The Lost Aria (Earth Song Book 3)

by Mark Wandrey

  “You give me no choice.”

  “Then you give me none either.” Jacob and Jasmine were suddenly bathed in a crisp green light rather like a stage spotlight. The beam quickly went from illuminating them all over to a clearly defined ring around Jacob and Jasmine only, the two who had threatened her. They both looked around in confusion, and then with painful slowness they looked straight up. To anyone standing at a distance, they could see the green circles of light descend from the sky to them; it was like looking into a flashlight. “It seems you do not know who you are dealing with.”

  “Are you trying to tell me this spotlight is a weapon from orbit?” Jacob laughed, but it was a laugh that did not reach his eyes.

  “That is for you to decide.” Slowly at first, Jacob and Jasmine began to look uncomfortable. Then a tiny wisp of smoke rose from Jacob's hair quickly followed by Jasmine's. “Your move, First.”

  Jacob tried to stand his ground. Jasmine had reached her limit and she ran for the distant buildings. The circle of light followed her perfectly. A few meters away she fell to the ground screaming, her clothes smoking. The nearest Chosen moved to help but he pulled back his hand in shock as he touched the energy wave.

  “Damn it Jacob!” Minu screamed, “stop this before she kills you both!”

  “You will follow orders!” he screamed back, bending over and covering his smoldering head with now smoldering arms. The scout teams stood their ground, uncertain what to do. Lilith paid them no attention, she was aware of every living thing for a hundred kilometers in every direction, and prepared to kill all of them to defend her ship. “Minu, stop her!”

  “I have no more power over her than I do over you.”

  “I am a ship of the line,” Lilith said, her voice full of ice and fire, “and you will not order me!”

  “Fine!”

  “Fine, what?” Lilith asked.

  “We will not try and take your ship.” Instantly the beams were gone. Jasmine remained on the ground, whimpering while the scout who’d tried to help earlier moved over to see to her. Jacob stood back up slowly, ignoring his partly melted hair and burned skin. “This is not over.”

  “It better be. Because if it isn't, I will simply remove this mountain top and be done with you.” And with no further fanfare, she turned and the crystalline bot walked her back inside. Her first visit ‘home’ was over. “Good bye mother, this has been enjoyable. We will talk soon.” The door slid closed and they all moved back as the shuttle made a perfect take off and angled upwards, quickly shrinking in size as it shot towards orbit. Minu smiled as she saw everyone step back so at least a couple meters were between themselves and the First.

  Dram patted Minu on the shoulder, “Chriso would have liked her.”

  Epilogue

  April 10th, 527 AE (local time)

  Stevens Pass Auditorium, Bellatrix

  Minu struggled to get the unfamiliar gear into place, cursing even as Cherise helped her. “It works for you,” her friend said.

  Minu blew a raspberry and tugged again at an uncooperative strap. “Not the kind of combat armor I prefer.”

  “It's all combat to you, isn't it?”

  “Sort of, I suppose.” Minu and her friend laughed as they finally controlled the strap and finished off by tying her now mid-back length hair into an intricate ponytail.

  “It's not too late to change your mind, you know. I wouldn't blame you, either.”

  “Nope, this has got to be done.” Cherise sighed, then nodded her head.

  “You better get out there then.”

  “Are there a lot of them?”

  “Yes, and they're getting more unruly the longer you take.”

  “At least I don't have to go through this alone.”

  “You knew I'd be here for you.”

  “I hoped you would.”

  “You couldn't keep me away with wild kloth.”

  Minu smiled and kissed her friend. “Come on, let’s go.” Cherise held the door for her and she walked out. The crowd was big, and they were all looking at her. She felt very uncomfortable in this unfamiliar garb; afraid she'd missed a strap or something by the way they looked at her. More than a few obviously figured she didn't have a chance judging by the tears in many eyes. She didn't let it bother her, this was her decision.

  At the end of the long walk was Aaron, also dressed and ready. They'd do this together, as two people always had throughout history. She realized she'd been destined for this since they first met. Suddenly she was crying too. Aaron saw her tears and looked concerned. She shook her head and smiled, and he knew it was okay. Near the front of the assemblage her daughter hovered in her bot supported ball of zero gravity, watching the proceeding with interest. Pip stood on one side of her. The two were fast becoming friends.

  Finally as she neared Aaron, Bjorn stood and took her arm, walking her the last meter to stand next to Aaron. From behind a podium Dram gave her a wink and nodded to Bjorn. The elderly man, uncle to her friend who she’d fought so hard to save, and her mentor, gave her a little kiss on the cheek and put her hand into Aaron’s. “Take good care of her son,” he said then returned to his seat. The Second among the Chosen cleared his throat. “We are gathered here to witness the joining of Minu Alma and Aaron Groves in matrimony.” Minu took Aaron's out stretched hand and turned towards Dram, to face her future.

  The three man team emerged from the portal and waited while they were regarded by sensors. A dozen heavy beamcaster emplacements, automated and imminently deadly, regarded them from all over the chamber while their fate was determined. “You are cleared,” a mechanical voice eventually acknowledged.

  The team leader led his people through a door where they racked their weapons and removed armor. They weren’t half finished when another door opened and a tall man strode in. They were all a little surprised. You almost never saw him out of his lab. “What happened?” he demanded instantly.

  “We saw her,” the team leader confirmed. “She was with a scout and a Rasa warrior.”

  “Rasa? Were they prisoners?”

  “Allies,” another team member said. “We saw them covering each other.”

  “They were a practiced team too,” the third man confirmed. “Smooth operators for as young as she and her other human were.”

  He seemed to consider this before speaking again. “Outcome?”

  “We neutralized the Vampires and extracted before they could identify us.”

  “Good.” His eyes got that vacant look they’d all come to recognize as his powerful mind worked on the situation. “And the ship?”

  “We only got a few looks through the instruments; it was in too high of an orbit.” The leader took out a data chip and handed it to him. The man popped it into a tablet and pulled up images. They were a little blurry but the needle pierced ball was unmistakable. “But it has to be a Kaatan.”

  He reviewed the images, stopping at a still of a short, slender, redhead woman, beautiful with angular facial bones and shoulder length, bright red hair. The expression on her face was one of intense life or death focus as she held a pair of improbably huge handguns at arm’s length. He puzzled over them for a minute before looking at the man to her side. Also rather short, he was powerfully built with chiseled features and was wielding a beamcaster with the grace and ability of a man who’d used one many times in combat. Was there something about the way they stood by each other? More than comrades, protecting loved ones from danger? The aforementioned Rasa was just to the side, covering their undefended flank. He carried one of their flechette machineguns and had a curious semi-circle burned in his crest. They were right, neither he nor they were prisoners.

  “Orders, sir?” the team leader asked.

  “No changes. We continue as planned.” The three scouts nodded and went about securing weapons and gear. In a minute they were gone leaving him alone. He sat on one of the benches and went back to the girl. “Minu,” he said and gently touched her image, as if he could brush the hair from
her digital eyes. “This is going better than I hoped.”

  He took a communicator from his pocket and activated it. “Ready,” a strangely modulated voice answered.

  “Prepare the ship, we have a mission.”

  “Acknowledged,” was the reply as he put away the communicator.

  Chriso Alma glanced back down at the picture of his daughter and smiled. Had she been there to see the grin on her father’s face, Minu would not have considered it one of mirth. Any who’d fought against Chriso would recognize that look. It was the last one they’d ever seen.