Beyond the Shroud of the Universe

by Chris Kennedy

  He dove into the passageway with his trident at the ready, coming to rest against Corporal Davis. He was able to fire three time before one of the plasma rounds struck him in the face.

  Task Force Calvin, Alien Ship, Anti-HD 69830 System, Unknown Date

  “The good news is we’re past the robots,” Lieutenant O’Leary commed. “The bad news is there are Shaitans coming in from behind us in large numbers. Watch your back, sir!”

  “Yeah, we’ve got them here too,” Calvin said. “Keep pushing on, and we’re bound to get somewhere important. We’re going to start at the bottom of the ramp and work our way up. Try to find out whatever it is that the robots were guarding.”

  “Wilco, sir; we’re on it.”

  Calvin switched to the squad’s network. “Let’s go down to the bottom and start there. The other squad is going to start on the top.”

  “Sir, Gunner’s down with a plasma bolt through the chest.” Calvin watched as Sergeant Milan Vranjesevic’s life signs went to zero. Ironic, Calvin thought. The Serb had survived NATO bombings early in his Army career, only to be killed by a cowtaur in a system he had probably never heard of.

  “Leave him,” Calvin commed. “If we don’t hurry up and find a way to stop this ship from jumping back and forth, we’re not getting off it.”

  “Sir, I’m at the bottom of the ramp, five turns down,” commed Staff Sergeant Alka Zoromski. “Looks like we got robots in the passageway here too. Sal’s dead.” It had to happen sometime, Calvin thought. Corporal ‘Sal’ Sallissollosiss was the unit’s first Kuji fatality.

  “Is there any way to get some antimatter behind them?” Calvin asked. “That was how the other squad got past their robots.”

  “It’s going to be difficult, sir,” replied Staff Sergeant Gurney. “The ramp ends in the passageway where the robots are, and it’s going to be darned difficult to fire anything down the corridor without giving them the chance to shoot back at us. Let me see what I can do.”

  “Hang on, Staff Sergeant,” Calvin commed. “Wait until I get there.” He hurried around the last two turns of the ramp. “Oh, crap,” he said, arriving at the Big Gurn’s position. “That sucks.” There was no way to get an angle on the robots without the robots being able to shoot first.

  “I’ve got an idea,” said Sergeant Declan ‘Ducky’ Jones. “What if I drop down the center of the ramp well. They’ll be focused on the ramp, and I may be able to get off a few shots before they reorient on me. Gurn can come down the ramp right after, and while they’re shooting at me, he can fire off a few rounds too.”

  “You’re going to be pretty exposed there,” noted Calvin.

  “Not really,” said Ducky. “I think I can fire, then dive under the ramp. As long as they aren’t too fast, it could work.”

  “Whatever you’re doing sir, you’re going to need to do it faster,” said Wolf, who was rear guard. “They must have emptied the ship to get this many cowtaurs behind us, but there’s a whole pile of them back here.”

  Calvin looked into Ducky’s eyes. “Yes sir. I can do it.”

  “It’s a good plan,” said the Big Gurn. “We can do this.”

  “Okay,” Calvin said. “Do it.”

  “Let me know when you’re ready,” said Ducky. The cyborg put a leg over the railing, his mortar at the ready.

  The Big Gurn moved to where he was just out of sight. “Ready.”

  “Here we go,” said Ducky. He jumped.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Task Force O’Leary, Alien Ship, Anti-HD 69830 System, Unknown Date

  “There only be one door on the left side of the passageway,” Sergeant Margaret ‘Witch’ Andrews said, “but there be five doors on the right side.”

  “Any idea what’s behind them?” Lieutenant O’Leary asked.

  “No mon, I mean, no sir,” Witch said, “but whatever’s behind the single door must be pretty big. I vote for that one.”

  “All right, Dantone, get up here and cut through the single door,” Lieutenant O’Leary ordered. “Wraith, you’ve got rear guard.”

  “I’m on it, Lieutenant,” Staff Sergeant Park Ji-woo replied.

  Task Force Calvin, Alien Ship, Anti-HD 69830 System, Unknown Date

  Ducky hit the ground and stood up. Knowing he didn’t have time for his brace to extend, he leaned into the shot and fired a high explosive round. The force of the launch drove him back several feet; the force of the blast pushed him back even further as the mortar reloaded. He leaned into the shot and fired again. Silver thermite.

