Warlords Saga

by Brian K. Larson

  “I don’t understand,” Race said with a puzzled look on his face.”

  “Colonel Jennings,” Jed asked, “Have you considered that Gilmore may have lied to you?”

  “Yes, Admiral, the thought did occur to me, but I still don’t think so, Sir.”

  The radio crackled another question, “What makes you think that?”

  “I had the better hand, Sir.”

  “Come again, Colonel?”

  “It’s easy, Sir, he had a straight to the king, and I had a flush.”

  “Ah, the better hand, eh?”

  “Yes, Sir, a flush beats a straight any day of the week.”

  Lieutenant Bradley turned to Race with a worried look, “Sir, it’s these asteroids. It’s playing hard-ball with our sensors.”

  “Reuben, how you doing with collision avoidance over there?” Race asked.

  Lieutenant Russell grew a more worried look on his face before answering, “Okay for now... I guess, Sir.”

  “You don’t sound very confidant, Reuben?”

  “Well, Sir, it’s the ship’s auto collision avoidance system, Sir. It’s making course corrections faster than I can manually input them, Sir. The ship’s flying itself right now.”

  “Very well, Reuben, it’s nothing you’ve not seen in simulator before. Keep a steady hand at the ready and stand by.”

  “Aye, Sir, you got it, Sir, standing by.”

  “Foster, is our channel still open?”

  “Yes, Sir, Admiral Fitz is on overhead.”

  “Jed, are you picking up anything on your scanners?”

  The radio again crackled to life with Jed’s voice, “Nope, nothing yet. We’re having the same issues with our scans. If it’s out here, we’re not close enough to pick it up.”

  “Understood, Sir,” Race looked over to his tactical officer, “how much closer would we need to get to pick anything up?”

  “If Admiral Gilmore was telling the truth and it’s out here, we’d have to be within a half a click.”

  Race nodded his understanding and addressed Jed, “Admiral, can you launch any sort of CAP?”

  “Negative, Colonel. It’s too risky for fighters. We can handle an occasional asteroid strike, but a fighter, let alone an ACE support, would be destroyed if hit.”

  “Okay then,” Race answered, “Admiral, I’m taking the Excalibur in for a closer look.”

  “Race,” Jed’s voice sounding genuinely concerned, “It’s already pretty dense at our location, any further in would mean...”

  “I know, Admiral, we’re fully aware of the risks. We’ll be careful, Sir,”

  “Race...”

  “Helm, take the wheel and move us a few kilometers closer to our target.”

  Reuben took in a deep breath and exhaled in anticipation, “Aye, aye, Sir, moving closer inside the asteroid debris field.”

  “Russell, give me regular updates, don’t keep me in the dark now.”

  The Excalibur slowly moved out ahead of the Rocinante, deeper into the provided coordinates of the asteroid belt where Admiral Gilmore had indicated an alien warship hull was parked.

  “Helm, steady as she goes now,” Race assured his pilot, looking out the front windscreens of the battleship. “Easy does it, umm, there’s a rather large one in our flight path, Lieutenant...”

  “...I see it, Sir,” Lieutenant Russell said, sweat beading on his forehead, a few drops fell down his cheek and fell to the instrument console, “It’s pretty tight, Sir, I-I think it’s going to...”

  Before Reuben could finish his sentence a large bang sounded as the enormous asteroid drifted across the ship’s bow, scraping and crumbling the dancing asteroid into smaller pieces.

  “Break port!” Race ordered.

  “Turning hard to port, Sir, but there’s an even bigger one heading our way, Sir!”

  “Bradley, can you lock missiles on that?”

  “Yes, Sir, but I don’t advise it, Sir.”

  “I didn’t ask if it was safe, but lock your missiles and...”

  “Aye, Sir, missiles away, Sir!”

  Five missiles shot from the bow of the Excalibur and obliterated the large asteroid upon contact.

  “Close the blast screens!” Captain Rollins ordered.

  Before Bradley could reply, metal shielding slid across from each end of the ship’s command center, sealing the visual diamond reinforced glass from the shower of rocks raining down on them.

