by Scott Moon
Ceana shrugged, which caused movement to ripple down his multi-colored wings. “Ships are human things. Do not ask me how they work.”
“I am definitely going.”
“It is a long way. You will never reach Kin in time on your stubby legs.”
“Watch it,” Rickson said.
“Is that an insult?”
“Yeah!” Rickson shook his head. “Like saying your wings are short.”
“Then I retract it. You should grow wings and longer, stronger legs.”
Rickson whistled to Ogre. “Kin’s in trouble. We need to help.”
Ogre raced after him.
Ceana flew above him for a time, then hit the ground with both feet, sprang forward with incredible strength, and soared ahead.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Ship Assault
“WHY did you allow him to leave the plateau?” Kin asked.
“Am I his father?” Ceana asked. “No, I am not. Do not answer with one of your jokes. He runs faster than most but will not be here for many hours. If the sickness other humans experience comes on him, he will not be here for days.”
“Ceana, go back. Check on him. He is just a boy.”
“He is very tall for a boy. And his responsibilities are those of a man.”
Kin shook his head. Learning that most of the Crater Town people were experiencing sickness, disorientation, and regret did not make him feel better about the situation. He again thought of Laura before remembering she had stayed with Earth Fleet. Maybe she had liked Admiral Westwood more than she claimed. His heart ached for her. Images and memories of the Toines and Philapo families’ annual volleyball tournament surfaced unexpectedly and weakened his knees. He pushed the memories aside, replacing sadness and regret with anger and determination. Emperor Onderbock and Admiral Shield had played him like a cheap drum. Bang, bang, boom — march to my evil plan, Kin.
Droon’s Reaper horde and the new, distinctly terrible monster had followed him through the passage to the Ror-Rea. Major Eagle’s ship and elite troopers were blocking any attempt at escape and would likely do more than sit back and wait for Kin to die. Neither the Emperor nor the admiral cared where Kin died, just as long as he did it with thousands of Reapers within the effective genocide range of his genetic time bomb.
Clavender would expel the Reapers, hoping to save Kin’s life, but he already felt where this was going.
“I have one final battle left in me, Ceana. Let’s hope it will not be spent on these ships.”
“There is more than one?” Ceana asked.
Kin pointed.
In the shadow of the first ship was a Mazz craft.
“They are working together?” Ceana asked.
Kin shook his head. “Things just got real.”
“I do not understand that expression,” Ceana said.
“Find Dax. Tell him about the ships.”
Ceana turned to a row of his warriors and selected the youngest. “Find King Dax and tell him we will assault these new ships and destroy them.”
The young Ror-Rea warrior saluted, sprinted to a ledge, and leaped into the air. His wings snapped to their full span like sails catching the wind.
Ceana watched his messenger critically but also with pride. When he spoke to Kin, his words were low but strong. “How will we destroy these ships?”
“From the inside.”
“How do we get inside?”
“We wait.”
Silence separated them for a time. Additional warriors landed and arrayed themselves behind Ceana as their wings changed to battle-black. None were so young as the messenger Ceana had sent away, though most were as young as Ceana, who was in his prime.
“I will not criticize you, Kin Roland, but it seems we need more of a plan,” Ceana said.
Kin moved closer to the last point of concealment and spoke without looking back at the Winger champion. “When they come out, it will be like they are assaulting a fortified position. There will be four assault bays, each dropping a ramp at the same time. These are Eagle’s men, so they will have the best armor and some serious skill.”
“I assume they will shut these doors once the troopers are outside,” Ceana said.
“That depends on how many units Major Eagle commits to the operation. I doubt they are expecting a counter-attack. There may be a second wave of support vehicles. That is the only thing in our favor. This is a blocking force sent to make sure none of the Reapers escape back to Crashdown; the objective of their mission will be static compared to a full assault.”
Ceana laughed. “Your people and the Mazz are fools. The Reapers cannot go back unless Clavender sends them.”
“What about these ships? Can they go back without her help?” Kin asked.
