Secrets of the Horizon (The Union Stories Book 1)

by Lesa Corryn

  “Lieutenant Pierce, it pleases me to see your return, but I must ask how you came to be here before us.” Her eyes looked at the ship, the Agerian pilot clear in the cockpit window.

  “In due time Captain, for now though there is much to attend to.” Flik, Edel, and myself climbed out of the ship. Flik and I hung back while Edel stepped forward offering his bow to the Captain.

  “This is Captain Edelweiss of the Agerian village of Evergreen. They are the native race here,” began Allouette. Her eyes scanned the masses, frowning at the twitchy hands floating around holsters. “They wish to offer us peace, there is a confusion that must be cleared up.” The Captain's eyes narrowed. Allouette's words were hesitant and her breath caught in her throat. Those around her had already begun shifting their weight and whispering in each other's ears. The Captain looked behind her, before returning her gaze to Edel.

  “Lieutenant, you're holding something back. What are you afraid to say?” she began, “Are you worried that our soldiers have forgotten their rank and place and the laws of the Union?” The mass quieted and Allouette's shoulders dropped. I too found my breath exhaling as if rising from under water. “Captain Edelweiss, is it your people that landed our ship here?”

  “Yes.”

  The mass stirred but the Captain's voice rose to hush them. “The L-47 incident, do you know what that is?”

  “Yes, that too was done by our ships.”

  The mass began to roar but neither Edel nor Gith stirred. The shadows however fluttered and Allouette's muscles grew taught. I reached out and grabbed her shoulder. “Not yet,” I whispered. A low growl curled from her throat but she relaxed beneath my grip.

  “Why did you strike at us?” said Gith, again her voice exceeding the crowd's volume.

  “We thought you were the Bendalurians.” Now the crowd hushed, even Gith's face showed a shadow of confusion.

  “The Bendalurians, why?” asked Gith.

  “Because they have been trying to take this planet from under the Union's noses,” said Allouette. “They were trying to abolish the native race, those currently known as Agerians, and tried to fake their own colonization here. We don't know their motives, but based on our discussions with a local civilian leader, we think the Bendalurians plan mutiny against the Union.”

  Again the mass roared and the Bendalurian soldiers turned with fear as those around them began to push and pull. Gith stood strong, her arms clasped tight against her chest, her head bowed.

  “Do you dare harm a fellow Union officer,” she shouted. She turned to face the mass, her back straight, her head high, a thousand soldiers quaking before her words. “Union is Union, no matter race or culture. Lay a hand on a fellow officer and you only hurt yourself. Cut him and you cut us. Beat him and you hit us. Those attacking or abusing any soldier with a Union insignia proudly pinned to their chest will be held for treason and assault against the Union, do I make myself clear?” The mass snapped into a salute and a wave of “yes ma'am” rolled over the valley. Gith turned, behind her many stood shaking and afraid, but for now all appeared to be safe.

  “They were part of a force that was set up outside of the Bendalurian’s Union sanctioned army. Something not even the civilians knew about until they were shipped here against their will. Given those facts, I would think the last people the Bendalurian government would want to know about their plan would be their Union soldiers.” Allouette's voice rung true amongst the mass but a sense of urgency rose in her voice, she itched to find Nemis.

  “I see,” began Gith. “So is this the party you were with in your evac pod?” Allouette's face pinched. Gith was falling off topic.

  “Yes, but there are a few others.”

  “Oh?”

  “Corporal Gin Watkins was also with us and we later found Corporal Maxwell Teshe, who was the only survivor from his evac pod. If there are others out there we do not know of them.”

  “We,” said Edel, “my people, are scouring our world now for survivors. We will treat all we find with care and heal all wounded as well as collect those who have fallen for proper burial.”

  Gith's eyes lit and she gave a slight bow. “The crew of the Hera are in your debt.” She then turned to Allouette. “So where are Corporals Watkins and Teshe?”

  “Corporal Teshe returned with some medical relief to one of the fake Bendalurian towns. Many civilians were injured in a battle between them and Captain Edelweiss' troops. Also Corporal Watkins has suffered many injuries including a miscarriage.”

