by Adair Hart
As they turned a corner, Evaran cast a sidelong glance at Jake. “There are downsides to having them as well. You would be sought after.”
Jake swallowed hard. “Maybe, but I wouldn’t be able to be controlled.”
“I understand,” said Evaran.
“I feel like useless baggage compared to everyone.”
Dr. Snowden shook his head. “Well, you’re part of Evaran and the gang now.”
Jake smiled as he looked up at Dr. Snowden. Although Jake appreciated the kind words, he knew his performance was lacking. If he could not have nanobots, he would look to technology to enhance his performance. This outing had shown him that if he needed to be able to handle threats of the nature he had seen so far, he would need to upgrade his gear and tactics. At least he now had experience on what to expect. He gestured at the restraints Dr. Snowden carried. “Are those special cuffs?”
“They’re Palisin-energy based,” said Dr. Snowden. “They interact with exotic matter but are harmless to living matter. It’s what they used to restrain Evaran when moving him.”
“They didn’t get that on Earth then,” said Jake.
Evaran peered back. “You are correct. I have seen them before, in the future, when a rogue time-traveler’s son used them on me. They came from Seeros Industries. This means that Ares has off-planet connections. That also means that advanced technology is in place, more so than I had anticipated.”
“Huh,” said Jake. “Then they should work well on Count Boris.”
“That is the idea,” said Evaran.
“Good. I still can’t believe—”
Evaran raised a hand.
Everyone went silent as they crept along the side of the hallway.
Evaran gestured forward, then to the right. In a low voice, he said, “They are ahead. Count Boris may sense us, but it will be masked, and he will think we are still in the other room. I want everyone to take the Bugodas. Use mist and stun beams after a repulsion shot. I will handle Count Boris. V has entered the room and is in stealth mode. He will help you. Put your helmets up, and he will relay a visual.”
Jake slid his faceplate up and could see the view from V. Count Boris was standing behind a guard using a workstation. The Bugodas were spread across the room, with two guards at the entrance. His adrenaline kicked in. It was time to make Count Boris pay for what he did.
“Are we ready?” asked Evaran.
Everyone nodded.
Evaran extended his utility handle into a baton and activated his shield. He strode forward and then turned right into the hallway leading to the control center. Dr. Snowden and Emily followed him with shields out and PSDs at the ready.
Jake fidgeted with the blaster in his hands. He was ready to prove himself.
Evaran fired a repulsion blast into the doorway.
The two guards went flying.
“What is this?” asked Count Boris as he wheeled around to face Evaran.
The Bugodas pulled out assault weapons and began to fire.
Emily and Dr. Snowden took a position near the door while Evaran flipped through the air toward Count Boris.
Dr. Snowden and Emily fired a continuous mist beam across the room. V faded in, and with support from Jake, they fired their stun beams.
The Bugodas shook as the stun beams washed over them. Some dropped their weapons.
Emily rushed forward with her PSD extended into a staff. She hit the first one with an upswing.
Crack!
The Bugoda went flying into the ceiling, then fell.
Dr. Snowden, Jake, and V focused fire on the second Bugoda, causing it to fall.
Evaran aimed his grappling beam at Count Boris and fired. When Evaran reeled him in, he hit Count Boris across the chest, causing Count Boris to slide forward feet first before landing on his back. Evaran jumped on Count Boris and flipped him over, then grabbed both his arms.
Emily surged forward and knocked the weapon out of the third Bugoda’s hand. She then spun around and hit the fourth Bugoda into the fifth and sixth ones. She fired a stun beam point-blank at the third one, causing it to fall to the ground.
Dr. Snowden hustled over and fired another mist beam on the remaining Bugodas and the two guards who were struggling to get back up.
Emily, Jake, and V fired their stun beams.
The Bugodas and guards stopped moving.
Everyone rushed over to Evaran, who held down a struggling Count Boris.
“Place the restraints,” said Evaran.