  “Status report!” Race ordered.

  “Sir,” Bradley answered, “I’m picking up another ship’s signature a half a click out, Sir!”

  “Identify!”

  “It’s Antarian, Sir.”

  “Life signs!?” Race begged to hear that nothing was alive on that ship.

  “No Sir, There are no life signs. She’s had a hull breach, just like Gilmore said, Sir.”

  “Admiral, you reading this?”

  “Yes, indeed, Colonel,” Jed happily answered. “Guess he wasn’t lying after all, huh?”

  “No, Sir,” Race smiled, “guess he wasn’t.”

  “Very well, looks like you’ve got things under control, Colonel.”

  “Thanks for the escort, Sir,” Race again smiled, “We’ll take it from here, Sir.”

  “How long you gonna be before you are back in orbit?”

  “We’ll have to send over a team to assess the damage, Sir, but we hope to have the ship underway in a few hours. We’ll stop by Earth to prepare our flight to Serintin.”

  “Very well, Colonel,” Jed answered, “We’re heading out of here and back to Earth, Rocinante out.”

  “Alright,” Race said, turning to the ship’s crew, “Let’s get on over, shall we?”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  ________________________

  Serintin

  Valley of Trenches

  ________________________

  Laboolaron swung helpless in the wind as he desperately grasped the cold iron chain. Wind driven snow bit Laboolaron’s face and exposed body.

  He and the Boreshog had nearly frozen by the time the beast set down near her lair deep within the Trenches. By then he no longer felt the arm that had held the chain.

  “Revein’sev must be warmer than this,” Laboolaron’s whisper was lost in the howling winds. He crawled through the snowdrifts in front of the Boreshog’s lair in hopes to find shelter. He watched the she beast crawl into her lair and then heard her extruding snot on the ground. Another roaring different from the wind told him that she had ignited it with her breath.

  Laboolaron jealously watched the shimmering heat waves rise from the lair. The hope of warmth from the burning phlegm was all that kept him alive until he finally reached the lair opening.

  Inside the lair opening was a drop of ten meters. Laboolaron crashed hard onto the jagged rocks at the bottom. He painfully turned onto his back only to see the she beast towering over his broken body, puffs of smoke issued from the creature’s nostrils and sides of her jaw.

  Laboolaron’s first instinct was to back away from the creature’s talons, but the pain and the cold defeated the idea.

  And there was no place to hide from the Boreshog in its own lair.

  “I know you cannot harm me. I do not fully understand how yet, but I know,” he whispered against the howling wind that blew across the gaping hole above his head. The heat from the burning snot gave strange warmth to the cave as yellow eyes of the creature studied him.

  The simple thought of being hungry now crossed his mind and in an instant, the she beast flapped its massive wings and took off, exiting the lair.

  Laboolaron inched closer to the burning fire in hopes to cure his uncontrollable shivering, somehow knowing the creature would return soon. The warmth drew him into a deep sleep.

  ~

  The returning Boreshog creature startled Laboolaron from his slumber. The she beast crawled down into the lair holding a dead howler in her jaws. The fresh kill laid by the fire lifeless and the creature began using its
talons to slice the skins from its carcass. She continued to slice the leg bones and the rest of the meat from the lifeless creature.

  Laboolaron opened his eyes wide seeing the sight as she sat one of the legs across the flames. Laboolaron sat up as the smell of the cooking meat flooded his senses. The creature then cut a section of the hide from the creature and she tossed it to him.

  Laboolaron cringed. The hide was still warm and sticky with the Howler’s blood. He draped the animal fur around his shoulders.

  “I don’t know how, but thank you,” Laboolaron again whispered to the creature, ensuring his voice didn’t frighten the creature, and then sat on his knees holding his hands over the remaining carcass chanting the ancient sayings, “Freely you have given. Now I freely release your blood spirit to the great divide.”

  Laboolaron grunted in his native tongue, “Morgesh...” and then with a mighty upward thrust, he swung his arms high into the air, “Bea’goth!” before lowering his arms in a few seconds of meditation. “Until we meet again. May you find your eternal rest in Revein’sev.”

