It took a few moments before Lee heard the clicks and chirps of the Ch’Tauk commander below. He heard the sound of sharp claws marching towards the ramp, stopping just before coming up the ramp. The voice of the commander echoed up the ramp and into the ship. Lee assumed he was being offered a chance to surrender. A few moments later, two sets of clawed feet began running up the ramp.
Just as the two Ch’Tauk stepped into the cabin, Lee leveled his rifle and fired twice. The first shot liquefied the left knee of the closest alien, toppling it to the floor. The second shot missed wide, causing the Ch’Tauk to turn and level his own rifle towards Lee. The sound of a plasma rifle erupted from behind the soldier and he fell forward, a smoking hole burning through the armor of his back. Lee nodded to the short squad leader as his men finished off the other screeching Ch’Tauk soldier.
Lee heard the Ch’Tauk commander cry out further orders to his men and the sound of clawed feet coming closer to the ship. Just as the first alien reached the bottom of the ramp, one of the human soldiers tossed a small, round object down the ramp. It bounced with a metallic sound twice before exploding in a thundering flash of light and sound. When Lee looked back down the ramp, he saw the remains of several Ch’Tauk soldiers smoldering on the hangar deck floor. He wasn’t sure how many were still left, but knew that this was the time to leave the shuttle.
Lee motioned to the squad leader. The porcine soldier waved to his men and the group began to run down the ramp, crouching to be sure they would get in the first shot under the ship’s hull. As Lee leapt down, he saw the squad firing rapidly at the remaining Ch’Tauk. One of his men, a felinoid like Farthing, was lying against the ramp, a thick trail of blood flowing from his right leg. He continued to shoot though, and Lee could see that they would soon finish the battle with minimum casualties.
As the final Ch’Tauk soldier fell to the humans, Lee searched the hangar for the commander. Apparently not content with leading from the back, the commander had been with the first group that had approached the ship, and had been badly injured in the grenade blast on the ramp. The alien’s green blood was splattered across his black armor and the deck below. Lee could not see one of the alien’s arms. Still, though, the alien clicked and sputtered at the attackers.
Lee saw Tuxor duck down the ramp as the last few plasma bolts finished off the Ch’Tauk defenders. Lee motioned him over to the commander and the two men approached the Ch’Tauk. His compound eyes glistened in the hangar’s overhead lighting and he seemed to focus on Lee as the man approached.
“Tell us how many Ch’Tauk are stationed on this station,” said Lee to the dying alien. “Tuxor, can you tell him?”
The big amphibian emitted the same chirps and clicks as the alien commander. The alien spat back a response, obviously agitated at the presence of the Karisien. As the two aliens exchanged words, Lee stared at the alien with contempt. This creature was a representative of the aliens who had taken his home and destroyed his civilization. He had never realized the true depth of hatred he had held for these creature until now.
“He refuses to tell me how many there are, Commander,” said Tuxor. “He will not betray his people.”
There was a final plasma burst from behind Lee and the commander’s head exploded in a mass of green blood and armor shell. Lee looked back to see Melaina standing at the bottom of the ramp, holding the injured felinoid’s rifle. She looked ready to take on the entire Ch’Tauk army, but Lee thought he saw tears forming in her eyes as she lowered the rifle.
“They’re not people,” she said. “Now let’s go get my friends.”
23
As the fighting moved further into the station, the squad leader, who Lee had learned was named Wellick, suggested that he and his soldiers break into three teams to clear out the towers. Lee took Melaina and Tuxor, Farthing, and three soldiers towards the prison office complex while the other teams began the process of clearing the rest of the station. The shortest of the spikes that made up the station, the office complex, contained mostly computer and communications controls.
As the lift brought them up to the control level, Lee and the soldiers formed a protective barrier around Melaina and Tuxor. The lift slowed and Lee felt his pulse quicken in anticipation of the battle. The lift stopped and the doors slid open silently.