Dr. Snowden handed Emily the wrist end of the devices. He placed the ankle ones while she applied the others to the wrists.
“How … what … ,” said Count Boris.
“It appears that you have been captured,” said Evaran. “That is what is going on. For the next part of our trip, you will need to be unconscious.” He took a step back and extended a hand out in an arcing motion to everyone. “The honor is yours.”
Everyone lined up in a single line and fired a stun beam concurrently.
Count Boris went limp.
Evaran picked up Count Boris and slung him over his shoulder. “V, if I did not say it before, I am glad you were here.”
“Acknowledged. I would have preferred to join the fight earlier.”
“I understand. However, you were our backup plan.”
“Dr. Snowden’s toxic spit was a better plan.”
“I wouldn’t say it’s toxic,” said Dr. Snowden. “Well, maybe against vampires. Come to think of it, it might be toxic. I guess we can test it out later.”
“I have added your spitting ability as a tactical asset,” said V.
Dr. Snowden shook his head.
“Before we go, let us get Lee’s body. V has already cleared the few guards topside,” said Evaran.
After thirty minutes, Emily was pushing a wooden cart with Lee’s body in it. They were outside the fort and headed back to the rift door.
“Did you clear the rift door too?” asked Dr. Snowden.
“Both the guard post ahead and the rift door have been cleared,” said V.
“Ahh,” said Dr. Snowden. He tilted his head at Evaran. “Any way to block incoming rifts from Caltorus’s rift door?”
“There is, and I will configure that when we get there. As the Helians are stretched thin, I do not suspect they will be able to help this world, but perhaps the absence of a threat that can reinforce itself will let this planet’s denizens recover. There is still the matter of the existing Raskarians.”
Jake tossed a hand out. “I bet if we went to the other coordinate, we could catch Caltorus. I also bet that the Torvatta is there.”
“That is my assumption as well,” said Evaran. “However, I suspect that wherever that second set of coordinates leads, it will be guarded, especially if it has something like the Torvatta.”
“Then we attack Earth-side,” said Emily.
“That is what I am thinking as well. We will need a group to do so. However, the assault needs to be on all the Helian bases under Caltorus’s control. Others will need to assist us.”
Jake sighed. “That doesn’t sound easy at all. Nonhuman politics suck. Everyone wants their own turf, and they don’t want to help anyone.”
“Then we shall convince them. A list of those likely to help us will need to be compiled.”
“It’s gonna be rough,” said Jake. “At least I can be useful there.”
Evaran paused and faced Jake. “Your presence alone is helpful. Never think of yourself as useless.”
Jake smiled and looked down as the group continued. He enjoyed being around Evaran. It made everything better. Although the recent situation was tough, they had survived. It was a small win. The struggle ahead seemed much longer. When they got to the rift door, Jake noticed that the guards were all laid out. He had come to appreciate V’s abilities and wondered if U4 would still be around if she had the same ones.
Evaran laid Count Boris down and then interacted with the rift door controller. After a moment, he
said, “Caltorus’s rift door has been locked out.” He tapped at the controller again, causing a rift door to appear between the rift rods. “This one is back to the Helian base, but first the verification sequence.”
Jake could see that the Helians had shielded the other side. There was nothing but darkness when he looked through the rift door. After a moment, the darkness cleared up. He could now see the interior of the Helian base.
“Let us go,” said Evaran. He picked up Count Boris and strode through the rift door.
Emily lowered her faceplate after stepping through the rift door. She had kept it up so she could use her suit’s temperature controls. Pushing a cart with Lee’s heavy robotic body was a bit more work than she had expected. She parked the cart off to the side. A whooshing sound made her jump a bit. She relaxed when she realized it was just the shielding going up around the rift door rods.
Commander Darius ran up to the cart. “What happened? Where is Agent Malz and the other agents?”