Ceana did not answer.
WINGERS arrayed themselves for battle; primitive weapons and armor ready to be destroyed. The swords, Kin knew, could penetrate steel and ceramic armor. He wouldn’t have believed it until he witnessed the Wingers in battle. Part of it was the secrets of their weapons, part of it was their skill and strength.
They would be cut to pieces once they lost the element of surprise. Ceana’s battle group comprised warriors who had never left the Ror-Rea. Kin identified them by their haughty bearing and piercing gazes. None were excited to see humans in this realm. The invasion by monsters, Earth Fleet troopers, and Mazz Imperials left them speechless. They were eager to attack the ships. They would make their assault with or without him.
“I need the ships intact if possible, but most of all, I need armor and weapons to fight the Burning One and Droon,” Kin said.
“The Burning One?” Grayl and Ceana asked at the same moment. Grayl was a warrior of fighting age who had been left behind to defend the Ror-Rea. From what Kin had learned about Dax’s kingdom, Grayl was one of the most prolific duelists in several generations. He had resented being left behind but complied with the will of his lord. Duty and family honor was very important here.
“The Slomn-Reaper,” Kin said. He studied the Earth Fleet ship, preparing to attack as soon as the doors were open and Eagle’s troopers committed to their deployment.
Grayl moved nearer, eying Kin suspiciously. “Why did you call it the Burning One?”
Kin faced him. “Droon calls him the Burning One. Problem? You act like you have never conversed with a Reaper King.”
Grayl backed away and looked at Ceana. “This is not good.”
“Worry about it later,” Kin said, gripping his pistol. “The deployment ramps are about to drop.”
“How do you know?” Grayl asked.
Several banks of powerful floodlights blinded Kin, even though he had known it was coming. Facing the attacking troopers was like looking into the sun.
“Don’t look at the lights,” Kin said.
“Your warning has come too late,” Ceana said, but he was laughing and leaping forward.
Kin followed and saw his Winger friend soar over the heads of troopers and land in the threshold of the ship entrance. His wings knocked troopers off balance. Some fell or moved clear of other aerial attacks. In the confines of the doorway and ramp, troopers held their fire to avoid blasting their squad mates.
Outside the ship, on the distinctive, pebbled ground of the Ror-Rea, the battle went less well for Kin’s allies. High velocity bullets ripped through flesh and wings and shields. Kin saw a sword blade disintegrate, then blood and brains from the weapon’s owner. Kin anticipated fields of fire and moved through gaps in the zones caused by Ceana’s bold attack.
Fighting his way to the deployment ramp seemed to take a lifetime and was also over in an instant. Inside the ship, Wingers pushed through the corridor ahead of him. He saw Ceana and the others press against the walls and threw himself on the floor before a plasma bolt ripped through the air above him. They fought corridor to corridor and room to room, stalling where doors could not be opened or slowed where doors had been jammed by falling bodies.
“Take the Earth Fleet armo
r!” Ceana yelled.
“No time for that. We have to secure this section first.”
Grayl, bleeding from several wounds, pushed through Wingers waiting to attack the next room and grabbed Kin’s arm. “The Reaper King and his Burning One approach the ship.”
Kin broke his grip and ran for the deployment area, which was several rooms and hallways behind him now. He needed to shut the doors. Without time to arm himself, the attack on Eagle’s ship was wasted. The Burning One would kill them all, including Droon.
Earth Fleet troopers in FSPAA-IIA units blocked the second corridor Kin approached. He retreated and chose another route, only to encounter marines in Marine Security Armor. The MSA units could operate in zero gravity and without atmosphere. Their weapons included short-range munitions less likely to penetrate the interior of a military spacecraft.
Kin changed course, losing himself in a maze of corridors as they filled with smoke. By the time he reached the ship entrance, there was little remaining but a scene of slaughter. Blood painted the walls. Troopers lay face up with helmets melted into flesh that looked chewed but not eaten. Kin had hoped the Burning One or Droon’s Reapers would stop to feed before continuing the attack.
