Sirens blared as they had done for several minutes, signaling a ship-wide alert. No doubt it was because the Holy Leader had been taken prisoner. A voice blared over the address system, telling everyone to man their battle stations. Hope wondered at the strange command. How was that going to allow the others to rescue Copeland?
No one they passed was stupid enough to try anything so far, but the soldiers and crew were vocal enough about their intentions. Hope’s father was warned about any number of painful deaths and eternal hellfire. The threats to Piras were even worse. Tortures of a horrific nature were promised to the demon Kalquorian, with promises he would beg for death before they were finished with him.
Hope couldn’t see the Dramok’s face, but she heard his low chuckle. “As if there weren’t already a long line of men waiting who have wanted that very same thing,” he muttered.
Piras was a good deal less amused when the threats moved on to the females. One man shouted, “Death to the whores! Stake and burn them!”
Red-faced, fangs showing, Piras screamed back, “Shut your fucking face or Copeland loses his! You’re all beneath contempt to name him your spiritual leader. He’s a monster! A rapist of children! I should tear off the heads of each man low enough to worship him!”
Hope spared him a glance before directing her attention to those following them once more. She heard plainly the sound of Piras spitting, presumably at the speaker. Charity giggled, but it was a high, screamy sound. Hope had to agree that Piras in full rage was a scary motherfucker. He didn’t sound the least bit sane when he lost his temper.
Something buzzed behind Hope. She didn’t look around, afraid another moment’s distraction would give the crew a chance to take them down. Besides, she was pretty sure if a threat came at them from the front, Piras and her father were far better suited to handle it than she was.
She was relieved when Piras spoke in a nearly reasonable tone, apparently into his com. “Piras here.”
Even better was hearing Kila’s growl of a voice. “Thank the ancestors. What is going on, Admiral?”
“No time to talk, Captain. You’ve started the plan, now keep it going. All the way. Piras out.”
Hope could have screamed with relief the next instant. They left the seemingly endless corridors, crossing over the threshold of the shuttle bay at long last. Her delight didn’t last long. Now there were more crewmen to guard against, growing the throng tracking behind them. Hope kept the blaster sweeping from side to side, more concerned now that she had a vaster space to cover.
“Shuttle’s over there,” Piras said.
With escape in their sights, Copeland made a desperate plea to his followers. “Help me! Do not fear death, for you will awaken in Heaven if you save me from these traitors! The Voice of God commands you!”
At his words, crew and guards surged towards the group. The women screamed like banshees and readied to fire on them.
Hope didn’t bother to threaten the fanatics who were ready to die for Copeland. Instead, she turned to put her blaster at the base of his skull. Sounding as maddened as Piras, she screamed. “Back off! We have nothing to lose and I will blast this lying bastard where he stands! He’ll be dead before he hits the floor!”
Copeland screamed to feel another weapon at his head. Maybe he’d decided Piras and Borey wouldn’t dare kill him. Possibly he thought Hope, with her lack of military station, would be more likely to carry out a mortal threat. Perhaps it was his basic distrust of women after years of abusing them so horribly. Or maybe it was because he was the worst kind of bully and coward Hope had always known him to be.
Whatever the reason, Copeland’s stance on rescue changed in an instant. “Stay back! I order you to stay back! I must not die!”
Confused, the crew and security officers dropped back. Their blasters lowered.
Copeland’s captors crowded through the hatch of Piras’s shuttle. The shuttle had been meant to carry six comfortably. Hope wondered if the weight capacity would be maxed out with so many squeezing into the small space.
The moment they had all shoved their way into the craft, Piras shouted, “Hatch, closed!” He’d had the good sense to be the first on board and wasted no time getting into the cockpit.
The hatch closed, shutting the bay out. The women allowed themselves the luxury of tears and frightened whimpers. Hope relaxed only a little. The soldiers might open fire rather than let them take the Holy Leader away. She didn’t know how blaster-proof the shuttle was.
“Those who can, sit down and strap in the children. The rest of you, hold tight,” Piras shouted as he brought the engines online. “They’re closing the bay doors, so it might be a tight squeeze.”
