by Jerome Kelly
“Kalmar, how much further?” James quickly asked as another group of at least a dozen Lataka came into view and opened fire, forcing the group to find cover.
“Less than five hundred meters away from our current position,” Kalmar called back, “we’re getting close.”
They were certainly on the right track, the increasing number of Lataka attacks were a sure sign that they were getting close to the centre of the base and the resting place of the Shadow Bringer. The Lataka attacks were getting more ferocious and more desperate the further through the complex they went. Even if they couldn’t get a completely accurate location on the Shadow Bringer from their current position, the closer they got, the clearer the signal became.
“Come on, we have to keep moving!” James gave a rallying call to his team. The Lataka were defending the base with everything they had but James was not going to let them slow him down. Leaning out of cover he took aim and took down two of their soldiers who were not able to find cover in time. He signalled to the rest of them to move forward, Kosare, Julio and Ansare all moving up first, moving, firing then taking cover as they did so, hitting the Lataka and getting out of the firing line before they could counter-attack.
There was the sound of more activity above them from outside the base. James looked up through an open area of the roof to see more alliance transports attempting to land, this time the Naisan and Juyoan ground forces were joining the fight along with more Voronian reinforcements. The anti-air guns were firing again, trying to bring them down but the majority were making it through. One of the Naisan airships guarding the transports took a shot at the gun turret directly above where the team had been taking cover. The turret’s supports were knocked out, sending the still-active gun toppling to the ground, right above where James and his team had been taking cover.
“EVERYONE MOVE!” James quickly yelled. There was mayhem, the engineering teams quickly pulled the pieces of Shadow Bringer out of the way, several meters back from the blast zone but the rest of them were too close. The turret was still active and still firing, taking several more shots which were now coming down towards the ground beneath it. The force of the impacts created a powerful explosion, the force of which knocked James off his feet and sent him flying backwards several meters. He hit the ground hard, the force of it almost knocking him unconscious. He was dazed, his vision blurry but after a few seconds, he came around, he wasn’t badly hurt, it was just a few scrapes and bruises. Recovering his composure, he dragged himself to his knees, surveying the scene. There was wreckage and debris everywhere and there was a thick grey smoke from the fires around them making it difficult to see what had happened.
“Is everyone Ok?!” James called out, the condition of his team a worry for him right now. “I’m Ok!” He heard some of the calls coming back. He could hear Morelli, Ansare, Kalmar, Saavoy, they were all Ok. Connolly, Lucy and the engineering teams had managed to escape the blast radius with the pieces of the Shadow Bringer and Kyrakian was Ok too, if a little disoriented.
James dragged himself to his feet and stumbled towards the wreckage to find the rest of the team. Kristea was lain back against some of the wreckage however she looked unharmed, just too dazed to make it to her feet, James quickly helped her up. Through the smoke he could see Julio on the floor, but he looked conscious and uninjured, however there was a sickening sight next to him. Kosare was lain there and she was not moving.
“Oh no… Jaiden!” James rushed over to her and flipped her onto her back. She was hurt badly. James quickly put his ear to her chest, “she isn’t breathing!”
Everyone had gathered around where Kosare lay. No one quite knew what to say at the sight of her lying motionless on the ground, she just couldn’t die on them like this so suddenly and in such acrimonious circumstances. The injuries were bad but enough to kill her?
“Stand back!” Julio quickly said to everyone who was now crowding around, pushing them back. He ripped open the combat gear covering her chest and began compressions followed by mouth to mouth. He tried it once… twice… three times but she didn’t move.
“Julio… I don’t think…”
“It will work!” Julio snapped, “it will work… she isn’t dying like this, not today!”
He tried mouth to mouth one more time. James didn’t want to see her go like this but he couldn’t deny, it looked as if she was gone. Just as all hope seemed lost for her, Kosare suddenly let out a gasp, her eyes opened.
“Wha… What happened…” she gasped, “where am I… ?”
“Oh thank god,” James let out a sigh of relief, “well done Julio, really well done.”
Kosare looked confused but she was conscious again. It looked as if she had no idea what had happened to her and by the looks of it, no idea as to the extent of her injuries. She was definitely not going to get on her feet again, not without serious medical aid and she was still losing blood. Not a huge amount but it would add up over time if they couldn’t stop the wound.
“Please don’t tell me Julio saved me,” Kosare said, still breathing rapidly through the shock, “please don’t let me have to owe him my life.”
“I’m afraid so,” said James, “you’re damn lucky to be alive you know. You’re going to need a lot of medical attention too, we need to get you out of here.”
“I’m not going anywhere, not like this,” said Kosare, the rush of adrenaline in her system likely blocking out the pain and making her unaware of how serious her condition was.
“She’s right, we can’t move her without making it worse,” said Julio, “James, I’ll stay here with her. I’ve been trained for trauma and battlefield care back at the academy. I can stabilise the wounds and keep her alive. You all go on ahead and finish this, we’ll be Ok here.”