The office foyer was dark as Lee stepped cautiously into the room. The soldiers behind him fanned out with their rifles shining small shafts of light against the walls. Lee searched the wall for a control pad to open the inner door. On the right side of the room, Farthing called out that he had discovered the door panel and was working to activate the darkened panel.
“It’s a safe bet they know we are here,” Lee said to the soldiers. “Be ready and watch that door.”
The soldiers formed a defensive circle around the doorway as Lee pushed Melaina and Tuxor into the far corner. He turned back to see the panel by the door light up and Farthing practically purring with satisfaction. The furred officer turned back to the panel and began tapping codes. He held up his left hand and began to drop fingers in a countdown. When he reached one, he pulled himself away from the door and pressed a final key.
The moment the door opened, bright orange plasma bolts screamed into the foyer. Two of Lee’s squad fell as they were hit in their chest armor. The two men landed hard on their backs, but soon indicated that the armor had held and that they would be able to continue. Lee leveled his rifle at the door and began to pour his own plasma bolts through the opening.
The smell of burnt armor and the sounds of the rifles firing in the small space were almost overwhelming. The soldiers continued to fire into the door until it seemed the metal frame was beginning to melt away from the wall. After a minute, the return fire from the other room ceased and the team stopped firing. Lee took up a position behind a small couch by the far wall and tried to see past the smoke into the other room.
The lights in the foyer clicked on with a sudden flash. Lee could see Farthing, still crouched by the door, pressing the panel. With the lighting on, Lee could see into the other room. There appeared to be three black-shelled Ch’Tauk lying on their backs just beyond the doorway, smoking from multiple plasma burns.
Lee motioned to the other soldiers and two men approached the door. One kneeled while the other stood over his comrade. They turned as one around the doorframe and swept the interior of the next room with their rifles. The one standing raised his right arm and motioned for the rest of the soldiers to enter, giving the all-clear. Lee helped the two fallen soldiers to their feet, inspecting the deep scorch marks in their armor and making sure they were unhurt. He gathered Melaina and Tuxor and entered the adjoining room after the soldiers.
The control room was a round room lined with computer terminals, monitoring every floor of the prison complex. Lee and Farthing looked quickly to the monitors and found the other two teams, fighting their way into the prison towers. Although the Ch’Tauk were putting up resistance, the allies had brought greater numbers and had been prepared for the assault.
“Commander,” said one of the soldiers. “I found a diagram of the prison.”
Lee stepped quickly to the muscular man and looked at the monitor. It appeared the third tower was empty of prisoners, but the other two towers were still occupied. Melaina joined the two men at the monitor and pointed to the middle tower.
“That’s where we were being held,” she said, looking to Lee with hope. “You’ve got to send the men there.”
Lee looked at the diagram and the terminal screen. The tower where Melaina had pointed had only about fifty prisoners held in its cells, most on the top two floors. The final tower held almost three times that many. He quickly looked to the other monitors to see where Wellick and his teams were fighting. It seemed that most of the battle had been fought and the men were now searching the Ch’Tauk bodies for survivors.
“Farthing,” ordered Lee. “Tell Wellick to split his men off. I need him to lead a team to the central tower, a
nd the rest need to go to tower two. Tell them we’ll get whatever help to him we can from up here.”
Lee heard the felinoid relay his message to the short squad leader. He saw the man nod into the screen and begin issuing orders to his men. The group broke off into two teams and Lee could see them on the monitors, heading off to the other locations. Wellick and his team marched quickly to the center tower and began working on the doors.
“Farthing, can you access the tower doors from here?”
“Yes, Commander,” said the man, tapping more keys. “I believe I can open the outer door from here, but we may have some problems with the cell doors. They can only be opened from the guard stations on each floor.”
Lee turned to Melaina, who had seated herself at one of the terminals and was scrolling through names on the screen. She seemed to be searching for someone, but was having no luck in finding the name.
“Melaina, who are you looking for?”
“The scientist who created the weapon system I told you about,” she answered. “He was here when we were taken, but I don’t see his name.”
“Maybe they killed him after you left,” Lee said, seeing Melaina wince at the suggestion. “We have to consider the possibility.”