Hope kept her blaster trained on the gasping and praying Copeland. Her father forced Charity into one of the seats and made her strap in. Others took care of the rest of the girls.
“Ready or not, here we go,” Piras called.
The engines cycled up to high power. Those standing in the cramped cabin braced themselves. Booms shook the shuttle as those outside opened fire on it.
Chapter 20
Veko spoke through the mop of hair hanging over the com station. “Dramok Sitrel’s ship is attempting to com the frequency identified as belonging to the Basma. The com block has prevented him from doing so. I believe we can safely assume no transmissions will get through.”
Mostar added, “The Imperial defenders are destroying Maf’s forces at will. Earther battlecruisers that are not phased are getting involved but also being overwhelmed by the attack on both sides.” His voice took on a different tone, one of severe gravity. “Captain, I’m getting readings from one of the shuttle bays of the Holy Leader’s battlecruiser. It appears there is a firefight going on. A shuttle carrying Kalquorian power signatures is attempting to leave, but the bay doors are closing.”
Kila exchanged a glance with Lokmi. His Imdiko breathed, “Piras.”
“And Hope,” Kila said, wishing out loud.
Mostar’s voice was flat, the way it got when he had to deliver bad news. “They will not make it out, Captain. The shuttle is moving much too slowly. There is not enough time before those bay doors shut.”
Kila made a sudden decision. “Unphase the Sword of Truth, Chief.”
“Unphase? But the shuttle’s isolated phase isn’t activated. It won’t make any difference—”
Kila roared at his clanmate. “Do it!”
Lokmi’s hands flew over his computer panel. “Phase off. The Sword of Truth has materialized.”
“Bay doors are closed,” Mostar reported. “I’m having trouble locking onto the shuttle’s readings—can’t tell if it’s phased—” He looked at Kila. “There has been a large explosion within the battlecruiser’s bay. It could have been the shuttle.”
Kila’s heart lurched. Lokmi staggered at his station, his face stricken. The Nobek saw him soundlessly mouth two names: Piras. Hope.
Kila wanted to find something to kill. Ancestors, don’t you fucking do this to me. Don’t you fucking dare!
Finding enough breath to speak at last, Kila said, “Try to com the admiral, Veko.”
“Hailing Admiral Piras.”
Kila’s heartbeat ticked off the seconds. As they passed, dread grew like a dead weight in his gut.
I should have gone to him. I should have run to his and Hope’s rescue rather than follow orders. Their deaths are on me. I’ve failed—
“Piras here. Nice of you to give us an out, Captain, though we barely got the shuttle phased in time.”
Kila whooped in a breath. Lokmi’s knees buckled again for an instant, almost putting his ass on the floor. He righted himself and offered Kila a shaky smile as the bridge crew erupted in cheers.
Kila’s eyes closed. “I’m glad you figured it out, Admiral.” The understatement of his lifetime. “Do I dare to hope you have extra passengers?”
“The Nath family has kindly opted to join us.”
Lokmi unleashed another cheer which made the re
st of the bridge crew smirk. For an instant he remembered himself and tried to assume a more dignified expression—and promptly gave up. “Fuck it. This is too good to not celebrate.” He roared with an exuberance that made Kila chuckle.
The captain returned his concentration to their Dramok. “We were worried when we detected an explosion in the shuttle bay.”
Piras laughed. The sound was breathless enough that Kila knew how close a call it had been. “We were under heavy fire as I lifted off. We’re also carrying a little extra weight. In trying to avoid the Earthers’ blasters and being unable to get high enough, I accidentally hooked onto another shuttle. I dragged it almost right up to the bay door before I phased. That must have been what blew up.”
“Makes sense.”
“When we’re all together again, see to it Medical is ready to attend about fifteen Mataras.”
Kila’s mouth dropped open. “Fifteen Mataras?”
“You’ll also need a security detail for a very special extra passenger. If his ex-wives let him live, I think Fleet Command will be delighted to get their hands on him.”
