Cavalry

by Thorby Rudbek

  Karen continued, with her recollection of Jusstinalss’ words:

  “He said: ‘The whole point of the Controllers’ entirely atypically sneaky attack is that it is supposed to keep the subsequent, far more gratifying, hand-to-hand battles of subjection from damaging this world too much,” Kirrina continued. “So, despite the fact that Narlavs ‘live to fight’, they would need to wait until the dust has completed its job. We know that the biggest impact occurred in the first couple of days, at least it did where we are, and probably all other areas this far or further from the equator, and I’ll tell you now, though no one wanted to admit it then, we wondered if they would only wait a week, or maybe, if we were lucky, two, and of course we only had Patrol Craft Eight and Citadel to respond with if they did. I don’t think anyone really believed they would wait this long.”

  This was said mainly for Amber’s benefit, as Kirrina thought the truth might be something this lonesome girl could handle at this point, and might distract her from, or at least put in perspective, the very personal losses she had endured. I’m glad she has Smoke, but I wish she could have connected better with Mona October. That kid still needs someone to share her losses with – apart from me! – and Amber is the next youngest in our ‘inner circle’ and could have come across as a substitute older sister, almost like the one Mona lost. Everyone else here has lost so much of their family, but it’s easier for the adults to handle, and of course Beckie has other compensations – like Brad and Tracy, Walt, Richard… as well as me!

  Beckie looked at Amber, only too aware of her thoughts, for they had pounded on her both day and night for weeks and had caused her a great deal of sleeplessness. She related in some ways to Amber’s loneliness, though her new adopted family was a great comfort to her. She knew that it was assumed that this older girl’s uncle (Ed) could fill that gap, but she could detect that his concern for her fell far short of her emotional needs, though she did not phrase her conclusion so succinctly.

  Amber stared back at Kirrina and nodded, stroking Smoke’s head absently. She found the explanation made a lot of sense, though she was still subdued by the scale of the devastation that the Mecuba[38] had already caused. She realised that the fear of an invasion before their Patrol Craft were completed would have been dominating the thoughts of most GAF participants.

  “I also asked Paranak,” Karen continued, once she saw her two young friends were still wondering about the fortuitous delay. “He says the typical setup of Narlav ritual battles – which are the only ones he is familiar with – involves a small team preparing the forum first, and the arrival of the two opposing factions does not occur until all is made ready. So perhaps there is only a small expeditionary force on the far side of the Moon, and they are still awaiting the arrival of the rest of their ships before they commence a ground attack. Remember, Latt said they were all sent out far and wide to try to find habitable worlds. Maybe some haven’t made it back to Rhaal yet.”

  “Then we should have hit them right away, put their dust machine out of action, before they got their full force there.” Beckie recalled the first simulated battle she and her adopted parents had fought, and how the scenario had been changed, in subsequent training exercises, from them dropping in on Fepnine and blasting Pakak, to them meeting Warrnam rising from the Moon as the Patrol Craft approached from Earth.

  “We did consider attempting that, but if we were wrong, and they had three ships already on location, or perhaps four or even six, then they might well have been able to defeat our two ships, and we would have lost our element of surprise.” And our lives… “Then they would have been able to come to Earth and there would have been no one to oppose them. Remember the message fragments that the NUIT had received? You were there, Amber, when Eric first viewed them. They mentioned multiple Warrnam, and Crater Tsiolkovsky of course, so we think we know where they are, but not how many.”

  “So we choose to wait… and wait,” Amber chimed in grimly, hammering down some crusted-over snow to deepen the recess she was sitting in, attempting to minimise the impact of the ever-present winds and recalling the almost physical blow she had felt when Eric had shared the devastating news with her, stuck in his Humvee, in turn stuck in the midst of a thicket of trees. “And while we waited, almost everyone froze, or drowned, or starved. Their plan has already worked – only too well. I know. I’ve been to Baltimore twice with Uncle Ed, five times with Eric, and once each with Tony, Patricia and finally, Paul. Everyone has tried so hard to help me find my family, including you…” She paused, trying to stop her voice from wavering. “You know what we found…” She found it too painful to actually say it. ‘So… what are the Narlavs waiting for now?”