“Things just got a lot more complicated,” Kin said to Ceana, who watched the corridor behind them for the approach of enemies.
“Will there be a space inside of this ship with ceilings high enough for my warriors to fly?”
Kin’s laugh wasn’t a good laugh. “Watch my back. I’m due for an upgrade.”
Additional Wingers found their way to Ceana’s side. Grayl wasn’t with them. Kin wondered if the warrior was dead. He wondered why he was even thinking about the Winger when finding an unsecured suit of armor should take all of his attention.
“Once I get into this thing, they will find me easily if they think to check the unit location trackers. The action will get hot around me. Fight smart. If I get swarmed, you need to take your warriors and circle behind my attackers.”
“That will be difficult in this senseless maze,” Ceana said.
“The floor plan makes perfect sense to a sailor or a marine,” Kin said.
“I am neither of those.”
The only armor that Kin could secure for his own use was too small, not by much, but he was learning that Eagle’s FSPAA-IIA units were custom fit down to the last detail. He laughed, not realizing he had already activated the external speaker.
“What does the great Kin Roland find amusing?” Ceana asked.
“I am not sure I know how to pee in this thing.”
“Your people are strange,” Ceana said. “I pray that mine never find it necessary to dress like turtles. May we attack the enemy now that you are comfortable?”
“We may. Pick one.”
Ceana flexed his wings in the large bay, then approached the more confined hallway ahead. “It seems that there is, or very recently, has been a Reaper in this corridor.”
Kin thought that was as good a place as any to start. “Let me go first. My turtle skin is more resistant to high velocity ordinance than flesh and bone.”
Ceana stepped aside for Kin. His usual lightheartedness in the face of battle was slipping. Many warriors of the Ror-Rea were dead.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
High Lords of the Ror-Rea
“KIN Roland,” Dax shouted.
Exhausted, wounded, raising his head with difficulty as he told himself now wasn’t the time to evaluate the decisions that led them to this moment, Kin stared at Dax. The King of the Ror-Rea marched down the main corridor of the Earth Fleet ship, wings sweeping to each side like majesty made into a cloak.
“I have brought reinforcements,” Dax said. “Tell me why we fight in this terrible place.”
Several High Lords followed their king. Their attention was on Kin Roland.
“To win,” Kin said.
Hasic, the First High Lord of the Ror-Rea, moved past Dax and knelt beside Kin where he sat drinking a nutritional supplement. “That is an answer worthy of the Ror-Rea, but I need a human answer. What is the objective and why should my warriors die to attain it?”
Dax growled.
“Your warriors?” Kin asked. “I thought Dax was king.”
“Dax is king. He cannot deny that I spend the lives of my sons and grandsons on yet another fruitless battle,” Hasic said.
“I don’t know, Hasic old buddy, it wasn’t long ago you were begging Clavender to send your sons and grandsons into the Bleeding Grounds.”
Hasic rose to his feet and stepped back, wings bristling. “I never begged.”
“Whatever,” Kin said.
Dax stepped forward and spoke in a strong, low voice. “Kin Roland, my home is in danger. Ceana was bold to commit our strength to this battle, yet the entire Ror-Rea is in danger as it never has been. Tell me why we fight here so I may reassure the High Lords.”
“This ship invaded your home. Isn’t that enough?”
Dax nodded, but several of the Wingers behind him grumbled and talked amongst themselves.
“In the spirit of full disclosure, it seems the Mazz have breached this ship and have sent their SKIN armored soldiers into the fight.”
“Against us or Earth Fleet?” Dax asked.
“That is a great question,” Kin said. “I have armor. It doesn’t fit and will probably scar me in places I would rather not talk about, but I can fight Droon. I might even take on the Burning One. But I can’t fight all of Earth Fleet and the Mazz Imperial Army. I need help.”
“You do,” Dax said. “The High Lords wish to leave this battle.” He glared at Hasic.