  The Antarian Dragon roared as quietly as it could.

  “Yes, my Antarian friend, Mae’sheen.”

  The smell of the roasting meat overwhelmed Laboolaron. He pulled the meat from the fire and tore strips of meat from the bone with his crooked teeth until his stomach was full.

  “I still do not understand this, but I do have a good idea that it was your blood.” He thought a few seconds and responded to the creature, knowing he was communicating with her, “I too still feel the blood spirit of Empress Danielle, and I know you do too.”

  The creature grunted and snorted. Laboolaron answered the creature, “Yes, my blood draws me to her. Yes, yes, I do feel that she will return to the Rising Star of Antares... I know, I know, her blood song does fade, but nonetheless, it is there,” he thumped his heart at the same time the creature made a similar motion on her breast, “She is here,” he stated, “Deep down inside...she will return, this I know. Perhaps not today or tomorrow, but soon... Will she be safe if she seeks you?”

  Laboolaron looked around his shoulder and shook his head, “Listen to me, I am speaking to myself, yet I still feel you can understand me... yes, I know if her blood song wanes completely, she will have to face you. Her blood song does still sing, so I am safe so long as her song continues.”

  The Antarian Dragon blew on the fire and made it grow larger in size. Laboolaron backed slightly away from the searing heat. He rolled over with his new Howler fur and slept in the warmth of the lair the rest of the cold bitter night.

  ________________________

  Sol Asteroid Belt

  The Excalibur

  ________________________

  “Sir, we’ve cleared a path to the Antarian ship,” Race heard over the transports intercom.

  “Excellent,” Race replied, “Launching transport now.”

  “Empress Danielle,” Darnash began, “When we dock with the warship, you should remain on the transport until we have secured the vessel.”

  “Very well, Lord Darnash, I concur.”

  Thelix made his way up front to inspect the derelict ship close up, “It appears the bridge has been compromised,” pointing a hairy finger.

  “Yes,” Darnash nodded, “and a breach at the engineering section.”

  “Our boys should be able to patch up those holes in short order,” Race added, “My main concerns are getting power and ship’s systems online.”

  Thelix raised his bony eyebrow, “Your teams patch her up, and leave the internal systems to us.”

  “Sounds like a plan, my man.”

  The pilot, Captain Corey Wallace turned briefly in his seat and then back to the front view screen, “We’re coming up on the docking bay now. It appears the doors are already open. We’ll be landing in thirty seconds.”

  “Okay,” Race began, “is my first team suited up and ready back there?”

  “Aye, aye, Sir,” Chief Leo Hunter replied through his helmet.

  “Very well, Chief, I’m sealing the rear transport off from the command center. We’re landing shortly.”

  “We’re locked and loaded back here, Colonel.”

  “Closing airlock doors,” Race acknowledged with a press on his console sliding the inner door closed.

  “Bringing her down now, Sir.”

  “Gravity plating seems to be still online,” Mister Thelix reported.

  “That means there may be pockets where some ship systems could still be active. Stay sharp,” Race instructed.

  “Landing struts are down and locked. We’re all set, Colonel.”

  “You’re clear to go, Chief,” Race said, “Opening the outer hatch. We’ll be monitoring your progress.”

  The hatch on the transport slid open, exposing the marines to the vacuum of space inside the Antarian landing bay.

  “Move out, men,” Race heard through the ship’s comm system.

  The comm system crackled Chief Wallace’s voice, “We’ve secured the landing bay and are moving into the corridor. So far, no signs of any survivors, Sir. My men are splitting into their two teams. Team two is heading to engineering to assess the hull damage and will maintain a direct link with me. Team one is heading to the bridge... Sir, we’re seeing a few Antarian bodies as we move above decks.”

  “Can you tell how they died, Chief?”

  “Yes Sir, it appears they died of exposure. I’m not seeing any external injuries.”

  “Keep moving, Chief, get to the bridge.”