  Gith's head dropped. “Any word on how Corporal Watkins is doing?”

  “Before we left, we made a transmission to the Agerian troops there. Corporal Teshe claims that the Agerian and Bendalurian medical officers are quickly stabilizing the town. Corporal Watkins is still in critical condition. He said he would join us to meet you, but I ordered him to remain with Corporal Watkins.”

  Gith gave a slight nod, then looked at Edel. “There is more that must be said, but I sense it is not something we can discuss here.” Allouette twitched and her jaw stiffened. Time was running out. War could be declared any moment and only Nemis' confession could save the Union from what could be a war of no return.

  “Yes, Captain.” Allouette bowed her head.

  “Okay then. Well, let's head back to my office and we can discuss it there. Captain Edelweiss, if you would also please join us.”

  “No,” I interjected. Allouette's head shot up and Flik turned again with a gapping mouth. Edel stood as still as before. “No,” I repeated. I stepped forward, standing beside Allouette, our shoulders brushing against each other. “There isn't time, he may already be too far gone to reach.”

  The words sputtered out before my lips could stop them and the mass that had begun dispersing turned. Gith's eyes narrowed and her chin rose. “Weren't you the one we thought to be a spy?”

  “Yes.”

  “Thurman not now,” said Allouette under her breath. I didn't listen.

  “Yes, you thought I was a spy. So you remember that that question was raised. Well, it wasn't me, but we know who it was and as we stand here talking he's getting further and further away. Without him there will surely be war.”

  The mass rose in a roar, questions shouting from all sides. But Gith remained silent. Edel clicked.

  “It's not just the Bendalurians planning war, but our old foes have yet to recover from their defeat ten cycles ago.” My voice rose over the trees and the collective breath of the mass stood caught in their chests.

  “You say the Alladians want war,” said Gith.

  “Yes,” said Allouette. “And your Commander, is the one that's handed us up to die.”

  Chapter 31

  Talons

  The crowd roared with anger and Nemis' name echoed in the valley. Their broken bodies burned with malice and their hands ached to take action. They called to Gith, urging her to move forward, to bark an order, to give the go, but her arms remained locked against her chest, her foot tapping the ground.

  “You must do something captain!”

  “I saw him not too long ago, he headed to the west!”

  “Send a search party!”

  “Gather weapons!”

  “Enough,” said Gith, her voice piercing the crowd's ramble. “Enough of this. Don't forget your place and don't forget who gives the commands.” She faced the mass and they stood in anticipation, their weight collectively shifting with unease. “Now why would I send all of you off, when only half of you either have wave goggles or can see in this light?” The crowd didn't answer but the tension signed that they understood. Gith continued, “If you are a ranger troop and cannot see in this light, retrieve goggles from any nearby soldier that is not a melee troop. Melee troops I would only like those Sergeant rank and above to join me, so if you can't see you need to find yourself some goggles. Colonels Hathaway and Jenka, I would like you to remain. You will be in charge of defense and command over the remaining melee troops.” Two voices rang out clear over the crowd
and they beckoned all melee under Sergeant to group with them. Others shifted in the mass as rangers and melees collected goggles and began to move forward towards Gith.

  “Colonels Arax, Denis, and Ortec, each of you will create a search and capture party for Commander Nemis. They are to remain small, only three rangers and a melee. The rest of you, break off into teams of five, four rangers, one melee. You will strictly be scouting, your melees are only for defense in case you come nose to nose with Nemis. Report anything you find to Hera.” Those that had gathered to the front snapped to attention and then proceeded to break into their groups.

  “The rest of you, food scavenging will desist for now. All efforts will now go towards preparing for departure. I hope with our new found allegiance with the Agerians we can begin our departure from their planet. If you have any medical experience head to med bay, departure may be more than some of our wounded can handle, try to prepare them as much as possible. All the rest, debris cleanup and ship repair are your top priorities. Now move!” Again the mass snapped to attention and scurried off to their respective duties. Then she turned to us.

