by Kyle Larson
“Oh no,” Kelvin said. “They would’ve, but this ship blew up from its own weapon. That’s probably what’s making it hard to scan the surface. An electro-cannon as big as your ship just blew up, after it finished burning holes into the surface of Venus.”
“But their Gravity Shield?”
“It brought that down, too,” Amelia said. She realized she hadn’t identified herself to the brigadier. “Lieutenant Amelia Chapman of Earth Navy, sir. There are wounded Gravity Warriors out here that need your help. If you have any shuttles or star divers available they are going to need to get the wounded Gravity Warriors back to the surface. There’s an Archive in Judur and you––”
“I know the Archives very well, Lieutenant Chapman. Say no more, we will handle any rescue operation. We are well aware of the…unique properties of Venusian gravity and what it does for the Gravity Warriors. According to our calculations, your Earth Navy should be here within the hour, and your flagship is already on the surface. Perhaps you should see if any of your people can assist us.” Brigadier Kaur didn’t need to elaborate, it was clear he knew how capable his allies were.
“We haven’t been able to make contact with them, but if you can take it from here, we’ll head back down there,” Kelvin said. Amelia scolded him with a glare, letting it be known she thought they should stay and help.
“Ah, yes, I forgot you came here on your own and have been under Lord Teve’s instruction. Queen Tendai informed us in her last communication before we lost contact. Yes, Lord Sellwood, return to your people and ask them to send whatever shuttles they can. We will wait for the Earth Navy to arrive before taking the Wanderers into custody. One of my ships will make it’s way to Judur to ensure the city is secure and that this debris is the only reason we can’t establish communication.”
“Thank you, brigadier,” Kelvin said and cut the transmission.
“Kelvin, the Monarch doesn’t need our help. There could be hundreds of Gravity Warriors up here, wounded and dying. We need to stay and help them.”
“You can,” Kelvin said. “You’ve made it pretty clear you’re going to do what you want up here, Millie?”
“Excuse me? I’m the one who does what I want? Why are we here in the first place, Kelvin? Who's the one who decided they wanted to abandon the Monarch and go against the wishes of everyone who asked you not to.”
“I didn’t ask you to come, Millie. And, you’re welcome, because if I hadn’t you wouldn’t have learned the things we did. You never would’ve become a Gravity Warrior. You made your own decision.”
“And you did, too!” Amelia said. “I believe in uniting the Nine Kingdoms and that’s the only reason I’m here. I believe in you because you’re a good person and the Nine Kingdoms need a symbol to believe in. You using your power for good is what it is, but don’t act like we’re all here to serve you. You’re lucky to be alive after you went on that crazy flight to try and find your sister. I came along to protect you, Kelvin! I came along because you’re starting to become so blind to saving your sister that you don’t realize how much danger she’ll put you and anyone else who gets in her way in.”
Kelvin didn’t say anything. He turned the star diver around and headed back toward Venus. Amelia was furious, but it was mostly from the raw emotions and the fatigue continuing to attack her. Everything seemed foggy and she’d already forgotten what she’d said to Kelvin seconds ago. Kelvin was upset, but because he agreed with Amelia. He had been foolish and put the idea of himself and his sister before the well-being of others. Just because the cause they believed in was something selfless in itself didn’t mean that he wasn’t capable of being selfish.
When the star diver came closer to the planet, they could feel the effects of Venus’ gravity on them. Kelvin brought the Star Diver to a full stop and reached for his helmet.
“Look, Millie, I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I said anything about you. You’ve done more than anyone I know. I’ll go back to the Monarch, just to check in with them and make sure they’re okay. I’ll come back with more star divers and shuttles. We’ll make sure all the Gravity Warriors out there are rescued.”
Amelia didn’t say anything. The anger was still raw. She accepted that Kelvin was angry, but the words he said stung too much at the moment. It was hard to hear his apology, so she nodded in acknowledgment. They both put their helmets on and prepared for Kelvin to open the airlock.
“Can I stay, Kelvin?” Mara asked.
“No.”
