A Clash of Aliens (The Human Chronicles Book 13) (20 page)

“Well, you’re not right this time,” Sherri countered. “The Sol-Kor may get this technology, but they won’t get it from us. As Riyad said, we’re willing to sacrifice our lives to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

Tobias smirked and shook his head. “Unfortunately, Ms. Valentine, so am I—I mean sacrifice
your
lives, not mine. The potential harm is too great for me to let personal feelings get in the way of my decision-making, unlike what y’all are doing.”

“Sorry you feel that way, Admiral, but there’s nothing you can do to stop us. Panur will be done with his conversion in a couple of days and then we’ll make the jump. We’ll let you know how things turn out—when we return safe and sound—with Adam.”

“Return to where?” Tobias asked, his voice as cold as ice. “To Worak-nin?”

“Eh…I don’t know what you mean?” Riyad stammered.

“You don’t? Let me be clearer: Worak-nin, a planet seventeen light-years past the Dinz Marker, Kidis Frontier. The place where your signal is originating.”

“How…you can’t—”

“It’s just one of the innovations built into the Mark IV. You may have found the tracker, but there was a secondary locater built into the CW comm.”

“Knowing where we are won’t help, Andy. We’ll be gone long before you can get here.”

Tobias looked off screen and then returned a moment later. “Let’s see, the Juireans are less than a day out from your location, and my fleet is just now blasting past some rock called Wokan, which doesn’t put them too far behind our mane-headed friends.”

“
Fuck you
, Andy!” Sherri cried out.

“You brought this upon yourself, Valentine. You can save yourselves by stopping Panur from completing his conversion. Seeing that y’all are the ones who said he still has a few days before it’s done, this looks like your only option. That, or just sit back and let my forces put you out of your traitorous misery.”

“We’re signing off now, Admiral,” Riyad said. “Let the games begin.”

“As you wi—”

Riyad cut the contact. Afterwards, Sherri and him sat in silence, drained of energy and disappointed to the core.

“I suppose
now
I should let you assist me.”

The two Humans spun around to find Panur standing in the entrance to the bridge.

“Come, we haven’t much time. I will have to do some creative workarounds to make the transit engine viable now without the help of Syrus Jacs.”

********

 “Two fleets? I find that…exorbitant.” Benefis Na was outside the
Najmah Fayd
at the base of the cargo ramp. “And now you tell me the ship is unable to be flown.”

“It will remain so until the conversion is complete. I have no choice but to continue.”

“And no other starships on the entire planet?”

“None.”

“I’m sure I will still have time to find a cave wherein I can hide.”

“Or you could help!” Sherri stepped up to the seven-tall alien, all five-foot-four inches of her. She pointed her finger up at the huge, square-jawed head. “If you hadn’t kidnapped us back on Wokan, we would have been literally light-years ahead of the game. But now we have about seventeen hours to get this bucket of bolts back into space, and with the use of makeshift parts and baling wire.”

“What is
baling
wire?”

“That’s what I’m going to wrap your useless body in if you don’t stop talking and get to work helping us.”

“Is it even possible? Seventeen hours. The entire left side engine is spread out on the ground.”

“Not much of the conventional engine is going back in,” Panur explained. “The starboard side engine is converted. I just need this one put back together.”

“What is it you wish me to do?”

“I need some of that gold you have been gawking at since you arrived here. It makes excellent electrical contacts.”

“Just peel it off the walls?”

“Yes.”

“May I keep any extra?”

“Benefis!” Sherri cried out. “What good is it going to do if you’re dead?”

“That is a valid point. I will now take a cart and return promptly.”

“Lila,” Panur began, “I need this generator bearing lifted into the cradle.” Sherri could tell he was still in the doghouse with Lila by his tone.

Without a word, the voluptuous seven-year-old mutant grasped the two-meter-diameter iron disk by both hands, and then to Sherri’s amazement, lifted it effortlessly off the ground. Panur quickly adjusted the cradle and the bearing slipped in with a clank. The gravity of Panurland was close to Earth’s and Sherri knew for a fact that the bearing disk had to weigh a good five hundred pounds or more. Even as the self-proclaimed Supermen of the galaxy, Sherri knew the Humans were no match for the two mutants. She shuddered, thinking that Adam was dealing with his own super-strong mutant.

“Damn mutants,” she whispered.

“Did we do something to offend you?” Lila asked. Both mutants were looking at her with hurt looks.

“Nah, I was thinking about Adam’s mutant, not you guys. You’re cool mutants.”

“I appreciate that,” said Lila with a grin. Then she moved inside the ship, carrying both the bearing wheel and its cradle with hardly a grunt.

Panur slipped in next to Sherri. “Lila is still a child when it comes to interacting with Humans. I know you despise us, but there is no need to hide your feelings.”

