The Valkyrie Returns (The Kurtherian Endgame Book 7)

by Michael Anderle

  Bethany Anne hopped to the Penitent Granddaughter to grab Nickie.

  Her appearance on the bridge brought a couple of nervous screams from the more sensitive members of the crew.

  Nickie rolled her eyes and took the hand Bethany Anne held out to her.

  “Can they run the ship without you?” Bethany Anne asked once they were in the Etheric.

  Nickie snorted. “Yeah, sure. Don’t be fooled by their reactions. My crew is a tight team, and they don’t let shit slide when it comes down to it.”

  Bethany Anne’s next step took them out of the Etheric and onto the Sayomi, where they picked up John and Tabitha and made the trip to the dark crystal platform.

  Bethany Anne brought them out of the Etheric on the lowest level of the structure and turned to them with fire in her eyes. “You three need to take out the Ookens working the nanocyte production and destroy any nanocyte stores they have down here. I don’t want to give our Skaine friends any reason to fall into temptation once this place has been blown to shards.”

  Tabitha pressed her lips together in distaste. “I think we need to be ready in case they turn on us once the factory has been secured,” she warned Bethany Anne. “I know they can’t do much against our ship tech, but you never know if they’ll be stupid enough to think they can win because they have the numbers advantage.”

  “Where’s the advantage?” Bethany Anne responded. “All that means is that if they turn, they’re placing me in a target-rich environment.”

  Tabitha lifted her hands. “What can I say? Stupid is knowing the consequences and doing it anyway. I beat the ignorance out of them as a species, so I know for a fact they’re aware we can’t be beaten.”

  Bethany Anne’s mouth twitched in amusement. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

  “Gotcha,” John affirmed. “Ladies, shall we?”

  Nickie lifted her Jean Dukes Specials with a slightly manic grin fixed on the production line. “You know me, Grandad. Let’s throw a few spanners in their works and see what happens.”

  Tabitha pointed at one of the huge machines nearby, and a wisp of smoke rose from it as the internal workings ground to a painful-sounding halt. “Who needs to waste time on that?” She jerked her head in the direction of the worker Ookens farther down the production line. “You guys take care of them while I concentrate on figuring out what they’re doing with this machinery while I get in there and break it all.”

  Bethany Anne looked at the glass wall, a shiver passing down her spine as the identical layout of the floor reminded her that there would be close to a million Ookens on the surface. She opened a link to the ArchAngel. “We’re here. Have the Skaines start their distraction.”

  The crystal vibrated as the surface bombardment began. Dan had point for the fleet, along with instructions on how to breach the platform’s shielding.

  There was no reason to have anyone except Bethany Anne’s team set foot on the platform, and whether or not the Ookens required an atmosphere to survive wasn’t a concern.

  “The only good Ooken is a dead one,” Bethany Anne murmured after dropping the link. She stepped through the Etheric again, this time only walking far enough to circumvent the glass wall and get into the tank beyond.

  She emerged and walked slowly along the floor of the tank while she got her bearings and adjusted her mass to best travel through the water. The Collectives were easy enough to locate since there was none of the vegetation they preferred to live in to obscure them from her sight.

  Bethany Anne made her way around the ring, searching out the group mind as she walked. The curving wall led her to the opposite side of the factory floor, which was where she found the Collectives.

  Their condition was pitiful. Bethany Anne stopped in her tracks, needing to gather herself. She felt their agitation at the awareness of her presence. However, they did not react violently. She felt the reason before she saw it. Their misery was absolute, and Bethany Anne had to work hard not to be sucked into their emotional miasma.

  Their skin was pale and sagged around their frames. They clung to each other, their tentacles entwined for comfort, and what little protection they could afford themselves from the ministrations of their torturers. It was hard to make out where one Collective ended and another began.

  Bethany Anne cursed, feeling a gnawing in her stomach that did not belong to her. They were beyond hungry. Worse than the physical starvation was the mental agony they were suffering from. Being cut off from the group mind was utter hell for a Collective, and these were relatively young compared to her guests. She didn’t know how they hadn’t reached the point of giving up already.