Melaina turned to Lee, frustration marking her features. She had shown such ferocity when they arrived, but now seemed defeated and shrunken. He wanted to reach out for her, but knew it would not ease her pain.
“They wouldn’t have killed him,” she said. “He was far too valuable.”
“Sir,” called Farthing. “Tower two reports that they have broken through the Ch’Tauk defenses and are beginning to release the prisoners.”
Lee glanced at the monitors to see weak and bedraggled human prisoners staggering from their cells and into the rounded common area of the prison floor. Some of them looked as if they had not been out of their cells for years. He saw the soldiers enter a few of the cells and return carrying bodies. It seemed that these prisoners were not as valuable to the Ch’Tauk and had not been well cared for.
As the soldiers cleared the floors of the tower, Lee noticed that scattered among the prisoners were about twenty of the small aliens that Melaina had been calling elves. Tuxor stood and stared at the monitor, looking intently at the little creatures as they mingled among the humans.
“Commander, I must see to the little ones,” said the big alien. “They will be looking for one of our people for guidance.”
Lee nodded to Tuxor and waved for one of his men to accompany him. The two ran out of the command center to the tower quickly. Lee watched them on the monitors as they made their way along the long connecting corridor and into the tower. He looked away from that tower towards the monitors showing the central tower. Wellick and his men seemed to be pinned down in the corridor, fighting a determined group of Ch’Tauk defenders. Several of Wellick’s men were down, but appeared to still be alive. The Ch’Tauk numbers were dwindling fast, but the remaining aliens fought harder to protect their prizes.
Lee watched, wanting to send help but knowing that the battle would be over by the time any assistance arrived. He turned back to Melaina, who was still scanning names on the terminal, and tried to focus on the mission.
“Melaina,” he said. “You once told me that the researchers were always kept paired in case of the death of one. Did your colleague have a partner?”
“Yes, I think so,” she replied. “I’ll look for his partner.”
The woman started tapping keys and searching for another name. Lee went back to watching the monitors. He saw the central tower team had finally overcome the Ch’Tauk and had entered the prison level. The other team had begun gathering prisoners in the connecting corridor. Some of the prisoners were being supported by the soldiers as they were marched to the landing bay. One of the allied soldiers was escorting a human prisoner towards the office complex, away from the rest. As they entered the foyer, Lee turned to meet them at the still-smoking door.
“Sir,” said the soldier. “This man requested to meet with whoever was in charge.”
Lee nodded and looked at the prisoner. His clothes were in rags, soiled with sweat and other things. He had long, black hair hanging from his head in oily strands. He was thin to the point of emaciation, but stood with an arrogant pride that the Ch’Tauk had been unable to erase. His cracked lips moved behind a long, unkempt beard.
“They told me that you were the one in charge,” the man rasped. “I wanted to meet you and give you my thanks.”
“It’s fine,” said Lee. “We really need to get you to the shuttle now, sir.”
“You don’t understand,” the man said, holding a hand up and placing it on Lee’s arm. Lee could feel the man’s bony hand shaking as he tried to grasp his sleeve. “Everyone else gave up on us. The Confederacy, the Ch’Tauk and everyone else. We owe you everything and we will follow you anywhere you need us to go.”
The intensity of the man’s gaze unnerved Lee. It was obvious that at some time the man had been a force to be reckoned with, but now he seemed broken and weak. He removed the hand from his arm and stepped back, motioning for the soldier to take the man back to the landing bay.
“Thanks,” he said. “But right now I need you to get on that shuttle.”
The soldier escorted the man out of the office and back to the corridor. He made a mental note to look at the man’s record as soon as he had the chance, but right now he had a mission to complete. He looked back at the monitors to see Wellick and his men escorting the scientists down the long hallway to the landing bay. Some of the researchers seemed to be very weak and Lee wondered if the Ch’Tauk had begun to give up on their prisoners. Others, however, seemed to be walking steadily and appeared much healthier than their colleagues. Melaina kept looking at the screen, searching for her friend.
