Entering the main part of the hall, the intersection of the four great vaults, the queen's throne sat on a stepped platform to Mizuki's left, where the chancel and ambulatory of an Earthly cathedral would have been. The throne was an alabaster cradle meant to support the queen's abdomen—there was no high back as on a human throne.
“This is truly stunning, Your Highness,” Mizuki said in wonder.
“As well it should be, for I will never leave this room again so long as I shall live.”
Before Mizuki could ask the Princess why that would be, figures approached from the northern transept.
“You are right about that, sister!” came a strong voice from among the newcomers, echoed and amplified by the chamber's excellent acoustics.
Looking to identify the source of the comment, Mizuki spotted a large native that looked nearly identical to Timushi. No doubt this was Princess Reishi, Timushi's sister and rival for the throne.
Reishi's warriors spread out across the north side of the nave, filing down the side aisle, as Timushi's warriors did the same on the south side. Both sides dressed their ranks and faced each other with weapons drawn.
Chikushō! Mizuki thought, drawing her katana, I guess this isn't going to be simple after all.
Rescue Mission, The River
Frank took the shuttle low over the river to gain cover from the surrounding ridges. As they sped westward along the river valley a bright flash appeared off the port side—the detonation of the AM grenade left in the wreckage of the small shuttle. Seconds later the shockwave arrived, causing the shuttle to wobble, though its passengers felt nothing, all motion filtered out by the deck gravity.
“How much juice did you put in that thing, Commander?” Frank asked, correcting the shuttle's attitude and heading.
“About 90 terajoules, the equivalent of roughly 20 kilotons of TNT.”
“About the same as the bomb dropped on Nagasaki,” observed Tamara.
“About that,” Bobby agreed. “Temperatures at the heart of the explosion should have exceeded five thousand degrees—hot enough to vaporize the shuttle and those left aboard her.”
“Where to now, Sir?”
“Look over there, off to port. That looks like a sizable open space just before the bridge up ahead. Put her down in the clearing, Mr. Hoenig.”
“Aye, aye, Sir.”
* * * * *
Minutes later the shuttle was on the ground and the Marines fanned out across the clearing. Partially sheltered by nearby trees was a small raised pond with water running out of an overflow.
Umky was once again seeking the scent of the missing Mizuki. “She was here alright, Commander.”
Bobby kneeled down next to the outflow from the pond. “Indeed, Mr. Umky. Even I can tell she was here.”
The bear looked at the human with a puzzled expression on his long face. Then he noticed that Bobby was pointing at the ground. There in the moist soil was an eroded but recognizable boot print.
Umky grinned. “Yeah, that'll work too.”
“So we know that she passed this way,” the Gunny said, coming over to look at the boot print. “Do we know where this road goes?”
“I don't but we can ask the ship.” Bobby changed frequencies. “Peggy Sue, Rescue Leader.”
“Go, Rescue Leader.”
“We have found evidence that Dr. Ogawa made it out of the jungle and was headed along the river road. Can you tell us where the road leads?”
“Roger that, Rescue Leader. It turns after the bridge and runs north for a couple hundred klicks. It ends up at a large city... wait one.”
The rescue mission leader waited impatiently.
“Rescue Leader, be advised that there seems to be a great deal of activity around a big structure in the middle of the city. It looks like there are two columns of armed natives converging on a cathedral like building—one from the south and one from the north.”
“I copy, Peggy Sue. The natives are having a dust up in the city to the north.”
“Affirmative. Be advised that the northern party is accompanied by aliens of some other form, presumably the ones landed by the primitive fleet.”
“What does that mean?” the Gunny asked Bobby.
“It means that something important is happening at the end of this road, something involving the aliens that shot down the shuttle. And if I know Mizuki she'll be in the thick of it. Let's saddle up, Gunny!”
While the Gunny got the squad back on board the shuttle, Bobby talked to the ship in orbit.
“Peggy Sue, I'm going to take a leap of faith and assume that Mizuki is involved in the situation to the north. We are headed there now. ETA is fifteen minutes.”
“Roger that, Rescue Leader. Good hunting.”
Chapter 28
Queen's Palace
Warrior ants poured from the northern transept, moving eastward along the aisle on the north side of the nave. To keep themselves from being flanked, Princess Timushi's warriors did the same on the south side. Once both sides had fully deployed they rushed to meet in the middle of the vaulted hall, spears thrusting and swords slashing. Unlike humans, the insect warriors fought in eerie silence, making no battle cries and not calling out in pain when wounded.
Mizuki, her katana drawn, positioned herself in front of the Princess, standing a few steps down from Timushi and the Castellan. From the north side came a volley of arrows. Behind her several warriors moved to protect the Princess with their shields and bodies. Mizuki's approach was more direct—she knocked three of the incoming arrows from the air before they could strike.
“Stay under cover, Your Highness,” the Castellan shouted, motioning for her archers to counter volley. The return flight of arrows scattered the opposition archers temporarily, but on the front line things were not going well. The superior number of Princess Reishi's warriors was slowly but surely overwhelming Timushi's force.
I signed on for this and I doubt they will show mercy if my side loses, Mizuki thought grimly and waded into the fray.