The hatch to the star diver opened and Kelvin flew out, back down to Venus. Amelia closed the hatch and flew back toward the wreckage of the Empress.
Captain Ali and Holloway landed on a lower balcony of the Royal Palace. They had been watching the battle between the Colonel and the Gravity Warriors in the sky. Holloway knew about the abilities the Gravity Warriors had, but it was still an incredible sight to see humans fly and fight. They didn’t know the single person taking on all the Gravity Warriors was the Colonel. They actually had no idea what to think.
“We should help them,” Holloway said. She drew her electro-pistol and prepared to fire up the thruster suits they’d just used to get them to the Royal Palace.
“Right behind you,” Ali said and drew her pistol.
At that moment, they were no longer captain and officer, they were sisters in arms. They were ready to stop the people who’d hurt their crew from hurting anymore. They’d been blasted out into space, watched their friends die, and seen their own ship slammed into the ground by those who would destroy it. Ali and Holloway were ready to end whatever the Wanderers intended to do to the Gravity Warriors of Venus.
“From what I hear, they might not need much help,” Holloway said.
“Well, whatever they need, we’re going to give it to them,” Ali said.
The two of them shot up in the air and headed straight for the fight. As they got closer, they could see how fast the Colonel was, but they still had no idea who he was. He spotted them and flashed an evil smile to the Gravity Warriors. Holloway and Ali didn’t realize they were giving the Colonel the perfect distraction for the Gravity Warriors. Instead of fighting him, some of them would have to focus on protecting Holloway and Ali. The Gravity Warriors cursed to themselves as they saw the two Earth Navy officers flying towards them with electro-pistols drawn.
The Colonel broke off from the Gravity Warriors and flew like a bullet toward Holloway and Ali. They both unleashed a stream of electro-blasts at him, but the Colonel dodged every one. Just as he got close to them, Eryel put herself in front of them and their staffs clashed. As soon as Holloway and Ali could see the ferocity and speed that the Gravity Warriors fought with, they realized they were in over their heads.
“Welcome to Venus, Captain Ali and Commander Holloway. Not much of a welcoming reception, but little Lord Sellwood ought to be pleased to see the Monarch finally made it to the Royal Palace,” the Colonel said.
Both of them recognized the Colonel’s terrible voice that sounded like claws and smoke. He went for them again, but Eryel stopped him, which allowed the other Gravity Warriors to catch up.
“Back to your ship!” Eryel said to them without taking her eyes off the Colonel. “Now!”
Holloway and Ali turned away and started back.
“I’ll be seeing both of you soon, don’t worry,” the Colonel said. “The two of you will have ships of your own in my fleet, someday. We’ll get there.”
Every smug syllable of the Colonel’s words infuriated Ali and Holloway. The fact that the Colonel was a Gravity Warrior, or whatever he was, added a new layer of urgency to stopping the Wanderers. Now, they realized he aimed to take Venus for the powers it brought him. They could tell that any weapons they would bring to a fight would be useless at this point. The only people who could end the battle of Venus were the Gravity Warriors.
They made their way back to the Monarch since it was empty. What they could do now was repair their ship and get it airborne. They had to assume that the W
anderers would have more ships headed for Venus and they wanted the Monarch to be ready to join Earth Navy’s fight. Captain Ali and Holloway flew toward the bridge, where they could see all the porthole windows had been shattered. They spotted one that was big enough for them to get through.
On the bridge they found something unexpected: All the Wanderer hackers, helplessly trapped and trying to find a way off the bridge. The computers were all down and as soon as they saw Captain Ali and Holloway had their electro-pistols pointed at them, they raised their hands in surrender.
“Well, looks like I’ll have some help cleaning up the mess you people made,” Holloway said, with a smile.
Teve opened his eyes and was terrified. The last thing he’d seen was a bright explosion that turned to darkness. He was in the arms of two of his former students, Lily and Ivan, descending through the sky toward the Venusian surface. They both had their helmets off, so Teve removed his. As soon as they could see the Venusian gravity healed him, they stopped and let his arms go.
