Birthright: Book I of the Temujin Saga (2 page)

::Goodbye, Mr. Li.:: The alien turned and walked toward the ladder. ::Kill the workers. Leave no witnesses.::

Chuluun threw back his head and bellowed a command.

The deafening
rat-tat-tat
of fully automatic weapons echoed throughout the tomb as the mercenaries on the surface opened fire, accompanied by the distant screams of the workers, but Chuluun did not need his ears to hear the alien’s next command.

::Prepare the artifact for transport. There is much work to be done.::

Part I: Project Alexander

Chapter One

Gluut Star System

Seignso Colony Moon, Gluut Alpha 2 beta 1

AKA “The Factory”

Eleven Years Later

Lieutenant Vain looked around the cabin. Twenty-four of the Navy’s finest shock troopers sat with their backs against the walls of the dropship, staring ahead with stony expressions. The injections they’d received had wiped all traces of fear from their systems.

Being an officer, Vain was not extended the same luxury. Fear, the brass claimed, kept the mind sharp. Vain couldn’t disagree more. All fear was good for in combat was aiding in bowel movements.

Red light filled the cabin and Vain saw the men stiffen in their seats. His body bashed against his restraints as the ship pitched and his digestive organs flew up into his chest. They’d breached atmo. For the second time that day, Vain swallowed his lunch.

“All right, you slugs!” Vain bellowed in a shaky voice. “This is it. We drop in and we clean ‘em out. Our orders are to capture and detain if at all possible. But if one of those sneaky little bastards tries to get into your brain, you put a round in theirs. Do you understand?”

“Sir, yes, sir!”

“Lock and load!”

As one, the soldiers reached above their heads and released their rifles from their charging stations. Vain felt a tingle in his spine as they cocked their weapons in unison, filling the trembling ship with a growing hum.

Finally the ship slowed, shuddered, and became still. The restraints pinning Vain and his men to the wall disengaged and sprang upward. The bay door cracked open and blinding white starlight from outside the ship washed out the crimson interior lighting. The men stood.

“Move out!”

Vain drew his sidearm and followed the troops down the ramp into the blistering hot air. The platoon double-timed it the five hundred paces to the installation nestled in the pale rock. The lead trooper kicked the door — hard — but it did not yield. No problem; Vain had expected this.

“Blow it.”

One of the privates dug into his pack and produced a metal disk. He twisted a dial on the top and slapped it against the door. The disk secured itself magnetically.

“Stand clear!” the private shouted.

The troopers retreated a respectable distance from the door. Several seconds later, the ground was rocked by an explosion, and as the dust cleared, Vain could make out a gaping hole where the door had once stood.

“Move in!” Vain said. “I haven’t got all day. Dinner’s getting cold.”

The inside of the facility was just as sweltering as the outside. Blinding white light assailed the men from every corner. The Seignso had made themselves right at home here. This room, however, was merely a receiving area with several branching corridors. Their true goal was deep underground.

When they located the central grav-lift, they found it to be offline, which suited Vain just fine. No way was he going to be caught in the middle of an enemy lift tube and have the floor dissolve under his feet. The men set up their rappelling gear and dropped down the tube one-by-one, ever watchful for booby traps. The descent was uneventful, which only set Vain further on edge. Finally the platoon reached its destination, a sealed door at the bottom of the lift tube. It was close quarters, so blasting was out of the question.

“Ladd!”

“Sir?” called a soldier from the back.

Vain stepped away from the door. “Cut it.”

Ladd pushed forward and produced a handheld cutting torch. The rest of the platoon looked away as he ignited it, and the smell of ozone and molten metal filled the tube. The intense heat of the torch only exacerbated the suffocating conditions of twenty-five men in full combat gear crammed into the confined space.

Finally, Ladd extinguished the torch and stepped back, leaving a glowing orange outline around the edges of the door. Ladd looked over his shoulder and Vain nodded. Ladd kicked the door dead center and the panel fell inward, bathing the tube in more white light. The troopers poured into the chamber with weapons raised, but the room’s occupants didn’t seem the least bit interested in them.

Almost thirty Seignso milled about the room. Most ignored the invaders as they busied themselves at their workstations. The few that did take notice quickly lost interest. A single Seignso detached itself from the crowd and approached the soldiers. It was naked, with hands out in a non-threatening gesture, so most of the troopers relaxed. Vain wished they hadn’t.