  “Aye-aye, sir, we’re on it.”

  “We’re going up another level, Sir. Getting reports from my second team; they’ve secured engineering, and it looks like there’s minimal damage, Sir.”

  Mister Thelix looked over to Race, “Some good news, Colonel. We should be able to get the ship underway once the hull is repaired.”

  “That remains to be seen, Mister Thelix. We still don’t know how bad the damage to the bridge is yet.”

  “Sir,” Chief Wallace broke in through the comm link, “We’ve secured all decks and made it to the bridge. There are no survivors on board.”

  “Chief, how bad is it over there? Will we be able to fly her?”

  “Yes, sir, I do think so. Some of the bridge stations are damaged beyond repair, but there appears to be backup systems on the opposite side of the bridge.”

  Mister Thelix and Darnash both leaned closer over Race’s shoulder and Darnash spoke first, “Chief Wallace, can you give us a video feed of the damaged systems?”

  “Sure thing,” Chief Wallace replied, and then turned on his helmet cam, “You should now be seeing the three consoles that are damaged.”

  “Yes, that is a good picture,” Thelix answered, “It’s not a wonder that the entire crew perished.”

  “Why do you say that, Mister Thelix?”

  “These stations control the ship’s environmental controls. When the missile punched through and destroyed the bridge crew, it also destroyed the ship’s ability to auto close any emergency bulkheads. With the second hit at main engineering section caused the ship’s atmosphere to vent so quickly that her crew had no time to respond.”

  “It was a lucky hit, Colonel,” Darnash added.

  “Well, lady luck is on our side for once,” Race smiled, “How soon can you have her patched up, Chief?”

  “Give us a couple of hours, Sir. She’ll be sealed up in no time using the mag-gel to seal the largest of the holes.”

  “Excellent, Chief, keep us posted and we’ll join you onboard as soon as she’s pressurized.”

  “Aye-aye, Colonel,” Chief Wallace out.

  ________________________

  Serintin

  Valley of Trenches

  ________________________

  Laboolaron sat before the fireplace, sipping a fine aged Hosclatch. He looked from the dark amber liquid to the warmth of the burning log. Suddenly the fire leapt from the hearth, the flames scorching across his body. He awakened with a s
cream as he quickly backed away from the Boreshog.

  The twitching body of an eight legged creature smoldered as the last bit of life drifted up with the smoke. Laboolaron gave a nod of thanks to the female Boreshog, “You protected me from the Erontos. May the forces of Revein’sev be with this creature.”

  You are welcome, friend of Empress Danielle, the creature said to his mind.

  “I can hear you, and you can understand me; it’s the blood, this too I know.”

  Your blood oath... with Empress Danielle... keeps you alive...

  “And my taking of your blood reactivated her waning song within me.”

  Yes... you are correct... friend of Empress Danielle.

  “How much time is left before her song is gone?”

  Song fading fast... you must not stay... when dawn comes... kill you will I...

  “That isn’t necessary; you don’t have to kill...”

  Kill you I must... song will be gone... instinct is all that is left... go you must...

  “I have no weapon.”

  Weapon of Empress Danielle... you have here... dagger she left...

  “I don’t see it. Where is it?”

  The Boreshog raised its head in the air and blew fire to illuminate the cave. A metal blade imbedded in the sand and rocks glinted in the light, well within Laboolaron’s reach.

  He pulled the knife from the rock. Near it he noticed some purple vines growing up the rock wall. He cut some to tie the Howler fur to his body. Then he cut smaller pieces from the Howler carcass and fashioned boots.

  “Are you certain that her song will be gone at dawn?”

  Empress Danielle... must partake... of another dose... kill you I must if not...

  “Very well, then. I shall take my leave before dawn.”

  Stay here... keep warm... until first light... then go you must.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  ________________________

  Serintin

  Dumakas’ Chamber

  ________________________

  “Ah, Tumaleka,” Dumakas looked up from his computer screen. He had been sitting patiently, rubbing his chin in deep thought, focusing on fleet deployments, “It is good that you return from Delema.”