Sherri grinned. “You’re not as smart as you think you are. I like Lila. It’s you I have a problem with. You and your creation, J’nae. And if you don’t wise up pretty quick, you’re going to lose Lila for good.”

“I thought you would prefer that?”

“On a personal level. But let’s face it, she wouldn’t fit into normal society, and for the moment you’re the closest thing she has to an equal.”

“But we are not equal.”

“Like I said, you ain’t as smart as you think you is. Now what else can I do? I feel the hairs on the back of my neck tingling. The Juireans are getting closer.”

********

Overlord Ranor D’inos had managed to call up nine Class-Fours for the assault on Worak-nin. After the initial attack on Panur’s starship, and the subsequent steering of his remains toward the nearest star, fourteen other vessels had been released for other assignments. The nine he had left would have to do, at least until the Humans arrived a day later.

Still, there was something gnawing at his subconscious. He should have plenty of firepower to face down one Human prototype vessel, no matter how advanced the rumors indicated it to be. Yet there was Panur. He was the unknown. What could he have done to the ship that would cause trouble for Ranor and his squadron?

The Overlord also had to admit that this entire region of space was an irritant. The riots on Wokan had spread to other worlds, including Lasiter. The single Juirean base in the Frontier had been attacked by a poorly-prepared group of protesters. Little damage was caused, but it was evident that the population was upset and growing even more so. It was too soon since learning of his failure to neutralize Panur for him to turn his attention to the task of annexing the Kidis Frontier to the Expansion. The mutant had to be dealt with first, and Ranor had just learned of the even deadlier threat that Panur now posed.

Was it possible he could build a starship that, on its own, could transit dimensions? In normal times that would represent an incredible opportunity to expand living space for the Juireans, as well as all the other creatures of the galaxy. Yet these were not normal times, not with the Sol-Kor. He could imagine a time when fleets of beamships and harvesters would appear out of nowhere to subdue world after defenseless world before slipping away just as effortlessly as they had arrived. At that point, there would be no stopping them.

So now, more than even before, Panur had to be stopped. No quarter given. The world they were approaching would be ravaged, blanketed with plasma bombs and every nuclear device Ranor had in his tiny fleet. The Humans would have more; they still valued such devices as weapons of war.

“My Lord, we are approaching the outer comet field of the Worak-nin system. Time to planet: three hours, standard.”

Ranor acknowledged the report with a nod. But then the Guard commander was approached by an underling. The two whispered between themselves.

“Is there additional to report?” the Overlord queried.

“There appears to be additional traffic in the region, more than was to be expected.”

“Anything beyond one Human starship would be more than expected. Explain yourself.”

“A formation of ships is arriving from out-system.”

“The Humans?”

“No, my Lord, these appear to be local ships, local within this section of the Frontier.”

“Course?”

“That is what is so confusing, my Lord. They appear to be on an intercept course.”

Is this even possible?
Ranor thought.
Could the locals have already organized a counter response to my force? What are they thinking? We are Juireans!

“Initiate battle status within all ships. Charge weapons. Prepare to raise shields.”

“You cannot believe these contacts can pose a threat to nine Class-Fours?”

“I am taking no chances, not with the unrest that is growing within Kidis. Allow no mercy, Commander. We must not be delayed in reaching the planet.”

********

Syrus Jacs couldn’t believe his good fortune. One moment he was a semi-legitimate trader with limited influence, the next he was in charge of a fleet of over two hundred starships. Granted, they weren’t the most battle-worthy spacecraft; most were leftovers from both Juirean, Kracori, and Human fleets, scrounged up over the years from raids of the nearby territories. But they were crewed by an assortment of pirates, raiders, Defenders, and others who knew their way around a skirmish.

Still, there were nine first-line Juirean warships facing them, and Syrus knew the casualties would be horrific. But he had the advantage of numbers, as well as an almost unreasonable level of anger that had spread rapidly through this section of the Frontier, something that had apparently been simmering for a very long time.

For his part, Syrus was apolitical. As long as the authorities allowed him enough room to work, he was fine with whomever was in charge. Yet now he saw an opportunity to parlay this overflowing rebellious spirit into a new power base, possibly even as the first leader of the newly-formed Kidis Federation—or whatever they ended up calling it.

Of course, his first priority was surviving the coming conflict. But stopping a fleet of Juireans—if only nine ships—would go a long way to cementing his new image as a rebel leader.

Then he had to contend with the much larger Human fleet heading this way.

He made a mental shrug. He would worry about that tomorrow.

As the only ship’s captain who knew where Panur was hiding—and therefore where the Juirean were headed—Syrus was granted command by a vote of the participants. They really had no choice, otherwise they would have been a fleet in search of an enemy to attack. By that time, he knew that filling Panur’s shopping list—along with the balance of payment for their delivery—would be pointless. He would never be able to get to the planet, make delivery, and then be away before the Juireans attacked. So instead he was returning to Panur’s star system at the head of a ragtag fleet of local rebels.