“What happened?” Teve said.
“The Wanderers weapon, it exploded. Took out their fleet and…” Ivan stopped himself.
“How many?” Teve didn’t need him to finish explaining what else the weapon harmed.
“We don’t know, master,” Lily said. “The Earth prince found you.”
Just as she spoke of him, Kelvin shot by them and vanished into the clouds. Lily and Ivan didn’t distinguish him from any other, but Teve recognized the armor his mother had given him.
“Get back to Judur and tell my mother I’m alive. I’m going to have a word with the Earth Prince. Tell her we’ll be in Judur in a few minutes. He’s probably headed back to the Royal Palace,” Teve said. He flew away from them toward where he thought Kelvin would be.
It didn’t take long for Teve to catch up with Kelvin. When Kelvin saw him he stopped in excitement.
“Teve! You’re okay!” Kelvin said.
“Sounds like I’ve got you to thank for that, Lord Sellwood,” Teve said, but without the tone of snark that usually accompanied it. Teve knew that just because he didn’t take his own royal title seriously didn’t mean he had to put down Kelvin’s. “Where’s Amelia? What’s going on?”
Kelvin took some time to recount everything for Teve. Teve reeled at the prospect of so many Gravity Warriors either wounded or dead. That concern soon turned to something else. The man who’d hurt so many, who he never thought he’d see again, was responsible for this.
“Is Justeph on one of those ships?” Teve said.
“Justeph? Oh, the Colonel? No, I don’t even think he’s here. Aren’s probably on her way back to him now. Traitors.”
“Your ship is down there. You should go to it. I need to report to my mother in Judur, to see what our plan is. The Uranian Corsairs will expect me, as well.”
“If you wouldn’t mind, just to check, could you come with me to the Monarch? There might be a lot of wounded who need help.”
The worst of the battle had passed, for now. Teve figured he owed Kelvin so he nodded in agreement. They started to head toward the Monarch, but as they got closer, Teve made out the twelve guards of the Royal Palace taking on someone in mid-air, whose movements he hadn’t seen in a long time. Justeph Leray had a distinct fighting style and it was one Teve hoped he would get the chance to go up against again. Kelvin noticed and took note of how fast the person was the Gravity Warriors took on.
“Kelvin, you’re going to have to deal with the Monarch on your own.”
“Who is that?”
“Justeph. Just make sure your people are safe, Kelvin. I’ll deal with this.”
Juda and the Wanderers emerged from the canyon with their new powers fully realized. The abilities came easy to them and they were already well acquainted with Thalosi. Each of them held a staff they’d taken from the Archive and were ready to use it. First, it would be the Uranian Corsairs and follow that up by Earth Navy. Before all of that, they’d have to deal with the remaining Gravity Warriors, but they knew the Colonel had a plan.
As soon as they were out of the canyon they stopped and floated in mid-air, awaiting Juda’s next command. Juda had ordered them to stay back until the Colonel asked them to join the fight, just as he’d ordered her to do. He let her know it would be a personal fight for him and he wanted to be the one to take out the Gravity Warriors at the Royal Palace –– especially if any of the royal family were there.
Seeing how capable a fighter he was reassured Juda of her own abilities. The Colonel told her often she was his strongest student and taught her advanced fighting techniques from old, Thalosi books he’d stolen from an Archive. The Colonel wasn’t able to actually demonstrate them himself since the gravity of Venus robbed his body of its ability to rejuvenate. A combination of combat-bots from ancient Earth and Riz served to demonstrate.
Juda knew how much Riz wanted to be here with them now. He had been as much a teacher to her as the Colonel. She couldn’t wait to see what he was capable of once he’d been in the Sanctuary Spring. That could wait, as she saw the Colonel was still fending off the guards of the Royal Palace. She and the other Wanderers watched the Colonel and they could tell he was starting to wear the Gravity Warriors down.
Then Teve showed up. Like a flash of lightning, Teve struck the Colonel with his staff, sending his old nemesis crashing to the ground. Juda and the other Wanderers prepared to pounce on Teve as he bolted toward the Colonel, but their teacher raised his hand at them to hold off. It wouldn’t have mattered, as the twelve Gravity Warriors already came at them.