  These beings thrived on community, and they were dependent on close contact with each other. They were only whole when they were together as part of a much larger whole.

  Bethany Anne paused to process her rage on their behalf. Her anger was not going to help these Collectives. They needed a kind touch. They needed a strong mind to hold them close and cleanse them of hurt that had been done to them.

  She attempted to connect with the Conduit, thinking its presence in her mind would be more than useful to keep them calm while she moved them to the G’laxix Sphaea. However, the distance must have been too great because the attempt failed.

  Bethany Anne wondered briefly what that would mean for her in terms of how much it was going to cost in energy to take the Collectives across that distance.

  More than I’m comfortable with, TOM told her flatly.

  Not much I can do without moving the G’laxix Sphaea into the line of fire.

  Oh, no, TOM snarked. Kael-ven’s ship might get a scratch on the paintwork.

  >>Well, not really, << ADAM interjected. >>But it would create a gap in the destruction of the towers, which means there would be a fuck-ton of Ookens free to make their way down to BA.<<

  Look at you with your accurate estimations, TOM remarked icily. You do remember it’s our place to help Bethany Anne to survive these encounters, not to enable her to hero herself into a grave?

  Quit bitching, the pair of you, and get ready to make sure the day I go to my grave is in the very, very distant future. Bethany Anne breathed calm into herself and pushed Etheric energy out of her palms to act as jets. She sped toward the knot of tentacles with resolve and empathy as her weapons in the fight against despair. ADAM, you’re up. Make sure I land in the center of the G’laxix Sphaea’s tank.

  ADAM fed her the tank’s precise location. >>You good?<<

  As I’ll ever be. Here’s hoping they don’t decide to hug me to death. Bethany Anne reduced her speed as she came up on the clustered Collectives, sending calming thoughts into the group mind as she approached and moving her body through the water to miss a misshapen and sad tentacle.

  Without a thought for herself, she drew massively on the Etheric and locked the Collectives inside a bubble of water.

  They reacted with fear as Bethany Anne screamed with the effort the transfer took. The Collectives’ cries of confusion were briefly accompanied by flailing tentacles as they rearranged their protective huddle before becoming still.

  Bethany Anne fed them her love and her promise to be their salvation from the hurts that had been done to them. She showed them her guests aboard the Helena and those beneath the Hexagon. The effort of maintaining a mindlink on top of pulling the Collectives and her battle armor through the Etheric set her nose bleeding, but she ignored the trickle even when it turned to a steady flow.

  She exerted her control over the floating bubble of water and pushed on regardless.

  Just keep going. I’ve got your brain, TOM murmured so as not to distract her from the herculean effort of pulling five-plus tons of Collective plus the metal she wore over the miles between the factory and the G’laxix Sphaea.

  It’s a fucking good thing I’m not put off by the prospect of hard work, Bethany Anne joked, pushing away the realization that she would have to do this many more times before everyone from the cells was safe aboard one of her
ships.

  Her armor dragged, weighing only half as much as the burden of her responsibility for the lives of the Collectives. She gritted her teeth and forced herself to pick up the pace. She focused on what mattered, which was saving lives, and grunted out her pain as she pulled the whole squirming bunch to the G’laxix Sphaea at a speed that even she had not known she could attain.

  >>BA,<< ADAM called, stirring her from the state of autopilot she’d fallen into. >>You almost went past your exit point.<<

  Thanks. Bethany Anne left the Etheric after checking she hadn’t completely overstepped her target landing point. Seeing she had stopped inside the tank’s boundaries, she made the transfer and let the bubble around the Collectives go.

  She staggered as the resistance from the Etheric vanished. Her heart pounded in her chest from the sheer effort of transferring that much mass. The Collectives remained entwined despite being released from the bubble.

  Bethany Anne managed to reach out and call for the Conduit with what little mental energy she had remaining.

