by M. R. Forbes
"Back up," Donovan said, keeping his eyes to the rear.
"I don't know how," Ehri replied, looking at the dashboard.
"We can't just sit here," Wade said.
"You'll figure it out," Donovan said, opening the door and climbing out.
"What are you doing, Major?" Montero asked.
Donovan returned to the corner and peered around it. A squad of Dread soldiers had already covered the position, and the mech was still incoming. He aimed the plasma rifle and fired, the first few shots going wide before he adjusted for the lack of recoil. He let the base of the building absorb the return volley, and then fired back again, hitting each of the clones in turn.
They weren't even trying to hide. Not with the mech at their backs.
The car began to go backward, stopping next to him. He jumped in and they continued onward. They were turning right when he saw the mech reach the corner. It was too slow.
The vehicle jumped forward, accelerating quickly through the mess. Ehri steered like a pro, getting them toward the city center where a park had once rested. Now it was a wide-open space, one that they would have to cross to get to the highway beyond.
"Go as fast as you can," Donovan said, scanning the area. A line of soldiers was entering from the west. He could feel the ominous presence of the mech approaching from the south.
Ehri went even faster, letting the car hit the edge of a burned out vehicle and throw it violently to the side. Then they were up and over what had once been a grassy area, now turned to brown wasteland. The Dread mech appeared to their right. The first shots hit dangerously close, sending up a spray of dirt through the open sides before the remainder struck the tail end, the force of the projectiles it was firing hitting the armor rocking the car.
Then they were across, breaking the mech's line of fire and racing toward the highway. The lane ahead of them was clear.
"I can't believe we made it," Matteo said.
Donovan caught motion to his right. A dark blur launched toward them, hitting the side of the car and sending it sideways. Ehri's hands gripped the controls, fighting to keep it stable as it began spinning from the force. Donovan got a glimpse of a pur'dahm soldier rising to its feet and bringing its rifle to bear.
The car hit the side of a wall and came to a stop. A bright flash nearly blinded them as a plasma bolt struck the armor, sinking in but not through. A second passed through the opening and into the wall on the other side, so close that Donovan could feel the heat of it.
A return volley caught the Dread in the shoulder, burning through the armor and damaging its arm, which fell limp to the side and dropped the gun. The pur'dahm vanished a moment later, springing away as Ehri got them moving again.
"Wow," Montero said. "Nice shot, Lieutenant."
The car began picking up speed again, breaking free from the edge of the city and bounding up and across a swath of long-dead grass and trees. Donovan could see the highway up ahead, a long strip of decaying pavement that continued on toward the tree line leading up the mountain. Donovan watched their rear as they crossed the area.
"It stopped following," he said. The echo of rifle fire created a sudden burst of sound.
"The General," Diaz said.
"Godspeed to him," Montero replied. "And to all of them."
"Do you think we're safe now?" Matteo asked. "Maybe they think we're just part of the evacuation and not worth the effort."
"I doubt that," Donovan said. The pur'dahm must have seen that Ehri was driving the car.
Two black dots appeared in the distant sky behind them.
He knew the Dread fighters were headed their way.
SEVENTY-TWO
"We'll make the trees," Ehri said, keeping the car moving faster and faster.
"I don't think so," Donovan replied.
The fighters were closing so quickly there was no way to outrun them.
"Diaz, we have to keep them off-guard."
He cradled the plasma rifle, leaning out through the side of the vehicle, facing the rear. The odds of hitting the fighters were ridiculously low, but if he could at least make them wary, it might be enough.
Diaz joined him on the opposite side, holding tight with her legs and aiming the weapon. They both began to fire into the distance, the plasma bolts piercing the sky, covering a thousand meters before fading.
Ehri swung the car left, nearly peeling Donovan from his perch. The fighters fired back at the same time, swooping down to send plasma bolts at them. They burned the ground next to the car, over and over as Ehri zigged and zagged before momentum carried them past and forced them to turn around and reset.
Donovan looked in at the Dread scientist, her eyes fixed on the road and her tongue sticking slightly out of her mouth in concentration. She had steered them away from the Dread's attack as if she knew when and where it was coming. Was that even possible?
The fighters were coming back. The trees were growing closer. The off-road path had to be close.
"Diaz," Donovan shouted, resuming his cover fire. Diaz did the same, their aim improving enough to force the fighters to wobble slightly. The next volley missed wide; the pilots' aim disrupted.
"Over there," Montero shouted. "The break in the trees."
Ehri turned her head, and then the wheel. They bounced off the pavement and onto the grass, the car jostling over the terrain toward the slope. The fighters were coming back for a third approach.
Then they were below the canopy, smashing through the lighter brush. Ehri had to slow to maneuver around the trees, and Donovan and Diaz ducked back inside before they were decapitated by wayward branches. They had covered a lot of distance in a short time.
Maybe they would make it after all.
They continued up the slope. Donovan tried to watch the sky, but the growth above them made it difficult to see. He was sure the fighters were up there, and he knew they would fire on them sooner or later.