“Commander, we have a problem,” said Farthing, monitoring the screens. “A jump point is forming on the far side of the station.”
Lee strode to the monitor and looked into space. The familiar blue-brown swirl of a jump vortex appeared between the molten planet and the station. As he watched, a bug-like vessel erupted from the energy whirl and was quickly enveloped in the fiery corona. Lee had gotten a good enough look to know that the vessel was not going to be friendly.
“It’s a Ch’Tauk scout,” he said to his team. “They must have gotten off a signal when we landed. Arm the station defenses and prepare for battle.”
The team on the command deck immediately began to press buttons and activate systems. The station began to hum with power as the shields powered up and the automatic cannons swiveled to face the newcomer. Farthing called to Wellick to let him know that he needed to secure the prisoners away from the armored hull of the station.
The Ch’Tauk cruiser shed its corona and began to advance on the prison complex. There was no hesitation to its movements and it seemed ready to attack the station. There was a crackle from the radio as the Ch’Tauk vessel signaled to the station.
“Now the frog has to leave,” said Lee, looking helpless at the radio console. “I don’t suppose you can click back at them?”
Farthing shook his furred head in exasperation. Both men stood, looking at the monitor in frustration. The alien ship turned menacingly towards the floating prison.
“Hold on tight,” said Lee.
The station shuddered as the Ch’Tauk ship opened fire. The station’s shields were much more powerful than Lee’s transport, but still flickered under the constant barrage from the alien ship. Auto cannon fire bridged the gap between the station and the scout with orange fire, but the plasma bolts seemed to cascade off the alien ship.
“Commander,” said Farthing. “The station’s power levels are dangerously low. I think the Ch’Tauk may have been prepa/ring to abandon the station.”
“Abandon the station?” Melaina asked, bewildered. “Why would they do that?”
“I don’t know, Miss Petros,” replied Lee, holding on to a chair for support as the station
rumbled under his feet. “Why don’t you get on the radio and ask them?”
Melaina sat back down in her chair, staring at the monitors. Lee saw the fear in her eyes echoed in the bearing of everyone in the room. Although Harpy station was built as a maximum security prison, it was not meant to take the kind of heavy fire that the Ch’Tauk were delivering. Alarms began to sound in the control room as systems meant to defend the station from prison breaks shut down under the military barrage.
“Sir,” said Farthing. “The shields are failing. We’ll be vulnerable in less than ten seconds.”
Lee watched as the indicator on the shield panel switched from yellow to red. There was a massive boom and the lights in the room flickered. Lee felt his stomach tighten as the gravity on the station failed. He felt his feet lift from the deck for just a moment before the emergency system powered back on and he fell back. The lighting sputtered back to life and showed Lee that the other members of his team had all kept themselves steady. The monitor’s streamed static as Farthing tapped keys, trying to restore some image from outside the station.
A single monitor resolved an image from space. The Ch’Tauk vessel had turned itself head on towards the station and was aligning itself towards the landing bay. Lee realized they intended to board the station rather than destroy it outright. One of their auto-cannons began to fire plasma bolts at the scout. The Ch’Tauk ship fired a single volley at the station and the guns disappeared in a fury of orange-red fire. Lee staggered as the station shook from the explosion.
“Sir,” announced Farthing over the boom of the attack. “I think we have more incoming. There’s another jump point opening behind us.”
Lee looked at the monitor in time to see the whirlpool of energy open. The screen broke into static as the Ch’Tauk peppered the station with plasma fire once more. They were not trying to destroy them, just keep them from shooting back.
The monitor snapped back into focus as Lee saw a ship begin to emerge. More static creased the image before the fireball corona image resolved on the screen. There was a massive explosion of sound and the command room went dark again. Lee grasped the chair, but the gravity held him firm. He heard the sound of Melaina trying to pick herself up from the floor. Lee hoped that the soldiers had managed to get their charges someplace safe before the end came.
Resolute Omnibus (The War for Terra) Page 18