Kila’s heart began to race again. Piras had snagged Copeland! “Does this change the plan, Admiral?”
“No. Complete it to the agreed-upon conclusion. For honor and Empire, Captain.”
“For honor and Empire.” Then, like Lokmi, Kila decided official fleet decorum could fuck off. His clanmate was safe and whole. The woman he adored was alive and he’d see her soon. Their ruse to stop Maf and Copeland from gaining Haven’s colonists had succeeded. They had Copeland and might soon get their hands on Maf as well.
Kila deserved to break with fleet protocol, if only for a moment. In a voice filled with the love he’d never speak of for fear of insulting his clanmate, he said, “We’ll see you soon, my Dramok.”
With things running the way they should once more, Kila got back to business. He had a mission to complete.
They were bearing down on the de-phased Sword of Truth, mere minutes from their bow passing through its hull. Kila went to his command podium, giving it an affectionate caress. “All right, crew, let’s gut that hideous ship which held an even more hideous man. Chief, shut down the coolant to the booster systems.”
“Coolant shutting off.”
A claxon sounded and emergency lights flashed. A computerized voice warned, “Boosters and engines overheating. At current use, ship will enter critical phase in five minutes.”
Lokmi doublechecked engineering’s readouts and nodded to Kila. “All systems are go for our big finale, Captain.”
“Alert the rest of the crew to enact the last stage of the plan, Veko. Let’s take our final bows.”
* * * *
Piras activated the surround vids in the cabin so his passengers could enjoy the show. The fighting was quite spectacular, with Maf’s forces all but destroyed. Half of the remaining Earther battlecruisers were also crippled. The rest had stopped firing on the Imperial forces. He thought they must have given up to the defenders of Haven and Rokan.
The obvious victory was not the reason Piras had elected to give his Earther passengers a view, however. He called, “I think you’ll find our flight’s entertainment interesting. If you will all direct your attention to the Sword of Truth?”
Copeland’s voice, showing no trace of its prior serenity, snarled from the cabin. “So you’ll win. Victory will not come without a heavy price, both in this world and the next. My battlecruiser will rain down destruction before it is overcome. I will relish every last death that comes to your lower species, for every life God sees fit to deprive the immoral and murderous Kalquorian Empire.”
A woman’s voice rose above the angry female mutterings which filled the cramped shuttle. “Shut up before I rip your tongue out, you filth. God spits on you.”
Piras grinned, both at the invigorated spirits of the wives and at what was coming next. Copeland was about to get a huge surprise. “I’m going to de-phase so you can get a full appreciation of what’s going to happen. I don’t think anyone will notice our little shuttle sitting out here with everything else that’s going on.”
* * * *
Hope rolled her eyes at Copeland’s pathetic grab at whatever victory he could claim. Even with defeat staring him in the face, he refused to acknowledge any sort of guilt for all the harm he’d done. Only stark fear held him as his wives pointed blasters at him from each side. If not for their palpable lust for his death, he’d keep spouting his megalomaniacal nonsense.
All the harm he and his mindless followers continued to do. The Sword of Truth wouldn’t win the battle alone, but it was the strongest ship left to Copeland’s fleet, a force of death to this bitter end. It fired on the attacking destroyers, its massive number of weapons enough to rout at least three if not more of the Kalquorian warships. It would indeed kill many of Haven’s defenders before they could stop it. It was too bad Hope had been needed so much to help Piras cripple the destroyers. If she’d had time, she could have phased and damaged the ‘cruiser’s engines, rendering it vulnerable to the Kalquorian fleet.
Then something bizarre happened, drawing gasps from all the occupants of the cabin. Dozens of Kalquorian shuttles and fighters appeared, as if erupting from the ‘cruiser. Their sleek, oblong shapes were easily identified despite the high velocity they flew at.
Hope sputtered her surprise. “We had no Kalquorian shuttles or fighters on board the Sword of Truth.”