Evaran laid Count Boris on the ground and joined Darius next to the cart. “Caltorus’s group overran Agent Malz’s position, then joined Count Boris and his Raskarian soldiers in fighting us. We were defeated, and Lee was executed by Count Boris. Thankfully, we escaped and then captured Count Boris.”
“How … how did you lose?”
“Caltorus’s power is more formidable than even I expected. He poses a grave danger to this world.”
Darius sighed while rubbing his temples. He shook his head as his eyes narrowed. “Manager Lee was one of our best. He helped in the transition of his species to Earth, and he was … a personal friend. I’ll … I’ll need to contact his son, Manager Zed, per protocol.”
“I understand,” said Evaran.
“I’d like you to brief us when you get settled. Say … in three hours?”
“Fair enough,” said Evaran. He faced the group. “Get something to eat, and then rest. You do not need to be at the briefing.”
Emily shook her head. “I’ll get something to eat, but I’m going to that briefing. No way I’m missing that.”
“Very well. I need to corroborate a few things as it is,” said Evaran. “Commander Darius, where will the briefing be held?”
“I’ll show you,” he said. With a wave of his hand, a Helian guard got behind the cart. “Take Manager Lee’s body to the morgue.”
“Yes, sir,” said the Helian guard. He began to push the cart out of the room.
Darius glowered at Count Boris’s limp body. He flagged two guards to come over. “Take this filth and put him in a cell.”
The guards did a Helian salute and then picked up Count Boris. They exited the room.
Darius glanced at Evaran. “Come, I’ll show you the conference room. I need to handle some internal affairs after that.”
“Lead on,” said Evaran.
Emily followed everyone out of the room. After being shown the conference room, she got something to eat with Dr. Snowden, Robert, and Jake. Robert was not happy with what had happened. She saw his face go from happy at having Jake back, to horrified at Jake explaining their capture. Robert looked like he was ready to give Count Boris a piece of his mind. Had Robert come, she was not sure he would have survived.
Dr. Snowden was unusually quiet. She could see he was mulling over things. Like him, she had begun to get to know Lee, and just like that, he was gone, along with Agent Malz and his team. With Dr. Snowden’s recent struggle with death, having to witness it was probably not helping. Jake, like her, was trying to make the best of it. She liked his approach to dealing with adversity. Get knocked down, get back up, and go again. It aligned closely with how she thought.
After three hours, everyone assembled in the briefing room.
Darius instructed everyone to sit on one side of a U-shaped table that spanned half the room. A large screen sat across from the open area, so everyone sitting had good view of it. Darius motioned for Evaran to go to the screen, then interacted with a table console.
Four holograms appeared sitting on the other side of the table, each in their own spot.
Darius pointed at the one nearest the center of the table, then at the others in sequence. “These are Council Members Ardorin, Grodis, Tellic, and Jendox. With the departure of the other council members, Ardorin is now first elder.”
The council members bowed their heads in unison.
Ardorin looked at Evaran. “We’ve heard a lot about you.”
Evaran did a slight bow. “I am sorry to hear about the Helian split.”
“Your concern is warranted. The split was bound to happen at some point. Why Caltorus decided to involve you is a mystery, one I suspect will be resolved with them on the wrong side.”
“I would agree,” said Evaran. He placed his hands behind his back and paced around. “First things first. I wanted to address Manager Lee. He was a credit to the Helian effort to save his species. Although I only knew of him during this situation, he proved to be strong, courageous, and loyal to the end. Before he died, he offered himself up to spare others. I am better for having known him.”
Emily’s throat constricted.
“I did not know Agent Malz or his men, but they died believing what they were doing was important. Based on what I saw, they did not go out easily.”
“Your words are kind, and the council appreciates it,” said Ardorin.
Evaran bowed slightly and then interacted with his ARI. A bird’s-eye view of the area on the other world appeared. He pointed at the first red dot. “That is the rift door. We went through it there, and Agent Malz’s men secured it. The humanoids manning the defenses were Druuz, a draconian race. One thing to note is that this was a world that contains shadow matter, which is distinct from baryonic matter as you know it.”