A warrior in front of her went down with a spear through its thorax. Mizuki stepped forward and removed the attacking warrior's head. The attacker sank to the floor still grasping its spear.
Fixing the nearby attackers in her mind, Mizuki focused her ki as she had been taught. Much as she had with the target mats back on board the Peggy Sue, the swordswoman danced among the attacking warriors, her sword a silver flash, harvesting heads, limbs, and torsos.
A monks robe cut to the left. To the right a kote or wrist cut, severing a sword arm, followed up by a do cut across the ant's belly. Again to the left an upward kiriage cut laid open an opponent's body from hip to opposing shoulder. The ant warriors were no match for her speed and her skill with a sword. Mizuki cut a terrible swath through the opposing warriors until she stood alone surrounded by a dozen dead.
* * * * *
On the north side, near the foot of the stairs leading to the throne, Princess Reishi stood surrounded by dark hooded figures. Among her guardians was the Fakkaa Commander.
“What in the seven hells it that thing?”
Reishi hissed. “It seems that my dear sister has brought a daemon of her own to the party. This is your area Commander.”
“Right. Sergeant, deploy a squad to the left and drive back the opposing force. That should draw off the attacking alien.”
Mizuki's rampage had turned the tide of battle and Timushi's warriors now pressed their advantage. The once cathedral like audience chamber was now a charnel house, with insect corpses littering the polished stone floors.
“Yes Sir! And what should we do with the alien?”
“Kill the damned thing.”
A dozen of the Fakkaa commandos threw off their outer garments, revealing their true nature. Each was about man height but much stockier. They stood on splayed feet that ended with stout curved claws. Their upper limbs were thick and strong, each with three long digging claws similar to a giant sloth or an anteater. Beaver like front teeth
protruded from pug faces with deep set dark eyes, but the most prominent feature was the quills.
Each Fakkaa was wrapped in a coat of needle sharp spines, much like an Earthly echidna or porcupine. Individual quills—modified hairs coated with a thick layer of keratin—were interspersed with normal hair and a furry undercoat. The quills themselves were up to thirty centimeters in length and embedded in the skin musculature, allowing their owners to bristle when wading into battle. Against an unarmored foe they were close to invulnerable.
The daemons joined the fray, knocking aside ant warriors, inflicting grievous wounds with their massive claws. The long stiff spines warded off blows from edged weapons and their digging claws handily deflected the warriors' spears. Princess Timushi's warriors faltered and again, the tide of battle shifted.
Rescue Mission, Arriving at the Palace
“There seem to be a whole lot of arthropods with Medieval weapons converging on that big building down there, Commander,” Tamara called out from the weapons console.
“Drop lower and circle the building, Mr. Hoenig. Let's be sure of what we are getting into here.”
“Aye, aye, Sir.”
The armored shuttle banked and circled the queen's palace at two hundred meters. To the south, ant-like warriors were entering the structure, while a throng of smaller insects crowded around.
There seemed to be no activity in front of the eastern wing of the building, but to the north an even larger body of armed ants crowded in. A hundred meters back from the structure there was another set of creatures, these decidedly not ant-like and each wearing garb akin to a monk's habit.
All the Marines were viewing the shuttle's video feed as they orbited the scene below. The Gunny asked the question they all were thinking. “I get that the ant things are the natives, but what are the things in the dark robes?”
“I'm guessing they are the other aliens, the ones from those primitive spacecraft in orbit.”
“That would be the aliens who shot down the shuttle,” said Frank.
“Affirmative, Mr. Hoenig. Take us around to the east side of the structure and land with the ramp facing the building.”
“Aye, aye.”
“Sir, IR shows a bunch of creatures moving around inside that building, and from the way they are moving I'd say they are either having a rave or there's a battle going on in there.”
“I'm not sure if Dr. Ogawa is in there but anything having to do with the off planet aliens can not be good,” the Gunny observed.
“I agree. Once we're down, form up the squad and we'll go around to the north side of the building and see what the interlopers are up to. Mr. Hoenig, send out a couple of recon drones—one to orbit the building and another up high to keep a watch on the surrounding airspace. Remember, these critters have some form of air support.”
“Aye, Sir. We are down and the rear ramp is unlocked.”
“Sit tight and keep an eye out for incoming,” Bobby said to the pilot. Then he turned and headed aft. “Gunny, deploy your Marines.”
The rear ramp dropped onto the flagstone pavement and massive dark shapes pounded down it. The jogging Marines swung to the right, spreading out and taking up firing positions. Bobby was the last one down the ramp, along with his halo of butterflies.
Walking clear of the shuttle, he looked up at the east face of the building. From the ground, the structure looked much larger than it did from the air. The main portion stood some eighty meters tall at its central peak, though it was surrounded by even taller spires. The facade rose in four tiers, the lower one taking the form of a pointed arch and archivolt framing ten-meter wooden doors. The tiers above that contained windows of various sizes and shapes, some glazed in stained glass and others open.