“Oh lovely, of all the people I have to be alone and wounded with…”
“Not your choice Jaiden,” said James, “I’m not leaving you alone here, you need someone to take care of you. We have to get the Shadow Bringer assembled and armed so we need to keep moving. Julio, see if you can get a message through to the rest of the alliance force, they’ll have field medics on standby down here. Get them in here and make sure you both get out of here alive.”
“I will do, James,” said Julio, “I’ll do everything I can to keep her alive, even if she would rather die than be trapped here with me.”
“And Jaiden, you stay alive,” James said to her, “don’t you dare go dying on me down here.”
“Well I guess at least I’m stuck with someone who will actually do everything he can to save me,” Kosare said through the shock, “the answer will still be ‘no’ though.”
“We’ll see,” said Julio, “go on, all of you, go and finish this. Get the weapon assembled and blow this place to hell and back.”
With Julio’s confident assurances, James and the rest of the crew left him with the few medical supplies that they had on them and pressed onwards. He really hoped that he would get to see them both again after this. After all, his adventures had already resulted in the death of one Castellan and he had dragged Kosare into this mess against her will when she would rather have stayed on Tolis. He couldn’t afford for either one to be killed but he had no choice but to press on and finish the mission. As much as a part of him would have wanted to stay by Kosare’s side and not leave until she was safely extracted, he had to put his trust in Julio to do it by himself.
“I hope she pulls through,” Morelli said as they continued through the base, the Lataka not having regrouped since the explosion, “after everything she has been through and everything she has survived, to go out like this…”
“She wont,” James said confidently, “she’ll make it through, she always does. We’re all getting out of here and we’re all going home. I’m not having anyone die under my command today.”
Bold words, especially as he couldn’t guarantee anything while they were i
n a very hostile environment surrounded by a powerful enemy. Kalmar continued to lead them through the Al’cari base, following the signal that was being given off by the Shadow Bringer. The industrial part of the base reached an end and the construction lead out into what looked like a very secure bunker at the heart of the complex.
“This has to be it,” said Kalmar, “its less than a hundred meters in front of us, it must be inside this structure. I don’t see a way in though.”
“We might have to force our way in,” said Ansare, “we’ll find the doors and set charges, it should blow them open. A structure like this should withstand the blast without any major damage.”
“Good call,” said James, “Ok, Loca, Kaldun, take the charges to the doorway and get them set, the rest of us will cover you from here.”
Ansare and Morelli took the demolition charges from Lucy and hurried across a small area of open ground to the bunker entrance. James, Kristea, Saavoy, Kyrakian and Lucy all took up defensive positions, watching for any signs of Lataka or Al’cari. The sounds of the battle were still evident in the distance, it sounded like both sides were still well in the fight and neither one was giving any ground. So long as it stayed in the distance, they would hopefully be able to complete the job without drawing too much enemy fire. From the looks of the Bunker, there was only going to be one way in or out. Once inside, they would need to ensure they did not draw too much attention or they could be trapped in there with no chance of escape.
“We’ve got incoming!” Lucy quickly warned them. A squad of Lataka soldiers were hurrying over towards them in the distance, lead by an Al’cari warrior. Morelli was still working on the charges and needed more time. James quickly took the initiative opening fire from a distance to force the Lataka from the open and slow them down but they kept on coming, despite one of them taking a hit and falling to the ground. Far in the distance, James could see more of them coming into view. It looked as if the enemy was aware of their plan and just how far they had got.
“Come on, hurry up with those charges!” James called to the others, gunning down another Lataka soldier that could not get out of the way in time, “we haven’t got all day.”
“Almost done,” Morelli called back to him, “twenty seconds.”
With supporting fire from Kristea, Lucy and Kalmar, James slowed the approaching Lataka enough to give Morelli and Ansare enough of a chance to finish the job and get clear of the blast-zone. With a press of the detonation switch, the charges went off, blowing the doors down in a ball of fire but leaving the rest of the structure standing and undamaged.
“Ok we’re clear, lets move!”
James ushered the engineering teams forward. As they moved the pieces of the Shadow Bringer across the open ground, the whole team broke cover and moved to support them as they made for the open doors of the Al’cari bunker. The Lataka were not letting up in their attack, more and more of them were pushing forwards but James was determined to hold them back. He was taking a risk but he held his ground, taking the Lataka down one after the other as they came into range. It was all the time the engineering crews needed to get out of the open but James was caught up in the moment and he didn’t retreat back towards the bunker.
“James! Come on!” Ansare called after him, “we’re clear on this side, the crew have made it inside.”
Snapping out of what had almost felt like a trance, he quickly turned and made for the bunker but the Lataka were following closely behind him. They opened fire on him as he dove for cover, one of their shots almost striking him on the shoulder as he made his move. As he stumbled, Ansare grabbed him by the arm and pulled him to cover.
“That was too close James,” he panted, “you Ok?”
“Fine, I think,” James replied, although there was a burn mark across his shoulder that was causing him a fair amount of pain. There was no major injury though, just a surface wound. A scratch compared to what had happened to Kosare. James followed the rest of the team through the bunker doors and into the large room inside. As soon as they were all in, Morelli closed an emergency door in front of the entrance, one that would hold the enemy for a short time. They had a few minutes to catch a breath.