  Smoke stared up at her intently.

  “Maybe they have some other, competing problems to solve, first.” Kirrina did know what had been found, or more correctly, what had not been found, as she had made a point of listening to Amber’s recollections after each trip and had learned even more about it from Beckie, who had been the ‘human scanner’ on most of the trips. Of course she had discovered a lot from her personal experiences, too, during those trips she had been a part of, the ones where Beckie had not gone – as being the only other person able to detect the thoughts of the survivors in hiding meant she was the only alternate on such a search. They now estimated that there were probably only a few thousand people still alive in Baltimore, and none of the ones that they had located recently were even remotely eligible to be considered by the NUIT or the GAF as suitable for rehabilitation at any of the recently rediscovered, still-functioning communities across America and Canada, let alone the supremely important community surrounding the top-secret construction facility in New Leeds.

  Through NUIT, the GAF had been able to obtain assistance from the remnants of the North American military and emergency forces, and was now acknowledged and approved by both the US and the Canadian governments, or such fragments of them as still existed. In reality, the military forces which had managed to maintain power for their facilities and hence heat, to avoid hypothermia and death, were in charge, if anyone could be said to be – a couple of US senators had been located recently, and an MLA[39] from Alberta, but each of them had readily admitted that they were not qualified to direct the reclamation operations that the triumvirate of GAF, NUIT and conventional military had tentatively begun.

  “Or perhaps they simply had estimated a longer period would be necessary for the destruction of most of humanity, and so scheduled the arrival of the main force accordingly,” Kirrina suggested, following up on Amber and Beckie’s questions. I think it’s time to reveal the plan, or at least some of it. “The good news is: they have still not attacked, and we now have ten ships completed, with crews assigned, and there are two more Patrol Craft under construction!”

  “Crews assigned?” Amber sounded indignant.

  Beckie looked at Karen, who resisted looking back, knowing full well what was coming and not wishing to emphasize that fact.

  Neither of them spoke.

  “No, not all the crews have been assigned. They can’t have been. I’m a part of this!” Amber looked at the exceptional Mrs. Fletcher in amazement, then checked Beckie’s face and realised that of course she already knew about this decision to exclude her. “Aw – come on! I want ‘in’ – please, Kirrina, I know she’s got ‘the gift’… but how can it be okay for Beckie to go and not for me?”

  “You know your uncle said ‘no’ to any direct involvement in combat, and he’s your legal guardian,” Karen responded after a brief hesitation. She had realised some weeks before that she disagreed with Ed Baynes on this one, reasoning that, if the destruction of the invaders was not achieved, Amber’s future – along with that of everyone else on Earth – looked very bleak, so her involvement in the upcoming battle would not involve any more dangers than her life would soon be subject to. I suppose it must be my Paranak-supplied Narlav memories that make me come across as callous…

  She recalled that
it was due to their intervention after Baynes’ bungling of his niece’s visit, using Arshonnan technology – the Aircar and the sensor equipment mounted within – that Amber had been found, close to death, and how she had been restored to full heath. She knew that logically, there was a significant possibility that the teenager’s potential involvement in the forthcoming battle would snuff out her life forever. It’s much like how I felt about Terry Stadt, when we went to try and locate him, and bring him back to New Leeds. The bottom line, Kirrina knew, was that no one was safe with the impending invasion of the Narlavs hanging, like too much heavy, wet and warm snow in the heights above a mountain pass, over everyone’s heads.

  Amber’s frustration at being prevented from joining the impending attack on the Narlavs continued to dominate her thoughts as she looked at Kirrina and her young protégé. She marvelled that her uncle, who previous to the loss of her family, had seemed so much more relaxed about her participation in potentially dangerous activities – the investigation of the then mysterious building in Redcliff, which she now walked past regularly when in ‘the basement’, for example – now acted so much more protectively. He’s more like my Dad, nowadays. She sobered as the recurring thought of her missing parents and brothers in this context made her realise that the fact that Ed Baynes was all she had left, in terms of family, had obviously figured in the way his attitudes to her had changed.