  The pyrotechnics of the round detonating was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. The silver sprayed everywhere in the passageway, reacting with everything it touched, turning it into radioactive slag.

  It was also the last thing he ever saw, as the remaining robot reoriented on the cyborg and fired, the plasma bolt going completely through his head, killing him instantly.

  The Big Gurn ran down the ramp as Ducky fired his first round. As he aimed his trident, the world exploded in yellows and silvers as Ducky’s second round detonated, and he was hurtled backward off his feet to slam into the unyielding surface of the ramp. Stunned, he watched in horror as the robot on the right turned to fire at Ducky. Having miraculously avoided the spray of silver thermite, the robot shot Ducky in the face with the first shot and then twice more as the cyborg collapsed.

  Having finished with the cyborg, the robot turned back toward the Big Gurn. Gurney threw himself to the side as it fired, and its first shot missed. Up against the ramp, the Big Gurn had nowhere else to go, so he aimed his trident and fired. The round struck behind the robot and detonated, destroying the robot…just milliseconds after it killed the Big Gurn.

  Task Force O’Leary, Alien Ship, Anti-HD 69830 System, Unknown Date

  “Here goes the door, Lieutenant,” Gunny Dantone said. “Fire Team Two, ready on support.” He looked around and all were sighted down the barrels of their weapons. “Now!” He kicked the door, and it fell inward.

  The heavy door slammed down with a clatter.

  “Is this what I think it is?” Gunny Dantone asked.

  “Yeah, it is,” Lieutenant O’Leary said.

  “Then where are all the people, or creatures, or whatever?” Gunny Dantone asked.

  “Yeah, dude,” Sergeant Jamal Gordon added, “like, where are all the aliens?”

  Task Force Calvin, Alien Ship, Anti-HD 69830 System, Unknown Date

  “Two doors, both sides of the passageway,” Wolf reported. “All four of them are damaged by the silver thermite round Ducky used. Looks like some of that shit has gone through the floor…I hope there isn’t anything too valuable down there.”

  “Pick one and start cutting,” Calvin said.

  “I’ll start on one of the damaged ones, if you don’t mind, sir,” replied Big Sky. “I’ve probably got enough juice left for one more door after that.”

  “Go ahead,” Calvin said. “That will probably be faster—”

  The ship rocked as something below them exploded.

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Task Force O’Leary, Alien Ship, Anti-HD 69830 System, Unknown Date

  “What the hell was that?” Gunny Dantone asked as the ship shuddered noticeably.

  “No idea,” Lieutenant O’Leary replied. “The CO must be having fun somewhere.” He looked around the open chamber. “I’m more worried about why the damn bridge is empty. I mean, this has got to be the bridge, right?”

  “You’ve spent more time on them than I have,” Gunny Dantone replied, “but it sure looks like all of the ones you see in the movies. Big console in the middle for the CO, lots of stations and monitors and shit on the sides. Except all of these are blank.”

  “Not ‘dis one,” Witch said, “and I got me a bad feelin’ about what it be doin’ mon.”

  Lieutenant O’Leary hurried over to where Witch was standing, and she pointed at one of the monitors in the central console. The monitor had a single symbol on it. After three seconds,
it switched to another symbol. After another three seconds, it switched again.

  “Yeah, I’ve got that same bad feeling,” Lieutenant O’Leary said. He switched to the command net. “Hey, boss, I think we found the bridge,” he commed.

  “Great!” Calvin replied.

  “Not great,” Lieutenant O’Leary replied. “The bridge is deserted, and it looks like there is some sort of countdown running. You don’t suppose they’d blow up their ship, would they?”

  “To keep the technology out of our hands? Yeah, they might well do that.”

  “Yeah, well, in that case, we better get the hell out of here because this thing is going to blow.”

  The ship shuddered again.

  “We might need to leave, anyway,” Calvin replied. “Ducky used a silver thermite round and slagged a bunch of shit down here. Some of it went through the floor, and it’s reacting badly with whatever’s underneath us. Trash the bridge and get topside; we’ll meet you there!”

  “See you there,” O’Leary said. He switched to the squad’s net. “Set some explosives and let’s get the hell out of here! The ship is going to blow!”