The attack came. Plasma bolts rained through the branches, burning holes in trees and igniting the brush around them. They were tracking the heat signature; their aim pushed off by the interference. Each volley began to come closer and closer.
"I can't shake them in here," Ehri said. "The trees force me into an almost straight line."
A plasma bolt hit the front of the car, digging deep into the armor, which managed to withstand the attack.
"It's time to ditch," Donovan said. "Everybody else out."
"We're still moving," Matteo said.
"If we stop, we die for sure."
Diaz kicked open her door and grabbed Matteo's arm. "Come on," she said, throwing herself out and dragging him along.
The other soldiers opened their doors and jumped out, rolling along the ground. More plasma bolts came down, two of them hitting the rear of the car where the passengers had been moments earlier.
"Ehri, we need to jump," Donovan said. He shoved the explosive against the dashboard and took hold of the detonator.
Ehri pushed open her door and vanished, leaving him alone in the car. He waited for the next plasma bolt to hit before throwing himself from the car and hitting the trigger on the remote at the same time.
The car exploded calmly, the armor keeping it from sending shrapnel everywhere. It was enough to set the interior on fire, and blow through to the engine compartment. Thick smoke rose from the front, and two more plasma bolts immediately dug into it, damaging it further.
Donovan waited thirty seconds before getting to his feet and scanning behind him. The others were still on the ground, likely watching him. He looked up through the brush and didn't see the Dread fighters.
Hopefully, the enemy thought they were all dead.
He waved back and signaled ahead. The rest of the squad began to rise, heading in the direction he had motioned while merging into one unit. They started picking their way through the woods in tense silence, listening for any sign of pursuit.
There was none.
SEVENTY-THREE
The echo of gunfire had fad
ed to nothing by the time Donovan and his squad neared the position where Matteo claimed General St. Martin's transmission had originated. They had climbed ten kilometers up the mountain in less than two hours, a pace that left them all tired and breathless.
"Do you think anyone is still alive down there?" Corporal Wade asked.
"They have to be," Sanchez replied. "No way General Rodriguez goes down like that."
No one else spoke. The words only made them more tense.
They traveled another half-kilometer before they reached their target.
A large building, half-buried beneath trees and moss and vines, the side of it appearing as if out of nowhere directly in front of them.
"I think this is it," Matteo said.
"What is it?" Diaz asked.
"I don't know."
Donovan approached the wall, pushing some of the leaves in front of it aside. He followed the parts he could see upward. It appeared there was a dome on top, though time had merged it with the vegetation.
"I think this is the side," he said. "We need to find the front."
They continued, staying close to the side and moving clockwise around it. It took another few minutes before they discovered the entrance in the form of a dark shadow beneath a line of vines and spider webs.
"Anyone have a light?" Donovan asked.
"I do," Matteo said producing a wrist light. He slapped it on and stayed close behind as Donovan pushed the vines and webs aside.
There was a soft light coming from somewhere inside, allowing them to see the long corridor the entrance became. The illumination was sourced through a window in a simple red door.
"There," Donovan said. He led them to it, running his fingers over the lettering etched into the glass when they reached it.
"Control," Ehri said, reading it.
Donovan looked through the glass. The light was brighter now, and was joined by others. Control was a small room with a monitor and touchpad, along with some other equipment he was sure Matteo would recognize.
He tried the door, finding it unlocked. He pushed it open.
"It's all yours, amigo," he said to Matteo.
"Thanks," Matteo replied. He entered and sat on the stool in front of the monitor, running his hand along the control pad. "This thing is old."
"What is it?" Donovan asked.
"It looks like a mainframe for something. I bet it was on low-power standby for all of these years, waiting for instructions that no one was around to give."
"Until now."
"Yeah." He explored the different screens while the others waited in anxious silence. "If I'm not mistaken, it looks like this building is connected to an antenna outside."
"I didn't see an antenna," Donovan said.
"I think it was on the opposite side."
"Does it transmit, or only receive?"
"I don't know yet. I'm picking through the pieces here." He moved through a few more screens. "Give me time."
"We don't have a lot of time."
"I know."
"Major," Ehri said. Donovan turned and found her standing outside of the control room. "You should come and see this."
Donovan left the others, following Ehri through a second hallway. Each door had a small window in it, and looking through he saw a series of rooms, dimly lit by backup lighting: a small room with a pair of bunk beds, a kitchen, a gym, and finally three adjacent offices.
There was a single book resting on the desk of the first. He pushed open the door and approached it. A layer of dust coated the cover, and he picked it up and wiped it off. Ehri stood behind him, looking over his shoulder.
The book was a plain navy blue with white writing. "Mount Tlaloc Deep Space Network Station 110," Donovan said, showing it to Ehri.
"Deep Space Network?" she said, reaching out and taking the book. She flipped through a few pages. "This is an operations manual for the base."
"Whatever the Deep Space Network is, it sounds promising."
"I know what it is, Major. The DSN antennas were originally installed to communicate with satellites and probes your people launched in the twenty-first century. As your technology improved and interstellar travel became possible, they were updated and increased in number to communicate with and track outbound ships. The bek'hai destroyed all of them during the initial invasion. Or at least, they believe they did."