  Beckie looked at her older friend, effortlessly picking up on the sadness, and the underlying reason, as usual. Somehow this caused the memory of her own loss to resurface, though obviously without any conscious intention. Her mother had died that terrible and – ironically also wonderful – day of changes when Kirrina had rescued her. She knew how close she had come to being killed, in those few hours on the run, by the drug-dealers that had murdered her only (known) parent. Life really hurts, sometimes.

  Kirrina reflected on each girl, impressed with their resilience and fortitude. “Beckie knows how much I have relied on her… she hasn’t ever failed me. And a certain very lovely niece of the Chief of NUIT has shown her value, helping with ship construction in a very diligent manner – Jane speaks very highly of you, I’ll have you know.” Karen could see that these words were not wasted – as ever, her words were carefully measured. “I don’t know if this helps at all, Amber, and I’m sure some people would say I should never tell you this, but I would have you in our crews in a moment, if the choice were mine to make.”

  Amber nodded, trying not to cry. I hate it when your tears freeze in your eyelashes! “Thanks.” Her husky one word response was all she could safely manage, but it was enough; she knew how well Kirrina could ‘read’ her. She sat quietly for a while, her hands ruffling the ears of her German Shepherd / Collie cross, contemplating the situation, wondering about her life and the forlorn hopes she still had that her family would be found, one day. She cleared her throat. “I think I’ll take Smoke in before he gets too cold.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Use Nical tooth and claw to defeat the carnivore – Winseuw

  Amber’s frustration at being prevented from joining the impending attack on the Narlavs continued to simmer in her mind and heart as she stood up. She sank into a feeling of isolation, though Beckie and Kirrina remained close by. Perhaps it was the cold which meant she was so well insulated that let this feeing develop.

  Beckie fidgeted and then got her feet, too.

  Kirrina followed the two girls and the impressively attentive dog as they headed back into the hangar. She found herself reviewing Stadt’s restoration again; she had been impressed with the story of his impossible one-man fight against the overwhelming power of a Warrnam and the psychological effects of the Controllers on their sustenance abused, subdued slave, Latt. She knew Terry had held nothing back from the star-crossed EDEM mini-spacesub project; his financial resources and time commitment to the NUIT scheme to build a fleet of little craft to protect Earth, and so she had taken a personal interest in his assimilation into the GAF team after his restoration. She had observed – back in New York – that his enthusiasm about getting his artificial arm replaced by means of the Arshonnan ‘recreation’ of his own flesh and bone had actually been exceeded by Ruth Hardy’s pleasure at seeing it happen, and the first generation Earthling had effortlessly picked up a lot about the complex relationship between the Hardy couple and their best friend, with her uniquely perceptive mental powers. It’s one of those ‘eternal triangles’, impossible to crack, unless Ruth the ‘matchmaker’ can find a way to solve a problem so close to home she can’t focus on it!

  “Let’s go downstairs,” Beckie urged as she saw (and ‘heard’) that Kirrina had become distracted by thoughts of some adult relationship complexities – concepts that made her feel distinctly uncomfortable – though this was something that happened so frequently for her that she was able to handle it much better than would be expected for an ‘ordinary’ twelve year old. “The weekly meeting must be about to begin.”

  The threesome, having returned to the warmth of the hangar, transferred down to the basement, peeling off their winter coats as they shimmered out of sight of the upper Leedites. The young Miss Davis was down on her knees, removing the paw protectors from her German Shepherd / Collie cross when Enid ran over to her and let Smoke lick her hand.

  “Hi! Amber!” Mrs Schroder met the frustrated gaze of the youth. “One of those computer-buff math teachers told me he had done some analysis of data brought back from the missions to Baltimore. He’d like to show it to you.”

  “Where is he?”

  “Now, don’t get too excited. I don’t think he has anything specific about your family,” Enid emphasised hastily. “He’s got the house just beyond yours – or Walt’s, I suppose.”

