Ryonna stood and walked towards the opposite wall, farthest from where the EMP had detonated. Alix’s light-blade was on the ground, the one he had thrown before trying to disable the force field. She hoped it had been outside of the range of the EMP. She looked at Atrak. For the first time she saw fear in his eyes.
Chapter 13
Ryonna picked up the light-blade. The on switch was still illuminated. The weapon had been out of range as she’d hoped. She started towards Atrak, passing Alix’s dead body and the huge pool of blood being absorbed by the light-gray carpet fibers.
“Let’s be rational here, Ryonna. In a few minutes you’ll get arrested. If you spare me I can guarantee you won’t go to Hellstar. I’ll give you whatever you want, money, a ship. You can get away from here. Now, what do you say?”
“I say that you don’t understand my motives. I want to go to Hellstar, and killing you will ensure that.”
“No wait! I can arrange that as well. I can even provide protection once you’re on the inside.”
“You forget about Jax.”
“Look, it wasn’t personal. He was in my way, that’s all.”
“It’s personal to me. And now you’re in my way. Gotta love the irony.”
When she approached, he threw the first series of punches. He was clearly well versed in hand-to-hand combat, no doubt from his long career in the Hathan military or as a mercenary. On a normal day, and with her multiple wounds, he could probably go the distance with her. But this was no ordinary day.
Ryonna dodged, blocked and countered each of his punches and kicks with perfect timing, either repelling him against the wall or inflicting damage of her own. She could finish the fight at any moment, but the fact that she still had some time made her enjoy the fight. For Jax, for Alix and for all the children whose lives this piece of garbage had either ruined or taken. He would pay here and now. Her only regret was that she probably didn’t have much time left to toy with and hurt the man.
As if in answer to her thinking, noises and commotion rose from the level below. The clock to her arrest was now ticking.
The next punch he threw at her she not only blocked, but she grabbed his wrist and punched him in the face with a well-placed elbow. Blood flew from his mouth as his head was thrown backwards. She applied strong pressure to his wrist and he opened his hand. She took his fingers one by one and broke them without hesitating. He screamed in agony with each new broken bone. He fell to his knees and implored her to stop.
But she couldn’t hear him anymore. She broke his wrist on the same hand, then proceeded to crush his humerus with a powerful thrust of her knee. The bone broke in two and was exposed to the air as blood flowed from the wound.
She then proceeded to his other arm, dislocating his shoulder with a very satisfying crunch. She no longer heard his screams. She was in revenge mode, making sure he would suffer every last second of his pathetic life. She owed that to Jax, Jonas and Alix.
When she stopped, Atrak was crying and begging for mercy, both arms rendered totally useless, blood flowing from many wounds. Even if she stopped there, he would die shortly. But she wasn’t done. Laser fire hit the force fields preventing people from entering the office. Ryonna saw half a dozen guards firing their weapons. The force field blinked but seemed to be holding. Nevertheless, she needed to make sure Atrak drew his last breath shortly.
“Get up, you piece of shit!”
“I can’t. You broke both my arms. I can’t move a single muscle.”
“Let me help you out.”
When their gazes met, Ryonna saw utter terror in his eyes. The man knew she was about to finish him.
With one hand she grabbed the light-blade and with the other she lifted Atrak to his feet by his hair.
“This is for Jax.”
She brought the light-blade to life near Atrak’s groin. The blade shot between his legs, hovering less than an inch from his testicles.
“No! Don’t do this, plea— Aaaaaaarg,” was the last thing Atrak ever said.
Ryonna cut through him slowly, taking her time, splitting his genitals in two before splitting the rest of his body all the way up to the top. A foul odor of charred flesh emanated from his body as the light-blade cut him slowly in half, cauterizing his wound and releasing smoke. By the time she was at neck level, Atrak was already long dead. She then released his hair and, with a swift motion, finished her movement to split his face in half, in a perfectly vertical line. His body split in two and fell to the ground. She turned the light-blade off and threw it on the ground.
“Vengeance has been served. Thank you, Jonas,” said Ryonna, knowing he could hear her.
The force field was about to give in, so she dropped to her knees and put both hands behind her back.
Soon the security guards stormed the office, restraining and arresting her.
Because she had killed so many people, Ryonna had been deemed too great a security risk for a public trial. Instead, a judge came to see her in her detention room, where she was chained to the wall by every limb, four laser-guided turrets covering her from every direction.
The woman judge entered her cell and shot her a cold stare.
“I have half a mind to ask an exception be made so we can execute you, miss.”
“I thought Hathan didn’t believe in capital punishment.”
“Acts like these make me think we should make exceptions.”
“Atrak was a piece of garbage. He needed to be put down.”
“Watch your mouth. I knew Atrak personally. You’re the piece of garbage here.”
“Then you didn’t know him as well as you thought.”
“And why should I listen to the words of a criminal responsible for the deaths of no less than eleven people?”
