstep."
Pris looked up at the dot. "That's him, isn't it?"
"Yep. We have stealth satellites in orbit to monitor the planet just in case they start lobbing nukes. It seems he could activate his biometric telemetry beacon, which is why we can see him. He's alive and very angry. Pris, what's he capable of if he thinks the League is threatened by these people?"
"What are you capable of doing?"
Kalana looked at her. "I will rain fire down on them the likes of which has never been seen. They killed the man I loved; they kidnapped my friend; and if they threaten my people, they will all die."
Pris walked over and put her hand on Kalana's shoulder. "You have your answer. We must get him back safely and stop the rebels from using the weapons Peter supplied, and we must do so without dragging the League into a civil war. I assume someone has a plan."
"Yep. We just have to make sure it comes together."
<<<<>>>>
About Frank Carey
Frank Carey has been formally writing and publishing works of science fiction since late 2013. Over the years prior, he had dabbled in various forms of writing including haiku poetry, but that all changed when he and his wife, Jo, decided to try their hand at writing and self-publishing. All his work, to date, has been in the science fiction genre.
Most of his stories take place about two centuries in the future when Earth joins the League of Planetary Systems. Many of his protagonists are strong females. He is an inveterate pantser who believes the story will go where the story wants to go.
Frank’s background includes degrees in physics and extensive work as a scientific programmer and technologist.
Frank and his wife produce a podcast—Xtreme Self-Publishing—which details their self-publishing efforts.
Frank can be reached through his podcast at xtremeselfpublishing.podbean.com or via e-mail at [email protected] or [email protected]