“Your High Lords are a bunch of whining pains-in-the-ass,” Kin said.
Dax closed his eyes for a moment. “You are not helping.”
“There are two ways to defeat this ship or any ship: take control of the Bridge or seize Engineering. There should be a Security HQ as well that is important.”
Hasic pushed between Dax and Kin to bully his king. “Again, it is the fault of your daughter. She allowed these invaders into our sanctuary. You allowed them. You must give her to me for punishment.”
And now they will fight like schoolboys, Kin thought. He watched them cross swords and batter each other back and forth across the room. Winger High Lords arrayed themselves by factions.
“Ceana,” Kin yelled. “I need help.”
Ceana looked at him, sadness written large on his face. “Do you wish to capture this place you call the Bridge?”
The idea was sound. It was the best plan. Only one of the Wingers had listened to him. That was the problem. “I need you to stay with me, but tell your battle commanders that the critical areas of the ship will be found wherever the defenses are strongest.”
“As is the way during all battles,” Ceana said.
“Such a buzz-kill, Ceana. I am trying to help.”
“I will instruct my warriors.”
Kin listened to the meeting and shared his knowledge. Ceana’s friends were brave. With modern training and tools, they would be even more formidable than their current warrior culture made them. He wished the war had never reached Crashdown or the Ror-Rea.
By the time Ceana had done his best to reorient the Winger battle groups, the duel between Dax and Hasic was over. They still argued. Kin wanted to punch one or both of them. He watched as the assault force fractured into groups setting out toward multiple objectives with war chants and raised weapons.
“I must fight for my king,” Ceana said.
Kin nodded and took charge of a Winger squad until they were heading in the right direction. Situation by situation, he adapted and led warriors unfamiliar with fighting inside of a ship. He needed to find Droon and the Burning One before more of his friends died.
ROR-REA warriors flooded out of the Earth Fleet ship as though making a planetary assault. Kin watched them go. He stood, checked each system of his FSPAA-IIA, and cleared his mind for battle. Fatigue didn’t exactly melt away, but he was able to
keep the effect of physical and mental fatigue at arm’s length. It had been worse on Hellsbreach and Hector’s Mountain.
“I will fight beside you, Kin Roland,” Ceana said.
“Thanks.”
“Do not thank me. My king sent me to die here,” Ceana said.
Kin linked to a wall terminal to get an update on where the fight was the most active. Deeper in the ship, there were still Wingers fighting against Earth Fleet troopers and marines, Mazz soldiers, and various nasty monsters associated with Droon. “We have a few minutes. I want you to try something.”
Ceana smiled but looked wary. “You will make me an outcast, Kin Roland.”
Kin located a torch from a maintenance locker and cut pieces of FSPAA-IIA armor into sections, then held the breastplate up to Ceana.
“Come on, Kin,” a woman’s voice said. “When did you have any kind of skill with technology?”
Kin let the mangled piece of armor hang in one hand as he turned and ran to Rebecca. His armor slammed into hers, lifting her off the ground in a hug that was more violent than romantic.
She laughed. “Good to see you, Kin. We are all going to die.”
“You know it,” Kin said. He turned to Ceana. “We need to fit him with some kind of upgrade. I don’t want to get the best fighter in the Ror-Rea killed.”
“You cannot get me killed,” Ceana said. “I am the master of my destiny.”
“Ceana is it? Let me try something,” Rebecca said. She ignored Kin’s clumsy attempt at retrofit armor and started fresh. She talked to Kin as she worked. “I took the time to get access codes during my recent reassignment. So this will be real gear for our Winger champion. Dogface, fix Kin’s armor. Looking at it is giving me a rash.”
Kin accessed the ship and tracked the movement of each battle. He decided that the Burning One would be easy to follow. The signal he suspected belonged to the Slomn-Reaper moved fast, cutting through units that opposed him without slowing.
“Have you spoke with Major Eagle?” Rebecca asked Kin as she slammed plates together around Ceana’s legs.
“No.”