::Ah, Lieutenant Vain.:: The creature smiled, probing Vain’s mind for information. ::To what do we owe the pleasure of this… visit?::

Vain shook his head, clearing away the fuzzy sensation. “You know perfectly well why I’m here. This is an illegal colony in violation of Federation statute 359
dash
B—”

The Seignso waved its hand dismissively. ::There was no harm done, Lieutenant. We merely made use of some vacant real estate. Surely the Federation can extend the Seignso a little leeway in this matter.::

“I wouldn’t bet on it.” Vain pointed over the alien’s shoulder. “What’re those?”

He stomped toward four vertical glass tubes in the middle of the room. They were filled with a clear, bubbling liquid, and each contained a strange life form connected to a breathing apparatus. The creatures were awake and appeared to be struggling. They were the ugliest monsters Vain had ever seen.

Their flesh was doughy and pale, with coarse fur growing sporadically over their bodies, which was thickest on top of their heads. They were bipedal, with long limbs ending in a few short, useless-looking digits. Even though the breathing devices partially covered them, Vain could see that the faces were deformed; the soulless, beady eyes were placed far too low on the beings’ heads.

Hideous.

The Seignso spokesman turned to follow Vain. ::Why, those are rejuvenation cylinders.::

“I know what they are!” Vain snapped. “I’m talking about the creatures inside!”

::Those?:: said the Seignso with a condescending smile. ::Just some simple non-sentient, simian species we’re engineering for labor. Beasts of burden, nothing more. Pay them no mind.::

One of the creatures pounded on the glass of its tube, alternating between striking it with its fists and elbows.

“It looks pretty damned sentient to me.”

::I can assure you, it is not,:: The voice inside Vain’s head remained calm and flat.

“We’ll see,” said Vain. “Lark, get over here and get a scan of these things.”

The platoon’s medic slung his rifle and traded it for a tablet computer. He held it up to the closest tank for a head-to-toe scan and then tapped in a series of queries. The response was almost immediate.

“They’re called…” Lark struggled with the pronunciation. “Hyoo-mahns. Non-Federation, sir. Indigenous to Sol Alpha 3.”

“Are they intelligent?”

Three knocks issued from one of the cylinders. Vain looked up and saw the most active of the creatures making a gesture at the Seignso — a closed fist with the middle finger extended.

“Reasonably, sir,” said Lark.

Vain’s green skin flushed brown in anger. The little gray bastard had lied right to his face. Deporting the little sleaze back to Sorua was going to be a pleasure.

::With all due respect, Lieutenant,:: the Seignso interrupted. ::I did not lie. We simply have a different definition of sentience.::

“Shut up!” Vain snapped. “Lark, release the creatures.”

Lark nodded and approached the console in front of the cylinders. As his fingers flew over the controls, one of the nearby Seignso stared at him intently. Lark paused to look up at the alien and the sneer forming on its thin lips. Suddenly Lark’s hands flew up to clasp his head and he doubled over in pain. The medic groaned, then screamed in agony.

Vain trained his sidearm on the Seignso leader. “What the hell’s happening to him?”

The Seignso grinned, showing short, blunt teeth. ::How should I know?::

“It’s in my head!” Lark shrieked. “Get it out!”

Lark’s assailant walked toward him slowly, pointing at the steady stream of blood pouring out of the trooper’s nose. An overpowering buzzing sensation — the Seignso equivalent of laughter — filled the heads of everyone in the room. Outraged, Vain fired his sidearm at the Seignso leader’s head. Searing, red plasma bore a smoking hole in the alien’s skull. The oppressive buzzing ceased as every Seignso in the room turned to look at Vain.

Another Seignso extended its arm. Vain’s pistol flew out of his grip and into the alien’s waiting hand. Before it could use the stolen weapon, one of Vain’s troopers put the Seignso down with a single shot from his rifle, and the rest opened fire. The air was filled with a frantic crisscross of plasma fire.

Vain hit the floor, struggling to be heard over the din. “Cease fire! I said stop firing, damn it!”