Teve charged his staff at the Colonel’s head, as he dove toward where the Colonel still lay. The rage Teve felt overwhelmed him. It was a crazy sensation and everything was a blur. All he wanted to do was kill the man who had done him so much harm. Teve blamed Justeph for his brother’s death. He’d never wanted revenge until he’d seen the Colonel moments ago.
The intense hatred was something Teve hated to feel, but it took him over. The Colonel rolled out of the way at the last second. He was on his feet again and attacked Teve. There were not going to be words exchanged between these two. They could say everything they needed to with their staffs. The obsidian in the Colonel’s staff lit up with sparks from the collision of stone staffs. The Colonel hadn’t lost any of his speed.
As the battle between old enemies raged, the dozen Gravity Warriors fought off hordes of Wanderers. They were overwhelmed by how skilled the Wanderers were in Thalosi and staff. The guards were already worn out from their conflict with the Colonel. They could see his style of fighting in his students. The Wanderers were still barely a match from them, but they knew all they had to do was tire the guards out. It was only a matter of time. Their strength was in numbers and it would be the only thing that would bring down the Gravity Warriors.
Juda was at the front and was the distinct leader of the pack. She felt alive, breathing fresh air and free from the confines of a ship. Everything was artificial for Juda, up until this point. The fight had become even more real now because Juda knew this freedom is what she fought for. There was no turning back from the plan now. It had to succeed or they were stuck on Venus. There were no ships to get them back to the Antioch Belt. Juda remembered the strong conviction that she shouldn’t have to declare allegiance to one kingdom over the other. She would fight to prove to the Gravity Warriors that the Wanderers deserved to see their beliefs come to fruition.
Teve felt like he couldn’t breathe. He’d never pushed himself so hard against an opponent, and the old villain was just as deadly as he’d been before. Teve didn’t see the Colonel or the leader of a movement –– he saw the treacherous snake, Justeph Leary. Every terrible memory of the violent insurrection Justeph lead against his family repeated in Teve’s head. He’d spent so much time trying to forget, but seeing Justeph at that moment made him feel like it had all just happened. Everything was fresh, especially his brother’s death.
“You won’t be able to keep this up, T
eve,” the Colonel said. The silence was broken.
“It’s over, Justeph. Once these people find out who you really are, they’ll turn on you. It’s not too late for most of them. Don’t make them killers like you!”
“Killers!? That’s outrageous! Who’s the one that got Karna killed? You’re one to talk.” The label of killer didn’t sit well with the Colonel. He’d killed, but the Colonel believed sacrifice was necessary for the Wanderers. That’s why he was prepared to sacrifice his life if it came down to it. The Colonel was very good at rationalizing murder.
“These fools you’ve lead here. Make them think they’re Gravity Warriors? Pathetic.”
The Colonel took flight and Teve followed him. They smashed staffs as they climbed high above the Royal Palace, neither one missing a beat. The battle below them raged as the Gravity Warriors had trouble maintaining themselves. They’d begun to slip up, so they landed on the balcony, hoping that a ground battle would be easier for them to fend off the numbers of the Wanderers.
The Wanderers circled around and above them. The Gravity Warriors realized they’d been hasty and cornered themselves. They could keep fighting, but they’d definitely wear down before the Wanderers. That wouldn’t stop them from fighting until they couldn’t. If the Wanderers were going to win this fight, they’d make them pay for it.
Suddenly, Queen Tendai appeared in front of them. She had flown in so fast it was if she appeared out of nothing. Her staff was raised. The Wanderers all look surprised and confused. They’d been warned about one person on Venus: Queen Tendai. They knew she was the most dangerous thing they would face on Venus. The master of masters.
“Eryel. Take the guards back to Judur, at the Archive. Wait for me there. This won’t take long,” Tendai said. She smiled wickedly at the Wanderers, fully confident this would be the equivalent of playing with children.