As Bobby marveled at the palace's architectural grandeur, his winged entourage was also making some observations. The butterflies formed a whirling torus above Bobby's head—flashing excitedly in vermilion, magenta, and gold—before heading en masse for the building. Like a Chinese dragon, the flock described a sinuous path, pulling up sharply at the doors. Rising to the second tier, the aoi chō entered the palace through the open windows and disappeared.
Inside the Palace
Seeing the carnage the spiny “daemons” were wreaking among the ant warriors, Mizuki charged forward, though she was not sure of how best to attack the creatures. Approaching the nearest quill covered attacker from the side, she struck its left arm where she estimated its wrist to be. The clawed hand was cleanly severed and fell to the floor.
The creature made a high-pitched bawling sound, almost like a human baby crying. Stepping behind her victim, carefully avoiding the wicked looking spines, Mizuki aimed a second strike at the back of its right knee. This brought the crippled alien to the ground.
Sensing a threat from behind her Mizuki spun about while sliding sideways. Her motion took her to the right side of a second alien who stretched upward, spread its arms and revealed its unprotected belly. But the creature's naked front held a deadly surprise—sprouting from black wrinkled flesh was a second set of arms, lower and smaller than the heavily clawed upper arms. The smaller arms ended in three fingered hands with opposable thumbs, hands that held what was obviously some form of firearm.
The alien pivoted, trying to bring its weapon to bear. Mizuki cut upward, slicing through both secondary arms, sending the short barreled weapon flying. Finishing the upward cut with her blade horizontal above her head she drove forward in a straight thrust, driving the point of her katana fifteen centimeters deep into the creature's left eye. She pulled the blade out and her foe collapsed.
Victory was short lived. The other daemons produced their own firearms and began to fire short bursts into Princess Timushi's remaining warriors.
Oh crap! I need cover. As good as she was with a sword she knew swords do not win over firearms except in martial arts movies. Mizuki turned and ran for the side aisle, seeking cover behind the stone columns that supported the gallery above. Bullets ricocheted off stone as she ducked behind an ornate column.
In the shelter of the column she raised the hood of her poncho and activated its adaptive camouflage mode. Running down the aisle toward the Princess's position on the throne platform, Mizuki was a shimmering phantom, dodging bullets, arrows and an occasional thrown spear. As she neared the cluster of warriors protecting the Princess she noticed more of the spiny aliens entering the fray.
This is not going well at all, she thought, breaking from cover and heading toward the daemon nearest the Princess. In front of her, an ant warrior was in the process of collapsing from gunshot wounds. She took two steps and jumped onto its back. Landing on both feet, she launched herself into a front flip over the head of the alien who was still pumping rounds into the dying ant. Landing in a crouch she spun to her left, moving to the shooter's side.
Striking with all her strength she cut the barbed alien below its second set of arms, where she hoped the creature's stomach was. Drawing back on the sword as it cut, her hands barely avoiding the spines, she pulled away and stood up. The daemon dropped its weapon and sank to its knees.
The alien began keening pitifully while trying to hold its intestines in, but they slid from its slit belly and spread wetly across the floor. The smell of blood and manure filled Mizuki's nostrils—evidently the porcupine like creatures were herbivores. Almost causally she cut down an attacking ant warrior as she backed toward the stairs. Looking toward the enemy Princess she saw more of the deadly aliens. Looking back down the nave to the east she saw her death.
Another of the spiny daemons stood well out of sword reach, pointing its projectile weapon directly at her. As fast as she was, she could not reach her foe in time, nor could she hope to evade an automatic weapon with no cover nearby.
“Shinjimae, kono yarou!” She shouted at the alien in defiance and then she noticed a cloud of bright fluttering color descending from the air above the battle.
A flock of butterflies danced around the gun welding ali
en, spoiling its aim and distracting it from shooting Mizuki. It waved an upper arm, trying to shoo way the winged distractions but instead they landed on its spines and body. Blue-white sparks lit up the creature, which shrieked, spasmed, and crumpled to the floor.
Under her breath Mizuki said a single word. “Bobby!”
Chapter 29
Rescue Mission
“Now where in the hell are they going?” Bobby said out loud as the last butterfly disappeared. Then it struck him that maybe, just maybe, Mizuki's winged pets knew something the rest of them didn't.
“Umky! Take out the doors,” he cried, pointing toward the massive stone structure.
“Aye, Commander,” the bear replied happily, raising his left foreleg. A six round burst of 15mm HE rounds issued from the triple barreled rail cannon on Umky's arm. The resulting string of explosions detonated so close together they formed a single rippling mass of flame. Fragments of wood and stone flew in all directions as the doors disintegrated.
Bobby blinked. He had intended for the large ursine to break through the doors bodily, not blow them to splinters. Probably our own fault for teaching the bears they should use weapons and only fall back on physical strength as a last resort.
As the smoke cleared, the stone lintel from above the doorway fell to the ground with a hollow thud. The Gunny and several of the other squad members were looking back at him, no doubt wondering what was going on.
“Gunny, take the squad to the north side of the building and remove any hostiles from the area.”
“Aye, aye, Commander.”
“You three,” he said indicating the Jumbo Twins and Umky, “follow me.” Breaking into a run, he headed into the building.
The Queen's Daemon (T'aafhal Legacy Book 2) Page 22