"This one looks like it was out of use before the invasion," Donovan said. "The entire forest has grown around it."
"Which is likely why the bek'hai didn't know it was here."
"If what you're saying is right, then this base should be able to get a message out to Mars."
"Yes, Major."
Donovan couldn't believe it. Just when everything had started to look hopeless. Just when the head of the resistance had decided it was better to run and hide than to continue the fight. The one thing they needed most had been sitting right in their backyard, waiting for them.
"We need to tell Matteo."
They rushed back to the control room. Matteo was tapping on the control pad.
"I think I have this mostly figured out," he said.
Ehri placed the book on the desk next to him. "This might help."
"Deep Space Network?" Matteo said. "Does that mean what I think it means, amigo?"
"Let's hope so," Donovan said. He turned to Diaz. "We need to secure the area. Take Wade, Cameron and Sanchez and form a perimeter. Do not engage. If you see any Dread coming, send a warning."
"Yes, sir," Diaz said. "You heard the Major."
The other soldiers followed Diaz from the room.
"What should I do?" Colonel Montero asked. It was still strange to Donovan to give orders to someone who outranked him.
"Cover the door, sir. Help pass any messages in from outside."
"Of course, Major."
"This screen has a list of numbers on it," Matteo said. "I wasn't sure what they were, but knowing what this place is helps. I think they're coordinates."
"May I see?" Ehri asked.
Matteo rolled the stool to the side so Ehri could lean over and see the screen. "Yes, you're right. They're updating in realtime."
"Is one of them Mars?" Donovan asked.
Matteo scrolled the list. He went halfway before pausing.
"Si, amigo. One of them is Mars."
SEVENTY-FOUR
Gabriel was already on the bridge when Theodore arrived. Only fifteen minutes had passed since their meeting with the scientists, and he was pleased when he noticed that the color and health had returned to the General's face.
There wasn't that much for him to do on the bridge while the Magellan was in a static position near Mars. In fact, there wasn't much for anyone on the bridge to do except sit and wait. Even so, he felt an obligation to be there. He didn't want anyone to think he was getting off easy because he was the General's son. Maybe it forced him to push himself harder than he would otherwise, but he was okay with that. If his efforts motivated the people around him, all the better.
"General on the bridge," Colonel Choi said as the elder St. Martin rolled in. The rest of the crew stood and saluted him.
"At ease," Theodore said.
He got himself to the Command Station and transferred himself from the chair. Then he leaned back in it, taking a breath, before fixing his gaze out of the front viewport. They had shifted their position, moving closer to Mars and leaving the red planet visible on the port side, large and beautiful. There was nothing but empty space dead ahead.
"Systems report," the General said.
"All systems operating smoothly, sir," Sergeant Abdullah said. "She's as content as a kid in a candy store."
"Heh. Where did you hear that simile, Sergeant?" Theodore asked. "You ain't old enough to have ever seen a candy store."
"My father used to like to say it, sir," Abdullah replied, turning back to face him. "He told me it reminded him of Earth. He was only seven when the Dread came. Was my usage incorrect?"
"No, S
ergeant. It was spot on. I was just curious. Carry on."
"Yes, sir."
The bridge fell into a comfortable silence. Gabriel sat back in his pod, mimicking his father by staring out the viewport. Was this the calm before the storm?
"Sir," Miranda said, spinning around from the comm station. "I'm picking up an unidentified signal on the X-band."
"X-band?" Theodore said, sitting forward on his arms. "That's a military frequency. Are you receiving?"
"Let me check, sir," Miranda said, operating her station. "I'm sharing with your station." Her voice was quivering. She glanced over at Gabriel, her surprise obvious. "It's coming from Earth, sir."
"I see that, Spaceman Locke," Theodore said. "Well I'll be. That sly son of a bitch, he's way ahead of me." He paused as the message continued to receive. "Damn it. Those alien couillons. It ain't going to end like this."
Gabriel looked back at his father, his pulse quickening. A message from Earth? How could that be? And what was his father muttering about?
The message must have finished. Theodore's expression gained an even higher level of intensity and focus.
"Colonel Choi," Theodore said. "Get me Reza and the Larones and bring them to the conference room."
"Yes, sir."
Colonel Choi left the bridge to find them.
"Captain St. Martin."
Gabriel stood and faced his father. "Yes, sir?"
"Contact Captain Kim and tell him to get the other pilots organized."
"Sir?"
"Don't question, son, just do."
"Yes, sir."
Gabriel returned to his station, using his control pad to contact Soon.
"Gabriel?" he said, answering the call. He sounded as if he had been sleeping. "What's up?"
"I'm not sure yet. I have orders from the General to prep the flight crew."
"Are you serious?"
"Very."
"Yes, sir."
"Captain Kim is prepping the flight crew, sir," Gabriel reported.
"Follow me, Captain," Theodore said. "Sergeant Abdullah, you have the bridge."
"Yes, sir," Abdullah said.
Theodore was in his chair by the time Gabriel reached him. He had to jog to keep up with his father as he sped down the hall.