  “Captain Edelweiss, may we request your government's assistance in this matter. It seems that our soldier has caused great harm to your people and ours. If captured with your assistance, the Union will offer him to your judgment as well as our own.”

  “We would be happy to give assistance,” said Edel, bowing, “however, we require no justice against your Commander. It was our naiveté that caused this. We are just as much at fault as he is. We only hope your Union can forgive us and we may find peace between our worlds.”

  “Your words are most admirable Captain, the Union is again in your debt.”

  “Now what is it you would like to do,” asked Edel.

  “Your airship, can you take us with a flyby over the surrounding area. The forest is dense, but any way we can find him.”

  “Absolutely,” said Edel, “our ships are designed for tracking. It was to help track our herds as well as native predators. It isn't rigged to search for those of Alladian blood but we will try our best to configure it.”

  “Thank you,” said Gith, “Now I have one more request. Can your people send word to ours that we are down here and need assistance and that your kind has done no harm to us?”

  “We have already tried, but they will not respond. Your people here,” Edel gestured to Allouette, Flik, and myself, “believe this is because they are waiting to declare war in your senate.”

  “This is likely,” Gith muttered. She rubbed her pointed chin and her brown eyes searched the ground. “If I give you a recording, can you transmit it to them?”

  “Absolutely, just step inside the ship and we can send a message to our capital for transmission to your people.” Edel and Gith stepped in and Gith quickly recorded her SOS.

  “All Union ships, this is Captain Margo Gith of the G.F.S. Hera. I repeat this is Captain Margo Gith of the Hera. We are safe and in need of recovery from within the Ageria belt. Those before you are a new race, currently known as the Agerians. They do not mean harm and wish for peace. A misunderstanding has caused this conflict, but our people have reached peace. I repeat we have reached peace. Do not initiate war. Do not initiate war.” After her message, they recorded Hera's coordinates and sent it away to the stars. She stepped out and scanned the valley.

  Much of it had cleared up. Now with the focus on medical, repair, and cleaning, most of the crew was inside the Hera. The search parties had long since left. All that remained were the five of us.

  “Allouette, please accompany me and Captain Edelweiss in our search for Nemis. Corporal Meikr?”

  “Yes, ma'am,” snapped Flik.

  “I would like you to return to the deck and plot a nav course through the field to assist our ships in retrieval. Can you do this?”

  “Yes, ma'am,” stuttered Flik. His eyes were eager and his pride could not help but show as he sprinted towards the wreck.

  “Corporal Thurman,” said Gith.

  “Yes, ma'am,” I returned.

  “I apologize for our hasty accusation earlier. Thank you for your assistance in this whole matter.”

  “No thanks needed Captain.”

  “Now please report to Sergeant Queba. She was very furious with me for accusing her top tech of treason. She will be happy to have you in assisting her with repair.”

  My stomach quickly unknotted knowing that Queba was well and alive, but I could not rejoice for long, my heart now longed to assist in the capture. “Uh, Captain, if I may, I'd like to join you in your search.”

  “Corporal, don't forget your place,” said Allouette. I would have expected those words to be laced with the vinegar I was so used to hearing in her voice, but now the words dripped with regret.

  “You are a maintenance tech there is no better place for you to be than repairing the ship. Do you understand Corporal?” asked Gith.

  I looked to Edel for some reinforcement, some support, but his antenna clicked in a slow rhythm. “Yes, ma'am.”

  I watched as they pushed off from the ground and began their search above the tree line before heading back towards Hera. It seemed like ages since I was just a maintenance tech. Hadn't I fought off the spider beasts, hadn't I jumped in front of a charging Bendalurian general, hadn't I saved a foreign dignitary from death which lead to our mutual peace? My arm pulled and tensed. You too were reminding me of my place, weren't you? You'd been pulling me all along, hadn't you Yanda? What now? Another cryptic message? Would you send pain shooting through my arm so I’d pass out and you’d remind me what it meant to be a lowly engineer? Don't worry, I got it, Yanda. I got it when Allouette turned me away and when the ship left me on the ground. My place had always been elbow deep in grease and wires, not amongst the stars.