“You said … shadow matter?” asked Ardorin.
“I did,” said Evaran. “Humans refer to it as dark matter, but is just one type in that group. Shadow matter can interact with baryonic matter normally, but also has unique properties when interacting with shadow matter itself.”
“Where in the universe is this shadow-matter world?”
Evaran wagged a finger. “Unknown for the moment. They typically exist between galaxies or in dark matter clusters within a galaxy. I have personally seen several locations before, but for this, I would need a quantum beacon and my Torvatta. Nonetheless, we were able to reach it from here.”
Ardorin looked at the other council members, then motioned at Evaran. “Continue.”
The screen showed a dotted line up to the second guard post. A yellow dot appeared before the guard post. “The yellow dot is where we fought ten of Count Boris’s men near a second guard post. They were dealt with. Agent Malz’s men retrieved them.” The screen showed a dot in the jungle off to the side. “This is where we discovered a ruined village and a member of a sentient species that Count Boris has been committing genocide against. She told a horrible tale.”
Emily shook her head. “Don’t forget that they said the rift door fell from the sky.”
“Fell?” asked Ardorin.
“Emily is correct. I am unsure how a rift door falls from the sky, but the end result is clear. It would seem that someone or something has the capability to send rift doors through space.”
“That’s troubling,” said Ardorin. “No place would be safe from it.”
“I concur. I have seen a main rift stone able to open locations without the need of gates, but this method would not require that.” Another red dot appeared on the screen. “After clearing the second guard post, we went to this fort location. It was lightly guarded. We were able to get to the control center that Count Boris had set up, but there was not much information there. Upon leaving, we fought Count Boris and his soldiers. Caltorus appeared with his Druuz army, along with the Decatron, Psyotica, and Ares. We … were not successful in defending ourselves.”
“We got our asses kicked,” said Jake, chuckling.
“As Jake alluded to, we were outmatched.”
“You were outmatched?” said Grodis. “Is that even possible?”
“For that encounter, yes. However, I was able to ascertain several things. One, Ares has off-planet connections. The beam used to disable me and the constraints that held me are known. They came from Seeros Industries. Leftovers from when Seeros wanted to capture me.”
“We know of Seeros from our Kreagan contacts. So Ares got these from Seeros,” said Ardorin.
“Not quite. Seeros challenged me in the past, and he is … no longer around.”
Emily saw several of the council members gulp.
Evaran shook a finger. “Nonetheless, the fact that Ares has these connections means he has access to advanced technology. Humans, and nonhumans by extension, outside of Helians, are not allowed off Earth per the Kreagan contract, unless it is in the natural development of humanity’s technological evolution. Ares violating that is an issue. The other major issue is that you are dealing with Caltorus, who I now know is a Dridakar, a being with an exotic energy known as elicidium that allows shadow matter to mix with baryonic matter in one being. Usually the shadow-matter aspect is dominant. It allows transformation into several forms. He is forced into a humanoid one here on Earth due to the lack of shadow matter here, but on worlds with shadow matter, he can transform into something else. Caltorus is worshiped as a god by the Druuz.”
Ardorin checked with the other council members, who shook their heads or shrugged. He looked at Evaran. “I’ve never heard of that before.”
“You would not have. They are extremely rare, but they do possess common traits. They are faster and smarter, and when the body they are bound to dies, they still exist as pure shadow matter, but require another body with elicidium energy in order to manifest.”
“Like a ghost,” said Emily.
“Somewhat, but even in that form, they cannot be seen by any type of light. They can be detected by sensitive gravitational sensors, though.”
Ardorin furrowed his eyebrows. “Okay … so we’re dealing with a Dridakar. It sounds like if he died, it would resolve this issue.”
“I have another plan for him, one that will not only allow him to live, but also serve justice. He just needs to be captured.”