  The Collectives screamed inside their minds, too traumatized by the move to realize they were in a better place.

  The Conduit’s voice filled the mindspace, its voice a calming song that interrupted the cacophony of panic the rescuees were emitting. They began to unfurl, curiosity at the new voice in their group mind drawing them out of their terror.

  Bethany Anne had no energy left to help. She had her armor keep her weighted to the floor of the tank while she bent to rest her hands on her knees and pulled energy from the Etheric to assist TOM with repairing the damage to her entire body.

  Good job, TOM soothed. Keep drawing energy so I can repair your internal organs.

  Shit, how much damage is there to repair? Bethany Anne knew it wasn’t good. She’d never felt so drained, or so much like a dried-out sponge left in the sun. Fix me faster. I have to get back and transfer the rest of the prisoners to the ArchAngel before the Ookens make it down there to kill everyone before we can get them to safety.

  TOM paused before replying. This was not as bad as the damage you’ve sustained after repairing a rift, but nevertheless, I had to concentrate on keeping your mind whole, and your body began to cannibalize itself.

  How. Fucking. Long? she demanded as the pain of his rapid repairs wracked her body. She growled in frustration. I need a better solution before we hit the rest of the factories. If this is almost killing me, it’s going to be a damn sight worse for anyone else doing the transfers.

  Just keep pulling the energy, TOM repeated, concern lacing his words. I’ll tell you the moment you can make the transfer without collapsing.

  He gave her the all-clear a few minutes later. The others will not take so much to transfer since they can move under their own power. I’ll be monitoring you.

  The last thing Bethany Anne saw before she left for the battle was the Collectives untangling from each other to welcome the Conduit. She felt their amazement at the Conduit’s presence and the lush kelp that caressed their tired bodies.

  Thank you, Bethany Anne, the Conduit told her. You were true to your word, and I am glad to be here for my kin.

  Take care, Bethany Anne replied. I’ll see you guys back at QT2 when this place is no more than ashes on the solar wind.

  She returned to the factory floor to find the equipment up in flames. The worker-Ookens had scattered, and she felt the telltale energy of the fighting kind in the mindspace. Bethany Anne assumed that some sense of self-preservation in their programming must have kicked in and drawn the fighters from the surface.

  Bethany Anne wondered where Tabitha, John, and Nickie had gotten to.

  There was a whoop from up ahead, which was followed by the appearance of Tabitha riding a worker-Ooken like a damned horse as she fired her Jean Dukes Specials at the bulk of the mass of fighter-Ookens chasing her.

  She threw up a hand to wave at Bethany Anne. “I wish you’d taken me with you last time!” she yelled over the crackling flames and screeching Ookens. “This is fuuuun!”

  John and Nickie stood on top of the machines, taking out Ookens out with cold efficiency from their respective angles.

  “We found the vats,” John called. “We destroyed them, no nanocytes left. Just these tons of sick fuckers to go, and we’ll be there to help with the cells.”

  Bethany Anne decided they had things under control on this level, so she leapt onto the nearest machine on her left and activated the software she’d had Eve install in her neural chip. She reached into the mindspace once again as she made a run for the cells’ locking mechanism.

  With the nanocurtains over the cells down, she darted back to the open part of the factory floor and made the leap up to the level where the prisoners were being kept. Is there a Seian here? she called. Or any Bl’kheth of higher rank?

  The mindspace fell silent. Bethany Anne wasn’t about to be put off by the reticence they were feeling. She increased the strength of her mental voice, making sure the translation software was broadcasting her thoughts as well as her speech. My name is Bethany Anne Nacht, but you may know me better by my Kurtherian name—Death. I am here to set you free. Do not run for the Etheric since I can’t protect you if you do. I have food and a safe place for you to recover from your ordeal while my ship takes you to the home I have created on my planet for your kind.

  Silence stretched for a long moment as the images telling the story of Sean’s group filtered into their minds. What followed was a rising babble that filled the mindspace.