“Look, lady, I don’t give a rat’s ass what you believe, but that asshole killed my husband and exploited young Droxian children.”
“What do you mean ‘exploited’?”
“Do I really have to spell it out?”
She didn’t. It was clear the judge was aware of such activity on her planet.
“I refuse to believe it.”
“Like I said, I don’t give a shit what you believe. He will no longer hurt anyone.”
“Even if what you say is true—and believe me I will get to the bottom of this—the way you sought retribution was wrong. You will be sentenced to life in the worst prison in this sector. Hellstar.”
Ryonna smiled.
“Do you find it funny, miss?”
“No. In fact, I’m looking forward to it.”
The judge shook her head. “I therefore sentence you to life on Hellstar. Do you understand your sentence, Ryonna Isch’ys?”
“I do, thank you judge.”
“May gods have mercy on your soul.”
“Save it for someone who believes in them, judge, but thanks for the pep talk.”
The judge left her cell and the temporarily disabled turrets came back to life, casting their red laser pointers on Ryonna’s chest. She was still smiling.
Ryonna looked at the stars passing by. She was in the transport that would bring her to her final destination. She was ready for what came next. Her thoughts went to Jonas. She had wished for a chance to talk with him once more, if only to say goodbye in case she didn’t make it out of Hellstar alive. But mostly she thought of Ronan. Soon she would be reunited with her son, and together they’d escape the unescapable prison.
Hold on, my son, I’m coming for you.
THE END
(The resolution of the storyline happens in Book 2
of the Universe in Flames saga: Fury to the Stars
Damocles Fall
By Christian Kallias
The events of Damocles Fall happen about the same time as when Earth - Last Sanctuary begins, but in another galaxy. It introduces a character that appears in book 2: Fury to the Stars. It’s not necessary reading, so if you’re in a hurry to learn what happens to Chase and his friends, you can skip it & jump directly to Fur
y to the Stars. I recommend reading it now as it’s a really great book where new character Spiros is the main protagonist of the story, something that is unique to this novelette.
Acknowledgments
Cover artwork by Christian Kallias
[email protected]
www.christiankallias.com
www.facebook.com/ChristianKallias
www.twitter.com/kalliasx
Production Editor & Alpha/ARC Team Lead
Paula Lavattiata Lopez
Editors
Philip Newey
Paula Lavattiata Lopez
Proofreaders
Paula Lavattiata Lopez
Miliana Chipaila (Thank you so much Millie!)
Copyright
Copyright © 2017 by Christian Kallias
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
First Printing, 2017 / Version 1.01
Cover artwork by Christian Kallias
Christian Kallias
[email protected]
www.christiankallias.com
www.facebook.com/ChristianKallias
www.twitter.com/kalliasx
1
“Commander! A fleet of seven unidentified ships is jumping out of hyperspace. They’re heading toward us at full sub-light burn. Their power signatures are massive,” said Lieutenant Commander Michalis Maniatis.
Station Commander Theodoros Leonidis took a step forward, his face stoic; his gaze as cold as ice.
“Do we have a visual on the fleet yet?”
“Yes, Commander, they’ve just entered visual range.”
“On screen.”
The large holo-screen in the command center of the Damocles-3 R&D research station came to life and displayed the ships no one on board had ever seen before.
“ETA?” asked Leonidis, rubbing his dark-gray beard.
“Less than fifteen minutes, Commander.”
From the top of his six foot six frame, the commander looked at the ships inside the streamed holo-vid and tried to remember where he might have seen them before. Something about the ships was familiar, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.
“Hail them.”
A few moments passed.
“Lieutenant Commander?” insisted Leonidis.
“I’m sorry, Commander; I can’t establish communications. They’re either incompatible to ours, or they simply don’t care to answer our hails.”
Leonidis was certain it was the latter. There was no way such advanced ships couldn’t pick up a subspace holo-signal.
“What do we do, Commander? Should I try audio only?”
“No, for the time being, we assume they’re hostile and take the necessary precautions. Try recalling the Star Alliance Destroyer Faith to the station.”
“They’ve already entered the Ismara Nebula, and we’ve lost both sensors and comms. I’m not getting any response, Commander.”
That was not the answer Leonidis was hoping for. He knew the SAD Faith, even with its latest R&D weaponry, couldn’t take on a fleet of ships that massive, but, in conjunction with the station’s defense, it would give them better odds in case of a conflict. The unknown ships’ power signature was off the charts. Together, they emitted a stronger signature than the Damocles-3 Station itself. Without the Faith, Leonidis didn’t see a positive outcome should the fleet decide to attack them. He needed reinforcements and prayed that his station’s heavy defenses would hold until they arrived.
“Open a channel to Alpha Prime.”
After a few moments without an answer, Leonidis sensed that something was terribly wrong. “What’s going on, Lieutenant Commander? Where’s my channel to Alpha Prime?”