  Task Force Calvin, Alien Ship, Anti-HD 69830 System, Unknown Date

  “Forget the door,” Calvin commed. “We’re leaving!”

  “I don’t know where you’re planning to go, but I wouldn’t recommend ‘back,’” Staff Sergeant Zoromski commed. “There’s a bunch of them back here. Better continue in that direction and find another ramp up.”

  “All right, Wolf,” Calvin said.

  “I heard him,” Gunnery Sergeant Stasik replied before Calvin could complete the sentence. “Going forward.”

  “Good man.”

  “Hey, sir, I’m through the door,” Big Sky said. “Looks like an engine room.”

  “Awesome,” Calvin said. “Set some charges quickly if you’ve got them. If not, shoot it up and let’s get the hell out of here.” The cyborg was obviously out of explosives as the ripping sound of a Mrowry autocannon on full auto reverberated through the hallway.

  “I’m at the end of the hallway,” Wolf reported. “Looks like the door opens out. I think a cyborg could knock this one down without having to burn through it.”

  “On it,” Big Sky said.

  The autocannon firing stopped, and the cyborg clomped past Calvin in the passageway a couple of seconds later. “A cyborg’s work is never done,” Big Sky said in passing. He accelerated as he approached the end of the hallway, lowered his shoulder and smashed through the door. A ramp going up awaited behind it.

  “Quickly! Up the ramp!” Calvin ordered. He switched to the squadron net. “Ghost, Mays; either of you up?”

  “Yes sir,” said Shuttle 02’s WSO, Lieutenant Thomas ‘Mays’ Yilmaz. “We’re standing by.”

  “We’re about 200 yards away from the ship,” added his pilot, Lieutenant Miguel ‘Ghost’ Carvalho. “There were some extraterrestrials on the side of the ship when we got here, but they’ve all gone back inside. We can swoop in whenever you’re ready for extraction.”

  “Roger that,” Calvin replied. “We’re on our way out for immediate evac. It looks like they’ve set the ship to self-destruct.”

  “Well then, hurry on out, sir,” said Mays. “We’ll be waiting.”

  “We’re hurrying. Calvin out.”

  Cargo Bay, Shuttle 02, Anti-HD 69830 System, November 9, 2021

  “Hey, Mays,” Night commed. “You can see the alien ship?”

  “Yeah, we’re alongside.”

  “And there aren’t any aliens?”

  “No; they all went back inside.”

  “Then why the hell are we sitting out here? Do me a favor and get us the fuck over to it! People are dying over there, and Yokaze and I can help!”

  “You want us to land now? Before the Skipper is ready?”

  “I want you to land right fucking now, or I will come up there and land this fucking tub myself.”

  “Well, why didn’t you say so? We’ll have you there in 30 seconds.”

  “About damn time!”

  Task Force O’Leary, Alien Ship, Anti-HD 69830 System, Unknown Date

  “I think I’ve got the skipper’s group coming from beneath us on the ramp,” Staff Sergeant Park ‘Wraith’ Ji-woo commed. “Sounds like a damn cyborg’s stomping up the ramp, anyway.”

  Wonderful, Lieutenant O’Leary thought. At least they didn’t have to go looking for them. “Ground Force, be advised we’re above you at the top of the ramp,” he commed. “Space Force, don’t shoot them as we link up.”

  Within seconds, O’Leary heard the heavy footfalls of the cyborg, too, and then the Ground Force reached the top of the ramp. “Good to see you, sir,” O’Leary said as Calvin approached. “We hold one of the openings to the roof and will start falling back to the shuttle. It’s going to be a bit dicey for the last couple of folks out; we’re holding off a bunch of them on this level. Since we’re already in place, why don’t you leave me Big Sky and take your squad to the shuttle?”

  “Sounds good,” Calvin said. “Ground Force, to the shuttle. Big Sky, you’re with the Space Force for covering fire.”

  “Dark’s down,” Staff Sergeant Jones said as several explosions were heard. “We need a medic and a little help down the passageway. They’ve got some kind of explosives launcher.”

  “Lucky, go check out Dark,” O’Leary pointed down the passageway. “Big Sky, get them out of there, now!”