  Bethany Anne heard a complexity of voices arguing about whether to trust this stranger who nevertheless had managed to communicate with them when no other had ever tried. She followed the sound, which was limited to the cells on the other side of the circular walkway.

  John, Tabitha, and Nickie joined her, each moving in a different direction to get the prisoners organized into groups for transfer. Many of the Skaines refused to come out of their cells at the sight of Tabitha.

  They soon realized she was there to help.

  Sometimes an outstretched hand and a genuine smile were all that was needed to repair a misconception.

  Bethany Anne moved faster than most of the prisoners could see, stopping only when she came to four cells containing the Bl’kheths. The thing that struck her much like her first encounter was that despite their malnourished state, these people had not allowed their spirits to be crushed.

  They stared at Bethany Anne proudly despite the fear she felt in their shared thoughts.

  She knelt and opened her arms wide. Honored Bl’kheths. I owe six of your people a debt I can never repay. All I can do is offer you safety and swear that you will be returned to your home and your people once I have freed every Bl’kheth the Seven are holding hostage against the rest of your world.

  The Bl’kheths did not reply except to express surprise that Bethany Anne also knew their history.

  I know you must be wary after being used for so long. Search my mind and see that I’m telling you the truth. She opened her memories of Sean’s group again, adding her emotional reaction to their sacrifice and her vow to protect the innocent from Gödel’s evil. Will you come willingly? she asked. Will you help me to fight the Seven?

  The Bl’kheths conferred among themselves again. The rising murmurs in the mindspace first went in favor of running, then shifted as the Bl’kheths saw that Bethany Anne was trusted by Sean—and that she was fully capable of doing the things she was promising them.

  A female extracted herself from the group in the second cell. We will go with you, she agreed on behalf of the group. We find you to have honor, and the staunch heart needed to give up your own needs for the good of your people.

  We will follow you, Bethany Anne Nacht.

  Bethany Anne let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. She understood that these pint-sized warriors had already earned a special place in her heart due to their refusal to be ruled by anything but right. That’s all I wanted to hear. Just no s
uicides, okay? Nobody needs to die to win this war except the Seven and their fuckpuppets. Take my hands, and I’ll get you out of here.

  The Bl’kheths gathered around Bethany Anne, each placing a hand on her body.

  Bethany Anne drew on the Etheric and transferred them to the bay aboard the ArchAngel, where the crew was waiting to receive them. She pointed out Natalia and Darryl, who both wore the headsets needed to communicate with the Bl’kheths.

  Go with my people, she instructed gently. She held up a finger before they left. Darryl and Natalia will take you to an enclosed space where there is plenty of food waiting. She eyed them. Under no circumstances are you to eat any part of my ship.

  24

  The next hour went by in a blur of factory-Etheric-ArchAngel-repeat.

  Bethany Anne took group after group to the ArchAngel, exhausting herself further with each trip. She ignored the pleas to rest between groups, choosing instead to keep increasing her draw on the Etheric and push through the pain while TOM did his repairs on her body.

  Darryl tried to hold her back when she arrived with the first group of Skaines and he saw her nose had been bleeding again.

  Bethany Anne shrugged him off and stepped back into the Etheric.

  It might not be the worst idea to take a break, TOM ventured. A few minutes isn’t going to make much of a difference.

  Bethany Anne exited into the factory and found that John, Tabitha, and Nickie were holding back an increasing tide of Ookens filtering down from the wreckage on the surface. Tell that to everyone who’s dying right now.

  By the time Bethany Anne had gotten all of the prisoners to the ship and made the final jump with John, Tabitha, and Nickie, the Skaines had finished slaking their thirst for revenge with their blanket bombardment of the surface, and they were all ready to withdraw and commence the last stage of taking the factory down.

  Bethany Anne took one last trip through the Etheric to the bridge of the Sayomi. She exited at a stagger, completely drained from the effort of carrying out the whole rescue effort.