“Oh wow…” James noticed it after taking a few seconds to recover his strength. It looked like a giant torpedo, about nine meters in length, a bright silver colour and consisting of a very similar technology to that from which the Evening Star was built, “is this… ?”
“The Shadow Bringer? Yeah,” said Kalmar, “in all it’s glory. Looks to be all in one piece, well obviously except for the three missing parts that we have with us but it looks undamaged.”
“You think you can get it open?”
“I should be able to, I’ve seen it’s schematics before, I managed to get a look at some of the senate’s secure files once. I think I know how do do this.”
“Then you, Loca and the engineering teams get to work,” said James, “the rest of us… we’ll just have to defend this location until you’re done. I’ll contact Kaydenne on the flyer and… damn!”
Whatever had been scrambling the signals outside was even stronger inside the bunker. It must have had some kind of field surrounding it that messed with sensors and communications, making it difficult to locate. He needed to get a signal out but he could not go back out through the front doors, the Lataka and Al’cari would be all over that area. There was only one other way out…
“I need to get to the roof,” James said, noticing a set of stairs on the far side of the room that lead upwards, “I need to get a signal out of here.”
“You’ll be a sitting duck up there,” Lucy warned him, “we should stay inside while we can. This building seems secure enough.”
“I need to contact Kaydenne and I need to contact Marek up in orbit,” said James, “I’ll go up alone, you guys stay down here.”
James left the room where his crews were beginning their work to install the missing components and headed up the stairs. It was six or seven flights high but there was a hatch at the top which James was able to force open before climbing out onto the roof. The roof area was very large, easily large enough to land the flyer on which was a relief, it meant they would have a way out once the weapon was armed. He had an excellent view all around from where he stood, he could see the battle in the distance, still raging on but having become more widespread now with many alliance forces having to take cover within the base to survive. He now noticed that he had signal on his comm, just as he had hoped he would. He quickly got in contact with Melina on the flyer.
“Kaydenne, everything Ok?”
“I’m fine over here,” came Melina’s reply, “the alliance forces are struggling though, the Lataka and the Al’cari have intensified their attack. Juarez has had to send more reinforcements down just to hold the landing area.”
“Well just make sure you stay safe,” said James, “we’ve reached the bunker where they’re keeping the Shadow Bringer and we’re attempting to assemble it now. I need you on standby to pick us up as soon as we’re ready.”
“I’ll be ready to come and get you as soon as you’re done, just give the word,” said Melina, “we’ve got alliance forces starting to fall back through the base perimeter though, I think some of them may be attempting to retreat back to the ships for when we pull out.”
“Just keep me updated,” said James, “I’ll try to keep someone in radio contact with you at all times, the signal is a bit patchy over here. Stand by for orders.”
James quickly closed the link and set up a connection to Juarez and the rest of the fleet in orbit.
“What’s going on down there James?” Juarez was quick to ask, “I’m seeing a lot of movement from the Al’cari and Lataka forces. They’re pulling back and heading back into the base towards a structure near the centre. Have you found the Shadow Bringer?”
“We’ve found it and we’re putting it together
now,” said James, “it’ll take us a few moments though, we’ll need as much cover as we can possibly get. The bunker we’re in is pretty secure and there only seems to be one way in or out other than off the roof.”
“I’ll do what I can to get forces in to cover you,” said Juarez, “I’ve ordered some of the men to get the wounded out and back to the ships, we’re trying to make sure we can get everyone out in time once the weapon is armed. How long until you have it ready to blow?”
“Still working that out now,” said James, “we’re going as fast as we can but we’re going to have half the Lataka forces on the planet kicking this door down if we don’t hurry.”
“Understood,” said Juarez, “just keep me informed, we’ll keep your path off the planet covered, we’re all still holding on up here, the Adeans are really turning things in our favour.”
“Good job, I’ll be up there shortly. It’s almost over now, we just need a few minutes.”
Closing the channel, James took a look out over the base complex below him. He could clearly see dozens of Lataka and Al’cari soldiers coming from all directions towards the bunker. He knew that they wouldn’t risk using explosives or make any attempt to demolish the building, they needed the Shadow Bringer in one piece and that was James’s advantage. The enemy could only use conventional weapons or risk losing the one thing that they had spent so long trying to recover. If they damaged it, they would have nothing to trade for their freedom.
Without warning, James heard an explosion from below. Panicking, he rushed back down through the hatch and down the stairs as fast as he could move. There was the sound of weapons fire below and a lot of shouting. Reaching the ground floor he saw that his crew had used the equipment in the room to set up a barricade at the front entrance but the Lataka had broken through the emergency door on the outside and were attempting to force their way in. It was a narrow corridor leading into the bunker and neither the Al’cari or Lataka could get inside without being greatly exposed to fire from James’s team. Kristea, Saavoy, Lucy and Kyrakian were all comfortably holding down their position, picking off anything that moved outside of the bunker but they were now exposed and they needed to hurry.