“I’m trying, Commander. Nobody is answering.”
“Widen your frequencies. Use the emergency ones.”
“I’ve already tried that. I’m picking up a subspace distress signal. Audio only.”
“Let’s hear it.”
“This is Admiral Thassos to any Star Alliance ship. We are under attack. The Obsidian have launched a large-scale attack on the Alliance. Defenses around Alpha Prime have fallen, we have no other—” The sound turned to static.
“Commander,” continued the Lieutenant Commander. “I’m picking up similar distress calls from all over the sector.”
What in the gods’ name is happening?
“Set condition red throughout the base,” said Leonidis.
Chief of Research & Development Spiros Malayianis punched his console with frustration, and half a second later the lights in his lab flashed red.
“What now?” he said out loud.
The station had set condition red. Spiros was in a foul mood, and the last thing he needed was another battle-readiness drill interrupting his work. The last twenty simulations trying to stabilize the power flow in his shield generator upgrade had all been a disaster. Sometimes the shields fluctuated to the point of becoming utterly inefficient, while in other cases the power capacitors overloaded and the simulation failed catastrophically. The emitters blew up, in some scenarios even taking the station with them.
Spiros had carte blanche with his research and didn’t need to worry about drills, though he usually got an advanced warning from the command center when drills were running, which oddly hadn’t been the case this time.
He checked his holo-screen and brought up the station’s status alert. His heart skipped a beat when he saw that this was no drill. A real condition red had been issued.
“What the hell?” he exclaimed, even though he was presently alone in the lab.
Before he had time to open a channel to Commander Leonidis, an incoming call arrived.
“Commander, what the hell is going on?”
“We’ve detected a fleet of massive ships coming our way. They’re not answering hails, and we’ve also intercepted multiple distress calls all over the sector. The Star Alliance is under attack, everywhere.”
It took a second for Spiros’ brain to assimilate Leonidis’ words.
“What do you mean everywhere?”
“Even Alpha Prime. We can’t establish a channel to the home world. Whatever the Obsidian are doing, this is a systemic, Alliance-wide attack. They’re wiping us out.”
“The Obsidian don’t have that kind of power, Commander! We’ve been at war for decades. Our forces are evenly matched.”
“It looks like today is the day this stalemate ends, Chief. And I think these unknown ships are the reason. Many of the distress calls mentioned them before they were abruptly cut off.”
“Do we know anything about them?”
“Something looks familiar to me. I just can’t recall where I’ve seen them before. Perhaps you can run them through our database and get more information. But that’s not the reason for my call.”
Spiros knew what was coming next. This station was the primary center for every new weapons upgrade being developed for the entire Star Alliance. The information it held could not fall into the hands of the enemy.
“You have ten minutes to wipe out your research.”
“But Commander—”
“Chief! This is a standard procedure we’ve put in place. We can’t take any chances. I’m sending two security teams to accompany you to the Phoenix prototype vessel you’ve been working on. It’s jump-capable at this point, right?”
“It is, but, sir—”
“Not now, Spiros! Listen carefully. You have to survive this attack. You can always recreate your research somewhere else. Your data is expendable; you, however, are not. Do I make myself clear?”
“I must object—”
“You have your orders, Chief! And so do I for contingencies like this one. I don’t have time to discuss or debate this with you right now. Let’s hope your last batch of modifications to our shields and weaponry will be effective against this threat. But we can�
��t take the chance, so I’m ordering you to erase all your databases now and prepare to flee this station and board the Phoenix. Be ready to go in ten minutes.”
2
“Tassos, where the hell are you? Come back to the lab at once,” yelled Spiros.
“On my way,” answered Tassos, his primary lab assistant, over the comm-link.
Spiros’ heart was racing. He felt a panic he had never experienced before. He wasn’t ready to delete his research, but he had been given a direct order. If he erased his entire research, it would take years to rebuild it from the ground up. This could be fatal if the Star Alliance were to survive this day.
He wasn’t prepared to give up on his advancements. Time was running out, so he needed to act fast. He grabbed his latest pet project, a multi-phasic-encryption, high-capacity data crystal, and started moving all his research into it.
Spiros then ran the database search to try to identify the ships that were coming their way.
While his research transferred to the data crystal, and the computer ran a program matching power signatures to the incoming ships, Spiros tried opening a channel to the home world. He couldn’t acquire a channel, not even on the golden priority network he was privy to.
He thought of Takis, his nephew back on the home world. The boy had already lost his parents to the war with the Obsidian, and Spiros was the last family he had. The death of Spiros’ brother and sister-in-law had been hard. Spiros had taken years to get over it, and now perhaps Takis was lost as well.
This is not happening!
The computer bleeped and dragged Spiros out of his thoughts. The computer had found a partial match for the ships. Spiros had to read the results three times to accept them.
Universe in Flames – Ultimate 10 Book Box Set: An Epic Space Opera Adventure Page 44