One by one, the small craft winked out of existence again. Hope realized they had phased. Another moment of understanding hit. Lokmi had told her none of the rest of the Imperial fleet had the phasing technology. Just one lone vessel and its complement of smaller craft possessed phasing devices. There was but a single destroyer those shuttles and fighters must have come from. But if they’d emerged from the Sword of Truth…
All at once, the forward hull of a Kalquorian destroyer partially appeared, coming out of the side of the battlecruiser. Its aft section stuck out of the other side, near where the bridge of the Earther vessel was located. The two ships were fused together, like some misbegotten hybrid monstrosity. Charity let out a little scream.
“Kila’s ship!” Hope cried.
From the cockpit, Piras said, “They’re merged now that the destroyer has come out of phase. The engines of both are still clear, however. It looks like both ships are trying to go in different directions. See how they’re lurching around?”
Hope’s father’s mouth hung wide open. “Good night, Admiral, the destroyer’s engines must be at full power. Otherwise, the Sword of Truth would overwhelm the thrust.”
“Full power, plus boost. Kila is what Lokmi refers to as a ‘speed junkie’, so his ship has a lot of juice. They would have turned off the coolant too. Overload will happen at any time now. We should be clear, but I’m going to phase again to be safe.”
“What will—”
Borey was interrupted as the merged ships blew apart in a terrific explosion. The shuttle filled with blinding white light for an instant before the vid’s automatic controls compensated for the flash. It took Hope’s eyesight a few seconds to return.
When it did, she appreciated the dim lighting of the Kalquorian shuttle which usually made her squint at her companions. She wasn’t interested in her family, Copeland, or the others at the moment, however. She stared at the surround vid, at the space where the destroyer and the Sword of Truth had been. There was no sign of either beyond chunks of twisted metal rushing away, as if racing to escape. Everyone else blinked slowly, as if coming out of a deep sleep.
Hope grasped what the Kalquorians had done. “The shuttles and fighters we saw. The crew evacuated the destroyer before it detonated.”
Piras nodded. “As far as Maf and Kalquor are concerned, each one of us is dead—leaving us to fight where we will.” He turned his attention to her father. “I have a few suggestions on that front, based on the conversations we’ve had.”
“I’m sure you do.” The shock seemed to be
wearing away. As Borey gazed at Copeland, who had hidden his face in his hands, Hope thought she’d never seen her father look so relieved—or so determined. “Since our plans to dismantle this part of Maf’s fleet seem to have worked, we have quite a few options now.”
Hope saw he was right. As far as everyone knew, they had all perished in the explosion. Her family could go to some far-flung colony and start over where no one knew them. They were as free as people could get.
Yet she knew her father’s conscience would not let him hide away on a remote planet or moon. He would make no attempt to escape the name Borey Nath, former leader of the Holy Leader’s forces. Copeland’s legacy had caused too much damage. Though her dad had done his best to mitigate it while responsibly taking Copeland down, he’d still see himself as a guilty party. He had to make amends.
As a minor, Charity could go to live with those family members who might have escaped to colonies. She could pursue a real education and not fear being married off to a monster. Every opportunity belonged to the youngest Nath. Hope prayed her angsty little sister would appreciate and take advantage of the second chance she’d been given.
What of Hope herself? Logic and duty said she should try to clear her name with the Galactic Council and Kalquorian Empire. She had her own crimes to answer for due to remaining part of a crew who had not surrendered at the end of the Earth-Kalquorian war. She also needed to chaperone Charity while her father navigated whatever penance he was due. It was a responsibility Hope dared not dismiss. Yet as she watched Piras through the cockpit door, she wished she was as free as she’d initially felt.
Kila’s voice spoke through the com system which had been left open. “Admiral, are you there?”
“Indeed I am. That was quite the show you put on.”
“I hope it was to your liking?”
Hope gazed at the now-weeping Copeland. Miserable, huddled, and naked, he was a far cry from the man who’d proclaimed himself the Voice of God. His wives stared down at him with grim satisfaction. A few showed relief, but she saw a great deal of shock and some sadness. Good people had been lost. The war had claimed more innocent victims—but the larger number of Havenites were safe.
Alien Revolt (Clans of Kalquor Book 11) Page 27