He heard breaking glass and looked up in time to see two of the cylinders shatter, spilling fluid across the floor, soaking the front of his uniform. Two of the pale-skinned humans were forcefully ejected along with the liquid; the bulkier of the two had a patch of black fur covering the lower half of its face, while the other had a smaller frame, a bald face, and long red fur trailing from the top of its head. The naked creatures slipped in the fluid and huddled together beneath the barrage over their heads.

“Cease fire!” Vain bellowed.

One by one, the troopers lowered their weapons. Vain’s ears rang, and the stink of singed flesh stung his nostrils. He stood and shook the fluid from his hands.

Vain surveyed the damage around him. Only twelve of the Seignso remained standing; there wasn’t enough left of the others worth scraping into a body bag. The two humans in the undamaged cylinders banged their fists against the glass while the pair on the floor gibbered to one another in a grunting alien language.

“This is a damn disaster,” Vain muttered. “Lark!”

The medic stood and wiped the blood from his nose. “Here, sir.”

“Are you all right?”

Lark wiped his hand on the front of his uniform and rubbed the side of his head. “I think so, sir. Thanks.”

Vain nodded. “Get those other two
whatsits
out of those tanks and check them over.”

“Yes’ir.”

“Sergeant Plou,” Vain addressed a tall soldier behind him. “Get that grav-lift working and get the prisoners topside. I want these bastards on the next tub to Moebius. Is that clear?”

“Sir!” Plou moved in close to his commander. “What about them?”

Vain followed his gaze to the humans, who were now all four on the ground, embracing and chattering excitedly. The two new ones also sported dark, matted fur over their jaws. They all ignored Lark as he examined them.

Vain turned back to Plou. “Bring them back with us. We’ll let the brass on Phaedaj decide what to do with them.”

Plou nodded and walked away to see to his duties.

*****

Across the room, Ladd stared curiously over Lark’s shoulder at the strange pale aliens. “Funny looking critters, aren’t they?”

Lark shrugged. “Oh, they’re not all that different from you and me. Same basic physical structure.”

“Speak for yourself, Lark.” Ladd knelt to get a closer look at the smallest human with the red fur. “Hey, they’re mammals! Check out the mammary glands on this one. You ever boink a mammal, Lark?”

“No, and neither should y—” Lark held out his hand in warning. “Hey now, don’t touch it!”

“Relax, Lark, what’s the worst that could happen?” Ladd sneered and groped at the human’s chest. “C’mere, little lady. What say you and I grab some shore leave together when we get back to Phaedaj?”

“Ladd don’t!”

The human female began to struggle and shriek in its alien language. One of the males lunged and punched Ladd in the face, knocking him to the ground. Ladd fumbled for his rifle as the human prepared to spring, its eyes glowing an eerie green. The aggressive male leapt at Ladd and the soldier fired three short bursts, knocking the alien from the air.

The female shrieked and ran to her mate’s side. Ladd watched as the male coughed up a mouthful of blood, shuddered, and became still. Lark scrambled to the fallen alien and scanned it. He cursed and scanned it a second time, but the result was the same.

Dead.

Lark jumped to his feet and shoved Ladd. “Great Mother’s Beard, Ladd! What did you do that for?”

“That filthy animal attacked me!”

“What the hell is going on?” Lieutenant Vain bellowed as he stalked over to the two soldiers.

“Ladd killed one of the aliens, sir!”

“It was an accident,” Ladd protested.

“My eye!” Lark said. “Lieutenant, I saw him molesting the female. The alien was only protecting its mate.”

“Whose side are you on, man?” Ladd said. “They’re animals!”

“Enough!” barked Vain. “Sergeant Plou, place Corporal Ladd under arrest.”

Ladd stared daggers at Lark as Plou relieved him of his weapon and escorted him away. Vain rubbed his neck with both hands. What was supposed to be a simple sweep-and-clear had turned into a catastrophe.

“Sir?” Lark nodded toward the dead alien at their feet. “What should I do with that?”

Vain sighed and turned away. “Put it on ice, Private. Let the eggheads at Dreknor dissect it to their hearts’ content.”

“Yes, sir.”

But as Vain walked away, he heard a loud gasp behind him, followed by Lark’s alarmed cries. He turned and saw the alien creature sitting up, very much alive. Vain could see the fear in Lark’s eyes, injections be damned. The other humans gathered around the revived male and patted it on the back while it cleared its throat and mouth of blood. They all seemed completely unfazed by this event.