  “And he’s there right now?” Amber pocketed the last paw protector and stood up.

  “Yep.”

  “Thanks!” She ran off with Smoke at her side, part pleased, part frustrated to be missing the start of the weekly meeting. She called out over her shoulder as she departed: “Could you tell Beckie that I’ll be back just as quick as I can?”

  “Of course.” Enid glanced across the chamber to where Beckie and Karen were standing, barely visible through the rapidly gathering throng.

  After the girl and the dog had gone into the tunnel which joined the hangar to the houses where the Hawks lived and the one where she was now living with her uncle and Walt, Beckie looked over her shoulder at Enid and broke into a grin.

  Mrs Schroder nodded, smiled back and walked through the crowd, looking to find her dear friend Sophie Trathad.

  “She’ll be so cross with us, but her uncle will be grateful,” Kirrina stated to Amber, as the two headed for a comfortable spot at the head of the assembling GAF personnel. She was referring to the fact that the material mentioned to Amber was real enough, but had been prepared and saved for this moment, to distract Baynes’ sister’s last known surviving child from attending the meeting, as it was not just any routine meeting, but the final, pre-attack briefing!

  “Okay, everyone, please be seated!” Walt still held one of the highest positions of authority in the unwritten hierarchy of the assembled defenders of Earth, mainly due to the fact that he was the most natural, best qualified, and experienced leader available – even Ed Baynes had (reluctantly) admitted this. Konig watched as the lower GAF personnel and military aircrew rapidly gathered in response to his call, noting especially the three additions that were semi-NUIT-sponsored: Stadt and the Hardys.

  Terry, who had become heavily involved in the GAF team soon after his rescue, was now an assistant to Paranak in the construction of computational modules, communications systems, remote sensors and laser and Negatruction weapons. In fact, he was about to take over full responsibility for these areas – at least for the duration of the attack – due to the impending departure of the Narlav with the fleet! Terry had multiplied his worth immediately by pulling Alex and Shannon, his two staff members that had been rescued with hi
m from New York, into the effort alongside him, and even though their prior experience was entirely administrative, they both threw their Medic-tuned bodies into the work, glorying in the energy with which they were now imbued. He had even managed to increase the production of hand weaponry in the process – previously one of the lower priorities, due to the rush to manufacture Patrol Craft – explaining his approach by saying that: ‘defence is not possible if you only have a few sticks that are big enough to beat off the rats’.

  When Latt and Paranak had heard this comment, both had had a good laugh, as the imagery of rats seemed to them to be more akin to Shaatak and therefore more like something the Narlav force would say.

  Isaac, whose in-depth knowledge of physics had enabled him to augment Latt’s efforts, was now a key part of the Drive construction effort, gradually – and for the duration of the battle, completely – taking over from Brad, and his involvement had resulted in some upgrading of Eliminator performance, and some new features being added to the Drives.

  There were now ten, fully equipped new Patrol Craft surrounding and intruding into the shape of assembled throng, their dark hulks strangely comforting to all assembled in the bronzy chamber. The last one had been finished only hours earlier, and the comprehensive but static systems tests had been completed in ‘dock’ only a few minutes before the meeting commenced. Only one of these vessels had an extra Scout Craft-sized sphere mounted on its tail end, much like the Scout Craft Seven / Patrol Craft One combination sometimes referred to as Patrol Craft Seven – and this one was somewhat predictably designated Patrol Craft Eight. Two further shells were under construction, but both were truncated at the tapered ends and were still pale, of course, indicating that these vessels would not be finished for several weeks. The most bizarre aspect of the assembled fleet, to the majority of the GAF, and even more so to the NUIT and the new military flight crews – i.e. those who had not seen the black hulks do anything other than rest on the bronze-like floor – was that, in contrast with the decade of new ships, the original Citadel was only touching the basement decking by means of the second Drive chamber sphere: the rest of the hybrid craft was ‘hovering’ above one of the two latest, partially completed hulks, by which gravity-cheating process some valuable floor space had been reclaimed.