  I made my way through the halls, not sure where to find Queba. Even my lousy mood couldn't ruin my relief of hearing she was alive and well. She understood the pains of position, of standing. She had scars of her own.

  I stumbled across another maintenance tech. An ensign from my class. He was a mousy lean guy with grease stains on his arms that never seemed to go away.

  “Hey Ulltrich, have you seen the Sergeant anywhere? I need her to give me an assignment.”

  “The Sergeant, yeah I saw her just awhile ago,” said Ulltrich. His hands were deep within the belly of a hallway ventilation system and his eyes focused on some obstruction piercing the pipes.

  “And,” I asked.

  “Oh, uh.” He pulled his hands out, they were blackened and rough, a few fingers cracked, blood dripping down his hand. He didn't seem to notice. “She said she'd be out of Hera for a bit and to report to Sergeant Davis.” He began to continue his work, but I stopped him.

  “Where was she going?”

  “I don't know, she said she was looking for Commander Nemis.” His voice sounded irritated, but I wasn't ready to let him go.

  “Why? Was she outside before, when we first arrived?”

  “What? What in the stars are you talking about? What happened outside? Engineers have been working non-stop on repairs. None of us have been outside. Been too busy.”

  “But you can't know that for sure,” I said. My arm was tensing, the blood pumping hard in my veins.

  “Jek, what's your point?”

  “Nothing, I...” I bit my tongue, he didn't know about Nemis.

  “Look, she's been working on the com system all day. Right there in the room just next to me. I've been working on this all day. The first time I saw her leave was just then when she said she needed to find the Commander.”

  “The com system,” I muttered.

  “Yes, the com system,” said Ulltrich rolling his eyes. “It's been down since before the crash. She was trying to figure out who hacked it. Maybe she figured it out and wanted to tell the Commander, he is in charge of security, remember?” He laughed. “Of course you do, how many times have you been in the brig now?” He continued to chuckle to himself and went ba
ck to work.

  “Which way did she go?” I asked, my arm on fire.

  “She said she saw him exit out just that way with Captain. I don't know where she went from there.”I left Ulltrich with his vents and ran back out from where I came. To the west someone said. I searched the ground. Queba didn't much like wearing her space boots. Her feet are very similar to birds back on Earth Terra, long and tipped with talons. They just ended up breaking through the shoes anyway. So Gith gave her special permission to wear customized boots that allowed her talons to be free from the boot. This, much to Gith's dismay, led to many scratch marks along the metal corridor floors. Now they left a path for me. Her three toed foot etched lines towards the East. Who was right? I didn't even think twice. I've always trusted Queba and so to the East I ran, following the path she left me.

  Chapter 32

  Queba

  I wasn't trained as a ranger, not even a little bit. Every cadet gets some melee training, merely as a means of knowing self defense, but being stealthy I was not. For all I knew they were watching me right now, not sure of where I was heading or why. But I didn't care. They could watch. I was all Queba had. She was all I had. Yanda was gone, Allouette has no respect for me, and Flik was too oblivious. Queba, how could I have forgotten you?

  Her tracks became harder to follow as I weaved my way deeper into the trees. Broken sticks and leaves choked with mud were my only signs of human disruption in the thick woods. How far did they go? Was she still searching for him? I had to stop her.

  A call broke the silence. I stopped, leaves kicking from beneath my scuffling feet. Who was it? What was it? A screech. Inhuman, I've heard it before. The spider creatures. How deep was I? Could I turn back? I didn't have a gun on me.

  Another shout, this time humanoid. Shrill, piercing. There was scuffling amongst the fallen leaves, the snapping of old twigs. Blaster fire of a Union gun. The fizz of the laser characteristic of our weapons. One of the crew was ahead. I sprinted forward no longer watching the track in the forest undergrowth. The scouting parties would have seen this coming, they would have kept to the treetops. This could only be...