  Fire Team Two, Alien Ship, Anti-HD 69830 System, Unknown Date

  “Good to see you,” Staff Sergeant Jones said as Big Sky and the medic arrived. The former CIA operative pointed at the ramp, just visible through the smoke. “Sky, I need you to keep them off us while we pull back, and then join us on the run. Got it?”

  “Sure thing, Staff Sergeant,” the cyborg said. He took cover in a doorway and fired at movement on the ramp. Several blasts of plasma erupted from the ramp, narrowly missing him. “Damn,” he said as he reflexively jerked backward out of the line of fire.

  “No shit,” Staff Sergeant Jones said. “Watch out for the arrows. They blow up. That’s what got Corporal Minion.”

  “He’s dead,” the squad’s medic, Corporal Shaun ‘Lucky’ Evertson, said.

  “Fuck,” said Staff Sergeant Jones. “Jonny was a pain in the ass, but he was still one of ours.” He shook his head. “Fire Team Two, fall back to the shuttle. Lucky, you too. Big Sky will cover us and then fall back.” He stepped up behind the cyborg and slapped him on the shoulder. “Got it, Sky?”

  “Yeah, hurry it up,” the cyborg replied. “I’m starting to run low on ammo.”

  “Okay, I’m gone. Give me three seconds, then follow me.” Big Sky fired several rounds into the ramp well to cover Staff Sergeant Jones’ departure, then threw his two remaining grenades. As the first one detonated, he turned and ran down the passageway after Staff Sergeant Jones.

  He had only taken three steps when a plasma bolt hit him in the back of the right leg.

  The servo mechanisms failed, and his leg went out from under him. Big Sky crashed to the floor, his momentum slamming him into the bulkhead on the right side of the passageway. He looked down at his knee and saw a two-inch hole through the section where his control wires ran. Crap. That wasn’t going to be fixable.

  “I’m hit and down,” he commed. “My right leg is inop; I’m going to need assistance to get out.”

  “On my way,” Gunny Dantone replied, the only remaining member of the team able to lift the cyborg.

  “Lucky, go take a look, too,” Lieutenant O’Leary ordered.

  Big Sky sat up and began pushing himself backwards down the hall, firing a couple of rounds every few seconds to keep the Shaitans’ heads down. He had covered nearly half the distance when Dantone arrived, followed immediately by the medic.

  “What’s up?” asked Dantone, firing at movement from the stairwell. A blast of plasma burned past his head in reply. “Oh? You want to play?” he asked. He dropped his pulse rifle,
allowing it to hang from the magazine on his back, and unhooked his trident. Selecting the 50 nanogram setting on the antimatter projector, he fired a single round into the ramp well. The size of a small bomb, the antimatter round destroyed the upper section of the ramp, with the shockwave from the explosion pushing them several feet down the passageway. “That ought to keep their heads down,” he added.

  “Can you do anything?” Big Sky asked the medic as he continued pushing himself down the passageway.

  “I don’t know what you expect me to do,” Lucky said. “I’m a corpsman, not a damned auto mechanic. I didn’t even take shop in high school.”

  “Well, let’s get him up and out of here before they come back,” Dantone said. He clipped his trident to his back and reached down with both hands to lift Big Sky up onto his good leg. “I’ve got him,” Dantone said; “you can head up to the shuttle.”

  “No,” the medic said. “You don’t have anyone to cover you. I’ll stay, just get going.”

  Big Sky put his right arm over Dantone’s shoulders and the cyborgs began awkwardly walking down the passageway to where Wolf waited for them, firing in the opposite direction. “Hurry!” he called; “lots of them coming from this way.”

  “No shit,” Lucky muttered. He ran forward to join Wolf, firing furiously at the approaching cowtaurs.

  “You need to eat a salad,” said Dantone, grunting for effect as he boosted Big Sky up to the overhead exit. “Heavy fuck.”

  “You need—” Big Sky said. Several plasma rounds cut off the rest of what he was going to say, along with most of his head, and the cyborg fell over backward, overbalancing Dantone. Both cyborgs crashed to the floor.

  “Shit,” said Wolf, diving out of the way from a hail of plasma. He looked back to see Lucky collapse, with several holes through his chest. Wolf knew he was screwed. He couldn’t get up without getting shot; there were too many of them coming. He continued firing, the counter on his battery rapidly approaching zero. He hoped the stupid cowtaurs would at least give him a chance to swap out the battery…although the next one would be his last.